Blog

UFCW Local 1994 “We Are One” Event

April 9, 2011

Cuffie introduced Gino Renne, President of Local 1994, who spoke of the county budget issues in the larger context of the events in the Midwestern US.   He connected the current situation with the circumstances that led to the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on April 4, 1968.  King had gone to Memphis TN to support the largely African-American sanitation workers who were demanding union representation and the respect and dignity that would come with it.

Mexican Congress Rushes to Pass Regressive Labor Law

April 7, 2011
  • adjust hours regardless of a contract;
  • enter individual contracts instead of union contract;
  • pay less wages for unfairly dismissed workers;
  • engage with “protection contacts” that fragment democratic unions; and 
  • set arbitrary minimum wage and work condition standards without the possibility of review or objection.

The law would also make it even more difficult to certify democratic unions, further undermining the ability of workers to oppose abusive working conditions.

Sweatshop, Warehouse, Walmart: A Worker Truth Tour

April 6, 2011

If you were unable to attend, I’ve tried to capture some of the tonal qualities of the voices of those who talked about their experiences, with some of the key quotes:

Kalpona translated with conviction from her first language for the Bangladeshi workers. She knew her ability to communicate others’ stories across language barriers was the most important thing she could be doing right then. It was the only way we could hear firsthand the sweatshop conditions experienced by those working in garment factories subcontracted by Walmart.

Center for American Progress Holds Screening of Triangle Remembering the Fire

March 29, 2011

On the day of the fire at 4:40pm the 8th floor caught aflame (from what is thought to be a discarded cigarette), there was no plan, never even practice of a fire drill. After eighteen minutes of the fire, the last body jumped from the window ceil to her death. While some were saved from a jam packed elevator, others searched for a way to exit the flames that possessed their workplace. Unfortunately 146 people were caught in the inescapable fire. Some jumped holding hands, holding each other, while the others died in the midst of the fire. Charcoaled bodies were carried and brought down from the top three floors, later to be identified by family and friends.

Remembering the Triangle: Not One More Fire!

March 26, 2011

For those familiar with the Triangle fire tragedy, the stories are all too familiar: Locked doors. Missing fire extinguishers. Callous management. Workers who can’t escape the deadly smoke and fire.

As a result, ILRF is working with partner organizations in Bangladesh to demand safer working conditions and respect for labor rights, including the right to organize and bargain collectively for better wages and safe working conditions.

Low Wages and Long Working Hours

New York City

Bangladeshi Trade Unionists Stand in Solidarity with Workers in Wisconsin, Ohio, and Elsewhere

March 17, 2011

By Liana Foxvog, National Organizer, SweatFree Communities

Int.Sol.USA.16.3.11
Today we received this deeply moving solidarity message from the National Garment Workers Federation of Bangladesh along with a photo of their demonstration in solidarity with "the fighting workers of the USA":

The Sustainable Apparel Coalition: Some Product Information for Consumers, But What About the Workers?

March 16, 2011

The formation of this Coalition is meant to address a systemic structural problem that plagues the industry – the supply chain for any particular product is spread out over many contractor factories, often in different countries, and under no direct control of the brand manufacturer that sells the product.  Therefore it is a challenge for companies to know the details about the environmental conditions under which the entire product is made, and also impossible for consumers to know much about the sustainability of these products.  The industry freely admits this problem, one they created through structuring their supply chains in this manner.  After all, if they wanted to know everything about the production of their own product, they could build and run their own factories, which they

Bargaining Rights Are Human Rights

March 11, 2011

A 2007 decision by the ILO sustained a complaint filed by the United Electrical Workers against the State of North Carolina for its prohibition on collective bargaining for public employees. The ILO called on the United States to "promote the establishment of a collective bargaining framework in the public sector in North Carolina," and called specifically for the repeal of North Carolina General Statute 95-98, the state law that prohibits public employee collective bargaining. Currently pending before the ILO is a complaint filed by Transport Workers Local 100 challenging New York State's "Taylor Law," which prohibits strikes by public sector employees.

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