[Via... http://www.egroups.com/group/Communist-Internet ] . . ----- Original Message ----- From: CLR <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Tuesday, May 15, 2001 9:38 PM Subject: May Index Labor Alerts (11,500 subscribers), a free service of: Campaign for Labor Rights Phone: 202-544-9355, fax: 202-544-9359 Trim Bissell, National Co-Coordinator Daisy Pitkin, Co-Coordinator, <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Web site: <www.summersault.com/~agj/clr> To subscribe/unsubscribe, contact <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> <><><><><> Campaign for Labor Rights' Monthly Index. Posted May 15, 2001 Table of Contents: RAPID ACTION NETWORK CAMPAIGNS {CLR's Rapid Action Network is mobilized in solidarity with these anti-sweatshop struggles.} -Kuk Dong, manufacturing for Nike and Reebok, Mexico -Chentex, bluejeans, Nicaragua -PCUN, US Farmworkers in Oregon SWEATSHOP BULLETINS -Struggle at Challenger Garments factory, Bangladesh -Second negotiation attempt with Adidas failed DOMESTIC LABOR STRUGGLES -New York passes legislation supporting farmworker organizing -A call to freedom and the juneteenth march and rally -Union wins a victory in strike at Washington ACORN -RA, Undergraduate Union at Amherst INTERNATIONAL LABOR ISSUES -Otto Reich nominated for State Department JOB POSTINGS -ACERCA seeks Campaign Coordinator -NISGUA seeks Executive Director -USAS to hire 3 new staff OTHER IMPORTANT STUFF -CLR booklet - "Globalization in Our Own Front Yard" -Mobilization for Global Justice Sept/Oct in Washington, DC -Alliance for Global Justice booklet on FTAA -International Anti-Nike day was huge success -USAS summer conference, Loyola, Chicago, Aug.2-5 -Harvard living-wage sit-in lasts 3 weeks -Summer program to study labor in Nicaragua -Scholarships for Progressive Student Activists -Walk for Farmworker Justice, June 18-24, Oregon -Aug. 1-12 Delegation to Mexico -Starbucks Global Days of Action -People's Global Action Bus Tour LINKS TO ARTICLES/PAPERS/WEB SITES -Web site for Barcelona Actions against the World Bank -FTAA Diary -"Untold Stories" series Commemorates Labor History Month -Report on Colombian Genocide Against Unionists -AFL-CIO supports undocumented workers <><><><><> MOBILIZED CAMPAIGNS (3 entries) **Kuk Dong (Mexico/Nike): Kuk Dong is a factory in Puebla, Mexico that produces for Nike and Reebok (among others). The clothes get sold in their outlets as well as on University campuses across the U.S. Kuk Dong has been the site of a struggle for freedom of association since Jan. 9, 2001 when the majority of the workers in the factory went on a wildcat strike in support of 5 workers were fired for leading a campaign to organize an independent union. Days later, as the workers occupied the factory grounds, 200 riot police raided the strike. Several workers were severely beaten, and 15 were sent to the hospital. Two days later, an agreement was reached to allow the strikers to return to work without reprisals, but shortly after, hundreds of the returning workers were either fired or forced to resign. On March 18, the independent union supporters at Kukdong met the legal requirements for recognition-this group now calls itself SITEKIM. Despite the management's promises to reinstate union supporters, Santiago Perez, one of the 5 leaders fired for opposing the CROC (company dominated union), continues to be denied access to his job at the factory. Nike must make a commitment to a free and fair election at Kukdong that will include a secret ballot process. This process was denied workers at the Duro paper bag factory, and is integral to a democratic election process. Nike also must pressure the local government in Puebla to accept the registro (union registration) filed by the independent union, SITEKIM. Campaign for Labor Rights has developed a list of our Rapid Action Network activists who are located in communities where there are key Nike targets. Over the next few weeks, we'll be contacting those activists to put them in touch with students in their area who have been active on the campaign. In this way, we hope to keep the pressure up on Nike through the summer. ~for more information contact Campaign for Labor Rights, [EMAIL PROTECTED], 202-544-9355, or call United Students Against Sweatshops, www.usasnet.org, 202-667-9328. **Chentex (Nicaragua/Kohl's): Chentex is a factory in the Las Mercedes Free Trade Zone outside of Managua, Nicaragua. It is owned by a Taiwanese business consortium named Nien Hsing. The factory employs 1,800 workers who produce 25,000 pairs of jeans each day. These workers, mostly young single moms, make on average 20 cents per pair of jeans they sew. The jeans get sold in Kohl's stores in the U.S. for 30 dollars. In April and May of last year, the factory's management fired 700 