As the de facto leader of the “Fight For $15” campaign, it’s no surprise that SEIU President Mary Kay Henry will address the “Fight For $15” convention in Richmond this afternoon.
While she will call for a minimum wage hike and feign concern for low-wage workers, she probably won’t mention SEIU’s undeniable hypocrisy when it comes to this debate. As SEIU bankrolls the “Fight For $15” to the tune of $20 million and formally united with the campaign in May, it also seeks exemptions from the minimum wage for themselves.
The Guardian: LA Unions Call For Exemption From $15 Minimum Wage They Fought For
The Daily Caller: Union Wants No Part of $15 Minimum Wage-Despite Fighting For It
Slate: Los Angeles Unions Fought for a $15 Minimum Wage. Now They Want to Be Exempt From It.
The reason SEIU is doing this is so they can pass this harmful legislation and get scores of new union members that grow their liberal political movement.
Clearly, they are unconcerned that a $15 minimum wage would hamstring businesses across the country, forcing them to slash hours or eliminate jobs for workers all together.
This misguided approach gets even worse when realizing that Henry pocketed a whopping $296,549 in 2015 according to the SEIU’s 2015 financial disclosure. While a $15 minimum wage will have dire economic consequences on workers in the form of job loss and a hiring stagnation, Mary Kay Henry will be raking in millions in new union dues.
All this just goes to show how hypocritical the “Fight For $15,” campaign is for Henry. She’s willing to accept the disastrous ramifications for all but her own union, only so she can grow her group’s political clout at the expense of the American worker.