March 7th Lobby Day: Your Chance to Defend Workers' Rights

Legislators' decisions in Nashville will have major impact on workers throughout state

"There's just an energy in the air," Renee Dillard says of her experience at Lobby Day last year.



State Decisions, Local Impact

     What happens in Nashville does not stay in Nashville. Decisions made by state legislators can change the lives of workers in Memphis, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Martin, and all across the state.

    Just ask public school teachers who lost their right to collective bargaining last year. Or ask a low-wage worker at the University of Memphis who finally got her first pay raise in four years.

    That's why Workers Interfaith Network and the United Campus Workers union invite you to join forces in a statewide Lobby Day at the legislature on Wednesday, March 7th.

Your Chance to Be Courageous

     Before participating in Lobby Day last year, Rev. Renee Dillard says she hadn't been to the state capitol since a 7th grade field trip. "Lobbying was a little intimidating to think about," she says. "But the training I got ahead of time helped me know what to expect and how to talk about the issues. On Lobby Day, I met new people, and the exchanges we had with legislators were more positive than I thought they would be. It felt good to know I was doing my part to make a difference with workers."

What We're Asking Legislators to Do

      On Lobby Day, we'll be pressing our legislators on two main issues. The first is rejecting a dangerous and misguided bill that bans living wage ordinances in our state. If passed, Sen. Kelsey and Rep. Casada's bill will repeal large portions of the living wage laws that the City of Memphis and Shelby County passed years ago. The bills are just one example of conversative lawmakers who say they believe in local government control for one moment, then turn around and interfere in local affairs when they don't like something a city governmet does.

      The second focus of Lobby Day will be pressing legislators to pass a fair pay raise for employees at public colleges and universities across Tennessee. In his State of the State address, Gov. Haslam proposed a 2.5 percent pay raise for state workers. While this proposal is a good start, a percentage raise won't do much for workers who are paid poverty wages. For example, a typical custodian at the University of Memphis would get a $425 annual raise under the Governor's proposal, while the University President would get a $7,600 raise.

    At Lobby Day, you'll be pushing for a much more fair solution: a $1 per hour pay increase for all higher education employees. While top administrators don't need a huge bump in pay, ordinary workers will use this pay raise to meet urgent, basic needs for their families.

    During Lobby Day, we'll also rally on the capitol steps for good jobs and living wages at noon.

Sign up for March 7th Lobby Day

    Register for Lobby Day online or call Zach Ferguson at 901-332-3570 for more information. Once you have registered, we'll schedule lobbying appointments for you and arrange for your transportation. At this point, we know for sure we will have buses leaving from Memphis and Knoxville, and there will probably be caravans forming in other cities.

Schedule for Lobby Day

The Memphis bus will leave at 5:30 a.m. Central time and the Knoxville bus will leave at 7:00 a.m. Eastern time.

9:00 - 10:30   Training for lobbying teams

10:30 - noon   Visits to legislators in teams

Noon - 1:00    Rally on the capitol steps

1:00 - 3:00     Visits to legislators and/or lunch break

3:00                Return to home cities

Speak out for a living wage on November 1st

     Some people would say it's crazy to call for a living wage in this economy. Maybe it is a little crazy. But I'll tell you something else - it's working.

     Because of the activism of workers, students, and community members like you, the University of Memphis has taken first steps toward a living wage for their workers. All of last academic year, the United Campus Workers union, Workers Interfaith Network, and the Progressive Student Alliance publicly pushed the University to move to a living wage for all U. of M. workers. Many of you wrote emails and postcards, made phone calls to the University. You lobbied the state legislature. You took part in a speak out on campus, a prayer vigil, and a rally to deliver the hundreds of postcards you gathered for President Shirley Raines.

    The result? After four years of no pay raises, the University implemented a raise of 3% or $750 a year, which ever was greater. The $750 option, called a flat dollar minimum raise, is important because it's especially targeted to low-wage workers. Many custodial workers and other low-wage workers ended up getting 3 times as big of a raise because of this new approach. And it was an approach raised by activists like you!

   The University has also just implemented a one time $1,000 bonus for most full-time workers.
   But before you assume that our work is done, I also want to stress that many current workers at the University still make far below a living wage. Plus, the University has not changed any of its practices or policies about what new workers are paid when they are hired. Many new positions still pay just above minimum wage.

    That's why workers need you to come to a Living Wage Speak Out on Tuesday November 1st at 6:00 p.m. in Brister Hall Room 220.

    At the Speak Out, you'll:

• learn about what pay and working conditions are like for workers right now.
• understand how the first steps toward a living wage were won last academic year.
• get involved in efforts this academic year to push the University to take further steps to a living wage.
• hear from activists in the successful Vanderbilt University campaign for a living wage.

    Directions to Brister Hall: Brister is located on Alumni Ave., near the intersection of Alumni and Patterson St. There are two ways you can enter the building. If you are entering from the Alumni Ave. entrance, you will already be on the second floor when you enter. If you are entering from Wilder Tower (which is attached to Brister Hall), you will need to turn left at the elevators and go up 1 flight of stairs to get to the 2nd floor of Brister Hall.

