Bakery Workers Express Astonishment over Nabisco CEO Irene Rosenfeld’s $20M Pay Day While Company Continues to Ruin American Communities

KENSINGTON, Md., March 30, 2016 – Today, the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union (BCTGM), which represents nearly 4,000 members at Mondelēz International, maker of Nabisco snack products, expressed its shock and disappointment with the exorbitant total compensation of Nabisco/Mondelēz executives received in 2015, amounting to approximately $36.8M for the Company’s three top officers. The disclosure, as reported in recent SEC filings, shows CEO Irene Rosenfeld receiving $19.7M and comes on the heels of Nabisco laying off over 300 workers in the last two weeks alone, as a result of the Company sending production of Oreos from the Chicago Bakery to Salinas Mexico.

“The compensation paid to Nabisco/Mondelēz’s top three officers in 2015 is nothing less than a tale of disregard for working men and women across America, particularly for the thousands upon thousands of workers who have made Oreos in this country since 1912,” said David B. Durkee, BCTGM International President. “The American public should be outraged by the corporate gluttony of these executives. Enabled by the Company’s Board of Directors, these executives are gorging themselves on the illicit proceeds gathered via the misery of workers and their communities as they move jobs to a third world country to once again prey upon working people and their families.”

Durkee continued, “Moving the production of Nabisco’s self-proclaimed “billion-dollar cookie” from Chicago to Mexico is producing despair for American families and yet, at the same time they still want to call it America’s favorite cookie. But the American consumer has had enough of purchasing products made in other countries at the expense of American jobs, while at the same time corporate executives wallow in wealth. Our “Check the Label” campaign, encouraging American consumers to make sure their favorite Nabisco products are produced in America before purchasing, will make it hard for Nabisco/Mondelēz to conduct business as usual for as long as this pillaging of America is the center of its corporate plan.”

Through the “Check the Label” campaign, BCTGM continues to educate the American consumer on how to identify American-made Nabisco products from its Mexican-made brands before purchasing products. BCTGM recently launched a new phase for the campaign, sending teams of laid-off workers across the country to speak about the boycott and to educate American consumers on ways they can take action against Nabisco/Mondelēz. The tour, known as the Nabisco 600 Consumer Educational Tour, will begin its East and West Coast engagements in April.

Durkee concluded, “The American consumer is essential to the success of Nabisco. BCTGM’s goal is to make sure American consumers know that included in the purchase price of every Mexican-made Nabisco product is the loss of another American job. We intend to amplify financial impact at the cash register and will not rest until there is justice and fairness infused into the relationship between Nabisco and America, the country this Company continues to use as a conduit to wealth for a few at the expense of many.”

The National contract between Mondelēz International and over 2,000 of its 4,000 workers represented by the BCTGM, expired on February 29, 2016. BCTGM continues to be resolute in its commitment to securing a quality contract for its members – one that is in the very best interests of all members and their families today and into the future.