HEI Hotels and Resorts, owner of the Sheraton Crystal City, is one of the fastest growing hotel management companies in the US yet employees have experienced reduced hours and layoffs, shortages in cleaning supplies and basic materials, and increased workloads - especially in housekeeping.

Now, HEI workers are fighting back! Supported by student activists and local community leaders, workers presented their general manager, Pradeep Bobba, with a demand for a air and democratic process for deciding whether to form a union, without management interference. ow, HEI managers have fired union leader Ferdi Lazo and Hermen Romero. Support workers' right to organize!

Save the date for Labor on the Bimah 2009! So far, the following congregations are already signed up to participate:

circle seating, with instruments

Church of the Pilgrims building is the gothic building on west side of 22nd St between P & Q Sts, NW. Enter around to the left side of the main entrance through the stairs down marked "Fellowship Hall." (2201 P St)

6:45 pm services; 8:15 pm veggie potluck

Directions here.

dvar tikkun Labor on the Bimah

Learn more about Tikkun Leil Shabbat here.

Save the date for Labor on the Bimah 2009! So far, the following congregations are already signed up to participate:

Jews United for Justice invites you to join us for a special event during Labor Day weekend!

We will gather together for a Havdalah service and dessert reception to celebrate Labor on the Bimah, an annual event that brings local worker-justice issues to the forefront of synagogue services. If you are interested in getting more involved in social action efforts in our community or learning more about JUFJ's day laborer justice campaign, please join us for dessert, singing, and fun!

To RSVP, please contact Shira Dickler, JUFJ’s Labor on the Bimah Coordinator, at 202-408-1423 or shira@jufj.org.

Save the date for Labor on the Bimah 2009! So far, the following congregations are already signed up to participate:

Save the date for Labor on the Bimah 2009! So far, the following congregations are already signed up to participate:

MITZVAHstock: A day of service and celebration for Jewish young professionals in the greater DC area! Be a part of the President's United We Serve initiative. In collaboration with more than a dozen Jewish organizations, we will actively work to repair the world and celebrate our commitment to giving back to our community.    

For more information, go to http://www.washingtondcjcc.org/MITZVAHstock  

Interested in guaranteeing that the Purple Line will benefit all communities?  Join us for our next Fair Purple Line Campaign meeting, Sunday, September 13.

JUFJ will have a table at the Adams Morgan Day Festival on September 13!  If you will be at the festival, please come by and say hi.

If you'd like to volunteer to help, contact elizabeth@jufj.org  

Come to our next Day Laborer Justice campaign meeting.  Exact time and location TBA.  If you are interested in attending please contact elizabeth@jufj.org for full details.

Join us on Thursday for a community meeting

Hello neighbors and friends,

Summer's ending, but DC's fiscal crisis is heating back up.

Today, our Councilmembers come back from their recess. A new revenue forecast for the city is expected later this month, and bad news on that front could trigger another round of budget cuts.

As City Council looks to the year ahead, our leaders need to know that we're watching too.

We know we won't achieve an economic recovery by slashing funding that helps support our city's most vulnerable residents. We need to build pressure now for smarter and more responsible leadership next year. And we're asking you to help us do that.

JOIN US for a Save Our Safety Net community event on Thursday (9/17) 6pm at Busboys and Poets (5th and K treet NW).

We'll learn about the budget crisis, discuss alternative courses of action, and identify opportunities for you to make a difference.

Tuesday, September 22nd
8:30-9:30am: Rally and Press Conference
9:30-Noon: City Council session, room 500.
Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Ave NW (Metro Center)

Join a coalition of city workers, parents, labor unions and community groups to welcome back the City Council and demand:
* The immediate halt to the privatization of public services (including child care!) and sale of public land.
* An independent assessment of the impact of recently-privatized departments.
* Uniform wage parity for taxi drivers with other major metropolitan areas.
* That the city honor union contracts and bargain in good faith with city workers.

Training: Building a Strategic Campaign
Tues, Sept. 24th
6:30-8:30pm
St. Stephen and the Incarnation Church
1525 Newton St NW

Trainings are free and open to the public, pre-registration required.To register for upcoming trainings clickhttp://www.surveymonkey.com/MySurvey_EditorPage.aspx?sm=tTeOXY0nDfkJyvIOqqwfc0oTChAzxVB3d2aGlwFITxw%3d. Snacks will be provided.

The Gerry Brittain Education Project is an initiative of DC Jobs with Justice designed to strengthen local organizing and build power among working people in the District of Columbia. It incorporates skill building and political education into 2-hour long monthly trainings.

For more information contact Ruth at 202.974.8281, email rcastel@dclabor.org or visit www.dcjwj.org.

On, Thursday, September 24th at 6:30 pm at Foundry United Methodist Church (1500 16th St., NW), members of the Day Laborers Association will be holding an accountability session with officials from the DC Office of Wage and Hour to follow up on promises that were made following our spring campaign/letter-writing action. 

There are reports that some of these promises are not yet being fully honored, so we will gather to show visible support for the workers.  Important: please RSVP to elizabeth@jufj.org if you would like to attend.