Idaho Childcare Workers Strike Statewide – As Democrats Dither, Virginia Bus Drivers Strike Remains Deadlocked

Child care workers protest at the Idaho State Capital (Audrey Dutton/Idaho Capital Sun)

By: March 9, 2023

Folks, 

Greetings from the Burgh, where tonite Payday subscriber AB Darling is DJing a sweet country western dance night at Belverderes. Come through to the Desert Hearts dance party tonite. 

Please donate to help us buy a few beers tonite. 

Idaho Childcare Workers Strike Statewide

With the work-from-home revolution, Idaho is becoming a popular destination for many people based on the coast, seeking places with cheaper rent. However, the increase in population has led to massive rental increases for longtime Idaho residents. 

Now, childcare workers in Idaho are out on strike today, protesting the expiration of a $36 federal grant that lead to a $300-a-month increase. The wage decrease is making it hard to staff childcare center workers. 

“The Legislature doesn’t seem to think that we need these funds, yet there was a center today in Caldwell where parents showed up and (the center) was shuttered,” Giraffe Laugh child care center director Lori Fascilla told the Idaho Capital Sun.  “No sign on the door, no employees there to tell them what happened, they’re just closed. And it’s becoming sadly more and more common.”

For more, check out the Idaho Capital Sun

Virginia Bus Drivers Strike Remains Deadlocked 

In Northern Virginia, a strike of bus drivers employed by the French-owned company Keolis, a subcontractor of the DC-area transit authority (WMATA), have been on strike for nearly two months. 

Despite Loudoun County’s government being controlled by the Democratic Party, the county refuses to resolve the contract. Workers are saying that they are willing to go the distance. 

Workers say they are willing to fight for as long as it takes to meet their demands. 

“We refuse to accept a contract that does not meet our basic demands that include but are not limited to: adequate health insurance, guaranteed retirement contributions by Keolis, fair and judicious use of drive cameras to monitor our work, wage parity with our peers throughout the Washington Metropolitan Area, a single wage scale for all CDL permit holding drivers, vacation allotments, and a guaranteed 40 hour work week for all CDL permit holders,” wrote 79 bus drivers in a letter to the local government. 

For more, check out Loudoun County. 

Alright, folks, that’s all for today. Come out and enjoy “Desert Hearts” at Belverderes tonite– it will be lit. 

Donate to help us afford a beer tonite & please sign up as one of our 743 recurring donors. 

Love & Solidarity, 

Melk 

About the Author

Mike Elk
Mike Elk is an Emmy-nominated labor reporter and alumni of the Guardian. In addition to filing nearly 2,000 stories from 46 states, Elk traveled with Lula from Sáo Bernando do Campos all the way to the Oval Office in the White House. Credited by the Washington Post for being the first reporter to track the strike wave systematically, Elk started Payday Report using his NLRB settlement from being illegally fired for union organizing in 2015. He lives in his hometown of Pittsburgh and works frequently in Rio de Janeiro, where he attended college at PUC-Rio. He speaks both Portuguese and Pittsburghese fluently. His email is [email protected]

Be the first to comment on "Idaho Childcare Workers Strike Statewide – As Democrats Dither, Virginia Bus Drivers Strike Remains Deadlocked"

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.