At Dec. 10 action, machinists say: ‘Our unions will not be busted!’

By Bryan G. Pfeifer
Manitowoc, Wis.

Thousands of labor, community and student supporters joined a solidarity rally and march here on Dec. 10 to support striking members of the International Association of Machinists Local 516. This mass-based progressive activity was a rare occurrence for this city of 32,000 in northeastern Wisconsin.

Photo: Susan Ruggles

Local 516 members have been striking Manitowoc Cranes since Nov. 15 to stop management from busting their union by making the company an “open shop.” The Dec. 10 march and rally gave the bosses and the rest of Wall Street their answer: “Our union will not be busted!”

Some 3,500 teachers, snow plow drivers, firefighters, steelworkers, boilermakers, operating engineers, laborers, letter carriers, truck drivers, custodians, nurses, bricklayers, electricians, painters, community members, religious leaders, students, immigrant rights activists and workers of many nationalities from both the public and private sector were there in solidarity, according to the the Wisconsin AFL-CIO, which also sponsored the rally.

Many unions and community supporters marched with striking Machinists. WW photo: Bryan G. Pfeifer

“We feel it’s important to be here for solidarity. They stood with us, now it’s our turn to stand with them, and we’re going to continue to be here until the job is done,” said Mahlon Mitchell, president of the Wisconsin Firefighters Association.

At Manitowoc’s municipal baseball field, public and private sector union leaders and community supporters spoke before a sea of labor, community and student supporters, hoisting colorful union banners and signs while wearing their union- and labor-related gear.

Phil Neuenfeldt, president of the Wisconsin AFL-CIO, chaired the rally and began by bringing to the main stage the fighting strikers of Machinists Local 516. Many union representatives announced the monetary contributions from their unions or ad-hoc collections.

Major caravans came from Milwaukee, Madison, the Fox Valley, the Lakeshore area, Green Bay and many other locations. The state AFL-CIO, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Union and numerous other unions, community, faith-based and student organizations from across the state had mobilized for the rally.

A blocks-long march to the headquarters of Manitowoc Co., the parent company of Manitowoc Cranes, shut down lanes of Dewey Street. In profound acts of solidarity, members of organizations such as Voces de la Frontera, a Milwaukee-based immigrant rights worker organization; Occupy Milwaukee; the South Central Federation Of Labor; the Wisconsin Bail Out the People Movement; and many others drove hundreds of miles to attend the solidarity rally.

Chanting slogans such as “What’s disgusting? Union busting!” “They say cut back! We say fight back!” and “¡Sí, se puede!” (Yes, we can!) and singing union songs led mostly by women, youth and students, the marchers joined in a moving picket line that swelled to take up all the street lanes in front of company headquarters before heading back to the park.

“It’s a great crowd today, a lot of energy,” said firefighter leader Mitchell. “It just shows you that our spirits are not dead. Everything that’s happened from February in Madison until now, it’s carried over to the entire state. For that matter, it’s carried across the entire nation. That’s why we’re seeing Occupy Wall Street, why we’re seeing Occupy D.C. And now we’re occupying Manitowoc.

“We came up to Manitowoc because an attack on union workers is an attack on immigrants, an attack on Blacks, Latinos, an attack on everybody,” said Joe Shansky of Voces de la Frontera. “This is an awakening, people have woken up. I’ve never seen such solidarity among our side, people who are working to defend our rights.

“Madison was a trigger for sure. Madison was a great opportunity for all of these people who have been working, many of us for most of our lives, for these different causes to come together and unite,” said Shamsky.

Monday through Friday picket lines are from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 6 a.m. to 12 noon. If visiting the picket line, supporters can bring hot beverages such as coffee, cider, snacks, etc. Solidarity messages are also encouraged. For updates, information and how to support Local 516: http://www.iamlodge516.org.

Bryan G. Pfeifer is an organizer with the Wisconsin Bail Out the People Movement, a labor-community-student organization that is supporting the ­Machinists Local 516 strike.
www.wibailoutpeople.org