Update: Ex-Colibri workers demand pay, health care
12:07 PM Tue, Feb 03, 2009 | Permalink
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By Benjamin N. Gedan and Karen Lee Ziner Displaced employees of The Colibri Group are gathering today at the company's East Providence headquarters to demand that laid off workers receive an additional two months of wages and health care coverage. The rally, reported by the Rhode Island's Future blog, is being organized by Fuerza Laboral, an immigrant and labor rights group in Central Falls. About 60 persons gathered at the plant and by noon were chanting noisily and displaying signs reading "Enough Abuse Already" and "Justice for Workers." Colibri, one of the region's best-known jewelry makers, abruptly shut down on Jan. 20, laying off its 280 employees. The same day, a Providence Superior Court judge appointed a receiver to sell off the company's assets to pay back more than $28 million in company debt. Fuerza Laboral argues that Colibri violated the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Act, known as the WARN Act. The law, passed in 1988, compels companies with at least 100 employees to provide a minimum of 60 days' notice before closing a plant. "Many workers had given 10, 20 and 30 years of their hard work to the company," Fuerza Laboral says in announcement about tomorrow's noontime rally. "Federal Law requires a minimum of 60 days notice for a major plant closing. We didn't even get one day." Laura Hart, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Labor and Training, which by law receives WARN notices from Rhode Island employers, said in some circumstances companies forced to close by emergency financial challenges may be exempt from the law. 
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You have got to be kidding me that someone from the Department of Labor and training would have the nerve to openly state that Colibri may be exempt from the law. Are these workers going to be exempt from the law when they may have to resort to drastic measures to pay their mortages,utilities and put food on their table. The rich get richer and the poor don't get a gosh darn thing. No wonder this economy is going down the tubes. Companies and banks don't have to take ownership on their responsibilties because some way somehow the same people that they are screwing are going to be paying to bail them out, maybe not now but Americans are gonna have to foot the bill.
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Uhh, the company went out of business...no more $$$ to operate. It's RI, the home of anti- business sentiments and super high taxes. Get it now? Wonder how many of these "protesters" demanding Colibri "follow the law" are here illegaly?
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To KCwashere:
For your information, none of the workers are illegal immigrants. The company always throughly checked their paperwork and ID"s. We are law biding citizens that broke a small law to put the attention to another financial company that has repeatedly broken a larger law affecting many hundreds of people.
Sometimes it is worth it to stand up--- or sit down for your rights. Founders Equity is by no means broke! They are a multi-million private investment firm located in NY. They have done the same thing before to other workers and companies and are trying to do it again in NY State. Companies like these have to have the attention put upon them so that investors and people can see just what crooks they are. They are robbing companies all around the US and sitting in their NY office making plans to do it again. They have to be controlled or they will continue in this manner and further contribute to the financial mess that is going on in the country right now.
If this means that we have to rally and protest---so be it! Somebody has to say "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!"
Shirley
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