(CNN) — Some contract federal workers are planning to strike Tuesday as all eyes turn to Washington for the Pope’s arrival.
The advocacy group Good Jobs Nation is calling for low-wage staff at federal buildings to walk off the job to “welcome [Pope] Francis and his message for the working poor.”
Good Jobs Nation says it represents the workers that cook, clean and provide other services for companies under contract with the federal government.
The group’s website says these contract workers are paid so poorly that they are “unable to afford basic needs such as food, clothing, and rent.”
The strikers will ask for collective bargaining rights, and for a minimum wage of $15 per hour.
President Obama upped the minimum wage this year to $10.10 per hour for companies that receive federal contracts. But advocates said during an April protest in D.C. that the law is often flouted by their employers.
Pope Francis has been a vocal advocate for living wages, and members of Good Jobs Nation sent a letter to Francis last week asking to meet with him when he’s in town. There is no word on whether a meeting will take place.
Strikers were told to meet Tuesday at 2nd Street and East Capitol St. NE at 9:30 a.m, according to a press release from demonstration organizer Change to Win. The Pope is expected to land in Washington at about 4 p.m.
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