Verizon Workers are on Strike...Need Your Support

This morning at 6 AM, 39,000 men and women working at Verizon went on strike for good jobs and a fair contract! They have hit a breaking pointl after 10 months of contract negotiations.

Over the last three years these workers have helped the company earn $39 billion in profits. Yet Verizon wants to freeze pensions, gut job security and send their U.S. positions overseas.

We are standing with our brothers and sisters from CWA & IBEW.
What you can do:

1. You can help by signing the petition at http://bit.ly/1oXma6l 
2. Join a picket line or rally near you at standuptoverizon.com
3. Share this information, the petition and rally/picket locations on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and take action to stand in solidarity with CWA District 1 and IBEW sisters and brothers as they Stand Up to Verizon!
4. Use hashtag: ‪#‎Standup2VZ‬

We Support Locked Out UFCW 342 Workers!

Throughout the last week we've been walking the picket lines with our UFCW Local 342 brothers and sisters who have been locked out by Trade Fair in Queens.

Over 100 meat workers throughout Trade Fair locations have been working without a contract since October and were all locked out last week.  The owner has posted "Help Wanted" signs throughout the neighborhoods and in the stores.   Ownership is demanding lower wages, and slashing benefits in his contract proposals.  It is simply unacceptable and has disrespected many of the workers.

The Times Ledger has picked up the story and so has Supermarket News.

What can you do: Stop by a picket line or Sign the petition online.  Go into a Trade Fair and tell the manager to respect their meat workers and negotiate fairly!

California: 7,000 UFCW Members On Strike

As we all are slowly recovering from the devastation throughout the Northeast from Hurricane Sandy, we have learned this morning our UFCW brothers and sisters have gone on strike.

via UFCW 8: http://www.ufcw8.org/index.cfm?zone=/unionactive/view_article.cfm&HomeID=262808

Raley’s Grocery Workers on Strike

Walkout hits stores in Northern and Central California Unions cite imposition of contract takeaways and unfair labor practices ROSEVILLE, CALIF. (Nov. 4, 2012) — Thousands of Union grocery workers walked off their jobs at Raley’s supermarkets this morning, citing management’s unlawful implementation of takeaways and unfair labor practices. Following days of intense negotiations in the presence of Federal Mediator Greg Lim, leaders of UFCW 8-Golden State and UFCW Local 5 announced a strike was in effect at Raley’s, Nob Hill and, in all likelihood, Bel Air stores in Northern and Central California. The labor dispute involves approximately 7,000 union members. The workers will set up picket lines in front of stores and will soon be asking shoppers to take their business to Safeway, Save Mart, Rite Aid and other Union retailers. In communications with members, the Unions noted Raley’s management had been bargaining in bad faith since contract negotiations began 15 months ago.  Union attorneys filed charges of “unfair labor practices” against the company on Nov. 1, citing violations of laws prohibiting harassment and intimidation of Union members, circumventing the Union’s authority as a bargaining agent, and “regressive bargaining” — submitting proposals that are worse than previous offers. The Unions also charged that Raley’s was unlawfully threatening to implement changes to the parties’ collective bargaining agreements. After the Union leaders said they intended to file additional charges in response to systematic one-on-one interrogations of Union members by Raley’s managers, Raley’s officials said they would comply with Union demands to stop the interrogations but the interrogations continued anyway. The strike coincides with Raley’s imposition of many of its “last, best and final” contract proposals without the input or approval of its Union employees. Among other things, the proposals include permanent elimination of some wage premiums for working at night and on Sundays and holidays, and establishment of two distinct classes of workers — those hired after the next contract is ratified and those hired before. Other terms proposed by the company include elimination of retiree health care and inadequate funding of health care for active workers. The strike has received endorsement by the UFCW International Union and all of the regional labor councils in Northern and Central California. In addition, the Raley’s Union Solidarity Alliance, initially formed by UFCW 8-Golden State and UFCW Local 5, was recently expanded to include UFCW Local 711 in Nevada; Northern California Teamsters; Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union Local 85; and IUOE Stationary Engineers Local 39. UFCW Presidents Jacques Loveall and Ron Lind said progress in the negotiations was stymied by Raley’s management team under the direction of an outsider with a history of animosity toward Unions.  “This individual’s lack of good faith, his inconsistencies and his erratic approach have derailed the entire process,” they continued. “By allowing this outsider, whose priority is ‘union avoidance,’ to direct its bargaining efforts, Raley’s has forced us to take this course,” they said. “We look forward to returning to the bargaining table when Raley’s management has adopted a more constructive attitude,” they added. “Our goal from the beginning is to negotiate a fair agreement serving the needs of both Raley’s and its Union employees.”

