The "Living Wage NYC" campaign is in full bloom this weekend, when 60 congregations will unite to push for legislation in favor of workers.
The legislation was proposed by a group of City Council members and strengthened by the support of Bronx Borough President Rubén Díaz Jr., when the Kingsbridge Armory Project was announced. He indicated that anyone involved with any project subsidized by the city has the obligation to offer a living wage to the project's employees: $10.00 an hour plus benefits, or $11.50 an hour without benefits.
In an effort to seek the support of the community, this weekend's Faith Caucus will consist of the pastors of the various religious institutions giving their sermons on the subject of economic justice this Sunday, October 10th. Parishioners will be invited to sign cards that will then be sent to the mayor and the City Council so that the lawmakers will take notice and approve of the legislation as a city law.
"This is a struggle we have been carrying on for several years, to raise the minimum wage," said Pastor Raymond Rivera, who is president of the Latino Pastoral Action Center, in the Bronx. "The statistics have shown that people cannot live in New York on a wage below $12 an hour, and that is why this movement has grown."
For the legislation to become law, it must be presented to the City Council by Council Speaker Christine Quinn, and then signed into law by Mayor Michael Bloomberg. "We are now working very hard to secure more than half of the votes – 34 – for it to be approved," said the pastor and Council Member Fernando Cabrera (D-Distrcit 14).
"We are the moral conscience of our society," said Pastor Cabrera, the minister of the New Life International Outreach Church. "What we are seeking is morality and justice when the public's money is used to support private development; the public ought to expect jobs with decent wages."
Borough President Díaz Jr. asks the community to demonstrate its support by signing the cards, to send a message to Mayor Bloomberg. "The people have awakened and should send a message to the Mayor that he ought to change the way the city does business," he added.
Díaz Jr. also said that it is untenable that the city provides financial aid to multi-million dollar businesses for their projects, without their guaranteeing that the workers get paid a decent living wage. As well, the president of the Borough of la salsa affirmed that he had created a working team that is in discussions about other possibilities for the future of the Kingsbridge Armory, which was the project that set off the debate about a living wage.
"We are analyzing the true impact on the creation of jobs, because supposedly 2,200 jobs were to be created, of which 1,000 were to be union construction jobs and the rest for small business entrepreneurs, but no one considered the negative aspects of the project on businesses nearby on Fordham Road," Díaz Jr. said in closing.
