September 15 was an international day of solidarity with the drivers of Dominos Pizza in Brisbane, called by the Anarcho-Syndicalist Federation of Australia. These workers, who deliver pizza, are in a struggle against the arbitrary abuse of the firm, which cut their salaries by 19%. The campaign was supported by the International Workers Association and actions were carried out in many countries around the world.
History
of the Conflict
The
drivers from Dominos Pizza in Brisbane, Australia, including members
of the Anarcho-Syndicalist Federation (ASF), have been confronting
the company which cut their salaries by 19% since April 9. From that
time they have been struggling to regain their former pay. This
struggle has been not only with Dominos, but also with the right wing
hierarchy of the SDA union, which also includes some Dominos
employees. In response to the inaction of the SDA, the drivers formed
the General Trasport Workers Association (GTWA, connected to the
Anarcho-Syndicalist Federation) and actively coordinates the struggle
to reinstate the salaries on the national level. Other employees of
the firm joined the ASF's branch union seeing that the other union
functioning in Dominos is concilliatory and does nothing to improve
the situation of the drivers.
The
union SDA, is one of the main ones in Australia, with approx. 230,000
members. SDA is run by a right-wing Catholic hierarchy (bureaucracy)
headed by Joe de Bruyn, who is not against using the union to
propagate clerical ideology.
ASF
Brisbane organized a meeting with Tim Van Schyndel, director of
labour relations for Dominos in its Australia headquarters, demanding
to regulate the question of the drivers salaries. But the meeting did
not bring results. Then the ASF-B organized a picket at the
headquarters, which was warmly received by local residents. They
appealed to the ASF Melbourne for support and they unanimously
decided to support their comrades and picket every weekend in front
of Dominos, supporting the pickets in Brisbane.
The
drivers had the following demands:
1)
The basic wage should not be lower than the official minimum wage set
by Fair Work Australia and casual and part-time employees should also
be guaranteed this minimum
2)
This norm should be observed irrespective of the collective agreement
3)
Workers should be paid for training and meetings they have to attend
(in the restaurant or on the Internet)
4)
All tips from clients should go to the employees in their entirety
and under no circumstances should Dominos take any part of them
5)
All casual and part-time workers should be paid public holiday rates
in
ratio to those entitlements currently received by full-time, and
part-time employees to the extent that by 2014, all casual workers
including drivers be paid at the rate of double-time for all hours of
work performed on public holidays.
Solidarity
Action on September 15
Аustralia.
Pickets and solidarity meetings with the drivers are organized in
Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide and Perth.
Аrgentina.
The Society of Resistance of FORA in Rosario translated and
distributed the appeal of the Australian comrades.
Great
Britain.
The Solidarity Federation called for people to send solidarity
protests through the firms page on Australian Facebook and on
September 17 to flood the Australian office with protest faxes and
letters of protest, so as to paralyze the company's communications
for a while. SF organized protests in front of restaurants in
London, Manchester, Leeds, Brighton, Bitterne Southhampton and other
places.
http://wessexsolidarity.wordpress.com/2012/09/15/solent-solfed-picket-dominos-southampton/
In
Manchester, activists from SF from the city and West Yorkshire,
together with members of the Anarchist Federation and other
libertarian comrades picketed Dominos near the university. The
manager called the police but they did not intervene. The action was
successful: during the picket only one group of customers went in.
(http://www.solfed.org.uk/?q=manchester/dominos-solidarity-in-manchester)
In Bristol, an Australian woman approached the picketers and thanked
them for solidarity with Australian workers. She promised to inform
about the action on local radio in Melbourne when she returned home.
In New Cross members of South London SolFed delivered a protest
letter to Dominos Pizza and spoke with the drivers there; the area
was posted with leaflets and stickers supported the Brisbane drivers.
A picket in Sheffield in front of Dominos was organized by the
Industrial Workers of the World.
Brazil.
The Brazilian Workers Confederation (COB) organized solidarity
actions in Sao Paolo and Porto Alegre.
Germany. Members
of the Free Workers' Union (FAU) picketed Dominos restaurants in
Bonn, Cologne and Langenfeld. They gave leaflets to the workers,
passersby and residents which explained the basics of the labour
conflict in the firm. On a placard in Cologne was written "19%
wage cut in Dominos! Today Brisbane, tomorrow Cologne?
(http://allgemeinessyndikatkoeln.blogsport.de/2012/09/15/protest-bei-dominos-pizza-in-koeln/)
Spain. There
were different solidarity actions with the drivers of Dominos
organized by members of the CNT-AIT in different cities. In Mataro,
activists from Permia and Mataro held a picket at a restaurant on St.
