Blog
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Protest at Trader Joe's in Chelsea
Join UFCW Local 1500 in support of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ at a Protest in front of Trader Joe’s.
Farm workers picking tomatoes for Trader Joe's chain of supermarkets earn 40-50 cents for every 32-pound bucket of tomatoes they harvest—wages that have not risen since 1978. Grinding poverty leaves farm workers vulnerable to further exploitation from employers: since 1997, 1000 farm workers were held in modern day slavery-like conditions in the Florida fields where they work.
The Coalition of Immokalee Workers, a farm worker-led organization based in Immokalee, Florida has called for actions targeting Trader Joe's supermarkets. Workers demand that Trader Joe's sign onto an agreement (as many large corporations like Whole Foods and Subway already have) to support more humane standards in the fields, to pay a premium price for fairly produced tomatoes, and to buy only from growers who meet these higher standards.WHO: Community Farm Worker Alliance
WHAT: Protest outside of Trader Joe’s store
demanding that Trader Joe’s:-
- Sign on to an agreement to support more humane standards in the fields
- To pay a premium price for fairly produced tomatoes
- To buy only from growers who meet these higher standards
WHEN: August 19, 2010 at 6:00 PM
WHERE: Outside Trader Joe’s Store in Chelsea at
W 21st Street and 6th AveDon’t live in New York? Contact us if you'd like to organize a campaign in your area to help farmworkers! farmworkersolidarity@gmail.com • http://farmworkersolidarity.blogspot.com/
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Modern Day Slavery Museum Northeast Tour
Join UFCW Local 1500 in support of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers’ Modern Day Slavery Museum Northeast Tour
The Modern Day Slavery Museum is replica of a produce truck in which farm workers were locked and chained by their employers. The truck also reflects and documents the history of slavery in Florida agriculture.
Please come out and support this important and inspirational work.
- Monday August 2, 10 AM- 9 PM Cathedral of St. John the Divine 1047 Amsterdam Ave
- Tuesday August 3rd, 10 AM- 9 PM Judson Memorial Church, 55 Washington Square South
- Wednesday August, 10 AM- 9 PM Middle Collegiate Church 50 E 7th Street
For more information, visit http://www.ciw-online.org/museum/
RELATED LINKS
http://www.ciw-online.org/museum/ -
ROC NY Gender Discrimination Report
Report Further Reveals Systemic Gender Discrimination
As Wal-Mart faces the largest class-action sex discrimination case in U.S. history, a report by the New York City Restaurant Opportunity Center reveals pervasive gender discrimination in the New York City restaurant industry. A crowed of ROC NY members, elected officials, community members and labor representatives packed the La Palapa restaurant for the release of “Waiting on Equality: The Role and Impact of Gender in the New York City Restaurant Industry.” Just as the Wal-Mart class-action suit went from six employees to over one million, the shared experiences of restaurant workers collectively reveals institutional and systematic discrimination. “I did not realize there were so many women having similar experiences,” said Chantel George, member of the ROC NY.
“Although women account for 38.1% of the industry’s workforce, they are largely under represented in the highest paid positions,” according the report. ROC NY documented a “gender tax” in which women make 21.8% less than men in the same positions and with similar skill sets. Further inequality in the industry occurs based on position and type of establishment. While women are under represented in the industry and excluded from some positions, women of color are overly represented in the fast food industry. Pervasive instances of sexual harassment were another major finding of the report. “The thing I liked about it was that it was very social, because of the social aspect of the job there is a blurred line in terms of appropriate behavior,” said Michelle Dent ROC NY member who started working in the restaurant industry when she was 14 years old.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender workers experience similar systematic discrimination as women workers. Derek Williams joined ROC NY after the release of “Beyond the Kitchen Door,” ROC’s report on racial discrimination. He became part of the women’s committee and a gay and lesbian focus group. “Sexual harassment is very prevalent, there are no guidelines, people think they can automatically over step their boundaries,” said Williams. “To change discrimination against women you have to change the thinking of men,” Williams challenged men “to step up your game, to be more open minded to women’s issues.”
“The good news is that we have options,” Dent urged other restaurant workers to “have the strength to tell someone what you are experiencing.” If you are experiencing discrimination you can file a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Spencer Lewis, Director of the New York District EEOC explained that an individual can file a complaint and they also have the power to conduct an investigation without a charge by an individual. Organizations like ROC NY can help workers who are experiencing discrimination file a complaint. Rehka Eanni Rodriguez, Co-director ROC NY emphasized that the best way to improve conditions is to unite workers together to demand justice. “the power is with you,” she imparted.
“Waiting on Equality: The Role and Impact of Gender in the New York City Restaurant Industry,” provides employers and policy makers with recommendations to prevent discrimination in the restaurant industry. ROC NY works with high road employers like La Palapa who hosted the release. “Today what we try to provide is an open door policy…Respect peoples potential, hire from within, promote and mentor,” said Barbara Sibley, co-owner La Palapa. ROC NY urges restaurants to communicate and adopt clear policies, pay a living wage and provide benefits to employees as a means to create a work environment that is less conducive to for discrimination. The report recommends that policy makers enact legislation that would incetivize or mandate on going sexual harassment trainings, support job training programs, publicly support model employers, collective organizing and to initiate or further study to true cost of discrimination. Rosemonde Pierre-Louis Manhattan Deputy Borough President applauded the report, stating that, “what is most striking about this report is that what is described in this report can be applied to many industries.” The class action sexual discrimination case agianst Wal-Mart is just one example, hopefully the release of this report will lead to more workers demanding freedom from gender and racial discrimination in their work places.
