Last week, nearly 200 workers at the Lipton plant in southeast Virginia voted to unionize with Local 400 of the United Food & Commercial Workers Union.
“I woke up this morning feeling wonderful,” said Lisa Gayle, who’s been with the company for 14 years. “As a unified group, now we can make Lipton the best place it can be. I’m so excited!” The Lipton plant has operated in Suffolk, Virginia for more than 60 years and produces nearly all of the Lipton tea sold in North America. More than 200 employees currently work at the plant, but that number could as much as double in the coming months as the company expands its workforce. “I couldn’t be happier to welcome such a wonderful group of people into the UFCW family,” said Mark Federici, President of UFCW Local 400. “Their courage, commitment and tireless efforts bolstered my faith in the power of working people to stand up for themselves and improve the lives of all hardworking men and women.” Read more on our website at dclabor.org, where you can also find out about the latest local labor events and actions by clicking on Calendar. Here’s today's labor history: On this date in 1919, John Reed formed the Communist Labor Party in Chicago. The American journalist, poet, and socialist activist is best remembered for his first-hand account of the Bolshevik Revolution, “Ten Days That Shook the World.” In 1921, some 10,000 striking miners began a fight at Blair Mountain, West Virginia, for recognition of their union, the United Mine Workers of America. Federal troops were sent in and miners were forced to withdraw five days later, after 16 deaths. In 1980, the "Solidarity" workers movement was founded as a strike coordination committee at Lenin Shipyards in Gdansk, Poland. The strike launched a wave of unrest in the Soviet Union that ultimately led to its dissolution in 1991. And in 1991, an estimated 325,000 unionists gathered in Washington, D.C., for a Solidarity Day march and rally for workplace fairness and healthcare reform. Today’s labor quote is from the Communist Manifesto, by Karl Marx and Frierich Engels "Workers of the world, unite! You have nothing to lose but your chains!"
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Categories
All
Union City Radio is proud to be supported by UnionPlus, which has been working hard for union families since 1986.
Union City Radio is part of The Labor Radio/Podcast Network
Listen now...UC Radio airs weekdays at 7:15a on WPFW 89.3 FM; subscribe to the podcast here. |