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UFCW Stewards

Power in Numbers

Nov 11, 2011

 

As stewards, we understand that our ability to negotiate with our employers comes from the power of our numbers. When more of us stick together and stand up for our rights, our voice is stronger and workers have more strength at the bargaining table to negotiate wages, benefits, and working conditions.

 

We know that power in numbers is more than just a union adage — it’s actually reflected in our wages and benefits. On average, union meatpacking workers make 15% more than nonunion meatpacking workers. And in socalled right-to-work states, where workers don’t automatically belong to our union, average pay is 10% less than in other union plants. Wages in these types of plants correlate with membership: fewer members mean lower wages. Fortunately, the correlation works both ways: with more union members, workers earn higher wages. And when workers in one plant join a union, that tends to raise the bar on wages and working conditions not just for themselves — but for workers in nearby plants that compete for the same pool of employees.
That’s why it’s important to all meat packing and food processing workers that more people are joining our union. During October and November, nearly 4,000 workers who work for National Beef in Dodge City, Kansas, Farmland Foods in Carroll,  Iowa, Nebraska Prime in Hastings, Nebraska, and JBS in Plainwell, Michigan voted to join the UFCW for a union voice on the job.

 

These new members will give each and every one of us a stronger voice when we bring our concerns to the companies and it will force management to really listen to workers. When companies know that they are dealing with a small number of workers, it’s easier to ignore worker requests at the bargaining table and disregard safety and dignity on the job.
Clemente Torres, a steward and a 9-year veteran at the Cargill meatpacking plant in Dodge City, Kansas knows this well. He works across the street from the National Beef plant where workers just voted to join his union, and he played a key role in organizing the workers there. “In my 9 years as steward I’ve seen our membership increase because workers can see what being united can do. Many Cargill workers worked at National Beef previously, or have relatives or spouses working there now. They understand the real difference is the power workers have during negotiations. If we are a stronger union with more members, we will be able to negotiate better benefits,” Torres says. “National Beef andCargill are Dodge City’s biggest employers. Now that workers in both places are union members, we have thousands of workers speaking together with one voice to raise the bar for working standards in the whole community.”
For workers, our bargaining power is measured two ways: by the number of union members in our individual plants, and by the number of union members in the entire meatpacking and food processing industry. If you work for a union company that operates non-union plants, talk to your co-workers about how non union operations bring your wages down. And ask your manager why your company insists on operating non-union.
If new workers at your plant don’t automatically become UFCW members, tell them you belong to the UFCW and explain to them that the company doesn’t simply provide better wages, benefits, and vacation days but they’re a result of bargaining with workers— union members like yourself.

UFCW Stewards

UFCW Stewards Standing Together to Fight Against Corporate Greed at Mott’s

Jul 11, 2010

 

As our country tries to pull itself out of the economic recession, corporations, despite having largely contributed to create the worst economy since the Great Depression, continue to use the same economy as a scapegoat to justify anti-working family behavior. Highly profitable companies are now demanding that workers take concessions at the bargaining table. At a time when the unemployment rate remains hovering near double digits and the economy desperately needs quality jobs, these companies are fueling a race to the bottom by gutting the few remaining family-sustaining jobs. This is an all out attack on working families, our communities and the broader economy.

 

One blatant example of such corporate greed at play is happening now at the Mott’s processing plant in Williamson, N.Y., where over three hundred of our brothers and sisters from UFCW Local 220* have been forced out on the streets on strike since May 23 over the outrageous concession demands Mott’s made, that would destroy the workers’ livelihoods and jeopardize their prosperous community.

 

Mott’s, a subsidiary of Plano, Texas-based Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, is the top applesauce and apple juice brand in the United States. Last year, the company made $555 million in profit. While other companies are struggling because of the recession, Mott’s, clearly, is doing very well. Despite their success, largely due to Local 220* members’ productivity and performance, Mott’s wants to eliminate workers’ pensions, force a 20 percent reduction to their 401Ks, slash wages by $1.50 an hour, significantly expand job responsibilities, and make workers pay thousands of dollars more for health insurance.

