[sustainable_tompkins-l] REMINDER: Labor Day Picnic MONDAY in Ithaca (LOCATION CHANGE)
The Tompkins County Workers' Center, the Tompkins/Cortland Labor Committee, and the Midstate Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO, will hold the 34th Annual Labor Day Picnic from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday, September 4th, in Ithaca's Cass Park, in a pavilion IMMEDIATELY NORTH of the Ithaca Children's Garden (not to be confused by the Labor Day Festival taking place in Stewart Park this year which has nothing to do with the labor movement.) This year’s picnic theme is "Fight for a Countywide Minimum Wage That is a Living Wage/Mobilize for Our Rights!” (Sign in on Facebook) The picnic is free and everyone is invited. Everyone is asked to bring a dish to share and to enjoy the free burgers (meat and veggie), hot dogs, ice cream and beverages. This year's program will include the fabulous music of the Ithaca Bottom Boys. The annual awards have become a highlight of the Labor Day Picnic over the years, and this year will be no different. The Mother Jones and Joe Hill awards are presented to people for their activism, organizing, and sacrifice at work. The Friend of Labor award is presented to a member of the community who has spoken out publicly or taken action in support of working people. The notorious Goat of Labor goes to an especially egregious offender of workers’ rights and/or the value of labor to our common good. David Marsh, Business Manager of Laborers Local 785 and an organizer of the Picnic says: "As American Workers prepare to enjoy our day, Labor Day, we should remember the effort and sacrifice made by past generations of workers to secure the worker rights that we now enjoy and to commit to mobilize for future improvements in our rights." For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Friday, 10 a.m.: Alternatives FCU Living Wage Press Conference
Last updated in 2015, the Tompkins County Living Wage for 2017 will be announced at a Press Conference and panel discussion this coming Friday, August 18th, at 10am, at The Space at GreenStar (700 W. Buffalo Street, Ithaca). Refreshments will be served. Please join us! (Facebook event sign-in). A new Federal Reserve report showing that wage inequality in Tompkins County is up there with the NYC metro area and far worse than elsewhere upstate, highlights the importance of our campaign to make the Minimum Wage a Living Wage in Tompkins County. The Press Conference is hosted by Alternatives Federal Credit Union which has been producing its Living Wage Study since 1994. Karl Graham, Director of Community Relations and Development at Alternatives, will announce the updated figures that represent a Living Wage for the Tompkins County area. Karl will be joined by a panel of speakers including: - Eric Levine, Acting CEO, General Counsel Alternatives FCU; - Megan Ward, A Living Wage employee ; - Pete Meyers, Tompkins County Workers Center (TCWC); - Deb Dietrich, ED of OAR (a small not for profit that works with formerly incarcerated people) and a Certified Living Wage Employer; - Rob Brown, TCWC. The new Living Wage will be the basis of TCWC’s campaign to establish this wage rate as the Minimum Wage throughout the County. For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] SAVE-THE-DATE: Annual Labor Day Picnic in Ithaca, Monday, 9/4
(ITHACA) The Tompkins County Workers' Center, the Midstate Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO and Tompkins/Cortland Labor Committee, will hold the 34th Annual Tompkins/Cortland Labor Day Picnic from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday, September 4th, in Ithaca's Cass Park, in a pavilion IMMEDIATELY NORTH of the Ithaca Children's Garden (note the change from the usual location at Stewart Park!) (Sign in on Facebook) The picnic is free and everyone is invited. Everyone is asked to bring a dish to share and to enjoy the free burgers (meat and veggie), hot dogs, ice cream and beverages. The annual awards have become a highlight of the Labor Day Picnic over the years, and this year will be no different. The Mother Jones and Joe Hill awards are presented to people for their activism, organizing, and sacrifice at work. The Friend of Labor award is presented to a member of the community who has spoken out publicly or taken action in support of working people. The notorious Goat of Labor goes to an especially egregious offender of workers’ rights and/or the value of labor to our common good. Local human service agencies, Living Wage Employers, and other organizations are welcome to have organizing tables at the event (however, please contact in advance). For more information, contact the Workers' Center at tc...@tcworkerscenter.org, 607-269-0409, or via the website, www.TCWorkersCenter.org For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Rally: Monday, 4 p.m.: Tompkins Workers to Propose Legislation for Countywide Living Wage to Legislature
Your presence is requested at a Rally this coming Monday, June 19th, at 4 p.m. at theCounty Legislature Building, 121 E. Court St. in Ithaca in support of a Minimum Wagethat is a Living Wage in Tompkins County. (See detailed FAQ of the campaign here.) At 4:30, we will jointly walk into the meeting of the County Legislature‘s Health and Human Services Committee topropose legislation ensuring that all whowork in Tompkins County will be paid a Living Wage. On Wednesday, June 14th, the Townof Enfield became the 5th County municipality in Tompkins County to formally urge the County to do exactly this,joining the Towns of Dryden,Caroline,and Ithacaas well as the Cityof Ithaca as Tompkins County locales who support the move to a CountywideLiving Wage. All told, these five local governments represent 71% of theCounty's population. Says Enfield Town Board Member, Becky Sims, ofthe newly-passedResolution: "We as a community can no longer accept wages that leavehardworking people unable to support themselves nor their families; anyone whoworks full time should not have to rely on external subsidies to meet theirbasic needs. Enfield residents in particular are affected by sub-living wages,highlighted by the fact that 73% of the students at Enfield Elementary qualifyfor free or reduced lunch, the highest of any school in Tompkins County." Without a Living Wage too many of our neighbors cannot support themselves ortheir families. This is unfair to these workers, unjust in a society filledwith wealth, and immoral in a community that values and supportsfamilies. (According to an Economic Policy Institute Family Budget Calculator from 2015,Tompkins County is the EIGHTH most expensive place to live in the nation for afamily of four). Sign the petition in support the campaign. And considergetting a yardsignin support of the campaign, please contact the TCWC by either responding tothis email or calling our office at 607-269-0409, or by dropping by the TCWCduring normal business hours. For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] ACTION ALERT: Support IC Contingent Faculty STRIKE, 3/28 & 3/29
You may well have heard that a two day strike at Ithaca College has now been called for March 28-29 bythe 300+ contingent faculty, represented by SEIU Local 200. The most important gesture you can make is to show up at IC on March 28 and 29 taking aone or two hour shift on the picket lines, from 9:00-11:00am or 4:00-6:00pm.Please sign up here: www.volunteersignup.org/HJH47 These professors - all precarious workers, uncertain from one term to the next if they will work, and the majority of them earning significantly below livable wages - have mustered the dignity, self-respect, and righteous indignation to demand equal pay for equal work with other IC faculty. Despite the union offering significant concessions during the course of negotiations, the IC management has refused the most basic demands for living wages and job security. Instead, according to Tom Schneller, a contingent professor of Music and union bargaining team member, IC is "...a predatory employer who is determined to keep contingent faculty at IC trapped in our current state of perpetual fear, insecurity and poverty." In face of strong solidarity among contingent faculty, and with IC students, IC management has responded with bullying, retaliation, illegal non-renewal of union activists, and strong threats against free speech and public assembly. Pursuing their legal right to withhold labor in order to resolve the negotiations impasse, the union remains open to any serious proposal from management that could avert a strike. The most important gesture you can make is to show up at IC on March 28 and 29 taking a one or two hour shift, from 9:00-11:00am or 4:00-6:00pm You can sign up for such a shift here: www.volunteersignup.org/HJH47 There will be picket lines in front of the major teaching buildings, and all faculty and students are all being asked to join the strike. Please click on the link above for the time/s you can do a shift. And feel free to contact Pete Meyers at the TCWC if you are have any questions. The Tompkins County Workers' Center will help to coordinate community solidarity.You may well have heard that a two day strike at Ithaca College has now been called for March 28-29 bythe 300+ contingent faculty, represented by SEIU Local 200. The most important gesture you can make is to show up at IC on March 28 and 29 taking aone or two hour shift on the picket lines, from 9:00-11:00am or 4:00-6:00pm.Please sign up here: www.volunteersignup.org/HJH47 These professors - all precarious workers, uncertain from one term to the next if they will work, and the majority of them earning significantly below livable wages - have mustered the dignity, self-respect, and righteous indignation to demand equal pay for equal work with other IC faculty. Despite the union offering significant concessions during the course of negotiations, the IC management has refused the most basic demands for living wages and job security. Instead, according to Tom Schneller, a contingent professor of Music and union bargaining team member, IC is "...a predatory employer who is determined to keep contingent faculty at IC trapped in our current state of perpetual fear, insecurity and poverty." In face of strong solidarity among contingent faculty, and with IC students, IC management has responded with bullying, retaliation, illegal non-renewal of union activists, and strong threats against free speech and public assembly. Pursuing their legal right to withhold labor in order to resolve the negotiations impasse, the union remains open to any serious proposal from management that could avert a strike. The most important gesture you can make is to show up at IC on March 28 and 29 taking a one or two hour shift, from 9:00-11:00am or 4:00-6:00pm You can sign up for such a shift here: www.volunteersignup.org/HJH47 There will be picket lines in front of the major teaching buildings, and all faculty and students are all being asked to join the strike. Please click on the link above for the time/s you can do a shift. And feel free to contact Pete Meyers at the TCWC if you are have any questions. The Tompkins County Workers' Center will help to coordinate community solidarity. For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
Re: [sustainable_tompkins-l] Low-Wage New York Workers Get a Boost!
