Strikers Picket 150 Goodyear Stores

[Omaha Steve]

http://money.excite.com/jsp/nw/nwdt_rt_top.jsp?news_id=ap-d8m2alro1&

Strikers Picket 150 Goodyear Stores

Saturday Decem
ber 16, 9:26 PM EST

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Union members battling Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. took their picket lines to about 150 tire retailers in the U.S. and Canada on Saturday, making their case directly to consumers for health care and retirement benefits.

In Lincoln, about 50 United Steelworkers members protested at two Goodyear retailers, decrying the company's use of replacement workers during the 2-month strike.

"We know what it takes to build tires, and unskilled workers just can't do it," said Gary Schaefer, 54, vice president of the United Steelworkers Local 286 in Lincoln. "We do not want the general public riding their lives on temporary workers."

Goodyear spokesman Ed Markey said the protests do not affect plans to return to the bargaining table, scheduled to resume Monday in Pittsburgh for the first time since meetings broke off Nov. 17.

FULL story at link above.

I was on the line today at the Omaha Jensen Tire Store representing AFSCME in support of the USW

.

[Drum]

1. Thanks for the news, and for representing

union brothers and sisters.

:thumbsup:

[Omaha Steve]

2. They are also fighting a plant closing that would send more US middle class jobs to China!

From the full article: Goodyear has said it intends to close its Tyler, Texas, tire plant by next year because the company is ending production of low-profit private-label tires. The union wants all plants protected from closing. The USW also strongly objected to a company proposal for creating a retirees' health care trust, which the union argues shortchanges retirees.