Author Archives for Ann Kammerer
750 Centerplate workers stop work at home of San Francisco Giants after three years of wage freezes
[San Francisco, CA] 750 workers began a one-day strike May 25th against Centerplate, the San Francisco Giants’ food and beverage subcontractor. The strike is a significant escalation in the workers’ campaign to achieve a new contract with wage increases, decent benefits, and job security. Centerplate workers have not had a wage increase since the last contract expired in March 2010. The workers will return to work on Sunday.
“This strike should be a wake-up call to Centerplate and the Giants.” says Patricia Ramirez a cook for 13 years. “We want a new contract with wage increases, health care, and job security, and we’re willing to fight for it.”
Negotiations have been at a standstill between Centerplate and the concession workers’ union. Centerplate’s proposal would severely limit workers’ access to healthcare and keep in place the three year wage freeze from 2010-1012, despite the incredible financial success of the baseball team and its concessionaire over those years. Concession workers voted by 97% to authorize the union to call up to 5 days of strike and a boycott of concessions.
“Groceries, gas, public transportation – everything has gone up in price over the last three years, including the prices at the ballpark. But we haven’t had a wage increase since April 2009,” says Julie Nordman, a concession worker for 20 years. “My stand alone brings in over $20,000 a game. Why can’t we share in the success?”
The concession workers’ primary dispute is with their direct employer, Centerplate, and not the Giants. Picket lines will encourage fans to enjoy the game, but to refrain from purchasing food from Centerplate. The Giants play the Rockies today at 1pm.
“Hopefully Centerplate and the Giants will realize how important we are to the fan experience at AT&T Park,” says Patricia. “I’m on strike because I want to see Centerplate come back to the negotiating table with a proposal that shows respect for the work we do.”
UNITE HERE Local 2 represents 12,000 hospitality workers in San Francisco and San Mateo Counties.
For more information, go to www.thegiantzero.org
Tuesday, May 21, 2013, over 50 UNITE HERE members of Local 100, Local 7, Local 23 and an Officer of Local 17 Minnesota gathered at 7:30am to attend a Senate Judiciary Committee Immigration mark-up public hearing on Capitol Hill. Members patiently stood in line proudly wearing UH red t-shirts waiting for the meeting to begin (10:30 a.m.). "I am honored to be a part of this process, as an immigrant and worker," said one member. "I am here in support of my family members and many others who are fighting for worker’s rights, family reunification and much more," said another member. All members in attendance were in agreement with Fr. Clete Kiley, "It was a rewarding experience to participate in the development of one of the most important pieces of legislation in our life time." President D-Taylor, Tom Snyder, Maria Elena Durazo (and others) congratulated the attendees on a job well done, especially those Locals that traveled many hours to Washington, D.C.
Update: A compromise agreement was reached last evening by the Judiciary Committee, the bill passed 13-5 largely intact, to the full Senate for a vote. Learn more.
Workers Take Action to Demand an End to Casino Management-Led Anti-Union Intimidation Campaign
PITTSBURGH, May 16 – Workers at Rivers Casino protested for over an hour today, May 16, 2013, in front of the casino main entrance, leading a picket of several hundred Pittsburgh union members and community allies to demand an end to anti-union intimidation led by casino management.
"I’m here to hold Rivers Casino to its promise of good jobs," said Matthew Arling, a bartender at the casino since 2011. "I want the same opportunity that casino workers had at The Meadows to make their jobs better."
Workers at Rivers have had to endure intimidation tactics and anti-union harassment beginning the day they went public with an organizing campaign to secure respect on the job and better working conditions.
Today’s action in front of Rivers Casino followed Tuesday’s City Council vote calling on the Pittsburgh casino to "fulfill its promise of good jobs for our community."
"When the casino came to Pittsburgh they promised they would be a good corporate neighbor to this community. Being a good corporate neighbor means providing good quality jobs," Councilman Daniel Lavelle pointed out Tuesday.
Hourly workers at Rivers Casino have formed the Steel City Casino Workers’ Council Organizing Committee to hold Rivers Casino to its broken "good jobs" promises.
Rev. David Thornton of Grace Memorial Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh’s Hill District kicked off the picket on the bullhorn.
Steel City Casino Workers Council
The Steel City Casino Workers Council Organizing Committee is made up of workers at Rivers Casino with support by UNITEHERE Local 57, Teamsters Local 211, Operating Engineers Local 95, and the United Steelworkers. Members of the coalition and its affiliates include over 100,000 casino industry workers in Las Vegas, Atlantic City, and The Meadows in Washington, PA.
Concessions workers at the San Francisco Giants’ AT&T Park Saturday to authorize a strike. 516 workers voted, approving a strike by 97%. The vote authorizes union leadership to call for any action including up to a five-day strike and a boycott of food and beverage at the park.
“We sent a clear message today to Centerplate and the Giants. 97% gives us the power and authority we need to win a fair contract,” said Billie Feliciano, a concessions worker at Giants games since 1978.
