Not just acting like they care
Jackson Bell
Adam Gregor doesn’t think twice about taking time off from work to
support fellow union members.
Gregor, a member of the Screen Actors Guild, left a movie set for
a couple of hours Thursday to protest what he calls “greedy
corporations” at a strike rally outside of Pavilions on West Alameda
Street.
“They’re trying to take [health] benefits away from people and not
give them decent wages,” he said. “Health care around the world is
not thought about. Here, we have to fight for it because people need
it.”
Celebrities including James Cromwell and SAG President Melissa
Gilbert were among an estimated 250 union members and others who
gathered to back members of United Food and Commercial Workers who
were on strike or locked out of their jobs.
Unions represented Thursday included Teamsters, American
Federation of Radio and Television Artists, Service Employees
International, and International Cinematographers. The event also
featured musical performances from Lowen & Navarro and members of
Quetzal.
“We are here to support the union and to send a message that
hundreds of thousands of union members in Southern California will
honor the picket lines,” Gilbert told onlookers. “We will not shop in
your stores until you treat them with respect and dignity.”
Juli Grillo, a member of UFCW Local 770, said she hoped the rally
would create better public understanding of what her union is
fighting for.
“A lot of people have this misconception that we don’t want to pay
for medical benefits, which is not true,” Grillo said. “We just want
what is fair.”
Marcus Hubbard, who a member of Teamsters Local 572 in Carson,
said the eight-week strike has been hard on grocery workers.
“I’m here to support the cause because we all go through the same
struggles, and we all need to support this,” Hubbard said.