Six nonprofit organizations were awarded around $2 million in grants from the U.S. Department of Labor to support their efforts to educate low-wage women about their rights at work and encourage them to take advantage of them.
Community-based organizations will use the funding to reach working women and give them the information necessary to exercise their legal rights, according to a Sept. 29 Department of Labor news release.
“These grants will strengthen community partnerships and align with our efforts to ensure working women have an equitable stake in our nation’s economic recovery,” Deputy Secretary of Labor Julia Su said, according to the release.
By utilizing the Fostering Access, Rights and Equity grants, the community organizations will have the funding for desperately needed outreach and education programs so women can learn about their workers’ rights, how to take full advantage of employment benefits and how to get legal help to protect their workers, the release reported.
Employees at low-paying, poor job quality worksites often do not understand their workplace rights or have a fear of retaliation if they speak out about potential violations, Women’s Bureau Director Wendy Chun-Hoon said, according to the release. These women are empowered through the support of organizations that provide them with information about their rights as workers and how they can exercise those rights. She said this expands the leverage to improve outcomes in women-dominated, low-paid sectors of the nation’s workforce.
