JwJ Blog

For the first time in Indianapolis’s recent history, 43 participants staged a mass civil disobedience in front of the Hyatt Regency downtown.  Hospitality workers and community supporters of the hotel workers were there to stand up for the Hyatt workers who have been asking management to stay neutral since November of 2008.  Among the 43 were two JwJ staff members, seven steering committee members and many other JwJ pledge signers.

On June 16, reports surfaced that the Hyatt had plans to sell the Hyatt  Regency in Indianapolis, adding to the uncertainty that Hyatt workers in Indianapolis already face.  Over the past decade, taxpayers in Indianapolis have invested $1 billion into the development of the local hospitality industry.  The hotel and convention industry in Indianapolis is booming yet at the Hyatt Indianapolis, a non-union hotel, subcontracting of jobs is rampant, hours have been reduced in recent months, and workers earn some of the lowest wages of any

Continue reading Central Indiana JwJ supports Hyatt workers in civil disobedience action as part of nationwide protests

Members of Jobs with Justice San Francisco turned out in force to support UNITE HERE Local 2 hotel and restaurant workers as they took to the streets to demand a fair contract on July 22.  Prior to the rally at Local 2 Plaza in downtown San Francisco, community activists, clergy, and union members packed a civil disobedience training session at Local 2 headquarters.  There they reviewed plans to close the street in front of the Grand Hyatt in Union Square.

An hour later, as tourists stared in amazement and snapped photos, fifteen hundred people marched through the streets and converged on the Grand Hyatt, cheering and chanting in several languages in support of the hotel and restaurant workers.  The boisterous crowd reflected the diversity of San Francisco as youth from POWER (People Organized to Win Employment Rights), PODER (People Organizing to demand Environmental and Economic Rights), Chinese Progressive Association and Young Workers United joined teachers, nurses, clergy, teamsters, longshoremen, many other union members and elected city officials to condemn

Continue reading JwJ San Francisco Sits Down to Support Hotel Workers Rising

Unemployment benefits expired for 2.5 million long-term jobless back in May.  Since then, the Senate has almost restored unemployment benefits three times, but each time Republicans have blocked the votes with procedural delays.

Tomorrow, the unemployment benefits extension is expected to come to a vote.  Tell your Senators not to fall for GOP scare-tactics about the budget deficit — or their offensive assertions that the unemployed are “spoiled” brats who are just “sitting there” collecting unemployment benefits.

One job for every five people looking for work is a jobless emergency, and we need emergency action now!

TAKE ACTION

They said we couldn’t do it, but they were wrong.  JwJ and our partners out-organized the big banks!

On Thursday, two years after the financial meltdown that has spiraled into the worst economic crisis in a generation, the Senate finally voted to approve the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform & Consumer Protection Act.  This financial reform bill takes some key steps towards breaking the control that Wall Street has over our country.

This important victory is just the beginning.  We will continue organizing to hold the big banks accountable and work to ensure that the banks who profit from our money benefit our communities.

Earlier today, members of the Chicago Jobs with Justice Unemployed Workers’ Council and allies paid a visit to Representative (and Illinois Senate candidate) Mark Kirk’s office in Northbrook, Illinois to protest his opposition to extending unemployment benefits.

Jorge Ramirez, President of the Chicago Federation of Labor, spoke to Rep. Kirk’s staff, “that’s the primary reason why a lot of these folks are here.  They’re unemployed, their unemployment benefits are getting cut off… he needs to know that the votes he makes in Washington are directly accountable to the people you see in this room.”

The House has already voted to extend unemployment benefits (without Rep. Kirk’s support), but it has yet to pass the Senate.  A Senate vote is expected Tuesday.

They said we couldn’t do it.  But they were wrong.  JwJ and our partners overcame $1.5 Million PER DAY of banker lobbying!

On Thursday, the Senate plans to vote on the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform & Consumer Protection Act.  This financial reform bill that takes some key steps towards breaking the control that Wall Street has over our country — and we need everyone to ACT NOW to pass it!

Last summer, insiders pronounced banking reform “dead.” They said ‘everyone’ had forgotten about the Wall Street bailout and the obscene bonuses — and that Congress was too dependent on bank money as it approached election season to do anything that would actually make a difference.  But a series of mobilizations across the country kept the heat on Congress and an important step towards breaking the power of the banks is within our grasp.

