Fighting for economic equality The Fight for $15 is a fight whose time has come. Once a social justice issue about dignity for low wage workers, it is now a movement about an economy that works for all. CSEA members were front and center during a National Day of Action in early November joining in solidarity with workers across the country who had their voices heard. Petra Gonzalez, a cleaner at Bronx Psychiatric Center, joined other workers on stage at a Manhattan rally demanding that corporations and governments raise wages so that people can support their families. “It’s wrong that so many people are paid so little that they can’t afford basic needs,” said Gonzalez. “Working people should have the right to stick together in a union so they can be heard. Raising wages will boost local families and make the economy work for all of us, not just the wealthy.” Gonzalez earns more than $15 an hour, but still struggles to make ends meet. She attended the rally in support of helping her co-workers who earn less. Union activists joined fast Petra Gonzalez, a CSEA member and cleaner at Bronx Psychiatric Center, addressed thousands in Foley Square demanding a fair wage. ‘Every penny helps’ challenges faced by low-wage workers. Sheehy is frugal, but still runs out of money before the end of the month. Contributions toward home expenses, car and insurance payments and a $150-per-month student loan payment easily exceed her take-home pay. For the last five years, Sheehy has been boosting her income doing part-time security work at a local television station. Between her Fight for $15 full-time and part-time jobs, Sheehy sometimes feels like she is missing out on her life. “But I need to work two jobs for extra money,” she said. “Things would be way worse without that second job.” “I hope it helps,” she said of the governor’s pay hike. “Every penny helps.” — Therese Assalian Above, Tessa Sheehy on a break from her job at the Department of Labor on the state campus. food workers, airport personnel home care aides, other low-wage workers and their advocates as part of a National Day of Action on Nov. 10 to demand fair wages and improved working conditions. The rally and other events across the state were sponsored by progressive groups including Citizen Action, the Moral Mondays movement and the Labor-Religion Coalition of New York State. That day, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that he would raise the wages of state workers earning less than $15 per hour, a move that CSEA has been calling on him to make since earlier this year. The raises will be phased in over the next several years. “The governor’s action will have positive practical impact and will be good for New York’s economy as a whole,” CSEA President Danny Donohue said. (See President’s column, page 4) CSEA continues to push for higher wages for all workers but there is ample evidence that helping low-wage workers is good for everyone and the economy as a whole. — David Galarza ALBANY — Tessa Sheehy, a CSEA member and office assistant at the Department of Labor, is just one of the thousands of working New Yorkers who have long been undervalued and will benefit from the governor’s plan to raise the minimum wage for state workers to $15 per hour. The 23-year-old lives with her mother, and is planning to find a two-bedroom apartment with a friend once they get enough money saved for the deposit and down payment. “That’s my goal,” she said. “I want to be on my own and not rely on anyone. There’s no way I could do it without a roommate.” For workers like Sheehy, fair wages will help them not only sustain themselves and their families, but will give them more money to spend in their communities. Sheehy’s circumstances were recently profiled in a New York Times article focusing on the December 2015 The Work Force 3
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