Garment Union Ordered to Pay Fine

Unite, the garment industry union, was ordered by a Santa Monica Superior Court judge to pay a $3,000 fine as a result of unruly behavior by union picketers on two occasions late last year in front of Guess Inc.’s store on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills. The judge suspended a fine of an additional $1,000. The picketers’ actions were ruled to be in violation of a preliminary injunction restricting their protests in front of the Guess store. The union staged picketing in front of Guess stores across the country as part of an ongoing campaign to organize workers at Guess, the biggest apparel firm based in Los Angeles, and at its contractors’ sewing shops. The squabble over picketing is just one of several legal battles between Unite and Guess, which last week announced that it is shifting most of its production from the Los Angeles area to Mexico and South America.