| BROOKLYN WAREHOUSE BOSSES’ CHRISTMAS GIFT: EXPLOITATION IN THE FOOD INDUSTRY
By 
AMERSINO WORKERS
December 30, 2006
For Immediate Release:
December 30th, 2006
Media Contacts:
Billy Randel (646) 645-6284
BROOKLYN WAREHOUSE BOSSES’ CHRISTMAS GIFT:
EXPLOITATION IN THE FOOD INDUSTRY
Brooklyn, New York – On January 2nd 2007 at 5:00AM, workers from the Food and Allied Workers Union (Industrial Workers of the World, I.U. 460) and their supporters will ring in the New Year with a picket targeting the Amersino Marketing Group at 161 Gardner Ave, Brooklyn, NY.
Workers are marching on the Brooklyn foodstuffs distributor to highlight a civil suit that they will file with the help of the IWW in federal court over unpaid wages and overtime. The New Years march will also act as a ‘friendly reminder’ to their boss that the NYS minimum wage will be increasing to $7.15 an hour, a figure which Amersino has conveniently overlooked in the past.
The story of these workers’ struggle began in June of 2005 when several employees took the initiate to file a complaint with the Department of Labor over wage and hour violations. Workers at Amersino were often working in excess of 65 hours per week and receiving $300 to $350 for their labor, sometimes even less. Unfortunately, this abominable treatment is the norm rather than the exception in an industry plagued by flagrant labor law violations, where wages are paid by the week rather than by the hour.
Jose Flores, a worker from the nearby Queens-based EZ Supply, another foodstuffs distributor where workers have also organized with the IWW, had this to say: “Before we had the union we would often finish our delivery runs at 9:00 or 10:00PM every day. Our boss, Lester, would load up our trucks as high as he could, even though he knew it would take us until then to finish the orders because he paid us by the week. It didn't matter how long we worked, we always got the same paycheck. In the morning, Lester would say, ‘I don't care what time you finish dropping off the orders, even if it takes you until tomorrow. Finish or I never want to see you again.’”
After their initial complaint was filed, months went by but nothing happened. With little hope from the DOL and continuous abuse from their boss, Amersino workers decided to form a union after some of the drivers met with IWW organizers on the street. With the help of the Brooklyn-based community center Make the Road by Walking / Se Hace el Camino al Andar, these workers were able to retain a private lawyer to file new charges in federal court.
It was not until workers bravely marched on their plant in March of 2006, waving the IWW flag and wearing pins, did the boss finally start paying the minimum wage. Five wildcat strikes over the next five weeks soon followed protesting unpaid back-wages, anti-union discrimination, and verbal abuse. This culminated with a 3-day lockout when 5 workers were illegally terminated for federally protected union activity. While this kind of exploitation in the food industry is nothing new, what is new is that workers have begun to stand up for their rights and fight back against the bosses’ abuse and greed.
The campaign has been hard-fought and the battle is far from over. Thankfully, workers have been able to wrest some concessions from the industry bosses. The union’s first non-majority contract in the industry was signed at the distributor Handy Fat, outlining basic wage and overtime stipulations as well as a grievance procedure. A first collective bargaining agreement was also in the works at EZ Supply, but negotiations there have recently turned sour with the boss reneging on earlier promises and firing members of the union. Furthermore, the union has received scattered reports from warehouse workers in northern Brooklyn and Queens that some of the bosses are now starting to pay minimum wage and overtime. All in all, the IWW has an organized presence at 5 foodstuffs distributors in the area and though these workers haven’t won yet, they are standing together in solidarity and refuse to give in.
Amersino worker Diego Lezama summed up the workers’ sentiment in a phone conversation with IWW organizer Billy Randal during one of their wildcat strikes. “The boss said to me: ‘You brought this f--king union in here and I’m gonna get you for it.’” The workers responded by spontaneously walking out en masse, forcing the bosses’ apology for his comments, the first time he had ever apologized for anything. “We aren’t going to take this anymore,” Diego said. “They have to treat us like we’re human beings, not slaves.”
