STATEMENT REGARDING TODAY’S RULING IN JANUS V. AFSCME

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[Cross-posted at workingwa.org/blog]

 “Today’s ruling abandons over 40 years of precedent. It shows five judges can’t handle the truth that strong labor unions have played a central role in building a more equitable economy and putting meaningful checks & balances on corporate power.

The Janus case came before the court as the result of a decades-long, multi-billion-dollar campaign to shift money and power from workers to the wealthy. It also came with an accidental poetic flourish: Janus is the Roman god of beginnings and endings, of change and transition, of passageways connecting past and future.

Here in Washington, we’re already leading the way to new futures for workers rights. Working Washington and Fair Work Center have partnered with unions and community groups over the past several years to win the nation’s first $15 minimum wage law, Seattle’s landmark secure scheduling ordinance, paid sick days, paid family leave, and more. We’ve scaled up new approaches to community-based outreach & enforcement of worker rights laws. We’re building a groundbreaking Seattle Domestic Workers Alliance that will take nannies & house cleaners from invisible to powerful. And more.

And regardless of what economic realities the Supreme Court chooses to dismiss, workers in our state will continue to build their power and organize towards a world where everyone can support themselves, contribute to the economy, and participate in our communities.”

— Rachel Lauter, Executive Director of Working Washington and Fair Work Center

Fair Work Center and Working Washington Announce Strategic Alignment and New Executive Director

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Fair Work Center and Working Washington are coming together to build a powerful, sustainable and scalable worker organization to advance worker and economic justice in Washington and beyond.

“Together, these organizations will help shape and lead the 21st Century workers’ movement in our region,” said David Rolf, founder and President of the Board of both Fair Work Center and Working Washington. “While each organization has been thriving on its own, the Boards of Directors realized that we could accomplish so much more for low-wage workers by joining the strengths of each organization under a single vision and strategic plan.”

The Boards of Fair Work Center and Working Washington recently hired Rachel Lauter to be the new Executive Director for both organizations.

“This is an important time of transition and growth for both worker-centered organizations and we are thrilled to have Rachel at the helm. Rachel’s combination of legal advocacy, organizational development and Si Se Puede tenacity will ensure that both organizations together become even more powerful in improving lives of low-wage workers,” said State Senator Rebecca Saldaña, Vice President of the Board of Fair Work Center.

“I’m honored to take on this role and am eager for the challenge ahead. Organizations like Fair Work Center and Working Washington are playing increasingly vital roles in building and sustaining power for low-wage, unrepresented workers,” said Lauter. “By aligning the legal, community education, advocacy and organizing strategies of each organization, we will bring a comprehensive approach to supporting workers in Seattle and throughout Washington.”

Rachel Lauter

Ms. Lauter started on May 29 and will be balancing time between the offices of both organizations while she leads a search for a new location to bring the more than 20 staff together under a single roof. Ms. Lauter moved to Seattle after serving as Deputy Chief of Staff and Director of Appointments for Mayor Bill de Blasio in New York City. In that role, she served as the Mayor’s senior personnel advisor, making hundreds of appointments and hiring the most diverse group of senior leaders in New York City history. She also oversaw the operational, administrative, and fiscal functions of the Mayor’s office, served as a policy advisor to the Mayor on issues related to campaign finance, election administration, and voting, and drafted and negotiated dozens of local laws. Prior to joining the de Blasio administration, she served as an Assistant Counsel to Governor Andrew Cuomo and as a federal law clerk. Lauter is the co-founder of New Kings Democrats, a Brooklyn-based political organization. She is a graduate of Brown University and Harvard Law School, where she served as President of the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau, the oldest student-run legal services provider in the country.

 

About the Fair Work Center and Working Washington:

Fair Work Center empowers workers to achieve fair employment. We are a hub for workers to understand and exercise their legal rights, improve working conditions and connect with community resources.

Working Washington’s mission is to build a powerful workers movement that can dramatically improve wages and working conditions, and change the local and national conversation about wealth, inequality, and the value of work.

Welcome Rachel Lauter, our new Executive Director

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Fair Work Center and Working Washington are thrilled to announce our new Executive Director, Rachel Lauter.

Rachel Lauter

Rachel most recently served as the Deputy Chief of Staff and Director of Appointments for Mayor de Blasio in New York City. In that role, she served as the Mayor’s senior personnel advisor, making hundreds of appointments and hiring the most diverse group of senior leaders in New York City history. She also oversaw the operational, administrative, and fiscal functions of the Mayor’s office, served as a policy advisor to the Mayor on issues related to campaign finance, election administration, and voting, and drafted and negotiated dozens of local laws. Prior to joining the de Blasio administration, she served as an Assistant Counsel to Governor Andrew Cuomo and as a federal law clerk. Lauter is the co-founder of New Kings Democrats, a Brooklyn-based political organization. She is a graduate of Brown University and Harvard Law School, where she served as President of the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau, the oldest student-run legal services provider in the country.