    Parking info: A few metered spaces are available for visitors in the lot at Mynders and Patterson. There are also metered spots available in the large parking lot across the railroad tracks on Southern. Garage parking is available for $2 an hour in the garage on Zach Curlin, next to Campus School. You may also be able to find free street parking along Walker or Zach Curlin.
   View a University of Memphis campus map.

Help strengthen WIN's work for a living wage. Become a Workers Interfaith Network member today.

Mayor Wharton and City Council Dismantle Workers' Rights, Threaten Living Wage

    In case you missed it, the budget agreement passed by the Memphis City Council last week slammed the City's rank and file workers hard. 125 workers are going to be laid off. Sanitation workers will be offered buyouts, with the goal of reducing the department (which is currently contributing to the city's general fund) down to half its size. Death benefits were taken away from workers, though the City announced yesterday some of those benefits would be restored. Twelve of the thirteen paid holidays workers had were taken away.
    In their haste to pass a budget package - which is still not in writing, by the way - the Council ignored Councilman Joe Brown's assertion that workers' paid holidays were guaranteed by a City ordinance. Now that Mayor Wharton's administration has realized Councilman Brown was right, they're telling the City's rank and file workers they will have to accept a 4.6 percent salary cut.
   This salary cut comes after all the city's unions already negotiated pay and work agreements with the City this spring. In those agreements, workers went without any raises and agreed to absorb health insurance premium increases themselves. The unions upheld their responsibility to negotiate with the City in good faith, and now the City is trying to undo the agreements they've already come to with their workers.
    The agreements between the unions and the City are called memoranda of understanding. They include a procedure for dealing with situations of fiscal emergency. This procedure requires Mayor Wharton's administration to show their books to the unions to prove that a real hardship exists. So far, Mayor Wharton has been unwilling to do this. Instead his administration has urged the unions to "come to the table," without having key knowledge about what the City's financial situation really is.
    Furthermore, the Mayor's proposed 4.6 percent salary cut endangers the living wage resolution that the City Council passed in 2006, in which permanent City workers are to be paid at least $10 an hour. In 2007, the City Council passed another resolution promising temporary City workers at least $12 an hour because they do not receive any kinds of benefits. There are very likely workers being paid right at $10 and $12 an hour right now, and the pay cuts would violate the promise to pay a living wage.
     It's time for the citizens of Memphis to call on Mayor Wharton and City Council members to act in good faith with their workers.
    Here's how you can help:

• Call Mayor Wharton's office at (901) 576-6000 and the City Council office at 576-6786. Tell them a pay cut for the city's rank and file workers is unacceptable. Urge the City to neogiate in good faith with workers' unions.
• Come to the City Council meeting this Tuesday, July 5th at 3:30 p.m.

    No matter what happens in the next couple of weeks with the budget, this attack on the hard-working people who keep our city running is not over. We're working on long-term plans to address this attack, so keep your eyes open for more news from us soon.

   Special thanks to Brad Watkins of the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center and Chad Johnson at AFSCME Local 1733 for their monitoring and reporting on all the budget developments with the City Council. I am drawing heavily on their work in this post.
 
Want to take action with workers seeking justice  and keep up to date on what's happening with City workers? Sign up for email action alerts from Workers Interfaith Network at http://www.workersinterfaithnetwork.org/index/involved/subscribe.htm

University of Memphis Raise Announcement: First Step to a Living Wage

    I'm excited to announce our first victory in the living wage campaign at the University of Memphis! On Thursday, the University of Memphis, along with other Tennessee Board of Regents, announced salary increases for fiscal year 2012. The proposed raises are 3 percent, or a minimum of $750 per full-time worker. Part-time workers will get raises in proportion to the hours they work. The raises must still be approved by the full Board of Regents.


U. of M. workers, students, and WIN members made this victory possible through many actions, including delivering 1,000 living wage petitions to President Raines' office.

     This is the first raise that higher education workers have received in four years, and it wouldn't have happened without the outcry from members of Workers Interfaith Network, United Campus Workers, and the Progressive Student Alliance. Thank you to everyone who rallied, sent emails, participated in vigils, and made calls to the University!

    You can be especially encouraged by the Board of Regents' decision to include flat dollar minimum raise of $750. About 2,500 workers at Board of Regents schools will be affected by the flat dollar raise. The United Campus Workers have been pushing this approach for years because it can move workers up to a living wage much faster than a percentage pay raise would. Rest assured, it is the living wage campaign carried out by workers, community members, and students that convinced the Board of Regents to use this approach.

    Of course, the University of Memphis has many more steps to take to bring all its workers up to a living wage. We look forward to hearing from President Raines about what the University's concrete plan and timelines are for implementing a living wage on campus.

