CHICAGO — Teamsters Local 705 members ended their strike at the Mauser Packaging Solutions subsidiary plant in the Little Village neighborhood here Nov. 21. Bosses had announced they were shuttering the plant that day.
The union’s 168 members walked off the job June 9. Workers at Mauser plants in Los Angeles and Minnesota carried out solidarity actions with their fight.
Mauser’s “last, best, and final offer” was rejected by the union in August.
Workers at the plant cleaned steel drums used to transport chemicals. The union was fighting against dangerous working conditions and for higher pay. It was also demanding the company agree to prevent Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from entering the plant without a relevant warrant. Little Village is one of Chicago’s largest Mexican immigrant communities.
Mauser is a sizable international company, with more than 180 sites around the world and a workforce of over 11,000. Their most recent financial report says their income grew 19% the previous year to over $4 billion.
“We are waiting to hear about possible severance pay,” striker Javier Hernandez told the Militant. “The company never showed us papers giving the reason for closing the plant.”