ILWU hold sit-in at PMA office
please see updates, announcement of Emergency Defense Committee Meeting, below
The Tuesday sit-in
at 10 o'clock this morning (Tues. April 12, 2011), and still continuing, unless they've been arrested by now:
Members of ILUW locals 10, 6, 54, and SEIU 1021 are now holding a sit-in at the offices of the PMA (Pacific Maritime Association) at 475 - 14th street in Oakland. Jack Heyman & Richard Mead are there.
This is because the PMA (Pacific Maritime Association) is suing the ILWU over the shutdown of the Port of Oakland and SF docks on Monday, April 4.
The PMA is notoriously anti-union, and is also reportedly hiring non-union workers at Port Chicago and San Diego.
Presumably, the police will be soon arresting these labor activists; so anybody who happens to be in the area please go there to be a witness. A supporting demonstration on the street outside the offices would be helpful if people can get there in time.
It's at the PMA (Pacific Maritime Association) office at 475 - 14th street in Oakland, across the street from the City Hall.
This was reported by phone to Daniel Borgström from ILWU member Stan Woods who is at the sit-in.
*** *** ***
UPDATE
The occupation ended at Noon. No arrests
by Stan Woods
April 12, 2011
The action is now over. The PMA refused to meet with the delegation and after several hours people decided to leave. Richard Phelps Atty. volunteered his services and served as a Legal liaison with the OPD.
In yet another anti-union attack the PMA (Pacific Maritime Assoc.) has decided to strike back against ILWU Local 10 for its April 4 Solidarity action with the Workers of Wisconsin (and everywhere!)
They are also reportedly using US Army reservists instead of Union Longshore at what was formerly known as the Port Chicago in Concord . And reports are now coming in re Port of San Diego. details unclear.
This is just the beginning. Any and everyone who is interested in defending workers rights are invited to attend a Emergency Planning meeting this Thursday 4/14 at 7 Pm Longshore Hall Henry Schmitt room 400 Northpoint/Mason SF.
Endorsed by the SF Labor Council on 4/12.
(See Channels 2 and 7 news at 5 and 6 pm today for film of the event. Also filmed by the Labor Video project)
--- --- ---
STAN WOODS is a labor and KPFA activist.
*** *** ***
Emergency Defense Committee Meeting
From: Jack Heyman
Sent: Wed, Apr 13, 2011 1:35 am
Subject: EMERGENCY DEFENSE COMMITTEE MEETING
Sisters and Brothers:
The labor movement is under attack from Wisconsin to California and from New York and Ohio to Arizona. And we're beginning to fight back. On April 4th when working people across this country demonstrated in solidarity with the Wisconsin state workers, the longshore workers of Local 10 in San Francisco did what they've always done, implemented their union's slogan, "An injury to one is an injury to all." According to news media, the ports of San Francisco and Oakland were shut down in solidarity with the workers in Wisconsin.
They did it in 1978 for the workers of Chile under the gun of Pinochet's bloody military dictatorship refusing to load bombs on a ship bound for Chile.
They did it in 1984 for the oppressed people of apartheid South Africa and according to Nelson Mandela helped bring down that racist regime.
They did it in 2000 for the Charleston longshore union under attack from police and politicians for defending their jobs.
They did it all in 2008 by shutting down all West Coast ports to demand an end to the imperialist wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
And last year they did it in solidarity with the Palestinian people being massacred in Gaza and protesting against the police killing in Oakland of an innocent young black man, Oscar Grant.
ILWU Local 10 has been the moral compass of the American labor movement. Now the employers' group, the Pacific Maritime Association, is trying to put an end to workers' solidarity actions by intimidating the longshore union through a court suit. Their bullying tactics must be stopped. ILWU Local 10 and the San Francisco Labor Council are organizing a broad defense campaign. There will be an EMERGENCY DEFENSE MEETING at Local 10 located near Fisherman's Wharf at 400 North Point Street (corner of Mason) Thursday April 14 at 7PM in the Henry Schmidt room. Be there to defend organized labor, civil liberties, the antiwar movement and immigrant workers' rights!
In solidarity, Trent Willis
The following resolution, introduced by Dave Welsh of the Letter Carriers' Union, unanimously passed the San Francisco Labor Council last night. It's time for mass mobilization to fight back!
