Walter Einenkel on Daily Kos reports on the tactics of the owners of Nabisco…
While record numbers of families struggled through lockdowns and steep unemployment, the wealthiest individuals and companies have enjoyed record profits during the global coronavirus pandemic. One such example is Nabisco’s parent company, Mondelēz International. Fortune says that Mondelēz International pulls in more than $3.5b in profits every year. The Guardian reports that in the second quarter of this year, Mondelēz reported “more than $5.5bn in profits and spent $1.5bn on stock buybacks in the first half of 2021.” Belgian businessman Dirk van de Put made just under $17 million as CEO of the confectionery, food, beverage, and snack company.
The median annual pay for a Mondelēz International employee? Just $31,000.
At the beginning of August, around 200 Nabisco bakery union workers in Portland staged a walkout. Three weeks into the strike, union workers have joined them in Colorado, Virginia, and Chicago, Illinois—the latter is where Mondelēz International is headquartered. The striking workers are represented by the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers, and Grain Millers (BCTGM). Cameron Taylor, a business agent for Local 354, told Oregon Live that the strike results from workers’ dissatisfaction with ongoing contract negotiations with the company. “This company made record profits throughout the pandemic, and then they come to the table and they want concessions. It’s absolutely a slap in the face.” In total, the strike is reportedly representing more than 1,000 Nabisco workers across the country.
Sounds like the folks who own Oreos didn’t get the memo that screwing over workers isn’t as acceptable as it used to be.
I think I’ll be skipping the Oreos fix for a while….
