Labor Day is the day we celebrate the labor movement, our right to collective bargaining, and all the worker protections and benefits unions have made possible.
Our unions have led the fight for worker rights in our state, our city and across America. Unions are the reason we have weekends. Unions are the reason we have paid vacations and sick leave. Unions are the reason we have a minimum wage and retirement benefits. We all owe unions for improving the living standards for all of us (see 36 Reasons to Thank a Union below).
Today we celebrate the labor unions that make Salt Lake City strong.
With higher costs of housing, healthcare, childcare and transportation, many workers struggle to make ends meet. Luz knows government can play a crucial role in improving the lives of everyday residents and has a record of fighting for the rights of workers.
As mayor, Luz will work to ensure that the collective voice of workers is heard. While the state legislature prohibited cities from creating a higher minimum wage, Salt Lake City can lead by example and press for higher wages from those businesses that locate their operations in the city. Those wages must also be equitable. Luz has the record of working on pay equity for women and will continue to press businesses to close the gender gap in wages.
An Escamilla administration will also ensure that all managers have adequate training and oversight to ensure that discrimination and harassment in the workplace have no place in Salt Lake City government. Again, Luz would have our city lead by example and press the business community to follow that lead.
Luz has been a champion for workers on Capitol Hill and will continue to champion unions and workers as our next mayor.
Happy Labor Day from Luz and the whole campaign team!
36 Reasons to Thank a Union*
· Weekends
· All Breaks at Work, including your Lunch Breaks
· Paid Vacation
· FMLA
· Sick Leave
· Social Security
· Minimum Wage
· Civil Rights Act/Title VII (Prohibits Employer Discrimination)
· 8-Hour Work Day
· Overtime Pay
· Child Labor Laws
· Occupational Safety & Health Act (OSHA)
· 40 Hour Work Week
· Worker's Compensation (Worker's Comp)
· Unemployment Insurance
· Pensions
· Workplace Safety Standards and Regulations
· Employer Health Care Insurance
· Collective Bargaining Rights for Employees
· Wrongful Termination Laws
· Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967
· Whistleblower Protection Laws
· Employee Polygraph (lie detector) Protect Act
· Veteran's Employment and Training Services (VETS)
· Compensation increases and Evaluations (Raises)
· Sexual Harassment Laws
· Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)
· Holiday Pay
· Employer Dental, Life, and Vision Insurance
· Privacy Rights
· Pregnancy and Parental Leave
· Military Leave
· The Right to Strike
· Public Education for Children
· Equal Pay Acts of 1963 & 2011 (pay equity for women)
· Laws Ending Sweatshops in the United States
*Note: the best we could determine, this list was original posted on a former blog called The Big Corporation Blog and reposted by the Teamsters on 21 June 2011.