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posted by martyb on Thursday May 03 2018, @10:13AM   Printer-friendly
from the a-win-for-workers-everywhere dept.

The International Socialist Organization reports

The Burgerville Workers Union (BVWU) in Portland, Oregon, has become the first federally recognized fast-food workers union in the U.S.

With a vote of 18-4 in a National Labor Relations Board election, workers at Store #41 notched an important victory in the drive to organize the 1,500 workers at all 42 Burgerville sites located in Oregon and southwest Washington. BVWU spokesperson Emmett Schlenz says that six of the company's locations now have publicly active unions. Workers at another store have already filed for an NLRB election.

[...] The union has been pressing for a $5 an hour raise, stable scheduling, affordable health care, paid maternity/paternity leave, free childcare and transportation, and an end to the employer's use of e-verify to exclude undocumented immigrant workers.

Using direct action tactics, including mass picketing with community allies, occupations and a three-day strike at four restaurants, the all-volunteer BVWU has drawn the support of dozens of local unions, many community and faith-based organizations, and some elected officials.

The union called a boycott of Burgerville after a number of union activists were fired.

[...] The union's announcement of its victory stated:

In this moment of victory, we want to celebrate, yes, but we also want to turn our attention to the 4.5 million other fast-food workers in the United States. We want to speak to everyone else who works for poverty wages, who are constantly disrespected on the job, who are told they aren't educated enough, aren't experienced enough, aren't good enough for a decent life. To all of those workers, to everyone like us who works rough jobs for terrible pay, we say this:

Don't listen to that bullshit. Burgerville workers didn't, and look at us now.


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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 03 2018, @06:31PM (2 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 03 2018, @06:31PM (#675209)

    I would have liked universal health care, until I lived under it for a while.

    Universal health care means that a bunch of people get to make decisions about my health care that are not linked to medical efficacy, on the logic that they're paying for it.

    So I get to pay more in taxes to have less choice and worse care.

    Call me an evil worker-oppressing hyper-individualist exploitative monster if you like, but I did not consider this to be a good outcome.

  • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 03 2018, @07:13PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 03 2018, @07:13PM (#675246)

    That is in no way different from the US unless you're quite rich and can afford to pay 10k+ for small stuff. Primarily people go without the medical care they should get due to the high deductibles and max price coverage. It has been repeatedly demonstrated that the "not getting proper care" is a total red herring, and if you're rich enough to afford US healthcare then just fly over.

    The data speaks much more clearly than your anecdotal complaints, maybe you're just an entitled boomer? ;)

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 03 2018, @07:16PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 03 2018, @07:16PM (#675247)

    Where did you live that banned private healthcare?

    I've always had socialised healthcare, and never lived in such a place.