Longshoremen storm Wash. port over labor dispute (overpowered and held 6 security guards)

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP-Excite

LONGVIEW, Wash. (AP) - Hundreds of Longshoremen stormed the Port of Longview early Thursday, overpowered and held security guards, damaged railroad cars, and dumped grain that is the center of a labor dispute, said Longview Police Chief Jim Duscha.

Six guards were held hostage for a couple of hours after 500 or more Longshoremen broke down gates about 4:30 a.m. and smashed windows in the guard shack, he said.

No one was hurt, and nobody has been arrested. Most of the protesters returned to their union hall after cutting brake lines and spilling grain from car at the EGT terminal, Duscha said.

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union believes it has the right to work at the facility, but the company has hired a contractor that's staffing a workforce of other union laborers.


Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20110908/D9PKE0CG2.html

---

A union worker blocks a grain train in Longview, Wash., Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011. Longshoremen blocked the train as part of an escalating dispute about labor at the EGT grain terminal at the Port of Longview.(AP Photo/Don Ryan)

[elleng]

1. Good to see this, and remember there are/were some here who WOULD physically protest.

Its uncommon among most.

[DeSwiss]

2. GENERAL STRIKE

All over the world.

- That's when we'll have their attention and only then......

K&R

[patrice]

3. Goodness and Light be with these Workers and bring them Economic Justice!

[Captain Lee]

4. Counter-productive at best, dumbass more likely

From the article: "The International Longshore and Warehouse Union believes it has the right to work at the facility, but the company has hired a contractor that's staffing a workforce of other union laborers."

So, it's not a union versus non-union fight, it's a 'my union' versus 'the other union' fight.

Hostage taking? Are you f'ing kidding me? Way to rally public support. Thank God the security guards were unarmed or 'exercised restraint'. Personally, I hope the organizers are arrested and charged with kidnapping. Domestic terrorism is NOT acceptable by ANY side.

[Name removed]

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[Name removed]

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[Captain Lee]

15. That was uncalled for

WTH? That was uncivil of you. Where do you find anything I wrote to be the product of either my gut or the radio (which is mostly tuned to NPR, thank you very much).

Read the entire article, then google related articles. I think what I wrote is very clear and accurate.

Is it okay to have Tea Party folks storm a town hall and hold people hostage? If not, it's not okay in this instance either. If it is, carry on then. Forget I said anything.

[Name removed]

18. Deleted message

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[Captain Lee]

20. Whatever dude

Tip of the hat to you and good day.

[hack89]

21. He is right - it is union versus union nt

[Generic Other]

40. One union is full of scabs is the difference

BIG difference.

[hack89]

41. Operating Engineers Local 701 established in 1918 - here's their web site.

http://www.iuoe701.com/

Don't look like scabs to me.

[Generic Other]

46. The History of the ILWU

Portland union workers crossing picket lines to work in Longview is scabbing.

The ILWU in Longview "understand the wisdom of the principles of worker unity, internal democracy, and international solidarity advocated by members of the militant Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) – principles summed up in the famous IWW slogan that the new union would adopt, “An injury to one is an injury to all.”

They have a fascinating history of standing up for themselves.

Perhaps the IUOE could take a lesson away from this.

http://www.ilwu.org/?page_id=814

[hack89]

47. Yes - I hope the IUOE does stand up for themselves and its members. nt

[Generic Other]

48. Stand up for a union busting Korean company who sent in scabs to undercut local labor??

They aren't welcome on Washington's waterfront. Seems to me that the local made that message pretty clear.

[hack89]

49. A union busting company that hires union workers? nt

[Generic Other]

51. Defying an 80 year history of ILWU membership at the port by recruiting non-ILWU members

to bust their union. Do you have any idea how serious it is for one union to stab another in the back like that?

I sure as hell wouldn't do it. But that's because I am union through and through--on the inside as well as the outside.

