WA State JwJ Local Workers' Rights Victories
May, 2006
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WA State JwJ Online Today
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In recent weeks, you may have received our newsletter and annual request
for a contribution to continue JwJ's critical organizing. If you
have already sent in your contribution, thank you!
If you did not receive a mailing, please call
the Seattle office at (206) 441-4969 to receive an envelope or to
contribute via credit card. Or simply mail your contribution to PO Box
9662, Seattle, WA 98109-0662. You can also make a tax-deductible donation
online through National JwJ.
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Our monthly donor program has grown to 75 people
contributing almost $1,000 per month. This source of steady, reliable
income helps us make organizing plans for the future. In 2006, with the
addition of 1½ additional organizers (see details at end of
this page), we hope to double our Monthly Sustainer Program to 150 donors
giving $2,000 per month. Will you accept the challenge?
Three quarters of our funding comes from local
individuals like you and local democratically-run organizations. We
are an almost all-volunteer organization except for 3½ staff
organizers, and have a small organizing expense budget. Even with
these modest costs, our bills are over $150,000 per year.
As we are devoting the next month to this
fund-drive, we greatly appreciate your timely contribution so we can get
back to committing more of our time to organizing and less time to
fundraising. Please contact the Seattle office for more information
on joining our Monthly Sustainer program. Or, if you prefer your donation
to be tax-deductible, simply sign up with a credit card online through National JwJ.
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Roll Call of Victories
After a 4 year campaign, WA State JwJ along with federal
workers and community activists have stalled Bush's proposed National
Security Personnel System (NSPS) while momentum grows for labor's right
to organize initiative: the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA).
The Bush-Rumsfeld NSPS is the leading edge of an
unprecedented ferocious attack on federal worker rights. Similarly
to the 1980's air traffic controllers, 3.3 million federal workers face
becoming the national symbol of union-busting and the Bush patronage
system. Bush's NSPS plan attacks by combining privatization,
cutbacks, erosion of civil service, assault on the right to organize,
outsourcing national security, creation of a backdoor draft of civilians,
and eliminates whistleblower protection.
 In the face of these attacks, Washington
State JwJ has played a leading role in mobilizing support for federal
workers and in helping the American Federation of Government Employees
(AFGE) develop into a fighting force. Over 15 actions in Washington
State lead by JwJ & AFGE served as a model for a growing national
federal worker rights campaign, including six simultaneous actions in
multiple counties on December 10th, 2005 to demand leadership from US
Rep. Dave Reichert regarding NSPS and EFCA.
Another highlight was rallying at the gates of
Ft. Lewis, where JwJ brought faith leaders of the peace movement and
others from the community to support AFGE civilian employees of the Department
of Defense, whose rights are threatened by NSPS. These events forced
Rumsfeld to postpone the NSPS to address worker criticism and popular
opinion in the "Defense community."
These delays enabled us to achieve a recent
victory when a Federal District Court Judge blocked the Pentagon from
moving forward on the NSPS. The court found that the new rules failed
"to ensure even minimal collective bargaining rights."
JwJ continues to work with AFGE to maintain pressure on our elected leaders
to protect the human right of workers to form a union despite Bush
Administration legal appeals and Dept. of Defense implementation of NSPS
on management staff.
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During a time of intense attacks on immigrant workers' rights that
threatens the livelihood of all workers in this community, Casa Latina
asked the MLK Jr. County Organizing Committee for an emergency mobilization
to stand with day laborers in Seattle, and protect their fundamental
right to seek employment.
The so called "Minutemen"
tipped off the media that they were planning to come to Seattle to
harass, intimidate, and photograph day laborers claiming these workers
were taking jobs from Americans and driving down wages. MLK
Jr. County Organizing Committee Leaders weren't fooled by this ploy;
they knew the only people who stand to benefit from intimidating workers
are the employers.
When workers are too afraid to even stand on the
street corner to look for work, they are powerless to force abusive
employers to follow wage and hour, health and safety and other labor
laws, much less organize their workplace. These same employers are
back in the other Washington trying to push through more "free
trade" treaties that force people to leave their countries for
America in search of work.