Want to take action with workers seeking justice? Sign up for email action alerts from Workers Interfaith Network at http://www.workersinterfaithnetwork.org/index/involved/subscribe.htm

Practicing What We Preach: Why WIN Employees Have a Union

by Rev. Rebekah Gienapp, executive director   
    When workers decide to form unions, often their employers go on the rampage. Holding lengthy meetings with workers to talk about the evils of unions, threatening to close the business, and illegally firing union supporters are all too common. But here at Workers Interfaith Network, I welcomed the opportunity for our employees to form a union, even though I am the "manager" around here.

WIN employees celebrate the signing of our first union contract.

   Two weeks ago, WIN signed a union contract with the St. Louis Newspaper Guild, Local 36047 of the Communication Workers of America. Why do we see this as a good thing for our organization and for our employees? Here's a few reasons:

• Our employees deserve to have a voice in decisions made around here. This includes decisions about how their work should be done. A union contract provides a framework for that kind of collaborative decision-making.
• It's not healthy for one person in an organization to have all the power. Everyone has biases, including me. Having a set process for disciplining employees helps limit that bias. And, if an employee, feels like I have made an unfair decision that doesn't follow our union contract, we have a way to work out that dispute.
• The contract makes clear to our employees our commitment to pay living wages and provide health and retirement benefits. These are the things we advocate for every day for workers throughout Memphis. We want to provide the same kind of good jobs we advocate for here at WIN. We were already paying living wages and providing benefits before the contract was signed. But now we can't arbitrarily change those things without negotiating with our employees.
• We're now a formal part of the labor movement, which has done so much for all workers - not just union members. We can thank unions for so many things - the minimum wage, the 8 hour work day, the end of child labor, and much more. Our employees' union membership is a small way to strenghten this important movement.
• Union membership gives WIN access to quality health care and retirement plans at a reasonable cost. Because we're now part of national plans through the Communication Workers, our health care premiums are much lower than they would be otherwise.

    Too many employers see any gain for their workers as a loss for their organization or business. Here at WIN, we see things differently. Treating our employees the way we want all workers to be treated brings integrity to our work. It helps create an atmosphere of loyalty, where WIN employees stick around for the long haul to organize for justice. And as a supervisor, the presence of a union reminds me to check my own actions with employees for fairness. Because I don't know about you, but I always find room for improvement in myself!

Want to take action with workers seeking justice? Sign up for email action alerts from Workers Interfaith Network at http://www.workersinterfaithnetwork.org/index/involved/subscribe.htm

Tennessee Legislative Wrap-Up: One for the Record Books

     The Tennessee General Assembly adjourned on Saturday, after months of attacking workers rights from many angles. The glimmers of hope: our local living wage laws withstood attempts to repeal them, and state workers got their first raise in four years. But the bad news is pretty awful: teachers' rights to collective bargaining were largely shredded; local governments can't prohibit discrimination; and all employers will have to use an incredibly flawed e-verify system to check job applicants eligibility to work.




Rev. Mary Edwards was one of dozens of WIN members who raised her voice for workers at the state legislature this year.


Here are the details on some of the most important bills affecting workers:

Teachers' Collective Bargaining
    Originally, anti-teacher forces tried to take away teachers' collective bargaining rights entirely. At the last minute, a compromise was arrived at that greatly reduces the role that teachers' unions can have in influencing teachers' working conditions.
    School districts are no longer required to engage in collective bargaining in districts where teachers have voted for union representation. Instead, teachers will elect committees of people to represent them. Union representatives can run for positions on these committees, but others will be included as well. The end result of negotiations will be memoranda of understanding, which cannot be legally enforced in the same way that a union contract can. And, while negotiations can include pay, insurance, and benefits, the committees will have no say over job assignments, bonuses, and other issues that are supposed to be related to student achievement.


Immigration
    Fortunately, consideration of an Arizona copypcat bill was delayed until 2012 because of the giant price tag to implementing the bill. So for now, local law enforcement isn't charged with enforcing federal immigration law.
   However, another misguided attempt by the state to take on immigration did pass: requiring employers to use the federal e-verify system to check job applicants' eligibility to work. While this may sound harmless, the Social Security's e-verify system is riddled with errors. It's also possible that the broader use of e-verify could lead to more wage theft. WIN has already seen employers who hire workers and wait to use the e-verify system until after they've done days or weeks of work. Federal law requires employers to pay these workers for the labor they've already done, even if they don't have proper work authorization. But plenty of employers will refuse to pay workers, using e-verify as an excuse.
    Tennessee employers will have to begin using the e-verify system in 2012.

Pay raises for University workers
    The budget passed by the legislature includes a 1.6% for all state workers, including University of Memphis employees. This is a step forward since the vast majority of workers haven't had any raise in four years.
    But if this very modest amount is distributed as a percentage amount, low-wage workers like U. of M. custodians could see only a $10 raise per pay period. As a WIN member, you've been pushing the University administration to distribute the raise as an equal dollar cost of living increase to all employees, so that it makes a real difference to workers who aren't paid a living wage. The University has not yet announced how the raise will be distributed, so we are still hopeful they will listen to the community outcry on this issue.

