People Before Profit blog

Vermont news battle

Fri, 20 Jun 2003 03:01:00 +0000

In Brattleboro, Vt., a town of 6,000, a major media union struggles is unfolding.

The local daily newspaper, the Brattleboro Reformer, with a circulation of 11,500, is owned by the Dean Singleton MediaNews Group, the seventh largest newspaper company in the U.S. It has collided head-on with the Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers International union (PACE) over wages, respect, and quality journalism.

The first casualty in this struggle for union recognition is Eesha Williams, who was fired from the Reformer four days after making public his support of the union. Williams who is the author of the book, Grassroots Journalism: A Practical Manual, started working for the Reformer about a year ago.

The Reformer claims Williams was in “breach of journalistic ethics” and that his firing has nothing to do with his union activity. To PACE and its supporters the Reformer’s claims are highly suspect: there were never any complaints issued against Williams prior to the organizing campaign. Williams has had more front-page articles than any other Reformer reporter. Williams asks, “Why run my articles in the front page if I’m in breach of journalistic ethics?”

According to Williams, the union campaign that started last fall had been brewing since 1995 when the Singleton Group acquired the paper. “Wages went down immediately,” Williams said. “Some workers who have been here for twenty years are making less now than they were in 1995.”

The average yearly salary for the 41 Reformer employees eligible to join PACE is $20,000, about half of what union newspaper employees make. “The union is widely supported among the staff,” said Williams, adding, “In any other industrial country in the world, we would already have our union.”

Dean Singleton, a notoriously anti-union Colorado billionaire who owns 48 daily and 121 weekly newspapers in the U.S., also heads the Newspaper Association of America, which represents the interests of newspaper owners. The MediaNews Group was one of the principal lobbyists for the recent gutting of FCC cross-ownership rules.

The Nashville-based union-busting law firm King and Ballow has been retained to send “representatives” to Brattleboro to intimidate, confuse and coerce union members.

According to Williams, “This is exactly the kind of [anti-union] stuff you read about. … They tell the employees that union leaders have criminal records, that the union will force them to go on strike, that the union can’t guarantee wages or benefits.”

This struggle is being watched closely by newspaper workers nationally. The success or defeat of Reformer employees will have repercussions throughout the industry.

The author can be reached at tonypec@pww.org

Auto union puts accent on organizing

Fri, 20 Jun 2003 02:39:00 +0000

DETROIT – “Our challenge is to craft an agreement that protects our members’ jobs and income security,” said United Auto Workers (UAW) Vice President Richard Shoemaker. Shoemaker was speaking about the union’s mid-July contract talks with the Big Three auto companies, in the UAW’s Solidarity magazine. Current contracts expire September 14.

Negotiations will focus on continuing wage increases, maintaining a quality health insurance package, preserving pensions, and dealing with the issue of organizing new members in independent or foreign-owned non-union plants.

“Organizing is important to everything this union does,” Roger Kerson, UAW assistant public relations director, told the World. However, he denied a report published by Automotive News in May that hinted the UAW was willing to concede plant closings and some layoffs in exchange for help with organizing.

Organizing is crucial to the union’s long-term bargaining power, especially in the growing parts production sector, which accounts for 60 percent of all workers in automobile manufacturing.

Thousands of parts production workers were added to union rolls in 2003, mostly in the union strongholds of Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan. At Johnson Controls, Chelsea Industries, Arvin-Meritor, and GKN Romulus, large majorities voted for union membership.

After these victories, UAW Vice President Bob King (who is director of the union’s Organizing as well as Parts Departments), told Solidarity that, “it was the solidarity of our active members combined with the courage and solidarity [of the new members] that achieved this great victory.”

Outsourcing in parts production threatens the strong contracts won by the UAW in the past. For example, 401(k) savings plans rather than pension plans are typically included in new contracts with the parts suppliers which were spun off from the Big Three (such as Visteon, Dana, Delphi) as well as in contracts from the companies that have moved in to pick up parts production such as Johnson Controls, Metaldyne, and Thyssen Krupp. This trend puts at risk the retirement plans of workers still reeling from the loss of millions from their retirement savings plans due to corporate corruption and the recession.

