NEWSFEED: US union struggles [Archive]

Blackscare

28th February 2011, 05:31

WSWS: Wisconsin state assembly passes anti-worker bill. (http://wsws.org/articles/2011/feb2011/wisc-f26.shtml)

Wisconsin state assembly passes anti-worker bill
By Patrick Martin
26 February 2011

The lower house of the Wisconsin state legislature voted overwhelmingly early Friday morning to approve legislation demanded by Republican Governor Scott Walker that will slash wages and benefits and effectively abolish collective bargaining for public employees throughout the state.

The bill was passed by a vote of 51 to 17, when the Republican-controlled state assembly put an end to a three-day debate and halted discussion of any further Democratic amendments. The vote was conducted so abruptly, shortly after 1 a.m., that two-thirds of the Democrats were not able to register their votes in time. The Republicans enjoy a 57 to 38 majority in the lower house, with one independent.

More than a thousand protesters were in the state capitol at the time of the state Assembly vote, and they voiced their continued opposition by singing “We Shall Overcome” as soon as they learned of the action. The assembly Democrats have conducted their semi-filibuster as a publicity stunt to win credit for opposing the bill, while they actually support the draconian cuts in wages, health care and pensions that it contains.

Only hours before the vote, a delegation of assembly Democrats met with a top Walker aide, reiterating their offer to vote for all the cuts if the provisions ending dues check-off, automatic union recognition and union bargaining rights were removed. Walker has flatly refused any such deal, insisting that the destruction of collective bargaining is an essential feature of his strategy for dealing with the state fiscal crisis.

The Democratic minority in the state Senate is still blocking passage of the bill by absenting themselves from the capitol. Senate rules require a quorum of 20 senators present to adopt any legislation with financial implications, and the Republicans hold a 19-14 majority.

The state senate took up the bill Friday, despite the lack of a quorum, but cannot give it final passage. But Republicans took action to insure that the legislation is not amendable if and when the Democrats return, meaning there would be an up-or-down vote on the legislation as drafted by the governor's office.

Walker hailed the state assembly action, and saluted the role of the Democratic minority in agreeing to go through the motions of a debate and dropping efforts to filibuster the bill indefinitely. “The 14 Senate Democrats need to come home and do their jobs,” Walker said in a statement, “just like the Assembly Democrats did.”

The governor began a statewide tour of the districts represented by the Senate Democrats, demanding that they return and warning that thousands of state workers will be laid off if his budget repair bill is not passed immediately. Walker is to present his biennial budget proposal to the legislature next Tuesday, March 1.

The Republican governor has also declared that those who are fighting his anti-worker legislation are opposed to democracy, claiming that he campaigned for the bill “all throughout the election.” Actually, according to a review of the campaign by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Walker said nothing about eliminating collective bargaining during the campaign, and he sought and won the endorsement of several police and fire unions.

The budget repair legislation would not only virtually put an end to future collective bargaining, but it calls into question existing contracts for local government and public school employees throughout the state.

Milwaukee City Attorney Grant Langley announced Friday that he was drafting a legal opinion on whether the state could compel city employees to make pension contributions, as required by the bill. Under their current contract, the city makes the pension contribution for many workers as part of their compensation.

The budget repair bill includes a $976 million reduction in state aid to local education over the next two years. Walker claims that by ending collective bargaining over most issues, local school districts will be able to recoup the lost aid by cutting salaries, health care and pension costs for their employees.

This plan to pass the cost of the fiscal deficit along to the workers is not only completely reactionary, it is unworkable, because many districts have union contracts already in place which cannot be overridden by state law. The Milwaukee Public Schools, for instance, will lose $200 million in state aid but have union contracts in place through the 2011-12 school year. The likely result is mass layoffs of school employees when the money runs out.

School districts throughout the state have begun issuing layoff notices to any employee who might conceivably be affected by the worst-case scenario for the state budget. The statutory deadline for nonrenewal of teacher contracts is Monday, February 28, the day before Walker officially unveils the budget. Some districts have gone so far as to issue layoff notices to every single unionized employee, as a “precaution” against lawsuits for unfair dismissal.

Walker is deliberately exacerbating the schools crisis, telling the Journal-Sentinel that he was looking into refusing federal funds under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, a long-time target of right-wing ideologues. Wisconsin schools received $188 million in Title I funds, largely to assist low-income students, so a state rejection would have a devastating effect.

The response of the unions to this right-wing rampage has been completely unserious and impotent. The Wisconsin AFL-CIO proclaimed that it was organizing the largest protests in the history of the state, to be held Thursday at more than two dozen sites.

The actual result was a series of small protests around the state, involving, according to the state AFL-CIO's own count, less than 9,000 people, all told—fewer people than took part in any of the daily protests in Madison over the past week.

The largest protest involved 2,500 in Stevens Point, where the University of Wisconsin has a campus. Less than a 1,000 people participated in three separate protests in Milwaukee, the state's largest city.

In an effort to cover up the deliberate sabotage of the struggle against the Walker administration, the state AFL-CIO cynically changed its description of the Thursday day of protest, calling it “the largest day of demonstrations outside Madison in Wisconsin history” (emphasis added).

Encouraged by the steady retreat of the unions and their deliberate stifling of the widespread popular opposition to anti-worker onslaught, the Walker administration and the Republicans in the state legislature are moving to close down the protests in Madison as well.

The state Department of Administration confirmed that Capitol Police were working with protest organizers to remove large items like mattresses, folding tables and chairs from the state capitol, the second in a series of steps to scale down the occupation of the building by protesters. The first step, taken Wednesday, was to close meeting rooms and offices inside the Capitol after 4 p.m. Friday, the usual closing time.

The rotunda and public hallways still remain open around the clock, and thousands of workers and students are expected to crowd them during protests this weekend. But the intention is clearly to put an end to the occupation before Walker delivers his budget message in the state capitol next Tuesday.

The workers in Wisconsin face enormous dangers from the capitulation of the unions to the right-wing onslaught. They must act independently, without relying on either the parliamentary stunts by the Democrats or the handwringing appeals by the union leaders. It is past time for workers to initiate a fight for a statewide general strike to defeat this attack, and the broadest possible appeal for support from workers throughout the country.

This requires the building of rank-and-file committees, independent of the trade unions and the Democratic Party, to mobilize the widest layers of workers and young people in a common fight to defend the living standards and democratic rights of the working class. This is, above all, a political fight against the entire economic and political setup in the United States, which sacrifices the interests of masses of working people to the wealthy few.

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Lacrimi de Chiciură

5th March 2011, 04:07

LABOR notes: New Voice in Wisconsin Protests: No Concessions, No Cuts (http://www.labornotes.org/2011/03/new-voice-wisconsin-protests-no-concessions-no-cuts)

New Voice in Wisconsin Protests: No Concessions, No Cuts

Colette Brown
| March 2, 2011

A day after 100,000 people demonstrated in Madison—one of the largest protests in Wisconsin history—labor activists gathered to strategize with a new-found sense of power. Andy Heidt of AFSCME Local 1871, a union of county workers, repeated a recurring theme of the day: “One hundred thousand people do not need to beg.”

About 70 people gathered in Madison for an emergency meeting called by National Nurses United under the banner of “No Concessions.” Panelists and attendees were unhappy about public employee union leaders’ signals that they would concede on all pay and benefit take-backs demanded by Governor Scott Walker in exchange for preservation of collective bargaining rights. The givebacks would amount to 8 percent pay cuts for state workers.

Participants also viewed Walker’s proposed social service cuts as unacceptable. The state budget the governor introduced Tuesday contained $1.5 billion in cuts to education and local government. This included sweeping changes to the state’s Medicaid program providing health care coverage to low-income families. The income benchmark for enrolling in the program would drop from $1,800 per month to $1,100—and 70,000 people could lose coverage. Walker’s bill could also force forfeiture of more than $46.6 million in federal transit aid, more than half the state’s federal transit aid.

The consensus was that these attacks on Wisconsin’s poor and working class are designed to divert attention from the real culprits behind the state’s fiscal problems—tax cuts for corporations and the rich, whose profits and incomes have continued to soar during the recession.

Jan Rodolfo of National Nurses United reviewed panelists’ main points: Blame should be placed on Wall Street for the country’s economic woes, not on workers. The solution to budget challenges lies in taxing the rich and closing loopholes—not in Walker’s budget cuts. Gains for workers must be considered as much a priority as saving collective bargaining rights.

Rodolfo asked the group to consider what result would qualify as a victory in the rapidly evolving landscape of Wisconsin’s labor battles. The group offered several ideas.

“We should involve the public in a participatory budgeting process and put forward an alternative budget that relies on increased taxes on the rich rather than cuts in social services for the poor and cuts in pay and benefits for public workers,” said Patrick Barrett, a University of Wisconsin staff member.

Participants spoke of the need to maintain momentum and keep up the unprecedented unity in the labor movement that has emerged over the last two weeks. Speakers advocated reaching out to non-union workers, emphasizing how Walker’s plans will affect them.

Others spoke of redirecting public resentment of union benefits and wages by showing how political leaders and their corporate supporters manufactured the budget crisis for their own benefit. While the image of shared sacrifice is often invoked by political and union leaders, corporations and rich people have not contributed their fair share to Wisconsin for years. Currently, Wisconsin allows the exclusion of 30 percent of capital gains income from taxation.

In 2010, this tax break amounted to $151 million, according to a report from the non-partisan Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. The $82 million in tax cuts proposed in Walker’s budget would exclude even more capital gains from taxes.

Participants have scheduled a “No Concessions” event for Thursday at 5 p.m., which will include a New Orleans jazz funeral procession protesting Walker’s planned program cuts, with a rally after that at the Capitol.

Colette Brown is a Wisconsin state employee and member of the Wisconsin Professional Employees Council, AFT Local 4848.

PhoenixAsh

10th March 2011, 01:17

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41996994/ns/politics-more_politics/

MADISON, Wis. — Republicans pushed a provision stripping public employees of their collective bargaining rights through the state Senate Wednesday evening by separating it from Gov. Scott Walker's controversial budget bill.

The action, if it stand, would have the effect of rendering moot a Democratic attempt to keep the provision from passing the Senate. The vote in the Senate was 18-1. No Democrats were present.
All 14 Democrats had left the state to prevent passage of the overall budget bill in opposition to the collective bargaining rights.
The Senate is split 19-14 with Republicans in the majority. Because the union provision was part of a budget bill, Republicans in the Senate needed at least 20 senators present for a quorum.
By separating the anti-union measure from the budget bill, Republicans did not need 20 senators for a quorum.
Before the Senate floor vote, Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald read the bill to a hastily created joint conference committee. Rep. Peter Barca, D-Kenosha, objected, saying the committee's meeting was in violation of the state's open meetings law. But Fitzgerald went ahead with the vote, which was seen live on WisconsinEye, and the measure was approved.
Senate Democrats reportedly were meeting to decide how to respond. Some argue that Senate Republicans were violating legislative rules with the vote.
The stand-alone measure would have to be approved by both the Senate and the Assembly, the lower chamber. The Assembly was not in session Wednesday and it was not clear that it could be convened until Thursday.
Stripping out the collective-bargaining provisions into a "non-fiscal" bill raises questions about the governor's and the Republicans' argument that the issue of collective bargaining rights is crucial to the budget.
NBC News' Mike Taibbi, John Yang, Mark Murray Samira Puskar and Stephanie Himango, and msnbc.com staff contributed to this report.

Rusty Shackleford

11th March 2011, 00:51

Mo' Fuckin' General Strike is on the horizon! Walker will sign it within 24 hours, no doubt.

Wisconsin Assembly passes anti-labor bill
Workers and students step up the struggle

If public and private sector workers in Wisconsin engage in a general strike, it will be supported by workers and students across the country. This struggle will not be decided in the halls of the state government, but in the streets—and spreading the word and building national support will be critical as workers prepare for the next stage in this battle.
ANSWER organizers have been helping to organize from the epicenter of this historic labor battle. Thousands of people poured into the streets to protest the illegal vote to strip workers of their rights. Our organizers have also been reporting and tweeting live throughout the day. They will continue to send in reports, video and photos of the actions as they continue to unfold in the coming days. ANSWER has also produced and distributed placards and other materials in Madison in solidarity with the workers and students.
Please help us at this critical moment of struggle by making an urgently needed donation. Your support will help cover the cost of organizers on the ground as well as the production of materials for the demonstrations. (http://www2.answercoalition.org/site/R?i=wIoVD0Mj8KorpOI1dD0jkg..)
Eyewitness report
This eyewitness report was sent today by activists at the labor demonstrations in Madison, Wis.
In a 53-42 vote, the Wisconsin State Assembly just passed the bill at the center of labor struggle that has unfolded in Madison for the past several weeks. The new legislation strips public-sector workers of collective bargaining among other fundamental union rights. Gov. Scott Walker—the most ardent backer of the bill—has already indicated he’ll sign it into law.
But if Gov. Walker thinks he can silence the workers and students and succeed with his anti-labor agenda, he is seriously mistaken.
Help with this fight now. We can win. (http://www2.answercoalition.org/site/R?i=gGHqOtp52jPtURU6BfMq8A..)
Thousands of demonstrators immediately began converging at the state capitol last night after a special legislative committee pulled a procedural sleight-of-hand to get around the required three-fifths quorum that had been prevented by the Senate Democrats. Last night's Senate vote on the bill allowed it to proceed to the Assembly.
Protesters continued to arrive today in a show of force against the union-busting legislation. Middle- and high-school students walked out by the thousands to join the demonstrations. The impressive outpouring delayed the Assembly vote for several hours.
Now comes the the next phase of the struggle. More student walkouts are planned for tomorrow and a mass labor action has been announced for Saturday. Prior to the vote on the bill, the Madison-based South Central Federation of Labor’s 45,000 members endorsed a resolution calling for preparations for a general strike should the bill pass.
Please make an urgently needed donation today. (http://www2.answercoalition.org/site/R?i=8_Ls5WXjfnN3nAFPPFttkg..)

ckaihatsu

20th March 2014, 18:51

Immokalee workers demand higher wages from Publix

By Jared Hamil

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/ciwstage.jpg

Lakeland, FL – For almost five years farmworkers in Immokalee, organized by the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW), have been fighting for higher wages from Publix Supermarkets. Immokalee, located in southwest Florida, grows many crops, including tomatoes and oranges. The city is home to many migrant farmworkers mostly from Mexico and Central America. Publix, whose headquarters is in Lakeland, Florida, is a multi-billion dollar corporation with over 1000 grocery stores throughout the South.

The CIW has been pressuring Publix to pay a penny more per pound of tomatoes it buys from the farms in South Florida. As it stands, the Immokalee workers are paid by piece, meaning they are paid anywhere from 30 to 50 cents per 30 pound bucket of tomatoes they pick. Since the corporate buyers set the price they pay for tomatoes, they essentially set the wages for the farmworkers in the fields. The CIW have also been trying to get Publix to sign onto the Fair Food Program, which would advance the conditions for the workers. It would help stop slavery, harassment from the bosses, allow for break times, and many other things.

Since March 5, Immokalee workers on “The Now Is the Time Tour” had been going to different cities throughout the South to talk about the Fair Food Program and urging companies like Publix and Wendy's to sign on. Different cities had marches and protests. On March 14, the CIW arrived in Lakeland. Hundreds of protesters gathered outside of a local Publix store. Groups of people arrived throughout the night to take part in a 24-hour vigil. The local police were in full force, as well. They told people not to enter the parking lot - threatening them with arrests and car towing. On March 15, hundreds more gathered outside the store. The crowd was a mix of farmworkers, community members and students. They picketed for hours while chanting “The people united will never be defeated!” and “J-U-S-T-I-C-E is what we want, Justice in Immokalee!”

In the hot Florida sun, almost 1000 people marched into the streets towards downtown Lakeland. For over two miles, men, women and children of all ages waved banners, flags and signs in the face of traffic and onlookers. Cars honked their horns and people cheered from the sidewalks.

They marched to a park in downtown Lakeland where the CIW had set up a stage for speakers, and musicians. It opened up with speakers, and was followed with Huapango music (Mexican folk). Oscar Otzoy, a farmworker and member of the CIW said, “We're here to celebrate the dramatic transformation underway in the fields as a result of a the Fair Food program and communicate the urgency of Publix's participation as Publix continues to ignore us, to disseminate misleading statements and turn their back on the farmworkers who fuel their soaring profits.”

Farmworkers acted out in a theatrical piece which showed the horrible conditions that they endure in Immokalee. It also showed how conditions improve when farms sign onto the Fair Food Program.

From the stage, students from around Florida spoke. Diego Guerra of CHISPAS from the University of Florida fired people up and led them with a chant, “What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!”

Veronica Juarez who grew up in Immokalee spoke on behalf of Tampa Bay Students for a Democratic Society, stating “My mom is a farmworker so I've seen the horrible conditions that the farmworkers face first hand; from the harassment of the crew leaders to the wage theft. It's great to see that the CIW is trying to change these realities so that the workers will have better working conditions and higher wages.”

Marisol Marquez, an activist from Tampa and member of the Freedom Road Socialist Organization had this to say, “The U.S. time and time again, continues with exploitation of undocumented immigrants and farm workers - specifically those who are from Mexico and Central America. Just like Publix, the U.S. tries to turn the other way when confronted by the same people they oppress. NAFTA is one of those horrible examples of how the U.S. doesn't start its terrible treatment of immigrants just at home, it also does it abroad. That is why you see so many immigrants crossing the border and risking everything to do so. Using economics and exploitation, they hurt people across the globe.”

Marquez continued, “My parents, who are from Mexico, are a part of this. My mother swam through the Rio Grande and my father held onto the bottom of a train for four straight days; looking for work. They met in the crop fields. I remember growing up how they took me from tomato field to tomato field with them. Almost every immigrant around the country knows that farm workers will work under brutal conditions if they move to the state of Florida. And yet Florida is known by big businesses as the number one producer of crops like oranges, strawberries and tomatoes. It's no surprise that business booms when people are forced into slavery and have to work for low wages. Enough is enough, the people are fighting back! And the CIW is paving the way!”

The CIW plans to continue demanding that Publix sign onto the Fair Food program. Over the years the CIW has reached agreements with corporations like: Taco Bell, Burger King, Walmart, Subway, Aramark, among many others. It is only a matter of time before they make Publix cave in like the rest.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

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ckaihatsu

22nd March 2014, 01:08

Stop Kellogg greed! Locked out Memphis workers tell their stories

Locked out Memphis workers tell their stories - stop Kellogg greed!

http://gallery.mailchimp.com/e788a43ccacc225abf8e6e748/images/KGreedLogo81af09.png

The BCTGM has released a series of powerful videos depicting Kellogg's workers' fight against rampant corporate greed. The union has posted the videos at www.kellogggreed.com from where you can also send a message (http://iuf.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=e788a43ccacc225abf8e6e748&id=afc369e640&e=090f0b0646) to the company.

http://gallery.mailchimp.com/e788a43ccacc225abf8e6e748/images/wewanttoworkd771fb.jpg

Union workers at the transnational cereal maker's Memphis factory have been locked out since October 22 for rejecting the company's efforts to impose a plan under which all newly employed workers would be employed as casuals with no guaranteed hours at significantly lower pay and benefits. Kellogg's call this "The New Workforce of the Future".

Union factories have been closed in Australia and Canada, production is being shifted to low-wage facilities and the company is demanding unacceptable conditions around the world to feed a voracious appetite for executive pay and stock dividends.

View the videos and SEND A MESSAGE (http://iuf.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=e788a43ccacc225abf8e6e748&id=88a4c6b1ac&e=090f0b0646) to top Kellog executives demanding a halt to the destruction of decent jobs and working people's loves and communities. If you live outside the United States, just enter your country in the postal zip field.

E-mail: [email protected]
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ckaihatsu

28th March 2014, 16:43

Campus workers in Chicago will take strike vote

By staff

Chicago, IL - 3000 workers at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) have gone without a contract, and without a contract raise, for over a year. In response, the Joint Bargaining Committee of Clerical, Service and Maintenance, and Technical units at UIC has called for a strike authorization vote. The workers are represented by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 73. The voting will take place from Monday, March 31 through Thursday, April 3. Fight Back! interviewed Joe Iosbaker, a clerical worker at UIC who chairs the joint committee.

“In negotiations with management, their chief negotiator Steve Katz said, ‘None of your members are underpaid.’ In other words, management is saying, ‘just be glad you have a job and stop expecting raises.’

“Now management is threatening us that the politicians in Springfield want to cut 12.5% of the university’s budget for next year. They say it's because the state will lose that much revenue when the temporary income tax increase ends on Jan. 1, 2015. Management wants us to give up any hope of a fair contract.

“The three bargaining committees met and agreed to fight on both fronts. Our message to Springfield: No pension cuts! No budget cuts! Make the rich pay their share of taxes! We adopted a resolution to send a message to the politicians.

“And our message to management: We’re prepared to fight, and even strike if we have to. Salaries for top management have exploded while we have struggled to keep up with the cost of living, with no hope of getting ahead.

“We are asking all union members to come out to vote Yes! to authorize our committees to call a 3 day strike.”

Below is the resolution adopted unanimously by the joint meeting of bargaining committees (Clerical and Administrative, Service and Maintenance, and Technical units) of the Service Employees International Union Local 73 at the University of Illinois at Chicago:
Tax the Rich!

Resolution adopted unanimously by the joint meeting of bargaining committees (Clerical and Administrative, Service and Maintenance, and Technical units) of the Service Employees International Union Local 73 at the University of Illinois at Chicago, representing 3000 workers.

The State of Illinois has an unfair tax system. Wealthy people don’t pay their share. In Illinois, the rich pay less in taxes that 42 other states.

Many major corporations located in Illinois pay little or no taxes. Take for example the Boeing Company. They are the second largest arms manufacturer, and get most of their contracts from the federal government. From 2003 through 2012, Boeing had $35 billion in profits, but paid zero in state taxes.

Now the politicians in Illinois want to cut hundreds of millions of dollars from the higher education budget, and billions from other programs that benefit working class people.

We shouldn’t pay for this crisis! The politicians have been raiding our pension funds for 30 years because they don’t tax the rich enough. Illinois state workers have met our obligation by paying into our pension fund from each paycheck. Our pensions are under attack already. Now we’re being threatened with this 12.5% budget cut.

No pension cuts! No budget cuts! Make the rich pay their share of taxes!

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

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ckaihatsu

2nd April 2014, 16:57

Tell the state of CA to take Prima's owners to court ASAP!

http://action.ufw.org/prima

Gerawan Farming - which markets its fruits under the Prima brand - is a multi-million dollar company employing over 5,000 farm workers. These farm workers are hardly part of the 1%. In early 2013, the UFW was able to negotiate wage increases of $1 to $2.50 an hour for these Prima workers. For example, general laborers received an increase from $9 to $10 an hour. For those workers who work full time, that's over $2000 more a year, money much needed to support them and their families.

But $10 still falls way short of what one needs to have a decent standard of living. Four months ago, the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board (ALRB) ordered Gerawan to raise wages on March 15, 2014 to at least $10.75 an hour. But workers have yet to see this increase. In fact, in spite of there being a final order, Gerawan is continuing to flaunt the ALRB order and not paying workers what they're legally entitled to.

Is there a pattern here? Perhaps. Remember that only last month, workers sued Gerawan Farms for wage and hour violations.

Juan Cruz Lopez, who labors in Gerawan's fields says, "So much time is passing and they are not giving us what we deserve. Where are our rights? Where are the contract wages we are entitled to?"

Long time Gerawan worker Primitivo Santiago Gutierrez tells us, "It is very important to us to have a contract because we need Gerawan respecting our rights, benefits and better work conditions… Farm workers are the ones who suffer the company abuses of power … Lots of stress, and fear of being fired if we try to do anything, fear of discrimination for exercising our rights.”

Workers at Gerawan labor hard to pick the peaches and harvest the grapes we see in supermarkets under the Prima Brand. They're proud of the work they do and want to see their company prosper; but they also need Gerawan to comply with the order and the law.

Tell the State of California there can be no more delays. Go to court and force Gerawan to follow the law.

http://action.ufw.org/prima

After you take action, please ask your friends and family to take action too. You can send them an e-mail, post this campaign on your Facebook and/or Twitter page by clicking here or by going to: http://action.ufw.org/page/share/prima

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ckaihatsu

3rd April 2014, 00:16

IUF dairy affiliates to fight trade and investment agreements (http://www.iuf.org/w/?q=node/3268)

Posted: 01 Apr 2014 07:56 AM PDT

IUF dairy division members call on their respective Governments to abandon the current model of investment agreements and to conduct trading relationships which respect human rights and promote food security and economic sovereignty.

U.S. Government charges Kellogg's with serious violations of federal law (http://www.iuf.org/w/?q=node/3267)

Posted: 01 Apr 2014 05:45 AM PDT

http://cms.iuf.org/sites/cms.iuf.org/files/Kelloggs.jpg

The United States government has charged transnational cereal-maker Kellogg's with multiple and serious violations of federal labour law in connection with the lockout of more than 220 union workers in Memphis.

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ckaihatsu

3rd April 2014, 00:18

http://action.workingfamiliesparty.org/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=9589

Working Families

Call UPS now! Tell them: "STOP retaliating against 250 drivers. No more firing!"

CALL UPS CEO Scott Davis at 404-828-4816

Report how the call went here:

Call UPS CEO Scott Davis at 404-828-4816. When you get a hold of his assistant tell her:

"I'm calling because I'm appalled UPS has fired 20 drivers in Maspeth, NY and is continuing to threaten 230 drivers -- all for protesting. This is workplace retaliation, and it's wrong.

[If you have used UPS before] I am a customer of UPS, and I am playing close attention. Please tell CEO Scott Davis that I want UPS to do the right thing. Stop retaliating, negotiate with the workers' union, and re-hire the 20 drivers.

[If you have not used UPS before] As a consumer, I'm paying close attention. Please tell CEO Scott Davis that I want UPS to do the right thing. Stop retaliating, negotiate with the workers' union, and re-hire the 20 drivers."

After the call, please take a moment to fill out the form on the left and leave a comment about how your call went.

If you don't get through to a person right away, keep calling!

First Name*
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How did the call go?

© Working Families | 2013design by theCoup.org

ckaihatsu

3rd April 2014, 16:08

UPS starts firing drivers, outrage spreads

By staff

New York, NY - Following a walkout by 250 UPS drivers in Maspeth, Queens, and the subsequent unjust retaliation by UPS, the fight for justice continues.

Workers walked out to defend a union activist and 24-year worker, Jairo Reyes, after UPS attempted to fire him through an abuse of the grievance procedure - a common practice to retaliate against workers enforcing their rights. UPS issued working terminations to the 250 brave drivers from Teamsters 804, claiming they could maintain the right to dismiss them at anytime. In response, the local union launched a national campaign of support with the aims of bringing UPS back to the table, and rescinding the terminations. The support included a national petition which garnered over 100,000 signatures in just two weeks.

Union leaders, stewards and rank-and-file activists from Local 804 hit the gates of every building in New York City educating members and gathering signatures from their 6000-person membership.

“We want to show UPS we’re united and won’t tolerate them retaliating against our brothers and sisters. UPS created this situation by violating the contract and refusing to respect the grievance procedure,” said 804 member Dustin Ponder. “The workers we talked to were eager to sign. They stand behind the drivers and our local.”

The groundswell of support spread nationwide as activists from groups like Teamsters for Democratic Union, the Vote No movement and Part Time Power at UPS circulated the petition outside gates across the country. Within days activists gathered petitions at hubs in Florida, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Philadelphia, Chicago, Rhode Island, Ohio, New Jersey and Arizona.

The union held a rally outside the distribution facility in Maspeth, Queens on March 21, where union leaders and local politicians such as New York City Public Advocate Letitia James were joined by hundreds of workers and community supporters. They demanded the company rescind the terminations and begin respecting the contract.

UPS attempted to raise the stakes on March 31 by terminating 20 workers after they completed their shifts, and stating more terminations of hard working drivers would follow. Outrage spread in a matter of days and the story quickly spread to national headlines.

The union and their allies now want to shine the spotlight on up to $60 million in subsidies New York City gives the company. “We’ve given UPS breaks, particularly as it relates to this [parking] program,” Public Advocate Letitia James said in quote given to the Daily News. “They should not treat workers in this manner.”

Local 804 issued a call for workers and community supporters to rally on April 3 at 10:00 a.m. outside city hall to continue the fight-back against UPS’ abuses of their workforce. The rally will demand that UPS reinstate all workers who walked off their jobs and rescind all outstanding terminations.
Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

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ckaihatsu

3rd April 2014, 17:42

Stop the attempted intimidation of adjuncts at the MD Institute College of Art

Dear Chris,

Here at the Maryland Institute College of Art, our administration has launched an all out union-busting campaign against adjunct faculty who recently filed for a union election. President Fred Lazarus and department chairs have sent out numerous anti-union emails, held one-on-ones and captive audience meetings to try to intimidate faculty, and made adjunct faculty leaders fear for their future at MICA. When asked about the adjunct union, President Lazarus said “I would vote no.”

Send a message to President Lazarus and the MICA administration: stop trying to intimidate adjunct faculty and halt all union-busting activities! (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=e9VEeNA%2FXC9w2oujBdCrsR80yvsKLd4T)

In 2013, part time faculty taught 45% of MICA’s credit hours, but received only 13% of total faculty compensation (less than 5% of the total compensation budget). Part time faculty compensation has not increased since 1999, despite regular cost-of-living adjustments, salary increases, and essential benefits delivered to administrators, staff, and full-time faculty. As students, we will not accept the administration using our tuition dollars to intimidate faculty as they fight for fair working conditions and quality education.

Email President Lazarus and ask him to halt all anti-union emails, phone calls, and captive audience meetings. (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=j%2B1YsQyc6A0ywfPLu3B0Glcjee0h%2BYWU)

We know that adjunct faculty working conditions are students’ learning conditions, and that an adjunct faculty union will lead to higher quality education.

In solidarity,

Estelle Kline and Karyn Lao
Students Supporting the Adjunct Union

United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org
Organizing for Student and Worker Power

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ckaihatsu

8th April 2014, 23:34

Arrested for picketing

Dear Chris,

Last week during a peaceful picket line at the University of California Santa Cruz, riot police tackled a union leader and photographer, and arrested 22 students and union members. On April 2nd and 3rd, members of UAW 2865, the union that represents Teaching Assistants at nine UC campuses went on strike to stand up for their rights and to protest a pattern of intimidation and harassment of campus workers. The UC proved it will do whatever is necessary to prevent student-workers from exercising their right to lawfully picket as part of a strike against UC’s unfair labor practices.

Send a message to President Janet Napolitano and Executive Vice Chancellor Alison Galloway: drop the charges and settle a fair contract for UC Teaching Assistants! (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=mOExFD8Lof%2Bx2xsu5tqerCos%2FQSvUXsM)

Riot police were brought in from UC Berkeley prior to the strike. The Berkeley police are known for their willingness to physically assault both students and faculty at peaceful demonstrations. Wearing riot helmets, and resting their hands on their weapons, police used conflicting messages to create confusion about what demonstrators could do to avoid arrest. A union leader was specifically targeted after communicating to administrators that the picket was about to begin. He introduced himself to Executive Vice Chancellor Galloway, and informed her that he was going to be exercising his right to picket, but that he would not be standing in front of cars or blocking traffic. Shortly after this encounter, he was tackled to the ground by police and arrested, along with a photographer who was documenting the incident.

