The Militant (logo)  

Vol. 71/No. 11      March 19, 2007

 
On the Picket Line
 
Airbus workers in France and
Germany protest mass job cuts
Thousands of Airbus workers in France and Germany halted production March 1 to protest massive job cuts recently announced by the company. Work stoppages occurred at plant sites in Méaulte, France, and in Nordenham, Varel, and Laupheim, Germany, reported the Associated Press.

The day before nearly 14,000 workers at four plants in France halted work for two hours, union officials told the media.

Airbus plans to slash 10,000 jobs—nearly 20 percent of its workforce—and sell as many as six factories over the next three to four years. Job cuts will include 4,300 in France, 3,700 in Germany, 1,600 in the United Kingdom, and 400 in Spain.

Some 10,000 Airbus workers and others rallied in Toulouse, France, March 6 to protest the planned layoffs. A Europe-wide action is being organized for mid-March.

—Brian Williams

Teamsters fight lockout at Royal
Aluminum plant in New Jersey
NEWARK, New Jersey—Some 60 workers at the Royal Aluminum plant here are fighting against a company lockout imposed during negotiations for a new contract. The workers are members of Teamsters Local 202. The majority of the workforce are women of Latino and Portuguese descent. The company, which manufactures specialty windows, offered an hourly wage raise of just 20 cents per year over a five-year contract, according Teamster representative Anthony Rosa. The unionists are also demanding improved health-care benefits. With the imposition of the lockout, the company halted all negotiations.

—Carole Lesnick

Canada rail workers end strike,
vote on one-year contract
Under the threat of strikebreaking legislation by the federal government, 2,800 conductors and yard workers returned to work on the Canadian National (CN) railway March 1 after striking against worsening job conditions. The strike, which began February 10, paralyzed sections of the economy, causing layoffs, plant shutdowns, and a backlog of ships in ports waiting for shipments for transport.

The workers are voting on a one-year pact reached between United Transportation Union officials and CN bosses, with results to be announced March 26. The agreement provides for a 3 percent wage increase, but does not address any of the work rule issues that were of most concern to the strikers, who walked out over the “productivity” drive of the CN bosses. Discussions on these issues will begin next fall. Federal Labour Minister Jean-Pierre Blackburn has warned that the government might still use the legislation if the workers don’t approve the deal.

—John Steele  
 
 
Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home