Our 2009 Legislative Conference will be held at the Sheraton Raleigh Hotel, 421 S. Salisbury St, Raleigh, NC on February 19-20, 2009. This conference is both an education forum and a lobbying opportunity for your membership.

At our 2009 Legislative Conference, we will discuss legislative issues in play at the state and national levels, including public employee bargaining and the Employee Free Choice Act. We also will meet with state legislators both at the legislature and again at the hotel during our legislative reception and banquet to talk about our 2009 Legislative Agenda.

Our experience is that the conference is not only interesting and educational for those who attend, but also that strong participation during the conference greatly impacts our image and our success in state legislative work. For information about hotel reservations, registration fees and schedules, download the conference flyer and the registration form.

Labor Councils across NC will be holding local legislative meetings ahead of our conference. Look for more info by mail, email, and on our web site, and find one near you.

Having been on strike since July 20, 2008, the many union members of Machinist Lodge W369 in Moncure, NC aren’t expecting to have a Merry Christmas or Happy New Year.

We wanted to give our readers and members from across the state an opportunity to help. The NC A. Philip Randolph Institute (NC APRI) has collected the wishes of workers walking the picket lines, and we have compiled them here for viewing.

Some wishes are for toys for children or gifts for spouses. Many wishes are for money to help pay basic expenses like transportation and shelter or gift cards to buy food.

If you would be interested in adopting a striker for the Holidays, contact the NC APRI at ncapri@earthlink.net and leave your name and phone number and who you would like to adopt.

For more information, contact business agent Melvin Montford at (901) 619-1987.

Rally planned for Saturday, Dec. 20

The strike at Moncure Plywood enter its sixth month on Saturday. The stakes for workers who have been out on the picket line since July have never been higher. The company is intent on using the strike to break the union rather than come to an agreement.

We cannot let that happen. Join us to rally support for the human rights of Moncure Plywood workers, members of IAMAW Local Lodge W369. You can bring your wish list gifts to the rally.

What: Rally to support striking workers

When: Saturday, December 20, 2008 at 12 noon

Where: Court House Circle at intersection of NC-64 and US-15/501 in downtown Pittsboro, NC (map it)

Jessica Cervantez of News 14 Carolina interviewed State Fed president James Andrews for a story about the work of the AFL-CIO in North Carolina and the recent victory at Smithfield Foods in Tar Heel.

“It’s a great victory for the workers there at Smithfield. For more than 16 years, they have tried to form a union. [The company] decided to allow workers to vote in a fair and free process and that led to this victory.” — News 14, 12/12/08

Cervantez also interviewed David Zonderman, a professor at NC State University and member of the Hear Our Public Employees coalition, about the reasons for low union density in the southeast - including right-to-work (for less) laws and the ban on public sector bargaining.

Zonderman also raises the reasons employers generally oppose organizing - power and keeping wages low:

“To a certain extent, that is one of the goals of unions is to get people living wage. But what we have to remember is when people make that wage they also often spend that money,” Zonderman said. “So union wage in some ways is actually good for an economy.” — News 14, 12/12/08

The decline in bargaining power for middle class workers since the 1980s corresponds with declining wages despite huge gains in worker productivity. Profits that should have been shared in wage increases were taken by executives and shareholders. Meanwhile exploding costs for health care, food, housing and transportation have put the squeeze on consumers’ buying power, and our economy suffers the consequences.

You can read the article and watch the video online.

As I watch the coverage of the fate of the U.S. auto industry, one alarming and frustrating fact hits me right between the eyes. The fate of our nation’s economic survival is in the hands of some congressmen who are completely out of touch and act without knowledge of an industry that affects almost every person in our nation. The same lack of knowledge is shared with many journalists whom are irresponsible when influencing the opinion of millions of viewers.

Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama has doomed the industry, calling it a dinosaur. No Mr. Shelby, you are the dinosaur, with ideas stuck in the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s. You and the uninformed journalist and senators that hold onto myths that are not relevant in today’s world.

[...]

So I’ll end where I began on the quality of the products of Detroit. Before you, Mr. or Ms. Journalist continue to misinform the American public and turn them against one of the great industries that helped build this nation, I must ask you one question. Before you, Mr. or Madam Congressman vote to end health care and retirement benefits for 1 million retirees, eliminate 2.5 million of our nation’s jobs, lose the technology that will lead us in the future and create an economic disaster including hundreds of billions of tax dollars lost, I ask this question not in the rhetorical sense. I ask it in the sincere, literal way.

Can you tell me, have you driven a Ford lately?

Jim Jackson, Elkins, West Virginia

You can read Mr. Jackson’s full letter at the Inter-Mountain web site.

Workers vote to join UFCW

After 16 long years, workers at the world’s largest meat processing plant will finally get their union.

Last night, the company announced the results of an NLRB supervised election—2,041 ’Yes’ votes for UFCW to 1,879 ‘No’ votes.

Organizing at the Bladen County plant began almost as soon as it opened in 1992. After two failed election attempts in 1994 and 1997, in which the company was found to have repeatedly broken the law, the union launched the Justice @ Smithfield campaign to raise public awareness about abuses at the plant.

Victory came after the company and union settled a lawsuit earlier this year which paved the way for a fair election process. The Tar Heel, NC plant now joins the majority of Smithfield operations where a union is already recognized.

From the UFCW press release:

“When workers have a fair process, they choose a voice on the job,” said UFCW Director of Organizing Pat O’Neill. “This is a great victory for the Tar Heel workers. I know they are looking forward to sitting down at the bargaining table with Smithfield to negotiate a contract. The UFCW has constructive union contracts with Smithfield plants around the country. Those union contracts benefit workers, the company and the community. We believe the workers here in Tar Heel can achieve a similar agreement.”

Ronnie Ann Simmons, a veteran of 13 years at the plant said, “We are thrilled. This moment has been a long time coming. We stuck together, and now we have a say on the job.”

Workers at 26 Smithfield-owned facilities around the country already have UFCW representation.

Company spokesman Dennis Pittman, who announced the results, told the News & Observer the election was conducted fairly, adding, “We respect the employees’ decision and look forward to working together.”

Workers have voted to have a voice on the job, and we hope the company will stand by its commitment to respect what they have to say and negotiate in good faith with the union on a first-contract.

The NC State AFL-CIO has for many years now stood in solidarity with the workers at Smithfield Packing, and we will continue to do so.

Congratulations to the new union members at Smithfield Packing in Tar Heel, NC. Your courage and determination to form your union is an inspiration to the entire labor movement. Congratulations also to the UFCW, which never gave up on what has been a very long campaign.

The strike at Moncure Plywood is about to enter its sixth month. The stakes for workers who have been out on the picket line since July have never been higher. The company is intent on using the strike to break the union rather than come to an agreement.

We cannot let that happen. Join us to rally support for the human rights of Moncure Plywood workers, members of IAMAW Local Lodge W369.

What: Rally to support striking workers

When: Saturday, December 20, 2008 at 12 noon

Where: Court House Circle at intersection of NC-64 and US-15/501 in downtown Pittsboro, NC (map it)

Call the company, let them know you’re watching

Community support is needed to demand Atlas Holdings (www.atlasholdingsllc.com), the company that owns Moncure Plywood, respect the human rights of its workers.

The company thinks no one outside the union cares about what it’s doing to its workers in Moncure. You can tell them otherwise.

Use the contact information below to send a message:

I am contacting you to demand your company treat the workers in Moncure with dignity and respect. You should bargain in good faith with their union and return IAM members to work.