Nearly 50 members of UE, the Communications Workers of America (CWA), Jobs with Justice and other supporters rallied on June 6 outside the annual meeting of DirecTV in New York City to protest the denial of workers´ rights by the giant satellite TV company and its subcontractors. Four of them – Northeast Regional President Peter Knowlton, UE Local 719 member and DirecTV contractor employee Victor Iddings, International Rep. Dennis Painter, and Organizer Omar el-Malah – got inside the stockholders´ meeting and challenged DirecTV CEO Chase Carey, asking him why DirecTV condones abuse of technicians who are doing the company´s work. His answers were, as expected, evasive. Other shareholders offered friendly and supportive remarks to union protesters. Later some 20 protestors eluded security and marched into the Hilton New York, where they chanted just outside the meeting room: "What do we want? Workers´ rights!" Workers at JBM Bluegrass Satellite in Columbus, OH, a DirecTV home installation subcontractor, began organizing with UE in May 2003, and demanded union recognition from the company in September 2003. The company committed massive unfair labor practices in an effort to crush the organizing drive. Faced with the prospect of defeat in an NLRB trial, Bluegrass agreed in March 2004 to recognize the union. But within days the company began firing workers in retaliation for their union support, and over the following three years committed massive additional labor law violations, including subcontracting work in an effort to starve workers into submission. JBM Bluegrass is now a subsidiary of DirecTech, also a DirecTV contractor. Both businesses prominently display the logo of DirecTV, their sole customer, on their websites, and their workers wear DirecTV uniforms. The Columbus workers, now members of UE Local 719, have remained strong and determined through four years of mistreatment by their lawbreaking employer, and continue their fight for justice and a union contract. A year ago, workers at DirecTech Southwest in Missouri, Illinois and Kentucky voted for CWA union representation. Since then, the company has stonewalled their contract negotiations as well, and continues to refuse to bargain a fair agreement.

"WE RAISED A LOT OF EYEBROWS"

In the shareholders´ meeting Victor Iddings, Bluegrass technician and member of Local 719´s bargaining committee, challenged DirecTV over how its home service contractor is treating employees. "I asked whether they were aware of the pay freeze, how people have been constructively discharged, and the other illegal things that have been going on," said Victor. "They were clueless. We raised a lot of eyebrows. By the end, other people were asking questions." Iddings feels that "it really did some good" to take the workers´ case to the shareholders´ meeting and embarrass DirecTV executives over the outrageous behavior of its contractors. "This fight´s not over," he adds.

Brother Iddings had a lot of support from other UE members in New York. UE participants in the DirecTV protest included Director of Organization Bob Kingsley; Peter Knowlton; Jean Ellis (Local 404, Passaic Library); Mahkubar Ratimur (Local 404, Hishi Plastics); Joe Miglino (Local 404 retiree), Jon Nowlan (Local 155, Wood River Industries); Ray Pompano, Wayne Morrison and Chris Fiorentino (Local 243, Sargent); Jack Mesner (Local 222, Sub-local 71, New Haven); Bob South (Local 234, Fairbanks Scales); Political Action Director Chris Townsend, International Reps. Dennis Painter, Connie Spinnozi and Kim Lawson; and Field Organizer Omar el-Malah.

UE members and friends can help Local 719 members in their fight for justice. Sign the online petition to DirecTV´s CEO on the UE website.