Members of USW Local 310 in Des Moines, Iowa, some of whom have lost family members to the Ebola virus, are helping organized labor and other supporters mobilize in the fight against the deadly disease.
Some of the workers, employees of the Bridgestone-Firestone agricultural tire plant in Des Moines, emigrated from Africa and still have family in Liberia, a country with a long connection to the U.S. rubber industry. For 90 years, Firestone has operated an 118,000-acre rubber plantation in Liberia that employs more than 8,000 people.
When the Steelworkers learned of the extremely poor working conditions these workers faced, the USW supported efforts of the plantation workers to organize a union. Beginning with that group, the Firestone Agricultural Union of Liberia, the union movement eventually spread throughout the region and into other sectors including iron ore mines and transportation.
Earlier this year, as the Ebola virus began to spread in West Africa, Local 310 members decided to plan a gate collection to help support the efforts to fight it. They sought advice from Secretary-Treasurer Stan Johnson and Vice President for Human Affairs Fred Redmond, who put them touch with Mike Zielinski of the USW’s Strategic Campaigns Department. Zielinski directed them to the Movement for Labor Rights and Justice (MOLAJ).
MOLAJ, with the support of the USW, the Firestone Agricultural Workers of Liberia, the United Workers Union of Liberia #4 ArcelorMittal, the Liberian Labor Congress, and the General Agriculture and Allied Workers of Liberia, soon were at the forefront of the fight to eradicate the Ebola virus.
As members of the global labor movement, Redmond said, we must be concerned and provide support whenever possible to our brothers and sisters in need, regardless of where they live, the color of their skin, or the language that they speak.
Though Local 310 members initially planned to conduct a simple gate collection, they eventually contacted their plant manager, as well as management at the company’s headquarters, to ask for support. Since then, Bridgestone/Firestone has donated $1 million to the Ebola relief effort. The company has contributed to the effort to stop the spread of Ebola through public awareness, delivery of in-home medical supplies for the sick, enhanced treatments, and support for the children who are left orphaned due to the epidemic.
Because it is clear that this epidemic affects much more than the rubber industry, Local 310 is asking all USW locals to find a way to support the Ebola relief effort and to encourage the companies they work for to do the same. We have a window of opportunity to put an end to this horrific disease before it becomes more widespread, and we should all be proud that organized labor has helped lead the way.
Update: Local 310 President Steve Vonk reported that the gate collection yielded $2,000 dollars and the plant manager has agreed to match the amount.