December 2, 2009

Food and Commercial Workers President Joe Hansen to Participate in the White House Jobs Summit

(Washington, D.C.) – United Food and Commercial Workers International Union President Joe Hansen will proudly represent the 1.3 million UFCW members at the White House jobs summit tomorrow.

President Obama is convening the gathering of nearly 100 key industry, union and economic leaders to explore ways to slow the loss of jobs and quicken the pace of job creation at a time when the nation’s jobless rate is at 10.2 percent, its highest point since 1983.

With one million members in the private retail sector of the economy, President Hansen will be discussing the importance of food aid assistance for unemployed Americans as well as increasing lending opportunities to retailers to expand quality food access to underserved communities.  For millions of workers in communities across the country, supermarket jobs are stable, quality jobs.

“President Obama inherited one of the most challenging economic situations in modern history.  I am proud to work with him to find solutions that will get people back to work, make sure unemployed workers have the support they need to stay healthy and that responsible employers have access to resources to stay afloat while we rebuild the economy,” said President Hansen.