Jobs with Justice 2008

[eridani]

WA State JwJ Update and Local Workers' Rights Victories
January 2008


Sleeping with Wal-Mart Can Cost a Mayor's Career

Fircrest Mayor Dave Viafore lost his position this month after backing Wal-Mart's planned invasion of this community nestled between Tacoma and University Place. In a vote of 4-3, the City Council demoted Viafore to City Councilmember following his nomination to the JwJ Grinch of the Year contest and a community revolt against Wal-Mart. Even the Wal-Mart lovin' News Tribune cited the Wal-Mart issue as Viafore's first factor for his demise in a front page top-of-the fold story.

JwJ was an important ally in the Fircrest Against Wal-Mart (FAW) community campaign. Once the community organized overwhelming opposition to Wal-Mart, Viafore desperately tried to paint himself as neutral. While Viafore's ouster at the age of 43 and after a 14 year reign sends a message to all regional mayors courting with Wal-Mart, challenges remain to prevent an anti-worker Big Box company from invading the Fircrest site. The Fircrest City Council has yet to rezone the Big Box designation of the site. The new Mayor Kathy McVay has a hostile history to FAW members' efforts to debate the Wal-Mart issue. Fircrest residents continue to want the site to be a source of needed commercial tax revenue but political leadership has failed to embrace publicly a pro-worker option.

Anti-union Boss recognizes security officer's right to organize

For the past three years, Seattle and Bellevue security officers have been working with SEIU Local 6 to raise the standards of their industry. In December of 2007, security officers at Star Protection Agency conducted a card check and voted to join SEIU Local 6. Star Protection Agency recognized their employee's right to join a union and agreed to join four other security companies for contract negotiations.

This is an exciting victory because, Scott Scimner, CEO of Star Protection Agency is also the CEO of Allied, a janitorial service company, where he fought tooth and nail against SEIU Local 6 to unionize the janitorial industry in Seattle and Bellevue. Scott fought so hard that he let his company fall into ruin before he let it go union.

This time around with the security officers and SEIU Local 6 accomplished a card check within three months. Jobs with Justice has been on the frontlines bringing community and student support to fight for this racially diverse workforce. We are proud to be in solidarity with Security Officer's in their fight for a living wage and affordable health care and will continue to fight tirelessly along side of these courageous workers.


Hostile Developer Hits Wall at Pt. Defiance Park
Community-Friendly Developer Sought

Mike Cohen's anti-community practices continued to dog him last month as Tacoma Metro Parks closed the door on his attempt to privatize and profitize Point Defiance Park. In a Tacoma Metro Parks press release, the Commission expressed concern that Cohen's proposal raised too many unresolved issues. A complicating factor is that under intense public scrutiny, the City of Tacoma has forced Cohen's neighboring Point Ruston development project into extensive public review.

JwJ activists and ally organizations are participating in this review to insure that Cohen's usual corrupting influences are minimized. For example, Cohen has hired recent government officials and donated to agencies entrusted to regulate him while he tries to smooth and duck his proposals past community resistance.

By packing public forums, leafleting his promotional events, filing enviro appeals, public record comments, and making numerous calls on government electeds and bureaucrats, we are keeping Cohen on the radar of justice. We hope Cohen reforms his hostile practices.

Alternatively, we pledge to help a more community-friendly developer to improve Point Defiance Park after Cohen completes his obligated toxic clean-up. For now, Pierce County developers should be on notice that if they plan to roll over community standards, development projects will get more complicated.

Immigrant Workers organize for Justice in Pacific

In Pacific, a small town just south of Auburn, immigrant workers started getting illegally arrested and taken to detention centers. El Comite, a JwJ membership organization, worked with the immigrant community to address this problem. Now the immigrant worker community in Pacific is more cohesively organized and they have overcome their fear to march in the streets. In fact, after several marches to town hall, with the support of Jobs with Justice, their has been a repeal to "unconditional permits" to march in the streets, the unlawful arrests have stopped, workers have filed three lawsuits against the city for unlawful arrests and the US Department of Justice has come down in support of immigrant workers.