Yes, it IS still outrageously low, Jane-Marie!! Thanks for your ongoing commitment to change this :-D In solidarity Pete From: Jane-Marie Law <jm...@cornell.edu> To: Tompkins Workers' Center <tc...@tcworkerscenter.org>; SUSTAINABLE_TOMPKINS-L <SUSTAINABLE_TOMPKINS-L@list.cornell.edu> Sent: Wednesday, December 21, 2016 5:33 PM Subject: Re: [sustainable_tompkins-l] Low-Wage New York Workers Get a Boost! This is an outrageously low amount still. I am signing the petition. If we can't pay a living wage to our workers, we can not have equity and justice in our community. Jane-Marie LawAssociate Professor of Japanese Religions Department of Asian StudiesFellow, Atkinson Center for a Sustainable Future350 Rockefeller Hall Cornell University Ithaca, NY 14853-2502 607-255-5095/ 607-255-8332 From: bounce-121101943-12863...@list.cornell.edu <bounce-121101943-12863...@list.cornell.edu> on behalf of Pete Meyers <p...@tcworkerscenter.org> Sent: Wednesday, December 21, 2016 3:27:35 PM To: Tompkins Workers' Center Subject: [sustainable_tompkins-l] Low-Wage New York Workers Get a Boost! As of December 31st, 2016, the New York State Minimum Wage increases significantly. Fast food workers in Tompkins County and throughout the upstate areas must be paid at least $10.75/hour (a $1 increase). All other workers must be paid at least $9.70/hour (an increase of 70 cents). The fast food minimum wage applies to chains that have 30 or more locations nationwide and that primarily serve food or drinks, whether as eat-in or take out (so typically without full table service). Local examples are: Chipotle, DunkinDonuts, KFC, McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, Starbucks, Subway, Taco Bell, Wendy’s and others. The coming year will be the first time ever that the general minimum wage will differ throughout NYS. While $9.70 “upstate,” it will be $11 in NYC (11 or more employees; $10.50 otherwise) and $10 in Westchester and Long Island. These minimum wage rates will continue to rise over the next few years, but the differential between upstate and elsewhere will worsen. Between 2017 and 2021 the upstate minimum wage will only rise by less than a third, while in Westchester and Long Island it will increase 40%. The Tompkins County Workers’ Center continues to organize for a Living Wage for all workers in Tompkins County (sign the petition here) and to object to this discrimination against hard working Tompkins County community members. There is no justification for it. The cost of living in Ithaca is significantly higher than elsewhere upstate and is commensurate with the New York City suburbs. Yet we are being treated as “second class citizens.” For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] 2-5 on Sunday, 12/11: Community Matchup: A Way to Give for Holidays
Tompkins County Community Matchup - A Way to Give for the Holidays: Support Local Organizations That Ensure Basic Needs and Civil Rights for All and Protect our Environment! http://communitymatchup.org/ Please join us on Sunday, December 11th, 2016 from 2:00pm - 5:00pm at The Space @ GreenStar (700 W. Buffalo Street, Ithaca, NY) for a matchup event to connect community members and organizations (nonprofits and agencies). Many of us are seeing the writing on the wall: funding cuts for organizations that help provide basic needs and civil rights, which equalize social and economic wealth in our communities. If you have felt the pull to get involved and ensure a vibrant, resilient, and inclusive community, but aren’t sure where to start, let this be your first step. On Sunday, December 11th the Space will be filled with local organizations ready to share their missions, goals, and needs. Each organization will have a mailing list signup, a volunteer list signup where appropriate, and a donation box. This is truly a matchmaking event, a quick and fun way to see what is already in place in our community and to support existing efforts to help marginalized populations and the environment. What does each organization need to continue to foster equity in basic needs and civil rights in our community? Do they need volunteers, board members, funding, networking support? If time is what you have to offer, great! If funds are what you want to redistribute back into the community, wonderful! This is your chance to help build community! Donated time and/or money can be done in the spirit of the holidays in the name of a loved one, the name of future generations, and the planet as a holiday present (we will have holiday cards as a gift for your giving). During the event, there will be a silent auction to raise money for organizations and initiatives in rural communities that may not have access to this event. We are facing the hard truth that we are a divided nation and this divide has kept us suffering socially, economically, environmentally, and emotionally. This is one way we can begin to heal this divide. The golden age of organizing and activism has begun and we are all invited to take part in the change that we see needs to happen. It’s time to tear down walls and nurture the values of acceptance, mutual respect, and unity. True prosperity will only manifest when EVERYONE’s basic needs are met and EVERYONE has a voice at the table of revolution. For more information please go to www.communitymatchup.org If you are inspired to invite people to attend through the facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/362373964098290/ If you have or know of an organization who you would like to see tabling at the event please share this registration form with them: http://communitymatchup.org/#organization-signup If you are inspired to donate an item or service to the silent auction please fill out this form: https://goo.gl/forms/we8Oh2OqLCL8mtot1 Thank you in advance for your commitment to the community and happy holidays to everyone! Together we can make great things happen for everyone,Anna KellesEvent creator and organizerCounty Legislator - District 2 For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Building a Working Class Movement in This Unsettled Era: Tuesday, 11/29 (5:30-7)
Building a Working Class Movement in This Unsettled Era
Tuesday, November 29th: 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the First Unitarian Society of Ithaca
(306 N. Aurora Street)
A Community Conversation with free pizza and drink and as led by:
- Linda Martín Alcoff, Professor of Philosophy, Hunter College, City
University of New York, and author of The Future of Whiteness
- Larry Alcoff, Veteran Union Organizer, SEIU, NYC
- Stacey Black, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 241
- Pete Meyers, Coordinator of the Tompkins County Workers' Center
As a result of the recent Presidential elections, many people in this country
are very scared as to what a Trump Administration portends for our country and
for the world. To take but one example relevant to working people, what will
the Trump Administration's Department of Labor look like? Will it be headed up
by a corporate CEO who will stand with corporate interests rather than the
interests of working people? Will Trump choose to END the Department of Labor?
Will there be movement on a Federal minimum wage increase? Or will Trump move
to END the Federally-guaranteed minimum wage as we know it, as he has said at
times?
We at the Tompkins County Workers' Center (TCWC) are greatly concerned that
Trump has opened up a large space for bigots, misogynists, and other people who
are filled with hatred to feel more at home expressing their points of view,
either through words or violent actions, toward those they dislike. As well,
Trump's talk about massive deportations concerns us greatly for the welfare of
immigrants in our midst.
For the above reasons (and many more), has the TCWC decided to hold this
Community Conversation to work for the deepening of the 'working class
movement' that has already been building in recent years.
An event organized by the Tompkins County Workers' Center and cosponsored by
the Minority, Indigenous and Third World Studies Research Group at Cornell
University and the Social Justice Council of the First Unitarian Society of
Ithaca.~~~
If you are not able to make the above event and/or want to continue the
conversation the next evening, please consider checking out
The Future of “Whiteness”:
White Identity, Race, and Progressive Politics
An event organized by The Minority, Indigenous and Third World Studies Research
Group at Cornell University and cosponsored by the Tompkins County Workers’
Center
A panel discussion followed by a conversation about the changing face of white
identity and the political horizons of white anti-racist activism.
November 30, 2016
4:30PM
Lewis Auditorium, Goldwin Smith Hall, 232 East Ave, Ithaca, NY
White European Americans living in the United States will soon be fewer than
50 percent of the population. The impending demographic shifts are already felt
in most urban centers and the effect is a national backlash of political, and
sometimes violent, activism with a stated aim that is simultaneously vague and
deadly clear: "to take our country back." In response to this backlash,
anti-racist whites are left to confront significant changes in their political
and cultural reality. What is the future of anti-racist white identity? What
are possibilities for cross-racial progressive coalitions?
Panelists include:
Linda Martín Alcoff, Professor of Philosophy, Hunter College, City University
of New York, and the author of The Future of Whiteness.
Larry Alcoff, veteran union organizer, SEIU, NYC.
Sam Lagasse, Ph.D. student in the Department of English, Cornell University.
