Call to Pete’s Market to respect worker’s rights and to march on May Day
Comite 10 de Marzo
Contacts: Moises Zavala: 630-254-3100
José Landaverde: 773-968-4258
Jorge Mújica: 773-852-8815
WHO: Local 881 of the United Food and Commercial Workers and the March
10th Immigration Committee
WHAT: Call to Pete’s Market to respect worker’s rights and to march on May Day
WHEN: Monday, April 12, at 10:30 a.m.
WHERE: In front of Pete’s Market, 4300 S. Pulaski, Chicago
The March 10th Committee, a united front of Immigrant Organizations,
stands in solidarity with Pete’s Fresh Market.
When we see wrong in our community we work together to confront the
issue and rectify the situation. Many workers from Pete’s fresh Market
have told us of the issues facing them in their workplace. We have
heard about the unsanitary working conditions that threaten the
public’s health. We have heard from women afraid to go to work because
they are treated like sexual objects. We have heard from men whose
wages have been stolen because the company claims they have somehow
wronged Pete’s Fresh Market.
When the majority of Pete’s workers decided to join a labor union to
solve the situation in the workplace, managers started talking about
“the possibility of an ICE raid”, and about “the possibility of using
the E-Verify Program” to deter their organizing efforts.
As Pete’s workers heard these threats, they decided to join the May
Day Immigrants’ and Workers Rights March on May Day 2010, seeing that
a broken immigration system is being used to instill fear in them.
We have met with workers who have been fired because they are fighting
to make their workplace better with union representation, and are also
fighting to improve their lives and be recognized as human beings, not
“treated like dogs,” as management presently calls its workforce.
“When Pete’s management intimidates, harasses, or wrongfully
terminates a worker member of the immigrant community, they are
hurting an entire family that depends on those wages,” says rev. José
Landaverde, pastor of the Episcopalian Mission of Guadalupe. “The
workers of Pete’s Fresh Market want to be treated with respect, and as
spokespersons of the Latino community, we are greatly insulted that
Pete’s cannot accommodate that request.”
As a united front of Latino organizations we are angry that Pete’s
Fresh Market thinks it can insult and mistreat our people with no
repercussions, and expect that our community will keep providing them
with high profits. “Pete’s may sell ‘arrachera’, but they are no
friends of the Mexican and Latino Community.”
--
Jorge Mujica