Grocery Strike Poll

I'm not really sure how to answer this poll (0.00 / 0)

I shop the local IGA (Northville Market in New Milford) and for stuff I can't get there, I go to the Big Y. I know that's locally owned, but not sure if it's union.

Of course there's always my local foray to Bombay Sweet&Spicey in Danbury (yes the extra e is there by design), I'm guessing thats non union LOL.

.Adding Another Dimension of Vituperation Toxicity to Blogging since 1999!.

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by: nolopro @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 17:01:23 PM CST

Blue Book (0.00 / 0)

We try to "Shop Blue" whenever possible. Generally we shop at Costco, Trader Joe's, and Independent grocery stores and farmstands.

The exception is ShopRite, which is locally owned in Milford (by a Repooplican, though).

I don't believe I have ever crossed a picket line, except for those outside of women's health clinics where they shove bloody photos in your face.

I have never been to a Wal-Mart.

"I am not a Blogger...But I play one on the internet."

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by: tessa @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 17:50:47 PM CST

The Blue Pages - Vote with your Wallet (4.00 / 1)

A Directory of Companies Rated by Their Politics and Practices.

FromPoliPoint Press/

 

for ex.
Starbucks gives all charitable donations to Democratic Party-affiliated organizations and causes.
Skyy [vodka] gives all charitable donations to Republic-affiliated groups.

About the Book
By summarizing the political contributions and business practices of hundreds of corporations, this handy directory helps you support companies that share your political values.
Follow your money; you might be surprised. The Blue Pages includes valuable information on political contributions to each major party, employee benefits and labor practices, lawsuits and investigations, and community and charitable programs.

. 

"I am not a Blogger...But I play one on the internet."

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by: tessa @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 18:08:09 PM CST

[ Parent ]

and of course there's (0.00 / 0)

buyblue.org

their webhost has a cute slogan, Blue Hosting in a Red State. They're based in Austin.

they're my webhost of choice. :)

.Adding Another Dimension of Vituperation Toxicity to Blogging since 1999!.

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by: nolopro @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 18:22:29 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Damaging to democracy and progressive ideals (0.00 / 0)

I'm fine with patronizing companies that have higher environmental standards, support the right to organize, etc.  But to patronize corporations because they try to buy access to Democratic elected offiicals is one of the most self-destructive strategies I've ever heard of.  Our goal should be to get corporate money out of politics, not encourage more corruption and corporate dependence among Democrats.

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by: mikect @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 21:27:28 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Bravo! (0.00 / 0)

I'm with you, Mike. Just because they're Democrats doesn't mean they're above corruption.

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by: saramerica @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 21:44:26 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Solrry, on the run (0.00 / 0)

The book provides information on how corporate treats the workers, whether or not there are anti-gender bias clauses written into the employee handbooks, what the benefits are (health, education, etc.)

The money thing is just a portin of the info provided.

I didn't intend to be so mono-informational. Sorry.

"I am not a Blogger...But I play one on the internet."

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by: tessa @ Fri Feb 16, 2007 at 06:29:10 AM CST

[ Parent ]

Good Poll! (0.00 / 0)

I think it's certainly very important to get people thinking about this. As the service sector grows in this state and in this country, it is particularly important to protect the rights, (and also the wages and benefits) of those who are unionized. The labor movement is our best chance to resist the total Wal-Mart-ization of America--and it seems like Stop & Shop is jealous that they have to pay their workers more then the absolute bottom of the barrel does.

Stop and Shop has brought in Peter Hurtgen, a long time negotiator in labor disputes (on the corporate side). So this could be a dirty fight.

If the strike happens, you can bet I'll be supporting the UFCW any way I can.

Check out the new CT Working Families Blog over the next few days if you're curious--I'll be posting pretty regularly about the developments in the dispute. (My apologies for the blatant plug.)

-Joe Dinkin.
Take the pledge at www.ct-workingfamilies.org

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by: Joe Dinkin @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 19:10:56 PM CST

Glad to know about this blog. (0.00 / 0)

I used to vote WF in NYC.

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by: drowsy @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 19:23:28 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Awesome! (0.00 / 0)

I went to college in NYC (Columbia) and worked with Working Families there for a while. They've been having some great successes. The CT WF is not as big yet, but we'll get there. This year, we're gonna be putting a lot of energy into pushing for good health care reform--something will probably happen, and we are going to make sure that something is as close to affordable universal coverage as possible. (But sorry, I've gone off topic--but you should definitely get yourself involved with Working Families this year if you're interested.)

-Joe Dinkin.
Take the pledge at www.ct-workingfamilies.org

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by: Joe Dinkin @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 19:34:44 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Thanks Joe (0.00 / 0)

And don't worry about the blatant plug - we all crosspost, plug our posts on other sites, etc.

I know enough about Hurtgen that I think a strike is quite likely (though the 919 staffer I talked to today thought it was far less likely). I lived in CA during the strike/lockout, and the "big 3" used some brutal tactics there.

