In Orlando the Fight for $15 Must Be a Movement
Earlier this month, communities across the country participated in marches and rallies for the ‘Fight for $15’, a national campaign to raise the minimum wage. This event was especially significant in Central Florida, where the glitz and glimmer of tourist attractions hide the poverty of the employees and the fact that we rank number one in the nation as having the most working poor. The median income in Central Florida is $29,781, the lowest of any other major metropolitan area in our country. One-third of Orlando’s workers make under $25,000 annually. That is why teachers, educational support professionals and the Orange County Classroom Teachers Association staff joined the march and rally to demand that our community’s workers be lifted out of poverty and earn a salary worthy of their labor.
As an educator I know that student success is not just determined by what takes place within the four walls of a classroom, but also by circumstances that extend beyond the school to the home and community. Poverty wages hurt families and they hurt children. More than half of our community’s students are eligible for free or reduced lunch and 3,200 homeless children attend OCPS schools. A fair wage for every community member will mean a higher quality of life for all students and their families.
When we think of Orlando’s employers who are notorious for paying low wages, fast food restaurants or theme parks may come to mind. But even Orange County Public Schools, Orlando’s second largest employer, is part of the poverty wage problem. Disney, Universal and Wal-Mart employees all have a higher starting pay than many of the dedicated OCPS educational support professionals. Thousands of these OCPS employees must work second and third jobs and frequent food banks. The starting pay for these employees ranges from $8.10 to $14.44 for the first 12 steps of their 17-step pay scale. Even after working five years, the OCPS employees on the first 12 steps will not earn $15 an hour.
Loyal and committed OCPS bus drivers, custodians, security guards, cafeteria workers, receptionists, secretaries, clerks, translators and para-professionals work every school day, contributing to student achievement. Still, they are under-valued and underpaid. Even many employees in positions requiring higher education or technical training are paid under $15 an hour for their first five years of employment with OCPS.
Orange County Public Schools can and must do better; our community can and must do better.
One of the speakers at the ‘Fight for $15’ rally, Florida State Senator Geraldine Thompson asked the crowd, “Is this a moment or a movement?”
The crowd roared their response: “Movement!”
It is up to every one of us to ensure that the ‘Fight for $15’ is a movement, and not just a moment. As teachers we must stand by our schools’ educational support professionals as they fight for higher wages. On behalf of every worker and child in our community we need to support initiatives to raise the minimum wage and continue the fight for a living wage.
