CHICAGO — “We want a union, we want respect,” Ernesto Patino told the Militant on the strike picket line outside Open Kitchens here July 6. “And we need a raise. We have to take care of our families and pay the bills.” The strikers deliver meals to Chicago Public Schools and other customers throughout the Chicago area. The drivers and helpers, members of Teamsters Local 703, walked off the job June 26.
The workers voted to join the Teamsters last year, “but the company has continued to intimidate workers and drag out negotiations instead of reaching a collective bargaining agreement,” the union told the press.
Open Kitchens “pays helpers $18 an hour and drivers $20,” said Patino, a member of the union bargaining committee. He has worked as a helper for five years without getting a raise. In addition to pay, the strikers are demanding basic union protections, like the right to bid on routes by seniority and for recall rights after seasonal layoffs.
“The company has been firing union supporters,” Giovan Scianna, business agent for Local 703, told the Militant. “When we voted in the union there were about 40 drivers and helpers, now it’s closer to 20.” The union says those firings and the company’s stalling of negotiations are the grounds for the strike.
“We’ve had a lot of support from other Teamsters locals,” helping fill out the picket line, Scianna added. This includes members of Teamsters Local 710 who are on strike themselves at nearby BreakThru Beverage. “And we’ve visited their picket line.”
The 115 drivers at BreakThru in Cicero have been on strike since early May. One of the central issues is the company insists they give up the right to honor other workers’ picket lines. Last year, they refused to cross when striking drivers who had recently joined the Teamsters at BreakThru facilities in Florida picketed their warehouse. The Florida workers won their first contract in October.
Visit the picket lines to show your support! Join the picket at Open Kitchens at 3348 S. Pulaski Road. The picket line at BreakThru Beverage, at 3333 S. Laramie Ave, Cicero, is up around the clock Monday through Friday.