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News and Updates
February 12, 2014
Lanette Edwards of Local 1625 Teaches Boy Scouts About the Labor Movement
Lanette Edwards, of UFCW Local 1625 in Lakeland, Fla., is teaching the Boy Scouts what the labor movement is all about. Last year, Lanette held a class with over 30 Boy Scouts, where she talked about American Labor merit badge. The American Labor merit badge was introduced in 1986 to the Boy Scouts of America; however, over the past several years, this merit badge has been earned less frequently by scouts. Lanette has made every effort to help the Boy Scouts in her community learn about the American labor movement and revitalize this merit badge within Local 1625 and her local Boy Scout Council.
Lanette taught the Boy Scouts about the history of the labor movement, as well as the organizational structure of the UFCW and AFL-CIO and opportunities in the field of labor relations. The National Boy Scouts of America Community Services Committee, in recognition of Lanette’s significant contribution to the Boy Scouts of America, was awarded the AFL-CIO’s Wood Badge scholarship which will assist selected union members in acquiring skills that will better equip them to serve the youths in their communities.
Lanette was awarded the George Meany Award by the Boy Scouts of America and West Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO, for her work in teaching youths about the American labor movement.
February 12, 2014
Bob’s Furniture Workers Say “Yes” to a Union Voice and Join UFCW Local 328
Bob’s Furniture workers in Attleboro, Mass., voted to join UFCW Local 328.
Last week, more than a dozen workers at Bob’s Furniture in Attleboro, Mass., came together for a union voice at work and voted to join UFCW Local 328.
The Bob’s Furniture workers were focused on job security during their campaign to become part of UFCW Local 328. Job security will also be a key element in their contract when negotiations begin.
February 10, 2014
UFCW Minority Coalition Kicks Off Trailblazers Publication with Tribute to Addie Wyatt
February 7, 2014
Black History Month Member Spotlight: Mike Dillard
For this week’s member spotlight, we chatted with Local 75 member and steward Mike Dillard. Mike has worked at Kroger stores in Cincinnati, Ohio and in nearby Kentucky for 25 years now, and has seen how being a union member truly makes a difference in the workplace. Today, he is an assistant meat manager.
In honor of Black History Month, he also shared with us some stories of his his grandfather and father, who lived during the height of the civil rights movement.
Local 75 member and steward Mike Dillard
His father, a retired one star general and doctor, was the second black general in Ohio, and was a participant in several marches for equality in the 60’s. His grandfather, Mike tells us, was a doctor during World War I. However, when Mike’s grandfather Charles served during the war in the army, they refused to recognize his M.D., and made him scrub latrines instead. Although Mike remembers this story of his grandfather’s with sadness, he notes that he went on to later found a radiology center at the University of Michigan, with pride.
Mike also shares that he recently discovered that he and his family are direct descendants of a unit in the Civil War called the Black Brigade. Mike explains that during the Civil War, many African Americans living in Kentucky moved slightly further north into Ohio because it was less hostile towards them, and to escape the Confederacy which had moved up into Kentucky. When the confederates were on the verge of attacking the Cincinnati area, Union troops began taking black men against their will and put them to work to fortify the city and build trenches. But upon hearing this, one of the Union generals was outraged that these men had been forced to work, and demanded their release and an apology. Once the group of African American men returned to their homes, they were then asked if they would be willing to volunteer their time helping build defenses and fortifications for the city. Despite the previous gross violation of their human rights–being made to work against their will–nearly 1,000 African American men from the area agreed to help the Union troops. This group of men was dubbed the Black brigade, and became the first of many such groups to form throughout the country–building bridges and trenches, hauling cannons, and assisting the cause in many other ways. Mike notes that thanks to the help of this Black Brigade, the Confederacy was effectively kept out of Ohio and they saw no bloodshed. There is even a memorial statue in a nearby park that commemorates the group, Mike says.
Unfortunately, Mike has experienced some conflict in his own experiences too, having dealt with a verbally and at one point physically abusive manager for a time. Thankfully, being a union member meant that Mike had the support he needed to get out of the situation. Mike says he tries to use what he has learned as a union worker, as well as his family’s rich history dealing with fighting for civil rights, to help his fellow union members.
