June, 2013

Constituency Groups, Economic Justice, Health Care, Immigration, Politics, Social Justice, UFCW Industries, UFCW Values, United Latinos

National Lobby Day in Washington, D.C.

Jun 20, 2013

Reposted from ufcwaction.org:

On June 18th and 19th over 150 UFCW members and staff came to Washington D.C. to talk face to face with their Members of Congress about the important issues facing working men and women.

NJ 464A NJ 464ALourdes Castellano, a member of Local 1776 who works at Cargill in Hazelton, Pennsylvania, was proud to add her voice to the debate on immigration reform.

“I’ve worked at Cargill for 11 years and I would say 95% of my coworkers are Latino. We all want comprehensive immigration reform so that we can feel like we have a welcoming home. It’s especially difficult to see coworkers with family members who are separated because not all of them are able to come to America. We want a fair path to citizenship so that families can be reunified.”

With the Senate currently debating S. 744, a comprehensive immigration reform bill, Local 5 member Lachele Thomas, who works at Safeway in Salinas, California, found the very real prospect of helping to pass this landmark legislation exciting.

“This is historical. It’s almost overwhelming. I’ll be so proud if I can look back and know that we helped pass immigration reform.”
California Local 5It was also an excellent time to talk with Members of Congress about properly shaping bills that have already been passed. With the Affordable Care Act (ACA) slated to take full effect in 2014, Local 1262 member Delores Jackson, a Shop Rite employee in Rochelle Park, New Jersey, was happy to be sharing her concerns about fairly implementing the law.

“I’m very excited to be here. I want them to hear my point of view. I’ve been with the union for years. We fought hard for our current benefits and we deserve to keep them. I’m hoping I can convince some of these politicians to help us with this ACA problem. I want to keep my good health care. I don’t want it to change. I can’t afford to pay more for less health care coverage – that’s just not right. Usually politicians just talk to us – it’s time we came up here and talked with them. They need to hear our voice. They need to know how it is for us.”

One of the big takeaways, especially for members who had never lobbied before, was how effective their participation can be. For Humberto Munoz, a member of Local 5 who works at Safeway in Salinas, California, the experience was rewarding.

“I met my Congressman – visiting him in his office was a great experience. I realized being here that they do listen and that talking with them really can California Local 5 make a difference.”

With members and staff from California, Michigan, Missouri, Texas, Kentucky, Georgia, New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Indiana, Iowa, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Arkansas, Arizona, Wisconsin, Connecticut, Virginia, Kansas, Nebraska, Minnesota, Tennessee, Nevada, Florida, Oklahoma, Colorado, and Maryland showing up, it truly was a national lobby day.

If anyone reading this is thinking about getting more involved politically – stop thinking about it and start doing it. Shante Vinalon, a Local 1996 member who works at Kroger in Decatur, Georgia, was happy she did.

“I’ve worked at Kroger for 8 years. This is my first time lobbying in DC. Meeting and sitting down with Representatives one on one is empowering. I get an understanding of where they’re coming from and they get an understanding of where we’re coming from. I’m able to see who is for us and who is against us. I like it. It’s a great experience. Everyone should do it. I plan on encouraging all my friends back home to do it.”

Georgia 1996UFCW’s national lobby day proved to everyone that politicians are a lot more approachable than they sometimes seem. If we want our concerns to be heard, we have to be willing to speak up.

Georgia 1996 If anyone reading this is thinking about getting more involved politically – stop thinking about it and start doing it. Shante Vinalon, a Local 1996 member who works at Kroger in Decatur, Georgia, was happy she did.

UFCW’s National Lobby Day proved to everyone that politicians are a lot more approachable than they sometimes seem. If we want our concerns to be heard, we have to be willing to speak up.

Retail, UFCW Industries, UFCW Values

American Retail Workers Support IKEA Workers in Turkey and Beyond with Global Day of Action

Jun 19, 2013

Participants in today’s Day of Global Solidarity with IKEA workers show their support in Dublin, Ireland.

IKEA, the world’s largest furniture retailer, has been accused of falling short of its own worker policies in several countries outside of Sweden, thereby failing to live up to the company’s professed values outside the home market. For the past two years, IKEA Turkey has run a campaign of intimidation, interference and coercion in response to its employees’ efforts to choose a union.

