Calls to Boycott Subway until Carlos gets his job back echo through emptied-out stores as picketlines effectively shut down lunch business A week of spirited pickets that have effectively eliminated the lunch business at several Subway stores across the city will roll their way Friday to the 1st & Pike Subway, at the gateway to the Pike Place Market.
All this week, stores which normally serve hundreds of customers during a typical weekday lunch rush have been almost completely emptied out, as customers heed the call to boycott Subway in support Carlos Hernandez, a leader in the fast food workers movement. Carlos was recently fired — supposedly over a 66¢ cookie. But Federal charges have been filed alleging that Carlos was actually fired in retaliation for his role in the fast food strikes.
When given the facts, customers overwhelmingly agree that what Subway did is wrong — so they turn around, take their business elsewhere, and the join the call to boycott the chain until Carlos gets his job back.
Bad reviews for Subway's behavior have even spread to the Yelp page of the 206 E Broadway Subway store that fired Carlos, as supporters of the Good Jobs Seattle movement take the picket message to where the customers are — before they even decide what restaurant to go to.
Who: Fast food workers and community supporters
What: Cap off of a week of rolling lunch-hour picketlines at Subway stores across Seattle with dozens of picketers at the gateway to Pike Place Market calling for a boycott of Subway to strike back against retaliation and support all fast food workers. (And we're not done yet.)
When & Where: TODAY - Friday, September 27, 2013, 11:45 am - 1:00 pm during the lunch rush Pike Place Market Subway, 106 Pike St. Note: This will be the 4th consecutive day of Subway pickets, which have already ground lunch business to a halt at 206 Broadway E, 1800 8th, and 501 Seneca.
More information: Federal charges: Fast food workers this week filed Federal charges against the Subway fast food chain for firing striker Carlos Hernandez in retaliation for his leadership role in this summer's fast food strikes. The Federal cases name management of the local Subway store where Carlos worked, as well as the chain's corporate parent based in Milford, Connecticut. The Subway chain has agreed at the national level to take responsibility for labor standards at all their stores, whether franchised or corporate owned. Federal labor law clearly bars retaliation against workers for striking.
The cookie excuse: Subway knows that retaliation against striking workers is illegal, so they found a flimsy excuse to use when they fired him: they said it was because he gave a cookie to a 3-year old. The cookie cost 66¢.
Additional details: Prior to the firing, Subway management had attempted to make strikers sign a "final warning" disciplinary notice about striking. (Copy available online.) They even instructed other employees to not speak to Carlos, because of his role as a leader in the Good Jobs Seattle movement who has repeatedly spoken out to the public and to co-workers about the campaign for good jobs.
Sparked by this summer's fast food & coffee strikes, Good Jobs Seattle is a growing movement which seeks to build a sustainable future for Seattle's economy from the middle out — by turning poverty-wage jobs in fast food and other industries into good jobs that offer opportunities for a better future and pay enough for workers to afford basic necessities like food, clothing and rent. Good Jobs Seattle is supported by organizations including Washington Community Action Network, Working Washington, OneAmerica, SEIU Healthcare 775NW and hundreds of workers and grassroots supporters.
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