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[sustainable_tompkins-l] Wage Theft National Day of Action: Friday, November 18th
Friday, November 18th is National Wage Theft Day of Action as declared by one of our national partners, Interfaith Worker Justice. The Tompkins County Workers' Center began its Workers Rights Hotline in the spring of 2003. A full 20% of the people that we've encountered through the Hotline have come to us as a result of Wage Theft happening to them in their workplace. The TCWC has won wage theft judgments of more than $1,300,000 for 350+ workers. Wage Theft includes: • violations of minimum wage laws; • non-payment of time-and-a-half overtime pay; • workers being forced to work off the clock; • workers not receiving their final paychecks; • workers having their tips stolen by management; • payroll fraud through worker misclassification as independent contractors. Wage theft is an insidious national crime. According to the Economic Policy Institute, workers in the United States have an estimated $50 billion in wages stolen from them each year. That’s more than three times the $14 billion lost in burglaries, larcenies, stolen cars, and robberies. Stopping wage theft can only happen if people report it! If you are ever the victim of Wage Theft, know of SOMEONE ELSE who might be the victim of Wage Theft, or suspect that a particular industry of workers at a specific worksite are the victims of Wage Theft (If You See Something, Say Something), please consider reaching out to us at our Hotline, 607-269-0409. You can also send an email to tc...@tcworkerscenter.org For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Press Advisory: Wednesday, 6 p.m.: Ithaca College Students and Faculty to Rally Outside IC Board of Trustees Meeting
FORIMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: ChrisMachanoff , Faculty Forward / SEIU 200United / 585.880.3345,cmachan...@local200united.org Pete Meyers, Tompkins CountyWorkers' Center 607.339.1680/ p...@tcworkerscenter.org IthacaStudents and Faculty to Confront Board of Trustees Cocktail Hour with Rally After12 Months of Bargaining, College Continues to Stiff Faculty Demands for LivingWage and Basic Security While Drinking Champagne (Ithaca) After walking out fromnegotiations with their administration on September 23, students, the IthacaCollege Contingent Faculty Bargaining Committee and members of the IthacaCollege Contingent Faculty Union/Service Employees International Union (SEIU),Local 200United will rally outside a cocktail hour where the Ithaca CollegeBoard of Trustees will be present on October 19 at 6pm. The committeepreviously rejected the administration’s request for federal mediation, arguingthat the administration needs to develop serious economic proposals to addresshelping contingent faculty get out of poverty and attain more securelivelihoods rather than hiding behind a mediator. Furthermore, the lavishcatering budget for the Board of Trustees and top administrators exemplifiesIthaca College’s wrongly prioritized spending. While contingent faculty pay haslargely been stagnant, student tuition has more than doubled since 1999 withoutgiving students or faculty input into how tuition dollars are allocated. Nationwide and across Upstate New York,contingent faculty have been taking action to win fair wages and more securityin the university system including places like Tufts University, NortheasternUniversity, Fordham University, The College of St. Rose and the CaliforniaState University System. WHO: Members of the Ithaca CollegeContingent Faculty Union/SEIU Local 200United; Ithaca College students andfaculty; Members of numerous unions throughout Tompkins County; the Tompkins County Workers Center; Elected Officials and community alliesWHAT: Rally for Contingent Faculty FairPay and SecurityWHEN:Wednesday, September 19 at 6:00PMWHERE: FreeSpeech Rock on the IC Quad/Campus Center, Ithaca College, 953 Danby Rd, Ithaca,NY 14850 ### For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Living Wage Visioning Contest Winners Announced: ALL Entries Published
Living Wage Visioning Contest Winners Announced: ALL Entries Published The Tompkins County Workers’ Center held its Celebration of all eighteen (18) entries that people submitted who entered our first- Living Wage Visioning Contest ever on Friday, October 7th. Contestants who live and/or work in Tompkins County, NY, were asked to produce an original creative work that gave artistic voice to their vision of how their life and the life of their family would change if they were paid a Living Wage. All entries are incredibly heartfelt and expressive of the Contestants’ experiences and feelings. Entries included a dance video, a recorded song, visual arts, posters, poems, and short stories.(To see an excellent video and story as created by Kelsey O’Connor of the Ithaca Journal of the Contest and its winners, go here.) - 1st Prize Winner ($1,250): Leslie Prunty: “My World Is Very Small” - 2nd Prize Winner ($750): April Krueger and Iain Michael: “Princess Eloise and the Magical Living Wage” - 3rd Prize Winner (2 Tied, $250 each): Stephanie Harris: “Living Wage and Reclaiming My Humanity” - 3rd Prize Winner (2 Tied, $250 each): Tal Mintz: “Pride” - Runner-Up: Teresa Behan: “Living Wage Song” - Runner-Up: Richard Brock, Sarah Korman, and Corry Wiggle: “Trippsart” - Runner-Up: Shonntay Butler: “Living Wage" - Runner-Up: Elliott DeLine: “If I Made a Living Wage” - Runner-Up: Chris Georgardoudakis: “The 15 Dollar Dream” - Runner-Up: John Gunn: “a eulogy for momma” - Runner-Up: Caleb William Haines: “Occitan Sonnet to a Dying Wage” - Runner-Up: Travis Howard: “Here Nor There” - Runner-Up: John Hutchinson: “Life with Living Wage" - Runner-Up: Jason Kinsey: “Upgrade” - Runner-Up: Bailey Olmstead: “$12,000” - Runner-Up: Spiral Cracks (Remanu Steele, Briel Driscoll, and Rosette Epstein): “Thank You” - Runner-Up: Heather Townsend: “When Living Wage is Part of the Dream” - Runner-Up: Lilith Xseraph: “Reflections on Labor and the Divine” An especial thanks to Sustainable Tompkins’ Neighborhood Mini-Grant Program and the Kathy Yoselson Fierce Determination Fund of the Community Foundation of Tompkins County for helping to make this Contest possible! For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Rally to Support Contingent Faculty at Ithaca College - October 19th at 6
Within the past year, both Part-Time and Full-Time Contingent Faculty at Ithaca
College (IC) unionized with SEIU200 United as their union. ('Contingent
faculty' are non-tenure track college teachers. At IC, they earn poverty wages,
receive no health benefits, and must re-apply for their job every year.)
Negotiations have begun in recent months and both PTers and FTers have been
very disappointed with initial proposals from the IC Administration.
The Ithaca College Contingent Faculty Union is requesting a large community
presence of support at a Rally at Ithaca College. The Rally will be this coming
Wednesday, October 19th, at 6 p.m. at Free Speech Rock on the IC Campus, which
is on the IC Quad near Campus Center. Please join the Tompkins County Workers'
Center and many local unions who will be there in solidarity!
If you're able to make the Rally, please respond to this email, or sign-in to
the Facebook event. Also watch the excellent 7 minute video created by students
from IC Students for Labor Action for some of the reasons Contingent Faculty
have unionized in the first place.
Says Full-Time IC Contingent Faculty Member, Megan Graham:
"The 19th is especially important because the Ithaca College Board of Trustees
will be in town, and is going to be enjoying a fancy cocktail hour and dinner
in the Campus Center at that time. We want to make it clear to them how
important this issue is on campus and how much support we have. The more people
we have at this rally, the stronger that message will be."
"We are holding this rally with faculty, students, staff, and community allies
because the administration has been stonewalling us in bargaining - asking for
long dialogues that take up multiple sessions and then coming back with no
counter-proposals. Our proposals on the most important topics - wages,
benefits, and length of appointments for faculty - went unanswered for months,
after which they hastily drew up a proposal offering a 0.25% wage increase from
what they'd offered before (1.75%, for a grand total of 2% - not even enough to
make up for our lack of cost of living increases the last six years). Suffice
it to say, we walked out of bargaining. Now we want to demonstrate our strength
and the strength of the community behind us to force them to come to the table
with real proposals."
1/3 of all faculty at IC are "part time", yet their salaries account for just
1% of the college budget. IC Contingent Faculty are paid poverty wages, receive
no health benefits, and must re-apply for their job every year. Many contingent
faculty have trouble planning their lives and making ends meet.
For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please
visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/
If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom
Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] YOU Are Invited to Friday's Living Wage Visioning Contest Winners Celebration @ 5
Celebratingthe Winners of the Tompkins Workers' Center's Living Wage Visioning Contest: Wine, Cheese, and Beer Reception: Friday, October 7th from 5:00-6:30 p.m. (Ithaca) The Tompkins County Workers’ Center announcesa Wine, Beer and Cheese Reception to celebrate the three winners of thefirst-ever ‘LivingWage Visioning Contest‘ on Friday, October 7th from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. inthe Cafe Above AutumnLeaves Used Books on The Commons in Ithaca. The event is also fullysituated within the DowntownIthaca Alliance’s First Friday Gallery Night. ALL submissions will beshowcased at the event. The Contest entry period was from July 1, 2016 through September 15, 2016.Contestants were asked to produce an original creative work that gaveartistic voice to their vision of how their life and the life of their familywould change if they were paid a Living Wage. The eighteen (18) forms ofcreative work are incredibly heartfelt and expressive of the Contestants’experiences and feelings. Entries included a dance video, a recorded song,visual arts, posters, poems, and short stories. The first place winner is receiving $1,250; second place winner willreceive $750; and third place, $500. For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] YOU Are Invited to Living Wage Visioning Contest Winners Celebration (10/7 @ 5 p.m.)
