Ultimately, Nichiha workers’ unity and determination made this win possible. It’s a milestone that will shape a better future for them and their families, and it’s the beginning of positive changes ahead.
Organizer Carlos Brooks talks to a Nichiha worker at the facility gate.
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This past July, workers at Nichiha in Macon, Georgia, voted in favor of unionizing with the Boilermakers union. More than 250 workers turned out for the vote, with 55% voting “yes” for the union. Nichiha manufactures fiber cement siding panels that are primarily used in residential construction.
Southeast Area Organizer Carlos Brooks led organizing efforts, which began several months prior. Among his organizing tactics, he used texting and social media campaigns, as well as flyers and other visual material. Most important, Brooks and others maintained a Boilermaker presence at the Nichiha facility to talk with workers and answer questions.
“This was a highly vocal campaign,” Brooks said. “I spent significant time at the gates and responding to employees’ concerns via text messages.”
He said that throughout the campaign workers raised serious concerns about their work environment, including promised raises that were never delivered, unsafe and extremely hot working conditions, unfair promotion practices and more. Nichiha’s attempts to discredit the Boilermakers union failed.
“The success of this campaign was led by Brother Brooks and assisted by Erica Stewart (Diversity Organizer and Recruiting Coordinator, M.O.R.E. WIF),” said Don Hamric, Executive Director-ISO/Director of Research and Collective Bargaining. “They used their years of experience as union leaders to listen to the employees’ grievances and offered suggestions on how to combat those grievances.”
Several Boilermakers from Brooks’ home local L-D23 (Clinchfield, Georgia) also assisted with the campaign: retiree Milton Taylor, secretary-treasurer Edwin Allen, Jr. and trustee chairman Riccardo Askew.
“Ultimately, Nichiha workers’ unity and determination made this win possible,” Brooks said. “It’s a milestone that will shape a better future for them and their families, and it’s the beginning of positive changes ahead.”
The Nichiha win came on the heels of another victory Brooks led organizing Sherwin-Williams in Birmingham, Alabama, a campaign he began simultaneously with the Nichiha campaign. The M.O.R.E. Work Investment Fund has supported these organizing efforts.
“I’m excited about the future of our union and the futures of these workers who are joining us as Boilermaker brothers and sisters,” Brooks said. “This organizing work makes me proud to be a union Boilermaker. These are more hardworking Americans who will have the voice on the job they deserve.”
