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News and Updates
Issues
November 4, 2014
UFCW Members Across the Country Get the Vote Out
Members from UFCW locals across the country have been busy getting the vote out in key battleground states including Michigan, Kentucky, Iowa, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania–as well as others.
November 3, 2014
UFCW Members Sound Off on Why Voting in This Election Is So Important!
We asked UFCW members from all around the country why they took a pledge to vote this November 4th in the mid-term elections. Here’s what some of you said:
“To elect candidates who want to protect the middle class, not destroy it.” –-Andrew Myers; Swanton, Ohio
“Too many people died to give me this right and it dishonors their legacy for me not to vote.” –Ericka Ferrell; Oxon Hill, Maryland
“Because we need to oust these career corrupt politicians who don’t listen to what we want or need!” –Anthony Giordano; Hamden, Connecticut
“I am voting to protect women’s rights, to protect unions, elderly, students, the environment, voters, the economy and all of the 99%.” –Member from Chillicothe, Ohio
“To stop anti-union candidates!” –Andrew Carillo; Denver, Colorado
“I’m voting this year because I want a governor that is not going to decimate the private sector unions by introducing right to work.” –Donovan Jurss, UFCW Local 1473
“To exercise my right to have my opinion heard and get rid of Mitch” –Jeanelle Fuson; Covington, Kentucky
“I vote every year!!! We need keep Democrats in office!!!!” –Karen; Dalton, Georgia
“Because it’s the right thing to do.” –Leinaala Furtado; Santee, California
“Because it is time to get all the officials elected that care about working people.” –Mary Spicher
“For a better future for my children” –Nikki Rich; House Springs, Montana
“To try to move this country forward–we have been at this road block way too long” –Pam; Spring, Texas
“To make America a better place, and to help the American worker any way I can…go union–keep fighting for America…” –Prisco; Guilford, Connecticut
“To keep the super-rich from completely taking over this country.” –Tom; Feasterville, Pennsylvania
“It takes the entire community to make a change. As a society, if we don’t start picking our leaders more carefully, we will never progress past the sorry state we are in.” –Member from Indianapolis, Indiana
“I’m voting to insure a Democratic victory for this country and the people who are pushed aside and ignored. It’s time to push back.”
“Yes I am [voting]–also doing door knocking and phone-banking.”
“I’m voting because my vote might help to make a difference in the middle class and the lower class in reference to jobs, economy and education.”
We couldn’t be more proud of all of our engaged members who will be voting to make a difference in their communities, and standing up for working people! Make sure you cast your vote on November 4th if you haven’t already voted early. You can make sure you have everything you need by heading to our voter information hub!
October 31, 2014
UFCW Applauds OSHA’S Effort to Protect Poultry Workers from Musculoskeletal Disorders, Hazardous Workplace Conditions
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) today released the following statement regarding OSHA’s decision to exercise the seldom-used “general duty clause” of the Occupational Safety and Health Act to protect poultry workers from workplace injuries or death.
“The UFCW applauds OSHA’s decision to use the “general duty clause” to protect poultry workers from dangerous workplace conditions, including exposure to unsafe machinery, risk of falling and musculoskeletal hazards. The UFCW also commends OSHA’s efforts to look into practices that result in the failure to manage the medical treatment of injured poultry workers and maintain an accurate record of those injuries, resulting in an artificial injury and illness rate that is used to benefit the poultry industry at the expense of the safety of its workers. The UFCW believes that the safety awards presented by the National Chicken Council and other industry groups to member poultry companies for outstanding safety performance should be reconsidered since OSHA’s findings show that the poultry industry has the ability to conceal the extent to which poultry workers suffer from work-related injuries and illnesses.
“The UFCW represents workers at poultry plants across the country, and our union has called attention to the many dangers poultry workers face every day, including ergonomic health hazards. While the UFCW has been successful in curbing some of the workplace abuses in this industry, too many poultry workers do not have a collective voice on the job and continue to toil in low-wage jobs that threaten their health and safety.
“All poultry workers deserve better workplace conditions, and the UFCW urges OSHA to establish a National Emphasis Program to protect poultry workers from the health and safety hazards that are specific to this industry.”
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The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) represents more than 1.3 million workers, primarily in the retail and meatpacking, food processing and poultry industries. The UFCW protects the rights of workers and strengthens America’s middle class by fighting for health care reform, living wages, retirement security, safe working conditions and the right to unionize so that working men and women and their families can realize the American Dream. For more information about the UFCW’s effort to protect workers’ rights and strengthen America’s middle class, visit www.ufcw.org, or join our online community at www.facebook.com/UFCWinternational and www.twitter.com/ufcw.
