Entries Tagged 'Events' ↓

SOJwJ SUPPORTS MERCY NURSES, Solidarity- “Road Trip” to Roseburg

July 13th, 2007 — Actions, Events

Monday July 16, 2007
Mercy Medical Center, Roseburg, Oregon

ona200705.jpg

THE TIME TO SUPPORT MERCY NURSES IS NOW !
Southern Oregon Jobs with Justice calls upon Our Member Organizations, Our Individual Pledge Card Signers and ALL Southern Oregonians who support social and economic justice. The nurses at Mercy Hospital in Roseburg, Oregon need our support on Monday, July 16th for a Day Long Informational Picket. We joined them for a big
rally on May 4, 2007* (*see below), yet they still need our help as their struggle drags on and on and on . . . . The Mercy Nurses prolonged attempts to bargain a first contract has proved to be a gross violation of the intent of labor law, yet the denial of member representation is a slap in the face to the dedicated nursing workforce at Mercy. Fundamental protections for people to associate and to “be union” have been violated by an employer that bargains in
bad faith. The “bad faith bargaining sessions” have now lasted a year and 1/2 with no end in sight. The Mercy Nurses Need Our Support Now!

COME JOIN US FOR THIS SOLIDARITY ROAD TRIP

Southern Oregon Jobs with Justice is planning a solidarity road trip to Roseburg to support our ONA Nurses at Mercy Medical Center. This is important. Please Join this Fundamental Call For Workforce Justice. Monday, July 16 is during the week so it is really tough for our workforce to attend. If you are able to join in this “road
trip” for health care justice know that we plan to fund some gas money for the car-pools. (upon approval of our bod who is hpo (hundred percent onboard). Our SOJwJ BOD met last night and we are in total support of the ONA Nurses at Mercy Medical Center in Roseburg, Oregon. Here is the plan for car pools north. Please
share this and help us build a “Road Trip of Solidarity” from here in the Rogue Valley. Sign up, Get involved, Give me a call, lets do this now!

CAR-POOLS TO MERCY NURSE RALLY IN ROSEBURG, MONDAY JULY 16, 2007
Leave Ashland 1:30 p.m. (Evos Coffee House, near our closed library)
Leave Medford 2:00 p.m. (Sherms Food-4-Less, North Medford Exit - Meet Near Chevron Gas Station)
Mercy Medical Center is at 2700 Stewart ParkwayFrom Interstate 5 southbound: Take Exit #127 (Stewart Parkway), right on Edenbower Boulevard to Stewart Parkway, right on Stewart Parkway to MMC (1/4 mile).

Rally with Mercy Nurses at the Mercy Medical Center 4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Car-Pool back to Rogue Valley - Leave 6:00 p.m.
Arrive in Medford 8:00 p.m. (Sherms)
Arrive in Ashland 8:30 p.m. or sooner! (Evos)

Thank you,

Wes Brain, Chair
Southern Oregon Jobs With Justice
298 Garfield Street
Ashland, OR 97520
541-482-6988
brain@mind.net

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

*MAY 4, 2007 RALLY IN ROSEBURG, OREGON*
150 folks gathered in Roseburg, Oregon on May 4, 2007 to support the nurses who work at Mercy Hospital. Over a year ago the Mercy Nurses voted overwhelmingly to form a union and join the Oregon Nurses
Association, yet the Mercy Administration has failed to bargain in good faith and the nurses do not have a contract yet. Following can be found two stories about the Mercy Nurses.

Rogue IMC story about the Mercy Nurses’ struggle http://rogueimc.org/en/2007/05/8416.shtml

Mercy Nurse Roberta Silva interviewed on the Brain Labor Report (mp3 audio file) http://www.kskq.org/blr/2007/05/03/oregon-nursing-solidarity

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HERE IS MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE MERCY PICKET ON MONDAY, JULY 16 IN ROSEBURG, OREGON

RNS WANT NO MORE DELAYS FOR OUR COMMMUNITY!

The Nurses of Mercy Medical Center are committed to building a workplace where our highest priorities are:

· Providing safe and quality patient care;

· Ensuring staffing levels are sufficient to provide that care;
and

· Guaranteeing fairness for all staff

Over two years ago we began to express our concerns, share our ideas and participate on committees to better the workplace, all to no avail. We concluded that in order for Mercy Medical Center to observe these priorities and provide our community with the hospital it deserves, Mercy medical Center administration needed to listen to the voice of the Nurses.

Last year, we identified these vital priorities to management. Despite intimidation, threats, and fear of retaliation, we spoke with our collective voices and on January 11, 2006, we voted to be represented by ONA. Under our own RN strong leadership, we are ONA.
Since then, over one year has passed. During that time, we have been negotiating with Mercy Medical Center administration. While we appreciate the change in leadership and the resulting positive impact, we believe that the negotiation process has been held up long enough. There are nine outstanding articles left to negotiate,
relating to issues that are crucial to a fair contract for RNs.

Nurses united together can create the highest standards of healthcare at Mercy Medical Center for our community. This has always been our goal and remains the reason why we organized. Please support us in
this struggle. E-mail MMC’s CEO, Kelly Morgan at kellymorgan@chiwest.com. Send the message that a fair contract for RNs, without further delay, is critical to a safe hospital for our
community.

Mercy Nurses Have Been Negotiating Their First Contract for a Year and a Half!!! Help Them to Achieve their Reasonable Goals of:

· Ensuring Staffing Levels are Sufficient to Provide Quality
Patient Care

· Guaranteeing Fairness for ALL Staff

Support Us On the Picket Line July 16th!

