Former Tina’s Restaurant employee Guillermo Barrera claims he was fired because he had to go to the hospital. His former boss, Athina Skermo, says she had no idea he was going to the hospital and he just “left [her] flat.” Little information is available, because the Daily News‘s Michael Saul only alloted Ms. Skermo one line in the entire piece to make her case, while local “economic justice” group Make the Road gets several paragraphs to state their entire platform on the issue of paid sick leave. We are not even told the condition for which Mr. Barrera was treated at the hospital.
The issue has blown up to such an extent that a rally across the Brooklyn Bridge was held today to call for all employees to have paid sick leave, backed by a bill in the Council. The Mayor’s office is concerned with how small businesses will cope with this requirement, if Manhattan Councilwoman Gale Brewer’s legislation is passed.
sjp October 1st, 2009 at 9:46 pm
Sometimes we need an excuse to rally for paid sick leave, Jeremy. God.
bushwickfreeofhipsters October 2nd, 2009 at 12:50 am
If you call yourself a Bushwick “townie”, go by Make the Road NY someday, and you’ll see that the work they do is actually really awesome and its not an “economic justice” group, but a vibrant Community Organization that organizes workers, immigrants and lgbtq folks to improve their lives and to fight the gentrification and displacement that you, “Bushwick townie”, are causing.
Jeremy Sapienza October 2nd, 2009 at 9:38 am
You’re a typical supporter of MTR, in that you attack your new neighbors for their very presence. We’re evil because we have the nerve to even live among you, and good thing there’s an organization that FIGHTS us, right? I don’t subscribe to your class and race war theories.
Justin October 2nd, 2009 at 4:26 pm
Jeremy, don’t you realize how damaging it is that people like you fix up old buildings, go to local restaurants, support local arts groups, and shop in local stores?
Oh, wait, that doesn’t sound that bad does it?
Dresden October 2nd, 2009 at 10:26 pm
Today on the J train some guy started yelling at me in Spanish about how his family lived in NYC for 40 years, and everyone was getting kicked out. I ignored him, because he was nuts – but he was clearly racist and an idiot. All I was doing was looking out the window at Greenpoint. He thought I was some sort of tourist. If that’s who I’m displacing, despite living here 12 years, fuck him. Fuck him long and hard and right out of town.
sjp October 4th, 2009 at 6:03 pm
bushwickfreeofhipsters:
let’s separate the world into things that can be changed and things that cannot:
1) You can’t stop young people from moving into Bushwick.
2) You can help the people who already live here.
So either you can waste your time getting angry at the vague, elusive “hipster,” or you can devote your time to doing the latter. Maybe those hipsters would be willing to help you out.