Local 351 Defines ACTIVISM in New Mexico
Representing manufacturing, production, maintenance and sanitation workers in the baking, confectionery, tobacco and grain milling industries.
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07 Dec Local 351 Defines ACTIVISM in New Mexico

Posted at 13:52h in Local Union News by

BCTGM Local 351 in Albuquerque, New Mexico is the picture of labor union activism. From organizing new workers, political action and membership education, to offering unfaltering support to other labor campaigns, the officers and members of Local 351 exemplify trade union activism.

In October, under the leadership of President/Business Agent Andrew Gutierrez, Local 351 was able to organize a non-union distribution center at the Bimbo Bakeries U.S.A. offices in Albuquerque. The workers at the facility signed union authorization cards in June and Bimbo Bakeries recognized the Local Union as the bargaining agent for the workers.

โ€œThis was a big victory for our local,โ€ recalls Gutierrez. โ€œThe workers received a $2.50 per hour wage increase plus all the benefits that come with a union contract. We are proud to welcome them into Local 351,โ€ he adds.

Local 351 also spends as much time as possible focusing on community engagement, activism and empowerment within the community. โ€œStrong unionism doesnโ€™t end in the workplace after you clock out. In fact, thatโ€™s when the important work begins,โ€ says Gutierrez.

This summer, Local 351 answered a call for community engagement when the Albuquerque Public School System announced it was targeting a local low-income elementary school for closure. Gutierrez and numerous Local 351 members and families showed up to an informational picket set up by Albuquerque Teachers Federation Local 1420 outside Hawthorne Elementary School, the targeted school. The BCTGM members joined together with AFT New Mexico, Carpenters Local 1319 and the union teachers of Hawthorne Elementary.

According to Gutierrez, education is key to worker activism.

โ€œEducated members and shop stewards are the best way to increase strength and involvement,โ€ he says. โ€œOur strength is in our numbers and our existence relies on the members being educated, involved and willing to fight.โ€

Gutierrez hopes that all of the Localโ€™s activism will lead to even more involvement by rank-and-file members in the shops.

โ€œSolidarity is a driving force for me. It keeps me pushing forward when I feel like there is nothing left. Our survival as a local union depends on our activism both in and out of the workplace,โ€ concludes Gutierrez.

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