October 25, 2014
Louisville Courier-Journal: ‘Right to work’ harms working families
In the hit series “The West Wing,” a character mistakenly refers to Kentucky as a right-to-work state. In defense of the show’s writers, you can understand their confusion. Kentucky remains the only state in the South not to pass one of these laws, which shows our political independence and common sense. But Republicans in Frankfort, Sen. Mitch McConnell, and a group of out-of-state, big-moneyed special interests are doing everything in their power to change that.
I strongly oppose right-to-work legislation because I love Kentucky and want a bright future for our children and grandchildren. Right to work is a sham. It is, as Martin Luther King Jr. said, “a false slogan” which will “rob us of our civil rights and job rights.”
Slogans are catchy. They are designed to get a quick emotional reaction rather than a detailed understanding. That is why I believe some polls show support for these laws. No one opposes the right of Kentuckians to go to work and earn a living. But slogans are also misleading. They do not tell the full story. A majority of Kentuckians also support collective bargaining and higher wages, both of which are under attack as a result of right to work. As people learn more about who is behind right to work and the harm it causes working families, opposition is going to grow substantially.
So who is behind right to work?
Right to work is being pushed and bankrolled by an organization called the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). Congressman Mark Pocan of Wisconsin, a former member of ALEC who has seen similar battles in his state, called it “nothing more than a corporate-funded and dominated group that operates much like a dating service, only between legislators and special interests.”
Here is how it works. Corporations pay ALEC to wine and dine legislators. In turn, the legislators agree to introduce bills written by ALEC. It’s nothing more than a form of legalized bribery. Who do you honestly think ALEC is looking out for — the people of Kentucky or their corporate contributors? Sen. Mitch McConnell, who has made a career carrying the water of special interests, is also behind right to work. He even went so far as to offer a national right-to-work amendment to civil rights legislation last year.
What does right to work mean for working families? To answer that, there is a brand new study from the University of Illinois and the numbers are disturbing. Right to work reduces wages and salaries by an average of 3.2 percent. It lowers both the share of workers who have health insurance and a pension. It reduces union membership by 9.6 percent. And workers are forced to rely 24 percent more on taxpayer-funded government assistance. In other words, right to work would make Kentucky poorer, sicker, less likely to have retirement security, and more reliant on Uncle Sam. We deserve better.
I am a proud member of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 227. Every few years, my co-workers and I sit down with the company to negotiate the terms of our employment. There are disagreements, but we have always managed to work out a deal without any help from the government. All we want is a fair wage, decent benefits, and respect on the job. Our employer is making profits and I happen to think a happy, healthy, unionized workforce is a big reason why. Right to work assumes that business and labor are unable to bargain a fair contract without the assistance of a bureaucrat. I think in Kentucky, we do just fine on our own.
When it comes to right to work in Kentucky, “The West Wing” got it wrong. Let’s get it right by electing candidates who oppose this misguided legislation.
Shannon McMurray is a member of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 227.
October 22, 2014
The Midwest Pushes Ahead on Immigration Reform
From The Chicago Sun-Times:
Despite inaction on immigration reform in Washington, local municipal and civic leaders are getting things done. Across the country, state houses, city halls and community coalitions are addressing immigration-related policies on their own, creating new ways to strengthen their communities and grow their economies.
Immigrants are a growing demographic in local communities, making immigrant integration a decidedly local concern. The federal gridlock only helps inspire local leaders to tackle what others have postponed addressing.
What’s new and novel today is the shift from enforcement-heavy local policy — such as Arizona’s draconian Senate Bill 1070 in 2010, which criminalized the failure to carry immigraiton documents and gave police authority to detain solely based on suspicion of immigration status — to a series of immigrant-friendly local policies. What’s also striking is the growing number of these local initiatives found in the Midwest, a region with a reputation for being demographically homogenous and generally resistant to change.
Pro-immigration efforts come as no surprise in a place like Chicago, with its rich history of immigration and a mayor who aims to make the Windy City “the most immigrant-friendly city in the nation.” In 2011, he established an Office of New Americans. But city-sponsored programs dedicated to immigrant integration are decidedly more pioneering in places like Indiana, where welcoming initiatives stand in sharp contrast with the state’s 2011 passage of SB590, similar to Arizona’s SB1070.
The Welcoming Center of Indianapolis promotes a successful volunteer network of Natural Helpers, established immigrants who assist new immigrants in transitioning to life in Indianapolis. And Fort Wayne’s Municipal Action for Immigrant Integration offers a “CITYzenship” program that aims to build city officials’ working relationship with immigrant communities.