[hack89]

52. I support union workers - like I am in this case. nt

[Generic Other]

53. Then you must support ILWU's right to collective bargaining

The company refused to bargain in good faith. They contracted another union to displace the workers. You can't say you support unions if you don't understand what kind of tactic is being pulled here. In the case of Longview docks, there is a union whose contracts broke down because the company made a deal with a local who apparently does not understand what it means to be in a union. IUOE have become tools of the company.

Which side are you on?

[Dreamer Tatum]

65. So now you can be in a union AND be a scab?

:crazy:

[Union Scribe]

62. Union is as union DOES

You don't get to take a bunch of union contracted jobs and then decide you're union, too, any more than I can jump off my garage and call myself a bird.

[0rganism]

27. EGT broke contract to outsource the work

THAT is why there's a strike.

The fact that the outsourcing contractor got union workers from OE701 (probably to run the heavy equipment due to lack of qualified scabs) doesn't mitigate this as an attack on organized labor.

[sulphurdunn]

45. The ILWU workers

took over the dock and shut it down for 2 hours. They didn't permit anyone to enter or to leave through the main gate. That included the guards. They could have gone elsewhere and climbed a fence or taken a swim. I doubt anyone would have tried to stop them. Believe me, had the authorities any legal basis to arrest ILWU workers for kidnapping, they would have. Just becasue AP stretches the definition of hostage taking to add sensationalism and an anti-labor tone to its coverage doesn't make it so.

[iemitsu]

54. one union against another union of scabs

its easy for me to decide whose side i'm on.

[coalition_unwilling]

60. Welcome to my Ignore list, scab - n/t

[fasttense]

68. This how corporation destroy America. By getting one union to fight another

not so respected union. In the end the corporation wins. That contracted out Union needs to back off and let the local union work it out.

But jobs are so tough to come by corporations can pit one union against another and have liberals cheering them on.

[SoapBox]

5. Bravo!

...and I can't help but contrast how these folks have to act to get a voice heard, compared to this article:

"Michigan Protesters Against Hate Pastor Terry Jones Were ***Told By Police To Keep Their Voices Down***"

http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2011/09/08/314384/michigan-protestors-against-hate-pastor-terry-jones-were-told-by-police-to-keep-their-voices-down/

At every turn, we are being suppressed, screwed, ordered around and held down.

Vote America...for gawd's sake, vote!

[zogofzorkon]

6. Return to the roots, it wasn't accomodating, bending over, or caving that

brought better conditions for all workers.

[Name removed]

8. Deleted message

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[humanityisfree]

9. Here is comes people

More of this to come - especially if one of these crazy ass republicans becomes president

[Hoopla Phil]

10. I don't see one union protesting that a different union got the contract as

a good thing. This can quickly turn into union vs. union violence.

[Xithras]

11. I agree. This is a fight between unions, which is never a good thing.

No matter who wins, a union gets hurt and union workers lose their jobs.

[Bosonic]

12. Apparent wildcat Longshoreman strike shuts down ports of Seattle and Tacoma

SEATTLE -- The Longshoremen's international union is investigating reports of a wildcat strike at the ports of Seattle and Tacoma.

ILWU spokesman Craig Merrilees says union officials are trying to sort out what is happening at the two Washington ports and were not sure on Thursday morning if the strike is related to union activity in Longview.

Longview police say hundreds of Longshoremen stormed the Port of Longview early Thursday, overpowered and held security guards, damaged railroad cars, and dumped grain that is the center of a labor dispute.

http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2011/09/apparent_wildcat_longshoreman.html

[msongs]

14. vandalism and thuggery is bad. contrast that with Wisconsin union activism nt

[Gin]

17. no info on the "unions" that got the jobs.....reading the comments it

says a foreign entity took over...wonder what the whole story is with this situation..

[quakerboy]

56. I wondered about that

They were protesting down here in Portland earlier this year. I talked with them when I went by, and it was explained to me that the picketed area was the HQ of the company responsible.

The short version, their side, seemed to be that the company built some port/transport facility away from other facilities, and part of the deal they signed to get various concessions and govt funding included using ILWU members to staff these facilities. But then once built, they brought in other workers (At that point, I recall them saying non union workers). And so they protested.

