In Los Angeles, the workers are restless
L.A. grocery strike joined by transportation strike
The 70,000 grocery workers now on strike in southern California were joined at midnight Monday by Metropolitan Transit Authority workers. The mechanics union is striking and workers will honor the picket lines thus shutting down the entire system.
And now, please grab a hanky and weep for Lawrence Johnston, the CEO of Albertson’s, who somehow stuggles on with his 12.22 million a year salary. He and the other CEO’s want to break the grocery union, whining Wal-Mart is hurting them so much they must cut benefits and slash wages to stay “competitive”.
Don’t believe it. Albertson’s made a gross profit of 10.38 billion this last year, and a net profit of 724 million. Their profits are up, not down. This is a union busting attempt, pure and simple, and judging from the number of cars honking in support of strikers yesterday in L.A., I’d say management is in for a protracted war.
They want to slash wages of new hires and freeze existing wages, insinuating that $17 an hour is just too much to pay for experienced employees.
Well, Lawrence “Greedy Pig” Johnston makes $6100 an hour (12.2 million / 2000 hrs a year ) and you can bet he’s not taking a pay freeze.
A real nightmare may await them. I’m hearing the Teamsters may strike in solidarity with the grocery workers. The warehouses are computerized, scabs and management don’t have the knowledge to operate them. Thus, a Teamsters strike would shut down the grocery chains completely.
Why would Teamsters do this? Because, as the ILWU says “an injury to one is an injury to all”. If the greedy pigs break the powerful grocery union, no union is safe. If the grocery union wins, then all unions win with them.
And now two major unions are on strike in L.A. (as well as sheriff deputies, who are staging wildcat strikes)
PS IF you’re in L.A., join us tonight in support of grocery workers:
Tuesday night at 8:15 PM at Ralphs in Koreatown, Western Avenue at 8th Street. Join neighbors, friends, and ANSWER activists by bringing signs, hot coffee, food, encouragement, and solidarity to the striking workers!