Celebratingthe Winners of the Tompkins Workers' Center's Living Wage Visioning Contest: Wine, Cheese, and Beer Reception: Friday, October 7th from 5:00-6:30 p.m. (Ithaca) The Tompkins County Workers’ Center announcesa Wine, Beer and Cheese Reception to celebrate the three winners of thefirst-ever ‘LivingWage Visioning Contest‘ on Friday, October 7th from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. inthe Cafe Above AutumnLeaves Used Books on The Commons in Ithaca. The event is also fullysituated within the DowntownIthaca Alliance’s First Friday Gallery Night. ALL submissions will beshowcased at the event. The Contest entry period was from July 1, 2016 through September 15, 2016.Contestants were asked to produce an original creative work that gaveartistic voice to their vision of how their life and the life of their familywould change if they were paid a Living Wage. The eighteen (18) forms ofcreative work are incredibly heartfelt and expressive of the Contestants’experiences and feelings. Entries included a dance video, a recorded song,visual arts, posters, poems, and short stories. The first place winner is receiving $1,250; second place winner willreceive $750; and third place, $500. For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Over 500 People @ Labor Day Picnic in Ithaca: List of Awards
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|(ITHACA) Over 500 people attended the Tompkins County Workers’ Center and
Midstate Central Labor Council’s 33rd Annual Labor Day Picnic @ Ithaca’s
Stewart Park on Monday, September 5th. The Picnic organizers focused on the
theme: Labor Rights are Civil Rights highlighting the ‘Black Lives Matter’
movement locally. The Guest Speaker was Professor Russell Rickford of Cornell
University, ,and also a leader in the Black Lives Matter Ithaca movement.
Incredible music was provided by Colleen Kattau and Mike Brant (Gringa Grooves
from the Heart), as well as Ithaca-based rap artist, Sammus also a leader in
the Black Lives Matter Ithaca movement.Professor Rickford talking about how “a
rebellion is beginning to take hold in the laboring class as workers begin to
fight for a living wage, from farm workers in Afghanistan to laborers in India.
Where this intersects with movements like Black Lives Matter, Rickford said, is
in the intrinsic motivations of why activists are pushing for their stances.“
JOE HILL AWARDS: Named after legendary labor activist, Joe Hill (1879-1915).
[Hill was a songwriter, itinerant laborer, and union organizer, Joe Hill became
famous around the world after a Utah court convicted him of murder and was
executed.]
The three Joe Hill Awards were given to the following organizations:
- The Member Farmworkers of the Workers’ Center of Central New York and the
Member Farmworkers of the Worker Justice Center of New York for the workers’
and advocates’ of the respective organization’s efforts to support and organize
farmworkers; for facing adversity and challenges from those who would deny
workers their lawful right to join together in the struggle against injustice,
and for proving once again that workers united will never be defeated. The
organizing of both organizations has led to a lawsuit against the State of New
York which presently doesn’t allow farmworkers to organize into a union;
- The Communication Workers of America, Local based in Elmira, NY
(responsible for the area including Tompkins County) for their leadership in
the recent and successful ‘strike’ against Verizon that saw tangible gains made
for both present Verizon workers, as well as opening up new possibilities for
organizing workers in non-organized call centers and cell phone stores.
Members of the Worker Justice Center of NY and the Workers’ Center of Central
NY alongside Members of the Tompkins Workers’ Center and the Midstate Council
on Occupational Safety and Health after receiving the Joe Hill Award.MOTHER
JONES AWARDS: Named after legendary labor activist, Mother Jones (1837-1930),
who once said: “Pray for the dead and fight like hell for the living. “Forced
to support herself, when her husband and children all died, she became involved
in the labor movement and helped to found the Industrial Workers of the World
(IWW or “Wobblies”), in 1905.]
The two Mother Jones Awards were given to the following organizations:
- Cornell Graduate Students United for their stellar organizing to create a
union for graduate students at Cornell University–a possibility made all the
easier in late August by the National Labor Relations Board decision to
consider grad students as employees at all universities;
- The Full-Time Contingent Faculty at Ithaca College, for quickly organizing
a union of their own, following the lead in 2015 of the Ithaca College
[sustainable_tompkins-l] 'Black Lives Matter' Highlighted at Annual Labor Day Picnic: Monday, 9/5
(ITHACA) The Tompkins County Workers' Center and the Midstate Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO, will hold the 33rd Annual Labor Day Picnic from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday, September 5th, in Ithaca's Stewart Park. This year’s picnic theme is “Labor Rights Are Civil Rights”. (Sign in on Facebook) This year's program will include the music of Black Lives Matter - Ithaca Organizer, Sammus, an Ithaca-based rap artist and producer; along with Featured Guest Speaker, and Black Lives Matter - Ithaca Organizer, Professor Russell Rickford, speaking on the links between economic justice and the Movement for Black Lives, as well as local activist folk singer, Colleen Kattau (Gringa Grooves from the Heart). The picnic is free and everyone is invited. Everyone is asked to bring a dish to share and to enjoy the free burgers (meat and veggie), hot dogs, ice cream and beverages. The annual awards have become a highlight of the Labor Day Picnic over the years, and this year will be no different. The Mother Jones and Joe Hill awards are presented to people for their activism, organizing, and sacrifice at work. The Friend of Labor award is presented to a member of the community who has spoken out publicly or taken action in support of working people. The notorious Goat of Labor goes to an especially egregious offender of workers’ rights and/or the value of labor to our common good. Local human service agencies, Living Wage Employers, and other organizations are welcome to have organizing tables at the event (however, please contact in advance). For more information, contact the Workers' Center at tc...@tcworkerscenter.org, 607-269-0409, or via the website, www.TCWorkersCenter.org For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] 'Black Lives Matter' Highlighted at Annual Labor Day Picnic: Monday, 9/5
(ITHACA) The Tompkins County Workers' Center and the Midstate Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO, will hold the 33rd Annual Labor Day Picnic from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday, September 5th, in Ithaca's Stewart Park. This year’s picnic theme is “Labor Rights Are Civil Rights”. (Sign in on Facebook) This year's program will include the music of Black Lives Matter - Ithaca Organizer, Sammus, an Ithaca-based rap artist and producer; along with Featured Guest Speaker, and Black Lives Matter - Ithaca Organizer, Professor Russell Rickford, speaking on the links between economic justice and the Movement for Black Lives, as well as local activist folk singer, Colleen Kattau (Gringa Grooves from the Heart). The picnic is free and everyone is invited. Everyone is asked to bring a dish to share and to enjoy the free burgers (meat and veggie), hot dogs, ice cream and beverages. The annual awards have become a highlight of the Labor Day Picnic over the years, and this year will be no different. The Mother Jones and Joe Hill awards are presented to people for their activism, organizing, and sacrifice at work. The Friend of Labor award is presented to a member of the community who has spoken out publicly or taken action in support of working people. The notorious Goat of Labor goes to an especially egregious offender of workers’ rights and/or the value of labor to our common good. Local human service agencies, Living Wage Employers, and other organizations are welcome to have organizing tables at the event (however, please contact in advance). For more information, contact the Workers' Center at tc...@tcworkerscenter.org, 607-269-0409, or via the website, www.TCWorkersCenter.org For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Living Wage Visioning Contest Offers $2,500 in Prizes
If you of anyone that makes less than a Living Wage OR you work with people who make less than a Living Wage, the Tompkins County Workers' Center very much encourages people to apply for this Contest!! (Still over a month to go to submit an entry). The TompkinsCounty Workers' Center (TCWC) announces its first-ever "Living Wage Visioning Contest". Contestants will produce anoriginal creative work that gives artistic voice to their vision of howtheir life and the life of their family would change if they were paid a LivingWage. The forms of creative work that can be submitted into the Contest includevisual art, video, song, poster, poem, short story, or essay. The first place winner willreceive $1,250; second place winner will receive $750; and third place, $500. The Contest is open to Tompkins County residents or non-residents 17years or older who work in the County. Entries will be accepted from July 1, 2016through September 15, 2016, with winners announced on September 30, 2016. If you are able to help distribute posters advertising the Contest, either download the link by clicking here OR contact our office by responding to this email or calling 607-269-0409 and we'll make sure you GET some posters. An especial thanks to the SustainableTompkins Neighborhood Mini-Grant Program for helping to support thiscontest. For contest details: www.TCWorkersCenter.org/LWVisioningContest or contact the Workers' Center at 607-269-0409 ortc...@tcworkerscenter.org Cosponsors: The Kathy Yoselson Fierce Determination Fund of the Community Foundation; MulticulturalResource Center; SustainableTompkins; and the Tompkins County Office of Human Rights. For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Living Wage Visioning Contest to Offer $2,500 in Prizes
