Mahony Cites Labor Rights, Asks Cemetery Union Election

Archbishop Roger Mahony announced Friday that he has directed officials of the Los Angeles Archdiocese to take steps leading to an election among Archdiocese cemetery workers to determine if they want to be represented by a union.

Mahony’s announcement came one day after he received a letter from the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union requesting that an election be held by an impartial third party to be jointly chosen.

The union’s request was made in the immediate aftermath of a decision Monday by the National Labor Relations Board’s Los Angeles office denying a petition by the union that it conduct a representation election among the workers. The board said that holding such an election could lead to “excessive entanglement” of a government agency in church affairs and thus violate the First Amendment.

Bill Rivera, a spokesman for the Archdiocese said Friday that Mahony’s decision “will enable the election to be conducted in a manner which provides protection for the employees’ rights without danger of possible First Amendment conflicts.”

Cites Church Teachings

Mahony’s formal statement refers to “the extensive teaching of the Catholic Church on the rights of workers, which always focuses upon each individual worker,” and said he “recognizes and supports . . . the duty of society to make certain that each worker’s rights are both recognized and protected.”

The union announced in July that 120 of the 140 workers employed at 10 cemeteries and mausoleums operated by the Archdiocese in three Southern California counties had signed cards saying they wanted union representation. The workers said they sought better wages and restoration of life insurance and a Christmas bonus, the last two of which were canceled last year.

The organizing campaign has presented a ticklish issue for Mahony, who has been widely known as a champion of workers’ rights for two decades. He has aided unionization campaigns for farm workers and low-paid domestics, and he publicly supported an increase in California’s minimum wage last year.

“We’re certainly pleased” about the announcement, said Barbara Mejia, California director of the clothing and textile union.

Union Seeks Apology

However, Mejia also said the union and the cemetery workers wanted Mahony to apologize for remarks he made Wednesday when he was asked why he was unwilling to simply recognize the union on the basis of the cards the union had gathered from the workers. He responded: “I’ve been around unions long enough to know how you get people to sign cards. You have a big rally, serve a lot of food and drink and get people . . . to sign cards.”

Mejia said: “I was totally shocked by this statement. This union--or any other union I know--does not act that way.”