Dish Retaliates Against Workers in Texas Three Months After Voting in Union

CWA members erected these crosses outside the company's North Richland Hills facility, near Ft. Worth, Tex., as a reminder of the CWA Local 6171 members who were fired by Dish Network.

CWA crashed Dish Network TV's annual summit meeting in San Antonio, Texas, last week to protest the company's campaign to destroy the union workers who organized at its Farmers Branch and North Richland Hills locations in February.

Since February, Dish has fired workers, stepped up the use of contractors, and made drastic changes in working conditions. CWA Local 6171, which represents the Dish workers, has filed unfair labor practices charges against Dish, but the NLRB still hasn't certified the workers' election victory following Dish's appeal. Sixty-two percent of Dish workers at those locations voted for CWA representation.

CWA Local 6143 in San Antonio organized the protest in solidarity with the Dish workers and leafleted more than 100 Dish Network managers and workers outside the convention center. Inside, CWAers delivered an open letter to CEO Charles Ergen from CWA Local 6171.

Both locals, with District 6 staff and Jobs with Justice activists, hand-billed 11 Radio Shack stores, a Dish retailer, and asked customers to request in-house union techs when they need service. They also erected crosses outside Dish's North Richland Hills operation representing the workers who had been fired or forced to quit.

Workers outlined their case in a letter to the NLRB, calling for quick action. "We are forced to show up for work four days a week and then are sent home, being told 'we don't have a route for you today, so don't clock in.'"  Some full-time workers get just one day in a week.

"Justice delayed is justice denied," said District 6 Vice President Andy Milburn. "We need to keep the heat on the company and demand that the NLRB act quickly on workers' behalf. The board needs to stand up and show these workers that our labor laws stand for something."