LIUNA Local 3 members joined dozens of former Euro Concrete employees at a Jersey City rally organized in light of a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) complaint alleging union busting tactics.
By Daniel Ulloa/Hudson County View
The construction business is owned by former Jersey City Construction Board of Appeals Chair Kuldeep “Sunny” Kumar. The board was dissolved after a unanimous vote (9-0) by the city council in September, as HCV first reported.
At the protest, Christian Gomez explained in Spanish that he was among those who were fired after they complained about the poor working conditions and the pay.
“We’re here to say the fight is not over,” he said in Spanish, noting he still wants to support the workers still at Euro Concrete.
“We’re making the company know they can’t keep treating their workers poorly,” Vincente Simbana added in Spanish, calling the working conditions “dangerous.”
“We’re winning because they’re hearing our voices! Workers have rights. Workers have dignity and we won’t let them continue to abuse us. We are united and we are strong. We’re going forward with this fight and we’re not going to stop: Si se puede (Yes we can)!”
Then, Vito Speziale pretended to be Kumar and mockingly confessed and apologized in a sort of impromptu skit as the crowd booed him loudly.
Speziale, still speaking as if he was Kumar, said his agent threatened to fire workers for supporting the union.
“You suck Sunny!” someone in the crowd yelled.
“Shame shame!” the crowd chanted.
“On May 21, 2024, I called the police to silence a peaceful labor action to suppress their right to protest and to silence workers voices,” Speziale, still role playing as Kumar, stated.
“When our workers organized, we punished them. We fired them one by one. Driven not by business but by vengeance. In my greed, I let workers be underpaid and their overtime stolen. To discourage future union activity, we brought on new workers,” Speziale said to boos and more calls of shame.
He concluded by saying that he was sorry they got caught and that he was going to back to exploiting workers.
“The union is only as strong as all the workers coming together,” LIUNA Organizing Director Dave Johnson declared, exclaiming that they wanted to organize more workers and help them.
“The National Labor Relations Board issued a complaint against Euro for unfair labor practices during this organizing campaign. Euro reached out to the NLRB, and they’re interested in trying to negotiate a settlement. We’re optimistic. We also think it is in our best interest to negotiate a settlement. But a fair and just settlement.”
Johnson said they want to organize the Concrete industry to help more workers.
“Yes we can!” the crowd chanted in Spanish to conclude their rally, who were undeterred by the rainy conditions.
LIUNA said that their organizers spent over six months investigating claims and assisting workers seeking to improve conditions and join the union.
Both the New Jersey Department of Labor (NJDOL) and the NLRB have open investigations regarding Euro Concrete’s alleged unethical behavior.
According to LIUNA, the NJDOL cited Euro Concrete and its labor brokers MJSS Construction, Yolo Construction Corp and RRHS Construction for improper classification, unpaid wages, late wages, failure to pay overtime rate, and record-keeping deficiencies at three separate job sites.
