Last month, we sent the following letter to all 50 City of Chicago Aldermen in response to the continued attack on Unionized employees in the City of Chicago by Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
Sign the online petition here to tell Mayor Emanuel to stop his attacks on Unionized workers!
Dear Alderman,
We wanted to bring your attention to the attached January 4th article by the Chicago Reader’s Mick Dumke, titled “City job cuts hit black and Hispanic neighborhoods hardest.” (Click here to read article)
As the article points out, Mayor Emanuel’s cuts disproportionately affect people of color and their communities…your communities. But communities of color in general, and African Americans in particular, are painfully familiar with being “last hired, first fired.” Mr. Emanuel’s actions seem to lack an awareness and sensitivity to these communities’ needs and to their historical experience.
In addition to the discriminatory consequence of the cuts, there are several reasons why Mayor Emanuel’s layoffs and cuts make little sense. The planned privatization of custodians and window washers at Chicago’s airports and libraries are not necessary for the following reasons:
- These positions were in the budget you voted for! If they were budgeted and approved by the City Council, why is the Mayor outsourcing these positions?
- The layoffs at O’Hare airport will not save the City of Chicago any money because the airlines pay the salaries along with an administration fee to the city. The staffing services at the Chicago Public Libraries are offset by a $2.3 million dollar special appropriation grant from the State of Illinois for FY2012.
- All of the employees at the airport and the Chicago public libraries have to be residents of the City of Chicago! Many of these employees are homeowners and pay taxes, buy vehicle stickers, shop here, buy gasoline here, and use the entertainment venues here paying all of the taxes and fees associated with those activities. There is no residency requirement in the RFQs for a private contractor! Bean counters won’t tell you the amount of lost of revenue the city will incur as a result of this privatization. We will tell you that the loss easily surpasses one million dollars!
- Privatization ofthese services threatens you! You now have an administration that is prepared to eliminate your constituents and decimate the community that you represent!
Since 2003 SEIU Local 73 has negotiated with the city each time there was an issue with either the budget or the costs of the services provided by our members in these jobs. Our members have had their wages reduced, given up sick time and accepted an increased workload created by the elimination of vacancies. These workers have participated in shared sacrifice under the Daley administration. The Emanuel administration wants to reward their sacrifice by eliminating their jobs! Your constituents need your immediate assistance!