December 17, 2014 — At least five workers at a city fish company were fired Tuesday morning after conducting a work stoppage and giving management a list of demands that includes a $15 minimum hourly wage, according to advocates.
"I'm going to continue struggling for the workers that are still in the company, despite the fact that (I was let go)," said Antonia Cruz, a mother of three who was one of the workers leading the protest.
On a blistering cold Monday night, some 25 workers and "allies" gathered at Northern Pelagic Group's Fish Island facility with candles in hand, waving placards and chanting slogans in Spanish and English.
"This is based on a history of complaints that the workers have had with the company about working conditions," said Lisa Maya Knauer, an activist with Centro Comunitario Trabajadores and UMass Dartmouth professor. Knauer said 15 of the workers agreed to participate in the stoppage.
NORPEL processes mackerel and herring with capacity for freezing more than 2,400 metric tons per week, according to its website. A man who answered the phone at NORPEL on Tuesday declined to identify himself, saying he had no comment. A subsequent email to the company received no response.
Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard Times