IU workers rally for better wages

Congressman Baron Hill spoke at a union workers rally Saturday expressing his thoughts on IU support staff’s campaign for better wages and other labor issues.

They campaigned for health care and the Employee Free Choice Act, which would make it easier for workers to unionize.

Speakers outside the Monroe County Courthouse voiced their concerns for labor workers, who stressed the need for health care for everyone and how important unions are in corporate America.

“You all keep the big corporations honest,” Hill said. “As a member of Congress, I will always support the labor unions.”

Another speaker, Communications Workers of America Local 4730 President Peter Kaczmarczyk, said he does not want the fight for wages to be “an us against them” argument, but Kaczmarczyk said IU needs to recognize its support staff.

“This is the time to give real raises to IU staff,” Kaczmarczyk said.

About 75 people turned out for the rally on the square. Many carried signs with slogans that read, “It’s time our economy worked for everyone again!” and “Wall Street, you’re not above the law.” Others wore T-shirts and buttons supporting their unions.

Victor Kinzer, a member-at-large on the CWA 4730 board, said the purpose of the rally was to bring awareness to current labor issues, specifically to the Employee Free Choice Act.

According to the Library of Congress Web site, the Act is to make unionizing more efficient for employees and “to provide for mandatory injunctions for unfair labor practices during organizing efforts.”

“Hopefully people walking by will ask us questions. They’ll see all these people care,” Kinzer said. “Maybe they’ll go home and look up the act and see what’s actually going on.”

IU support staff employee Karen  Adkins-Fleener, who has worked at IU for 29 years, said she attended the rally because she wanted to find out more about the issues.

She also said she feels positive that support staff will eventually get what they have been striving for.

“I think staff has been slighted in years past, and we’re the ones that can really make the economy start working if they give us good raises,” Adkins-Fleener said.

Kaczmarczyk and his union has contacted IU President Michael McRobbie and the board of trustees. The trustees have recognized the union’s plea, but the University’s budget cannot be made until the state budget is finalized and the trustees approve it.

With the economy as it is, the University has not given a definitive answer to the union workers.

But in order to get the raises and improve the problems labor workers face, Kinzer said workers have to come together and “speak with one voice.”

“It’s very easy to push aside one person,” Kinzer said. “It’s hard to push aside a group of people that represent a constituency of voters.”