A-Infos (en) US, Mineapolis, Jimmy Johns Workers Union (Industrial Workers of the World*) Spirited Picket Brings Block E Business to a Standstill as Management Refuses to Meet with Workers

Spirits were high and the air full of song on picket lines outside Jimmy Johns this 
afternoon as over 100 workers and supporters brought business to a near standstill. The 
picket was prompted by the refusal of Mike and Rob Mulligan, owners of the Miklin 
Enterprise franchise, to meet with their employees to discuss improvements in wages and 
working conditions. ---- Union members say they are undiscouraged by the owners' absence 
from the negotiating table. "We'll be out here until the Mulligans realize that workers 
can't make it on these poverty wages. We need consistent scheduling and more respect on 
the job. We need sick days. We need change. We're fired up and we're not going away until 
we see the changes we want," said Rikki Olsen, a union member at the Block E Jimmy Johns.

So far, the only response from the company has been a craigslist post advertising openings 
at all locations, with starting pay at $7.50, 25 cents more than current workers make.

Workers walked off the kitchen floor and presented demands this morning at all nine Miklin 
franchise locations, declaring their membership in the IWW Jimmy Johns Workers Union.

Representatives of the Jimmy Johns Workers Union will hold a press conference at 11AM to 
announce further actions to bring management to the table.

The demands of the IWW Jimmy Johns Workers Union include a pay increase to above minimum 
wage, consistent scheduling and minimum shift lengths, regularly scheduled breaks, sick 
days, no-nonsense workers compensation for job-related injuries, an end to sexual 
harassment at work, and basic fairness on the job.

The Minneapolis Jimmy John's franchise, owned and operated by Miklin Enterprises, Inc., 
pays the federal minimum wage of $7.25/hr, offers no benefits, and has no full-time 
positions outside of management. Jimmy Johns corporate website lists $264,270 as the 
average yearly net profit for operating a franchise. Union members estimate that Rob and 
Mike Mulligan, owners of Miklin, Inc. made an annual profit of at minimum $2.3 million in 
the last year alone. The Miklin franchise plans to open four new locations this year at an 
estimated cost of over $1.2 million.

The fast food workers' move to unionize is emblematic of mounting frustration amongst US 
workers with the sluggish pace of recovery from the Recession. With unemployment rates 
hovering around 9.5%, many workers view low wage service jobs as their only option. 
Employment in the food service industry is expected to grow 8.4% from 2008 to 2018, higher 
than the 7.7% rate predicted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics for all industries. Wages 
and working conditions in the fast food industry are widely regarded as substandard; in 
2009, 25% of workers in the service industry made less than $7.55 an hour, the highest 
percentage of any occupational group.

Related Links

Restaurant, Hotel, and Building Service Workers Industrial Union 640

Twin Cities GMB

Jimmy Johns Workers Union

http://www.iww.org/en/node/5162
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* An antiauthoritarian anticapitalist syndicate
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