The Shaw's Strike: How you can help

So, an old acquaintance of mine works for the union representing the Shaws workers who are under strike right now. Apparently, Shaw's is playing real hard ball and she's looking for ways people get can involved big and small. So, here are some of her suggestions.

1. There's a rally coming up in Boston to support the workers. Here's the information on that:

When: April 1, 2010 at 4p
Where: Shaw’s Prudential Center, 53 Huntington Ave Boston MA 02199

2. Adopt a store.

We continue to ask groups to "adopt a store" for a few hours a week. Since the warehouse has only 300 members and there are 65 non union stores in Massachusetts, it's great when organizations can take over a location for a few hours at a time to pass out flyers to customers. If you're interested in adopting a store, let me know and I can get you some flyers. As long as the store you choose is non-union, you can pick a location that is convenient for you!

3. Mobile picketing.

Last weekend, we began mobile picketing to try to keep Shaw's/Star market on their toes. If you or your members want to join in the fun, we meet at Teamsters local 25 (544 Main St in Charlestown) at 10a on Fridays and Saturdays. We hop in cars and pop into stores for an hour or so before moving onto the next. If you want to attend this event or you have a group of people who want to pick a route, let me know!

4.Talk to the manager at your (non-union) Shaw's.

Finally, we're asking for people to go to your local non-union shaw's or star market and talk to the manager. We have petitions that ask managers to pledge their support for the striking warehouse workers.

If anyone's interesting in getting involved in any of these ways, let me know. I'll get you set up. Shaw's is trying to take advantage of the situation and the relatively small group of people effected to get every inch of benefits they can, right when it's more important than ever to make sure there's a fair solution for the workers involved.