NOV. 6, 2009:NWLP
11/3/09
Inside
10:21 AM
Page 1
MEETING NOTICES
See
Page 6
Volume 110
Number 21
November 6, 2009
Portland, Oregon
Tensions escalate at
Fred Meyer stores
Three UFCW reps are
arrested at a Hillsboro
store, and a Spokane
UFCW local mounts a
region-wide protest of
cashier firings
‘No justice, no peace’
Stuart Acuff of the national AFL-CIO leads a chant at Bend Fred Meyer in a show of support for store employees,
who are members of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 555. Grocery, meat, and central checkout employees
at Fred Meyer stores in Bend and the Portland metropolitan area have been working under terms of an extended
contract since July 2008. On Oct. 15, three UFCW Local 555 officials were arrested for trespass at Hillsboro Fred
Meyer after they tried to talk to members about contract negotiations. Police were called after union officials wouldn’t
leave when ordered to by managers. The arrests rattled unionists attending the Oregon AFL-CIO convention in Bend.
More than 100 delegates marched on the Bend store after the convention adjourned on Oct. 27. UFCW Local 555 is
not affiliated with the AFL-CIO. Because of language in its current contract, Local 555 officials were restricted from
participating in the rally. Fred Meyer is owned by national food giant Kroger.
By DON McINTOSH
Associate Editor
A long-simmering conflict between
Portland-area grocers and United Food
& Commercial Workers (UFCW) Lo-
cal 555 boiled over Oct. 15 when three
union representatives were arrested at a
Hillsboro Fred Meyer store. Local 555
President Dan Clay, Local 555 Repre-
sentative Mike Marshall, and UFCW
International Representative Jenny
Reed were cuffed and led away in front
of members and the public after a store
manager called police.
Accounts differ as to what led up to
the arrest of the head of Oregon’s
largest private-sector union.
Hillsboro Police spokesperson
Michael Rouches said police were
called to the Fred Meyer store on Tu-
alatin Valley Highway when a group of
eight union representatives refused a
store manager’s order to get off the
property. Five left voluntarily, Rouches
said, while three refused a police order
to leave and were arrested.
Several witnesses offered a different
account: Clay had just driven in to find
out what was going on when police ar-
rested him in the parking lot after a brief
conversation; Marshall was in the park-
ing lot waiting for a ride when he was
arrested; and Reed was arrested in the
lobby asserting that federal law — and
the union contract — gave her the right
to be there.
In charges filed the same day with
the National Labor Relations Board
(NLRB), the union alleges that Fred
Meyer (which is owned by national
food giant Kroger) broke federal labor
law in the incident. According to the un-
fair labor practice charge, the union reps
checked in with store officials, then
tried to talk with members to update
them on the status of contract negotia-
tions and an employer health care pro-
posal. Right away, store manager Jim
Dostert confronted the reps, told them
to go to the break room, and angrily and
loudly ordered them not to speak with
employees. Dostert followed them
through the store, placed himself phys-
ically between them and employees, or-
dered employees not to talk to them,
and threatened the reps with arrest for
(Turn to Page 11)
Oregon AFL-CIO bolsters constituency groups, targets younger workers
BEND — More than 250 delegates attending the 51st convention of the
Oregon AFL-CIO at the Riverhouse Hotel & Convention Center Oct. 26-
27 made a strong commitment to bolster the federation’s constituency
groups and to reach out to younger workers — in both organizing and in-
volvement in union activities.
A resolution creating a newYouth Caucus for union members under 35
passed unanimously, as did a resolution to revitalize existing constituency
groups within the Oregon AFL-CIO. Two groups that are moving forward
aggressively are the Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW) and the
Coalition of Black Trade Unionists. Statistics show that women, workers
of color, and young people have the most to gain from union membership.
In wages alone they can earn between 28 to 43 percent more when work-
ing under a union contract.
To help spread the message that unions are champions of the middle
class, starting this month the Oregon AFL-CIO will launch a year-long ra-
dio and Internet advertising campaign. “We’ve been through some very
tough times,” said Oregon AFL-CIO President Tom Chamberlain. “But
we’re coming back, and we want the middle class with us.”
Guest speaker Stuart Acuff of the national AFL-CIO said that after
decades of unfettered corporate-driven globalization, stagnant wages, and
(Turn to Page 4)
Newly elected AFL-CIO Secretary-
Treasurer Liz Shuler (center) poses
for a picture with AFSCME Local
88 and Local 328 delegates during
break at Oregon AFL-CIO
convention in Bend. The delegates
— from left, Elvyss Argueta, Jaimie
Sorenson, Michael Hanna and
Grant Swanson — are members of
AFSCME’s “Next Wave,” a group
for younger members. In her con-
vention address, Shuler stressed the
need for labor to reach out to
younger workers. “There’s one
thing we have to get right, and that
is to give the next generation hope,”
Shuler said. “Fight for them,
embrace them and welcome them
into our movement.” Earlier, the
convention passed a resolution
establishing a Youth Caucus.