2/1/03 Dart Update

The first real test of this campaign is happening this week. The captive audience meetings have been hard hitting but still leaving out the worker issues. Our In Plant Committee people were a little worried on what damage was done to the campaign. They were stifled for the most part so the company does not want comments obviously. The company has done slide and film presentations in groups of around 20 to 40 people. All pretty much a union/AWPPW bashing party. Had new hires stand up and say they paid $75 a month union dues and had no representation. (At different meetings, same message same cot of union dues. Suspicious.) Here is one persons take of what is going on:

Dart Container began mandatory anti-union meetings for all the employees the last few weeks. Management has even gone to the point of to pit employees vs. employees.  Closed door meetings being held by shift supervisors and employees on a one on one basis, those employees are told of a company "list" of names of union supporters who will be dealt with after the Feb. 14th election. Management seems determined to make all union employees out to be "evil". Hispanic female employees (1/2 the workforce) especially targeted for this intimidation (afraid of deportation).      Anonymous please

Our meetings were well attended. The day shift meeting had an overflow crowd. Javier Reynoso from local 863 Ripon gave a great speech on his observation on their coming together and got a rousing applause. The crowd was encouraged and energetic.

Some of the main topics of their hour-long captive audience meetings held by John Darius, the VP of Operations for Dart Corporation:

· The AWPPW is a small union looking for new members. They just want your dollars.
· The AWPPW represents a plant in LA that pays $8.20 an hour. You workers make a lot more than that!
· The AWPPW ran 9 organizing campaigns since 2000 and only won one, and that plant went on strike!
· Dart pays competitive wages for Corona and the attendance policy is better than others in the area.
· AWPPW had a campaign with only three workers and all three voted no! And one that had 955 voting no!
· Dart workers stand to lose wages during negotiations.
· You will have to pay union dues right after the vote!
· The workers will have to hire a lawyer to decertify if they are not satisfied.

I know, most of what they are saying is not true, and the rest is misleading. People just cannot believe that the company is not going to tell the truth. They want to believe. And some are swayed. We have heard that a "vote no" committee is forming. So we are going to keep this one monitored closely. By tracking our house calls, we estimate almost a 100-vote spread in our favor. This hopefully is on the conservative side. We are hoping for a 200-vote victory to help at the bargaining table.

We still have Unfair Labor Practice charges pending on assorted violations by Dart Management. California Area Representative Bob Crane and attorney David Holsberry have handled the main NLRB charges and the overall election protocol.

Dart has begun to have captive audience meetings in Spanish only for the Latino workers. Here the workers have had wage and benefit issues they could not understand and the company ignored them. Now they have been enlightened on how to speak and write out in the Spanish language because of the union threat. We are hosting meetings this week exclusively in Spanish to inform Latino workers who want to have a question and answer session in their own language.

Our House calls have been great! Many workers from Dart have offered to help out and have done a fantastic job! Lots of help with the translations also. Way beyond the call.

Below is a leaf that the company is not taking credit for. It was on tables in the break rooms and papered all over the plant. It was in Spanish on the back. It was not signed by its originator, and was behind lock and key on the company board. Not to hard to trace. We answered the questions on a sheet looking like the companies so they could be distributed around inconspicuously in massive amounts to counter.


STOP! THINK! ASK QUESTIONS! LISTEN!


Organizers from the union are trained salespeople. The product they try to sell is union representation. It isn't free. If you speak with one of them, ask for answers to the following questions before you make a decision.

Isn't it true that:

· It will cost me dues each and every month to be a member of the union?

· If a member violates a union rule, he or she can be fined by the union, and there's no limit on how high that fine could be?

· Nothing is guaranteed to change or improve just because a union is in the picture?

· I could be called out on strike?

· Economic strikers get no wages or benefits as an employee while striking?

· Economic strikers can be replaced-permanently-while on strike and may not have a job to come back to if all positions have been filled?


UNLESS YOU GET STRAIGHT, HONEST ANSWERS, YOU ARE BETTER OFF NOT TAKING ANY CHANCES. DON'T GAMBLE. VOTE "NO!"

Martin Perez is lead organizing a BBQ for the last weeks push to election. Hope everyone in the LA area is able to attend. Thanks Martin!


ATTENTION KIMBERLY-CLARK AWPPW LOCAL 672 EMPLOYEES!


WE NEED YOU! LE NECESITAMOS!

SUPPORT DART WORKERS AT CORONA UNION DRIVE EFFORT. 624 WORKERS SHALL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO VOTE THEIR WILL TO DECIDE IF THEY WANT TO JOIN OUR DEMOCRATIC/AUTONOMOUS UNION.

DART WORKERS INVITE YOU AND YOUR FAMILIES TO A POTLUCK/SOFTBALL DAY

WHERE: PRADO REGIONAL PARK
GROUP SITE AT PARKING LOT #3
WHEN: SATURDAY FEBURARY 8TH
TIME: 12:00-5:00


Come and enjoy an afternoon of sun, fun and food. Bring your family and favorite food dish.

Vengan a govar una tarde de sol diverimiento. Y comida traiga su familia y una comida favorita.

Softball Bingo Volleyball Horseshoes


Two weeks to go!
RM