Mr. Block gets news only from the bosses' paper

some things never change


So who is Mr.Block (from Wikipedia)?

Mr. Block is a United States comic strip character commemorated in a song written by Joe Hill.

Mr. Block, who has no first name, was born 7 November 1912 to Ernest Riebe, a member of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW). Block appeared that day in the Spokane newspaper Industrial Worker, smoking a cigar and wearing a checkered suit with top hat. Subsequently, Mr. Block lost the fancy clothes but always kept a hat, ten sizes too small, perched on one corner of his wooden blockhead.

"Mr. Block is legion," wrote Walker C. Smith in 1913. "He is representative of that host of slaves who think in terms of their masters. Mr. Block owns nothing, yet he speaks from the standpoint of the millionaire; he is patriotic without patrimony; he is a law-abiding outlaw .. [who] licks the hand that smites him and kisses the boot that kicks him .. the personification of all that a worker should not be."

Pyramid of the capitalist system redux

They Rule You, They Fool You, They Shoot At You and They Eat For You

That idealization has been around for quite some time, it was on the cover of The Industrial Worker, the newspaper of The Industrial Workers Of The World(The IWW) way back in 1911, the title of the work is Pyramid of the Capitalist System.



So what has changed in the almost 100 years since this masterpiece has been created, the masses fought through the Great Depression gotten some advantage through the 50's and the corporatist have found better ways to fool us.

They have opened our borders to a servitude class, while diverting our pension into mutual funds that invest against our own interests, they have made loopholes for those at the top and given corporations carte blanche over our lives and have taken our constitutional rights while we sat in blind patriotism. They have their media telling us what we need to know about nothing, while constricting the free speech from dissenting views. They have us thinking that labor laws will protect us, while cutting staff and regulations to the bone.

They have used racism, religion, language, and fear to pit us against one another, and have beaten us with the sense that there is nothing any one of us can do about it.

Here is an updated version of the great illustration of 1911, is it so far off the mark.

I wish I were more creative I'd make my own, maybe show the Wal-Mart door crushing out a human life so some scums could save a few dollars on their foreign made crap, maybe add the Haitian bread winner feeding his children dirt sandwiches to stave off the hunger pains after a hard days work making clothes for companies which used to make it here for a living wage.

They sold our future down the drain while you watched American Idol.

Unfortunately I don't know where the image is from

Video and Music: History of Solidarity Forever, Anne Feeney and my favorite labor song

In our hands is placed a power greater than their hoarded gold,
Greater than the might of armies, magnified a thousand-fold.
We can bring to birth a new world from the ashes of the old
For the union makes us strong.

From YouTube

Solidarity Forever sung by Pete Seeger & The Weavers, with old photographs of the labor movement in US History.This is a tribute to all the workers who sacrificed to make a better world for their children and grand children.

The history of this song can be found at Wikipedia,

"Solidarity Forever", written by Ralph Chaplin in 1915, is perhaps the most famous union anthem after The Internationale. It is sung to the tune of "John Brown's Body" and is inspired by the "Battle Hymn of the Republic". Although it was written as a song for the Industrial Workers of the World, other union movements, such as the AFL-CIO, have adopted the song as their own. The song is still performed by musicians such as Utah Phillips, and was redone by Emcee Lynx. It is still commonly sung at union meetings and rallies in Australia and Canada, and has also been sung at conferences of the Australian Labor Party and the Canadian New Democratic Party. The use of the originally patriotic tune for a progressive and left-wing cause also inspired the anthem of the consumer cooperative movement, "The Battle Hymn of Cooperation."

heres a new verse I didn't know existed

They say our day is over; they say our time is through,
They say you need no union if your collar isn't blue,
Well that is just another lie the boss is telling you,
For the Union makes us strong!
(Chorus)

They divide us by our color; they divide us by our tongue,
They divide us men and women,; they divide us old and young,
But they'll tremble at our voices, when they hear these verses sung,
For the Union makes us strong!
(Chorus)

