The Militant(logo) 
    Vol.63/No.12           March 29, 1999 
 
 
L.A. Airport Workers March For Wages, Union  
This column is devoted to reporting the resistance by working people to the employers' assault on their living standards, working conditions, and unions.

We invite you to contribute short items to this column as a way for other fighting workers around the world to read about and learn from these important struggles. Jot down a few lines about what is happening in your union, at your workplace, or other workplaces in your area, including interesting political discussions.

LOS ANGELES - Three hundred airport workers and supporters marched through the airport here March 5 in a picket sponsored by a number of AFL-CIO affiliated unions. Among the chants was "Minimum wage ain't working for me, we might as well work for free!" The protesters' demands included better wages and benefits, as well as the right to organize unions. This action came on the heels of the recent union victory of 74,000 Los Angeles County home-care workers who joined the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) after a 10-year effort.

The SEIU and the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees (HERE) are organizing the bulk of the airport workers for union recognition and a "living wage" for nearly 8,000 airport workers. Members of the SEIU and HERE have held regular demonstrations and one-hour walkouts over the past several months. This included a protest of food service workers and janitors marching and merging with a rally of Teamsters- organized flight attendants who were fighting for a better contract from Northwest Airlines late last year. These events forced the Los Angeles City Council in November to require all large city contractors and their subcontractors to pay the citywide "living wage" - which is higher than the federal minimum wage of $5.75 an hour - to their employees. The airlines and airport companies had used a loophole to avoid paying subcontracted workers the $7.39 per hour with health benefits or $8.64 without benefits stipulated in the city ordinance. Only about 1,000 out of the 8,000 who now earn below the city's minimum have received the "living wage" increases so far. The raises only take effect as leases and contracts come up for renewal. Some contracts, such as the one covering workers in the Delta terminal, are not set to be renegotiated until 2025.

The March 5 demonstration included members of the Association of Flight Attendants, Teamsters, International Association of Machinists (IAM) from United and Northwest airlines, Transport Workers Union from American Airlines, the Brick Layers Allied Craft Union, nonunion ramp workers from Continental, and others.

Many participants were union officials and organizers. But the spirited chants and variety of hand-held signs gave the event a fighting character. José Avilez, a driver for the food preparation service CA 1, held up his "H.E.R.E. Local 814" sign. The 300 members of his union are fighting for a new contract with better wages and benefits, similar to what 700 Host Marriot food workers got in January. They won a new contract with significant wage increases, medical coverage, and vacations for the first time.

"Fight for Better Wages and Pensions," read the sign carried by George Turner, a UPS worker and Teamsters member. "I grew up in the union," he said, "and united we stand divided we fall."

Fellow UPS worker Zack López Jr., held a sign that read, "Argenbright STOP THE HARASSMENT!" Argenbright is the largest subcontractor of nonunion airport "security" workers in the airport's seven terminals. Argenbright workers, including baggage screeners, are paid the federal minimum with no benefits, sick or vacation days. The company has tried to intimidate those who try to unionize.

Janitors, baggage screeners, and wheel chair attendants are organizing to get into the SEIU. They are fighting airlines like United, Delta, and Northwest, which control the board of directors at each concourse that hire subcontractors for inside terminal work. AFL-CIO President John Sweeney announced at the protest that 250 airport security workers signed up to join the SEIU.

Jose Morales, an airport janitor, has been speaking to IAM union meetings and to Northwest workers. He told the rally, "We are here to demand respect and we are not going to permit the airlines and contractors play with the Living Wage Law or to trample on our rights."

Juan Lima has been a welder for seven years and is in the Brick Layers Allied Craft Union. "I don't work at the airport, but we found out last night about the demonstration," he said. "If we would have known sooner I could have called more people.... From what I see the unions need to stick together." Lima thought the American Airline pilots were courageous for calling in sick recently, effectively closing down the airline for days.

