For the past several months, ONE DC and its members have been shaping the Right to Live and Work in DC campaign. According to the New Convention Center Hotel Omnibus Financing and Development Act of 2006, DC residents who successfully complete the hotel training program will be given first consideration for positions at the Marriott Marquis hotel slated for construction at the former Convention Center site. Per the legislation, ONE DC also has a seaton the Headquarters Hotel Committee alongside John Boardman, Executive Secretary-Treasurer of UNITE HERE Local 25 and Fred Kramer of Marriott. ONE DC is specifically tasked with identifying potential recruits for Marriott's job training and placement programs in close coordination with other Committee members.

ONE DC is proud to facilitate placement of DC residents into jobs, but this is also an opportunity to raise consciousness in the community about work as a human rights concern. The legislation specifies that DC residents will be given first consideration for jobs in the new Marriott; more so, ONE DC believes that all DC residents have a human right to a good job that pays a living wage. We want to use the Right to Live and Work in DC campaign to:

• illustrate the disparity in employment levels between wards in our city;
• highlight the structural nature of persistently high unemployment in Wards 5, 6, 7, and 8;
• dismantle the stereotypes and discriminatory practices that perpetuate the problem of high unemployment, particularly for District residents of color; and
• build power so that we DC residents can demand and realize our human right to good, sustainable jobs.

There is a lot of work to be done! We need to prepare an outreach strategy, conduct extensive research into hospitality industry hiring practices, continue to build relationships with Marriott, and identify and reach out to DC residents in the community who are ready to work -- both on an individual basis and through popular education workshops. ONE DC's mission is not only to place DC residents into jobs at the Marriott Marquis but also to build consciousness around workers' rights and human rights and to hold Marriott responsible to the agreed-upon legislation. ONE DC intends to tailor our work so that the recruits it recommends will be the best possible candidates for positions at the hotel and will have the institutional skills and support to remain in those positions for the long term.

If you are interested in participating in any aspect of this campaign, or if you are an unemployed or underemployed DC resident who is ready to work, please contact ONE DC. We cannot make the change happen for you -- you are the change, and we need you!