The General Assembly of Occupy Boston passed the following resolution on December 3, 2011:
Occupy Boston supports the Millenium Daycare workers, and all workers like them, who are among the most disenfranchised of the 99%.
In March 2011, the Millenium Daycare Center in Chinatown closed when the owner filed for bankruptcy. The day it closed, twenty workers showed up for their shift to find the door locked and a note telling them not to come back. Last year, workers were paid once a month, but each time their paychecks bounced and they were left to pay bank penalties. They have still not been compensated for bounced checks and overtime fees. Now the owner has filed bankruptcy to absolve herself of all responsibility.
Wage theft affects the least visible and most vulnerable among us. The experience of the Millenium daycare workers reflects a common problem experienced by immigrant workers, many of whom work at-will or are otherwise unprotected by existing bankruptcy legislation. Immigrant workers in Chinatown, the Boston area, and the country have a long history of organizing for justice. After almost half a year of waiting for their pay, these workers are now planning to take public action with help from the Chinese Progressive Association, which has worked tirelessly to advocate for their right to fair compensation.
We join these workers and their allies in solidarity to speak out against wage theft as a symptom of a broken political and economic system.