File spoon-archives/marxism-feminism.archive/marxism-feminism_1997/marxism-feminism.9707, message 4


Date: Wed, 2 Jul 1997 17:21:48 -0500
From: Yoshie Furuhashi <Furuhashi.1-AT-osu.edu>
Subject: M-FEM: Pressure needed in support of poultry industry investigation


>Date: Tue, 1 Jul 1997 18:28:06 -0700 (PDT)
>From: Mike Rhodes <clr2-AT-igc.apc.org>
>Subject: Pressure needed in support of poultry industry investigation
>Sender: clr2-AT-igc.org
>
>Labor Alerts/Labor News
>a service of Campaign for Labor Rights
>1247 "E" Street SE, Washington, DC 20003
>clr-AT-igc.apc.org   (541) 344-5410   http://www.compugraph.com/clr
>
>Action Alert: Pressure Needed in Support of Poultry Industry
>Investigation
>
>Summary:  Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman has been receiving
>political pressure not to follow through with the Department of
>Labor's promises to investigate the poultry industry. The poultry
>workers' justice project of the National Interfaith Committee for
>Worker Justice is asking for letters urging Herman to fulfill the
>promises made by the Labor Department last year.
>
>Background:  The poultry workers' justice project is a campaign of the
>National Interfaith Committee for Worker Justice (NICWJ) focused on
>improving working conditions, worker rights, and worker pay for
>employees of poultry plants. The Code of Ethics released by the NICWJ
>on January 23 states that: "Poultry companies should treat workers
>with respect, pay a living wage, provide fair benefits, ensure safety
>on the job, guarantee workers' right to organize without fear and
>negotiate in good faith with workers' elected representatives.
>Companies that recruit immigrant workers should assist those
>immigrants with their transition into a new community and country."
>
>The principle campaign focus of the NICWJ is the workers' struggle at
>the Case Farms poultry processing plants in Morgantown, North
>Carolina, and Winesburg, Ohio. Most of the workers in the Morgantown
>plant are from Guatemala. In July of 1995, Morgantown workers voted to
>be represented by the Laborers International Union of North America,
>but Case Farms has been unwilling to cooperate and the workers do not
>yet have a contract.
>
>The Department of Labor under Secretary Robert Reich agreed in
>November to investigate the poultry industry this spring, but the
>Department is currently being pressured to hold off on its
>investigation.  This could further delay agreement on a contract at
>the Morgantown, Case Farms plant. Nine Southern Senators sent a joint
>letter to Alexis Herman, Secretary of Labor for the DOL, urging her to
>not proceed with the promised investigation.
>
>In an effort to apply positive pressure and encourage the
>investigation of the poultry industry, Kim Bobo, director of NICWJ, is
>asking concerned individuals to write letters to Alexis Herman. The
>letters should address the need for worker rights and sanitary
>conditions in the poultry plants and urge Herman to immediately follow
>through with the Department of Labor's promise to investigate the
>poultry industry.
>
>Letters can be sent to:
>
>Alexis Herman, Secretary of Labor
>
>Department of Labor
>200 Constitution Ave. NW
>Washington, DC 20212
>
>[Case Farms workers held a rally on July 12 in Morgantown, NC, to
>celebrate two years of organizing and to emphasize the continuing
>need to negotiate a contract. Speakers at the rally will be Baldemar
>Velasquez, Linda Chavez, and Bishop Jess DeWitt.]
>
>For more information about the NICWJ, their poultry workers' justice
>project, and the Case Farms campaign, please contact the NICWJ at 1607
>W. Howard, Suite 218, Chicago, IL 60626; phone: (773) 381-3345; or
>fax: (773) 381-2832.
>
>CAMPAIGN FOR LABOR RIGHTS memberships:  Send $35.00 to CLR, 1247 "E"
>Street SE, Washington, DC 20003.  For a sample copy of our newsletter,
>send your postal address to clr-AT-igc.apc.org
>----------------------------------------------------------------------
>Labor Alerts lists:  Nike, Disney, Guess, child labor, Guatemala,
>Mexico, Nicaragua, El Salvador, US farm workers, US poultry processing
>workers.  To receive information on each of these, let us know that
>you want to be on our ALL CAMPAIGNS list.  If you would like to
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>labor, workfare, other policy issues,  additional briefing material on
>some campaigns), indicate that you want to be on our Additional Labor
>Information list AS WELL AS our All Campaigns list.
>




   

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