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NEWS & LETTERS, March 2004Bitter end to L.A. grocery strikeAs we go to press, strikers on the weekend of Feb. 29 have ratified a settlement, however reluctantly, establishing lower wages and health benefits for new hires. We will have more from grocery workers in our next issue. * * * Los Angeles--On Feb. 22 the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) and the grocers were in the twelfth day of negotiations as pressure mounted for the grocery chains to settle the five-month-long strike in Southern and Central California. The federal mediation service has reported that the grocers’ claim of needing to slash workers’ benefits and wages to compete with Wal-Mart had been greatly exaggerated. Three days earlier, union leaders organized demonstrations with civil disobedience, briefly blocking entrances at Vons in Los Angeles, Santa Monica, San Pedro and Mission Viejo. Over two dozen protestors were arrested. The strength of the strike is the rank-and-file workers standing firm for their rights, daily picketing in this marathon strike. But one worker on the picket line asked why the union announces their tactics while the corporations operate in secret. The element of surprise is lost. Three weeks ago, in a show of support, 30,000 union workers marched to a Vons grocery in Inglewood, a suburban city adjacent to Los Angeles. Various union members wore T-shirts and carried banners and signs of their union locals. Marchers included teachers, nurses, fire fighters, University of California workers, garment workers, farm workers, communications workers, grocery workers, janitors, Teamsters, longshoremen and warehouse workers, construction trade workers, government employees and immigrant workers. The march climaxed at a rally where religious, political and union leaders addressed the crowd. One speaker said, "We’re fighting for affordable health care all across the U.S.” Another said companies are attempting to turn this country into Third World status, and another said: "This kind of corporate misdeeds brings about revolutionary actions.” The States Attorney of California spoke about filing state charges against the grocery chains for illegal conspiracies, in other words, the secret pre-agreement between the three chains to share revenues during the strike. Various unions donated or loaned from $25,000 to $500,000 to the diminishing UFCW funds. They included the California Teachers Association, three locals of ILWU, and United Nurses of California. Trade unions from London, Germany and elsewhere sent statements of solidarity. During the strike and lockout, there has been no direct worker participation. A worker on the picket line I spoke to agreed that strike strategy and tactics must be decided by, and not just for, the rank-and-file workers. The early decision by union leaders to lift the picket lines from Kroger/Ralph’s stores (who locked out their workers) looms large today as Ralph’s has less incentive to meet workers’ demands. Without pickets, they are doing business as usual--except with non-union, lower wage replacement workers. --Basho |
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