Tell President Napolitano and EVC Galloway to stop the intimidation of organized labor by the UC and drop the charges against peaceful protestors. (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=bGKoKxlS41df5DsvsGRbwyos%2FQSvUXsM)

This isn’t the first time the UC has used intimidation to suppress organizing. UC admin have threatened the visa status of international students who participate in union activities, and have threatened to withhold future employment if union members participated in a legally sanctioned strike. It’s time for the UC to stop the intimidation of union members and come back to the bargaining table to settle a fair contract.

Sincerely,

Joshua Brahinsky
UAW 2865

United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org
Organizing for Student and Worker Power

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ckaihatsu

11th April 2014, 23:22

SHOPPER ALERT!

Diesel

failed to require

Dickinson & Cameron

and their subs to pay Carpenter
area standard wages and benefits
on all of their jobs, all of the time.

LABOR DISPUTE

---

If you care about Workers, Families, and Community

Go inside and talk to the store manager and

Voice your OUTRAGE to the following:

Diesel USA

Tomasso Bruso, CEO
220 W. 19th Street
New York, NY 10011

Tel: 212-675-4349
Fax: 212-414-8202
Email: [email protected]

So it goes in San Francisco,

So it goes in California,

So it goes across the U.S.A.

We do not seek recognition, nor are we asking anyone to stop working, stop deliveries, or cease doing business with any employer.

Carpenters Local 22

ckaihatsu

12th April 2014, 16:19

IUF News

UFCW calls for safety first in poultry industry changes (http://www.iuf.org/w/?q=node/3291)

Posted: 11 Apr 2014 07:09 AM PDT

A new study released by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) confirms what workers in the poultry industry have been saying for decades-it is among the most dangerous places to work in America.

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ckaihatsu

16th April 2014, 16:39

More than 2000 attend Labor Notes Conference

By staff

Chicago, IL - Over 2000 people attended the 2014 Labor Notes conference here, April 4-6, bringing together some of the best fighters in the labor movement for 140 crowded workshops of people discussing how to rebuild labor in the U.S. and abroad, and a militant protest at Staples on behalf of postal workers fighting privatization.

Mark Dimonstein, the newly-elected president of the American Postal Workers Union (APWU), gave a rousing speech in defense of postal workers and public sector unions.

"We're living in a moment when six members of the Walmart family have the accumulated wealth of 40% of this country," he said, detailing how the super-rich avoid paying taxes and, after successfully beating down private sector unions, have now "unleashed their fury on public sector unions." Dimonstein added, "When they don't pay who does? We do. And when they still don't have the money they take it out of the public sector.”

Asked to say something about the victory of his reform slate in the APWU, Dimonstein explained, "We simply told our members the truth as we understood it, we went to the rank and file around this country, we never offered a path of guaranteed or easy victories, the only thing we guaranteed is if we were elected we would wage an unrelenting fight alongside the membership to save the public postal service, the fight to rebuild our union contracts, the fight to save our union, and we promised to enter the battlefield without white flags or surrendering, that was our promise. We asked the members to support us if they want a union the is willing to fight back."

Conference attendee Charles Jordan, of Teamsters Local 804 in New York City, was recently on the front lines of a battle with UPS in his local. Teamsters of Local 804 were fighting the unjust firing of their union steward, who has 24 years working for UPS. In response to management walking him off the job, 250 drivers held an emergency protest outside their facility. UPS started replacing some of the 250 and said they were going to fire all of them. A campaign to save their jobs resulted in a victory where all 250 are back at work now.

Jordan stated, "The support for Local 804 was great. It was understood that the 804 fight was not only to primarily get our drivers reinstated, but also to protect the act of solidarity shown that fateful day when the drivers remembered, 'an injury to one, is an injury to all,' and they stood up for their brother unjustly fired."

Fight Back! hosted a party Saturday evening that featured class struggle unionists, including the president of an AFSCME local in Minnesota; a labor leader from El Salvador, where the people just elected a pro-worker government; a leader of the Chicago Teachers Union, a worker from Teamsters 804 who was one of the 250 UPS workers that recently went on strike, and many more.

One of the teachers in attendance at the Fight Back! party asked the crowd, “Where has unions following the rules gotten us? The game is rigged. Unions are going to have to start breaking the rules and looking at civil disobedience."

Blake Branum, a rank-and-file Teamster from Local 344 in Milwaukee, said, "I was astounded not only by how much knowledge I had taken in but by the diverse amount of people who are proud and unwilling to compromise what they believe in their heart.”

Cherrene Horazuk, president of AFSCME 3800, told the party attendees, "We know that working people win when we stand up and fight back, when we fight the boss for a better workplace, when we use the most powerful tools in our toolbox - the strike and solidarity - and when we organize as a class to make this a better place for all working people."

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

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ckaihatsu

24th April 2014, 15:46

Tell British American Tobacco Chairman Burrows to Prevent Human Rights Abuses in U.S. Tobacco Fields!

BAT must act on human rights abuses in U.S. tobacco fields!

http://gallery.mailchimp.com/e788a43ccacc225abf8e6e748/images/NCworkerhousingf00f35.jpg

The situation for tobacco farm workers in North Carolina is dire. Many farm workers often live in labor camps with inadequate or non-functioning toilets and showers and other substandard conditions, suffer from illnesses resulting from nicotine poisoning and exposure to dangerous pesticides and work long hours for below-poverty wages.

BAT is the major shareholder (42.02%) and an important customer of Reynolds American Inc., the largest tobacco company in North Carolina. BAT plays an important role in setting acceptable standards for tobacco farm workers in its supply chain.

Since there is no American law which mandates compliance with internationally recognized human rights protections for tobacco farm workers such as freedom of association, the IUF-affiliated Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC), which represents tobacco farm workers, wants RAI to guarantee the human right to freedom of association and worker representation on its contract farms. BAT should use its influence and tell RAI to sign an agreement with FLOC.

It's time for BAT to take responsibility for conditions in their U.S. supply chain - click here to send a message to BAT! (http://iuf.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=e788a43ccacc225abf8e6e748&id=7be45a588e&e=090f0b0646)

E-mail: [email protected]
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Protest inhuman conditions in North Carolina's tobacco fields

Send a message to British American Tobacco.

Is this email not displaying correctly?
View it in your browser. (http://us2.campaign-archive2.com/?u=f3995b46c18cb039818f29a32&id=1ad2685c2c&e=4e93ef2fad)

https://gallery.mailchimp.com/f3995b46c18cb039818f29a32/images/NCworkerhousing.jpg

British American Tobacco (BAT) is the major shareholder and an important customer of Reynolds American Inc. (RAI), the largest tobacco company in North Carolina. BAT plays an important role in setting acceptable standards for tobacco farm workers in its supply chain.

The situation for tobacco farm workers in North Carolina is dire.

A 2011 report by Oxfam America and the IUF-affiliated Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC) -- A state of fear: Human rights abuses in North Carolina's tobacco industry [1] -- showed that many farm workers live in labour camps with inadequate or non-functioning toilets and showers and other substandard conditions, and suffer from illnesses resulting from nicotine poisoning and exposure to dangerous pesticides. They work long hours for below poverty wages.

As there is no American law which mandates compliance with internationally recognized human rights protections for tobacco farm workers such as freedom of association, FLOC, which represents tobacco farm workers, wants RAI to guarantee the human right to freedom of association and worker representation on its contract farms. The IUF has just launched an online campaign (http://labourstart.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=f3995b46c18cb039818f29a32&id=035c740742&e=4e93ef2fad) demanding this.

Please take a moment to send a message to BAT Chairman Richard Burrows (http://labourstart.us2.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=f3995b46c18cb039818f29a32&id=bbe5173270&e=4e93ef2fad) telling RAI to sign an agreement with the Farm Labor Organizing Committee.

Thank you.

Eric Lee

[1] http://www.floc.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Oxfam-A-state-of-fear-full-report-final.pdf

---
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ckaihatsu

28th April 2014, 23:03

Airport workers deserve better

Chris,

For over a year now, workers at Baltimore-Washington International Airport have been organizing and asking the Maryland Department of Transportation for improvements in the quality of their jobs and for more job stability. They’ve made a pretty straightforward request: to make sure that they don’t lose their jobs whenever individual restaurants and stores close at the airport. Unfortunately, nothing has happened in response to the workers’ request, and now that could result in the loss of jobs at the airport for some at the end of this month.

Send a message to the Secretary of Transportation and the workers’ boss asking them to take action to preserve job security for airport workers. (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=Ddx0WwhFiieURABotNzREHKfQeqD3OS0)

Creative Food Group, a company that operates six restaurants at the airport, took over from another company at the beginning of 2012, and refused to rehire the majority of the existing workers. Now, that same company is closing one of its restaurants, and some of the workers will be out of a job by the end of the month. They have not been offered jobs at other Creative Food Group restaurants or at other BWI concession outlets, and haven’t even been placed on a preferential hiring list for future openings.

This is the exactly the kind of problem that BWI workers have tried so hard to avoid. Workers have asked the State of Maryland to institute worker retention policies, like those adopted by several other airports around the country, to ensure that workers have continued opportunities when such restaurant closings occur. Despite many attempts to convince the state to implement such policies at BWI, no action has been taken, and as a result, workers will be left unprotected when their restaurant closes at the end of this month.

Support these workers now by sending a message to the Secretary of Transportation and to the CEO of Creative Food Group! (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=Gz3uocydWAd%2BgGHNRUpcLHKfQeqD3OS0)

During the 2014 legislative session, a bill seeking to ensure that airport food and retail workers be paid equally to the lowest paid Maryland Aviation Authority workers gained over 30 legislative cosponsors. At the close of the legislative session, airport workers and their supporters staged a 300-person march in Annapolis that culminated in fourteen workers and clergy being arrested in an act of civil disobedience. As recently as last week, airport workers and clergy affiliated with Interfaith Worker Justice of Maryland asked the Department of Transportation to adopt policies that exist at other airports which provide continued work opportunities or preferential hiring when such restaurant closings happen.

In solidarity,

Julian Bloom
Student Worker Alliance at American University
USAS Local #34

United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org
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ckaihatsu

28th April 2014, 23:08

Reclaiming Our Unions for Struggle: New Stirrings in the Labor Movement

[please excuse duplicate postings; to subscribe / unsubscribe, contact [email protected]]

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Reclaiming Our Unions for Struggle:
New Stirrings in the Labor Movement

Despite the hammer blows that have rained down on the working class and its main organizations -- i.e., the trade unions -- for close to three decades, and despite the complicity of the top union leaders with this ruling-class offensive, union members at all levels, especially the rank and file, are seeking to reclaim their unions for struggle against the bosses and the government.

There is not a mass labor upsurge at this time; workers and their unions are very much on the defensive. There is not, as of yet, an extension of the fightback that we witnessed with the Chicago teachers' strike almost two years ago. But there are repeated and important developments that indicate a willingness to fight back that is swelling beneath the surface and portend major class battles ahead.
* IAM Reform Slate Makes Big Gains:

The elections for the top officers of the International Association of Machinists are taking place in IAM lodges (their name for locals) nationwide throughout the month of April. The IAM Reform Slate website reports that their slate has been winning a majority of the votes in lodges where they did not even have contacts a short while ago.

Their slate has re-energized tens of thousands of Machinists on a labor fightback / anti-concessions platform in the wake of the mammoth betrayal by the top union leadership at Boeing. "Rosie's Machinist" Shannon Ryker received the "Troublemaker of the Year" award at the recent Labor Notes conference. [You can hear her presentation on the video produced by Labor Beat in Chicago; see sidebar article.]
For more information on this IAM Reform Slate, go to:
http://rosiesmachinists751.net

* Teamsters Union In New York Forces Management to Rescind Firings at UPS:

Teamsters for a Democratic Union (TDU) reports that UPS has rescinded the terminations of all 250 drivers fired for reaching out to the public during contract negotiations in Queens, N.Y. All fired workers are members of IBT Local 804, the local of former IBT President Ron Carey, who had organized a successful national strike against UPS (and who, as a result, was forced out of office on trumped-up charges by the government).

When the company refused to come to the table to negotiate a settlement, Local 804 organized a community support campaign. They collected more than 125,000 signatures on support petitions from Teamster members and public supporters. Drivers who had reached out to their customers in person, on camera and in the press were summarily fired.

The grassroots mobilization brought UPS back to the table and ultimately forced the company to rescind the terminations. A press release from IBT Local 804 put it this way: "UPS executives had insisted the firings were a done deal. Local 804 members proved otherwise by staying united, taking their case to the public, and mobilizing support." It was a small, but significant, victory.

* Teachers Organizing the Fightback:

There has been a big increase in the number of rank-and-file caucuses in both the AFT and NEA nationwide. Protest actions of all sorts are taking place as part of the fight against the budget cuts, the growing opposition by teachers to the new performance-evaluation tests, and the overall fight against the privatization of public education. This is occurring in K-12 schools, but also -- as the fight at City College of San Francisco attests -- in higher education, mainly at the Community College level.

From Los Angeles, teacher unionist Joel Jordan reports: "Great news at UTLA! The progressive organizing slate -- Union Power -- swept the officer and Board of Directors elections, with a run-off for president in April. . . . So we're looking at an overwhelming victory in the run-off and the opening of a 'second front' (with Chicago) in the second largest urban district in the U.S.!"

The day before the April 5-6 Labor Notes conference in Chicago, a day-long meeting of dissident teachers' caucuses gathered in Chicago, with delegates from North Carolina, California, Washington state, Minnesota, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Oregon, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Ohio. The National Network Coordinating Committee of teachers will be holding a larger, open conference of rank-and-file teachers and reform caucuses in Chicago in August.

* Postal Workers' Union Elect Militant Leader:

A militant leader of the North Carolina chapter of the American Postal Workers Union (APWU), Mark Dimondstein, recently won the election for union president. Dimondstein ran on a platform to stop the privatization and destruction of the U.S. postal service (which is far advanced at this point) and to build unity with the three other postal workers' unions to beat back and reverse the attacks against the Post Office and the workforce.

The four post office unions, in fact, have just formed the Postal Union Alliance to fight back against the "unprecedented attack" on the Postal Service. The unions will work together to protest privatization, subcontracting, and other actions that have already led to the loss of tens of thousands of jobs. The alliance also "vows to form a common front in the fight for genuine postal reform legislation," to fight corporate welfare in USPS service rates, and to work to expand services to include basic banking, notary, check-cashing and other services.

Dimondstein was a keynote speaker at the Labor Notes Conference. [His speech is included in the Labor Beat report; see below.]

* Growing $15 an Hour Movement:

Spurred by the electoral victory of Kshama Sawant and the successful organizing drive for a $15 minimum wage ordinance in Seattle, scores of labor-community coalitions have been building similar movements in cities across the country. In San Francisco, a resolution adopted by the S.F. Labor Council was followed-up by a decision to form a coalition, led by SEIU Local 1021 and Jobs with Justice, among others, to place a $15 an hour minimum wage initiative on the November 2014 ballot. "This is about lifting up everybody in the community, not just low-wage workers," said Shaw San Liu, a spokeswoman for the San Francisco Progressive Workers Alliance, which is spearheading this campaign.

As a result of this mounting pressure from below, the national AFL-CIO has even come out for a $15 federal minimum wage -- at a time when Obama is pushing for a increase in the minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $10.10 an hour (a proposal that is being fought tooth and nail by the Republicans). Many young labor and community activists are mobilizing in support of this campaign.

* Growing Labor for Single Payer movement:

Outraged by the attacks on the unions' health plans, more and more national unions are speaking out against the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) and urging support for single payer. This issue surfaced in an explosive manner at the AFL-CIO convention in September 2013. But business has not returned to usual in the house of labor on the healthcare front. Some unions, such as UNITE-HERE, are actively educating the labor movement about the serious shortcomings of ACA. This is likely to be one of the main breaking points -- if not the main breaking point -- between labor and the Democrats (and one of the main leverage points for launching a Labor Party) in the period ahead.

In many states, such as California, the labor movement is joining with community organizations to form coalitions with the goal of placing a single-payer initiative on the ballot in 2017. Under the provisions of the ACA, states can opt out, or modify, their ACA legislation in 2017 as they see fit -- and this could include opting out of the private-insurance-dominated ACA system to establish a single-payer system. The Campaign for a Healthy California (CHC), led by the California Nurses Association/NNU, is educating labor and community about the major problems with ACA and building a base to launch a successful campaign to defeat what will surely be a billion-dollar effort by the insurance companies to stop any single-payer ballot initiative in 2017.

For more on the UNITE HERE campaign, go to:
http://www.unitehere.org/detail.php?ID=3775

For more information on how states can move toward single payer in 2017, to go the PNHP blog.

* Moral Mondays Movement Spreads Across U.S. South:

A recent article written by Tom Bias and distributed by the Labor Fightback Network noted that the "Moral Mondays" protests that shook North Carolina's capital through all of 2013 -- led by labor and community organizations -- have now spread to Georgia and South Carolina. UE Local 150 leader Saladin Muhamad called this a "budding mass movement" as he reported on the close to 100,000 people from throughout the South who turned out for a "Moral Mondays" protest in Raleigh on February 8.

The protests have targeted the attacks by the Supreme Court and many Southern governors on the voting rights of Black people, the decisions by state legislatures not to participate in Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act, the assault on public employees and their collective-bargaining rights, the "New Jim Crow" legislation across the South and the growing prison-industrial complex, the mounting attacks on pensions and unemployment benefits, the lack of housing, the attacks and deportations of immigrant workers, the loss of funding for civil rights enforcement agencies, and more.

It is no surprise, therefore, that all the top leaders of the North Carolina Public Service Union, UE Local 50, were jailed and still face serious charges -- along with more than 900 other labor and community activists. Reclaiming the traditions of the early Civil Rights Movement, these activists are putting their bodies on the line -- and they are inspiring workers and youth in the rest of the country in the process.
For more information on this movement, go to:
http://southernworker.org/

* Huge Turnout for Labor Notes (LN) Conference:
The bi-annual LN conferences have always been a gathering place to do networking for serious labor activists and officials committed, as their slogan goes, "to putting the movement back in the labor movement." But this year's LN conference -- reflecting the rumblings occurring within the labor movement -- was different. For one thing, it was the largest ever -- 2,000 union activists, with a much larger percentage of youth, Black and Latino activists. A big contingent came from the Southern Workers Assembly in North Carolina. And some national unions attended the conference. This was the case of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU), whose 400 delegates attending a prior union meeting in Chicago all came to the LN conference. -- A.B.

* * * * * * * * * *

LINK TO HIGHLIGHTS OF Labor Notes Conference 2014, Produced by Labor Beat (Chicago)
On YouTube at:
http://youtu.be/sEPHe-mFi04

Speech excerpts from the Friday evening and Saturday morning plenaries of the April 4-6, 2014 Labor Notes Conference in Chicago. And before the speeches begin, a quick visit with the folks at the lit tables that provide much of the political ambience surrounding this biennial event.

Speeches by: Karen Lewis, President of Chicago Teachers Union, who delivers the welcome; Jane Slaughter, Labor Notes Editor; Stephan Chan, Union of Hong Kong Dock Workers, who led a 40-day strike in 2013; Tim Sylvester, President of IBT Local 804, UPS New York; Jessica Davis, Workers Organizing Committee/Chicago; Mark Dimondstein, newly elected President of American Postal Workers; Kimberly Bowsky, Chicago Teachers Union.

Mark Dimondstein, APWU President, dwelled on the attacks on the public sector unions, "along with this [privatization] drive of public services, from education, public transportation, public utilities, public hospitals, and public postal services. . . . Privatization represents the looting of what belongs to the people. Privatization represents a transfer of wealth from decently paid union workers to the bosses and owners who thrive off of non-union, non-living wage jobs."

Dimondstein capsulized the basic strategy of the privatizers: "But since the people trust the Post Office, frontal privatization is not such an easy thing. First you have to degrade it, undermine it, not have enough people working the windows, have the lines long, close early, deliver mail late into the night, and people are going to be forced to look elsewhere. I compared it in our campaign to a lot of what's happened to public education in this country. Before you can destroy it, and move in for the kill, you have to undermine it and degrade it."

President Dimondstein also noted at several points in his speech that both the Republican and Democratic Parties have been leading the privatization attacks.

[The political ramifications of such political observations were addressed later at the Conference at a featured session on Labor and Independent Politics. We videotaped that meeting and will delve into that footage in some future Labor Beat show.] Length - 26:39

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner, and member of the Evanston Community Media Center. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat".

On Chicago CAN TV Channel 19, Thursdays 9:30 pm; Fridays 4:30 pm. Labor Beat has regular cable slots in Chicago, Evanston, Rockford, Urbana, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Princeton, NJ; and Rochester, NY.
Visit our Web Site:
http://www.laborbeat.org

* * * * * * * * * *

Mass Mobilizations Spread to
Demand End to Deportations
ALL OUT FOR MAY 1st!

The failure by the Democrats and Republicans to reach a deal on "immigration reform" left an opening for labor and community activists who had not swallowed the "poison pill" of Comprehensive Immigration Reform to initiate a campaign to demand that Obama stop the deportations (more than 2 million under his watch to date), expand DACA (deferred action), and stop the firings of undocumented immigrants.

Soon the campaign was endorsed by local unions and central labor councils -- and then by entire city councils (Los Angeles, San Francisco, and later many cities across California and the country). Labor activist David Bacon, in an aptly titled article titled, "How Change Happens," described this as "a growing insurgency . . . in direct response to the fact that the Obama administration, like the Bush administration before it, has implemented the harshest parts of Congress' immigration reform proposals, even while Congress has been paralyzed and unable to pass them."

Bacon summarized some of the recent activities of this movement:

"In early March, hundreds of people inside the Tacoma Detention Center launched a hunger strike against its private operator, Geo Corporation, demanding better conditions and a moratorium on deportations. A week later the strike spread to another Geo facility in Texas.

"This is only the most dramatic action of a wave of activity around the country, in which community and labor activists, and now deportees themselves, have refused to quietly endure increased immigration enforcement. . . . These activists refuse to wait for Congress to enact its immigration reform proposals, and in fact many reject them as fatally compromised. Instead, they're organizing actions on the ground to win rights and equality:

" - In Tucson, San Francisco, Phoenix, Chicago and other cities people sat down in front of ICE buses and vans, and chained themselves to vehicles, to block deportations. . . .

" - Supervisors in Los Angeles and San Francisco passed resolutions demanding a moratorium on the huge wave of deportations -- 2 million people in 5 years. The San Francisco resolution also demanded an end to the tens of thousands of immigration-related firings.

" - In Burlington, Washington, immigrant indigenous farm workers from Oaxaca went on strike repeatedly last year for labor rights, better pay, and to stop a grower from using the H2A guest worker program to replace them."

Bacon concluded his article as follows:

"Figuring out the alternative isn't really the hard part. It's building a movement strong enough to force Congress and the administration to enact it. But this is possible, as our own history tells us. Historian Howard Zinn warned: 'When a social movement adopts the compromises of legislators, it has forgotten its role, which is to push and challenge the politicians, not to fall in meekly behind them.'

"Zinn believed people have the power to win radical demands. 'If there is going to be change, real change,' he said, 'it will have to work its way from the bottom up, from the people themselves. That's how change happens." -- Editors

ckaihatsu

1st May 2014, 16:50

Stop the intimidation of adjuncts at Northeastern University

Dear Chris,

Last week Northeastern lied to students and adjuncts when they promised to halt anti-union communications with adjunct faculty who are currently voting in their union election. Over the past few days, adjuncts received anti-union mail to their homes and phone calls from NEU deans. Although I am proud to call myself a Northeastern student, I am appalled that the administration is using student tuition money to intimidate the faculty who teach a majority of my classes.

The stakes are high: voting is currently underway, and a last-minute anti-union campaign by NEU administration could intimidate enough adjuncts that it sways the election. We need everyone’s help to launch full-court press against NEU administrators until they stop trying to intimidate adjuncts during their union vote!

Send a message to President Aoun and the NEU administration: stop the intimidation of adjunct faculty and halt all union busting activities! (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=gbe1VjIu3ywWMB%2FdqB42vt7dm3a4Rdeb)

Adjuncts at Northeastern have organized a union in order to fight for fair pay, fair working conditions, and quality education. While President Aoun makes over $1 million and students pay upwards of $50,000 per year in tuition, many adjuncts make poverty level wages and work at multiple universities to make ends meet. I support my adjuncts because I know that faculty working conditions are students’ learning conditions, and that the entire NEU community will benefit from adjunct faculty having a union voice.

Email President Aoun and ask him to halt all anti-union mailings, phone calls, and all other anti-union activities. (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=u6SpIab5S81H3fbywxDS9dttetKU7bk%2B)

Adjunct professors at Northeastern make up around 70% of our teachers on campus. They have no job security, a contract that does not cover health or retirement benefits, and 35% of adjunct professors earn less than $2,500 per three-credit course they teach in a semester. It’s time for NEU to live up to its core values and stop union-busting!

In solidarity,

Sokona Diallo
Progressive Student Alliance at Northeastern
USAS Local #115

United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org
Organizing for Student and Worker Power

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ckaihatsu

14th June 2014, 16:44

Workers are winning jobs back in Prima campaign. Escalate your efforts.

Prima workers have not given up asking Walmart to do right by them and to ask Prima to give them their jobs back. They know that Walmart, as Prima's largest seller, has the power to help. Workers have been unrelenting in their task. Farm workers have leafleted at 27 Wal-Mart stores. They have asked supporters like you to send messages to Wal-Mart, the ALRB and Prima. They held protests and engaged in publicity to make consumers aware of their situation.

And they have been successful. Out of 58 workers who were not called back to work this season, 46 are now back on the job. But there are still 12 more workers who need to get back to work. So, workers are coming to you one more time to ask you for your support.

What you can do:

1. Share information on the campaign on your social media pages. You share this infographic on your Facebook (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9f6d/14552b18/446f40bb/2b40e89b/497982555/VEsF/)/Twitter (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9f6d/14552b18/446f40bb/2b40e898/497982555/VEsC/) pages.

http://action.ufw.org/page/-/Albertoinfographicnew.jpg

Click to share infographic on Facebook (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9f6d/14552b18/446f40bb/2b40e89b/497982555/VEsA/)
Click to share infographic on Twitter (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9f6d/14552b18/446f40bb/2b40e898/497982555/VEsB/)

2. If you haven't yet sent Walmart an email, you can do so here: http://action.ufw.org/page/speakout/walmart_prima

3. Read the Rosenberg Foundation article (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9f6d/14552b18/446f40bb/2b40e8e6/497982555/VEsP/) on the right about how Gerawan Farming, according to this article, is costing its workers millions. After you read the article please share it w/friends and family.

We'll be back to you soon with upcoming campaign announcements, so stay tuned.

Thank you again for all your support!

http://action.ufw.org/page/-/rf1.jpg

The Long Road to Justice for California Farmworkers (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9f6d/14552b18/446f40bb/2b40e8e6/497982555/VEsHBA/)

By Cruz Reynoso & Arturo S. Rodriguez

With the recent nationwide release of the first feature film and a new full-length documentary about the life of Cesar Chavez, we are celebrating Cesar’s legacy of fighting for farmworkers’ rights and the continuing progress of the United Farm Workers of America.

However, even today, farm workers in the U.S. continue to be excluded from national labor laws that granted basic rights to industrialized workers in 1935 and 1938. California is the only state with a law—the 1975 Agricultural Labor Relations Act—allowing those who labor in the fields to organize and bargain for better pay, decent conditions and job security. California workers have those protections only because of Cesar Chavez and the workers he and his movement organized.

But, as with other good laws that protect California’s agricultural workers, poor enforcement of the state’s farm labor law means that workers often must battle long and hard to win union contract protections.

Fresno-based Gerawan Farming, one of America’s largest grape and tree fruit growers, epitomizes the agricultural industry’s ongoing, entrenched resistance to unionization. Gerawan’s grapes, peaches, plums, nectarines and apricots are sold in major grocery stores across the country under its Prima label, but the workers who grew and harvested that fruit have been denied even the most basic of labor protections.

Just last year, 23 years after voting for the UFW in a state-conducted, secret ballot election, Gerawan workers finally got what they voted for: a union contract that the state ordered the company to implement. California lets workers call in neutral state mediators to hammer out contracts when growers refuse to sign them. Under the contract terms set by the mediator—not the UFW—as of May 2014, the majority of Gerawan employees would have received approximately $1,074 each, retroactive to July 2013. This was to cover paid holidays and regular wage increases, reflecting a 54-hour work week. MORE (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9f6d/14552b18/446f40bb/2b40e8e6/497982555/VEsHBw/)

OUR E-MAIL ADDRESS HAS CHANGED. Please add our new email [email protected] to your safelist/address book so that our messages don’t get trapped in your spam filter. If you have questions about how to do this, drop us an e-mail.

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ckaihatsu

4th August 2014, 23:53

[LaborTech] LinkedIn to pay workers $6 million in back wages

LinkedIn to pay workers $6 million in back wages

http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_26273609/linkedin-pay-workers-6-million-back-wages

Associated Press

POSTED: 08/04/2014 12:58:17 PM PDT0 COMMENTS
UPDATED: 08/04/2014 01:38:03 PM PDT

NEW YORK -- Professional networking service LinkedIn has agreed to pay nearly $6 million in unpaid wages and damages to 359 current and former employees, the Labor Department said on Monday.

The U.S. Department of Labor said an investigation found LinkedIn in violation of overtime and record-keeping rules that are part of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. It said the violations occurred at company branches in California, Illinois, Nebraska and New York.

A representative for Mountain View-based LinkedIn did not immediately respond to a message for comment.

LinkedIn agreed to pay the back wages once it was notified of the violations and to take steps to prevent them from happening again.

http://www.nieuws.nl/media/afj39uso1j7vam40vf0a8qf9x-w300-h300-q90-f-bfff

FILE - In this May 8, 2014 file photo, people walk outside of LinkedIn headquarters on in Mountain View , Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File) (Marcio Jose Sanchez)

Federal law requires that hourly employees get paid 1.5 times their regular hourly rates for hours they work beyond 40 per week.

ckaihatsu

23rd August 2014, 04:11

ENERGY (OIL, GAS, ELECTRICITY AND NUCLEAR) CONFRONTING GLOBAL CAPITALWORKERS' RIGHTS USA COLLECTIVE BARGAININGLOCKOUTVIOLATION

This article exists in: EN|FR|ES|RU

Honeywell Once Again Locks USW Members Out in the US

http://www.industriall-union.org/sites/default/files/styles/image_w460/public/uploads/images/Actions-and-events/USA/unknown.jpeg?itok=M7xtNaHn

Aug 18, 2014

Honeywell Inc.’s uranium conversion facility in Metropolis, Illinois has locked out nearly 150 members of the United Steelworkers (USW) Local 7-669 trying to break the union. IndustriALL Global Union gives full support to the campaign with its affiliates worldwide.

The facility converts milled uranium, known as yellowcake uranium, into uranium hexafluoride (UF6) that is used in nuclear fuel enrichment. The potentially dangerous process requires the experience and knowledge of the now locked out Steelworkers, and the irresponsible corporate decision is putting local communities at risk.

