By Don McIntosh
On the morning of Jan. 11, two dozen workers at an industrial bakery on Northeast 172nd Place in Gresham did something they’d never done: They marched to the company president’s office to let him know they and their co-workers intend to unionize.
The company — Portland Specialty Baking — is a privately-held contract bakery with about 180 production workers. Almost none About one in six are paid more than $11 an hour, and most are within a dollar of Oregon’s $9.25-an-hour minimum wage. It’s a diverse workforce, with as many as 10 languages spoken.
The union campaign has been under way for about a year, with staff support from the national AFL-CIO. If the campaign proves successful, workers will become members of Bakers Local 114, which represents workers at other industrial bakeries in the area. At Franz, Safeway, Bimbo/Oroweat, and Kroger, union workers earn $22.75 an hour plus benefits for similar work. Portland Specialty Baking makes pretzels, cakes, bagels, muffins, and other products under contract for Starbucks, Franz, Safeway, Costco, Winco and other companies.
Visiting their boss, workers had back-up: Oregon AFL-CIO President Tom Chamberlain, State Rep. Chris Gorsek (D-Gresham), and Local 114 Secretary Treasurer Terry Lansing.
Company president Josh Richardson listened respectfully as they and half a dozen workers explained why they’d come: To ask the company to voluntarily recognize the union. If it doesn’t, the National Labor Relations Board will conduct an election.
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