Governor O’Malley Announces Plans for Living Wage Implementation
August 31, 2007
Governor O’Malley: 125 years ago 10,000 workers gathered in the streets of New York City to celebrate their achievements and contributions to our American way of life. A way of life that says that we believe in the dignity of every individual, that we believe in our responsibility to advance the common good. An American way of life that says the most important freedom that we have the ability to choose is the freedom to advance the common good.
That first Labor Day celebration was organized by the Central Labor Union in order to demonstrate the strength, Athe esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations@.
And we have come a long way since 1882. We have won many fights in the battle for safer working conditions, for humane working hours, for decent wages and so many, many other things that, as Americans today, we take for granted. And you know what, they would not have happened were it not for organized labor and the organized voices of working men and women. (Applause.)
Now, we now have someone who understands that we are in that vanguard, that march of American progress, in our new Secretary of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, Tom Perez, don’t we? (Applause.)
We know that we are making change when we look at the Office of the Commissioner of Labor and Industry and it is now led by Ron DeJulius. (Applause.)
And while we do not win every battle in which we choose to engage, we are glad that our new O’Malley/Brown administration actually introduced as an administration priority, and will again, collective bargaining. (Applause.)
We are also glad -- I mean, listen to this -- it’s almost as I said to Lieutenant Governor Anthony Brown in the course of this administration, maybe we should have vetoed some of these things, they happened too easily. You know, when the impediment’s removed we can come together, form a consensus and make progress.
We passed -- we actually passed bills this session that were priorities for worker’s rights, like the Joint Committee On Unemployment Insurance Oversight -- (Applause.) -- the Joint Committee on Workers’ Compensation Benefits and Insurance Oversight. (Applause.)
We passed legislation on worker’s compensation having to do with unpaid work based learning experiences, benefit, costs of living adjustments, benefits for dependents and notice and premiums. And we also passed a lot of other things.
And you know what? While some people don’t understand that they’re labor priorities, all of us understand that they are. When we fully funded Thornton with $580 million dollars, that was a labor priority. (Applause.)
When we invested $400 million in school construction, that was a labor priority. As the Lieutenant Governor mentioned, when we took the first steps to make college education more affordable for more families, that was a labor priority. (Applause.)
When we passed the Clean Indoor Air Act, the smoking ban, that was a labor priority. And we still have so many more things to do, because despite the progress, there are more than 100,000 working Marylanders in 2005 who were living below the poverty line in the wealthiest State in the United States. They were earning less than $10,000 for an individual or $20,000 for a family of four. The State Government should not be in the business of perpetuating poverty in a State that’s now ranked as the wealthiest State in the Union. We can do better, don’t you think? (Applause.)
It is shameful that we would pay our workers so little that they have to seek public assistance in order to feed and house themselves and their families.
And recognizing this, that’s why we chose to move forward in this session. We chose to move forward on many fronts. We move forward this year, with your help, to become the
first State in the nation to pass a Living Wage Bill. (Applause.)
And the Living Wage concept is relatively simple, right? And it stands so with the vast majority of the people of our State who don’t want their tax dollars, hard earned, to be invested in perpetuating poverty. They want their tax dollars to be spent in the fair way, in the decent way, in a way that recognizes the dignity of work and the dignity of every individual.
The Living Wage quite simply says that if your employer is doing business with the State, if you’re working on a service contract funded by the hardworking people of Maryland, then you should be able to support your family from the fruits of your labor. (Applause.)
So as we celebrate Labor Day on Monday, we can also celebrate that effective October 1st, companies awarded contracts to perform services for the State will be required to pay their workers a Living Wage. (Applause.)
And you know we have a lot of work to do as a State ourselves as an employer. To not only talk the talk, but also walk the walk. And I’m confident that the Board of Public Works, when we see contracts from such entities who would like to think that they are independent of the State, but actually are not, when we see contracts from entities like the Maryland Stadium Authority, we expect them to abide by the spirit as well as the letter of the law. (Applause.)
Now, the law covers the most service contracts of $100,000 or more and companies with more than 10 employees, but that doesn’t mean that they can’t do better than the law, right? They can do better than the law. And we welcome that.
Businesses awarded those contracts must pay workers $11.30 if the work is done in the State’s, you know, more metropolitan, urban areas and the compromise that we were able to craft in order to get your legislation passed, our legislation passed, was in the rural areas, recognizing the difference in economies and the costs of living, it is $8.50.
But the American dream promises that if you work hard, if you play by the rules, you will have the means to take care of your families. We have to be about rewarding work. It’s great to say we need to reform welfare. How about reforming work? How about reforming work? (Applause.)
It’s amazing, isn’t it? When we point out the sad dichotomies that still exist in our State, where a billionaire pays the same income tax rate that the person who cleans his office pays, they are quick to complain we need to look at market forces, this wouldn’t be fair to tax me at a higher rate.
Why is it that the wealthiest State in the Union, we actually saw corporate revenue collections decline last year. We can do better than that. We know what fairness is. We know what fairness is not. We know that a living wage is fair. It’s not about making people rich. It is about rewarding work and the dignity of every individual. (Applause.)
Many of you have heard time and again the goals of this administration and I submit to you the reason why we were successful a year ago was because they are the goals of every Marylander. They are to strengthen and grow the ranks of our middle class, to improve public safety and public education in every part of our State, and to expand opportunity. The best way to do that, the best anti-poverty program that has ever been crafted by mankind is a decent job with a decent wage. (Applause.)
This administration -- this administration understands that in that mission to strengthen and grow our middle class and improve public safety, public education and expand opportunity, that the men and women of organized labor are not the enemy, they are our allies, they are in the vanguard, they are in the forefront. (Applause.)
The phrase "working poor" -- the phrase "working poor" should not be part of the American lexicon. Maybe another nation chooses for their economic purposes to have working poor. In our country we do not believe in the concept of working poor. We believe that people who work should be able to make a better future for their families. We believe the most important aspect of being an American is to prefer a better future for our children and to work towards it.
And that’s why on this Labor Day, as we commemorate 125 years from the initial celebration, we again honor workers. We honor workers by not only keeping faith with the past, but honoring the responsibility we have to make a better future for our kids.
Thank you all very much and please welcome Tom Perez here. (Applause.)
Secretary Perez: Thank you, Governor. You had a new person enter the audience during your speech, giving new meaning to our green initiatives in Maryland, we have the Governor’s son.
It is great to be here, it’s a pleasure to be here. And I want to first of all acknowledge my staff. And, in particular, our wonderful Commissioner of Labor and Industry, as you acknowledge Ron DeJulius. (Applause.)
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