|
Voice@Work Update August 10, 2004
You Sent 177,000 Employee
Free Choice Act Postcards
In an unprecedented
display of workers and their allies mobilizing in support of the
Employee Free Choice Act, people sent more than 177,000
postcards on the issue this summer. Over 77,000 were sent
to Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) thanking him for his support of
this legislation, and another 73,000 were sent to President Bush
urging him to support the bill. Another 27,000 cards have
come in from people volunteering to help elect Sen. Kerry and
pass the Employee Free Choice Act.
Congratulations for
your great work collecting these cards during the Voice@Work
Week of Action and all summer long. We want to recognize the top
10 states and national unions that generated the most
postcards:
National unions generating the most cards are
AFSCME, AFT, UAW, the Communications Workers of America,
Laborers, United Food and Commercial Workers, Electrical
Workers, SEIU, Steelworkers, Teamsters, Transport Workers, UNITE
HERE and Utility Workers.
A special mention goes to the
Communications Workers of America, who were instrumental in
making the week of action a success. Amazingly, CWA members
submitted 22 percent of all cards collected. CWA's comprehensive
efforts to involve its members in the fight to restore
collective bargaining will be a benchmark for all of us as we
gear up to pass the Employee Free Choice Act in 2005.
The
10 states are Arizona, California, Maryland, Missouri, Illinois,
New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas. New York led
the way, accounting for 18 percent of all the cards.
We
will deliver the postcards to President Bush in a
soon-to-be-announced action aimed at continuing to make this
legislation a critical election issue. We also will present
cards to Sen. Kerry, thanking him for his support and urging him
to keep this issue a priority.
back to
top
Employee Free Choice
Act Gains Two Senate Republican
Co-Sponsors
Republican Sens. Arlen Specter (Pa.) and
Ben Nighthorse Campbell (Colo.) have signed onto the Employee
Free Choice Act. Their support demonstrates the
legislation's bipartisan support and a broad recognition that
restoring a fundamental freedom and fairness to America's
workers is needed.
Hundreds of workers and their allies across Pennsylvania
wrote personal letters to Specter, made compelling cases in
their local newspapers and attended meetings and a formal
hearing with the senator to inform him about the importance of
this issue. Similar work was done in Colorado to inform and
persuade Campbell.
With these new co-sponsors, the number of formal Employee
Free Choice Act supporters totals 208 in the House and 35 in the
Senate.
back to top
You Are Making a Difference
for Workers at Quebecor
More than 1,000 of you
already have told Avon to adhere to its strict code of ethics
and hold its catalogue printer, Quebecor, accountable for
violating workers' freedom to form unions. Many Quebecor workers
say they have been intimidated, harassed, disciplined and
demoted for trying to exercise their freedom to form a union. If
you haven't already, please take action right now by
visiting:
http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/Avon
Please
also take a moment to tell 10 friends to join in on this very
important action:
http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/Avon/forward
back to top
More than 3,000 Workers Win at America
West
The nearly 3,100 customer service employees at
America West Airlines nationwide formed a union with the
Teamsters Aug. 17. The workers won despite an anti-union
campaign by management and undemocratic laws governing the
airline and rail industries that require you to get support of
over 50 percent of all workers in the unit - including those who
don't vote - to win.
Many of you sent faxes to America
West in support of the workers. In addition, workers
participated in editorial board meetings, press conferences and
public actions to involve the community and highlight the
opposition they were facing in their effort to form a
union.
"The company has taken us for granted for too
long, and now that will change," said Tracy Biles, an America
West customer service representative at Dulles International
Airport in Sterling, Va.
back to
top
Fired Worker
Stephen White Gets His Job Back at Comcast
Stephen
White, an outspoken worker who says he was terminated from his
job at Comcast in Montgomery County, Md., for trying to form a
union, reached a settlement with Comcast Aug. 27, allowing his
return to work. He will receive 100 percent back pay and
overtime pay. In addition, disciplinary actions will be removed
from his file and he will be able to speak publicly about the
settlement.
White was terminated in March 2004 when he
and other co-workers were trying to form their union with CWA.
He started speaking out about employer intimidation in early
2003.
After his termination this spring, White became an active
spokesperson for workers' freedom to form a union. He spoke at
national press conferences; he gave numerous statements to the
media; he testified at a national Jobs with Justice Workers'
Rights Board hearing. He even stood with AFL-CIO President John
Sweeney when Sweeney addressed the Democratic National
Convention last month.
Shortly after White was fired, thousands of Voice@Work
Network members sent faxes to Comcast on his behalf. It is a
major victory that White will be able to return to work. Most
workers are not as lucky as White. Firing workers for trying to
form a union is an illegal tactic commonly used by employers to
thwart their workers' organizing efforts. The Employee Free
Choice Act would establish stronger penalties for the violation
of employee rights when workers seek to form a
union.
Please have a look at The Washington Post story
about Stephen White's return by clicking on the link
below:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40326-2004Aug27.html
back to top
Activism Around the Freedom to Form Unions at the
RNC
More than 40,000 workers made their voices heard
at spirited a Stop Bush rally outside the Republican National
Convention in New York. Local activists distributed leaflets
comparing the stands of President Bush and Sen. Kerry on
workers' freedom to form unions. Activists also collected more
than 500 signed postcards to the presidential candidates
thanking Kerry for his support of the Employee Free Choice Act
and urging Bush to support it as well.
Kudos to New York City's union movement for highlighting
workers' freedom to form unions as a top issue on the
election-year agenda.
back to top
Check Out Where Sen. Kerry Stands
on Collective Bargaining Rights
The difference
between two presidential candidates' positions on workers'
freedom to form unions is stark, and Kerry's stand is a
compelling reason for union members vote and volunteer. Click on
the link below to see where John Kerry and John Edwards stand on
this issue:
http://www.aflcio.org/issuespolitics/politics/candidates_i_union.cfm#kerry
back to top
New Press Clips Highlight Workers' Freedom to
Form Unions
The following three clips have appeared
since our last update.
Check out a great opinion-editorial by Sen. Ted Kennedy
(D-Mass.) called "Giving Workers a Voice" that appeared in
several papers around Massachusetts this Labor Day:
http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/columnists/view.bg?articleid=77227
Have a look at a really interesting opinion-editorial by Jack
Fiorito, a professor at Florida State University, published in
the Tallahassee Democrat:
http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/democrat/news/opinion/9566779.htm
Finally,
read this response to Rep. Charlie Norwood's (R-Ga.) anti-worker
opinion-editorial by Philadelphia Central Labor Council
President Patrick J. Eiding :
http://www.philly.com/mld/dailynews/news/opinion/9559806.htm?1c
back to top
Please send story
suggestions, event announcements, campaign reports, letters and
other information to Bernard Pollack at bpollack@aflcio.org.
Thank you for all you do to restore workers' freedom to
form unions and bargain collectively.
Together we will
win.
In solidarity,
Andy Levin
Voice@Work
Campaign
AFL-CIO
|
Tell-a-friend!