Criminalizing labor unions
    House and Senate committees passed a terrible bill that would allowed injunctions to be issued again unions for any violence committed by their members, even if the union did not condone the violence. The bill includes “intimidation” as “unlawful violence.”  An employee or employer could claim that asking someone to sign a petition in support of collective bargaining or even a political candidate constitutes “intimidation.” The bill only addressed violence by unions, and deliberately did not address possible violence by company officials against workers.
    Fortunately, this misguided bill was not passed on the House and Senate floor, and instead was sent back to committee for next year.

Repeal of Memphis and Shelby County living wage ordinances
    This bill, which would have invalidated large parts of the living wage ordinances you worked so hard to get passed, has been sent to summer study committee. Bills are often sent to summer study when there is not enough support to pass them. WIN will be monitoring the study committee, but it may be that the bill is not even brought up for discussion over the summer.


Special access to discriminate act
    All people have the right to work, regardless of their sexual orientation. But this bill takes away local governments abilities to stop discrimination among contractors who are funded by taxpayer dollars.

    The special access to discriminate act prohibits local governments in Tennessee from telling their contractors not to discriminate against workers because of their sexual orientation. It revokes an ordinance just passed by Nashville Metro Government which bars discrimination by the city's contractors.
   The bill passed both the House and Senate and has been signed into law by Governor Haslam, but a court challenge by opponents of the bill is expected.

Want to take action with workers seeking justice? Sign up for email action alerts from Workers Interfaith Network at http://www.workersinterfaithnetwork.org/index/involved/subscribe.htm

State Legislative Update: Your Action Still Needed

     Here's your update on worker rights bills in the Tennessee Legislature. Workers still need you to sign a quick petition or make a short phone call on some of these bills.

     While this has been a very tough legislative session, you've shown that when Tennesseans act together, we can stall, and sometimes defeat, bad bills that attack workers' rights.

Taking away teachers' collective bargaining
     This bill takes away the right that Tennessee teachers have had for other 30 years to sit down with school boards to negotiate their wages and working conditions. Educational reform does not have to include taking away teachers' rights.     
Latest update: This bill has passed the Senate and was expected to pass the House yesterday. But a surprise amendment meant the bill has to go back to the Education committee again. This could mean that the votes are not present to pass the bill.                                                                                        
Action needed from you: Sign WIN's petition on change.org which will go to all legislators urging them to oppose this bill.

On March 15th, more than 1,000 Tennesseans raised our voices for workers' rights at the capitol. Your voice is needed again!

Fair raises for state higher education workers
This bill proposes a $2,000 flat dollar pay increase for all state higher education workers, who haven't had a raise in four years.
Latest update: While this bill is unlikely to be acted on, Gov. Haslam has proposed a 1.6% pay increase for state workers. It's important that this cost of living increase be distributed in a fair manner that benefits low wage workers the most. We are urging University of Memphis President Shirley Raines to distribute the raise as an equal dollar amount because this will help low-wage workers' paychecks the most.
Action needed from you: Call President Raines' office at 901-678-2234. Tell her that you are a community member who wants to see all University of Memphis workers earn a living wage. Ask her to take the first step toward the living wage by implementing an equal dollar cost of living increase for all employees.



Repeal of Memphis and Shelby County living wage ordinances
Good news! This bill, which would have invalidated large parts of the living wage ordinances you worked so hard to get passed, has been sent to summer study committee.
Latest update: Bills are often sent to summer study when there is not enough support to pass them. WIN will be monitoring the study committee, but it may be that the bill is not even brought up for discussion over the summer.
Action needed from you: Give yourself a round of applause for stopping this misguided bill that would have lowered workers' wages!

Anti-immigrant Arizona copycat bill
This bill requires that when police have "reasonable suspicion" that a person does not have legal immigration status, that law enforcement verify the person's immigration status. It will undoubtedly lead to racial profiling, and the fiscal note on the bill estimates state and local governments will have to spent nearly $5 million the first year alone to implement the bill.
Latest update: In the House, the bill has been delayed a couple of times in the Finance subcommittee. In the Senate, the Judiciary committee will not consider the bill until their last meeting of the session (probably 2 - 3 weeks from now.) This could be a sign that support for the bill is weakening.
Action needed from you: Our friends at the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition have a petition you can sign in opposition to this bill and other anti-immigrant bills.

Special access to discriminate act
This bill prohibits local governments in Tennessee from telling their contractors not to discriminate against workers because of their sexual orientation. If passed, it will overturn an ordinance just passed a few weeks ago in Nashville which bars discrimination by contractors of Metro Government. All people have the right to work, regardless of their sexual orientation.
Latest update: This bill has passed the House. The Senate State and Local Government was supposed to hear the bill this week, but has delayed it one week.
Action needed from you: Call Sen. Mark Norris, who sits on the State and Local Government committee at (615) 741-1967. Urge him to vote no on SB 632 because it takes away control that local governments should have over their own contracting process.



