Chapter 1: Thanks for hanging in there with us!
So did the judge rule in our favor securing sick leave rights protections for everyone? We don’t have a definitive answer, but we do have some really good signs.
City Council Sign Ons
First, if you haven’t already heard, the statement of legislative intent was submitted with signatures from Council Members Kevin Riley (Co-Sponsor of the legislation and Co-Chair of the Black, Latino, and Asian Caucus), Christopher Marte, and Oswald Feliz (who is a lawyer himself). This is a strong first lineup for two reasons. One, it includes a council member who is a lawyer, which signals the validity of the statement. Two, while many petition signers might have suggested a different set of pro-worker champions would take the lead, it was Council Members Riley, Marte, and Feliz who stepped forward first. Their early leadership demonstrates the potential for more growth in council support, and we are already seeing signs of that momentum!
Reporters Don’t Even Know Yet
As the supporters of these rights, we are happy for you to be the first of the public to be given access to a copy of the statement of legislative intent. There’s some powerful stuff in that text. If it’s not easy to understand, that’s fine. We’re going to get together on Zoom to help everyone understand.
The reply papers have been tuned into the court for 6 weeks now. From what we hear, that means it’s not easy to just say no. Jackson Lewis must be thinking the same because they have asked about Hannah’s interest in settling.
These are all good signs but since Hannah started on this journey she knew she wanted to do more than just cash out. Our campaign wants to protect the rights of as many New York City workers as we can. We are now up to 38 organizations that have signed on to ask city council to take action to protect our rights.
What’s Next?
People have seen our momentum. Multiple council members offices have reached out asking how they can help with whatever the future of this fight looks like.
If you care about workers rights, we are happy to give you the power to shape and fight for those rights. Help us define how we respond to city council and advocate for these rights that will affect all of New York City’s workers.
Meeting with partners has happened fairly haphazardly. Moving forward, we will be holding two 45 minute online meet ups every week. These short focused strategy sessions to help everyone make plans together, stay coordinated, and keep current about the case and legislation.
Mondays at 11:00 AM
Thursdays at 6:00 PM
To see the calendar on our website you can click here. You can also subscribe to it to stay up to date on meeting times. This Thursday we will be discussing legislation that will likely get passed next month that we have been asked to give feedback on.
If you are unable to make it you can find out about things after they have happened on the website. We started a new page where you can read about what everyone has accomplished. It can be found at protectESSTA.org/chapters.
Hope to see you Thursday!
In solidarity,
The protectESSTA Team