PGHIMC - Pittsburgh Independent Media Center

Labor Union Education at Turnpike Rest Areas Kicks-off this Holiday "Working" Se
by Pittsburgh I.W.W. Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2007 at 10:59 PM
pittsburghiww@yahoo.com P.O. Box 831, Pittsburgh, PA 15146

ACLU Steps-in to Assure Citizens that Rest Areas are Public Space for First Amendment Activities

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday November 21, 2007

Tens of thousands of workers across Pennsylvania have taken "extra" jobs this holiday season in the retail and food service industries. The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) wants them to bring the union to work with them. That’s the message union members will be delivering to the patrons of PA Turnpike rest areas across Pennsylvania on "Black Friday," the traditional start of Holiday Shopping Season, or "Working Season."

"The IWW organizes the worker, not the job," says IWW member Kenneth Miller. "We are not going to focus on how long workers are staying at a particular work place, but what conditions can be improved in the short term. Work is better, you feel like a human being, when you can openly advocate for yourself and your co-workers."

The Starbucks Workers Union, part of the IWW and active across the United States and in other countries, has had success winning wage increases and schedule improvements. Workers are demanding their union rights at work: the right to be public about their union membership, wear a union button, discuss wages and benefits with co-workers, and use all of the legal means at their disposal and the solidarity of other workers to fight back against illegal firings.

The Pittsburgh and Lancaster General Membership Branches of the IWW are asking patrons of PA Turnpike rest areas to help with outreach to Starbucks workers this holiday season. "People want to feel good about where they shop and the people that are serving them, that is the foundation of the Starbucks brand. If people learn that Starbucks is treating their barista "Partners" badly and that the advertising about the benefits Starbucks has brought to coffee farmers is untrue, then we have a meaningful and honest holiday challenge. These workers are our friends and neighbors. The issues become, how can we be better informed and how can we support workers for real, during the holiday season and throughout the year?" says Hawa Lassanah.

IWW members will be distributing a double-sided leaflet with information exposing Starbucks treatment of baristas and its false advertising about the benefits coffee growers receive when they do business with the corporation. People stopping at any of the rest areas across the state between noon and 3 PM are likely to encounter friendly IWW leafleters.

The Turnpike Commission and the operator of the rest areas, HMSHost, have both threatened the union with legal action and attempted to shut down free speech activity at the rest areas. The PA ACLU has intervened on the union’s behalf and the State Troopers seem to understand their responsibility to protect First Amendment Rights along the Turnpike. The next Turnpike Commission meetings are the 4th and 14th of December. People wishing to make public comment must contact the Commission’s lawyers one full week in advance of the meeting.



Contacts: Central PA – Hawa (717) 380-6085
Western PA – Kenneth (412) 241-1339


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www.starbucksunion.org