Wisconsin State AFL-CIO Blog

Working Families, Community Members Help Those on Strike This Holiday Season

In a show of solidarity and support for the middle class, community members are coming together and donating food and toys to striking families at Manitowoc Cranes.

 

Union and community members from across Wisconsin are showing support for the men and women on strike at Manitowoc Cranes. The company has pushed the workers out at a difficult time of the year for many working families.

Thankfully, in keeping with the Wisconsin holiday spirit, working people across the state have come together to support the workers with donations of food and toys.  Hundreds of toys and 3 truckloads of food were delivered to the Machinists Union Hall. 

 

“The support from the community has been overwhelming and much appreciated,” said Ben Elizondo, of the Machinists Union. “There is never a good time for a strike but during the holidays, when people are suppose to be coming together, it is a shame that Manitowoc Cranes have pushed these workers out. Thankfully, the Manitowoc and Wisconsin community realizes that this is a fight for all working people. This is the fight to be able to put a check on corporate greed, a fight to be able to join together with your co-workers for a better workplace.”

 

On Wednesday, December 21 striking workers and community members gathered at the Machinists Local Lodge 516 Union Hall on Conroe Street to distribute the donated toys and food to the striking families of Machinists Local Lodge 516.

 

“While the CEO of Manitowoc Cranes rakes in a paycheck of $5 million a year, these workers simply want a fair contract, void of all union-busting language,” said Phil Neuenfeldt, President of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO. “Our holiday hope is that we can get back to the table, negotiate and get the Machinists back on the job.”

 

Since Nov. 15 nearly 200 workers at Manitowoc Cranes have been on strike. At issue is not wages or benefits but the basic right to have a union. At the last minute, the Company slipped union-destroying language, similar to Gov. Walker’s union-busting bill, into a contract proposal.

The workers at Manitowoc Cranes have made their choice with an overwhelming vote of (180-2) to reject the language. The community has stepped up and supported the workers who are standing up for the middle class by donating food and toys so that the children of the striker’s can have a Christmas.

 

On Dec. 10 thousands of working families came together in Manitowoc to support the workers by walking the picket line and rallying in solidarity.  The labor movement stands firmly behind these brave workers as they fight for their union rights.

For more information visit the IAM Local 516 website.

 

Media Clips

•    Manitowoc Herald Times, Children of Striking Workers Receive Toys

•    NBC 26:  Striking Workers Get Holiday Help

•    WBAY:  Union: Manitowoc Crane Strike Could Last Months

•    Manitowoc Herald Photo Collection

The Story Behind the Blue Fist

You’ve seen it on passing cars, in the hands of thousands of protestors, in the windows of homes around Wisconsin and even on Glenn Beck, but do you know the story behind the iconic Blue Fist?

The Blue Fist has become an image of solidarity and strength not only for the Wisconsin union movement but for the global struggle for social justice and democracy. 

Carrie Worthen is the artist who designed the Blue Fist.  Worthen was born and raised in Appleton, Wisconsin.  She studied Fine Arts at the University of Milwaukee and currently works in design in Los Angeles.  You can find her work at thirdthing.com. 

“I was "The Clarifier," explained Worthen.  “I prettied-up and simplified the idea. It was spur of the moment and out of necessity, and grew from there.  To me it needed to be bold and clear, loud and simple.” 
 

Norm Carley, also a UW-Milwaukee graduate from Steven’s Point, was part of the team that brought the Blue Fist to life.

“We have to credit Scott Walker.  He helped the Blue Fist come alive,” explained Carley.

“The fist has been a symbol of the struggle for years and years.  Putting Door County on the closed hand, made the image into the Wisconsin Blue Fist.  We needed a symbol to organize and rally around.  The Blue Fist is a potent image, tied to both the movement and to the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO.  This was a group effort, done out of necessity with little time.  It gelled together and became the Blue Fist.  This image has rekindled the use of the fist as a protest symbol of America and now you are seeing a reawakening of the fist as a protest symbol.” 

 

“The Blue Fist is just the most recent in a long line of solidarity fists,” continued Worthen.  “The raised fist is a historic protest gesture that has appeared in worker, civil rights and solidarity graphics since at least mid-century.  Right-wing groups tried for years to discredit it but the Wisconsin Blue Fist shattered those notions and now you see the fist everywhere, just look to the Occupy Movement.”

