BROKEN WINDOWS, OPEN DOORS
In early December 2008, after Republic Windows and Doors abruptly told its workers that it was shutting down the operations, 240 members of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) occupied the plant. The executives of the company claimed that the Bank of America had canceled Republic’s line of credit, making it impossible to stay in business, or even pay employees the severance and vacation pay they had earned. Day after day the spontaneous but well-planned action received support of people from all over the country, intervention of local politicians and national media attention. After six days of occupation, the bank agreed to provide $1.35 million for Republic’s layoff package. The workers hey got what they demanded—sixty days of severance pay, earned vacation pay, and two months of health insurance coverage. The Republic workers’ protest in Chicago was reminiscent of similar sit-ins during the Great Depression and civil rights activists in the 1960s. The film documents factory occupation day after day, shows the growing support of the worker struggle and successful resolution. In English and Spanish with subtitles.
Video Chamba production.