Some companies are finding that the biggest way to increase profits is to move to non-union regions or to spend millions fighting union organizing efforts. Honda workers in Marysville, Ohio, Nissan workers in the brand new assembly plant near Jackson, Miss., and Lextron auto parts workers, also in Mississippi, work without union protection. The spread of non-union shops in parts and in auto assembly plants and the resultant reduction in “union density” (the percent of the total work force that is unionized) threaten to undermine the long-term bargaining power of the UAW.

For example, Dana, an Ohio-based company that makes axles, engine parts, and sealing systems mostly for Ford and Chrysler, “has aggressively and systematically attacked its union workforce by closing, selling and downsizing its unionized facilities – especially UAW-represented plants,” according to Solidarity.

On the other hand, a neutrality and card check agreement reached with Johnson Controls in its 26 plants employing 8,000 parts workers was a critical component in the organizing campaign that resulted in the UAW organizing 30,000 new workers in 2002 alone. In a card check agreement, the employer agrees to recognize the union after a majority of workers sign authorization cards.

The author can be reached at jwendland@politicalaffairs.net

Boycott the Congress Hotel

Fri, 20 Jun 2003 02:26:00 +0000

Chicago – About 130 workers at the Congress Plaza Hotel walked out on strike at 11:00 a.m., June 15, here protesting illegal wage and benefit cuts. The contract with Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union (HERE) Local 1 expired on December 31, 2002, making it the first strike at a Chicago hotel in recent memory.

As of May 14, the Congress cut workers’ wages by 7 percent, and have effectively eliminated healthcare and pension by refusing to pay the required monthly premiums.

The picket lines will be up 24 hours a day. To support the strikers, you can send a check made out to HERE Local 1 Strike Fund, with “Congress Strike” written in the memo line. Mail to HERE Local 1, 55 W. Van Buren, 4th Fl, Chicago IL 60605.

An interview with Ray Milici. Jackson aids hospital workers

Thu, 19 Jun 2003 09:56:00 +0000

On June 6, Rev. Jesse Jackson came to Yale New Haven Hospital (YNHH) in Connecticut. His visit was in support of the 150 dietary workers whose union contract expired 30 months ago, the 1,800 service and patient care workers who are trying to get union recognition, and the community-labor campaign for an end to YNHH’s aggressive tactics in collecting unpayable medical debts from low-income patients. After a press conference, Rev. Jackson toured the hospital and met with workers. Ray Milici, a chef in the Hospital’s kitchen and longtime rank and file union leader, spoke at the press conference and guided Rev. Jackson through the hospital’s kitchen areas. Later, Milici spoke with the World about the day’s events. Following are his remarks.

It was so exciting today. The pressure is mounting on Yale-New Haven Hospital. The administration actually agreed to let Jesse Jackson go on a tour in support of the workers. That alone is a victory for us.

Rev. Jackson came down into the kitchen. One of the executives from the hospital tried to ambush him by talking his ear off – how many patients we serve, etc. But we showed Rev. Jackson the work areas, and introduced him to a lot of the workers. All the members were telling him we need a contract, and one member asked him to sign a card to her son in Kuwait. His words were very encouraging.

Then we went upstairs to the cafeteria. Our union members were coming up to meet Rev. Jackson, and one of the cashiers was so busy, she didn’t see him. He put his hand in her register – she looked around, then jumped up laughing and hugged him. They were both laughing about it.

After the tour, I had to go back to work, but I understand that Marna Borgstrom, second in command of the hospital, came with her entourage to meet with Rev. Jackson. Rev. Jackson said, “wait till I’m done talking to the workers” – he was talking to one of the unorganized workers in the hospital active in the union drive. They spent about 10 minutes talking while the administrators waited out in the hall. I understand that afterwards, Rev. Jackson told the hospital executives that these workers need the union and ‘you should not stand in the way.’

I was disappointed about the news coverage of the press conference. I spoke about not having a contract over the past two years, and revelations about the senior executives’ supplementary pension plan. They make up to $1 million a year plus they have two pension plans, while our pension fund is going down. We have members in food service that can’t afford the hospital’s health insurance. We work for a health care institution and we’re paying for benefits. Health care and pensions are two of our biggest issues.

The news didn’t show any of us (rank and file workers). Just a very short interview with Rev. Jackson about the medical debt issue. It’s hard for our little group of 150 workers to get any coverage at all.

But it was a big shot in the arm for us. Our struggle with the hospital continues. Jesse Jackson was there to support the workers and it has inspired us to fight on and boosted our morale.