Want to take action with workers seeking justice? Sign up for email action alerts from Workers Interfaith Network at http://www.workersinterfaithnetwork.org/index/involved/subscribe.htm

Take Action: Urge President Raines to Take First Step To Living Wage

     On April 8th, you rallied for a living wage for all University of Memphis workers. A delegation of leaders from WIN, the United Campus Workers union, and the Progressive Student Alliance delivered more than 1,000 postcards that you signed to President Shirley Raines' office. Dr. David Cox, executive assistant to President Raines, met with the delegation. You can view pictures of the rally on WIN's facebook page. Soon after, President Raines met with several members of the Progressive Student Alliance to talk about the living wage issue.

    We appreciate President Raines meeting with students. Now is the time for the University to take a first concrete step toward a living wage. Please call her and urge her to implement a fair cost of living increase for workers, who haven't had any type of raise in four years.





A delegation of workers, students, and community members delivered
your living wage petitions to President Raines.

  Take Action: Call President Raines' office at 901-678-2234. Tell her that you are a community member who wants to see all University of Memphis workers earn a living wage. Ask her to take the first step toward the living wage by implementing an equal dollar cost of living increase for all employees.

What is an equal dollar cost of living increase?
   State higher education employees have gone without a pay raise, even adjustments to make up for a higher cost of living, for four years. This year, Governor Haslam's proposed budget includes a 1.6% pay raise for all state University employees. This percentage raise would mean a raise of $4,766 for President Raines, but a typical custodial worker would only get a raise of $250.

   An equal dollar cost of living adjustment would distribute funds in a fairer way. For example, all workers might get a $800 cost of living adjustment. While this wouldn't be enough to bring all workers up to a living wage, it would be a first step. And service workers like Emma Davis and Jean Rimmer can certainly find a way to use an extra $800 a year.

If you're told that only the Tennessee Board of Regents can control how pay raises are distributed:
   When you make your phone call, you may be told that President Raines doesn't control how pay raises are doled out. When she met with the Progressive Student Alliance, President Raines said that only the state legislature and the Tennessee Board of Regents could decide to distribute the pay raise as an equal dollar amount, rather than by percentages. That may be true, but if President Raines calls on the Board of Regents to distribute the pay raises in this way, they're very likely to listen to her.

But first, we have to get President Raines to listen to the community, so be sure to make that phone call today!

Want to take action with workers seeking justice? Sign up for email action alerts from Workers Interfaith Network at http://www.workersinterfaithnetwork.org/index/involved/subscribe.htm

A Litany for Tennessee's Workers

   Yesterday I saw the inspiring sight of 1,000 Tennesseans rallying together for good jobs, living wages, and an end to the attack on workers rights.

  I wanted to share with you the litany for workers that Rev. Renee Dillard (St. John's United Methodist, Memphis) and Dr. Herbert Lester (Blakemore United Methodist, Nashville) shared with the crowd. You may want to pray it yourself or share it with your congregation. Now is a critical time for people of faith to both pray and act with workers whose rights are being eroded by our state legislature.

Leader 1: Scripture tells us that whenever workers are abused, God hears their cries for justice.

Leader 2: From ancient times through today, our God breaks the chains of oppression and brings good news to the poor.

Leader 1: When the state of Tennessee pays some workers so little that they remain trapped in poverty,

All: God hears the cries of workers.

Leader 2: When legislators threaten workers' livelihoods by repealing the living wage and upholding discrimination,

All: God hears the cries of workers.

Leader 1: When laws are proposed that would silence teachers' voices,

All: God hears the cries of workers.

Leader 2: When those in power try to push working people out of the political process,

All: God hears the cries of workers.

Leader 1: When the unemployed search long and hard for jobs that have been promised but not delivered,

All: God hears the cries of workers.

Leader 2: When leaders demand sacrifices only from the people who cannot afford to make them,

All: God hears the cries of workers.

Leader 1: When immigrant workers are blamed for an unemployment crisis that they did not cause,

All: God hears the cries of workers.

Leader 2: God's justice compels us to speak and act for the good of everyone in our communities, not just a few, because we know that

All: God hears the cries of workers.

Leader 1: Despite the many forces we face against us, we stand, in trust and confidence, because here and in every place,

All: God hears the cries of workers.

Leader 2: Thanks be to God! Amen.

Want to take action with workers seeking justice? Sign up for email action alerts from Workers Interfaith Network at http://www.workersinterfaithnetwork.org/index/involved/subscribe.htm

Legislators trying to repeal living wage ordinances you won

   You gave countless hours of your time and donated countless dollars of your hard-earned money to make sure the Memphis and Shelby County living wage ordinances passed.

   Now state legislators who don't have a clue about working poverty are trying to repeal the laws you got passed locally.

   We've defeated these kinds of proposals in past legislatures. But make no mistake about it, this will be our toughest battle yet. And I need every one of you to take action to make sure that no worker has to face up to a 43 percent pay cut in this tough economy.

WIN members celebrate the passage of the City's living wage ordinance in 2006.

   The Memphis City Council passed its living wage ordinance in 2006, after years of your activism. It makes sure that the City of Memphis only contracts with businesses that pay living wages.

   After all, why should our City government give away our tax dollars to companies that create poverty jobs? Memphis certainly has enough of those already. In 2007, the Shelby County Commission also passed a living wage ordinance for its contractors.

