FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday November 21, 2007
Labor Union Education at PA Turnpike Rest Areas will Kick-off this Holiday "Working" Season: ACLU Steps-in to Assure Citizens that Rest Areas are Public Space for First Amendment Activities
Tens of thousands of workers across Pennsylvania have taken "extra" jobs this holiday season in the retail and food service industries. The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) wants them to bring the union to work with them. That’s the message union members will be delivering to the patrons of PA Turnpike rest areas across Pennsylvania on "Black Friday," the traditional start of Holiday Shopping Season, or "Working Season."
"The IWW organizes the worker, not the job," says IWW member Kenneth Miller. "We are not going to focus on how long workers are staying at a particular work place, but what conditions can be improved in the short term. Work is better, you feel like a human being, when you can openly advocate for yourself and your co-workers."
The Starbucks Workers Union, part of the IWW and active across the United States and in other countries, has had success winning wage increases and schedule improvements. Workers are demanding their union rights at work: the right to be public about their union membership, wear a union button, discuss wages and benefits with co-workers, and use all of the legal means at their disposal and the solidarity of other workers to fight back against illegal firings.
The Pittsburgh and Lancaster General Membership Branches of the IWW are asking patrons of PA Turnpike rest areas to help with outreach to Starbucks workers this holiday season. "People want to feel good about where they shop and the people that are serving them, that is the foundation of the Starbucks brand. If people learn that Starbucks is treating their barista "Partners" badly and that the advertising about the benefits Starbucks has brought to coffee farmers is untrue, then we have a meaningful and honest holiday challenge. These workers are our friends and neighbors. The issues become, how can we be better informed and how can we support workers for real, during the holiday season and throughout the year?" says Hawa Lassanah.
IWW members will be distributing a double-sided leaflet with information exposing Starbucks treatment of baristas and its false advertising about the benefits coffee growers receive when they do business with the corporation. People stopping at any of the rest areas across the state between noon and 3 PM are likely to encounter friendly IWW leafleters.
The operator of the rest areas, HMSHost, has threatened the union with legal action and attempted to shut down free speech activity at the rest areas. The PA ACLU has intervened on the union’s behalf and the State Troopers seem to understand their responsibility to protect First Amendment Rights along the Turnpike. The next Turnpike Commission meetings are the 4th and 14th of December. People wishing to make public comment must contact the Commission’s lawyers one full week in advance of the meeting.
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Spread News of SWU Organizing Drive Across PA on Black Friday - PA Turnpike Rest Areas
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Monday, November 19
Contacts: Central PA – Hawa (717) 380-6085 Western PA – Kenneth (412) 241-1339
Updates on: www.starbucksunion.org
On Black Friday, the traditional start of the holiday shopping season, members and supporters of the Starbucks Workers Union (SWU), part of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), will spread the news of union organizing and the exploitation of coffee workers by the world's largest coffee chain, Starbucks, at rest areas along the PA Turnpike.
Starbucks, a company that has built a reputation as the leader in "Socially Responsible" business practices, has been exposed as a union buster, and its claims about respectful treatment of coffee growers does not hold up to the most elementary scrutiny.
"Starbucks has deceived many people into believing that it is a decent employer. But the reality of working at Starbucks is a poverty wage, irregular scheduling, and unaffordable health care. Starbucks needs to stop the union-busting and respect our rights now," says SWU organizer Daniel Gross. The SWU organizes workers at both company-owned and licensed Starbucks facilities.
Hawa Lassanah of Lancaster, PA explains, "We want people to understand that the Starbucks brand is a sham. More than that, many people traveling on the PA Turnpike this holiday season know Starbucks workers, and we want them to help us deliver a message this holiday season. That message is: You have rights that can be protected. You should expect more for your efforts. The Starbucks Workers Union is organizing here in Pennsylvania. People learn and remember the things they discuss with their families. We want to shift the conversation from how many times a week someone drinks their favorite coffee to one about workers’ rights and what the Starbucks workers we know need to feel supported and empowered."
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The Industrial Workers of the World was founded in 1905 and advocates for the organization of workers within their industries, rather than by trade or occupation. The I.W.W. is a democratic, member-run union, open to all workers with or without collective bargaining rights. The Starbucks Workers Union is affiliated with the I.W.W.
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