Immigrant workers launch Freedom Ride

Thu, 19 Jun 2003 09:26:00 +0000

NEW YORK – Something historic is brewing. Inspired by the freedom rides of the civil rights movement, the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride is now being organized for Sept. 20 – Oct. 4. National sponsors include the AFL-CIO, major international unions, national immigrant and civil rights groups, religious institutions, student and community organizations, prominent elected officials, and others.

“Immigrant workers, living and paying taxes in the U.S., want the rights to apply for citizenship, to reunify their families, and to have a voice on the job without regard to legal status, rights denied by their undocumented status and outdated laws.” So reads a statement from a web site associated with the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union (HERE), a sponsor of the project.

Buses will be leaving from eight states, crisscrossing the U.S. and stopping at major cities: Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Miami and Boston, to name just a few. At each stop the riders will hold rallies and urge communities to get involved. The buses will then converge on Washington, D.C., to lobby Congress to change the laws. On Oct. 4 in New York City there will be a national rally and festival for amnesty, with music and food from all over the world. Organizers say they want tens of thousands of people to rally for a new immigration policy.

At a June 13 press conference at the New York City Central Labor Council (NYCLC), immigrant workers talked about their work experiences and difficulties.

Ching Hang Lee Chan of the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees (UNITE) described the sweatshop conditions she worked under before she was able to join the union. She worked hard to bring her eldest son to the U.S., only to have the Immigration and Naturalization Service force him to return to Taiwan, leaving his wife and child behind.

Mohamad Barlas, a member of International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM), told of families left behind when the breadwinners were deported. The IAM has organized drivers who work for large limousine service companies, many of whom are immigrant workers.

Prof. Edward Culvert of the City University New York spoke eloquently of his experience in the civil rights movement. He said that without broad unity, civil rights – which are human rights – could not have been achieved. The achievement of immigrant rights will require no less, he suggested.

Joel Magallon of Asociación Tepeyac de Nueva York said there are some 11 million undocumented workers in America who need legislative protection.

NYCLC President Brian McLaughlin spoke at the press conference and urged all trade unionists to give their support to the Freedom Ride and its objectives.

For more information on the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride, please visit www.iwfr.org

The author can be reached at gfalsetta@pww.org

Congress turns its back on long-term jobless

Thu, 12 Jun 2003 09:21:00 +0000

The Senate agreed to extend the federally funded Temporary Emergency Unemployment Compensation (TEUC) program on May 23. The measure provides a maximum of 13 additional weeks of unemployment benefits for the 2.1 million workers who will exhaust their state unemployment benefits between June 1 and Dec. 31.

Senate action came only days before the existing 13-week extension of federal benefits was set to expire on May 31. The situation was further complicated by the fact that the House had left town for the week-long Memorial Day recess, thus forcing the Senate to accept the House-passed measure or allow the program to expire.

However, critics charge, the legislation being sent to the president denies extended benefits to more than one million long-term unemployed workers who have exhausted both state and federal benefits. This number will increase by 680,000 in the next three months.

In a statement released following the Senate’s action, Maurice Emsellem, project director of the National Employment Law Project, pointed to the inadequacy of the 13-week extension, adding, “During the last recession, a similar federal program provided 26 weeks of federal extended benefits at its peak, with workers in many states receiving 39 weeks.”

The Center on Budget Policy and Priorities says an estimated 3.2 million workers have exhausted both state and federal unemployment benefits since the TEUC program began in March 2002, a 70 per cent increase compared to the recession of the early ’90s. A study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found that 80 percent of all laid off workers have savings equal to only two months of their previous earnings.

According to a national survey done by Peter D. Hart, 83 percent of unemployed workers say it’s harder today to find an acceptable job compared to when they last had to look for work, and the average unemployed worker has applied for no less than 29 jobs. Nearly seven in ten unemployed workers say that the ending of their unemployment benefits has had a major impact on meeting their family’s basic needs.

Although congressional sources put a $7.9 billion price tag on the program, money to pay for extended benefits comes from the more than $20 billion surplus in the unemployment trust fund. It does not require an appropriation by Congress.

The May unemployment report: No rosy colors

Thu, 12 Jun 2003 09:18:00 +0000

The U.S. Labor Department said that 9.0 million workers were counted among the officially unemployed in May, bringing the official unemployment rate to 6.1 percent, the highest since July 1994. When the 4.8 million men and women working part-time because they can’t find full-time work, and the 1.4 million who have become too discouraged to continue job-hunting are added, then some 15.2 million workers, more than 10 percent of the workforce, were either unemployed or underemployed in May.

