The Mixer, May, 2008 Workers protest Men’s Wearhouse announcement that it will close its Canadian factory UNITE HERE is campaigning across North America to save nearly 600 Canadian manufacturing jobs at a Montreal plant that Men’s Wearhouse announced it would close in July. Hundreds of workers, represented by Quebec Council of UNITE HERE, rallied at a press conference outside the Golden Brand Factory and vowed to fight the closure. Workers and activists reached out to customers in a dozen cities including New York, Toronto, LA, and Philadelphia. Men’s Wearhouse owns Moores, the Canadian retailer that supplies quality, Made-in-Canada suits. The closure of the manufacturing plant in Montreal throws hundreds more Canadians out of work, and sends a strong signal to North American consumers about how little this company respects their loyal workers and their loyal customers. Golden Brand has operated in Montreal for more than 40 years and was the foundation of the company that operated the Moores retail stores in Canada. In 1999, Moores was purchased by Men’s Wearhouse. “The most outrageous thing is that this company that owns Moores and Golden Brand is profitable,” said Lina Aristeo, the Director of the Quebec Council of UNITE HERE. “Men’s Wearhouse has been increasing its income year after year and now it is turning its back on the hundreds of workers who made that profit, many of whom have worked for Golden Brand for decades. This is despicable.” “We’re going directly to Men’s Wearhouse customers,” explained Aristeo, “because we know many customers are sick and tired of seeing good manufacturing jobs, like the ones at Golden Brand, lost so that profitable companies like Men’s Wearhouse can extract even higher profits by shipping work offshore. We are going to be speaking to those customers, here in Montreal and across North America, and we are going to ask them to join us in telling Men’s Wearhouse that enough is enough. Stop shipping our jobs overseas and still expecting us to be your customers and shop in your stores.” Men’s Wearhouse recorded profits of $148, 575,000 in 2007, an increase of more than 100% in two years, increasing its sales in that same period by more than 20%. “To be kicked out after giving twenty years to this company – it’s very hard,” said Claudia Martinez, who has worked at Golden Brand for 20 years. “An American company has come in and is doing whatever it wants to make money. Without good jobs like these, how will we take care of our children and give them the opportunities and education that we didn’t have? We will do whatever we can to keep this place open.” Learn more and take action at www.ourjobsmatter.org. International Week of Action highlights concerns over Aramark’s bad practices As part of an international week of action that took place in April, workers took to the streets in Ireland, the UK and Belgium to inform the public of concerns about Aramark’s poor treatment of workers, communities and clients. Over the course of the week, workers in the three countries were joined by Jack Rushton, an Aramark employee in Philadelphia, who was, after 20 years of service, recently demoted by Aramark. The union is concerned about this treatment, as it occurred shortly after speaking out at a rally on behalf of his fellow workers. UNITE HERE continues to fight on his behalf. “We stand behind our brothers and sisters in Canada and the United States, who are fighting to build a decent life for their families,” said Jack O’Connor, President of Ireland’s Services, Industrial, Professional and Technical Union (SIPTU). “Every hardworking man and woman deserves a family-sustaining wage, access to affordable healthcare, dignity in retirement and respect in his or her workplace.” | 
