SAN JOSE – Assemblymember Ira Ruskin has been named Labor Champion by the South Bay Labor Council, which represents union workers in all of Santa Clara County.  Assemblymember Ruskin will be presented with the award at the South Bay Labor Council’s Annual Committee On Political Education Banquet on March 14, 2008, in San Jose.

“In an era of economic hardship, it is important to support working men and women in all professions.  The middle class in our country is quickly diminishing.  Supporting labor unions preserves high quality jobs for working people.  I am honored by this award and its recognition of the work I have done to support the working men and women of our State,” Assemblymember Ruskin said.

Mr. Ruskin has been a strong proponent for protecting the rights of working men and women for many years.  He has marched with union members from the American Federation of State, Municipal and County Employees (AFSMCE) and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) to demand a living wage and to protect overtime and meal breaks.  He has spoken at rallies with union for hotel and restaurant employees (UNITE HERE!) and the Teamsters Union to protect the jobs and benefits of working people. 

In 2005, Assemblymember Ruskin joined teachers, nurses, firefighters, and others in the Labor Community to defeat the ballot propositions proposed by Governor Schwarzenegger.  This is Assemblymember Ruskin’s second year on the Assembly Committee on Labor & Employment, and in 2007, he received a perfect voting score from the California Labor Federation for his votes on the Labor Committee and on the Assembly Floor.  

Mr. Ruskin was one of only nine members of the Assembly to vote against the four Indian gaming compacts negotiated by the Governor last year, on the grounds that the compacts failed to provide an enforceable right to organize for low-wage casino workers.