If you want to share the research you do for the working families blog here, feel free to put up a "diary" -- most MLNers read the articles on the right side of the page as well as the center-column articles, and we frequently promote diaries as well.

–7.25 / –7.28

http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/tw...

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by: mattw @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 19:49:13 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Thanks (0.00 / 0)

Thanks for the advice. While we're at it--what should I do to get the WF blog in the blogroll?

Anyway, yeah, I've just been reading up on the Hurtgen tactics with UFCW in Southern California. He also had a hand in the negotiations back in 2002 between the longshoremen and the ports. And some negotiations with Verizon, and CWA, and a bunch more.

I'll definitely cross-post when my post goes up.

-Joe Dinkin.
Take the pledge at www.ct-workingfamilies.org

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by: Joe Dinkin @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 19:58:24 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Great stuff! (0.00 / 0)

Thanks for promoting your blog here - it looks great!  I've added it to my RSS reader and look forward to your work.

As mattw suggested, it's a great idea to cross-post some of your best stuff here every once in a while so that people can get more exposure to your site and either add it to their RSS readers or their bookmarks for frequent visits. 

It's great to see the CT progressive blogosphere continue to grow.

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by: Maura @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 22:55:16 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Update (0.00 / 0)

I posted a little about Hurtgen. But, sorry for the n00b question--where do I click to post a new diary entry here, if i want to cross post?

-Joe Dinkin.
Take the pledge at www.ct-workingfamilies.org

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by: Joe Dinkin @ Fri Feb 16, 2007 at 12:33:12 PM CST

[ Parent ]

On the menu in the upper right hand corner (0.00 / 0)

"New Diary"

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by: Jon Kantrowitz @ Fri Feb 16, 2007 at 13:34:50 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Strange (0.00 / 0)

I don't see a 'new diary' in the menu. I guess I need a certain number of posts or length of time as a member before I can write a diary?

-Joe Dinkin.
Take the pledge at www.ct-workingfamilies.org

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by: Joe Dinkin @ Sat Feb 17, 2007 at 09:50:57 AM CST

[ Parent ]

Stay away from Ferraro's market in NH (0.00 / 0)

It probably wouldn't come as much of a surprise from the "Smile! God loves you!!!" graphic printed on their shopping bags, but the owner of Ferraro's is a Bush campaign donor. I never give them any of my business.

"I think the economic logic behind dumping a load of toxic waste in the lowest wage country is impeccable and we should face up to it."

-Lawrence Summers

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by: joesaho @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 20:32:00 PM CST

The Shop-Rites in Norwich and New London (0.00 / 0)

are owned by Ken Capano who hosted a shindig for Lieberman at the Harp and Dragon Pub in Norwich, which is incidentally owned by a Capano.  I will probably shop at Big Y in Norwich or a small independant called Starrwoods which is also in Norwich.

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by: snorwich @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 21:26:26 PM CST

Sigh. That falls into the category of "what I wish I didn't know." (0.00 / 0)

I was planning on boycotting Stop N Shop and shopping at Shop-Rite.  I like Shop-Rite because they stock a lot of produce from local growers, even this time of year.

I will still probably use Shop-Rite until the food coop opens in New London this spring.  Otherwise I'll be driving more and contributing to global warming....so much to weigh.

But I ain't crossing no picket line.  Nope.

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by: Laura N @ Fri Feb 16, 2007 at 17:32:02 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Shame on the line crosser. n/t (4.00 / 1)

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by: snorwich @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 21:28:38 PM CST

I always shop in a union store, (0.00 / 0)

but that's because I live in New Haven, and spend my money IN New Haven, where Shaws is the only game in town (well, except Ferraro's, but I've never taken a shine to that place). It's not specifically because of the union.

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by: da0802 @ Thu Feb 15, 2007 at 23:17:56 PM CST

A more personal point of view (0.00 / 0)

I saw a patient of mine for a physical this morning. He has a slight mental retardation and presently works at the Stop n' Shop in Milford. Without my coaxing, he brought up that a vote on a big strike is about to come up this Sunday. Understandably, he was quite concerned because he does not want to lose his job. He is a part-time worker and lives with his dad (who is also a patient); but I think he relies on his meager income for his needs. He said that he belongs to a union, and that he has a vote on the union's decision to strike. Without hesitation, he said he would vote "NO". He said a lot of his co-workers feel the same way. I would think the reason is they need that paycheck more than any of the other parties involved.

I didn't ask him any further, but if these people belong to a union, and union management is encouraging them to strike, will the union give them money to handle the loss in pay?

The arc of history is long, but it bends toward justice. --Martin Luther King, Jr.

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by: connecticutyankee @ Fri Feb 16, 2007 at 13:07:09 PM CST

I remember back in the day (0.00 / 0)

a million years ago we got PARTIAL pay when we went on strike. I think it may vary by union, I'm not entirely sure all of them can afford to do this, or do it for long.