The Economic Policy Institute looks at the question another way. In its latest “snapshot,” the institute says: “Employment rates – the share of a given group with jobs – are also indicative of how weak the labor market is for some groups of workers. The employment rate for men, 68.7 percent, is the lowest it has been since May 1983, when the unemployment rate was 10.1 percent. This suggests that the current 6.1 percent unemployment rate is not fully capturing the lack of job opportunities for these workers. Similarly, the fact that the employment rate for college graduates – 75.4 percent – is the second-lowest rate since the government began keeping these records is evidence of the weakness of the job market among white-collar workers.”

The Labor Department says 8.2 percent of Latino workers were unemployed last month as were 5.9 percent of white men, 5.1 percent of adult women, 18.5 percent of all teenagers, and 10.8 percent of African American workers. Hardest-hit were African-American teenagers, with an unemployment rate of 37.0 percent, 3.9 percent above April levels. Although the pace of loss has slowed, the economy lost 53,000 manufacturing jobs last month, bringing to 2.6 million the number of these jobs lost since July 2000.

Even more alarming, in the last year, the U.S. lost 4.1 percent of its manufacturing jobs. Among the hardest-hit industries were communications equipment (12.6 percent), apparel (12.8 percent) and computers (12.9 percent). The economy has not suffered such a prolonged period of job loss during any other post-World War II recession.

Other indicators of a weak job market include:

• The percentage of unemployment due to workers who voluntarily leave their jobs fell to 8.6 percent, the lowest level since 1983.

• Average hourly wages increased by only 1.3 percent over the last quarter, with wages of workers in the retail sector increasing by a mere 0.3 percent.

• The number of employed people over age 55 increased by 36,000 in May, as the declining value of 401(k)s continued to drive older workers back into the labor market.

• Of the 2.4 million older workers who have returned to work since February 2001, nearly 1.5 million are women.

• Total employment in the nation’s manufacturing industries is lower today than at any time since 1948.

“From the standpoint of the growing ranks of unemployed, the president’s tax cuts of 2001 and 2002 may have padded the pockets of the very rich, but they failed to create jobs,” said AFL-CIO President John Sweeney. “More of the same medicine in the form of his 2003 tax cut will not put people back to work.”

Meanwhile, the latest U.S. Department of Labor figures show 841,369 applications for temporary extended unemployment compensation for the week of May 17 – a weekly number that has risen for five straight weeks and is at its highest level since October 2002. The Labor Department reported on June 5 that weekly new jobless claims for the workweek ending May 31 reached a five-week high of 442,000. The rate of workers exhausting their unemployment compensation benefits rose in April to 43 percent, the highest rate since the recession began in April 2001, when the rate was 32 percent.

The author can be reached at Fgab708@aol.com

Perus teachers spark nationwide struggle

Thu, 12 Jun 2003 09:04:00 +0000

Despite having reached a tentative agreement, Nilvar Lopez, general secretary of the Peruvian teachers union (SUTEP), said a nationwide strike will continue until the union ratifies the new collective bargaining agreement. Minister of Education Gerardo Ayzanoa fired 500 teachers in Lima, the Peruvian capital, last Monday, and is said to be looking to do the same in other cities and in the provinces. Lopez told the education minister the firings would only complicate the end of the strike.

At press time, the union leadership was still meeting.

The strike started a month ago when the government of President Alejandro Toledo offered a salary increase of only $30 a month. Toledo, who said he would “go down in history as the education president,” had promised that his administration would double the salaries of the teachers.

Peru’s 280,000 teachers are among the worst paid in Latin America. They receive about $180 a month. Meanwhile, it takes $575 a month for a family to cover its basic necessities according to government estimates.

Only 2.9 percent of Peru’s national budget is allocated for education while 28 percent is used to pay interest on its foreign debt. This budget priority, along with selling off state-owned enterprises, cutting social programs and cracking down on workers, are all hallmarks of the Toledo government’s neoliberal policies.

The teachers’ struggle struck a chord in Peruvian society. Thousands came out in support, while others used the occasion to press their own demands. Farm workers, bus drivers, hospital and healthcare workers, judiciary employees and others joined the teachers in striking.

The strikes started taking on the character of a general protest against the policies of the Toledo government. This motivated the government to impose a state of emergency, declaring the teachers’ strike illegal on May 27.