Once the image was designed for the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO posters and buttons were printed and handed out to protestors both  inside and outside the Rotunda.  Social media was used to help spread the image as Face Book and Twitter were used as tools to get the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO Blue Fist image to supporters not physically in the Madison area. 

 

“People gravitate towards the Blue Fist,” said Stephanie Bloomingdale, Secretary-Treasurer of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO.  “Grandmothers, fathers, daughters, union workers, non-union workers – people are stopping into our office on a regular basis to pick up Blue Fist buttons, posters and bumper stickers to proudly display in their homes and neighborhoods.” 

 

 The Blue Fist is in the shape of Wisconsin.  It is a bright blue fist against a sea of red.  It is a raised fist, not a clenched or angry fist.  Below the image reads “Stand with Wisconsin.”

 

"The slogan that we used, 'Stand with Wisconsin' it is this sort of call to the nation to stand up like Wisconsin workers and the Wisconsin people,” explained Worthen. “I think it's great that everybody is with this movement.   You see Blue Fists everywhere.  The Blue Fist is our united front, it's a call-to-action, a wake-up call to the nation to stand and fight like the heroes in Wisconsin!” 

 

 

Visit http://www.standwisconsin.org/ for Blue Fist posters, t-shirts, bumper stickers, sweatshirts and more!

 

• Click here to see the Decembrists play Jimmy Kimmel live with a Blue Fist sticker on their guitar!

• Click here to see the DropKick Murphys play Summerfest in Milwaukee with the Blue Fist on stage!

• Blue Fist on the cover of the National Review, a right-wing publication.

Half a Million Wisconsinites Sign to Recall Gov. Walker

WOW!  Union members and recall activists have gathered over 507,533 signatures to reclaim Wisconsin and recall Gov. Walker in just 30 days! 

This is a huge accomplishment, but we aren’t stopping now!  Our new goal is to collect 720,277 signatures before the January deadline. 

With your help we can surpass our goal and ensure that Gov. Walker’s on attacks Wisconsin workers and families are stopped. 

• Click here to download a petition to circulate in your neighborhood.  There are still 30 days left to collect signatures.

• Click here to donate to the recall effort before the end of the year deadline. 

 

If everyone pitches in we will have the grassroots, people power to combat Gov. Walker’s big moneyed, corporate backers like the Koch Brothers.  Volunteer your time, download a petition or donate today. 

A new report released by the Institute for Wisconsin’s Future shows that the ripple affects of Gov. Walker’s policies will cost Wisconsin over 18,000 full-time, private sector jobs a year.  This report is a stark reminder of why we must recall Gov. Walker.

Over half a million people have signed to recall Gov. Walker.  Half a million people is the equivalent of filling Lambeau Field 7 times, Miller Park 11 times and is 10,000 more people than the average  gate attendance at Noah’s Ark in the Wisconsin Dells!  

Together, we will recall Gov. Walker.  In Wisconsin, we need jobs, not a Governor who puts corporate special interests above the 99%. 

Report: Walker Costing Wisconsin Over 18,000 Jobs A Year

  A report released by the Institute for Wisconsin’s Future entitled “The Price of Extremism” clearly and systematically outlines that Gov. Walker’s policies are not working.  In fact, the indirect, ripple affects of Gov. Walker’s actions are costing Wisconsin over 18,000 full-time, private-sector jobs during the first year of Gov. Walker’s budget. 

 

The report focuses on four ways that Walker’s policies are hurting Wisconsin and attaches private-sector job loss estimates to each of the policies.  The four areas and estimated job loss include: 

 

1.         Cuts to education and healthcare which will cost Wisconsin 5,400 jobs

2.         Cuts in aid to low-income families which will cost Wisconsin 1,200 jobs

3.         The economic impact of Act 10 which will cost Wisconsin 6,900 jobs

4.         The rejection of federal aid funds which has cost 4,700 jobs

 

The report, which can viewed here, also provides county-by-county estimates of the impact of Act 10 and the impact of education cuts on local economies. 