“I’m a nice guy and I try to keep an open mind and good rapport with managers and my fellow associates,” say Mike. When Mike tells us that it is “better to get more bees with honey than it is with vinegar”, we are reminded of the teachings and actions of Martin Luther King Jr. and Bayard Rustin, both Civil Rights leaders who valued peaceful protest rather than violence.
As Mike reflects, he notes that the fight for equal civil rights and the fight for equal workers rights often have the same goal. When telling someone about the union at work, Mike explains that “you have a stronger voice with more people, just like with civil rights, you know if you have one person yellin’, you’re not going to be heard as much as 10,000 people yelling” for the same cause. “With both the union and with the civil rights movement, you have solidarity. It’s about being fair, and everyone having the rights that they should have.”
Do you have a story to share about being a union member, or about participating in the civil rights movement? Let us know here!
February 5, 2014
UFCW President Hansen Statement on Revival of NLRB Election Rule
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Joe Hansen, International President of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW), today released the following in response to the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) reviving a proposal to streamline union elections.
“When the Senate cleared a path for the current NLRB to be confirmed, I called it the best day for workers and their families in years, if not longer. Today we are beginning to see why. I salute the Board for reviving a common sense and desperately needed proposal to streamline the process for workers to form a union. Too many employers use frivolous litigation and other technicalities to create delays so they can intimidate, harass, and in some cases fire pro-union employees before an actual vote occurs. This proposal would limit the influence of bad actors and ensure workers can have their voices heard in a fair and timely fashion. I hope this is the first of many steps the NLRB will take to carry out their mission of promoting collective bargaining.”
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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.
February 5, 2014
UFCW President Hansen Statement on House GOP Immigration Principles
WASHINGTON, D.C. —Joe Hansen, International President of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW), released the following statement in response to the principles for immigration reform issued by House Republicans.
“More than one year after President Obama laid out his plan for comprehensive immigration reform and seven months after the Senate passed legislation on a bipartisan basis, House Republicans have put forward their principles for reform. I hope this step, however belated, will move the immigration debate forward. But words alone are not enough. UFCW members, immigrant communities, and the majority of Americans are demanding action. That means passing a bill like H.R. 15 and working with the Senate to get a final product to President Obama’s desk. The principles issued by House Republicans are short on details and what is included looks like more of the same. For instance, the idea of additional guest workers and legalization based on enforcement triggers are complete nonstarters. It is long past time for comprehensive immigration reform with a path to citizenship for aspiring Americans and strong protections for immigrant workers. The UFCW calls on House Republicans to stop delaying and bring legislation up for a vote.”
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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.
February 5, 2014
Black History Month Celebrations: Show Host Richard Fowler Empowers Youth to Make a Difference
To continue our celebration of Black History Month, we are sharing another story of someone who has made a great impact on civil rights and economic equality. That person is Richard Fowler.After years of going into the voting booth with his mother as a young child, Fowler learned the importance of being an active voice in one’s community. Working with the NAACP, he has helped over 1000 young voters in his native Florida to get registered and organize. He has also worked as a campaign manager for political candidates, to work on issues that uplift women, youth of color, and LGBTQ and low-income communities.
Working with youth in order to empower them to make a difference in their own and their communities’ lives is clearly important to Fowler, who has trained about 2,000 young people on how to make their voices heard through messaging and media. Fowler’s trainings no doubt draw on his experiences as the host of his own radio show (The Richard Fowler Show), which has recently partnered with the popular show The Young Turks. Additionally, Fowler serves as the interim director of Generational Alliance, which is made up of over 20 youth organizations dedicated to increasing collaboration and coordination within the youth movement through the following methods:
1. Create cultural spaces for young progressive leaders
2. Sit in progressive spaces that have historically left out underrepresented communities
3. Provide trainings for staff of members’ organizations to fill the leadership development gap
4. Help organizations collaborate on advocacy issues they align with
5. Uplift and promote their communications efforts through media training, booking and digital organizing
Fowler’s work at the Alliance and at his own show also includes educating folks on important issues, like the Affordable Care Act, via YouTube videos.
