Rosendin Electric Unjustly Fires Union Steward
On May 18th, union steward Joseph Barkell was fired from his job at Rosendin Electric at the MPS Lewisville facility. The official reason given was a "lack of production," but the facts reveal this to be a flimsy excuse covering the real motive: removing a worker who was fighting for his fellow class brothers and sisters. The reality is that prior to his firing, the company had not spoken to Joseph about his performance even once. In fact, his Foreman and General Foreman have commended both his work performance and his handling of Steward's duties in this shop of about 500 union members. There was no suggestion of an issue with his production, no write-ups, no warnings—nothing.
What the records do show is the number of overtime hours clocked by the workers at this facility. The average worker puts in between 48 to 56 hours a week to supplement their insufficient wages. At most other worksites, overtime pay is double the normal hourly wage; in fact, this is the case at other Rosendin Electric workplaces, save for MPS facilities across the Local. Naturally, workers are growing fed up with working such long hours for less pay despite performing the same work for the same company. They reached out to their steward, Joseph, to help formulate a simple demand: to be paid at the same rate as other workers covered by the same union local and working for the same company.
To show their support and solidarity with this just cause, many workers chose to wear buttons demonstrating this demand at the weekly safety meeting. It was only after this collective action that Joseph was fired. This firing, executed without any progressive discipline, is a clear violation of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRB) and the collective bargaining agreement between the company and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW). While these laws and agreements are protected, the capitalist class will make trash out of them when it suits them, only to expect workers to adhere to them as if they were sacred texts.
This act is employer terrorism, designed to intimidate workers into accepting ever-worsening conditions or to scare them from fighting for better ones. Even in the reactionary state of Texas, workers have the right to demand better pay. To the workers at Lewisville, this firing demonstrates the level of contempt your employer holds for you. That they would target your leaders, your coworkers, and your class brothers and sisters for daring to demand fair pay not only shows their disregard for you and the well-being of the families relying on your wages, but also reveals their fear. They know that organized workers, determined to fight to the bitter end for what is right, are a formidable force. They believe that through this act of employer terrorism, they can intimidate you into sheepishly accepting less. We must show those cowards that we do not bend to tyranny; we choose to fight.