by DC Jobs with Justice | Dec 5, 2012 | Campaigns
Read TOXIC EXPOSURE, a report culiminated by a yearlong undercover investigation into the practices of the asbestos abatement industry in the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. It exposes an industry that routinely violates the law, harms its employees, and fails to protect the safety of its workers. READ MORE about this investigation. Click here to view video testimony, “The Devil’s Dust: DC Metro Area Latino Asbestos Workers”. Resources Asbestos Fact Sheet News Coverage Links Asbestos Report Finds Poor Conditions For Workers Asbestos Exposure Grave problemática en sector de la construcción Baltimore-Washington Asbestos Contractors Flout Safety Standards, Union Report Says NIST contractor accused of putting worker health at risk Hispanic Workers in Asbestos Industry Face Language Hurdles, Disease Dangers Asbestos Abatement Toxic in Mid-Atlantic Region...
by DC Jobs with Justice | Dec 4, 2012 | Campaigns
Press Release: October 24, 2012 Contact: Sally Dworak-Fisher or Alexandra Rosenblatt at 410-625-9409 Silver Spring, MD – The Public Justice Center has filed suit on behalf of employees of Bethesda-based staffing agency WMS Solutions, LLC to recover the wages that the company illegally withheld to pay for asbestos workers’ training, health, and equipment costs, and to recover the out-of-pocket funds that employees paid for their own trainings, equipment and/or medical exams. The plaintiffs are also demanding WMS pay its employees for their work attending mandatory trainings and to compensate them at overtime rates when they work more than forty hours in a week. At the time of filing, 36 WMS workers had already filed notices to join the lawsuit, and many more are expected. WMS Solutions, LLC provides temporary workers to construction contractors working in the asbestos, lead, and mold abatement industries. By unlawfully passing along to the workers a significant portion of the enormous costs associated with high employee turnover in these industries, WMS is able to enjoy an illegal competitive advantage over firms that abide by the law while workers foot the bill. “This suit alleges that WMS has unlawfully failed to pay its workers for all work they have performed, and that they have unlawfully required workers to pay for their own health and safety-related costs,” said Public Justice Center Attorney Sally Dworak-Fisher. Former WMS asbestos workers had to pay for his asbestos abatement training and safety equipment out of his own pocket, despite the fact that the law requires the company to provide both free of charge. “I have been forced to pay hundreds of...
by DC Jobs with Justice | Nov 30, 2012 | Grassroots Leadership Education Project, Projects
On Saturday, November 10th, DC JwJ joined with the DC Democratic Socialists of America (DC DSA) to offer a free training for JwJ coalition members called the GET UP (Grassroots Economics Training for Understanding and Power) Project. Trainers Bill Barclay and Peg Strobel, long-time activists with JwJ and DSA, traveled from Chicago to teach participants how to understand and talk about the roots of the economic crisis, and alternative progressive economic policies, in common-sense terms. In addition to DC JwJ and DC DSA, attendees represented the Restaurant Opportunities Center DC (ROC-DC), CWA Local 2336, AFSCME Council 26, LiUNA!, Jews United for Justice, the American Friends Service Committee, and Respect DC, among others. About 35 people attended the training, which took place at Communication Workers of America (CWA) headquarters in Washington, DC. Through skits and participatory education, the GET UP Project armed activists with the knowledge, tools and skills to articulate an alternative economics that works for the 99% instead of the elites that dominate our society and politics. Interactive trainings were held on: the economics of the 1%, the origins of the current economic crisis, and the job crisis. Dan Blumenthal, an AFSCME member who attended the training, said: “The training helped to understand how we got into this financial crisis. I will use the knowledge gained in this training to persuade my fellow union members to actively protest any attempts during the ‘fiscal cliff’ negotiations to cut and/or make any changes to cost of living adjustments to Social Security and Medicare.” The training received generous support from the CWA and United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 400. ...
by DC Jobs with Justice | Nov 25, 2012 | Campaigns, Get Involved, Injured Worker Advocate
Over 2,000 injured D.C. government employees go through the Public Sector Workers Compensation Program each year. Disability benefits are intended to give injured government workers financial security when injured on the job and help them pay their medical care, rent, and other basic necessities. Unfortunately, due to a decade of poor administration an noncompliance, formerly middle-class injured workers have been driven into poverty. The D.C. Council should act immediately and pass legislation to: Restore the great weight afforded to the opinions of treating physicians to ensure accurate medical assessments of injuries Provide that injured workers will not lose disability compensation while they are navigating the administrative process Enable compensation for mental stress or emotional conditions suffered by workers as a result of their injuries Protect workers with injuries that last longer than 500 weeks, but are still classified as “temporary” rather than “permanent” Bring the compensation program back “in house” rather than contracting with a company that profits at the expense of workers Take Action >>> Sign the...
by DC Jobs with Justice | Nov 17, 2012 | Campaigns, Paid Sick And Safe Days
Imagine that you work in a restaurant to support your family. One day you wake up feeling awful. Lying in bed, you realize that if you don’t go to work, you’re not going to be able to pay the rent. Even worse, imagine that you are healthy, but your young child is sick. Can you afford to take the day off to care for him? Or will you send him to school while you work, and just hope he gets better? This scenerio is all too real for thousands of workers in DC. In 2008, Washington, D.C. passed a groundbreaking law allowing many workers in the District of Columbia to take paid time off to recover from illness or instances of domestic violence. However, this law does not cover everyone. Tipped restaurant workers were excluded from the law, even though these workers can still get sick and spread illness to others. Nearly 80% of restaurant workers cannot earn paid sick days, and as a result, almost 60% of restaurant workers in the District reported preparing, cooking, and serving food while sick. This increases the health risks to workers and consumers. Food is not sustainable without sustainable jobs for food workers. JUFJ is working as a part of the Paid Sick Days for All Coalition to demand justice from our favorite restaurants. Join the Paid Sick Days for All campaign to ensure that no worker has to choose between taking care of their health and earning a day’s pay. Healthy Workers, Healthy Businesses, A Healthy...