Wednesday Afternoon One Liners...

Labor Notes: Mott's Strike Enters Month 3, Seeks National Support

Yesterday, N.Y. State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli visited the Mott's picket line. [Press Release]  The Daily News also picked up the story.

More @ RWDSU

Check out WNYLabor's video on Mott's.

Sour Apples: Mott's Workers Continue to Strike as Harvest Season Looms....

Wal-Mart has quietly been raising prices. [The Daily Finance]

N.Y. State Senate rejected the Farm Workers Bill: The measure would require farmers to pay workers time-and-a-half wages and provide 24 consecutive hours of rest each week. Collective-bargaining rights would also be extended to employees who work on farms that record more than $650,000 in gross income over a year.

Foxwoods is appealing their UFCW representation vote. The casino and its tribal owner, the Ledyard-area Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, last week disclosed its intention to appeal. Bartenders, drink servers, and bar porters voted 190-145 to affiliate with United Food and Commercial Workers Local 371.

Steven Jenkins, cheese impresario and senior manager of Fairway Market in New York City has written an Op-Ed in The Gourmet Retailer.

Sam's Club is adding WiFi?

Missed the UFCW's Panel on Immigration Reform? You can watch it here.

GROCERY UNION HEADS TO AIRWAVES TO FURTHER MESSAGE OF LOOMING STRIKE

GROCERY UNION HEADS TO AIRWAVES TO FURTHER MESSAGE OF LOOMING STRIKE

Union will Notify Millions of New Yorkers of Potential Strike over the July 4^th Weekend which would affect hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers

QUEENS VILLAGE, NY (06/23/2010)-- United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) Local 1500, New York State's largest grocery workers’ Union, has purchased airtime on New York’s number one AM Radio  station (1010WINS) to notify millions of New Yorkers of an impending strike with Pathmark/A&P, Stop & Shop Supermarket and King Kullen Markets.  UFCW Local 1500 is currently negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement with the three companies, though little progress has been made through months of negotiating.  The strike would affect supermarkets on Long Island, the Five Boroughs, Westchester, Putnam and Dutchess Counties and may also possibly affect supermarkets in New Jersey and Connecticut. The contract expiration date is Saturday, June 26th.  Any potential job action will directly affect the 4th of July weekend for hundreds of thousands of customers.

Beginning on June 23^rd, UFCW Local 1500 will run Public Service Announcements on 1010WINS, during “Drive-Time”.  The announcements will air during both the morning and evening commutes.  “This is a serious situation,” said Pat Purcell, a spokesperson for UFCW Local 1500. “We feel that it is our responsibility to notify the public of the gravity of the situation.” UFCW Local 1500 began notifying the public and law enforcement agencies of the impending strike last week. The release informed customers that fulfillment of their 4^th of July grocery orders rests upon fragile and boiling labor negotiations. “Frankly speaking, Stop and Shop, King Kullen and Pathmark are playing with fire, and it’s their customers who will get burned.”
The looming strike would affect over 150 Supermarkets, 16,000 workers and hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers. “The three companies have put their corporate greed in front of doing what’s right, both for their employees, and for their customers. As members of the communities they do business in, these companies have a responsibility to their customers, right now, they’re essentially gambling with their customers’ 4^th of July weekend plans.” Purcell concluded.

United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1500 will continue purchasing airtime and print media throughout the week to keep the Public informed of the looming strike. “We’ll continue to be honest with the public while Stop and Shop, King Kullen and Pathmark continue to avoid reality.” The Union has also set up a website which will notify the consumers with updates about the potential strike. The website is www.nysupermarkets.com.

