Coronavirus concerns revive labor organizing

In India, corruption in the distribution of government ID cards leaves the poorest without legal identity or protection. A non-profit group is creating and distributing unofficial ID cards and legal aid for day workers in major cities in India.

The minimum wage issue has been debated endlessly, with arguments both for and against its effectiveness. An increase, tested in some states and enacted in others, immeasurably betters the quality of life for low-income families.

Bangladesh has often struggled maintaining safety in the workplace. But a new effort ensures that Bangladeshi workers are trained about how to better follow security and safety restrictions to create a safer working environment.

Caller-Times Saturday’s biannual Coastal Bend Social Forum hosted by Del Mar College gathered an array of experts to delve into the issues of domestic violence, labor rights, immigrant rights and homelessness, among other topics, to ignite a new tide of change in the Coastal Bend.

Sexual harassment and assault, and almost non-existent job security, are just some of the problems that plague migrant workers in the United States. A decade-long farm worker-led effort to push corporations to demand farmers submit to “clean labor” audits has yielded, for the first time, the introduction of shade tents, mandated water and bathroom breaks.

Overall, Cambodia is a relatively poor country whose residents don't own much. Norwegian hotel owners in the city of Krong Siem Reap urge their Cambodian staff to be more in charge of making their own decisions by making them co-owners of the hotel, an act that forced them to have more confidence and critical thinking skills.

In the past five years, as federal and state minimum wage levels failed to keep pace with the cost of living, and as the recession took its toll, the living wage movement has accelerated. Across the United States, more than 125 cities and counties have enacted ordinances or passed ballot initiatives to lift the wages of the working poor.

After years of banning labor unions in Bangladesh, garment workers unionized to fight for higher wages and safer working conditions. For women, this isn't traditionally a space they were welcomed in, but now they’re holding their own meetings to ensure women’s safety is ensured on the job.

For decades, migrant workers in Florida have been employed under dreadful conditions, picking produce without breaks under extreme temperatures and women being sexually harassed. The Coalition of Immokalee Workers has demanded that growers increase wages, mandate rest breaks, and prohibit sexual harassment. The Coalition has partnered with big food companies, notably McDonald’s, Yum Brands, and Walmart, which have pledged to buy only from growers who follow these standards.

Many independent workers feel that the battle for affordable health insurance is one they are losing. The Freelancers Union is working to provide protections for “contingent” workers that go beyond just health care.