chicago-area factory occupation #2?

Remember Republic Windows & Doors, where workers staged a six-day factory occupation in December, and not only won the benefits and back pay they were owed when their factory was abruptly closed, but successfully negotiated with the new owners of the plant to rehire all the fired unionized workers at their former levels of pay?

Well, a second Chicago-area workplace may be taking the lessons of the Republic victory to heart. Workers at Hartmarx Suit Factory--formerly famous only for providing the preferred threads of our current president--have voted to authorize a sit-in if the factory shuts down.

Like Republic, Hartmarx is under pressure from its biggest creditor, Well Fargo, which accepted billions of dollars of stimulus money. Pressure on Bank of America eventually forced it to cough up a measly $2 million of the $34 BILLION in bailout money it received to pay for the Republic workers' vacation pay and benefits as required by law.

These bold actions, while they involve relatively small groups of workers, have certainly captured the attention of politicians. Joe Biden was recently dispatched to the soon-to-be-reopened Republic factory, mostly to spin it as a success story of Obama's stimulus package and the "green economy." And the mention of the word "sit-in" was enough to bring the Illinois State Treasurer (in a state where politicians are certainly not known for their integrity) zipping out to Des Plains to ensure his support of the workers there.

Here's hoping that the power of these occupations or occupations-to-be has been internalized by more than politicians and that they'll give some hope to workers in today's brutal economy.

Watch the video; it's pretty cool.

In a related notes, workers from Republic, along with activist author Naomi Klein and journalists who documented the factory takeover movement during Argentina's 2002 financial crisis will be speaking at this awesome panel on Friday. Check it out if you're in NYC!