[R-G] Chicago Factory Occupied: UE Members in Chicago Need Our Help!

[Yoshie Furuhashi]

Hopefully a first salvo of the fightback. -- Yoshie

<http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/ue061208.html>
UE Members in Chicago Need Our Help!

UE Local 1110 members in Chicago who work at Republic Windows and
Doors, are now engaged in a battle with their employer as well as the
giant Bank of America.  The bank -- which has already been given $25
billion dollars in taxpayer bailout monies -- is refusing to extend
credit to the company.  The national Jobs with Justice coalition has
taken up the fight on behalf of these UE members, launching a campaign
to expose the shameful behavior by Bank of America -- as well as the
many other outrages of the government bailout.  To lend a hand, click
here. <http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/bankofamerica/>

Do your part today to support these fellow workers and push back
against the Wall Street and big bank rip-off of taxpayers.  Please
participate in the Jobs with Justice Week of Action for a People's
Bailout Now!  To lend a hand please visit the main Jobs with Justice
page.<http://www.jwj.org/>

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Chicago Factory Occupied
by Lee Sustar

In a tactic rarely used in the U.S. since the labor struggles of the
1930s, the workers, members of United Electrical, Radio and Machine
Workers of America (UE) Local 1110, refused to leave the plant on
December 5, its last scheduled day of operation.

"We decided to do it because this is money that belongs to us," said
Maria Roman, who's worked at the plant for eight years.  "These are
our rights."

Word of the occupation spread quickly both among labor and immigrant
rights activists -- the overwhelming majority of the workers are
Latinos.  Seven local TV news stations showed up to do interviews and
live reports, and a steady stream of activists arrived to bring
donations of food and money and to plan solidarity actions.

Management claims that it can't continue operations because its main
creditor, Bank of America (BoA), refuses to make any more loans to the
company.  After workers picketed BoA headquarters December 3, bank
officials agreed to sit down with Republic management and UE to
discuss the matter at a December 5 meeting arranged by U.S. Rep. Luis
Gutierrez (D-Ill), said UE organizer Leah Fried.

BoA had said that it couldn't discuss the matter with the union
directly without written approval from Republic's management.  But
Republic representatives failed to show up at the meeting, and plant
managers prepared to close the doors for good -- violating the federal
WARN Act that requires 60 days notice of a plant closure.

The workers decided this couldn't go unchallenged.  "The company and
Bank of America are throwing the ball to one another, and we're in the
middle," said Vicente Rangel, a shop steward and former vice president
of Local 1110.

Many workers had suspected the company was planning to go out of
business -- and perhaps restart operations elsewhere.  Several said
managers had removed both production and office equipment in recent
days.

Furthermore, while inventory records indicated there were plenty of
parts in the plant, workers on the production line found shortages.
And the order books, while certainly down from the peak years of the
housing boom, didn't square with management's claims of a total
collapse.  "Where did all those windows go?" one worker asked.

Workers were especially outraged that Bank of America, which recently
received a bailout in taxpayer money, won't provide credit to
Republic.  "They get $25 billion from the government, and won't loan a
few million to this company so workers can keep their jobs?" said
Ricardo Caceres, who has worked at the plant for six years.

The members of Local 1110 have a history of struggle.  In 2004, they
decertified the Central States Joint Board -- a union notorious for
corruption and sweetheart contracts with management -- and brought in
UE, a far more democratic organization.

In May of this year, Local 1110 mobilized for a contract by organizing
a "practice" picket, and 70 workers used their lunch break to confront
the boss with a petition listing their demands.  The workers were able
to turn back the company's effort to win major concessions and won
solid pay increases.  Now, management is trying to get revenge by
pocketing money that belongs to the workers.

UE officials and workers acknowledge that it will be difficult to stop
the plant from closing.  But they're determined to get the money owed
to them -- and they believe that by fighting, they can set an example
for other workers facing layoffs and plant closures as the recession
deepens.

Negotiations are set for Monday, December 8.  Whatever happens,
however, the workers have already sent a message to employers that if
they violate workers rights and the law, they can expect a fight.

"This is a message to the workers of America," said Vicente Rangel,
the shop steward.  "If we stand together, we will prevail until
justice is done, and we get what we're due."

What YOU Can Do

If negotiations with Bank of America fail to resolve the issue, there
will be a picket of BoA's Chicago headquarters at 231 S. La Salle on
Tuesday, December 9 at 12 noon.

Members of Local 1110 need your support.  Make checks payable to the
UE Local 1110 Solidarity Fund, and mail to: 37 S. Ashland, Chicago, IL
60607.  Messages of support can be sent to leahfried at gmail.com.  For
more information, call UE at 312-829-8300.

At the Jobs with Justice Web site, you can send a message of protest
to Bank of America.
<http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/bankofamerica/>

Workers occupying the Republic Windows & Doors factory slated for
closure are vowing to remain in the Chicago plant until they win the
$1.5 million in severance and vacation pay owed them by management.

The call to action was first published on the Web site of United
Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) on 5 December
2008.  Lee Suster's article was first published by SocialistWorker.org
on 6 December 2008.