Negotiations are at a standstill between Centerplate – the Giants’ subcontracted concessionaire – and the concession workers’ union, UNITE HERE Local 2. Workers are seeking job security through a successorship clause, along with fair wage increases and improved health care. Centerplate, on the other hand, is proposing to severely limit access to healthcare, and to maintain a wage freeze for the last three years with a 25 cent raise for 2013 as well as another 25 cent raise for 2014.
“Job security is really important to me and my family. I travel two hours to come and serve Giants fans. I really do love my job, but this vote was a landslide. With this vote, I feel confident that we are going to win this contract,” said Anthony Wendlberger.
Visit www.thegiantzero.org for more about the dispute.
To support the concession workers, sign the petition here.
Our union sister Patty and union brother Billy lost their beloved family member Krystle Campbell at the Boston Marathon. Patty has been with UNITE HERE Local 26 since 1983, and Billy has been with UNITE HERE since 2000. In the aftermath of this unimaginable loss, donations from our union family are appreciated.
Personal gifts to the Campbell family. If you would like to make a personal gift to the Campbell family to help them with their costs during this difficult time, please make gifts as follows:
You will not be eligible for an income tax charitable deduction for making this gift.
The Krystle Campbell Memorial Fund at The Boston Foundation. If you would like to make a charitable gift in memory of Krystle Campbell, please contribute to the Krystle Campbell Memorial Fund at The Boston Foundation. The Memorial Fund will be used to make gifts in honor and remembrance of Krystle to charitable causes important to Krystle and her family. Gifts should be made as follows:
- Online gifts can be made using this link: http://www.tbf.org/giving/make-a-gift/krystle-campbell-memorial-fund
- Checks should be payable to “The Boston Foundation”, and should reference the Krystle Campbell Memorial Fund in the memo line. Please mail checks to: The Boston Foundation, Fund Administration, 75 Arlington Street, 10th Floor, Boston, MA 02116
You may be eligible for an income tax charitable deduction for making a contribution to The Boston Foundation, which is a section 501(c)(3) public charity.
The One Fund Boston. If you would like to make a charitable gift to benefit those affected by the Marathon bombings, please consider contributing to The One Fund Boston. Please visit www.onefundboston.org for more information.
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If you would like to make a non-deductible personal gift to the family of Krystle Campbell, go to: http://www.youcaring.com/memorial-fundraiser/supporting-krystle-campbell-s-family/56447
If you would like to make a charitable gift to a memorial fund that will be used for charitable causes important to Krystle and her family, go to: http://www.tbf.org/giving/make-a-gift/krystle-campbell-memorial-fund
If you would like to make a charitable gift to benefit those affected by the Marathon bombings, go to: www.onefundboston.org
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Welcome to the 70 Aramark cafeteria workers at Simmons College — the newest members of Boston’s Local 26 who voted overwhelmingly to join the union on April 24th. The action started heating up in February, when workers, together with students, faculty, and alumni, presented Aramark’s general manager at the college with a petition signed by over 75% of the workers. In March, students formed a new campus group, the Fighting Injustice Now at Simmons coalition (FINS), and many hundreds of campus allies (students, student groups, faculty, and alumni) signed onto a petition of support for the cafeteria workers. Later that month, hundreds of members of the campus community came together on campus to show how much the workers are valued as important members of the community. The student government and the faculty senate of the College of Arts and Sciences also passed resolutions- unanimously- supporting the workers. While all of this was going on all over campus, the workers repeatedly showed their solidarity and determination by wearing union buttons at work, by participating in delegations and meetings with Aramark and with college administrators and faculty.
Estella Cosby, a cook who has worked at Simmons for nine years, described what happened: “We made a family out of ourselves because all we had was each other. I got to know the students and professors, I shared a little about myself, they shared a little about themselves, and then students became like my sisters and daughters, and professors became like my aunts and mothers.” The Aramark workers at Simmons were also supported by the Bon Appetit workers at Lesley University who organized into Local 26 earlier this spring.
Claremont – Pomona College Dining Hall workers voted in favor of joining UNITE HERE Local 11 on Tuesday. A group of workers, joined by student and faculty allies, erupted in emotional applause as the results were read. The victory closes a long chapter in the workers’ struggle to gain union representation, which publicly began when they announced their intention to form a union in March 2010.
While the college administration pledged to refrain from intimidating the workers, their three-year campaign was wrought with controversy. The union campaign attracted national media attention and ignited a debate about the rights of immigrant workers. In 2011, the administration instituted a gag rule barring students and workers from talking in the dining halls. The rule was ultimately rescinded by the college, after the NLRB’s general counsel charged that it violated federal labor law.
"This is as much your victory as it is ours," Crystal Flores, a Pomona cook, said to a group of student supporters through a stream of tears. "We could never have done this without all of you."
Isabel Juarez, a Pomona senior, echoed that sentiment. "Today is a victory for everyone at Pomona," said Juarez "This was a long and difficult journey, and I am elated to see how far we’ve come."