April 11 SAN FRANCISCO LABOR COUNCIL RESOLUTION
DEFEND ILWU LOCAL 10's APRIL 4 SOLIDARITY ACTION
Whereas, the delegates meeting of the Council voted unanimously on March 14 that "in the event that a Council affiliate votes to engage in an industrial action on April 4, the San Francisco Labor Council will call on all its affiliates.....to support such action......" and
Whereas, International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 10 and its President Richard Mead are being sued in court by maritime employers of the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) for a 24 hour shutdown of the Port of Oakland on April 4 a National Day of Action called by the AFL-CIO and a day for which ILWU International President McEllrath on March 8th called for mobilizing in solidarity with the workers of Wisconsin; and Whereas, each rank and file member of Local 10 made this selfless choice to stand up for public workers in Wisconsin and for all workers in the best tradition of the longshore union, as they have done since the Big Strike of 1934 and the historic San Francisco General Strike which built the foundation for the trade union movement in this city and on the West Coast, and
Whereas, these same maritime employers were unsuccessful in their attempt to use the slave labor Taft-Hartley Act to stop the ILWU from carrying out a Local 10-initiated coastwide shutdown of all ports on May Day 2008 to demand an end to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, a first-ever in U.S. labor history, and
Whereas, Local 10, the heart and soul of the San Francisco labor movement, is now under attack for implementing the principled labor slogan "An Injury to One Is An Injury To All",
Therefore be it resolved, that the San Francisco Labor Council, consistent with its March 14th resolution, initiate a broad defense campaign of ILWU Local 10 by setting up a defense committee in close collaboration with Local 10 by contacting and mobilizing the Labor Councils and AFL-CIO of the Bay Area, California and nationally and Be it further resolved, that the first step in this campaign will be to call for a mass mobilization of all Bay Area Labor Councils and the California AFL-CIO to rally in front of PMA headquarters in San Francisco on Monday April 25th to demand that the court suit be dropped and that the vindictive lynch mob procedures against the union in the arbitration be halted immediately, and
Be it finally resolved that ILWU Local 10 be commended for its solidarity action and that we request that the state and national AFL-CIO do likewise.
.
The Tuesday sit-in
at 10 o'clock this morning (Tues. April 12, 2011), and still continuing, unless they've been arrested by now:
Members of ILUW locals 10, 6, 54, and SEIU 1021 are now holding a sit-in at the offices of the PMA (Pacific Maritime Association) at 475 - 14th street in Oakland. Jack Heyman & Richard Mead are there.
This is because the PMA (Pacific Maritime Association) is suing the ILWU over the shutdown of the Port of Oakland and SF docks on Monday, April 4.
The PMA is notoriously anti-union, and is also reportedly hiring non-union workers at Port Chicago and San Diego.
Presumably, the police will be soon arresting these labor activists; so anybody who happens to be in the area please go there to be a witness. A supporting demonstration on the street outside the offices would be helpful if people can get there in time.
It's at the PMA (Pacific Maritime Association) office at 475 - 14th street in Oakland, across the street from the City Hall.
This was reported by phone to Daniel Borgström from ILWU member Stan Woods who is at the sit-in.
*** *** ***
UPDATE
The occupation ended at Noon. No arrests
by Stan Woods
April 12, 2011
The action is now over. The PMA refused to meet with the delegation and after several hours people decided to leave. Richard Phelps Atty. volunteered his services and served as a Legal liaison with the OPD.
In yet another anti-union attack the PMA (Pacific Maritime Assoc.) has decided to strike back against ILWU Local 10 for its April 4 Solidarity action with the Workers of Wisconsin (and everywhere!)
They are also reportedly using US Army reservists instead of Union Longshore at what was formerly known as the Port Chicago in Concord . And reports are now coming in re Port of San Diego. details unclear.
This is just the beginning. Any and everyone who is interested in defending workers rights are invited to attend a Emergency Planning meeting this Thursday 4/14 at 7 Pm Longshore Hall Henry Schmitt room 400 Northpoint/Mason SF.
Endorsed by the SF Labor Council on 4/12.
(See Channels 2 and 7 news at 5 and 6 pm today for film of the event. Also filmed by the Labor Video project)
--- --- ---
STAN WOODS is a labor and KPFA activist.
