BCTGM: U.S. Senators Call on Kellogg to End Memphis Lockout

KENSINGTON, Md., March 7, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Five powerful and highly-respected United States Senators have asked the Kellogg Company to "act swiftly to find a fair agreement" and end its nearly five-month lockout of more than 220 workers at its Memphis, Tenn. cereal production facility.

In a March 6 letter to Kellogg CEO John Bryant, Senators Sherrod Brown (Ohio), Robert Casey, Jr. (Pa.), Cory Booker (N.J.), Robert Menendez (N.J.) and Jeff Merkley (Ore.), reflected on the dedication of Kellogg workers.

"Many of these hardworking individuals have been employed by Kellogg's for decades. They have made their career working for your company. Yet rather than being rewarded for their hard work and loyalty, they have been forced off the job. Not only are workers without pay, but families are without health insurance, unsure if they can afford their prescriptions or visit a doctor. The result is that these workers, who help prepare the food that others eat each morning, must decide whether they can put food on the table or pay the bills."

Noting the harm that Kellogg is inflicting on the city of Memphis by continuing the lockout, the Senators wrote, "This lockout not only harms the workers, but the entire Memphis community as well. At a time when our nation's inequality gap continues to grow, replacing good-paying middle-class jobs with lower-wage, casual workers should not be the corporate standard, and it is not keeping with your company's history of nourishing families 'so they can flourish and thrive'.

"Kellogg's workers work hard. They deserve nothing less than fair pay, benefits, and full-time hours for their work. We sincerely hope that you will end this lockout and let your employees return to where they want to be: at work. We look forward to your response," conclude the Senators.

 More than 220 workers have been locked out of their jobs at Kellogg's Memphis, Tenn. cereal plant since October 22, 2013. The workers, members of Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union Local 252G, who make Frosted Flakes®, Froot Loops® and other breakfast favorites were locked out as part of the drive by the company to replace steady, middle-class, full-time jobs with casual part-time employees who would make significantly lower wages and substandard benefits.

The BCTGM represents more than 4,000 Kellogg employees throughout North America. The BCTGM also represents thousands more workers in the cereal industry at such companies as General Mills, Quaker Oats, and Ralcorp amongst others.

To read the full text of the Senator's letter, please visit the BCTGM International Union's website, www.bctgm.org.

SOURCE Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union