Since our founding in 1998, global corporations have grown dramatically in power and industrial diversity to the point where they now control the labor standards in the industries where most low wage workers are employed in both the United States and Mexico.  Additionally, institutional infrastructures that play a role in the extent to which we have control over our own lives, such as banks, transportation systems, and prisons are also rapidly coming under the control of global corporations.

Background

Delegates at the 2004 Enlace convention voted to:
· adopt worker justice campaigns of member organizations aimed at these transnational corporations—Sara Lee (SEDEPAC), Pung Kook (SINTTIM), and Tyson (Local Teamsters 556)
· adopt the campaign of SITESABES (FAT) to organize teachers in the government-run SABES program in the state of Guanajuato, México
· continue the work of providing trainings;
· and support worker centers in the U.S. 
We continued much of this work in 2005.  Please continue reading below.

We are happy to announce that the Enlace board of directors voted to accept new affiliates Instituto de Educación Popular del Sur de California (IDEPSCA) and the Pilipino Workers Center and returning affiliate the ILWU Organizing Department.

· IDEPSCA (Instituto de Educación Popular del Sur de California—Los Angeles)—Through leadership development and educational programs based in Popular Education methodology, IDEPSCA organizes and educates low-income Latino immigrants concerned with solving problems in their own communities.  Among a number of programs, IDEPSCA runs six centers and three corners for day laborers and is assisting domestic workers in forming their own cooperative.

· Pilipino Workers Center (Los Angeles)—Founded in 1997, this center organizes in three areas: home care workers hired by private homes or agencies; Pilipino tenants; and Pilipino and Pilipino American youth.

· We also welcomed back the ILWU Organizing Department as an affiliate—the department is organizing food processing workers of Blue Diamond Grower in California.

Recently, the Day Labor Program of La Raza Centro Legal (San Francisco), UNITE HERE Local 681 (Anaheim, CA), and Young Workers United (San Francisco) have been nominated for membership.

Workers won several million dollars and new rights in 2004 in the Sara Lee and Pung Kook campaigns.  During the course of these campaigns we developed the Integrated Organizing Approach (IOA), which combines internal capacity-building techniques with strategic campaign development and international mobilization to cultivate unique and effective workers rights campaigns. 

We are now working to assist SINTTIM’s efforts to organize for justice in the food export processing industry in Baja California and the Workplace Project’s struggle to change the anti-immigrant and racist biases that have led to the mass evictions of Latino residents in Suffolk County, New York.

We are introducing the IOA to others through our various training series.  In 2005 we held two trainings for organizational development coaches from our affiliates and a supervisors training that we successfully opened up to non-worker, social justice organizations. 

The coach team provides organizations with tools for deciding on a strategic direction and for evaluating the internal structure of an organization and the structure of its campaigns. The coaches learn frameworks and they use them in their own organizations for planning and evaluation. 

The objective of the Supervision/Leadership Series is to help groups to grow and to develop the capacity to improve the abilities of the staff and the leaders of the organization. With our frameworks leaders learn to become better supervisors and to help to motivate the staff to improve their skills and to assure accountability. 

Enlace supported SITESABES of the Frente Auténtico de Trabajo (FAT) and the teachers of the SABES program of the state of Guanajuato, México, where independent union SITESABES was able to secure the first secret ballot union election ever ordered in México.  While they were unable to win the election due to intense opposition by the government, they are re-organizing for another election in March 2006. 

Two years ago Tyson Foods Foods tried to crush Pasco, WA-meatpackers’ union Teamsters Local 556. Enlace worked with the union leadership team to fight back.  The workers won the first vote, but Tyson came back with the support of the Bush-appointed National Labor Relations Board, firing workers and taking other repressive actions and throwing the union out in a second vote in February 2005. 

Enlace is participating in a pilot project for a stored value card to strengthen workers centers and to benefit low-wage workers who are excluded from having banking accounts.  Enlace is coordinating the participation of member the Workplace Project.  IDEPSCA and the Pilipino Workers Center are participating through other networks.

This fall we embarked on a campaign to raise funds through house parties, individual donors, and organizational donors.  Thank you to the Enlace board, Jeri Sundval, Teresa Enrico, Lorene Scheer and Tony Perlstein, all of whom helped in the drive; and to the house party organizers and co-sponsors: Chava Bustamante, Veronica Carrizales, Cindy Cho, Tho Do, Lilia Garcia, Mike Garcia, Elena Popp y Bridget Gonzalez, Gordon Mar, Victor Narro, Tim Reagan, Matt Ross, and Haydee Urita.

It’s not too late to make a donation and support Enlace’s work.  Click here to do so.

Thank you all for your support this past year!  We look forward to collaborating with you all next year!  Happy Holidays!