http://sweatshopfreeny.tumblr.com/

Domino's Pizza campaign on BUILDING BRIDGES tonight!

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 10:31:00 -0400

Building Bridges over WBAI radio, 99.5FM with Mimi Rosenberg & Ken Nash
Monday, March 25, 2013, 7 - 8 pm EST or streaming live at http://www.wbai.org/ and live streams are available on smartphones for information: http://stream.wbai.org/. To listen to, or download archived shows go to http://archive.wbai.org/show1.php?showid=bbridges.

No Justice, No Pizza – Domino’s Beware! with The Justice Will Be Served Campaign
Pizza workers and supporters rallied against their employer Domino’s
over years of unpaid wages and retaliation experienced when they stood
up for their rights. During the rally they celebrated their recent, first of its
kind court ruling permitting them to sue Domino’s Pizza Corporation as
a joint employer along with the individual franchise holder, which would
also empower other fast food workers in establishments like McDonalds
and retail workers at Walmart The right of the Latino, African and
Bangladeshi workers to proceed with the suit they filed in 2010 against
Domino Pizza’s franchise owner David Melton and the Domino’s Corp.
is a huge victory. The workers had commenced suit after receiving below
the minimum wage, were forced to make deliveries during extreme
weather conditions, didn’t have a place to take a break or eat during their
excessively long work hours.

SAIGON GRILL SWEATSHOP CLOSES AMID COMMUNITY-WIDE IMPROVEMENTS IN WORK CONDITIONS

Sat, 09 Mar 2013 11:15:00 -0500

ASSEMBLYMEMBER LINDA B. ROSENTHAL AND JUSTICE WILL BE SERVED CAMPAIGN TO HOLD NEWS CONFERENCE TO DECLARE VICTORY FOR FAIR WORKING CONDITIONS ON THE UPPER WEST SIDE

SAIGON GRILL SWEATSHOP CLOSES AMID COMMUNITY-WIDE IMPROVEMENTS IN WORK CONDITIONS

New York, NY – Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal (D/WF-Manhattan) and the Justice Will Be Served Campaign will be joined by elected officials, advocates, community members, and workers on Friday, March 8 at 12:00 noon to host a celebratory rally in front of Saigon Grill Restaurant to announce the demise of one of the most notorious sweatshops in New York City.

Though the business has been operating for many years under different owners, they have continued to violate labor laws. For over two years, restaurant workers, who were fired for speaking out about appalling work conditions, have been picketing Saigon Grill, with the support of Upper West Side residents, faith groups and community organizations. Most recently, former employees won a $1 million judgment against the restaurant for refusing to pay the debt from a previous settlement. The closure of Saigon Grill sends a clear message to the industry that sweatshops and stores with other deplorable working conditions will not be tolerated on the Upper West Side or in this City.

Assemblymember Rosenthal and the Justice Will Be Served Campaign will work to build a partnership with the property owners of 620 Amsterdam Avenue to make certain that a new responsible tenant takes over the existing space. This fight is not over. It will take a community effort, between advocates, concerned citizens, community members, and residents to mount pressure on all employers on the Upper West Side and the City to ensure the legacy of sweatshops is not duplicated.

What: Press Conference and Rally: Saigon Grill restaurant closes and avoids $1 million settlement amid community-wide improvements in working conditions

Where: Saigon Grill, 620 Amsterdam Avenue (between 90th and 91st Street)

When: Friday, March 8, 2013 at 12:00 Noon

Who: Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal, Justice Will Be Served Campaign, City Council Member Gale Brewer, Pastor Heidi Neumark, Democratic District Leader Marc Landis, and other community leaders and advocates

NY Times: A Restaurant Was Popular; Its Closing Was Celebrated

Sat, 09 Mar 2013 11:15:00 -0500

NY Times: A Restaurant Was Popular; Its Closing Was Celebrated:

Coverage of the recent closing in the New York Times.

Saigon Grill has closed again! Is this the end for Saigon Grill?...

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 16:47:23 -0500

Saigon Grill has closed again! Is this the end for Saigon Grill? They still owe the workers $1 million.

Domino’s Pizza press conference earlier this week at the...

Fri, 01 Mar 2013 16:40:13 -0500

Domino’s Pizza press conference earlier this week at the store at 32nd St and 3rd Ave.

Rally for the Columbia University Faculty House workers who are...

Sun, 10 Feb 2013 18:26:04 -0500

Rally for the Columbia University Faculty House workers who are trying to negotiate a new contract.

SAIGON GRILL UPDATE: the restaurant has been closed by the...

