Marc Perrone Elected President of 1.3 Million Member United Food and Commercial Workers International Union

Says by uniting together, we can give workers the opportunities they deserve

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CHICAGO, IL—Today, Marc Perrone, a labor leader who has committed four decades to fighting for hard working families, was elected International President of the 1.3 million member United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW).

As a proud leader and member of the UFCW, Perrone has long fought to organize more members, bargain the best contracts possible, and hold irresponsible corporations accountable. His values as a labor leader have been defined by the belief that every worker has the right to a decent living, a reliable schedule, quality affordable health care, and respect on the job.

"The choice we face today is whether we will stand together and build an economy that lifts up all families, or watch as even more workers fall further behind and struggle to make ends meet,” Perrone said. “Cynics may believe that these divisions and inequities are irreversible. I do not. We, as a union, do not. I strongly believe that by uniting together we can give workers across North America the opportunities they deserve."

Beginning today, Perrone will spend the coming weeks and months meeting with UFCW members throughout the United States and Canada. As part of this listening tour, Perrone will have one on one conversations, visit worksites, and utilize digital and social media platforms to engage with union members and hear their thoughts and ideas on how the UFCW can grow even stronger.

"The ideas to build a stronger union do not lie within any one individual,” Perrone said. “They lie within all of us. They lie in the collective wisdom and strength of 1.3 million UFCW members who work hard every day to support their families. I want to hear their ideas. I want to hear their vision. I want to hear what we can all do to become an even greater and stronger union for the decades ahead."

Perrone will be succeeding retiring International President Joe Hansen.

Hansen started as a meatcutter in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1962 and used his experience as a rank and file union activist to help lift up UFCW members and all workers. Hansen was elected International President in 2004 and helped steer the UFCW through a Great Recession, the flood of corporate money into politics, the single greatest legislative attack on labor in history, and the rise of income inequality.

“Even in the face of unprecedented challenges, Joe Hansen never lost sight of our members,” Perrone said. “His commitment and dedication to the hard-working men and women we represent will never be forgotten.”

During his tenure, Hansen increased union density in meatpacking and processing, formed important global labor alliances, and helped lead the labor movement’s positions on comprehensive immigration reform.

* For Perrone's biography, and the announcement of new UFCW officers, please see below:

Biography of International President Marc Perrone:

Marc Perrone joined the Retail Clerks—which later became the UFCW—in 1971 while working as a courtesy clerk at Weingarten’s food store in Pine Bluff, Arkansas.  Since that time, he has held various positions within the UFCW, including Region 1-Eastern Director and National Director of Strategic Programs, Collective Bargaining and Organizing. For the last decade, he has served as International Secretary-Treasurer, keeping the UFCW on sound fiscal footing in a challenging climate.

New UFCW Officers Elected:

Under the UFCW International Constitution, the International Executive Board is charged with electing a replacement for a vacancy in the office of International President. The UFCW Executive Board consists of 50 International Vice Presidents, primarily local union leaders, and 5 Executive Committee members.

The UFCW International Executive Board also elected former Executive Vice President Pat O’Neill as International Secretary-Treasurer, Esther Lopez as Executive Vice President, and Stuart Appelbaum as Executive Vice President. Paul Meinema currently serves as Executive Vice President and National President of UFCW Canada. Executive Vice President Bill McDonough retired on October 31.

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The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) represents more than 1.3 million workers, primarily in the retail and meatpacking, food processing and poultry industries. The UFCW protects the rights of workers and strengthens America’s middle class by fighting for health care reform, living wages, retirement security, safe working conditions and the right to unionize so that working men and women and their families can realize the American Dream. For more information about the UFCW’s effort to protect workers’ rights and strengthen America’s middle class, visit www.ufcw.org, or join our online community at www.facebook.com/UFCWinternational and www.twitter.com/ufcw.

Film Screening: After I Pick The Fruit

Film Screening: After I Pick The Fruit The Lives of Migrant Workers Please join us next Wednesday Feb. 27 at 7:30pm at New York Law School for an  exclusive screening of "After I Pick The Fruit," a documentary film created by  Sodus, NY based independent film-maker and activist, Nancy Ghertner. The film follows the lives of five female migrant farmworkers in upstate New York and  chronicles the many struggles they faced as immigrant laborers in the U.S. over  the course of ten years. The screening will be followed by a panel discussion  featuring film-maker Nancy Ghertner; Maggie Gray, author of an upcoming book  "Labor and the Locavore" about New York farmworkers and food politics; Gerardo  Gutierrez, campaign coordinator for the Justice for Farmworkers campaign; and  Soche Meng, legislative counsel at the NYCLU. The discussion will be moderated by Andrea Callan, Statewide Advocacy Coordinator at the NYCLU. The panel will focus on the challenges faced by NY’s farmworkers and how the proposed state  legislation, the Farmworkers Fair Labor Practices Act, will seek to remedy so many of the inequities in labor rights suffered by NY’s farmworkers. Currently, farmworkers are the only group of workers in New York that do not have a right to the same basic labor protections all other New Yorkers enjoy; overtime pay, one day of rest during the week, the right to collectively bargain and join a  union, or access to workers compensation or disability pay if injured on the job. The Farmworkers Fair Labor Practices act seeks to remedy this  discriminatory scheme and provide NY's farmworkers the labor rights they deserve.  Please RSVP with Marc Loresto mloresto@nyclu.org if you would like to attend. If you would like to learn more about the film, or watch the film trailer, visit  the website at: http://www.afteripickthefruit.com/.

