New Haven, CT
Wednesday, September 16
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| Protesting Wells-Fargo Bank: UE convention delegates rally to support UE members at Quad City Die Casting at a downtown New Haven branch of Wells Fargo's Wachovia subsidiary. |
Delegates to UE’s 71st Convention used their lunch break on Wednesday, September 16, to march from the convention hotel to the New Haven branch bank of Wachovia, now a subsidiary of banking giant Wells Fargo. There they protested Wells Fargo’s continuing role as a “roadblock to recovery” – specifically its deliberate destruction of the jobs of UE members at Quad City Die Casting in Moline, IL, and now its blocking of the funds needed to pay the benefits workers are owed.
UE delegates rallied in front of the bank and sent a delegation inside to confront the bank management. The delegation consisted of UE Local 1174 Recording Secretary Deb Johann, a Quad City Die Casting worker; Western Region President Carl Rosen; and Northeast Region President Peter Knowlton. When they emerged from the bank, they spoke to the convention delegates outside.
Deb Johan said the delegation told the bank manager, “we wanted to make a withdrawal, since me and my co-workers are owed two years’ vacation plus $4,500 medical costs, because Wells Fargo wouldn’t loan operating money to Quad City. The bank left us hanging. We worked hard and in four months we made $1 million for Quad City. Wells Fargo got a $25 billion bailout with taxpayer money, so now they need to use that money to help the American people, like me and my co-workers.”
“We delivered the UE message directly to the bank manager,” reported Carl Rosen. “Believe me, she knows you all are out here making big noise for justice. The bank manager says she will deliver the UE message to corporate. We all know that a lot of UE members will continue our fight to win justice – next stop is the bankers’ association meeting.”
“I’m here on behalf of Northeastern UE members to support Quad City UE Local 1174 workers who are owed vacation money because Wells Fargo/Wachovia refused to loan them money to stay open,” said Knowlton, president of the Convention-hosting Northeast Region of UE. “Our message to the bank is, wherever Wachovia is, we UE members will follow until our UE members win justice.”