On June 19, about 50 percent of the workers at the company walked out as part of a four-month fight to win union representation. Five Star is one of a number of local laundries that the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees (UNITE) has tried to organize over the last two years.

Many workers leading the strike are immigrants. "We're tired of tricks and lies and will stay out as long as it takes," said Jaime, 24, from Mexico. Maria, also from Mexico, pointed to the company's intimidation tactics. "They threatened those inside, saying whoever signed the union card would be fired. They signed anyway." Approximately 90 percent of the workforce have signed union cards. Around 40 employees have continued to work during the strike, in addition to the temporary workers that Five Star has brought in. The company has reduced all those working during the strike to temporary status.

The Five Star walkout is an unfair labor practices strike. UNITE charges Five Star with threatening to fire workers who support the union. Also, workers who wouldn't sign up for a pro-company outfit--Local 707 of the National Production Workers Union, which is not affiliated with the AFL-CIO--were told their paychecks would be held back. The union also charges that Five Star offered bribes to individual workers to cross the picket line, and that it changes conditions of work and production without first negotiating with the union.

Natalie Payton, who was picketing outside Five Star, said that the bosses "talk to you any kind of way. They don't ask you about overtime. They tell you. A supervisor came up to me and showed me the palm of his hand, where he'd written 1:30! They tell you to go to lunch by gesturing with their hands to their mouths to eat. And we get only one of our two 15-minute breaks," she said. "For how hard I work I deserve some respect. The company is getting new accounts but we're not benefiting. On Five Star's one-year anniversary, they gave us pizza!"

Prior to the walkout, workers started at $6.50 an hour, usually topping out at $7.25, with a smaller number of workers getting up to around $8.50. They get no benefits except a medical plan at great expense to individual workers.

Payton and Sherry Clark, both young Black workers who recently joined the strike, also reported that Black workers are not allowed to talk to each other while working. One boss told Payton that "Blacks don't like to work." Payton and Clark also pointed to individual favoritism as a problem. They mentioned a number of unsafe working conditions, including no air conditioning, exposed rollers within machines, and sharp machine corners that are supposed to be covered by rubber. Payton said, "We could drop dead. They don't care. They'd just cart us out and send in some new workers."

UNITE has organized leafleting teams at hotels contracting with Five Star to let customers and hotel management know about issues of this strike. Three hotels have since canceled their contracts with the laundry company.

Several workers from the large UNITE-organized sewing plant Hart, Schaffner and Marx have joined in picketing and leafleting teams.

Lisa Potash and Lisa-Marie Rottach are both sewing machine operators and members of UNITE in Chicago. Potash is also the Socialist Workers candidate for U.S. Congress.  
 
 
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