An Open Letter to Jimmy John's Workers in Minneapolis on the Eve of Their Union Election
Submitted on Thu, 10/21/2010 - 5:47pm
By Colin Bossen - Minister, Unitarian Universalist Society of Cleveland:
I write to you on the eve of your historic union election. Tomorrow you will be one of the few groups of fast food workers in the United States ever to have the opportunity to vote for a union. I urge you to vote yes. You are not just voting for yourselves. You are voting for fast food workers across the country.
In my religious tradition we believe that all human beings have inherent worth and dignity. By voting for a union tomorrow you will be sending a signal to the nation that all workers, regardless of occupation, are worthy of dignity and respect and that everyone has a right to a decent living.
More importantly you will be demonstrating that an industry--fast food--that has long been held as unorganizable can in fact be organized. For most of the last thirty years the income gap between the rich and the poor has been increasing. The primary reason for this has been a decline in union membership. You have a chance to reverse that trend by proving that any group of workers can come together and work to improve their working conditions.
Tomorrow you have the honor of standing at a pivot point in history. You do not stand alone. Across the country hundreds of working people have rallied in your support. If you vote for the union thousands more will rally to your cause. You may well help spark a revival in the labor movement that leads the improvement of not just your own lives but the lives of tens of thousands more.
Tomorrow you can make history. Tomorrow, vote union yes!
In solidarity and with love and admiration,
The Rev. Colin Bossen
Minister, Unitarian Universalist Society of Cleveland
"He drew a circle and shut us out.
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.
But love and I had the will to win,
we drew a circle and took him in".
--Edwin Markham
