Restaurant, Hotel, and Building Service Workers I.U. 640

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Former Ozzie’s Barista Settles for $15,500

Posted Thu, 04/07/2011 - 2:20pm by x344543

By Kristin V Brown - Park Slope Patch, April 3, 2011 - Reposted in accordance with Fair Use Guidelines.

Last month a former Ozzie's employee settled a suit alleging that the local shop discriminated against his union involvement.

A former Ozzie’s barista settled for $15,500 last month after the National Labor Relations Board filed suit against the local java joint, claiming it discriminated against the barista for his union affiliations.

Jeff Baurer, 41, claimed that the coffee shop unfairly terminated him for his affiliation with Industrial Workers of the World (also known as the Wobblies), an international union that believes all workers should be united and the wage system must be abolished.

“I can move on with my life knowing that at least one boss will think twice before interfering with a worker's right to organize for dignity and respect in the workplace,” said Bauer.

Bauer claimed that before his termination last June from the Seventh Avenue and Lincoln Place shop, he was constantly praised by management as a model employee and even offered the manager position. Then his employers’ sentiments quickly changed.

“Ozzie's violated my legally protected right to join and/or form a union in the workplace,” said Bauer, who worked at the spot for nearly a year. “They harassed me, retaliated against me, reduced my hours, demoted me and terminated me for engaging in protected concerted activity.”

The former barista believes that someone leaked his affiliation to management when he was organizing a May Day benefit for the IWW.

Protest Planned for Starbucks CEO

Posted Thu, 04/07/2011 - 2:13pm by x344543

By Mercer R. Cook - The Harvard Crimson, March 31, 2011 - reprinted according to Fair Use guidelines.

Harvard students, union members, and Starbucks employees from around the country are planning to protest a lecture by Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz at Harvard Business School on Friday.

Schultz will be speaking to several hundred Business School students on his experiences running a successful business while also be promoting his new book, “Onward.”

Liberté Locke, an organizer of the event, said Starbucks employees are angered by what they deem to be hypocrisy in Schultz’s book, in which he expresses his commitment to his “partners”—as the company calls its workers. Employees of the company, especially union members, feel that Starbucks is one of the least labor friendly companies in America, Locke said. Starbucks has been found guilty by the National Labor Relations Board of violating labor rights, including charges of union busting and wrongful termination.

“For Howie [Schultz] to sit around and claim how much he loves us, it’s just disgusting,” said Locke, a Starbucks barista and Starbucks Workers Union organizer from New York. “Starbucks is one of the biggest union busting corporations in the United States.”

Harvard union representatives said they planned to support Starbucks workers in the protest.

Geoffrey “Geoff” Carens, an assistant librarian and member of the Harvard Union of Technical and Clerical Workers, emphasized what he called the “phoniness” of Schultz’s message.

“Howard Schultz likes to present Starbucks as a socially responsible corporation,” Carens said. “In reality, conditions are really bad and getting worse.”

Power Concedes Nothing Without Demand: Courtesy and Class Struggle at Jimmy John's

Posted Thu, 04/07/2011 - 2:06pm by x344543

It may come as a surprise to those who have never worked in the food industry to hear that not only Jimmy John's sandwiches, but also the pizzas, salads, burgers, and burritos that are consumed in many American restaurants often have a few secret ingredients: cold, flu, and other germs. There is a simple reason for this. Jimmy John's and many other fast food restaurants do not allow workers to take sick days. Management pressures sick workers to find a replacement or come to work. In addition, wages at Jimmy John's and throughout US food service are so low that workers cannot afford to take a day off if they fall ill. The result of these pressures is that American restaurant workers work while sick, creating an enormous public health risk. The evidence is not just anecdotal; in a recent study performed by the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, of 793 employees surveyed 72% said they worked while they had severe flu symptoms. It doesn't have to be this way. According to an Institute for Social Health and Policy study, 127 countries guaranteed at least a week of paid sick days per year for all workers.