Anne Feeney: War On The Workers, my favorite labor song

Copy and pasted from my new Joe's Union Review MySpace account
Speaking of Anne Feeney, heres a clip from the 2002 G8 protest in Calgary with Chris Chandler

The NY Times actually mentions Indian Slave pipe-fitters, Rick Berman, need for teaching about unions, IN: Laborers get 1st raise after 3 years, more

We start with a story that Omaha Steve pointed out in the Labor section at Democratic Underground, it seems that Rick Berman's firm has launched a new nationwide ad campaign against unions and the Employee Free Choice Act.

• Labor Officials Denounce Union Attack Ads -WCSH6/Maine (6/6/08):

The ads depict workers talking about how unions take away their rights and bully people into joining unions.

"What the ads play on is a sense that, 'I'm not gonna win, I should keep my head down and I can't make a difference, because somebody out there is going to beat me down,'" McKay said. "That's exactly the problem unions see."

The next story is by Donald P. Russo, a labor attorney from Bethlehem, PA

• Young people need new lessons about labor unions- The Morning Call.com (6/7/08):

Big business and the Republican Party have done a remarkable job of convincing young people that unions are bad. The propaganda campaign has been a remarkable success. Young people working at low-wage, part-time jobs, with no health insurance, paid sick leave, paid vacation or pension benefits actually think that they are doing well and that it would be a bad thing to bring in a union. As an employment attorney, I am seeing situations that are slowly bringing me to the realization that ''union busting'' is now a full-time pursuit in the workplace. What is most disconcerting, however, is the split I am observing among liberal Democrats.

Tula Connell over at the AFL-CIO WebBlog brings us some distressing news on the latest unemployment figures

• Busted: Unemployment Rise Worst in 20 Years (6/6/08):

The corporate media mouthpiece Bloomberg may say the nation’s economy is “stalling” in the wake of today’s announcement that the jump in the U.S. unemployment rate is the worst in more than two decades, but working Americans know the real word for it: Disaster.

Jobs fell by 49,000 after a 28,000 drop in April, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. The unemployment rate increased to 5.5 percent, the fifth straight month in a row that jobs decreased.


Source: Department of Labor. Prepared by the Staff of the Committee on Ways and Means, 5 June 2008.

Holy crap, Julia Preston at The New York Times is actually reporting on the Indian slave pipefitter hunger strike

• Workers on Hunger Strike Say They Were Misled on Visas - NY Times (6/7/08)

Brendan Hoffman for The New York Times
Reji Davis, center, and other workers from India on a hunger strike on Embassy Row in Washington. They say they were promised permanent residency.

“I sold my home to raise that money,” said Mr. Pazhambalakode, 43, who is one of the protesters and has a wife and child. “I can’t go home empty-handed because of that great debt.”

Meanwhile, on the Gulf Coast, Signal was seeking skilled workers, overwhelmed with orders for repairs on oil rigs battered by Katrina.

“We were on our knees,” Mr. Marler said, “and we wanted to contribute to turning the Coast around. We were approached by these labor providers, and we jumped at the chance.”

Maybe a phone call to The United Association would have been a better idea, Mr. Marler. Fpr more info on this topic and a few other related articles here at Joe's Union Review, check out the links below, maybe the Times has a spot for me.

• Modern day Slavery hunger strikers going on day 20, Get E-Active!
• Indian Ambassador refuses to visit with "slave" hunger strikers
• Slavery in the news: Indian 'guest workers' to hold hunger strike in DC
• More H1B Visa abuse news
• Slavery: Alive and well in USA Pt.2, Indian pipefitters abused in H2B Visa scam, main stream media picks up story full year after facts are released
• Offshoring and H1B Visa abuse, the 1-2 punch to knockout US tech workers
• NY Times blows the lid off of Made In India manhole covers in New York

Richard at Union Review points an article at Forbes, which shows how the corp's are in fear of a rise in union membership.

