Staff Writer
PRESQUE ISLE — Blueberry pies were delivered to Maine’s congressional delegation April 16 by activists seeking support on bills dealing with unionization of workers and health care.
Pies were delivered to Congressman Mike Michaud’s office in Presque Isle by citizens seeking action on the proposed bills. In all, about 225 blueberry pies and more than 1,000 letters were delivered to the members of Maine’s congressional delegation throughout the state to urge them to support President Barrack Obama’s health care reform proposals and The Employee Free Choice Act.
In Presque Isle, nearly a dozen people, pies in hand, made the delivery to Michaud’s Main St. office. Participants included: Judy Hilton, Dorothy Matson, Troy Haines, Shelly Mountain, Jane Caulfield, Joyce Haines, Joe Haines, Lucy Adams and John Cancelarich. While at Michaud’s office, some members took time to share comments on the issues at hand.
Adams was first to speak, noting it was time for change and that, “Getting our economy on track now and building an economy with strength that can last means building an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top.”
“To help make it happen, the two million members of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) have launched ‘Change That Works,’ a campaign in more than 30 states to bring economic solutions to Main Street by ensuring passage of the economic recovery package, comprehensive health care reform and the Employee Free Choice Act,” said Adams.
She said, “Any nation having uninsured or underinsured citizens is a grave injustice,” noting that access to quality affordable health care should be considered “a basic human right.”
“Unfortunately, in this country it has become a privilege and one that is rapidly moving further and further out of the grasp of hardworking Americans,” said Adams.
Mountain shared her views on the Employee Free Choice Act and health care reform.
A full-time stay-at-home mom and part-time student, Mountain spoke of past employment and the difficulty she and others faced in the 1980s when they began discussing unionization.
“Prior to the vote, management, on a daily basis, tried to intimidate us into voting against the union with threats about how much a union would limit our freedoms and that the company would close and go elsewhere. Because of threats and pressures placed on us by management, we eventually voted against organizing,” said Mountain, adding, “After the vote, management implemented those policies that they threatened would happen if we unionized, and eventually they closed and left the area.”
“We would have been more protected if unionization had been easier,” Mountain said.
Discussion will continue on these issues, at an event being promoted by the Maine AFL-CIO. The meeting will take place on Wednesday, April 29, at 11:30 a.m. in Presque Isle, at the Mark and Emily Turner Memorial Library, 39 Second St. A diverse group of worker, academic, business and community leaders will come together to discuss the economic challenges Mainers are facing every day and how the Employee Free Choice Act can help confront those problems head-on. The roundtable discussion will include: Roger Roy, University of Maine professor of economics; Martha Grant, small business owner; workers; and other interested individuals.
Staff photo/Kathy McCarty
SIGNED PETITIONS seeking better health care and supporting the Employee Free Choice Act were presented at Congressman Mike Michaud’s office on Main St. in Presque Isle April 16. Receiving the documents, at left, is Rachel Smith, constituent service representative, and at right, Troy Haines. In back, from left: Dorothy Matson and Shelly Mountain.
Staff photo/Kathy McCarty
LUCY ADAMS shared her views on the current state of health care in the U.S., during a visit to Congressman Mike Michaud’s office in Presque Isle April 16. Listening to Adams read is John Cancelarich.
Staff photo/Kathy McCarty
SHELLY MOUNTAIN spoke in the Employee Free Choice Act and the rights of employees in the workplace. Joining her at Congressman Mike Michaud’s office April 16, at left, was Dorothy Matson.
