Letter from the Manager
Union Brothers and Sisters, Welcome to our first digital newsletter! We want to provide access to our information and our stories in a more practical way, and we feel that distributing this out electronically will do just that. We hope you like the new format. This year, as we all know, was quite possibly the most challenging year of our lifetime. The uniqueness and uncertainty of 2020 forced us at the Joint Board to make internal operational changes quickly and dramatically, while still providing top-notch union representation to our members and retirees, as well as continuing to put resources into our organizing program. Every union shop we represent is different in one way or another, and we saw that during the pandemic. Some workplaces remained open every single day since March. Other workplaces have been closed completely. And there are many that have been somewhere in between, on reduced hours, or a reduced workforce. No matter where you work though, we have fought hard to ensure safe working conditions, minimize risks to our members, and simultaneously still bargain and fight for economic gains. We are not out of the woods yet with this pandemic, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Please stay safe and healthy. I hope you enjoy the holidays, even if they do not look like they normally would. For 2021 and beyond, I promise my dedication and solidarity to our union- each and every one of you. The workers united will never be defeated! In solidarity,Gary Bonadonna Jr.Manager, Rochester Regional Joint BoardWorkers United International VP
About Union Organizing
The power of the union comes from the workers themselves banding together with co-workers to collectively represent the interests and needs of the workforce. The other power comes from the fact that the right to organize a union is a fundamental human and civil right. When employers, as some do, try to trample on those rights and engage in union busting, Workers United (WU) has proven time and time again throughout its history that the community, other unions, and customers can be mobilized to support workers trying to organize. Recently, when Spot Coffee workers were met with strong anti-union behavior by management, the local unions, progressives, and Spot workers joined together to boycott the company. That resulted in an historic settlement with the employer, reinstatement of fired workers, and one of the strongest union contracts ever negotiated in the service sector. We have a saying in the movement that comes from labor history and the Industrial Workers of the World – “an injury to one is an injury to all.” This generation of the new labor movement intends to enforce those words vigorously. We will work with employers, but any employer who denies a worker this fundamental right to form a union will be met by a collective force for justice. Without a union, workers are “at will”. In US labor law, at-will employment is an employer’s ability to dismiss an employee for any reason (that is, without having to establish “just cause” for termination), and without warning, as long as the reason is not illegal (e.g. firing because of the employee’s race, religion or sexuality). Think how many times your employer has disciplined, bullied or even fired a co-worker. Without a union, bosses are judge and jury of their own case. With a union and a union contract, employers cannot engage in such abusive conduct. We organize to build a working-class movement. We don’t care what political party you are in: Republican, Democrat, Independent, Libertarian, or Socialist. We unite to fight for a better world for the working class. We strongly support other struggles: the struggle of transgender people, human rights for people of color, immigrant rights, LGBTQ, and women’s rights. We unite around the rights of the working class to lead our lives with dignity, without discrimination, with fair pay, and without exploitation for our labor. Successful organizing depends on two things: Having a strong representative worker committee, and the ability to pressure an employer who tries to deny workers the right to organize. A committee is a voluntary steering committee of you and your co-workers that guides your new union through the organizing process. Working on a union organizing committee can be a fun and rewarding learning experience. A Workers United union representative can explain how to form a strong and effective committee. The National Labor Relations Act encourages U.S. citizens to form unions and the Act protects that right. It is illegal to interfere with, coerce, or restrain workers in the exercise of these rights. WU has lawyers and experienced organizers to help out with legal issues if they arise. However, the true power of your new union comes from the court of public opinion, rather than the court of law. The public and customers can be mobilized to support any group of workers who are organizing and that can be a much swifter and effective justice than waiting months to win a legal proceeding. Both are needed but the community pressure is most effective. In January, negotiations for an initial collective bargaining agreement began between Workers United’s newest members and the Ithaca Sciencenter which is a nationally recognized children’s museum. Negotiations have been difficult, as they often are, for an initial agreement as we are starting from scratch. The Sciencenter Workers United Union committee is a band of five worker leaders representing their co-workers who dedicate three days a week to winning a good contract. They meet every Sunday evening to prepare for their weekly Monday bargaining sessions and then debrief and draft new proposals. At the heart of these negotiations is the goal of real power-sharing by the workers. As we know we must demand more power if we want more justice. To this end the workers of the Sciencenter Union are an inspiration to us all. Stay tuned – it will be interesting to see their first contract. All of Workers United and the labor movement will stand with them if they need our support to bring this fight home.
