Rally to Highlight Employment Issues

With union contracts covering 250,000 Los Angeles workers ranging from janitors to actors set to expire this summer, county labor officials hope to link bargaining efforts and build public awareness of issues affecting working people. The coordinated effort will kick off at 5 p.m. today with a rally at Pershing Square in downtown L.A., which is expected to draw teachers, county clerical workers, construction workers and janitors. Labor leaders said the rally will highlight income disparity and job insecurity. The largest employers involved include the Los Angeles Unified School District, with 72,000 teachers and classified and trade workers, and Los Angeles County, with 140,000 social workers, sheriff’s deputies, doctors, janitors and home-care workers.