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A u g u s t 7, 2013
Page 15
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Workers Exploited by Your Tax Dollars
McDonalds not
the only low
wage player
by
M artha B urk
McDonald’s really
stepped in it this sum­
mer when the fast
food empire created
a budget for its un­
derpaid employees to
help them make ends meet on the
low wages they bring home after
flipping burgers all week.
At first, the McBudget didn’t
include any money for food or
gasoline, then it fixed that by
telling its full-time workers to get
a second job. It allocated only $20
a month for health insurance —
less than half of what it costs to
carry McDonald’s most afford­
able coverage option.
.The golden arches deservedly
came under fire and faced wide­
spread ridicule.
This blunder underscored how
huge corporations like Mickey
D ’s and Walmart are responsible
for the majority of our nation’s
low-wage jobs. But there’s an­
other player in this mix that’s workers may never get a raise ers taken advantage of by Big Ag
responsible for creating more that brings their pay above our companies subsidized with gov­
poverty- level jobs than these two paltry minimum wage.
ernment handouts.
companies combined. It’s good
Guadalupe Rodriguez is an ex­
Well, some of these underpaid
o f Uncle Sam.
ample. She has worked for al­ federal contract workers are mad
That’s right. The federal gov­ most 20 years for a janitorial com­ as hell, and they’re not going to
ernment supports more U.S. pany at Union Station, a federal take it anymore. Rolling strikes in
low wage jo b s than property. She receives no ben­ Washington have been held this
M cDonald’s and Walmart efits and has never made more summer at the Smithsonian Insti­
put together, according to a
recent report from Demos.
One reason why we don’t
hear much about it is that
these exploited workers don’t get
a paycheck directly from the U.S.
Treasury. They work for con­
tractors — companies that are
paid with your tax dollars to staff
government facilities and do gov­
ernment-funded work around the
country.
Contractors get big bucks to
make goods, like military uni­
forms, and provide services.
These companies do construc­ than the minimum. Workers who tution, Union Station, and the
tion jobs, employ home health are undocumented, and there are Ronald Reagan building. Led by
care workers, and are respon­ some, are paid in cash and cheated the union-backed Good Jobs Na-
sible for cleaning government out of even that lowly sum.
. tion, the strikes are sure to spread
buildings.
These workers exploited by to other cities with large numbers
Though the contracts can total companies raking in your tax dol­ of government-contracted work­
billions of dollars, frontline work­ lars number about two million. ers.
ers are paid at poverty levels. On top of that, there are at least
The D em os re p o rt urges
After decades on the job, these one million underpaid farm work­ President Barack Obama to is­
Though the contracts can total
billions o f dollars, frontline
workers are paid at poverty
levels. After decades on the job,
these workers may never get a
raise that brings their pay above
our paltry minimum wage.
v
sue an executive ord er that
would mandate higher wages
and benefits as a condition of
federal contracting, an already
common practice at the m u­
nicipal level.
Better yet, why not cut out
the middlemen? Uncle Sam used
to employ people directly, with
decent wages and benefits. Now
those jobs are outsourced to
corporations making big profits
on the backs of workers.
By allowing contractors to
pay low wages and no benefits,
the federal government is forc­
ing us taxpayers to pick up the
tab for the help these employees
must have to make ends meet
— services like Medicaid, food
stamps, and subsidized child
care.
There’s no sane reason why
corporations should be allowed
to benefit from billions of your
tax dollars to line their already
overflowing pockets, all the while
keeping your neighbors in pov­
erty.
Martha Burk is the director o f
the Corporate A ccountability
Project fo r the National Council
o f Women's Organizations.
Justice for Trayvon is About Justice for all
America
continues to
devalue young
black men
by
M arc H. M orial
In the weeks since
the not-guilty verdict
in the second-degree
murder trial of George
Z im m erm an, w id e­
spread outrage and legitimate
questions about the treatment and
perception of young black men in
A m erica have rev erb erated
throughout the nation.
In an unscripted appearance in
the White House Press Room,
President Obama spoke person­
ally about the historical racial con­
text and the negative pre-concep­
tions that may have led to the
death of Trayvon Martin. He also
talked about the racial indignities
and systemic disparities that mil­
lions of black men face every day
and the questionable Stand Your
Ground laws that may be causing
more violence than they are sup­
posedly meant to prevent.
And the President suggested
he would use his “convening
power” to engage a cross-
section of citizens in doing
more to give African Ameri­
can boys “the sense that
their country cares about
them and values them and
is willing to invest in them.”
We applaud the Presi­
dent for his insightful comments.
We hope they touch the nation’s
conscience and advance the kind
of dialogue and action that is
needed to heal America’s fester­
ing racial divisions and prevent
the deaths of more Trayvon Mar­
tins.
The death of Trayvon Martin
has re-energized the civil rights
community and inspired an out­
pouring of citizen action not seen
since the height of the movement
50 years ago.
In dozens of cities across the
nation, thousands of people, ap­
palled at the Zimmerman verdict,
attended peaceful rallies in sup­
port of justice for Trayvon Mar­
tin and a civil rights investigation
into his killing. The National Ur­
ban League stands in solidarity
with them.
on race.
A recent study bÿ Texas A & M
University found that Stand Your
Ground type laws increase homi­
cides by 17-50 percent, “which
translates into as many as 50 addi­
tional justifiable homicides a year.”
And as the case of Marissa
We will be intensifying our quest
fo r a thorough civil rights
investigation, along with efforts to
end to racial profiling and abolish'
o f Stand Your Ground laws across
the country.
We will be intensifying our
quest for a thorough civil rights
investigation, along with efforts
to end to racial profiling and abol­
ish of Stand Your Ground laws
across the country. Many of those
“shoot first” laws are contribut­
ing to needless bloodshed and are
ripe for unequal application based
I
Alexander shows, the Florida law
is not even being applied consis­
tently. Alexander, who is black, is
serving 20 years in prison for
firing a single shot at the ceiling to
scare off her abusive husband
who was charging towards her
with murderous intent.
Unlike the Zimmerman case, a
Stand Your Ground self-defense
claim did not prevent Alexander’ s
conviction. Clearly, something is
wrong when the man who killed
Trayvon Martin is acquitted, while
a black woman who fired a warn­
ing shot gets 20 years.
As President Obama noted,
“there is a history of racial dis­
parities in the application of our
criminal laws, everything from
the death penalty to enforce­
ment of our drug laws.” These
disparities are more than de­
meaning, they are leading to the
over-incarceration, under-em­
ployment and disenfranchise­
ment of m illions of African
American men.
The death of Trayvon Martin
has ignited a firestorm of protest.
And it’s not just about the shoot­
ing, but the many ways America
continues to devalue young black
men. Justice for Trayvon is about
justice for all.
Marc H. Morial is president
and chief executive officer o f the
National Urban League.