United Airlines mechanic Martin Chávez commented, "More demonstrations are needed. Higher wages for airport workers are needed, many workers earn below poverty level."

"We are asking for justice," said Host Marriott food service worker Araceli López. "We are here from different unions with different jobs to show we are united."

Workers rally to back Tyson poultry strikers
LOUISVILLE, Kentucky - A rally sponsored by Jobs with Justice was held at the Kentucky Fried Chicken headquarters here February 26 on behalf of members of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) on strike at Tyson in Corydon, Indiana. The purpose of the rally was to ask CEO David Novak to sign the poultry workers code of conduct, guaranteeing basic standards of workplace justice, and to contact Tyson to encourage them to resume bargaining.

The rally of several hundred did not last long. After a few chants, a song or two, and a few brief speeches, a KFC representative said they would meet with two representatives of the rally February 29. Then a security guard asked everyone to leave. Since the company agreed to meet, everyone reboarded the buses in the same peaceful manner as when they had arrived.

The strike at the Tyson chicken processing plant in Corydon is entering its third month. The mostly rural community, not far from the Kentucky border, is very much in support of the strike. The plant, located near the main square of town, is well known by most people in the area, who have known someone who worked at the plant. The plant was first owned by ARPAC, and then Hudson Foods. Tyson took over a little over a year ago. When the contract expired, the company demanded sweeping concessions.

Elaina Willis, a 24-year-old striker who has worked in the poultry plant for five years, explained on the picket line, "Tyson thought that a small union wouldn't have a chance against a big company. They said our wages and benefits are better than other Tyson plants and they have to come down. They kept putting off a settlement with contract extensions until January and cold weather. They said if we walked, we'd be back in a few weeks. But we've already proved them wrong!"

The strikers' week is busy. In addition to maintaining the picket line, on Mondays they travel to different Tyson plants. Wednesday is the weekly solidarity dinner. Thursdays they go to the county food bank, and on Saturdays they handbill stores selling Tyson products.

Alaska Air workers rally for contract in Seattle
SEATTLE - Nearly 250 members of the International Association of Machinists who work at Alaska Airlines and their supporters rallied here March 5, demanding new contracts that would include substantial wage increases, an end to forced overtime, and increases in pensions. The IAM is currently negotiating two separate contracts at Alaska -one for ramp and stores workers, the other covering customer service and reservations agents.

Unionists at Alaska have had concessions forced on them for 14 years. Some baggage handlers, for example, have had only a 3 percent wage increase in 15 years, while some customer service representatives make less than 13 years ago.

Two rallies were held to accommodate different shifts. Cheri Glover, a baggage handler participating in her first rally, said, "I was impressed with how many people came out and supported our fight, workers I never saw before, especially rampers from Northwest Airlines. Next time we have to put more effort into getting mechanics to come out and support us. I talked to several on second shift who didn't know about our activity and said they would have come."

Mechanics at Alaska are represented by the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association; a few did join the two rallies. A delegation from United Steelworkers of America, locked out by Kaiser Aluminum in Tacoma, participated in the rally. USWA member Richard Dolph spoke about their struggle.

A group attended from the SEIU, who recently won a strike at the West Seattle Psychiatric Hospital. IAM members from Northwest and Boeing also came. And workers from the Association of Flight Attendants at Alaska Airlines gave greetings.

One speaker who got an enthusiastic response was Anna María Guzmán, a member of the Teamsters union and a leader in the fight against the recent firings of hundreds of immigrant workers at the apple packing warehouses in the Yakima Valley. These firings, organized by the Immigration and Naturalization Service, were intended to intimidate workers and undercut union organizing at the warehouses.

Laura Anderson and Mark Friedman, members of the IAM in Los Angeles; Jim Horn, member of the UFCW in Louisville; and Mark Severs, member of IAM Local Lodge 2202 at Alaska Airlines in Seattle, contributed to this column.  
 
 
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