The last time, three years ago, that plant management attempted to continue production during a 14-month lock out, there were two near-miss tragedies due to mishandling of dangerous chemicals, and management was cited by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for helping replacement scab workers to cheat on exams that ultimately allowed them to operate the facility.

The previous lock out was the precursor to a three-year collective agreement, ratified by USW members on 2 August 2011. At the start of that lock out, Honeywell was intent on taking away pension benefits, the accompanying health care benefits, as well as union-protection provisions. But Local 7-669 members won the decent collective agreement that is now up for renewal.

This time around, Honeywell is going all out in an attempt to bust the union. The company proposal in bargaining with USW includes language that would allow management to systematically replace permanent, union workers with contractors. The unskilled contractors cost Honeywell more than the permanent USW workers already at the plant.

At approximately 11:45 pm August 1, Honeywell management entered the bargaining room and offered a virtually unchanged proposal, despite the union offering a comprehensive counter proposal 4 hours earlier. When the union’s negotiating committee declined to take the offer to the membership for a vote, the company notified the union that they would be locked out of the plant effective immediately.

Sign the petition here - https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/dont-put-our-communities-at-risk-end-the-lockout-and-bring-back-the-experienced-usw-workforce

IndustriALL Global Union general secretary Jyrki Raina told Honeywell CEO Cote today in a letter:

What a message to send to your workforce and local community, that your company would rather risk a nuclear accident than bargain in good faith with their Local 7-669. This is disgraceful corporate misbehaviour and we will continue to support the USW members at Honeywell until they get a fair collective agreement they deserve.

Another round of bargaining will take place at 10 a.m. on 18 August. The job security issue is not the only company attack that management is refusing to address. The present company proposal is a cut to workers’ health care equaling a 10% cut in wages. Honeywell workers are exposed to increased radiation so justifiably propose proper safety checks.

See the full details of the bargaining committee’s proposals on the Local 7-669 website here - http://usw7-669.com/story/what-we-are-fighting

ckaihatsu

20th December 2014, 16:29

The strike is over! [graduate employees at the University of Oregon]

Chris,

After eight days on strike, the graduate employees have a tentative contract that includes paid sick and parental leave. And they specifically stated that they couldn’t have done it without the support of the people who signed their online petition. Thanks in part to your activism, these workers won’t have to choose between taking a sick day and getting a paycheck.

Let’s take a moment to congratulate these brave teachers and researchers who took a big risk by standing up for their rights. Sign this card congratulating these graduate employees on their new contract. (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=7mQ6GeDSH7RTNET1ouqvHibs%2FrR66CVj)

The graduate employees are so grateful for all of your support and asked us to pass this along to you:

“On behalf of the membership of the GTFF we would like to thank all AFT members, community advocates and supporters who took the time to sign our online petition asking for medical and paid leave. We truly believe that your voice in the realm of social media influenced the decision-makers and also strengthened our bargaining team. Your ‘online solidarity’ reminded us that we are not alone in this fight and that we have huge support on a regional as well as a national level.” – Judith Lechner, GTFF member

The lives of graduate employees at the University of Oregon will be a little more secure, and you played a role in making that happen. When we can make a meaningful impact on someone’s life, that’s something to celebrate.

Join us in congratulating GTFF. Sign the congratulations card to celebrate their victory! (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=wx9%2B4vCjxCaev3St3L3z5ibs%2FrR66CVj)

In solidarity,
AFT

Click here to unsubscribe from the AFT e-Activist network

ckaihatsu

10th January 2015, 16:54

SIGN to FIRE Boston Public Schools Transportation Director John Steketee - DUMP VEOLIA!

Click HERE (http://www.solidarityweb.com/lists/lt.php?id=Lh8BBwQBGQZWDEhXD1QBAw) to view in your browser PLEASE SHARE WIDELY Facebook Twitter Addthis

Tell Boston Mayor Walsh: STOP CORPORATE CONFLICT of INTEREST in our SCHOOLS!

FIRE Jonathan Sanders/Steketee! DUMP Veolia/Transdev!

Click http://www.bostonschoolbus5.org/petition/steketee to send the following message to Mayor Walsh, the Boston City Council, the Massachusetts Congressional delegation, Mass. Governor Baker, Labor Secretary Perez, President Obama and members of the media.

Text of Petition:

To: Mayor Martin Walsh

cc: Boston City Council, Boston Interim Superintendent of Schools John McDonough, Massachusetts Congressional Delegation, Governor Baker, Labor Secretary Perez, President Obama, members of the media

STOP CORPORATE CONFLICT OF INTEREST IN OUR SCHOOLS!
FIRE JONATHAN SANDERS/STEKETEE! DUMP VEOLIA/TRANSDEV!

The new Transportation Director for Boston Public Schools (BPS) was formerly a top executive with Veolia Transportation – the private contractor for the BPS buses!

You couldn’t have a more obvious example of the fox hired to guard the henhouse!

Not only that: Fully aware of the appearance of favoritism, Jonathan Steketee the Transportation Director actually changed his name from Jonathan Sanders – his name as Veolia Assistant General Manager!

Sanders/Steketee also violates the position’s residency requirement, which Mayor Walsh is required to enforce. The Transportation Director is required to be a resident of Boston. But Sanders/Steketee lives in Quincy.

What else is Sanders/Steketee hiding?

Sanders/Steketee apparently got the name-change idea from Veolia, whose international reputation — as a corrupt corporation responsible for union-busting and customer gouging and as a supporter of apartheid settlements in Palestine — is so bad its executives recently changed its name to Transdev.

Veolia/Transdev relies on cozy relationships with city officials to help it reap tens of millions in bonus incentives structured in its contracts. Obviously, it is in Veolia’s interest to have an insider manage a contract that can yield such fabulous payouts. The BPS Director also decides on Veolia’s contract renewal.

Fact is, Sanders/Steketee was General Manager on the scene at Veolia on October 8, 2013, when he illegally locked out 800 drivers instead of simply agreeing to a meeting. Sanders/Steketee then presided over the frame-up and firing of 4 school bus union officers. He constructed a contract proposal to the drivers full of labor concessions and givebacks, and gave false testimony to police in the union-busting frame-up charges against the union’s Grievance Chair.

Sanders/Steketee and Veolia/Transdev’s conflicts of interest and anti-labor stance may result in the first school bus drivers’ strike in 24 years.

Veolia/Transdev has been booted out of whole countries and cities and lost contract bids in others. At a minimum, We call on Mayor Walsh to fire Sanders/Steketee and replace him with someone who can place the interests of Boston’s 33,000 schoolchildren above personal gain and Veolia/Transdev’s union-busting agenda.

We further call on Mayor Walsh to dump Veolia/Transdev for breach of contract and to use his authority to reach a just settlement with the bus drivers.

Initiating signers (list in formation):

Mel King, Boston’s First African-American Candidate for Mayor
Stop Veolia Seattle
Sandra Macintosh, Coalition for Equal Quality Education
Clarence Thomas, past Secretary-Treasurer of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 10
Charles Clemons, Founder, Touch 106.1
Chuck Turner, Boston City Council, 1999-2010
Jewish Voice for Peace-Boston
Parents to Improve School Transportation (PIST), NYC

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ckaihatsu

23rd February 2015, 19:24

[LaborTech] Facebook bus drivers unanimously approve union contract; here are the terms

Facebook bus drivers unanimously approve union contract; here are the terms

http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2015/02/21/facebook-bus-drivers-unanimously-approve-union.html

Feb 21, 2015, 2:54pm PST UPDATED: Feb 21, 2015, 3:29pm PST

http://media.bizj.us/view/img/2080441/google2*304xx4000-2667-0-2.jpg
David Paul Morris
These workers are getting on a Google bus, which became a symbol of the tech shuttle issue.

Greg Baumann
Editor in Chief-
Silicon Valley Business Journal
Email | Twitter | Google+

Facebook Inc. shuttle drivers employed by bus contractor Loop Transportation voted to approve a labor contract that will give them higher pay and better working conditions, a signal moment in organized labor's effort to unionize more contract support workers in Silicon Valley.

Eighty seven Loop drivers who are affiliated with the Teamsters voted unanimously to approve the contract, said Doug Bloch, a political director with the Teamsters.

Under the new contract, drivers will earn between $21 and $28.50 an hour for various driving assignments. Rome Aloise, an international vice president with the Teamsters who heads the Local 853, said drivers at Loop previously were making in the range of $17 an hour.

The vote on the contract precedes a Feb. 27 vote by drivers employed by Compass Transportation who shuttle Apple Inc., Yahoo Inc., Zynga Inc. and Genentech Inc. workers on whether they want to join the union.

"Some of the Compass drivers came to the Loop meeting today to witness the process," Aloise said in an interview. "I think when the people at Compass Transportation see what the Loop drivers, the Facebook drivers, won through organizing with a union, I think they're going to want that too."

The new Loop contract gives workers an array of new benefits:

• Seniority provisions

• Guaranteed hours based on scheduled shifts

• Guaranteed overtime

• Paid jury duty

• 11 paid holidays, plus whatever extra days Facebook takes

• Up to five weeks paid vacation

• Personal leave for medical, maternity, rehabilitation and school visits

• Paid bereavement leave

• Nine days paid sick leave

• Grievance and arbitration procedures

• Health care for workers and family of full time workers, fully paid by Loop

• $10,400 in contributions for a defined contribution retirement plan for each full time worker over the length of the three-year contract

• Workers who don't want to work split shifts are guaranteed a minimum six-hour day

• Those who work splits get a better salary

• Pay-rate protections for working shifts that pay lower wages should the worker return to the higher-rate job

Now Loop will have to work out details of the contract with Facebook, Aloise said.

Contacted by email for comment, Loop CEO Jeff Leonoudakis issued a statement: "Loop Transportation doesn't negotiate through the media. However, I can tell you that we have made progress in our negotiations, but we don't have an agreement at this time."

Greg Baumann is editor in chief at the Silicon Valley Business Journal.

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ckaihatsu

25th February 2015, 02:36

[LaborTech] Workers at Macy’s fear new electronic scheduling

Workers at Macy’s fear new electronic scheduling

http://48hills.org/2015/02/22/workers-at-macys-fear-new-electronic-scheduling/

Workers at Macy’s fear new electronic scheduling
Worries at unionized store about software, instead of people, telling employees when to come to work

http://i2.wp.com/48hills.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/48hillsmacys2.jpg?resize=360%2C640
When software decides who works when, things get messy for workers

By Chloe Johnson

FEBRUARY 23, 2015 — Macy’s in San Francisco is not just another store: like its counterpart in New York City, Macy’s Union Square has been a local institution for decades.

At Christmas time, the store puts puppies in the windows, and parents take their kids there to meet Santa Claus. Last week, the store was decorated for the Chinese New Year festivities.

Macy’s Union Square is also one of the few Macy’s stores in the nation whose sales staff is represented by a labor union, the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 5.

But there are changes afoot that are making Macy’s Union Square less like an old-fashioned department store and more like a big box store, at least for the employees.

While Macy’s workers speak with pride about their place of employment, they also say that there are unwelcome changes and bitter struggles between the union and management. Between August and November of last year, a new union contract was rejected three times by the members, before being narrowly approved, mainly to avoid a strike, according to shop steward Tony Vargas.

The crux of the conflict has been scheduling, possible loss of commissions, and whether Macy’s employees are considered skilled professionals or just interchangeable workers. The union had a victory when it voted down management’s proposal to do away with commission, and compromised on scheduling, narrowly approving a computerized scheduling system.

Macy’s is joining other retailers in using software, instead of human managers, to schedule employees. The computer programs are not designed to give workers regular schedules; in fact, they do the opposite. Macy’s workers in other stores say that increasingly sporadic and irregular schedules set by computers have made it hard to balance work with life, and some workers have even quit in frustration.

Unpredictable schedules in retail work have been a hot topic recently: they were the main problem that led to the passage of the Retail Workers’ Bill of Rights in San Francisco last November. There’s state legislation on the issue pending, too.

Macy’s Union Square plans to institute a computerized scheduling program in May, which, while still controversial, was considered to be not as bad as others by union members.
While the My Schedule Plus program has not started yet at Macy’s Union Square, Vargas knows several retail workers at other Macy’s branches and other retail brands who have complained about computerized scheduling.

“The online scheduling program ruins your life,” said Vargas. “It’s harder to build a clientele and a connection with customers.”

Julie Fisher, who has been a Macy’s employee for more than 30 years, said irregular schedules make it particularly hard for employees who have children, go to school, or need to keep medical appointments.

“Parents have to adjust their childcare, and there’s a snowball effect,” Fisher said. “Whether you have children or not, you deserve a predictable schedule. It’s retail: these are not emergency circumstances.”

Conny Ford, a vice president of the San Francisco labor council and longtime local activist, told us that scheduling software is typically designed by someone at corporate headquarters. It’s designed to measure hypothetical customer traffic based on complicated algorithms that translate to irregular schedules – that is, a worker is called in for three hours in the morning, sent home for a few hours in the middle of the day, and then called in for three more hours in the evening. It also changes week to week.

Another issue that came up in last year’s contract fight was the company’s plan to eliminate commission for salespeople, and instead pay flat hourly wages, said Mike Jones, a union representative with UFCW Local 5.

Jones said that the plan to get rid of commission, which 90 percent of all voting members of the union opposed, would have taken away the motivation for salespeople to improve their craft and move up in the company, and turn them into “just cashiers.” Although hourly workers would receive a raise based on their average commission sales over the past year, Jones believes that the company was pushing this “commission buyout” because it would save them thousands of dollars over the years.

“You would be locked into your rate,” Jones said. “You could go from Godiva chocolates and go to handbags, and it wouldn’t change. You would work a lot harder and make the same you made selling candy.”

Commissioned Macy’s salespeople make anywhere from $30,000 a year to $60,000, Jones said. Those making less tend to be younger workers, who are clustered in lower-level departments.

If the commission buyout had happened, as older workers retired and younger workers moved up from clothing sales to selling furniture or appliances, their hourly pay would remain the same. Therefore, the company would gradually shift to having lower-paid employees, according to Jones.

Macy’s company representative Megan Pardo told us that the company had no intention of paying workers less, only going to a different pay structure. She said the proposed changes would have kept Macy’s Union Square competitive and innovative.

“The prior contract was a six-year contract, and much change had happened in the retail industry over those years,” Pardo said.

Most long-time Macy’s employees don’t plan to go anywhere and will continue to fight to keep the quality jobs that attracted them to the company in the first place.
“I like working at Macy’s,” Fisher said. “There are things I’d like to improve, just like living in a neighborhood. You don’t just walk away.”
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ckaihatsu

25th February 2015, 02:39

Sickened by pesticides. Next time it could be me. Sign today.

http://action.ufw.org/page/-/uzielr.jpg

wrapper
donate
Workers sickened by pesticides last August still have no justice from Ag Commissioner

Workers will hand in petition (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9fea/14552b18/4408fd31/2b53d3fa/164053933/VEsF/) to Ag Commissioner during March 6 rally

“I work picking peaches for Gerawan. In August 2013, Gerawan workers entered a peach orchard to starting picking. They noticed a bad smell, began to feel sick & later found that this field was sprayed with toxic pesticides. It frightens me that no one even told them to keep out of the orchard like the law says. What’s scary is it could have just as easily been me.

“It’s been more than a year and a half since this happened and Gerawan still hasn’t been punished for their carelessness. The Ag Commissioner ruled against Gerawan back in November. And still nothing has happened. I don’t understand it. They have been found guilty and should be fined already.

“I and some of my coworkers visited the Ag Commissioner last Friday. They still couldn’t give us answers.

“So we want to do a demonstration in front of their office on March 6 and hand in a petition. We are hoping people from all around the country will sign it. We want the Ag Commissioner and Gerawan to realize people know about this and care. Will you sign our petition?”

http://action.ufw.org/agcomm215

After you sign the pledge, please ask your friends and family to sign too. You can send them an e-mail, post this campaign on your Facebook and/or Twitter page by clicking here or by going to http://action.ufw.org/page/share/agcomm215

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ckaihatsu

5th March 2015, 19:14

Kent State workers deserve better

Dear Chris,

Rachel Mass, of Kent State USAS Local 27 here. Like many students across the country, my experience at Kent State wouldn’t be the same without dedicated, ambitious, skilled, campus workers who make our campus feel like a second home to all of the students. Without their efforts, our sidewalks and roads would not be plowed, our food would not be available, and our facilities would not be maintained.

Will you call Kent State President Warren today at 330-672-2210 and tell her that Kent State workers deserve a higher wage?

On Kent State’s campus, workers are hurting. Many are struggling to keep the lights on in their homes and put food on the table. Over the winter break, three workers lost their homes; countless others are fighting foreclosure. Over half (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=wNYfKR4BfjHSY1rFbDpF4OxcVaOU9y0O) of the 373 workers on our campus earn wages that put them below the poverty line.

Join us in calling president Warren’s office at 330-672-2210 and asking her to support our campus workers in receiving a fair wage.
If you get through to President Warren, that’s great, if not, leave a message on her voicemail or with whoever answers. Here’s an idea of what you could say, but feel free to improvise:

Hi, I'm a (student/faculty member/national supporter/alum/etc) and I want President Warren to support our campus service workers in receiving a higher wage because I believe that Kent State workers deserve respect and the ability to provide for their families.

Thank you.

The board has proposed an increase in the cost of workers’ health care and only a 2% increase in their pay. This proposal is an insult. The workers are asking for a mere $2.00 an hour increase and a freeze in their healthcare costs. 25% (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=6YAWJs0Ep0k4gDmitOTsNuxcVaOU9y0O) of these workers’ bi-weekly paychecks are currently deducted for healthcare, leaving very little for them to sustain themselves. President Warren, however, makes a base salary of $450,000 annually.

President Warren and the administration have shown very little regard for our workers' well-being. They have not responded to multiple student attempts to speak about our concerns for our campus workers. Please call President Beverly Warren today to persuade her to listen to her employees’ stories and lives.

Thank you for all your support!

Sincerely,

Rachel Mass
Kent State USAS Local 27

United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org
Organizing for Student and Worker Power

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ckaihatsu

11th April 2015, 19:11

Seattle did it, now it's time for the University of Washington

Dear Chris,

On Wednesday, April 1st, tens of thousands of workers across Seattle received a wage increase as part of Seattle's groundbreaking $15/hr minimum wage ordinance. But despite being the single largest employer in Seattle, the University of Washington is making excuses (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=pVMpAaJSKJ8otO0jhTHvvlSLD0egtMN2) to not pay at least $15/hr to all workers on campus. This means that over 12,000 campus workers are at risk of not receiving much-needed raises – including over 8,700 student workers, who have seen tuition rise 82% since 2008.

Sign our petition to demand the University of Washington fully complies with Seattle’s historic $15/hr minimum wage ordinance. (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=ZwatTza351o3%2FdfWOpr13FSLD0egtMN2)

Seattle workers won a precedent-setting wage increase by engaging in mass mobilization and coalition building, uniting low-wage workers across the city. If we're going to win $15 at UW, students and workers across campus must unite to demand the UW raise wages, not tuition.

Our pressure is already working. Just days before our $15 Now April Fool’s action, the UW committed to immediately raise the wages of 70 full-time staff who make less than $11/hr. But this is not enough. The UW has not committed to raise the wages of over 2,600 student workers paid below $11/hr.

The UW is also attempting to divide and conquer students and workers by saying that student fees would increase if student workers were paid $15/hr. It’s the same threat of overpriced Big Macs that McDonald’s used to fight Seattle workers’ demands – and it’s not going to work at UW.

Sign our petition to demand that the UW raise the wages of ALL campus workers. (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=pQjjLHe%2BTsOuCSYBYHCeJlSLD0egtMN2)

Thanks for all your support.

In Solidarity,
Emilie Woodd
University of Washington USAS, Local 99

United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org
Organizing for Student and Worker Power

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ckaihatsu

17th April 2015, 23:37

Taking a stand against Lawbreakers for Profit so every U.S. worker has a chance for fair pay

Dear Chris,

Yesterday, we saw fast food workers and countless others around the globe make history in our ongoing fight to increase the minimum wage for hourly workers to $15. Meanwhile in some industries like ours, we are misclassified as “independent contractors” and too often see paychecks below even the CURRENT minimum wage because of wage theft. Some weeks, we actually owe the employer for the “privilege” of working!

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/003/767/original/st.png

Please give to the Justice for Port Drivers Hardship Fund (http://mailings.actionnetwork.org/wf/click?upn=XCNBX9To3mfe6s0Uvand51kBjwzLt5BrnYUUjCbq rSHKo5AwXPB2JL24BqgC-2FSMh5jiWqA5Wwg2NtsmPj48YAnGRphYAdjIMUQZUnd-2F-2BsTvAd3nkn5hnIycZvsz7wDEPX95p6BTX2Al1s9X7THwdikvd 2IOXWD1w-2F3ZOp75UI2eHecQ71feUTOESE2tP1o9-2FCtZa3G785X3wzzBVTss3EUROcAwm9YkoaUSaauzpfBSVpUaF EPcLiX35BZPQ-2FI-2FQ-2FL7WHIB435nPS2mYGJpLNrOQqK9FqsY4UNjwXkMyuYIDjHK3k XhzgLvw-2BCTpGUzVMg772vi-2F3CKLEKHbeXVd8Vi9h3awd8f7N3dcDyasIUSKgIQA6nbLgowK OZYpGa4DYQxLaTrsR-2BmdoryFnE-2Bt3YUt-2BAoRh7Vuw7IraIIIk7seskU03ZkkKDZzvdnGx-2Bsb_-2BvwfuvO6dPyF8TPREnIo-2FX0zWo-2BX0OhBd1ZmZBTnKbBMP1ro2oNgMD06E-2Fm2Mw8Zp13XdH3kABcTBFrC6pZUm5XQYEp95Av2VCDobdLxn5 S0Wn1wusagNlsfXZp7l2x16s4uNT6IBLCou1rrHxUltu1CoxWZ 2r3mbaFgKFw0rj8jhG7x5vDRH-2F3MJIcsYaO6nzagy6UfcFFXRh6qiSVXu1-2F9tvQFsdhc3ytEsc55fiCYMiFMz2s5prLDIpmUwa1eyKIYJ03 TeYiCmQPczVLZVrlInn4-2F9srU6MSjezMsouAze9fN3BqiFM9HcsjEdZHNaUj0BALwC7ha XfUCFqYQ9emXxd8lyGpJeIw6PtKlPam9SH4rvZh6hROopIDVvt WF)

Every year, port truck drivers haul 2 billion tons of containerized cargo on and off the docks of U.S. seaports. Managing truck drivers as employees but classifying us as “independent contractors” has been very profitable for port trucking company owners and their giant retail clients – they have evaded payroll taxes, denied us access to workers compensation and disability insurance, and deducted all truck-related expenses from our paychecks.

But by filing claims for wage theft with the Dept. of Labor and in the state and federal courts, we have proven that this business model is more than wrong – it is illegal. Yet despite countless legal rulings, there are some company owners that would rather fight us and continue to break the law for profit rather than comply with labor and employment laws.

Meet Alfredo Reyes and Alex Paz (http://mailings.actionnetwork.org/wf/click?upn=XCNBX9To3mfe6s0Uvand59Tiwjh3nYO4K22Ajk9s hARo-2BOL4PI4lrcDqsvmpuoqJBzORyXvX-2B8gqO-2FmAGZr-2FonBVT5pHxcc8-2BPC1tqKtqm4mWJtqwOKWrDy3rTlhC4MeULwMDHk1u6sqOShr0 WmyhjPKIHg-2FnRbCqTocxSO1nssTQD04YYfWurvM2Ynl2F8ZyrVVmRKp6Huh HJIqbb35XtmpImk1vi8BS-2BQxaTTHUGZUXl9fetohMCRxHnh9hcjst2h7lEKXcT8JfEVxfG oh-2FvjuogSMwN-2FbWz2unnFeD-2FMvRbU16MTV9I3g2uhVhaJEfSrwj6rhji52oTrd3aYBDjZ4dV zOrja2BV8niJ6g0lf3dx7qu6JLD4ocTWDNPIIAGQrDa-2FN2XEQUh5sSe9GySwo1CUeIhCoaKjB-2FyrFopbw-3D_-2BvwfuvO6dPyF8TPREnIo-2FX0zWo-2BX0OhBd1ZmZBTnKbBMP1ro2oNgMD06E-2Fm2Mw8Zlh1GbfBCOiZFZo8BtKiKCTPWk4OTqImlD6-2BWf3jOgcYg3dWAt4sKfB-2FZFo8wFGKbx3DCqK62moYSvG3QDKQeWm06cO2TusQmNV0t8pc noitFxPfGDbWjiMx-2FSN8U3xXg-2FgG5JknVIV-2FXlVptADmc8vcPgQKfrZZSXN6TDw8RNsHoL46ufQAYFkUzkWh NFDovJ2tdNG-2BfktRwGs-2BgbuM-2B5P4R9VlL4KXFxszF-2F8h3Znf9yC9oy1S-2BpRfsREWyAL7NXXWkHSfJFjVYtweQ0XnsIzgw4nF7g0VZUFWU 7Xk-2Bw-2BnLLpCp-2FC6mbZOw91S8eNdK). Alfredo has fallen into a $5,000 debt to his employer, who retaliated against him after he and his coworkers went on strike last November. Alex has been fighting to be classified as an employee for years, and now works for Toll Group as a Teamster.

Watch this video to hear drivers on the front lines. (http://mailings.actionnetwork.org/wf/click?upn=XCNBX9To3mfe6s0Uvand59Tiwjh3nYO4K22Ajk9s hARo-2BOL4PI4lrcDqsvmpuoqJBzORyXvX-2B8gqO-2FmAGZr-2FonBVT5pHxcc8-2BPC1tqKtqm4mWJtqwOKWrDy3rTlhC4MeULwMDHk1u6sqOShr0 WmyhjPKIHg-2FnRbCqTocxSO1nssTQD04YYfWurvM2Ynl2F8ZyrVVmRKp6Huh HJIqbb35XtmpImk1vi8BS-2BQxaTTHUGZUXl9fetohMCRxHnh9hcjst2h7lEKXcT8JfEVxfG oh-2FvjuogSMwN-2FbWz2unnFeD-2FMvRbU16MTV9I3g2uhVhaJEfSrwj6rhji52oTrd3aYBDjZ4dV zOrja2BV8niJ6g0lf3dx7qu6JLD4ocTWDNPIIAGQrDa-2FN2XEQUh5sSe9GySwo1CUeIhCoaKjB-2FyrFopbw-3D_-2BvwfuvO6dPyF8TPREnIo-2FX0zWo-2BX0OhBd1ZmZBTnKbBMP1ro2oNgMD06E-2Fm2Mw8Z7TCJr6KE0rb07DX3Gx4QwaLhBtyuLKeeYkzVzHIVD3 A93-2FmnF-2B3226td2sD5OuxxakuvZnIwqBoueVw1F-2BaMH74Mn8HW1dclhll5V67p77O4BPwxGR6Y0L-2F5E2cC-2B-2BbnQsohshRDsBBF4HbmIl4-2BPpaEePx-2FUvrcvZxiB4uhGyOLaI5swzhbuibNc4czOFlqRMGCTZT7tc6Z PWN3qOm1drFYwH0lms9b0uZ-2BA-2B44NPljLvg8Sdqrtt-2BDDl5QrBjl-2BCB40BSZGlT-2FsQwrUvvPr0-2Ft6UrJ270u-2F8lpJOixu-2Bs0IBRIBAQFyrncSwCC3ZgL)

We will not back down in our fight to demand that every company doing business at U.S. seaports – and across America – follow the laws of the land. We are taking a strong and unwavering stand against lawbreakers for profit, a scheme that has helped America’s wealthiest shareholders hoard profits while hard-working Americans like us struggle to make ends meet.

Please give to the Justice for Port Drivers Hardship Fund

It is difficult for us to ask for your financial support because we do not want handouts. But we are risking everything to make our country a more fair and just place for our children. Please contribute to the Justice for Port Drivers Hardship Fund. All donations will go to support port drivers who are on the front lines to secure a better future for all of our families.

Give to the Justice for Port Drivers Hardship Fund.

/Justice4PortDrivers

@PortDriverUnion

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ckaihatsu

21st April 2015, 20:33

Truck Drivers Fed Up with Wage Theft!

Dear Chris,

In hopes of closing the widening gap between America’s elite and everyday workers, millions have united to demand an increase of the minimum wage to $15 an hour. Yet in some of America’s core industries, including port trucking, workers are suffering such staggering wage theft that their pay is often below even the current minimum wage. Some weeks, drivers owe their employer for the “privilege” of working!

Port truck drivers in Long Beach and Los Angeles need you to call on Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia to put an end to lawbreaking for profit at the ports of LA and Long Beach. (http://mailings.actionnetwork.org/wf/click?upn=XCNBX9To3mfe6s0Uvand51kBjwzLt5BrnYUUjCbq rSFPUMbve9X4iQsdn4X9qDgc6LfbZzH8FrtVYTx4VJAO7cpKGI XqcWcWhUVtKOIrUirRNIiaAUTbn-2FUkiy5XIMhPA4TZYH4D245qmxSZAGXE6S4LCI-2B2WNwdGRvDsS-2FMjUM0-2F6okiiNz2W6DpoDYK4Fto7OhI0xf6-2FQkqM6TRyN651t71fD9emPrMBJXm-2BSo3j2zRp4so1MdHbYBe5obnvLUvlTcnk4yGHahipNHnOf5ff nlDl0ArXjE2-2FwcJuQBU9dBvwPlH-2Bkn-2BRiLG-2BccOYRO_-2BvwfuvO6dPyF8TPREnIo-2FX0zWo-2BX0OhBd1ZmZBTnKbB4iGapsvAPCKInq-2F8RPfjq4yxK1S4isLKp797JP2j9hkYJMd2xYaA-2FC17gmWh2OuLCUVAkV-2BNu-2BCb1gI6fdfq9tJhFeAuhpaCAR0cQfYpIxAs9v3zo0tCLpD5pj-2BAbwePY6GHM8eWeHLld3falNhekoHtufC-2FteiRUfNN4AjfMetIOHTNjpcitE2kGH2kudzZD9KGLHBdd4ai SnGS1TRn3bgYCAbrVp0kDyqPUaCw1gu7ZBAjvi66G7I9uHEp38 WMeB5m9jX-2B6MaBYG-2BmECGRu)

SIGN OUR PETITION NOW STOP WAGE THEFT NOW (http://mailings.actionnetwork.org/wf/click?upn=XCNBX9To3mfe6s0Uvand51kBjwzLt5BrnYUUjCbq rSFPUMbve9X4iQsdn4X9qDgc6LfbZzH8FrtVYTx4VJAO7cpKGI XqcWcWhUVtKOIrUirRNIiaAUTbn-2FUkiy5XIMhPA4TZYH4D245qmxSZAGXE6S4LCI-2B2WNwdGRvDsS-2FMjUM0-2F6okiiNz2W6DpoDYK4Fto7OhI0xf6-2FQkqM6TRyN651t71fD9emPrMBJXm-2BSo3j2zRp4so1MdHbYBe5obnvLUvlTcnk4yGHahipNHnOf5ff nlDl0ArXjE2-2FwcJuQBU9dBvwPlH-2Bkn-2BRiLG-2BccOYRO_-2BvwfuvO6dPyF8TPREnIo-2FX0zWo-2BX0OhBd1ZmZBTnKbB4iGapsvAPCKInq-2F8RPfjqCKfod7cBGsAv87XwXEVDnWsB878qGuwxlwt7QyrSAP SuzlxmA3VjA11JoUNIEKDCGnzyLJO8B1TCZwSCTTfadBIGIsbM 4hyXgZ7G4KXq2bNUFqwn9RqCIQxHK95zVoSZ9EHvx6LsmS5tPW Z6-2B5zARxLRbaT-2FRJnFVFDI0pOsYZxepEojp7p1Yz5JedssqP4Tm25AtZhoo6RH TsAz364JXGfvD4v7CCV9oVKBFeUww83RlsioCf4qX2Psfdx-2Bk2Wd)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/003/883/original/STOP_WAGE_THEFT.jpg

This unconscionable wage theft – which robs more than 80% of America’s port truck drivers of not just their hard-earned income they need to support their families, but also basic employment protections like disability and unemployment insurance, and their right to form a Union at their company – is the product of a scheme devised to misclassify workers as “independent contractors.”