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Building Blocks Project Newsletter: Volume 12
In this issue:
Two Bronx Stores to Receive FRESH Incentives: NYC's first two retail stores to receive FRESH incentives, nearly $12 Million...
Obama's $400 Million Push for a Healthier America: 400 Million reasons for a Healthier America & Michelle Obama's Let's Move campaign!
Plan for a Smaller Food Print: Overwhelmed with all the problems in our food system?
Creating an Economy of Innovation: New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn has been busy bringing programs and people together to create a job recovery plan for New York City, creating an economy of innovation...
Events: Trader Joe's Rally, South Bronx Fresh Food Retail Attraction Seminar, Left Forum Conference March 19th-21st Pace University NYC
Two Bronx Stores Receive FRESH IncentivesA Foodtown and a Western Beef, both located in the Bronx, are the first two companies to apply and receive FRESH incentivesThe New York City Industrial Development Agency (NYCIDA) has approved the first two tax incentive packages that will aid the development of two new supermarkets in the Bronx. This marks the first two supermarkets to receive incentives from the recently passed FRESH (Food Retail Expansion to Support Health) program. Let’s skip the politics in this one and get down to the core issues: Jobs and Access to Healthy Food, two of the primary reasons the FRESH program was created.
Though FRESH is still in its infancy stage, two ambitious companies in the Bronx are not missing out on what it has to offer. Western Beef, who operates non-union, and Foodtown, a union store. Foodtown will be receiving $3 million in real estate and tax benefits, while nearly $5.6 million in real estate and tax benefits were approved for Western Beef. You don’t need to be an economist to understand the advantages of utilizing the FRESH program. Foodtown is investing $3.7 million to build a new 11,000-square-foot supermarket in the Norwood section of the Bronx, to replace their old store which burned down in December 2009. Western Beef has proposed to invest $11.5 million to construct a new 35,000-square-foot supermarket with a 20,000-square-foot warehouse and an unbelievable 33,000-square-foot parking lot. The store will replace a smaller Western Beef nearby in the Tremont section of the Bronx.
What about jobs though? Both stores are vowing to retain the 90 existing jobs and creating 65 new ones. The FRESH program is enabling both companies to expand, improve their products, and operate more efficiently.What about food? Both stores will have full service fresh produce aisles available daily to customersFoodtown is planning to enter a long-term lease for the property, while Western Beef is beefing up their entire operation with the help of FRESH. Not only is Western Beef expanding their store by 10,000-square-feet, but the company is planning on opening new departments in the store such as a bakery, and full service deli. Western Beef is also going green; they are also pledging to install energy efficient equipment and HVAC systems, and to use energy efficient building materials to reduce energy consumption.
It seems to be a win-win for everyone; the community receives a store that is providing good jobs and fresh healthy food, while the company is receiving tax breaks and incentives. New York City Comptroller John C. Liu though, is not ready to give his stamp of approval without a rigorous investigation, an act he pledges to do every time the city hands out taxpayer money. “I take very seriously the job I’ve been given by the people of this city, and I intend to clearly examine our city’s finances, all the more critical in this tough economic period.” “In reviewing the past minutes and project financing for the items on today’s agenda, I can see significant potential for great community benefits and improvements. However, we are also committing a substantial amount of taxpayer resources to these projects – over $12 million today alone…It is therefore critical that my office gains a deeper understanding about the kinds of jobs taxpayers would be subsidizing, if costs per job are reasonable, whether all applicants have been treated fairly and whether all benefits being conferred are truly necessary. Until I have completed such an in-depth review of standards and processes for granting these kinds of benefits, I cannot cast a “Yes” vote.” We admire Comptroller Liu for expressing the desire to investigate and look over a project, which at its face value seems to be a no-brainer, too many times elected’s have approved finances at face-value, Comptroller Liu displayed much character with his “No.” vote.
To us, we’re really not sure why more supermarket operators aren’t utilizing the program. It’s an obvious win-win for the operator and the community. Maybe these first two are simply breaking the ice.
Obama’s $400 Million push for a Healthier America
The Obama Administration’s active push to encourage healthy lifestyles just took another step forward by releasing details on an over $400 million Healthy Food Financing Initiative
Last year Michelle Obama created a White House organic garden, encouraging Americans to become more self-sustainable by growing their own vegetables. This served as a catalyst for a national discussion on the health of children throughout America. Through the garden, she began a discussion with kids about proper nutrition and the role food plays in living a healthy life.
The Obama Administration’s active push to encourage healthy lifestyles just took another step forward by releasing details on an over $400 million Healthy Food Financing Initiative. The initiative aims at bringing grocery stores and other healthy food retailers to underserved urban and rural communities across America. Sound familiar? UFCW Local 1500’s Building Blocks campaign began this same initiative (on the local level) a little over two years ago right here in New York City. “The physical and emotional health of an entire generation and the economic health and security of our nation is at stake,” said Mrs. Obama. “This isn’t the kind of problem that can be solved overnight, but with everyone working together, it can be solved. So, let’s move.”
