Cintas Workers Launch National 'Painful Truth Tour' to Expose the Human Costs of...

Cintas Workers Launch National 'Painful Truth Tour' to Expose the Human Costs
of Keeping America's Laundry Clean

Workers Speak Out About the Pain and Injuries Suffered On the Job

CHICAGO, July 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Coalition of Injured Cintas
Workers today announced the launching of a nationwide tour to expose the
hidden human costs of keeping America's laundry clean. This summer, the
Painful Truth Tour will span the nation to show investors, community leaders
and Cintas uniform wearers in the hospitality industry the effect that unsafe
machinery and production quotas at Cintas plants around the country have on
laundry workers' health.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070817/CLF013LOGO )

"When I get home my whole body hurts. All I can do is take a pain pill and
rest. I can't even hold my grandchild," said Adela Viera who works in Cintas's
Central Islip laundry. "I'm on the tour to get support so Cintas will make
work safer for all of us."

Appearing on the tour are current and former employees of Cintas who have
joined the Coalition of Injured Cintas Workers after enduring a range of
injuries from repetitive stress to crushed limbs. The Coalition was formed
after safety hazards led to the death of Oklahoma Cintas worker Eleazar Torres
Gomez. Mr. Torres Gomez was killed in March 2007 after being dragged into a
300-degree industrial dryer by an unguarded conveyor. Since this fatality,
state and federal safety inspectors have cited Cintas for dozens of safety
violations and proposed more than $3 million in penalties. The U.S. Congress
has held two hearings highlighting the safety problems at Cintas.

Despite the deadly wake up call, dangerous working conditions persist. Last
month California inspectors issued special orders for potentially lethal
hazards in two Cintas laundries. OSHA is investigating a Chicago-area
facility for allegedly inadequately guarded machinery.

Workers at Cintas report that regardless of the pain and injuries they suffer,
they are pressured to hit production targets each day. Last December, the
Wall Street Journal recently reported a higher injury rate for industrial
laundries than for chemical manufacturing or oil drilling.

Cintas provides laundry, uniforms and other business services to 800,000
customers across North America. The Coalition of Injured Cintas Workers is a
joint effort by the Uniform Justice campaign and current and former Cintas
employees. Since 2003, UNITE HERE and the Teamsters unions have supported
Cintas workers' fight for better, safer jobs through the Uniform Justice
campaign. For more information, please visit www.uniformjustice.org and
www.MakeCintasSafe.info.

SOURCE UNITE HERE

Matt Painter of UNITE HERE, +1-646-673-4999