Such efforts are also trailblazing in Iowa, a state infamous for the 2006 and 2008 federal immigration raids in meatpacking plants in Marshalltown and Postville. But in fact Iowa’s community colleges have expanded their English as a Second Language programs and city leaders have traveled to Mexico to learn about the origins of their largest immigrant community. The Iowa Center for Immigrant Leadership and Integration offers tailored consulting to assist local communities and businesses in better engaging with immigrants and refugees.
Midwestern hospitality is reflected in large state-level immigrant initiatives in Illinois and Michigan and in smaller communities like Dodge City, Kansas — with a population just over 27,000 as of the 2010 Census — as an affiliate of Welcoming America’s Welcoming Cities and Counties initiative. Innovative regional efforts like the Global Great Lakes Network connect like-minded inter-state leaders and organizations in sharing best practices, maximizing impact and resources.
The Midwest’s embrace of its immigrant population is rooted in pragmatism. Savvy civic leaders know that immigration is increasingly a demographic lifeline for the Heartland: Census data show that over the last decade, the metro areas of the 12-state region have shed a collective 1.4 million native-born residents. At the same time, the region’s immigrant population rose 27 percent. Immigration now accounts for 38.4 percent of all metro area growth in the Midwest, with new immigrants sustaining populations, tax bases, and federal political representation, and, perhaps most critically, replacing aging native-born workers in regional labor forces. From Davenport to Duluth, South Bend to Sheboygan, many Midwestern communities are growing almost exclusively because immigrant families are choosing to call them home.
To keep things in perspective, the Midwest is still home to its fair share of restrictive policies. There is more work to be done. But the region’s level of action and commitment to immigrant integration represent a remarkable shift in rhetoric from previous years. Today, the Midwest is home to a significant number of local initiatives, working in concert with efforts in other regions: California’s governor just signed new immigration reform legislation. Atlanta’s mayor recently announced the creation of an office of multicultural affairs. Nashville just launched an Office of New Americans. And many have looked to New York City’s Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs as a blueprint for best practices.
Immigration is, at its core, a local phenomenon, playing out where people actually live and work — and as such, local initiatives will continue to play a critical role in long-term immigration policy, either working in concert with a future federal reform or continuing to fill the void caused by a prolonged congressional stalemate.
Either way, the Midwestern momentum around the issue is unprecedented and notable, offering an example for D.C. policymakers as to what is possible when pragmatism prevails over partisan politics, and policy focuses on facilitating connections between people and the places they live.
Juliana Kerr is director of the Immigration Initiative for the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. Paul McDaniel is the Entrepreneurship & Innovation Fellow for the American Immigration Council.
October 21, 2014
UFCW Local 227 Members Get Out The Vote in Kentucky
Members of UFCW Local 227 are knocking on doors, making phone calls, and visiting worksites in an effort to get out the vote in Kentucky.
The Bluegrass State is home to one of the most hotly contested Senate races in the country. Republican Senator Mitch McConnell, who introduced national right to work, is facing a fierce challenge from Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Grimes. Local 227 members Chuck Duckworth, Chawan Morgan, and Abigail Shake—all employees of Kroger—have been working hard to get Grimes across the finish line.
“McConnell has sucked the life out of Kentucky,” said Morgan. “We need a fresh face, some new ideas, and a different direction.”
“Alison Grimes understands our struggles,” Shake agreed. “She’s not Washington—she’s Kentucky.”
McConnell’s support for right to work and the close battle for control of Kentucky House of Representatives has brought the issue of workers’ rights front and center.
“We’re the only southern state that’s not right to work,” Duckworth said. “I think this election is very important to keep it that way.”
“I have job security, health insurance, annual raises, equal pay and so many other benefits,” Shake added. “Right to work would take that away.”
The Local 227 members all talked about the importance of reaching out to their coworkers. “For me to go to a door and see a single mom raising three kids on her own, working a job and doing everything she can to get by, for me to help educate her about how to make life a little easier, that’s what is important,” Shake said.
Or as Morgan put it: “It’s about solidarity—being united and strong.”
October 16, 2014
UFCW Releases Online Ads in 4 Key Battleground Elections
WASHINGTON, D.C. —The 1.3 million member United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) today announced an aggressive online advertisement campaign in four key battleground elections.
The ads are running through Election Day in Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, and Wisconsin.
In Iowa, the UFCW launched a video that is a twist on Joni Ernst’s original campaign commercial about castrating hogs. “Don’t let Joni Ernst castrate workers’ rights,” the narrator says. Watch the ad here.
In Kentucky, the UFCW launched a video comparing Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to milk that has spoiled. “Mitch McConnell’s been in D.C. since 1984. He’s out of date and out of touch with Kentucky,” the narrator says. They also released a video which calls Mitch McConnell’s 30 years in Washington “long enough.” Watch the ads here and here.
