Organizing Update

North Carolina Home Care Workers Join CWA Local 3607

Workers at Reliable Home Health Care Services in Greensboro, N.C., voted last week to join CWA Local 3607.

CWA Local 3607 President Chris Myrick negotiated card check neutrality with the owner Portia Shipman and successfully gained recognition for 37 certified nursing assistants and home health care workers.

After two weeks, Marilyn Baird, an organizer with The North Carolina Occupational Safety and Health Project, and Ravin St. Julien-Brown, a local organizer, submitted authorization cards with 68 percent of the employees voting to be represented by CWA.

CWA Local 3010 President Rafael Castro-Torres and organizer Lizbenet Vazquez say, "Vote Yes!"

Below: Fired Open Mobile employees demonstrate outside of the call center.

Workers Prepare for Union Election at Puerto Rico Call Center

After suffering years of their employer's unfair disciplinary policies, workers at Puerto Rico's Open Mobile are standing up and demanding a voice in their workplace. They'll be voting on joining CWA on Sept. 4.

"We will continue to help bring justice and dignity to the workplace with the only instrument available to the worker, forming a union and reaching a collectively bargained agreement" said CWA Local 3010 President Rafael Castro-Torres.

Open Mobile is a wireless carrier with a call center in San Juan and 30 company-owned retail stores around the island.

After workers began organizing last June, the company responded with a fierce anti-union campaign, hiring one of the top union busting consultants in Puerto Rico. Among the 12 workers who were fired after being identified as activists, four were members of the organizing committee.

On July 29, CWA Local 3010 organizer, Lizbenet Vázquez, filed a petition for elections with the National Labor Relations Board after achieving a majority in cards. Charges have been presented, as well, to the NLRB for the illegal firings.

"I stand with these workers that have never seen a wage increase, are threatened with termination if they dare use sick-days and are arbitrarily rotated and abused," said Vazquez.

On Aug. 8, all of the fired workers, along with union members from AT&T Mobility, demonstrated in front of Open Mobile's call center in support of the campaign. Next week, on Aug. 30, local AFL-CIO unions, CWA Local 3010 members and the fired activists and their families will be demonstrating for a "yes" vote in the upcoming election.

"This is not the time to be afraid. We are all Open's victims. We need to vote for CWA, we need to vote yes!" said Sandra Guadalupe, one of the fired activists who worked 16 years for Open Mobile.