Like many working-class folks of shade dwelling in Los Angeles County, I work to help myself and my household. This contains my 4 youthful siblings and single mom.
I work exhausting at UPS half time and simply accomplished my diploma in labor research at California State College, Dominguez Hills. I’m a proud member of Teamsters Native 396, which represents transportation and sanitation staff in Southern California. As a store steward, I apply my information to assist my co-workers at UPS advocate for themselves.
Each employee ought to be capable of sit instantly throughout from their employer to barter the working situations they deserve. I’m honored to try this, serving on the usTeamsters Nationwide Negotiating Committee as we cut price our new five-year union contract protecting greater than 340,000 staff at UPS. We have now had sufficient and we’re prepared for the contract we deserve at UPS.
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Sadly, after we bought to the a part of negotiations the place we cut price over wages, we hit a giant roadblock. UPS walked away from the desk on July 5, refusing to offer the Teamsters a final, finest, and closing supply. It was disheartening to listen to that from the employer I work so exhausting for, an employer that made a record-setting $100 billion final yr. Half-time staff work extraordinarily exhausting to make this firm its earnings, and we need to share in that success.
As hundreds of UPS Teamsters apply picketed, rallied, and mobilized throughout the nation, UPS bowed to the stress, and on July 19, reached out to the union to renew negotiations subsequent week. UPS must ship a good contract with the wages we deserve.
As a part-time employee at the usCompton hub, I make $18.85 an hour. UPS advertises that their jobs pay a median of $95,000 a yr, however that’s not what I’m making. My co-workers and I wrestle to make ends meet on low wages, particularly in a state like California, which has among the many highest dwelling prices within the U.S.
Inflation is rising, and requirements like lease and meals have gotten more and more troublesome to afford. Housing is a serious expense for people and households. In line with a current Nationwide Low Earnings Housing Coalition report, a employee should earn an hourly wage of $42.25 and work full-time to afford a two-bedroom house in Southern California. For cities like Los Angeles, Berkeley, and San Diego, a single particular person should make greater than $76,000 to “reside comfortably,” in response to the Massachusetts Institute of Know-how Dwelling Wage Calculator.
Earnings inequality in the USA has grown dramatically for many years. The wealthiest People are getting richer whereas the remainder of us wrestle to maintain up. Costs for items and providers are rising, however paychecks aren’t holding tempo. The result’s a rising variety of staff who’re compelled to decide on between paying for lease or groceries, and that’s merely not acceptable.
This development is mirrored within the wages of part-time staff at UPS. UPS Teamsters are united round negotiating wages that respect the very important position we play within the firm and the economic system. The beginning fee for a part-time UPS employee is $15.50 an hour. We do vital work and are important to the corporate’s success, however we’re not paid accordingly. This can be a multibillion-dollar company that may afford to do higher by its staff.
Elevating wages for part-time staff is the precise factor to do. It’s additionally good for the economic system. When staff have extra money to spend, they put it again into their communities, supporting native companies and creating jobs. This boosts financial development and advantages everybody, persevering with a cycle of shared progress.
UPS wants to boost wages, so this firm’s staff can reside with dignity and safety. Half-timers at UPS, like myself, overwhelmingly need full-time jobs. We regularly have to attend years for that chance and, within the meantime, work for wages that can’t maintain a person, not to mention a household.
One of the simplest ways for UPS to retain reliable staff is by paying us sufficient to reside and creating alternative. The system that presently exists at UPS means staff must cobble collectively a number of jobs to make ends meet. This isn’t good for us, and it’s not good for the corporate. It’s time for UPS to acknowledge the vital position that part-time staff play within the firm’s success and make some severe investments in our labor for the long-haul.
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