[jwirr]

16. I worked as an archivist in a railroad museum. We seem to be back

were we started. And I do not think the robber barons of today are any less vicious. I am glad no one was hurt. I see we now call scabs contractors. Everything today is sanitized.

[Nuclear Unicorn]

22. Those "scabs" were a competing union

[jwirr]

24. Yes, I did not see that until after I posted, Sorry.

[Scruffy1]

29. Read your labor history. not the first time That the AFL provided scabs.

Whether or not the scabs are union members is not the issue. This is a long standing practice of the bosses to break union contracts and is doubly effective as it pits worker against worker. It is so easy to do in these hard times
when people are desperate for work.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

19. "Hostage."

Which is which?

:freak:

:think:

[Vidar]

23. Bravo, longshoremen. It's great to see someone on our side fighting.

[hack89]

25. It's a union turf war.

they are pissed that another union (Operating Engineers, Local 701) got the work. There is nothing noble about this.

[0rganism]

26. BULLSHIT. It's EGT breaking the port contract to get cheap labor

betcha the only reason OE701 got work at all was holding company EGT couldn't find non-union scabs to run the heavy equipment.

Now you fall back on this to blame ILWU when it's clear the real problem is EGT looking for cheap labor and trying to crack the longshoremen? WTF is your angle?

[hack89]

28. I support all union workers - including Operating Engineers, Local 701. nt

[Generic Other]

42. +1000

The ILWU needs to crush EGT so no other companies try this shit. It's the kind of divisive tactic the bosses always use against workers. The fact that a foreign-owned company thinks they can get away with it makes it all the worse.

Good luck ever making a shipment until they settle with the strikers. When the women and children join them blocking the railroad tracks, you know it's going to get ugly.

[sulphurdunn]

30. Longshoremen storm Wash. state port, damage RR

Source: AP

LONGVIEW, Wash. (AP) — Hundreds of Longshoremen stormed the Port of Longview early Thursday, overpowered and held security guards, damaged railroad cars, and dumped grain that is the center of a labor dispute, said Longview Police Chief Jim Duscha.

Six guards were held hostage for a couple of hours after 500 or more Longshoremen broke down gates about 4:30 a.m. and smashed windows in the guard shack, he said.

No one was hurt, and nobody has been arrested. Most of the protesters returned to their union hall after cutting brake lines and spilling grain from car at the EGT terminal, Duscha said.

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union believes it has the right to work at the facility, but the company has hired a contractor that's staffing a workforce of other union laborers.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/longshoremen-storm-wash-state-port-damage-rr-144921214.html

---

The most successful union in America you probably never heard of. This is how it's done. This is why the International Longshoremen and Warehouse Union (ILWU) has been as successful as it has over the last 70 years. Goods arriving through West Coast ports are valued at approximately one billion dollars a day. The ILWU runs the docks through which those good arrive and never stops fighting to continue doing so. Because of this, Longshoremen and their families own homes, have pensions, medical insurance and job security. For working people to have those things in America they must be militant and unafraid to hit their enemies (corporate, company union or political) where it hurts: in the profit and loss column. The ILWU has never had any illusions or misgivings about the nature of the struggle against predatory capitalism or how to fight against class warfare.

http://www.ilwu.org/

[Brickbat]

31. K&R for Solidarity.

This is how victories are won.

[Cool Logic]

32. "but the company has hired a contractor that's staffing a workforce of other union laborers."

I don't understand...they are using union labor...

[Brickbat]

35. It's possible for a union to scab on another union.

It's a low-down dirty thing to do, of course.

[sulphurdunn]

36. The IUOE

is trying to muscle in on the docks like the Teamsters once did. The longshoreman have a union contract with the Port of Longview to hire only ILWU members on its docks as does every other West Coast Port. The foreign owned consortium EGT has grain storage facilities at the Port of Longview, but says it is not obliged to honor the contract (no surprise there). It initially brought in non-union construction companies from out of state to build its grain terminal then tried to bring in non-union workers to staff its facility at greatly reduced wages and failed. Bringing in the IUOE was a fallback strategy. If EGT wins this fight don't expect the IUOE to have a contract with them for long. They will be gone and the shippers will have set a precedent that will advance their cause of busting the ILWU, something they have desired for 70 years.