• Forbes: Fears Of A Union Renaissance- UnionReview (6/6/08):

Forbes is running a piece today called "Fears Of A Union Renaissance." In the article they menion that the US Chamber of Commerce is fearful of a potential union resurgence in the United States.

The article says, "Now the group, which represents business interests, is opposing a laundry list of bills fluttering about Capitol Hill, which the chamber says would make it easier to organize a union, expand worker benefits at the expense of employers and lift the caps on punitive damages sought by employees in lawsuits."

They are referring to the Employee Free Choice Act.

You can see more about their tactics in the first link I posted above, and heres another tactic, illegally firing organizers and union sympathizers...

• Starbucks Fires Outspoken Michigan Barista for Union Activity- Starbucks Union(6/6/08):

Starbucks' pretext for the illegal anti-union firing was that Dorsey was guilty of some months-old attendance infractions.

"Today I joined the growing number of baristas that Starbucks has fired in its relentless union-busting campaign," said Cole Dorsey. "Starbucks' disrespect for the right to join a union is appalling and absolutely will not stop our efforts to have a voice at work."

Starbucks, I like the coffee and the way they have legal workers in their stores and the fact that their is organizing drives and some union workers, I'm hoping they will have all union stores one day, heres some more Starbucks info at this site, speaking of this site, I got a nice plug from a fellow labor blogger

• New Link - Far Left Field (6/7/08):

If you haven’t checked out the site please do so. The blog is proudly pro-union, despite the strange site address, and covers everything from organizing drives to music to an unbelievable list of labor links that I was shocked to find myself on!

He's talking about us here at Joe's Union Review, I'm very proud to have been noticed, I urge my readers to check out the stories there as most are labor related, with social and political issues and some music thrown in. No shock needed, Far Left Field's 3rd article, well over a year and a half ago was about the Employee Free Choice Act, and continues to this day bringing forth labor news and views such as last Fridays "Investing In Workers". Hers some more news

Laborers Local 274 in Indiana, gets new deal after 3 years without pay raise and strike

• Labor strike settled against contractors in Indiana- WISHTV8 (6/5/08):

The laborers asked contractors for more money and better benefits. Union leaders said they just reached an agreement for a new contract and will not be picketing on Friday.

Thursday morning, picketers were outside Wilhelm Construction in Indianapolis, one of Central Indiana's largest contractors. Laborers also picketed in Lafayette, Terre Haute, and Bloomington too.

Seems they didn't feel like writing much, so heres a bit more from some previous stories

• Construction workers strike local projects - 18WLFI (6/4/08)

Other building trades are showing support by stopping work on the job sites. Local 274 President Jim Terry said several union contractors who are not part of the Indiana Construction Association have signed an interim agreement with the union.

That temporary agreement will allow work to continue on some construction projects.

Union members said they have not had a new contract in three years and hope an agreement will be reached soon. "In the three years, we haven't had a cost of living increase," Steve Foltz said. "And we're just trying to catch up with the other trades. We're trying to get this settled, hopefully before the end ofthe week. It's just a security thing, a few extra cents to the hour."

even when they report about it, they seem to get it wrong, they have had a contract, which expired on May 31st., they have not had a raise in 3 years

• Several construction projects stop -News10 (6/4-5/08)

Indiana State University's new recreation center is supposed to open in 2009, but a dispute between the Laborers International Union of North America Local No. 204, and Hannig Construction could change that if the two don't come to an agreement on a new contract, which ended May 31.

"You would think that the contractors would have enough respect for the people who work on their projects, when they know that they have not had a pay increase in over three years," said Charlie Toth, Business Manager for Local 204.

Theres some more news out there, check out the headlines over at these blogs and sites

The NY Times actually mentions Indian Slave pipe-fitters, Rick Berman, need for teaching about unions, IN: Laborers get 1st raise after 3 years, more

We start with a story that Omaha Steve pointed out in the Labor section at Democratic Underground, it seems that Rick Berman's firm has launched a new nationwide ad campaign against unions and the Employee Free Choice Act.

