AFSCME Rally 9/23, Support Detroit City Workers

Reposted from Detroit Greens

AFSCME LOCAL 207 will be conducting a Union-Community Picket and Rally on Wednesday September 23, 2009 at the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center at 2 Woodward Ave. Detroit assembling at 4:30pm at the Spirit of Detroit statue.

We will be protesting against the severe contract concessions being pushed on Detroit city workers by Dave Bing and the layoff of over 1000 city workers and resulting cutbacks in public services.

Contact : John Riehl 207 President 313-919-5011
Michael Mulholland 207 Treasurer 313-995-5691

American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO
Local 207 Public Utility Employees of The City of Detroit, Michigan
Michigan District Council #25

Website: afscme207.com
e-mail: afscme207@sbcglobal.net

600 West Lafayette, Suite L-106 – Detroit, Michigan 48226 – 313 965-1601 – Fax 313 965-1603

Help exploited Mexican workers in Michigan

Forwarded from a friend in the labor community:

Mexican workers are being exploited by many US and foreign companies, especially auto parts suppliers. One of the largest is TRW which is headquartered here in Michigan. In Reynosa, Mexico they pay workers, many of them women, about $1.50 an hour to make seat belt systems for GM, Ford and Chrysler, and other automakers. It is nearly impossible to live on that kind of money even in Mexico.

And on top of that the company has unilaterally imposed a change of location on them, disrupting their transportation and child care arrangements without any compensation. On top of unsafe conditions and threats to their job security, and inaction from their company union, about 600 workers organized to fight back. The leadership was soon fired and blacklisted. Sound familiar?

One of the leaders is in the US, and part of his purpose is to present the grievances directly to TRW leadership in Livonia, Michigan. That will take place on Wednesday at 10am...here's how you can help the workers:

Please write or call the company president and CEO on Wednesday morning. The details on how to do so follow. And a more detailed explanation is attached in a flyer. On Wednesday, email or call TRW supporting workers’ demands c/o: John C. Plant, TRW President and CEO John.plant@trw.com 734.855.3871(office), 734.748.0676 (cell), 734.855.2473 (fax)

It should only take a few moments to take this action but it would mean a lot to the workers, and to our belief that we are in one common struggle and we can reach out across the world to help each other.

Image reposted from Plawiuk Blog

Moratorium Now rally for DTE Shutoff Tenants

Media Advisory

Event: Moratorium NOW! Coalition Meeting/Rally at Highland Towers
Date: Monday, September 14, 6:00-8:00pm
Location: Highland Towers Apartments, 12850 Woodward Near Glendale
Contact: 313.671.3715
E-mail: ac6123@wayne.edu
URL: http://www.moratorium-mi.org

Moratorium NOW! Coalition Meeting Will Be Held Outside the Highland Towers to Demand That the Lights Remain on Pending an Acceptable Resolution of the Crisis; We Must Win a Halt to Illegal Utility Shutoffs and Evictions!

Organizers for the Moratorium NOW! Coalition to Stop Foreclosures, Evictions and Utility Shutoffs will intensify their campaign this week in support of the tenants at the Highland Towers Apartments in Highland Park where DTE Energy had shut off the power for 11 days. The owners of the building had failed to pay the utility bills despite the fact that the tenants had paid their rents which includes costs for electrical services. On Friday September 11, as a result of a 10 day struggle, Wayne County Circuit Judge Kathleen MacDonald ordered DTE Energy to turn the power back on at the building for one week...

Other important developments this week will include two other hearings before Judge MacDonald on Tuesday, September 15 and Friday, September 18 at 9:00am. Both hearings will seek relief from damages endured by the residents resulting from the actions of both the absentee landlords as well as DTE Energy.

The Moratorium NOW! Coalition is calling upon the community in both Highland Park and Detroit to attend the street meeting on Monday evening. The current struggle to win justice for the residents at Highland Towers has broader implications for the overall campaign to win a general moratorium on foreclosures, evictions and utility shutoffs in the state of Michigan . As the economy further declines more people will face illegal lockouts and displacements. Only an organized response from homeowners, tenants and their supporters can protect the rights of growing numbers of people affected by the economic crisis.