The $400 million initiative was created to promote a range of interventions that expand access to healthy & nutritious foods, including the development and equipping of grocery stores and retailers to sell healthy food throughout communities that lack options, these areas are known as “food deserts”. In order to help community activists and leaders identify food deserts in their area, the USDA launched a Food Environment Atlas online (www.ers.usda.gov/FoodAtlas/).
One of the primary reasons for the initiative are the plain facts, over the past three decades, childhood obesity rates in America have tripled, and today, nearly one in three children in America are overweight or obese. One third of all children born in 2000 or later will suffer from diabetes at some point in their lives; many others will face chronic obesity-related health problems like heart disease, high blood pressure, cancer, and asthma. A recent study put the health care costs of obesity-related diseases at $147 billion per year. A White House official also said “This epidemic also impacts the nation’s security, as obesity is now one of the most common disqualifiers for military service.”
Michelle Obama's “Let’s Move” campaign (http://letsmove.gov/) pledges ambitious goals to remove all 'Food Deserts' in America in seven years, and to fight childhood obesity at the same time. Let’s Move was designed to work with communities and identify the problems that are relative to them. A White House official said, “Let’s Move is comprehensive, collaborative, and community-oriented and will include strategies to address the various factors that lead to childhood obesity. It will foster collaboration among the leaders in government, medicine and science, business, education, athletics, community organizations and more. And it will take into account how life is really lived in communities across the country – encouraging, supporting and pursuing solutions that are tailored to children and families facing a wide range of challenges and life circumstances.” We’re ecstatic to hear about the Obama Administrations decision to tackle this growing problem occurring throughout the United States. For too long food has been overlooked in politics, which has led to where we’re at today, with national obesity rates tripling over the past thirty years, and more than half of adult New Yorkers being overweight or obese we’re overjoyed about the Federal Government addressing this problem.
Plan for a Smaller Food PrintThe connection between the food and climate change is that carbon emissions are produced at every step in the food system...Have you ever been overwhelmed with all of the problems with our current food system? Baffled by the thought of transforming our current food system into one that is sustainable? Does reversing climate change seem utterly insurmountable?
The “NYC Food and Climate Summit” organized by the Manhattan Borough President’s Office, Just Food and New York University, took us one step further in developing a plan to reduce carbon emissions by transforming our food system. The product of this summit is a report entitled, “Food NYC: A Blue Print for a Sustainable Food System.” According to the report our food system refers to "a continuum of activities, including farming, processing, storing, distributing, preparing and discarding food." The connection between food and climate change is that carbon emissions are produced at every step in the food system. Because our food system produces one third of green house emissions causing climate change, transforming our food system is a good place for us to start to develop a plan to reduce our food print. The ten-step plan outlined in the report recommends tangible policy changes that focus on building a vibrant local food economy.
Good jobs are a major part of the new food economy. Echoing the message of the Good Food Good Jobs Coalition, the report recommends that the City "require companies receiving City contracts or subsidies to pay a prevailing wage and provide health benefits for their workers.” The report also calls on the New York State Legislature to safeguard farmworkers' basic rights by passing the Farmworkers Fair Labor Practices Act.
Imagine going into a grocery store and picking up a product that has a calorie label, a carbon emissions label and a fair labor practices label. Better yet, imagine public policy that incorporates environmental concerns, fair labor practices and public health. Now that we have a plan all we need to do is make it a reality.
Download the full report at: http://www.mbpo.org
Creating an Economy of InnovationFor all of the New Yorkers that are out of work, Speaker Quinn is providing some solutions to create the jobs we need.New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn has been busy bringing programs and people together to create a job recovery plan for New York City. Her strategy is based on four principles; cultivate an economy of innovation, bolster small business, tax relief for small businesses and workforce education. In her 2010 State of the City Speech on February 18th, she laid out a set of programs, initiatives and legislation to address the challenges that high tech start-up’s face in New York City.
If we gave start-up companies the tools they need, New York City could be the center of innovation. Quinn announced developing New York City High-Tech Connect based on the San Diego Connect that helps start-up companies connect with resources like; talent, investors and a workspace. As well as a Municipal Entrepreneur Testing Service program that would alleviate some of the burdens that start-ups face in testing out new technologies by allowing City owned buildings to be used for testing out products. And to ensure financing, she is working on attracting companies like Citibank and New Grid Energy Solutions to invest in renewable energy.
So how do we keep existing jobs in New York City? According to Quinn small businesses are suffering from rules that “are enforced in a way that’s unfair and inconsistent.” A Business Owner’s Bill of Rights will be introduced requiring City inspectors to provide information to businesses before conducting an inspection. This year the City Council will be creating a “tax credit that will exempt mom and pop retailers from the City’s corporate tax” to alleviate some of the burdensome taxes they face.
In order to make sure that our workforce is prepared to fill these new positions we need to make sure that 1.6 million New Yorkers, Quinn declared “that are out of school and do not have a high school diploma” are able to take and pass the GED. In order to make taking the GED more accessible, the City will be launching a website where people can register to take the GED and find preparation courses and other materials that will help them pass the test.
For all of the New Yorkers that are out of work, Speaker Quinn is providing some solutions to create the jobs we need.
You can read the full speech at: http://council.nyc.gov/html/soc/main.shtml
EventsDownload the flyer: [pdf]
Facebook Event Page
Date: Thursday, March 18, 2010Time: 6:00pm - 7:00pmLocation: Trader Joe's on 14th St., Manhattan, NYCInfo:The Coalition of Immokalee Workers, a farmworker-led organization based in Immokalee, Florida has called for actions targeting Trader Joe's supermarkets. Farmworkers picking tomatoes for Trader Joe's earn 40-50 cents for every 32 pound bucket of tomatoes they harvest--wages that have not risen since 1978.
