Twisted sisters and a bandy legged brother*

Via Next Left Notes video footage of the IWW's March Against Wage Slavery on MLK Day:

"NEW YORK -- January 19, 2009. On Martin Luther King Jr Day 2009, the IWW rallied outside Starbucks' regional headquarters on Fifth Avenue before marching to Wild Edibles, to demand justice for the truck drivers who were fired by the food supplier after attempting to start a union. Along the way - the Rude Mechanical Orchestra provided the backbeat."

*The 'brother' bit is a sure indication that I've been watching far too much Celebrity Big Brother this year.

Brandworkers Exposes Wild Edibles' Use of Corporate Fronts

Via the Brandworkers International website:

For Immediate Release:

Brandworkers International

Contact: press (at) brandworkers.org

August 26, 2008

Statement of Brandworkers on Wild Edibles' Deceptive Use of Corporate Fronts

"In their continuing bid to avoid accountability for their illegal employment practices, Wild Edibles and owner Richard Martin have begun using different company names to deceive restaurant owners into buying seafood from Wild Edibles.

On the heels of filing a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition, Wild Edibles is deploying at least eight trucks under various company names and is billing restaurants using invoices from front companies. Wild Edibles and these front companies are one and the same and are therefore all subject to the current labor dispute.

The fish from the front companies is processed, packed, and delivered by Wild Edibles workers in the Wild Edibles warehouse. The same warehouse which received a warning from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for selling adulterated tuna that had been, "prepared, packed, or held under insanitary conditions whereby they may have been rendered injurious to health."

Employees have been campaigning for over a year to win respect for work and family at Wild Edibles, Inc., a formerly well-regarded seafood wholesaler and retailer. Instead of paying illegally withheld overtime pay and improving working conditions, Wild Edibles owner Richard Martin responded to the workers' efforts with a fierce campaign of retaliation, a questionable bankruptcy filing, and now a sorry attempt to obscure Wild Edibles' identity through front companies.

The Brandworkers Focus on the Food Chain initiative is providing comprehensive legal and advocacy support to twenty-four current and former Wild Edibles employees. Focus on the Food Chain promotes the principle that healthy, wholesome food includes respect for the dignity of workers along the food supply chain. Brandworkers International is a New York-based non-profit organization protecting and advancing the rights of retail and food employees.

http://www.Brandworkers.org