Religious leaders and community residents joined union members in a show of support Friday for Franklin Street Bakery workers who vote this week in a union election.
The National Labor Relations Board will conduct a union representation election at the Minneapolis bakery Feb. 12.
Over a period of just three weeks, a majority of the appx. 50 Franklin Street employees signed union cards authorizing the Bakery workers union, Local 22, to represent them. Union organizers said that since the campaign began, management has engaged in anti-union behavior including intimidating workers.
Friday?s rally was intended to show the workers they have support not only in the labor movement but throughout the community, said Gary Sorenson, Local 22 president.
Issues in the organizing drive include low wages, few benefits, no clear channels for promotion, no guaranteed hours, and no established vacation policy. The workforce is mostly Spanish-speaking immigrants.
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| Bakery Workers Local 22 President Gary Sorenson addressed the crowd outside the bakery. |
?We know that the future of the labor movement is with the immigration coming from various countries,? Sorenson said. ?This is a country that was founded by immigrants. These people are no different than our forefathers and foremothers.
?Everybody should have the ability to have dignity, justice and respect on the job.?
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| Aztec dancers performed as demonstrators carried signs and banners expressing solidarity with the bakery workers. |
Demonstrators at the hour-long rally carried signs in both English and Spanish calling on the bakery to recognize the union and expressing solidarity with the workers. The Twin Cities Religion and Labor Network led the group in prayer. A delegation of religious leaders also attempted to meet with bakery management during the rally, but was rebuffed.
?We gave them a letter urging them to live up not just to the letter but to the spirit of the law,? said the Rev. Doug Mork.
Religious leaders and community residents joined union members in a show of support Friday for Franklin Street Bakery workers who vote this week in a union election.
The National Labor Relations Board will conduct a union representation election at the Minneapolis bakery Feb. 12.
Over a period of just three weeks, a majority of the appx. 50 Franklin Street employees signed union cards authorizing the Bakery workers union, Local 22, to represent them. Union organizers said that since the campaign began, management has engaged in anti-union behavior including intimidating workers.
Friday?s rally was intended to show the workers they have support not only in the labor movement but throughout the community, said Gary Sorenson, Local 22 president.
Issues in the organizing drive include low wages, few benefits, no clear channels for promotion, no guaranteed hours, and no established vacation policy. The workforce is mostly Spanish-speaking immigrants.
| Bakery Workers Local 22 President Gary Sorenson addressed the crowd outside the bakery. |
?We know that the future of the labor movement is with the immigration coming from various countries,? Sorenson said. ?This is a country that was founded by immigrants. These people are no different than our forefathers and foremothers.
?Everybody should have the ability to have dignity, justice and respect on the job.?
| Aztec dancers performed as demonstrators carried signs and banners expressing solidarity with the bakery workers. |
Demonstrators at the hour-long rally carried signs in both English and Spanish calling on the bakery to recognize the union and expressing solidarity with the workers. The Twin Cities Religion and Labor Network led the group in prayer. A delegation of religious leaders also attempted to meet with bakery management during the rally, but was rebuffed.
?We gave them a letter urging them to live up not just to the letter but to the spirit of the law,? said the Rev. Doug Mork.