Greetings from Bainport, Illinois

SEIU President Mary Kay Henry, Rev. Jesse Jackson to Visit ‘Bainport’ in Support of #Sensata Workers Facing Outsourcing by Bain

SEIU President Mary Kay Henry, Rev. Jesse Jackson to Visit ‘Bainport’ in Support of Sensata Workers Facing Outsourcing by Bain

Freeport, IL – On Monday, October 29, Service Employees International Union (SEIU) President Mary Kay Henry will visit Bainport to rally with Sensata workers fighting to save their jobs from outsourcing to China by Bain. She will be joined by Rev. Jesse Jackson, who was arrested last Wednesday with 13 others who attempted to meet with Sensata management.

“Mary Kay Henry has always been an advocate for workers,” said Tom Gaulrapp, who has worked at Sensata for 33 years. “And on Monday, she’ll be joining Sensata workers like me to take a stand against outsourcing by companies like Bain, which is chipping away at the American Dream for millions of workers and devastating communities like Freeport across the country.”

Sensata has emerged as a flashpoint in the controversy over Romney’s ties to Bain in the lead up to Election Day, with the company’s employees pleading publicly with Romney to help save their jobs from being outsourced to China. In September, the workers began to camp outside the plant to protest Bain’s decision to ship their jobs to China and increase the pressure on Romney—who still profits directly from Sensata—to help save their jobs. The workers have previously welcomed former NAACP Chairman Julian Bond, Rev. Al Sharpton, Sen. Dick Durbin, and United Auto Workers President Bob King.

As Romney refuses to intervene, the workers are mobilizing to win a full and fair severance with petitions and sit-ins at company headquarters. Employees who have been at the plant for 20, 30, and even 40-plus years are only getting 26 weeks’ pay as a severance from Bain-owned Sensata.

On October 24, the workers filed two unfair labor practices against the company for cracking down on protected concerted activity and threatening to close the plant early if workers continued to protest. At a subsequent march on the plant, fourteen protesters were arrested, including Rev. Jesse Jackson and three workers. The workers also walked out of the plant in protest of the company’s threats on October 25.

For real-time updates from Bainport, visit www.bainport.com.

WHO:                   SEIU President Mary Kay Henry

Sensata workers and concerned community members

WHAT:           Rally at Bainport

WHEN:          Monday, October 29 at 4:00pm

WHERE:        Stephenson County Fairgrounds

2250 South Walnut Road

Freeport, IL 61032

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