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ACTION ALERT: Help Wobbly Food Warehouse Workers Fight Back Against Nasty Bosses
By IU 460 ![]()
December 27, 2006
Foward Widely - updates posted on wobblycity.org
February 9th 2006 – Workers at EZ-supply vote to join the IWW
November 27th 2006 – IWW reaches agreement with EZ-supply
December 26th 2006 – Boss reneges agreement and makes threats regarding worker’s immigration status
Morning of December 28th 2006 – Union serves EZ-supply with Federal complaint regarding back wages and overtime
Evening of December 28th 2006 – EZ-supply fires all union workers
December 29th 2006 – Hell breaks loose – call Tomer to find out how you can help – (646) 753-1167
Call EZ-supply and demand the workers be rehired immediately - (718) 386-3600
Schedule of Events:
Friday December 29th: Leafleting action from 7pm -9pm, meet at park slope food co-op at union St. between 6th and 7th ave – (come only if you are not planning on attending Fair Food event http://fairfoodnyc.org/)
Saturday December 30th: Leafleting action from 7pm -9pm, meet at park slope food co-op at union St. between 6th and 7th ave
Sunday December 31st: Leafleting action from 7pm -9pm meet at 116th and Broadway on the east side of the street.
Tuesday January 2nd: March with workers on Amersino! Followed by picket from 5am – 10am. We know that's early, but the workers need your solidarity! Meet at the corner of Metropolitan and Gardner in Green Point, Brooklyn. Take the L train to Grand St. and walk east on Grand over the bridge to Metropolitan. Follow Metropolitan for 3 more blocks to the corner of Gardner and Metropolitan. Interested in crashing nearby on January 1st? Contact Tomer!
If you are interested in attending the march or the leafleting actions please let us know by emailing iww.nyc@gmail.com or contact Billy Randal at 646-645-6284 or Tomer Malchi at (646) 753-1167.
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Ez-Supply reneges on agreement with the union
By Tomer Malchi 
December 26, 2006
Ez-Supply reneges on agreement with the union
Ez-Supply reneges on agreement with the union
Throughout the Fall of 2006 the IWW has been putting pressure on EZ supply to sit and negotiate. Finally the boss came to his sense and negotiated an agreement. The agreement included recognition of the union, wage increases, a grievance procedure, paid time off and more.
On December 26th on the heels of workers at 2 more shops announcing their membership in the IWW and demanding their rights the boss at EZ-supply reneged his agreement. The previous lawyer who did the negotiations no longer works for EZ-supply and a new lawyer showed up. Workers returned to work knowing that the boss was once again showing his unwillingness to obey the law and respect the rights of workers. We all see a vicious fight in front of us.
We believe that greater forces are stepping in. Employers are organizing to try and crush the union drive and show that they will not tolerate workers standing up and demanding justice. On Tuesday January 2nd we will be out at Amersino picketing at 5am demanding justice and an end to the illegal anti-union activities of the bosses. Amersino is located on Gardner between Metropolitan & Meadow in Green point. You can take the L train to Grand St. and walk east on Grand over the bridge and right on Gardner
Workers are up against a lot and in the next few weeks we fear that the bosses are going to attack and workers will once again be going on strike. One of the best ways to support these courageous workers is though financial support, we are collecting donations for a strike fund. Checks can be made out to NYC IWW and sent to PO Box 7430, JAF Station, NY 10116 or you can donate through your delegate.
For more info or to get involved email the NYC IWW - IWW.NYC (at) gmail.com
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Underpaid Workers to Serve Boss with Class-Action Lawsuit
By 
December 25, 2006
Who:
Current and former employees of Giant Big Apple Beer, Ltd., all Latino immigrants.
Where:
Giant Big Apple Beer Ltd.
32-31 57th St.
Woodside, New York, 11377
Phone: (718) 545-9400
CEO Sunny Paek
What:
Protest and press conference; service of lawsuit papers
When:
Tuesday, 26 December 2006
8:00 a.m. - Protest and service of lawsuit papers
8:30 a.m. - Press conference
Why:
Workers at Giant Big Apple work long hours for less than the legal minimum wage, without overtime pay. Fed up with this exploitation, they approached the Industrial Workers of the World and Make the Road By Walking, a Latino community organization based in Bushwick, Brooklyn. With the help of the IWW and Make the Road, they filed a wage & hour complaint with the U. S. Department of Labor in fall of 2005. As far as the workers know, this complaint has not resulted in any action by the DOL and they allege that their boss continues to violate State and federal wage laws. As a result, the workers consulted labor attorney Stuart Lichten of Schwartz, Lichten & Bright, P.C., with whose help they have filed a class action against Giant Big Apple on behalf of all present and former employees of the company.
