We can’t depend on our corporate power structures to protect our rights, we must continue to organize to build our power!

We are outraged by the U.S. Supreme Court’s brazen agenda to disempower our communities while expanding the reach of corporations and the carceral state. SCOTUS rulings of the past year have protected the interests of the corporate class while stripping away our rights to bodily autonomy, privacy, and reproductive choice; stripping away the right to defend ourselves against corrupt policing and indefinite detention; stripping away tribal sovereignty; hindering regulatory agencies’ power to combat climate change; protecting companies engaged in child slave labor; and weakening the right to organize in our workplaces.

These decisions impact us all, yet our most vulnerable communities—poor people in the U.S. and around the globe, disabled people, low-wage workers, immigrants, and BIPOC communities—will be impacted the most. 

It’s imperative to remember that these legal rulings are possible because of long-standing systems of oppression that are protected not only by conservatives, but the ruling class in general. We must continue organizing to dismantle these systems and protect our communities. That is how we will win good and safe jobs for all, bodily autonomy for all, environmental sustainability, indigenous sovereignty, and an end to state brutality.

SCOTUS Rulings: June 2021 – June 2022

Protection for Food Corporations engaged in Child Slavery 

• June 17, 2021: SCOTUS decided Nestle USA, Inc. v. DOE, ruling that enslaved children could not sue Nestle and Cargill because their cocoa suppliers were based in the Ivory Coast. 
• June 28, 2022: a federal judge dismissed Coubaly et al v. Cargill, a lawsuit by eight citizens of Mali seeking to hold Hershey Co, Nestle SA, Cargill Inc and others liable for child slavery on Ivory Coast cocoa farms. 

Property Rights over Workers’ Right to Organize 

• June 23, 2021: SCOTUS decided Cedar Point Nursery v. Hassid.In a 6-3 ruling, SCOTUS chose the interests of property owners over workers, holding that union organizers coming to talk to farmworkers at the farm (their place of work) violates the property rights of the farm owner–essentially a “takings” clause of the Fifth Amendment. This case received less attention than 2022 rulings around abortion, and guns, yet the potential implications are no less concerning. The legal reasoning weakens the right to organize for farmworkers and potentially workers in other sectors as well. 

Indefinite Detention of Immigrants

• June 13, 2022: SCOTUS decided Garland v. Gonzalez, ruling that immigrants detained in the U.S. are not entitled to a bond hearing. This means thousands of people with open immigration cases who are currently in federal holding facilities can continue to be detained indefinitely.

More Consequential Cases include:

• Vega v. Tekoh, June 23, 2022
  

• Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, June 24, 2022
  

• Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta, June 29, 2022
  

• Biden v. Texas, June 30, 2022
  

graphics via so.informed

FCWA’s Member Organizer Program supports a cohort of organizers and senior worker leaders anchored in our member organizations. Fellows receive funding to spend one day per week working on organizing projects important to their organization or sector. Over a period of 8 months, they convene monthly for peer learning, and receive support from FCWA to develop their projects. We are very proud to present our inaugural cohort of 2021-2022 FCWA Member Organizer Fellows: 

Helen Abraha: I am a first-generation Eritrean American, currently working as an Organizer and Research Coordinator at the Restaurant Opportunities Center of Washington DC (ROC-DC). I got involved with ROC-DC in 2018 after seeking support on a workers compensation case. I began “dipping my toe” into student organizing while pursuing a BA in Sociology at American University. Alongside classmates, I was outspoken about AU’s inability to condemn racism on campus, and demanded widespread education for all staff, professors, and students on systemic racism and institutional violence. I feel empowered by the community solidarity and change making. My dream is to be the first in my family to receive a Doctorate degree and go back home to Eritrea to offer support in the social and economic development of my country. Throughout this program, I have been working with ROC LA and ROC MN chapters to learn how to take on wage theft cases, create storytelling workshops for workers, and build relationships with the community in my city. 

