by dcjwjeditor | Mar 7, 2013 | Actions & Events, Immigrant Rights, Projects, Trabajadores Unidos de DC / United Workers of DC, Wage Theft
Chants of “la lucha – sí, la lucha – sí” (the struggle -yes, the struggle – yes) echoed off the DC Council chamber walls as more than 50 workers and community activists packed the Wilson Building on Monday, March 4th to demand more protections for workers against wage theft. DC Jobs with Justice, United Workers of DC, and the DC Wage Theft Coalition accompanied workers as they presented Councilmember Marion Barry with a giant paper bill for outstanding unpaid wages. The bill totaled more than $260,000, yet only represented the wage theft claims of about 40 workers, a small number of the many more victimized by wage theft in Washington, DC. Pledging to seek justice for the workers, Councilmember Barry quoted Frederick Douglass: “Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never has and it never will.” With that, the group filed into the performance oversight hearing for the Department of Employee Services. Witness after witness testified about the inability of the Office of Wage-Hour to protect workers who struggle to recover their rightfully owed wages. United Workers of DC President Carlos Castillo explained, “Without significant changes, going to the Office of Wage-Hour to file claims often becomes a waste of time, of money, and of opportunity to find a good option for daily work for a day laborer.” Moved by this and the many other testimonies from workers and advocates, Councilmember Barry vowed to investigate the workers’ claims, to explore new resources, systems, and funding for the Office of Wage-Hour, and to consider proposing legislation to protect workers against wage theft. Coming off a tremendous victory at popular Georgetown restaurants,...
by dcjwjeditor | Feb 13, 2013 | Actions & Events, Trabajadores Unidos de DC / United Workers of DC, Wage Theft
On Wednesday, February 6, three former workers of two popular restaurants in Georgetown won a combined $4,237 in unpaid wages. After many months of struggling for their pay, the workers returned to the restaurant with more than 50 allies from the community, who stood outside the restaurants to ensure that the three workers were paid. Sure enough, just minutes later, the workers emerged with their newly won wages. Fresh off its victory, the group held a rally at which the workers repeatedly stressed the importance of fellow worker, community, and student support in the effort to reclaim stolen wages. DC Jobs with Justice, La Unión de Trabajadores and the rest of the DC Wage Theft Coalition – a group of labor, legal services, and workers’ rights organizations – will continue to support workers in the campaign to end wage theft in Washington, DC. But we can’t do it alone. We needed your support with wage theft at Georgetown restaurants, and we’ll need it again as we continue to send the message that we won’t tolerate wage theft in our city. Thank you so much for standing in solidarity with the Georgetown restaurant workers. Please take the pledge so we can keep you in the loop as we join more and more workers in the fight against wage theft. ...
by dcjwjeditor | Feb 4, 2013 | Actions & Events, Projects
Patient Protection Act Proposed for DC Hospitals Survey: 57% of District Hospital Nurses Cite Inadequate Staffing Registered nurses joined with District of Columbia Council members and community supporters in a press conference today to announce the introduction of the Patient Protection Act to dramatically improve care in DC hospitals to protect patients. Speaking to a room packed with some 200 DC RNs, Council Chairman Phil Mendelson called the bill “common sense, today’s version of the 8-hour day.” It is intended, he said, to address “the short change of healthcare due to the bottom line, ensure an adequate number of nurses on duty and eliminate (nurse) burnout.” Opening the press conference, Washington Hospital Center RN Rajini Raj explained the bill would establish mandatory minimum nurse-to-patient ratios by hospital unit, augmented by additional staffing based on individual patient needs. It is “modeled on a successful California law that has dramatically improved patient safety, brought 130,000 additional nurses back to the bedside, and has helped keep experienced nurses taking care of patients.” The Patient Protection Act, Mendelson emphasized, “provides a minimum number of nurses on duty by specific unit at all times” The bill is prompted in part by an autumn 2012 NNU survey of DC area nurses which found: 57 percent of DC nurses say staffing is inadequate always or almost always; 64 percent said they have less time to care for patients; 60 percent say changes in their workload have led to worse outcomes for patients; 88 percent say they have had to work through meal and rest breaks because of inadequate staffing; 87 percent say that mandatory nurse-to-patient...
by dcjwjeditor | Dec 18, 2012 | Actions & Events
At the DC Jobs with Justice Winter Cabaret on December 15, 2012, Rob Walton and Walmart were crowned the Scrooge of the Year. Dozens of labor leaders, community members, students, and faith leaders turned out for the 2012 Winter Cabaret. Participants were entertained by the Option Pearls Drill team, DJ Uncle Sonny, and the Hula Huskers. Volunteers graciously donated plenty of treats for the participants to snack on. At 11pm the moment of truth came when the the Scrooge of the Year was crowned. It was a tight race between Verizon Vice President/Darden Board Member Clarence Otis and opponent Rob Walton and Walmart. However in the end Walton and Walmart pulled out ahead of the pack and won the title. DC Jobs with Justice Board and Staff would like to thank everyone who participated in the fundraiser. The reason we are able to do good work in the community is through the supporters like...
by dcjwjeditor | Dec 7, 2012 | Guest Blog, Immigrant Rights, Trabajadores Unidos de DC / United Workers of DC, Wage Theft
Guest Blog Post from Barbra A. Kavanaugh December 4, 2012 Everyone knows what theft is, but I am constantly surprised by how few people know what “wage theft” is. Simply put, wage theft is when employers refuse to pay employees the wages they have earned, either by denying them the minimum wage, overtime or frequently, simply not paying them at all. Every week, more than two-thirds of low-wage workers experience at least one incident of wage theft. At a time when many Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, for many of the clients we see, even just one incident of wage theft can result in unpaid rent, car repossession or homelessness. One of the most common ways that employers steal wages is by misclassifying their employees as independent contractors to avoid paying the legally required minimum wage and overtime pay. Workers who are wrongly labeled as independent contractors are cheated of many of the legal protections afforded to employees – including minimum wage and overtime. No matter what an employer calls a worker, the law determines whether a worker is an employee or independent contractor. Although there is no hard and fast rule, the more control an employer has over the circumstances of a worker’s employment, the more likely it is that the worker should be considered an employee, and not an independent contractor. For example, if an employer controls the hours that someone works, where they work and provides their equipment, that person is not likely to be an independent contractor. Too often, employers take advantage of workers’ ignorance on this issue, and deny rightful wages, overtime, breaks,...
