Democrats, Stop Talking at Workers. Start Listening to Them

Newsweek

a day ago

In the 2024 election a clear message was sent to the Democratic Party and elected officials writ large: connect with the working class or fail.
Now, with a Trump budget that slashes assistance to millions of working families who aren't paid enough to afford basics like food, health care, and rent—all to fund trillions in tax breaks to the wealthiest, most comfortable individuals and corporations in our nation—the need to hear from working people and build an agenda that responds to their needs is more urgent than ever before.
While the Bernie-AOC "Fighting Oligarchy" tour, the New Economic Patriots caucus, Sherrod Brown's Dignity of Work Institute, and Mitch Landreiu's Working Class Project are all evidence of a desire to focus on working people, there remains a glaring need for elected officials to engage in an ongoing and personal conversation with workers—and to simply listen.
The U.S. flag waves in front of the White House.
The U.S. flag waves in front of the White House.
J.As Marina, a young woman from Sacramento, Calif. who works at Chipotle while pursuing her nursing degree, put it: "They don't seem to be asking questions they should be asking [like] what's going on in your workplace? What could be changed? Questions can be asked [about] any job. I would like to see them showing more interest in our day-to-day life."
That's why our organizations and many allies are launching #Listen2Workers, a campaign designed to connect workers in California and across the nation with people in power, jumpstart these conversations, and make working people's needs and desires crystal clear. We will have politicians interviewing workers—beginning with California State Senators María Elena Durazo and Monique Limón, and Assemblymembers Matt Haney and Buffy Wicks—share videos and writings from union and non-union workers alike, organize town hall-like forums to further this critical dialogue, and make sure the public and workers see who is listening, who is fighting for them, and who isn't.
Only through consistent, personal engagement will legislators regain trust at a moment when trust in government is steadily declining, and less than half of working class people still believe in the American Dream. That makes participating in this campaign both the right thing to do and a political opportunity as well.
To learn what keeps workers up at night all one must do is ask them.
Service workers, care workers, farmworkers, gig workers, and other blue-collar workers are worried about wages that don't keep pace with the cost of living, their benefits, and opportunities for advancement. Many fear retaliation when they speak up about workplace conditions. They want their children to go to college but tuition is out of control. Too many now must worry that they will be separated from their children. They see their families' dreams remaining forever out of reach no matter how hard they work as they watch the chasm between the haves and have nots grow deeper.
"I hope my children can live in peace, move out on their own, and live their own dreams," said Curtis, a hospital security guard outside of Sacramento. "Right now, I'm afraid they can't. They can't afford it."
There is nothing revolutionary about listening. Worker organizers are constantly doing it in order to assess and respond to rank-and-file needs. A decade-long organizing effort by fast food workers recently culminated in California with a raised wage, new worker protections, and a seat at the bargaining table for the first time. Similarly, a recent contract for child care providers included a first-of-its-kind retirement fund for family child care providers and historic rate reform. All of these campaigns began with listening and understanding workers' needs.
Democrats have never had a problem with getting good crowds or talking about policy ideas. But they do have a problem with showing up regularly for working class people and listening—making it routine—and developing proposals based on the real stories we are hearing on the ground. And for all our talk of inclusivity, too often we speak in a language that people don't connect with—as if we are drafting a post for our LinkedIn followers, or speaking with nonprofit and philanthropic elites; too many buzz words and talking points, too much jargon and consultant-driven language.
Instead, by maintaining an ongoing conversation with working class people, elected representatives can break out of inside baseball bubbles, regain trust, and build grassroots power. Just #Listen2Workers.
Tia Orr is the executive director of SEIU California.
Devon Gray is the president of End Poverty in California.
The views expressed in this article are the writers' own.