Clergy, community, and labor have come together to assert
that Chicago
residents need good jobs with living wages.
Good jobs are key to enable hard-working people to care for their
families and lift themselves out of poverty. We believe no one should work a full-time job
and still be poor.
Many claim the recession is over, but Chicago’s families continue to
struggle. People on Main
Street continue to suffer layoffs and high
unemployment. 11.2% of city residents are currently unemployed. Black communities face almost double the rate
of unemployment as Whites. Latinos are disproportionally
impacted as well.
In addition, Chicagoans that are able to work full-time minimum
wage jobs earn only $16,640. That still is $5,410 under the poverty level for a
family of four.
As new development comes into our city, economic improvement
should improve the quality of life for people.
Our coalition sees the great opportunity to invest in our
city by transforming job quality and city development, especially in
communities of color who have been hardest hit by the recession. Chicago’s neighborhoods
cannot be improved unless residents have good jobs.
