by James Parks, Mar 14, 2008
With the nation’s middle class under attack, workers are developing a new way to mobilize workers on the job and in their communities to fight for a better life—the Stewards Army.
The idea behind the Stewards Army is straightforward but powerful: Create a movement-wide network of stewards—the union official closest to the members, who works alongside the rank-and-file members—to educate, organize and mobilize members around key issues.
When the Electrical Workers (IBEW) was contacted by Comcast employees seeking respect on the job and the protections of a union contract, the union mobilized its Stewards Army to provide information and support for the workers’ efforts. During a nationwide blitz this week, more than 400 IBEW activists handed out leaflets at more than 100 Comcast worksites, letting workers know they have a right to join a union.
Day after day, Comcast’s front-line workers literally are in the trenches, working outside through biting cold and brutal heat, doing the work that brings the Internet and the world of cable television to consumers. But Comcast workers are paid less than their counterparts in the cable industry, the union says. Comcast’s workers are seeking a greater opportunity to negotiate for their fair share of the wealth created by their high-quality, high-tech work.
Without these workers in the field, the system does not work. But rather than share with the workers who created Comcast’s profits—$602 million in the fourth quarter of 2007 alone—it gave CEO Brian Roberts a $28 million pay package last year. Click here to learn more about the Comcast workers’ efforts to join a union.
As IBEW President Edwin Hill says:
Over the past several years, we’ve seen a boom in the telecommunications industry and the creation of many new skilled jobs. But not all workers are enjoying the economic potential and security of these new jobs.
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