Jobs with Justice has utilized its rapid response team to support these workers to live free from harassment. We will continue to support workers in Pacific until the city of Pacific passes a non-cooperation ordinance and immigrant workers are free from police brutality.

Low-Wage Security Workers at Maersk Terminal Win Raises, Continue On

When $10/hour security workers at the Port of Tacoma Maersk terminal started to organize with the Longshore Union (ILWU), managers slipped them two 50 cent raises to try to quiet the waters while retaliating against organizers. But these workers called for a living wage and a respected voice in the workplace. They threw out the company union that managers imposed to block a real organizing drive and told their story to JwJ and community allies.

Independently, JwJ mobilized a shut down of Maersk's headquarters and the largest terminal at the Port. We demanded managers act with justice to the underpaid security workers. Emboldened, the new ILWU members organized even more actively. Shortly thereafter, managers promised a $250 bonus. Managers reluctantly dismissed the company union but then tried to cut wages and the bonus, illegally blaming the ILWU.

Rapidly the new ILWU members escalated organizing with petitions. Six days later, managers reinstated the raises plus another 50 cent raise despite more retaliation and managers trying to push a new company union. If this sounds like a Wild West soap opera, welcome to the jungle of workers trying to exercise basic rights within a broken federally regulated system. By introducing chaos among security workers, Maersk is inviting more insecurity at our Port. This is why US Rep Reichert and President Bush should stop opposing the Employee Free Choice Act.

Managers have yet to recognize the workers' right to living wages and an independent voice at work. Community impatience is once again brewing with Maersk, which professes to have a pro-union workplace policy.

Security Companies support fair wages for Security Officers

The biggest issues on the bargaining table for the security officers have been fair wage increases and affordable family health care. Jobs with Justice has been in the streets marching in solidarity with the security officers as they demand fairness in the workplace. On January 23rd ,Guy Thomas, spokesperson for the security companies announced "under the proposed contract all security officers would receive an immediate guarantee raise, in addition, most of the downtown Seattle and Bellevue security officers will see a new minimum starting wage of $12 an hour with annual increases." This is an industry where some security officers start at $8.00 an hour getting a .50 cent raise every 6 months. Improving the starting wage means that security officers are closer to a living wage. The relentless heat in the Seattle downtown streets from labor, community, faith and student groups has made a difference in the lives of these workers. Jobs with Justice will continue to mobilize our coalition to fight for worker justice.

Teamster Members Prevail Again Over Notorious Union-buster

Lead by wrongly fired Alan Ritchey Inc (ARI) worker Adam Hoyt and others, Teamster 117 members denied ARI and the Jackson Lewis firm's attempt to impose an open shop. By a vote of 56-19 out of about 80 workers, the Teamster members at ARI in Auburn grew their workplace power and unity headed into next year's union contract negotiations. Given ARI's record, we expect negotiations to be a full blown battle, again. Folks might remember that Teamster members at ARI received JwJ's Pierce County honor in 2006 for organizing despite ARI managers and Jackson Lewis union-busting attacks. Adam Hoyt is also co-chair of the JwJ Pierce County Organizing Committee.


Tacoma School Bus Drivers Organize

First Student Tacoma school bus drivers won their election 74-36 to form a union with Teamsters 313. First Student agreed not to hire a union-buster to mentally terrorize the workforce, as most local companies do when faced with workers organizing such as Tomlinson Linen, Alan Ritchey Inc, and Maersk. In this case, Teamsters mounted an international campaign with SEIU and others to get a neutrality agreement from First Student's top executives in Great Britain. JwJ bannered with Teamster members near the election jobsite to remind local First Student managers that "neutrality" means "let workers decide for ourselves" whether to organize.


While we celebrate these victories, we have much organizing before they are secure. We need our combined volunteer activism and funding to continue to build a better world. Please support WA State JwJ!

[omenbunny]

1. About the star unionizing thing...

I will agree Mr. Scimner is a royal jerk, however I do have one problem with how those cards were gathered, some of us who have a less than positive view of unions were essentially made to join, with the unspoke threat of job loss. I personally say great they got a union that might actually stand up for them, however I also have a problem with people being forced to join any group, be it good or ill, luckily IIRC Washington has a law that says my dues can't go towards Hillary.

