What: 15 Now Rally for $15/hour and a Union
Time: 12:00pm Friday December 5th
Where: Terminal 1, Upper Level Roadway, across from ticketing
Join 15 Now for a national week of action of low-wage workers, beginning with Black Friday Walmart actions, then major fast food strikes on December 4th, and culminating locally with a major rally and action by workers at MSP Airport on December 5th.
Over 2,500 workers at the Minneapolis – St Paul airport make poverty wages, significantly less than $15/hour. Workers organizing with 15 Now have presented nearly 2,000 petition signatures from workers demanding $15/hour to the Metropolitan Airport Commissioners.
Delta workers, baggage handlers organizing with the International Association of Machinists (IAM) and Airserve workers organizing with SEIU are all fighting for their right to unionize. Poverty pay affects thousands of workers in numerous airport jobs, from DGS ramp and above wing, Swissport fuelers, retail workers inside the airport, G2 valets, rental car workers, to workers at many major airlines (Alaska, Great Lakes, Sun Country -Menzies).
On December 5th, join 15 Now airport workers, community and labor activists, and all supporters of the demand for $15/hour and the right to a union at the Minneapolis- St. Paul airport. Workers deserve to live, not just survive!
The following is from an email from Joe Hesla, posted with his permission:
I hope you can come to this rally for the 15 NOW campaign at the airport. It’s a historic campaign and part of wave spreading across the country: San Francisco, Seattle, and St. Louis. Its thrilling for me to be a part of it.
Our campaign now has the public and financial support of SEIU, AFSCME Council 5, the Nurses Union, the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers, EA union. The St. Paul Federation of Teachers, and other unions.
$15 an hour is a living wage. Winning this will strength union’s position across the state.
In our campaign, more and more airport workers are getting involved and signing on to the campaign.
More details will come later, but the rally will be at the airport at about noon on December 5th, Friday. I am taking the day off. I am recruiting as many friends as I can to come.
These events are what we are using now to build our public power, and create a platform to make our demands known to airport officials and to public officials.
Joe’s house is near the 38th St. LRT. If people want to gather at his house at 11:00 am, he can drop them at the LRT station. Otherwise, we will meet out at the airport as above. Joe’s number is 612-722-6473, for more information.