• Labor Officials Denounce Union Attack Ads -WCSH6/Maine (6/6/08):

The ads depict workers talking about how unions take away their rights and bully people into joining unions.

"What the ads play on is a sense that, 'I'm not gonna win, I should keep my head down and I can't make a difference, because somebody out there is going to beat me down,'" McKay said. "That's exactly the problem unions see."

The next story is by Donald P. Russo, a labor attorney from Bethlehem, PA

• Young people need new lessons about labor unions- The Morning Call.com (6/7/08):

Big business and the Republican Party have done a remarkable job of convincing young people that unions are bad. The propaganda campaign has been a remarkable success. Young people working at low-wage, part-time jobs, with no health insurance, paid sick leave, paid vacation or pension benefits actually think that they are doing well and that it would be a bad thing to bring in a union. As an employment attorney, I am seeing situations that are slowly bringing me to the realization that ''union busting'' is now a full-time pursuit in the workplace. What is most disconcerting, however, is the split I am observing among liberal Democrats.

Tula Connell over at the AFL-CIO WebBlog brings us some distressing news on the latest unemployment figures

• Busted: Unemployment Rise Worst in 20 Years (6/6/08):

The corporate media mouthpiece Bloomberg may say the nation’s economy is “stalling” in the wake of today’s announcement that the jump in the U.S. unemployment rate is the worst in more than two decades, but working Americans know the real word for it: Disaster.

Jobs fell by 49,000 after a 28,000 drop in April, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. The unemployment rate increased to 5.5 percent, the fifth straight month in a row that jobs decreased.


Source: Department of Labor. Prepared by the Staff of the Committee on Ways and Means, 5 June 2008.

Holy crap, Julia Preston at The New York Times is actually reporting on the Indian slave pipefitter hunger strike

• Workers on Hunger Strike Say They Were Misled on Visas - NY Times (6/7/08)

Brendan Hoffman for The New York Times
Reji Davis, center, and other workers from India on a hunger strike on Embassy Row in Washington. They say they were promised permanent residency.

“I sold my home to raise that money,” said Mr. Pazhambalakode, 43, who is one of the protesters and has a wife and child. “I can’t go home empty-handed because of that great debt.”

Meanwhile, on the Gulf Coast, Signal was seeking skilled workers, overwhelmed with orders for repairs on oil rigs battered by Katrina.

“We were on our knees,” Mr. Marler said, “and we wanted to contribute to turning the Coast around. We were approached by these labor providers, and we jumped at the chance.”

Maybe a phone call to The United Association would have been a better idea, Mr. Marler. Fpr more info on this topic and a few other related articles here at Joe's Union Review, check out the links below, maybe the Times has a spot for me.

• Modern day Slavery hunger strikers going on day 20, Get E-Active!
• Indian Ambassador refuses to visit with "slave" hunger strikers
• Slavery in the news: Indian 'guest workers' to hold hunger strike in DC
• More H1B Visa abuse news
• Slavery: Alive and well in USA Pt.2, Indian pipefitters abused in H2B Visa scam, main stream media picks up story full year after facts are released
• Offshoring and H1B Visa abuse, the 1-2 punch to knockout US tech workers
• NY Times blows the lid off of Made In India manhole covers in New York

Richard at Union Review points an article at Forbes, which shows how the corp's are in fear of a rise in union membership.

• Forbes: Fears Of A Union Renaissance- UnionReview (6/6/08):

Forbes is running a piece today called "Fears Of A Union Renaissance." In the article they menion that the US Chamber of Commerce is fearful of a potential union resurgence in the United States.

The article says, "Now the group, which represents business interests, is opposing a laundry list of bills fluttering about Capitol Hill, which the chamber says would make it easier to organize a union, expand worker benefits at the expense of employers and lift the caps on punitive damages sought by employees in lawsuits."

They are referring to the Employee Free Choice Act.

