Maria Luisa Berlanga

Maria Luisa Berlanga is a single mom and has been working as a janitor in Houston for six years. She supports herself and her three-year-old son, Andres, on $5.50 an hour with no benefits; she trusts that will soon change.

"I'm in very good spirits because we have won the union we have fought so hard to win," she says. "What we accomplish by uniting will not just benefit me; it will benefit many families. We are not asking for much, only for fair compensation."

One of the most important things for Maria Luisa is getting health insurance for her child. "If I can make a better living, my son can have a better life."

Andres, her son, woke up early one morning crying -- he was really sick and was running a high fever. Because she doesn't have health insurance the incident was particularly scary for her. It turned out he had a bad ear infection. "We are human beings and we work hard -- we deserve to live better than this. We don't make enough to support our families and we can't afford health care for our children," she says. "If we can do this, then all workers in Houston can unite for a better life. Every worker wants to achieve the American Dream."

Maria Luisa is thankful for all the support the janitors received from the community and religious leaders and from workers from other unions. "They can count on us unconditionally." Maria Luisa is also very thankful for the support they received from other janitors around the country. "I know what they did for us was not easy, but by doing it they gave us a lot of strength. And just as they supported us in our struggle, we will support others trying to form unions wherever that may be."

And while it's the families without insurance that face the most immediate and devastating consequences, everyone in Houston feels the effects of the health care crisis. Taxpayers pick up hundreds of millions of dollars in costs as low-wage employers shift the responsibility for providing health care onto the already overburdened public safety net. Those with insurance -- as well as responsible employers who do offer health insurance - see their premiums rise to make up for the uncompensated care that hospitals provide to the uninsured. And everyone feels the effects of overcrowded emergency rooms.

It's one of the major reasons janitors in Houston are joining SEIU's Justice for Janitors campaign and why we've launched a major effort to improve health care in Houston.