United Methodist Women Join Columbus Community in Rally for Living Wage

COLUMBUS, OHIO – Nearly 2,000 United Methodist Women members in town for their quadrennial Assembly are standing alongside Columbus-area community organizations calling for a living wage at rally in front of the Ohio State Capitol, May 17.

About 600 of the United Methodist Women members came to the rally after volunteering at some 38 Columbus-area community organizations as part of United Methodist Women’s “Ubuntu Day of Service” and advocacy kicking off “The Power of Bold” Assembly, May 18-20 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.

The “A Living Wage for All: Ohio Needs a Raise!” supports legislation before the Ohio legislature that would raise the state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025. Ohio’s current minimum wage is $8.30 an hour.

“This rally seeks to help build momentum for Ohio’s HB 576, a new Ohio General Assembly bill introduced in March,” said Carol Barton, United Methodist Women head organizer for the organization’s Ending Economic Inequality mission priority. The organization is advocating for legislation that builds a base for a living wage around the country. “For nearly 150 years United Methodist Women has focused on mission action that improves life for women, children, youth and families. A living wage ensures all working families can support their children.”

Columbus-area co-sponsors of the rally said almost 70 percent of new jobs in Ohio pay poverty wages. An Ohio family of three with a breadwinner who works full-time at minimum wage makes $3,500 below the poverty line, according to Policy Matters Ohio, a co-sponsor of the rally.

Thirteen local organizations co-sponsored the rally, including the Ohio Council of Churches, Service Employees International Union-1199 Ohio, and Farm Labor Organization Committee. Also sponsoring the rally are Church and Community Development for All People; Council on American Islamic Relations, Columbus Chapter; Faith in Public Life-Ohio; For Ohio’s Future Action Fund; Methodist Federation for Social Action, East and West Ohio Conferences Progress Ohio; Sierra Club; and Unitarian Universalist Justice Ohio.

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Contact: Yvette Moore, ymoore@unitedmethodistwomen.org