You can see more about their tactics in the first link I posted above, and heres another tactic, illegally firing organizers and union sympathizers...

• Starbucks Fires Outspoken Michigan Barista for Union Activity- Starbucks Union(6/6/08):

Starbucks' pretext for the illegal anti-union firing was that Dorsey was guilty of some months-old attendance infractions.

"Today I joined the growing number of baristas that Starbucks has fired in its relentless union-busting campaign," said Cole Dorsey. "Starbucks' disrespect for the right to join a union is appalling and absolutely will not stop our efforts to have a voice at work."

Starbucks, I like the coffee and the way they have legal workers in their stores and the fact that their is organizing drives and some union workers, I'm hoping they will have all union stores one day, heres some more Starbucks info at this site, speaking of this site, I got a nice plug from a fellow labor blogger

• New Link - Far Left Field (6/7/08):

If you haven’t checked out the site please do so. The blog is proudly pro-union, despite the strange site address, and covers everything from organizing drives to music to an unbelievable list of labor links that I was shocked to find myself on!

He's talking about us here at Joe's Union Review, I'm very proud to have been noticed, I urge my readers to check out the stories there as most are labor related, with social and political issues and some music thrown in. No shock needed, Far Left Field's 3rd article, well over a year and a half ago was about the Employee Free Choice Act, and continues to this day bringing forth labor news and views such as last Fridays "Investing In Workers". Hers some more news

Laborers Local 274 in Indiana, gets new deal after 3 years without pay raise and strike

• Labor strike settled against contractors in Indiana- WISHTV8 (6/5/08):

The laborers asked contractors for more money and better benefits. Union leaders said they just reached an agreement for a new contract and will not be picketing on Friday.

Thursday morning, picketers were outside Wilhelm Construction in Indianapolis, one of Central Indiana's largest contractors. Laborers also picketed in Lafayette, Terre Haute, and Bloomington too.

Seems they didn't feel like writing much, so heres a bit more from some previous stories

• Construction workers strike local projects - 18WLFI (6/4/08)

Other building trades are showing support by stopping work on the job sites. Local 274 President Jim Terry said several union contractors who are not part of the Indiana Construction Association have signed an interim agreement with the union.

That temporary agreement will allow work to continue on some construction projects.

Union members said they have not had a new contract in three years and hope an agreement will be reached soon. "In the three years, we haven't had a cost of living increase," Steve Foltz said. "And we're just trying to catch up with the other trades. We're trying to get this settled, hopefully before the end ofthe week. It's just a security thing, a few extra cents to the hour."

even when they report about it, they seem to get it wrong, they have had a contract, which expired on May 31st., they have not had a raise in 3 years

• Several construction projects stop -News10 (6/4-5/08)

Indiana State University's new recreation center is supposed to open in 2009, but a dispute between the Laborers International Union of North America Local No. 204, and Hannig Construction could change that if the two don't come to an agreement on a new contract, which ended May 31.

"You would think that the contractors would have enough respect for the people who work on their projects, when they know that they have not had a pay increase in over three years," said Charlie Toth, Business Manager for Local 204.

Theres some more news out there, check out the headlines over at these blogs and sites

CA: Starbucks gets stuck with $100 Million bill for subsidizing its low level managers with employee tip money and more related information

Heres the story from Forbes (3/21/08):

Sometimes it pays to start a fight with the big guys. For some former Starbucks baristas that pay is going to total over $100 million.

Judge Patricia Y. Cowett of the Superior Court of the State of California ruled in a class action suit Thursday that the Starbucks Corp. (nasdaq: SBUX - news - people ) must pay 120,000 of its current and former baristas the sum of $86.7 million, plus awards interest of 7%, for tip pool money that the coffee retailer used to compensate shift supervisors.

Under California state labor laws, it is legal for employers to implement tip pools where employees are required to share tips, but recipients of the pool share may not be owners, managers or supervisors.