Immigrant Workers' Rights continues to be a
priority area of Washington State Jobs with Justice, as set annually by
the steering committee. Unfortunately for the Minutemen, out of
this priority work came the development of an Immigrant Workers' Rights
Rapid Response Team that was successfully mobilized for the first time
for this action. While hundreds of people came out in support of
the day laborers despite cold weather and rain, the Minutemen were
nowhere to be found. Hillary Stern, Executive Director of CASA
Latina, thanked the rapid response team, saying "We could not have
done it without the help of JwJ."
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Garbage drivers do a dangerous, dirty job to keep our neighborhoods clean
and disease-free, yet their previous contract forced them to pay almost
$300 per month for healthcare and routinely work 2-4 hours of mandatory
overtime per day. That's now about to change when the new union contract
(with Teamsters 174) goes into effect. JwJ plans for picket line support
were set aside after garbage drivers approved new contracts with Waste
Management and Allied Waste.
Twice narrowly averting a strike that could have disrupted garbage
collection for some 2 million residents and thousands of businesses in
Seattle, King County and Snohomish County, the 600 drivers won a dramatic
reduction in their out-of-pocket health care costs--from $274 per month
down to $30--plus new restrictions on the companies' ability to require
overtime. Many of the key demands drivers formulated last fall while
planning for negotiations were achieved, including improvements in wages
and pensions. Numerous organizations and elected leaders contributed to
this victory.
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 After
the April 10th march and rally for immigrant rights, which topped 30,000
participants, people were elated at the monumental nature of this
action. Jobs with Justice mobilized for the event and assisted in
critical planning and support areas. The feeling of power was soon
to escape some workers, especially those that had to face their bosses
the following day.
Companies whose workers had participated in the
march stepped up their punitive actions against thousands of workers
across the country, and Washington State was no different. On April
11th, Laitala Enterprises, a painting company in Monroe Washington, fired
17 Latino workers who had left early the day before to participate in the
march.
The delegation drove to Monroe and arrived
unannounced for a meeting with Laitala Enterprises General Manager Terry
Laitala. After an hour of "education" it became obvious
to Laitala that more would come unless he moved to resolve the
problem. Three days later, all 17 workers were rehired and a clear
message was sent to employers who retaliate against immigrant workers for
taking action to stand up for their workplace and civil rights . . .
We'll Be There!
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In Other News . . .
The last few months have been a period of change, as we wave farewell to
old friends, welcome new staff and board members, and see some familiar
faces move into new roles.
Please welcome Alex Bacon and Juan José Bocanegra to the mix as JwJ
staff. In January, the JwJ Steering Committee approved bringing on
1½ permanent organizers. Alex, our former volunteer Volunteer
Coordinator, will be working half-time on administrative work. He will be
in the office Monday through Friday from 9 am to 1 pm.
Juan, or Boca as he's more commonly known, has a long and strong history
of organizing in the area, and will be joining Maya Baxter as a statewide
organizer. Jake Carton, as many of you know, has been organizing
full-time for JwJ in the South Sound (Pierce County and points south) for
the past year.
WA State JwJ is proud to welcome as new
Statewide Executive Board members Craig Dameron from Communication
Workers of America Local 7800 as Co-Chair, Bianca Plank from
American Federation of Government Employees Local 3197 as Secretary,
and Susan Dobkins from First United Methodist Church of Tacoma-Micah
Project as At-Large Faith Rep.
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We also thank outgoing elected leaders, interns, and staff
for their service. Thanks and congratulations to outgoing Faith Rep. Nick
Leider on his new baby, and thanks to outgoing Secretary Brenda Willis
and outgoing Workers' Rights Board Rep. Diane Morrison for all of
your leadership. UW Masters of Social Work Intern Lambert Rochfort has
worked the last 6 months with the Immigrant Workers' Rights Workgroup to
develop, train and mobilize our Immigrant Workers' Rights Rapid Response
Team. Temporary staff organizer Danielle Friedman worked with us through
February on a joint campaign with Wake-Up Wal-Mart to fight against the
anti-worker corporate giant. We're so grateful for the time and hard work
these committed individuals have put in to make JwJ stronger and more
effective.
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While we celebrate the progress we
are making on these campaigns, we have much organizing ahead of
us before we are victorious. We need our combined volunteer activism
and funding to continue to build a better world.
Support WA State JwJ
Online Today.
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