Monday, September 28, 2009

TBOU Action Alert - KEEP STELLA D'ORA IN BRONX RALLY

Keep Stella D'oro in the Bronx! Rally with Workers and Supporters at the Stella D'oro Plant Friday, October 2, 3PM-7PM 237th Street & Broadway

It is crunch time at Stella D'oro! Brynwood Partners, the company's private equity owners, intend to shut down the Bronx facility as early as the first days of October. They have a deal in principle with North Carolina-based manufacturing and marketing firm Lance, Inc. to buy the brand and relocate production to a non-union plant in Ashland, Ohio. But the deal still hasn't closed -- and we can stop it!

Please join the courageous women and men of Stella D'oro -- who have stood up for themselves and for the entire labor movement in New York -- as they rally to keep their plant open -- and their jobs -- this Friday, October 2nd, outside the plant gates at 237th Street and Broadway. Take the 1 train to 238th Street and walk one block south.

WHO: Stella D'oro Workers and Supporters
WHAT: Rally to Keep Stella D'oro in the Bronx
WHEN: Friday, October 2nd @ 3PM TO 7PM

Thursday, September 3, 2009

TBOU Action Wednesday September 9, @ 4:00PM Informational Picket Justice For Joe Sexton College Point Depot

At 4:00 pm on Wednesday, September 9th, the Take Back Our Union(TBOU) movement is going to the College Point Depot in Queens(12815 28th Ave, Flushing, NY 11345).We Will Sit Up An informational Picket Out Side the College Point Depot starting at 4:00PM Please Pass and Post Widely.

TBOU comes to Queens in support of Joe Sexton, an officer not being supported by the current union leadership. Mr Sexton is currently suspended and facing dismissal charges as MTA Management accuses him of posting "an unauthorized notice" regarding a change in pick procedures. Even if he did post a notice that was unauthorized, it would be an internal union matter and should have been handled as such. The Local 100leadership should have been firm and told the management at MTA Bus that they would not tolerate suspending a union officer acting in that capacity, and to return Mr. Sexton back to work immediately. If the MTA still refused to put Sexton back to work, he should have been put on the union payroll until his case was resolved with MTA Bus. Every officer in this union should be outraged that the union is not coming out in full support of Mr. Sexton -- Mr. Sexton is the Division Chair(Queens division)of MTA Bus and has been out of work for several weeks with no end in sight. The College Point Depot is part of MTA Bus which, in the spring 2008, became part of the MTA Regional Bus Operations.

MTA Regional Bus Operations (RBO) is the surface transit division of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), and was created in 2008 to consolidate all bus operations operated by the MTA. The MTA then moved to streamline its operations through consolidation of management's functions. To that effect, RBO was officially created in May 2008. The president of what was then New York City Transit's Department of Buses, Joseph A. Smith, was named to lead the consolidated Regional Bus Operations which includes:

** MTA Bus (previously seven Private Bus Lines)(PBL)**
**** New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA)****
**Manhattan and Bronx Surface Transit Operating Authority**
** MTA Long Island Bus the Metropolitan Suburban Bus Authority**

Around the same time, the MTA began to move towards RBO, a small band of members in the Stations Department began to build a rank and file movement called Take Back Our Union(TBOU). Since its formation in May 2008, TBOU has grown into a union-wide movement with networks of activists in every department of TWU Local 100 (the largest transportation union in the country). After winning a substantial number of slots in the TWU 2009 International Delegates election, TBOU is poised to take over the leadership of TWU Local 100 in 2010. Highly controversial for its outspokenness and complete rejection of the current partnership between the TWU and the MTA, TBOU is often at odds with the current TWU leadership. TBOU wants to break apart the cozy relationship between the TWU and the MTA, a relationship created by former MTA boss Elliot Sander(who was recently fired by Governor Patterson) and outgoing TWU President Roger Toussaint(who has deserted Local 100 for a job with the TWU international). Rather than fostering a partnership with the MTA, TBOU instead prefers to educate and organize the members to stand up and fight the MTA. TBOU also calls for solidarity among all titles of workers in Local 100 -- partnership with each other, not management. TBOU sets out to end infighting in our union once and for all and to stand behind all union officers regardless of their political affiliations, before, during, and after union elections.

That's why this Wednesday September 9 is such an important date for all officers and members to come out to College Point Depot to help get Justice For Joe Sexton !
Already confirmed to appear from TBOU's Surface and Subway Departments:

#Israel Rivera Jr.#(MABSOTA)#Candidate Secretary Treasurer#
*Benita Johnson **(RTO) **Candidate Recording Secretary**
*Angel Giboyeaux ** (PBL) **Candidate Administrative VP **
*Christine Williams **(STATIONS)Candidate Executive Board**
*Derrick Echevarria **(STATIONS)Candidate Executive Board **
*Charles Jenkins VP CBTU **(MOW)Candidate Vice Chair L/ES **
**Denotes Delegate for 23rd TWU International Constitutional Convention **
For more information call the TBOU Hot line (646)321-5213, send an email to tboustations@yahoo.com or visit our blog at www.tbou.org *