The declaration of a state of emergency did not deter the teachers and other unions. On June 3, tens of thousands of Peruvians march through Lima in protest against Toledo’s policies and in solidarity with the teachers. Similar demonstrations took part in many cities and towns throughout this South American country.

The demonstration, organized by the General Confederation of Workers of Peru (CGTP), stopped all traffic for five hours in defiance of the government. (The CGTP was founded by José Carlos Mariategui, who also founded the Communist Party of Peru.)

The CGTP filed charges against the Toledo government with the International Labor Organization for “violation of labor rights” after the imposition of the state of emergency and the police attacks, which resulted in the arrest of hundreds and the death of two university students. This is not the first time the government has resorted to force to stop a strike. In January, striking construction workers union leaders were attacked and arrested.

The Peruvian workers received other support internationally. The World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) said it “condemns the state of emergency and the repressive measures of the government of Peru, as its response to the just demands of the different sectors of workers and society” that are the results of the Toledo government’s “failed neoliberal policies.” The CGTP is an affiliate of the WFTU.

The International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) also jumped into the fray condemning the repression against the workers. In a letter sent to the Peruvian president, the ICFTU noted that the “confrontations started after your government declared the state of emergency” and warned that the government’s action could lead to “more discontent and more violence.”

Toledo won the presidency in 2001 with promises of reconstructing and improving the economy after years of dictatorship and corruption by the administration of Alberto Fujimori, which left the country in economic ruins. The Toledo government has not only continued but also extended the neoliberal policies of its predecessor.

Last year the Toledo government sold off two electrical plants to a Belgian company that had been accused of bribing Fujimori. This prompted widespread demonstrations by workers, which were met with violence and a state of emergency in the southern part of the country.

The continued poverty and attacks on workers demanding better wages have led to a drop in Toledo’s popularity from a high of 60 percent during his campaign, to 15 percent today, according to local polls.

The author can be reached at jacruz@attbi.com

Memorial desecrated

Thu, 12 Jun 2003 08:08:00 +0000

Ludlow, Colo. – One of organized labor’s most sacred and cherished shrines, the Ludlow Memorial, was desecrated on or shortly after the evening of May 7. Vandals cut through solid granite and marble to sever the heads off the statues of a miner and his wife. The wife’s arm, holding a baby, was also removed and stolen.

“It’s so sad, it brought tears to my eyes,” said Mike Romero, president of United Mine Workers of America Local 9856 in Trinidad, Colo.

“We have no leads at all, but a $5,000 reward is out there to find out who done this,” Romero stated.

The UMWA fully intends to restore the statues and would like to recover the missing parts hauled away by the vandals. Recovery of the parts could reduce restoration costs that will likely be in the tens of thousands of dollars. The restoration would be easier if the original parts, uniformly weathered since their construction in 1917, could be recovered.

“Seeing the damage and desecration tore me up,” said Bob Butero, regional organizing director of the UMWA.

Pointing at the grounds surrounding the memorial, Butero stated, “This was a battleground in an economic war. These martyrs set the table for all the things we enjoy in wages, benefits and working conditions for workers in America today.”

Although Butero noted that the identity of the vandals is only speculation at this point, he feels that the vandalism “might have been some shot at the labor movement or the UMWA.”

According to Butero, local residents and union members are deeply pained by the desecration of the memorial. Many have ancestors who participated in the strike of 1913-1914. They consider the grounds at Ludlow to be sacred grounds symbolizing collective sacrifice and struggle for all workers. Butero says that, for workers, this site is similar to the Arlington National Cemetery. Workers spilled their blood here for our freedom.

The union welcomes donations from the public to help restore the memorial. Donations above restoration costs will be used to improve the historic site. Checks should be made out to “Ludlow Memorial Fund” and mailed to Mike Romero, UMWA Local 9856, at 1804 N. Linden Ave., Trinidad, CO 81082. (See related story below)

* * * * * *

Remembering the Ludlow Massacre

By Dennis DeMaio

In the opening decade of the 20th century, mine workers in Colorado were engaged in a bitter struggle with the mine owners in the Colorado coalfield wars. Throughout the state, mine workers were in the forefront of the struggle for the eight-hour day, liberation from paychecks in “company scrip,” the fight for union recognition and the struggle to rise above subsistent wages.