The IWW Jimmy John's Workers Union is tired of seeing our coworkers with colds, the flu, or even strep throat be forced to risk getting written up or being fired for protecting public health. So we proposed a simple solution to Mike and Rob Mulligan, the owners of our franchise. For weeks, we called on them to allow workers to call in sick and provide some paid time off. Week after week, they ignored our polite requests. As flu season hit its peak, we gave them an ultimatum–-reform your sick day policy or we will inform the public that you are putting private profits over public health.

Mike and Rob Mulligan refused, so we put up 3000 posters throughout the city alerting the public that the sandwiches you consume could be filled with cold and flu germs from workers who can't take a day off.

In retaliation for blowing the whistle, Jimmy John's fired six outspoken union members in an attempt to silence us.

Food Safety Fight at Jimmy John's Escalates as Public Outcry Mounts over Mass Firing

Posted Sat, 03/26/2011 - 11:02am by x344543

Whistleblower Workers Pledge Action for Right to Call in Sick, Paid Sick Days

Jimmy John's Workers Union- Industrial Workers of the World

Contacts: David Boehnke, 651-315-4222 and Davis Ritsema, 612-281-9772

March 25, 2011

MINNEAPOLIS- Thousands of community supporters have jammed Jimmy John's phone lines and flooded the chain's Facebook page with messages of outrage and support for six whistleblowers who were fired for exposing widespread coercion to work while sick at the chain. Today, the workers have announced that they plan to escalate actions against Jimmy John's until their demands for the right to call in sick, paid sick days, and reinstatement of the fired workers are met.

“We will not be silenced. Speaking out against the policy of forcing workers to work while sick is not only our right, it is our duty. “ said Erik Forman, one of the fired sandwich workers. “The unfettered greed of franchise owner Mike Mulligan and Jimmy John himself jeopardizes the health of thousands of customers and workers almost every day. We will speak out until they realizes that no one wants to eat a sandwich filled with cold and flu germs.”

Under current policy, Jimmy John's workers are disciplined for calling in sick if they cannot find a replacement. In addition, many workers are unable to afford to take a day off if they are ill because wages at the sandwich chain hover around the federal minimum of $7.25 an hour. The result of these pressures is that sandwich-makers often have to work while sick, creating an enormous public health risk.

After franchise management rebuffed numerous employee requests to reform the sick day policy, members of the IWW Jimmy John's Workers Union posted 3000 copies of a poster advising the public of health risks at the sandwich chain. Management fired six outspoken union members in retaliation.

Jimmy John's Resists Campaign to Reform Sick Day Policy with Illegal Firing of Six Workers

Posted Wed, 03/23/2011 - 11:38am by x344543

Sandwich Chain Seeks to Suppress Educational Poster on the Risks of Eating Food Prepared by Sick Employees

Jimmy John's Workers Union - Industrial Workers of the World

Contacts: Micah Buckley-Farlee, 612-845-9290 Mike Wilkow, 612-807-6633

March 23, 2011

MINNEAPOLIS- In an effort to silence employees who have blown the whistle on serious food safety hazards at Jimmy John's, the company fired six workers yesterday for putting up posters demanding the right to call in sick and paid sick days in order to avoid exposing customers to infection. Under current policy, Jimmy John's workers are disciplined for calling in sick if they cannot find a replacement, forcing many workers to make sandwiches while ill.

"It just isn't safe -- customers are getting their sandwiches made by people with the flu, and they have no idea," said Micah Buckley-Farlee, one of the fired workers, "and now we're getting fired for blowing the whistle on this disgusting practice. Rather than safeguard public health and do the right thing for their employees and their customers, Jimmy John's owners Mike and Rob Mulligan are trying to silence us. These illegal and offensive firings will not stand."

In addition to the threat of discipline for calling in sick, many workers are unable to afford to take a day off if they are ill because wages at the sandwich chain hover around the federal minimum of $7.25 and the company offers no benefits. The result of these pressures is that sandwich-makers often have to work while sick, creating an enormous public health risk. The issue of working while sick in restaurants has assumed increased concern from the public in recent years. A recent study performed by the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy shows a marked increase in workers unable to take sick leave noting that of the 793 employees surveyed 72% said they worked while they had severe flu symptoms.