Let’s be real:  The Dodd-Frank bill, already passed by the US House, is not the end of the struggle.  The big banks are still too big.  They still need to be broken up and reined

Continue reading ACT NOW to Hold Banks Accountable

On Wednesday, July 7th, as a prelude to our first big action following the US Social Forum (which will be on September 15th), Kentucky JwJ stood in solidarity with millions who have lost their jobs and face a desperate future.

Although this was a last minute call to action, at least 50 protesters showed up to march outside of the office of Senator Mitch McConnell in Louisville.  Our demand was an immediate extension of unemployment benefits and protection of Social Security and Medicare — our precious social safety net programs won by generations of struggle.

Several individuals on unemployment spoke, including longtime Kentucky Jobs with Justice activist Gail Helinger.  She has been laid off for over a year now, and her unemployment compensation will end soon unless Congress acts quickly!

Gail and several other unemployed workers marched into Senator McConnell’s office to speak with him about this issue but, of course, he was unavailable.  They were able to speak to an aide who informed them that the Senator will vote for extension of unemployment benefits that is fiscally responsible.

We then marched several blocks to the unemployment office to distribute leaflets with the following call to action:

Are you unemployed?  Are

Continue reading Kentuckians Demand Unemployment Benefits Extension

The main purpose of social media is to make it easier for people to stay connected with family and friends around the world.  Websites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube have created a space where people can share pictures, videos, and generally keep in touch.  In recent years, organizations have been finding new ways to utilize these social mediums to spread their message and reach more people.

At the US Social Forum, the workshop “Social Networking for Social Justice”, facilitated by  Attica Scott of Kentucky JwJ and Shameka Parrish-Wright of Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, illustrated some of the ways that social media can aid in the fight for social justice.

For social justice organizations, one of the main advantages of using social networking to spread a message or further a movement is that it’s FREE.  Social media is like free advertising – you can say all that you need to say and reach so many people without having to pay a dime.  Another advantage to using social media is that you can present your message in a fun interactive way, and in ways that will attract new comers and keep the interest of already loyal followers.

Using social media can also help breathe

Continue reading Social Networking for Social Justice at the US Social Forum

Yesterday was an exciting day of education and action at the U.S. Social Forum! 

JwJ coalitions convened and spoke at a variety of workshops, including: Uncovering the Truth on Police & ICE Collaborations (DC JwJ), Social Networking for Social Justice (KY JwJ), Writers’ Circle (Missouri JwJ), The Impact of Financial Restructuring on Michigan Workers and the Union Response (SE Michigan JwJ), Good Jobs for All:  Winning Full and Fair Employment for a New Economy (National JwJ), and The TRADE Act as a Tool for Global Justice (Southern Oregon JwJ). 

Jobs with Justice members participated in the Excluded Workers Congress People’s Movement Assembly which focused on how we can expand workers’ rights to organize.  We heard inspiring testimony from a variety of workers who are fighting for their rights on the job (stay tuned for more on this, including video).

In the evening, JwJ co-sponsored a march and rally with AFSCME Council 65 and the Metro Detroit AFL-CIO to demand, “Money for JOBS, not Banks!”

What an amazing day!

Jobs with Justice held an orientation session for local coalition folks early in the day and then got on buses to meet up with local labor activists for the USSF opening march. 

JwJ joined the march with the other members of the Inter-Alliance dialogue more than 10,o00 people for a lively march through downtown Detroit and then convened at Cobo Hall for the USSF opening ceremonies. 

Check out our photo album from the march here.

 Tonight JwJ held a meeting of our local coalition leaders to discuss our ongoing jobs campaign.  We had a rich discussion about the depth of the jobs emergency and possible approaches for how to address it, including challenging the corporate- funded scare tactics about the deficit that are distracting us from the reality of the jobs crisis.   We came away from the meeting with renewed dedication to a more coordinated strategy to challenge the right wing agenda and win good jobs for all.

May 29th marked one moment in the ongoing fight to stop SB1070.  Over 100,000 merged to Phoenix to denounce legalizing racial profiling, demand that President Obama intervene, and call on people of conscious everywhere to join the fight to address the human rights crisis in Arizona as the implementation date of July 29th approaches.

From a candlelight vigil organized by  JwJ of East Tennessee and others, to Diamondbacks Boycott held in San Francisco, over 70 other solidarity actions occurred leading up to and on the day.  And more followed.  Organizers, activist, people of faith, teachers, students, and community members took the call for solidarity back into their communities, cities and states.

