| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 27, 2002 |
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Kentucky Bourbon King Faces Government Hearing On Denial Of Bathroom Access Rally to Support Jim Beam Workers Almost half the workers, mostly women, on the Jim Beam bottling line in Clermont, Kentucky have been disciplined for using the bathroom, and some long time workers are even facing firing. According to worker reports, they were told to "train their bladders" to correspond to scheduled break periods and one unscheduled bathroom time; or face discipline, including dismissal. The problem is human physiology. The bathroom needs of menstruating women, older workers and women who have had children do not follow Jim Beam's schedule. "When you gotta go, you gotta go," is physiological reality as well as an old adage. The United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW), representative of the Jim Beam workers, is fighting the battle across the food and beverage processing industry to maintain the basic dignity of workers who are now being forced to chose between wetting or soiling themselves, or being fired. After decades of bottling bourbon without any problem or line stoppages---relief workers let workers relieve themselves as needed---plant management instituted a bathroom monitoring and restriction system in September, 2001. Jim Beam, the shining star of Kentucky's famous bourbon industry, now seems more obsessed, from the workers' viewpoint, with their bathroom habits than the making of bourbon. "The company keeps computer spreadsheets documenting each time we go to the bathroom. It's like the potty police. It seems like they spend more time monitoring our bathroom time than we actually spend going to the bathroom. They should focus more on the business and less on the toilet," said Anne Culver, a Jim Beam worker. Workers filed a complaint with the Kentucky occupational safety and health office. The workplace health agency agreed with the workers, and issued a citation directing the company to give workers reasonable access to the bathroom. End of story? Not quite. Beam won't give up the fixation with monitoring bathroom visits, and has demanded that the citation be overturned. A hearing is scheduled to begin on August 28, 2002. Jim Beam workers and their supporters will rally at noon on the day the hearing begins. The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union represents 1.4 million members in the United States and Canada. Local 111D is part of the UFCW Distillery, Wine and Allied Workers Division and has represented workers at Jim Beam for 55 years. WHO: Jim Beam workers, Kentucky AFL-CIO President Bill Londrigan, Jobs with Justice leaders, other union leaders and community members. WHAT: Rally for Jim Beam workers WHEN: Wednesday, August 28, 2002, 12:00 noon WHERE: Outside OSHA hearing at Bullitt County Area Technology Center, 395 High School Lane in Shepherdsville, Kentucky PHOTO OPPORTUNITY: Crowds with signs, workers and their children. Directions to the rally: From I-65, take Kentucky Highway 44 towards Mt. Washington and Shepherdsville. Go about a mile, and after the Bullitt County High School, turn left onto High School Lane (or Drive). Log on to Voice Activated: The Worker Voice E-Activist Network of the UFCW. Click below and send your own personalized message directly to Jim Beam. http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/jimbeam |
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