Workers on Dole Flower Plantations Win Historic Victories in ...

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Board of Directors Beth Myers (Chair) Executive Director STITCH Gail Lopez-Henriquez (Vice Chair) Labor Attorney Henry Frundt (Secretary Treasurer) Former President, Local #2274 American Federation of Teachers Bama Athreya Executive Director International Labor Rights Forum Noel Beasley Executive Vice President UNITE HERE! Tim Beaty Director of Global Strategies International Brotherhood of Teamsters Clayola Brown President A. Philip Randolph Institute Gabriel Camacho Project Voice American Friends Service Committee Laura Carter Assistant to the General Secretary (Policy) ITGLWF-FITTVCC Teresa Casertano Program Director, Americas Region AFL-CIO Solidarity Center Martha Farmelo Fund-raising consultant Paul Filson Director Connecticut State Council, SEIU Stan Gacek Associate Director International Department, AFL-CIO Brent Garren National Lawyers Guild Lisa Haugaard Executive Director Latin America Working Group Gabriela Lemus Executive Director Labor Council for Latin American Advancement José Oliva Worker Justice Coordinator Center for Community Change Ron Oswald General Secretary IUF-UITA-IUL Rod Palmquist International Campaigns Coordinator United Students Against Sweatshops Edgar Romney Executive Vice President UNITE HERE! Alan Spaulding Director of Global Strategies UFCW Jeff Vogt Global Economic Policy Specialist AFL-CIO Stephen Coats Executive Director *Some organizations listed for identification only 2 <strong>Workers</strong> on Dole Flower Plantations... continued from page 1 closure, in which hundreds of workers lost their jobs, was the legal requirement that the company negotiate with remaining workers. This amounted to severance negotiations for the hundreds of workers at the larger plantation, Splendor El Corzo, and contract negotiations for the workers at the remaining, smaller plantation, Splendor El Rosal. This process, which began in 2006, proved to be long and difficult. The company was unmovable, agreeing to almost none of the workers’ demands. Eventually negotiations broke down in early 2007, leading the two parties into a mediated process with the local Ministry of Social Protection. In violation of local laws, the Ministry refused to respond to the union’s request for an arbitration tribunal for 10 months. Finally in January of 2008, the USLEAP is pleased to welcome the following new members of the board: • Clayola Brown, President, A. Philip Randolph Institute • Jose Oliva, Worker Justice Coordinator, Center for Community Change • Ron Oswald, General Secretary of the International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied <strong>Workers</strong>’ Associations (IUF); and • Rod Palmquist, International Coordinator, United Students Against The U.S. Labor Education in the Americas Project is an independent non-profit organization that supports the basic rights of workers in Latin America, especially those who are employed directly or indirectly by U.S. companies. USLEAP is funded by individuals, foundations, trade unions, and religious groups. This newsletter is published four times a year for donors and available upon request. P.O. Box 268-290 , Chicago, IL 60626, Tel: 773.262.6502 , Fax: 773.262.6602 info@usleap.org; www.usleap.org U.S. LABOR EDUCATION IN THE AMERICAS PROJECT Ministry sent a response to USLEAP, though it never communicated directly to the union. The Ministry reported that the union had turned in a piece of its documentation one day past a deadline, which the union adamantly denies. The following month, after his office was briefed by USLEAP, Representative George Miller (D-CA) intervened, resulting in a court order for the initiation of the tribunal. This intervention came in the context of the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement, which has generated significant Congressional attention on Colombia, and the flower sector in particular, over the past 18 months. The July victory is the fruit of this tribunal. The new contract, which will cover all workers at the plantation who do not intentionally opt out, lasts two continued on page 3 A Warm Welcome to our New Board Members; Grateful Good-Bye to Others Sweatshops (USAS) We also extend our deep appreciation to members who have rotated off the board in the past year, including Angela Berryman of the American Friends Service Committee, Jeff Hermanson with Writers Guild of America west, and attorney Jennifer Hill, all of whom served for over ten years on the board, and Zack Knorr, previous USAS international coordinator, who served for three years. Fall 2008
years and includes many new benefits for workers, including a $200-$400 bonus for not having received a raise for two years, a raise of $14 per month above the legal minimum, vacation time, and improvements in sick time. Fragancia <strong>Workers</strong> Plan To Educate Children with New Subsidies The Untrafragancia union was formed in early 2006, and has claimed wide representation on the plantation ever since. <strong>Workers</strong> here also faced a major anti-union campaign, including the formation of a company union to prevent workers from signing a legitimate contract. In April of this year, Dora Acero, the Secretary of Education for Untrafragancia, came to the U.S. on a speaking tour sponsored by USLEAP. Like most workers in the industry, Ms. Acero explained, La Fragancia workers suffer from repetitive stress injuries related to high work quotas, become ill from pes- ticide exposure, have highly restricted access to bathrooms and drinking water during their long shifts, and endure degrading and humiliating treatment from management. She also highlighted one of the major concerns for women on her plantation: on a flower worker salary, most single mothers are unable to send all of their children to school at once, and are forced to do an annual rotation, allowing one child to study each year. This has a disproportionate affect on girls, who are often kept out of school so they can care for their siblings and do housework while their mothers are away at work. The new contract signed in July addresses this problem head on. Now, workers with children will receive an education subsidy that covers books and uniforms, allowing flower workers to educate all of their children, boys and girls. In addition, workers will receive a 6% pay increase, bonuses for punctuality, and additional pay for fumigation Though the flower worker campaign continues, take a moment and thank Dole for signing these contracts. Please add, however, that you hope Dole will respect the rights of the rest of its flower workers in Colombia, as well as the rights of workers who are organizing on any of its operations, including banana workers in Latin America whose campaign against Dole also continues. Send letters to: Send Dole a Thank You! David DeLorenzo President and Chief Executive Officer Dole Foods, Inc. One Dole Drive Westlake Village, CA 91362 Tel: 818.874.4000; Fax: 818.874.4593 Fall 2008 U.S. LABOR EDUCATION IN THE AMERICAS PROJECT continued from page 2 workers who are exposed to high levels of hazardous chemicals. New Union Registration “Speedily” Approved In what USLEAP hopes is a trend for new unions in Colombia, the Ministry of Social Protection approved the legal registration for the new union at the Flores Papagayo plantation in under four months. This is a change from past experience, in which most new unions have been repeatedly denied legal registration and wait months or years for a response from the Ministry. Though the company, which is nationally-owned but ships all of its products to the U.S., is appealing the union’s registration, the approval may be a result of the growing strength of Colombia’s flower unions. Congratulations to workers at Splendor El Rosal, La Fragancia, and Flores Papagayo for these exciting gains! These amazing advances would not be possible without your support. We thank you for the letters, emails and donations that have sustained our work. Help USLEAP Write a Better Newsletter! We want to hear from you about what you like and don’t like about the USLEAP quarterly newsletter. Please take five minutes to go online and fill out a quick survey about this newsletter and the work of USLEAP. Your answers will help us understand our supporters better, and produce a more informative, clear, and engaging newsletter. You can fill out the survey online here: www.usleap.org/newslettersurvey If you would like a paper copy of the survey, please contact Rachel Wallis at 773-262-6502. 3
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Page 5 and 6: Tempered By Big Losses in Guatemala
Page 7 and 8: USLEAP USLEAP and BANANA UNIONS CON

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