Students, faculty members and alumni have supported the workers throughout their campaign, sending letters to the administration, signing petitions and joining in protests. Dining hall workers who helped organize the union say that the support of the Pomona community was critical to their victory.
Victor Silverman, a Professor of History at Pomona, remarked on the significance of the workers’ victory for the entire college community. "The educational institution has been, in a sense, turned over," said Silverman. "The workers are teaching us what it means to have a voice and to have power in this institution. You will continue to make this place a true institution of learning, and a place true to its values."
"I hope that this is another step in the direction of healing the Pomona community," said Pomona alum Francisco Dueñas. "As an alum, I know the workers are a part of our community and that’s why I’ve always supported them."
The workers will become members of UNITE HERE Local 11, a union that represents 20,000 hospitality and food service workers in Southern California. The UNITE HERE International Union represents food service workers at more than 100 colleges and universities in the US and Canada. While most college cafeterias are run by outside contractors, Pomona College oversees its own food service operation.
Watch the video below of workers, students, and faculty allies in response to the vote count:
Contract represents path forward while Hyatt is still at odds with workers
[CHICAGO] – UNITE HERE Local 1 and Local 450 have reached a contract settlement with Hilton Hotels preempting the expiration of current contracts, which expire on August 31, 2013. The agreement covers over 600 workers from the Drake, Palmer House Hilton, Chicago Hilton, and Hilton O’Hare. Hilton is the first major hotel employer to step forward to reach a settlement with workers, presenting a path forward for hotel workers and other hotel companies in Chicago.
The new five year agreement improves job security and provides economic improvements for hotel workers and their families. Hilton workers are among over 6,000 hotel workers in Chicago and area suburbs whose contracts are set to expire this year. The settlement with Hilton is a departure from the last round of protracted citywide negotiations that lasted two years.
"This is a positive step for the hotel industry in which Hilton is leading," said UNITE HERE Local 1 President Henry Tamarin. "We’re coming off very strong contracts from 2009, and this is a continuation of a decade of work to achieve middle class jobs for hotel workers in the City."
A tentative agreement has been reached with Starwood Hotels, and workers at Hyatt hotels have been without a contract since August 31, 2009. Since that time, Hyatt workers have taken numerous actions, including strikes and the launch of a global boycott in response to unsafe working conditions for hotel housekeepers and Hyatt’s practice of subcontracting jobs.
"It’s refreshing that we’ve been able to reach an agreement without a lengthy battle. Hyatt workers have been without a contract for four years," said Flavio Gonzalez, Hilton server. "Now, in Hyatt’s hometown, Hilton has settled before our contract even expired. Hyatt has a lot to learn from Hilton."
In the last decade, hotel workers who are members of UNITE HERE Local 1 have made significant gains in wages and benefits. Workers receive low-cost, high-quality healthcare, which is free for individuals and only $30 a month for families. Chicago housekeepers went from making just $8.83 an hour in 2002 to $16.40 an hour today.
On April 20, hundreds of Baltimore residents rallied to demand an end to the city’s failed development policies, which subsidize developers without ensuring public benefits. The march began at the construction site for the planned Horseshoe Casino and continued past the Hyatt Regency, which has been identified as a symbol of Baltimore’s failed development policies. Mike Jones, a dishwasher at the hotel, said, "The Hyatt Regency received the benefit of public subsidies with the expectation that development would bring good jobs, yet today many of my coworkers work as temps, making barely more than minimum wage, with no hope of a permanent job." The Fair Development Campaign calls for development projects that benefit the communities most in need and provide living wage jobs for Baltimore residents, as well as transparency, accountability, and meaningful community participation in the development process.
Read the press coverage below:
Just weeks after food service workers at O’Hare Airport released “Putting Sustainability on the Table: Airport Workers’ Vision for $3 Billion of Food and Drink at O’Hare”—a report in which they made recommendations to the City of Chicago on sustainable food concessions at the country’s second-busiest airport—the Chicago Department of Aviation (CDA) has announced a new Green Concessions Policy.
The Green Concessions Policy advances the CDA’s sustainability program by requiring concessionaires to focus on the use of renewable resources in consumer packaging, disposable utensils, cleaning products, trash bags, and food. It also includes requirements around recycling and donating surplus food—two sustainable practices highlighted by workers in their recommendations to the City. The Green Concessions Policy is an exciting step towards sustainable food practices at the airport and workers are encouraged by the CDA’s demonstrated commitment to these issues.
Chris Williams, a server at Wicker Park Sushi said, “I think policies like requiring sustainable foods and donating surplus food items to local charities will help a lot of people. It’s also good to see the city listening to the people who really drive the airport, the people who work there.”
As the City of Chicago and CDA prepare to set guidelines for companies interested in providing food service at O’Hare Airport, workers are calling on the City to ensure that those guidelines include sustainable food practices by way of scratch-cooking concepts; healthy, vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options; locally grown produce; eco-friendly waste disposal methods; food donation; and job stability and training opportunities for current food service workers.
Read more at Real Food Real Jobs.