Well, well, well, it looks like Bernie Sanders is failing to practice what he preaches… again.
Several members of the Sanders campaign have already left over poor wages and now a significant part of his campaign team is threatening to do the same if he doesn’t start paying at least $15/hour.
Advocate for Higher Wagers
For as long as I can remember, Bernie Sanders has been an advocate of raising the country’s minimum wage to $15.
One would think as a face of the movement, he would employ his workers at that rate or better.
However, according to his own campaign staff, that is not exactly the case.
The Washington Post reported campaign staffers wrote a letter to Sanders’ campaign manager Faiz Shakir to address the issue.
The letter stated campaign workers “cannot be expected to build the largest grassroots organizing program in American history while making poverty wages.”
It further stated, “Given our campaign’s commitment to fighting for a living wage of at least $15.00 an hour, we believe it is only fair that the campaign would carry through this commitment to its own field team.”
Not only is Sanders not paying them a “fair wage,” they are apparently being asked to work well beyond their contracted hours when heading out into the field to drum up support for Sanders.
The Post report stated when workers figured out their actual pay rate at the end of the day, they are lucky to pull down $13 per hour.
Low Morale
One of the biggest factors in effective campaigning is the fact regardless of the situation, campaign workers are always energetic and positive about their candidate.
Once again, though, the Sanders campaign in not firing on all cylinders there, either.
The campaign staffers stated, “Many field staffers are barely managing to survive financially, which is severely impacting our team’s productivity and morale. Some field organizers have already left the campaign as a result.”
When asked about the letter from the campaign staff, Shakir offered up a lame excuse, asking for duty over pay.
He stated, “We know our campaign offers wages and benefits competitive with other campaigns, as is shown by the latest fundraising reports.
“Every member of the campaign, from the candidate on down, joined this movement in order to defeat Donald Trump and transform America.
“Bernie Sanders is the most pro-worker and pro-labor candidate running for president.”
In essence, Shakir is telling them all to shut up and keep working.
Bernie recently became a millionaire for the sales of a best-seller.
His campaign regularly boasts of the amount of money it brings in, yet he cannot break off a respectable wage for workers supporting, according to his campaign manager, “the most pro-worker and pro-labor candidate” in the field.
Bernie doesn’t donate money to charity and Bernie doesn’t pay his workers a “fair” wage.
It seems to me Bernie is all about paying out money and big benefits to people as long as he is not the one footing the bill.
When that is the case, Bernie’s dusty old wallet remains closed!
Source: Washington Post
We depend on our readers to help us get the word out. So, if you agree with this article, please like and share the article on your favorite social media outlet. You are also encouraged to sign up for our newsletter to ensure you can stay informed. To sign up for our newsletter, click here.