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"Enhanced Fight" Rejects Two Tiers

Dear Brothers and sisters in solidarity,

WE ARE ENHANCED Fight. Chrysler Belvidere "Enhanced Temporary Employees" who started as temporaries, but our conviction is permanent. A smart man once wrote "There is no seniority date for dignity and justice. There is no retirement from solidarity. Two tiers are too many." Our innocence is lost, we are taking the fight to corporate America and our corporate sponsored and controlled union leadership.

This fight started before we, as temporaries, were born. During the 2003 Agreement talks at Belvidere Assembly, the membership made a bold move and refused the first contract proposal. Fast forward a few weeks, typically the corporation threatened to close the doors if they didn't accept the demands of the concessionary caucus, but this was minor compared to our UAW Local 1268 president who stood next to the very caucus that uttered threats and implored the membership to accept this contract, and they did. The rank-n-file membership was shown a "highlighted" portion of the contract and based upon this, voted the contract in by almost 91%. Attached to this contract was the language that allowed DCX to hire temporary workers. Ask any Local 1268 member what they voted on and you get, "oh, that was just to vote in the team rotation and JIT concepts." For to long this local has been led down the path of least resistance until they have finally lost their ability to wager a fight for their own future, a Local with over 2500 members that cannot even manage a quorum to hold monthly meetings. This lack of quorum let Chrysler and our Local 1268 leadership lie to us during our entire hiring process, they collectively wagged the union carrot in front of our noses, and we sat down for the feast. This is the atmosphere we enter as ETE's; this is the backbone we have as support from our Local. Sadly, it's not enough.

With trepidation, our main goal for the moment has to be the funding of our legal battle, without this blow to our corporate sponsored union genocide squad our fight will start on bended knees. As many of you are aware, the machine that is solidarity does not rev up quickly, and sadly time is our enemy at the moment. Our secondary hope in this is to put our brothers and sisters back in the plant. We want, we deserve our chance to live, support, and grow our Local union as full members with all the hard fought freedoms our legends struggled for. Then WE can bargain, vote, and continue our activism as a fraternal family.

We come to you while our backs are still straight, asking for support in the beginnings or our struggle. We are at a quick crossroad in our struggle; we have filed our class action lawsuit against DCX, UAW International and UAW Local 1268. But through intimidation, rumor mongering and outright lies, all backed by the seeming "official" status of the people spreading this diatribe have severely dwindled the number of ETE's we wished to join us. Our collectively individual pieces of the pie are larger than we can handle now.

Our legal fight requires us to come up with $40,000 in the next 30 days to keep the half dozen or so law firms needed to fight one of the "big 3" alive.

We are not idle in this, we are generating fundraisers locally, and we have members selling Avon, Candles, Texas hold-em Poker Nights and any other unique idea that will render support. Our members are divvying up cash out of pockets that are already strained by our corporate wardens; more than half our numbers are still reeling from being fired and due to the corporation stall tactics have yet to receive unemployment compensation. We have set up a number of ways to receive funds.

Kathy Hungness has set up an Avon sellers account with all monies received being immediately deposited into the Enhanced Fight account.

www.youravon.com/khungness

We have an account set-up at US Bank, please make out checks to "Enhanced Fight" and send to:
U.S. Bank
Enhanced Fight
6940 Village Green View
Rockford, IL
61107

Please feel free to email Kathy or myself with words of solidarity at:

kpsd1968@yahoo.com

enhancedsolidarity@hotmail.com

We believe in our struggle, we believe in your struggles, we believe that through solidarity we can send corporate America's concessionary caucus to their collective hell. We believe our fight is just, divinely supported, and based on the common morals this country was built on. "By the people, for the people"

In solidarity,

Jeremy Cantrell - Enhanced Fight
Kathy Hungness - Enhanced Fight 815-601-9911



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