A Rank and File Labor Solidarity Meeting

Mike Griffin, War Zone Foundation, UBC. [Cannot attend.]

Lee Sustar, Charleston Five Defense Committee, Labor Editor.

Music by Bucky Halker, Labor Troubadour

The Cleveland Five are the Cleveland, N.C., fired Freightliner (Daimler) UAW Local 3520 strike leaders Robert Whiteside, Allen Bradley, Franklin Torrence, Glenna Swinford, and David Crisco. Come to this solidarity meeting, to encourage these brave union members, and to unite around their struggle for justice!

www.justice4five.com

Partial list of endorsers to date (Individuals' organizations are not necessarily endorsers): Chicago Supporters of The "Freightliner Cleveland Five"; The Cleveland Five, justice4five.com; Committee for Labor Access, Labor Beat TV and Labor Express Radio; Donna Dewitt, President, South Carolina AFL-CIO; Bob Gallie; Dennis Gallie, Quorum 325; Mike Griffin, War Zone Educational Foundation, United Brotherhood of Carpenters member; Steve Edwards, Welfare Workers AFSCME; Bucky Halker; International Socialist Organization ISO national and Chicago; Chris Kaihatsu; Lee Sustar; Ken Riley, President, International Longshoremens Association ILA 1422, Charleston S.C.; Earl Silbar; Chicago Teachers Against Privatization; Steve Zeltzer, Labor Video Project, San Francisco; and others.

Miscellaneous tour info: NOTE: The St. Louis Feb. 3 tour stop has been CANCELLED, because a major area labor organization has a Super Bowl event). Some stops for The Five:

• Flint. Detroit, Jan. 29.
• Champaign IL, Feb. 2, 11 a.m., Illinois Labor Hour radio interview.
• Chicago, 7 p.m., UE Hall, 37 S. Ashland.
• St. Louis, Feb. 3, has been cancelled.
• West Coast, Feb. 20-26, including San Francisco, Feb. 23, ILWU Local 34 801-2nd St., at Embarcadero next to the ballpark

Lee Sustar's brand new article on The Five is here.

A video of interviews is here. A Labourstart news article to USA and Canada links here. Mike Griffin's December article is here. Another December article is here. A previous interview on The Illinois Radio Hour is here.

 

 

United Educators San Francisco Resolution In Support Of The UAW 3520 - 'Justice 4 Five' Unionists

• Whereas, as a result of a strike by UAW 3520 Freightliner members in April 2007 over health and safety and other conditions and benefits, the management of Freightliner in Cleveland, North Carolina has fired 5 UAW strike leaders and members of the Bargaining Committee and Executive Board and,
• Whereas, the struggle to prevent retaliation is important not only to defend the local but also to show workers throughout the country, and especially the 'right-to-work' South, that the labor movement believes an injury to one is an injury to all and,
• Whereas, the company with the support of the arbitrator is seeking to obstruct the union arbitration by insisting on 5 separate arbitration's and,
• Whereas, these brothers and sisters have exhausted their unemployment benefits (they have been unemployed since April 5, 2007) and are fighting for funding to continue their struggle for justice and,
• Whereas, it is critical that the labor movement support those trade unionists who are organizing the labor movement in the South and protect them from union busting, retaliation and the anti-labor onslaught,
• Be it resolved, United Educators San Francisco calls for the re-employment by Freightliner of fired UAW 3520 union leaders and members Robert Whiteside, Allen Bradley, Franklin Torrence, Glenna Swinford, and David Crisco and encourages members to contribute to their hardship fund;
• Be it further resolved that the union will send a letter calling for re-employment and full back-pay to: Freightliner P.O. Box 4750 Portland, Oregon 97208-4750
• Be it further resolved, that UESF will donate $100 to the hardship fund by sending a donation to Justice 4 Five Solidarity Fund, P.O. Box 5144, Statesville, N.C. 28687

Be it finally resolved that information about this solidarity struggle, as well as a request for donations and letters of support will be published to the membership as soon as feasible.