workers for who were affiliated with a union that was working to get an 8 cents wage increase. Since that time, solidarity activists in the U.S., Taiwan, and internationally have mobilized in support of the Chentex workers right to organize. There have been over 400 actions at Kohl's stores, and about 4,000 letters have been written to Kohl's, Nien Hsing, and officials in Nicaragua. The Chentex struggle has been instrumental in encouraging union organizing drives in several factories in the Las Mercedes FTZ. On Wednesday April 4th, 2001, the Managua Court of Appeals, in a 2 to 1 decision, ruled in favor of Chentex union leaders in their third and final legal appeal to be reinstated to their jobs. This court ruling increased the pressure on Chentex management, and on May 10, the management and the union signed an historic agreement providing for the re-hiring of 4 union leaders and 17 union members. This is a precedent setting victory for us all! ~for more information contact the Campaign for Labor Rights, [EMAIL PROTECTED], 202-544-9355, or the Nicaragua Network, [EMAIL PROTECTED] **PCUN (Oregon/NORPAC): PCUN is a farmworkers' union in Oregon that has been engaged in the struggle for a collective bargaining agreement for years. Recently, the union, in their campaign to boycott NORPAC, has had several important victories. On the heels of Bon Appetite food service's decision to boycott NORPAC, the Director of Marketing and Communications for Sodexho Marriott told the Varsity News (the student newspaper of the University of Toronto) that "we've asked distributors to block shipments of NORPAC products to all Canadian units." This action follows students at the University of Toronto awarding the company with the First Annual Dishonorable Service Award in recognition of the following contributions and unaccountability: private for-profit prisons, supporting sweatshops, high prices and really bad food." Sodexho's compliance with the boycott helps build the international movement to bring NORPAC growers to the table with the PCUN union, and it will build momentum for the upcoming Walk for Justice, June 18-24 through the fields of the Willamette Valley (see announcements below in this Index). The continued support of U.S. grassroots activists is key to achieving the goal of the boycott; for NORPAC growers to finally negotiate collective bargaining agreements with farmworkers who desire union representation. ~for more information contact Campaign for Labor Rights, [EMAIL PROTECTED], 202-544-9355 or check PCUN's website: www.pcun.org <><><><><> SWEATSHOP BULLETINS (2 entries) **Struggle at Challenger Garments Factory, Bangladesh Challenger Garments is a small garment factory in New Eskaton road Dhaka, Bangladesh. The workers at the factory have been engaged in a struggle over back pay with their managers for several months, and on April 25th, this struggle led them to stage a sit-down strike inside the plant. ~for more information on this struggle, check the Workers' Solidarity Alliance on the internet, http://flag.blackened.net/agony/wsa.html **Second Negotiation Attempt with Adidas Failed For the second time within one year, Adidas-Salomon has broken off an attempt to come to an agreement with the German Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC) on a pilot project for the monitoring of social standards with suppliers in Central America. The CCC informed Adidas' Global Director for Social - and Environment Questions, David Husselbee, in a statement at the 4/5/01, that they find the reasons for the cancellation not very convincing. After Adidas had gotten negative press in the last years because of dirty labor practices at its world-wide suppliers, the company appeared to be ready in the beginning of 2000 to complete an agreement with the CCC for the realization of a pilot-project in El Salvador, in which local organizations would actively participate. After initial progress, however, Adidas broke off the negotiations in April 2000 for the reason that the proposed Monitoring-Net GMIES would not be independent enough, thereby also wiping of the table the experiences this same organization had with US company the GAP. ~for more information, contact, Clean Clothes Campaign, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, tel: + 31 20 4122785, fax: + 31 20 4122786, e-mail:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <><><><><> DOMESTIC LABOR ISSUES (4 entries) **New York passes legislation supporting farmworker organizing The New York Assembly passed A7207 today. This bill removes all farmworker exclusions from the New York's labor laws. Among other things, it would guarantee farmworkers collective bargaining rights, vertime, and a voluntary day of rest. ~for more information, contact the Farmworker Legal Services of New York, 