Join us in front of the hospital for an Informational Picket anytime
8am-8pm

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Ashland’s 4th of July parade

July 5th, 2007 — Events

SOUTHERN OREGON JOBS WITH JUSTICE PAYS ASHLAND’S CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FOR FREE SPEECH. *NOTE* More on this cost of free speech found further below

Here are photos which show some of the happenings and goings-on this Independence Day 2007 in the small Southern Oregon town called Ashland…

CLICK ON ANY PHOTO FOR LARGER VERSION













W H E R E' S * W A L D E N ?
W H E R E’ S * W A L D E N ?
A GREAT TIME WAS HAD BY 40 SOJWJ PARTICIPANTS WHO REPRESENTED MANY MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS OF THE SOUTHERN OREGON JOBS WITH JUSTICE COALITION!

*HERE IS MORE INFORMATION ON THE REQUIREMENT TO PAY FOR FREE SPEECH FOR THE PARADE…

Per the Ashland Chamber of Commerce 4th of July 2007 parade application Southern Oregon Jobs with Justice paid the $30 entry fee as required for a Not-For-Profit Organization. Everything was set to go until the official parade packet arrived in the mail only a couple days before the 4th. That’s when we were told we could not be political. We were forced with a tough decision, either cough up more money for free speech or exclude two of our member organizations.

Here are the words of James S. Kidd, titled “Head Chair” on the letter as part of the parade packet received in the mail, The letterhead: Ashland Chamber of Commerce Old Fashioned 4th of July. It starts, “Dear Parade Entry…” and goes on telling us we are #823 this year and how to display the number on our entry plus more… Handwritten on this letter is the following note from Head Chair James S. Kidd:

“Not-for-profit entries are _NOT_ permitted to display political or political party (i.e. Green Party, etc.) banners. Thank you!”–James K.

Another item in the parade packet is the double-sided “Parade Rules & Regulations”, and I noticed the very last rule, #32 is bolded with all words capitalized:

THE ASHLAND FOURTH OF JULY COMMITTEE RESERVES THE RIGHT TO REFUSE AN ENTRY FROM STARTING THE PARADE, OR TO REMOVE AN ENTRY AFTER IT HAS STARTED DOWN THE PARADE ROUTE, IF ANY OF THESE RULES AND REGULATIONS ARE VIOLATED.

This seemed so very strange because SOJwJ is a COALITION of 14 various “member organizations” two of which can be tagged “political”, Southern Oregon Socialist Action and the Jackson County Pacific Green Party - yet certainly “our collective” is more accurately described as “not-for-profit” than as a “political candidate or organization”. This was frustrating and certainly not patriotic, especially on Independence Day, and we can all just contemplate what Thomas Jefferson would think, or do…

Faced with this mandate SOJwJ paid the extra $70. for Free Speech and were able to invite ALL of its member organizations.

WE HAD GREAT FUN! and were not deterred by the City of Ashland’s Chamber of Commerce and its unpatriotic way of handling this year’s Fourth of July parade.

Southern Oregon Jobs with Justice
14 Member Organizations
217 Pledge Card Signers
Douglas, Josephine, Jackson and Klamath counties

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Pastors for Peace … Caravan to Cuba

July 3rd, 2007 — Events

Pastors 4 Peace BusRichard Becker of Pastors for Peace discuss the annual pilgrimage to Cuba. Becker discusses history of Cuba colonialism and the effects of the blockade.

Brain Labor Report - July 3, 2007

“It is a policy of trying to starve somebody into submission…”
~ Richard Becker on Cuba Blockade

Pastors For Peace 
What is the Cuba Caravan? On 14 separate routes, participants and vehicles travel through the US and Canada, making pre-arranged stops in cities along the way. Speakers discuss what is happening in Cuba and the purpose of the trip.

Humanitarian aid is gathered, consisting of medical and educational supplies and equipment, and also computers, bicycles, tools and sports equipment. These are items difficult or very expensive to obtain in Cuba, due to the 45-year-long economic blockade imposed by the US government.

This project offers concerned US citizens an opportunity to demonstrate solidarity, and an alternative foreign policy based on justice and mutual respect, towards our neighbor country, only 90 miles away.

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SOJwJ brings George Mann in Concert!

April 18th, 2007 — Events

George Mann at the BeaneryKicking off Independent Media Week, Southern Oregon Jobs with Justice sponsored a free concert featuring the pro-labor, anti-Bush folk music of George Mann was held at the Beanery in Ashland. The concert followed the free indy film festival at Southern Oregon University (SOU)

For more pictures Click Here.

George Mann
George Mann

Singer/songwriter and producer George Mann makes music in the NYC area with 90-year-old Julius Margolin - the “George and Julius” website is here http://www.georgeandjulius.com

George Mann has worked as a union organizer and has been singing and recording since his teens. George writes and arranges many of the “George and Julius”duo’s tunes, and has produced three CDs four solo CDs and the first two “Hail to the Thief” compilations. “There’s No Way Out” is from his upcoming solo album.

Prior to the free concert at the Beanery, a documentary film about Julius Margolin debuted at Southern Oregon University. “A Union Man” is the story of Julius’ life through his own eyes as well as those he’s met and worked with. The film features guest appearances by Utah Phillips, Faith Petric and former NMU Vice President Joe Stack, and has concert performances as well. “A Union Man” is an affectionate portrait of a 90 year old rank-and-file activist still in the struggle for justice and workers’ rights. “A Union Man” was produced by George Mann and the editing was performed by Ashland videographer Steve Ryan.

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