Members of Unite Here Local 969 have been on strike since July 12, and representatives from the Chicago Federation of Labor, Change to Win and Chicago Area Jobs With Justice protested with them outside the company at 420 Kingston Court on Aug. 15.

Union representatives said the employee contract expired in Sept. 2005, and they contend Lechner and Sons, a uniform rental and industrial laundering company, used unfair labor practices.

Lechner and Sons representatives declined comment for this story.

Lynn F. Talbott, Unite Here's international vice president, said the company started to retaliate against employees when bargaining table negotiations became contentious. The company changed schedules daily, making it difficult for the mostly female workforce to arrange for baby-sitting, said Margarita Klein, Unite Here's staff director. The women hang, sew and iron uniforms and prepare them for packing as part of their jobs, she said.

The union said it filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board.

Talbott said the fight with Lechner started two years ago when the company moved from North Broadway in Chicago to Mount Prospect. When the company decided to build the new facility in Mount Prospect, it wanted to fire its employees and hire new ones, Talbott said. The issue went to arbitration, she said.

Lechner and Sons also brought in a new union that it preferred, but workers voted it down, Talbott said.

Cook County Commissioner Roberto Maldonado also spoke at the rally in support of the workers and said Lechner and Sons owes $372,000 in property taxes. He said the company bought the property from the non-profit Illinois Teachers Pension Fund and never told the county it bought the property.

Despite the issues, Talbott said the union wants to reach an agreement with the company.

"If this takes five months, we will be here," she said. "If this takes five years, God forbid, we will still be here."