Grinding poverty leaves farmworkers vulnerable to further exploitation from employers. In the most extreme cases, forced labor. Since 1997, over 1,000 fruit and vegetable harvesters have escaped slavery rings, including both documented and undocumented workers as well as U.S. citizens in the agricultural fields of Florida (and the southeastern United States).
The Campaign for Fair Food aims to take a preventative approach by asking large corporations, like Trader Joe's, to leverage their high volume purchasing power to pay a premium price for tomatoes as well as sign a human rights agreement (like large corporations - Whole Foods and Subway have done) to agree to more humane standards in the fields, including a zero tolerance policy on forced labor, that is created and implemented by the workers themselves.
Just Harvest USA has informed Trader Joe's of these issues as well as identified stores carrying tomatoes from farms whose crew leaders were found guilty of slave labor in 2008. A year later, Trader Joe's has responded with silence and continue to boast about the sustainability of its food.
We ask them: Are poverty wages and modern-day slavery sustainable?!
NO! Meet with the CIW NOW!
Left Forum 2010 presents
THE CENTER CANNOT HOLD:
Rekindling the Radical Imagination
March 19-21
Pace University
One Pace Plaza
New York, NY 10038Each spring in New York City, Left Forum gathers intellectuals and activists from around the world to address the burning issues of our times. The theme for 2010 is "The Center Cannot Hold: Rekindling the Radical Imagination."
Register at http://leftforum.org/node/23
For more detailed info, please see Panels By Subject Area.
Questions? Please email Seth Adler, Conference Coordinator: seth@leftforum.orgThanks again!For any questions or comments please reply to this email.-The Building Blocks Team,Local 1500 is on Facebook, & Twitter, Friend Us, Follow Us! You can find all of our news on the 1500 Blog. -
Building Blocks Project Newsletter: Volume 11
Outer-Borough Supermarket Attraction Seminar
Brooklyn hosts first informational event on 'F.R.E.S.H.'
On January 14th, The Brooklyn Economic Development Corporation hosted the first informational event on the Food Retail Expansion to Support Health: “Supermarket Attraction Seminar: NYC Outer Boroughs.” The goal of the event was to bring together brokers, supermarket operators, developers and community activists. A panel presented incentives available through the F.R.E.S.H. as well as barriers to supermarket development in New York City. The panel and discussion focused primarily on what operators and developers need in order to open up or renovate new supermarkets in high need areas.
Success for a supermarket comes down to two critical factors: demographics and rents,” said panelist Patricia Brodhagen, vice president of public affairs for the Food Industry Alliance of NYS, a trade association. It was noted repeatedly by panelists and supermarket operators that Brooklyn has the population. High rents and low profit margins were the major barriers discussed.
The event was a success in terms of getting basic information out to operators, developers and brokers about the program and for community activists to learn more about what supermarket operators look for in a site. Unfortunately, “nothing was mentioned on the dialogue that needs to exist with communities on the need for good food and good jobs.” noted Samantha McLane, Bread for the World.
Please see the attached link to the Brooklyn Daily EagleSlides for Supermarket spaces - Fresh Neighborhood profiles - Supermarket Access in Brooklyn - Fresh Fact Sheet article highlighting the event. Click the following links to access that information.
In addition, for more information about whether or not your particular sites are eligible for any incentives discussed at the Supermarket Seminar please feel free to contact Katie Scallon at kscallon@nycedc.com
Two Bronx Supermarkets are the first stores to apply for F.R.E.S.H. financial incentives
Do to our united efforts to include community and good jobs standards in the F.R.E.S.H. program, stores applying for public financing are required to fill out a questionnaire that asks questions on community and labor standards. The first two stores to apply for financial incentives through the F.R.E.S.H. program are a Foodtown supermarket damaged by fire on 204th Street, and a Western Beef store and accompanying warehouse on Webster Avenue. The questionnaires will be posted on the fresh website nyc.gov/fresh on Thursday, a week before they will appear before a public hearing on Feb. 4th. The Foodtown on 204th street is unionized and the workers are represented by UFCW Local 342. According to an article published in the Supermarket News on January 12th, “in both projects, proposed assistance includes payments in lieu of city real property taxes, exemption from city and state mortgage recording taxes and exemption from city and state sales and use taxes.” The first public review hearing will take place on Feb. 4th 10am at 110 William Street, 4th Floor, New York, New York. This hearing is open to the public to give testimony and to come and learn about the stores.
If you would like to review project applications and cost benefit analyses before the date of the hearing, copies will be available on Friday Jan. 28th on the website of New York City Economic Development Corporation at www.nycedc.com or may call (212) 312-3598. If you would like to review the questionnaire copies will be available at nyc.gov/fresh.
If you are interested in giving testimony at the hearing please call (212) 312-3598
or mail New York City Industrial Development Agency Attn: Ms. Frances Tufano
110 William Street, 5th Floor New York, New York 10038
If you cannot make it to the hearing please send your testimony by Feb. 4th to the attention to New York City Industrial Development Agency Attn: Ms. Frances Tufano 110 William Street, 5th Floor New York, New York 10038
Supermarket News covered the story here.
