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This is a great post by Borderhawk at the SOS site, good information. I'm passing it on with credit to Borderhawk.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact Person: Nativo V. Lopez
(714) 423-4800
OVERHILL FARMS’ WORKERS LAUNCH CONSUMER CAMPAIGN
PANDA EXPRESS IS THE FIRST TARGET
What: Protest by workers of Overhill Farms
Where: PANDA EXPRESS food outlet on the corner of Alameda and Florence in the city of Huntington Park
When: Thursday, June 11, 2009
Time: 4:30 p.m.
Terminated workers of the Overhill Farms company announce their consumer education campaign in response to the racist and discriminatory abuse and mass firings by company President Jim Rudis.
PANDA EXPRESS is the first target of the consumer education campaign. Panda Express is a major purchaser of pre-packaged food product manufactured by Overhill Farms. Others include Jenny Craig, El Pollo Loco, Jack-in-the-Box, Costco, American Airlines, Northwest Airlines, and other companies.
“We will call on these companies to communicate with Overhill Farms management to cease its discriminatory treatment of its employees and return the terminated workers to their jobs. Consumers of product from these companies have the right to know the truth about Overhill Farms. And, we intend to make sure they know,” stated Teresa Cortez, leader of the Worker’s Council of Overhill Farms.
Most of the dismissed workers have been with the company between five and twenty years, and those with the greatest seniority are women. Overhill Farms is the powerhouse publicly-traded multi-million dollar food processing and pre-packaged food manufacturing and distribution company of southern California – thanks to its immigrant work-force.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Nativo V. Lopez
National Director
Hermandad Mexicana Latinoamericana
611 W. Civic Center Drive, Suite 402
Santa Ana, CA 92701
(714) 541-0250
Fax: (714) 541-2460
[email protected]
Nativo V. Lopez
National President
Mexican American Political Association (MAPA)
310 N. Soto Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90033
(323) 269-1575
(323) 260-8015
[email protected]
Back ground
Vernon Company Fires Hundreds: Workers Allege Racism at Protest
EGP News Service
By Company says IRS found discrepancies with workers’ Social Security numbers.
A Vernon food processing and packaging company was accused of racism on Wednesday, after 254 employees who had been with the company between five and 20 years were fired for “discrepancies with their Social Security numbers.”
Ex-employees protest recent firing at Overhill Farms. / Manifestantes no dieron sus nombres, simplemente dijeron que estaban unidos. (EGP Photo by Fred Zermeno)
About 75 people protested outside Overhill Farms, the largest food processing and packaging company in Southern California. The company provides packaged food products to grocery stores and larger companies like Panda Express, Jack-in-the-Box, Costco, and Sam’s Club. It has been in Vernon for over 40 years.
The company is allegedly using discrepancies in Social Security numbers as an excuse to fire higher paid full-time workers and replace them with cheaper part-time workers, “who do not enjoy benefits under the current collective bargaining agreement” with Local 770 of the United Food and Commercial Workers, according to Nativo Lopez of Hermandad Mexicana Latinoamericana, one of the lead organizers of the protest. In a written statement, Hermandad said the Social Security Administration “clearly establishes with employers that such discrepancy is not a cause for termination.”
“This is the largest mass firing of workers by a company due to alleged social security number discrepancy,” stated Lopez.
However, Social Security Administration Public Affairs Specialist Mariana Gitomer said the federal agency has no enforcement authority over what a company does or does not do regarding those discrepancies.
Alex Auerbach, Overhill spokesman and Board of Directors member, said the Internal Revenue Service initiated the investigation and Overhill had to comply. Two hundred and fifty employees were given 30 days to provide valid Social Security numbers and when they did not, they were terminated, said Auerbach.
“The IRS specifies it is illegal to have employees on payroll with invalid social security numbers,” said Auerbach.
Auerbach called accusations that the company is looking for cheaper worker and allegations of racism “incomprehensible” and “despicable,” considering the vast majority of their employees are Hispanic and unionized.
Lopez said dismissed and current Overhill employees on the Workers Council are seriously considering a boycott directed at the company’s vendors “to encourage a fair settlement and reinstatement of employment.”
TRANSLATED FROM:
http://egnews.com/?p=10314
A company that processes and packs food in Vernon was accused of racism this Wednesday after 254 employees, who have been with the company between 5 and 20 years, were fired for having "discrepencies with their social security numbers".
Alex Auerbach, spokesperson and member of the board of Overhill Farms, said to EGP that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) initiated an investigation and that they had to comply with the order. 250 employees were given 30 days to provide a valid Social Security number, and when they did not, they were fired, said Auerbach.
Protesters did not give their names, they just simply said they were united.
__________________
Protests scheduled by Nativo Lopez MAPA
Note: I (Borderhawk) am posting this information, not for couterprotest, but so members may go witness and video the event. While recording ask the protesters if they are US citizens. But, of course counter protest if you wish.
