Vernetta King
UNITE HERE
Cleveland, OH
“It took a 2nd and 3rd job for me to just barely make ends meet and I have a full-time job. ”
My name is Vernetta King. I became a part of Local 10 of the trade union that is now called UNITE HERE almost 13 years ago. I took on a 2nd and a 3rd job at Jacobs Field and Gund Arena just to make ends meet. Jacobs Field is the stadium where our city's baseball team plays; Gund Arena is where the basketball team plays. Both are seasonal employments and don't overlap until March or April of each year. So, I figured I could handle THREE jobs all at the same time. I had no choice. I had four kids at home and a husband with a series of medical issues that oftentimes prevented him from working. Jacobs Field wasn't a union shop at that time, so with $6.25 per hour as the starting rate, I thought that was the best I could get until something better came along. Gund Arena, which opened up a few months later, WAS a union shop and we started there at $6.75, which was even a little better for me.
But curiosity made me engage in conversations with workers in all of the job classifications at Jacobs Field; and I discovered that for the majority of the employees, this seasonal job, from April to September, was their primary source of income . ALL YEAR. At $6.25 per hour, I just couldn't fathom anyone making it on that kind of a salary; especially with many of them having 2 or more kids and paying for transportation, day care and medical expenses. It took a 2nd and 3rd job for me to just barely make ends meet and I have a full-time job.
Ultimately, we began an organizing a union campaign at Jacobs Field and after the first unsuccessful attempt, Jacobs Field became organized in its 2nd attempt; result in a starting wage of $7.25, with longevity bonuses for those who had been there for at least 5 years. Since that time, we've also organized at Cleveland Browns Stadium and now all 3 sporting venues have good contracts, with decent wages and for the first time ever in the history of these venues, health care coverage. And, although it only exists for a small percentage of the employees, it does exist. But it's not fair to those who aren't in the upper percentile. Everyone should have health care coverage . EVERYONE.
I'm one of the lucky ones. I'm still balancing a full-time job, which has a good health care package and decent salary, but even I have to still maintain my part-time seasonal employment at the sports arena, now called the"Q". BUT . most of my membership isn't as lucky as I am. I've watched them for 13 long years continue to struggle with making ends meet at these wages. Nothing's changed for them; they still have kids, they still have no or very limited health care and still have your basic living expenses . food, shelter and utilities.
I've been a union steward for most of the time and a union officer for the past 6 years. And in that time, we've been constantly fighting for the rights of our service workers, hotel workers, and gaming workers so that they don't have to juggle more than one job, away from their families and their own deteriorating health . just to survive. Outside of the union, I witness the same circumstances at the college where I also work each and every day. People stroll into my office looking for a quick "training fix" because they are employed or underemployed. I hear their stories, I feel their pain and some have even begged and cried, "PLEASE HELP ME"!!! and I so desperately want to do something, but I don't have the power. The government HAS the power. It is the government's responsibility to uphold the U.S. Constitution and Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that states, "Everyone, has the RIGHT to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including medical care and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control."
Commissioners, I am living proof of the pain caused by the government ignoring our cries. My constituents are living proof of the impact minimum and low wages have placed on their lives. We are ALL feeling the effects of little or no health care, in a country full of wealth and advanced technology.
Commissioners, we must all open our eyes, open our ears, and open our hearts. There's not just a war on foreign soil; we have a war going on right here. A war that can be WON, if all of us would intervene with the same energy that this country displays when it fights wars abroad.
Thank you.