The 1,300 locked-out employees at American Crystal Sugar Co. in three states need your help. The members of Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers (BCTGM) Local 167G have been locked out since Aug. 1 after they rejected the company’s final offer by a nine-to-one margin.
American Crystal reportedly has hired replacement workers at its seven plants in Minnesota, North Dakota and Iowa. Negotiations to replace a seven-year contract began in May. The union has filed an unfair labor practice charge against American Crystal, claiming the company has not bargained in good faith.
You can help the American Crystal workers, who want to work and who are standing up for workers’ rights by signing a petition here telling American Crystal’s CEO Dave Berg to not turn his back on the community.
You also can contribute to the Sugar Beet Workers fund that will help workers during the hardship faced while being locked out. Make checks out to: Minnesota AFL-CIO, 175 Aurora Ave., St. Paul, MN 55103. In the memo line, print “BCTGM Lockout 2011.”