 

“In tough times, the worst thing a Governor can do is further shrink the economy by stifling spending,” explained Jack Norman, Research Director for the Institute for Wisconsin’s Future. “Gov. Walker has taken huge amounts of money out of the economy through budget cuts, attacks on workers and increased taxes on low-income families. This leads businesses to have fewer customers, workers to have fewer jobs and local governments to have less revenue.”

 

“Along with stripping public employees of their basic collective bargaining rights, Act 10  decreased the spending power of public employees by an average of $3,668 a year for the typical public employee making $40,000 a year,” said Phil Neuenfeldt, President of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO.  “This has a huge affect on local economies that will result in $700 million leaving Wisconsin’s economy.  This is money that was spent at the local corner store and small businesses in communities across the state.  The end economic result for Wisconsin is the loss of 6,900 full-time private sector jobs.” 

 

“Under Walker, Wisconsin is 33,800 jobs short of matching the national pace of job creation,” said Stephanie Bloomingdale, Secretary-Treasurer of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO.  “Walker’s policies are not working.  Our state needs jobs.  It is crystal clear that we need to change direction so that Wisconsinites who work hard and play by the rules can have access to family-supporting jobs.  This report is another reminder that Gov. Walker must be recalled for the sake of Wisconsin.” 

 

The Institute for Wisconsin’s Future (IWF) is a non-profit, non-partisan statewide organization dedicated to tax policy research, community organizing and education policy.  For more details, including copies of the various documents referred to in this press release, see the IWF web site at: www.wisconsinsfuture.org

Thousands Stand in Solidarity with Machinists at Manitowoc Cranes

The Municipal Baseball Field on Grand Avenue in Manitowoc was filled with thousands of Wisconsinites today, but there was no game in sight.  Instead an estimated 3,500 Wisconsinites stood in solidarity with the Fighting Machinists of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (I.A.M.A.W) Local Lodge 516 who are on strike at Manitowoc Cranes.

Teachers, snow plow drivers, fire fighters, steelworkers, boilermakers, operating engineers, laborers, letter carriers, truck drivers, custodians, nurses, bricklayers, electricians, painters, community members, faith leaders and workers from both the public and private sector stood in solidarity with the striking members of the I.A.M.A.W Local Lodge 516. 

“This is not about wages or benefits,” said Ben Elizondo of the Machinists Union.  “This is about management wanting total power.  It’s a sad thing when the company pushes you out at a time of the year when people are suppose to be coming together.”

A life-long union machinist at Manitowoc Cranes, J.C. Schultz has been a Machinist for over forty years.

"I’m a journeyman machinist. I started my apprenticeship when I was 17-years-old with the union, and I celebrated my 61st birthday this week on the picket line.  They are not going to break the union, not in the great state of Wisconsin," says Schultz.  "This fight is about our children and our children's children and the kind of society we want to live in.  A society where workers have the right to union representation.”

Nearly 200 men and women have been on strike at Manitowoc Cranes since November 15.  At issue, is non-economic contract language which would have zero impact on productivity and instead bust the worker’s union.  The language, which the worker’s have voted overwhelming to reject, would backhandedly destroy the union and the worker’s ability to have a voice on the job.

On Saturday, December 10, thousands braved the cold and gathered on a chilly Saturday afternoon for a solidarity rally.  After the rally, thousands marched to the Manitowoc Cranes plant gates to join the picket line. 

The Gunderson Brothers made the journey from Madison to show their support.  Members of AFSCME Local 60 and Teamsters Local 695 the Gundersons’ are second generation union.  “We are here to stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in the Machinists union.  This sort of attack affects us all.  It’s no surprise that Gov. Walker’s union-busting is moving to the private sector.  We need to support the Machinists here and recall Walker.” 

Reverend Neil Piepenburg opened the rally with a prayer for the workers and for the community.  “This is not just a political issue.  This is a moral issue and a faith issue.  When the voice and the rights of one are sacrificed for the voice of another, there is no justice,” said Rev. Piepenburg.   