Tracey-Ann Hines: I am married and a mother of my five-year-old son. I have been a member of Justicia for Migrant Workers for the past 7 years, and have been active in community forums and panel discussions. I participated in meetings of the Changing Workplace Review, and took part in press conferences to convey to the public the reforms that are needed to help vulnerable workers in Ontario. I also advocated for rights in the workplaces to settle important workplace issues, and have been active in the fight for justice for injured workers. For the past 6 months I have been a part of the amazing training program with FCWA, where I am currently working on my project to create a safe house for injured workers where they can have a safe place to stay and receive treatment. There is a lack of protection for migrant workers when they are injured they are left alone to weather the storm. I am passionate about this project because I too was injured and didn’t have a relative to stay with to finish my treatments after my work contract ended.

Jorge Fernando Lopez Mendez: I was born in Puerto Amelia, between Brazil and Peru, and currently live in Cincinnati. I’ve been a member of the Cincinnati Interfaith Worker Center since 2012, and I am currently the vice president of the board of directors. Previously, I worked at the Peruvian Telephone Company for 20 years. Through the union in this company, I learned that people and workers have rights and that the union is everyone and that we must always be organized and have solidarity to achieve victories. In 2013, I founded Cablecitotv, a social media platform with the vision to lift up videos of our struggles. There are many people who fight for the community, and Cablecitotv shares their voices and has motivated many people to not give up on their dreams. What drives me is addressing the injustices workers face when they suffer accidents at work. Instead of supporting workers and ensuring they have protection and medical attention, many companies fire workers after a workplace accident. When a worker is fired, they lose their access to healthcare. As part of this program, I am documenting testimonies of workers who got injured. We will use these stories to ensure workers know their rights and to fight for justice for all injured workers.

Eyasu Shumie: I was most recently a Food Supply Chain Organizer with Warehouse Workers for Justice. Originally from Las Vegas, I moved to Chicago last summer to work towards building worker power in one of the largest logistics and transportation hubs in the world. Coming from a family of immigrants, I am passionate about building on the bonds that people share and helping bring people together in order to fight for better working conditions and wages. For this project, I am using EGIS mapping as a main resource to map warehouses in the Chicago area. My project focuses on demystifying the confusing web of logistics companies, staffing agencies, and warehousing companies within the food system, and developing worker-led campaigns which collaboratively use organic worker power, media campaigns, and community support to help leverage worker demands into actionable change.

Hoy la Alianza de Trabajadores de la Cadena Alimenticia está lanzando la versión en español de su reporte: “NO SOMOS DESECHABLES: Trabajadores de alimentos organizándose frente de COVID.”  Lanzado originalmente en febrero del 2021, el reporte documenta los devastadores y desproporcionados impactos de COVID-19 en los trabajadores en la cadena alimenticia, especialmente para los trabajadores Negros y Latinos, y expone como la pandemia ha exacerbado los problemas que vienen desde antes para los trabajadores en el sector de alimentos. El reporte cuenta con entrevistas y análisis sobre las tendencias de cómo los trabajadores se están organizando en respuesta de la crisis, desde el lanzamiento de una huelga y paros hasta protestar por condiciones peligrosas, presentando demandas contra mega corporaciones, peleando por protecciones legales, exigiendo pago por trabajo peligroso y fondos para trabajadores excluidos, y formando nuevos sindicatos  y organizaciones de trabajadores para construir poder. 

El reporte describe las tendencias en las experiencias de trabajo en cada paso de la cadena de alimentos a través de las industrias—desde granjas hasta las plantas de procesamiento, almacenes, restaurantes, tiendas, y más. Los trabajadores de alimentos han estado en la primera línea de la pandemia de COVID-19, proveyendo servicios esenciales mientras los casos aumentaban. 

