by admin | January 13, 2016
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 13, 2016 CONTACT: Bailey Dick, 419-260-6044, bailey(at)jwj.org Washington, D.C. – Today, dozens of D.C. employees, labor scholars, local business owners, and community leaders testified at a District Council hearing in favor of legislation that would bring more stable schedules and fuller employment to thousands of people who live and work in the District. “At DC Jobs With Justice, we’ve surveyed hundreds of residents and talked to dozens of community organizations about this issue. It’s become very clear that an individual’s work schedule is more than a workplace issue,” said Nikki Lewis, executive director of DC Jobs With Justice. “We’ve heard that this is just too much for big chain companies to handle after the minimum wage increase and paid sick leave were passed. I find it hard to stomach how they can tell someone making below the poverty line, scrambling for more hours, and only asking for some more stability that they’re asking for too much.” “It was not easy to request time off and lose hours for being here today,” said RasImani Diggs, an employee at Marshalls. “Right now, life is hard. I was told I would get 20 hours a week when I started, but I almost never do. When they make the schedule, they don’t care about our availability. Even when I open my availability up or volunteer for overnight shifts, I still don’t get scheduled for the hours I expected.” “We’re the nation’s capital, its leading city. The District has been leading the nation on so many worker issues like the minimum wage, paid sick days, paid family leave and more....
by admin | January 13, 2016
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 13, 2016 CONTACT: Bailey Dick, 419-260-6044, bailey(at)jwj.org Washington, D.C. – TODAY, Wednesday, January 13, at 9:30 a.m., a broad coalition of business owners, retail and food service employees, community leaders and councilmembers will hold a press conference to discuss progress on legislation that would bring more stable schedules and fuller employment to thousands of people who live and work in the District. Following the press conference, members of the coalition will testify at a hearing on the bill. Council bill 21-512, the Hours and Scheduling Stability Act, spearheaded by D.C. Jobs With Justice and introduced by at-large Councilmember Vincent Orange, would require large retail and restaurant chains to provide their employees with advance notice of schedules, promote full-time work opportunities, end “on-call” schedules and ensure equal treatment for hourly employees. The bill has the backing of eight councilmembers, and a wide majority of D.C. residents say they support the measures included in the legislation. According to a recent poll, 86 percent of D.C. residents say they would support legislation that would mandate stable hours and predictable work schedules from employers. Additionally, 87 percent of those surveyed say they would support rules that would require two weeks’ advance notice of work schedules, and 88 percent say they would support rules that would require large corporate chain stores and restaurants to first offer additional work hours to their part-time employees before hiring new employees. Similar legislation was enacted in San Francisco in 2014 and is under consideration in Massachusetts, New York and California, as well as in Congress. Dozens of national retail companies have also ended the...
by admin | December 1, 2015
Washington, D.C. – This afternoon, D.C. Councilmembers introduced legislation that would usher in more predictable schedules and stable employment opportunities for people working in retail and restaurant chains in the District. The Hours and Scheduling Stability Act, spearheaded by D.C. Jobs With Justice and introduced by Councilmember Vincent Orange, would require large retail and restaurant chains to provide their employees with advance notice of schedules, promote full-time work opportunities, end “on-call” schedules and ensure equal treatment for hourly employees. The bill was co-introduced by Councilmembers Mary Cheh, Brianne Nadeau and Elissa Silverman, and co-sponsored by Counclmembers Charles Allen, David Grasso, LaRuby May and Brandon Todd. “I’m honored to introduce the Honors and Scheduling Stability Act today. One of the biggest issues employees face is too little predictability in their schedules, and face a tremendous challenge in earning enough to care for themselves and their families,” Councilmember Vincent Orange said during today’s hearing. “This legislation is needed to protect workers, and bills like this are being introduced across the country. Having a schedule you can count on leads to a better work environment and better opportunities for families.” According to a recent two-part survey, 86 percent of D.C. residents said they would support legislation that would mandate stable hours and predictable work schedules from employers. Additionally, 87 percent of those surveyed said they would support rules that would require two weeks’ advance notice of work schedules, and 88 percent said they would support rules that would require large corporate chain stores and restaurants to first offer additional work hours to their part-time employees before hiring new employees. “Our neighbors working in retail...
by admin | December 1, 2015
Washington, D.C. – TODAY, Tuesday, December 1, legislation that would usher in more predictable schedules and stable employment opportunities for people working in retail and restaurant chains in the District will be introduced to the D.C. Council. The Hours and Scheduling Stability Act, spearheaded by D.C. Jobs With Justice and introduced by Councilmember Vincent Orange, would require large retail and restaurant chains to provide their employees with advance notice of schedules, promote full-time work opportunities, end “on-call” schedules and ensure equal treatment for hourly employees. According to a recent two-part survey, 86 percent of D.C. residents said they would support legislation that would mandate stable hours and predictable work schedules from employers. Additionally, 87 percent of those surveyed said they would support rules that would require two weeks’ advance notice of work schedules, and 88 percent said they would support rules that would require large corporate chain stores and restaurants to first offer additional work hours to their part-time employees before hiring new employees. “Our neighbors working in retail and fast food have been left behind in the booming development of our city. These are the folks who urgently need decent schedules to secure a stable income, be there for their families, and work their way up,” said Nikki Lewis, executive director of D.C. Jobs With Justice. “Living off my check week to week is stressful, especially when you only get a few hours and you depend on Metro. I want to be able to help my family, but I’m barely able to get by myself,” said RasImani Diggs, a Ward 7 resident who works at a local/District department...