 

As stewards, we are the first line of defense of  bargaining agreements and it is our responsibility to make sure that the issues that matter most to our fellow union members are addressed and that their livelihoods are protected in our contracts. When there is no financial need for a successful company to insist upon drastic demands at the table, we must stand together and fight such corporate greed until we prevail.

 

“They say that we are overpaid, and to take money and benefits out of our pockets is the right thing to do, and that’s what they plan to do,” said Mott’s worker and Local 220* member Ira Bristol.

 

But while Mott’s is attempting to drive down wages for UFCW members, Larry Young the President and CEO of Mott’s’ parent company, made $6.5 million in total compensation in 2009, which represents an increase of 113 percent in just two years: that is corporate greed at its best.

 

UFCW Local 220* members, many of whom have worked at Mott’s for decades, refuse to be bullied by Mott’s into accepting a contract that would literally destroy the quality of jobs in their community. They are standing up to corporate and are engaged in a fight to level the playing field for working people across the country.

 

“There is no more just fight in the United States right now than the one against what Dr Pepper Snapple is doing to you right now,” UFCW International President Joe Hansen told the Mott’s workers on the picket line.

 

Please stand with UFCW Local 220* members and show your support by spreading the word inside your plant and your community.

 

Support the Williamson workers’ struggle by not buying the following Mott’s products:
Mott’s Apple Sauce, Hawaiian Punch, Margaritaville Margarita Mix, Mr. & Mrs. T Drink Mixes, Welch’s Grape Juice (64 oz.), Rose’s Lime Juice, Snapple cans, Mott’s Fruitsations, Mott’s Garden Cocktail, ReaLime Juice, ReaLemon Juice, Holland House Cooking Wines, and Clamato.

 

Visit www.mottsworkers.org or www.NoBadApples.org to learn more about the workers’ plight and on ways you can help. Call Mott’s at 1-800-426-4891 and tell them you support the workers in Williamson. On the Web site you can send a letter to Mott’s management. You can also print out materials for in-store actions at your local supermarket or to educate consumers in your community.

UFCW Stewards

Together for Quality and Affordable Health Care Reform

Oct 11, 2009

 

UFCW members know there is a health care crisis in this country. We see it firsthand, every day. We fight at the bargaining table for good health insurance for ourselves and our families. We see our friends and neighbors affected by medical bills they cannot pay.
But this crippling problem is not something union members can solve at the bargaining table. It is a national problem, and it demands a national solution. The fact is that health insurance is taking up an increasingly larger and larger share of our total compensation. Anyone who has sat around a bargaining table hammering out a quality health plan that is affordable both for workers and for our employers knows that something has to be done. That’s why UFCW members are standing together to fix this critical problem.
Our demand of Congress is clear— every American must have access to quality affordable health care. Thousands of UFCW members across the country are reaching out to their members of Congress, and telling them that real health care reform cannot wait.
We know that real health reform must have certain key elements:
Shared responsibility by employers.  Big employers like Walmart shouldn’t be allowed to duck their responsibility to provide quality health coverage for their workers— especially when so many more responsible, union employers do pay their fair share.
A choice of a public insurance option. To keep the insurance companies honest, and ensure that American workers will always have an affordable plan available, we need the choice of a public health insurance plan.
Keep our coverage affordable. So that everyone can achieve access to health care, reform shouldn’t include a tax on health benefits. Any tax on health care would unfairly penalize people who are lucky enough to have coverage—especially union members who have fought hard to keep health care affordable.
Big business and the insurance companies are working together to keep us from achieving real reform.
That’s why it’s so important for UFCW members to take a stand in this fight. If thousands of us across the country contact our members of Congress, encourage our friends and neighbors to join us, and work for health care reform—we can achieve it. You can learn more about the issue and get the latest updates on the legislative fight at www.ufcwhealthcarenow.org. You can also call your Representative or Senator today. Call 1-888-743-4403 or visit www.ufcwactnow.org and enter your information. We’ll then make it easy for you to speak to your member of Congress.