United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 1500 is based out of Queens Village and represents 23,000 grocery workers in the Metropolitan New York area

UFCW Local 1500 Calls Federal Mediator into Contract Negotiations Urges Supermarkets Not to Mislead Public about Affects of Strike

News from UFCW Local 1500

Grocery Workers Union Calls Federal Mediator into Contract Negotiations

Urges Supermarkets Not to Mislead Public about Affects of Strike

QUEENS VILLAGE, NY (06/21/2010)-- United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW ) Local 1500, New York State's largest grocery workers’ Union, has called Federal Mediators into negotiations with the three major supermarkets in hopes of avoiding a crippling strike that would affect over 150 supermarkets and 16,000 workers. Companies involved in the negotiations are Stop and Shop Supermarket, King Kullen Markets and A&P/Pathmark. The strike would affect supermarkets on Long Island, the Five Boroughs, Westchester, Putnam and Dutchess Counties with its effect possibly being felt in New Jersey and Connecticut. The contract expiration date is Saturday June 26th. Any potential job action will affect the 4th of July weekend for hundreds of thousands of customers.

"We are doing everything we can to avoid a strike," said Patrick Purcell, spokesperson for UFCW Local 1500 "However, this is a fight between what our members need to survive versus the companies immoral greed. That is the fight: Need versus greed."

The Union also urged the supermarkets not to mislead the public regarding their ability to operate in the event of a strike, "It would be irresponsible to announce that everything will operate as usual in the event of a strike. To be less than honest to customers would be a real slap in the faces, this could affect sales long after any dispute is settled." said Purcell.

Purcell questioned the publics' willingness to shop in striking stores. "Does the public want their money exchanging hands with an inexperienced cashier?" Purcell asked. "Do they want to place their bakery orders with some store manager from New Jersey who is more accustomed to eating doughnuts than baking them? The public needs to consider shopping alternatives in the event of a strike. That is the bottom line." Purcell concluded.

"We do not want a strike" said UFCW Local 1500 Harry Hammin, a Pathmark worker and member of the Union negotiating committee. "However, the supermarkets seem to be doing everything they can to guarantee there will be a strike. If that's what they want, then that is what they will get."

For consumers, the Union has sent up a web address that will lead them to public updates about the potential strike. The website is www.nysupermarkets.com.

United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 1500 is based out of Queens Village and represents 23,000 grocery workers in the Metropolitan New York area

Release: Union Begins Campaign to Notify Public, Law Enforcement of Looming Strike...

News From UFCW Local 1500: Union Begins Campaign to Notify Public, Law Enforcement of Looming Strike

Clock Winding Down for 16,000 Grocery Workers in Metro NY Area

QUEENS VILLAGE, NY (06/16/2010)(readMedia)-- United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 1500, New York State's largest grocery workers Union, has begun the process of notifying the public and local enforcement of a potential strike that could affect over 150 supermarkets and 16,000 workers. With a contract expiration date of June 26th, any potential job action could affect the 4th of July weekend for hundreds of thousands of customers. Companies involved in the negotiations are Stop and Shop Supermarket, King Kullen Markets and A&P/Pathmark.

"We have a responsibility to inform the public and local law enforcement that you could see a widespread strike throughout the Five-Boroughs, Long Island, Westchester, Putnam and Dutchess Counties," said Patrick Purcell, spokesperson for UFCW Local 1500. "A strike in the supermarket industry will have a serious impact on communities in multiple ways. We intend to partner with elected officials and law enforcement to minimize the inconvenience."

"A strike could be avoided if the companies would come to the table with respect for their employees and bargain in good faith. Respect for the workers by these companies has been AWOL during these negotiations," Purcell continued. "All they have talked about is cutting health benefits, cutting pensions, wage freezes, etc. It's corporate greed, pure and simple. People in this country, workers and consumers alike, are tired of greedy companies and their bailouts who continue to demonstrate disrespect for their consumers and workers. The members of UFCW Local 1500 will take a stand against these companies and will send them a message: Greed Stops Here!" Purcell concluded.

Robert Schnarrs, a Stop and Shop worker on Long Island and member of the UFCW Local 1500 negotiating team, made his opinion clear: "Over our dead bodies will we cave into company greed!"

Actions that the Union will begin to take will include, but are not limited to, notifying local Police Precincts, County Police and State Police. County Executives and other elected official will be notified as well.

