A-Infos (en) US, NYC, Help Wobbly Food Warehouse Workers Fight Back Against Nasty Bosses!

Community Support and Solidarity Needed! --- Schedule of Events:
Thursday December 28th: Leafleting action from 5pm 7pm, meet at park 
slope food co-op at union St. between 6th and 7th ave
Friday December 29th: Leafleting action from 7pm -9pm, meet at park 
slope food co-op at union St. between 6th and 7th ave ? (come only if 
you are not planning on attending Fair Food event http://fairfoodnyc.org/)
Saturday December 30th: Leafleting action from 7pm -9pm, meet at park 
slope food co-op at union St. between 6th and 7th ave
Sunday December 31st: Leafleting action from 7pm -9pm meet at 116th and 
Broadway on the east side of the street.
Tuesday January 2nd: March with workers on Amersino! Followed by picket 
from 5am ? 10am. We know that's early, but the workers need your 
solidarity! Meet at the corner of Metropolitan and Gardner in Green 
Point, Brooklyn. Take the L train to Grand St. and walk east on Grand 
over the bridge to Metropolitan. Follow Metropolitan for 3 more blocks 
to the corner of Gardner and Metropolitan. Interested in crashing nearby 
on January 1st? Contact Tomer!

If you are interested in attending the march or the leafleting actions 
please let us know by emailing iww.nyc@gmail.com or contact Tomer Malchi 
at (646) 753-1167.
For updates on actions visit wobblycity.org or IWW.org

More will be forthcoming as the situation develops - IWW organizers are 
expecting a major battle against management in coming weeks. Here is a 
bit about the history of the workers of the IWW Food Industry and Allied 
Workers Union and their struggle:

WAREHOUSE BOSSES' CHRISTMAS GIFT:
ILLEGAL RETALIATION AGAINST IMMIGRANT UNION MEMBERS

Brooklyn, New York ? On January 2nd 2007 at 5:00AM workers from the Food 
Industry and Allied Workers Union (Industrial Workers of the World, I.U. 
460/640) and supporters will bring in the New Year with a march and 
picket line.

This week owners from four different warehouses illegally threatened to 
call immigration or terminate union workers due to their immigration 
status in clear retaliation for the workers' union activities. Tuesday's 
march and picket will target Amersino Marketing Group, 161 Gardner Ave, 
Brooklyn, NY.

Over the last year and half, food distribution warehouse workers in 
northern Brooklyn and Queens have organized a union with the IWW. The 
campaign has met with resounding success: workers have organized in five 
different warehouses, several of which have been certified in National 
Labor Relations Board (NLRB) elections, they have forced their bosses 
towards full compliance with wage and hour laws, and they have won 
several major wage and hour violation cases while still other complaints 
totaling more than $100,000 have been filed with the Department of Labor.
>
Thanks to the efforts of the Food Industry and Allied Workers Union, 
workers have witnessed an increasing number of bosses abide by minimum 
wage and overtime laws across the food distribution industry. As a 
result of their successes, workers have met escalating employer 
opposition. While this week's coordinated threats by warehouse owners 
regarding workers' immigration status may be their trump card, it 
represents only the latest in a series of unsavory maneuvers designed to 
hamper the union drive.

Last year, Amersino owner Yu Q "Henry" Wang, who has robbed workers out 
of hundreds of thousands of dollars in wages, responded to workers 
exercising their lawful right to organize by threatening workers, 
deceitfully rigging an NLRB union election, and firing union leaders.

Lester Wen, owner of the restaurant wholesaler EZ-Supply, refused to 
bargain in good faith after workers won an NLRB union election almost a 
year ago. In response, the union has put pressure on EZ-Supply by 
targeting its customers ? restaurants in park slope, the upper west side 
and the village ? and convincing them to switch to other companies. At 
the end of November, the union and Mr. Wen's lawyer reached a tentative 
agreement on a landmark contract, with workers winning wage increases, a 
grievance procedure, paid time off and much more ( 
http://www.iww.org/en/node/3052). On December 26, 2006, in a shockingly 
crass maneuver, Lester "the Grinch" Wen and his lackeys reneged on the 
agreement reached in negotiations and illegally threatened workers 
regarding their immigration status. In response, workers walked off the 
job in a wildcat strike and only returned after the union assured them 
that legal action would be taken.

The IWW Food Industry and allied Workers Union calls on the owners of 
EZ-Supply, Amersino, Handyfat, and Top City Produce to cease its 
anti-union activities, reinstate fired workers, and to negotiate 
contract with the union in good faith. The legal institutions in NYC 
must act immediately to secure the rights of workers to organize and 
protect workers from the unlawful retaliatory activities of employers in 
the food industry.
_______________________________________________
A-infos-en mailing list
A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
http://ainfos.ca/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/a-infos-en
http://ainfos.ca/en