LIVING WAGEVISIONING CONTEST Entries accepted: July 1 - Sept 15 Winners Announced: Sept 30 First Prize: $1,250Second Prize: $750Third Prize: $500 Do you make less than a Living Wage? If so, how might your life and the life of your family change if your wage was raised to a Living Wage? To enter our contest, produce an original creative work that gives artistic voice to your vision of how your life would change if you were paid a Living Wage. This can be visual art, video, song, poster, poem, short story, or essay. Eligibility: Open to Tompkins County residents or non-residents 17 years or older who work in the County. (Note: the current Tompkins County Living Wage for a single individual is $14.34/hour assuming full-time work.) For contest details: www.TCWorkersCenter.org/LWVisioningContest or contact the Workers' Center at 607-269-0409 or tc...@tcworkerscenter.org An especial thanks to the Sustainable Tompkins Neighborhood Mini-Grant Program for helping to support thiscontest. If you are able to help distribute colorful posters on the Contest, please contact us by either responding to this email or calling our office at 607-269-0409. Cosponsors: Tompkins County Workers' Center, Tompkins County Office of Human Rights, Sustainable Tompkins, & Multicultural Resource Center. For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Verizon CEO Protest March and Rally CANCELLED: Unions and Verizon Reach Agreement
Saturday’s march and rally organized by the Tompkins County Workers' Center (TCWC) and the CWA (Communication Workers of America) in support of striking unionmembers at Verizon has been called off as the unions and Verizon have come to“an agreement in principle” on a new contract. The CWA is pleased with the agreement. According to the Union: "Striking CWA members have achieved our major goals of improving working families’ standard of living, creating good union jobs in our communities and achieving a first contract for wireless retail store workers." For the full statement see http://www.cwa-union.org/news/releases/striking-verizon-workers-win-big-gains The agreement settles the sixweek strike by close to 40,000 workers. “Hats off to the courageous union members who struck Verizon for six weeksand to their families who endured hardship,” said TCWC Board Member, Joe Lawrence. “We are pleased that the Workers’ Center was able toorganize our members and many community supporters to stand with the strikerson the picket lines,” said Pete Meyers, TCWC Coordinator. “One of the largest strikes in the lastdecade, we hope this reinforces the resurgence of worker militance we have seenacross the country in the last few years.” Below is an excerpt of a statementreleased by U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez:“Today, I am pleased to announcethat the parties have reached an agreement in principle on a four-yearcontract, resolving the open issues in the ongoing labor dispute betweenVerizon’s workers, unions, and management. The parties are now working toreduce the agreement to writing, after which the proposal will be submitted toCWA and IBEW union members for ratification." For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] SATURDAY: Hundreds of Strikers/Supporters to Protest Verizon CEO and Cornell Trustee
Ithaca, NY— On Saturday, hundreds of Verizon strikers, elected leaders, and community supporters, organized by the Tompkins County Workers' Center and the Communication Workers of America (CWA), will march and rally to protest Verizon greed. Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam is on the Cornell University Board of Trustees which will be meeting on Saturday in Ithaca. Despite making over $18 million at a company that rakes in over $1.5 billion in profits every month, CEO McAdam has forced workers to strike to defend good jobs. "This strike is important because the actions of Verizon are indicative of a larger societal trend that would lower standards for workers across America,” said Pete Meyers, Coordinator of the Tompkins County Workers' Center. “We are holding this march and rally to support the brave women and men on strike and to voice our opposition to Verizon's corporate attack on good union jobs." Nearly 40,000 workers have been on strike since April 13 and are fighting back against Verizon’s push to offshore and outsource middle-class American jobs. “We are on strike for the future of our families,” said Jake Lake, striking Verizon technician and President of CWA Local out of Elmira and which is the Local for Tompkins County. “Verizon’s greed is putting the American dream at risk. While the company makes billions in profits, executives want to make cutbacks that would devastate our families and hurt our customers."Shame on Verizon for trying to hurt the workers that have made the company successful. Verizon has raked in billions while millions of Americans have lost good jobs since the 'Great Recession,’” said striking Verizon technician and Ithaca resident Jim Reeves. “Yet company executives are strip-mining even more profit at the expense of the American workers who brought them their success during a time of hardship. Verizon’s actions are immoral, unconscionable, and un-American." WHAT: March and rally to protest Verizon greed WHEN & WHERE: Saturday, May 28 8:45 AM strikers and supporters to meet at Verizon Wireless Downtown Ithaca Store - 720 South Meadow St. Ithaca; strikers and supporters will march to rally outside of Cornell University Trustee meeting leaving Verizon Wireless promptly at 9:15. Please go here for a timetable as to where the March will be and at what time. 10:30 AM strikers and supporters to rally outside of Cornell University Trustee meeting at the Johnson Art Museum on University Avenue up the hill from the intersection of University Ave and West Ave. WHO: Strikers, community supporters, and elected leaders including: - Martha Robertson, Tompkins County Legislator - Dooley Kiefer, Tompkins County Legislator - Will Bubank, Tompkins County Legislator - Anna Kelles, Tompkins County Legislator - Cynthia Brock, City of Ithaca Councilperson - Pat Leary, Town of Ithaca Board Member BACKGROUND:Verizon workers, represented by the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), have been working without a contract since August 1, 2015. Verizon is in week seven of the largest strike in recent history, and the company’s public opinion has sunk to a three-year low, and top economists, financial analysts, and editorial pages around the country have condemned the company’s short-sighted business practices. Despite $1.5 billion in monthly profits, Verizon is trying to force concessions that would lead to more offshoring and outsourcing of good middle-class jobs. Meanwhile, 17 cities have passed resolutions in support of striking Verizon workers. The wave of municipal resolutions is a demonstration of the groundswell of support building for workers who have gone over a month without a paycheck and three weeks without employer provided healthcare, after Verizon cut benefits to workers and their families. For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Town of Dryden Endorses Push for a Countywide Living Wage
(DRYDEN, NY) The Dryden Town Board, by a unanimous 5-0 vote, hascalled on the Tompkins County Legislature to move toward establishing theLiving Wage as the Minimum Wage for all employees working within the countyborders. The vote took place at the Dryden Town Board meeting onThursday, April 21st. The Town of Dryden is the fourth local government body to heedthe call of the Tompkins CountyWorkers' Center (TCWC) which has been organizing to mandate the county’sLiving Wage of $14.34 as the new Minimum Wage. Both the Town and the City ofIthaca as well as the Town of Caroline previously also voted to also endorse aCounty Living Wage. Together these locales who support this measure compriseapproximately 67% of the County's population. "Alot of the work I do in my law practice is to work with the working poor",said Jason Leifer, Dryden Town Supervisor. "There are many people working 30-40hours a week and they are not able to meet their family's needs and they'restill getting services from the County. The current minimum wage enables bigcompanies to get away with not paying people what they should and the publicside has to make up the difference. Had I grown up in Dryden, I would've beenone of the 46% that received free and reduced lunch in the Dryden Central SchoolDistrict." Said Dryden Town Board Member,Deborah Cipolla-Dennis: "There's a large amount of children in Dryden thatqualify for free and reduced lunch and that has continued to go up. When wehave a really low minimum wage that puts quite a burden on government andrequires additional services to people so that they can just meet their basicneeds. I think that increasing the minimum wage is good for all of us and willhelp to relieve school, town and county taxes as well." Dan Lamb, Dryden Deputy TownSupervisor, had this to say: "The minimum wage has NEVER been enough. WhatI like about what the Workers' Center is doing here is that you're redefiningthe concept of what people should be paid, and it should be a Living Wage. ### For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Where's OUR $2.50? NYS Minimum Wage Increase is Great, But Upstate Needs a Living W
FORIMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact:April1, 2016 PeteMeyers, Tompkins County Workers' Center 607-339-1680/p...@tcworkerscenter.org Where's OUR $2.50?Minimum Wage Increase is Great but Upstate Needs a LivingWage Too! (ITHACA) The Tompkins County Workers' Center (TCWC)applauds today's historic decision to increase wages of the lowest paid NYSworkers putting them closer to a Living Wage. Increasing the minimum wageupstate to only $12.50 (in five years), however, is extremely disappointing. It repudiates the promise that Governor Cuomo made to these workers earlierthis year and denies them the same chance to approach a Living Wage as allother workers in the state. The TCWC began its own campaign for a CountywideMinimum Wage that is a Living Wage (presently $14.34/hour in Tompkins County)in the spring of 2015. Says campaign Organizing Committee Member, Milton Webb(a recycling worker at Tompkins County Recycling whose leadership helped himand his co-workers wages win a raise to a Living Wage last year):"Everyone everywhere in New York State needs to be making a minimum of$15/hour RIGHT NOW! No one can reasonably live on $9.75/hour." "The incredibly high cost of living in TompkinsCounty translates into many workers falling far short of a family sustaininglivelihood even with the increase. The TCWC will continue its efforts for atrue Living Wage for all workers in Tompkins County, and will support the rightof workers to organize for collective bargaining and against Wage Theft,especially as the minimum wage rises," said Pete Meyers, Coordinator ofthe TCWC. SaysLorie Compton, a Direct Service Professional at the Franziska Racker Center inIthaca and a mother of two, says: "I'm very disappointed that the wageisn't going up higher or quicker in Upstate New York. I make $11.40 an hour andcan barely make ends meet. I have to pay rent. I have to buy groceries. Perhapsmanagement should consider taking a cut in profit rates and excessively highmanagerial salaries so that other people who are doing the hard work can make aLiving Wage, a wage we need just to survive!" SaysErin Leidy, a longtime worker in various transportation industries, and aresident of the rural Tompkins County community, Dryden, NY: "Any increaseis welcome but I think the timelines make the increases much less impactful.Additionally, I'm aware that the overall cost of living is higher in the citythan upstate but that is primarily caused by rents. There are parts of upstate(like Ithaca) where the rental markets look more like parts of the city thanpeople think. I feel like I have to live in Dryden because of the cost of rentin Ithaca." Adil Griguihi, Owner of Casablanca Pizzeria in Ithaca says: "If they give an increase to New Yorkers, it should be the sameincrease at the same time for everyone. The rent is expensive in TompkinsCounty; EVERYTHING is expensive here. Even $15 is not enough. But the State should also be figuring out a way to help small business owners pay this wage." “It's important for usto remember that a Living Wage is defined at what Minimum Wage should be, on alocal level, based on real costs to live,” says Rob Brown, staff person for theTCWC. “While the State's new three-tier plan recognizes that New York City isan especially expensive place to live, it falls short of acknowledging that thesame is true in Upstate communities. Tompkins County has been in the nationalnews this past year for being one of the most expensive places in the US, notjust NY, for health insurance, housing, and other costs of living. We needlocal leaders in the workforce, in business, and in government to stand up and showthat we can also lead in making sure our neighbors earn what they need.” For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
Re: [sustainable_tompkins-l] Tompkins Workers' Center Certifies Town of Enfield as a Living Wage Employer
Thanks Gay! This is the 6th municipality (am including Tompkins County govt as well, which isn't QUITE a municipality)Here's the entire list http://www.tcworkerscenter.org/community/certified-employers/ Pete From: Gay Nicholson <gaynichol...@gmail.com> To: Sustainability in Tompkins County <sustainable_tompkins-l@list.cornell.edu> Cc: Tompkins County Workers' Center <tc...@tcworkerscenter.org> Sent: Wednesday, March 2, 2016 6:26 PM Subject: Re: [sustainable_tompkins-l] Tompkins Workers' Center Certifies Town of Enfield as a Living Wage Employer That's great news, Pete! How many municipalities are certified? -- Gay Nicholson, Ph.D. President Sustainable Tompkins 309 N. Aurora St. Ithaca, NY 14850 www.sustainabletompkins.org 607-533-7312 (home office) 607-220-8991 (cell) 607-272-1720 (ST office) g...@sustainabletompkins.org On Wed, Mar 2, 2016 at 5:20 PM, Pete Meyers <p...@tcworkerscenter.org> wrote: (Ithaca) The Tompkins County Workers' Center is pleasedto announce that we have now certified 104 employers as being Living Wage Employers, having just recently added the Town of Enfield on thewestern border of Tompkins County. The Town of Enfield employs a total of 22workers. This brings the total of workers, countywide, who are working forLiving Wage Employers up to over 3,110 people. Additionally, the Town ofEnfield joins the following government entities in Tompkins County as LivingWage Employers: City of Ithaca; Tompkins County; Town of Caroline; Town ofDanby and the Town of Ithaca. [The Living Wage in Tompkins County is presently defined as $14.34/hour.] Says Ann Rider, Supervisor for the Town ofEnfield on why it was important for the Town to become Certified as Living Wage: "I believe that government should be leaders and this was one thing wecan do to be a socially-conscious leader in the community." TheWorkers' Center initiated the Living Wage Employer Certification Program in2006 to publicly recognize and reward those employers who pay a living wage. Anyemployer in the private, public, and non-profit sectors is eligible to apply.With your help, we can provide incentives for other employers in our community!Please go to http://www.tcworkerscenter.org/community/certified-employers/to find out which employers are Living Wage-Certified, as well as to download criteriaand an application form. For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] REMINDER: Monday, 2/22 @ 7: League of Women Voters Forum on Living Wage
“The New York State League of Women Voters supports a Living Wage, based on the League’s national position about meeting basic human needs. A Living Wage should provide sufficient income without government assistance, for food, clothing, housing, energy, transportation, health care, education, child care and a small amount of discretionary income.” To help in understanding of this issue in our community, the Tompkins County League of Women Voters is presenting a program, open to the public, at 7:00 PM on Monday, February 22 at the Tompkins County Public Library (Borg-Warner Room). A panel of three will describe various aspects of a “Living Wage” here in Tompkins County and how it can be implemented. The speakers are: - Karl Graham: Alternatives Federal Credit Union, Director of Community Relations and Development. He will describe how the living wage for Tompkins County is calculated and the Alternatives experience; - Carl Feuer: Tompkins County Workers’ Center, Community Organizer. He will tell us about workers’ advocacy and local perspectives; - Sue Dale Hall: Director, Child Development Council, a Certified Living Wage Employer. She will describe her agency’s implementation of a Living Wage and problems and challenges. For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Town of Caroline Endorses Push for Countywide Living Wage
(Caroline, NY) The CarolineTown Board , by a 4-1 vote, has called on the Tompkins County Legislatureto move toward establishing the Living Wage as the Minimum Wage for allemployees working within the county borders. The vote took place at the CarolineTown Board meeting on Wednesday evening, February 10th. (See full Resolution here.) Caroline is the third localgovernment body to heed the call of the Tompkins County Workers' Center (TCWC)which has been organizing to mandate the county’s Living Wage of $14.34 as thenew Minimum Wage. Both the Town and the City of Ithaca previously also voted(in both cases, unanimously) to also endorse a County Living Wage. “With over one-third of the childrenat Caroline Elementary School in families with incomes so low that they qualifyfor the free lunch program,” said Pete Meyers, TCWC Coordinator, “it is clearthat the lack of a Living Wage impacts deeply on the population of the Town.” Town Board member Irene Weiseradded: “Because the cost of living varies from community to community, municipalitiesshould be allowed to set a living minimum wage for their residents. Iurge Tompkins County to play a leadership role in pointing New York in thisimportant new direction." ### For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Rise Again Singalong Benefit Concert: Saturday, 10/31 @ 7:30 p.m.