Wed, 23 Jan 2013 10:38:20 -0500

SAIGON GRILL UPDATE: the restaurant has been closed by the Health Department for a number of days.

Worker Solidarity Events at Columbia University

Sat, 19 Jan 2013 12:17:14 -0500

The Columbia Student-Worker Solidarity group is having a week of events coming up, including teach-ins on the Domino’s workers organizing and the ongoing Faculty House negotiations (UNITE HERE workers without a contract for a while). These events on campus are open to the public. http://www.facebook.com/events/571039136257179/

Four New Businesses Have Signed the Pledge

Wed, 19 Dec 2012 21:53:24 -0500

Congratulations to the 4 new businesses that have signed our Sweatshop Free Pledge last weekend.

Columbus Art Gallery - 588 Columbus Ave
Reamir & Co - 3 locations, 303A Columbus Ave, 512 Columbus Ave, and 2587 Broadway.

We now have 76 businesses that have signed the Pledge that they are decent employers, and we’re getting close to 100! If you’re in the Upper West Side and your favorite place is not signed, go sign them up! Full list is on our blog at sweatshopfreeny.tumblr.com/walloffame. Email us at sweatshopfreeny@gmail.com for more info.

Sweatshop Free UWS - Pledge Day this Saturday

Mon, 10 Dec 2012 22:48:23 -0500

Join the Sweatshop Free Upper West Side campaign as we work to get 100 businesses pledged to be sweatshop free by the end of the year. We are getting very close to this goal! Our next Pledge Day is this Saturday, December 15th at 2pm at West Park Presbyterian Church at 86th St and Amsterdam Ave. We’ll have a brief introduction to the campaign and then canvass the area asking businesses to sign the Pledge. The pledge drive is one of the ways that we are building awareness and support of workers’ rights and the need for good jobs in the community.

If you can’t make the Pledge Day, we encourage folks to gather pledges on their own. If your favorite business is not on our sweatshop free list, feel free to go sign them up! A flyer for the pledge day is attached which includes the list of pledged businesses. Also attached is a letter to businesses and a pledge form that can be used.

For more information, see our blog sweatshopfreeny.tumblr.com, FB page: www.facebook.com/sweatshop.free, or call 212-358-0295.

5 New Businesses Have Signed the Pledge

Mon, 19 Nov 2012 22:55:00 -0500

Congratulations to the 5 new businesses that have signed our Sweatshop Free Pledge last weekend.

Ayurveda Cafe - 706 Amsterdam Ave
Gold Leaf Stationers - 606 Amsterdam Ave
Hudson River Picture Framing - 107 W 86th St
Playground Pups - 664 Amsterdam Ave
Wild Bird Fund - 565 Columbus Ave

We now have 72 businesses that have signed, and we’re getting close to 100! If you’re in the Upper West Side and your favorite place is not signed, go sign them up!

Sweatshop Free Upper West Side - Pledge Day this Saturday

Tue, 13 Nov 2012 12:40:05 -0500

Join the Sweatshop Free Upper West Side campaign as we work to get 100 businesses pledged to be sweatshop free by the end of the year. We are getting very close to this goal! Our next Pledge Day is this Saturday, November 17th at 2pm at West Park Presbyterian Church at 86th St and Amsterdam Ave. We’ll have a brief introduction to the campaign and then canvass the area asking businesses to sign the Pledge. The pledge drive is one of the ways that we are building awareness and support of workers’ rights and the need for good jobs in the community.

If you can’t make the Pledge Day, we encourage folks to gather pledges on their own. If your favorite business is not on our sweatshop free list, feel free to go sign them up! For more information, see our blog sweatshopfreeny.tumblr.com, FB page: www.facebook.com/sweatshop.free, or call 212-358-0295.

Local activists wage anti-sweatshop campaign

Fri, 26 Oct 2012 18:21:00 -0400

Local activists wage anti-sweatshop campaign:

Coverage of our campaign by the Columbia Spectator.

Join us at Saigon Grill, the House of (In)Justice, this Friday

Wed, 24 Oct 2012 09:08:00 -0400

Campaign Supporters,

The 99 Pickets group is supporting the picket line at Saigon Grill to let the owners know that we all stand behind the workers and their right to organize and be treated with dignity and respect. Please join us on the picket line at Saigon Grill this Friday at 6:30pm, at 90th and Amsterdam.

For more info: http://99pickets.org/picket/house-of-injustice-picket-at-saigon-grill/

Our FB page: http://www.facebook.com/sweatshop.free

Next Campaign Meeting - Oct 25th

Fri, 19 Oct 2012 17:32:28 -0400

Hello Campaign Supporters,

Please join us at our next meeting, Thursday, October 25th at 6:30pm at Trinity Lutheran Church, 164 W 100th St, near Amsterdam Ave, in the basement. We’ll be making final plans for our community outreach efforts in November, which will be our Sweatfree Business Month, where we try to get to 100 businesses pledged to be sweatshop free. Hope to see you there.