“This is what having a union is all about,” explained Phil Neuenfeldt, President of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO.  “Having a union is about having the strength of your co-workers.  It’s about working people supporting each other and standing together in solidarity.  Having a union is about having a voice at work and having the strength to improve your workplace.  Manitowoc Cranes has no right to try to cripple the worker’s union and we are here to stand with them in their fight for justice.”

“Today working people from Manitowoc and from across Wisconsin chose to come together to say:  an injury to one is an injury to all.  We are here to stand together to support the strikers at Manitowoc Cranes.  We hope that management and the workers can sit down together and continue negotiations so we can get back to work and get back to making a first-rate product that is exporting worldwide,”  said Russell Krings, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, District 10. 

Media Coverage

• Fox 11 Green Bay:  Manitowoc Crane Strikers Hold Rally

• WBAY, Manitowoc Cranes Rallying Together

•  NBC 26, Rally for Manitowoc Crane Workers

• Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter, Hundreds Rally Behind Striking Machinsits

• Photo Collection from the Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter
  

Jobless Workers, Faith Leaders Hold Flower Prayer Vigil at Rep. Paul Ryan's Office

Unless Congress acts, 31,500 Wisconsinites will lose unemployment aid.  If Congress fails to act, the impact on families, communities and our economy will be devastating. 

In Wisconsin, the average weekly benefit is $275.21.  This money is immediately pumped back into the economy as families use it for food at local groceries, gas at the corner station and rent to the neighborhood landlord.  Nationwide, the economy grows by $2 for every $1 spent in unemployment aid.

Today, jobless Wisconsinites, clergy members and community members visited Rep. Paul Ryan’s Kenosha office to hold a flower prayer vigil for jobs and the jobless. 

“As a jobless American, I pray every night for a job and then hit the pavement every morning looking for one. If Congress doesn’t extend unemployment insurance, I’ll lose the last lifeline I have for myself and my family as we struggle to get through the biggest challenge of our lifetime,” said Mary Houf of Racine. 

Reverend Georgette Wonders of the Unitarian Universalist Church lead the group in a prayer as white carnations, each representing a testimony from a jobless worker, were hand-delivered to Rep. Paul Ryan’s office. 

Unfortunately, Rep. Ryan was not in his office and was unable to meet with constituents. To the side is a photo, taken December 8, of the door to Rep. Ryan’s Washington D.C. office.  A number of jobless Wisconsinites traveled to D.C. to talk to their Congressman about jobs and the economy.  Unfortunately, Rep. Ryan was available by appointment only today. 

In Milwaukee, jobless workers and community members met with Rep. Gwen Moore’s office to discuss issues facing the joblessness and community solutions. 

Solidarity Rally to Support Striking Machinists

 

Click here to share the Face Book event

Five Things To Help Manitowoc Cranes Workers

This Saturday, December 10 at the Municipal Baseball Field, 2200 Grand Ave, Manitowoc, WI 54220 there will be a solidarity rally to support striking workers at Manitowoc Cranes.

What:    Solidarity Rally with Striking Machinists
When:    Saturday, December 10 at 1:00 pm
Where:    Municipal Baseball Field, 2200 Grand Ave, Manitowoc, WI, 54220

Below are five things you can do to support our brothers and sisters on strike at Manitowoc Cranes:

1.    Attend the Solidarity Rally this Saturday, December 10.

2.    Sign the petition in support of the striking workers.

3.    Give a gift to the Strike Assistance Fund:  MCI Strike Fund c/o Machinists Local 516, P.O. Box 222, Manitowoc, WI, 54221-0222

4.    Send food and toy donations to IAMAW District Lodge 10, 1650 S. 38th St., Milwaukee, WI, 53215

5.  Share this blog post on your Face Book page, Twitter page or email to five of your friends. 
 

Executives at Manitowoc Cranes have taken a page from Scott Walker’s Union-Busting Hand Book.  At the last minute, the company slipped union-busting language into the contract proposal.  Proudly, the workers at Manitowoc Cranes stood together and voted overwhelming (180-2) to reject this attack on their union rights. 

Now is the time for all of Wisconsin to stand together and support these men and women who have made the brave and difficult decision to go on strike.  These workers are standing up for all working people and the middle class.  Anything you can do to show solidarity is appreciated.   

