People deserve a living wage – Chico Enterprise-Record

I was born in Lawrence Mass, the ‘immigrant town’, site of the 1912 Bread and Roses strike. At its peak, 10,000 workers were on strike at Everett Mills, motivated by a $0.32 cut in their weekly wages from
The labor movement thrives when workers unite! Unemployment benefits during a global pandemic, working conditions for coal miners in the late 19th century, the 40-hour work week, national holidays and safe and humane working conditions are strenuous victories for the movement worker against the incessant greed of entrenched capitalism.
People who chastise low-wage workers using federal unemployment, or those who work a few weeks and decide “the jobs aren’t right for them,” are disparaging workers’ rights to a living wage and dignity, and to choose what is best for themselves. Meanwhile, the fight for living wages and dignity continues on Labor Day, Labor Day, at…
—Bill Mash, Chico