And join us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/sweatshop.free

Fall 2012 Newsletter

Mon, 24 Sep 2012 18:48:29 -0400

In this issue:

Sweatshop Free Anniversary Draws Happy Crowd
Neighbors and Workers Unite to Expand Sweatshop Free Zone
No Justice, No Pizza: Our Domino’s Boycott Draws Threat
Saigon Grill, Still Under Boycott, Adds Phantom “Saga” Food Delivery
Cafe Frida, V&T and Others “Do the Right Thing”

___________________________________________________________

The Community Says Happy Anniversary to the Sweatshop Free Upper West Side Campaign

June 29^th , 2012 / Franciscan Community Center at 97^th St and Amsterdam Ave.

The late June heat waves couldn’t deter Upper West Side residents and workers from celebrating the first anniversary of the highly successful Sweatshop Free Campaign. Despite soaring temperatures, residents and passers-by were drawn in to the festivities, lured by sounds of cheering, festive music and dance performances. One couple stopped by to find out what was going on. Others came because they had heard about it through their community organizations, or because they had picked up a flyer at the subway station earlier in the week. In all, over 200 supporters turned out to review the accomplishments of the past year and discuss the work ahead.

Because of the Saigon Grill campaign, which has braved blizzards as well as heat waves since November 2010, many businesses have improved their working conditions and have given backpay to their workers. The community came out in droves to celebrate such progress at popular neighborhood eateries like Tomo Sushi, Sun Lee West, and V&T Pizzeria. Members of our growing coalition gave stirring speeches to the diverse group of party-goers.

The event was fortunate to have a lineup of great speakers, starting with a welcome by Father Mike Tyson from Holy Name Church, followed by remarks from New York State Assembly Member Linda Rosenthal, Joan Paylo of the Community Free Democrats, Pastor Heidi Neumark from Trinity Lutheran Church, Cynthia Doty of Three Parks Independent Democrats, Pastor Robert Brashear of West Park Presbyterian Church, Oscar Vazquez representing Café Frida, and New York City Council member Gale Brewer.

The audience was rallied by the speakers’ remarks. “It was actually because of my son that I got involved in this campaign,” said Pastor Brashear. He and Pastor Neumark described their resolve to continue fighting for justice, despite threatening letters they received from Domino’s Pizza Corp.’s attorneys to cease their involvement with the Domino’s Boycott. The crowd cheered when Pastor Neumark read her defiant letter in response to the corporation’s threats.

Sweatshop Free: Making Huge Strides in One Year

It was over one year ago that we launched the Sweatshop Free Upper West Side campaign at a March 26 th rally in front of Saigon Grill. Our community had long been supportive of local workers who have organized for years to improve working conditions. But instead of just supporting the struggle for workers’ rights in our neighborhoods, we envisioned a more active campaign where we, the community, could unite with workers to transform the Upper West Side into a Sweatshop Free Zone! How could we do this?

By encouraging local employers to pledge to be sweatshop free and by promoting these responsible businesses.
By engaging more residents and informing them about the problem of wage theft, labor law violations, and other sweatshop conditions in our community.
By supporting more workers in their fight for better working conditions.

In every way the campaign has had a successful first year. We spoke with hundreds of neighborhood residents, attracted many new organizational sponsors to the campaign, and welcomed different faith based groups and local Democratic clubs to our coalition. We have supported dozens of workers to come forward and fight sweatshop conditions at several businesses.

In the next year, we are looking forward to expanding our list of Sweatshop Free businesses. On a citywide level, the campaign will spread the Domino’s Pizza boycott throughout the five boroughs, and ensure that all New Yorkers can participate. We’ll continue to boycott the Saigon Grill Restaurant for promoting sweatshops in our community. We are especially interested in hearing your ideas on how to make this all possible, so join us and together we’ll make our community Sweatshop Free!

Domino’s Pizza Workers Organize for Justice

Since the November 2011 rally to launch a city-wide boycott of Dominos Pizza, the Sweatshop Free Campaign has collected over 300 postcards to send to New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman urging his office to take action. Several Sweatshop Free Upper West Side Coalition members also sent a letter to Schneiderman, urging him to heed this concern by initiating a criminal investigation of David and Angelina Melton. The Meltons own and operate several of the popular pizza franchises, where over 60 workers are organizing against their sweatshop practices.

