labor delegation press release

November 8th, 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media contact:

Daniel Denvir, Coordinator (info@pcasc.net; 971-227-3527)
Northwest Union Delegation to Venezuela and Colombia Departs November 9th

Portland, Oregon (November 8th, 2006)–The Portland Central America Solidarity Committee (PCASC) sponsors a delegation of 8 Oregon and Washington union leaders and members to Venezuela and Colombia, this November 9-20th. The press is invited to meet the delegates at a send off breakfast on November 8th at 8am at the home of Steven Toff (4815 SE Caruthers St., Portland), Organizing Director for the Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers (AWPPW).

These union delegates will meet with workers, activists, government officials and opposition figures in Venezuela to determine how workers and the labor movement have faired since President Hugo Chavez was elected in 1998. Delegates will look into claims that poor Venezuelans have increased political power, along with unprecedented access to good healthcare and education. In Colombia, delegates will meet with workers and farmers and investigate the effects of U.S. military aid and a proposed bi-lateral free trade deal has on average Colombians. Colombia is the most dangerous place in the world to be a labor activist.

The delegation includes leadership and members of 7 unions, including the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Locals 4 and 8, the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 88, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 503, the Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers (AWPPW) and the Oregon Education Association (OEA). Daniel Bonham, a former carpenter, will be representing the Fair Contracting Foundation, of which he is the Director.