NLRB Adopts Rule to Speed Union Elections

Today, in a small step forward to leveling the playing field for the working class, the National Labor Relations Board adopted a new, Republican criticized and attacked, rule which would eliminate and "reduce unnecessary litigation and delays" during the union election process.  The new rule will go into effect on April 30, 2012.  From the NLRB:

but under the current rules, inefficiency, abuse of the process, and delay still hamper resolution of many questions of representation.

In recent years, only about 10 percent of NLRB election cases have gone through the hearing process. Such elections have been held on average 101 days after the election petition was filed with a regional office.

 “This rule is about giving all employees who have petitioned for an election the right to vote in a timely manner and without the impediment of needless litigation,” said Chairman Pearce.

You can read the press release from the NLRB with summaries of the proceedings here.  Earlier this November, House Republicans passed what was dubbed the Election Prevention Act, to combat the modest NLRB rule change.  The laws would give companies and corporations a tool-kit and a swiss-army knife for defeating unions and destroying workers' rights.   Republicans continue their attack on unions, workers' rights and the NLRB, though today a small victory towards creating a fair unionization process.

Related articles

• NLRB Fight Shows How Far We've Fallen (seeingtheforest.com)

Friday Morning One-Liners: 3/9-3/11;

“And for those politicians who seek to emulate Governor Walker, rest assured, these attacks on middle class families have unified and inspired an even stronger grassroots movement for change in this country.”   UFCW International's statement on GOP attacking workers' rights.

Wednesday night under sobering pressure from polls and recalls, Governor Walker urgently rammed through his anti-union legislation.  "In 30 minutes, the 18 Republican senators stripped away 50 years of worker rights," Poll after poll shows support for Public Workers and thousands of protesters rushed the state Capitol in Wisconsin.

The UFCW International released a statement on Wisconsin GOP's attack on workers. 

Labor has vowed to step up the recall effort in Wisconsin, "This legislative gimmick proves Walker's attack on the middle class was never about balancing the budget; it was always about stripping workers of a voice and rewarding the cronies who helped finance his campaign." Read more @ Huffington Post.

Mad about Wisconsin?? Tell your NY elected officials via AFL-CIO.  

32 BJ Press Release: Democracy, Not Just Wages, Under Attack in Wisconsin & Elsewhere.

Thousands gather @ Indiana's Statehouse for a labor rally.

NFL Players back Indiana's public workers.

#Industry

The first three 15,000 sqft Walmarts will open between May and early summer in Arkansas.  More @Bloomberg.

Business Week & The WSJ report Walmart plans on opening 'hundreds' of small stores.

On Thursday, Walmart said the company is considering acquiring retailers with smaller stores to help turn around its weakened U.S. business.  More @ ABC News.

In a few days, Betty Dukes will be fighting Walmart in the Supreme Court, send her a message of encouragement.

Join Walmart Watch in calling Justice Antonin Scalia to recuse himself from the Dukes v. Walmart case.  The Justice's son is a partner at Walmart's law firm in the massive gender discrimination suit.

A  BJ's Wholesale club will be opening in Garden City in 2012.

Fresh Direct is receiving a $50M investment to expand out of NY.

Rally at Noon @ Amish Market Park Place Today!

Union’s Rally for Justice on Martin Luther King Jr.’s Birthday

“An injustice anywhere is an injustice everywhere.”

                              - Martin Luther King Jr.

Unions representing thousands of workers at the World Trade Center site and in the immediate area are coming together to support workers at Amish Market Tribeca.

Who: UFCW Local 1500, the Building and Construction Trades Council of New York, the New York Central Labor Council, New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn

What: Rally in support of workers at Amish Market at 53 Park Place.

When: January 15, 2010 at 12 noon – 1pm

Where: 53 Park Place @ West Broadway, Manhattan

Why:  To highlight Amish Market Tribeca's long standing anti-worker behavior.  Union and community members will pledge not to patronize Amish Market Tribeca until the owners demonstrate a reversal of their stand against workers rights.

Speakers: Speaking at the rally will be City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, Central Labor Council President Jack Ahern, UFCW Local 1500 President Bruce Both as well as a worker from the market.

Performance: Rude Mechanical Orchestra (a 30-odd-piece New York City radical marching band and dance troupe).

Background: On February 26, 2009 New York State Department of Labor announced a $1.5 million enforcement action against Amish Market Park Place and other stores for primarily unpaid wages. To protect themselves from these kinds of abuses, workers have been trying to unite into UFCW Local 1500 but have been met with significant resistance from the store’s management including harassment and intimidation of union supporters.

 

To RSVP, or for more details head to Facebook.