The Story About Elkhart, Indiana You Won't Hear About On Corporate Media When Obama Visits

The Story About Elkhart, Indiana You Won't Hear About On Corporate Media When Obama Visits-Elkhart, Indiana UAW364 Conn-Selmer Workers Fight For Justice
Elkhart Strikers Nearing Three Years On Strike

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3386674426389672298

In April 2006 the Vincent Bach company which is owned by Steinway Musical Inc. forced 230 instrument makers who are members of UAW 364 on strike. The company demanded concessions on healthcare, benefits and other conditions. They are also seeking to export the jobs to China in order to increase the profits. The owners including CEO Dana Messina is a stock manipulator (he was one of Milkin's boys) and he along with other owners sold some of their stock just before the strike began.
The company has hired 130 replacement workers (scabs) and is seeking to starve the workers out. This video is about these workers and why they need support for their struggle.
You can send food and financial support to
Food 4 Strikers
58558 Ardmore Drive, Elkhart, Indiana 46517

Contact UAW 3 Regional Director Mo Davison and ask him why he and the UAW are not doing more to support these workers. His phone number is 317-547-0614. Also call UAW President Ron Gettelfinger and ask him to support bucket collections for these strikers at every UAW auto plant in the country. His number is 313-926-5000.


http://www.connselmerstrike.com/

Conn Selmer Strike

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-Mother of all Picnic's is on download page full DVD quality will be
up by evening of 8-19-08.
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- Now available online discussion forum for the Conn Selmer Strike!

This site was created to provide resources to help understand the Conn Selmer Strike. The administrator of this site is a Vincent Bach "current" employee, who is in a "labor dispute" along with his brothers and sisters of local UAW 364. The objective of this site is to work closely with the union leaders of UAW 364 in providing the truest of facts and most relevant material relating to the strike.

News from the Strike Line.


1-21-09- No negotiating is currently going on, the last willingness of the company to sit down and talk happened in August of 2008. Robert Allen reported the company offered at that meeting nothing that would excite the rank and file.

A new committee has been authorized by Robert Allen with the purpose to renew and invigorate the three year old strike. Its mission will be to create, in the words of our UAW Lawyer Rick Swanson, “an economic impact on the company”. Hence forth this committee will be known as the UAW 364 Strike Action Committee.

12-18-08- An article found on the company web site gloats of Indiana Tax dollars being spent to train scabs and replacement workers at the striking Vincent Bach plant. Why would our elected representative allow this when there is a work force trained and ready to work if only the contract would include the very workers who vote on the contract to actually be the ones to come back. Instead the company from the first day of negotiations refused to put clearly in writing that everyone would be brought back ahead of new workers.
Read the article by Googleing for the head line;
“Indiana Economic Development Corporation Grant Awarded To Conn-Selmer Elkhart Facilities”

12-16-08- The Company still seems interested in negotiating and meetings continue to occur. A recent check distributed by a collection of fellow unions in the area was much appreciated. I know for this administrator January is going to be a slow month in getting days to work with this economy.

11-20-08-Company has started negotiations again, hopefully the company is more sensible since the August negotiations when Robert Allen said the rank and file "would die on the strike line" (regarding what they were offering).

11-19-08-We hear Conn Selmer again has a contract with E>K.Blessing to produce TR 301 student line horns. E.K. Blessing will continue to use UAW striking workers to produce these horns.

8-1-08- EK blessing is making the TR 300 with the Bach name here in Elkhart. Their primary emphasis is on recruiting currently striking skilled employees of Conn Selmer so far they seemed to have about 20. This information I know because this administrator was invited in for an interview and tour of the Blessing plant here in Elkhart in order to work as a color buffer. unfortunately I had to turn down the offer because of the fact that I would not make money off the backs of our striking union brothers and sisters who do not have a chance to go back to the music industry. Rumor is that Conn Selmer has pulled their line from EK Blessing but nothing has been written in the Elkhart Truth paper at this time to confirm or deny this.

Currently negotiations have started with Steinway regrettably not with a president of the union we elected. Our current president resigned and currently the vice president is in office. We also need to elect a new officer that has quit and worked for EK blessing. His position has filled with an appointment made by higher ups in the UAW. At this time no union meeting are being allowed. The committee claimed that a vote was taken in a prior meeting not to have any more union meeting till there was something to report. When ask to see the minutes no copies were provided.

READ MORE>reasons to negotiate

I suspect that the first proposal will not be worthy of the two and a half years we have been on strike. Our non elected UAW 364 President has already hinted we may have to take less because of the economy.




Even the Conn Selmer Statue has to work without a union!


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Allen Bradley of the Freightliner Five spoke at the NW Socialist Conference, November 8th, 2008.

UAW officers not represented by UAW.

Editorials Needed

If you wish to comment on the Conn Selmer Strike and have your letter posted, please send an email along with your name, address and phone number to be reached and I would be happy to post your comments on the ongoing strike.

For or against!
Send to:
conn_selmer_strike [at] verizon.net