Support Striking Machinists at Manitowoc Cranes

Since Nov. 15, nearly 200 Machinists have been out on strike at Manitowoc Cranes.  At issue is not wages or benefits but the fundamental right to a union.

Executives at Manitowoc Cranes have taken a page from Scott Walker’s Union-Busting Hand Book.  At the last minute, the company slipped union-busting language, similar to Gov. Walker’s bill, into the contract.

Workers at Manitowoc Cranes voted overwhelming (180-2) to reject the union-busting proposal in the contract.

 

Click here to sign the petition in support of workers at Manitowoc Cranes.  Both Machinists on strike and the company need to know that the Wisconsin labor movement and its supporters stand with the workers.  

As we head into this holiday season, Machinists at Manitowoc Cranes are taking a stand for the middle class.  They are taking action and providing an essential check on corporate power and corporate greed in order to bring justice to the workplace.

Workers at Manitowoc Cranes are fighting for all working people and the entire middle class.  Without unions, who will continue to fight for good American jobs?    Who will insist companies pay workers a living wage?  Add your name to the petition to support the striking workers.

 

Machinists at Manitowoc Cranes manufacture a wide variety of cranes which have been utilized to build power plants, sports stadiums, hospitals and infrastructure throughout the United States and overseas.  The World Trade Center was built with a crane manufactured in Manitowoc and the Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center was put up using cranes built at Manitowoc Cranes.

There will be a solidarity rally in support of striking Machinists on Saturday, December 10 at 1:00 pm in Manitowoc. 

Union Hall Petition Pick-up/Drop-Off Locations

The following is a partial list of union offices where petitions can be picked up/dropped off.  Feel free to drop by any of these locations to sign a recall petition, pick up blank petitions to circulate in your community or drop off completed petitions. 

Milwaukee Area Labor Council
633 S. Hawley Road
Milwaukee, WI 53214

Wisconsin State AFL-CIO
6333 W. Bluemound Road
Milwaukee, WI, 53213

Wisconsin Federation of Nurses & Health Professionals
9620 W. Greenfield Avenue
West Allis, WI 53214

Teamsters Local 344
10020 West Greenfield
West Allis, WI

AFT Wisconsin
6602 Normandy Lane
Madison, WI 53719

Madison Labor Temple
1602 S. Park St
Madison, WI

Painters Training Center
1571 Ivory Drive
Sun Prairie, WI

UAW 95
1795 Lafayette Street
Janesville WI

United Steelworkers
1620 Shore Drive
Beloit, WI 53511

Racine Labor center
2100 Layard Avenue, Racine

Southern Lakes United Educators
616 Droster Avenue
Burlington, WI 53105

Eau Claire Labor Temple
2233 Birch Street
Eau Claire, WI 54703

 
Green Bay Labor Temple
1570 Elizabeth St., Green Bay
Mon-Fri, 7am to 7pm

Teamsters Local 662 Union Hall
1546 Main St, Green Bay
Mon-Fri, 8am to 4:30pm

Neenah/Menasha Labor Temple
157 Green Bay Rd., Neenah
Time: Tues-Sat, 12pm to 7pm

USW District 2 Office
1244A Midway Rd., Menasha
Mon-Fri 8am to 5pm
Sheboygan Buildings & Trades Hall
1104 Wisconsin Ave., Sheboygan
 
 
Emil Mazey Hall (UAW 833)
5425 Superior Ave., Sheboygan
Mon-Fri, 6 AM to 5 PM
 

Ironworkers District Council Office
403 E. Lake Street
Horicon, WI 53032


Boilermakers Hall/ M/M Labor Temple
71 W. Hosmer Street, Marinette
Mon/Tues/Wed/Fri 12pm-5pm
Thursday 12pm-7pm
Saturday 9am-12pm

 
Machinists Union Hall
1307 Market Street
La Crosse, WI 54601


IAM Local 1260 Union Hall
2116 Wisconsin Ave., New Holstein
Mon, Nov. 28 to Fri, Dec 2
1pm to 5pm


WSEU Office
1701 Main Street - Lower Level
Union Grove, WI 53182
HOURS: Monday 12:00 to 5:00pm
Saturday 6:00 am to 12:00pm