Group to Call on Council to Override Mayor’s Veto of Living Wage Bill With the DC Council preparing for an override vote of Mayor Gray’s shortsighted veto of the Large Retailer Accountability Act (LRAA), DC residents from neighborhoods throughout the city will be taking their calls for fair wages and good jobs to Council on Tuesday. The bill, which would ensure that large, profitable retailers pay a minimum of $12.50 an hour to employees, has been recognized by local residents, Council Members, policy experts and economists as a bill that would help improve jobs and bolster the local economy.
Results from Hart Research Associates.
New polling shows from Hart Research shows that voters overwhelmingly support the LRAA. Seventy-one percent of voters voiced their support in a survey conducted this weekend, with large majorities saying the bill will have positive effects not only on workers’ wages, but also on jobs, employment and the local economy. Support was particularly high in Wards 5 and 7. Additionally, 63 percent of voters said that they would be more likely to support a mayoral candidate in 2014 who supports the LRAA.
For more information on the polling, visit: http://www.respectdc.org/wp-content/uploads/ME11014-DC-Voter-Survey.pdf
At 12 pm on Tuesday Sept. 17, hundreds of people – including Revered Graylan Hagler of Faith Strategies and Plymouth United Congregational Church of Christ, Kimberly Mitchell, a life long Ward 7 resident and Macy’s employee, Reverend Edwin Jones of Living Faith Baptist Church, Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Dyana Forester, and more – will be rallying for an override on the front steps of the Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Ave. NW Washington, DC 20004.
WHO: Respect DC, Forward 7, Ward 4 Thrives, Faith Strategies, OUR DC, UFCW Local 400, Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO, DC Jobs with Justice, Fair Budget Coalition, Jews United for Justice, DC Employment Justice Center, OUR Walmart, and more
WHAT: Rally for Good Jobs in DC, Call on Council to Override of Living Wage Bill
WHEN: 12:00 pm, Tuesday, September 17
WHERE: Wilson Building steps, 1350 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Background:
The rally comes as Walmart workers in the DC area and nationwide have increased their calls to improve jobs at the country’s largest employer. Last week, 100 workers and supporters were arrested when refusing to end their calls for better jobs at Walmart.
A report from the national public policy center Demos shows that better jobs at Walmart and other large retailers would even help the store’s bottom line, as well as have an impact on individual families and the larger economy. A wage floor equivalent of $25,000 per year for a full-time, year-round employee for retailers with more than 1000 employees would lift 1.5 million retail workers and their families out of poverty or near poverty, add to economic growth, increase retail sales and create more than 100,000 new jobs.