Cafeteria Workers, Politicians, and Supporters Rally near Broadcom to Demand Cafeteria Contractor Code of Conduct

What: Contracted Cafeteria Workers from the Bay area Rally near Broadcom San Jose

Date/Time: February 28, 2007 at 4:30 PM

Location: 3151 Zanker Road, San Jose

Who: Café workers from High-Tech and Biotech Campuses in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, politicians, and UNITE HERE! presidents Bruce Raynor and John Wilhelm

Cafeteria workers who work for Guckenheimer Enterprises, along with UNITE HERE! General President Bruce Raynor and President-Hospitality John Wilhelm, elected officials, and community supporters will call on Broadcom to adopt a Responsible Contractor Code of Conduct. They will hand deliver a letter to Broadcom CEO Scott A. McGregor.

“I serve lunch at Broadcom. Even though I serve these people lunch and chat with them everyday, they don’t know that I struggle to afford dinner for my kids. I am proud of the good service I provide, and I want more for my family,” said Mireya Villalobos, a Guckenheimer catering worker who has worked at Broadcom for three years.

Contracted cafeteria workers from some of the most successful high tech and biotech companies in the South Bay who work full time but do not receive sufficient wages or benefits to provide for their families.

Broadcom has cafeterias in both its Irvine and San Jose sites and uses Guckenheimer Enterprises, a foodservice contractor, to operate its cafeterias in both locations.

The workers at Guckenheimer are joining together with community leaders and UNITE HERE! to form Service Workers Rising Campaign. Service Workers Rising is aimed at raising standards for contracted workers in the food service industry in the Bay Area and Silicon Valley.

A report by UNITE HERE! issued last year found that because food service contractors often offer inadequate benefits, many workers have to rely on state assistance. Food service workers earn 69 percent less than the median wage in the high tech/biotech corridor.

Broadcom is one of the more than fifty companies that contract their foodservice to Guckenheimer Enterprises in the Bay Area.