War on Workers

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2012 Presidential Election, Barack Obama, Elections, Legislation, Politics, War on Workers

What are UFCW Members Doing to Help Working Families this Election?

Sep 21, 2012

We asked our members ‘What are you doing or going to do to make sure working families win this November?”


Here are some of the highlights of what they said!

“Having my church have voter registration available  for all the young people and seniors”

“I sent $ to the DNC and i am proudly displaying my Obama/Biden bumper sticker”

“Not voting for Romney”

“Go to vote”

“Phone banking and canvasing- also taking anyone to vote early that will let me”

“Canvassing”

“Voting for Obama!”

“Passing better legislation”

“Helping a local state senate candidate”

“helping whenever needed”

“i’m reminding everyone i speak to is we need to move forward not backwards”

“I’m gonna drag everything that ain’t glued down 2 the polls…lol”

“Lookin’ 4 help to start a union at my Walmart”“Stand up for my rights”

“Tryn’ to make sure everyone that i know votes in November!”

“I work on the polls for our rights that the G.O.P. is trying to take away from us”

“Making sure the working class understand that president Obama is the best candidate for our future and we need to keep moving forward!!!!”

“Run for state rep”

If you want to join the UFCW rapid response team and be part of the next poll, sign up to receive text messages by texting JOIN to MYUFCW (698329). Your feedback could be the next to be featured on the UFCW blog.

Collective Bargaining, In the News, Legislation, Politics, Uncategorized, War on Workers

Things Could be Looking up for Labor after Judge Strikes Down Wisconsin’s Act 10

Sep 17, 2012

Big news for labor came out of Wisconsin on Friday, when a judge struck down Scott Walker’s controversial anti-collective bargaining law. Although the governor has said he is sure his state will successfully appeal the judge’s decision about Act 10, we certainly are not.  If anything, this news could be just the fuel people need to keep up the fight for labor rights, and do what’s right, especially when this decision comes so near to the November Presidential election.
wisconsin_0613
In a Washington Post article about the ruling, a few possible outcomes of this news are detailed, most of which bode well for the state’s- and the nation’s- labor movement:

Firstly, the decision, although perhaps only temporary, is a big motivator for all those involved in this year’s earlier anti-walker protests.  After investing countless resources into the movement to stop his anti-worker legislation from passing, and recall the governor, it was disheartening to lose the battle.  Working families see that our efforts were not in vain.

Another point made in the article suggests that now, political polarization and opinion on the issue is not going to fade away, and will only be rejuvenated.  Because of the Friday decision, Democrats and Republicans are less likely to compromise on their beliefs regarding right-to-work legislation, essentially giving the labor movement a second wind. Collective bargaining is now back in the spotlight, front and center.  The debate is not over.

This is good news folks.  Even if the judge’s ruling doesn’t stand up, we know that the fight will not be over.

2012 Presidential Election, Elections, Politics, Press Releases, Uncategorized, War on Workers

UFCW STATEMENT REGARDING THE REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION’S ANTI-WORKER PLATFORM

Aug 30, 2012

Washington, D.C. – The following is a statement issued by the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union:

“The Republican Party’s anti-worker platform at their convention in Tampa, Fla., this week further highlights the GOP’s disconnect from the realities of everyday Americans. Instead of offering any serious solutions for creating jobs with benefits and wages that can support a family and addressing the growing gap between the rich and the poor, convention speakers like Chris Christie, Scott Walker and Nikki Haley have resorted to pitting workers against workers by lashing out at labor unions.

“America’s workers are the cornerstone of our country’s middle class, and making it easier for hard working men and women to stick together through a union would put more company profits in the hands of working people and strengthen America’s middle class. While Republican candidate Mitt Romney and his running mate, Paul Ryan, claim to care about the middle class, they have challenged the very idea of the right of workers to stick together and bargain for basic rights—including fair pay, health care and retirement benefits.

“The best way for workers to have a say about their working conditions is by sticking together as a union, and the UFCW will continue to fight any action by Romney, Ryan and followers like Christie, Walker and Haley who favor the wealthy one percent over America’s workers and the poor.”

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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.