I was a member of  Local 1-S Department Store Workers Union, and it was a part time job (I was in high school and early college.. I don't remember when the strike actually was).It was a BRIEF strike, a day or so (I wasn't even scheduled to work).

I feel SO BAD for these people. I've spoken to two women that work in the New Milford store and they NEED the money. It's a tough situation. :(

.Adding Another Dimension of Vituperation Toxicity to Blogging since 1999!.

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by: nolopro @ Fri Feb 16, 2007 at 14:17:49 PM CST

[ Parent ]

It's a challenge (0.00 / 0)

This is a major point for me - Stop and Shop has historically done a great deal of good for communities by hiring disabled workers for some of the jobs (baggers, carts, stock), allowing many to live and participate with dignity in the community, often where they grew up, because of reasonable pay and health benefits.

If your patient has to choose between paying several thousand dollars out of his wages for healthcare (possibly pricing him out of the housing he currently has), or going without healthcare, what would he pick? Would he be able to handle moving under economic duress?

I live in working-class Fairfield (my part of Fairfield is, anyway,) and I've kept in touch with a couple of people in my neighborhood in a very similar situation who've been working at Stop & Shop since we were in high school together. It's a terrible position for anyone to be in, doubly so with a mental handicap, and the end result of caving on this issue will result in people like your patient unable to continue medical insurance, doctors office visits, and prescriptions.

Obviously only you know how necessary this patient's ongoing treatment is to his continued well-being, but there are obviously serious public-health implications to what Stop & Shop is proposing.

–7.25 / –7.28

http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/tw...

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by: mattw @ Fri Feb 16, 2007 at 15:16:11 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Oh No, they ain't no Albert Schweitzers (0.00 / 0)

When S&S hires a 'disabled' worker, they receive a kickback from the state of CT for their noble deeds. These kickbacks are in the form of tax breaks which total in the hundreds of thousands of dollars! This is less than admirable or community minded, it is in fact, calculating and if I may say, I have noted that disabled workers at S&S often have less desirable jobs, like the carts in winter and the garbage, and the bottle return machines.

I have also heard that a percentage of each worker's salary is removed from their SSDI before the calculation of their individual SSDI benefit caps. I assume the government is holding this money but I would love any additional information.

You can fool too many of the people too much of the time. ~ James Thurber

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by: jtmasters @ Fri Feb 16, 2007 at 17:08:15 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Strike Fund (0.00 / 0)

I'm pretty sure striking union members will have some strike fund money, though presumably less than a normal pay check.

But I will add that this isn't the leadership forcing the members into a strike. The vote was something like 900-0 to strike. Stop and Shop's proposals are a serious threat to the union and its members.

-Joe Dinkin.
Take the pledge at www.ct-workingfamilies.org

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by: Joe Dinkin @ Sat Feb 17, 2007 at 13:02:31 PM CST

[ Parent ]

Grocery Strike Poll asks wrong question? (0.00 / 0)

It is difficult to answer this poll, I think as much as we all hate the big boxes that kill our downtowns, like wal-mart, we are also in a state with a very high cost of living. For example, my diabetic 'shakes', ie, my supplemental drinks which trust me, don't taste like shakes but are necessary for me if I want to eat healthy based on my lifestyle, are $2.00 a box cheaper at sprWal-Mart. Since there are 6 in a box, and I usually drink 2 a day, you can see how that adds up. Therefore, I am pretty much forced to shop at a union-hostile store.

The question should be, "If there is a strike at your local grocery store, would you be interested in organizing co-op grocery buying in your area?" that way we ditch the stores all together and go right to self-organized, fair, price-minded buying which could last as long as the strike or longer. 

You can fool too many of the people too much of the time. ~ James Thurber

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by: jtmasters @ Fri Feb 16, 2007 at 16:36:07 PM CST

It's however you see it (0.00 / 0)

Some people look past the out-of-pocket cost ($20 a month if your case) and see the larger picture (the social and economic effects of an increasingly poor labor class) as more compelling. Others aren't in an economic position to do so. For most people, the considerations lie between those two poles: how much inconvenience, monetary cost, time, or change in lifestyle will I accept to make things right?

I obviously am very strongly pro-union, but I'm interested in how other people approach it. Democrats have been allies of labor for generations. But then again, a century ago Democrats were openly segregationist... so a lot of things can change with the times.

Co-ops are nice, but you either find volunteers whose huge weeks of work go uncompensated, or you're back to the question of providing pay and benefits that allow people to live with dignity in the community. If you're buying 6-packs of shakes at Walmart, you surely understand that we don't live in an agrarian society -- barter is only going to go so far, and it will certainly stop short of paying for utilities, rent, or healthcare. So I don't really see a shortcut here.

–7.25 / –7.28

http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/tw...

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by: mattw @ Fri Feb 16, 2007 at 17:21:03 PM CST

[ Parent ]