Activists in the US demand $15 Now!


15 Now campaign

On 15 March a national day of action took place across the US as part of the 15 Now campaign for a $15 an hour minimum wage. In Seattle 750 protesters took to the street.

Union activists, 15 Now volunteers and low-wage workers rallied to chants of “Tip Credit? Forget it!” warning against a proposal full of loop-holes and exemptions, such as lower wages for tipped workers or a so-called “total compensation” package which would attempt to count everything from health benefits to bus passes toward a minimum wage of $15.

At the end of the rally Kshama Sawant, Seattle’s socialist City Council member, said: “Let’s use the next two months to hit the pavement and build a grassroots movement like Seattle has not seen in a long time.

“Let’s get a firsthand experience of the power of working class solidarity – where we stand up for the interests of everyone – workers and the unemployed, the poor and oppressed, of all races and color, immigrants and American-born, elderly and disabled.”

The movement’s next big mobilisation will be a conference on 26 April. The conference will launch the massive campaign to collect the 21,000 signatures required to put a robust $15 minimum wage on the November ballot, should it become necessary.