Come to a Singalong Benefit Concert, October 31, withAnnie Patterson & Peter Blood, the creators of Rise Up Singing, celebratingthe release of their long-awaited 2nd songbook Rise Again! - joined by Kim& Reggie Harris, Charlie King and Sparky & Rhonda Rucker, & JanNigro singing Walk A Mile. This concert will be a benefit for the new Carry It On Fund, whichraises funds to support organizations and causes that Pete & Toshi Seegerwere deeply committed to. Locally, tickets will be available at Green Star, Autumn Leaves, Ithaca Guitar Works and the Tompkins County Workers' Center $18 in advance $20 at the door, HS and younger $5 Oct 31 2015 - 7:30pm St Paul's Methodist Church 402 N. Aurora Street Ithaca , NY 14850 Contact: Melody Johnson rcrep...@twcny.rr.com Sponsors: The Cornell Folk Song SocietyWe Are Seneca Lake Ithaca Friends Meeting Ithaca CatholicWorkers Poplar Ridge Friends Perry CityFriends Tompkins County Workers Center | | | | | | | | | | | Rise Again - Ithaca | Rise Up and SingSingalong concert with Annie Patterson & Peter Blood, the creators of Rise Up Singing, celebrating the release of their long-awaited 2nd songbook Rise Again! - joi... | | | | View on www.riseupandsing... | Preview by Yahoo | | | | | Songbooks will also be available to borrow or buy the evening of the concert,$5 off retail prices. 20 or more booksare $13/book for small size & $15/book for large size. We hope to have our audience celebrate and reflect the diversity that we havein our Ithaca community. Our performers have been politically active throughout their careers,particularly in areas of Black History, Civil Rights, peace and socialjustice. This is an excellent opportunity to bring our communitytogether. So we are particularly interested in having those who don'tusually go to folk concerts involved. Contact me if you wish to help distribute tickets,particularly to those who have financial constrictions. Tickets can also be purchased at https://www.riseupandsing.org/events/rise-again-ithaca and books can be pre-ordered. Annie Patterson has performed and ledmusic retreats at folk festivals, coffee houses, schools and camps throughoutNorth America, New Zealand, the Netherlands and the British Isles. She isbest known for co-creating the popular songbook Rise Up Singing, along with herhusband, Peter Blood, and has just finished a new songbook, Rise Again, with1200 more songs. During the last 2 decades, Annie has honed her skills as afolk performer and jazz vocalist. Peter Blood After I graduated from college I spent six years doinganti-draft and anti-war work for groups working on peace and radical nonviolentsocial change. In 1976 I began nursing school and later earned a master’sdegree as a psychiatric clinical nurse specialist. I left my nursingposition in 1986 to work more than full time for two years completing work onRise Up Singing. I have divided time since then between work as a nurse, familytherapist, crisis worker, and nurse educator and work as a music editor(including editing Pete Seeger’s autobiography), songleader, spiritualformation leader and teacher of Quakerism. I taught at UMass School ofNursing from 2006-2012 and left that position to pursue work on the new book. Spirituality. Both Annie & I are really involved in the Religious Societyof Friends (Quakers) and our faith is really important to us and undergirds allthe work we do. Most of the songs we lead are not explicitly spiritual. We believe, however, that the process of people discovering that they can lifttheir voices with others is in itself spiritual work. This often includespeople who never sing because of early hurts like being told that they weretone deaf. The songs that we felt led to include in Rise Up Singing wereones that we believed served the basic mission of our work, with a heavyemphasis on songs of hope and transformation. Sparky and Rhonda Rucker perform throughout the U.S. as well asoverseas, singing songs and telling stories from the American folk tradition.Sparky Rucker has been performing over forty years and is internationallyrecognized as a leading folklorist, musician, historian, storyteller, andauthor. He accompanies himself with fingerstyle picking and bottleneck bluesguitar, banjo, and spoons. Rhonda Rucker is a musician, children's author,storyteller, and songwriter. Her blues-style harmonica, piano, old-time banjo,and bones add musical versatility to their performances. Sparky and Rhonda are sure to deliver an uplifting presentation of toe-tappingmusic spiced with humor, history, and tall tales. They take their audience onan educational and emotional journey that ranges from poignant stories ofslavery and war to an amusing rendition of a Brer Rabbit tale or their wittycommentaries on current events. Their music includes a variety of
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Book Launching Event/Fundraiser @ Buffalo Street Books Saturday (10/17)
Fund-Raiser for Countywide Minimum Wage That is a Living Wage Campaign and Book Launching Event (ITHACA) On Saturday, October 17 at 1:00 pm at Buffalo Street Books (one of the TCWC's 102 Certified Living Wage Employers), the public is invited to a fund-raiser in support of the Tompkins County Workers’ Center campaign for a Countywide Minimum Wage That is a Living Wage (presently $14.34/hour). The event features a new book by Ithaca authors Ruth Yarrow and the late Mike Yarrow, Voices from the Appalachian Coal Fields: Found Poems. If you buy the book at Buffalo Street Books you're ALSO supporting a locally-owned and cooperatively owned bookstore (for those who live out of town, if you purchase online via this link, the Powell's Books 'union' gets 7.5% of the sales. Think about making the switch from Amazon!) 'Voices from the Appalachian Coal Fields: Found Poems' is composed of the words of men and women coal miners and miners’ wives about their lives drawn from 225 interviews the Yarrows conducted in the late 1970s and 1980s, mostly in West Virginia.Local authors and editors will read from the book, and photographs from Mike’s brother Douglas Yarrow will be on display. For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Town of Ithaca Unanimously Backs Countywide Minimum Wage as Living Wage
(ITHACA) On Monday evening, 8/10, the Ithaca Town Board, by a unanimous vote, became the first governmental agency in Tompkins County to publicly endorse the Tompkins County Workers’ Center (TCWC) campaign, to mandate a minimum wage for EVERYONE who works in Tompkins County that is a Living Wage ($14.34/hour in Tompkins). Says Ithaca Town Supervisor Herb Engman: “The Town Board realized that the issue today isn’t just jobs but jobs that pay wages people can live on. The widening income gap has gotten a lot of attention nationally, and more local governments are taking action to raise the minimum wage, which has fallen over the years in terms of spending power.” Town Board Member, Pat Leary, added: “The affordable housing gap can’t be closed by addressing just the housing side of the equation: housing has become increasing unaffordable because wages haven’t kept up. A living wage can help improve the lives of millions of people in many aspects of their lives.” See text of Resolution below: MEETING OF THE ITHACA TOWN BOARD Monday, August 10, 2015 TB RESOLUTION 2015 – 089: SUPPORT FOR A TOMPKINS COUNTY MINIMUM WAGE THAT IS A LIVING WAGE WHEREAS raising incomes is critical to providing economic mobility and opportunity for working families and WHEREAS the growth in income inequality in recent years has created serious divisions within our society and community and WHEREAS Tompkins is increasingly becoming two counties with a portion of the population thriving while many more face low wages, growing inequality, erosion of middle-class jobs, high housing costs and the institutionalization of a low-wage service economy and WHEREAS a full-time minimum wage worker in New York earns $18,200 which is significantly below the current Tompkins County living wage of $29,827 and WHEREAS a higher minimum wage would likely help stimulate the local economy and WHEREAS a higher minimum wage would likely reduce the need for and the cost of providing social services in Tompkins County and WHEREAS our community has a proud tradition of advocating for worker rights and promoting economic justice and WHEREAS we as a community and we as a country can no longer accept wages that leave some unable to support themselves or their families and WHEREAS some say that raising the minimum wage locally is “too complicated,” without acknowledging how complicated it is trying to live on $8.75/hour Now therefore be it RESOLVED that the Town of Ithaca requests that the Tompkins County Legislature pass a local minimum wage law establishing the Tompkins County Living Wage ($14.34/hour) as the minimum wage, and indexing it to the NYS, regional, or county median wage and be it further RESOLVED that the Town Board requests that the County pass a home rule request seeking the authority to implement such a local minimum wage and be it further RESOLVED that the Town calls on the NYS Legislature to promptly pass this home rule request. Moved: Pat Leary Seconded: Eric Levine Vote: Ayes – Leary, Levine, Engman, DePaolo, Hunter and Goodman For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Benefit Concert (Magpie, Burns Sisters, George Mann): Sunday, 7/26, for Workers' Center's Living Wage Campaign
Hoping some of you can make!! In solidarity Pete Sunday, July 26: Joe Hill Lives – Fights for Tompkins Living Wage: GET YOUR TICKETS NOW! On Sunday, July 26th, from 6-9 p.m., the Tompkins County Workers’ Center (TCWC) presents the Joe Hill 100 Roadshow! Featured artists are Magpie (Terry Leonino Greg Artzner), George Mann, and special guests, the Burns Sisters ‘live’ at The Space at GreenStar, 700 W. Buffalo St. in Ithaca.This concert is part of a national concert tour honoring the centenary of famous Wobbly/IWW singer/songwriter Joe Hill’s execution, and will feature classic Labor and Folk Songs. The concert is a Benefit that will support the TCWC’s campaign to Make the Minimum Wage a Living Wage for ALL people in Tompkins County! Joe HillDoors open at 6:00 pm, and the show starts at 7:00. The suggested donation is $15, but no guest will be turned away for a lack of funds! Purchase tickets in advance here by clicking on the ticket and let us know that you’re donation is for the ticket. More information about the event can be found at www.tcworkerscenter.org. More info about the tour itself can be found at www.joehill100.com For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Benefit Concert (Magpie, Burns Sisters, George Mann): Sunday, 7/26, for Workers' Center's Living Wage Campaign
Sunday, July 26: Joe Hill Lives – Fights for Tompkins Living Wage: GET YOUR TICKETS NOW! On Sunday, July 26th, from 6-9 p.m., the Tompkins County Workers’ Center (TCWC) presents the Joe Hill 100 Roadshow! Featured artists are Magpie (Terry Leonino Greg Artzner), George Mann, and special guests, the Burns Sisters ‘live’ at The Space at GreenStar, 700 W. Buffalo St. in Ithaca.This concert is part of a national concert tour honoring the centenary of famous Wobbly/IWW singer/songwriter Joe Hill’s execution, and will feature classic Labor and Folk Songs. The concert is a Benefit that will support the TCWC’s campaign to Make the Minimum Wage a Living Wage for ALL people in Tompkins County! Joe HillDoors open at 6:00 pm, and the show starts at 7:00. The suggested donation is $15, but no guest will be turned away for a lack of funds! Purchase tickets in advance here by clicking on the ticket and let us know that you’re donation is for the ticket. More information about the event can be found at www.tcworkerscenter.org. More info about the tour itself can be found at www.joehill100.com For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Auto Response: sustainable_tompkins-l digest: April 12, 2015
I am on vacation to return to the so-called civilized world on Tuesday, April 21st. I will respond to your email not long after my return! Pete
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Huge Living Wage Victory for Tompkins County Recycling Workers!!
