AMERICAN LABOUR CALIFORNIA:

SOLIDARITY WITH LAID OFF NURSERY WORKERS:

The following appeal for solidarity with laid off nursery workers in the USA comes from the United Farm Workers.

ALALALALAL
Stand in Solidarity with Laid Off Nursery Workers

Nurserymen’s Exchange is one of the nation’s largest wholesalers of nursery plants. Until recently they employed a work force of around 300. The situation at Nurserymen’s Exchange wasn’t great. There were ridiculous quotas, injuries and other problems, but workers still stuck around because it was a least a steady paycheck. Then in early July they laid off nearly half of their employees. Many of these workers were long time employees who worked with the company for decades.

Twenty-nine year employee and team leader, Lourdes Patino was one of these 132 laid off workers. She tells us to add insult to injury, the company told the employees the reason they were laid off was because there was no work for them, but in reality the company wanted to hire out of town labor contractor workers so they could pay cheap wages and no benefits. Lourdes told us she knew this because “on our last day, management told us they would give us the phone number of the farm labor contractor so we can talk to him and he could hire us to work again, paying us minimum wage and no benefits. I think it’s not fair for us because they want to bring us back to work for the minimum wage.”

Shortly after they were laid off, the workers contacted the union and we are doing all we can to help them get their jobs back. Help us take a stand to hold corporations like this accountable. A bad economy is not an excuse for sleazy behavior. Won’t you help?

ALALALALAL

THE LETTER:

Please go to this link to send the following letter to Nurserymen's Exchange in California.

ALALALALAL

I am deeply disappointed in your company for laying off nearly half of your workforce--many of whom were with your company for decades. This is simply immoral. A bad economy is not an excuse for sleazy behavior. Trying to cover your company by paying workers the minimum compensation that the law requires you to pay anyway does not satisfy your responsibility to these workers.

Mass layoffs and then hiring back cheaper labor contractor workers is outrageous. Especially as it is reported that to add insult to injury, "on our last day, management told us they would give us the phone number of the farm labor contractor so we can talk to him and he could hire us to work again, paying us minimum wage and no benefits."

Immediately recall or rehire these 132 workers who have stayed loyal to your corporation through ridiculous quotas, injuries, foreman pressure and more.

LABOUR SOLIDARITY:

TELL APPALACHIAN STATE TO RESPECT WORKERS' RIGHTS AND ADOPT THE DSP !

The 'Designated Suppliers Program' (DSP) is a workers/students/union initiative devised to ensure that licenced university apparel purchased by US universities and colleges is produced in factories that respect workers' rights. Dozens of such institutions across the USA have already agreed to the Program. The administration of Appalachian State University, however, has held out against adopting the Program. The United Students Against Sweatshops have launched an internet email campign to put pressure on the Chancellor of the University to adopt the Program. To learn more about this campaign and to participate go to the link HERE. To see more about the DSP go to the website of the Workers' Rights Consortium.

US LABOUR:

BUSH ADMINISTRATION H2A PROPOSAL IS NOTHING MORE THAN GUTTING OF EXISTING WORKER PROTECTIONS:

This week the US Department of Labor announced what it calls "the most significant overhaul of the nation's agricultural guest worker program in two decades". This new proposals is, according to the United Farm Workers, "nothing more than the gutting of existing protections for both domestic and foreign workers". The overhaul will result in lower wages and worse working conditions for farm workers. The DOL's proposals include an easing of standards that framers must follow to show that they have tried to hire domestic workers first. It also lowers wages and labor protections for incoming guest workers. The UFW have proposed an alternative, their AgJOBS program, and they intend to carry on a campaign to have this legislative alternative passed in the near future. It already has the bipartisan support of a majority in Congress. The UFW have called on their supporters to pressure the Department of Labor to abandon this regressive measure. to learn more and to join this campaign go to http://www.ufwaction.org/campaign/dol208 .