Living Wage Week: November 15th-21st

As the VERY FIRST organization to certify employers as being Living Wage in the country back in 2006, the Tompkins County Workers’ Center (TCWC) is proud to announce that the week of November 15th-21st as International Living Wage Week! Living Wage Week is a big deal in other countries like the United Kingdom. The TCWC is excited to partner with the National Living Wage Network, a network of local LW Certifiers, and Living Wage for US.

During Living Wage Week in the US, a new national Living Wage Certification program, Living Wage for US, seeded by Oxfam America, will launch and work together with local programs around the country to continue to raise the wage floor. Living Wage Certified businesses will be highlighted and the we will continue the dialogue about why we need more jobs that pay a Living Wage.

Leading up to, and during Living Wage Week, we invite you to get involved in a few ways:

The TCWC presently certifies over 100 Living Wage businesses in Tompkins County and in the region. Every two years, since 2006, we work with Alternatives Federal Credit Union to update the Living Wage rates for Tompkins County. We educate the community about the costs of living in Tompkins County and the importance of Living Wages in our region and beyond. 

There are Living Wage programs like ours around the country where people are advocating for higher wages in their communities. Living Wage week is an opportunity to celebrate this work and the living wage businesses who are prioritizing wages and investing in people to build stronger local economies and a higher standard of living for their employees.