M a r k D i l l e y

~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~

An Urgent Appeal from the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC)

Powerful interests in Mexico have filed a complaint against Brendan
Greene, an organizer for the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC),
AFL-CIO in an attempt to stop the FLOC's groundbreaking efforts to
enforce the rights of Mexican migrant workers.

The complaint alleges that Greene asked three individuals to pay him
to process their work visas when they came to FLOC's Monterrey,
Mexico office looking for employment. The complaint includes a
forged FLOC pamphlet that Greene allegedly distributed in which FLOC
is said to have charged union dues in Mexico to protect workers from
Mexican businesses that "want to enslave workers and pay miserable
wages."

In reality, the flyer that Greene and FLOC distributed offered
FLOC's telephone numbers in Monterrey and the support of our casa de
hospedaje to FLOC members who have to wait to get their visas
processed by the U.S. consulate before they go on to work in North
Carolina.

Last September, FLOC won a historic victory for farm workers when it
got a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) for the 7,500 temporary
guest workers employed by the North Carolina Grower's Association,
Inc. (NCGA). The agreement guarantees these workers many rights,
including hiring without discrimination, a new seniority-based
hiring system with preference for union workers, and a swift
grievance procedure allowing workers to complain about safety or
other issues without fear of retaliation.

The charges against Greene suggest that there are powerful interests
bent on interfering with FLOC's enforcement of the CBA. Without
that enforcement, the rights of Mexican temporary guest employees of
the NCGA would quickly disappear.

FLOC had hoped that the complaint against Greene would be terminated
without any further processing. However, Greene has been notified
that there will be a 15 day investigation into the charges. To
date, authorities have not provided Greene with a copy of the
charges against him or any evidence against him. This failure is
extremely serious, as the charges against Greene could be converted
into a penal case. To prevent Greene's detention, FLOC has been
forced to both retain a Mexican attorney and pay an "amparo" (the
quasi-equivalent of a bond under U.S. law) of several thousand
dollars.

The CBA is the first labor agreement to gain representation for
temporary guest workers in the history of either the U.S. or
Mexico. Without the work of FLOC employees like Brendan and the
courage of workers who continue to protest the violation of their
rights, efforts to enforce the CBA and defend workers' rights will
not succeed.

We are asking that you to contribute to these efforts by:

1. Contributing whatever funds you can to F.L.R.P./Mexico Defense
Fund to pay for legal expenses necessary to defend Mr. Greene and
other FLOC staff or members like him. Please send any funds to:
Farm Labor Research Project Inc., 1221 Broadway, Toledo, OH 43609 (A
tax-deductible 501 (c)(3) charity).

2. Authorizing the listing of your name or your organization's name
to a petition to the Instituto to terminate the deportation
proceedings against Brendan Greene. Please direct your authorizing
e-mail or correspondence to: Jerry Ceille at jceille@floc.com or
FLOC, 1221 Broadway, Toledo, OH 43509.

3. Indicating whether you have any interest in being a member in
the National FLOC/Mexico Legal Defense Committee to develop
activities or other actions in support of FLOC, Mr. Greene, and FLOC
staff or members like Mr. Greene. Please direct your e-mail or
correspondence expressing any such interest to: Baldemar Velasquez
at FLOC, 1221 Broadway, Toledo, OH 43609 or bvelasq@floc.com.

***************

"Putting the movement back in the labor movement"

Labor Notes
7435 Michigan Avenue
Detroit, MI 48210
Tel: 313/842-6262
Fax: 313/842-0227
Email: labornotes@labornotes.org
http://www.labornotes.org
http://www.troublemakershandbook.org

East Coast Office:
104 Montgomery St
Brooklyn, NY 11225
Tel: 718/284-4144
Fax: 718/287-3287
Email: marsha@labornotes.org