'People are struggling': Durham workers hold rally, march for better pay on International Workers Day

Hundreds of people on Wednesday rallied and marched in Durham, calling for higher pay for city employees on International Workers Day.

The rally started at 5 p.m. at CCB Plaza. People then marched through the city at 7 p.m.

Several groups participated in the event, including Mothers for Ceasefire and the Durham Association of Educators.

The demonstrators say they are frustrated with the current state of affairs for employees in the city.

“People are struggling,” Victor Urquiza said. “Inflation is going up. Groceries [and] rent are going up. You know what doesn’t go up? Our wages.”

The rally called for several demands, including:

• $25 an hour for city, service and all workers.
• Affordable housing
• Asking Duke University to pay a more equitable share
• An immediate cease-fire in Gaza and a divestment from businesses tied to Israel.

Organizers said, initially, they wanted a $15-an-hour minimum wage, but they increased the minimum wage demand to compensate for inflation.

City sanitation workers for months have attended city council meetings demanding the city provide sanitation and other city workers with a more liveable wage.

One worker said they marched because they were still waiting to receive benefits from their job.

“I have to wait another two years before I can get full benefits,” a woman with the Union of Southern Service Workers said. “That’s not right.”

Protesters later marched past the Duke campus, calling for the university to disclose and divest ties from Israel. While the marchers called for the school to divest, the protest was not as intense as the protests that broke out at UNC on Tuesday.

For Ben Carrolls, he wants the school to pay its fair share in property taxes.

“Duke is making all of this money and isn’t contributing anything to the city they’re in,” Carrolls said

According to an organizer, Duke University does not have to pay local taxes as a private university. Organizers created a petition calling on the university to spend more in the community with property taxes.

Carrolls said the funds would help break down the barrier between the school and the Durham community.

“That money should be spent on workers’ needs at home, [including] higher wages, housing [and] healthcare,” he said.

Police were present at the rally and march, but no one was arrested.