In the case of Chau vs. Starbucks the court ruled that Starbucks illegally distributed tips from the tip pool to compensate shift supervisors as well as baristas, expert espresso makers, and the plaintiffs are entitled to an injunction that Seattle, Wash.-based Starbucks no longer force employees to share their tips with shift supervisors.

Jou Chau, Starbucks barista from 2003 through 2004, filed the lawsuit in October 2004, complaining that he didn’t think it was fair to have to share tips with shift supervisors. “Tips really help those receiving the lowest wages. I think Starbucks should pay shift supervisors higher wages instead of making money from the tip pool.”

After reading a few comments by Starbucks employees I just couldn't hold back my anger of the stupidity of these workers who consider themselves Team Members and Partners, Jesus, I can call you sister and brother it doesn't mean we're related. This type of shit goes on in Toys' R Us and Wal-Mart to name a few. Where the corporations swindle the employees into thinking they are associates, a team or partners.

Do they even have a clue how stupid that idea is? If you are a partner at Starbucks, why the hell would I leave you a tip, let alone the lower level management. Geez, the general public are subsidizing the pay for their employees. How stupid could we be, $2-4 for a coffee and then we pay the employee too?

Wake up Starbucks workers, make your partners your fellow employees and form a damn union and force this giant multi-national piece of crap to reinvest in their partners, by giving you all a set schedule, a honest days pay and access to affordable medical for all their employees. Maybe even find a way for them to reinvent themselves to attract new customers, instead of just the overpriced coffee house that makes one feel obligated to tip.

My comment at Forbes:

I'm sorry, but I worked in Deli's and Bagel Stores when I was younger and there was no tip glass. The theory was that if there was a tip glass that the customers would think you didn't get paid enough.

It was a good theory. Starbucks should not use the customer to subsidize their employee pay. They should give their workers an honest days pay. You are not Baristas, team members or associates, you are just employees/workers and numbers to

the Starbucks corporation who has a lawful duty to make a profit in each quarter to satisfy the demand of the investors.

Got it, you work for Starbucks, they should pay you accordingly. I personally hate the way Starbucks makes customers feel obligated to tip someone who makes a cup of coffee, hell the way the brainwashed employees speak as if they are partners, make me wonder why the hell would I tip a multi-national chain store owner.

Think of it PARTNERS. Tell Starbucks to give you all full time hours, access to medical, the right of association and to freely form a union if so desired. Then maybe you can start calling them partners.

You can learn more about Starbuck's infractions against worker by checking out the IWW, Industrial Workers of The World website and the Starbucks Union site.

Heres one recent story of note from IWW (1/29/08) :

E-Mail Action: Fortune Magazine, Stop Lying About Starbucks Being a 'Best Company to Work For'
by intexile

Andrew Serwer
Managing Editor
Fortune Magazine
1 Time Warner Center
New York, NY 10019

January 28, 2008

Dear Mr. Serwer,

I take serious issue with the erroneous information regarding Starbucks in Fortune Magazine's 2008 '100 Best Companies to Work For'. I am especially concerned about the reliability of Fortune given that the IWW Starbucks Workers Union wrote you an open letter before the 2007 '100 Best Companies to Work For' feature that pointed out the very same misinformation which you proceeded to include once again in the 2008 list.

The 2008 'Best Companies to Work For' list claims that the most common hourly job at Starbucks is a mysterious position called "Coordinator III" which takes in $37,390 per year. Once again, the most common hourly job at Starbucks, by far, is a position called "Barista" which likely takes in approximately $12,000 per year on average. The precise average pay for baristas is not known since Starbucks refuses to make that information public.

Brooklyn,NY: Handyfat workers win $360,000 in back pay, with help from IWW and Make the Road by Walking

UPDATE to-> NY & Surrounding Area : IWW I.U. 460/640 Needs Our Help !!!

From: The Industrial Workers of The World (3/13/08)

IWW to picket Handyfat Trading in celebration of jury award for 6 fired workers of $360,000 in back pay!

