Jobs with Justice Helps Union Efforts

The national Jobs with Justice conference doesn’t just talk about helping unions, we take action. The entire conference turned out for the Communications Workers at the rally pictured above.

 

An especially exciting workshop at the confernce was titled "Winning Strikes." The facilitators were Rand Wilson, who directed communications during the UPS strike of 1997; Steve Early, strike director for the CWA; and Debra Rigiero, who just led a successful strike for the Massachusetts Nurses Association.

 

The facilitators agreed on two fundamentals before any discussion:

1. Nobody wants to go on strike. It is absolutely essential that the membership and all allies realize that management forced the strike situation.

2. It is essential to tell members the truth.

 

All of the success stories had to do with successfully leading union membership and their many allies, some of whom were previous undiscovered. All facilitators agreed that the critical period is the preparation time before the contract expiration. They said we should not be afraid to let the company to know we're prepared.

 

Rand Wilson gave some specific instructions:

      Develop your constituency

      Set up a strike office

      Set up communications

      Print signs

      Print stickers, pins, t-shirts

      Urge members to pay off their debts

      Develop strategies for dealing with scabs

Find out where company would get scabs and pre-empt them on their transportation or accommodations

      Talk to law enforcement people

      Set up relations with media

            Tell your story on the issues

            Look for media allies

            Develop rank and file spokespersons where possible

            Don't give up on the commercial media

 

Chris Sanders, AFL-CIO Religious Outreach, offered to come into strike situations to help.

 

Steve Early commented:

 

Try to overcome officers' and members' "It will never happen to us." Denial.

 

The better we are prepared to strike, the less likely it will be necessary.

 

CWA has had 12 month program on organizing issues before their Bell Atlantic contract is due Aug 5th. We saw printed posters that are meant to recruit flying pickets.

 

Impress on members that we are not 'strike happy." We believe in preparation, not strikes

 

Avoid violence, or even the impression of possible violence, at all costs. People are suckers for company-planted provocators.

 

Political help is extremely important.

 

Being forced into a lockout is far better than striking.

 

"JwJ is one of the best investments that a labor organization can make when it comes to avoiding the necessity of a strike, because it keeps the coalition alive... When it's your turn, people will be there for you, no questions asked."

 

Your allies may be able to apply tactics that the members couldn't.

 

Workshop participants asked if strikes did not scare away union members, and the facilitators agreed that it used to be more of a problem than it is now. During the UPS strike, Teamster organizing drives succeeded as never before. This continued after the victory. American workers are ready to fight, he concluded. Early added that the janitors' strike is having a similar effect in California. More people are joining after the strike!

 

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CWA Led Picket on July 11

Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 6151 and a lot of their friends from the union movement picketed Dallas AT&T headquarters as part of a nationwide call for union solidarity from the CWA, Screen Actors, Television and Radio Artists, and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.

 

Unionists across the country were blasting AT&T management for failing to live up to card-check agreements, cutting back on union jobs, and not negotiating fairly.