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EJC History

The Economic Justice Coalition was first organized in the winter of 2003, following a public hearing by State Senator Vincent Fort on Living Wage issues, and the inauguration of a new mayor, who expressed interest in addressing issues of poverty. Our initial focus was:

  1. Bringing people together from African American communities, Latino communities, as well as whites from the University of Georgia campus and the community at large, especially low income neighborhoods.
  2. To look at the Clarke County government's wages for their employees and negotiate with the Mayor over their "minimum wage" and their economic development standards for wages and benefits. The county pays all regular staff over $10.50 per hour with healthy benefits.
  3. Establishing a board of directors and developing our by-laws and filing for tax exempt status. This was done in 2004 and achieved in 2005.
  4. Much time was spent in the first two years in developing public education programs on the issues of living wages, the consequences of poverty wages on individuals, families, communities, and employers' effectiveness.
  5. A student group on campus was initiated in this period, and that effort resulted in the University of Georgia raising its "Minimum Hiring Rate" to $20,000 up from $12,000 for regular, benefited employees (not their temporary workers). We initiated a study in the University Council (faculty senate) of six proposals on living wage issues. That resulted in approval of 15 resolutions by the University Council in Sept. 2007, including raising the minimum hiring rate to $24,000 ($11.54 per hour) and recommending that temporary workers be shifted to "regular" status with benefits and the higher wages.
  6. Collaboration with the Georgia Living Wage Coalition resulted in a) the City of Atlanta passing a Living Wage Ordinance for all contractors who use City resources or property. That resulted in the State Legislature passing a "Preemption Law" which prohibits any local government from having a policy affecting wages or benefits of private businesses.
  7. As a result, the mission of EJC expanded to include "rights of workers to organize" and "participation in governmental decision making" through voter registration, Get Out The Vote activities, and civic engagement. As a result voting numbers went up significantly in the low income districts, affecting one congressional election and a number of county commission elections.
  8. In the spring of 2006, our new Latino Outreach Coordinator assisted in organizing the largest civil rights march since the early 1970s in Athens, the Immigration Rights March of about 1500 people, many of them undocumented immigrants. After that, we have had Latinos on our Board of Directors and we have worked on a weekly basis with the day laborers south of Athens at a Home Depot site.
  9. In 2008 and we have been organizing English as a Second Language (ESL) training for the day laborers, involving over 15 volunteer conversation trainers, resulting in the workers feeling much more comfortable conversing with their employers. Currently, we are organizing ESL volunteers in the development of a Latina women's group on the north side of Athens.
  10. Our Executive Director, Linda Lloyd, comes from South Georgia, Dooly County. She is on our staff, technically, half time. At other times, she has developed an Economic Justice group in her county. With voter registration activities she has made a difference in local elections. She has secured an office for EJC in the Rural Empowerment Zone (an economic development activity), and she has developed a federally funded after school program and summer youth enrichment program.
  11. In 2007 through now, the EJC has worked on developing a Worker Center, which stands for workers' rights under labor and employment laws, as well as rights to organize on the job. Five attorneys have been identified who are willing to assist in filing complaints about employers' abuses. Six of our board members are workers, and we are organizing food service workers as the initial focus of the worker center.
  12. In 2008 through now, we have worked on developing a nonprofit business in landscaping, handyman, and construction work for day laborers, both African American and Latino. Further ideas for job development under Medicaid (home health care workers) are in process of developing.
  13. An off-shoot activity developed in 2006 to the present with a web site (workerfriendly.org) which promotes higher wages and benefits by honoring employers who meet standards given on the web site. Currently, we are looking for Human Resource specialists to spread the word and ask employers to submit their employee wage and benefit data for assessment. The goal is to spread the standard in a positive way by honoring worker friendly employers.
  14. In connection with the Northeast Georgia Food Bank, we have established a food distribution program for intensely hungry families, especially in the face of this economic crisis (2009).
  15. Multiple events have been developed which serve to educate the public on the issues, and in some cases, raise donations to the EJC. In 2005, Sarah Himmelheber came up with the idea of a Labor Day Event: Celebration of Workers Rights. Fabulous speakers have been on the steps of city hall speaking, after a march around downtown chanting "What do we want, the Living Wage. When do we want it, NOW." Jesse Jackson, sr., came in 2008. Three campus rallies at the Tate Center Plaza have been held. Three Worker Appreciation picnics have been held. And, a Gospel Fest was held in October, 2008.

Since then we've done many things to generate ongoing activity.