Twenty percent of U.S. adults are in jobs that pay poverty wages and more are at risk of falling into poverty. While there is a jobs crisis in America, there is also a job quality crisis. This was the topic of discussion at today’s Good Jobs for a Strong Economy Conference held on Capitol Hill.
The event brought together anti-poverty, labor and other progressive organizations to discuss the crisis and potential solutions. The Teamsters' good friend Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) gave the keynote address:
Real class warfare in this country is corporate America’s war on the working class. There used to be a consensus on collective bargaining rights, voting rights, women’s rights, and all this has gone out the window. There is now opposition to families joining the middle class. This is what politics has become and that’s the beauty of Occupy Wall Street. It is up to us in elected office to use their energy and progressive ideals to move the country forward.
Brown also talked about Ohio’s SB-5 battle and the importance of collective bargaining:
As a nation, we will move forward because of activism. In Ohio we’re fighting against the collective bargaining issue and the reason we’re going to win is because we have committed activists behind us.
Of course, among the committed activists opposing SB-5 and rallying at the Occupy events, are Teamsters.
For more information and materials from the Good Jobs For A Stronger Economy Conference, visit Demos.
