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Latest on Employee Free Choice
What the Eastern Maine Labor Council,
affiliated Unions, and our allies are doing
Eastern Maine Religious Leaders and Farmers Support
Employee Free Choice
Thanks to the work of numerous Eastern Maine Labor Council and
Food AND Medicine members, ten religious leaders and twenty-four
farmers have signed letters to Sen. Olympia Snowe asking her to
support the Employee Free Choice Act, showing it is not just a "union
issue" but a fundamental human rights issue.
Religious Leaders in support of Employee Free Choice
Fr. Tom Farley, Parochial Vicar, Parish of the Ressurection, Old
Town
Fr. Frank J. Murray, Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish, Auburn
Rev. Gerald Oleson, Sunny Corner Fellowship, Bangor
Rev. Elaine Hewes, Redeemer Lutheran Church, Bangor
Rev. Dr. Mark Allen Doty, Hammond St. Congregational
Church, UCC
Rev. Rob McCall, First Congregational Church of Blue
Hill, UCC
Rev. Dr. David L. Grainger, United Methodist Church,
Orono
Rev. Dr. Susan Elizabeth Davies, United Church of
Christ, Bangor
Rev. Mike Tapper, Pathway Wesleyan Church, Bangor
Rev. Grace Bartlett, First Congregational Church UCC,
Brewer
Rabbi Darah Lerner, Congregation Beth El, Bangor
Read the Letter
from Religious Leaders
Maine Farms in support of Employee Free Choice
Checkerberry Farm
Village Farm
Wingbrook Farm
Rogers Farm
Olsen Farm
The Shire Farm
Wickett Farm
Clovercrest Farm
Cluain Lara Farm
Goose Hill Farm
Long Meadow Farm
Mysty Mountain Farm
Co-Efficient Farm
Way Back Farm
Rainfly Farm
Happytown Farm
Orizaba Farm
Snakeroot Farm
Brightberry Farm
Darthia Farm
Dig Deep Farm
Double Bit Farm
Fail Better Farm
Phoenix Farm
Read the Letter
from Maine Farmers
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Employee Free Choice Act Symposium with Barbara Ehrenreich
Draws Crowd
Watch
a video excerpt of the event!
In what one attendee described as "the most well-attended
event on a labor issue at the University in 30 years,"
hundreds packed an auditorium in the University of Maine's
D.P. Corbett Business Center to learn about the state of worker
rights and union organizing in our country, and the urgent
need for change.
This "Symposium on the Employee Free Choice Act,"
organized jointly by the Eastern Maine Labor Council, Food
AND Medicine, UMaine's Student Labor Action Project, the
Bureau of Labor Education,
and the Maine Christian Association and co-sponsored by 18
other student & community organizations and small businesses,
brought Barbara Ehrenreich, noted author of Nickel &
Dimed: On (Not) Getting By In America, to speak alongside
Maine workers about the lack of democracy and basic rights
in non-union workplaces. EMLC members Linda Morris and Steve
Husson shared stories of organizing campaigns they helped
lead with MSEA-SEIU and Teamsters 340, respectively. Both
encountered draconian and often illegal opposition from their
employers in these efforts to make the workplace better. Barbara
Eherenreich, who took low-wage, non-union jobs all across
the US in her hands-on research for Nickel & Dimed,
then urged the audience to get involved in the fight for
worker rights.
One major note that emerged from the program is that it is
time to clearly and in large numbers let Senators Olympia
Snowe and Susan Collins know that the workers of Maine want
the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) to pass in order to level
the playing field for workers.
Read
Bangor Daily News coverage of event
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Opposition to Employee Free Choice Gets Hysterical
One of our members came upon this article
about a private conference of CEOs and Corporate Lobbyists, trying
to stir up opposition to EFCA. Home Depot co-founder Bernie
Marcus, perhaps the most power-mad of the bunch, called Employee
Free Chice "the demise of a civilization," and said of
his colleagues "If a retailer has not gotten involved in this,
if he (sic) has not spent money on this election, they should be
shot." These statements are shocking and revealing. They wouldn't
be going to such great lengths if they didn't think workers have
a real chance of winning this.
Here in Eastern Maine, several area business leaders met at the
White House Inn for a Feb. 18 press conference slamming the Employee
Free Choice Act. Our allies at Food AND Medicine were able to get
a word in, however. Read the Bangor
Daily News coverage here.
Learn More
About the Employee Free Choice Act
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Taking Action for Employee
Free Choice on Human Rights Day
On December 10, 1948, world leaders signed the Universal Declaration
of Human Rights, pledging to guarantee to the people of their countries
the freedom to form trade unions.
On December 10th, 2008, over 40 Eastern Maine Labor Council and
Food AND Medicine members gathered in the Solidarity Center to plan
our fight to restore this basic right through passage of the Employee
Free Choice Act. Over a potluck supper complete with a roast turkey
and fixings, workers and supporters recognized the 60th anniversary
of the UN Declaration. Speeches by workers involved in union organizing
campaigns, however, made it clear that we cannot rest easy with
the promises of 60 years ago. Subira Gordon of MSEA-SEIU 1989 spoke
of intimidation and harrassment of home health care workers who
formed a union at Medical Care Development in central Maine, and
Steve Husson, a current Food AND Medicine organizer, spoke of the
dirty tricks played on him and his co-workers when they formed a
union at DHL's Bangor branch. On a positive note, Ted Rippy of SEIU
Local 771 described the improved conditions for home health care
workers employed by Alpha One when they formed a union through majority
sign-up, the process that will prevail at all workplaces if the
Employee Free Choice act is passed.
Before the night was over, the entire room wrote letters to Senator
Olympia Snowe asking her to support the Employee Free Choice Act,
and 15 people pledged to write letters to the editor in their local
papers.
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EMLC confronts deceitful, sleazy union-busting
front group "Union Facts" for running ads in local media
"Union Facts" is run by corporate propagandist Richard
Berman--besides misrepresenting and attacking unions, this is a
guy who advises pregnant women to eat above FDA approved amounts
of fish with mercury (see article)! Incredibly, this group still
claimed to support worker rights during last night's news. No shame
whatsoever.
It's clear that their angle is to attack our leadership and cause
divisions within our labor movement. You can see from Channel 2s
coverage below that Sen. Susan Collins apes their language. Collins,
without ever talking to any worker involved in an organizing campaign,
opposes the Employee Free Choice Act, because she wants to protect
workers.
Our response got great press coverage. You can watch the local
news and read the article below. I want to thank Brent Hall who
did a great job putting visuals behind Dan Lawson, Calvin Murphy
and myself that spoke to worker rights, jobs with justice and the
like. Calvin got great coverage on channel 7, but I can't find that
on the web. Channel 2 had a nice shot of our mural which has writtten
large and in red "Work place Democracy, through Solidarity".
Another way to beat back Berman's lies.
-Jack McKay
The news:
http://www.wabi.tv/content/4091/Watch_TV5_News/
(For the morning news version it's about 8 minutes into the show.)
http://www.wlbz2.com/news/local/default.aspx
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