Why the Fight for $15 Is Our Fight, Too

Across the country, CWA activists took to the streets to demand higher wages and a voice on the job. We stood with thousands of fast-food, bank, airline, home care and other service-sector workers, fighting for $15 an hour.

"Every year we see corporations making record profits. CEOs are getting record bonuses, while the rest of America, working Americans, are struggling and living paycheck to paycheck. I think it's about time that all of us get to enjoy the fruits of our labor," Dale Foster, IUE-CWA Local 87140, said.

With the 2016 presidential election just a year away, workers told politicians, "Come get my vote!"

Check out all the photos here.

Minneapolis, MN

CWAers joined nearly 500 people rallying for paid sick days, $15 an hour and fair scheduling in downtown Minneapolis. For 40 minutes, Yolanda Roth of CWA Local 7250 addressed demonstrators as they closed a branch of US Bank, which has lobbied against paid sick leave while continuing to foreclose on people's homes.

At a US Bank collections call center, eight workers stood up for justice for 5 minutes and wore buttons reading "9 sick days." As a member of the Committee for Better Banks, CWA has been working for just wages, career paths and job security for front-line bank workers.

New York, NY

"These corporations have silenced us for way too long. We are ready to stand up and show them we are sick of it," said Bianca Cunningham, who was fired from her job at Verizon Wireless after she helped organize her coworkers in Brooklyn.

Members of CWA Locals 1109 and 1101 also joined massive rallies across New York City. And activists woke up bright and early for a demonstration in downtown Brooklyn, where Mayor Bill de Blasio joined workers and addressed the crowd.

Houston, TX

CWA Local 6222 members marched to City Hall for $15 and a voice on the job.

Albuquerque, NM

CWA Local 7011 members and TU activists picketed outside T-Mobile's call center on Menaul Boulevard in Albuquerque, NM.

Wichita, KS

The Huffington Post profiled Angela Simler, a T-Mobile call center worker who rallied with her fellow TU activists outside their workplace on Tuesday.

"Whether it's fast food, Walmart, child care, T-Mobile, all these people are paid too little to support their families. The wages have remained stagnant for too long," she told the newspaper.

It was the first time Wichita workers held a Fight for $15 campaign rally. CWA Local 6402 supplied much of the manpower for the rally and barbeque, where activists talked to T-Mobile employees about the union. Also stopping by to show support were the Kansas NEA, Musicians Union Local 1000, and friends and family.

Check out our flyer explaining the union difference for Wichita workers here. 

Raleigh, NC

Piedmont Airline workers, members of CWA Local 3645, stood behind Rev. William Barber, leader of the Moral Monday movement, as he rallied supporters to fight for a fair wage for workers. 

Dayton, OH

IUE-CWA members and CWA Local 4322 members teamed up with local activists to show their support for low-wage workers who need a raise.

Rochester, NY

IUE-CWA 81381 members demonstrated at a nighttime rally in downtown Rochester. More than 150 people gathered around the Abraham Lincoln monument at Washington Square Park before marching north to City Hall.

Denver, CO

CWAers joined a demonstration in Civic Center Park where 200 protesters gathered before marching to the Capitol, forcing Broadway and Lincoln Street to be temporarily closed. Watch a local news report featuring our members here. 

Detroit, MI

CWAers in Detroit stood up for $15 an hour and a union. Around 300 people rallied in front of the Coleman A. Young Municipal Building to bring the message directly to elected officials.

Chicago, IL

"Studies show that because you have fewer and fewer union members out there and union density is reduced, it tracks with income inequality," said NABET-CWA Local 54041 President Don Villar. Watch Villar's video of the downtown Chicago protest here. 

Cleveland, OH

The rain didn't stop CWA protesters from gathering on the steps of City Hall on Tuesday. Activists stood with local home care workers, nursing home workers, library staff, school district employees, fast food workers, and child care workers throughout the city.

CWAers also joined actions in Columbus, OH, Milwaukee, Wisc., and other locations.

Top row, from left: In Albuquerque, CWA 7011 members and TU activists stand up for a living wage; in Chicago, members of NABET-CWA Local 54041, NABET-CWA President Charles Braico and allies join the demonstration; IUE-CWAers and members of CWA Local 4322 rally in Dayton, Ohio.
Second row, from left: Verizon Wireless leader Bianca Cunningham at the NYC rally, joined by members of CWA Local 1109; CWA Local 6222 members join the Fight for $15 in Houston; in Denver, members TNG-CWA Local 37074 show their support for low-wage workers who need a raise.
Center: In Rochester, N.Y., IUE-CWA Local 81381 member Evelyn Evans and her family join a night action for fair wages; In Minneapolis, Bridgette Noel and bank workers take a stand for $15 and a union.
Third row, from left: Piedmont Airlines workers and other members and retirees from CWA Local 3645 join Rev. William Barber at an action in Raleigh, N.C.; about 30 CWAers joined the fight for $15, fair scheduling and paid sick days in Minneapolis; Marcus Dodson, a bank worker in Minneapolis, was among the 500 workers who rallied for fairness; in Cleveland, CWAers join the protest on the steps of City Hall.
Bottom row, from left: CWA retirees from Local 1101 stand up for $15 and a union; in Detroit and across the state, CWAers joined the fight for 15; in Wichita, Kan., TU members and CWA activists leafleted for 15 and fairness.