New Report Charts Food Hardship in Every“Low-income areas across America that lack access to nutritious foods at affordable prices — the so-called “food deserts” — tend to be the same communities and neighborhoods that, even in better economic times, are also “job deserts” that lack sufficient living-wage employment.”District
- Joel Berg, Executive Director New York City Coalition Against Hunger
Joel Berg is executive director of the New York City Coalition Against Hunger. He is also the author of All You Can Eat: How Hungry Is America?by: Joel Berg
A new study by the D.C.-based Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) underscores the severe food hardship faced by Americans in this brutal economic climate. FRAC’s report compiles for the first time ever food hardship data in every one of the nation’s congressional districts and top 100 metropolitan areas.
In my home city of New York, the numbers are dismal. People in seven of the 13 congressional districts here faced severe food hardship in 2008-09. The 16th Congressional District in the South Bronx, where more than one in three residents could not afford enough food, had the highest rate of food hardship in the nation, and the 10th Congressional District in Central Brooklyn, where 30.8 percent faced food hardship, had sixth highest rate out of all the country’s 436 congressional districts. Considering that the city still has 56 billionaires, this is an appalling turn of events, which provides the latest wake-up call that all levels of government need to take immediate action to reverse the city’s growing hunger poverty, and inequality of wealth.
While key parts of the city face a particularly severe problem, I believe the most notable news from this data is just how widespread food hardship is in all corners of the city and nation. Even in the relatively least hungry congressional district in the city – Rep. Anthony Weiner’s district that has been traditionally thought of as a bedrock middle-class of neighborhoods in Brooklyn and Queens – more than one in 12 residents couldn’t afford enough food, a level likely higher than in the majority of industrialized Western nations of the world. Because America’s wages are now so low and our safety net so gutted, even the parts of New York City suffering the least are still in worse shape than most people in our competitor nations.
In the New York metropolitan region, including suburban Connecticut and New Jersey, 21.6 percent of households with children faced food hardship. The problem is so widespread that, even when you factor in some truly wealthy areas in Manhattan, Westchester, Long Island, and suburban Connecticut and New Jersey, more than one in five people in the metropolitan area couldn’t afford enough food. Statewide in New York, 17.4 percent of all state residents faced food hardship.
The new report only underscores the need for a Good Food, Good Jobs program that I proposed here in December. Low-income areas across America that lack access to nutritious foods at affordable prices — the so-called “food deserts” — tend to be the same communities and neighborhoods that, even in better economic times, are also “job deserts” that lack sufficient living-wage employment. A “Good Food, Good Jobs” initiative would be a good way to tackle our interrelated hunger, malnutrition, obesity, and poverty problems.
Download the report: Food Hardship: A Closer Look at Hunger - Data for the Nation, States, 100 MSAs, and Every Congressional District (pdf)
SCREENING of Food Inc.WEBINAR: Using Economic Development Funds to Create Incentives for Healthy RetailScreening of FOOD INC. is presnted by The Temple of Understanding and Mercy Corps’ Action Center to End World HungerWhen: Thursday, January 28, 2010Time: 6:30pm – 9:00pm
Where: Action Center to End World Hunger
6 River Terrace, Battery Park City, NYC
Tickets: $10 (All proceeds for this event will be shared between the Temple of Understanding and Mercy Corps’ Action Center to End World Hunger.)
Tickets can be purchased online from Brown Paper Tickets www.brownpapertickets.com/event/92006
Planning for Healthy Places and the Healthy Corner Stores Network invite you to join the upcoming webinar:
Using Economic Development Funds to Create Incentives for Healthy RetailTuesday, February 9, 2010, 12:30pm - 2:00pm, Pacific Time. Please note NEW start time.The speakers include:
Jennifer Stokes, Myrtle Ave Brooklyn Partnership, will provide an overview of the economic tools available to small store owners.
Richard Keit, San Jose Redevelopment Agency, will discuss how façade improvement programs can be deployed to improve bottom line for food retailers and increase food access for residents.
James Johnson Piett, Urbane Development, will offer recommendations for working with local government to match incentives to retailer needs.
Brianna Almaguer Sandoval, The Food Trust will present on the forms of technical assistance needed to prepare food retailers to take advantage of economic development incentives by sharing lessons learned from the PA Fresh Food Financing Initiative.
To join the call:
Planning for Healthy Places is now using WebEx, an online meeting program, for our TA Calls. Please register for this FREE webinar in advance at webex.com Registration typically takes under 5 minutes to complete. Login information will be included on the Webex confirmation email received after registration.
If you have not used WebEx before, please try logging in 15 minutes before the start of the presentation. If you have any trouble joining the conference or loading the WebEx software on your computer, please call WebEx Technical Support at 866-229-3239.
Topic: Using economic development funds to create incentives for healthy retail
Date: Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Time: 12:30-2:00 pm PST
Meeting Number: 576 667 835
Meeting Password: planning123
Thanks again!-The Building Blocks Team, -
Building Blocks Newsletter: Volume 09
Good Food & Good Jobs FRESH Update:
A re-FRESH-ing step in the right direction..
New York City is one step closer to food justice. On December 9th, the City Council passed the F.R.E.S.H. program into law. Thanks to Speaker Quinn, members of the Good Food Good Jobs Coalition, and to the activists, people of faith, labor organizations, elected officials, and urban planners who made this vote possible. F.R.E.S.H. (Food Retail Expansion to Support Health) will give zoning incentives and tax abatements to supermarkets that open in neighborhoods that need better food access (see http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/html/fresh/index.shtml).
