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Economic Justice, Politics, Social Justice, UFCW Values

2013 ABC Contest

May 01, 2013

DSC_0109UFCW’s political action committee, the Active Ballot Club (ABC), has launched its 2013 contest.

By supporting worker friendly candidates and issues at the federal, state, and local level, ABC helps workers and their families win the respect that they deserve on and off the job.

From increasing the minimum wage to improving workplace safety to fighting back against so-called “right to work” laws, ABC stands up for the issues that matter to UFCW members.

 Contest Details:

-Runs from Wednesday, May 1 through Tuesday, November 5, 2013.

-Participants will only be eligible to win with $1 a week sign-ups or upgrades.

-Two local union prizes will be awarded in each region (Each of the two winning locals will receive an award and 100 percent credit for one year to their ABC account for new revenue raised).

-Five prizes for Union Representatives will be awarded in each region (3 $1,000 AMEX gift cards, 2 iPads).

-All members who sign up at $1 a week or upgrade to $1 a week and those who currently contribute $1 or more per week and upgrade will be eligible to win one of four $500 AMEX gift cards per region.

Winners in Each Region Will Be as Follows:

-Local that signs up the most new members at $1 a week.

-Local that has the highest increase in ABC percentage of participation at $1 a week.

-Union Representative with a route size of 1,000-1,500 members that increases ABC participation at $1 a week by the greatest percentage ($1,000 AMEX gift card).

-Union Representative with a route size of 1,500-2,000 members that increases ABC participation at $1 a week by the greatest percentage ($1,000 AMEX gift card).

-Union Representative with a route size of 2,001+ members that increases ABC participation at $1 a week by the greatest percentage ($1,000 AMEX gift card).

-Union Representative with the second highest percentage increase in ABC participation at $1 a week (iPad).

-Union Representative with the third highest percentage increase in ABC participation at $1 a week (iPad).

For information on ABC, click here.  

Corporate Responsibility, Economic Justice, Packing and Processing, Social Justice, UFCW Industries, UFCW Values, Walmart

Warehouse Workers, Community Organizations Call on Walmart to Stop Retaliatory Firings in Contracted Warehouse

Apr 26, 2013

http://www.ufcw.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/UFCWnews.jpgONTARIO, Calif. – Javier Rodriguez, a leader for change inside Walmart’s contracted warehouses in Southern California, was fired yesterday from his job as a forklift driver.

Rodriguez, along with Warehouse Workers United, filed formal federal charges today to protest the illegal firing.

“Walmart is committed to one thing, looking the other way when workers in its supply chain are abused,” Rodriguez said. “Just look at the factory collapse in Bangladesh this week or the fire that killed 112 last year. Just look at the conditions inside the warehouses in Southern California.”

Supporters launched a petition calling on Walmart to ensure Rodriguez’s reinstatement Friday and plan to deliver the signatures to Walmart officials Monday in Downtown Los Angeles. (Local reporters, see event details below.)

Rodriguez and his coworkers have repeatedly demonstrated that Walmart does not hold its contractors to its own standards. Warehouse workers, who are required to work inside dark, hot, metal shipping containers with little ventilation or water, under pressure to meet high quotas in the face of frequent injury, filed a complaint with the state agency responsible for workplace conditions last summer.

Though Walmart initially dismissed workers’ concerns, in December, the Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) cited NFI Industries, which is contracted by Walmart to operate the warehouse, and one staffing agency, tens of thousands of dollars in health and safety violations.

Earlier this month Walmart supply chain workers from the National Guestworker Alliance, Warehouse Workers United, New Labor, Warehouse Workers for Justice and Jobs with Justice convened to respond to Walmart’s claim that it holds its suppliers to its “Standards for Suppliers.” Workers offered their own set of core principles that would ensure improved labor standards in the supply chain.

“What workers have shown is that Walmart’s standards are nothing more than a sheet of paper,” said Guadalupe Palma, director of Warehouse Workers United. “To be serious the Walmart’s standards must be enforceable, credible standards that are centered around workers. Walmart must ensure Javier is reinstated and immediately start acting to resolve serious problems in its supply chain.”

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Warehouse Workers United is an organization committed to improving the quality of life and jobs in Southern California’s Inland Empire. More than 85,000 warehouse workers work moving goods for major retailers like Walmart in San Bernardino and Riverside counties.

 

 

 

Corporate Responsibility, Food Safety, Packing and Processing, Retail Food, Social Justice, UFCW Stewards, Workplace Safety & Health

Remembering Those Who Have Fallen

Apr 25, 2013

This Sunday, April 28th is Worker Memorial Day, in which we take time to remember and honor those who have lost their lives on the job.  With the tragedies of the past two weeks fresh on our minds, this year’s Worker Memorial Day is particularly somber and offers us a chance to rededicate ourselves to the fight for safer workplaces.

Last week, in West, Texas, a fertilizer plant exploded, killing at least 15 workers and emergency responders.  The amount of deadly chemicals stored at the plant was thousands of times beyond the mandated limit, and inspections of the factory had not been performed in several years.

This week, news of a collapsed garment factory in Bangladesh that has killed at least 300 workers saddened us all.  Reports that cracks in the building’s foundation found yesterday were ignored and that management still forced employees to come to work are alarming.  This incident comes only months after more than 100 workers perished at another Bangladesh garment factory, when a fire broke out and locked doors (done by management) trapped workers inside.

Workers at a Nicaraguan Walmart supplier were recently physically attacked by a paid mob when they protested about being fired for trying to organize for a voice on the job.

It’s time that companies stopped putting workers’ lives at risk in order to make a profit.  The working people who make corporations successful deserve basic human rights, and deserve safe working environments.

Take a moment to remember the victims of workplace fatalities, and help us continue to fight for worker safety. If you have a story of a friend or loved one lost or injured on the job that you would like to share, please send us a message on our Facebook page.

2013 Worker Memorial Day Break Room Flyers

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