Strikers March in Sunnyside
By TOM ROEDER YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC		Striking employees of Valley Manufactures Housing in Sunnyside gained support of the Western Council of Industrial Workers for a march through Sunnyside Saturday afternoon.
SUNNYSIDE -- More than 300 union workers rallied here Saturday to show support for striking workers at Valley Manufactured Housing who have spent nearly eight months on picket lines. The rally, which drew supporters from as far away as Spokane and Portland, came three days before the union representing 135 strikers is scheduled to reopen negotiations with the home building firm. The Tuesday talks will mark the first time in months both sides of the contract dispute have been to the negotiating table. "It's been seven months and they haven't done anything," said striker Marcos Valencia of Sunnyside, who has worked for Valley Manufactured for more seven years. The dispute between workers and the firm centers primarily on wages. The company pays workers $8.25 per hour after a year on the job, which company General Manager Dale Miller has called "reasonable." But strikers and supporters contend that Valley doesn't pay enough to allow workers to support their families. Valencia, who is married with two children, has worked a part-time construction job during the strike. "But I still find time to be on the picket line," he said. Striking workers are eligible for $100 per week from their union, the Western Council of Industrial Workers Local 2739. The union has also arranged for a food bank to fill the cupboards of strikers. But the strike still presents a financial pinch, Valencia said. "It's been tough," he said. The ranks of workers like Valencia were bolstered by dozens of steelworkers locked out from Spokane's Kaiser mill during a protracted contract dispute, which has lasted for more than a year. "We're all in the same boat," said Kaiser worker David Cruz. Union spokeswoman Sherry Scott said the labor gathering, which started with a parade through Sunnyside and ended with a barbecue in South Hill Park, heartened workers weary of the strike. "We have 135 people out on the line," she said. "They have remained strong." Bob Gorman, state director of the AFL-CIO praised the strikers. "In my opinion, the brothers and sisters putting up the fight are the real heroes," he told rally-goers as they ate hamburgers and hot dogs at the park. Gorman was impressed by the turnout for the rally, saying it sends a message to area employers to respect the rights of workers. Denny Scott, the Portland-based head of the Valley Manufactured union, called the rally "a tremendous spiritual lift." "We are so proud of these people for keeping up the fight," he said. Guadalupe Gamboa, the Sunnyside-based regional director of the United Farm Workers union, said the rally should make politicians pay attention to the plight of workers. "Community leaders have to recognize that there is no benefit to having worker's organizations smashed," he said. "There has to be pressure on employers." Valley Manufactured, located at 1717 S. Fourth St. in Sunnyside, is one of the largest private employers in the Lower Valley with more than 200 workers. Since strikers walked off the job on Aug. 25, the company has hired more than 150 replacement workers. Workers want Tuesday's negotiations to focus on wages, health insurance and an end to the company's policy of mandatory overtime. Earlier talks and the intercession of a federal mediator in October have failed to end the deadlock between the company and the strikers.