Fifteen million jobless are still waiting for our Senators to finish the job and pass unemployment insurance extension.   Millions more are waiting for COBRA health subsidies and aid to states.

CALL NOW: 1-888-854-1978

Tell your Senator to vote for the American Jobs & closing Tax Loopholes Act:

This jobs crisis is deeper and longer-lasting than even the Reagan recession of the 1980s.  State and local governments are starting to lay off thousands of teachers, and experts predict a loss of nearly one million jobs in the coming months if Congress fails to help the states now.

So what’s the hold up?

Many Democrats seem to be falling for right-wing scare tactics about the budget deficit and some are even buying into the ridiculous argument that getting jobless benefits keeps the unemployment rate higher.

But defecits are necessary in a jobs crisis.  Just imagine what forcing one million more onto the

Continue reading CALL NOW! The Jobless Can’t Wait Any Longer.

Kentucky Jobs with Justice will be joining more than 10 other social justice organizations on two charter buses to Detroit to take part in the US Social Forum.  Here is a snippet from the USSF Web site:

The US Social Forum (USSF) is a movement building process. It is not a conference but it is a space to come up with the peoples’ solutions to the economic and ecological crisis. The USSF   is the next most important step in our struggle to build a powerful multi-racial, multi-sector, inter-generational, diverse, inclusive, internationalist movement that transforms this country and changes history.

The USSF provides spaces to learn from each other’s experiences and struggles, share our analysis of the problems our communities face, build relationships, and align with our international brothers and sisters to strategize how to reclaim our world.

The first US Social Forum was held in Atlanta in 2007 with KY JwJ taking over 40 delegates.  KY JwJ hosted the first Kentucky Social Forum in 2009 at Berea College, which drew over 400 participants.  These Forums were and are inspired by the

Continue reading Kentucky Jobs with Justice is Taking 100 Activists to the USSF in Detroit!

For over a year, JwJ has been sounding the alarm that we are in an economic crisis calling for bold action and that there is no such thing as a “jobless recovery.” But leaders in Washington DC still don’t get it. 

What we really need is a major jobs creation program, but the 15 million jobless Americans need support – NOW!

Tell your Senators to support jobless workers!

There are still nearly 6 people looking for every job opening, and even optimistic projections suggest it will take 5-6 years before the unemployment rate drops to pre-recession levels.  If all the jobless Americans stood shoulder to shoulder, they would stretch across America — twice.

Unless Congress acts, 300,000 people will run out of unemployment benefits next week.  Unless Congress continues jobless benefits, like the subsidy for COBRA payments, 144,000 per month will likely lose health coverage. 

Tell your Senators to act now!

Yesterday, flanked by Cleveland Jobs with Justice activists; including members of the Cleveland Teachers Union (CTU), SEIU Local 1, Workers United, Working America and ATU Local 268, along with fire and police union members, Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown announced his intent to introduce the Local Jobs for America Act during the week of June 7th.  Senator Brown’s version of the House Bill would send $75 Billion to local governments and community groups over the next 2 year period. Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson and Mayor Don Plusquellic  of Akron both spoke about the cuts in fire and police forces that have had to endure during this economic downturn.  Teacher Justin Hons, effected by the upcoming teacher layoff in Cleveland and laid off  ATU Local 268 mechanic,  Dennis Pohl both attended the news conference lending support to the bill being introduced by Senator Brown.

Michele Pomerantz,  CTU Trustee and Director of Political Action and Cleveland Jobs with Justice member  said, “today’s announcement gives me hope that better days are coming for everyone.”

The crowd of approximately 100 listened intently while a small group of teabaggers (3, in fact) tried to

Continue reading Sherrod Brown Will Introduce the Local Jobs for America Act in the Senate

Phoenix, Arizona.  This weekend 100,000 people marched six miles from Steele Indian School Park to the State Capitol to denounce SB1070 and demand President Obama intervene in the growing human rights crisis in Arizona.  We were joined by supporters ranging from AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka to the voice of her people, Grammy Nominated Singer, Jenni Rivera, and attendees who drove from as far away as Boston to support the local people leading the effort to overturn SB 1070.

In a gathering Sunday morning, movement-building organizations from across the country share their commitments to bring the Arizona human rights crisis fight back to their communities. 