Can you sign our petition to Los Angeles and Long Beach Mayors to request rules be put in place at the LA and Long Beach ports to end wage theft? (http://mailings.actionnetwork.org/wf/click?upn=XCNBX9To3mfe6s0Uvand51kBjwzLt5BrnYUUjCbq rSFPUMbve9X4iQsdn4X9qDgc6LfbZzH8FrtVYTx4VJAO7cpKGI XqcWcWhUVtKOIrUirRNIiaAUTbn-2FUkiy5XIMhPA4TZYH4D245qmxSZAGXE6S4LCI-2B2WNwdGRvDsS-2FMjUM0-2F6okiiNz2W6DpoDYK4Fto7OhI0xf6-2FQkqM6TRyN651t71fD9emPrMBJXm-2BSo3j2zRp4so1MdHbYBe5obnvLUvlTcnk4yGHahipNHnOf5ff nlDl0ArXjE2-2FwcJuQBU9dBvwPlH-2Bkn-2BRiLG-2BccOYRO_-2BvwfuvO6dPyF8TPREnIo-2FX0zWo-2BX0OhBd1ZmZBTnKbB4iGapsvAPCKInq-2F8RPfjqKQxB-2FVDRElp0EBfF51DoWODv2ZTfivclltE1FdxI9Y-2BKYAVDYpp5g3jiP8g5cJ-2Fy2y-2FiUdpj2oEi9uNx2ay6hGKziChUDtw8VBvw-2FQhFGx00wdBp6u-2Bi6Tf0Zw9mvuDnx2XPJ-2BOKawzQjB36hssu9MmBIIdWpH6E2oAEMpvpXbj99h-2BGIXedKGm4VA1gYSCHA7-2FCcYs-2BrYiz5vvB7pu5dVnH9m1h4Ds53ElfTIdZY5U6xCjEtvgq-2F-2Bt8zPx5GJrS)

These companies are willfully breaking the law for profit, and countless governmental agencies and courts have ruled that it is wage theft and it is an illegal business model. Nevertheless, these trucking companies continue to do business every single day at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach even though they are in clear violation of the law.

We call on Mayors Eric Garcetti and Robert Garcia to set the rules for their respective ports and demand that every single port trucking company obey the law. (http://mailings.actionnetwork.org/wf/click?upn=XCNBX9To3mfe6s0Uvand51kBjwzLt5BrnYUUjCbq rSFPUMbve9X4iQsdn4X9qDgc6LfbZzH8FrtVYTx4VJAO7cpKGI XqcWcWhUVtKOIrUirRNIiaAUTbn-2FUkiy5XIMhPA4TZYH4D245qmxSZAGXE6S4LCI-2B2WNwdGRvDsS-2FMjUM0-2F6okiiNz2W6DpoDYK4Fto7OhI0xf6-2FQkqM6TRyN651t71fD9emPrMBJXm-2BSo3j2zRp4so1MdHbYBe5obnvLUvlTcnk4yGHahipNHnOf5ff nlDl0ArXjE2-2FwcJuQBU9dBvwPlH-2Bkn-2BRiLG-2BccOYRO_-2BvwfuvO6dPyF8TPREnIo-2FX0zWo-2BX0OhBd1ZmZBTnKbB4iGapsvAPCKInq-2F8RPfjqP-2F5ddP60yky0Z-2FddsiuaDY4szAcx1un13km0nIwHSpTFqzQTExNAxzaOzTG0bu hHE4uOK6B2QD7JtLTQqxs16FXJnHLjVrkyk-2BkAxDP9y2cH4AYOV0Eddp1Zf05y84Suv9qwupgjTDrT5ppTdr EyyEv-2FTqQCBcfh4bCGb7Ju6c-2BTGciwrpN57C7zGMinrGgUgrVmo-2BPkD-2Bckw5p3vWEzJD0qx-2B2O00Vy4RQ0T-2F8tOwKaeskGNyzDSU-2Fx52MlPjDP) Lawbreaking for profit should not be allowed at the Ports of LA and Long Beach!

Thank you for standing with us and stay tuned for more announcements in our campaigns to end wage theft at the ports of LA and Long Beach.

In struggle,

Justice for Port Drivers Campaign

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ckaihatsu

29th April 2015, 20:58

Airline catering workers in L.A. deserve your support

Tell airline caterer Flying Food to pay a living wage now!

In Los Angeles, employees of airline caterer Flying Food Group work to ensure that passengers flying internationally from LAX have food and drink on their flights. They cater to an airline industry that continues to report record profit, but Flying Food Group refuses to pay its workers the City of Los Angeles Living Wage. Some workers earn a full $6 an hour less than the Los Angeles living wage for airport workers. CLICK HERE (http://iuf.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=e788a43ccacc225abf8e6e748&id=e81c1f6028&e=090f0b0646) TO SEND A MESSAGE TO FLYING FOOD

https://gallery.mailchimp.com/e788a43ccacc225abf8e6e748/images/c669890d-e41d-4ce2-95ef-8a71c43f2a77.jpg

E-mail: [email protected]
Rampe du Pont-Rouge, 8, CH-1213, Petit-Lancy (Switzerland)
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ckaihatsu

1st May 2015, 00:03

HAPPENING NOW: Wisconsin Students Sit-In to Support Workers Rights

Chris --

Right now, I’m occupying my Chancellor’s building because the University of Wisconsin, Madison has waited far too long to take action on the deadly conditions facing garment workers in Bangladesh. For a year and a half, the Student Labor Action Coalition has been demanding UW cut ties with Jansport until their parent company, VF Corporation, signs onto the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh. As one of the largest producers of apparel in Bangladesh, VF should be held accountable to safe workplaces and the UW should do everything in its power to make that happen.

Call Chancellor Blank now at 608–262–9946 and tell her to listen to the demands of students and workers. We can’t wait another day for UW to cut ties with Jansport.

Since 2005, over 1,800 garment workers have died in preventable factory fires and collapses producing for brands like VF Corporation. This is unacceptable and we’re prepared to sit-in until Chancellor Blank makes a commitment to take action by agreeing to cut our licensing contract with Jansport.

And we’re not alone. We’ve built up widespread support both on campus and in the Madison community. The Associated Students of Madison and the Labor Codes Licensing Compliance Committeee have unanimously endorsed our campaign, and 30 legislators and campus/community groups such as Dayton County Democrats have agreed that it's high time for Chancellor Blank to support workers rights.

We won’t wait for another worker to die. Call Chancellor Blank at 608–262–9946 and demand the UW do it’s part for worker safety by cutting ties with Jansport.

It might be finals week but we’re not going anywhere. Until VF makes a legally binding commitment to eliminate their deadly factory conditions in Bangladesh, there is no place for them on our campus.

Solidarity,

Jeung Bok Holmquist

Member of Student Labor Action Coalition, USAS Local 1

Student at University of Wisconsin-Madison

United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org
Organizing for Student and Worker Power

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ckaihatsu

5th May 2015, 04:08

Students hunger strike at Tufts University: Stop the layoffs of Janitors!

Dear Chris--

Yesterday afternoon, students at Tufts University began a hunger strike in protest of the impending firing of 35 janitors by the Tufts administration.

For the past several months, janitors, students, faculty, and community representatives have been united in a campaign against these cuts. Last month, the Somerville and Medford City Councils passed a resolution urging Tufts to discontinue plans for the cuts. The Tufts Labor Coalition has organized increasingly large-scale actions in opposition to the plan, and janitors have held weekly rallies on Tufts’ campus. Nonetheless, Tufts plans to move forward and layoff 1 in 6 janitors in early June.

Now, we need your help. Tufts administrators have proven that they don’t listen to the voices of their workers. Will you call administrators at Tufts to show your solidarity with our janitors? Below is a list of phone numbers, as well as a possible script that can be used.

Phone Numbers:

President Tony Monaco: 617-627-3300

Executive Vice President Patricia Campbell: 617-627-3331

Vice President of Operations Linda Snyder: 617 627 3334

Example Script:

As a concerned [student, alum, community member, supporter, etc], I am calling to ask for one simple thing: immediately stop the plan to layoff 35 janitors.

The budget should not be balanced on the back of the most vulnerable members of the Tufts community. I support the united efforts of workers, students, and faculty to push for a more just and inclusive campus.

Thank you,

[Your name]

In solidarity,

Sam Slate
Tufts Labor Coalition
USAS Local 111

PS: To follow what's going on, like our page on Facebook, Tufts Labor Coalition, or follow us on twitter at @tuftslabor.

United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org
Organizing for Student and Worker Power

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ckaihatsu

7th May 2015, 21:37

@tuftslabor

We promote worker's rights, on and off Tufts campus. All are welcome, please join us!

Medford/Somerville, MA
Joined September 2011
100 Photos and videos

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Andrew Núñez @andrew_nunez · 4h 4 hours ago

Show your support for @tuftslabor by signing this petition:

https://t.co/0M72vOovYy

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ckaihatsu

9th May 2015, 14:49

Take Action: Students sitting in to stop a Dallas Cowboys monopoly at the University of Texas, Austin!

Dear Chris --

I know you've been getting a lot of these emails lately -- it's starting to feel like a real sit-in spring in USAS land! But as students and workers are raising their voices across the country more than ever before, please stick with us because we could never do it without your support.

Right now, students at the University of Texas at Austin are occupying the administration tower to stop the university from agreeing to a monopoly, single-source, contract for all UT apparel with Dallas Cowboys Merchandising. The Cowboys have tried to do this on other USAS campuses, and we've stopped them before. Please help us do it again.

For the past year, UT administration has been in communication with the sweatshop-dependent, labor-terrorizing textile manufacturer that contracts to worker-exploitative factories overseas in places like Indonesia and Bangladesh. The deal would prevent any UT student from pushing for better worker safety in factories that produce UT apparel, because with this monopoly sweatshops agreement, we wouldn't be able to seek out any alternatives.

Call President Powers now at 512-471-1232 to demand UT Austin acknowledge the responsibility that it has as a powerful institution and refuse to correspond with known human rights abusers.

Despite our consistent request for dialogue, and the constant campaigning from the UT Sweatshop-Free Coalition, this 10-year agreement with the Cowboys was conveniently released behind closed doors during spring break. UT administration are lining their pockets off the backs of students and lucrative deals with sweatshop brands like Cowboys Merchandising, and it's time they are held accountable.

Call UT President Bill Powers now at 512-471-1232 and tell him students and community members will not stop campaigning while garment workers risk their lives to make university apparel.

Here's an example of what you can tell him, and remember to leave a message if he doesn't answer himself:

"Hi, my name is __________ and I'm a student/community member,etc. from ___________ calling in support of students sitting in who are campaigning for the university to halt its contract with Dallas Cowboys Merchandising. As an institution with a large role in the college apparel industry, UT has a responsibility to make ethical decisions. I want you and your administration to meet with students about this upcoming deal, and prioritize the safety of workers who make UT apparel."

Solidarity,

Andi Flores

University of Texas at Austin

USAS Local 18

United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org
Organizing for Student and Worker Power

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ckaihatsu

14th May 2015, 02:49

Take on Big Tobacco's history of abuse!

Sign the petition to Reynolds demanding they talk to workers! (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=uUZF%2FcFp%2FW1IAynJfiCkn%2BMOr8Zjq45%2F)

http://action.laborrights.org/images/Tobacco%20rally%201_cropped.jpg

Dear Chris,

I was in North Carolina last week, marching through the streets of Winston-Salem with the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC) to demand collective bargaining rights for workers who harvest tobacco.

You can join the fight! Please sign this petition to Reynolds American (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=6fuStBHl8a8aM1%2FgmR8TZm%2FsWI3fmemA), asking the company to sign an agreement with FLOC that would allow opportunities for tobacco workers in North Carolina to negotiate for better working conditions.

As workers shared their stories about the unjust conditions in fields and sub-poverty earnings, I was struck by the similarities between tobacco industry exploitation in my own country and what our partners in Malawi, the Centre for Social Concern (CSC) and Tobacco and Allied Workers Union of Malawi (TOAWUM), are fighting against. Tenant farming in Malawi fuels child labor and human trafficking, as described in a recent CSC report (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=Rdmk3HVW2k8Gqv6RmRiPLOMOr8Zjq45%2F).

To learn more, check out the blog we posted today (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=Fc05AR56zFHsdLzNUJenXeMOr8Zjq45%2F), describing how the exploitation that persists in today's tobacco trade emerged from a long history of colonization, slavery and an addiction to cheap labor -- in the U.S. and Africa.

Cigarette manufacturers and leaf buyers perpetuate a global system of inequity that bolsters corporate profits at the expense of those who labor at the bottom of the tobacco supply chain. It is long past time for that system to end, and be replaced by a more fair tobacco trade that respects the workers who harvest this toxic crop. Please help us put a stop to it by signing the petition to Reynolds American (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=FUHhysui%2FeG%2BKNfvRzU7xeMOr8Zjq45%2F)!

In solidarity,

Abby McGill
International Labor Rights Forum

P.S.- Help build ILRF's capacity to continue fighting for these Labor Rights Defenders by supporting our annual event (http://afl.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=uOzaLFqOsHqGin9qf5GoKOMOr8Zjq45%2F), where FLOC and TOAWUM will be two of our honored awardees.

This email was sent by the International Labor Rights Forum.
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ckaihatsu

21st May 2015, 21:03

Columbia College adjuncts & students protest - next Labor Beat on CAN TV 19, starts 5/21

Two-segment show

Paying More, Getting Less:
Columbia College Chicago

Chicago - CAN TV Channel 19
Thursday, May 21, 9:30 pm
Friday, May 22, 4:30 pm
Thursday, May 28, 9:30 pm
Friday, May 29, 4:30 pm

A coalition of faculty and students at Columbia College Chicago picked May 1, 2015 to hold a sidewalk protest plus sit-in at the office of Dr. Kwang-Wu Kim, President and CEO of the school. Their complaints have been piling up for some time, and, unfortunately, have a lot in common with those from many college and university campuses in the U.S. Columbia College Chicago, situated on Michigan Avenue across the street from Grant Park, emphasizes arts and media education.

P-FAC, the union representing the part-time faculty at Columbia College, have organized together with the students to form the coalition #SaveColumbia. It is calling, among other things, for an end to six-figure salaries for administrators, for freezing tuition at the rate from the year a student entered, for transparent budget and good faith bargaining with United Staff of Columbia College. On the day of the protest and sit-in, P-FAC department representatives voted unanimously to initiate a vote of no confidence against Columbia College President Kim and Provost Wearden.

Interviewed are: Sarah Schlieder (student); Jude Valentin (student); Diana Vallera (President of P-FAC, the part-time faculty union at Columbia College Chicago); Victoria Shannon (adjunct faculty); Michael K. Paxton (adjunct faculty); Reginald Wilson (adjunct faculty).

Valentin commented about the large "Industry-Leading Faculty" window posters that are prominent to viewers on Michigan Avenue. "When I came here for orientation I thought, 'oh, that's so cool'. But now at the end of my freshman year I'm like 'this is really sad'. Because 'Industry-Leading Faculty' it is but it's not the truth. The truth is that [they who have] the potential to be great in teaching us, in teaching us what we need to know in order to go out in the world, are being shafted. They're being shafted, their classes are being cut, and kids who need their classes to graduate aren't being able to have those classes. And that's not fair."

Following informational picketing in front of the Michigan Ave. campus, a group of students and teachers rode the elevator to the 5th Floor of the main building, where President Kim's office is located. Hoping to have a discussion with the president, they were instead locked out from even talking to his receptionist.

"They've limiting the number of people who are up on the 5th floor", P-FAC President Vallera explained while in phone conversation with the outside. "They've locked us out. We can't even go into the office area to ask to meet with the president. And students right now are trapped in the staircase, and they've locked the elevators so nobody else can go on the 5th floor. So everyone should be pretty outraged because this is the message of silence to our demands from Dr. Kim, not a conversation."

Later in the day, we learned from #SaveColumbia what happened to President Kim: "Kim just left just now. He was here the whole time. Ignored us. Well." Also can be viewed at:

5gOhX94zN68

http://s22.postimg.org/aly9t9jyp/20150501_Diana_Vallera_Columbia_College_Chicago.jp g (http://postimage.org/)
Diana Vallera (L, with phone), President of P-FAC chapter at Columbia College,
and student organizer Sarah Shieder (R). Locked out from talking to President Kim.
Photo: Labor Beat

http://s22.postimg.org/mmjptzrdd/20150501_students_locked_5th_floor_Columbia_Coll.j pg (http://postimage.org/)
Glimpsed briefly, Columbia College students stuck in stairwell behind locked
door to the 5th Floor and the president's office. Photo: Labor Beat

Also Short Second Segment:
Black Lives Matter and the Democrats

Brief excerpts from a panel at the May 2-3, 2015 Future of Left/Independent Electoral Action in the U.S. conference. Remarks from Arletta Scruggs (Socialist Alternative); Amara Enyia (mayoral candidate in recent Chicago election); Teddy Shibabaw (Socialist Alternative).

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". Labor Beat is on as a cable-tv series in six U.S. cities; check our website for more info.

Labor Beat's facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/LABOR-BEAT/167503422257

To order this dvd from Labor Beat (Committee for Labor Access):

BUY DVD - CLICK HERE (https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=9872013)

(Put title of DVD, "Paying More, Getting Less" in Description box. Put $15 in Unit Price box. $20 for Canada, and $25 for other countries outside the U.S. NTSC format only.)

ckaihatsu

15th June 2015, 03:09

Workers tell U of MN regents: ‘We want raises and respect’

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/che.jpg

By staff

Minneapolis, MN - University of Minnesota campus union workers, holding signs demanding “raises and respect“ held a press conference regarding the U of M proposed budget before testifying at the board of regents public budget hearing.

At the budget hearing, members of U of M AFSCME and Teamsters Local 320, which collectively represent over 4000 University workers, challenged the U of M budget proposals.

Cherrene Horazuk, president of AFSCME 3800, said, "President Kaler’s budget continues the fiction that the university has budget problems while it continues to prioritize high paid administrators. With all the unanswered questions surrounding the administration and the board of regents of late, frontline workers are asking tough questions about wage and benefit disparities and we expect answers.”

AFSCME and Teamsters Local 320 have come together to demand adequate raises for frontline staff. Mick Kelly, member of Teamsters 320 negotiating committee said, “Right now there are 400 Teamsters at the U making less than $15 an hour. We are holding the university accountable and insist on our right to a decent standard of living. We are tired of making due with less. We want and expect raises and respect.”

Lorraine Haley, member of AFSCME 3800 stated, “I’ve worked at the university for 28 years, but the only way I’ll be able to afford retirement is if I get a part-time job.”

Claire Thiele, a lab animal attendant and a member of Teamsters 320 told the regents, “The work we do is physically, mentally and emotionally taxing, and essential to the research done at the U, and yet we are among the lowest paid of the frontline staff here.” Thiele makes less than $15 an hour.

Horazuk concluded, “As the sixth largest employer in the state of Minnesota, and as the state's Land Grant University, it's time for the U of M to close the gap between haves and have-nots within its own workforce. This is a public university, not a private business where a few people on the top get CEO salaries while those on the bottom struggle to survive.”

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

22nd June 2015, 02:22

[LaborTech] These Workers Have a New Demand: Stop Watching Us How workplace surveillance has become a menace to health and safety.

These Workers Have a New Demand: Stop Watching Us

How workplace surveillance has become a menace to health and safety.

http://www.thenation.com/article/208425/these-workers-have-new-demand-stop-watching-us

Jessica Bruder May 27, 2015 | This article appeared in the June 15, 2015 edition of The Nation.

http://www.thenation.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/main_node_view_image/bruder_labor_tech_otu_img.jpg
(Credit: Allie Whitehead)

Four years ago, I was out jogging with an old friend when she told me a puzzling story: Her longtime UPS driver had just reappeared after more than a monthlong absence. He’d been hospitalized for stress, she told me.

Stress? How stressful could that job be? So I asked to meet him.

Over coffee, the deliveryman, whom I’ll call Bill (he asked to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation from the company), explained that United Parcel Service had been upgrading its systems for tracking employees. Now the truck he drove was full of sensors. They reported when he opened the bulkhead door. When he backed up. When his foot was on the brake. When he was idling. When he buckled his safety belt. A high-resolution stream of data, including all that information and his GPS coordinates, flowed back to the UPS offices. The system is called “telematics.”

With more than 15 years on the job, Bill already knew how to follow classic UPS protocols, with names that sounded like dogma from a productivity-worshipping cult: “The Five Seeing Habits,” “The Ten-Point Commentary,” “The 340 Methods.” Guidelines derived from time-and-motion studies told him the most efficient way to do everything: how to handle his ignition key, which shirt pocket to use for his pen (right-handed people should use the left pocket, and vice versa), how to pick a “walk path” from the truck, and how to occupy time while riding in an elevator.

But telematics ratcheted up that pressure. Now drivers were called to account for a litany of small sins. They were asked to justify bathroom breaks and any other deviations—“stealing time” in corporate-speak—that could chip away at their SPORH (pronounced “spoor”) count, or Stops Per On-Road Hour.

“I have no problem doing a heavy, hard job,” Bill told me. “But now, after you do the job, you have to look back every day and say, ‘Did I do this? Did I do that?’ They have a report that tells them everything that you did wrong. For instance, if you turned the truck on before you put on your seat belt, that’s wasting gas.”

For UPS, whose revenues topped $58 billion in 2014, tracking worker productivity goes straight to the bottom line. Time is money, and management knows exactly how much: “Just one minute per driver per day over the course of a year adds up to $14.5 million,” the company’s senior director of process management, Jack Levis, told NPR last year. He appeared on a boosterish episode of the Planet Money podcast titled “The Future of Work Looks Like a UPS Truck.” Levis and other UPS executives have a favorite quip: “We’ve moved from a trucking company that has technology to basically a technology company that just happens to have trucks.”

But UPS trucks aren’t driven by robots—at least not yet—and of the 10 current and former drivers I’ve interviewed, all felt like they were handling packages in the Panopticon. “Data is just a proxy for control,” said Sam Dwyer, 26, a former screenwriter and marketing-industry analyst who spent eight months as a driver last year.

A current driver, who also asked to remain anonymous for fear of getting fired, said: “It’s like you’re fighting for your job every day. They harass you: ‘Why did it take you 10 minutes here? Why did it take you this long there?’… They want you to hate your job and quit so they can hire somebody at half the pay.”

The metrics-based harassment of workers is common, said Tim Sylvester, the president of Teamsters Local 804, when I visited his Long Island City union hall in March. He told the tale of one UPS driver, Domenick DeDomenico, who spent 10 days in a coma after getting hit by a car while delivering packages. A year later, after surgery and extensive physical therapy, DeDomenico was back on the job. When the tracking data indicated that he’d dipped below his pre-accident delivery rate of 13.23 packages per hour, managers threatened to fire him, DeDomenico said at a union rally.

Some UPS supervisors post printouts of drivers’ data every day to keep up the pressure. “Guys get scared,” said Josh Pomeranz, Local 804’s in-house counsel. “They start cutting corners.” According to Pomeranz, knee and back surgeries are very common among UPS workers. One driver lodged a protest by posting a telematics-inspired parody of “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town” on YouTube. (Sample lyrics: “He sees you when you’re driving. He knows when you’re on break!”)

Job stress is a popular topic on BrownCafe, an independent chat board for UPS workers. In two separate forum threads, when some members referred to apparent driver suicides in Atlanta, Georgia, and Paris, Tennessee, others began talking about management pressures. In September, when a recently fired UPS deliveryman in Birmingham shot two supervisors to death before killing himself, forum members speculated about the role played by a pressure-driven corporate culture. “It was just a matter of time before somebody went ballistic,” wrote one. Another added: “We are people, damn it, not some stupid metric.”

* * *

How did we get here? A mere 48 years ago, on his weekly program The Twenty-First Century, Walter Cronkite proclaimed: “Technology is opening a new world of leisure time. One government report projects that by the year 2000, the United States will have a 30-hour workweek and monthlong vacations as the rule.” Machines, many people thought, would lift the yoke of labor from humanity’s shoulders. A Time magazine essay predicted that “by 2000, the machines will be producing so much that everyone in the U.S. will, in effect, be independently wealthy.”

The pundits had one thing right: Advances in technology did increase national productivity. In the three decades following World War II, productivity and hourly wages grew roughly in tandem, by 97 percent and 91 percent, respectively. Then they were decoupled: Workers produced steadily more and earned proportionally less. From 1973 to 2013, while output rose 74 percent, the average worker’s pay rose just 9 percent, according to a January report from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).

“All the productivity gains have been harvested and turned into corporate profits,” explained Michael Childers, the director of the School for Workers at the University of Wisconsin. CEOs now make 296 times as much as the typical worker, according to the EPI; a half-century ago, they made only 20 times as much. Likewise, after-tax corporate profits hit their highest level on record as a share of the GDP in 2013, even as workers’ salaries and wages hit their lowest level.

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UPS demonstrates perfectly how technology now governs the US workplace. Metrics enable “management by stress,” said Childers. Two years ago, he met workers who were processing insurance claims at a Pennsylvania call center, where managers monitored every conversation and keystroke. They used that data to discipline employees, he said, constantly urging more speed. “If you get a few calls where people speak slowly in a row, you know you’re going to hear about it next week,” Childers recounted. “Always in the back of your mind as a worker is, ‘Oh my God, I wish this person would talk faster.’” The workers’ anxiety and exhaustion were palpable: “You had 20-year employees quitting, people throwing up in the parking lot.”

In the winter of 2013, Reynalda Cruz, 42, took a job as a FedEx warehouse temp in Edison, New Jersey. She was issued a computerized package scanner and told to strap it to her right forearm. But the weight of the device became unbearable, she said. As she reached repeatedly for boxes that were above her chest level, stacking them on pallets and then wrapping them in plastic, her arm grew inflamed. Coworkers told her this was normal. They counseled her to take a Tylenol or Motrin. Meanwhile, her data-gathering wrist scanner had registered a troubling trend: Her pace was dropping. When supervisors confronted Cruz, she told them she was in constant pain. The same device that was tracking her speed was inhibiting it, too. They urged her to “pick it up,” she said.

“At the beginning, when they put it on my arm…I said, ‘Oh, wow!’ But after the hours went by, I saw this really wasn’t good for me at all,” she recalled, speaking in Spanish through an interpreter. “How is it human beings can end up working like this? They were measuring our time, our production, as if we were robots.” Today, Cruz is an organizer for New Labor, a nonprofit advocacy group representing immigrant workers in New Jersey.

Laura Graham was a seasonal worker last year in Coffeyville, Kansas, at one of the infamous Amazon warehouses. She was born in 1965, when the techno-utopian dream was ascendant, but the workplace she describes, like Cruz’s warehouse, is the inverse of those earlier predictions. Every time she scanned a piece of merchandise, another countdown began on her screen, indicating how many seconds she had to reach the next item, as if she’d graduated to the next level in a video game. Her progress toward hourly goals was also tracked. When an accidental trip down a wrong aisle left her more than five minutes behind, a supervisor arrived to scold her. Graham’s body rebelled against the demands of the device, which directed how she walked from 10 to 20 miles a day on concrete in the 915,000-square-foot complex for $11.25 an hour. “There’s nothing to describe the misery, physically,” she said. “I started getting these really sharp pains through my arches…it ended up being plantar fasciitis.” Putting new insoles in her shoes didn’t help. To cope, she took two ibuprofen tablets halfway through the graveyard shift, which ran from 5:30 pm to 3:30 am, and another two at the end. On days off, she tried to keep from using her feet, lying in bed except for visits to the bathroom or shower.

* * *

Amazon and UPS, two of the most successful companies in the United States, both use technology to drive their workers hard. But there’s a big difference: UPS has a union. Amazon does not. As a result, UPS drivers make a decent wage—$18.75 an hour to start, rising to $32 after four years on the job—and can negotiate for protections. In May 2011, Teamsters across the country began wearing stickers on which UPS stood for “Unfair Production Standards.” This was four months before Bill broke into a cold sweat on the job, couldn’t breathe, and was rushed to the hospital in the throes of his first panic attack. While the Teamsters’ contract with UPS has a clause stipulating that workers can’t be disciplined based on telematics data alone, a gaping loophole in that agreement—it’s invalid in cases of worker “dishonesty,” although the contract doesn’t specify what such cases may include—renders such protections toothless. Local 804 representatives said they’d hoped to see more robust language added in the last round of contract negotiations between UPS and the Teamsters, but it didn’t happen.

Meanwhile, the pressure to produce more and faster keeps intensifying. Some UPS employees and union reps told me about the tricks workers use to keep up. Drivers have been known to sit on top of already-fastened seat belts to save time. (Recently, they’ve been getting busted for that, however, since sensors can tell if a seat belt hasn’t been unbuckled at a delivery stop.) In one warehouse in Queens, they said, a safety shut-off mechanism had been disabled—someone taped a reflector against the electric eye tracking the conveyor belt—because it meant fewer false alarms stopping production.

And workers are not looking forward to the arrival of a new routing system for drivers—called On-Road Integrated Optimization and Navigation, or ORION—that UPS is rolling out across the country. The company claims it will cut mileage and save $300 million annually. Teamsters elsewhere in the country have called it “telematics on steroids.” They worry that it’s a new way to erode workers’ earning power by dumbing down—or “deskilling”—the job to make them expendable.

If workers are to prevent companies from turning their workplaces into Panopticons, and firing them based on increasingly inflexible metrics, they will have to organize around new types of demands. That means bargaining for very narrow language about what kind of data may be gathered—from e-mail to phone recordings and GPS movements—and setting clear boundaries on how employers can use such information. It also means setting times and places that are off-limits.

This will be a challenge, because unions themselves are under attack. In March, Wisconsin became the 25th “right-to-work” state, enacting anti-union legislation that critics have aptly nicknamed “right-to-work-for-less.” Legislators in Missouri and New Mexico may follow suit. In November, a settlement with the National Labor Relations Board required Amazon to post notices in its warehouses stating that employees are free to unionize. When I asked Laura Graham if she planned to work another holiday season there, she said yes. She’s applying to one of the company’s warehouses in Texas—a right-to-work state since 1993—and expects her experience as a seasonal worker to be pretty much the same as last time.