Workers from Handyfat Trading founded IWW Industrial Union 460 in December 2005. They were instrumental and active in organizing all the other food service shops that have joined IU 460 since then (ten shops). In addition, these workers along with the workers from EZ Supply/Sunrise Plus achieved the first collective bargaining agreements in this segment of the food industry.

In December 2006 and January 2007, all union members from both Handyfat and EZ Supply were fired. After winning orders of reinstatement and back wages at the NLRB, the workers now begin to win the court battles for their stolen backwages.

The IWW will be holding a picket and press conference this Saturday at Handyfat.

Saturday - March 15th, 2008 at 10am

at Morgan and Thames street in Bushwick, Brooklyn (Look for the big rat on the corner) L train to the Morgan Avenue station The press will be invited to talk to the workers about their struggle and victory.

From UnionReview - NY & Surrounding Area : IWW I.U. 460/640 Needs Our Help !!!

The Story at Handyfat (9/22/07)

In August of 2005, Pablo Montes and Carlos Hidalgo, workers from Handyfat Trading Corp., attended a meeting of Workers in Action, the labor group at the Bushwick, Brooklyn, community organization Make the Road by Walking. They spoke of terrible working conditions: they worked 60 or more hours for a mere 280 dollars per week (at most $4.66/per hour with no overtime); they had no benefits or sick days, and they were called "dirty Mexicans" and worse by an abusive manager. Afterwards, they agreed to bring their fellow workers to meet with two IWW organizers/Make the Road members, six of whom joined the union. On December 5, 2005, over 50 supporters joined the Handyfat workers in a march to declare their IWW membership and demand that the owner observe the wage and hour law. By the end of the winter, the owner was paying legal wages, and the union had won a minority contract, complete with wage increases, sick days, vacation time, and other perks.

You can read more about Make the Road by Walking at UnionReview in the article entitled:
Brooklyn , NY - Fighting For the Little Guy And Winning
and you can read more about the IWW with a search at UnionReview,
While this is a huge victory for the workers, as of 9/22/08, the IWW local 460/640 had been dropping deeply into debt supporting these workers. You can contact them to see if they still need assistance. Hopefully the NLRB decision made them whole again.

NY: Waldbaum's and A&P screwing 400 local employees and moving to nonunion facilities

Great Atlantic & Pacific takes our money, then turns it's back on NY workers.

With annual sales of $9.4 billion, Great Atlantic & Pacific operates 456 stores under the A&P, Waldbaum's, A&P Super Foodmart, The Food Emporium, Super Fresh, Pathmark and Food Basics banners. They have plenty of stores here in the NY metro area, they like to take our hard earned, but they don't want us to have good jobs.

This is a story very dear to my heart, I worked as a Teamster here in Brooklyn in Key Foods warehouse 15 years ago, the company moved half the operation to New Jersey and "bought out" half of the union employees. I was one of those who were bought out. While the contract helped the process the New Jersey warehouse got organized. So the remaining employees in New Jersey and the new union employees were all finally without a job within a few years when Key Foods operations finally moved into some New England state where there wasn't a union at all. Last I heard the employees get paid by the piece. So much for good local jobs. I have never stepped foot into a Key Food since. Now I read in NY Newsday that quite a similar situation is happening once again, with the employees out in Central Islip, Long Island, NY. While in conversation with a coworker at the end of the day opened my eyes to the fact that the Central Islip facility has been losing union employees for quite some time, this coworker's mother worked in the clerical division which were union employees at the time, that division was moved out about 10 years ago. The A&P group has also recently closed their Bronx, NY and Edison, NJ warehouses in 2005 when they were bought out by C&S Wholesale Grocers, a Keene, N.H.-based company. Their entire operation will now be moved to nonunion facilities in Connecticut and Pennsylvania. From NY Newsday

The facility, which initially operated decades ago as a Waldbaum's warehouse, employs approximately 400 people, said Kevin McCaffrey, president of Teamsters Local 707, which represents 220 warehouse workers. Another 90 unionized workers, including truck drivers, and about 80 non-union management and support staff also will be affected, he said.
Representatives of A&P and C&S did not return numerous calls seeking comment.

