Jennifer Parker, a longtime and active 1199SEIU Florida member-leader recently authored an editorial published in The Orlando Sentinel that called out Governor Ron DeSantis and other state politicians for their cynical claims and misguided priorities while failing to serve working families.

A Unit Secretary at HCA Florida Osceola Hospital and mother of a 13-year-old daughter, took particular aim at the false boast that it’s “tax-free to raise a child in Florida.”

She writes: “The governor’s claim that it is now ‘tax free to raise a child in Florida’ also blatantly defies the experience of millions of families across the state. As a health-care worker and mother of a teenage daughter, I can state with authority that childcare in Florida is neither accessible nor affordable, and the situation is getting worse.”

Parker has been a healthcare worker for 24 years because of a deep desire to help others, and has been an active recruiter and leader with 1199SEIU to build a better, fairer workplace for all staff.

She closes her editorial with the following message: “If we had the right leaders who sincerely serve the people, we really could make Florida even more than ‘low-tax,’ but more importantly, a ‘high-quality’ state to raise our children.”

She has served as a Member Political Organizer (MPO), a role she will soon take back up for the critical November 2024 elections, and encourages all members to be active and engaged.

“There are some very clear choices regarding the needs of working families, healthcare, women’s rights and protecting the core of our democracy,” she says, “We the people have the power if we all use our voices and our votes.”

To become an MPO or for more information, contact your organizer, Jason Morales (jason.morales@1199.org) or Tarah Reppert (tarah.reppert@1199).