I entered my union at 22 years of age and although I am a young individual I have been able to start building up my own benefits for retirement which lets me know that the steps I am taking now will afford me stability in the future. The wage disparity that has plagued women in the workplace, more especially women of color has been challenged head-on by the core values and standards that unions uphold strongly by their members.
After entering [a union] workers will be provided with benefits that secure their future [including] the higher wages that we receive and benefits and access to health care. Coming from a family in trades, my mother being a union member, a single mother, and a woman of color, the union has provided for me throughout my whole life. I am grateful for the opportunity we have been granted as otherwise we would have never been living in such a fortunate situation today.