For consumers, the Union has sent up a web address that will lead them to public updates about the potential strike. The website is www.nysupermarkets.com.

United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 1500 is based out of Queens Village and represents 23,000 grocery workers in the Metropolitan New York area. Contracts with additional employers such as D'Agostinos, Gristedes, Key Food and Shop Rite.  Contracts representing 6,000 workers will expire in September.

Permalink: http://readme.readmedia.com/Union-Begins-Campaign-to-Notify-Public-Law-Enforcement-of-Looming-Strike/1432658

Supermarket News.

King Kullen calls union demands "Unrealistic"

Workers at seven Long Island King Kullen stores walked off the job Sunday in four-hour shifts before returning to work as negotiations stalled between the supermarket chain's management and union leaders.

One hundred workers who make Bakers Pride ovens, broilers and ranges are on strike in their quest for a new contract to replace one that was due to expire two months ago. The workers, members of Local 888 of the United Food and Commercial Workers, want 4 percent raises, said Eric Cunningham, a union representative who led about 30 workers yesterday on a picket line in front of the company's sprawling brick building on Pine Street. The company has offered raises of 2.5 percent, he said.

Supermarket News covered the UFCW endorsement of Obama.

Workers in the meat and seafood departments of six King Kullen supermarkets on Staten Island will walk off the job Sunday night unless a contract deal is reached between their union and the chain's management. A union representative said today that negotiations between United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 342 and King Kullen Grocery Inc. are not going well and a strike is "pretty likely" at all 51 King Kullen stores on Staten Island, Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island.

About 17,000 home-based child care providers will join the Civil Service Employees Association as a result of a lopsided pro-union vote, state officials said Friday.Officials with the State Employment Relations Board said that 3,723 child care providers had voted to unionize, while 161 had voted against. National union leaders applauded the move. “Today, 17,000 day care workers in New York added their voice to the national cry for change,” said John J. Sweeney, president of the A.F.L.-C.I.O. “They said the best way for working families to bring change is to form unions.”

Kroger Avoids Cincinnati Region Strike

By DAN SEWELL – AP

CINCINNATI (AP) — A union representing nearly 11,000 grocery workers says its tentative three-year contract with Kroger Co. provides employees with quality health insurance, wage increases and no benefits cuts.

The agreement, announced late Thursday, avoided a last-minute strike at 79 stores in the Cincinnati region. Kroger, the nation's largest traditional grocer, hasn't had a strike in its hometown since 1971.

The tentative contract must be approved by the union's membership, and voting could begin next week, said Brigid Kelly, a spokeswoman for Local 1099 of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union.

The union last month authorized its leaders to call a strike. They continued working under a contract extension that was scheduled to end at midnight Thursday.

Kroger officials and union leaders met for most of the day after a federal mediator set up new talks.

Both sides had made preparations for a strike. Kroger had said it would use managers and temporary workers to keep operating the affected stores in southwest Ohio, northern Kentucky and southeastern Indiana.

"From our perspective, the agreement is good news for our employees and customers, and we are looking forward to seeing our employees in our stores Friday," said Kroger spokeswoman Meghan Glynn.

Kroger also settled contracts this year in other regions including Southern California, Michigan and Texas without a work stoppage.

The company, which grew from a single downtown Cincinnati grocery in the late 19th century, has continued to dominate the local market, even as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has ringed the city with nonunion Supercenters in the past two years.

Other competitors — such as Supervalu Inc.'s bigg's, Midwest regional chain Meijer Inc. and various specialty food chains — also have increased their presence.

During negotiations, Kroger said it offers industry-leading compensation to employees in a highly competitive region.

The union said Kroger's workers have been key players in the company's growth and should share in its financial success. It had complained that Kroger wasn't fully funding pension and health care plans and offered subpar wage increases.

Pay raises in a proposal rejected last month ranged from 10 cents an hour for baggers to 95 cents an hour for department heads. Under that proposal, a top-rated clerk's pay would have increased 85 cents an hour to $15.46 an hour.

Kroger, which had $66.1 billion in sales last year, operates 2,491 supermarkets and multi-department stores in 31 states under two dozen local banners, including Ralphs, Fred Meyer, Food 4 Less, King Soopers, Smith's, Fry's, Dillons, QFC and City Market