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Representing manufacturing, production, maintenance and sanitation workers in the baking, confectionery, tobacco and grain milling industries.
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OSHA has cited Zaloudek Grain Co. with four serious safety violations following an incident involving two 17-year-olds in August 2011. Both suffered leg amputations when they became caught in an inadequately guarded screw auger while cleaning out a grain flat storage structure at the company's facility in Kremlin. OSHA investigators found serious violations including failures to affix or secure the machine guard over the moving screw auger, provide training for workers assigned to enter grain...

05 February, 2012

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has approved new union representation rules to ensure workers can freely exercise one basic right we hold dear in this countryโ€”the right to vote. The new rules make union representation elections fairer by simplifying procedures, deferring litigation and setting shorter deadlines for hearings and filings. Currently when workers petition the NLRB for an election, it can take months and even years before they can cast a vote. Companies often use...

21 January, 2012

On January 18, the first hearing concerning the bankruptcy of Hostess Brands was held in New York, N.Y. before a federal bankruptcy judge. The purpose of the court proceedings was to name members to the Creditors Committee. Bob Bergin, Executive Director of the Bakery and Confectionery Union and Industry International Health & Pension Funds, was placed on the Committee. The Creditors Committee also includes representatives for the Teamsters and other union pension funds, as well as...

19 January, 2012

AFL-CIO - The national Republican party has selected Indiana Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels to respond to President Obamaโ€™s State of the Union address next weekโ€“sending a clear signal the party is making attacks on working people a top priority in the 2012 elections. Daniels is a key backer of right to work for less (RTW) legislation which state Republican lawmakers, in a stunning display of arrogance,ย have repeatedly tried to ram through, whileย thumbing their noses at...

19 January, 2012

Wisconsin working people hit one right out of Miller Park: Moments ago, they submitted 1 million signatures supporting a recall election of Gov. Scott Walker (R), exceeding the total number of signatures required by 460,000. Walker last year pushed to abolish the rights of public employees to collectively bargain for a middle class life. Walkerโ€™s policies are killing 18,000 jobs a year in Wisconsin, according to a recent report. Union members and allies also turned in...

18 January, 2012

On Wednesday, January 11, Hostess Brands filed for bankruptcy protection for the second time since 2004.ย  The Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union (BCTGM) represents more than 5,000 workers at Hostess Brands. The BCTGM International Unionโ€™s legal and financial team, under the direction of International President Frank Hurt, has been working with Hostess for months to identify an amenable resolution that would address the companyโ€™s financial difficulties.ย  Throughout this process, the company has...

12 January, 2012

AFL-CIO - The Republican-controlled Indiana House Employment, Labor and Pensions Committee, muzzled Democrats and in a five-minute โ€œcharadeโ€ of a hearing this morning passed a so-called right to work bill by an 8-5 vote. Not only were Democrats barred from offering any amendments, no discussion of the bill was allowed and immediately after the vote, the hearing was adjourned. Rep. John Bartlett (D) told reporters that heโ€™d โ€œnever seen a charade like this in my life.โ€ Said...

10 January, 2012

President Obama utilized recess appointments to name three new members of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), the White House announced. Since January 1, the board has just two members and cannot carry out most business. Republican Senate leaders have said they will block any NLRB nominations in a move most regard as an attempt to shut down the NLRB. That is part of an overall strategy that has bottled up hundreds of Obama administration nominations....

05 January, 2012

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has approved new union representation rules to ensure workers can freely exercise one basic right we hold dear in this country โ€“ the right to vote. The new rules make union representation elections fairer by simplifying procedures, deferring litigation and setting shorter deadlines for hearings and filings. Currently when workers petition the NLRB for an election, it can take months and even years before they can cast a vote. Companies...

03 January, 2012

BCTGM International Executive Vice President Joseph Thibodeau has retired, ending his 48 year career with the union. โ€œJoe personifies what a true labor leader is,โ€ notes BCTGM International President Frank Hurt. โ€œHe remains one of the most dedicated and giving union leaders this organization has ever had. He has spent his life working hard to make sure American workers have the benefit of a fair day's wage, a healthy workplace and the dignity that comes with...

21 December, 2011

Local 203T (Richmond, Va.) adopted 59 families in the Richmond tri-cities area for the holiday season. Through generous donations to the localโ€™s holiday toy drive, Local 203T members helped put smiles on the faces of 185 children and fill their homes with holiday cheer....

08 December, 2011

CHICAGO โ€“ The U.S. Department of Labor has reached an agreement with Haasbach LLC in Mount Carroll, resolving 25 citations issued by the departmentโ€™s Occupational Safety and Health Administration and child labor civil money penalties assessed by its Wage and Hour Division. The resolution follows the deaths of Wyatt Whitebread, 14, and Alex Pacas, 19, at the companyโ€™s Mt. Carroll grain bin facility in July 2010. A 20-year-old worker also was seriously injured in the...

07 December, 2011

UPDATE: On Dec. 5, Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton follows up on his promise during the American Crystal Sugar stakeholders meeting, to help facilitate contract negotiations and to remain present until a successful conclusion is reached. Click here to read the full letter. On Dec. 4 in Moorhead, Minn., Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton met with an American Crystal Sugar Company executive and listened to locked out workers stories during a Saturday visit to Moorhead. More than 300 people...

05 December, 2011

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 specialtiesโ€ฆ. Annabelle Candy Company 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 companyโ€™s renowned Almond Roca, Cashew Roca, Mocha Roca, Sugar Free Almond Roca...

02 December, 2011

The already strained relationship between management of American Crystal Sugar Company (ACSC) and its 1,300 locked out workers was dealt another serious blow when recordings of anti-worker statements by ACSC President and CEO Dave Berg were made public this week. In a meeting of company shareholders on November 7 in Grafton, N.D., Berg likened the workers to a 21-pound cancerous tumor. According to an audio recording of the meeting, Berg told the story of a sick...

01 December, 2011