“A big part of it for me, and the reason I can go back, is psychological: I know I’m only going to be there for two months,” she said. “I’ll be miserable for two months, and then just call it a day.”

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ckaihatsu

29th June 2015, 18:48

Presentation & AFL-CIO Calls on the Mexican Government to Comply with the Agreements Reached with the Farm Workers in San Quintin (from La Jornada, México)

[please excuse duplicate postings; to subscribe / unsubscribe, contact [email protected]]

PRESENTATION

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

Here's some good news on a day when we have been dealt a big blow with the adoption by the U.S. Senate of Fast Track.

A progressive and widely read Mexican daily, La Jornada, ran today the editorial below. This is a significant development on the part of the AFL-CIO and the Central Campesina Cárdenista of Mexico.

Without a doubt the main factor explaining the willingness of the AFL-CIO to take action on behalf of the San Quintin farm workers has been the resolve of the close to 70,000 farm workers and their families in this agricultural valley of Baja California, only two hours south of the border -- and the massive workers' solidarity it has engendered across Mexico. Also not to be ignored is the fact that Mexican labor legislation has come under close scrutiny with the TPP negotiations in the U.S. Congress. Representative Sander Levin specifically singled out Mexican farm labor laws.

But another factor, which cannot be underestimated, is the work that labor and immigrant rights' movements in the United States have carried during the recent period.

San Quintin farm-worker leader Fidel Sánchez reported to the Mexican press, only one day after the Second Labor Fightback Conference (Rutgers, N.J. -- May 15-17), that an important wing of the U.S. labor movement (his words) had just adopted a resolution supporting the San Quintin workers and launching a boycott of Driscoll's (the main U.S. corporation producing fruit in the valley, under a Mexican label). Sánchez's words were picked up by the Baja California edition of La Jornada newspaper.

U.S. labor and farm-worker activists also worked closely with the San Quintin leadership and the leadership of the Skagut County (Washington) independent farm-workers' union at Sakuma Brothers Farms (Familias Unidas por la Justicia) on the resolution adopted by the Rutgers Conference in support of these two struggles -- a resolution that was circulated widely in the U.S. labor movement, with its adoption by major chapters of the AFL-CIO's Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA), including its New York chapter.

And on June 4, the day the Mexican federal and state governments met with the leadership of the independent farm workers' union in San Quintin, Northern California immigrant rights and labor activists -- including Al Rojas, a co-founder of the United Farm Workers of America -- held a press conference on the steps of San Francisco City Hall to support the farm workers' struggles, north and south.

In Los Angeles and other cities, local affiliates of the United Food and Commercial Workers union launched a campaign in support of the workers in San Quintin as early as March 2015.

Together we all contributed to this decision by the AFL-CIO to publicly support the demands of the San Quintin farm workers and to call for a boycott of San Quintin farm produce should the Baja California government and the growers refuse to honor their commitments.

And this brings us to the current situation: The Mexican government is not likely to pull back from its obligations; its role is not central. But the Baja California government may easily pull back, and the growers have already vowed that they will not negotiate pay raises or improved working conditions with the new, independent trade union -- as they already have 60-plus contracts signed with the corporatist unions (CROC, CTM, and CROM). The growers are the key players.

This is why Sacramento LCLAA and other labor and community groups have decided to issue a press statement urging the national AFL-CIO to take action and launch the boycott now, as this pressure today -- in fact, even just the decision to launch the boycott -- could get the growers to the negotiating table with the new union.

Yes, it's been a very bleak day regarding Fast Track and TPP, but the class struggle continues unabated, and there are high points and low points in this struggle. Now the struggle is on to get the AFL-CIO to launch a real -- not just a paper -- boycott of Driscoll's, enjoining it with a reinvigorated and expanded boycott of Sakuma Brothers farm produce, a campaign that was launched by the Familias Unidas por la Justicia in Washington state and that has the support of the Washington State AFL-CIO. Please join this effort!

In solidarity,

Alan Benjamin

* * * * * * * * * *

[Translation from the Spanish by Alan Benjamin]

La Jornada Newspaper

Mexico June 23, 2015

Editorial

AFL-CIO Demands that the Mexican Government Comply with the Agreements Reached with Farm Workers in San Quintin

U.S. union labor federation announces possible boycott of farm products from the valley

By Matilde Pérez U.

The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO, for its acronym in English) and the Central Campesina Cárdenista (CCC) issued a joint statement demanding that the federal government and the state government of Baja California meet the commitments reached with the agricultural laborers of San Quintin concerning minimum wages and social benefits, such as being covered by the Mexican Social Security Institute, or IMSS [which provides healthcare coverage to the workers and their families – Tr. Note].

Max Correa Hernandez, leader of the CCC, and Lorraine Clewer, representative in Mexico of the AFL-CIO, said that more than two weeks have passed since the signing of the agreement, and the authorities have yet to classify the farm enterprises into large, medium and small businesses. This is the first step in defining the amount of the wages to be paid to the workers. The agreement calls for wage increases from 100 pesos to three basic wage levels -- 150, 165 and 180 pesos per day -- based on the size of the farm units.

The union leaders added that the IMSS has not yet verified whether agricultural workers are already affiliated with this healthcare program, noting as well that there is no confirmation as to whether the Baja California state government has freed 14 detained laborers. The federal authorities had undertaken to seek their release and to ensure respect for trade union freedom and autonomy of farm workers in San Quintin.

Clewer said the AFL-CIO maintains close communication with the National Alliance of State and Municipal Organizations for Social Justice [the union formed by the workers in San Quintin – Tr. Note] and supports their decisions. Agricultural laborers work in inhumane conditions, hence the importance of the agreement to carry out substantial changes in the sector. “But so far,” Clewer continued, “these changes have not materialized. Therefore we urge the authorities to comply with the agreement in a transparent and inclusive manner.”

The U.S. labor federation, which has 12 million members, has warned that it will launch a boycott to prevent chains like Walmart and Costco from purchasing agricultural products from the San Quintin Valley if the growers and authorities do not fulfill the commitments signed on June 4. Federation leaders also vowed to summon members of religious groups and other organizations to uphold justice as a social principle.

In response to allegations by the San Quintin farm workers that the Ministry of Labor has not complied with the labor agreements, the head of the agency, Alfonso Navarrete Prida, stated: “We do not have the legal authority to set the wages; what we do is ensure that workers' rights are not violated. It is up to the local labor authorities to address the issue.”

Navarrette Prada added that the Ministry of Labor will see to it that the newly formed union receives its legal registration.

ckaihatsu

16th July 2015, 21:18

CTU Rally for Fair Contract - next Labor Beat on CAN TV, starts July 16

CTU Rally for Fair Contract
June 9, 2015

Chicago - CAN TV Channel 19
Thursday, July 16, 9:30 pm
Friday, July 17, 4:30 pm
Thursday, July 23, 9:30 pm
Friday, July 24, 4:30 pm

The battle over the CTU contract and public school funding has now been joined and major developments come daily. The recent June 9, 2015 CTU rally for a fair contract was the beginning of Chicago workers' new offensive. The rally and march showed the robust espirit de corps within the vanguard of Chicago's labor movement. This, despite three years of intense struggle from the 2012 strike, the historic closings of 50 public schools, the generally disappointing (and costly) results of the CTU's attempts in the recent municipal election to defeat Rahm Emanuel and his City Council toadies, the recent layoffs of 1,400 CPS employees, et cetera ad nauseam. And so the fact alone that the CTU was ready to engage in yet more big battles was an alarming message sent to Mayor Emanuel and Governor Rauner.

What did they talk about on June 9th?

CTU President Karen Lewis described the big game board: "We have people who are trying to set the working class at odds with poor people...Working class people don't want to pay any more property taxes, that makes sense. We understand that. Poor people are trying to get help. We understand that. But we have a governor who thought it was OK to cut funding to autism on World Autism Day. So clearly priorities aren't shifted in the right direction. Who are the one set of people that could solve this problem by doing one thing: paying their fair share?" The rally cheered at this. Everybody knew what set of people Karen meant -- the Illinois millionaires and billionaires who have been on a tax holiday for decades.

10th Ward Alderman Susan Garza talked about a society stood upside down. "It's disgraceful to watch elected officials bail out big banks that are considered too big to fail, and the same politicians use taxpayers money to bail out investment firms. We must consider out public education system too valuable to fail."

Michelle Gunderson (CTU Vice President for elementary schools) talked about the recent election. Despite its disappointing results, "it made us as teachers more politically aware. Teachers as [part of] the working class are not the most political people, yet in our work we do the most political job. We teach people how to read, how to make opinions and how to think for themselves."

An important addition to the rally was a union leader from another part of the public sector, ATU 241 President Tom C. Sams Jr. He told the crowd that "transit has been quiet for a long time. But thanks to the organizing of the teachers we're out here in support of you. Guess what -- this is about working families. Public transit and public schools, takin' it to the streets."

Also includes speech excerpts from: Action Now President Gloria Warner; Cook County Commissioner Jesus "Chuy" Garcia; and Jitu Brown of Kenwood Oakland Community Organization. Also can be viewed at <https://youtu.be/qW0-eVQd6vk>

qW0-eVQd6vk

http://s16.postimg.org/p3gl6wal1/150609_Karen_Lewis_CTU_Labor_Beat.jpg
Karen Lewis (C) spells it out as 10th Ward Alderman Sue Garza (L) and County
Commissioner Chuy Garcia (R) listen. Photo: Andrew Friend / Labor Beat

http://s16.postimg.org/pey1jnr11/150609_Tom_C_Sams_Jr_ATU_Labor_Beat.jpg
At the mic, Amalgamated Transit Union Local 241 President Tom C. Sams., Jr.
Photo: Andrew Friend / Labor Beat

http://s16.postimg.org/kvlsy595h/150609_CTU_march_Labor_Beat.jpg
After the Thompson Center rally, several thousand march to the Chicago Board
of Trade Plaza. Photo: Labor Beat

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". Labor Beat is on as a cable-tv series in six U.S. cities; check our website for more info.

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To order this dvd from Labor Beat (Committee for Labor Access):

BUY DVD - CLICK HERE (https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=9872013)

(Put title of DVD, "CTU Rally for Fair Contract - June 9, 2015" in Description box. Put $15 in Unit Price box. $20 for Canada, and $25 for other countries outside the U.S. NTSC format only.)

ckaihatsu

2nd August 2015, 18:01

[LaborTech] Google Express Workers File for Representation by Teamsters Union

Google Express Workers File for Representation by Teamsters Union

http://teamster.org/news/2015/07/google-express-workers-file-representation-teamsters-union

JULY 27, 2015

https://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=fffb3857d9&view=fimg&th=14ed3542ee41b950&attid=0.1.1&disp=emb&attbid=ANGjdJ_W-_VwFkAMiG0mYdI6CSRZ_v9WWlIHpF0L3om5THj7FpZTZQuLItC fvQWBmOmUkrjFi2ftYJKrosC2Mk5PTsXYfnY27oVJbovG9hGwv 3j2D_ZMlBWspPd3j8I&sz=w1130-h754&ats=1438314172505&rm=14ed3542ee41b950&zw&atsh=1

More than 140 Warehouse and Shipping Employees Seek a Strong Voice on the Job

PRESS CONTACT
Rome Aloise
Email:
Phone: (510) 915-6430

(SAN LEANDRO, CALIF.) –– Teamsters Local Union 853 announced today that workers at Palo Alto-based Google Express Services filed for a representation election. The more than 140 warehouse and shipping workers sought out the Teamsters for help with improving working conditions, treatment on the job and compensation.

Google Express Services, operated by Adecco, provides products shipped from local businesses to consumers on a same-day or overnight basis. Workers are required to sign short-term employment agreements with Adecco that limit them to two years before the company lets them go. Workers have also alleged subjection to constant harassment to work faster in poor conditions that includes damaged equipment, cracked floors and failing electrical systems that have resulted in fires.

“The reports we have received from workers at Google Express paint a bleak picture,” said International Vice President and Local 853 principal officer Rome Aloise. “It is surprising that Google, a company that prides itself on the treatment of its workforce, would allow this behavior to continue at Adecco.”

In fact, in a July 17 interview on KQED, the Bay Area’s public radio station, top human resources executive Laszlo Bock stressed the importance of the company and its contractors recognizing and respecting its workers’ right to organize. When asked by a caller what Google’s stance would be on its contractors’ interaction with employees that seek union representation, Bock made clear that the company expects them to not interfere.

“Folks have a legal right to organize without fear of retaliation,” Bock said in the interview. “And that’s a critical and important thing and we respect that. I mean, there would not and will not be retaliation.”

The Teamsters Union is part of a growing movement of labor, faith and community-based organizations and workers challenging income inequality in Silicon Valley through an innovative partnership called Silicon Valley Rising.

For more information on tech worker organizing with the Teamsters, visit: http://teamster.org/tech-drivers-deserve-union. Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.4 million hardworking men and women throughout the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Visit www.teamster.org for more information. Follow us on Twitter @Teamsters and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/teamsters.

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chimx

11th August 2015, 05:20

http://i.imgur.com/2PjI5y1.jpg

not really news worthy, but my wifes union has been involved in contract talks and she took part in an informational picket the other day. proud of her for getting involved!

:wub::wub::wub:

ckaihatsu

13th August 2015, 02:18

[LaborTech] Bay Area Teamsters face first roadblock in unionizing shuttle drivers for tech workers

Bay Area Teamsters face first roadblock in unionizing shuttle drivers for tech workers
http://www.sfexaminer.com/teamsters-face-first-roadblock-in-unionizing-shuttle-drivers/

http://www.sfexaminer.com/wp-content/uploads/Teamsters-01.0812.jpg
Teamsters and drivers for Bauer's Intelligent Transportation rally against the company’s intimidation tactics on Tuesday at the corner of Valencia and 24th streets. (Michael Ares/Special to S.F. Examiner)

By Joe Fitzgerald Rodriguez on August 11, 2015 9:46 pm

Two years ago, San Francisco’s eviction crisis spurred the first Google bus protests and drew national attention.

Now, the tech shuttle-stopping tactic is being employed again — this time to defend the shuttle drivers.

Early Tuesday morning, more than 40 members of various Teamsters unions stopped tech shuttles on Valencia and 24th streets, the same corner of the first shuttle protests in 2013.

“We don’t get no justice? Then you don’t get no buses!” the Teamsters shouted as they blocked a Bauer’s Intelligent Transportation bus from moving, and another soon after.

The first stopped Bauer’s shuttle was chartered by video game-maker Electronic Arts. The second was chartered by tech giant Cisco Systems.

The protest comes on the heels of a federal complaint that alleges Bauer’s Intelligent Transportation intimidated its drivers who are considering forming a union.

Bauer’s management then photographed and wrote down the names of its drivers to dissuade them from joining the Teamsters, the union alleged.

Bauer’s did not return calls for comment.

“We believe drivers deserve fair treatment,” said Rome Aloise, principal officer of Teamsters Local 853. “And Bauer’s is the worst of the worst.”

Bauer’s is considered the first major roadblock in the path to Silicon Valley unionization.

The Teamsters have almost overnight recruited many of the shuttle drivers who transport tech workers from San Francisco to the South Bay. Just two weeks ago, Compass Transportation drivers voted to join the Teamsters. Compass provides shuttle services to companies like Apple, eBay, Yahoo! and Zynga.

The Teamsters are especially pushing for added pay during the downtime between morning and evening commute “split shifts,” said Mark Gleason, from Teamsters Local 665. Drivers began discussing forming a union in March, he said.

“Immediately Bauer’s started spying on the workers,” Gleason said. “We need an election to decide if these workers want a union or not, but [Bauer’s] is fighting back very aggressively.”

Bauer’s drivers, in general, make about $16 an hour. But Gleason said union drivers make about $24 an hour.

“Everyone understands income inequality nowadays,” Gleason said. But Bauer’s drivers’ medical packages are “basically nonexistent,” he said.

Aloise told the San Francisco Examiner that Teamsters may repeat the protests until Bauer’s backs off. This may potentially include a protest of the shuttle at the 49ers new Levi’s Stadium, Aloise said.

The National Labor Relations Board is set to hear from both Bauer’s and the Teamsters in September.

If Bauer’s is found at fault, it could run afoul of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency’s recently passed “labor harmony” resolution, which directs shuttle companies that are part of The City’s Commuter Shuttle Pilot Program to maintain good relations with its unions.

Back at the protest, Aloise shouted to the teamsters, “We will win this battle!” Then they dispersed.
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ckaihatsu

31st August 2015, 06:27

Donald Trump and the U.S. Labor Movement

DONALD TRUMP AND THE U.S. LABOR MOVEMENT

Weeks ago, when Donald Trump announced that he was visiting the Mexican-U.S. border at the invitation of the border workers union, the AFL-CIO intervened and Trump was uninvited.

To date we have been unable to find further actions or statements by the AFL-CIO in response to Trump's many ultra-reactionary pronouncements, which the media has consistently been highlighting. These include his advocating the rapid deportation of 12 million "illegals"; his characterization of them as criminals, rapists and drug peddlers; his targeting of "gangs in Ferguson" and other cities he says should be among the first to be rounded up and expelled; and his reference to women in the most obscene, insulting, degrading and demeaning manner.

If Trump were some kind of isolated voice in the wilderness, he could simply be dismissed as a crackpot. But he currently leads the polls nationally and in a number of states when measured against his Republican rivals contending for their party's nomination for president. And he is drawing the largest crowds by far when compared to them.

So why are AFL-CIO's leaders remaining silent in the face of Trump's vicious attacks against our members and workers as a whole? After all, we are talking here about our sisters and brothers, who are immigrants, women, members of oppressed nationalities and communities of color. Why suffer these attacks against them without responding to and exposing Trump for what he is -- a spokesperson for the most reactionary wing of the corporate class?

Take, for example, his proposal to deport 12 million undocumented workers. How would this be carried out? By employing many more border guards, the National Guard, cops, militia, the army and every other repressive force in our society. Those members of the corporate class who oppose Trump's proposal decry its costs as unsustainable. That may be, but the overriding objection is that it could convert our nation into a police state -- obliterating civil liberties and civil rights and imposing an iron heel on dissent.

Past Reactionary and Repressive Movements

The U.S. has a long history of reactionary and repressive movements, policies, laws, institutions and practices. These include the Alien and Sedition Acts; slavery; the end of Reconstruction and the rise of the Ku Klux Klan; the internment of 120,000 Japanese plus thousands of Germans and Italians during World War II; deeply rooted xenophobia; the Gerald L.K. Smith movement; McCarthyism; the Un-American Activities Committee; the boycott of Hollywood actors and writers; jailings under the Smith Act, making it a crime to advocate the overthrow of the government by force and violence; gay and lesbian bashing; the massive incarceration of Blacks and other victims of racism; renditions and torture; lengthy and often indefinite detention of political prisoners; and the escalation of police violence and murder of so many unarmed Blacks.

At the same time, there have also been centuries of heroic actions and movements to preserve, protect and expand basic democratic rights, and these are being added to on a daily basis.

But with it all, the Trump phenomenon is unique in this respect: It has a mass base among nativists and others susceptible to Trump's mouthings, and it is actively organizing all across the country, with sufficient funding to push forward its program -- whatever that program is -- while making it unnecessary to raise money from other sources.

Where is the Trump Movement Going?

Some people are dismissive about Trump's prospects. They view his movement as ephemeral, not enduring. "Give him more rope and he'll hang himself," they confidently predict.

Others are far more concerned. They point out that Trump's heated rhetoric spawns hatred and potential violence. This in an already too-violent and heavily armed nation.

One thing is clear: Trump has shown a talent for pouncing on developments and citing them as verification for positions he has taken. If, for example, an undocumented worker is charged with a murder in San Francisco, Trump says, "I told you so." As China devalues its currency, which could cost jobs for U.S. workers, Trump's reaction is the same: "I told you so." He gives red meat on a daily basis to his followers, most of whom swallow what he says lock, stock and barrel.

Of course, the fertile ground that has allowed Trump to get a hearing would not be there were it not for the war at home and abroad carried out by Democrats and Republicans against working people. Money desperately needed to create jobs and improve living and working conditions here at home for the working class majority have gone to promote wars for oil in the Middle East and beyond, while Wall Street -- not Main Street -- has been bailed out to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars.

It is this worsening economic situation affecting tens of millions of people that provides the political space for demagogues like Trump to be able to scapegoat immigrants and others -- when it’s the banksters and their political representatives in both major political parties who are responsible for the misery that is being inflicted, not people fleeing repression and U.S.-promoted “free trade” agreements that are devastating their home countries.

Why Labor Must Take Trump Head-On

While there might not be agreement within the labor movement over the magnitude of the threat that Trump poses, there should at least be consensus on recognizing that he is an enemy of the working class. He has, in fact, already targeted labor as an obstacle to progress, making clear that he opposes the labor-backed increase in the minimum wage, while contending that wages are currently too high and are causing companies to move to lower-paying countries, resulting in the loss of jobs at home.

Depending on Democratic and Republican politicians to stop Trump in his tracks -- in the absence of massive and vocal opposition from below -- is an exercise in futility. What is needed instead is building an independent movement led by labor, in partnership with our community partners, which takes a clear-cut stand exposing Trump as a spokesperson for the most reactionary wing of the ruling class.

As conditions worsen, people like Trump and his followers will exploit the situation and argue that there is no alternative to the simplistic solutions that Trump puts forward. It is essential that the labor movement provides that alternative with a program that reflects the interests of the working class majority and mobilizes to win support for its provisions. That is how to most effectively deal with the Trump phenomenon.

As spelled out in a statement by the Black Labor Collaborative titled, “A Future for Workers: A Contribution from Black Labor”: “If the labor movement does not raise its own flag and rally the vast majority of those who are seeing their dreams squeezed out of existence by global capitalism, it is quite possible that the developing anger will be channeled in dangerous directions, e.g., towards right-wing populism. Right-wing populism is an illness of anger, intolerance and irrationality that frequently emerges within capitalism during times of pressure and crisis, times such as those in which we live. As such, the forces of progress have little time to waste and, indeed, we must continue to recognize that failure is not an option.”

Money for jobs, housing, education, and public services – not for war!

End the U.S. wars in the Middle East! Out Now!

Stop the TPP in its tracks!

***************

Issued by the Labor Fightback Network. For more information, please call
973-975-9704 or email [email protected] or write Labor Fightback Network, P.O. Box 187, Flanders, NJ 07836 or visit our website at laborfightback.org. Facebook link : https://www.facebook.com/laborfightback

Donations to help fund the Labor Fightback Network based on its program of solidarity and labor-community unity are necessary for our work to continue and will be much appreciated. Please make checks payable to Labor Fightback Network and mail to the above P.O. Box or you can make a contribution online. Thanks!

ckaihatsu

31st August 2015, 07:18

http://www.legitgov.org/#breaking_news

http://www.knoxnews.com/news/local-news/1100-union-workers-to-strike-at-nuclear-weapons-plant_52487665

1,100 union workers to strike at nuclear weapons plant

Frank Munger

12:01 AM, Aug 29, 2015

local news

http://mediaassets.knoxnews.com/photo/2015/08/28/Pantex_23352423_ver1.0_640_480.jpg

Copyright 2015 Journal Media Group. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

A Pantex union member expresses his feelings about Consolidated Nuclear Security’s final contract offer on a sign near Amarillo, Tex. Clarence Rashada, president of the Metal Trades Council at Pantex, said union workers remain upset by proposed changes to their benefits, and he said that was the primary reason for the rejection of CNS’s final contract offer and their vote to strike. (NEWS CHANNEL 10/AMARILLO)

Union workers at the Pantex nuclear weapons plant — a sister plant to Y-12 in Oak Ridge — this week rejected a final contract offer and voted to go on strike, effective at midnight Friday.

The strike by more than 1,100 workers at the national security site received the necessary blessing of the Metal Trades Department of the AFL-CIO in Washington, and it reportedly will be the first strike by the main workforce at Pantex since 1970.

Pantex and Y-12 are managed by Consolidated Nuclear Security, a Bechtel-led contractor team, and union negotiations at Y-12 have been on hold for months while the situation at Pantex played out.

CNS and the 10-union Metal Trades Council at Pantex have been in negotiations, off and on, since early this year.

Clarence Rashada, president of the umbrella labor group, said union workers were upset by proposed cuts to their benefits, and he said that was the primary reason for the 3-to-1 rejection of CNS's final contract offer and their vote — with a two-thirds majority — to strike.

"The crowd is angry," Rashada said.

The union chief said the two sides got back together at the bargaining table after the Pantex workers rejected the company's "best and final" offer in early August.

Rashada said union negotiators submitted a counterproposal to CNS, and he said CNS ultimately provided another "best and final" contract offer.

He acknowledged there were some significant changes in the final offer, including 3 percent wage increases for each of four years, and he said CNS accepted some of the union requests.

"It wasn't the best contract, but it was better than the initial (proposal)," Rashada said.

However, he said hourly workers were so upset he's not sure they would have approved anything that subtracted benefits from the previous contract. Workers didn't feel like CNS had the right to come in and change things, he said.

"They want their contract back," Rashada said.

About a half-dozen picket lines were scheduled to be set up at Pantex, starting at 12:01 a.m. today, he said.

CNS executive Michelle Reichert sent a message to Pantex employees Friday, emphasizing work at the plant will continue despite any work stoppage by the unions, and she said there would be work available for all employees — including any of those from the Metal Trades Council.

The collective bargaining agreement for many union workers at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant is due to expire Sept. 21, and it's not clear when negotiations between CNS and the Atomic Trades and Labor Council in Oak Ridge will begin or how the strike the Pantex may affect the plans.

Copyright 2015 Journal Media Group. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

ckaihatsu

4th September 2015, 04:47

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2015/09/03/pers-s03.html

For a united struggle of US steel, auto and telecommunications workers!

3 September 2015

On Tuesday, the United Steelworkers (USW) in the US ordered 30,000 workers at ArcelorMittal and US Steel to continue working without a contract, even as the giant companies press for draconian concessions and contracting firms have begun hiring replacement workers in the event of a lockout or strike.

The “continue to work” agreement leaves workers vulnerable to victimizations, while ensuring that all initiative lies in the hands of the companies. It also further isolates the 2,200 steel workers, already locked out by Pittsburgh-based Allegheny Technology Inc, which is demanding steep increases in health care expenses and the elimination of pensions for new hires.

The collaboration of the union with the companies in an effort to create the best conditions for a renewed assault on workers is not unique to the USW. Throughout the United States, the unions have compelled hundreds of thousands of workers to work beyond the expiration of their labor agreements, including 300,000 workers at the US Postal Service, 60,000 Verizon and AT&T telecommunication workers, 38,000 Illinois state employees and tens of thousands of teachers in Chicago, Pittsburgh, Detroit and other cities.

The actions of the USW are also a warning to the 140,000 auto workers whose contracts with General Motors, Ford and Fiat Chrysler expire on September 14. The United Auto Workers is currently conspiring behind the scenes with corporate executives and the Obama administration to institute new wage and benefit cuts. The UAW has made absolutely clear it has no intention of calling a strike, despite a nearly 98 percent strike authorization by workers.

All sections of the working class face a common class enemy that is pursing a definite strategy. The economic and financial crisis that erupted in 2008 was followed by a massive infusion of trillions of dollars into the financial system and an escalation of the assault on jobs, wages and benefits. The former was initiated by the multi-billion dollar bailout of the banks under Bush, which was vastly expanded under Obama. The latter was announced by the 2009 restructuring of the auto industry, overseen by the Obama administration.

The result has been an unparalleled transfer of wealth from the working class to the financial and corporate elite. Now, with the government-inflated stock market boom and world economy unraveling again, the corporations and the banks will only intensify their demands that every penny be extracted from the hides of the working class.

The objective conditions exist for a united struggle of both private-sector and public-sector workers to fight back. This year alone, contracts expire that cover some five million workers. At the beginning of the year, various business, political and media figures warned of an impending “wages push” by workers after the longest period of wage stagnation since the Great Depression.

Yet to date, the strivings of workers to mount such a struggle have been subverted and suppressed, and the corporations have been able to impose new attacks on workers’ living standards and working conditions. On Wednesday, the Labor Department reported that productivity rose at its fastest rate since 2013 in the second quarter, while labor costs declined again.

It is unprecedented that in the midst of a supposed economic recovery, with profits, stock prices and CEO pay hitting new record highs, workers’ wages continue to decline. There is no longer even a pretense that wage and benefit cuts, speedup, forced overtime, etc. are temporary measures to help out companies facing large losses. These are permanent facts of life under the profit system—the “new normal”—and the precursors to even more brutal attacks.

The obstacle to mobilizing the working class is not an unwillingness to fight among workers, as the pseudo-left apologists for the trade union bureaucracy claim. It is the trade unions themselves. Far from uniting workers to increase labor’s share of the national income, the unions do every thing they can to divide and weaken workers and reduce that share.

The year began with the Obama administration intervening to block a strike by 20,000 West Coast dockworkers. The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) then signed a federal mediated deal that was hailed by the ship and terminal owners for introducing greater “cost containment” and “efficiency.”

Indeed, the AFL-CIO and other unions have enforced a virtual ban on strikes. In a country with 144 million workers, there have been just five walkouts involving 1,000 or more workers this year. This follows 2014’s total of 11 such stoppages, the second lowest since records began in 1947.

When the unions have called strikes, it has only been with the aim of dissipating anger among workers, dividing them against each other and enforcing defeat. This is what the USW did during the oil refinery strike that began in February. The union ordered four-fifths of its members in the oil refinery industry to remain on the job. The USW, whose president Leo Gerard sits on Obama’s corporate competitiveness board, responded to growing demands from workers for an all-out fight by strangling the strike and signing a contract that met all of Big Oil’s demands.

In so far as the trade union executives have engaged in “collective bargaining” it is only to preserve the income of the executives that run them and create a new modus vivendi with the companies. The UAW has offered to expand the union-controlled retiree VEBA health trust to active hourly and salaried workers as part of Obama’s efforts to reduce and eventually eliminate employer-paid health benefits. This is particularly important because they fear the loss of dues income from thousands of disgusted and disaffected workers once laws that make union membership voluntary take hold in Michigan, Indiana and other states.

Other unions are following a similar model. Indeed, the VEBA was pioneered by the USW, and the Communication Workers of America (CWA) is offering itself in a similar capacity as part of “negotiations” with Verizon and AT&T. Such moves demonstrate that the unions have long ceased to be workers’ organizations and have become businesses that prey on the workers they claim to represent.

Among workers there is mass discontent, rising anger and the initial stages of a political radicalization. One indication of this is the powerful response the World Socialist Web Site has already received from US autoworkers, with hundreds subscribing to the WSWS Autoworker Newsletter, posting WSWS articles on social media and sending in comments expressing their hatred of the UAW bureaucracy and the desire to fight for the unification of the working class.

The decades-long suppression of the class struggle has only ensured that when it erupts it will do so explosively. Eighty years ago, the eruption of the class struggle took the form of a rebellion against the AFL unions. Today, it will be aimed at the UAW, the USW and the other anti-labor organizations, which function unabashedly as the tools of the big business and the government.