The Industrial Workers of the World, a democratic, member-run labor union, is supporting the Giant Big Apple workers, and will stage a protest rally in front of Giant Big Apple when the suit papers are served. A number of Giant Big Apple's workers have joined the union and organizing efforts at the beer distributorship are continuing.
Giant Big Apple employs approximately 19 workers. Seven current employees and nine former employees have joined the class-action lawsuit.
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"Farmworkers, McDonald's, and Building Solidarity"
By fairfoodnyc 
December 21, 2006
Join us for a discussion with Marc Rodrigues of the Student/Farmworker Alliance on the Coalition of Immokalee Workers' current campaign demanding justice and fair wages for tomato pickers in McDonald's supply chain.
Where: 339 Lafayette St. buzzer #11, NYC (corner of Bleecker & Lafayette St, near the 7 train Bleeker St. station, one block north of Houston).
When: Friday, December 29th, 7:00 pm
Info: visit www.fairfoodnyc.org and www.sfalliance.org.
OR: e-mail
fairfoodnyc(at)gmail.com and marc(at)sfalliance.org
SFA is a national network of students and youth organizing in solidarity with farmworkers to eliminate sweatshop conditions and modern-day slavery in the fields.
SFA works in partnership with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, a membership-led organization of mostly Latino, Haitian, and Mayan Indian low-wage immigrant workers based in Southwest Florida. Together we won the historic Taco Bell Boycott in 2005.
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Fair Food NYC is an independent group supporting the Coalition of the Immokalee Workers. For more about their struggle, visit www.ciw-online.org.
Contact fairfoodnyc(at)gmail.com or visit http://www.fairfoodnyc.org for more information or to get involved.
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DEC 26, 8 AM - Join The IWW To Put And End To Another Boss Not Paying Minimum W
By Food Industry and Allied Workers ![]()
December 20, 2006
Workers at Giant Big Apple are being cheated out of hard earned wages.
Join us Tuesday, Dec. 26 AT 8 at the corner of 57th and northern blvd in woodside
Join us to support the workers who are organized in the shop and those who are too afraid to join.
Join us to announce that the IWW IU 460 is serving a federal court order and summons for wage and hour violations against the boss. Possible Press conference.
we really need you out with us - if you can make it please let us know by email at IWW.NYC@gmail.com or calling Tomer at 646-753-1167
Directions: Take the N R or V train to Northern Blvd and walk 3 blocks east to 57th st.
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TOP CITY PAY YOUR WORKERS!
By IU 460 
December 18, 2006
posted 8pm 12/18/06
As of this afternoon workers at top city are going back to work. The boss agreed to pay min wage and overtime and open to further discussions.
Thanks to everyone for the support we know that alot of people called and that scared the shit out of the boss. The workers at Top City want to send a strong message of solidarity back to everyone who took action.
More to come - no picket tommarow morning :)
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posted at 9am 12/18/06
AT 5:00 AM Monday December 18, 2006 IWW members from Top produce, Handy Fat, Ez-Supply and Starbucks along with members of SDS marched on Top City Produce to demand justice. Workers at Top City refused to go to work until the boss agreed to obey the law. For too long workers have been working 72 hour weeks with no overtime, wages less than minimum wage, no benefits and no respect. Workers in the Food Industry warehouses in Brooklyn are organizing to end exploitation and demand their rights as workers The time has come for the bosses to pay up, obey the laws and recognize the union!
After 3 hours of picketing the boss still refused to recognize the union or agree to pay minimum wage. We will be back out at 5 AM Tuesday December 19th please join us. A fight is being waged and we need your help!
Tell Top city boss Danny to pay up and recognize the union
CALL NOW – 718-218-8026 or 718-218-8027
Or fax Danny at 718-218-8094
To find out how you can help please email us at iww.nyc@gmail.com
Strike fund support is needed contribution should be made out to NYC IWW and sent to PO Box 7430, JAF Station, NY 10116
For more info go to IWW.org or wobblycity.org
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IU 460 keeps on marching on the bosses
By NYC IWW
December 17, 2006
Deep in the gritty, industrial district of North Brooklyn/Queens, workers have been organizing in their workplace and demanding an end to sweatshop wages, back wages, overtime pay, respect and recognition of their union, The Industrial Workers of the World.
