For Immediate Release
Tuesday, July 23, 1996
Maryland Governor, AFSCME President to Designate Nation's First "Living Wage Building;" Scores of Other Cities Poised to Follow Baltimore's Lead
Baltimore, MD —Nearly 200 people will be present on July 25, as Maryland Governor Parris Glendening -- joined by Gerald W. McEntee, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), AFL-CIO -- designates the Maryland World Trade Center as the nation's first "Living Wage Building." The event coincides with the first pay increase received by custodial workers under the terms of Baltimore's ground-breaking Living Wage law. That law requires city contractors to pay their employees higher wages than the current minimum wage required by federal law. Though the state is exempt from the terms of the municipal ordinance, Glendening has announced that the World Trade Center will observe the new law.
Speaking at the July 25 event will be: Maryland Governor Glendening; AFSCME President Gerald W. McEntee; Rev. Curtis Jones, pastor of the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church and a representative of BUILD; and three contract custodial service employees who will offer testimony on how their lives will be improved thanks to the Living Wage law.
AFSCME and the church based group Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development (BUILD) were leading proponents for passage of Baltimore's Living Wage initiative, which was signed into law by Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke in 1994. The success of Baltimore's Living Wage initiative has given rise to a Living Wage movement. A number of cities have enacted living wage laws -- including Milwaukee, Wis., Portland, Or. and San Jose, Caif. -- with similar initiatives pending in cities like New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles.
A plaque designating the World Trade Center as the nation's first "Living Wage Building" will be presented. In addition, custodians who work at the World Trade Center will receive their first "Living Wage" paychecks.
| EVENT: | Dedication of the nation's first "Living Wage Building" |
| DATE/TIME: | Thursday, July 25, 1996 5:30 p.m. |
| LOCATION: | Maryland World Trade Center, Inner Harbor Baltimore, Maryland |
| SPEAKERS: | Maryland Governor Parris Glendening AFSCME President Gerald W. McEntee Reverend Curtis Jones, BUILD Testimony by custodial employees of the World Trade Center, members of AFSCME Local 1711 |
NOTE: To arrange interviews with national spokespersons on Living Wage efforts around the country, please call the number listed above.
