Standing outside of the Lord Plant in Erie on Thursday, August 6th, IAM Local 1968 President Harry Ross explained why worksite leafleting is an effective way for him to let his members know that John McCain and his anti-worker policies are bad for working people. “Worksite leafleting allows me to bring these important issues right to the workers. This way they get information that they know they can trust without much hassle.”
IAM Local 1968 includes 70 members employed by eight different plants in Erie and Crawford counties in Northwestern Pennsylvania, and about 150 retirees. Some shops have only one or two members, while other, larger shops, like the Lord Plant in Erie, where President Ross works, employ twenty members.
Despite his members being fairly spread out, President Ross has found ways to make sure every one of them receives important information about the candidates and the issues that matter most for working families this year. One of President Ross’s main strategies is to use his shop stewards. “I make sure that shop stewards are doing the same thing that I am: taking these leaflets into the plants and getting them to the workers. I make sure that the shop stewards understand the issues and then I have them spread the word to members in all of our plants. This way I reach as many people as possible and in the most effective way possible.”
President Ross believes that worksite leafleting is the most effect way of getting information to union members because “it requires one on one contact. The exchange between the person handing out the leaflets and the person receiving it is the best way to get information to sink in. It also can start a discussion. Now the member is thinking about these issues because another member asked them to and now they can ask important questions and get answers when otherwise they wouldn’t.”
“This election is the most important one of our life time. The middle class is hurting from the Bush Administration’s failed policies. We know that McCain will be more of the same. That is why it is so important that I make sure my members know about the issues and know that McCain will mean more of the same bad policies. We are going to turn America around this election. We have to turn America around.”
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