Join us in solidarity with workers as they stand up and demand justice!
Monday, December 18th, meet us at 5:00AM at the corner of Morgan Ave & BQE (I278) in Bushwick/East Williamsburg to march with workers on their boss.
Organizing as the IWW Food Industry and allied Workers union IU 460 have had several victories the latest being recognition and negotiations at EZ Supply (read more at http://www.iww.org/en/node/3052)
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McDonald's Profits from Farmworker Poverty
By NYC Alliance for Fair Food 
Leafletting for the CIW (Photo: Thomas Good)
December 15, 2006
McDonald's makes its billions not only by selling more
fast food than any other restaurant, but also by using
its massive purchasing power to drive down the price
of the tomatoes it buys. This downward pressure hits
farmworkers the hardest: they earn 40 cents per
32-pound bucket of tomatoes picked for McDonald's, the
same amount farmworkers have been earning since the
1970's. At this rate, a worker must pick nearly 2.5
tons of tomatoes just to make minimum wage for a
10-hour day. What's worse, more than 1,000 farmworkers
have been held in conditions of modern-day slavery in
recent years. Were the tomatoes in your burger picked
under threat of violence? McDonald's refuses to prove
otherwise.
Farmworkers in Florida won a boycott against Taco Bell
in 2005, earning an extra penny per pound of tomatoes
picked and oversight in the fields to prevent abuses
and slavery. Now, farmworkers are demanding
accountability from McDonald's.
In NYC a group has formed supporting the Coalition of
the Immokalee Workers, for more about their struggle,
visit ciw-online.org.
To get involved in NYC contact
fairfoodNYC@gmail.com
or visit: http://www.ciw-online-org
More Photos: http://www.antiauthoritarian.net/NLN/images/tomer_malchi_1024.jpg
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Starbucks workers continue to join IWW despite intimidation
By SWU 
June 22, 2006
Starbucks workers continue to join IWW despite intimidation, harassment and constant violation of federal law.
At 2:45pm on Friday, June 16th a workers delegation from the IWW Starbucks Workers Union entered a Starbucks store at 57th St. and Lexington Ave. in Midtown Mahattan. Workers on the shop floor donned their IWW union pins and informed the company that they had joined the IWW. Employees stopped work as they presented their demands in writting to their store manager, Patrice Britton. The manager refused to take the document and ordered everyone back to work. In response, workers spoke out and told their manager and customers about their concerns.
Meanwhile, several Wobblies were distributing leaflets outside, letting customers and passers-by know what was going on. Inside, a brief moment of anarchy occurred when the manager began yelling at workers to get back to work and workers refused and stood firm. All the while, customers weren't being served and kept asking what was happening as a long line started to form out the door.
Eventually, District Manager Veronica Park arrived and quickly singled out the leaders. Isis Saenz and Charles Fostrum were told to count their registers and clock out. They refused to do so and were taken into the back room where their union sisters and brothers could not follow. The DM then began shouting at the two militants to clock out as they both continually refused. Isis was constantly accusing management of anti-union behavior which ultimately caused manager Patrice Britton to explode into anger. The DM actually had to calm Patrice down several times whenever he got worked up and out of hand. After about 10 minutes of this defacto stalemate, workers were finally allowed to return to work.
57th St. and Lexington Ave. is the fifth Starbucks store in NYC to go public with an organizing committee and present collective demands to the company. Some of their demands included guaranteed hours and consistent scheduling, the removal of an overly-strict lateness policy, and an end to unfair firings. Workers also called upon the company to stop all unlawful anti-union activity and to abide by the National Labor Relations Board court settlement, downloadable online at:
http://www.starbucksunion.org/node/712
What can you do to help? Take action!
Call Starbucks management and let them know you do not approve of worker exploitation unlawful union-busting. Tell them to stop intimidating and harassing workers and allow us to organize!
Store Manager Patrice Britton - Work: 212-486-1632 -or- Cell: 917-528-6409
District Manager Veronica Park - Cell : 201-970-1118
Regional Director Kathy Mcleod - Cell : 917-862-145 -or- Work: 212-613-1280 ext. 2226
Regional VP James Mcdermont - Work: 212-613-1280 ext. 2201
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