Detroit Rally Says: 'Defend Immigrant Workers'
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.

Detroit Rally Says: 'Defend Immigrant Workers'
Chanting, "Sí Se Puede!" and "Viva Chávez," 350 trade unionists, students, immigrant workers, and others marched and rallied in Detroit to commemorate the life and struggle of César Chávez, a leader of the United Farm Workers (UFW). Several union delegations participated, including United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 600, United Food and Commercial Workers Local 837 and UAW Local 36. A spirited group of students from the Chicano/ Boricua Studies Department at Wayne State University and 10 students from Western High School also joined the march.

Bishop Thomas Gumbleton of the Archdiocese of Detroit addressed the rally and pointed out that if California's Proposition 187 were in force when César Chávez first came to the United States, he would not have been able to stay here. "We must reverse Proposition 187," he said. Also speaking were Wayne county commissioner Ken Cockrel, Detroit City Council president Maryann Mahafey, and David Martinez, an executive director of the UFW.

A highpoint of the event came when rally organizers recognized groups of workers from Mexican Industries and Crown Industries who were greeted with roaring applause. Workers at Mexican Industries, the majority of whom are women from Mexico, are currently engaged in an organizing drive with the UAW. Workers at Crown Industries just won a union certification vote at their plant.

Printing workers in New York City show unity
Workers at Admiral Photo Offset in New York City went through a new experience in a recent contract battle. Admiral is a printing and mailing house whose customers include some of the major Wall Street investment firms.

The 70 union members in the plant belong to International Union of Allied Novelty and Production Workers (NPW) Local 139. They are the only printing trades workers in this union. Wages at Admiral are on the low end of those in the industry, and there are no wage scales. Workers are hired at whatever the company offers, and some are given raises other than those in the contract. In past years, union members in the plant were involved in contract talks only to the extent of electing some co-workers to serve on the negotiating committee along with the union officials, and voting on the contract.

With the contract expiring May 1, negotiations began April 20. As voted on at a shop meeting, union T-shirts were given out that day, and worn by virtually every member. Since the union didn't have a T-shirt, workers in the shop designed their own. It said: We Are the Union/ We Are United. Voluntary contributions of $5 and a raffle financed printing the shirts. Workers continued to wear them throughout the negotiations.

Another shop meeting decided on a job action for Monday, April 24. On Mondays, many workers are asked not to take lunch, because of a major job that's printed and mailed every week. That day, in accordance with New York State law, which guarantees the right to lunch breaks, workers took an hour lunch at noon and held a picket outside chanting, "no contract, no work," to show that the workforce would go on strike if there was no contract by the deadline.

Negotiations went on beyond the deadline, but there was a contract to vote on by the afternoon of May 1. It provides for an immediate increase of 3 percent, with another 2 percent in six months. Over the next two years, increases of 2 percent on May 1 and another 2 percent November l are required.

The vote was held without the night shift present, and with almost no time for discussion. At the last minute workers found out that new hires would not get their health benefits until after six months, instead of the previous three.

The contract passed by a vote of 34 to 15. While a number of workers felt more could have been won, the most important thing was the dramatic change in workers' confidence through wearing the T-shirts and participating in the job action.

London bank workers protest low pay offer
Workers at Barclays Bank held a protest outside the annual general meeting of the bank in London. The protest came after the membership of Unifi, which represents 32,000 clerical workers at the bank, voted in favor of strike action for the first time. The workers held signs protesting the offer of a 2.75 percent raise at the same time as the pay of Andrew Buxton, Barclay's chairman, was increased by 18.6 percent bringing his salary to $847,260. No actual strike has been called yet.

Over the past five years layoffs and downsizing have eliminated 80,000 jobs in the banking sector in Britain. The strike vote came after Barclay's reported record profits last year of 1.86 billion (1=US$1.60). "We have had four years of rises in basic pay which have all been under the retail price index and our members have said, 'Enough'," said Unifi's general-secretary, Paul Snowball.

Contributors to this week's column include: Mark Gilsdorf in Detroit and Marc Lichtman, a member of NPW Local 139 at Admiral Photo in New York.  
 
 
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