The task facing the working class is not in trying to revive these long dead institutions, but to build new organizations to unite the working class in an industrial and political struggle against the ruling class and the capitalist system.

Such a movement must reject the nationalism of the trade unions, which has long been used to swindle workers by claiming the enemy is not the corporate owners and bankers at home but workers in other countries. US workers can only fight the global corporations by uniting with their class brothers and sisters in Mexico, Canada, China and other countries in a common fight for jobs and decent living standards, and against the threat of war.

In the US, the task is to unite every section of workers—the young and the old, the employed and unemployed, immigrant and native born, and workers of all races. It must champion a program of social rights—for a living income, health care, education, a good retirement, and for leisure time and access to culture—regardless of whether the capitalists and the big business politicians say they can afford it.

In order to fight for these, workers must organize as an independent political force in opposition to the Democrats and Republicans and the capitalist system they defend. The big corporations and financial institutions that suck up wealth from every corner of the globe must be put under the common ownership of the working class as part of the socialist reorganization of the US and world economy.

Jerry White
Copyright © 1998-2015 World Socialist Web Site - All rights reserved

ckaihatsu

30th October 2015, 01:35

The tale of two Amazons… the horrid conditions of those who work at Amazon

Dear Chris,

As Amazon announced a plan to hire 100,000 temps (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0QA/ni0YAA/t.1ri/b1QZi-NIQ9y-7V6XqivWww/h0/Ah91BpChpR0OWWLLeFxJ15oZgJ1rNgwJwuArmMATJDTNQlt2Tk h1GUjrCbGyCgx6xb5XgqXInTgvlX6ba9ltv-2FBirHqubyhq8RZXgtiU1aaapikXCHIWOoOUbiX61MZJfVEpzq UBdKAJoo8t9r2xs2k2x0s9Snut7IgQbOonmW8mdsbyxJrn-2Fpfd7fytX-2Bg8tjlQeUovvfuOMRX3T5j0JI8N5I1g5Oo284aAKl8I8-2BtaTglbvvez8zBwlKKz7Uy1qUbtuNseLGG8ZXQSlLNkBaPLRK qF1b-2BoFToXSijYzJ8ag-2FE5UQ9u-2BRqXG3K-2BU-2Fp5m-2F6FhnsgmSA7-2FUPsdrZiqHgZceDzLeTbf6-2FbPW1snxE8sfUEBa4C6Cq-2FNVVPgBlbWRJegvDI1PpjZoJpjaU8iFxUsv3svDrNehKQHroM 5uEGDymERF9V2YU4fDflAB7AN8YX5N-2BvE2vKwk6Km1P8iutNwt7bW2DrFIhxnMuk1fLJmK39y8QdTRS 0yKX8eknqGY8NSFMya50FOloktfIJWLvxUcfAhrHSfccMpHmTx XLUtDPSKPM2L5ONFb7iXWGi) to handle the holiday rush, the ugly truth about the horrid conditions of those who work in the company’s supply chain are being revealed (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0QA/ni0YAA/t.1ri/b1QZi-NIQ9y-7V6XqivWww/h1/VAUA2dgKocSIFqh3UrJUqLnf5R3DjoZYAb-2BJO0eKvA8tYULmRU7pNg-2FYg69go3g4rvfKhb0rPFpbFZ-2FEELgXArKy-2BrQfzyg8n5VicdJzj-2FTZ43n2IirQwISz4Bt-2Bl1yBx9tEWQyrVY334O58iOmO80qCKm632P-2FQtUbO4-2B7ebcifWAf-2Bq7139jAhX6wWKMSW0aXu-2FusfrTRLnVC80fJrOZ7RtZ-2BDftabhRfIQwy6sLq1OhEf4jIrv8EyKyN9XfwZw8-2BrqQU9tuOS6EZZhi3YF-2Funb5buqLtwDagjCyeYPIQLGdA85sWXEikXo0N3uP-2BhHdNZMF7-2BdzPqbU5vXAb33GOyE5ZZLmRcKwcnxs6iRWvDJW9Q9zh-2FWqUI8tLDEXuiY-2B0yfGAM89-2BdwB-2FfHvDdMvxQQRxFLvV-2FP4zCSnIBp7JbDs9OFhTWQtJ9TBzMkHBAa-2BGkw70nd67ISBfrHvBi7z-2BG9TH8V5rYRoZYJufYtdChc6MxIzR8IeJHzrdMm6uUifkN9dB C-2Fs-2FDrW4IYX5RuA-3D-3D). Recently, warehouse worker Jeff Lockhart Jr., a married father of three, died working at an Amazon fulfillment center in Chester, Virginia. But it isn’t just in Amazon’s warehouses that workers are suffering. Consider the story of Julio Garcia, who hauls imports for Amazon off the docks at our nation’s largest seaport – the Ports of Los Angeles/Long Beach.

Click here (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0QA/ni0YAA/t.1ri/b1QZi-NIQ9y-7V6XqivWww/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CK3sS08zQVm0t-2FK6f6FhZWGqOQi7-2Bgyq6e7hjtNcAzfX7g0JNteFSpEGLI7jE85Sv1QELrOAgYraN lr7O1fXV9zNgekOlDW07bvLb7-2FMJ0LJ8OOM4nP6zFyMcb6AzziVQT3CX1YgtSJLnEVCT6v-2FeTVpO8jFXrHZix-2By8RwzCeRxQOGlJcYHJxnLppTQMPlhIKD8lgubMQqMg5lVAnQ lfk6Ygk2SgJRhE1p0vHO9zrHtEhlsxrhtLF0Q9nSnFoRBemPPS l61gNdbPU5Z9mQB3ObJBNVa3wuEyKyJbeQ-2Ba0fqzh02KIz-2FKzoqhOIwZEGbCsfBIUmazETG4Wgzc8PhwWKlIPvHousj3Jb9 4hTeeOiJyLT1N1WbSeFD76t4kPVlIszTulHSELWwsH8mUFUfke sv4iHoFAj8HcYSzWDwlYO15CELWzW8otFC-2F-2Bg9nS1xiuRtN0sBizIoJ24ohD3DfC) to sign a petition to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos to respect the workers in Amazon’s supply chain.

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/017/405/original/julio_garcia.jpg

Day in and day out, Julio Garcia gets in the company’s truck, drives to the port, and transports the electronics, clothes, and toys that Americans buy online every day from Amazon.com. Julio Garcia consistently works 50-60 hour weeks as a professional truck driver, yet his family was denied a home loan by the bank because they deemed his income “unstable.”

How could this be? Julio Garcia drives full-time for one of Amazon’s contractors, a giant company called XPO Logistics that is valued at more than $2.5 Billion. XPO, like thousands of similar American corporations, engages in an employment scheme that leaves his family unable to show a “stable” income despite “stable” work by treating its workers as employees but paying them as “independent contractors.” This scheme not only allows them to avoid payroll taxes, but also lets the company deduct their business expenses from drivers’ paychecks. They charge the drivers to drive the company truck, charge him to register, insure, fuel, and maintain their truck, and they even charge drives to park the company trucks at the company yard! “There are weeks that they charge me so much that I make less than the minimum wage – and some weeks I owe the company for the privilege of working for them,” said Julio Garcia.

Click here to sign a petition to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos to respect the workers in Amazon’s supply chain. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0QA/ni0YAA/t.1ri/b1QZi-NIQ9y-7V6XqivWww/h4/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CK3sS08zQVm0t-2FK6f6FhZWGqOQi7-2Bgyq6e7hjtNcAzfX7g0JNteFSpEGLI7jE85Sv1QELrOAgYraN lr7O1fXV9zNgekOlDW07bvLb7-2FMJ0LJ8OOM4nP6zFyMcb6AzziVQT3CX1YgtSJLnEVCT6v-2FeTVpO8jFXrHZix-2By8RwzCeRxQOGlJcYHJxnLppTQMPlhIKD8lgubMQqMg5lVAnQ lfk6Ygk2SgJRhE1p0vHO9zrHtEhlsxrhtLF0Q9nSnFoRBemPPS l61gNdbPU5Z9mQB3ObJBNVa3wuEyKyJbeQ-2Ba0fqzh02KIz-2FKzoqhOIwZEGbCsfBIUmazETG4Wgzc8PhwWKlIPvHousj3Jb9 4hTeeOiJyLT1N1WbSeFD76t4kPVlIszTulHSELWwsH8mUFUfke sv4iHoFAj8HcYSzWDwlYO15CELWzW8otFC-2F-2Bg9nS1xiuRtN0sBizIoJ24ohD3DfC)

This is wage theft and it is illegal, so Julio Garcia is one of more than 700 professional truck drivers in California who have filed a claim with the state Labor Commissioner. This week, he and his coworkers delivered a petition with a list of their demands. It’s fallen on deaf ears, so XPO drivers are again on strike – their 8th strike in the last two years.

Click here to sign a petition to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos to respect the workers in Amazon’s supply chain. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0QA/ni0YAA/t.1ri/b1QZi-NIQ9y-7V6XqivWww/h5/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CK3sS08zQVm0t-2FK6f6FhZWGqOQi7-2Bgyq6e7hjtNcAzfX7g0JNteFSpEGLI7jE85Sv1QELrOAgYraN lr7O1fXV9zNgekOlDW07bvLb7-2FMJ0LJ8OOM4nP6zFyMcb6AzziVQT3CX1YgtSJLnEVCT6v-2FeTVpO8jFXrHZix-2By8RwzCeRxQOGlJcYHJxnLppTQMPlhIKD8lgubMQqMg5lVAnQ lfk6Ygk2SgJRhE1p0vHO9zrHtEhlsxrhtLF0Q9nSnFoRBemPPS l61gNdbPU5Z9mQB3ObJBNVa3wuEyKyJbeQ-2Ba0fqzh02KIz-2FKzoqhOIwZEGbCsfBIUmazETG4Wgzc8PhwWKlIPvHousj3Jb9 4hTeeOiJyLT1N1WbSeFD76t4kPVlIszTulHSELWwsH8mUFUfke sv4iHoFAj8HcYSzWDwlYO15CELWzW8otFC-2F-2Bg9nS1xiuRtN0sBizIoJ24ohD3DfC)

Sincerely,

Justice for Port Drivers campaign

P.S. Support us by signing this petition (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0QA/ni0YAA/t.1ri/b1QZi-NIQ9y-7V6XqivWww/h7/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CK3sS08zQVm0t-2FK6f6FhZWGqOQi7-2Bgyq6e7hjtNcAzfX7g0JNteFSpEGLI7jE85Sv1QELrOAgYraN lr7O1fXV9zNgekOlDW07bvLb7-2FMJ0LJ8OOM4nP6zFyMcb6AzziVQT3CX1YgtSJLnEVCT6v-2FeTVpO8jFXrHZix-2By8RwzCeRxQOGlJcYHJxnLppTQMPlhIKD8lgubMQqMg5lVAnQ lfk6Ygk2SgJRhE1p0vHO9zrHtEhlsxrhtLF0Q9nSnFoRBemPPS l61gNdbPU5Z9mQB3ObJBNVa3wuEyKyJbeQ-2Ba0fqzh02KIz-2FKzoqhOIwZEGbCsfBIUmazETG4Wgzc8PhwWKlIPvHousj3Jb9 4hTeeOiJyLT1N1WbSeFD76t4kPVlIszTulHSELWwsH8mUFUfke sv4iHoFAj8HcYSzWDwlYO15CELWzW8otFC-2F-2Bg9nS1xiuRtN0sBizIoJ24ohD3DfC) demanding changes from employer XPO Logistics.

/Justice4PortDrivers (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0QA/ni0YAA/t.1ri/b1QZi-NIQ9y-7V6XqivWww/h9/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiIvEHI-2F2KG5GdsRHLElbV6q2epjO-2FlOAKNGnVE8PXLnFskyWJUlj4D3n0TVGF8Z-2FtVkssGuWIoXGmoUGZJBapN2dg9-2Fsqe-2FRHnIR-2F3XgvE9a8aITuioljSyLDq3lLKwLiZUdE9qhICTDVNHcHYnv6 USL0TO3e4y4d46z88xQEv6Knv73uv-2FJMYwAkO1sWcfknitUZRwMhRi92pbXfSnypeu9R7BZ070I4va knV8PUr-2BBkE6zpO4mie-2B8eKFuTdVNdJgV-2B0uzH7j1GNLWS-2F4tU9a3AMSqRSJvvOJzLD2YuuQcJif6piz0u3wIpBV2wChB0c KZv1-2FHjzL1nOGzYJTzGvA32B2assYjj44Eb9WQD6Uad0-2FskrtDC8-2F5EhcpY44fPowdGI7rhQcaNtDp9HErhdTKUSrhxI8cNRT2Xa4 vAV-2FscCy9wJ3CGWpRcPiYuJsSNn7KyqtQXxuuGa4TP7c1AHw-3D)

@PortDriverUnion (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0QA/ni0YAA/t.1ri/b1QZi-NIQ9y-7V6XqivWww/h11/VE2atosPJwyp5yA4oN-2FSajomMBmB3X04e3k8wQ46x30gJC9dWvL6MHLkUqYnAlGMSei 5I5LMEbNTxFFWDoiXdEH-2BJHW2z6iV3itq-2FjJBEw-2B7LVwPbQ9CTGJCFO68-2FZQA4-2FfMOtcBOlddJkwE5eO4C6AlBz-2FkTLgtsh9h13V2xgJwO7BqiuTKLr5rVq4ODhiVJ0UIBx-2FcfYkvXNrMgJ9cn6HMIZdIALYCsO32-2B3HGgHIMcSrh33y2i3pDJTZO1300xOEmtH27ZoME8dpUN5102 OKhIw0jgFZbPOCa-2BDkkHIEs9aUgs4vv-2BX1eKaFCMj4gp8nMHsEhkIKv-2FGC76JLe5VDuas0RhfrdEsXuxf7odYLek6yexgAq8yoBC5hDY qnMnfzVXDNkHkkAEWWMm6tvNOYyhgJmJpSFtoYfWLGnQ-2F1Gc4ouIDFkT3Sr13-2FnFFa55kO-2FSJZnnXpYeyg97PQqiw-3D-3D)

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ckaihatsu

23rd November 2015, 02:00

https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2015/11/19/kohl-n19.html

Injunction issued against Kohler strikers in Wisconsin

By James Brewer

19 November 2015

The day after more than 2,000 striking workers at Wisconsin’s Kohler Company staged a march and mass picket, an injunction was issued by a Sheboygan County circuit court judge.

Kohler, the multinational plumbing fixture manufacturer, filed a complaint requesting that strikers be banned from “engaging in mass picketing or a show or demonstration of force or threats of force or intimidating or coercing Kohler Co.’s employees, prospective employees and/or business invitees in the exercise of rights guaranteed to them by law.”

In the restraining order issued by Judge James Bolgert that language was struck.
Kohler Director of Security Patrick McCarthy filed an affidavit with the court alleging that pickets assaulted security officers, saying, “Some of our contract security officers were also assaulted by picketers (elbows in the ribs, etc.)”

Tim Tayloe, the president of United Auto Workers Local 833, issued a statement reported in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: “That is totally false. If anything happened it was from their hit men. ...They had one guy who stopped, and stepped on the gas and almost hit one of the picketers.”

Rather than defending the actions of his membership, Tayloe felt the need to apologize publicly to the press, saying that pickets should not interfere with traffic: “I can understand the points of the police officers. It’s for everybody’s safety to try and keep the guys off the road.”

He added that he “heard language was getting out of hand,” and admonished pickets for what they said to people crossing the line. To the press, he said, “They don’t need to use bad language with them.”

Tayloe and the UAW continue to work to isolate and wear down the struggle of the 2,100 Kohler workers who voted 94 percent in favor of rejecting the company’s “last, best and final offer” Friday.

The UAW is determined to prevent a united struggle of the Kohler workers with autoworkers at Ford, GM and Fiat Chrysler, where the UAW is attempting to conclude its efforts to ram through pro-company deals this week. Voting at Ford concludes today, with momentum shifting against the contract over the past two days.

Despite rainy weather, hundreds of strikers amassed along the street in front of the plant on Tuesday, the day the injunction was issued. Tayloe told the media, “When you’ve got a couple hundred people at each gate, it can get out of hand at times.”

Members of a local Veterans Auxiliary organized an impromptu march on Highland Drive, in front of the Kohler plant, which was disbanded by police. Officers threatened to arrest strikers and veterans before they moved off the street.

Tensions are building as the Kohler workers are determined to fight. The main issues are the two-tier wage system, which has been in place since the UAW agreed to it after the 2008 economic crash, and the degradation of their health care plan.

The company has publicly announced that it will continue to run production during the strike and is seeking to intimidate workers by ordering them to come in to work.

Jacob Wine, a Kohler striker told WTMJ News, “I hope this goes quick, but you know, I’ll be standing out here for as long as I have to.” The UAW will pay strike pay of just $200 a week, which is not enough to live on. Wine, who has two children, spoke on his expenses, “Well $800 rent a month.That’s gonna be paid no matter what. But then that’s gonna take from other things you know, gas, electric, utilities, that comes to roughly $200 a month for all of that.”

There is deep public sympathy for the strikers. The Journal Sentinal, however, has devoted more ink to the problems caused for the hotel across the street than to the strike itself. The American Club, which was opened by Herbert V. Kohler, Jr. in 1981, is five-star hotel that was converted from a building constructed in 1918 to house Kohler’s immigrant workforce.

The Village of Kohler was founded in 1873 as a company town. The well-connected Kohler family, with two members serving as Wisconsin governors in the 1930s and 1950s, has a long history of violent opposition to the working class. During the first strike to unionize, Kohler mobilized a special police to attack pickets. Two workers were killed and 43 were injured.

ckaihatsu

10th December 2015, 02:32

Tell Duke to stop union busting!

Dear Chris,

Have you heard that non-tenure track faculty at Duke University are organizing to form a union? They’re joining a movement that has brought concrete gains through organizing and collective bargaining — from pay raises to basic job security provisions — to contingent faculty across the country.

But rather than allow faculty to organize together for a better Duke, President Brodhead has launched an anti-union campaign, interfering with faculty’s right to organize. Duke University has even hired a union-busting law firm, wasting student tuition dollars on suppressing our professors’ rights as workers.

Yesterday, faculty came together in a public community forum to hear from contingent faculty and discuss how to support their efforts—including distributing yard signs and calling on the City Council to pass a resolution. Today, we need YOU to call President Brodhead and other administrators and tell them to STOP union busting.

Contingent faculty at Georgetown, Tufts, and many others have found that in uniting, they can win concrete gains in both their working conditions and their student learning conditions. In order for faculty to decide what is best for Duke’s educational future, Brodhead needs to immediately halt his anti-union intimidation.

Earlier this month, the administration held a town hall forum in which President Brodhead defended his decision to oppose the union. As students, we will not accept this kind of opposition to a union in blatant contradiction with the values of our school. We demand that President Brodhead be neutral immediately and stop all acts of intimidation.

Take action now: call Brodhead at 919-684-2424. Tell him that we support contingent faculty and demand an end to union busting!

Thank you,

Zoe Willingham

Duke University, USAS Local 101

United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org
Organizing for Student and Worker Power
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ckaihatsu

10th December 2015, 02:49

Chicago event raises money for striking Kohler workers,

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/Kohlermoner.jpg

By staff

Chicago, IL - A crowd of 100 people from all walks of life gathered in Chicago for an annual event, the People’s Thanksgiving. A fundraiser for Fight Back!, the event raised almost $1600, half of which was donated to the striking Kohler workers of UAW Local 833.

Eric Koene, a striking worker from the Kohler plant in Wisconsin and education director of UAW Local 833, said of their strike which started Nov. 16, “Kohler Company doubled its value from $3 billion to $7 billion in a year. So, we’re demanding an end to the two-tier wage scale.” Thinking about his future, he continued, “I have 22 years in the plant. My son, or grandson could come to work there someday, and I’d be working alongside them making a good wage, and they’d be making less than half of it.”

Dan Ginsberg, a trade unionist with the Milwaukee United Workers Organization introduced Koene. “Over 2000 workers are striking Kohler. All people concerned with economic justice, who are fed up with greedy billionaires taking more and more, need to be supporting this strike. Kohler workers and their union are igniting the next wave of struggle needed to revive a fighting workers’ movement in the U.S.”

Kait McIntyre, emcee of the event, presented Koene with an award called, “The ‘Big’ Bill Haywood Class Struggle Award.” The subtitle of the award: “The working class and the employer class have nothing in common.” This is the opening line of the preamble of the constitution of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), the fighting labor union from the early 1900s. “Big” Bill Haywood was the head of the IWW.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

10th December 2015, 03:04

CTU Grant Park Night Rally - Labor Beat video

CTU Grant Park Night Rally

On YouTube at:
1WuCNR_p5Bo

Would they come to a night rally on a Monday in the cold in the park on the lakefront? Yes. And there was a big turnout too, as Chicago teachers told the city that they were toughening up for a strike. The successful Nov. 23, 2015 rally was a necessary step forced by Mayor Emanuel and his hand-picked school board who are threatening a full-spectrum assault on union standards in health insurance, pensions, class size and jobs to impose a crushing $650 million hammer blow against the CTU and public schools.

Featured speakers included Loretta Johnson, Sec-Treas., AFT/AFL-CIO who said that "The underfunding of your pension is not a result of excessive pension benefits or inadequate employee contributions. It's them spending your money and wanting you to pay for it."

Kristine Mayle, CTU Financial Secretary, and a former special education teacher, noted: "Hundreds of special education teachers and teacher assistants are being cut this year. Our members are loosing jobs and their students are loosing teachers. Last year our special education teams were already stretched beyond their abilities to serve the most needy students in our district. But this year the problem is much worse...But that's not to say that our general education students aren't suffering too. Art and libraries are reduced if not outright eliminated. Class sizes are balooning. Teacher workloads are crushing. High School electives that help students prepare for college are becoming a thing of the past."

Also appearing in the video are Anna Jones, Hunger Strike for Dyett High School; State Representative (31st) Mary E. Flowers; State Rep (19th) Robert Martwick. Flowers called for a financial transaction tax and an elected school board.

CTU President Karen Lewis, with the upcoming strike authorization vote on her mind, told the CTU: "So we've heard the speeches, not it's time for us to act." She reminded the crowd of the foundation of trade unionism. "We know that if we must, we will withhold our labor." (The official CTU strike authorization voting will take place on Dec. 9, 10, 11.) Length - 16:06

http://s16.postimg.org/6bibycpwl/151123_CTU_member_cold_night_Labor_Beat.jpg (http://postimage.org/)
A CTU members braves the cold night to be at the rally. Photo: Labor Beat

http://s16.postimg.org/94bjidq91/151123_Kristine_Mayle_CTU_Financial_Secretary_La.j pg (http://postimage.org/)
Kristine Mayle, CTU Financial Secretary, among the speakers at Grant Park. Photo: Andrew Friend/Labor Beat

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner, and member of the Evanston Community Media Center. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". On Chicago CAN TV Channel 19, Thursdays 9:30 pm; Fridays 4:30 pm. Labor Beat has regular cable slots in Chicago, Evanston, Rockford, Urbana, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Princeton, NJ; and Rochester, NY.
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ckaihatsu

7th February 2016, 19:36

[LaborTech] Google Shuts Down Amazon Unionization Website

Google Shuts Down Amazon Unionization Website

http://www.thestranger.com/blogs/slog/2016/02/05/23534490/google-shuts-down-amazon-unionization-website

by Sydney Brownstone • Feb 5, 2016 at 7:51 pm

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For several months, a website hosted on a Google subdomain was posting workplace horror stories from people claiming to be Amazon employees. Now it's been shut down. KELLY O

It appears that Google has disabled a website where people who claim to be Amazon employees were threatening to unionize. Google posted a notice saying the website violated its terms of service on Friday afternoon.

On Tuesday, we ran a story about the website, which was soliciting Amazon workplace horror stories to be published online. The site, which called itself the Former and Current Employees of Amazon (FACE of Amazon), had been up and running since late October.

Between October and early February, the site had received some 27,000 hits and 80 stories. In the three days after our story was published, FACE claims that it had received an additional 45,000 hits.

"Google shut off our site a few minutes ago without any explanation, so we're working to see if they will turn it back on based on our appealing their decision or else we will find an alternative location to host it," FACE told me in an e-mail. "We don't think it's a coincidence that they did this late on Friday afternoon."

We've reached out to Google and Amazon for comment and will update if we hear back.

A partial backup of the website is available through the Wayback Machine. You can read it here.
https://web.archive.org/web/20160118052937/https://sites.google.com/site/thefaceofamazon/

NAVIGATION
• THE FORMER AND CURRENT EMPLOYEES (FACE) OF AMAZON
• A CULTURE OF FEAR
• A CULTURE OF LIES
• A HOSTILE UNFRIENDLY WORK ENVIRONMENT
• ADVICE TO THOSE WHO ARE HARMED
• ALL STICK AND NO CARROT
• ALWAYS PROTECTING BAD MANAGERS
• AMAZON IS A LEADING EXPLOITER
• AMAZON IS BAD FOR WOMEN
• AMAZON MANAGEMENT IS LIKE A LOTTERY TICKET
• AMAZON SUCKS FOR ITS EMPLOYEES
• AMAZON'S NEGATIVE CULTURE
• AMAZON'S ONLY BENEFIT IS AS A CAREER STEPPING STONE
• BAD BEHAVIOR IN MEETINGS IS NORMAL
• BLAMED FOR EVERYTHING THAT WENT WRONG
• BROKEN MEETING CULTURE
• BROWN NOSER DIRECTOR
• CAN'T GET PROMOTED
• CAN'T TRUST MY MANAGER
• COE: WHY WAS I FIRED?
• COMPLETE BURN OUT
• COMPLETELY IGNORED ME
• DESTRUCTIVE COMPETITION
• DON'T BE DISRUPTIVE
• DON'T WAIT AROUND BASED ON LIES
• EVERY MAN FOR HIMSELF
• FIRED FOR CONTACTING JEFF
• GETTING RID OF THE COMPETITION
• GETTING SICK IS A CAREER RISK
• HATING THE MANAGEMENT CULTURE
• HIGH ATTRITION BLAME GAME
• HR IS FRUSTRATING
• JUST LOOK AT THE COURT RECORDS
• KEEP MISTREATING ONE AFTER THE OTHER
• LEARN TO EARN TRUST FROM A LIAR?
• LEFT TO FEND FOR MYSELF
• MANAGER PROMOTED TO COMPLETE INCOMPETENCE
• MANAGERS CONTROL EVERYTHING AT AMAZON
• MEETING GOALS WITHOUT ETHICS
• MOST EMPLOYEES ARE NOT HAPPY
• NEVER HAD A 1:1 IN 2 YEARS
• NEVER TRANSFER JUST BEFORE REVIEW SEASON
• ONLY THE SCUM SUCCEED
• ORG SPLIT SHOWS HOW AMAZON CAN GO BAD
• PERFORMANCE TRACK RECORD DOESN'T MATTER
• PIP OUT OF THE BLUE IS NOT UNUSUAL
• PLAYING THE POLITICS GAME
• PROBLEMS ARE DUE TO GROWTH
• PUNISHED FOR BACKFILLING ABSENT MANAGER
• RETALITORY BAD REVIEW
• SCAPEGOATED
• SHUFFLED AROUND
• SWEATSHOP
• TAKE ONE FOR THE TEAM
• THE BLAME GAME
• THE COMPANY THAT HATES ITS WORKFORCE
• THE END IS INEVITABLE
• THE ONLY APPEAL IS A BIG PAYCHECK
• THERE'S ALWAYS ANOTHER BODY
• TOO MUCH MANAGER CONTROL
• TOO MUCH MANAGER LEEWAY
• TOXIC CULTURE
• TRY TO FIX THINGS BUT DON'T TRY TOO HARD
• TRYING TO GET PROMOTED
• WALL STREET IS DRIVING AMAZON'S UNETHICAL BEHAVIOR
• WIDE VARIATION ACROSS AMAZON
• WORST PARTS OF WORKING AT AMAZON
• WORST PEOPLE ARE PROMOTED
• YOU CAN ONLY MOVE AHEAD BECAUSE OF POLITICS
• ZAPPOS CULTURE WAS DESTROYED BY AMAZON
The Former And Current Employees (FACE) of Amazon
Amazon has a management abuse problem. This was made clear in the August article by the New York Times. Even worse is that Amazon is in denial about this problem and claims that all employees should report their management problems to HR or to Jeff Bezos himself. This site documents all of the cases where Amazon managers have mistreated their employees and escalating only made it worse and never helped the employees deal with their bad managers.

Amazon is a great company for its customers. It's about time that it became a great company for its really hard working employees as well.

To add your story to this site, email theFACEofAmazon @ gmail.com or anonymously leave a voicemail at (425) 310-2347. We will never disclose your personal information, so please include as many details as you are comfortable sharing.

Most popular:
1. org-split
2. coe-why-was-i-fired
3. getting-rid-of-the-competition
4. too-much-manager-control
5. amazon-is-a-leading-exploiter
6. hr-is-frustrating
7. too-much-manager-leeway
8. toxic-culture
9. a-culture-of-fear

Latest stories:
Added 1/16 - only-the-scum-succeed
- most-employees-are-not-happy
- the-company-that-hates-its-workforce
- playing-the-politics-game
Added 1/12 - pip-out-of-the-blue-is-not-unusual
- try-to-fix-things-but-don-t-try-too-hard
- the-end-is-inevitable
- amazon-sucks-for-its-employees
Added 1/10 - complete-burn-out
- managers-control-everything-at-amazon
- don-t-wait-around-based-on-lies
- performance-track-record-doesn-t-matter
- amazon-is-bad-for-women
Added 1/8 - the-only-appeal-is-a-big-paycheck
- problems-are-due-to-growth
Added 1/6 - always-protecting-bad-managers
- worst-people-are-promoted
Added 1/3 - advice-to-those-who-are-harmed
Added 12/30 - amazon-s-only-benefit-is-as-a-career-stepping-stone
- wide-variation-across-amazon
Added 12/27 - amazon-management-is-like-a-lottery-ticket
- high-attrition-blame-game
Added 12/23 - just-look-at-the-court-records
Added 12/20 - you-can-only-move-ahead-because-of-politics
Added 12/16 - all-stick-and-no-carrot
Added 12/11 - a-hostile-unfriendly-work-environment
- a-culture-of-lies
Added 12/10 - broken-meeting-culture
Added 12/8 - fired-for-contacting-jeff
Added 12/5 - don-t-be-disruptive
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ckaihatsu

2nd March 2016, 16:23

CTU Protests at B of A; CCC Faculty no confidence vote in Chancellor - next Labor Beat on CAN TV, starts 3/3

Two Segment Show

CTU Protest at Bank of America & Anti-Layoff March

Chicago - CAN TV Channel 19
Thursday, March 3, 9:30 pm
Friday, March 4, 4:30 pm
Thursday, March 10, 9:30 pm
Friday, MArch 11, 4:30 pm

In early February, 2016 the Chicago Teachers Union marched against Chicago Public Schools' failing to re-negotiate toxic-swap loans from banks. Suing to get shady interest loan money back from Band of America and other banks would help fund public schools. We watch as the union withdraws $750,000 from their B of A bank account in protest. And we cover the big, 3,000-strong march by the CTU against 1,000 layoffs that CPS is threatening. Video can also be viewed at: https://youtu.be/APa6ugE_Pl0

APa6ugE_Pl0

http://s29.postimg.org/prt2vlbtz/160204_Chicago_Teachers_Union_march_Labor_Beat.jpg (http://postimage.org/)
3,000 strong march protesting B of A bad loans to CTU on Feb. 4, 2016. Photo: Labor Beat

Second Segment:

CCC Faculty Council: No Confidence in Chancellor Hyman

After waiting for nearly two hours at its Feb. 4, 2016 meeting -- while the City Colleges of Chicago board heard orchestrated speeches praising Chancellor Cheryl Hyman and the "reinvention" -- two faculty members finally got a chance to explain the formal faculty council vote of "no confidence" in Chancellor Hyman. The two faculty members who spoke were: Jenny Armendarez, Associate Professor of Speech at Harold Washington College, and former president of the HWC local faculty council; and Jennifer Alexander, president of the Faculty Council of City Colleges of Chicago (FC4). Video can also be viewed at: https://youtu.be/qF53xTI29ic

qF53xTI29ic

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner, and member of the Evanston Community Media Center. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". On Chicago CAN TV Channel 19, Thursdays 9:30 pm; Fridays 4:30 pm. Labor Beat has regular cable slots in Chicago, Evanston, Rockford, Urbana, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Princeton, NJ; and Rochester, NY.

