Submitted on Wed, 03/11/2009 - 1:01am
by Joe Tessone
03/03/09- The time is 8:55 AM, 5
minutes before my alarm clock was supposed to sound I am awoken by a
text message which says that Howard Schultz, Starbucks CEO and #1 union
buster, is having a press conference at the Oak and Rush Starbucks
location. I jump out of bed, get dressed, and haul downtown. By the
time I get there, the news cameras are gone. I look around and there he
is sitting behind a merchandise wall in an interview with a few
reporters. I order an Iced Tall Passion Tea… no need for caffeine, I’m
fired up.
My old District Manager is in the cafe
greeting customers and she asks me why I’m there. “Just getting a
drink,” I respond. She then proceeds to make a call on her cell phone,
obviously calling upper management. After I get my beverage, I find a
seat, set my bag down, and I approach him.
Submitted on Thu, 02/05/2009 - 5:46pm
1.why did you decide to messenger?
I
guess I decided to messenger for the same reason as most. I was living
in New Orleans at the time, and was about to lose my job. One day I was
hanging out downtown trying to figure out what to do with myself. A
bike messenger cut through an intersection, and I thought to myself
“that looks like a pretty cool job.” I went down to the only company
that was hiring, and started working the next day.
2.when did you start? has the time been on/off or straight?
Submitted on Fri, 01/09/2009 - 1:50am
THIS SATURDAY, JAN. 10TH
THE ILLINOIS WORLD LABOR HOUR
90.1 FM /
www.weft.org 11AM - 12 NOON ( CENTRAL TIME )
A LIVE TELEPHONE INTERVIEW WITH ROBERT AUSTIN OF THE CHICAGO INDUSTRIAL WORKERS OF THE WORLD ( IWW ).
TALKING ABOUT HIS EYE-WITNESS EXPERIENCE AS A PARTICIPANT IN THE REPUBLIC WINDOW AND DOOR FACTORY OCCUPATION WITH RANK AND FILE WORKERS OF THE UNITED ELECTRICAL WORKERS UNION ( UE ).
TUNE IN AT 11AM ( CST ) TO HEAR FELLOW WORKER AUSTIN DESCRIBE THE EVENT THAT SHOCKED THE RULING CLASS AND INSPIRED WORKERS AROUND THE WORLD.
WEFT 90.1 FM /
www.weft.org
LISTENER SUPPORTED COMMUNITY RADIO IN CHAMPAIGN IL.
Submitted on Thu, 12/11/2008 - 6:23pm
Press Release from UE Local 1110, posted in solidarity by IWW members:
Workers Vote to Get Pay; Occupation Ends!
After 6 days occupying the
plant, workers at Republic Window and Doors in Chicago voted to accept a
settlement late on December 10th.
The settlement totals $1.75million. It
will provide the workers with:
- Eight weeks of pay they are owed under
the federal WARN Act;
- Two months of continued health coverage, and;
-
Pay for all accrued and unused vacation.
JPMorgan Chase will provide
$400,000 of the settlement, with the balance coming from Bank of America.
Although the money will be provided as a loan to Republic Windows and Doors, it
will go directly into a third-party fund whose sole purpose is to pay the
workers what is owed them. In addition, the UE has started the "Window of
Opportunity Fund" dedicated to re-opening the plant.
As the Local 1110
leaders characterized the settlement, "We fought to make them pay what they owe
us, and we won." Read more about the settlement here.
We want to extend
a big THANK YOU to all of you who participated in this campaign. The tremendous
support and solidarity from the thousands of people like you around the country
- and the world - who took the time to send messages to Bank of America and who
rallied at banks across the country was crucial in winning this victory.
This is truly an historic victory for workers in the United States.
But this struggle is just the beginning! As the economic crisis deepens
we need to launch a working class fight back. Rallies for a "People's Bailout"
will continue today and throughout the rest of the week.
Click here to
find an action near you (updated daily)
http://www.jwj.org/bailout/12-08actions.html. You can also take action online:
- Tell Congress: We Demand a People's Bailout:
http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/peoplesbailout
- Save Autoworker Jobs:
http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/autoworkers
- VOTE NOW for Grinch of the
Year: http://www.jwj.org/grinch
Thanks again for all that you do! You
can see photos, video, and press clips from the Week of Action here:
http://www.jwj.org/bailout/12-08report.html
Submitted on Tue, 12/09/2008 - 3:39pm
From Chicago Indymedia
The worker occupation of the Republic Windows and Doors factory on Chicago's Goose Island by members of UE
(United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America) Local 1110
went into its third day on Sunday, and workers have vowed to continue
the occupation until they are paid back pay and benefits, or until the
plant is re-opened.
The occupation was declared on
Friday, the day the company moved to shutter the plant with only three
days notice — in violation of federal and state labor laws. Owners have
also cut off employees' insurance and failed to pay back pay. The
takeover has sparked a groundswell of support across the nation, with
rallies, e-mail campaigns, petition drives, fundraisers and plans for future actions. [ Updated news links ]
Company management blames the shut-down on Bank of America, which cut
their credit line — after BoA received $25 billion in federal bailout
money that the bank said they did not need. Since the bailout began,
BoA — like big banks across the globe — has slashed credit lines to
businesses, forcing a growing number of small and medium-sized
companies to shut down. Workers plan to meet with company and bank
representatives on Monday — and to picket BoA's LaSalle St. offices on
Tuesday if Republic's line of credit is not restored.
The action at Republic Windows comes on the heels of a drive to kick
out the company union, which had colluded with company owners and
management for years. That effort succeeded after three years of
struggle. Republic Windows' worker occupation is one of the first
actions of its kind in the United States since the Great Depression,
when a wave of sit-in strikes and factory occupations marked one of the
most militant phases in U.S. labor history.