Questions By Workers Defense Action Fund

How do you plan on continuing to work with WDAF in the future?

In the current political environment, many members of the Austin community have legitimate fears of the Austin Police Department. Will you work with WDAF to address these concerns?

What would you do if elected to increase voter participation and protect voting rights?

There is currently no interpretation provided at Austin City Council meeting to allow for non-English speakers to understand people’s testimony or the conversations occurring on the dais. Do you believe that the City should provide interpretation at Austin City Council meetings, so that they are more accessible to non-English speakers?

Many Texas working families live in areas of Austin where our community centers are in dire need of improvements. We would love to be able to provide places for our children to learn arts, music, and to learn more about their culture, and where the community gathers together. We would also love to include services for adults such as workforce development referrals and classes. Would you support investing more into community centers?

If elected, would you support policies to reduce the arrests of those suffering mental health crises, those in need of medical or mental health treatment, or those in need of substance abuse treatment, so they are diverted to needed care and not funneled into the criminal justice and immigration detention systems?

Would you support a policy to prohibit companies that profit from anti-immigrant contracts to construct a border wall or build immigrant detention centers from obtaining city of Austin contracts or working as subcontractors on City of Austin contracts?

The City of Austin currently provides funding to local immigration legal service providers so that city residents can obtain needed legal representation to fight against deportation or obtain some other lawful status. Do you support the city continuing to fund immigration legal services for Austin residents?

If elected, will you oppose collaborations between local law enforcement and federal immigration enforcement where not required by law, including any expansion of the 287(g) program or SB4?

Will you support keeping immigration enforcement officials (ICE) out of county jails, hospitals, schools, and public transportation?

Austin is home to many immigrant families. Since the 2016 election, we have seen heightened immigration enforcement efforts here in Austin and across the country. Within the Workers Defense community, we have members who are now in deportation proceedings because of an ICE raid at their worksite or because they were stopped for a simple traffic citation and then held in jail on an ICE hold. Because of the passage of SB4, almost every undocumented person who is placed under arrest, no matter how minor the charge, now faces deportation and separation from their family. Do you support efforts to reduce arrests for nonviolent misdemeanor offenses?

Do you support measures requiring greater accountability from City of Austin Small Business Program and Economic Development Department grant recipients to ensure taxpayer dollars are used to attract businesses that reflect Austin’s values?

Do you support measures requiring City of Austin Small Business Program and Economic Development Department grant recipients to disclose local, state, and federal lobbying activities on matters substantially related to items contemplated by Austin City Council?

Currently, the enforcement of many local labor requirements is spread across various city departments, including the Equal Employment and Fair Housing Office, Austin Code Enforcement, the Economic Development Department, and the Capital Contracting Office. Do you support the creation of a civil rights or labor standards department that would oversee the enforcement of local labor rights laws, like the rest break ordinance, the earned sick time ordinance, and the fair chance hiring ordinance?

The Austin region has been ranked as one of the most economically segregated areas in the country. This economic segregation has particularly affected communities of color. Please describe your top three priorities to address economic inequality in the City of Austin.

Do you support incorporating worker protections into the 2018 housing bond, for projects that result in new construction, equivalent to those found on other city-funded projects such as Better Builder® certification, living and prevailing wages, safety training, workers’ compensation insurance, and a commitment to DOL-registered apprenticeship and certified bilingual craft training?

Central Texas is undergoing major changes as our city becomes increasingly unaffordable for working people. There is now a $250 million dollar affordable housing bond that residents will vote on in November. Do you agree that affordable housing should not be built using exploitative construction practices that undermine Austin’s commitment to making the city more affordable?

What changes, if any, would you propose to Austin’s Earned Sick Time Ordinance?

If elected, do you commit to fully fund the implementation and enforcement of the earned sick time ordinance, so that all employers and employees are informed about the ordinance and reported violations are thoroughly investigated and justly resolved in a timely manner?

Texas is the only state that allows an employer to opt out of providing workers’ compensation coverage to its employees. Many workers who are injured on the job often do not have access to the medical care or financial support that they need to recover from their injury, pay their bills, and return to work. Oftentimes, these injured workers must resort to publicly funded programs, like the Medical Access Program (MAP), to receive needed medical care. What measures would you propose to support residents in your district who suffer workplace injuries while working for employers who do not carry workers’ compensation insurance?

Do you support increasing the City of Austin living wage to $15 per hour by FY 2019 and ensuring future living wage rate increases are tied to a cost of living index?

Wage theft occurs when a worker is not paid for their work, not paid the wages promised, or not paid what they are owed under the law. In certain low-wage sectors, in particular, wage theft is too common, constraining the ability of workers to provide for themselves and their families. To ensure the responsible use of local taxpayer dollars, would you support policies to disqualify contractors who have violated local, state, or federal wage and hour laws from receiving city contracts?

The Better Builder ® Program creates good jobs in the construction industry by establishing minimum standards on construction sites. These standards include a living wage for all construction workers, OSHA 10-hour safety training for all workers, workers’ compensation coverage, local hiring goals to place workers in approved skills training programs, and accredited, independent on-site monitoring to ensure these standards are met. As a city council member, will you support incorporating these standards onto projects where the city has both a substantial role and the ability to require higher worker protections, including (but not limited to) ground leases, Public Improvement Districts, density bonus programs, tax increment financing, abatements, and other city development programs designed for the utilization of private developers?