New York City – This, hundreds of excluded workers, elected officials, and allies took over the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges. They raised the heat on the demands for an additional $3 billion for the Excluded Workers Fund in the state budget and the first ever “Excluded Worker Unemployment Program” in the country which would provide compensation to workers who have lost a job or income and are ineligible for unemployment insurance.
More than 130,000 people across New York State had their lives transformed after receiving funding from the Excluded Workers Fund. Yet many New Yorkers were left out due to insufficient funds. A recent Immigration Research Initiative report estimated that 175,000 New Yorkers would be eligible for funding if the Excluded Workers Fund was expanded according to our proposal.
We are also calling for a permanent solution called Excluded No More legislation. The legislation would affect three sets of workers–undocumented workers, documented workers paid off the books by certain employers, and self-employed workers making limited income. These workers currently cannot get access to assistance if they lose work, a gap exposed during the pandemic, when hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers were left to fend for themselves after being shut out of stimulus checks and unemployment support.
We shut down traffic in New York City to show the power of excluded workers, and the dignity of our labor. But we are not done yet. On Tuesday, dozens of immigrant and excluded workers across New York State will embark on a 150 mile march from NYC to Albany to call for an end to exclusion. Will you support the fight to end exclusion in our social safety net for good?
Yesterday, Laborers’ Local 79, a union representing more than 10,000 workers in the construction industry, came out in support of the Excluded No More proposal, saying it would help close the gap between union and non-union contractors while making it easier for construction workers to organize freely on the job without fear of retaliation.
The labor movement in New York State is stronger than ever, and we call on New York State to support excluded workers’ demands for more funding and a permanent solution.
“The Workers United Will Never Be Defeated”
Excluded Workers demanding new legislation step off from @GovKathyHochul office in Manhattan & begin marching to Albany.@fewcoalition @vendorpower @MaketheRoadNY @NICE4Workers @nychange @Teamsters #laborers79
🎥Ken Lopez @htownslack pic.twitter.com/izPPE2AElP
— @TheIndypendent (@TheIndypendent) March 15, 2022