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Houston DSA adopts resolution in support of Houston Firefighters’ struggle for pay equity and a fair contract

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April 15, 2018 — Houston DSA announces its membership has adopted a resolution supporting the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association (IAFF Local 341) in their ongoing struggle for pay equity, and denouncing Mayor Sylvester Turner’s threats to lay off hundreds of firefighters and cut emergency services to some of Houston’s most vulnerable communities.

The resolution, adopted at Houston DSA’s general meeting held Thursday, April 11, calls on Mayor Turner to return to the bargaining table and negotiate a contract that phases in pay parity for firefighters, and further condemns the Mayor’s latest legal challenge to workers’ collective bargaining rights.

“At its root, this is a labor issue,” says Hannah Thalenberg, Houston DSA co-chair. “Mayor Turner’s actions are a threat to collective bargaining rights and to all working people across Texas.”

Houston DSA urges its membership and allies in the progressive community to call their council members and demand that they:

  • Reject any measure authorizing firefighter layoffs or cutting any fire and EMS services to Houstonians;
  • Strongly oppose the City’s lawsuit against the firefighters’ union as a dangerous attack on workers’ rights;
  • Fully fund city workers and services by repealing the revenue cap, which disproportionately benefits the wealthy at the expense of working-class Houstonians.

The full language of the resolution is included below. For press inquiries, please contact info@houstondsa.org.