low wage workers

Rent is out of reach for minimum-wage workers in every state. New study shows how far out of reach

Opponents of raising the minimum wage to $15 like to say that sure, $15 might be a reasonable wage in New York City or Los Angeles, but it’s just too high in the heartland. Guess what, guys? There are more than 3,000 counties in the United States, but only 218 in which a full-time minimum-wage worker can afford …

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New York City holds parade honoring essential workers—but many essential workers boycott

Wednesday was “a day to celebrate and appreciate the heroes who often go unsung,” New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said last month in announcing a parade to honor the essential workers of the COVID-19 pandemic. “We’re going to sing about them this day.”  Many of the workers, though, feel so unappreciated that they boycotted the …

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Laying the Groundwork For the Workplace Protection Policies We Need

For most, attendance was taught to be a priority. The American Educational system, in particular, stresses that without near-perfect attendance, it would be impossible to hold a job or manage the business world. As a result, Illness and extemporary circumstances are associated with failure, weakness, and irresponsibility. However, the emergence of the coronavirus pandemic forced …

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‘Not just a low-wage recession’: White-collar workers feel coronavirus squeeze

The drop in overall employment that white-collar industries have seen in five months is already on par with or worse than the hits they took during the Great Recession. The coronavirus recession that began as a short-term shutdown devastating low-wage workers is now bearing down on white-collar America, where employers have been slower to rehire …

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Philadelphia Just Passed the Strongest Fair Scheduling Law in the Nation

Philadelphia, the poorest big city in the country, just enacted the most sweeping bill yet to give low-wage workers some control over their schedules. The city’s new law, which passed the city council on Thursday, will require businesses with more than 250 employees and more than 30 locations worldwide to provide employees their schedules at …

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On International Women’s Day, not all women can go on strike

On International Women’s Day, the organization that spearheaded the Women’s March over Inauguration Weekend is leading “A Day Without a Woman”—a call to action for women around the world to take the day off from paid and unpaid labor, to shop only at women-only or minority-owned businesses, and to wear red in solidarity. They’re hoping …

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More U.S. Workers Have Highly Volatile, Unstable Incomes

The U.S stock market may be at record highs and U.S. unemployment at its lowest level since the Great Recession, but income inequality remains stubbornly high. Contributing to this inequality is the fact that while more Americans are working than at any time since August 2007, more people are working part time, erratic and unpredictable …

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The Hope From Audacity: Fight for $15 Pulls Off “Most Disruptive” Day of Action Yet

Chicago—The movement known as Fight for $15 started in New York City as a surprise one-day strike. The workers’ demands then were simple and bold. They wanted a minimum wage of $15 an hour and the right to organize a union. The workers who initiated the campaign could no longer tolerate lengthy debates over penny …

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Madeline Messa

Madeline Messa is a 3L at Syracuse University College of Law. She graduated from Penn State with a degree in journalism. With her legal research and writing for Workplace Fairness, she strives to equip people with the information they need to be their own best advocate.