Posts Categorized: Community

On April 25, more than 50 UFCW Local 1161 members from Worthington, Minn., boarded a bus to travel to a temporary satellite El Salvador Consulate in Minneapolis. There, members were able to acquire important documents (such as visas and passports) that will help them prepare their applications for citizenship or temporary protected status. Since the closest El Salvador Embassy is in Chicago, Ill., a lot of UFCW members (many of whom work at the JBS plant in Worthington) did not have the means to make the long trip. This was a special opportunity arranged by UFCW Local 1161 through the UFCW’s Union Citizen Action Network (UCAN) program to help members and their families get access to the resources and information they need to complete their immigration applications.  UFCW Local 1161 also worked with the Mexican Embassy to set up a satellite site at a local junior college in Worthington, where hundreds of UFCW members, their friends and families were able to gather documents and begin their applications for citizenship or temporary protected status.

Tomorrow, Walmart workers with OUR Walmart will join with fast food strikers, home care providers, airport workers, adjunct professors and many others to stand up in the fight for $15 an hour.

“I’m proud to be part of a growing movement of moms and dads, brothers and sisters like me, who are standing up for better jobs. A company like Walmart, which brings in $16 billion in annual profits, can afford to provide the pay and hours that our families need,” said Lisa Pietro, a two-year Walmart employee from Winter Haven, Fla., who made just $8.95 an hour before the recent increase to a minimum of $9 an hour. “The raise we just won at Walmart shows what working people can accomplish when we stand together. I’m excited about what we’ll be able to do when we all come together to stand up and fight for $15 an hour.”

Nationwide, workers and supporters are planning rallies, marches and direct action in the streets, in front of stores like Walmart and on campuses across the country. These massive mobilizations are expected to draw some 100,000 protesters with workers from nearly every low-wage sector and will highlight the importance of holding companies like Walmart and McDonald’s accountable.

On April 15^th, Walmart workers will renew their calls for $15 an hour and access to consistent, full-time schedules. Last October, Walmart workers launched a petition for $15 an hour and access to consistent, full-time schedules. The petition spread like wildfire, garnering signatures from more than half – 2,200 – of Walmart stores across the nation. Then, following the largest Black Friday protests and strikes ever, Walmart announced that it would raise wages for 500,000 U.S. workers. This modest increase, especially with no guarantee that they’ll get the hours they need, means many are still forced to rely on government assistance programs like food stamps to get by.

If you would like to join Walmart workers at the #Fightfor15 protests, visit April15.org to find an event near you.