The program aims to create stores that provide Good Food and Good Jobs. The F.R.E.S.H. program was developed through collaboration between the City Planning Department, the Economic Development Corporation, the Council and the Office of Speaker Quinn, and community groups. Because of the efforts of the Good Food Good Jobs Coalition, F.R.E.S.H. includes standards to guarantee that the program will truly empower communities.
Now that the program has passed, the Good Food Good Jobs coalition will be working to bring stores to neighborhoods that need them.
Please email good.food.good.jobs@gmail.com to join the movement to bring good food and good jobs to every New York City neighborhood.Thanks to everyone who contributed to the F.R.E.S.H. initiative!
NYC Food Politics: Putting the Fair in F.R.E.S.H.
"Unfortunately, while more and more chickens are cage free, many workers are still caged.” Bruce Both, President, United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Local 1500 – December 7, 2009.
By: Regina Weiss, EatWellGuide.org
Last May, when New York politicians announced zoning changes and tax incentives to address the huge problem of food access — or lack thereof — in many New York City neighborhoods, food advocates and community activists thought the plan could be improved. They quickly mobilized and today, the new, improved, Food Retail Expansion to Support Health (FRESH) bill is slated for passage by the New York City Council.
City officials estimate that the FRESH program will help build 15 new grocery stores and upgrade 10 existing stores over ten years, while creating 1,100 new jobs and retaining 400 more. The program’s financial incentives include real estate tax abatements, as well as tax exemptions on materials used to construct, renovate or equip grocery stores. These publicly financed benefits will be available to store owners in low-income neighborhoods throughout New York City that lack sufficient supermarkets.
Meanwhile, the city’s zoning law will be revised to allow residential developers to build slightly bigger buildings if they include space for a neighborhood grocer on the ground floor. These zoning incentives will be available in four New York City neighborhoods: the South Bronx, Upper Manhattan, Central Brooklyn and Downtown Jamaica, Queens. Additional zoning changes will make it easier for grocery stores to be built in light manufacturing districts, where, until now, they were required to obtain a special permit. The new zoning will also reduce the cost of developing grocery stores by reducing the parking that a store is required to build when locating on pedestrian streets.
All of this sounds pretty good, right? Still, members of the Good Food, Good Jobs Coalition, made up of dozens of labor and community organizations, knew it could be better. They lobbied tirelessly over the past six months to insert the concerns of workers and working class New Yorkers into the final legislation that is expected to pass today.
The coalition focused their efforts on three key points:
- Making sure that stores that receive FRESH incentives are affordable to low income New Yorkers;
- Giving the community in which stores want to locate a say in considering whether to grant applications for the zoning incentives; and
- Pressuring stores that receive FRESH benefits to provide jobs with fair wages and benefits.
While they didn’t get everything they wanted, thanks to the coalition’s hard work, the final FRESH legislation includes standards designed to make stores that benefit from the program more accountable to the communities they serve:
- All stores that are built or upgraded under the FRESH program will be required to apply to the EBT (Food Stamps) and WIC (the Women, Infant and Children) supplemental nutrition programs to accept these forms of payment.
- To guard against exploitative labor practices, stores will be required to answer questions about their relations with employees before receiving financial subsidies, with the answers posted online so that community and labor watchdogs can effectively weigh in on those decisions, before program applicants are approved or rejected by the city’s Industrial Development Agency.
- Stores that want to take advantage of the zoning incentives will be required to first meet with the local community board, with the board submitting recommendations to the City Planning Department before approval.
On Monday, the coalition hosted a standing-room-only meeting to celebrate their success in having these standards written into the final bill.
With perhaps 500 people attending, Bruce Both, president of United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Local 1500, which represents 23,000 New Yorkers, said “Unless we bring in the concerns of working class people we will not be able to pursue the sustainable food movement in any meaningful way.” Noting the importance of closely scrutinizing business practices, he added, “Even if a store sells fair trade coffee, does that mean it’s fair to its workers? Businesses that stand to benefit from public subsidies should be held accountable to the public.” Sustainable chef and food advocate Dan Barber agreed, telling the crowd, “It is time for this movement to broaden its base.” He also made a pitch for home cooking, noting how much of the environmental damage caused by food comes from processing and packaging. “None of the issues related to sustainable food will be solved if people don’t cook,” Barber said.
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn ending the meeting by announcing “Food Works New York,” a six month planning initiative to comprehensively link jobs, health, and environmental issues with food for New York City and the surrounding region.
Using the example of romaine lettuce, Quinn noted that, while the city Education Department now buys a huge quantity of lettuce for school salad bars, every bit of it comes from California or Maryland. “New York City is the largest institutional buyer of food outside aside from the military,” Quinn said. “Right now we have identified famers in Rockland County [which is just 12 miles northwest of the city] who would love to supply New York City’s schools with lettuce, but they can’t. Why not? Because we don’t have a wash and bag facility in any of the five boroughs – something that we could build to create jobs and support our local economy. We talk a lot in New York City about getting food to poor people, which is a good thing. Let’s also use food to get people jobs, so that they can afford to feed their families.”
Well, one thing’s for sure. While Quinn and the city council pursue Food Works New York, members of the Good Jobs Good Food coalition will be right there, looking over their shoulders, keeping them on the right track.