Fowler is carrying the torch of the leaders of the civil rights movement who came before him, using new media and technology to inspire young people to make a difference in new ways. To learn more, you can follow him on Twitter @RichardAFowler.
February 3, 2014
UFCW President Hansen Statement on House GOP Immigration Principles
WASHINGTON, D.C. —Joe Hansen, International President of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW), today released the following statement in response to the principles for immigration reform issued by House Republicans.
“More than one year after President Obama laid out his plan for comprehensive immigration reform and seven months after the Senate passed legislation on a bipartisan basis, House Republicans have put forward their principles for reform. I hope this step, however belated, will move the immigration debate forward. But words alone are not enough. UFCW members, immigrant communities, and the majority of Americans are demanding action. That means passing a bill like H.R. 15 and working with the Senate to get a final product to President Obama’s desk. The principles issued by House Republicans are short on details and what is included looks like more of the same. For instance, the idea of additional guest workers and legalization based on enforcement triggers are complete nonstarters. It is long past time for comprehensive immigration reform with a path to citizenship for aspiring Americans and strong protections for immigrant workers. The UFCW calls on House Republicans to stop delaying and bring legislation up for a vote.”
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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.
February 3, 2014
This Black History Month, We Honor Bayard Rustin
photo credit: jrcla.org
February once again marks the beginning of Black History Month–a time to remember and celebrate the rich history of African Americans and the achievements of the Civil Rights Movement.
One of the greatest moments of the Civil Rights era was the March on Washington in 1963–one of the largest non-violent protests to ever occur in America. The March on Washington brought thousands of people of all races together, in the name of equal rights for everyone–whether they were black or white, rich or poor, Muslim or Christian. Dr. Marin Luther King, Jr. made one of his most inspiring and famous speeches at the march, which culminated on the National mall.
But history has often overlooked the man who was the driving force behind this monumental event–a man named Bayard Rustin. Rustin was the one who organized the march, bringing methods used by Gandhi as well as the Quaker religion to Washington to ensure peace, but also impact. It was Rustin who helped shape Dr. King into the iconic symbol of peace he is remembered as.
As a young adult, Rustin worked with many kinds of people who influenced his activism, including ministers and labor organizers. During World War II, Rustin fought against racial discrimination in war-related hiring, and was later jailed for two years after refusing to enter the draft. Then, after protesting segregated transit systems, he was sentenced to work on a chain gang for several weeks.
Despite being punished for his beliefs, Rustin continued to work towards changing things for the better. In 1953, Bayard Rustin arrived in Montgomery, Alabama to partake in the famous bus boycott that kicked off after Rosa Parks was arrested after refusing to give up her seat on the bus for a white man. The boycott brought many civil rights leaders to the area, including a young Dr. Martin Luther King, who had not yet embraced non-violence. But Rustin taught many who were partaking in the boycott how Gandhi had used peaceful tactics to bring change in India, and people saw the importance of these tactics, and began to embrace them, focusing on direct protest.
Rustin was also a champion of workers rights. In 1965, Rustin and his mentor A. Philip Randolph co-founded the A. Philip Randolph Institute, a labor organization for African-American trade union members.
Although Bayard Rustin was a tireless activist, his life achievements are unknown to many, and he has even been called the “lost prophet” of the civil rights movement. This is largely because not only was Rustin silenced and threatened like many others were for being a black man speaking out for equal rights, but also because he was openly gay in a time when homophobia and bigotry was rampant. Rustin continued his life as an openly gay man, even after being incarcerated for it, and is seen as a champion of the LGBT movement still today. Despite being beaten, arrested, jailed, and fired from various leadership positions, Rustin overcame and made a huge impact on the civil and economic rights movements.
America has a long way to go before Rustin’s dreams of equal human rights for all are achieved, but without him, we perhaps would not be where we are today. Today, we have a black president, more women in leadership positions, and more of legislation in the states overturning old and outdated laws barring gay couples from marrying. These are just a few examples of the progress our country has made since Rustin’s time, and working people will continue to work so that ALL people have equal rights–at work and at home.