This is issue #37 of The Barking Dog,

which is put out by Caroline Lund, a member of UAW Local 2244 at the NUMMI plant in Fremont, CA. It is dated May 15, 2001.

Union Yes!

I received an email from a worker at a non-union Toyota plant in Ontario, Canada. John (not his real name) says employees are trying to get a union in there, the Canadian Auto Workers.
John writes that the anti-union people are saying that NUMMI people don`t want a union, pointing to The Barking Dog.

Well, this is to clear things up for all those Toyota workers up in Canada! The Barking Dog, and, I believe, the big majority of NUMMI workers, are pro-union. Don`t listen to your lying management!

If we didn`t have a union, the whole plant would be a company dictatorship run according to favoritism and brown-nosing. We would not have any avenue for representation. The Barking Dog was set up as another avenue for NUMMI employees to voice their opinions about our problems at NUMMI.

John writes, "It would be great to see the support from NUMMI members. They can tell their stories of what life at NUMMI would be like without representation."

Email me (address at top right) if you want to reply to John.

John ends, "I`m glad to see that Brothers and Sisters can stand together for one common goal even if separated by borders." Solidarity!

Caroline Lund

Philippino Workers Strike Toyota

Toyota is the Philippines` number one car manufacturer. Workers at Toyota plants in Bicutan and Sta. Rosa, Laguna, are on strike after they won union recognition but Toyota refused to negotiate a contract with them. Hundreds of workers have been terminated for walking off the job to appeal to the Labor Department to force Toyota to recognize their right to a union.

The strikers say: "We love our jobs! We feed our small children, siblings and unemployed parents from working here. We spent 8-10 years of our young lives working hard and in making Toyota Motors a leader in the industry. We feel we deserve to be treated fairly, humanely and live decently from the hard work that we give. We don¹t deserve to be thrown out when we realize we have rights and when we find the time to exercise those rights. The Constitution guarantees the right to organize and to strike. Are we asking too much?"

Philippine Young Christian Workers, 1316 Perdigon St., Paco, Manila, Tel/Fax: (632) 563 7173 email: philycw@pacific.net.ph

These workers need donations for strike expenses and hardships from having no wages.

Source: The Internet

Contract Negotiations

Many members are wondering what is happening in NUMMI`s contract negotiations with our union. There is a feeling that we need more information coming out to the membership on the plant floor, not only at the union meetings.

Some unions encourage membership involvement in contract negotiations. My husband works at United Airlines and the mechanics and cleaners there (about 16,000) are going to have a vote soon on whether to kick out their old union (the IAM) and put in a new union (AMFA, the Airline Mechanics Fraternal Association). Eight thousand workers have already signed up in support of AMFA.

AMFA recently negotiated a contract with Northwest Airlines, where the workers won a 24% immediate wage increase, plus 12% more over the course of the 3-year contract.

During negotiations with Northwest, AMFA invited 50 rank-and-file workers to observe at each negotiating session. If more than 50 showed up, lots were drawn to see who went in. During breaks in the negotiations, AMFA negotiators would meet with the worker observers to get their feedback and suggestions. The union provided daily updates, with details of each side`s agreements and disagreements, via bulletins and internet postings.

Seems to me this is how a real union should function. We will get a better contract if the Company feels the hot breath of the union rank and file right there in the negotiating room!

Caroline Lund

Trip to Brazil

Have you seen the latest edition of Inside Track? Pat Pineda says the only significant difference between NUMMI and the GM plant in Brazil is that the workers there only make $300 per month. Was this her opening offer for our next contract? I wonder what the person who holds a position comparable to hers makes in Brazil? Would she be willing to work for the same amount?

How much did NUMMI spend on Pat`s trip? Seems to me they could have learned the same thing by making a phone call. That would have saved NUMMI thousands. Maybe NUMMI could outsource Pat`s job to a lower-wage vendor.
That way, one person could make these worthless trips and spread the costs among several companies.

I read in the NUMMI News that the Brazil plant solved an ergonomic problem with an inexpensive office chair. The worker is required to roll backwards during an assembly operation. What if one of the wheels were to hit a bolt and the chair tipped over? Would the company fix his fractured skull with an expensive band aid?

Tom Burton, PAT 25

UAW Constitution on the Web

Our coworker Tom Burton has provided an important resource for all UAW members. He has put up the entire UAW Constitution on his web site.

