Workers making Oreos and other Nabisco snacks are on strike in 5 states, including Colorado

By Coral Murphy Marcos, The New York Times Company

Unionized workers who marque Oreos, Chips Ahoy!, Newtons and different Nabisco snacks are connected onslaught successful 5 states implicit what they accidental are unfair demands for concessions successful declaration negotiations.

Members of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers national successful Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Oregon and Virginia person rejected management’s telephone for changes successful displacement lengths and overtime rules. The workers are besides calling for the restoration of a pension plan, which Nabisco’s owner, Mondelez International, replaced successful 2018 with a 401(k) programme aft a declaration impasse.

“We privation our pension back. We earned that,” Mike Burlingham, vice president of Local 364 successful Portland, Oregon, said successful an interview. “This is simply a bully job, wherever radical program for retirement. If the institution could person their way, that would beryllium gone, and it wouldn’t beryllium a occupation worthy warring for astatine all.”

The national enactment the fig of striking workers astatine much than 1,000.

The erstwhile declaration expired successful May. Union workers accidental they person often enactment successful 16-hour days arsenic request for snack foods has accrued during the pandemic.

The institution is seeking schedules successful which immoderate employees would person shifts of up to 12 hours without overtime wage but would enactment less days a week. Those connected play shifts, antecedently eligible for other pay, would get the premium lone aft moving 40 hours successful a week. In addition, caller hires would wage much than different employees for wellness insurance.

“Our extremity has been — and continues to beryllium — to bargain successful bully faith,” Mondelez International said successful a statement, “while besides taking steps to modernize immoderate declaration aspects which were written respective decades ago.”

The onslaught began successful Portland connected Aug. 10, and workers successful Aurora, Colorado; Richmond, Virginia; Chicago; and Norcross, Georgia, followed suit arsenic precocious arsenic Monday. The institution said accumulation was continuing with employees not nether national jurisdiction.

Union members accidental they person been treated unfairly portion Mondelez International has made beardown fiscal gains amid the pandemic. The institution reported a 12% summation successful gross for the 3 months ending successful June compared with the aforesaid 4th a twelvemonth earlier.

The workers person besides called for the institution to “stop exporting our jobs to Mexico.” Some Oreo accumulation was shifted to Mexico successful 2016, a determination that was criticized by Donald Trump arsenic a statesmanlike candidate. This year, Nabisco plants were unopen successful Fair Lawn, New Jersey, and Atlanta, but Mondelez said nary enactment determination was sent to Mexico.

The national “will instrumentality each due enactment indispensable successful bid to scope a declaration colony that treats Nabisco workers reasonably and equitably,” Anthony Shelton, president of the union, said successful a statement.

This nonfiction primitively appeared successful The New York Times.