LABOR CALENDAR
Union City Radio: 7:15am daily
WPFW-FM 89.3 FM; click here to hear today's report
Alexandria Dems Labor Caucus: Wed, May 6, 7:30am – 8:30am
Via Zoom
Union City Radio: Your Rights at Work: Thu, May 7, 1pm – 2pm
WPFW 89.3 FM or listen online. Call-in at 202-588-0893
Arlington Dems Labor Caucus: Thu, May 7, 6pm – 7pm
Via Zoom
May 4-10 is the #LaborCounts Census Week of Action: today's theme: Women’s Empowerment and the Census
DC nurses accuse Mayor of “selling out” residents in new hospital deal
Nurses at United Medical Center say they’re “incensed at the lack of transparency” in negotiations between the District Government, George Washington University Hospital (GW), and Universal Health Services (UHS) to operate the new hospital in southeast DC. “Once again Mayor Bowser is selling out residents East of the River by negotiating behind closed doors on a new hospital that resoundingly fails to meet the health care needs of our residents,” said Edward J. Smith, Executive Director of the DC Nurses Association (DCNA). “People still need a cancer clinic, geriatric center, OB-GYN with a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), an upgraded diabetes program, and a Level 1 trauma center.” Forcing UMC nurses to apply for positions at the new hospital “demonstrates a lack of respect for the nurses at UMC who are risking their well being to save the lives of individuals suffering from the corona virus,” said Roberta Lenoir, an emergency department nurse and President of the UMC/DCNA bargaining unit.
Save the Dates: DC City Council Candidate Town HallsThe Metro Washington Labor Council will be hosting a series of Zoom Town Halls this month with our endorsed DC Council candidates: Wednesday, May 13 - 7:30p: Trayon WhiteThursday, May 21 - 7:30p: Jordan GrossmanWednesday, May 20 - 7:30p: Janesse Lewis-George You'll be able to meet the candidates, submit questions and learn more about their stands on labor issues. Click above to register.
Stories from essential workers
From grocery store workers to healthcare professionals, thousands of essential workers have found themselves on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic. Recently, BuzzFeed asked them to show what it's actually like at their jobs right now. Here’s some of what they said: "I work at a restaurant that’s considered essential. I have to constantly wash my hands and use bleach cleaning products. Even though I use lotion and sleep with gloves on, my hands still crack and bleed." "I'm a cashier, and my experiences with customers run the gamut: I got a rose as a thank-you from one customer, but got coughed on by another customer who was mad about her total." "This is the new normal as a nurse in assisted living: overtired and always unsure of what's next."
- excerpted from “21 Emotional Pictures And Stories From Essential Workers Who Are On The Front Lines Right Now”; BuzzFeed
Today's Labor Quote: Student nurse Alivar
"I'm working as a student nurse and a healthcare assistant and am so proud that I’m able to care for patients during these difficult times."
Alivar is one of the essential workers quoted in the BuzzFeed story (above).
Today's Labor History
This week's Labor History Today podcast: Jack Kelly’s "The Edge of Anarchy”; “Union Maids” director Julia Reichert (Part 2)
Last week’s show: Julia Reichert: ‘We Don’t Just Interview People Once’; Montgomery Ward busted; May Day and Mother Jones
Works Progress Administration (WPA) established at a cost of $4.8 billion -- more than $72 billion in 2011 dollars -- to provide work opportunities for millions during the Great Depression - 1935
400 black women working as tobacco stemmers walk off the job in a spontaneous revolt against poor working conditions and a $3 weekly wage at the Vaughan Co. in Richmond, Va. - 1937
- David Prosten; photo: Bridgeton, New Jersey. Seabrook Farm. Cannery Workers. John Collier, photographer, June 1942. Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Black-and-White Negatives. Prints & Photographs Division; source: Library of Congress
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