Hostess union strikers proud of their success: Maine’s striking Hostess workers say company’s collapse a strong message of union resolve
By Seth Koenig, BDN Staff
Posted Nov. 16, 2012, at 4:32 p.m.
Last modified Nov. 17, 2012, at 7:52 a.m.
Troy R. Bennett | BDN
Strikers stay close to fires in barrels for warmth Friday morning Nov. 16, 2012, outside the Hostess Bakery in Biddeford.
Troy R. Bennett | BDN
Ken Rumney of Standish stands on strike outside the Hostess Bakery in Biddeford on Friday, Nov. 16, 2012. He started working for the company in 1969.
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BIDDEFORD, Maine — Labor leaders in Maine say the resilience of the Hostess workers on the picket line at the company’s Biddeford plant, which is in the process of being shut down after the company on Friday said it would liquidate the business, gives them inspiration in the face of what they believe have been ongoing efforts — by politicians, including Gov. Paul LePage, and corporate investors — to reduce union influence.
Bakers’ union officials and their supporters say also that the demise of Hostess Brands Inc., which failed to convince striking workers to return to their jobs, is a warning sign for corporate investors seeking to squeeze more profits out of the working class.
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The union’s willingness to go down with the sinking ship — and in some cases take credit for sinking it — in the Hostess case may prove to corporate investors that the working class must be reckoned with, said University of Southern Maine economist and labor relations expert Michael Hillard.
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Sarah Bigney, spokeswoman for the Maine AFL-CIO, a labor coalition representing 26,000 members from a wide range of local workers’ unions across the state, said the resolve of the striking BCTGM workers has been “inspirational.”
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