845-255-1884, or check www.flsny.org **A Call to Freedom and Juneteenth March and Rally On June 16th, join the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC), AFL-CIO, and the Black Workers for Justice (BWJ) in Raleigh, NC. This event will promote the unity of Black and Latino workers in the new movement for justice. Celebrating the emancipation of black slaves and calling to the emancipation of the new slaves: undocumented immigrants. ~for more information contact Beatriz Maya at FLOC, 1221 Broadway, Toledo, OH 43609, 419-243-3456, [EMAIL PROTECTED] **Union Wins a Victory in Strike at Washington ACORN Seattle, WA. In the ongoing labor dispute between workers represented by the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) and the management of Washington ACORN, the workers who have been on strike for over two months got some good news. They are to be paid back wages for the full amount since they offered to return to work over a month ago. ~for more information, contact, 206-706-6250, e-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] **RA, Undergraduate Union at Amherst AMHERST, Mass. (April 11, 2001)-A majority of the 360 Resident Assistants at UMass, Amherst have formed a union, and have filed a union election petition with the Massachusetts Labor Relations Commission. On April 6, RAs and members of the UAW marched in mass to Chancellor Scott's demanding union recognition. The union and the UMass administration met on April 9 where Associate Provost Susan Pearson, speaking on behalf of Chancellor Scott, denied recognition of the RA union and also refused to sign a neutrality agreement where the university would agree to not wage an anti-union campaign against the RAs. Ras, who are mostly undergraduate student workers, are paid only $50 per week for 20 hours of work. ~for more information, contact Seth Hemond and Tim Scott, UAW Local 2322, (413) 577-2629. <><><><><> INTERNATIONAL LABOR ISSUES (1 entry) **Otto Reich Nominated to State Department Otto Reich, whose credentials include being a key player in the contra war and being one of the original members of Worldwide Responsible Apparel Production (WRAP-a sweatshop monitoring group set up by the apparel industry to whitewash labor rights abuses around the world), has been nominated to be Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs. Join the growing movement to oppose his appointment to this position that would give him incredible power over the lives of people and workers throughout the Americas. ~for more information, contact the Center for International Policy, 202-232-3317, [EMAIL PROTECTED], www.ciponline.org, also check out Peter Kornbluh's article in the May 7, 2001 edition of the Nation, entitled "Bush's Contra Buddies." <><><><><> JOB POSTINGS (3 entries) **ACERCA Seeks Campaign Coordinator on Central America and Colombia ACERCA (Action for Community and Ecology in the Regions of Central America) is seeking a campaigner to work on the complex issues surrounding the Central American Region with an added emphasis on Colombia. Located in Burlington, VT, The position will require understanding the impacts of corporate globalization in the region (including the role of the FTAA, World Bank/IMF, WTO, Plan Puebla Panama, dry canal megaprojects and transnational corporations) and how they relate to indigenous issues, militarization, and the environment. Deadline: Monday, June 4, 2001. ~for more information email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Send resume with cover letter and three references to ACERCA, Central America & Colombia Campaign Coordinator, PO Box 57, Burlington, VT 05402 **NISGUA Seeks Executive Director The Network in Solidarity with the People of Guatemala (NISGUA) is a 20-year old nationwide grassroots organization for social justice and human rights in Guatemala. Our current campaign focuses on supporting democratic processes in Guatemala and on changing U.S. foreign policy towards a more responsible approach to Guatemala and the region as a whole. NISGUA is active in many cross-issue coalitions and there is a lot of room for initiative, influence, and professional development. We are a small team with excellent interpersonal relations, non-hierarchical decision-making, and diverse senses of humor. We are looking for a dedicated, motivated, and visionary individual to be our fearless leader. Deadline for applications: May 25. Position located in Washington, D.C. ~for more information, or to apply, send cover letter, resume, two short writing samples and list of three references to Executive Director Search, NISGUA, 1830 Connecticut Ave. N.W., Washington D.C. 20009, [EMAIL PROTECTED], fax: 202 223 8221. **United Students Against Sweatshops to hire 3 new staff USAS is hiring for 3 positions at their national office in