Here is the direct address: http://www.angelfire.com/ca5/newsboard/constitution.html

Or you can access it from his home page at: http://www.autoworker.org

Also, check out this site of the UAW Solidarity Coalition: http://www.hawk.addr.com/uawsc/index.htm

Is Criticism Divisive?

Following is an excerpt from an independent newsletter called Collective Action, which is put out by Jon Swanson, a member of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union, Local 1640:

"People who are afraid of the free flow of ideas are either afraid of change, hiding something, or both. The assumption that ideas can`t be debated passionately without undermining solidarity is absurd. Of course, everyone must be treated with respect in the process. In the end, members will coalesce around common goals even as they debate the best way to achieve them."

Letter From Kenworth Truck Worker

My Fellow Barking Dogs,

Your newsletter is extraordinary and your editor is a brave woman. There is a story you may find interesting about another brave woman who works in a factory in Renton, Washington. For the past 20 years Linda Blaney has built Kenworth trucks, the big rig heavy haulers you see on the freeways every day. She is also a member of International Association of Machinists Local 289, where she served honorably as Senior Shop Steward, until one day IAM Business Representatives Don Hursey and Mike Goddard decided she "didn`t fit in." So without explanation, with no written charges, and with cooperation from Kenworth, they removed her from office.

It did not matter that the membership had elected her. Don Hursey brazenly said to the membership, "I don`t care what you want."

About 2 years ago Linda Blaney filed suit against the IAM alleging sexual discrimination. Blaney versus the IAM ended emotionally on March 30, 2001, with the jury voting 12 to 0 in favor of Linda Blaney. The jury awarded her $637,000 plus attorney`s fees.

The membership at Kenworth was ecstatic over this victory, and so was the jury. Members of the jury shook Linda`s hand, hugged her, and congratulated her on the strength to do what most women would not be strong enough to endure.

The union leadership can`t believe they lost. They are in shock, as someone reported from the union hall.

People at Kenworth are joking, "It`s nice to see somebody get something out of this union, enjoy the money, Linda." Many are asking if they can mail their union dues directly to Linda`s house!

This settlement may bankrupt the local, but most members don`t really give a damn because the leadership of the IAM has lost touch with those who matter most. The dues payers. This trial exposed the IAM leadership for what it really is, an elitist, private club for the benefit of its pudgy, middle-aged, sexist white boy leadership.

You may contact Ms. Linda Blaney at LBlaney289@aol.com

Sincerely,
Robert "Bob" Osborne, Honorary Editor of The Onion Chatters, a publication much like The Barking Dog, dedicated to the good people who build Kenworths in Renton, Washington.

Union Business?

Our union is negotiating to buy a luxury resort in Palm Springs for $9.75 million. This is after they spent millions on building a lavish golf course at the UAW Educational Center in Black Lake, Michigan. The resort, called La Mancha, has hosted celebrities such as Liz Taylor, John Travolta and Barbra Streisand. This is our dues money they are spending on resorts and golf courses!

What does this have to do with unionism?

The Detroit Free Press quoted Gene Austin, a 29-year UAW member at Local 594, a GM truck plant in Pontiac, MI. He said of the resort deal: "They [the UAW leadership] need to invest in our retirees, who don`t have cost-of-living adjustments, or invest in our members who work at parts suppliers and get substandard wages. This is just irresponsible. It`s another dark day in the history of our union."

BART Worker Suspended

BART worker, Ray Quan, was suspended by BART management on March 30 without a hearing and without pay. For 10 years Ray was Chief Steward for Oakland BART shops and East Bay Vice President of the Service Employees International Union Local 790. He is well known for standing up to management in defense of his fellow workers.

It is contract negotiations time at BART, just like here at NUMMI, and BART is trying to silence Ray and intimidate other BART employees by threatening to terminate him.

Ray puts out a newsletter called Odds & Ends, in which he published a photo of a BART vehicle being used by a supervisor for personal business.

For this, management accused him of "retaliation and intimidation," and threatened to terminate him.

He had earlier distributed a satirical newsletter called Shooting News, which made fun of management for sending him home from work and then later having to pay him for the day, which he spent target shooting. (Ray is a long-time gun safety instructor and avid target shooter.)

Management called this newsletter a violation of their policy against "violence in the workplace"! Thus BART is trying to use this policy not to protect employees from real violence, but to retaliate against a worker they don`t like.

To find out more information and how you can help, contact: RayQuanDefense@yahoo.com

Quote of the Month

"The world is my country, all mankind my brethren, and to do good is my religion." Thomas Paine, leader of the American revolution that founded our country.

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