   These ordinances are a great success. Workers are able to move out of poverty and meet their most basic needs. Neither the City or County has had problems with attracting qualified contractors. In fact, the City Council even expanded its living wage ordinance in 2008 to include the contractors of Memphis Light, Gas, and Water.

    So why are Rep. Glen Casada and Sen. Ketron trying to destroy these laws that are working just fine for Memphis and Shelby County government? They claim that it's just too confusing for companies to have living wage standards to keep up with in some situations and not in others. 

    Do they really expect you to believe that businesses that have to fill out the numerous records involved in becoming a city contractor can't keep up with two different pay rates? For all their talk about protecting businesses, Casada and Ketron must not think businesspeople are very smart.

   And Ketron and Casada must think that Memphis and Shelby County are not capable of running their own governments. The last time I checked, determining who gets local government contracts, and for what reasons, should be decided at the local level. 

   So, what's our plan for action? What can you do to protect the living wage and all the workers who depend on it for survival?

• Sign up for Lobby Day on Tuesday, March 15th in Nashville. We're also joining a big rally for workers' rights at noon on the Capitol Steps South that day. There will be buses coming in to Nashville from several cities.
• If you don't already get WIN's email alerts, sign up now. Bills can move extremely quickly through the legislature, and email is the best way to get alerts about calls that must be made right away.
• Make a gift to Workers Interfaith Network. This will be our toughest struggle yet to protect the living wage, and every dollar will help in the fight.  

   Is it discouraging to have to face legislators from outside Shelby County every year who try to undo the good work we've done? Yes.

   But I find encouragement and hope in Psalm 140:12, which tells us "I know that the Lord maintains the cause of the needy, and executives justice for the poor." May we do the same ourselves.

Want to take action with workers seeking justice? Sign up for email action alerts from Workers Interfaith Network.

Stand up for workers on Lobby Day

In 2004, WIN members like Rev. Jeff Irwin (left) held a lobby day to successfully stop a bill that would have killed our local living wage laws.

   I hope that you'll consider signing up to join the statewide Lobby Day for Living Wages and Good Jobs on March 15th in Nashville. As I wrote yesterday, there are many important worker rights bills - both good and terrible - that state legislators are considering this session. Now is the time to raise your voice!

   If you're not able to join us in Nashville, you can still speak up with workers as state legislators consider critical bills affecting their rights. Just sign up for WIN's email updates, so you'll know the best times to contact legislators about important bills.

    The Tennessee legislature began meeting yesterday and will wrap up in May, so the winter and spring are key times for you to advocate for workers' rights.

   This legislative session could present University workers with the opportunity for a fair raise, after three years of pay freezes. Advocates must also be prepared to defend workers' rights as legislators introduce bills to take away workers' rights to have unions, and bills that encourage racial profiling of immigrant workers.

Why participate in Lobby Day?

    When someone wants to you to do something, an email might work. A phone call or a letter is more likely to get your attention. But what really gets you thinking about the other person's request is a face to face conversation, isn't it?

    It's the same way with our state legislators. The best way to make sure they hear - and respond - to your concerns about workers' rights is to meet with them in person. That's why WIN invites you to join us in Nashville on March 15th with people from all across Tennessee.

March 15th Lobby Day Schedule

    While some details of this schedule may change, the departure and arrival times from Memphis will not change.

5:30 a.m.                 Vans leave midtown Memphis for Nashville.
9:00 - 10 a.m.         Training and roleplays for legislative visits.
10:00 a.m. - noon    Visits to legislators in teams
Noon - 1 p.m.          Rally for living wages and good jobs on capitol steps.
1:00 - 1:45 p.m.      Lunch break (on your own)
1:45 - 3:00 p.m.      Visits to legislators in teams
3:00 p.m.                 Vans leave Nashville for Memphis
7:00 p.m.                Vans arrive in midtown Memphis


    We'll make sure you have all the training and talking points you need to meet with your legislators. The lunchtime rally will be an energizing time to join with people from all across Tennessee who believe our state can do better for workers. Won't you join us?

   Sign up to participate in the March 15th Lobby Day for Living Wages and Good Jobs!

State legislators prepare slew of anti-worker bills

Legislative session also presents opportunity for progress on

living wage for University workers

    The Tennessee Legislature begins its real work today, February 7th. Usually they wrap up their legislative session by mid-May. That means that the winter and spring are key times for you to advocate for workers' rights.

    University workers in Memphis and across the state have endured pay freezes for the past three years. As workloads have mounted and health insurance costs skyrocketed, low-wage workers have struggled to pay their bills.

   The budget passed by legislators could determine whether University workers move a significant step closer to a living wage. But the only way the state budget will include raises for low-wage University workers is if legislators hear from people like you.

  Your action will also be urgently needed to stop a number of anti-worker bills that have been introduced or are planned (legislators have just two weeks from today to introduce all bills for the session.)

   In the last legislative session (2009), a bill was narrowly defeated that would have repealed the local living wage ordinances you worked so hard to establish in Memphis and Shelby County. It is very likely this bill be introduced again this year.