Between the coal strikes of 1903 and 1913, little changed in the brutal working conditions for mine workers. They paid exorbitant rents for company-owned shacks, used scrip to buy goods at inflated prices in company stores and worked in underground pits with fatality rates comparable to the Industrial Revolution.

While locked into these brutal economic conditions, the ability of mine workers to organize was severely curtailed by the virtual suspension of the U.S. Constitution in Colorado. Martial law was regularly invoked during strikes, curfews were imposed in company owned towns and workers were routinely stripped of due process rights.

During strikes, union members were often rounded up, put on freight trains and “deported” to Kansas and New Mexico. Military troops occupied courtrooms and sometimes “reversed” the orders of judges. The Mine Owners Association subsidized a 30,000-member vigilante force that beat up, framed and murdered union members throughout the state.

Amid growing concerns about a worker-hostile police state, Colorado reporters questioned General Sherman Bell about the alarming escalation of constitutional infractions. Bell retorted, “To hell with the Constitution. We’re not following the Constitution!”

Preceding the Colorado mine strike of 1913, the Rockefeller-owned Colorado Fuel and Iron Company (CF&I) owned 27 mining camps and produced 40 percent of the coal mined in Colorado. Resisting any concessions to improve wages or working conditions for the miners, CF&I prepared for war with its workers by building up its arsenal of machine guns and hiring additional security guards. When CF&I refused to negotiate, workers struck CF&I in the fall of 1913.

When the strike began, CF&I immediately evicted the miners and their families from company-owned shacks. The United Mine Workers of America quickly moved to erect tents on union leased property to house the miners and their families. About 13,000 miners – roughly 90 percent of the striking miners – occupied 13 tent colonies, including Ludlow.

To the owners, the tent colonies were viewed as poison to the economic stew the owners enjoyed. While the mine owners intentionally segregated their housing to separate and divide their ethnically diverse workers, the Ludlow area tent colonies integrated the workers. Twenty-one different ethnic groups were mixed together in the tent colonies as one group of striking workers. It horrified the mine owners to see these workers sharing food, fuel and conversation together in a unified purpose of shared struggle.

From the fall of 1913 through April of 1914, company thugs and company subsidized state militia forces mounted an escalating campaign of violence against the striking workers. Troops routinely fired indiscriminate rounds of bullets into the colonies. Guns were confiscated from miners, women were raped and numerous strikers were stripped of due process rights and jailed. The legendary Mother Jones was also arrested and held incommunicado for 20 days.

Exactly at 9 a.m. on April 20, 1914, the organized assault on the Ludlow tent colony began. Company thugs and state militia opened fire with machine guns; their bullets ripped through the canvas tents. Early on in the assault, five strikers and a 10-year-old boy were killed by gunfire.

Throughout the day, the striking miners worked frantically to evacuate their families from the unfolding genocide. The popular strike leader, Louis Tikas, was captured by troops as he attempted to evacuate a woman and two children from the carnage. He had earlier suffered a beating and jail detention for his strike activities. Tikas, union secretary James Fyler, and one other union prisoner were summarily executed by troops while defenseless and under guard by lawless thugs.

At approximately 5:30 p.m. on April 20, 1914, the state militia and CF&I company thugs drenched the canvas tents of Ludlow with coal oil. Under the direction of Lieutenant Kenneth Linderfelt, the colony was raided and the tents were ignited. Soldiers looted, smashed and pillaged the tent colony before it erupted into an inferno of flame and tragedy.

During the morning of April 21, 1914, workers made their way through the smoldering ruins of Ludlow. A twisted iron cot covered a pit dug into the ground. It was a routine pit dug to protect the striking miners and their families from the shower of bullets fired regularly into the camp. In this pit, the bodies of two young mothers and eleven children lay beneath the rubbish. The children ranged in age from three months to nine years.

In 1917, the Ludlow Memorial was built above the pit where the mothers and children were found. The memorial simply states, “Erected by the United Mine Workers of America to the memory of the men, women and little children who died in freedom’s cause, April 20, 1914.”

The author can be reached at pww@pww.org

Black telephone workers fight for MLK holiday

Fri, 06 Jun 2003 02:33:00 +0000

NEWARK, N.J. – Black telephone workers at Verizon are continuing their fight to force the company to make Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday a paid holiday. Although Dr. King’s birthday was won as a federal and state holiday, in private industry only twenty-six percent of employees at private companies have won a paid holiday. Many find it unbelievable that a company as large as Verizon, with so many Black employees and a large Black customer base, is not on the right side when it comes to Dr. King’s birthday. Verizon workers said private industry must not be let off the hook when it comes to respecting the contributions of King and the African American people’s struggle for justice.

