The devastating earthquake in Haiti is on everyone’s mind, and union members are among the many who are stepping up to help relief efforts on-the-ground and with financial support.
If you plan to make a financial contribution to support the recovery efforts in Haiti, consider donating to one of the organizations below. You can follow the links to learn more about how each group is contributing to the relief effort.
The Solidarity Center’s Earthquake Relief for Haitian Workers’ Campaign. You can learn more about what they are doing to help Haitian workers and their families here.
The TransAfrica Forum, a longtime ally of the labor movement, suggests donations to two organizations already providing aid on the ground in Haiti:
The United Church of Christ, longtime ally of Jobs with Justice and the labor movement, is collecting donations for their mission partners in Haiti. Read about their work here.
From the AFL-CIO blog, here is a sampling of what some unions in the United States are doing to support the relief efforts:
On November 3rd, members of the Mid-Willamette Valley Jobs with Justice came out to denounce the anti-union practices of BrucePAC, a private company that packages cooked meats in Silverton, OR. Over 40 community supporters showed at the main BrucePAC facility in Siverton to hand out information about the working condition and demanded an end to the intimidation and harrassment of the 350 workers. Workers there are trying to form a union with LIUNA Local 296.
The horror stories from workers sparked the community into action and is another example of why we need real labor law reform like the Employee Free Choice Act. More than 40 workers say they were fired for supporting the union organizing effort, female workers report being sexually harassed, and injured workers say they have been sent home and denied workers comp. BrucePac is also spending big money on union busting consultants to intimidate workers.
Workers that have been with the company several years still only make minimum wage! With current estimates showing BrucePAC having revenues close to $99 million in 2008, workers know Larry Bruce, President of BrucePAC, can do better.
Jobs with Justice was one of 521 organizations that signed an open letter to Obama criticizing the Presidents inactivity on immigration reform. The letter demands the “immediate termination” of the 287(g) program which allows local law enforcement agencies to essentially act as proxies for federal agents who investigate, apprehend, transport, and detain people who are suspected of being undocumented.
The national debate on health care continues to be front-and-center, and JwJ coalitions remain engaged on the ground.
St. Joseph Valley Project/JwJ in South Bend, Indiana went out to show their support for health reform when the so-called “Patients First National Bus Tour” came to town.
As a recent graduate of Florida State University and current National Coordinator for the Student Labor Action Project (SLAP), I am one of the few young workers among my friends and family who is a member of a labor union. This means that unlike many of my peers I have a healthcare plan, a retirement savings account, and a say in my working conditions and wages.
Sadly, this is not the case for the majority of young workers in the U.S. As shown in the report released today by the AFL-CIO & Working America, more than half of young workers under age 35 earn less than $30,000 per year. Thirty-one percent of young workers report that they have no health insurance and only forty-seven percent have retirement plans at work.
Even though many young workers have a college degree, they still aren’t able to pay their bills and become financially independent. Twenty-four percent say they do not make enough to pay their monthly bills. More than one in three workers under age 35 live at home with their parents.
These startling statistics clearly show that young workers must become a crucial part of the labor movement.
When security officers at the Philadelphia Museum of Art rallied against a recent roll-back of their $0.25/hr raise, they never guessed that their efforts would become an example in the nationwide debate over the Employee Free Choice Act. That’s what happened after an article by Sarah Jaffe appeared on the website of The Nation Magazine.
The guards hope that the arrival of the museum’s new director, Timothy Rub, will prompt workplace improvements. Thus far, they have they tried to communicate with Mr. Rub via written letters and phone calls. Their requests remain unanswered, so the guards decided to translate their message into a language sympathetic to the ears of the museum leaders: art. Today, the film entitled “Welcoming Change: A Message To Timothy Rub,” directed by David Stuart Randle from local media organization Media Mobilizing Project, will be released on the internet and will premier on screen at 4205 Chestnut St at 6:30 pm. The film will also be mailed to 100 local churches.
The security guards, with the help of Philadelphia JwJ, began organizing in 2007 in
Workers and community leaders in Dallas, TX and Pontiac, MI came together on August 18th to voice their concerns about the proposed merger between Pulte Homes and Centex Corporation. The merger would make it the largest home building company in the U.S.
The protests were organized as part of the “Building Justice” partnership between the Painters and Allied Trades union (IUPAT), the Sheet Metal Workers (SMWIA), the AFL-CIO, Pulte homeowners, community members, and elected officials to improve conditions at Pulte developments. Unions and community members are concerned about Pulte’s use of so-called “non-traditional” loans and about reports of sub-par working conditions.
North Texas Jobs with Justice was proud to join the Sheet Metal Workers, Painters, Laborers, and Ironworkers for a protest outside the Centex Construction Company’s stockholder meeting in Dallas.
The debate over the Employee Free Choice Act is going to heat up in the next few weeks. In Philadelphia, there is an effort underway that stands out as an example of why we need to pass this critical labor law reform.
A group of AlliedBarton security officers have been struggling since 2005 to win better wages and benefits. Over the years they have used innovative direct-action strategies to win union level wages at the University of Pennsylvania and paid sick days at Temple University, Drexel University and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Despite these victories, they have watched as their hard fought gains have been eroded by their employer. For example, on Labor Day last year, the Philadelphia Museum of Art announced that they would give the security guards three days of paid sick leave. The very next week, after the news cameras had gone away, the new benefit was clarified. Workers were eligible to have up to three days of paid sick leave. In order to get that level of benefit, they had to have been employed, full time, at the same property for three years. In fact, less than 1/3 of the guards
On Sunday, August 9 workers from the Lumiere and President Casinos had reason to stand tall as they learned the National Labor Relations board handed down a scathing ruling against their employer, Pinnacle Entertainment. The rulings call on Pinnacle to finally begin bargaining with the workers’ union, Workers United Local 74.
The workers and their union had an “all star” cast of support on hand, including actor Danny Glover (pictured here). Also on hand were members of the St. Louis Workers Rights Board, elected officials, and area union leaders from throughout the labor movement.
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 Actdocuments 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 manipulate and flout labor laws with little or no consequences.
The Employee Free Choice Act could make a huge difference in cases like
JwJ Executive Director Sarita Gupta gave an interview to the Real News Network last week about the fight for the Employee Free Choice Act and why labor and community allies are continuing to mobilize for labor law reform.
Security Guards at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, after 
The debate over the Employee Free Choice Act is going to heat up in the next few weeks. In Philadelphia, there is an effort underway that stands out as an example of why we need to pass this critical labor law reform.
On Sunday, August 9 workers from the Lumiere and President Casinos had reason to stand tall as they learned the National Labor Relations board handed down a scathing ruling against their employer, Pinnacle Entertainment. The rulings call on Pinnacle to finally begin bargaining with the workers’ union, Workers United Local 74. 
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 