   A number of proposed bills this year attack the rights of public employees, especially teachers, to have a union. One bill takes away teachers' unions ability to negotiate the terms of teachers' employment with boards of education. WIN members like you know that when workers have a voice in workplace decisions through their union, it creates a more stable, productive workplace.

   Worker rights and immigrant rights' advocates are also very concerned about promises by state Sen. Bill Ketron to introduce a state immigration bill similar to Arizon's controversial SB 1070. Such a law would allow local law enforcement to enforce federal immigration law. It would likely lead to racial profiling of Latinos and anyone who police decide seems foreign-born. It could also give employers an incentive to call the police on workers who complain about wage theft or other abuses.

Take Action

1) If you don't get WIN's email action alerts already, sign up now. Once the legislature starts to move, bills can progress very quickly. I'll send you alerts when your urgent action is needed.

2) Tomorrow I'll be posting about how you can participate in the Lobby Day for Living Wages and Good Jobs on March 15th in Nashville.

What inspires you to seek justice?

   The four of us who are privileged to work at Workers Interfaith Network all share something in common. And it's something that I bet we share in common with you: a passion for seeking justice.

   As I've gotten to know my co-workers better over the years, I've been continually inspired by their stories of what brings them to this work. What makes them get up every day and do the difficult work of organizing?

  Then I thought, why haven't I shared these stories with you? I hope they will inspire you to continue devoting yourself to the work of justice. And perhaps they will inspire you to share your own story!

   So today, I'll start by sharing some of James Luvene's story. James has worked part-time at WIN since 2005, building relationships with congregations and fundraising. He became connected with WIN while completing his Master of Divinity degree at Memphis Theological Seminary, where's he now completing his Doctorate of Ministry.

   What inspires James to seek justice? James tell this story best himself in the video below. His mother and father's experiences as custodial workers still have a profound impact on him today. When he shared this story about his mother's brave act on the day of Dr. King's assassination, I knew more people needed to hear it:



  What James forgot to mention is that his parents had 13 children to support when she quit her job.
 
  Faith and social justice: A United Methodist, James points to his church's strong statements for justice in its Social Principles. "For me, I really believe deep in my heart that it's almost impossible for me to say I'm a Christian and not be involved in social justice. It's what Jesus lived out every day; it's what Jesus taught every day, and it's what the Bible teaches," says James.

   The impact you make as a WIN member: When I asked James what the most important experience he's had on the WIN staff, he pointed back to an article that ran in The Commercial Appeal after your hard fight to win a living wage ordinance with the City of Memphis. The article featured a City worker who received a raise because of the living wage ordinance. She shared that she would now be able to buy her children's back to school clothes because of her raise. "That's what this work is all about," James says. "Making sure people who are working every day are treated with dignity in their work."

   James' dream for WIN: James is concerned about the growing emphasis on the prosperity gospel in many churches today. "As an African-American, I'm very concerned that there seems to be this pulling away from the works of justice," James says. "One of my dreams is for WIN to help the majority of churches in Memphis re-connect with their calling to the work of justice. We need to remember that Dr. King died in Memphis. But we also need to remember why he was in Memphis: to stand up with the sanitation workers."

   Share your story: So now you know a little of the journey that brings James to organize with you at Workers Interfaith Network. I want to hear your story too! Tell us what beliefs, people, and experiences inspire you to seek justice. Just share in the comments section below, or post on the WIN Facebook page.

Vigil Shows Growing Momentum for Living Wage at University of Memphis

    "If God was here, how would we act?" Dr. Ande Johnson asked the crowd of 60 University workers, students, and community members gathered for the living wage vigil on January 22nd. Dr. Johnson reminded us that while the world tends to think there's not enough for everyone, we worship a God of abundance. "I want to pray for our eyes to be opened, so that when we get these arguments like 'there's not money in the budget for a living wage,' or 'you should just be glad to have a job,' we can see that's there's already enough there for a living wage."

   Last week's vigil was the second major action in the University of Memphis living wage campaign, following up on a successful speak out in October. Because of the action and generosity of members like you, Workers Interfaith Network is able to join with University of Memphis workers and students in this new living wage campaign.

   All staff and faculty at the University have gone without pay raises for more than three years, but it's been especially tough on workers who are paid poverty wages. Custodial worker Emma Davis says she's had to rely on help from family members to make ends meet. Thelma Rimmer, also a custodial worker, wiped tears from her face as she shared that she can't even afford to live without a roommate at the age of 57 because she's only paid $8 an hour. Ms. Rimmer described co-workers who've worked at the University for more than a decade, but still have to ride the bus to work because they can't afford a car.

   Both workers also spoke of the fear that keeps many of their co-workers from speaking out. "I'm asking you all to do whatever you can to just be with us," Ms. Rimmer said. Reflecting on the fear of some of her co-workers, she added, "God gave me this freedom to stand up here today. I have this freedom of speech to stand here, and I'm not going to be scared."

