New Hampshire Women’s Forum Sends Clear Message

NEW HAMPSHIRE -- Today, at the New Hampshire Women and the Economy Forum held at St. Anselm Institute of Politics, local restaurant owners and workers joined with community leaders, elected officials, and national political leaders in a discussion about the conditions facing working women in New Hampshire, and the impact that women workers leaving the service industry due to low wages has on the local economy.

Sponsored by One Fair Wage, a national nonprofit that advocates on behalf of subminimum wage workers, in conjunction with local and national political organizations - the forum explored what issues would drive working women to the polls in the 2022 statewide election. Participating organizations included: RAISE: High Road Restaurants, Women’s March, MomsRising, UltraViolet, Patriotic Millionaires, Voices for Progress, We Demand More, Raise Up New Hampshire, The New Hampshire Women’s Foundation, She The People, Granite State Organizing Project, and more.

WATCH THE FULL EVENT HERE: https://www.facebook.com/onefairwage/videos/3240325556256789

Here is what some of the New Hampshire restaurant owners, workers and elected officials had to say at today’s forum:

"I can promise you that no one in this state can afford to live for $7.25 an hour, let alone $3.27. We have to do better,” explained NH State Representative Sherry Frost.

“I’m tired of listening to everyone calling these workers essential workers and then not paying them as if they’re essential workers,” added NH State Representative Maria Perez.

“Today the idea of creating a workplace where people feel appreciated and paid a livable wage for their work is not only what makes a workplace great, it's what makes it American,” explained John Pepper, owner of Boloco restaurants.

“I survive on fluctuating tips and putting up with way too much sexual harassment and that was before the pandemic. The pandemic made it so much work. I worked the whole year masking, gloving, and testing anytime a coworker tested positive. One table would thank me for wearing a mask and the next table would harass me for it. I have never in my career worked so hard, and endured so much mental stress, and been so mentally and physically exhausted as I have in the last twelve months. Everything has changed except for my wage,” shared Kimberly Taliadouros, a restaurant worker from Manchester.

Advocates, community leaders and experts also weighed in, saying:

“Since 2017 our workers have been focused on raising the wage. Our minimum wage has been $7.25 an hour since 2009. That ain’t right. No one can survive on $7.25 in New Hampshire, no one can survive on that anywhere. Even $15 isn’t enough but it’s a good start. The US Senate race will determine the fate of the US Senate, working women voters will determine the fate of the NH Senate race. But NH is first in US politics, last in min wage. It’s supposed to be “live free or die” but it’s more like “work until you die.” Gov Sununu has failed the state. Why is New Hampshire First in Politics and Last in Wages? Why? Because our leaders are not listening to our peopleTwice Sununu has vetoed legislation to ensure that Granite Staters have a wage floor they can rely on, a wage floor that is solid enough - strong enough - to hold up a middle class, You can’t build a future on quicksand, you can’t climb a ladder when the rungs at the bottom are broken, you can’t stand up when you’re sinking. Every single state in New England has a wage floor higher than New Hampshire,” exclaimed Karen Taub, Raise Up New Hampshire.

“More women work in restaurants here in New Hampshire than any other state in the U.S. and even before the pandemic that $3 wage resulted in the restaurant industry having the highest rates of sexual harassment of any industry. I’ve never seen such a high rate of sexual harassment in any industry and it’s solely because of a largely female force having to put up with inappropriate behavior in order to feed their families,” said Saru Jayaraman, executive director of One Fair Wage.

“We are at historic levels of workforce participation from women and it’s not going in the right direction. We are at the lowest levels of women in the workforce since 1988. It isn’t rocket science when we think about the policies that would support women in the workforce. Policies like a livable wage, policies like affordable childcare -- these are the policies that are going to lift us all up. We know that our most effective workers are our black and Latina moms. We know who the people are who are providing support and we know what they need. We need to work now with our Senators on policies. I want to encourage them to work for affordable and accessible childcare and implement a livable wage so workers can support their families,” shared Christian D'Alessandro, New Hampshire State Director for MomsRising.

“There are owners who are trying to take the high road. They have to compete with the low road businesses. There are three reasons that we are fighting with you: First, it’s good for business. Less turnover, less stress on workers so they can focus on one job instead of multiple. It’s the morally right thing to do. Let’s compete on the product and the service but let’s not compete with the wages. Second, it’s good for the economy. When workers are paid more, people spend more money locally. When wages were growing in the 1970s, that was a period of shared prosperity and economic growth. And Third, too much inequality undermines everything we care about and the wage problem is part of it. You can’t have a society where the rich get everything and the workers are left behind. It’s only going to hurt our economy. We're talking about raising the floor in the economy when some people are leaving the rest behind with how much they make,” added Chuck Collins founding member of Patriotic Millionaires

At the forum, One Fair Wage announced also announced a new $1,000,000 “Wages Can’t Wait - Service Worker Action and Relief Fund'' aimed to support struggling restaurant workers who are considering leaving the industry given current low tips and wages and increased customer hostility, to help them stay in the industry and elevate their voices for increased wages that would make the sector more sustainable. The fund would also support workers who do leave the industry in protest to support their continued advocacy on the issue.

New Hampshire restaurant workers would be eligible for up to $500,000 of the fund's total allotment.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE WAGES CAN’T WAIT FUND HERE: https://ofwemergencyfund.org/wcwfund

Earlier this year, One Fair Wage released first representative survey of tipped restaurant workers, in partnership the National Employment Law Project (NELP), and UltraViolet, which found that four in five tipped restaurant workers in New Hampshire supported One Fair Wage - increasing the federal minimum wage for tipped workers to $15 an hour with tips on top. Eighty percent of workers in New Hampshire and nationally support the Raise the Wage Act with high intensity – with half (50%) strongly in favor.

New Hampshire Senators Maggie Hassan and Jeanine Sheehan both voted against the Raise the Wage Act in February.