Sonia Lozano (right) is the secretary-treasurer of Laborers (LIUNA) Local 572 in DC and a member of the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA). Describing the importance of Latinos in the workforce and in the labor movement, she says that "In 2050, Latinos will make up one-third of our workforce, yet we are currently some of the most vulnerable workers in the country. For the future of labor and for the future of Latinos, this is an undeniable partnership that needs to take place now. I am a mother of two, and every morning I wake up and think about the future of my kids. I want to make sure that they grow up in a world where my daughter will earn the same amount of money as my son. I want them to be treated as equals and not discriminated against for being Latinos. Hopefully, our efforts as laborers can provide them a greater opportunity to build a better future for their families and for the community that surrounds them." Click here to read more. During Hispanic Heritage Month, the AFL-CIO and the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) are profiling past and present leaders in the intersecting movements to protect and expand the rights of Hispanics, Latinos and working families. The Metro Washington Council and Community Services Agency’s offices will be closed on Wednesday and Thursday, September 23 and 24, due to the papal visit's downtown closures and traffic. However, all staff will be working and available via cel phone and email. U.S. Capitol workers struck yesterday for a living wage and a union, asking Pope Francis to meet with them. Praying for better wages & union, the food service and other government contract workers said they hope that when Francis addresses Congress later this week, “our Senators and House Representatives will heed his call for worker justice and make meaningful and bipartisan reforms that allow workers to sustain a family and put an end to a ‘throwaway economy’ that values profit over people and planet.” Click here to add your own prayers in support of the Pope's speech to Congress. “At the end of the week, we'll send your prayers to Congressional leadership to encourage them to act on the Pope's value-oriented policy prescriptions and stand up for working people,” said Interfaith Worker Justice. photo courtesy Good Jobs Nation With yet another federal government shutdown looming, federal workers’ unions are giving their members advice on how to cope with a sudden halt to their paychecks, lobbying lawmakers to come to their senses and avert the crisis and advocating legislation that would reimburse employees for lost pay if and when the feds return to work. “Having to live with constant threats of a government shutdown every year is extremely demoralizing to the federal workforce and damaging the government’s ability to recruit and retain the best and the brightest,” said AFGE President J. David Cox. Political infighting, specifically within Congress’ ruling Republicans, could leave federal workers on the outside looking in come Oct. 1, and everyone else without vital government functions and services. The immediate source of the problem is that the new fiscal year starts that day and Congress not only has not passed any of the regular money bills to keep the government going, it hasn’t even started work on a so-called “continuing resolution” (CR) that would let agencies limp along at last year’s funding levels until lawmakers provide permanent solutions. “There are just five legislative days remaining before the end of the fiscal year, but the House failed to take any action to keep the government open,” said House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, D-Md. “Instead, House Republicans wasted time on legislation attacking women’s health.” - Press Associates, Inc. (PAI); photo: October 4, 2013 shutdown demo at the U.S. Capitol; photo by Chris Garlock |