Labor Day: A Time to Advocate for Just Wages
Isabelle, the 13-year-old daughter of one our employees, was looking into getting a part-time job. Her starting pay would be the Federal Minimum Wage of $7.25—the exact same amount that it was on the year she was born!
Hearing this made me curious (and a bit furious) about wages for those in the labor force. Here are some of my findings. The average American worker’s medium annual wage in 2021 was about $51,500 according to the U.S. Department of Labor.
To be classified as belonging to the middle class, a person in 2021 would need to make $52,000 (for an individual) –$156,000 (for a household of 3) according to the PEW Research Center.
In that same period, the average total income of a farm worker was between $15,000 to $17,499 a year for individuals and $20,000 to $24,999 for a family based on the National Agricultural Workers Survey—a report published by the U.S. Department of Labor. These are disturbing statistics! The realization that the people who do the back-breaking work that allows us, the consumers, to have cheap and affordable fruits, vegetables, and meat on our tables work full-time and still live below the poverty line is appalling!
Farm workers just ended a 335-mile march in Sacramento, Calif. This march was an effort to convince Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign the Agricultural Labor Relations Voting Choice Act to allow farm workers to vote for a union free from intimidation and threats by their employers. He did not sign the bill. Check out the National Farm Workers Association website for further details, https://snccdigital.org/inside-sncc/alliances-relationships/national-farm-workers-association/.
Many workers in Midwest meat packing plants and chicken factories are underpaid and work long hours in horrific working conditions. During the pandemic, with the spread of COVID, conditions worsened, and some governors mandated they continue to work in unsafe conditions without access to healthcare.
Such an irony, that we celebrate a national holiday of Labor Day which recognizes the importance of workers and their rights. At the same time workers’ rights are often trashed. As we gather with friends and family for a leisurely “Labor Day,” let us pause to really listen to the “workers,” to the “Cry of the Poor,” as the second Laudato Si” Goal beckons us. Let us give thanks for those who labored to bring food to our tables and work for fair and livable wages for the most vulnerable.
Mary Frances Clarke beckoned her sisters to “work unitedly,” and these words resonate with our call to stand in solidarity with our sisters and brothers who labor. Support businesses that pay fair wages and local unions that advocate for just wages.
Now going back to 13-year-old Isabelle who is looking for a job. Hopefully, in another 13 years, there will be a livable Federal Wage and just wages will be the norm. Then we can truly celebrate Labor Day.
Nancy, thanks. So well done with difficult and challenging facts and stories. Coupled with Kimberly’s last mail, we are boldly reminded of the life of workers behind all the food we eat everyday. May we continue to contact our representatives to bring about just changes.
Marilyn
Thank you, Nancy, for the inspiring and thought-provoking words for Labor Day and the reality of those we depend upon the most, farm workers, grocery workers, who are paid the lowest wages. May we use this time to listen to the silent voices closest to us. Bette
Thank you, Nancy, for reminding us of this essential news at this time —-LABOR Day.
Thank you, also, for the many social issues to which you ask us to respond. You provide a very necessary service.
Nancy’s blog and Kimberly Emery’s email link to the National Farm Worker Ministry “Harvest of Justice” video present an accurate picture of the downside of immigrant labor. Farm workers in the U.S. (including children) are exempt from laws that mandate fair labor and safety standards that cover all other workers. BVMs and Associates advocate for and with workers seeking justice, both in the fields and in food processing plants.