Presbyterian
Church (U.S.A.) Office of Public Witness Director the Reverend J. Herbert
Nelson Joins Hundreds of Striking Low-Wage Federal Contract Workers Calling on
President Obama to Lead the Growing “Fight for $15” Movement
U.S. Federal Contract Workers
Strike for to
Ask President to Sign Model Employer Executive
Order
Washington, DC – On Wednesday at 10am, the
Reverend J. Herbert Nelson, Director of the Presbyterian
Church (U.S.A.) Office of Public Witness, joined U.S. Senate contract janitors and food
service workers, who for the first time in history, walked off their
jobs to protest poverty pay.
The U.S Senate contract employees joined hundreds
of striking workers from the U.S. Capitol, Pentagon, Smithsonian Institution
and other federal landmarks, where private companies receive lucrative
contracts to run food service, provide janitorial services, and much more.
Reverend Nelson and several other faith leaders
joined with workers to call on President Obama to lead
by example and champion the growing “Fight for 15” movement by signing
Model Employer Executive Order that gives a preference to federal
contractors who pay living wages of at least $15 an hour, provide decent
benefits like paid leave, and allow them to collectively bargain so they need
not go on strike to be heard.
In his opening remarks, J. Herbert Nelson called
for the President to make federal contract jobs good jobs. He called for
fairness in our labor market – “The fairness that I speak of today is not
about simply earning enough to make a living, but instead enough to build a
life worth living – and a legacy to leave behind.”
Presbyterians can join with Reverend Nelson in
standing with low-wage workers and against poverty wages. Click
here to write a letter to the President.
Today, the federal contracting process awards
contracts to the lowest bidder, making
the government the largest low-wage job creator in the country, funding over 2
million poverty jobs through contracts, loans, and grants to private businesses.
Taxpayer dollars should create good jobs that pay workers livable wages,
provide benefits, paid sick leave, and dignity in the workplace. We know from
past movements that Executive Orders related to federal contract hiring can
lead the marketplace, creating a tide that lifts all workers and builds a
stronger economy.
This will be the twelfth strike in two years by
low-wage contract workers who are organizing under the banner of Good Jobs Nation.
This is the second time in a year that Reverend Nelson has walked with these
workers. In response to previous strikes and Congressional
gridlock, President Obama declared he would “lead by example” by signing
executive orders to boost the minimum wage to $10.10 and end wage theft on
federal contracts. In the wake of the President’s orders last year,
the CEOs of private companies like The Gap, IKEA, McDonalds and Wal-Mart
announced that they too would hike starting pay and several cities passed
ordinances to end wage theft.
However, just like the thousands of fast food
worker who are calling for better pay, benefits, and working conditions, federal
contract workers say they need “More than the
Minimum” to survive. Even after President Obama’s
executive orders, the U.S. Government continues to be America’s largest
low-wage job creator. We can do so much better.
Reverend Nelson was joined in his solidarity with
low-wage workers by several other religious leaders who wrote in a letter –
Dear Mr. President,
In the faith community, we believe that every
person is a child of God, that God wants shalom, that is, peace and wholeness
for each of us, and that there is inherent dignity in work and the fruits of
labor.
As you know, our nation generates great abundance
yet only a few among us share in the bounty. This growing gap between the
wealthy and everyone else is not only a political issue, but also a moral one
that we are compelled by conscience to address. Indeed, it is an affront to
human dignity when hardworking men and women are deprived of fully enjoying the
fruits of their labor and must struggle simply to feed, clothe and shelter
themselves and their children…
As leaders of faith communities in the United
States, we express our gratitude to you for exercising moral leadership by
using your executive powers to start lifting low-wage workers out of
poverty. Our faith traditions advocate
for justice, and we recognize that your actions provide a firm foundation for
rebuilding a more fair and equitable society.
However, given the scale of human suffering
caused by poverty jobs, we urge you to do even more to aid our nation’s most vulnerable workers by promoting living wage
and benefit standards on federal contracts with the power of your pen. We believe that if you lead on this, our
economy and labor market will once again follow your lead.
We therefore call on you to issue a
“Model Employer Executive Order” that provides a contracting preference for
companies that pay living wages of at least $15 an hour, offer good benefits
and paid-time off for sickness and care-giving, provide full-time hours and
predictable work schedules, as well as promote the rights of workers to bargain
collectively so they do not need to strike to have their voices heard.
For the complete letter and list of signatures, please
visit the Office of Public Witness blog.
To read J. Herbert Nelson’s remarks, as prepared,
please visit the Office of Public Witness blog here.
Click here to view the video of J.
Herbert Nelson’s remarks.
###
Parts of this article are
excerpted from a Media Advisory published by Good Jobs Nation, an organization of
low-wage federal contract workers who are calling on the President to end the
U.S. Government’s role as America’s leading low-wage job creator. Good Jobs
Nation is supported by national faith, labor and advocacy organizations
including Change to Win, Interfaith Worker Justice, Progressive Congress, and
the Campaign for America’s Future.
Learn more at www.goodjobsnation.org.
