Tom Kertes
Encyclopedia
Tom Kertes is an American
human rights
activist living in Canada
.
's successful living wages campaign at Camden Yards. The association claimed that workers at Camden Yards were paid less than the state and federal minimum wage http://www.citypaper.com/news/story.asp?id=13785. For over three years the United Workers Association fought to secure living wages at the stadium http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-bz.cleaners08aug08,0,3325166.story?page=1. On September 6, 2007 the Maryland Stadium Authority
voted to pay cleaners the Maryland living wage rate of $11.30 per hour. Adoption of the living wage policy occurred days after a scheduled hunger strike of 11 workers and 4 allies had been postponed http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-bz.cleaners07sep07,0,2657343,full.story, following positive remarks by Maryland
Governor Martin O'Malley
http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-bz.living01sep01,0,1246332.story.
Tom Kertes worked with the United Workers Association as a volunteer advisor starting in 2003, as communications organizer in 2006 http://www.citypaper.com/printStory.asp?id=12015 and as a consultant in 2007.
. Tom Kertes has also worked with Friends and Residents, an organization of public housing residents in Washington, D.C.
fighting HOPE VI development of their neighborhood. Starting in 2003 he worked with the United Workers Association
, an organization of low-wage workers in Maryland.
Prior to his work with the Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign, Tom Kertes owned Children's Garden, a children's book and toy store in Silverdale, Washington
. The store closed in 2001 due to losses after snow melt from a snow storm damaged over $200,000 in inventory.
, Canada
, in response to human rights violations by the United State government and so that he could live in a country where marriage between same-sex couples is recognized http://www.thestar.com/News/article/243555.
Tom Kertes has worked as a communications consultant for The Real News http://imaginetreeconsulting.com/about-tom-kertes.
Tom Kertes was Policy and Communications Advisor to the College of Early Childhood Educators in Ontario, Canada's first self-regulatory organization for early childhood educators http://imaginetreeconsulting.com/about-tom-kertes.
In 2009 Tom Kertes moved to Vancouver
, Canada
where he currently works as a community organizer in the child care sector http://imaginetreeconsulting.com/about-tom-kertes.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
activist living in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Notability
Tom Kertes was media strategist for the United Workers AssociationUnited Workers Association
The United Workers Association is a human rights organization led by low-wage workers in Maryland in the United States. The organization was founded in 2002 by a group of homeless men and women in Baltimore...
's successful living wages campaign at Camden Yards. The association claimed that workers at Camden Yards were paid less than the state and federal minimum wage http://www.citypaper.com/news/story.asp?id=13785. For over three years the United Workers Association fought to secure living wages at the stadium http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-bz.cleaners08aug08,0,3325166.story?page=1. On September 6, 2007 the Maryland Stadium Authority
Maryland Stadium Authority
The Maryland Stadium Authority, MSA, was created by Chapter 283, Acts of 1986 Maryland General Assembly. Its initial mission was to return the National Football League to Baltimore. Maryland sought a new football team after former Baltimore Colts owner, Robert Irsay, moved the Colts out of the...
voted to pay cleaners the Maryland living wage rate of $11.30 per hour. Adoption of the living wage policy occurred days after a scheduled hunger strike of 11 workers and 4 allies had been postponed http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-bz.cleaners07sep07,0,2657343,full.story, following positive remarks by Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
Governor Martin O'Malley
Martin O'Malley
Martin Joseph O'Malley is an American Democratic politician who is currently serving as the 61st Governor of Maryland. Previously, he served as the mayor of Baltimore from 1999 to 2007. He is currently the chairman of the Democratic Governors Association.-Early life, education and career:O'Malley...
http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-bz.living01sep01,0,1246332.story.
Tom Kertes worked with the United Workers Association as a volunteer advisor starting in 2003, as communications organizer in 2006 http://www.citypaper.com/printStory.asp?id=12015 and as a consultant in 2007.
Background
Tom Kertes has worked with the poor people's economic human rights movement since 2002. He has worked with the University of the Poor's School of Labor, which is part of the Poor People's Economic Human Rights CampaignPoor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign
The Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign ' is a coalition of grassroots organizations, community groups, and non-profit organizations in the United States of America committed to uniting the poor across color lines as the basis for a broad movement to abolish poverty...
. Tom Kertes has also worked with Friends and Residents, an organization of public housing residents in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
fighting HOPE VI development of their neighborhood. Starting in 2003 he worked with the United Workers Association
United Workers Association
The United Workers Association is a human rights organization led by low-wage workers in Maryland in the United States. The organization was founded in 2002 by a group of homeless men and women in Baltimore...
, an organization of low-wage workers in Maryland.
Prior to his work with the Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign, Tom Kertes owned Children's Garden, a children's book and toy store in Silverdale, Washington
Silverdale, Washington
Silverdale is a census-designated place in Kitsap County, Washington, in the United States. The population was 19,204 at the 2010 census.Despite many attempts at incorporation, Silverdale remains an unincorporated community....
. The store closed in 2001 due to losses after snow melt from a snow storm damaged over $200,000 in inventory.
Current work
In 2007 Tom Kertes moved to TorontoToronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, in response to human rights violations by the United State government and so that he could live in a country where marriage between same-sex couples is recognized http://www.thestar.com/News/article/243555.
Tom Kertes has worked as a communications consultant for The Real News http://imaginetreeconsulting.com/about-tom-kertes.
Tom Kertes was Policy and Communications Advisor to the College of Early Childhood Educators in Ontario, Canada's first self-regulatory organization for early childhood educators http://imaginetreeconsulting.com/about-tom-kertes.
In 2009 Tom Kertes moved to Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
where he currently works as a community organizer in the child care sector http://imaginetreeconsulting.com/about-tom-kertes.