“Entramos en huelga porque a la compañía no le importó darnos protecciones básicas, y siguió exponiendonos para qué nos enfermamos o nos muriéramos. Por semanas le exigimos a que la compañía nos dejara seguir el distanciamiento social a través de no terminar el programa de horarios escalonados para reducir el número de trabajadores que tuvieran contacto con sí mismos. Aunque la compañía restituyo el programa después de la huelga, sabemos que la pelea no se ha terminado, seguiremos peleando hasta que nos traten con dignidad.” 

  — Trabajador de avicultura de George en Springdale, Arkansas 

“Trabajamos durante el virus, usamos máscaras pero todavía así nos empezamos a enfermar. Continuamos trabajando con lo que empezó como una fiebre y otros síntomas de COVID-19.  Tres semanas después, con dolor y fiebre, la compañía dijo que todos los trabajadores tenían que tomar el examen del coronavirus. El resultado salió positivo. Luego el patrón dijo que no podíamos trabajar, y envió a tres de nosotros a la casa para estar en cuarentena. Teníamos miedo de conseguir ayuda médica, tuvimos que usar remedios caseros para combatir el dolor y para curarnos. Estuvimos solos, solamente las personas que nos mandaban comida podían dejar la comida y luego se iban. Es injusto—tenemos que tener mejor protección porque hubiéramos podido prevenir esta situación. ¡Somos seres humanos y merecemos ser protegidos!”

— Erika, trabajadora de empaque de manzanas, Condado de Oswego, Nueva York 

Yo hago como $1,000 al mes en ventas. No es lo suficiente para pagar el alquiler, definitivamente no es lo suficiente para ponerse al día con los pagos. La ciudad no nos ha ayudado, el gobierno no nos ha ayudado. No califico ni un centavo para el paquete de estímulo. Soy indocumentada, y nosotras no calificamos para nada. Hay una moratoria de alquiler hasta marzo 2021. Me da miedo de que cuando esto acabe me echarán, y no podré conseguir otro apartamento. ¿A dónde iré? No tengo un trabajo seguro ya que las ventas varían de día a día. Me ayudaría el perdón del alquiler ya que no veo cómo me podría poner al día con los pagos. 

— Sonia, vendedora ambulante en la Ciudad de Nueva York 

Siento muy fuertemente que necesitamos más que las ganancias que podríamos ganar bajo lo que básicamente se siente como un tiempo de plaga. Los trabajadores de Caribou merecen tener el tiempo pagado para cuidar a sus familiares…merecemos un salario más alto. Merecemos tener tiempo pagado y asegurado por enfermedad para todos. Hay tantas cosas que como trabajadores nos hemos dado cuenta que necesitamos pero que no tenemos…estas son cosas que amo de mi trabajo las cuales me han hecho quedarme. Gracias al hecho de que organizamos, me he quedado. Tengo mucha fe de que podemos construir algo mejor para nosotras mismas. 

— Lux, trabajadora de Caribou en Minneapolis, Minnesota 

“Los empleados supuestamente tienen que ser prioridad. Después de lo que vi, usted me está diciendo que mi seguridad no es importante y que su ganancia si lo es.” 

— Mark, trabajador de la empacadora Mars Candy en Joliet, Illinois

“Los impactos del COVID en los trabajadores de alimentos, los cuales este reporte describe,  demuestran las maneras en que nuestro sistema de alimentos y de labor explotan y tratan a los trabajadores como desechables. Aun así, incluso mientras los trabajadores de alimentos encuentran increíbles desafíos, han acelerado su organización para ganar protecciones en el trabajo. Las historias en este reporte elevan como los trabajadores se han estado organizando para mantener sus lugares de trabajos seguros y seguir apoyando a sus comunidades. Si más trabajadores tuvieran el poder de levantarse en sus trabajos, menos trabajadores tendrían que sufrir enfermedades y muertes prevenibles a causa del COVID.” 

— Sonia Singh, Alianza de Trabajadores de la Cadena Alimentaria

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