by DC Jobs with Justice | Feb 18, 2015 | Walmart: Respect DC
Melinda Gaino has a full-time job in DC, but she struggles to make it. She earns $9.90 an hour as a cashier at Walmart on H Street, NW, bringing home about $20,000 a year. That is too little to support the 45-year old mother and her four children in their SE apartment. Melinda is an example of the many workers who have been left behind in DC’s growing economy, according to a recent report from DCFPI. She is a victim of an economy that is failing to create shared prosperity, to ensure that everyone who works hard can get by. Melinda’s life as a low-wage worker is not unique. There are thousands who work in DC every day but barely stay afloat: the lot attendants who park our cars ($9.72 average wage), the cashiers who check us out ($11.03 average wage), the people who make our sandwich for lunch ($11.43 average pay for food prep workers). These workers have not fared well, according to DCFPI’s report. Hourly earnings for DC’s lowest paid workers grew just 7 percent over 35 years, adjusting for inflation – about 2 cents per year – while the highest paid workers saw paychecks grow by 55 percent. The pay gap between the people who earn the least and those who earn the most in DC is at a record high. Melinda typifies the challenge to stay ahead in other ways. She worked at Blue Cross/Blue Shield for three years earning $15.60 an hour, but then got laid off. She searched for employment for 6 months before starting at Walmart at a much lower salary. Her...
by DC Jobs with Justice | Dec 1, 2014 | Projects
Last week was a week of “firsts” for Respect DC and Walmart associates in the District. Throughout the week, we witnessed the first-ever Black Friday for Walmart in Washington, DC, the first sit-down strike in Walmart history, the first Walmart worker strike in the DC stores, and the first-ever community occupations (twice!) of the H Street store. Leading up to the Black Friday action, OUR Walmart members, inspired by the widespread demonstrations seeking justice in Ferguson and for Michael Brown, joined the Tuesday #DCFerguson march. When the march reached the H Street Walmart store, demonstrators flowed into the store, drawing the connection between economic inequality and our broken criminal justice system. The next day, on Wednesday, around 30 Walmart associates from DC, Maryland, and Virginia walked out on strike and held a sit-down strike in the H Street store. The next day, on Thanksgiving, they arrived at the Georgia Avenue Walmart to talk to customers about why they were striking and to deliver a letter to store management demanding no retaliation. Finally, on a brisk Friday morning, more than 400 community allies rallied with the Walmart strikers in front of H Street. Workers from VA and H Street told their stories: working full-time yet still needing public assistance; or unable to get enough hours to get benefits and provide for their families. At every action, workers departed chanting, “we’ll be back!” And when they return, they’ll return with the force of the community and the entire DC JWJ coalition, until Walmart jobs become living wage, full-time jobs...
