Thursday, June 21st, 2007...5:13 pm
Hey, It’s Hot Out, I’m Sure They Were Just Trying to Cool Them Off
Growing up, I’d see protests against dictators in Poland, South Africa, Chile or wherever, and the response by those in charge was always the same: call out the water canons and show ‘em who’s boss. It was even George Wallace’s and Ross Barnetts’s weapon against civil rights protestors in our country back in the 1960’s.
It appears that Pulte Homes is picking up pointers from Bull Connor and Wojciech Jaruzelski: when there are protestors out, they call out the guanacos. Hey fellas, you missed the dogs and truncheons.
This incident occurred when Pulte was trying to stop a protest by workers at a site in Florence. Witnesses report that supervisory personel watched and laughed at the incident. The AFL-CIO will be unveiling this video at a press conference at the capitol tommorrow, but it has already been uploaded to YouTube:
Harry Wheeler would be so proud.
18 Comments
June 21st, 2007 at 5:31 pm
What was the gist of the protest itself? What were these union members protesting?
I am also curious about this because of the issue of who in America hires the most undocumented laborers. This tends to be home builders and also agriculture (among many other fields).
I can’t accuse Pulte of hiring undocumented labor, of course, but whether they do or do not, this video brings more attention to them then they would need.
June 21st, 2007 at 5:59 pm
The reason for the protest is the workers were fired from companies that Pulte subcontracts with. The reason they were fired was for speaking up about unfair working conditions. The workers do not recieve enough water to properly hydrate thoughout the day. The workers are required to give up their lunch and breaks in order to complete a job. The companies do not follow all safety regulations and the list goes on and on. You know many people will try and turn this into an immigration fight- the fight is against unfair working conditions and treating WORKERS with dignity and respect. THese workers were want to be treated humainly- hosing down workers with water trucks is not my idea of humain treatment. These workers are standing up to demand justice and I hope you will stand with them and tell Pulte, “Shame on YOU!”
June 21st, 2007 at 7:35 pm
Dana explained most of it. Add the fact that the AFL-CIO announced in April that they would be organizing Pulte and Pulte-subcontracted workers in Arizona and Nevada because Pulte is, as the union put it ‘the Wal-Mart of the construction industry,’ with regular workplace violations of even basic rights and that the sort of thing that Dana describes has been the norm at Pulte for years now.
June 21st, 2007 at 7:37 pm
Pulte also announced on May 28 that it is cutting its workforce by 1,900 jobs nationwide (including hundreds in Arizona) because of the housing slowdown. However, this cut in its regular workforce makes it clear that it sees subcontractors as its future.
June 21st, 2007 at 9:57 pm
but guys– don’t you know if you don’t like the business practices of pulte, you just shouldn’t buy from anyone they work with and then the market will sort it all out?
June 22nd, 2007 at 1:24 am
thanks for the background and additional information Dana and Eli. Much appreciated. I found the subcontractor labor issue quite interesting.
One of the reasons that I found the video quite shocking and telling was that at the beginning it appeared that the “gentleman” was “warning” the guy that he was going to be calling the cops and essentially “warning” that this would be problematic if they were illegal. Am I wrong or did I just read this in?
June 22nd, 2007 at 1:32 am
Let me ask one more thing for those that may know. The use of subcontracting obviously allows them to profit from various worker crews that, as Dana put very well, can be easily exploited and harder to unionize.
I swear I am asking this because I am curious and not some anti-immigration hawk. But does the subcontractor issue allow companies to more easily hire undocumented labor without taking on the legal burden of having done so? Example, if ICE raided a large homebuilding site being put up by “mega-housing Inc” and found undocumented workers….would it be the subcontractor that is held legally liable or “mega-housing, Inc.”
I ask this because I often make the argument that Southern Arizona’s growth has been housing and real estate and I also remember a story in the Star that estimated 8000 undocumented laborers in S. Arizona in the homebuilding industry. I have been thinking for a long time about how this happens and of course what tighter border restrictions would do to our economy.
Again, not trying to politicize the video which speaks for itself in just plain how disgusting it is.
June 22nd, 2007 at 5:02 am
Kral:
Of course you’re right. Visit any home construction site and you’ll find it’s a primary magnet for undocumented immigrants. They start out doing grunt work and develop marketable skills, and frequently become highly skilled craftsmen. In many ways they’re following a traditional pathway to the American middle class.
