Locked-out Mining Union Gets Solidarity Boost in Battle with Mineral Conglomerate Rio Tinto

Hundreds of union members from all across Los Angeles gathered in a Dodger Stadium parking lot early Wednesday morning for a 125-mile caravan solidarity ride in support of 560 brave workers and their families in the Southern California high desert town of Boron (population 2,000). Seven TV news vans and many more reporters were on hand to witness a well-organized display of union solidarity overseen by the L.A. County Federation of Labor, heavily organized by the Teamsters and a diverse bunch of supporters, including the Car Wash Workers and the SEIU.

The solidarity and support is warranted: Since January 31, Local-30 members of the International Longshore & Warehouse Union (ILWU) have been locked out for standing up to multi-billion dollar multinational mining conglomerate Rio Tinto Group’s strong-arm attempt to slash their basic workers' rights and benefits, busing in replacement workers from its other mines.

Union outrage and organized support was swift; $30,000 worth of food was donated, and ILWU Local-30 has received international support from as far away as Australia.

“The fact that this money was raised quickly from concerned union families in Southern California indicates that the miners' fight against Rio Tinto’s lockout and corporate bullying tactics is resonating and connecting with the public,” said ILWU spokesperson Craig Merrilees. “This issue has the potential to become a powerful symbol of corporate greed, and a decision by these determined families to stand up and fight is becoming an inspiration to everyone who’s fed up with what’s happening in America today.”

The crowds in the parking lot reached the inspiring point by 7:30am and felt Southern California to the bone: Union members munched on organic burritos stuffed with Niman Ranch sausages served out of the hip and unionized West L.A. food on wheels enterprise, Green Truck on the Go. Dozens of burly Teamsters stood in circles chatting, posing in their bad-ass leather jackets and black sunglasses next to three gleaming 18-wheelers loaded with food supplies for ILWU members. Classic cars in mint condition were spread across the lot, mixed in with immaculately waxed and buffed pick-ups and SUVs -- all sporting American flags.

Maria Elena Durazo, head of the AFL-CIO’s L.A. Federation of Labor, got the crowd going as she named the unions in attendance, asking them to shout in affirmation. She fired up the crowd with the day’s plans: The group was going to deliver food, eat lunch and spend the day with ILWU Local-30 workers at their union hall to spread the good spirits and parade through the town of Boron to show solidarity -- and the organized strength and reach of union power in Southern California. At 8am, the three Teamster trucks set out and took the lead, followed by a 300-plus vehicle armada.

The SoCal union caravan made its way through L.A. suburbs that melted into high desert and Joshua trees in the stretch to Boron. Along the way, union members were greeted by their compatriots, waving flags over a dozen overpasses along the ride to the ILWU 30 Union Hall, located on the outside of Boron, just across the highway from California's largest open-pit mine and the largest borax deposit in the world. Rio Tinto purchased the mine in 1968 to capitalize on the demand from dozens of industries that rely on the mineral to make cosmetics, fiberglass and detergents, among other products.

The economic dividing lines between Rio Tinto Group and the union members at its Boron plant are staggering. In 2009, the company pulled in $4.9 billion in profits, and the company, with headquarters in Australia and England, rejected a $147 billion takeover bid with the response that the offer was "significantly undervalued." The ILWU union members who work at the mine in Boron, some of whom have been at the plant for four decades, take home between $15,000-$29,000 a year, with the average income in the low 20s. Members have to pay in as much as $400 per month so they and their families can access the mine’s health coverage system.