USW International Secretary-Treasurer Stan Johnson and progressive talk show host Leslie Marshall this week discussed World Day for Decent Work, a day, marked on Oct. 7, that draws attention to the alarming global trend away from full time employment and towards precarious work.
Precarious work includes temporary work, involuntary part-time work and underemployment. As employers chase the cheapest possible options regardless of the social or environmental consequences, they increasingly rely on workers they treat as disposable, who earn no benefits and often fail to make a living wage.
This is a problem, Johnson said, that is not unique to developing countries, nor is it isolated to a few industries like retail or food service.
“This is not limited to unskilled, low-skilled or uneducated workers,” said Johnson. “It runs the gamut from low-skilled people to people with Ph.D.s.”
Precarious employment leaves workers and their communities vulnerable. “If you want to make a living and you can’t know from one day to the next whether you’ve got a job or not, how do you budget for rent? How do you budget for basic food items? How do you budget for health care?” said Johnson.
The solution, he said, is solidarity.
“We’ve got to lock hands and say ‘enough is enough.’ The workers in this country are strong enough and powerful enough to demand that things change. One of the hardest things to do—but one of the simplest ways to make a difference—is to have a collective voice.”
To hear the full conversation, click on the audio below:
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