TESTIMONY
Tara Joy, Union Staff Member at Mobilization for Justice, on the Strike for Fair Wages and its Impacts
5:03:44
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129 sec
Tara Joy, representing the Mobilization for Justice union, testifies about the ongoing strike due to staff attrition, insufficient wages, and its impacts.
- The union comprises 110 members working in various fields including housing, economic justice, and children's rights, serving 15,000 households citywide.
- Joy highlights the loss of 23 employees, 17 unfilled positions, and the inadequate 2% salary increases offered by management.
- She stresses the importance of fair and equitable wages to retain staff and maintain the organization's capacity to provide life-changing advocacy.
- Joy calls for any funding increases from the city to prioritally support the workers over executives.
- She acknowledges Council members Banks and Rest for their support and invites others to join the picket line.
Tara Joy
5:03:44
Good afternoon, Karen Myella.
5:03:46
My name is Tara Joy.
5:03:48
I'm a member of the union staff at mobilization for justice.
5:03:52
Our union comprises a 110 members from front desk staff to senior attorneys who work in a number of different practice areas.
5:03:59
With 4 major focuses being housing, economic justice, disability, aging rights, and children's rights.
5:04:05
Last year alone, we served 15,000 households citywide.
5:04:08
With that said, I'm not just here today to talk about the work that MFG handles, fighting the big shifts, helping the silanes gain permanent residency, helping families stay together, and shining light on deplorable conditions.
5:04:18
And adult homes.
5:04:19
I'm also here to talk about why myself and 109 of my colleagues have not set foot in our offices nor spoken to any clients since February 23rd.
5:04:26
I'm here today to talk about our strike.
5:04:28
While we are incredibly proud of the work we do, our staff is at a breaking point.
5:04:32
In the past year, MFJ lost 23 employees and currently has 17 open positions, many of which have gone unfilled for months.
5:04:39
And yet the contractual offers made by our management would do nothing to alleviate the constant turnover as we all know that 2% salary increases are not sufficient to keep up with the cost of living in New York City in order to attract and retain the workers we so desperately need.
5:04:52
The irony of having to fight for fair and equitable wages from an employer whose mission statement claims to envision a society in which there's equal justice for all is not lost on us.
5:05:01
Having witnessed it firsthand, I really wanna hammer in the impact of staff attrition to an organization like ours.
5:05:06
When an attorney quits, in the short term, their colleagues have to wretch themselves thinner by absorbing their caseload.
5:05:12
In the medium term, while that position remains empty, our capacity to take on new clients is reduced by that much more.
5:05:17
And in the long term, the faster staff burn out and leave, the harder it is to cultivate the kind of legal skills and knowledge that produce truly life changing advocacy for New Yorkers.
5:05:26
Skills that only really come with years of experience.
5:05:29
In closing, I'd like to clarify that the union knows that MHA's management has asked the city for funding increases, and we fully support these asks.
5:05:36
The reason for our presence here is to remind the city, the council, and our management that any increases in funding should go to the workers fighting for your constituents and not to the executives who caused this strike.
5:05:45
We'd like to give a special thank you to Council member's banks and rest there for joining us in the picket line and extend an invitation to all those who have yet to join us.
5:05:52
Thank you for your time.