In Michigan, the UFCW launched a video highlighting Governor Rick Snyder’s extreme record. Listing his tax increase on seniors and massive education cuts as examples, the narrator calls Snyder “One Clueless Nerd.” Watch the ad here.
In Wisconsin, the UFCW launched a video criticizing Governor Scott Walker for his failed promise on jobs. “Despite promising 250,000 new jobs, he put Wisconsin dead last in job creation,” the narrator says. Watch the ad here.
UFCW members—some of the youngest in the country—are inspired by online political outreach featuring ads that are cutting edge, creative, and fun.
The UFCW is also sending direct mail into these four states along with putting a large number of members and staff on the ground. The contrast in Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, and Wisconsin could not be greater. The UFCW is committed to defeating the enemies of working families and electing candidates that will fight for higher wages, better benefits, and the right to organize.
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The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) represents more than 1.3 million workers, primarily in the retail and meatpacking, food processing and poultry industries. The UFCW protects the rights of workers and strengthens America’s middle class by fighting for health care reform, living wages, retirement security, safe working conditions and the right to unionize so that working men and women and their families can realize the American Dream. For more information about the UFCW’s effort to protect workers’ rights and strengthen America’s middle class, visit www.ufcw.org, or join our online community at www.facebook.com/UFCWinternationaland www.twitter.com/ufcw.
October 15, 2014
UFCW Michigan Members Continue Canvassing Campaign
UFCW members continued an aggressive canvassing operation this past week in Michigan. They are going door to door working to convince every resident they talk to that their vote matters in the November 4th midterm election.
“We need our government to start working for the people. That won’t happen until more people vote and involve themselves,” said Dawn McClanahan, a member of UFCW Local 876. “We’re canvassing and holding conversations with voters to increase turnout and increase the voice of workers at the ballot box.”
For UFCW Local 876 member Steve LeVey, the memory of 2010 has inspired him to get out the vote this year.
“I remember too well what happened in 2010. The everyday people who won the 2008 election stayed home and we got stuck with a Governor and a state legislature that passed right-to-work. We can’t afford another election like 2010.”
Victory for McClanahan, LeVey, and other UFCW members in Michigan would be electing Congressman Mark Schauer as Governor.
“We’re supporting Mark Schauer because he’s the only candidate who’s committed to helping workers,” said LeVey. “His vision for Michigan is all about making life better for the common man and woman.”
Staff from locals across the country and the International Union will be pouring into Michigan and other battleground states this week to help UFCW members get out the vote for candidates who champion workers and their rights.
October 7, 2014
Take Back Michigan
Anita Green, Emily Emmons, and Lori Baker will be spending the closing weeks of the 2014 election canvassing in Kalamazoo, Michigan. All three work at Meijer and are members of UFCW Local 951.
“We’re here to get the word out and spread knowledge,” said Lori Baker. “Most of our reaction on doors has been positive. It’s amazing how many people have thanked us for stopping by. Too many just think about the Presidential and that it isn’t time yet, but it is time. We are canvassing to get more people educated and aware so that more people will vote.”
There is a lot at stake in Michigan this election. Current Michigan Governor Rick Snyder signed “right to work” into law in 2012. The chance to elect Mark Schauer as Governor of Michigan, a candidate who cares about making Michigan’s economy work for everyone, has been motivating.
“Right to work has been a major issue with people we’ve talked with. They’re upset about it because it sounded good, but it’s just another tool for management to have even more of an upper hand over workers,” said Emily Emmons. “People we’ve talked to are realizing that right to work has just lead to less job security.”
“We can overturn right to work if enough people come out and vote,” added Lori Baker.
Decisions are made by those who show up. Thanks to Anita, Emily, Lori, and dozens of other UFCW members across Michigan, more people are going to have a say in the 2014 midterm election.
“People want to know that their voice and their vote counts,” said Anita Green. “Talking with them about the election reinforces that. Everyone we talk with sees that we believe in this. We want them to vote because it’s their right and their voice really matters.”
September 23, 2014
National Voter Registration Day
Did you know that in 2008, six million Americans didn’t vote because they missed a registration deadline or didn’t know how to register?
We can’t let that happen again – the 2014 election is just too important to working families. This election will determine whether the Senate and countless state and local governments fight to raise the minimum wage and expand workers’ rights or to bust unions, slash budgets, and cut taxes on the rich. We need to make sure that every UFCW household has its voice heard this year.
Can we count on you? Then register today.
Today is National Voter Registration Day, and our allies at Rock the Vote have created a website with all the information you need to make sure you’re registered.
Forms, key dates, and other voting information are all included.