721 members would fight to increase L.A.’s minimum wage even if it didn’t benefit them directly — the gap between the richest Angelenos and average workers is the widest it’s ever been. But winning a minimum wage increase for all L.A. workers isn’t just the right thing to do — it’s good for every member of 721.

Increasing the Minimum Wage Helps 721 Members

In nearly every fight public employees face, our enemies try to play us off against non-union workers. in the private sector. Anti-union groups try to stoke jealousy among minimum wage workers about public employees’ health benefits and pensions and encourage them to vote for deceptive “pension reform” measures. The best strategy for us to combat these attacks on affordable health care and retirement security for public workers is to help these workers win $15 dollars an hour and the right to join a union without interference from the boss.

That’s why 721 and other SEIU locals are supporting the Fight For $15 movement in L.A. and it’s why 721 Vice President Linda Dent and I joined thousands of other union members, community leaders and minimum wage workers from fastfood restaurants around Los Angeles in the streets of Downtown L.A. earlier this month.

Fight for $15 Wins 721 Valuable Allies

I’ve written before about how our Fix L.A. campaign is helping 721 City of L.A. workers build powerful alliances with community and faith leaders around L.A. By fighting for the right of all workers to earn enough to afford basic essentials in the Fight For 15, we’re creating the same type of alliances. We’re also making it much harder for anti-union groups to scapegoat public workers and drive a wedge between us and non-union private sector workers

Bob Schoonover, President