CUED
Center
for Urban Economic Development
University of Illinois at Chicago
An Analysis of the A.E. Staley/Tate & Lyle Lockout in Decatur, Illinois
Project Number: 404
Report Date:
Author(s): David
Ranney, Paul Schwalb
View Paper in PDF format (32k)
There is, in our view, a pressing necessity for A.E. Staley workers and supporters as well as the citizens of Decatur, Illinois to defend their internationally recognized right to organize and bargain collectively; to work and live in a safe environment; to earn a reasonable wage; to achieve reasonable employment security. These rights have been placed in jeopardy by the actions of Tate & Lyle Ltd. following the hostile takeover of the A.E. Staley corporation including a lock out of its workforce. Tate & Lyle's collusion with another locally represented corporate giant and the similar behavior of two others place the entire Decatur community in jeopardy.
Tate & Lyle's explanation of the events leading to and including the June 1993
lockout of the workers at its A.E. Staley division in Decatur, Illinois is that
they need operate more efficiently for the sake of competition. We strongly disagree
with this explanation on the following grounds.
1) Tate & Lyle's actions are
consistent with a global trend, evolving since the mid 1970's, for supra national
corporations (corporations without national or local roots or loyalties) to drive
down standards (wages, working conditions, workplace and food safety, and environmental)
and attack any efforts to interfere. Eliminating unions is a part of this strategy
which also includes: a high degree of capital mobility in order to gravitate to
areas with lower standards; using the claim of competition and the threat of closing
or moving to drive down standards where they are; and increasing market power
by eliminating competition.
2) Tate & Lyle is itself a supra national corporation
which is pursuing this broader strategy through competition eliminating corporate
takeovers, aggressive labor relations policies, and similar aggressive policies
attacking working conditions and safety-based work rules.
3) Tate & Lyle cannot
justify the attack on Staley workers by the press of competition, when in fact
their Staley operations are in a non competitive industry that has achieved among
the highest rates of productivity growth in the U.S. during a period of record
profits. Wages, on the other hand have not even kept up with inflation. Under
these circumstances, to claim a need to destroy workplace safety conditions by
altering union work rules and forcing workers into personally destructive work
patterns is disingenuous.
We are dividing our analysis of the Tate & Lyle lockout into the following parts: a) the global context of the A.E. Staley lockout; b) Tate & Lyle's history and its policies at A.E. Staley; c) Tate & Lyle's market position; d) Impact on Staley workers and the people of Decatur.
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