Think about working in temperatures, upwards of 100 degrees on hot days.  Finding used hypodermic needles; human body parts, fluids and excrement; umbilical cords and other biohazard material from the Cleveland Clinic hospital system.   No safety harnesses for workers climbing over 10 feet in the air on scissor lifts.  Nonexistent water breaks and a minimal amount of fans to cool the facility on extremely hot days.   Now think about enduring all of this while earning $8.34 an hour.  Think I am talking about a sweatshop located in a third world country?  Well, think again.

I have just described some of the horrible conditions Sodexo Laundry workers in Cleveland, Ohio face on a daily basis.  It doesn’t stop there either.  Poor ventilation and circulation of the air causes oppressive heat inside the plant, even during cold weather.   One worker described going in and out of the plant like, “going from a stove to a refrigerator.”   Doors are thrown open in the winter, sending bone chilling drafts into areas of the facility, just increasing the uncomfortable surroundings the workers have to face.   Machines are overloaded and workers are expected to meet production

Continue reading Cleveland’s Own “Sweat” Shop

A campaign to save 300+ jobs at a Hugo Boss plant in suburban Cleveland  resulted in victory last week when the company reversed their decision to shutter the plant!  The workers, members of Workers United Local 10, voted overwhelmingly to approve a new union contract that preserves jobs and benefits.

The campaign to save these jobs started back in January, when Hugo Boss abruptly cut off contract negotiations after workers refused a $5/hr pay cut.  The company issued a WARN Act notice that they intended to close the plant on April 27 (the NLRB later found reasonable cause to believe that the company had violated the NLRA).  Hugo Boss, a high-end clothing line, reportedly intended to shift operations to Turkey, where labor costs are cheaper.

The campaign got a boost from celebrities, politicians, and labor-community solidarity.  Actor Danny Glover recruited fellow actors to not wear Hugo Boss on the red carpet this season, and came to Ohio to speak at a major rally with the workers on April 7th.  Ohio politicians, including Senator Sherrod Brown,

Continue reading Hugo Boss Will Stay Open in Ohio

It wasn’t very long ago that every time you looked at a clothing label you would see “Made in the USA.”  Not only was it made in the USA but it probably also had some sort of connection to a thriving garment industry in the Cleveland area.  Names like Joseph & Feiss Co, Bobbie Brooks, Printz-Biederman, Lion Knitting Mills, and Cleveland Worsted Mill dominated the industry and union cards kept people gainfully employed.

But this good thing has come to an end.  Now Hugo Boss, the last clothing manufacturer in Cleveland, has given notice of their intent to shutter their plant and permanently lay off 400 workers at the end of April.

Hugo is closing because they want to ship the jobs to a plant in Turkey where they can pay much less than the average current rate of $12 per hour they pay Cleveland employees.

Hugo management offered to stay if the employees were willing

Continue reading Hugo Boss Threatens to Move Overseas if Workers Refuse $4/Hr Pay Cut

Debbie Kline is Coordinator of Cleveland Jobs with Justice.

Unless you are a real news junkie and read the Business Section of your local newspaper or know one of the former employees, this is one story you may have missed.   

InkStop was a chain of 152 convenience stores for office supplies that stocked ink cartridges and small electronics.  The stores were located in small plazas in communities where big box office supply stores did not exist.   InkStop owner Dirk Kettlewell boasted that the chain would be profitable by the end of this year by using over $80 million from private investors.  This was supposed to be the “Sleeping Beauty” business story of the decade, but instead it turned into something that rivals “Psycho.”

The first blow came when all 152 InkStop stores were closed without warning on October 1st.  It was business as usual earlier in the day.  As the doors were locked for the night, the devastating news came via a faxed and emailed letter to employees

Continue reading InkStop Stores Dry Up, Owing Workers Pay and Health Care

Yet another example of why working people need the Employee Free Choice Act.  In 2006, warehouse workers in Lancaster, CA decided they wanted to form a union.  Despite the company’s attacks, a majority the of the workers voted to join ILWU Local 26 in March 2008.  But more than a year later, the workers have not been able to negotiate a first contract.

Today, as these workers continue fighting for a contract, Jobs with Justice is releasing a report to tell their story.  Rite Aid, Oliver J. Bell & Associates, and the Case for the Employee Free Choice Act documents how management employed union-busters and violated labor laws.  Last year, the National Labor Relations Board was prepared to charge Rite Aid with 49 unfair labor practice charges before the cases were settled out of court.

Unfortunately, the problems faced by workers when they formed a union at Rite Aid are all-too-common.  Profitable and unaccountable anti-union firms, like Oliver Bell and Associates, show companies how to

Continue reading Activists Hit Rite Aid Today in Support of Warehouse Workers, Employee Free Choice Act