Roughly 60 years ago, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. made the case for a different kind of dream — one where every person who was willing and able had access to a job. “We need an economic bill of rights. This would guarantee a job to all people who want to work and are able to work,” wrote King in a letter published after his assassination.
Six decades later, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley is invoking that dream pioneered by leaders like Dr. King, Coretta Scott King and Sadie Alexander. The Root has exclusively learned that during Black History Month, the Massachusetts Congresswoman is introducing a federal jobs guarantee.
“It’s been over 60 years since the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, and it’s long past time we actualized the radical dream and legislative blueprint that leaders like Coretta Scott King and Sadie Alexander presented us with to affirm the fundamental right to dignified work and a living wage,” said Rep. Pressley in a statement.
The resolution would guarantee every person with a legal right to a quality job. These jobs—ranging from child care to physical infrastructure projects, like transit systems—would also come with union protections and a mandatory minimum wage of $25.
The funding is non-discretionary, meaning Congress would not be able to easily gut it during one of their infamous budget disagreements.
The Massachusetts Representative argues that the resolution would not only help people who are unemployed but also force employers to pay a living wage and generally raise employment standards. As it stands, roughly six million people are unemployed in the United States, and roughly 24 percent of full-time workers earn less than $15 an hour.
“As a central and unfulfilled demand of the civil rights movement,” added Rep. Pressley, “a federal job guarantee is our opportunity to finally reach full employment and help achieve long-term economic security for everyone who calls America home.”