Washington, DC. The positions are Program Coordinator, Fundraising and Communications Coordinator, and Field Organizer. ~for position descriptions and information on applying, contact the USAS office, 202-NOSWEAT <><><><><> OTHER IMPORTANT STUFF (12 entries) **CLR Booklet: "Globalization in Our Own Front Yard" This 24 page pocket booklet examines the impacts of corporate-driven economic globalization in the U.S on issues ranging from prisons, agriculture, the environment, and various labor rights issues. ~for more information or to place an order contact the Campaign for Labor Rights, 202-544-9355, [EMAIL PROTECTED] **Mobilization for Global Justice Sept/Oct in Washington D.C. The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank will be holding their Joint Annual General Meetings in Washington, DC from September 28 to October 4, 2001. A variety of groups, including the Campaign for Labor Rights, have called on activists to converge in D.C. that week to protest the policies of these two undemocratic international institutions. An organizing listserve for the coordination and networking among activists for the counter actions has been established. ~to subscribe to this list, send a blank email message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] for information on the policies of the IMF and the World Bank, check out the 50 Years is Enough web site at www.50years.org **Alliance for Global Justice Booklet on FTAA The Alliance for Global Justice's newest pocket booklet is a great tool for popular education and organizing work on the FTAA. Entitled "Free Trade Area of the Americas: Demystifying the Corporate Jargon," the 28-page, booklet translates FTAA "tradespeak" for general grassroots education and organizing, defining and analyzing the impact of terminology such as National Treatment, Market Access, Investor-State Dispute Resolution, Performance Requirements, etc, in an easily-accessible format. Individual copies are $2 (incl.S&H). ~for more information or to place an order online go to: www.afgj.org/donate. For bulk order inquiries contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] **International Anti-Nike Day, A Huge Success International Anti-Nike Day (May 11th) was a huge success. Protests spanned the globe from Melbourne to London. Some countries saw No Sweat style actions for the first time: The Czech Republic, Germany, Sweden, and France. 5 were arrested in the Czech Republic, 2 in Australia. ~for brief reports from some of the actions that happened internationally, contact Daisy Pitkin at the Campaign for Labor Rights, 202-544-9355, [EMAIL PROTECTED] **USAS Summer Conference, Loyola, Chicago, August 2-5 ~for more information contact, www.usasnet.org, 202-NOSWEAT. **Harvard Living-Wage Sit-In Lasts 3 Weeks! Congratulations to the students and workers at Harvard who have spent 3 weeks taking a brave stand for economic justice at Harvard. Students left Mass Hall in response to an agreement with the administration. This agreement makes a couple of immediate concessions, and creates a much more representative committee (including workers and students this time) to create a plan for helping the lowest paid of Harvard's workers. ~for more information, check the internet at: www.livingwagenow.com. **Summer Program to Study Labor in Nicaragua Study abroad in sociology: Labor and Labor Movements in Nicaragua. Virginia Tech and Witness for Peace are offering a study-abroad course to Nicaragua July 3-13 as part of Virginia Tech's second summer term. The program will hear a wide range of viewpoints on that country's working conditions and union movements. The program will focus especially on the workers who make jeans and other clothes for export to the U.S. ~for more information, http://filebox.vt.edu/artsci/soc/wimberley/nicastudy/index.html **Scholarships for Progressive Student Activists Since 1961, the Davis-Putter Scholarship Fund has provided need-based grants to student activists who are able to do academic work at the college level and who are actively involved in the movement for social and economic justice. US citizenship is not a requirement but there is a strong preference for grantees that are building the progressive movement in the United States. Davis-Putter scholars are both graduate and undergraduate students and must be enrolled in an accredited school for the time period covered by their grant. ~for more information, or to request an application, send self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Davis-Putter Scholarship Fund, 25 Main Street, Belleville, NJ 07109. **Walk for Farmworker Justice June 18-24, 2001 Join farmworkers in a march through Oregon's Willamette Valley this summer. Organized in a partnership between religious and labor activists, including the Oregon AFL-CIO and