[iemitsu]

33. hooray for the workers

in the wobbly state.

[Generic Other]

34. War on the Worker!

Don't mess with our unions!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9hzOTK56hk

[socialshockwave]

37. Nothing says "good job" on DU

like hostage taking.

You people make me sick. Taking hostages will never advance your cause. It only gives Republicans more fuel to use against unions.

[msongs]

38. cutting brake lines sounds cool for goons but when your brake lines get cut...well well nt

[sulphurdunn]

43. Goons would sneak in under cover

of darkness, cut the brake lines and not tell you they did it. That's what goons do. The ILWU protesters were just sending EGT the kind of message it understands. That kind of message is spelled in $$$$$$$$$$.

[Generic Other]

39. Read up on labor history of Washington state before you mouth off

November 11, 1919. In the shadow of where this union action took place today, the Centralia Massacre resulted in six deaths, additional wounded, and multiple prison terms when the Wobblies fought the American Legion.

This is union territory. Always has been, always will be. You scab for the bosses, there are consequences.

[Generic Other]

58. The "hostage" hogwash has been debunked

Six guards were trapped for a couple of hours after at least 500 Longshoremen broke down gates about 4:30 a.m. and smashed windows in the guard shack, Longview Police Chief Jim Duscha said. He initially referred to the guards as "hostages," but later retracted that after the guards clarified no one had threatened them.

http://www.thenewstribune.com/2011/09/08/1814440/longshoremen-storm-wash-state.html#ixzz1XQJskd7u

[coalition_unwilling]

61. Hey Scab, you make me sick. And it's off to Ignore list for you - n/t

[Union Scribe]

63. Not everything can be solved with hockey.

[Omaha Steve]

44. Nobody HARMED is the first thing

Considering the circumstances of two unions with the employer causing the tension, nobody harmed in a tense situation makes me happy. Factor in the history of violence to union workers in the US, this worked out well.

OS

[Generic Other]

50. Thanks Omaha Steve for being a peacemaker

It is upsetting to see the ILWU membership criticized here while EGT execs rub their hands in glee at the havoc they create. I hope they never move a single boxcar out of that port. Foreign union busting companies can go home! We got enough trouble dealing with our own homegrown shitheads!

[unionworks]

55. security guards?

For those of you unversed in union biz, "security guard" is most often interchangeable with Oprofessional union busting firm" that gathers intel on workers, harrasses picketers and more. Any union that crosses anothers picket line gets what they deserve. I|saw it whe FASH went on strike in the 80s. Another unions truck tried to ram their barricade. The results were nearly fatal to the driver, he is now a vegatable. And not the Reagan kind either.

[Generic Other]

57. "Goons and ginks and company finks..."

...an old union song crying defiance of 'goons and ginks and company finks and deputy sheriffs that made the raids.'...
Goon is a hired thug, perhaps derived from the 1580's English dialect word gony, ''simpleton,'' and popularized by the hairy creature Alice the Goon in the cartoon ''Popeye.'' Gink, a 1910 synonym for ''jerk,'' may come from carnival usage. Back to fink. Although scab's slang meaning is limited to labor lingo, fink has broadened to include any dirty, lowdown, miserable object of scorn.


Other synonyms for strikebreaker include blackleg, jackleg, red apple, scissorbill, rat and the ever-popular fink.

http://www.nytimes.com/1987/11/01/magazine/on-language-goons-and-ginks-and-company-finks.html

[unionworks]

64. I'm PART OF THE UNION!

...till the day I die!!!! :fistbump: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdOCWUgwiWs

[annm4peace]

59. I applaud the Longshore men and women

Good for them! I hope it inspires other workers.

[Blue_Tires]

66. kick

[buckrogers1965]

67. Push us Americans enough

and we are going to kick your ass.

We are easy going, and forgiving, but don't mistake kindness for weakness.

Take enough away from us, push us far enough, and we will bury you.