11-Point Membership Benefit Program
WMLA’s 11-Point Membership Benefit Program is built by and for members to meet material needs as expressed by WMLA’s membership council, where delegates from the membership can provide input into the working of their benefit program.
Meet Day-to-Day Needs
WMLA members have built an 11-Point Membership Benefit Program to meet some of our immediate survival needs with the support of students, doctors, lawyers and small business owners, while we organize together for long-term change.
Self-Help
Members help members through WMLA’s Benefit Program, running food distributions, advocating against utility disconnections and deciding on actions through the Workers Benefit Council to bridge income shortfalls.
Mutual Benefit
We have a motto: If you need a benefit today, it’s available. And please come back tomorrow to help the next member get along. That way, members utilize the Benefit Program and as soon as they are able, return to make it possible for other members to get the help they need, and we grow stronger together.
CAN HELP?
NEED HELP?
These and other membership benefits are available through request. Call WMLA and speak to an organizer if you need help and to learn about other ways you can participate and build the Benefit Program.
(413) 443-9862
EMERGENCY & SUPPLEMENTAL FOOD BENEFIT
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Non-perishable food items are available for WMLA members upon request of an emergency food benefit to aid with immediate needs. Members can also enroll in a year-round budget savings program, which includes weekly fresh grocery distributions along with fresh baked bread, dairy items and prepared foods.
Clothing & Furniture Benefit
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Clothing of all sizes and seasonal needs as well as housewares are available at the WMLA Benefit Office located on the lower level of WMLA’s office central (call WMLA for hours). Members are asked to make a voluntary contribution of ten cents per item. Members can also make requests for needed furniture items, as WMLA is frequently contacted by supporters who wish to donate their gently used furniture.
Legal Benefit
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“Know Your Law” sessions conducted by volunteer attorneys present information about legal topics of interest to low-income workers as requested by WMLA members, such as landlord-tenant law, employment law and immigration law. Legal advice is provided to a requesting member privately in legal advice sessions with a volunteer attorney accompanied by a volunteer lay advocate to assist with the next steps of the attorney’s advice.
Utility Advocacy
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Volunteers receive on-the-job training in how to avert and reverse utility shutoffs, which threaten the lives of WMLA members both in the cold and in the severe heat. Advocates contact the utility companies to obtain payment arrangements or to establish medical protections on members’ accounts, and on certain occasions will contact the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities when the electric or gas company is breaking state law.