Regina Weiss authors "The Green Fork" a Good Food Feed, the blog from EatWellGuide.org. To view the entire piece follow this link.
FoodWorks New York has been covered by Supermarket News , The NY Times, ABC, The Gothamist, Crain's, NY1, & WNYC,
Amish Market... The community deserves better...
United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1500 is launching a city-wide, multi-media ad campaign urging New Yorkers to avoid shopping at Amish Market as a part of its ongoing effort to call attention to mistreatment of grocery workers.
The campaign – which includes outdoor, mail, online, and transit components – focuses on Amish Market’s theft of more than $1 million in wages from its employees, a transgression brought to the attention of state officials by UFCW Local 1500 in 2007.
“New Yorkers need to know that stores like Amish Market don’t deserve our support,” said Pat Purcell, Director of Special Projects at UFCW Local 1500. “If you want to do business in New York’s neighborhoods, you have to meet New York’s standards. Stealing more than a million dollars from working people doesn’t come close.”
The print components of the campaign are mirrored on major New York blogs (including Gothamist, CityRag, SeriousEats and MidtownLunch), where ads encourage readers to visit NothingFineAboutIt.org. The site documents a number of abuses committed by Amish Market; New Yorkers can also send a letter to the company announcing their intentions to shop elsewhere.
Campaign creatives can be viewed here:
http://www.ufcw.org/images/amishkioskscreen.jpg
http://www.ufcw.org/images/amishmailerscreen.jpg
http://www.ufcw.org/images/ufcw-pickp-vert-150x6002_120409_135744.gifPress inquiries should be directed to Corey Owens, cowens@ufcw.org, 202-905-2179.
If you'd like to volunteer send us an email.
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FoodWorks New York, & the FRESH Celebration
On Monday, Local 1500 co-sponsored an event at the New School regarding the expected passage of F.R.E.S.H. (Food Retail Expansion to Support Health). Local 1500 President Bruce Both spoke at the event, along with New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (you can read her speech here, or watch it here).“Unfortunately, while more and more chickens are cage free, many workers are still caged.” Bruce Both, President, United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Local 1500 –
Bluntly opening her speech, Quinn noted some oversight by the council, "Suppose I told you that New York City had the opportunity to create thousands of new jobs – but we just weren’t doing it... Now suppose I went on to say that we’ve actually had that opportunity for years, we just weren’t paying close enough attention..." Her honest point came across clear, New York City (and NY State) has ignored the economic potential and the amount of impact a certain sector can have on one's health for what seems like forever. The sector is of course New York City's Food System. The facts are all there, as Peggy Shepard from WE ACT pointed out, "The recession leaves us unemployed, obese and diabetic, not only because of individual decisions, but because our environment works against our own being." The abundance of fast-food stores throughout the Bronx and Harlem strikes anyone who walks through those neighborhoods. KFC, Burger King, McDonalds, Popeyes and a bodgea, these are the options our youth is left with. More than half of New York City adults are overweight, and 34% are obese, 58% are either obese or overweight. In the past 10 years, the number of people with diabetes in NYC has more than doubled. An estimated 530,000 adult New Yorkers know they have diabetes. For every two people who have diabetes, there is another person who has it and doesn't yet know it, suggesting another 265,000 New Yorkers with diabetes. (NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene)
"What they came up with was the first of its kind in the nation – the use of both zoning and tax incentives to bring more grocery stores to underserved communities. And we should all be incredibly proud and excited that the FRESH zoning initiatives are about to be passed by the full City Council this week." - Christine Quinn, Speaker, New York City Council.
In what seemed like a too good to be true event, Christine Quinn outlined a well informed five point plan called FoodWorks New York. Covering everything from manufacturing and transportation to the health of our communities, the broad Good Food, Good Jobs coalition has clearly taken much into consideration regarding the potential of the Food System for New York City by Quinn's blunt admissions on prior oversights, "But the truth is, each step in the food cycle – from the farm all the way to the table – has a major impact on the lives of every New Yorker. And each step has the potential to create jobs, to improve public health, and to preserve our shared environment. Or – if we continue to ignore those opportunities – the potential to cost us jobs, increase obesity, and pollute our air."
Quinn's FoodWorks NY:
1. Improving City's Food Infrastructure. Saying, "Too much of that infrastructure is outdated and inefficient, which costs us jobs and damages our environment. That’s why we need to begin making key, targeted investments – creating better links between the city and upstate producers, and supporting a smarter redevelopment of Hunts Point"
2. Creating new and better jobs in the food industry. Stressed the need to create better jobs in the Food Industry, "We talk a lot about getting people food, so they can feed their families. Now let’s use food to get people jobs, so they can afford to feed their families."3. Keep local food dollars in the local economy - Outlined that 2% of fruits and vegetables coming from Hunts Point come from New York State.
4. Reduce diet related illnesses like obesity, heart disease, diabetes. Bring healthier food to low income areas who lack access.
5. Reduce environmental damage from the consumption, transport and production of food. Stressed the need to cut out needless transportation of food from other states that is produced here in NY State. Cut greenhouse gases by using more rail transportation rather than truck.United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 1500 has been on the forefront advocating for the development of a City-wide food policy. Working with the Mayor, Speaker and Department of City Planning, UFCW Local 1500 and a coalition of community groups have spent almost two years developing F.R.E.S.H and targeting the City’s food deserts for supermarket growth.
Through our innovative Building Blocks Project, we believe that Good Food, Good Jobs and Good Health are the building blocks of all communities and that New York City's economy benefits when communities are built on this foundation. FoodWorks New York has been covered by Supermarket News & The NY Times.
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Celebrate improvements to F.R.E.S.H.
The Good Food, Good Jobs Coalition
invites you to a
Receptionto celebrate exciting progress toward a more just
and sustainable food system for all New Yorkers.
Come hear about new developments in the city’s Food Retail
Expansion to Support Health (FRESH) program to bring
good food and good jobs to communities. Also, hear about
efforts to build on this initiative to make our food system healthy.Monday, December 7, 2009
9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
Wollman hall, The New School
65 West 11th street
Speakers:
Christine C. Quinn, Speaker, New York City CouncilDan Barber, Owner, Blue Hill Restaurant
Bruce Both, President, UFCW Local 1500
Peggy M. Shepard, Executive Director and founder,
We Act for Environmental Justice
Invocation by Lisa Sharon-Harper, Co-Founder & Executive Director,
NY Faith & Justice
Welcoming by Nevin Cohen, Assistant Professor, Urban Studies, The New School
Music and Spoken word performances by: Chantilly Mers and Chris Muller
Light refreshments will be served. This event is free and open to the public.To RSVP please call 1.800.522.0456, ext. 274or email goodfoodgoodjobs@gmail.com
Sponsored by: The New School, United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1500, Families United for Racial and Economic Equality, New York Jobs with Justice, New York Faith and Justice, New York City Coalition Against Hunger and We Act for Environmental Justice. -
URGENT: Don't Let FRESH Turn Foul
The New York City Council is voting on the Food Retail Expansion to Support Health in the coming month. FRESH is a good effort to respond to the needs of many neighborhoods underserved by grocery stores, but FRESH still needs jobs standards!
Because of our united efforts, F.R.E.S.H. has already been improved. The program now includes two of our key recommendations.
- F.R.E.S.H. now includes provisions for community involvement in the program.
- F.R.E.S.H. participants must apply for the EBT and WIC programs.
Unfortunately, FRESH may go foul—unless it includes jobs standards. YOU can make a difference in 5 minutes. Write a letter or make a phone call!
1) Write a letter to City Council Speaker Christine Quinn
2) Call Speaker Christine Quinn
Thanks for your help! The united voices of community groups, labor organizations, hunger advocates, and people of faith are helping to shape the F.R.E.S.H. program to guarantee that it will empower communities. Don’t let F.R.E.S.H. turn foul!
The Good Food, Good Jobs coalition is made up of NY Faith & Justice, NY Jobs with Justice, United Food & Commercial Workers Local 1500, NYC Coalition against Hunger, Families United For Racial & Economic Equality (FUREE), and WE ACT for Environmental Justice. Thirty-two organizations have endorsed the call for jobs standards, as well as 3 borough presidents and a majority of the community boards that will be affected by F.R.E.S.H.
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The Time Is Ripe for Standards in FRESH
Thanks to everyone for your support as we work together to make sure the FRESH program doesn’t go rotten. We still have a lot more work to do before City Council votes on FRESH. But because of our united efforts, the City Planning Commission has already included one of our key recommendations in the program.
As the Commission voted on Wednesday morning, our community coalition rallied outside the Planning office, wearing fruit costumes and passing out fliers. Our message was clear: we can’t let FRESH turn foul. FRESH needs to include standards that guarantee taxpayer dollars and zoning incentives will not exacerbate poverty and cause gentrification.
The Commission voted unanimously in support of the FRESH program. Our voices convinced the Commission to include provisions for community involvement in the program. (Now, Community Boards will have to weigh in before a store receives zoning benefits.) By listening to the ideas of our coalition, the Commission has taken a step toward ensuring that FRESH will empower communities.
Even though the Commission only accommodated our coalition on one issue, now FRESH is heading to a vote at the New York City Council. The Council is our next opportunity to improve FRESH, so we’re gearing up to take our message to Council Members: FRESH will go foul unless the program includes good food and good jobs standards.
Taxpayer dollars shouldn’t go to unscrupulous companies that gouge customers and exploit workers. Planning efforts should discourage gentrification, not cause it.
We’re counting on all of our partners to pitch in as we move forward with editorial campaigns, rallies, and lobby days, so that every Council member will join our call for good food and good jobs.
A special thanks for your efforts so far:
- The six organizations leading the coalition: Families United for Racial & Economic Equality, We ACT, Jobs with Justice, United Food & Commercial Workers Local 1500, New York City Coalition Against Hunger, and New York Faith & Justice.
- The thirty-two community organizations that have endorsed our proposed standards:
- The three Borough Presidents (Marty Markowitz-BK, Helen Marshall-Q, Scott Stringer-M) who have joined the call for standards.
- A majority of the community boards that FRESH will affect, and the Bronx Borough Board, who have all passed resolutions saying that FRESH needs standards.
This is movement of workers, people of faith, food pantries, environmental justice organizations and environmentalists, farmers, health advocates, academics, lawyers, community organizers, workers and community members, everyday New Yorkers, and elected officials.
This is a movement of people who know the difference between a living-wage and a minimum-wage—the difference between prosperity and poverty, between respect and exploitation, between affording healthy food or getting sick on cheap fast food. Thanks to all of you, and keep up the good work.