-someone who feels he was press ganged into paying a part of his paycheck.

[eridani]

2. Homeless camip-in needs solidarity

wsjwj {at} igc.org

Save the date on June 8th for a camp out action at City Hall and/or join a delegation on the morning of June 9th to Mayor Nickel's office and ask him to Stop the Sweeps. (stay tuned for more details)

This is the second camp out action Jobs with Justice has joined in with Real Change. The first was on March 13th and as a result the Mayor's office agreed to give 72 hour notice when campsites are going to be cleared; to conduct an outreach campaign to try to connect people with services and storage of some personal belongings, and provide 20 additional shelter beds.

Unfortunately, the Mayor's agreement has no built in oversight and two big loopholes:

People just camping, not living in an encampment which requires three or more structures within 300 feet are not entitled to the notice and outreach.
Areas where campsites recur 3 times in 60 days are permanently posted and excluded from the protections.
While this is a victory for the homeless and the Justice for Homeless movement it is still not enough. It is inhumane and immoral to punish people for living outside when there is not enough shelter or affordable housing to meet the need.

Mayor Nickels should stop all non-emergency sweeps immediately and expand housing and services instead of criminalizing survival.

Please join Jobs with Justice on June 8th in solidarity with Real Change and homeless activist for a camp out at City Hall and a Stop the Sweeps delegation to Mayor Nickel's office on June 9th.

Background:
Many homeless are part of the working poor. They are janitors who clean your office, the healthcare worker who takes care of your aging parent, the retail sales person who sells your clothes. They are day laborers and immigrants who take temporary work. Even working fulltime, most of these workers earn less than a living wage. In Seattle/King County, 29% of all adults have personal earnings below the living wage. *

Twenty two percent of homeless households report employment as their primary source of income, while another 30% are temporarily or permanently disabled and receive state or federal disability income to help meet their needs. (SSI, GAU, or ADATSA)*

*Information taken from Real Change "First Things First" campaign and US Conference of Mayors, King County Annual One Night Count, National Low-Income Housing Coalition, and City of Seattle Consolidated Plan, 2001-2004.

[eridani]

3. Support actions in Seattle and Tukwila 9/18 and 9/20

Join SEIU 925 and Jobs with Justice as we support UW workers bargain for a living wage!
When: Thursday, September 18th, 11:45am to 12:45pm.
Where: University of Washington, Red Square by Suzzalo Library.

What's this all about:

SEIU 925 represents 6,500 classified staff, about 60% are women, on all University of Washington campuses both hospitals (Harborview and UWMC), who support the academic, research and medical work of UW.

Currently, the administration at the University of Washington is only offering a raise of 1.45% in 2009 and 1.5% in 2010. This offer does not even cover the cost of living adjustment for the Seattle area.
Workers for the UW have been bargaining since April and the UW administration has not budged. Money from the state government is only 15% of the UW overall budget. The University of Washington has collected $2.68 billion in grants and there are always labor costs built in. UW has no excuse for not paying a living-wage.

Help these workers get a fair wage in these hard economic times.

Join us for a rally and picket on September 18th at 11:45am!
For more info, contact Debbie Carlsen [phone] or debbie {at} wsjwj.org



Join Jobs with Justice and the Seattle Solidarity Network for an informational picket this Saturday, September 20th 11am at Tuff Shed in Tukwila!

When: Saturday, September 20th 11am to 1pm
Where: Tuff Shed, 17500 West Valley Highway, Tukwila, WA 98188

Help us inform potential customers and the public at large about Tuff Shed. The shed and garage company has been ignoring workers' safety and they recently terminated one of their builders where an on-the-job injury occured.

Bring bandages, slings, or neck braces to help show Tuff Shed that "an injury to one is an injury to all".

