Join us in celebrating all that we have accomplished in 2021!

Friends,

As we emerge from almost two years of a global pandemic, we look out at two starkly different visions of how we live together as a society. The first vision is a hopeful one; it reflects the generosity and solidarity that we showed one another in the face of COVID-19. It's the vision shared by those of us who acted with eyes open to both the immediate threat of the pandemic and the longtime faults it exposed. In this vision, we use the great tools and vast wealth at our collective disposal to foster the common good.

In the second vision, that of America’s billionaires, the rich get far richer while low wage workers, predominantly workers of color, stay on the frontlines. In this vision, they make port truck drivers shoulder all the risks and their employers-in-all-but-name reap the rewards. They respond to communities fighting asthma and cancer by making drivers pay for cleaner trucks. They make warehouse workers compete against the clock and themselves until their bodies break down.

That second vision has taken so much from us. But ours will win. We will win because of our solidarity and love. We will win by organizing. by finding common ground and standing on it, shoulder-to-shoulder and pressing forward.

Please join us in celebrating all that we accomplished in 2021 as we prepare for a new year fighting for this vision — for an economy that works for all of us.

In Solidarity,

Roxana Tynan

PORTS
LAANE’s Ports team worked in partnership with the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor under the leadership of Ron Herrera, Teamsters Port Division, and California Teamsters Public Affairs Council to pass new protections for port truck drivers under two landmark laws that were recently signed by Governor Newsom. SB 338, championed by Senator Lena Gonzalez, strengthens existing law by expanding the criteria for joint liability so that powerful retailers and cargo owners that contract with companies that have past wage theft judgments will share responsibility for future wage theft. AB 794, championed by Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo, protects drivers from predatory leasing schemes by requiring trucking companies to be in compliance with labor laws to receive and retain public incentive funds to purchase clean trucks. These bills mark a new chapter in state policy after decades of advocacy by labor and environmental organizations to advance climate and economic justice goals.

AMAZON
This fall, Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 701, the Warehouse Workers Protection Act. This law is the first of its kind and an initial step in addressing the reality of algorithmic work in our country. Championed by Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez, it will protect the over 250,000 frontline warehouse workers in California by requiring employers to disclose quotas while prohibiting them from penalizing workers for rest periods, bathroom breaks, and time complying with health and safety laws. We owe this victory to the tireless work of the Teamsters Local 396, Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, Warehouse Workers Resource Center, and the many warehouse workers who bravely spoke up, engaged their representatives, and joined together to say, “Work shouldn’t hurt!”

WATER & POWER
LAANE’s Water Justice and RePower LA campaign teams worked with their coalition partners to eliminate utility debt accumulated by LADWP ratepayers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our statewide campaign won $2 billion in utility debt relief for Californians—$1 billion toward water debt and $1 billion toward energy debt. Of that $2 billion, LADWP applied for and received $265 million, which will be credited to the accounts of 280,000 Angelenos by March 2022. The RePower LA coalition ended the year by joining environmental justice partners and LA City Council members to introduce a historic motion for a new energy justice framework for building decarbonization. The LAANE Water Justice team, with support and actions led by our environmental justice partners in Southeast Los Angeles, was able to send over 600 letters encouraging twelve water utilities to apply for water debt relief from the State Water Board. Collectively, the Southeast LA water utilities have applied for almost $2 million in
relief funds.

RETAIL & GROCERY

LAANE's Retail & Grocery team was proud to support UFCW 770 in their fight to pass $5 hazard pay ordinances for grocery and drug retail workers in the City and County of Los Angeles. Over 29,000 Angelenos have benefited from receiving hazard pay under these ordinances. Frontline grocery and drug retail workers have risked exposure to a potentially deadly virus to make sure our communities had the supplies they needed to stay safe. We owe special thanks to L.A. County Supervisor Hilda Solis and L.A. City Council President Nury Martinez for bringing these ordinances forward and making sure grocery and drug retail workers are treated with dignity and respect in unprecedented times.

At the state level, LAANE worked alongside the CA Work and Family Coalition to push for an extension of COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave, which provided a safety net for workers well into 2021 by requiring employers with 26 or more employees to provide up to 2 weeks of supplemental paid leave for COVID-19 related reasons.
QUALITY CARE
In partnership with SEIU 2015, LAANE is fighting to transform the nursing home industry by advancing policies to improve working conditions, provide transparency and quality care for patients and their families, and build power in the workforce, which is predominantly women of color. We look forward to continuing to build community and worker power in 2022 in order to uplift caregivers, secure the wages and protections they need, and transform the nursing home industry.

EDUCATION
Reclaim Our Schools LA, a coalition led by LAANE, ACCE, UTLA and Students Deserve, achieved major victories this year when the LAUSD School Board voted to support ongoing funding for 40 existing community schools and the creation of 30 more over the next 3 years. With the leadership of Students Deserve, Reclaim Our Schools LA also supported a $96 million investment in the Black Student Achievement Plan to support Black students across LAUSD. In the fall, the coalition brought together hundreds of parents, students, educators and community members in successful town halls, which focused on community demands ranging from reimagining student safety and police-free schools to protecting students experiencing homelessness. Reclaim Our Schools LA will continue to build community power to fight for these demands when UTLA enters into contract bargaining with LAUSD next year.

FUNDRAISING
LAANE’s City of Justice Awards Dinner made a much-anticipated return to the Beverly Hilton Hotel this month and smashed the 2021 fundraising goal. We are deeply grateful to the 2021 Honorees who made this milestone possible: Nancy Cotton, Cordoba Corporation, Ron Miller, and Julie Su.

There's still time to make a year-end donation ([link removed]) and help us continue all the work above and more in 2022! Any amount helps and is appreciated.


Thank you for being a partner, a supporter, and a friend who makes our work possible. Safe Holidays and Happy New Year from LAANE!

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