At the urging of Coloradans for the Common Good and the United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW), Governor Jared Polis expanded the consideration of "essential workers" to include food and grocery store workers on the front lines of the coronavirus crisis. The protections include emergency paid leave and child care, and will benefit 20,000 grocery store and commercial food processing workers across the state.

In a meeting with the Governor, faith and labor leaders successfully made the case that grocery store workers are essential and should be eligible for supports then-available only to front-line medical workers.

[Photo Credit: Mykal McEldowney / IndyStar]

Colorado Emergency Child Care Expands to include Grocery, Construction Workers, Chalkbeat [pdf]  

What About Grocery Store Workers? Advocates Push Colorado to Extend Emergency Child Care, Chalkbeat [pdf] 

In small group conversations organized through their congregations, Valley Interfaith leaders Elisa Alfaro of Holy Spirit parish and Dayra Campos of San Juan Diego kept hearing the same stories: workers in cold storage facilities earning less than the minimum wage and experiencing rampant labor abuse. 

While the federal minimum wage is $7.25, parishioners shared that they are often paid less than half that by McAllen producers.  When one company closed access to the bathroom for employees, they were forced to walk 10 minutes to a gas station for their bathroom break.  Another parishioner shared constant threats by their boss if they were to admit working 10 hours per day for $600 per month (less than half the minimum wage).   

In response, Valley Interfaith leaders are calling on the City of McAllen to ensure that no company that pays workers under the minimum wage, or is guilty of wage theft, receives incentives from the city.  They are also calling on the City to investigate abusive labor practices. Leaders are now meeting with the McAllen Economic Development Corporation and McAllen City Manager about making these changes.   

"Nobody should earn a slave wage," said Elisa Alfaro.

[Image Credit: KVEO footage]

Faith Leaders, Lawyer: Wage Theft Rampant at Local Cold Storage Facilities, The Monitor [pdf] 

Produce Industry Wage Dispute, KVEO [pdf]

Fair Pay a Distant Dream for Produce Packers in the Rio Grande Valley, San Antonio Express-News

Spokane, WA - Concluding a two-year campaign at an 11:30pm Monday vote, 180 Spokane Alliance leaders celebrated the passage of a historic citywide 'Sick and Safe' leave policy covering absences due to illness or re-locations to escape domestic violence. The ordinance mandates that businesses with 10 or more employees provide their workers at least 5 days of 'sick and safe' leave per year, and businesses with 9 or fewer workers at least 3. Forty leaders shared their personal stories with the council that night, resulting in a strengthened ordinance.

More background here, Spokane Alliance

According to lead organizer Deborah Littman, the key to success is conducting "listening campaigns."

The Vancouver Sun lauded Metro Vancouver Alliance for its work in building community and, most recently, for helping mostly Filipino nursing home staff get through a contentious contract dispute. Read article below for more.

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Hundreds of Spokane Alliance leaders crashed City Council chambers in a final December push for 'Quality Jobs' in Spokane. They succeeded, with a 5-2 vote in favor of an Apprenticeship requirement that contractors on public works projects larger than $350K hire apprentices for at least 15% of the work . Leaders supported this measure to create pathways to careers for living wage jobs.

Council Passes Public Works Project, Spokesman Review

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Catholic, Baptist and union leaders of Sydney Alliance challenged the wisdom of retail trading deregulation, given the impact on workers' families. Ten delegates gave personal testimony at a 'Take The Time' event; one related that as a father that works Sundays and 2 of 4 Saturdays per month, with a mother that works Saturdays, the only time to be a family occurs on days when shops don't open.

Facebook Post, Sydney Alliance

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"In recent weeks, unions have found themselves inadvertently under attack. In the ALP's attempt to make itself re-electable federally, unions were said to be "part of the problem". It's true that a few corrupt union leaders have done nothing to help the labour movement in recent years, but working people in this country are in real trouble if the values unions bring to our public sphere are weakened.

In every crisis there is opportunity. Instead of acting defensively, unions can use this shake-up to further strengthen themselves..."

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Leaders created additional economic opportunities for workers by pushing through a "preference policy" prioritizing local bids for contracts and vending with the City of Santa Cruz and Monterey County. This is part of COPA's regional strategy to promote hiring by municipal and school district entities from within Santa Cruz, San Benito and Monterey.