“Wage Theft in Our Communities” Aug 16 at the MJCC
August 2, 2012
AN EVENING OF STUDY AND ACTION
THURSDAY, AUGUST 16
Mittleman Jewish Community Center
“You must pay out the wages due on the same day, before the sun sets, for the worker is needy and urgently depends on it; else a cry to the Eternal will be issued against you and you will incur guilt.”- Deuteronomy 24:15
Jewish immigrants to America in the early 20th century worked in the textile industry, among other fields, and suffered exploitation. Today, wage theft and exploitation continues to be a serious issue for workers in many industries. 90% of Oregon strawberry pickers in Marion County reported that they consistently earned less than minimum wage. In a survey of low-wage workers from 2009, 68% of workers suffered at least one pay-related violation. This is not fair to any worker.
You’re invited to a day of cross-congregational Jewish learning and action to explore the issue of wage theft. The day of study is scheduled for Thursday, August 16th. Door open at 6:30 pm and the event will be at the Mittleman Jewish Community Center, 6651 SW Capitol Highway in Portland. The vision of the day of learning is to bring together Jews across denominational and congregational lines, to learn about the real issue of wage theft in Oregon, to share personal and family stories of dignified work and exploitation and delve into Jewish texts — familiar and new — to explore personal responsibility and accountability in the face of widespread workers’ rights abuses. We encourage you to attend this event on August 16th at MJCC.
