Archive for June 2018
RESOLUTION #138:
SOLIDARITY
WITH
FIRED, INJURED GM WORKERS IN COLOMBIA
Whereas,
at its 2014 (36th) Constitutional Convention,
the UAW resolved:
“We must win justice for our brothers and sisters around the
world, if we
are to win justice for American workers,” and
“We must change the behavior and hold accountable employers
that cast basic
labor standards aside and deny workers their rights,
regardless of where
their headquarters are located, to ensure that everyone who
works for the
same employer enjoys job security, a voice at work and a
living wage” and
“We will engage in struggles for human and labor rights
around the world,”
Whereas, General Motors continues the
practice of firing workers injured on the job or suffering occupational
diseases at its Bogota, Colombia assembly plant, and denying them compensation,
in violation of Colombia law and Internationally-recognized labor rights,
Whereas, some
of these former workers (members of ASOTRECOL) have waged a prolonged
fight for justice by occupying an encampment at the US Embassy for the past 6 ½
years, initiating several hunger strikes,
Whereas, the perseverance of these
workers has garnered international attention and growing solidarity in the USA
and from supporters around the world,
Whereas, that
solidarity recently influenced Colombian judges to uphold the rights of injured
workers by ordering GM to reinstate 24 such workers the company recently fired,
Whereas, GM
refused to comply with the judge’s orders in the case of 12 of those workers, which
resulted in a fine and an unprecedented 3-day jail sentence for a GM executive,
and the workers are still fighting to get their jobs back,
Whereas, UAW-GM
VP Joe Ashton, along with General Motors executives, in 2012 jointly tried without
success to get ASOTRECOL to agree to an inadequate monetary settlement, which
failed to cover medical expenses associated with their disabilities and more,
Whereas, the
now-retired VP Joe Ashton is being investigated for inappropriately receiving
payments from the GM-UAW Joint Activities Fund, which resulted in his sudden
resignation from the General Motors Board of Directors, and which compromises Ashton’s
integrity in his 2012 intervention on behalf of the fired ASOTRECOL GM workers,
Whereas, ASOTRECOL continues to seek
justice with support from US labor, religious, human rights, and social justice
activists, including many UAW locals and rank and file members who’ve helped
raise funds, organized rallies, spoken out at GM shareholder meetings, and
engaged in other acts of solidarity;
Therefore,
be it resolved
That
the UAW adhere to the letter and spirit of the 36th
Constitutional Convention Global Solidarity resolution by:
·
Demanding that GM uphold
Colombian law, and judges’ rulings, by immediately reinstating the 12 injured
workers illegally fired in 2016,
·
Demanding that GM negotiate a
fair and just settlement with the members of ASOTRECOL who’ve persisted in
their non-violent tent encampment since 2011,
·
Use its website and
publications to – in the spirit of an “injury to one is an injury to all” -
publicize and educate about the heroic struggle by the Colombian ex-GM workers
and encourage local unions to support them in their fight for job security and
safe working conditions, a voice at work, and a living wage.
Be it
resolved, that this resolution be
adopted by a vote of the delegates at the 37th UAW Constitutional
Convention to be held in Detroit, Michigan, In June 2018
UAW Convention delegates: Undo corruption in the UAW by supporting Resolution #138 in support of fired injured GM workers!
How did the corruption at the top compromise our UAW? How did workers get sold out in exchange for
joint funds illicitly funneled to UAW leaders’ pockets?
Former UAW-GM Vice President Joe Ashton is a case in
point. Ashton is currently under
criminal investigation by a Federal Grand Jury for misappropriating $ from the
UAW-GM Joint Funds. He’s also being
investigated by GM. When Ashton retired
from the UAW in 2014, GM put him on their Board of Directors – a first in
UAW/GM history. When the FBI probe went
public, Ashton was forced to resign.
In August 2012, as head of the UAW-GM Dept, Ashton traveled with
GM executives to Colombia, South America. That’s where non-union injured workers were
protesting their illegal firings from a GM assembly plant. They tried to fight the firings in court, but
their lawyer was bought-off by GM, as was the judge. They formed an association
(ASOTRECOL), set up a protest encampment and demanded reinstatement to jobs
they could do & back wages, or a fair severance package.
The workers
were at the tent for a year before the GM execs and Ashton showed up, and that
was only after 8 of them went on a hunger strike for 22 days, with lips sewn
shut. Ashton went along with GM setting
up a rigged “mediation.” When the
workers rejected GM’s meager “final offer,” Ashton and the executives all
packed their bags and split. Back home, GM
and Ashton lied that the it was ASOTRECOL that ended the mediation, and that they
were just too greedy!
Ashton could
have stood up for the workers, exposed GM’s rotten working conditions and illegal
practices, and demanded a fair settlement. But then GM wouldn’t have put him on their Board
or given him personal access to the joint funds. They rewarded him for his cooperation and degraded our
union.
UAW
delegates can turn this around, by supporting a resolution submitted by Local
Unions in solidarity with the Colombian GM workers. SEE "RESOLUTIONS COMMITTEE RESOLUTIONS" #138. The UAW leadership must reject Ashton’s
betrayal and demand that GM reach a fair settlement with the injured workers,
who’ve been at the encampment now for nearly seven (7) years. The UAW must publicize the actions of these heroic
workers to the membership. Please make a motion to put it to the
Convention for a vote.
All eyes
are on the UAW Convention. What better
way to show our Union’s integrity and solidarity than by fighting on behalf of autoworkers
who were forced to work in unsafe conditions and were then fired?
UAW delegates are also urged to protest at 8:30 AM Tues. June 12th
at GM headquarters at the Renaissance Center
That's where GM is holding its annual shareholders meeting. What better way to show the world your solidarity than with your feet!!! Let’s show GM where we stand!
That's where GM is holding its annual shareholders meeting. What better way to show the world your solidarity than with your feet!!! Let’s show GM where we stand!
Frank Hammer
Former President & Chairman, UAW Local 909,
Warren
