KUOW workers picket for higher wages
A Black Gig Worker’s Experience
Working Washington and gig workers representing Instacart, DoorDash, Postmates, Grubhub, Uber Eats, Shipt, GoPuff, and Caviar held #AppBlackOut from July 24th through 26th. The action was to request gig workers and allies to log off of these apps for those days, as workers demanded these companies address policies and programs that can negatively impact BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Color) workers.
Aviona Rodriguez Brown, an AfroLatinx artist who supplements their income with gig work, spoke with KBCS about their racialized experiences while on the job as a gig worker.
The Assassination of Silme Domingo and Gene Viernes
In the late 80’s, the Ferdinand Marcos regime was convicted of a wrongful death action that revealed the involvement of planning, execution and cover-up of the assassinations of two Seattle labor leaders, Silme Domingo and Gene Viernes. Find out how these Seattle sons posed a threat to the Marcos government.
Grocery Work During COVID 19
“I’m working with at least four people who are above 60 that just got hired when I got hired, because they got laid off…..There are people that have young children at home, people with pregnant spouses…People are making this decision out of necessity and it is just tragic that folks have to risk their lives in order to buy food…”
Swedish Hospital Workers’ Strike
About 7,800 workers among seven regional Swedish Hospital locations went on strike beginning Tuesday morning at 7 am. In preparation for the walk out, hospital management had cancelled elective surgeries, closed emergency department services in Redmond and Ballard and stopped labor and deliveries service at their Ballard location. Strikers announced their return to work for 7:30 am on Friday, February 1st. KBCS’s Yuko Kodama was at Swedish Hospital at Cherry Hill to interview some of the workers who walked out on Tuesday morning.
Ron Cole – Swedish Hospital Nurse
John Poquiz – Swedish Hospital Nurse
Laura Wood – Swedish Hospital Emergency Department Social Worker
Angelita Sherburne – Swedish Hospital Environmental Service Technician
H2A Workers in Washington State
Honesto Silva Ibarra was an H2A visa guest worker and 27 year old father of two from Mexico. He died in Washington state, as a worker at Sarbanand Farms. Around the time he became ill, other workers at the same farm were reported ill, dehydrated from the extreme heat and heavy smoke from the summer forest fires.
What came out of the investigation into Silva Ibarra’s death was the passage of State Bill 5438, created to fund an office tasked with monitoring labor, housing, and health and safety requirements for farms using the H2A visa program. It also prioritizes outreach to domestic farmworkers before farms use the H2A program.
Rosalinda Guillen of Community to Community Development (C2C) spoke with KBCS’s Yuko Kodama about the H2A Guest Worker Program and the latest with the Washington State H2A Program Oversight Committee.
Produced by Yuko Kodama
Photo: Community to Community Development