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Representing manufacturing, production, maintenance and sanitation workers in the baking, confectionery, tobacco and grain milling industries.
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Kensington, MD, January 25, 2012 – In Response to the Recently-Concluded Court Hearing to Approve Stalking Horse Bidding Procedures for the Bread Business in the Hostess Bankruptcy, BCTGM International President David B. Durkee Issued the Following Statement on Behalf of all BCTGM Members: “Today’s hearing on the stalking horse auction procedures for key bread assets sets the ground rules for a competitive bidding process for products including the Butternut®, Home Pride®, Merita®, Nature's Pride® and Wonder®...

25 January, 2013

BCTGM Local 218 member Mike Hummell, a Hostess/Wonder worker for 14 years, helps to tell the story of the Hostess bankruptcy through the eyes of dedicated Kansas bakers. “You've heard the Mainstream Media read you the Hostess PR sheet, now hear the truth from the mouths of the people who had their pension stolen. As the mainstream media distracted America with misinformation about Unions, the Hedge Funds got away with theft. They collected $4.25 an hour...

24 January, 2013

PRESS RELEASE/January 19, 2013 --The Bakery, Confectionery Union and Industry International Pension Fund (Bakers Fund) announced today that it has engaged the prominent New York distressed investment banking firm, Gordian Group, LLC, in connection with Hostess Brands’ chapter 11 cases currently pending in the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. “We are making every effort for our members by working to preserve their jobs and pension benefits, and assisting with the continuation of...

20 January, 2013

BCTGM International President Frank Hurt, who served as president of the International Union since October 1, 1992, retired effective January 1, 2013. To serve Hurt’s unexpired term through the next constitutional convention in 2014, the BCTGM General Executive Board (GEB) unanimously approved Hurt’s nomination of David B. Durkee as International President.  The GEB further approved the nomination of Steve Bertelli as International Secretary-Treasurer. International President Durkee David B. Durkee was first elected to fill the open position of...

04 January, 2013

From visiting critically ill children in Philadelphia, to coordinating toy and clothing gift donations in Minnesota and Ohio, BCTGM members have embody the true spirit of giving during the holiday season. [caption id="attachment_2898" align="alignleft" width="266" caption="BCTGM Local 492 members delivered holiday gifts and cheer to the sick children at Saint Christopher's Hospital for Children in Philadelphia."][/caption] BCTGM Local 492 members who are employed at the Kraft plant in Philadelphia have been bringing smiles to the faces of sick children at Saint Christopher's Hospital...

17 December, 2012

"Honorable and effective service to the membership is the highest objective which any labor organization can seek. The Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union will ever be faithful and devoted to this aspiration and trust."  -Declaration of Principles, BCTGM Constitution As I prepared this, my last column as International Union President, I decided to look back at my first column twenty years ago.  At the time, I wrote, “The one thing I want...

14 December, 2012

Photo: Joe Richard LANSING, Mich. -- More than 17,000 workers from all walks of life rallied yesterday outside the Michigan State Capitol building as anti-worker legislators heeded Gov. Rick Snyder’s call to divide Michigan by ramming through a so-called “right-to-work” bill which promises to kill jobs, lower wages, crush workers’ rights and unravel the middle class.  BCTGM members from throughout Michigan, including Locals 326 (Detroit), 3G (Battle Creek), 259G (Carrollton), 260G (Caro), 261G (Sebewaing), 262G (Croswell) and...

12 December, 2012

 The following was published in the November/December 2012 Issue of the BCTGM News.  Once upon a time there was a company. It had happy workers and was profitable for years – an American icon, some would say. But that fairytale ended long ago. One fact is clear: when BCTGM members employed by Hostess Brands across the country began to strike or honor picket lines on November 9, their fight was about more than disgruntled workers upset with the...

12 December, 2012

Today, BCTGM members are joining thousands of people in Lansing, Mich., to march on the state Capitol to fight back against Gov. Rick Snyder’s (R) and Republican legislators’ steamrolling “right to work” for less legislation without public debate or hearings.   Below is live-streaming video from the UAW's Ustream page.  You can also visit the UAW Facebook page for live-streaming updates. Stream videos at Ustream Updates will be posted throughout the day on the AFL-CIO Now blog and you also...

11 December, 2012

Fargo, ND – Locked-out members of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union (BCTGM) met with community leaders at the Holiday Inn in South Fargo, where American Crystal Sugar Company was holding its Joint Annual Meeting today, to discuss harm the over 16-month lockout of union workers is causing the company and community. “The lockout is hurting, not only factory workers, our families and communities, but Crystal Sugar itself and many people for...

06 December, 2012

Delight your friends and loved ones with holiday treats made by hard-working BCTGM members! Listed here is a sampling of the BCTGM-contracted companies that produce seasonal specialties… Annabelle Candy Holiday seasonal specialties and bag candy including union-made candies like Rocky Road, Abba Zaba, Look, Big Hunk and U-No. BCTGM Local 125 (San Leandro, Calif.)     Brown & Haley Holiday gift boxes, baskets, tins and packages filled with the company’s renowned Almond Roca, Cashew Roca, Mocha Roca, Sugar Free Almond Roca and...

05 December, 2012

November 21, 2012 – The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has issued a Summary Judgment against Bread of Life d/b/a Panera Bread in South Western Michigan.  The Judgment states the company violated Sections 8(a)(5) and (1) of the National Labor Relations Act (ACT) by refusing to recognize and bargain with the BCTGM Local 70 (Grand Rapids, Mich.).  On February 24, 2012, after a full and complete hearing on a petition filed by the BCTGM Local 70...

04 December, 2012

Jackie Tortura, AFL-CIO For the fourth time, locked-out American Crystal Sugar workers rejected an identical contract offer from the management company. The workers are members of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers (BCTGM). American Crystal Sugar workers have gone 16 months without a contract.  Susan Sylvester, a Crookston, Minn., resident who has worked at the company for 37 years, told the Huffington Post: Our families, they’ve really suffered great hardship, especially the ones with little kids...

03 December, 2012

A federal bankruptcy judge has approved bonuses for executives of Hostess, the maker of Twinkies, who stay on as the company is broken up and sold off. On Thursday, as part of a plan to liquidate the company and lay off 18,000 workers, a federal judge in White Plains, N.Y., approved paying 19 Hostess executives bonuses totaling $1.8 million. Hostess has said it has interest from at least 110 firms who want to buy pieces of...

30 November, 2012

"There is this narrative that the union talked us into voting for it, and we are portrayed as a bunch of emotional children that can't make decisions. We knew what we were doing when we took concessions in 2005." Read the full TRUTHOUT interview with BCTGM Hostess worker Mike Hummel by Yana Kunichoff....

29 November, 2012