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URGENT: Matamoros Workers Need Your HelpEmergency Plea from Matamoros Garment WorkersWe Urgently Need Your Help! Do Everything Possilbe to Stop the Plant ClosureMarch 19, 2003 On the eve of a war that preoccupies all of us, the Campaign for Labor Rights calls on our network to act on this emergency plea from workers to stave off a plant closure. By order of importance, please: 1. CALL, FAX or EMAIL the Mexican Embassy or a consulate closest to you. Ask the Mexican government to intervene on behalf of the workers (see below for a full list of Mexican Embassy or consulate telephone numbers and/or email addresses, sample letter). 2. EMAIL OR CALL the Director of Government and the Izucar de Matamoros government. Demand that the Mexican Government intervene in this emergency matter. 3. EMAIL OR CALL the Local Labor Board in Puebla, Mexico. Demand that they grant SITEMAG (Sindicato Independiente de Trabajadores de la Empresa Matamoros Garment) its legal registration and intervene to assure the workers well being during the time of their plant closure. 4. EMAIL or FAX Puma and blast them for avoiding their responsibility to workers at the Matamoros Garment factory. UPDATED SITUATIONIn the last 24 hours several key, the Matamoros Garment factory in Puebla, Mexico informed its workers that it will close its plant by Thursday. We relay this information to you as we receive it from the workers, and most importantly call for IMMEDIATE ACTION! - On Monday, March 17, 2003, Matamoros Garment informed workers that the plant would close until further notice and that workers should pick-up their last paychecks on Thursday. - Early Tuesday, March 18, 2003, a group of independent union supporters from the Sindicato Independiente de Trabajadores de la Empresa Matamoros Garment (SITEMAG) met in front of the plant expecting to witness the factorys machines being hauled away as was also attempted late last week. - Angry at the abrupt, irresponsible factory closure and expecting the end of Matamoros Garment as we know it, the SITEMAG supporters and the Centro Apoyo Trabajadores, a worker support center, demanded a meeting from the Municipal President of Izúcar de Matamoros, Prof. Melitón Lozano Perez, a recently-elected P.R.D. leader. - Melitón was unavailable, so the workers instead met with his Director of Government, Prof. Justiniano Ruiz Tirado. Justiniano promised the workers he would try to stop the factory from removing the machines and would contact the Local Labor Board to intervene on the workers behalf. The Labor Board stated that Matamoros Garment was a - conflict between two unions - (referring to the company-selected C.T.M. federation) and weakly agreed to - look into it-. - Meanwhile in Los Angeles, of suspicious coincidence where both Matamoros Garment director John Whittinghill and PUMA executive Reiner Hengstmann happened to be at the same time, both men have stated that they cannot meet this week nor confirm new orders from PUMA until Friday. - Incidentally, this Thursday, March 20, 2003, is when the 60-day waiting period is up for the Local Labor Board to notify SITEMAG whether their petition for legal recognition will be recognized. - To us it currently appears as if the factory is trying to close before Thursday, and that Whittinghill and Hengstmann are avoiding the workers until Friday. This certainly cannot be a coincidence as the SITEMAG recognition is due by Thursday. We believe Matamoros Garment, PUMA, the Local Labor Board, the C.T.M., and perhaps even the Izúcar de Matamoros government and the Puebla state government have consciously orchestrated the events of this ill-fated week, including the intentional denial of legal recognition to SITEMAG. BACKGROUNDTwo hundred factory workers staged a work stoppage at the Matamoros Garment Factory on January 13th, protesting the non-payment of wages, forced overtime, the imposition of a sweetheart union and the dangerous practice of locking workers inside the factory during work hours. They also called for the recognition of an independent union, Sindicato Independiente de la Empresa Matamoros Garment (SITEMAG), in conjunction with Centro de Apoyo al Trabajador (CAT). The factory management responded by informing the workers that as a result of their actions, well-known German sportwear company PUMA terminated its contract. Massive international pressure forced PUMA to enter into discussions with CAT about the workers charges. Also at issue at these talks was PUMA refusal to acknowledge that violations of workers rights have occurred and that workers had a right to freely choose a union without company harassment or pressure. The workers called on PUMA to withdraw recognition from the sweetheart union, Sindicato Francisco Villa of the CTM. In violation of discussion protocols and in an attempt to circumvent the independent union, PUMA issued a public statement