LOHR STRIKE UPDATE

The drivers of Lohr Distributing Company voted unanimously to strike on two separate occasions.

The first day of the strike was Sunday, May 22, 2005.

This strike has lasted over nine months. These drivers have been permanently replaced, but NOT fired. They are NOT eligible for unemployment benefits.

Lohr is the exclusive AB distributor in St. Louis, Anheuser Buschıs headquarters.

The key issues that the Drivers and Lohr Distributing disagree on are:

Twice the workload for the same pay. This will reduce manpower significantly and cut healthcare benefits for nearly half the employees.

Removal of work-rules that have been in place for over forty years. These rules help protect drivers from injury.

Decrease health and welfare benefits with increased costs to the drivers.

Decreased benefits for retirees and possible exclusion for dependents.

PRESENTLY

On October 7, 2005 the striking Drivers of Lohr Distributing Company were permanently replaced. Does permanent replacement mean the fight is over? Absolutely not! Now is the time to be more vigorous in our campaign. It is up to this community to realize that what is happening to the striking Drivers is not an isolated incident. Remember the Nurses? The Mechanics? The Retail Clerks? This battle is pivotal for the balance of power in the St. Louis area and nationwide. There are many labor leaders and executives alike that are watching this strike. With your help we can keep the momentum from going the way of corporate greed.

There are only twenty-four (24), full time Drivers on strike. That is not enough people to spread the word. It is up to the organized labor units in this community to stand together and say no to Ron Lohr and people like him. Support us by not drinking Anheuser-Busch products. Support us by telling everyone you know not to drink Anheuser-Busch beers, Busch Gardens and Sea World. Support us by educating your membership on the fantastic economic contributions Unions have made to this country, thereby allowing your members to educate non-member friends as to why they should be interested in this fight.

This is not an isolated incident as stated above. Labor as St. Louis knows it is being attacked by well-organized and well-funded foes. It is time to focus the power of over one hundred thousand union members in St. Louis. February 27, 2006 marks the beginning of the forty-first (41) week of the strike. There are twenty-four men fighting everyday at 8th and Hickory who could use your help. It is never to late to help.

This goes way beyond St. Louis City.

The underlying plan is to combine the distributorships of St. Louis (city), St. Louis County, St. Charles and northern Jefferson County. This enlarged distributorship would then be given to Patrick Stokes (the current head of the company) as a retirement severance gift. Does anybody remember the fight between Roger Marisı family and Anheuser-Busch over ownership of their distributorship? This is going to continue around the country. A-B wants to take back these privately owned distributorships and combine them into large wholly company or family owned behemoths.

So far the co. has demanded that all distributors use J.B. Hunt (a non-union trucking firm from ARK.) to deliver their beer, plus A-B has replaced all senior union bottlers and brewers that had bid into building cleaning and grounds keeping with cheap immigrant labor. As you probably know, A-B had a bottle plant built in Mexico and is getting bottles from it. The bottle plant that supplied the St. Louis plant has changed hands and is now non-union.

PLEASE no Bud, Bud light, Michelob, Busch, etc.

NO Busch Gardens, or Sea World.