The Militant(logo) 
    Vol.60/No.30           September 2, 1996 
 
 
McDonnell Douglas Strikers Get Solidarity  

BY DANNY BOOHER AND MARY MARTIN
ST. LOUIS, Missouri - Chanting "What do we want ?" "Union Jobs!" "When do we want them? Now!" and "Union in; Scabs Out!," over 6,000 unionists and their supporters marched here August 11 in solidarity with the International Association of Machinists (IAM) union members on strike against McDonnell Douglas Corporation.

Members of the United Auto Workers, the United Steelworkers of America, the Teamsters union, and other IAM locals from across Missouri, other Midwest states, plus California, Washington, and elsewhere came to participate in a two-mile march to McDonnell Douglas corporate headquarters.

The march stepped off from IAM District 837 headquarters in Hazelwood. A 2,000-strong contingent of autoworkers mostly from assembly plants in the area joined in soon. Two UAW members came from the McDonnell Douglas plant in Long Beach, California, and 17 UAW members from the Caterpillar plant in Peoria, Illinois, also marched.

A contingent of 65 IAM members who work for Boeing in Portland, Oregon, and Seattle, Washington, also attended. Daughters and sons of striking Machinists carried signs reading "I support my parents' fight for jobs."

The demonstration ended in a rally at a park adjacent to McDonnell corporate headquarters.

Kenny Whetstone, one of the UAW Local 974 members who works in the East Peoria Caterpillar plant, explained why the group traveled to St. Louis for the march and rally. "The injustice of what happened to us at CAT is reflected in the Machinists strike against McDonnell Douglas," he said. UAW members at Caterpillar returned to work without a contract at the beginning of this year after 18 months on the picket lines. "It's the same bosses at the top like we went up against at CAT. Instead of being loyal to their employees, the company wants to take away any voice from the union. They would like workers to be at the will of the employers."

Fifteen members of the St. Louis chapter of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU) marched with their banner. CBTU member Billy Clark, a building trades worker, said in an interview, "We are here because this is a union struggle. Today it's their union and tomorrow they may be chipping away at my union. I'm glad to see this show of solidarity."

The strike here has entered its 11th week. The main issues in the dispute are the outsourcing of jobs from the McDonnell plant to non-union factories as well as retirement and health benefits. Although negotiations have resumed, there has been little progress reported.

On August 1, the state of Missouri ruled that the Machinists were entitled to receive unemployment compensation during the walkout.

The aerospace giant has consistently boasted that through hiring strikebreakers and using white collar employees in assembly operations, production levels in the struck plant are nearly as high as they were before the strike, a claim disputed by the union.

On the basis of company assertions that near-normal production levels have been maintained, the state ruled no disruption in production had occurred as a result of the strike. Initially, the strikers will receive $35 per week in unemployment benefits. Company officials say the ruling is "immoral" and will be appealed.

The two-mile march made its way past the world headquarters building of McDonnell and into an adjacent park. Featured speakers at the rally included George Becker, International President of the USWA; George Kourpias, Secretary-Treasurer of the IAM; Bill Lucy, Secretary-Treasurer of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees; and Richard Trumka, secretary treasurer of the national AFL-CIO.

All union officials repeated in their speeches the labor tops' protectionist theme of defending "American jobs."

"We need a sense of job security for all Americans," Kouprias stated. "Changing jobs five times in a lifetime ain't right; it ain't American." He continued, "Its unAmerican to sell our technology [abroad]. These jobs in St. Louis are important to our future."

Many of those present signaled approval of these points with applause and whistles. A few had a different view.

Edith Marques is one of several former workers at the Bridgestone Firestone plant in Decatur, Illinois, who was illegally fired and is fighting to get her job back.

"I recently went on a USWA-organized trip to Tokyo to meet with Japanese unionists," she said in an interview. "We went to get solidarity in our fight to get our jobs back after the recent strike at Bridgestone Firestone. We received a lot of letters of support. I really didn't know anything about what they are doing in the unions in Japan. Now a Japanese delegation of unionists is going to come to Decatur and other cities in the Midwest at the end of August. It is these companies' fault that we have to fight for our jobs in this country - not the fault of workers in other countries."

Mary Martin is a member of International Association of Machinists Local 1759 at Northwest Airlines in Washington, D.C.. Jim Garrison, a member of United Auto Workers Local 110 at Chrysler in Fenton, Missouri, also contributed to this article.  
 
 
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