At New Labor, we organize to strengthen and protect our community in the workplace. As employers and businesses respond to statewide shutdowns and changing demands—all in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19—we are still fighting to make sure workers are treated fairly and safely.
While we can’t be sure what to expect in the next weeks and months, each week, some of us will share what we’re going through—both the difficulties and the ways that we are finding strength.
If you have a story to tell, contact info@newlabor.org.
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Your support makes a difference. If you can help, donate here. Or check out other ways to get involved.
2020 Overview of COVID-19 Response
Week 1: Shutdown
March 30 – April 5
Most workers have been home and out of work for two weeks; meanwhile, others are still required to work, even under unsafe conditions. Kids are home from school. Three members have already been infected with the virus.
What are your biggest concerns right now?
Week 2: Easter/Passover
April 6 – April 12
It’s an important week for faith traditions, with both Easter and Passover coming up. At the same time, New Jersey braces for what is expected to be the worst weeks of the pandemic.
What does this holiday mean to you? Or what else is on your mind?
Week 3: Communities Step Up
April 13 – April 19
In the absence of government aid, local communities around the country have formed mutual aid networks to connect people who can help with people in need. New Jersey is finally flattening the curve—the growth of new cases is slowing.
Tell us about your experience with a mutual aid network, or anything else on your mind this week.
Week 4: One Month Check-in
April 20 – April 26
A statewide stay-at-home order has been in place for one month. The outbreak continues to spread as New Jersey surpasses 100,000 confirmed cases.
How are you feeling one month in? How are you coping?
Week 5: The Children
April 27 – May 3
School has been closed for weeks, and the kids are home. They won’t return to classes or see their friends again this school year, so in many cases, they’re learning from home and figuring out their new reality along with their families.
How are you feeling about what’s going on right now?
Recipe: Galletas Marías con Limón
5 packets of “María” cookies
2 cans of condensed milk
2 cans of evaporated milk
1 large mug of milk
15 limes
Instructions
- Blend condensed and evaporated milk.
- Add the juice of all the limes and blend until you have a thick cream.
- Pour a layer of the cream into the pan. Cover with a layer of cookies.
- Repeat 3 or 4 times, alternating layers of cookies
- Refrigerate overnight until the liquid soaks into the cookies.
Week 6: Mother’s Day
May 4 – May 10
We’re celebrating Mother’s Day this week, at a time when many mothers are juggling multiple roles as caretakers, teachers, essential workers, and more.
What is it like being a mother in this pandemic? Or what message do you have for mothers during this time?
This week we have a few special messages from domestic workers who are also mothers.
Week 7: Spring in Full Swing
May 11 – May 17
The number of new cases in New Jersey has dropped to a six-week low, and the state is beginning to slowly ease restrictions. Meanwhile, chilly weather has given way to full-blown spring.
What are you looking forward to as the weather warms?
Week 8: New Labor Family
May 18 – May 24
It’s been over two months since New Jersey went into lockdown. While some businesses are slowly reopening, for many people, the future is still uncertain.
What do you value about your New Labor community at this time?
Week 9: George Floyd Protests
May 25 – May 31
On May 27, the U.S. registered 100,000 deaths from COVID-19, but the pandemic has taken the backseat to another national tragedy: the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police two days earlier. This week, New Labor members joined people around the country to protest police brutality and fight for Black lives.
Newark Protest | May 30, 2020
Week 10: Black Lives Matter
June 1 – June 7
After nationwide protests on May 30 brought police brutality into the spotlight, protests continued all week in cities around the country and the world. The COVID-19 outbreak continues to slow in New Jersey, but there are fears that protests will set off a second wave.
What are you fighting for this week?
New Brunswick/Highland Park Protest | June 2, 2020
Lakewood Protest | June 6, 2020
Week 11: Right to Refuse
June 8 – June 14
One hundred days after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic, New Jersey is reopening, and many people are back to work, even as the state continues to report hundreds of new coronavirus infections each day. And as many workplaces—especially temp agencies—fail to protect their workers from the risk of infection, New Labor members are standing up.
This week, temp workers protested for the right to refuse unsafe work without retaliation, including the right to refuse transportation in overly crowded vans. New Labor’s Reynalda Cruz was featured in the radio piece below, which aired on WNYC. You can also read the story here.
Week 12: International Domestic Workers Day
June 15 – 21
This International Domestic Workers Day, New Labor’s domestic workers are fighting for a New Jersey Domestic Workers Bill of Rights that would ensure respect, dignity, and safe working conditions for these essential workers.
The pandemic has compounded the risks domestic workers face daily on the job, but the underlying problems—including poor protection, lack of information, hazardous chemicals, unfair pay—long outdate COVID-19.
Why do you support a New Jersey Domestic Workers Bill of Rights?
Week 13: No Justice, No Peace
June 22 – June 28
The unrest from the early part of the month has somewhat faded, but protests continue in cities around the country. This week, New Labor members marched in North Brunswick.
Meanwhile, new cases in the state have leveled off at a few hundred a day, as outbreaks surge in the southern U.S.
Week 14: The Meaning of Freedom
June 29 – July 5
On the 244th anniversary of the United States’ independence, as COVID-19 takes a disproportionate toll on Black and Hispanic communities, as police get away with murder, the injustices built into the structure of this country stand out against the fireworks.
What does “freedom” mean to you?