in early February refuting the workers claims. On February 12th, CAT responded with a scathing denunciation and reissued a call for international solidarity. Negotiations were ongoing between PUMA and CAT. At a press conference in Cologne, Germany on February 25th, CAT restated its demands, and PUMA agreed to place new orders that day. However, in the past two weeks, no new orders have been placed. URGENT ACTION NEEDEDCAT has called on US/LEAP, Maquila Solidarity Network, United Students Against Sweatshops, Mexico Solidarity Network, Campaign for Labor Rights, No Sweat, Clean Clothes Campaign, and all of their supporters to urgently help prevent the Local Labor Board from denying the unions registration, demand that Melitóns government do everything possible to protect its citizen-workers, and blast PUMA for failing in its responsibility to the workers. We urge you to contact these actors TODAY (WEDNESDAY MARCH 19), or by THURSDAY. By the end of this week it will be much more difficult to influence the current situation. WHAT YOU CAN DO BY ORDER OF IMPORTANCE!1. CALL, FAX or EMAIL the Mexican Embassy or a consulate closest to you to intervene on behalf of the workers (see below for a full list of telephone numbers and/or email addresses, sample letter) 2. EMAIL OR CALL Director of Government, Professor Melitón Lozano Perez and the Izúcar de Matamoros government to demand that the government intervene. Demand that they solve the land tenancy question of Matamoros Garment so the owner John Kim can legally take over the factory. Challenge the Local Labor Board to grant the independent unions registration and intervene to ensure the workers well-being, and meet with the CAT and SITEMAG to find out how he can be their ally in this process. Prof. Melitón Lozano Perez Honorable Ayuntamiento de
Izúcar de Matamoros 3. EMAIL OR CALL the Local Labor Board in Puebla, Mexico and demand that they grant SITEMAG its legal registration and intervene to assure the workers well being during the time of their plant closure. Lic. Armando Toxqui Quintero 4. EMAIL or FAX Puma and blast them for avoiding responsibility to workers at the Matamoros Garment factory who make Puma apparel and demand that they work with owner John Kim and the workers to bring its production back when the plant reopens. PUMA A.G. Reiner Hengstmann and Jochen Zeitz Email: reiner.hengstmann@puma.com and jochen.zeitz@puma.com Fax: 49-9132-812246 EMBASSY/CONSULATE LISTEMBASSY OF MEXICO 1911 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C., 20006 ARIZONA Douglas 1201 F Avenue, Douglas, AZ 85607 Nogales 571 N. Grand Ave., Nogales, AZ 85621 Phoenix 1990 W. Camelback, Suite 110, Phoenix, AX 85015 Tucson 553 S. Stone Ave., Tuscon, AZ 85701 CALIFORNIA Calexico 331 W. Second St., Calexico, CA 92231 Fresno 830 Van Ness Ave., Fresno, CA 93721 Los Angeles 2401 W. Sixth St., Los Angeles, CA 90057 Oxnard 201 E. Fourth St., Suite 206-A, Oxnard, CA 93030 Sacramento 1010 8th St., Sacramento, CA 95814 San Bernadino 532 North D St., San Bernadino, CA 92401 San Diego 1549 India St., San Diego, CA 92101 San Francisco 870 Market St. Suite 528, San Francisco, CA San Jose 540 North First St., San Jose, CA 95112 Santa Ana 828 N. Broadway St., Santa Ana, CA 92701-3424 COLORADO Denver 48 Steele St., Denver, CO 80206 FLORIDA Miami 5975 Sunset Dr., South Miami, FL 33143 Orlando 100 W. Washington St., Orlando, FL 32801 GEORGIA ATLANTA 2600 Apple Valley Rd, Atlanta, GA 30319 ILLINOIS Chicago 300 N. Michigan Ave., 2nd Fl., Chicago, IL 60651 LOUISIANA New Orleans World Trade Center Building 2 Canal St., Suite MASSACHUSETTS Boston 20 Park Plaza, Suite 506, Boston, MA 02116 MICHIGAN Detroit 645 Griswold Ave. Suite 1700, Detroit, MI 48226 MISSOURI St. Louis 1015 Locust St. Suite 922, St. Louis, MO 63101 NEBRASKA Omaha 3552 Dodge St., Omaha, NE 68131 NEW MEXICO Albuquerque 1610 4th Street NW, Albuquerque, NM 87102 NEW YORK New York 27 East 39th. St., New York, NY 10016 NORTH CAROLINA Charlotte P.O. Box 19627, Charlotte, NC 28219 OREGON Portland 1234 S.W. Morrison, Portland, OR 97205 PENNSYLVANIA Philadelphia 111 S. Independence Mall East Bourse TEXAS Austin 200 E. Sixth St., Suite 200, Austin, TX 78701 Brownsville 724 E. Elizabeth St., Brownsville, TX 78520 Corpus Christi 800 N. Shoreline Blvd. Suite 410, North Dallas 8855 N Stemmons Freeway, Dallas, TX 75247 Del Rio 300 E. Losoya, Del Rio, TX 78841 Eagle Pass 140 Adams St., Eagle Pass, TX 78852 El Paso 910 E. San Antonio St., El Paso, TX 79901 Houston 4506 Caroline St., Houston, TX 77004 Laredo 1612 Farragut St., Laredo, TX 78040 McAllen 600 S. Broadway Ave., McAllen, TX 78501 McAllen 511 W. Ohio, Suite 121, Midland, TX 79701 San Antonio 127 Navarro St., San Antonio, TX 78205 UTAH Salt Lake City 230 West 400 South, 2nd Floor, Salt Lake WASHINGTON Seattle 2132 Third Ave., Seattle, WA 98121 This information provided mainly by: |
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