(Ithaca) A year and a half ago, Milton Webb and Stanley McPherson, two workers with ReCommunity Recycling (which was taken over by Casella Waste Systems in early 2014), a subcontractor with the Tompkins County Solid Waste Division, approached the Tompkins County Workers' Center (TCWC) wondering why they weren't making a Living Wage, considering the fact that they were doing the business of the County, which is a Certified Living Wage Employer. After a joint campaign that was made possible by the teamwork of an absolute variety of players, today we celebrate a huge victory in the step to ensure that all Tompkins County 'contracted workers' are paid a Living Wage. The details of the victory include an allocation from the Tompkins County Legislature's Living Wage Contingency Fund of $20,000, as well as a commitment to pay a Living Wage coming from Casella Waste Systems. Casella estimates that it will cost an additional $105,000/year to increase all their workers to a Living Wage. The agreement will enable workers at the County's Recycling and Solid Waste Center to all be paid a Living Wage (presently $12.62/hour or $13.94 without health insurance) beginning in early February 2015. The allocation, just approved at today's Facilities and Infrastructure Committee by a unanimous 5-0 vote, will now go to a full Legislature vote on Tuesday, January 6th. This successful campaign is a great example of the 'concerted action' of two workers in the workplace, in this case Milton Webb and Stanley McPherson, acting in solidarity with each other, and in coordination with a community campaign as organized by the TCWC alongside many supportive County Legislative members. As Casella worker, Milton Webb says: This was a team effort with the Workers’ Center and the Legislature. From the bottom of our hearts, Stanley and I want to say thank you. (Listen to audio here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKOgY8RcRuM) Added Webb: You know, the guys who are working here do a lot of good work, we work hard and we need that Living Wage. For all of us that are receiving nine or ten dollars an hour and getting bumped up to over $12.62, we really appreciate this. Everybody at the Recycling Facility is excited about it. We have a Living Wage coming that is going to uplift these workers. They will have the pay that they need and that they deserve. They’ll have money to put in the bank. For what we’re getting paid now, there is no option for saving money. This will make things better for families, for the economy, for everybody. The money will be spent right here in Ithaca. To all of the people who don’t earn a Living Wage because they’re employer won’t pay a Living Wage, hang in there, it’s coming. Click on picture for short audio interview with Milton Webb this past weekend on the implications of all Tompkins County Recycling workers soon to be paid a Living Wage. Milton Webb in foreground and Stanley McPherson in the background, along with the Tompkins County Workers' Center, outside ReCommunity Recyling in mid-October 2013 advocating for a Living Wage for all County-contracted workers, in general, and workers at the County's recycling facility, in particular. Throughout 2013, Webb and McPherson, along with the TCWC, lobbied the Tompkins Legislature and larger public saying that no one that contracts with the County for services should be making less than a Living Wage. In the fall of 2013, the TCWC urged the Legislature to set aside funds to boost contracted workers up to a Living Wage, which the Legislature did by creating a $100,000 Living Wage Contingency Fund in November of 2013. Says Nathan Shinagawa, Chair of the County's Government Operations Committee, We made it a top goal to make sure we use this money to uplift workers. We now pay a living wage to the workers of Food Net (Meals on Wheels) and, in the new budget, we passed a Living Wage for the workers of the Suicide Prevention Center and The Literacy Volunteers. I'm glad that starting in February, the workers of the Recycling and Solid Waste Center will also receive a Living Wage. Change would not have been possible without the Workers' Center and the individual efforts of Stanley and Milton. Their organizing led directly to legislative action. This is truly responsive, progressive government in action, added Shinagawa. Today, all Tompkins County employees and 1,788 of 1,994 contracted employees receive a Living Wage. I'm proud to live in and represent a community that makes a Living Wage a priority. Says County Legislator Carol Chock, who cosponsored legislation along with Shinagawa that created the Living Wage Contingency Fund: We shouldn't even be discussing whether or when to achieve a livable wage for all workers, it is in the interests of all of us that anybody who works be able to support their own basic expenses. “A final victory is an accumulation of many short-term
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Monday, 9/1, from 11-3: Annual Labor Day Picnic in Ithaca: Building a Strong Local Economy for Workers
31st Annual Labor Day Picnic in Ithaca: Building a Strong Local Economy for Workers Featuring the Music of Richie Stearns and the Evil City String Band (Ithaca) The Midstate Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO, and the Tompkins County Workers' Center, will hold the 31st Annual Labor Day Picnic from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday, September 1st, in Ithaca's Stewart Park, Main Pavilion. This year’s picnic theme is “Building a Strong Local Economy for Workers”. Special musical guests this year include Richie Stearns and the Evil City String Band. The Labor Council and Workers’ Center invite the community to join them and enjoy free picnic fare, music, and presentations of awards. The picnic is free and everyone is invited. Everyone is asked to bring a dish to share and to enjoy the free burgers (meat and veggie), hot dogs, beverages, and ice cream. Says Dave Marsh, President of the Tompkins-Cortland Building Trades Council and Business Agent for Laborers Union Local 785: As the community comes together to celebrate another year of progress for workers at the 31st Annual Labor Day Picnic, let us also ensure that we are all doing our part to build a strong local economy for workers. The annual awards have become a highlight of the Labor Day Picnic over the years, and this year will be no different. The Mother Jones and Joe Hill awards are presented to people for their activism, organizing, and sacrifice at work. The Friend of Labor award is presented to a member of the community who has spoken out publicly or taken action in support of working people. The notorious Goat of Labor goes to an especially egregious offender of workers’ rights and/or the value of labor to our common good. Local human service agencies, Living Wage Employers, and other organizations are welcome to have organizing tables at the event (however, please contact in advance). For more information, contact the Workers' Center at tc...@tcworkerscenter.org, 607-269-0409, or via the website, www.TCWorkersCenter.org Joy comes from realizing that nothing is ever a dead end, that whatever is happening in the present moment is both the fruition of one thing and the seed for something else. Life is throbbing with energy and possibility. -Pema Chodron For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Auto Response
I am on vacation to return to work on Thursday, August 21st. I will respond to your email not long after my return! Pete
[sustainable_tompkins-l] Workers' Center Holds Living Wage Community Celebration: 1/29, 5:30 to 7
Tompkins Workers' Center to Hold Living Wage Community Celebration (ITHACA) The Tompkins County Workers' Center (TCWC) announces that it will hold a Community Celebration on Wednesday, January 29th, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Workers' Center (115 The Commons/E. Martin Luther King Jr. Street in Ithaca) where free pizza, beer, and wine will be served. The purpose of the celebration is to honor two recent and significant victories in the TCWC's Living Wage work: * the successful Living Wage Employer Certification of the City of Ithaca in early December 2013 (the TCWC's 93rd Living Wage Employer); * the decision of the Tompkins County Legislature to set up a $100,000 Living Wage Contingency Fund as part of its 2014 Budget in order to begin helping those employers that contract with the County, who couldn't otherwise afford it, to pay their workers a Living Wage. The County itself is a long-standing Certified Living Wage Employer; * to honor all of our other 91 Certified Living Wage Employers. The City of Ithaca employs approximately 515 workers, with about 50 of them being brought up to a Living Wage as a result of the City's decision to become a Certified Living Wage Employer. This now brings the total of workers employed by a Living Wage Employer to up over 3,020 people. Tompkins County, this past year, went through a rigorous study of its Living Wage policy as a result of the work of ReCommunity Recycling workers (Solid Waste Division) and the TCWC bringing the issue of too many contracted workers making poverty wages on the County's dime. The first stage of the process will be for the County to conduct a thorough survey of its contractors to see how many workers doing County 'work' are not making a Living Wage. The $100,000 is to assist those employers to pay a Living Wage that may be able to claim reasonable hardship as employers. The Workers' Center initiated the Living Wage Employer Certification Program in 2006 to publicly recognize and reward those employers who pay a living wage. Any employer in the private, public, and non-profit sectors is eligible to apply. With your help, we can provide incentives for other employers in our community! Please go to http://www.tcworkerscenter.org/community/certified-employers/to find out which employers are Living Wage-Certified, as well as to download criteria and an application form. For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at t...@cornell.edu.
