WOW! Today’s committee hearing on secure scheduling was incredible — more than hour of public comment, almost everyone in support of the basic principle that our time counts!
Here are our top 10 moments from the hearing (in no particular order):
- “I speak from a position of ignorance. I didn’t realize so many people didn’t have secure schedules… How do you get a doctor’s appointment”?”
- “Too many workers have to hope their employer is the good guy.”
- Nichole Booker, retail worker: “One of my co-workers has to work 3 different part-time jobs to get by.”
- Darrion Sjoquist: "Our job is to make things better for everyone. Please keep that in mind."
- Mike Lafferty, Target worker: “Anything could be any day of the week, it’s always changing. That means my life revolves around work.”
- Alpine Anderson, REI worker. “We could be scheduled 24 hours, or none. These are the hardships of workers at one of Seattle’s most respected retailers."
- “I’m constantly trying to work more hours. I'm so pleased to see this. "
- Katie, Transit Riders Union: “This is about affirming a basic respect for workers’ time and lives”
- Jerry Cole, a grocery store worker, talked about the impact of only getting 3 days notice of his schedule: misses church & family events, and more. Bad for him, bad for community.
- “Workers should have not only a secure schedule, but also a secure life.”
And here's the top 1 sign from the hearing, from REI Employees for Real Change.
Next step: Committee vote on Tuesday, September 13th at 9:30 am. Meanwhile, take two clicks and send a message to City Council telling them you support secure scheduling!