Participants heard from local leadership, national allies, and from veterans of the Mississippi Freedom Summer the urgency of a national response.  Organizations shared ways to connect their struggles, campaigns, and creativity in breakout sessions and committed to ongoing peaceful resistance.    A global call for escalating resistance to stop SB1070 was made.

“We will make this summer a Human Rights summer everywhere, “Said Pablo Alvarado,

Continue reading Call for Peaceful Escalating Resistance to Arizona SB1070

14.6 million U.S. workers unemployed.  One in ten without work.  Only one job opening for every 5.6 people looking.

Congress just doesn’t get it.  Joblessness is an emergency, and requires bold, emergency action.  Tell Congress they must ACT NOW to create jobs and protect jobless benefits!

This jobs crisis is deeper and longer-lasting than even the Reagan recession of the 1980s, but many Democrats seem to be falling for right-wing scare tactics about the budget deficit and buying into the ridiculous argument that getting jobless benefits keeps the unemployment rate higher. 

Wall Street has recovered.  Corporate CEOs are back to their greedy ways.  Meanwhile, even if trends reverse today, workers will have to wait four to six years to close this job gap.  The House voted last week to extend unemployment benefits for the long-term unemployed, but only through November, and they removed money to help people keep their health care coverage. 

No matter what the conservative number crunchers say:  there’s no such thing as a jobless recovery!  Congress must act now to save and create jobs, starting with

Continue reading They Still Don’t Get It

Leroy Smith leads chants at a Chicago JwJ Unemployed Workers Council action outside the unemployment office on June 1. Jobless activists and JwJ member groups rallied and collected "applications" for the 1 million jobs that would be created by the Local Jobs for America Act.

Congress still doesn’t get it.  During the Congressional recess this week, Jobs with Justice coalitions across the country are sending them a message:  There is no such thing as a “Jobless Recovery”.

America is 28 months and 8 million fewer jobs into a major jobs crisis — caused by Wall Street recklessness and corporate greed.  Unemployment levels are deeper and longer-lasting that any post-war recession, there are nearly six people looking for every job opening, yet Congress has yet to enact a serious job-creation program, like the “Local Jobs for America Act”.  And pundits are telling us we should just wait a few more years til we can put America back to work.

The House of Representatives even stripped health care benefits for the jobless from its recent unemployment extension bill, passed on Friday.  Efforts to restore the jobless benefits for long-term unemployed will be

Continue reading Ramping Up the Pressure for Jobs and Benefits

Cross-posted from Labor Notes.

Striking workers at the Supervalu- owned Shaw’s Distribution Center in Methuen, Mass., have been marching from Methuen to Boston for justice since Sunday, May 23.

The 310 workers, members of UFCW Local 791, have been on strike since March 7 over the company’s insistence that the burden of increasing health care costs be borne by workers.

As a resident of Somerville, I chose to meet up with the strikers on their march from Medford to Somerville, the third day of their four-day journey. While we marched, the 50 or so workers and supporters enjoyed broad support from passing motorists, as well as cheers from many residents in the neighborhoods along the route.

It was easy to see how bringing the strike into the community gets people mobilized in different ways than just walking a picket line. All kinds of people get involved. I especially liked the opportunity to meet up with other labor activists from Somerville.

I also had a surprising connection with one of the

Continue reading Strikers March from Methuen to Boston to Win Justice at Shaw’s

Tens of thousands are mobilizing to Phoenix on May 29 to show the world that people from all backgrounds across the country are unified in denouncing SB1070.  From Seattle to Miami, the demands are clear, that President Obama needs to end the criminalization of people of color in the state of Arizona and stop SB1070.

Pablo Alvarado, Executive Director of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, stated, “The eyes of the world are watching and President Obama must act.  SB1070 is where we draw the line and say enough is enough.  Enough of a disastrous and dangerous ‘enforcement first’ strategy to immigration reform.  Enough to the criminalization of workers and families.  We will escalate our struggle if the President does not act concretely and immediately to stop the implementation of SB1070.”

Richard Trumka, President of the AFL-CIO, Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers, Eliseo Medina, International Executive Vice President of SEIU, Luis Gutierrez (Illinois, D), Raul Grijalva (Arizona, D), and artists such as Alex Lora of El Tri and Jenni Rivera will all be

Continue reading May 29 Mass Mobilization Against Arizona SB1070