Join Long Island Jobs with Justice in Albany on Tuesday, April 23rd as we lobby in Albany for the passage of the New York State DREAM Act! We will leave around 6AM that morning and have stops in Riverhead, central Suffolk, and Nassau County, returning to Long Island late in the evening. If you’d like to join us, register online here.
Spread the word with our flyer here:
Join Long Island Jobs with Justice for our Business Leaders Press Conference on Tuesday, March 19th. It’s not just workers and progressives who want to see a minimum wage increase: many businesses understand the importance of raising the minimum wage for their own businesses and for the economy at large.
As Jim Sinegal, CEO of Costco said, “Paying your employees well is not only the right thing to do, but it makes for good business.”
Immigration reform means different things to different people. But here at Long Island Jobs with Justice, we are committed to ensuring that all families benefit from immigration reform proposals as they roll out. Please join us in signing this petition for real immigration reform. For a recent analysis of what ought to be included in progressive immigration reform, check out Charlene Obernauer’s recent Huffington Post article online here.
Bus Riders Union’ Releases Report Calling for Improved Service for People with Disabilities, Reduced Wait time for Buses, and a Fix to the N6
Mineola, NY—The Long Island Bus Riders’ Union released a report today that outlined changes that need to be made to the bus system, according to the bus riding public. The report comes from a public forum that the Union hosted in late February, where bus riders shared their experiences on the buses with legislators and the community at large.
Bus riders have had a variety of experiences, from being stuck on the lift of an Able-Ride bus for a half-hour to Nassau Community College buses overcrowding and threatening the safety of the riders. With experiences like these, on top of a $.25 cent fare hike for Metrocards and a 10% reduction in service hours from 2012-2013, bus riders were concerned.
As one bus rider and member of the Bus Riders’ Union, David O’Donnell said, “We pay among the highest taxes in the country, but our bus system has gotten worse and worse. We talk about low ridership. Why? It’s dysfunctional.”
The report concludes with four recommendations for better bus service in Nassau County:
“The goal of this report is to share bus riders’ experience with legislators and the general public, who might not know what the bus service has been like for riders on a day to day basis. We hope that NICE Bus will work together with us to fix some of these problems, and ultimately look forward to an improved bus system,” said Charlene Obernauer, founder of the Long Island Bus Riders’ Union.
Our minimum wage press conference, initially scheduled for today at 9:00am, will be rescheduled due to the snow. The press conference was called on International Women’s Day, today, to highlight the high number of women who earn the minimum wage.
This evening, our hard work paid off. The NYS Assembly passed a minimum wage increase to $9, plus indexing. While we are ecstatic to see the bill moving forward, these next few weeks are critical. We need to see this bill move through the Senate and onto the Governor’s desk, and the only way this will happen is with your support. This Friday, on International Women’s Day, please come to our press conference with Assemblymember Michaelle Solages, urging the Senate to act now to pass a minimum wage increase.
Friday, March 8th at 9:00am
Co-sponsored by: 32BJ SEIU, 1199SEIU, Long Island Immigrant Alliance, Make the Road, RWDSU Local 1102, RWDSU/UFCW Local 338, UFCW 1500
If you’re looking for other ways to support, please collect the following letters, to be delivered to your NYS Senator. If you have any questions on this campaign, contact Charlene at charlene.obernauer@gmail.com.
Long Island Jobs with Justice 