McCaffrey said C&S officials notified workers and the union last week of the plan to shutter the Central Islip warehouse, saying it would save the company some $7 million annually. The unions and C&S had been negotiating a new contract.

One long-time employee said workers took the news hard. "We were in shock," said Joe Mullady of Holtsville, who has worked at the facility for 27 years, most recently as an inventory checker. Mullady said he will retire, but most co-workers "are scrambling to find jobs in a dying industry."

I feel you brother, I remember well. Good luck guys, hope you and your families can make it through. Unfortunately, warehousing isn't a dying industry, it has just become another sweatshop industry here in the state, according to Alex from IWW (Industrial Workers of the World):

Brooklyn, NY, July 2007 - They work 115 hours a week, earning under $4 dollars an hour. In New York City, where minimum wage is $7.15 and a studio apartment may cost $900 a month or more, workers at HWH Trading Company work in conditions that are closer to slavery than anything else.

Here is a blatant case of our losing community, there is absolutely no winner to this story, except a small handful of wealthy individuals at the top.

Who's gonna lose a house? Who's not gonna get paid because these people are trying to make ends meet? This is just another reason that 400 more New Yorkers and all American working people shouldn't vote for anyone who is involved in this:

The economic stimulus package is stalled in the U.S. Senate. Senate Republican leaders—backed by the Bush White House—threatened a filibuster against efforts by Senate Democrats to extend unemployment insurance (UI) benefits for the millions of jobless workers who will run out of benefits in the next several months.

Shame on the union leaders for the continued lack of rank-and-file and intra-union-communication!

We have absolutely zero boycotting ability, we do not stick together, we collectively give employers zero fear as a unified voice, we stand divided and I don't blame that on the workers in the field.
I will put this to the test in about a week, when I ask the next Teamster I come across about what he thinks about the warehouse closing in Long Island and I'm almost certain will get the curious look of bewilderment that I have come to expect from the average rank and file union member.

Shame on the Federations for not openly supporting one another!

Give us something to believe in. Fight for us! Hire more communication staff! Do it before we're all on the unemployment line! I would say that 98% of the union workforce in the country hasn't a clue that the next truck they will unload has a high probability of having a Mexican driver who has driven it directly from Mexico if the Bush administration has it's way, why isn't the entire country getting prepared to be joining hands and blocking the border together? Why isn't this an infomercial?

More introduction to computers classes for our members, more public relations, more advertising, more community outreach, more presence in the curriculum of the Public schools.

We need to get into the hearts and minds of the youth in America, the future voters and union members. We need to give the public a reason to believe in us once again. We need to equalize the media bombardment of the anti-union lobbyists. My Google ads are 100% anti-union sites, wheres our paid advertising? Defeat lies with truth. When we educate John and Jane Public as to what unions fight for, when they truly believe in us, then we will have more of a right to ask them to vote for our candidates.

Shame on us for being so fucking complacent!

We keep buying the NY Post, who vehemently hates organized labor, we buy Carhartt clothes, who turned it's back on union construction workers who made them famous and has now removed their final 5 Made in the USA items from it's website and we buy Red Wing shoes without checking the label while they are quietly moving their operations to China. We invest against our own interests, we still shop in Wal-Mart, we showed that we didn't give a shit if it was made here, we don't care if a child made it, we don't care if it poisons our children. We bitch about our union leaders and don't make an effort for change. We made our bed.

40 years ago there would be a massive boycott of all their stores in the New York area, now we all just bend over and take it up the...

Like I said before, I took this story personal. My old warehouse job in Brooklyn which paid $700+ for 40 hours, is now being done for $460 for 115 hours (with no taxes being paid)

Yeah I'm mad, and you should be too