Today, IKEA employees and their global supporters in a dozen different countries will take part in actions against poor labor standards, management violations of freedom of association, and IKEA’s inconsistency in its approach to worker rights and labor relations.

The RWDSU and UFCW, both members of the UNI Global Union, are supporting the efforts of IKEA workers in Turkey and we encourage you to take a moment and read a recent op-ed on IKEA’s anti-union tactics.

It is time for IKEA to put an end to the practice of treating non-Swedish workers as second-class. All workers have the right to freely associate, and bargain collectively for improvements in the workplace, no matter which country that workplace is in.

Politics, Press Releases, Retail, UFCW Industries, UFCW Values, Walmart

New Report on Political Contributions Underscores Walmart’s Sharp Turn to the Right

Jun 19, 2013

Following the Hiring of Bush Administration Official to Lead External Affairs,

Walmart Heirs Donate Millions to Right-Wing Candidates, Anti-Gay Politicians, NRA Supporters

UFCWnews A new report issued Tuesday shows that Walmart and the Walton family that founded and controls the company have dramatically increased their political contributions over the last decade and that the vast majority of those contributions have gone to Republicans and right-wing causes, including anti-gay, anti-environment and pro-gun politicians and causes. The report asserts that Walmart, the world’s largest private employer, and the Walton family have spent over $17 million in federal elections and millions more on state and local initiatives. Since the 2000 election cycle, more than $11.6 million—69% of Walmart and the Waltons’ contributions—has gone to Republican candidates and committees. At the same time, 83% of the Waltons’ contributions, including their contributions to Super PACs, went to Republicans.

The report, “An Analysis of Walmart and Walton Family Political Spending, 2000-2012,” comes after Walmart’s recent hiring of Dan Bartlett, a Bush Administration official known for his work in creating the “weapons of mass destruction” narrative, to replace Leslie Dach as Executive Vice President of Corporate Affairs. Dach worked in the Clinton Administration.

“This new report highlights the degree to which Walmart and the Walton family use their considerable wealth to distort the political process,” said William Fletcher, a member of OUR Walmart and an Associate at the Walmart store in Duarte, California. “The Waltons are the richest family in the world. Instead of putting their money into fair wages for us Walmart workers, they instead pour millions into a right-wing agenda that has nothing to do with business and everything to do with their radical ideology.”

The report further underscores Walmart and the Waltons’ turn to the right and shows that political contributions doesn’t simply stop at supporting Republicans; in 2008, Jim Walton gave $75,000 to the Arkansas Family Council Action Committee, which at the time was supporting a ballot measure to prevent gay families from adopting. Meanwhile, 94% of the Walton family’s contributions to candidates from 2000 to 2012 went to those who were opposed to or silent on the issue of marriage equality.

Aside from their record of supporting anti-LGBT candidates, the Waltons and Walmart disproportionately contribute to candidates with low scores on civil rights, women’s issues, immigration, and those who oppose raising the minimum wage. The Waltons also support NRA-backed candidates; 76% of all their donations from 2000-2012 have gone to candidates or politicians with an A+ or an A from the NRA.

The Walton family, collectively worth $115 billion, has more wealth than the bottom 42% of Americans combined. At the same time, despite more than $16 billion in annual profits and executives making 1,000 times more than the average Walmart employee, a new report released by the Democratic staff of the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce found that the costs to taxpayers at just one Walmart store as a result of Walmart’s inadequate wages and benefits is about $1 million.

Tuesday’s report was issued by Making Change at Walmart, a growing coalition challenging Walmart to help rebuild our economy and strengthen working families, and comes as a growing number of associates and supporters nationwide are calling for the company to end retaliation against employees and for the company to publicly commit to providing full-time work with a minimum salary of $25,000 a year so workers don’t have to rely on tax-payer funded programs to support their families.

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UFCW and OUR Walmart have the purpose of helping Wal-Mart employees as individuals or groups in their dealings with Wal-Mart over labor rights and standards and their efforts to have Wal-Mart publically commit to adhering to labor rights and standards. UFCW and OUR Walmart have no intent to have Walmart recognize or bargain with UFCW or OUR Walmart as the representative of Walmart employees.

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