Visit our Web Site:
http://www.laborbeat.org

MAKE A DONATION TO LABOR BEAT (COMMITTEE FOR LABOR ACCESS):
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ckaihatsu

5th March 2016, 16:51

Urgent: Your help is needed to get charges dropped against UC Berkeley activist John Penilla

Dear Sisters and Brothers,
I am writing this note to request that you take a look and sign these two petitions forwarded to me by activists in the Student Labor Coalition at UC Berkeley.

One is calling for charges to be dropped against student activist John Penilla for disrupting an event on campus at which the two guest speakers crossed a picketline set up by the students in support of the campus workers:

http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/drop-the-charges-against-2?source=c.em.cp&r_by=15092687

The other is for a boycott of speakers at UC Berkeley in solidarity with workers demanding university protections and attempting to unionize:

http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/boycott-speakers-at-uc?source=c.em&r_by=15092607

Please forward these to other people you think would be interested in signing.

Thank you,

Alan Benjamin

ckaihatsu

2nd April 2016, 20:47

Stand with striking airport workers

Dear Chris,

My name is Gerinelda Fornier. I work as a terminal cleaner at JFK Airport for the subcontractor Roma. Tonight my coworkers and I joined thousands of airport workers around the country in a national strike - our largest yet!

We hope you will join us at our JFK strike rally tomorrow afternoon.

JFK Airport Workers Rising Strike Rally
THURSDAY, March 31, 12 noon
Terminal 5, JFK Airport, Queens

My coworkers and I at JetBlue’s subcontractor Roma went on strike at JFK to protest illegal intimidation that we have faced when we organize, and to speak out about safety issues that potentially put both airport workers and passengers at risk.

We were told times not to complete security checks on planes, but when we spoke up about the issue the company threatened us and even cut our hours in retaliation! It was the last straw after years of poverty wages, unacceptable benefits, disrespect and more on the job.

Airport workers in Seattle, Chicago, Boston, Portland New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, and Fort Lauderdale have similar workplace concerns and have gone on strike as well - our campaign has gone truly national!

You have been a strong supporter of our airports campaign and with your support more than 45,000 airport workers nationwide have either received wage increases or other improvements, including health care, paid sick leave and worker retention policies. But there is still more work to be done. Around the country airport workers like me are still fighting for better lives.

We are fighting for $15 an hour, benefits and an end to various local unfair labor practices - and we need your help to amplify our message to our contractors, the airlines they serve and the entire country! We hope to see you out at our strike rally tomorrow at the airport!

We are also asking our allies to tweet support today with the hashtag #Strike4Families. Even when you can’t make it in person, it means a lot to see that we have your support on a day like today! Click to tweet to show your support now! (http://32bj.seiu.org/page/m/18a130bd/179da51/4ecd2d59/1fe06cb9/244294832/VEsH/)

We hope to see you online and in person.

In solidarity,

Gerinelda and the Airport Worker’s Organizing Committee

We are sending you this email about the national day of airport actions on March 31. If you do not wish to receive e-mail communications from 32BJ, please click here to unsubscribe.

CONNECT WITH US ONLINE:

Sign Up for Emails and Texts from 32BJ

32BJ SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION
25 West 18 Street, New York, NY 10011 PHONE: 212-388-3800
EMAIL: [email protected]

ckaihatsu

19th April 2016, 19:19

BREAKING: Agricultural Labor Relations Board finds Gerawan guilty of violating law.

Farm labor board rules Gerawan guilty of ‘extensive’ and ‘illegal misconduct’ in violating state labor law

ALRB’s 81-page judgment affirms a state judge’s 130-page opinion that the huge grower 'unlawfully inserted itself into the electoral process'

Board chairman cites principle that prohibitions on ‘oppressive tactics’ need to be applied to relations between employers and workers

The full Agricultural Labor Relations Board issued a unanimous 81-page decision on Friday, April 15 decisively affirming the 192-page Sept. 17, 2015 opinion by an ALRB administrative law judge finding the giant Fresno-based tree fruit grower Gerawan Farming Inc. guilty of “commit[ing] numerous” violations of California labor laws (P. 68). Judge Mark R. Soble ruled last year after hearing sworn testimony from 130 witnesses in 2014 and 2015. The ruling by the Sacramento-based ALRB sets aside the Nov. 5, 2013 election to attempt to decertify the United Farm Workers and dismisses the decertification petition. Ballots from that vote were not counted. (Page citations follow excerpts from the ALRB judgment.)

The ALRB decision orders Gerawan to “cease and desist from aiding, assisting, participating in or encouraging any decertification campaign and…interfering with, restraining, or coercing any agricultural employees in the exercise of their rights” under the farm labor law. (P. 69).” For the entire official decision, see: https://alrb.ca.gov/content/news/news.shtml#Gerawan and https://alrb.ca.gov/legal_searches/decisions/42_1(2016).pdf

In his concurring opinion, ALRB Chairman William B. Gould IV wrote, “The voluminous record and numerous findings of the [administrative law judge] in this case clearly established the illegal conduct of Gerawan, and the fact that it is guilty of extensive misconduct under the ALRA [Agricultural Labor Relations Act] (P. 79).” “The record of illegal misconduct in this case by which conduct the employer unlawfully inserted itself into the electoral process through a variety of means…is amply documented by the thorough, deliberate and carefully balanced findings and conclusions of the [judge] (P. 79).” Gould was also chairman of the National Labor Relations Board under President Bill Clinton.

Gould ruled that “though the decertification was filed by employees, by the ways found by the [judge], and affirmed by our decision, the employer became a principal party to that effort. To certify the results of this election would be to make the employer the ‘benevolent champion’ of those rights (P. 76).”

Gould described the principle “that labor policy promotes democracy in the workplace,” and cited “oppressive tactics engaged in by private parties as well as the state in the civic life of the nation and in well-known instances of authoritarianism abroad (Ps. 76-77).” “The same principles [are] to be deemed applicable to the employment relationship and the reduction of inequality between employer and employee,” he wrote.

In its lengthy ruling, the Agricultural Labor Relations Board determined that:

• “Gerawan discriminatorily permitted anti-union signature gathering during work time while prohibiting pro-union activity of the same kind (P. 68).”

• “Gerwan granted [decertification campaign leader Silvia] Lopez a ‘virtual sabbatical to conduct the decertification effort (P. 68).”

• “Gerawan did not discipline [decertification petition] signature gatherers for missing work, but continued to enforce its absence policies among the rest of the crew (P. 68).”

• “Gerawan tacitly approved an unlawful work blockage, which, although instigated by the decertification petitioner supporters, directly facilitated the gathering of the signatures for the showing of interest [to trigger an election] (P. 68).”

• Gerawan colluded with the CFFA [California Fresh Fruit Association, an industry group] to make arrangements for the decertification petitioners to travel by bus [with hundreds of Gerawan workers] to Sacramento in order to protest the dismissal of the first decertification petition, thus condoning employees taking time off from work to join the protest (Ps. 68-69).”

• Gerawan granted a wage increase during the decertification campaign and unlawfully solicited grievances” against the union (P. 69).

The farm labor board concluded, “Given the totality of the circumstances and Gerawan’s unlawful actions, we conclude that it is impossible to know whether the signatures gathered in support of the decertification petition represented the workers’ true sentiments. We affirm the [judge’s] conclusion that Gerawan’s unlawful and/or objectionable conduct tainted the entire decertification process, we adopt his recommended remedy dismissing the decertification petition, and setting aside the election (P. 69).”

Highlights from the decision (again with page cites next to quotes)

—“Unlawful assistance With and Support of the Decertification Campaign; Allowing the Decertification Proponents to Gather Signatures in the Crews During Work Time Constitutes Unlawful Assistance (P. 22)”

Decertification proponents were allowed by the company to solicit signatures on decertification petitions in the fields during working hours. Judge Soble “found that farm labor contractor crew boss Jose Evangelista signed the decertification petition on behalf of 18-20 crew members in mid-September 2013, and told them what he did (P. 22).”

“The evidence supports the conclusion that Gerawan discriminated in favor of decertification activity. This disparate treatment of pro-decertification workers reasonably could create the impression that the company was sponsoring, or at least supporting, the solicitation of signatures in favor of decertification. Therefore, we find that Gerawan was responsible for assisting the circulation of the decertification petition in those instances where supervisors allowed the circulation on work time (Ps. 23-24).”

—“Gerawan Unlawfully Assisted and Supported the Decertification Campaign Through Favorable Treatment of Lopez and Other Decertification Signature Gatherers (P. 29).”

“We agree with the [judge’s] finding that [decertification leader Silvia] Lopez was granted a ‘virtual sabbatical’ of almost two and a half months by the employer to circulate the decertification petition. She began missing work without consequence in August 2013, despite having been hired in late June 2013, and despite the company employment handbook’s provisions for discipline for excessive absences (P. 30).”

—“The Employer’s Tacit Approval of the September 30, 2013 Work Blockage Supports a Finding of Unlawful Assistance and Disparate Treatment. In Addition, There is Authority for Imputing Liability for the Petitioner’s Group’s Violation of the Act to Gerawan (P. 32).”

“The [administrative law judge] concluded that the decertification proponents blocked the ranch entrances because they were convinced that it was their only hope to gather the signatures they needed after the [ALRB] regional director dismissed the first petition (P. 33).”

“It is undisputed that the work blockage on September 30, 2013, caused a huge disruption in Gerawan’s operations during the busiest time of the year. [Gerawan Farming owner] Dan Gerawan estimated that the financial loss due to the work stoppage was between $100,000 and $200,000 (P. 34).”

“We find that Gerawan’s tacit approval of the blockage supports a finding of unlawful assistance and disparate treatment (P. 37).”

—“Gerawan Was Complicit in the California Fresh Fruit Association’s Financial Support of the Decertification Effort (P. 37).”

“The first decertification petition was filed on September 18, 2013. On September 25, 2013, that petition was dismissed. Shortly thereafter, CFFA [California Fresh Fruit Association] President Barry Bedwell made the CFFA credit card available to petitioner’s counsel Joanna MacMillan so workers could go to Sacramento on chartered buses on October 2, 2013, to attend a protest spearheaded by the decertification petitioner’s group (P. 37).” It is illegal under both state and national labor law for an employer or employer association to provide financial support to a group purporting to represent workers.

“There is ample circumstantial evidence supporting the inference that Dan Gerawan and Bedwell communicated about the trip, and that Dan Gerawan knew about the CFFA’s payment for the trip ahead of time (P. 38).”

“The CFFA’s support of the decertification effort was done in plain sight of Gerawan, yet Gerawan sat idly by and did nothing to prevent or distance itself from it. In these circumstances, an employer can be held liable for the actions of a third party (P. 40).”

“From the point of view of the average employee, we find it reasonable that one would believe that Gerawan paid for the trip and arranged for the charter buses to pick up workers next to the company office, or at least authorized and condoned such actions, and gave employees who went to Sacramento permission to leave work on a busy harvest day without consequence. In these circumstances, Gerawan can be held liable for the unlawful support provided to the decertification proponents (P. 43).”

“We find Gerawan unlawfully supported Lopez and the decertification effort by its affirmance and ratification of the CFFA’s financial contributions. Gerawan’s conduct, or lack thereof, further contributed to an atmosphere that made it impossible for an impartial election to be held (P. 48).”

“…we find that Gerawan, through its complicity with the CFFA, provided unlawful support for the decertification effort (P. 54).”

—“The ALJ [administrative law judge] Properly Rejected Gerawan’s Abandonment Defense P. 56).”

‘The [administrative law judge] properly rejected Gerawan’s argument that ‘abandonment’ by the union was a defense per se in his September 25, 2014 order. He also properly ruled that evidence would not be permitted for the purpose of trying to establish whether or not the UFW became inactive at the company. The Board has held that, under the ALRA, an employer’s claim that a certified union was inactive with respect to the employer and/or bargaining unit employees, even for an extended period of time, does not establish a defense to the duty to bargain (frequently referred to as an “abandonment’ defense)… We uphold the [administrative law judge’s] handling of this argument (P. 57).” The UFW has documented its repeated attempts to negotiate a union contract at Gerawan since winning an election in 1992.

—“The ALJ [administrative law judge] Properly Found that the Wage Increase for Grape Packing Workers Was a Violation of the Act and that It Would Have Had a Coercive Effect (P. 57).”

“On October 25, 2013, the day that the second decertification petition was filed, [Gerawan Farming owner] Mike Gerawan unilaterally increased the piece rate for field grape packers from $1.25 per box to $1.50 per box. Mike Gerawan conceded that the reason for the increase was an encouragement and a reward. The [administrative law judge] reasoned that this ‘well-timed’ increase, along with the free food given to workers, would have created a celebratory atmosphere that workers would have ‘unmistakably attributed to company joy over the decertification petition filing (Ps. 57-59).’”

“We uphold the [administrative law judge] on this issue and find that the wage increase would have had a coercive effect on workers’ free choice in the election. Granting benefits to employees in an effort to influence a representation election is clearly an unfair labor practice (Ps. 58-59).”

###

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ckaihatsu

22nd April 2016, 18:23

They threatened us with felony charges

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/034/652/original/Screen_Shot_2016-04-21_at_12.32.29_PM.png

Dear Chris,

Two weeks ago, USAS Local 42 held an occupation in Ohio State University President Drake's office alongside a coalition of other student organizations to #ReclaimOSU, demanding financial transparency and respect for student and worker voices. Administrators threatened to arrest us, expel us, and even tried to intimidate us with absurd claims that they would push for felony charges for our peaceful demonstration.

Will you help us tell OSU President Drake that we won’t be silenced? (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1AA/ni0YAA/t.1wj/g0K5D2pJQpCJLYWvmSFiYQ/h0/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3BfxpQ4GChRR-2FJ-2BJJAxdvmpm9eC9fDZNkgN7attUWaBBbENDVYNt-2F9vRQ3iemEBWTwWFt41MNnLfzQR5owqzF7JdkHxvqTxWCwOKn 8IxFT8U-2BxYuqt0iNdIy6KbOD9su2ikbHM-2Flk8pKPe-2BpmKk5yDmNk-2B6gpreQKpOpOSUUaGm1v1z9YgrH-2FqgfrL6X7w-2BUX798T6tg52gXCpt1HgZiMdvjJwUasluVOAUR41tZRbTaZwE djZw-2FYb-2B6TDKfuxWqLYpqIr4zdpcMUXcAPmoeWzoPlG5D5ncNyw8-2B26-2Fz-2Faiez7j4uKW5-2FjqDLuFZ0w8DHizOUMijFe-2Fd70y4QrYWMow)

For the past year, we've been fighting alongside our campus workers to #StopTheSellout of our campus. The OSU administration is inviting corporations to take over our university and squeeze more and more profit from students and workers: they already sold off our parking garages, and now the Comprehensive Energy Management Plan (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1AA/ni0YAA/t.1wj/g0K5D2pJQpCJLYWvmSFiYQ/h1/cp6U3o-2FM1Nib5GggM6N32q5nc6ZEasRSyfA5WCGoY4SHdHG4kxdo0u5-2Buck0N-2Biv1HjjuZ0SgCiRJK9PiS13jBxLrVl7q-2FCM6xqDc6-2FjRdO7fJ5-2BEQRqxPn-2Ba7-2FzFcJ1rlxaPOCOn1Ebcesr4RB11IshM8Y0GTPTulD7ArGpPHW 2axCfQuM0t5GbvQHbnDsxtsLFbD8xeeXgOdc-2FE3hU1ICnlqQtMzoGsLniGWOwBBxcjWHQ-2Fmxi0DGCuEKwX0YwhGtVvT6fYqEb-2BHDppBRhnz27DqcIf2DZZbuPqDWMZ-2FdhcxwFwmrutSqoP9wGlKR1cVWd8BBlFTPqCY9teQVUZuCeo-2BJ4xAPVe09sTZQNJFoecOjt60d67tu-2Fl1V4SSa8) threatens to sell off our energy systems. This dangerous deal could cost workers their union jobs. We refuse to let this corporate takeover threaten workers rights and the integrity of our public university.

We know we can win this. The administration is resorting to despicable repression tactics, and the public outrage is only growing. Today we are marching back to President Drake's office to demand an immediate end to this backdoor deal, and we need your help.

Will you join me and my fellow classmates in telling President Drake that corporate greed has no place on our campus? (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1AA/ni0YAA/t.1wj/g0K5D2pJQpCJLYWvmSFiYQ/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3BfxpQ4GChRR-2FJ-2BJJAxdvmpm9eC9fDZNkgN7attUWaBBbENDVYNt-2F9vRQ3iemEBWTxaPj-2Fnd29Nd5rF29b6BugKPyYX6st3mswSvhGpgPTrMzNhMwh0n2S pKO6HcSJT0Pgo0unC5DEBA7-2Bgc-2Bf0NeT-2FpBXXhsZMC7lKSlE-2FpQrVc2MG76Aqm0RDB0a1kY1EzRyjREe-2FIPJSFGtAjunSnh1D6n2OvxqS6P4z0SfCi1cBjmnJ54qPQ6A6 mGBxkbnskCC9L-2FeBy0FzdbUt3g5rcI7ph2cHT8RJGpSQhQBhfEF7Uhpztz36Pl rE3fcLIG-2FKPYxM-2BI-2F-2FN-2FgG1sp7i5Sa12e8)

Thank you for your support!

in solidarity,

Kasia Karolak

Ohio State USAS Local 42

United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org
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ckaihatsu

4th May 2016, 15:37

Support US farmworkers blacklisted for demanding their wages

Support US farmworkers blacklisted for speaking out!

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Seven tobacco farmworkers in the US state of North Carolina have been blacklisted for filing suit for wages owed in 2015. After refusing to withdraw their suit, they are now being denied employment for the 2016 season.

The IUF-affiliated Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC) is requesting support in the fight for reinstatement of the 7 workers and payment of all wages owed. CLICK HERE TO SEND A MESSAGE TO JACKSON FARMS (http://iuf.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=e788a43ccacc225abf8e6e748&id=0ff945ce1a&e=090f0b0646). You will be asked to fill in a form with your details to add your name to a letter to farm owner and North Carolina State Senator Brent Jackson.

Quick action is needed as the letter will be delivered on May 5th to Senator Jackson and to the tobacco companies that purchase North Carolina tobacco.

E-mail: [email protected]
Rampe du Pont-Rouge, 8, CH-1213, Petit-Lancy (Switzerland)
www.iuf.org

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ckaihatsu

16th May 2016, 20:59

AFSCME and SEIU to consolidate efforts in face of anti-labor attacks

By David Hoskins

Washington, DC - Two of the largest and most influential labor unions in the U.S. have announced plans to substantially consolidate their work. The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) are actively considering a joint resolution that would build strategic collaboration between the two unions, up to and including a potential merger.

SEIU and AFSCME have a combined 3.6 million members between them, mostly in the public sector but with a strong presence in the private health care and property service industries as well. Their merger would create the largest labor union in the country. The National Education Association, with its 2.9 million members, is currently the country’s largest union.

The joint resolution under consideration would build collaboration at every organizational level. Coordinated work would occur in the following key areas: joint goal setting and strategic planning, joint bargaining and representation where SEIU and AFSCME share a common employer, coordinated bargaining across shared industries, joint political and legislative activity, and collaborative organizing in targeted sectors and regions.

The resolution explicitly states that consideration of an institutional merger that would formally unite the strengths of both unions to create a new entity will be explored.

Consolidation comes amid extreme anti-labor assault

The consolidation of organizing, representational and political work between SEIU and AFSCME does not occur in a vacuum. Rather, it is a response to more than five years of the most extreme and coordinated anti-labor assault in recent memory.

This newest period of assault was unleashed with a vengeance in Wisconsin in 2011 when that state’s governor, Scott Walker, pushed through a bill that stripped most public workers of their collective bargaining rights, despite massive resistance from workers and students in the streets. As a result, Wisconsin public worker net wages have dropped as employee contributions to health insurance and retirement have gone up. Public sector unions with a strong base in the state (such as AFSCME) have seen their membership rolls decline and their strength depleted.

Wisconsin was just one front of a coordinated state and national level attack on collective bargaining rights. While the brunt of the attacks in recent years has been felt by public sector workers, union members in the private sector have also sustained hits.

For example, Michigan approved a public and private-sector ‘right to work’ law in 2012 that does nothing to actually guarantee anyone a right to a job. It does allow nonunion employees in a unionized workplace to have a free ride where they receive all of the benefits of a union, including negotiated wages and benefits, but do not have to contribute any dues to cover the cost of this representation. The result of this ‘right to work’ legislation was that in 2014, the first full year that the law was in effect, union membership in Michigan dropped from 633,000 to 585,000 even as total employment grew, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Other states have tried to curtail collective bargaining for public sector workers, including Ohio, where voters overturned the 2011 restrictions on public sector collective bargaining in a referendum that same year; 61% of voters said no to the restrictions.

A series of court cases challenging public sector collective bargaining have been another prong in the coordinated assault on labor. Two of the most high-profile cases have been Harris v. Quinn and Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association, both of which made their way to the Supreme Court and threaten public sector trade unionism in the United States.

In Harris v. Quinn, a five to four right-wing majority on the Supreme Court ruled that unions could no longer collect fair share fees to cover the cost of representation from nonunion public employees who did not wish to join the union. While the case was specific to SEIU home care workers in Illinois, the Supreme Court decision opened the door to declare most independent providers as quasi-public employees subject to a nationalized ‘right to work’ scheme. This will starve public sector unions of much needed resources and result in lower public union density in the long run.

The Friedrichs case potentially posed an even graver threat to public sector unions. It challenged fair share fees for all public sector employees. Thousands of labor contracts covering millions of public workers would be affected if all fair share fees were eliminated. Following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia, the threat of Friedrichs was put off temporarily as a four-to-four Supreme Court tie meant that a lower court ruling in favor of fair share fees was upheld. The plaintiffs in Friedrichs have already called for the case to be reheard by the Supreme Court as soon as a new justice is confirmed.

The state assaults, mainly coordinated by right-wing Republican governors and conservative legislatures, and national challenges to longstanding public sector dues practices represent substantial attacks on the labor movement. The consolidation of work between SEIU and AFSCME is an attempt by two of the country’s largest public sector trade unions to weather the storm and navigate these attacks on labor from a position of strength.

Only militancy can reverse labor’s decline

Increased solidarity in the form of consolidated work and coordinated strategies between SEIU and AFSCME is not a bad thing. In fact, to most it is a welcome reversal to some of the divisions that occurred within the house of labor when SEIU led several other unions out of the national labor federation known as the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) in 2005 to form a competing national federation known as Change to Win. Many of the initial Change to Win labor unions have since returned to the AFL-CIO fold.

The joint SEIU and AFSCME resolution reads in part, “Together, SEIU and AFSCME are unstoppable unions that never quit. We have the strength to achieve social and economic justice for all working people. Together, we can unite to turn back the well-funded special interests who have rigged the economy in favor of the wealthy few at the expense of the rest of us. If we do not take on this work, who will? If not now, when?”

The progressive optimism in those words is encouraging. Indeed, unions do have the strength to achieve social and economic justice, because the working class has the power to do so.

However, a lack of coordination between hardworking unions is not the greatest subjective factor holding back the labor movement from winning social and economic justice for all in this country. Free riders who refuse to pay their fair share of union dues are not the greatest threat to the labor movement either.

A more significant impediment to unions in this country achieving greater victory for workers is a lack of class struggle unionism. Too often, class collaborationist thinking dominates the leadership of organized labor.

The desire to cut a deal and maintain friendly relationships with the boss and elected officials often prevails over a genuine class struggle where trade union leadership puts the interests of the working class above every other consideration. As a result of this class collaboration, the primary strategic leverage of workers - the right to shut down production and withhold labor in the form of a sustained strike- is typically taken off of the table.

The attacks on labor can best be fought by activating a militant minority of the most class struggle-oriented rank-and-file union members, building the class consciousness of all union members and leaders, and developing a program for class struggle that puts the strike back on the table as a strategy for achieving working-class victories and growing the labor movement.

If the consolidation of work between SEIU and AFSCME is simply a way for trade union leadership to more efficiently carry out some of the failed programs of yesterday, a historic opportunity for labor to regain its footing will have been lost. But if it opens up the space for militant strategies and rank-and-file leadership, then it will represent a step forward for organized labor and the class struggle in this country.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

29th May 2016, 15:24

Stop Lawbreakers from Doing Business at Ports!

Dear Chris,

The verdict is in: port trucking and warehouse companies like those employing us are breaking practically every labor law on the books. At America’s largest port complex in Southern California, they've even been caught for insurance fraud and not making payroll tax deposits. But the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are still allowing these lawbreakers to come into the ports to conduct business.

Sign this petition today to demand the Ports of LA and Long Beach STOP big business and Wall Street interests from exploiting regular American workers like the truck drivers and warehouse workers. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6wA/ni0YAA/t.1xi/UX93XQ3wRgKnWoWD68Ct4Q/h0/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CEbonMLGWS4A4Cy4A6uL5PNKEQu24gBF0Rnh AbcX-2Bt7fNS7XDqWZXE0JHW52-2BP6ViMrZR-2BhUQedFVPYe4I-2FNYC-2BghFKAK4bUHFEtdqcZzeLWm806E-2FcMHch9KIwZitc0M7b0VF061Yheij-2BOkVmIPfIxjAcVnlG0q7p3PEZtYpEcJjsKQRlDNWOYRgjDIG-2BvAlnHnLIYbh36eOurMdvpMk83S4QQioTu6jsx5Z-2FobYDrfuagTf43uZyl2SryuRKYuvvQPQGQR-2BhvJKr5qcaJStViy8GxB64nx-2BmYwAmOW1p8F0daIrQ24dpCFTeFihyMt6pG985jKWpSKCSnjU B0YDu2gmXe265-2FgHP5eFmQU1XMBYY-2BH09uwYXnmf86XZdCE-3D)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/039/075/original/FacebookPetition.jpg

Letting these employers get away with breaking the rules is one of the reasons why Americans haven't had a raise in years. Just look at the impact on the workers like us who deliver the products that our families all depend on.

My name is Humberto Canales and I haul cargo from the Ports of LA and Long Beach to the warehouses of America’s largest retailers. Recently I worked five full weeks in a row but took home exactly $0 (zero dollars) each of these five weeks because my employer - XPO Cartage (NYSE:XPO) - falsely labels me as “self-employed” so they can deduct the cost of diesel fuel, truck maintenance, insurance, and lease payments from my paycheck.

My name is Fausto Torres and for 5 years I was a temporary worker at the Cal Cartage warehouse – on property owned by the Port of Los Angeles – moving mostly Amazon.com products. On May 2, 2016, I and more than 100 of my co-workers were fired for demanding our rights and an end to wage theft. The Port of LA must ensure that Cal Cartage follows the law on Port property, or bring in a warehouse operator who will.

Can you sign our petition to put a stop to lawbreaking companies at the ports? (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6wA/ni0YAA/t.1xi/UX93XQ3wRgKnWoWD68Ct4Q/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CEbonMLGWS4A4Cy4A6uL5PNKEQu24gBF0Rnh AbcX-2Bt7fNS7XDqWZXE0JHW52-2BP6VikCcPxfbE-2F2WGq48x68Gv2HXvpZ3dL-2By4ND-2BRJZoQGc5Yswtvyds4VhbvBqkAS7-2BaFq-2BK3j9j-2BD4ycmbkco3zFyeyQL8Z94rMttYdCrX-2FPlF9tSAq9JIlcx6QYL2LDNUdAlNuDoORrhGQmMerAR2KQGg7 TKoOF3UuG0mQVuqqFtzhce7Mnl89Wefio-2Fy-2FHdPNI7Kt-2F-2B3Wz8cBO1X0ErjBXYZQwTAKftpRDHi0mCDxrC-2FY6BzPdHqNTD03QmxJKnl6sriAmSEZ0MqltBvJAm5eDms-2Fpzj4ONKWIxoqMzStieeZ9we23E7EhgLbLJw2NBAE-3D)

We as port drivers and warehouse workers stand united asking for your support, together, the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will be forced to act.

Sincerely,
Humberto Canales, XPO Port Driver
Fausto Torres, Cal Cartage Warehouse Worker
Action Network

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ckaihatsu

4th June 2016, 14:35

VIDEO - Wage Slaves Mobilize to Unionize

View Online (https://cts.vrmailer1.com/click?sk=aIo8B2JgQjBIFEz9VAO8F5MUzbmEpqsbQdn30J5vf 0RI=/aHR0cHM6Ly92cjIudmVydGljYWxyZXNwb25zZS5jb20vZW1haW xzLzE3NTkyMTg2MDkyNjI2P2NvbnRhY3RfaWQ9MTc1OTIxOTAx MzY5MjQ=/-qLXkZ3ZJeT4yoiQlkfR5A==&merge_field_type=%7BVR_HOSTED_LINK%7D)

LB-hi-res.jpg

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Watch Video (https://cts.vrmailer1.com/click?sk=aIo8B2JgQjBIFEz9VAO8F5MUzbmEpqsbQdn30J5vf 0RI=/aHR0cHM6Ly92cjIudmVydGljYWxyZXNwb25zZS5jb20vZW1haW xzLzE3NTkyMTg2MDkyNjI2P2NvbnRhY3RfaWQ9MTc1OTIxOTAx MzY5MjQ=/-qLXkZ3ZJeT4yoiQlkfR5A==&merge_field_type=%7BVR_HOSTED_LINK%7D)

Wage Slaves Mobilize to Unionize

On May 25, 2016 Chicago was the center of the Fight For 15 movement, hosting low wage activists from around the world who converged upon the McDonald's International shareholders meeting. Mobilizing were not only McDonald's workers, but home care, airport and warehouse workers, colleges professors, to name just a few.