Nativo lacks validation so he calls this protest to satisfy his need for reassurrance of his acceptance.
Note: I (Borderhawk) am posting this information, not for couterprotest, but so members may go witness and video the event. While recording ask the protesters if they are US citizens. But, of course counter protest if you wish.
Nativo lacks validation so he calls this protest to satisfy his need for reassurrance of his acceptance.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact Person: Nativo V. Lopez
(714) 423-4800
OVERHILL FARMS’ WORKERS LAUNCH CONSUMER CAMPAIGN
PANDA EXPRESS IS THE FIRST TARGET
What: Protest by workers of Overhill Farms
Where: PANDA EXPRESS food outlet on the corner of Alameda and Florence in the city of Huntington Park
When: Thursday, June 11, 2009
Time: 4:30 p.m.
Terminated workers of the Overhill Farms company announce their consumer education campaign in response to the racist and discriminatory abuse and mass firings by company President Jim Rudis.
PANDA EXPRESS is the first target of the consumer education campaign. Panda Express is a major purchaser of pre-packaged food product manufactured by Overhill Farms. Others include Jenny Craig, El Pollo Loco, Jack-in-the-Box, Costco, American Airlines, Northwest Airlines, and other companies.
“We will call on these companies to communicate with Overhill Farms management to cease its discriminatory treatment of its employees and return the terminated workers to their jobs. Consumers of product from these companies have the right to know the truth about Overhill Farms. And, we intend to make sure they know,” stated Teresa Cortez, leader of the Worker’s Council of Overhill Farms.
Most of the dismissed workers have been with the company between five and twenty years, and those with the greatest seniority are women. Overhill Farms is the powerhouse publicly-traded multi-million dollar food processing and pre-packaged food manufacturing and distribution company of southern California – thanks to its immigrant work-force.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Nativo V. Lopez
National Director
Hermandad Mexicana Latinoamericana
611 W. Civic Center Drive, Suite 402
Santa Ana, CA 92701
(714) 541-0250
Fax: (714) 541-2460
[email protected]
Nativo V. Lopez
National President
Mexican American Political Association (MAPA)
310 N. Soto Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90033
(323) 269-1575
(323) 260-8015
[email protected]
Back ground
Vernon Company Fires Hundreds: Workers Allege Racism at Protest
EGP News Service
By Company says IRS found discrepancies with workers’ Social Security numbers.
A Vernon food processing and packaging company was accused of racism on Wednesday, after 254 employees who had been with the company between five and 20 years were fired for “discrepancies with their Social Security numbers.”
Ex-employees protest recent firing at Overhill Farms. / Manifestantes no dieron sus nombres, simplemente dijeron que estaban unidos. (EGP Photo by Fred Zermeno)
About 75 people protested outside Overhill Farms, the largest food processing and packaging company in Southern California. The company provides packaged food products to grocery stores and larger companies like Panda Express, Jack-in-the-Box, Costco, and Sam’s Club. It has been in Vernon for over 40 years.
The company is allegedly using discrepancies in Social Security numbers as an excuse to fire higher paid full-time workers and replace them with cheaper part-time workers, “who do not enjoy benefits under the current collective bargaining agreement” with Local 770 of the United Food and Commercial Workers, according to Nativo Lopez of Hermandad Mexicana Latinoamericana, one of the lead organizers of the protest. In a written statement, Hermandad said the Social Security Administration “clearly establishes with employers that such discrepancy is not a cause for termination.”
“This is the largest mass firing of workers by a company due to alleged social security number discrepancy,” stated Lopez.
However, Social Security Administration Public Affairs Specialist Mariana Gitomer said the federal agency has no enforcement authority over what a company does or does not do regarding those discrepancies.
Alex Auerbach, Overhill spokesman and Board of Directors member, said the Internal Revenue Service initiated the investigation and Overhill had to comply. Two hundred and fifty employees were given 30 days to provide valid Social Security numbers and when they did not, they were terminated, said Auerbach.
“The IRS specifies it is illegal to have employees on payroll with invalid social security numbers,” said Auerbach.
Auerbach called accusations that the company is looking for cheaper worker and allegations of racism “incomprehensible” and “despicable,” considering the vast majority of their employees are Hispanic and unionized.
Lopez said dismissed and current Overhill employees on the Workers Council are seriously considering a boycott directed at the company’s vendors “to encourage a fair settlement and reinstatement of employment.”
TRANSLATED FROM:
http://egnews.com/?p=10314
A company that processes and packs food in Vernon was accused of racism this Wednesday after 254 employees, who have been with the company between 5 and 20 years, were fired for having "discrepencies with their social security numbers".
Alex Auerbach, spokesperson and member of the board of Overhill Farms, said to EGP that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) initiated an investigation and that they had to comply with the order. 250 employees were given 30 days to provide a valid Social Security number, and when they did not, they were fired, said Auerbach.
Protesters did not give their names, they just simply said they were united.
__________________
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