Unions sending representatives to the rally included the Teamsters, Machinists, and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers, as well as those representing auto workers, nurses, longshoremen, government employees, hospital workers, bricklayers, and others. About a dozen UFCW Local 1518 members, locked out by Fletcher's Foods in nearby Vancouver, also attended. One of them, Ian McLean, observed that the Superior workers were subject to "incredible exploitation" by the company. Workers at Fletcher's and Superior belong to the same amalgamated local.

Workers won union certification at Superior Poultry last fall and struck on July 23 in response to the company's refusal to negotiate.

The bosses have indeed benefited from conditions of superexploitation of the entirely immigrant workforce. Wages start at the provincial minimum of $7.15 and rarely reach $10 an hour, even for workers with years of experience. They work 12-14 hours a day, six days a week, suffer constant abuse from the employer, and have no seniority rights.

Speakers at the rally included Michael Fraser, the Canadian National Director of the UFCW; Brooke Sundin, president of UFCW Local 1518; and Jim Sinclair, president of the British Columbia Federation of Labour. Ramparkash Sharma, a Superior Poultry striker, also spoke-- in both Punjabi and English. "Our fight will continue until we get good working conditions and good wages," he said, appealing to the 40 or so workers who have been crossing the picket lines. "Join with us and together we will build a bright future."  
 
Company uses thugs to intimidate
The company has hired security guards to try to intimidate and provoke strikers. The hired goons have had a constant presence, videotaping strikers around the clock and following them home. The guards speed past the picket line and through the plant gates in their fleet of minivans. The union has petitioned the provincial Supreme Court, seeking an injunction against the company for "attempting to incite violence on the picket line." In another example of the company's aggressive attempts to break the strike, they have placed large newspaper ads in a Vancouver daily, The Province, describing Superior as a "business under siege," citing an alleged death threat against a scab.

The strike for a contract at Superior Poultry is part of an upsurge in labor resistance in British Columbia, with strikes by longshoremen, hotel workers, and meat packers.

After more than a month on the picket lines, the Superior strikers remain firm. "I want rights, benefits, and honor," said Gill. "I am 100 percent certain we can win." Several strikers expressed interest in visiting the Fletcher's picket lines. Mark, a woodworker in a nonunionized plant, came to the rally "to learn more about how to make a union."

Originally from Burma, he stated that the obstacles to workers organizing in unions show that "Canada is not really 100 percent democratic, it doesn't have real freedom."

Derrick O'Keefe is a member of the Young Socialists and the UFCW. Steve Penner contributed to this article.