For more info, contact Helene Lustan at helene {at}wsjwj.org

[eridani]

4. 15th Anniversary Banquet 10/11 in Seattle

Jobs With Justice
15th Anniversary / 8th Annual
Honoree Dinner and Silent Auction

Saturday, October 11th from 6pm to 10pm
Naval Reserve Building at South Lake Union Park
860 Terry Ave N., Seattle
(purchase individual tickets online) http://www.unionvoi ce.org/jobswithj ustice/events/ wa_dinner_ 2008/details. tcl

(RSVP card for tickets and tables) http://www.wsjwj. org/assets/ docs/RSVP_ Card_2008_ web.pdf


Friday October 3rd is the priority ticket deadline. Send in your check to reserve your space today to PO Box 9662, Seattle WA 98109. We must receive your payment by Friday, October 3rd for $55 tickets - after that the ticket price will go up to $60 and we will seat you on a space-available basis.

Tickets are going fast. This event has sold out 5 of the last 6 years. This year, we still have a week and a half to go and are over three-quarters full. $55 single tickets are still available, as are $400 tables of eight.

This year we're honoring local activists committed to our goals of fighting for immigrant worker's rights, low-wage worker corporate accountability, workers impacted by the war, and the right to organize for all workers. This year's honorees are . . .


International Longshore and Warehouse Union
For leading the way by shutting down the West Coast ports on May Day to demand an end to the war in Iraq and an end to the war on workers here and abroad.
Real Change & Seattle City Council Member Nick Licata
For mobilizing the community to stop sweeps of homeless encampments in Seattle and promoting negotiations between the city and community members.

Laborers Northwest Regional Organizing Coalition
For their leadership in demanding responsible development in Washington State specifically for their commitment in South Sound to the fight for living wage jobs and affordable housing for local residents.

Special Recognition to Stuart Townsend
For creating the film Battle in Seattle and his portrayal of Street Heat that conveyed the time, effort, trials, and triumphs of the WTO Demonstrations.

WA State Jobs with Justice is proud to honor these courageous sisters and brothers. Much of our success is due, in large part, to people like you and your organizations, who purchased ads in our souvenir booklet and tables at the dinner. From that success, JwJ has been able to fund organizing scores more actions and winning campaigns.

Please join us for this celebration of the good fight, with inspiring program, dinner, drinks, entertainment, and a silent auction. In order to assure that you or your organization will have a table, we encourage you to send a check payable to Jobs with Justice as soon as possible. You can also RSVP by contacting Helene Lustan at [phone] or helene {at} wsjwj.org

All tickets will be held at the door. We look forward to celebrating with you this October 11th!

[eridani]

5. Demonstrate against UW Nike contract 11/20

Come join Jobs with Justice and the Student Labor Action Project to protest the University of Washington's decision to ignore workers' rights and sign a $39 million contract with Nike.
Date: Thursday, November 20th
When: 2:30pm
Where: University of Washington's Red Square (Seattle Campus) Map
(Accessible via Metro Routes from downtown - #71, 72, 73, 74)



Why: The Student Labor Action Project (SLAP) at the University of Washington's Seattle Campus is asking for broad community support and attendance for this action on Thursday, November 20th. Come to Red Square at 2:30pm to tell University of Washington's President Mark A. Emmert and the Board of Regents to defend workers' rights by adopting fair labor standards!


SLAP has been engaged in a campaign to get the University to toughen its stance on worekrs' rights for more than two years, and made a major gain when the University committed to the Designated Suppliers Program, the latest advance from the worker rights monitoring organization as the Workers' Rights Consortium.


In spite of the administration' s claims to support workers' rights, there have been continued documented abuses by both the Fair Labor Association and the Workers' Rights Consortium under the current rules. Workers in apparel factories worldwide are still living in conditions of modern day slavery, without the right to organize, without a right to have a family, in many cases without even the basic necessities of food, clothing, and shelter. This is due to multinational corporations want cheaper labor and higher profits - the same reason that they more our jobs overseas.
WE have a chance now to bring social justice to the workers: Come out to this rally and protest this process, and tell NIKE and the University that workers' rights come first!


For more information, call the JwJ office at 206.441.4969