Now, even though they still operate 4 stores, making millions in profit, the Meltons filed for bankruptcy (Chapter 11) in order to put a halt on the lawsuit and stop workers from exposing these sweatshop abuses. Rather than rectify the problem of labor abuses, the Domino’s Corporation has taken up defending the sweatshop boss Melton. Recently, when community supporters in the Upper West Side began spreading news of the boycott, the Domino’s Corporation tried to silence them by threatening to sue two pastors leading efforts to eliminate sweatshops in the neighborhood. Enough! We say “No Justice, No Pizza!”

We Demand that Domino’s Corporation:

Rehire the workers who were fired for demanding better conditions.
Apologize to the Upper West Side community about the threatening letter.
Tell David and Angelina Melton to pay workers’ stolen wages and backpay now.
Ensure labor law compliance and respect for workers at Domino’s stores.

Interview with Carlos, former Domino’s worker & representative.

“The boss fired me for demanding my rights. My coworkers and I, we decided to organize together and fight for better conditions. We want Domino’s Corporation to take responsibility and change the bad conditions. They are not paying us the minimum wage, hours extra, reimbursing us for bikes and uniforms, giving us time off, and when we get into accidents on the job, they refuse to take responsibility. They should pay back the money and hours they robbed from us.

We deserve to be respected! We all have families and we deserve time to spend with our families and to take care of personal matters like anybody else. Instead, Domino’s makes us work 11, 12, 13 hours a day. They think we’re nothing but machines, that we have nothing else to do and all we do is work, work, work.

We want residents, students, people in the community, to be a part of our campaign and boycott Domino’s Pizza. We need to work together to show everyone how Domino’s treats its workers because they continue to exploit us. We need to encourage more workers to come forward and join us. We ask the community to support our boycott- working together is the only way we will be able to win justice.”

Is Domino’s Pizza really too bankrupt to pay its workers? Let’s look at the facts:

In 2011, Domino’s Pizza made over $6.9 billion in sales! http ://online .wsj .com /article /PR -CO -20120611-903543.html ?mod =crnews

The CEO of Domino’s Pizza, J. Patrick Doyle, made $6,348,151in 2011. http ://www .forbes .com /profile /j -doyle /

Dave Melton, Domino’s Pizza franchise owner, states on his website that each of his NY stores exceeds $1 million in sales every year. His 4 NY stores made the most sales of all stores around the world, with annual revenue of $6 million! http ://www .hiretheamericandream .com /MeetDaveMelton .html andhttp ://www .franchising .com /articles /big _apple _pie _dominos _franchisee _makes _it _in _nations _toughest _pizza _market .html

Domino’s Pizza Corporation and franchise owner Dave Melton continue to rake in millions… it’s time they pay the workers and change their ways.

Saigon Grill Must Go!

The goal of The Sweatshop Free Campaign is to create a sweatshop free zone in the UWS. As long as Saigon Grill, on 90th St. and Amsterdam Ave., remains open, unscrupulous business owners will think it is OK to operate sweatshops in our community!

In November 2010, workers at Saigon Grill rallied the community to launch a new boycott of the restaurant when the new owners decided to bring sweatshop conditions back. The community answered the call, coming to the picket line to stand with workers. Since then, Saigon Grill owners have shown us their true colors. Not only have they refused to resolve the problem, they have taken many steps to mislead our community and promote sweatshops:

Most recently, they have begun to use a different restaurant name, “SAGA,” for delivery orders. Knowing many residents in the UWS support the ongoing boycott, this is a particularly disgusting move to trick its customers.

They continue to violate labor laws, and they retaliated against workers who stood up for their rights.

The National Labor Relations Board has filed a complaint against Saigon Grill for illegal firing.

Even though they assumed the former boss’s debt of one million dollars when they bought Saigon Grill in 2010, to this day, they refuse to pay the debt to the former workers.

We can’t let Saigon Grill escape responsibility. We must make our message clear - if you want to run a sweatshop, you have no business being in the UWS (or anywhere)! We call on all residents to help get this message out to everyone - Boycott Saigon Grill and join the picket line Wednesday-Sunday, 12:30-2pm and 6:30-8:30pm at 90^th St. and Amsterdam Ave.

Cafe Frida, V&T Pizzeria, and Other Businesses “Do the Right Thing” by Honoring their Pledge!

