Hundreds of farmworker supporters march in Winston-Salem
Reynolds American pressed in the board room, on the streets to fix its supply chain
As Reynolds American shareholders met at company headquarters May 7, the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC) brought its annual March on Reynolds back to the streets of Winston-Salem. Shareholders rejected two proposals presented by FLOC that would address some of the well-documented human rights abuses in Reynolds' supply chain.
Richard Craver covered the Reynolds-FLOC story for the Winston-Salem Journal:
The relationship between Reynolds American Inc. and its most vocal advocacy challenger has evolved in recent years from antagonistic to civil.
That doesn't mean, however, that the Farm Labor Organizing Committee is easing up on its prodding of Reynolds’ board of directors to push the company’s contract tobacco growers harder on worker-safety issues.
Or that the board is bending on its stance on not serving as a broker for freedom of association, or union, negotiations between FLOC, contractors and their employees.
That was evident during Thursday’s annual Reynolds shareholder meeting and subsequent eighth consecutive FLOC street protest outside the company’s headquarters.
FLOC President Baldemar Velasquez spoke to the Winston-Salem Journal as farmworkers supporters picketed outside the shareholders meeting:
Source: Reynolds, farm-workers union become more civil - Winston-Salem Journal: Local Business
Check out photos of the March on Reynolds on Facebook.
See loads more photos on our Flickr page.
Watch video of the marchers making their way through downtown.
Hear marchers chanting to Reynolds, "We want justice for all workers!"
Learn more about the Reynolds American campaign and how you can get involved at http://floc.com/.