During the contract struggle of 2000, when the issue of King’s birthday as a paid holiday was pushed to the side, Black workers at Verizon (members of IBEW Local 827) decided to get organized. They formed Black Telephone Workers For Justice (BTWFJ) and dedicated themselves to forcing Verizon to recognize this issue. “It was clear to us, that only as an organized force could we mount a struggle to make Verizon see that Black workers are serious about this issue,” Ron Washington, BTWFJ president, told the World.

Black workers went to union meetings and published a monthly newsletter, “Finally got the 411!” which helped to spread their struggle throughout Essex County. They also embarked upon building unity with community organizations in the Newark area.

In January 2001, they called for the first company-wide demonstration, on King’s birthday. The demonstration and rally, held in downtown Newark across from the Verizon headquarters, enjoyed community and labor support and was a huge success, despite the fact that the local was not officially involved. In the subsequent demonstrations of January 2002 and 2003, however, the local union fully supported the demonstrations and demand. “This is a clear victory for our efforts,” said Washington. “In addition, after two years of struggle Dr. King’s birthday is now one of the key demands in this year’s contract struggle.”

Verizon’s contract with its union employees is up August 2003, and workers are determined to make the issue of Dr. King’s birthday as important as wages or benefits.

The author can be reached at pww@pww.org

Millions strike against privatization in India

Fri, 06 Jun 2003 02:14:00 +0000

NEW DELHI, India – A one-day general strike brought many states to a virtual halt here. Up to 50 million workers participated in what trade union leaders called one of the “biggest strike[s] witnessed since Independence,” May 21.

The strike, spearheaded by the left trade unions, protested privatization of public sector entities, new anti-labor laws and attacks on pensions. The government wants to sell state-run companies to raise 132 billion rupees ($2.75 billion).

The unions said the government is also planning to reduce their pensions (Employees’ Provident Fund) interest rate from 9.5 percent to 8 percent. Strikers also demanded more legislation to protect agricultural workers.

Oil, power, coal, mining, steel, engineering and textile industries “experienced massive participation in the strike,” according to strike leaders. Most of the country’s ports came to a standstill. All domestic airlines called off their flights. About 6 million state and central government employees did not report to work. Railway and other transport sector workers also joined the strike.

“We want a complete halt to privatization and other economic policies that favor only the rich,” said Swadesh Dev Roye, leader of the National United Forum, an umbrella group of labor unions in state-run oil companies.

Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) General Secretary M.K. Pandhe and All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) General Secretary Gurudas Dasgupta told reporters that banking operations in the country came to a grinding halt. “Despite intimidation by the management, employees of the Reserve Bank struck work along with the officers and employees in all commercial banks.” This was the first time Reserve Bank employees took part in a strike. Some say the Indian banking industry is under pressure from the World Bank to trim its work force.

“We are protesting the change in labor laws in favor of the employers and the privatization/disinvestment policies that are leading to aggravation of joblessness and unemployment,” said S. Nagarajan, deputy general secretary, All India Bank Officers Association.

One bank employee working since 1977 faces retirement in 15 years. He is worried he could be laid off before then, losing out on his pension. “They want to privatize everything like it is in America. They want do away with job security - they have no concern about someone who is close to the end of his career,” Ajay Kumar Sharma said.

Another striker echoed this view, saying the government was selling profit-making state-owned companies. “We had no alternative but to go on strike. No one’s listening to what we are saying,” she said.

Trade union leaders criticized the prime minister for refusing to meet with the trade unions. Dasgupta said, “The PM talks to sadhus (holy men) and industrialists, but has no time for the working class.”

But he said the government may not want to annoy the trade unions in the run up to national elections next year. The BJP and their allies are seeking “election funds” from multi-national corporations, which are competing for privatization bids. One deputy minister recently had to resign from the cabinet because his secretary had accepted a bribe.

The strike had particularly strong support in the eastern state of West Bengal, which is governed by the Communists and Left Front. Bank official Sukhomoy Mitra said they would do everything it took to oppose the privatization plan.

“We are not opposed to modernization … or greater efficiency in the industry, but we cannot accept surrender to the whims of capital.”

