Chicago, IL (June 18, 2013) – The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation has announced today a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrests and convictions of those responsible for damaging a South Water Market, Inc. worker’s personal and work vehicles during a Teamster union strike.

With free legal assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, the Chicago-area South Water Market worker filed a federal charge last week against the Teamsters Local 703 union alleging that union militants threatened him, his family and his property, and that his personal property was damaged shortly after he received those threats.

The worker filed the charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) regional office in Chicago.

Teamsters Local 703 has been on strike at South Water Market. However, some of the workers are not union members and refuse to abandon their jobs. Under federal law, workers who are not union members cannot be disciplined for continuing to work during a strike.

According to the worker’s federal charge, union agents harassed and threatened nonmember workers who continue working to support their families. In the charge, the worker states that his personal property was damaged soon after the threats. The worker is seeking compensatory damages.

Two Chicago Police Department “Victim of Information Notices” reflect reports of property damage, one incident “by fire.”

A video posted on Youtube.com purports to show security camera footage of a South Water Market work truck on fire while someone on the sidewalk watches. The video also shows the purported damage to the truck after the fire was extinguished. Moreover, the video shows striking Teamster union militants asking each other “are we gonna kill ’em or what?” and stating that they are going to “test the guys out today” while posing like boxers.

“Far too often union violence in America goes unpunished,” said Mark Mix, President of the National Right to Work Foundation. “We hope this reward will help bring these criminals to justice.”

Anyone involved in the crimes is not eligible for a reward. The Foundation will decide who, if anyone, has earned the reward, and the reward may be split among multiple informants.

The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation is a nonprofit, charitable organization providing free legal aid to employees whose human or civil rights have been violated by compulsory unionism abuses. The Foundation, which can be contacted toll-free at 1-800-336-3600, assists thousands of employees in about 200 cases nationwide per year.

Posted on Jun 18, 2013 in News Releases