*** *** ***
Emergency Defense Committee Meeting
From: Jack Heyman
Sent: Wed, Apr 13, 2011 1:35 am
Subject: EMERGENCY DEFENSE COMMITTEE MEETING
Sisters and Brothers:
The labor movement is under attack from Wisconsin to California and from New York and Ohio to Arizona. And we're beginning to fight back. On April 4th when working people across this country demonstrated in solidarity with the Wisconsin state workers, the longshore workers of Local 10 in San Francisco did what they've always done, implemented their union's slogan, "An injury to one is an injury to all." According to news media, the ports of San Francisco and Oakland were shut down in solidarity with the workers in Wisconsin.
They did it in 1978 for the workers of Chile under the gun of Pinochet's bloody military dictatorship refusing to load bombs on a ship bound for Chile.
They did it in 1984 for the oppressed people of apartheid South Africa and according to Nelson Mandela helped bring down that racist regime.
They did it in 2000 for the Charleston longshore union under attack from police and politicians for defending their jobs.
They did it all in 2008 by shutting down all West Coast ports to demand an end to the imperialist wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
And last year they did it in solidarity with the Palestinian people being massacred in Gaza and protesting against the police killing in Oakland of an innocent young black man, Oscar Grant.
ILWU Local 10 has been the moral compass of the American labor movement. Now the employers' group, the Pacific Maritime Association, is trying to put an end to workers' solidarity actions by intimidating the longshore union through a court suit. Their bullying tactics must be stopped. ILWU Local 10 and the San Francisco Labor Council are organizing a broad defense campaign. There will be an EMERGENCY DEFENSE MEETING at Local 10 located near Fisherman's Wharf at 400 North Point Street (corner of Mason) Thursday April 14 at 7PM in the Henry Schmidt room. Be there to defend organized labor, civil liberties, the antiwar movement and immigrant workers' rights!
In solidarity, Trent Willis
The following resolution, introduced by Dave Welsh of the Letter Carriers' Union, unanimously passed the San Francisco Labor Council last night. It's time for mass mobilization to fight back!
April 11 SAN FRANCISCO LABOR COUNCIL RESOLUTION
DEFEND ILWU LOCAL 10's APRIL 4 SOLIDARITY ACTION
Whereas, the delegates meeting of the Council voted unanimously on March 14 that "in the event that a Council affiliate votes to engage in an industrial action on April 4, the San Francisco Labor Council will call on all its affiliates.....to support such action......" and
Whereas, International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 10 and its President Richard Mead are being sued in court by maritime employers of the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) for a 24 hour shutdown of the Port of Oakland on April 4 a National Day of Action called by the AFL-CIO and a day for which ILWU International President McEllrath on March 8th called for mobilizing in solidarity with the workers of Wisconsin; and Whereas, each rank and file member of Local 10 made this selfless choice to stand up for public workers in Wisconsin and for all workers in the best tradition of the longshore union, as they have done since the Big Strike of 1934 and the historic San Francisco General Strike which built the foundation for the trade union movement in this city and on the West Coast, and
Whereas, these same maritime employers were unsuccessful in their attempt to use the slave labor Taft-Hartley Act to stop the ILWU from carrying out a Local 10-initiated coastwide shutdown of all ports on May Day 2008 to demand an end to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, a first-ever in U.S. labor history, and
Whereas, Local 10, the heart and soul of the San Francisco labor movement, is now under attack for implementing the principled labor slogan "An Injury to One Is An Injury To All",
Therefore be it resolved, that the San Francisco Labor Council, consistent with its March 14th resolution, initiate a broad defense campaign of ILWU Local 10 by setting up a defense committee in close collaboration with Local 10 by contacting and mobilizing the Labor Councils and AFL-CIO of the Bay Area, California and nationally and Be it further resolved, that the first step in this campaign will be to call for a mass mobilization of all Bay Area Labor Councils and the California AFL-CIO to rally in front of PMA headquarters in San Francisco on Monday April 25th to demand that the court suit be dropped and that the vindictive lynch mob procedures against the union in the arbitration be halted immediately, and
Be it finally resolved that ILWU Local 10 be commended for its solidarity action and that we request that the state and national AFL-CIO do likewise.
.
Labels: dock workers, longshore workers, longshoremen