Antoni St.
(http://www.cntpremia.blogspot.com.es/2012/09/concentracio-dominos-pizza-...)
In
Gijon, a banner was hung on one restaurant and different graffiti
against the company was made.
In
Cornelia de Llobregat there was a picket in front of Dominos when
they have the most customers there. They read a communique a few
times and gave out about 300 flyers to passersby, customers and
workers.
In
Salamanca, members of the CNT (from the CNT union in Telepizza)
informed workers about the campaign and called on workers in the
branch to follow the example of the Australian colleagues, chosing
the path of self-organization
(http://quienparteyreparte.blogspot.com/2012/09/dominos-pizza-explotacion-sin-fronteras.html).
In Elche there was a picket in front of Dominos Pizza which lasted
about one hour. The participants gave out leaflets and brochures to
passersby, customers and workers and they put up some posters.
(http://cntelx.blogspot.com/2012/09/jornada-mundial-de-lucha-contra-domin...)
Canada. А
protest against Dominos was held in Vancouver.
Netherlands. The
Amsterdam group of the Anarcho-Syndicalist Union made a picket in
front of Dominos. The participants explained the situation to pizza
delivers and they expressed sympathy with their Australian
colleagues. One of them openly expressed solidarity with them.
(http://anarcho-syndicalisme.nl/wp/?p=1779)
New
Zealand.
А
protest
against Dominos took place in Auckland. It was organized by activists
from „Action against Poverty”
and Auckland anarchists and supporters. Another action took place in
the capital in Wellington.
Norway.
Аctivists from the Norweigan Syndicalist Federation distributed
leaflets at a Dominos in Oslo.
Poland.
Members of the Union of Syndicalists, Poland visited the office of
the company in Warsaw on September 14 and delivered a protest. On
September 15, then hung banners on the restaurant on al.
Jerozolimskie, which drew the attention of many passersby. They gave
out leaflets explaining the struggle of the drivers from Dominos
Pizza in Australia and about the situation of workers in the food
service industry in Poland. The police and manager of the restaurant
showed up. He made photographs of the picket to send in to the head
office and tried to make an impression by offering the protesters
pizza.
Russia.
For the international solidarity day, stickers were put up at the
entrance of a Dominos restaurant reading „September 15,
international day of solidarity with drivers from Dominos Pizza in
Brisbane. Shame on the company that lowered wages by 19%! No to
exploitation! International Workers Association". Leaflets with
a similar text were left on cars, including the ones for delivering
pizza.
Slovakia. Since
it that country there are no Dominis, Priama akcia sent letters of
protest to the company.
USA.
Solidarity actions took place in San Francisco, Los Angeles,
Berkeley, Long Beacg, Cleveland, Providence, Tampa, Ann Arbor,
Atlanta, Minniapolis/ St. Paul and other cities. Most of them were
attended by the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), Workers'
Solidarity Alliance and other local activists. Members of the
Workers' Solidarity Alliance took active part in the campaign in San
Francisco, Los Angeles, Berkeley, Long Beach and Providence (together
with the group „Common Struggle”.
In
Missoula (Montana) there was a picket in front of Dominos organized
by the Workers Solidarity Alliance and the Zootown Solidarity
Network. In Ann Arbor the action was organized by Lansing Workers'
Center.
France. French
anarcho-syndicalists held pickets in front of Dominos in Caen,
Clermont-Ferrand, Paris, Toulouse and other places. Leaflets were
distributed in 4 restaurants in the Paris region (in Nanterre,
Besonne, Sartrouville and Enghien-les-Bains)
entitled
"Why the pizza delivers get only pennies” and they spoke with
the workers. They discussed with workers about their conditions and
what is happening in Australia. In Toulouse about 200 leaflets were
given out in front of a Dominos restaurant and they spoke with the
workers.
(http://forum.anarchiste.free.fr/viewtopic.php?p=143682&sid=3b16170c7def917fa2ceb0a48a7ea7c1#p143682).
In Caen there was a picket and leaflets were given to residents,
customers and passersby. An administrator came out and demanded an
explanation and declared that the situation in Australia does not
concern him and that he would inform the management of the company in
France.
(http://cnt.ait.caen.free.fr/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=6849)
Activists
of the union of retail and services of SUD delivered a protest letter
to Dominos on Boulevard Saint-Marcel 40 in the center of Paris.
Translated
from the website of KRAS-IWA: www.aitrus.info
(Information
in this article based on news sent Sept. 15-18. Updated Sept. 18.)
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