Thread: Youngsters lend voices to national protest

http://www.boston.com/news/local/articl ... l_protest/

THIS STORY HAS BEEN FORMATTED FOR EASY PRINTING


Youngsters lend voices to national protest
Meat-packing firm is target of effort
By Adrienne P. Samuels, Globe Staff | December 11, 2006

SOMERVILLE -- About 50 fifth-graders and their parents marched outside a supermarket yesterday to lend their voices to a growing nationwide protest against stores stocking the products of Smithfield Packing Co., the world's largest pork processor.

Smithfield's packing plant in Tar Heel, N.C., made news recently after 1,000 workers walked out in protest of what they described as unfair labor practices relating to the company's illegal immigrant, Latino, and African-American workers. Union organizers and meat packers allege that Smithfield will not allow Hispanics and blacks to work together and that people who are injured on the job are denied claims for workers' compensation.

The children, part of the Sunday school affiliated with Workmen's Circle, a Brookline-based Jewish cultural center, took up the cause as part of their educational training. The school teaches social responsibility, and each year encourages fifth-graders to conduct a protest.

Shouting "1-2-3-4, don't sell Smithfield at your store," the children and adult supporters of the United Food and Commercial Workers union waved signs and drew police to the Foodmaster store on Alewife Brook Parkway. Foodmaster, like other stores in the Boston area, sells such Smithfield products as Eckrich sausage and Butterball turkey.

Ronnie Simmons, 56, a Smithfield employee, traveled from North Carolina to help with the two-hour protest. "We need a contract, health benefits, and better working conditions," she said.

Smithfield officials have said the protests have more to do with the union than labor practices than they do with the company.

The United Food and Commercial Workers union has tried since the early 1990s to unionize packers at the Tar Heel factory, where workers have twice voted down the union.

Smithfield did not return calls or e-mails to the Globe but has told the Raleigh News & Observer that "Smithfield has offered to schedule another new secret-ballot election at any time. We have even offered to pay half the cost of an independent outside observer to ensure the vote's fairness. But the union has rejected our offer."

Larry Mulrey , the human resources director for Foodmaster, said protesters were entitled to their opinion.

"Everybody has a right to protest," said Mulrey. "It's a labor issue in North Carolina. We have nothing to do with this."

Adrienne P. Samuels can be reached at asamuels@globe.com.



© Copyright 2006 The New York Times Company

Starting them out when they are young. As the beer commercial pitchman would yell, "Brilliant!!!" We had kiddies protesting in front of us at Farmers Branch, including a seven year old.
You know, if I've felt mistreated by my company, I would usually look for a job some place else. Unions, while a decent enough thought, usually unravel and become corrupt due to greed. It's a bad idea. Go find a job some place else, and stop making your kids march!

I bet the Boston Globe doesn't hire people who practice identity
theft. I bet they fired a few for 'documentation problems' over
the years. What hypocrits!!!