Working overtime to find a job

by Jonathon Vogt—Ohio

Wednesday was one of the first warm days our office has had after a long winter of canvassing. I walked down a street in west Dayton thirsty and unprepared for the heat.

Then I met this woman. I told her that we were fighting to keep good jobs in Ohio and we needed members to hold our politicians accountable. She told me that she would sign up but that she was very tired; she had been awake for the last eighteen hours. I asked her what kind of job she had that kept her awake for eighteen hours, assuming she worked the long hours that most people do at a hospital.

She told me that she didn’t have a job and had been continually looking for work for the last two days, revising her resume, submitting applications, attending a job fair and several interviews. Dayton ranks second in the country for most jobs lost due to outsourcing, just after Detroit. Linda’s struggles are endemic of the problems created by crooked free trade agreements that help neither American workers or workers overseas.

She said God has a plan for her and it is not for her to give up now, after a lifetime of hard work. I told her that you reap what you sow and since she was working hard, I firmly believe she will find a job. I told her that Working America will fight to make sure that people like her get the economic fair shake they deserve. She offered me a bottle of water and thanked me for stopping by. She said I could come back anytime and that she looked forward to getting involved with Working America.

Walking away no longer thirsty, I thought to myself that there is nothing that tastes better than the water you drink after knowing you made a difference in someone’s life.

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