The ruling-BJP’s trade union federation and the largest opposition party – the Indian Congress Party’s trade union federation (INTUC) did not take part in the strike. INTUC, at first supported the strike, but was criticized for pulling out at the last minute.

M.K.N. Moorthy contributed to this article.

Student fast wins workers rights

Fri, 06 Jun 2003 02:07:00 +0000

Six Stanford students ended a seven-day fast June 4 and celebrated victory in their campaign to win better conditions and more respect for university workers. The fasters had been supported by nearly 300 “solidarity fasters” and over 1,700 petition signers.

Student activists announced that Stanford’s president had agreed to work toward a university labor code of conduct, with worker and student representation in a presidential comittee on workplace issues.

“The University must recognize all members of its community as playing an integral part in Stanford’s success,” said Linda Tran, who had been fasting since the hunger strike began on May 28. “Workers have been an invisible part of the community too long.”

The fast, organized by the Stanford Labor Action Coalition, was the culmination of a campaign that had been going on for more than two years.

At issue was the poor treatment of workers by both Stanford University and the companies to which the institution outsources work.

The lowest paid workers make only $7.25 per hour, with no health care. Based on a 40-hour workweek, their annual wage is $15,080. Many of them live in San Jose, where a one-bedroom apartment can cost $15,000 per year.

According to a survey released by Working Partnerships USA and SEIU Local 715, which represents the organized Stanford workers, “Over three-quarters of temporary workers at Stanford receive a wage below the San Jose Living Wage of $10.10, about two-thirds of these workers do not have health care, two-thirds have been working as a temporary worker for half a year or more, and one-half share housing with other families.”

The students on the hunger strike demanded that Stanford create a “code of conduct” which would require the university and its subcontractors to guarantee a living wage and bring about educational opportunities to their employees. The strikers also demanded that workers and students have a voice in developing the policy.

University officials initially refused to meet with the students to discuss their demands, but eventually were forced to negotiate under the weight of public pressure. Since negotiations began, the university gave in to some of the demands, but initially refused to allow workers and students a place in the creation of the code of conduct.

The strike has received a lot of solidarity. Jesse Jackson sent a message of support. Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers, met with the striking students.

The author can be reached at dmargolis@pww.org

Illinois workers win pay hike

Thu, 05 Jun 2003 09:26:00 +0000

CHICAGO – In the midst of rising regional unemployment, a massive budget crisis, and a widespread housing shortage, some of Illinois’ lowest paid workers will be receiving some relief. Both branches of the Illinois State Legislature have passed a minimum wage increase, which will rise to $6.50 over the next three years. The wage increase will make Illinois the only Midwestern state with a minimum wage above the federal base.

Governor Rod Blagojevich, who was backed by the Illinois AFL-CIO in his election campaign, is expected to sign the law. Speaking at a March 30 labor and community-sponsored rally here to support the minimum wage increase, he said, “The minimum wage today buys about a third less than it did a quarter century ago ... [i]f the minimum wage had been allowed to keep pace with increased worker productivity, it would be $13.80 today. What we’re asking for is modest by comparison.” Blagojevich has also argued for the increase based on the prospects of increasing taxable income for the state. State Senator Kimberly Lightford (D) helped shepherd the bill through the legislature.

From the beginning Republicans and business advocates opposed the increase which was a major part of the newly elected governor’s campaign. The large margins by which Democrats swept into all but one statewide office made it possible for the increase to pass, although the resulting legislation is a compromise. Initially the increase was to be phased in over the next two years, with an increase of 50 cents on Labor Day of this year, and then another dollar increase on Labor Day of 2004. Now, however, the increase will not go into effect until Jan. 2004 and then again on Jan. 2005.

Besides increasing the minimum wage for all Illinois workers the proposed law will also eliminate the tip loophole, which allows workers who get tips to be paid less than minimum wage. The loophole allowed waiters and waitress to make less than $3.00 per hour.

Despite proof to the contrary, business advocates continue to argue that an increased minimum wage will deter profits. The minimum wage increase is just one of many complaints by corporations, which also saw business fee increases and the closing of some corporate tax loopholes, ushered in during this legislative session.

Although this increase is a victory for workers, activists are quick to point out that $6.50 is still far below a living wage. And despite the feigned cries of business, working people still continue to bear the brunt of the tax burden, nationally, regionally and locally.

The author can be reached at bkishner@pww.org