Political Quotes

“Mr. President, this spring, I was talking with a grocery store worker in Ohio, who told me: ``They call me essential, but I feel expendable.'' That grocery store worker and thousands of others who are on the frontlines of this pandemic risk their lives so that Americans can keep food on their tables and get their packages delivered. They change linen in hospitals. They drive city buses or rural buses. They stock shelves in supermarkets. When these workers go home at night, having been exposed to the public pretty much their whole workday, they worry they are going to bring the virus home and infect their families. It is essential workers keeping our society going. A number of American corporations claim to recognize this. They have run feel-good ads--at least they did early in the pandemic--saying ``thank you'' to essential workers, claiming these workers are the heart of their companies. But saying ``thank you'' is not nearly enough. Workers don't need a PR campaign. They need fair pay and protections on the job. These corporations get positive press off their workers while too often paying them poverty wages and, in too many cases, failing to protect their safety in the workplace. I wrote an open letter this summer to corporate executives, published in their paper of record, the Wall Street Journal. I said to these corporations: You say your workers are essential. Then treat them that way. Our economy is supposed to reward people whose talents are in high demand.…”