Amid pandemic, agency aids low-wage earners
KINGSTON, N.Y. » Lowwage earners are part of the American workforce in need of special attention amid the coronavirus pandemic, a local advocate says.
Lauren Deutsch, executive director of the nonprofit Worker Justice Center of New York, which advocates for low-wage and migrant workers, said those workers are on the “front lines” of the fight against COVID-19 and are critical to Hudson Valley communities.
“These people are risking their own health to disinfect our public spaces,” Deutsch said. “They are ensuring we have food on the table.”
The Worker Justice Center has an office in Kingston as well as two other regional locations.
“This global pandemic is highlighting the stark differences in the rights of workers depending on what they do for a living,” Deutsch said. “We need strong leadership from our elected officials.
“All employees deserve paid sick leave,” she said. “Contractors and service professionals need cash assistance. Janitors need hazard pay and protective equipment. Medical care should be easily accessible to farm workers.”
Deutsch said low-wage workers face financial difficulties that others do not.
“Many low-wage workers do not have savings to rely on and live paycheck to paycheck,” Deutsch said. “Any missed days of work — whether due to illness, or being furloughed or laid off — could result in eviction or foreclosure.
“Being absent from work could force these hardworking residents, who are our neighbors and friends, to decide between paying rent instead of electrical bills, or buying groceries instead of school supplies for
their children,” she added.
Many farm workers are exempt from unemployment taxes and, therefore, are not eligible for unemployment benefits, Deutsch said.
“Lawmakers should enact legislation allowing farm workers to access public benefits, including unemployment,” she said. “Farm workers are essential and need the job protections afforded to employees in other industries.”
Deutsch also noted that low-wage workers often are unable to work from home, and because “safe, affordable child care is prohibitively expensive, these vulnerable members of our society will be disproportionately impacted by school and child-care facility closures.”
In Ulster County, Deutsch said, 13.2 percent of residents live at or below the poverty line; in Greene County, 12.4 percent are in poverty; and in Columbia County, the total is about 11.4 percent. About 9 percent of Dutchess County residents are at or below the poverty line, she said.
In the coming weeks, Worker Justice Center of New York plans to:
• Identify immediate needs and mobilize resources for those most affected by the economic fallout from the pandemic.
• Push for strong legal protections, access to medical care, and emergency assistance, regardless of immigration status.
• Educate workers in their language about coronavirus, how to seek assistance, and their workplace safety rights.
• Educate the public about the plight of workers at the highest risk of exposure to COVID-19 and how the virus threatens to affect food supplies.
• Help people at greater risk of experiencing intimate partner violence while “social distancing” or home quarantining.