5 Ways to Fight for Working Families on Labor Day

Labor Day is a day for celebrating the achievements and hard work of the American workforce. Working families are the economic backbone of our country, and our policies should support and value them accordingly: all workers deserve fair wages, safe work environments free from harassment and discrimination, and the time and flexibility they need to care for themselves and their loved ones. 

So today and every day, here are five ways you can thank and support working families: 

1. Spread the word about workers’ rights. Knowledge is power, and in order for the law to be meaningful, workers must know and feel empowered to exercise their rights. Our state-by-state guide provides a comprehensive overview of federal, state, and local laws that support working families. 
2. Make sure workers know where to get legal help. We run a free and confidential legal clinic where workers call us with questions or when they think their workplace rights have been violated. You can too at 1-833-NEED-ABB (1-833-633-3222).
3. Advocate for strong workplace protections. We’re fighting to pass laws across the country that guarantee fairness for pregnant workers (27 states down!), paid family and medical leave, paid sick time, flexible scheduling, breastfeeding protections, and more. 
4. Defend local progressive legislation. We’re working with advocates and elected officials across the country to defend local governments, who increasingly face obstacles to passing progressive legislation in the form of states blocking, or “preempting,” ordinances like paid sick days, increased minimum wage, and more.
5. Fight back against efforts to roll back workers’ rights. It’s important to make our voices heard when workers’ rights are under attack. We must continue to speak out against the Trump administration’s demonstrated hostility towards workers, from the potential appointment of a Labor Secretary with a proven history of prioritizing corporate interests at the expense of workers to its efforts to make it legal to discriminate against LGTBQ workers.

Despite much progress, we still have a long way to go in the fight to secure basic workers’ rights and protections across the country. But this Labor Day, let’s pause and say thank you to working families for all that they do!