Oregon's Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon, this Walk's message is that it's time for NORPAC to come to the negotiating table (see CLR Mobilized Campaigns above in this Index). Join us for the entire march or even for a couple of days. ~For more information and a list of endorsers, check www.wfjustice.org,, or check the website: www.pcun.org/WalkforJ.html. **August 1-12, Delegation to Mexico Witness for Peace Great Lakes Region will host a delegation to Mexico City and surrounding areas. Focused entirely on labor and trade this delegation will look at 7 years of Nafta by meeting with labor unions, govt workers, US Embassy officials, US Chamber of Commerce as well as agricultural workers. Also included is a meeting with workers from a maquila in Puebla, which produces apparel for a major US corporation. Cost $900 plus airfare. ~For application send mailing address, or more info contact [EMAIL PROTECTED] $100 deposit due by June10th. **Starbucks Global Days of Action On June 25-26, help pressure Starbucks to remove genetically engineered ingredients from their food and dairy products on a worldwide basis, improve working conditions for coffee plantation workers, and brew and seriously promote fair trade coffee in all their cafes. ~for more information, check www.organicconsumers.org **People's Global Action Bus Tour This organizing tour brings together speakers who represent some of the most pro-active grass roots organizations in Latin America which have begun to create non-violent alternatives to capitalism and speakers representing Black, Latino, and working class organizations who are fighting against the criminalization of poor communities and communities of color here in the US. Tour schedule: Washington DC - May 16th 18th-20th. Philadelphia, PA - May 19th--21st. New York City- May 22nd-24th. Open Days Memorial Day weekend --suggestions and requests welcome. Boston, MA - May 28th 30th, and Amherst MA June 1-3rd. ~for more information, contact [EMAIL PROTECTED], 727-896-8224. <><><><><> LINKS... TO ARTICLES/PAPERS/WEB SITES (6 entries) **Web Site for the Barcelona Actions Against the World Bank in June www.alasbarricadas.net/bcn2001 <http://www.alasbarricadas.net/bcn2001> (English/Spanish) is a web page about the mobilization to resist the policies of the World Bank, which is meeting in Barcelona on June 25. **FTAA Diary An online (and downloadable) zine with accounts from several participants of the anti-FTAA mobilization last month in Quebec City, Canada. Use this amazing tool for outreach, education, and healing. ~find it online at, http://www.geocities.com/ftaadiary/ ** "Untold Stories" Series Commemorates Labor History Month ST. Paul, MN - We spend a third of our lives working. Take time to celebrate the joys and struggles of the work world as "Untold Stories" returns this May with a series of events commemorating Labor History Month. Sponsored by The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library, Untold Stories explores the world of labor through an evening of song, author readings, a local history presentation, a walking tour, and an exhibit. ~for more information, check the internet at: <http://www.workdayminnesota.org/daily/news/0422library.htm> **Report on Colombian Genocide Against Unionists Three out of every five trade unionists killed in the world are in Colombia. Read the latest NLC report, Colombia: A Case of Genocide Against Unionists <http://www.nlcnet.org/colombia/0401/index.htm>. ~find the report at: <http://www.nlcnet.org>. **AFL-CIO Supports Undocumented Workers By Cindy Rodriguez. "Even two years ago, it would have been an unlikely sight: executives of America's largest labor union rallying alongside undocumented immigrants. But there they were on Boston Common, fists in the air, once-unlikely allies who need each other in the new economy. ''For a long time, we didn't get it,'' Robert Haynes, president of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO, bellowed to an audience of hundreds of sign-waving demonstrators. ''We, in the labor movement, finally get it now." The AFL-CIO leadership said it will press Congress to grant amnesty to the nation's 6 million to 11 million undocumented immigrants - An extreme about-face for the labor movement, which throughout its history has shunned undocumented workers..." ~for the full text of the article, check out the Boston Globe online, www.bostonglobe.com, and look for the Rodriguez,May 2nd article. <><><><><> END If you have information you would like included in next month's edition of Campaign for Labor Rights' Monthly Index, please send an email (including all relevant contact information) to Daisy Pitkin: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Solidarity, Daisy Pitkin National Co-Coordinator Campaign for Labor Rights 202-544-9355