One year since the launch of the Sweatshop Free Campaign, over 60 businesses have pledged to follow labor laws and treat workers with respect. As recently as last summer, V&T Restaurant & Pizzeria, located on Amsterdam Avenue between 110th and 111th Streets, pledged to be a sweatshop free business. But delivery workers came forward to complain about sweatshop conditions at V&T and began to participate actively in the Saigon Grill picket and the Domino’s Boycott. V&T eventually decided to do the right thing and stick to their pledge. We’re happy to say that the conflict has been resolved and V&T now stands on our list of establishments setting a good example to other business owners.

Mr. Oscar Vazquez of Café Frida, another business who has joined the campaign, says “It is because of Café Frida’s belief that we all affect the universe and that we can choose to affect it in a positive way that Café Frida chose to be part of the UWS Sweatshop Free Campaign. Our neighbors always make us feel part of their daily life through the favor of their preference and we consider it an obligation to give them something in return, not only through quality products, but also through creating friendly places, supporting local projects and institutions and treating our employees with respect and dignity, as every human being deserves.”

The Sweatshop Free Campaign allows residents to make conscientious decisions about where we want to spend our money and get rid of sweatshops like Saigon Grill and Domino’s Pizza while helping businesses like Café Frida thrive.

In August, community members gathered together for another campaign Pledge Day, where we collected seven more pledges from local businesses promising to be sweatshop free. A current list can be found on our campaign blog. If your favorite business is not on the list, ask them to sign! You can mail in the pledge form on our blog to get your favorite local business on our Wall of Fame.

Photo

Mon, 06 Aug 2012 23:17:37 -0400

August 4, 2012 Pledge day recap: SEVEN SMALL BUSINESSES JOINED...

Mon, 06 Aug 2012 14:33:00 -0400

August 4, 2012 Pledge day recap:

SEVEN SMALL BUSINESSES JOINED the Sweatshop Free community by pledging to be “Sweatshop Free”, be a fair labor workplace, and comply with labor laws.

Visit these stores and make sure to mention that you’re shopping “sweatshop free.”

Newly pledged businesses:

Swan’s 86 Cleaners (531 Amsterdam Ave, owner Beomjin Choi)
Down Quilt Shop (just moved to 527 Amsterdam Ave, owner Tracy M.)
Salon West (172 W. 85th Street, owner Jennifer Kalikapersaud)
Hampton Chutney Co. (464 Amsterdam Ave, owner Dina Lamanna)
Kousan Restaurant (685 Amsterdam Ave)
Tezao Hair (175 W. 90th Street, owner Dilenia Almanzar)
Flowers By Special Arrangement (575 Amsterdam Ave, Dou Bronner)

Welcome to the Sweatshop Free business’ Wall of Fame!

For complete list, see: http://sweatshopfreeny.tumblr.com/walloffame

Kittens boycott Saigon Grill restaurant.

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 08:48:11 -0400

Kittens boycott Saigon Grill restaurant.

Address: 165 W 86th Street. Entrance on 86th Street between...

Sun, 29 Jul 2012 21:49:00 -0400

Address: 165 W 86th Street. Entrance on 86th Street between Amsterdam Ave and Columbus Ave.

http://sweatshopfreeny.tumblr.com/

Domino's Pizza campaign on BUILDING BRIDGES tonight!

SAIGON GRILL SWEATSHOP CLOSES AMID COMMUNITY-WIDE IMPROVEMENTS IN WORK CONDITIONS

NY Times: A Restaurant Was Popular; Its Closing Was Celebrated

Saigon Grill has closed again! Is this the end for Saigon Grill?...

Domino’s Pizza press conference earlier this week at the...

Rally for the Columbia University Faculty House workers who are...

SAIGON GRILL UPDATE: the restaurant has been closed by the...

Worker Solidarity Events at Columbia University

Four New Businesses Have Signed the Pledge

Sweatshop Free UWS - Pledge Day this Saturday

5 New Businesses Have Signed the Pledge

Congratulations to the 5 new businesses that have signed our Sweatshop Free Pledge last weekend.

Gold Leaf Stationers - 606 Amsterdam Ave

Hudson River Picture Framing - 107 W 86th St

Playground Pups - 664 Amsterdam Ave

Wild Bird Fund - 565 Columbus Ave

We now have 72 businesses that have signed, and we’re getting close to 100! If you’re in the Upper West Side and your favorite place is not signed, go sign them up!

Sweatshop Free Upper West Side - Pledge Day this Saturday

Local activists wage anti-sweatshop campaign

Join us at Saigon Grill, the House of (In)Justice, this Friday

Next Campaign Meeting - Oct 25th

Fall 2012 Newsletter

Photo

August 4, 2012 Pledge day recap: SEVEN SMALL BUSINESSES JOINED...

Kittens boycott Saigon Grill restaurant.

Address: 165 W 86th Street. Entrance on 86th Street between...