Workers take to the street

Tulane on St. Charles Avenue

On Wednesday afternoon, Sodexo workers from Loyola and Tulane took to the street in front of Loyola and Tulane Universities to bring their stories to the public.

The workers, who have been laid off for the summer, jumped at the opportunity to reunite with their co-workers and spread the truth about Sodexo. They held signs stating that Sodexo has been actively discouraging unionization and has violated federal law. They read a litany of charges that workers have filed against Sodexo including the surveillance, interrogation, and firings of workers who vocally support unionization (and those are just the charges here in New Orleans...).

During the rally, countless cars honked in response to a "Honk for Workers' Rights" sign placed on the roadside. Many more offered thumbs up, smiles, and handshakes as they walked along the sidewalk. Demonstrators handed out flyers to passengers on the streetcar as they stopped to let off passengers.

Workers and students spotted two Loyola administrators and a Sodexo manager coming to see demonstration. One administrator snapped a photo, while the manager preferred to sneakily drive by the gathering. The crowd waved hello as he drove by and then began chanting "SHAME ON SODEXO," until he was out of earshot.

Some workers spotted James Carville, a CNN correspondent and Tulane professor, jogging along the sidewalk. Once he turned into Audubon Park, two particularly athletic workers started jogging alongside him as they told their personal stories of Sodexo's deplorable working conditions. He was very receptive and promised to look into the workers' situation on his campus.

The demonstration is just one among a series of actions calling public attention to Sodexo's violations of workers' rights to organize as well as the deplorable treatment of employees that occurs on a daily basis.