Crystal Lee, 2020 Abraham Chatman Scholarship Winner
We are happy to announce that Crystal Lee, daughter Elijah Lee of Xerox, is the winner of the 2020 Abraham Chatman Scholarship. Crystal is attending RIT where she is majoring in Biotechnology and Molecular Science. Crystal says that she “felt very honored and appreciative” when she learned that she was the winner. Her parents were pleased as well, “We were excited and very proud that our daughter was chosen to receive this prestigious scholarship.” After graduating from Greece Arcadia High School, Crystal increased her hours at Wegmans, where she worked as a pharmacy technician. This job allowed her to save more money for college. While she started out as a Biotechnology and Molecular Science major, Crystal has decided to switch to Bioinformatics and Computational Biology in the next semester. I originally chose Biotechnology because I had decided to work toward a PhD in gene therapy. It is my dream to research immunotherapy and possibly focus on a rare disease that does not get enough attention. I became invested in this career because I have several family members with autoimmune disorders such as diabetes and pemphigus vulgaris. When I decided to do my own research, I found it fascinating that the immune system could attack healthy tissues and wanted to know the cause. When looking more into the program, I learned that compared to biotechnology, it had a greater focus on genomics and proteomics. When asked if she had any thoughts that she wanted to share with members and their children, here is what she had to say: Your career choice may not be something that comes easily to you. You must expose yourself to many subjects and ideas to narrow down your interests. For example, I have been interested in all fields of science since 6th grade. I chose a wide variety of science classes to take, which greatly narrowed down my interests. Since early elementary school, my career choice went from an archaeologist, to astronomist, to geologist, to veterinarian, then surgeon, to medical scientist, then finally an immunologist/ gene therapist. Everything I learned in school has helped me decide what subjects I enjoyed and disliked. In addition, I was able to narrow down my strengths and weakness. Choosing a career takes time and is not something that should be rushed. I finally decided what I wanted to do in late 11th grade. Elijah Lee is a member of Local 14-A, Xerox. Her mother, Sylvia Lee is the Director of Community Outreach and Training Programs at Excellus BlueCross BlueShield. Her sister, Christina Lee, is self-employed and a student at Monroe Community College. For those who are interested in applying for the Chatman Scholarship, the award allows $2,000 per year for as many as four years for a total of $8,000. All dependent children of union members attending an accredited two- or four-year college are eligible. You can learn more about this scholarship by visiting The Community Foundation website: and searching for “Chatman.” Congratulations to Crystal and her family. Back to Reflections Table of Contents
COVID-19 PANDEMIC UPDATE
Don’t let your guard down yet!By Dr. Joseph Nicholas Right now Western NY is entering a most difficult phase of the Covid-19 pandemic, with record numbers of people getting infected and getting hospitalized. Right now all hospitals in Western NY are struggling to find room and staff to care for the huge numbers of infected patients coming to their emergency rooms. Although vaccines will likely help control this pandemic in the year ahead, there are many important things for us all to do to stay safe! Remember: Masking, handwashing and distancing are the best ways to avoid getting or spreading Covid. People can spread Covid without feeling or looking sick. Most people get infected from close family and friends and coworkers, during times when they are not masking. Indoor parties, concerts, bars, and other close gatherings are common places to get infected. While most people who get Covid-19 do not end up needing the hospital, many others will get extremely ill and be left with complications. And while older people are at the highest risk of serious illness and death, there are younger patients who also end up in intensive care. Please do your part to help keep our community healthy, our businesses open and our healthcare workers safe- things will be better in the spring. Back to Reflections Table of Contents
Union Staff at Work
The union staff and members are at at work, serving the union community as always. They take masking and social distancing rules seriously and surfaces are wiped down. Thank you for all you do!
Video Speeches from Black Lives Matter to Unions
Some speeches from the Black Lives Matter to Unions Rally hosted by the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists.
Black Lives Matter to Labor
Photos from Black Lives Matter Rally hosted by the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists.