The IAM Union has filed suit to protect the rights of approximately 320 striking IAM Local I460 members to peacefully assemble outside a Perryville, Md. IKEA distribution center.
The suit alleges that the town’s police department, joined by town officials, issued an unconstitutional order prohibiting IAM members from intermittently crossing a public road, effectively the entrance of the plant, as part of their picketing. The IAM is seeking an injunction in U.S. District Court to allow the picketing, citing the National Labor Relations Act’s protection of concerted activity, a First Amendment right to peacefully assemble, and the right to free speech under the Maryland Declaration of Rights.
The police department’s order was a reversal from a police lieutenant who had given permission for striking workers to cross the state road as part of their picketing. Following the reversal, the police department arrested an IAM leader for stating that he would continue to intermittently and lawfully cross the state road and charged him with disorderly conduct. The IAM filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board over the incident.
“The IAM will never waver in defending the federally protected rights of our Local I460 members at IKEA,” said IAM Eastern Territory General Vice President David Sullivan. “In the IAM and in this great nation, we hold dear our rights to make our voices heard and fight for fairness. We will stand with our membership at IKEA every step of the way.”
IAM Local I460 members at the facility began their strike on Nov. 15 after rejecting a contract that would have stripped hard-fought seniority rights and failed to keep pace with cost-of-living increases. Community members have continued to show support, including U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, who urged the company to negotiate in good faith.
“The right to peacefully assemble and fight for a better life is critical to all working people,” said IAM International President Brian Bryant. “IAM Local I460 members are fighting for not just themselves, their families and their communities, but for every worker who relies on the right to stand up for dignity and justice on the job.”
The IAM Union, formally known as the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, is one of North America’s largest and most diverse industrial trade unions, representing approximately 600,000 active and retired members in the aerospace, defense, airlines, railroad, transit, healthcare, automotive, and other industries.
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