Declaration of Principles of Immigrant Worker Rights  
 

On Saturday, June 14th, the PSC was an active part of the launch of a new immigrants’ rights campaign. In May, the Delegate Assembly voted to sign on to the “Declaration of Principles of Immigrant Worker Rights,” and the roll-out of this document, signed by dozens of labor, faith and community organizations, marked the beginning of a public education campaign to explain how all New Yorkers have a stake in defending and extending immigrants’ rights. The PSC has been an active advocate for immigrants because a significant number of CUNY students (and faculty and staff, too) are immigrants or the children of immigrants.  

The declaration of principles follows:

NEW YORKERS UNITED: A Declaration of Principles for Immigrant Worker Rights

We are committed to fairness for All New Yorkers. We are individuals, labor unions, worker centers, community groups, faith based and advocacy organizations who come together to reaffirm the following principles:

1. RIGHTS APPLY TO ALL. The rights of all workers are human rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and the International Bill of Human
Rights.

2. LABOR RIGHTS ARE THE BASIS OF A JUST SOCIETY. All people should have the right to support themselves and their families, to organize and unionize, to bargain collectively, to keep their families together and to participate in the civic life of their communities. No one should face reprisals for exercising these rights.

3. SAFE AND HEALTHY COMMUNITIES ARE A BASIC RIGHT. This includes access to affordable housing, healthcare, education and a clean environment.

4. WE CANNOT LIVE IN A TWO-TIERED SOCIETY. Human, civil, and labor rights must be protected regardless of immigration status, the industry in which
people work, or the community in which they live. A threat to immigrants' rights is a threat to all workers.

5. NEW YORK MUST SET A PROGRESSIVE EXAMPLE. New York has a tradition of providing opportunity and pioneering social justice that has to be
preserved.

Therefore, we commit to work together for a fair and functional immigration system and for policies at the local, state and national levels that include a path to citizenship, family unification, civil, labor and human rights.

The PSC is but one of scores of unions endorsing the declaration.

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