The No-Nothings, of course, point to this as the “immigration problem.” Yeah, well, my dad was a construction worker, and so were two of my brothers. I guess it’s the pathway my family followed – only it was a lot easier to endure an uncomfortable passage through Ellis Island than it is to trek across the Sonoran Desert in the middle of the summer.
As for Pulte, I once had the misfortune of owning a home built by Pulte. It was the lousiest house I ever owned. I would never knowingly buy another Pulte home – ever.
June 22nd, 2007 at 8:59 am
I wouold expect to see this story on both regional and national TV newscasts — it’s great footage.
June 22nd, 2007 at 8:59 am
I would expect to see this story on both regional and national TV newscasts — it’s great footage.
June 22nd, 2007 at 10:23 am
Randall: Check KPNX-TV in Phoenix (http://www.azcentral.com/12news/news/articles/pulteprotestors0621.html)
Apparently Pulte’s flak sez it was a “doctored” tape by union goons. Yeah, that’s the ticket. Union goons….
June 22nd, 2007 at 9:28 pm
This is not doctored, it is condensed. We had over 2 hours of video. It is standard practice for us to take a video at all pickets. This was all amature vidoe and Pulte is not taking responisbility. This made univison national and CNN is interested. Pulte hosed the workers and subcontractors hosed the workers. This happened 16 times it is not an accident it is on purpose. We have Pulte supervisors talking to the trucks prior to the water trucks soaking the workers. The reports that the workers were paid to protest is not true. A correction was made by AP today. The workers are on strike and paid by a strike fund. This is an outrage! We will continue to release more video. Stay tuned!
June 23rd, 2007 at 6:58 pm
Look the 2 trucks that spray the water. Both do not belong to pulte homes…AFLCIO paid them to do this just for this video, it’s a set up to extort Pulte Homes. Think about who would cover or evan see a protest in the middle of some nomame houseing project in the midle of no were Arizona? Why not call the police and report this to Sherif Joe…Then some people who would be taking a quick trip back to mexico. Why not call the news crews? No, lets post it on YouTube.
If any thing. You do not like the JOB then quit and get another job some place else? Your looking at a Union trying to get it’s way with false propaganda.
Last how dumb are Mexicans? Why not just get out of the way? It’s not like you could not see the thing driving down the street and the spray was only 12 or so feet, move up the drive way and out of the way. I sure as hell would. I think the entire videos was done as a joke on the term wetbacks.
June 23rd, 2007 at 9:27 pm
“AFLCIO paid them to do this just for this video …”
Any proof of this, or you just talking out your ass, VictorT?
June 23rd, 2007 at 11:21 pm
In addition to his racism and lack of good grammar…Victor has trouble with geography. How the heck would they call Sheriff Joe when they are in Pinal County?
June 24th, 2007 at 10:47 am
Although Victor is alittle dense to understand, the police were called and a action is pending against Pulte homes and the drivers of these vehicles. The video reinforces how workers are treated in this state and we need to run on the ballot repeal of the right to work laws in Arizona.
Right to work laws suppress wages, let employers deny healthcare to their employees and has caused the current healthcare crisis we are experiencing in Arizona where people can literally die in a ER waiting room.
Unfortunately, people like victor who are full of hate, for reasons only know to them or maybe to the analyst they need to visit, but workers in Arizona know the truth, and overwelmingly agree the right to work law needs to go!
June 25th, 2007 at 8:47 am
The proper response from Pulte: Terminate the individual who ordered the water trucks to do this, and cancel any and all contracts with the company that owns these trucks.
The proper response from the general public: Boycott Pulte. Refuse to buy a home from them, there are plenty of other quality builders out there, as well as a large number of homes for resale, for Pulte to do this in a buyer’s market is assinine.
What is doubly dumb about all this, including the comment above about “getting out of the way” is that of all things to do, that may have brought a little bit of relief from the heat, and allowed these workers to protest longer.
Pulte’s response is disgusting.
June 25th, 2007 at 8:48 am
One” correction to my comments: “for Pulte to do this in a buyer’s market is assinine”, I have to admit that even in a sellers market it would be assinine….just doing something like this qualifies as assinine.