   Support from other staff and faculty, students, and community members like you is critical to the success of the living wage campaign. And the next few months have great potential to bring workers closer to a living wage, if you and I push the Tennessee legislature to make sure workers receive a fair raise. We'll also be pressing University of Memphis President Shirley Raines to make a plan for implementing a living wage on campus.

    Here are some ways you can help:

• Collect postcard signatures to President Raines, or invite friends to sign our electronic petition to the President. If you are would like a stack of postcards to distribute, please contact me.
• Contact your legislators and urge them to adopt a fair pay raise that makes a real impact on low-wage workers' pay. As the legislative session begins in February, we'll keep you posted on actions you can take. The best way to keep up with these is to sign up for WIN's email action list.
• Make a donation to Workers Interfaith Network to help fund the living wage campaign.
• If you are a student at the University of Memphis, get involved in the Progressive Student Alliance.
• If you're a staff or faculty member at the University, join the United Campus Workers.

Is there a ladder to climb?

   This Saturday, I was privileged to hear green jobs guru Van Jones speak at the anniversary celebration for the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center. Jones began by talking about the lessons his father, a working class man, taught him. His father stressed to him that it was up to Van to make sure he took the steps to climb out of poverty. If he didn't have the mindset to make that climb, and didn't do the hard work it required, nothing else would matter.

   But, his father said, "it's society's job to make sure that you have a ladder to climb." Jones said, and I agree, that this is where we are failing as a country right now.

  Hearing these remarks, I immediately thought of the hard-working people, mostly women, who are paid poverty wages to keep the University of Memphis clean. America has promised them that their hard work will bring rewards. They rise every day while you and I are still asleep to begin work several hours before the sun rises. Many of them have worked at the University for years, putting in the time you'd think it takes to rise to a decent pay rate. But still, they're paid poverty wages.

   Who can make sure workers at the University of Memphis have a ladder to climb out of poverty? There's two groups that can make a living wage a reality for these workers. One is the administration of University President Shirley Raines. That's who we focused on at the speak out for a living wage held in October. But the state legislature also has a big influence on whether these workers will be paid the living wage for their hard work. That's who we're focusing on at our prayer vigil this Saturday.

   At the vigil, we'll pray for the upcoming legislative session. We'll hear from University workers. We'll urge legislators to pass equitable pay raises for workers, who've had no raise at all in three years. We'll call on legislators to reject any attempts to repeal living wage ordinances we've already won in Memphis and Shelby County. And we'll hear from Rep. Jeanne Richardson and other legislators about their plans for the living wage over the next few months of the legislative session.

   Please join us this Saturday - make sure that workers don't stand alone. Be part of sending a strong, clear message to our legislature: now is the time for a living wage.

Vigil for a living wage:

asking our legislators to do their part

Saturday, Jan. 22nd at 1:00 p.m.

Wesley Foundation at University of Memphis

3625 Midland Ave.

Limited parking available behind the Wesley Foundation. Additional parking at St. Luke's United Methodist Church at the corner of S. Highland and Midland.

The vigil is indoors, so there's no need to worry about bad weather.

King's Words About Labor Ring True Today

    As we approach Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday, I know I'll be hearing a lot of quotes and excerpts of his magnificant speeches. We'll probably also see a lot of stories where various reporters ask people whether they think we have moved closer to achieving Dr. King's dream.

    But most of the news stories and events this weekend will focus only on Dr. King's work to end segregation, while giving little attention to his major emphasis on economic justice, and peace. (One big exception will be the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center's anniversary celebration, which will feature green jobs leader Van Jones. They still have a few tickets left for Saturday night's dinner and program - get them now!)

    Maybe we tend to focus on Dr. King's work on integration more than economic justice because it seems like we can point to more signs of progress in the breaking down of racial barriers. But Dr. King's goals for racial justice were broader than a mere end to segregation, and he understood that racial and economic justice are intertwined. I think he would point to the continuing racial disparity in unemployment rates as an issue of both racial and economic oppression.

   It's up to us to remind our community that Dr. King came to Memphis to support a labor struggle. If we want to continue Dr. King's legacy, we must listen not only to the "I Have a Dream" speech, but also speeches like the one he gave in Memphis on March 18, 1968 to the sanitation workers. (Unfortunately there aren't copies of this speech online, but you can read it in the new book All Labor Has Dignity).

   A few memorable lines from this Memphis speech that have relevance for us today:

• "You are reminding, not only Memphis, but you are reminding the nation that it is a crime for people to live in this rich nation and receive starvation wages."
• "Do you know that most of the poor people in our country are working every day? And they are making wages so low that they cannot begin to function in the mainstream of the economic life of our nation. These are facts which must be seen, and it is criminal to have people working on a full-time basis and a full-time job getting part-time income."
• "We can all get more together than we can apart; we can get more organized together than we can apart. And this is the way we gain power. Power is the ability to achieve purpose, power is the ability to effect change. And we need power."
• "Never forget that freedom is not something that is voluntarily given by the oppressor. It is something that must be demanded by the oppressed."

   Dr. King laid out our work for us. Let's just make sure we remember the breadth and depth of his work when we talk about how to continue his legacy.