And, on May 12 a rally here underscored that fast food workers in Illinois must rely on public assistance for basic needs, to the tune of $368 million annually. So Illinois taxpayers foot the bill so companies like McDonald's can get away with paying slave wages. This corrupt arrangement negatively impacts the state's public sector funding. It's the private sector-public sector political connection, and it makes public and private sector workers allies in struggle.

A large, internationally represented protest at Chicago's Rock and Roll McDonald's in the morning of the 25th was followed by an afternoon action and overnight sleepover in front of McDonald's Global HQ in nearby Oak Brook, where the shareholders were meeting. The spirits of a few thousand marchers were not dampened by a spectacular deluge that in fact "added to the magic of it" as a worker from New Zealand put it. We see here an international movement of low wage earners mobilizing against global corporate greed. But their goal is not only living wages. One worker told us: "Union rights are also a significant part of our fight. Union rights protects our jobs."

Length 17:32. Video url:
a77M6MX1VdA

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat (Committee for Labor Access) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". Labor Beat is on as a cable-tv series in six U.S. cities; check our website for more info. Chicago schedule: CAN TV 19, Thurs. 9:30 pm, Fri. 4:30 pm.

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ckaihatsu

9th June 2016, 16:30

Minnesota nurses authorize strike

By staff

Minneapolis, MN – About 5000 nurses represented by the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) voted overwhelmingly to reject the latest offer by Allina Health, June 6, and authorize the negotiating team to call a strike in the coming weeks.

"Nurses know what’s at stake. Nurses are prepared. We have to be advocates for our practice, our patients and for ourselves and our family," said Angela Becchetti, a registered nurse at Abbott Northwestern Hospital.

According to a statement from the MNA, “Nurses at all four hospitals voted by overwhelming majority to reject the contract offer and tell Allina to return to the bargaining table.”

At issue is Allina’s proposal attacking the nurses’ heath care benefits.

"Allina's negotiators never made the case why they need to cut nurses' health plans and ask nurses to pick up $10 million in costs. They’ve said it’s not about money. They said it’s about lowering nurses’ benefits to the low levels that their other employees suffer with," Becchetti said.

The MNA must give the employer a ten-day notice before a strike.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

23rd June 2016, 13:07

VICTORY!

Chris,

History has been made in Chicago today! The Chicago City Council voted 48-0 to pass earned sick time for over 450,000 workers in Chicago, who currently do not have the ability to take a day off, with pay, for their own illness or that of a loved one.

The ordinance takes effect next year. Read the details here (http://www.sicktimechicago.org/?link_id=0&can_id=3cdf51df4724d7ebfd54a77c2672a397&source=email-victory-7&email_referrer=victory-7&email_subject=victory)

This is big. And Chicago Jobs with Justice was there from the beginning with great partners including the Chicago Federation of Labor, Women Employed, ROC Chicago, UFCW Local 881 and SEIU Local 1.

This is an important reminder that victories do happen and the it's really true: "the only way we can win, is if we stand together."

Stand together with Chicago Jobs with Justice and make a donation today: www.chicagojwj.org/donate!

Thanks, and In Solidarity,

Susan Hurley

Chicago Jobs with Justice

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/041/847/original/CllIRRUUYAE2ZTe.jpg

Action Network
Sent via Action Network, a free online toolset anyone can use to organize. Click here to sign up and get started building an email list and creating online actions today.
Action Network is an open platform that empowers individuals and groups to organize for progressive causes. We encourage responsible activism, and do not support using the platform to take unlawful or other improper action. We do not control or endorse the conduct of users and make no representations of any kind about them.
You can unsubscribe or update your email address by changing your subscription preferences here.

ckaihatsu

23rd June 2016, 14:14

Fight for 15 mobilization; Don't consolidate child devel. programs at CCC - next Labor Beat, CAN TV 19, 6/23

A Two-Segment Show

Wage Slaves Mobilize to Unionize

Friday, July 1, 4:30 pm
Chicago - CAN TV Channel 19
Thursday, June 23, 9:30 pm
Friday, June 24, 4:30 pm
Thursday, June 30, 9:30 pm

On May 25, 2016 Chicago was the center of the Fight For 15 movement, hosting low wage activists from around the world who converged upon the McDonald's International shareholders meeting. Mobilizing were not only McDonald's workers, but home care, airport and warehouse workers, colleges professors, to name just a few.

And on May 12 a rally here underscored that fast food workers in Illinois must rely on public assistance for basic needs, to the tune of $368 million annually. So Illinois taxpayers foot the bill so companies like McDonald's can get away with paying slave wages. This corrupt arrangement negatively impacts the state's public sector funding. It's the private sector-public sector political connection, and it makes public and private sector workers allies in struggle.

A large, internationally represented protest at Chicago's Rock and Roll McDonald's in the morning of the 25th was followed by an afternoon action and overnight sleepover in front of McDonald's Global HQ in nearby Oak Brook, where the shareholders were meeting. The spirits of a few thousand marchers were not dampened by a spectacular deluge that in fact "added to the magic of it" as a worker from New Zealand put it. We see here an international movement of low wage earners mobilizing against global corporate greed. But their goal is not only living wages. One worker told us: "Union rights are also a significant part of our fight. Union rights protects our jobs."

Video can also be viewed at https://youtu.be/a77M6MX1VdA

a77M6MX1VdA

https://s32.postimg.org/sblll89p1/160525_Labor_Beat_living_wage_rally_at_Mc_Donalds. jpg
International contingents join rally at Chicago's Rock and Roll McDonald's. Photo: Andrew Friend / Labor Beat

Second segment

Stop Consolidation Plans for CCC Child Development Program

June 2, 2016. City Colleges of Chicago faculty, college community, and City Council aldermen spoke out about the violation of the CCC's founding mission for being a comprehensive open-enrollment community college. As the City Colleges Board of Trustees prepared to meet upstairs at its Loop headquarters, Tony Johnston, President of CCC Teachers Union, described the damaging effects of the administration's plans to consolidate the child development program from several CCC locations to just one -- Truman College.

Also appearing: Carlos Ramirez-Rosa (35th Ward), Scott Waguespack (32nd Ward), Chris Taliaferro (29th Ward). Also, Anita Andrews-Hutchinson (Child Care Advocates United) spoke about how the consolidation plans would "start to unravel the fabric of our industry."

Video can also be viewed at: https://youtu.be/FLy2I58hPxo

FLy2I58hPxo

https://s32.postimg.org/wyw90qmfp/160525_Labor_Beat_Tony_Johnston_CCC_Teachers_Uni.j pg
Tony Johnston, CCC Teachers Union President, opens up the press conference. Photo: Labor Beat

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner, and member of the Evanston Community Media Center. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". On Chicago CAN TV Channel 19, Thursdays 9:30 pm; Fridays 4:30 pm. Labor Beat has regular cable slots in Chicago, Evanston, Rockford, Urbana, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Princeton, NJ; and Rochester, NY.

ckaihatsu

23rd June 2016, 14:55

Thousands of nurses strike in Twin Cities

By staff

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/abott%20nurses.jpg

Minneapolis, MN - 4800 members of the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) from five Allina Hospitals in the Twin Cities Metro Area walked off the job today, June 19 , beginning a seven-day strike. Allina management is insisting that the nurses settle for a new contract that would change their health care plan to the same ‘corporate plan’ that non-contract employees have. This would dramatically increase their out of pocket expenses to receive the same health care that the nurses provide for the community at Allina Hospitals every day.

After four months of failed talks, the nurses decided enough was enough and decided they had no choice but to call a strike to show Allina that they won't back down until they win the contract they deserve.

Members of AFSCME, the Teamsters, SEIU and many more unions were seen on the picket lines supporting the nurses. SEIU Healthcare MN filed a ten-day notice to picket and SEIU members from Allina hospitals will be picketing in solidarity with the MNA nurses.

You can join the picket line from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day starting on Sunday, June 19 through Saturday, June 26 at Unity Hospital, Mercy Hospital, Abbott Northwestern, United Hospital, and Phillips Eye Institute.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected].org

ckaihatsu

25th June 2016, 19:29

Labor movement shows solidarity with striking Twin Cites nurses

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/afscmenurse.JPG

By staff

Minneapolis, MN - AFSCME 3800 members - clerical workers at the University of Minnesota - joined nurses of the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) on the picket lines June24 to show their solidarity.

Cherrene Horazuk, president of AFSCME 3800 stated, "When we were on strike in 2007, seeing all of the support from other unions was hugely inspiring to our members. This is an opportunity to give back some of the solidarity we received during our strike.

The nurses are waging a fierce fight to protect the health care that all people deserve. It's time to stop the race to the bottom and the nurses are leading the way. They're not just fighting for themselves but for all working people."

4600 members of MNA are in the middle of a seven-day strike against Allina Health Systems. The strikers have seen a tremendous outpouring of support from other unions, as well as members of the community. Each day on the picket lines, a colorful array of union t-shirts have been visible amid the sea of nurses in red. The outpouring of solidarity has been so strong that Allina lawyers sent a letter to Education Minnesota, the teachers union telling them to stop joining the picket lines. Education Minnesota responded by encouraging their members to show up in even greater numbers to express their support for the nurses.

The nurses strike continues through Saturday, June 25. Picket lines are set up from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm at five Twin Cities metro hospitals. To sign up for picketing, go to: https://mna.formstack.com/forms/allina_strike_sign_up

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

27th June 2016, 15:26

Nurses wrap up 7-day strike at Allina Hospitals

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/nursedayone%20%281%29.jpg

By staff

Minneapolis, MN - Nurses who are part of the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) wrapped up a powerful seven-day strike on Sunday, June 26.

Less than 10% of the nurses at the five Allina Hospitals where MNA was striking went to work last week. In the lead-up to the strike, Allina boasted that they had found "hundreds" of scab nurses to work during the strike but around 4500 nurses walked off the job and stayed out, leaving the Allina hospitals essentially shut down.

The Service Employees International Union (SEIU Healthcare MN), which repents many job classes in these same hospitals, held a seven-day support picket alongside the MNA strikers during their off-work hours. SEIU members on the picket line reported that the hospitals were mostly shut down with only a bare minimum of essential services continuing to operate. New patients were being rerouted to other hospitals outside the Allina system and surgeries and other procedures were being cancelled and rescheduled. One SEIU member on the picket line said "It's like a ghost town in there. The whole third floor and most of the nursing stations in the hospital are shut down."

In conversations with MNA nurses on the picket line and in the camps set up at supporters’ houses and churches nearby there was a common thread: The nurses understand that this is not the end. They are ready to do whatever they have to and will not break or bend. By staying out for seven days, instead of only one day as they had done in the past, the nurses were able to send a clear message to Allina that they can go out on strike and they can stay out on strike. The same thing was evident by the determination and resolve of the nurses on the picket lines.

Allina clearly lost tens of millions of dollars last week during the strike. This is not just about one contract though. For Allina this is an attempt to bust one of the biggest unions in their hospitals so that they can have unlimited power over the workplace and treat workers as poorly as they want. The nurses have sent Allina a strong message that they will never back down and will not be divided by Allina's disgusting behavior. In fact they will unite even more going forward in the face of these attacks.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

27th June 2016, 16:23

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2016/06/27/lamc-j27.html

Nurses unions shut down emerging strike wave

By Eric London
27 June 2016

Nurses unions across the country are shutting down a series of key strikes by thousands of nurses, in some cases calling the strikes off before they have even begun. Thirteen hundred nurses at Kaiser Permanente’s Los Angeles Medical Center will return to work without a contract on Monday after the four-day strike ended on Sunday. LAMC workers have been working without a contract for six years.

In Minneapolis, the Minnesota Nurses Association is sending 5,000 nurses back to work without a contract. In both Los Angeles and Minneapolis, nurses have gone on strike against unsafe staffing levels, skyrocketing corporate profits, and dangerous cost-cutting that harms patient care.

In Watsonville, California, the California Nurses Association called off a planned two-day strike of 300 nurses, announcing a tentative agreement on June 22 that forces nurses to return to work before voting on the deal.

In Boston, the Massachusetts Nurses Association blocked a strike by 3,330 nurses at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. The corporation said they were “extremely pleased” with the tentative agreement, which was reached by the MNA after a 15-hour bargaining session announced the day before the strike was set to begin. MNA Chair Trish Powers said she was “so proud” and “so happy” that “we avoided this strike,” but did not explain why nurses should support a deal that the corporation is “extremely pleased” with.

The nurses unions’ moves to halt the strike movement exposes the fact that the union does not represent the interests of nurses, and is only trying to keep “peace” between the multi-million dollar company and its exploited workforce. In announcing beforehand that the strikes would last only two, four, and seven days in Watsonville, Los Angeles, and Minneapolis, the union allowed the companies to plan around the strikes with minimal profit loss.

The World Socialist Web Site spoke with nurses on the picket line who expressed a deep desire to continue their struggle against the health conglomerates.

http://www.wsws.org/asset/75f0b894-2484-4c17-8572-f0662e109b7L/lamc-Xochitl.jpg?rendition=image240
Xochitl, an RN with 31 years of service

Xochitl, a nurse with 31 years of service, said:

“This nursing strike is part of a bigger labor movement sweeping across America.” Speaking before the strikes were brought to a halt, she said, “Currently there are 10,000 RNs all across America standing up for safe patient care and against the greed of corporate health care.”

Many nurses on the picket line had traveled from the Bay Area, some 300 miles away, to support their Southern California counterparts.

http://www.wsws.org/asset/1e4488e6-1ddc-45ca-a38c-7d0f0b3ef23D/lamc-parked.jpg?rendition=image240
Joseph points at Kaiser’s rental trucks, parked to block passers-by from seeing picketers

“Our brothers and sisters are not getting respect from Kaiser,” said Joseph, a nurse from Northern California, who said that alongside grievances like short-staffing and cost-cutting, many nurses are frustrated that health care is not free and universal for all: “A lot of patients come to a point where they decide, ‘do I live or do I die’ because they can’t afford to buy their medication. We’re supposed to be the best country in the world, but that’s a lie, because people—including veterans—can’t afford to live.”

Another Northern California nurse, April, said: “Kaiser makes billions. Health care should be a human right. Just because you don’t have money doesn’t mean your life should be less valuable than a millionaire’s. When a homeless person comes into the hospital, we give him the same treatment and care that we would give a CEO.”

Many nurses expressed this sentiment, which reveals as lies the claims by Kaiser that nurses are selfish and are harming patient care by going on strike.

Adam and April both stated they were elected Democratic Party delegates who were strong supporters of Bernie Sanders. Adam, like many workers across the country, said he cannot support Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump in November’s presidential election, and would still refuse to vote for Clinton even if Sanders made his endorsement formal.

Xochitl, who works at LAMC, pointed to police lingering by the picket line, and said, “Even though they say this is the land of the free, the US is instrumental in suppressing labor around the world. It is disgusting and it all takes place under the pretense of the flag.” Xochitl explained that the struggle of nurses against Kaiser was “not just a US problem but a global phenomenon.”

http://www.wsws.org/asset/12e96993-fb7a-4826-b1fd-7dd62d1cc92H/lamc-phone.jpg?rendition=image480
A nurse shows the WSWS an add for a scab-contracting agency

Xochitl, like many nurses, has followed closely the massacre carried out in the Mexican state of Oaxaca this month of striking teachers fighting to defend the right to public education: “Look at what’s happening in Oaxaca,” Xochitl said. “You get killed for protesting.”

Another nurse, Gina, said: “We are one step from being like Mexicans. These corporations will resort to violence against us. I saw the violent acts the teachers had to face in Oaxaca.” Gina is also following the US elections, and said “I would only vote for Clinton with Sanders as her vice president. She is going to lead us into war.”

The comments of nurses who are following international developments, and are eager to put an end to social inequality, give a sense of the role of the trade unions in attempting to direct these sentiments back into the Democratic Party. But nurses are coming into conflict with the attempts to block their struggle against corporations like Kaiser, Allina, and Brigham and Women’s.

Copyright © 1998-2016 World Socialist Web Site - All rights reserved

ckaihatsu

29th June 2016, 18:29

Hoffa delegates show true colors at day 2 of Teamster Convention

By staff

Las Vegas, NV - The International Brotherhood of Teamsters began the second day of its 29th convention today in Las Vegas. Nominations for Trustees and At Large Vice Presidents occurred immediately. In order to be nominated a candidate must receive the vote of at least 5% of the delegates. This is an important part of the convention because the candidates that are successfully nominated run in an election this fall in which all Teamsters will vote to determine the union’s national leadership.

Delegates supporting current President James P. Hoffa and Secretary Treasurer Ken Hall’s slate were ruthless. They shouted profanities and boos at the top of their lungs in an attempt to keep the reform Teamsters United slate’s nominations from being heard by the delegates.

During the nominations, the behavior of the Hoffa supporters was meekly checked by the independent election officer. He quietly banged the gavel asking for order. Despite having the authority, he disciplined none of the Hoffa delegates for their outrageous behavior.

Despite this, hundreds of reform minded Teamsters supporting Fred Zuckerman of Louisville Local 89 for president and the Teamster United Slate held tough. They stood out in front of the hall amid a flow of union officials wearing the red vest which indicates allegiance to Hoffa.

Later in the day, a series of noncontroversial resolutions were passed with no opposition. These included supporting organizing drives in various companies such as FedEx, XPO/Conway and others.

The Teamsters United Slate provides the convention with a much needed reality check. These Teamsters know that their union has been in a free fall. They are ready to fight take control from the ineffective leadership of Hoffa/Hall.

Without the Teamsters United Slate’s sober vision, the Hoffa scripted convention’s fictional account of the Teamsters union and the labor movement would go unchallenged. Out of touch International vice presidents had nothing to say about key contract negotiations in industries like carhaul and freight. They had nothing to say about the Teamster pension crisis at the Central States Pension Fund. Or the last UPS contract, which was ultimately forced upon members who never voted for it.

What could the leadership say? That the strategy of complete collaboration with the employers has led to huge losses for the members of our union? That things are terrible because of us, but we are not going to change a thing? Fiction is much, much better to these guys.

The reality of the rank and file is not discussed by those on stage in suits. Concessions, cutbacks, retirement losses, harassment and the rapid growth of right to work legislation are felt by the working members of this union. These battles will be fought out on the shop floor across the country, and not in the Teamster marble palace in Washington DC or at its convention in the middle of a desert.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

2nd July 2016, 20:44

Support Trump Taj Mahal Workers on Strike

In Atlantic City, we’ve drawn a line in the sand. Add your name to support casino workers at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City on strike.

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/042/861/original/Trump-Taj-Mahal-Strike-Line.jpg

Dear Chris,

Strike at Trump Taj Mahal Atlantic CityFor the last 27 years, I’ve worked as a cocktail waitress at the Trump Taj Mahal. I’ve been through three bankruptcies with Mr. Trump. While Trump walked away with millions, he left the casino with his buddy Carl Icahn, who cut wages and benefits by 35% for my coworkers, who average less than $12.00 an hour. Others lost their jobs completely.

Today, me and my coworkers at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City walked out on strike. We’re done being underpaid and overworked by Wall Street bullies.

No one wants to go on strike and give up pay. I love my job. But the reality is that we can’t afford not to go on strike.

I’m asking you to stand with us by pledging to not eat, sleep or meet at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City until we get our fair share.

In solidarity,

Valerie McMorris
Cocktail Server, 27 Years of Service
Trump Taj Mahal
Member of UNITE HERE Local 54

Connect with us!

UNITE HERE | 275 7th Ave., New York, NY 10001 | www.unitehere.org | privacy policy

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ckaihatsu

7th July 2016, 18:07

Old Country Buffet - Without Warning; also transgender rights - next Labor Beat on CAN TV 19, starts 7/7

A Two-Segment Show

Old Country Buffet: Without Warning

Friday, July 15, 4:30 pm
Chicago - CAN TV Channel 19
Thursday, July 7, 9:30 pm
Friday, July 8, 4:30 pm
Thursday, July 14, 9:30 pm

On June 7, 2016 Arise Chicago organized a press conference to announce a class-action lawsuit by former employees against the parent company of Old Country Buffet. The restaurant on the north side of Chicago suddenly closed recently without any warning. Their lawsuit asserts that this action violated the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act that required employers of over 50 or more to be give a 60 day notice or 60 days' wage compensation to their workers. The Buffet did not do any of this, throwing workers and their families into crises situations. These sudden Buffet closing have been happening country-wide.

Includes statements and interviews of former Old Country Buffet workers Debora Alvarez, Arcelia Martinez, Robin Gunterman. Also noted labor lawyer and author Thomas Geoghegan discusses the WARN Act in more detail; and Jorge Mujica (Arise Chicago) provides a comparison/contrast analysis between the circumstances of this current WARN Act violation and the 2008 WARN Act violation and workers' occupation at Republic Windows in Chicago.

Video can also be viewed at: https://youtu.be/tB8QtRTx2gk

tB8QtRTx2gk

https://s32.postimg.org/io0hwq9at/160607_Labor_Beat_Debora_Alvarez.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/r69y12ftd/)
Old Country Buffet protest on June 7, 2016. Photo: Labor Beat

Second segment

Protecting Transgender Fundamental Rights

On June 3, 2016 a demonstration took place at a Target store in Chicago's Uptown neighborhood supporting the recent decision of that store chain to adopt pro-equality policies in their restrooms. In March, Target came under attack in North Carolina for permittimg transgender persons to use restrooms that align with their gender identity. And the Governor of the state signed a bill banning such practices.

At the June 3 sidewalk demo, gay liberation and trans rights activists, and community supporters spoke out and defended their views while occasionally engaging in vigorous debate with some passers by. They took pains to clarify and bring into line a number of misconceptions about this subject.

Video can also be viewed at: https://youtu.be/9ULoc65aEZY

9ULoc65aEZY

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner, and member of the Evanston Community Media Center. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". On Chicago CAN TV Channel 19, Thursdays 9:30 pm; Fridays 4:30 pm. Labor Beat has regular cable slots in Chicago, Evanston, Rockford, Urbana, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Princeton, NJ; and Rochester, NY.

ckaihatsu

9th July 2016, 19:03

Sign now: Support striking Trump Taj Mahal workers

AFL-CIO

Show Working People on Strike at the Trump Taj Mahal That You’ve Got Their Backs (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6AA/ni0YAA/t.1yq/2LFNXvtkTuWwZ89U0LFDMA/h0/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3D6LSsKMI05g-2BApimA4sdJvEiuX3DW3qbXTJjOt-2B4aNnUnPJyRclOLXBQxZk1R9nDWASF-2F2dp2oxHqo-2FSZyOMJEmuZdccJbVA1fqGsGgbnNouSewXrTTSurpR8R-2BauRvpYtvA7XLhHR5yaPlXCyVONviykdgIjcqe5urh0iNSaga 97kWI1o2pkW7TqCn4QTV8wADlvaYBz53q3-2BGk8SFr3f-2FPAqDNJAih-2F7R304f2Dvy1TFemxyeJxy-2BJQxsNYiaW1EVy2Avy76wIP-2BuUQ7IYNoDHP8HEafnGRIkcGZVfUnD3I4NmBHkVJrut2xjmEd TNsEyLVpvopzAJGpoivtqzIrDIshwrlmDI3ZEXaNHNrKL4Eeo7 ZunathcEOUbt-2B7h7-2BTieMsm9-2FM11AMWd-2B5VUma)

Working people at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City, New Jersey, went on strike earlier this month. They’re striking to create a better workplace and to make sure they can make a good living and support their families.

Sign the petition now to tell Carl Icahn—a Wall Street billionaire who took over the casino from Donald Trump—that you’ll be supporting working people at the Trump Taj Mahal until they win a good contract.

Sign the Petition › (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6AA/ni0YAA/t.1yq/2LFNXvtkTuWwZ89U0LFDMA/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3D6LSsKMI05g-2BApimA4sdJvEiuX3DW3qbXTJjOt-2B4aNnUnPJyRclOLXBQxZk1R9nDWYo38lkC3rxkvk0KkmKjpda 0Pc-2Bj7YW56taZSB9CC94PxZlild-2Bkt3lwjHGk2I1EggpO9bM-2B-2FUY5olack20Zt5PVdZ5XuVFqInxVrnub618AZmejXoYCcrnFp 71vz-2F27RMc6QKK-2B6NMXhF5Tov0T2SeP0-2Bp-2BW-2F4kdINkIFAjFlq12v9spHJYEdSlW7X74krLbqGzC2ccwFoJdh sX1ABfkX48kMm9FEzJ6y-2B2diyYRTtxz9-2B3pYiBvQB52DJAb5bX5FdutVbWPR9Ai-2F-2BYW7w4mQ0q2SEW9I8d192xLt0vjRbIA4TxO4ftykApPmyoBmL H4rmaX-2B-2FhphX-2B0I9s7IXQgo)

Chris,

I wanted to make sure you saw this important action to support working people who are on strike at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City.

They went on strike earlier this month because they aren’t going to let Carl Icahn—the Wall Street billionaire who took over the casino from Donald Trump, and if Trump gets elected, his possible nominee to head the Treasury Department—bully them into taking more cuts in pay and benefits.

You can show your support with the striking casino workers by signing the petition to say you’ve got their backs. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6AA/ni0YAA/t.1yq/2LFNXvtkTuWwZ89U0LFDMA/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3D6LSsKMI05g-2BApimA4sdJvEiuX3DW3qbXTJjOt-2B4aNnUnPJyRclOLXBQxZk1R9nDVaHvBmAKDf0r7HULdSSCaR9 Y8VOQZAan7XKO3GsQpbSY2GLKaIlJjlkWsKsPmGZBPV7FxUuPo JKycQPc8i9XPAY22-2FQfEyAPGkMl0jxZHzlotMXukTLrq6HpMocvWKCFlIeN-2BdbFtesVA1BStKZpva9eu2LTPWylxavjbWvG0Wjm-2F1fJuzan53-2FHyRhrm1HcVWELD8S4O8OUFMDyxt4aQZJmq2U0X8TAhTqKf8G 40ukM9zEqD-2FJMn5ybHtlK8W-2B5ucQgnLeElAdSi2nVfSOxcPXH6SKrUpalxv-2B7qYrhLWiASbEFMgIaSnYlEN6HmnT4cSaVf-2BULj7-2F93KVXl4uBQj)

I’m also including a message from Valerie McMorris, a cocktail waitress at the casino who’s on strike, about why she’s on strike.

In Solidarity,

Elizabeth
---------------------
Elizabeth Bunn
Director of Organizing, AFL-CIO

From: Valerie McMorris, Trump Taj Mahal Cocktail Server and UNITE HERE Local 54 Member
Sent: Friday, July 1, 2016 at 4:00 PM
Subject: Support Trump Taj Mahal Workers on Strike

In Atlantic City, we’ve drawn a line in the sand. Add your name to support casino workers on strike at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6AA/ni0YAA/t.1yq/2LFNXvtkTuWwZ89U0LFDMA/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3D6LSsKMI05g-2BApimA4sdJvEiuX3DW3qbXTJjOt-2B4aNnUnPJyRclOLXBQxZk1R9nDUGfOq1hCj9othltE-2BUjHENgxI8L58DpQspVM4qAQl7Yq9sNoWsIRzqX2lE-2FThG1RJyFUg-2FC4FDs363113WlBcvs9QgD9x3OyxA-2FB78DnvjAkTSrB-2FuhCMKhX1U-2BhbHsNgdFbbKcHbeOhXnd7-2FEhPdsoPRzBSKaQCNj-2FoBrzCqztmw9-2Fk9PNCVbYe9lFA8iUInqZr-2FkoivKBeWTXUsPb8zEHpE6lslvn9KEOeUJc8-2BMKVrAFwFDWkz-2F-2BFTixbY8Dh4N3-2FPlUfT492wsGN5YMlRSvLguGQSjXd17fbxWAsVSw1OkXSacqU UBCfFSEfLNuCKyPitzJ1s2xSdKwZwPfkpr)

Chris,

For the past 27 years, I’ve worked as a cocktail waitress at the Trump Taj Mahal. I’ve been through the bankruptcies with Donald Trump. While Trump walked away with millions, he left the casino with his buddy Carl Icahn. And my co-workers, who now average less than $12 an hour, had their wages and benefits cut by 35%. Others lost their jobs completely.

My co-workers and I at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City walked out on strike. We’re done being underpaid and overworked by Wall Street bullies.

No one wants to go on strike and give up pay. I love my job. But the reality is that we can’t afford not to go on strike.

I’m asking you to stand with us by pledging to not eat, sleep or meet at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City until we get our fair share. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6AA/ni0YAA/t.1yq/2LFNXvtkTuWwZ89U0LFDMA/h4/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3D6LSsKMI05g-2BApimA4sdJvEiuX3DW3qbXTJjOt-2B4aNnUnPJyRclOLXBQxZk1R9nDVc6-2B9j6-2FRch8R3CZD4n6B1Bby4gcjE1wRZmGXiQBrVRNb9V21x7iYBt-2FaZRzVDCcaL6eGGIUrEHzV9Tw-2FWdnyY9gEZu2BSvt07QJ18AchJQDDSRUVr-2Boon6p9dFETpjQHFabMJR70G8TPb5xWMjDJBKlyj2-2FS-2BdA3pTQbTfKp8RbQ4WOzm152MthzFi5DuW8RubeiNHOcVaqTM pWN7JxeUgGOtS9UO-2F5fWC1m3DSpiYn2D9COLdvygvnctJzpce2vA0SuSDQXdrHhik szLOgQT-2F9-2BCfAA-2F2oBYPTsIw3HmJIUiQUMiGykILvsJTN-2BQPxq3WK7vWsUWE-2BqXPkLBoixR)

In Solidarity,

Valerie McMorris
Cocktail Server, 27 Years of Service
Trump Taj Mahal
Member of UNITE HERE Local 54

AFL-CIO Facebook Twitter
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ckaihatsu

14th July 2016, 21:34

Sign Our Petition: Stand in Solidarity with Striking Casino Workers

CWA Fighting for Economic Justice and Democracy
Let's stand together with working families on strike at Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City Chris.

Trump Taj Mahal workers have had it hard in recent years. First Donald Trump bankrupted the property while extracting millions in earnings. Then billionaire Carl Icahn took it over, using the bankruptcy process to strip workers of their healthcare and even paid breaks.

Let Carl Icahn know that you stand with working families on strike at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.1yu/aqURdhaLTY6jsk0ZHNCGWw/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3A0I9hm0E8piUni8cefq9vbzfPHdtsjpUqY8j Vag1fIFp8WBe2Fsp5A-2FJeFNs6Q3RxXE1LOJKVoaGmrpduGoXhHhm12rySPDRzXFkcOD B4HFezWQMxq1dgc9QPxY37cgiIi7jzbQK9rYiyLLLp5M4mVLbM PzQe26CWNEumo60GNdMPqf5Jz-2FwNDU1ixsOxx5bM0VLKBHblokHTvgUdH6LdH64LUpP0xrjn-2Fkg-2Bn2NEdQOEjvN9Gtdtk6Bi09LpOjDbUANbvyfJP3tC6DJUUzW9 cnkX4l-2FZspC5-2FzzjkviZ31iaw-2Fc2ShJi9D9lQdKzA8fa84bsrIjPibIfwC8VE5hTwRwsnDec7N etpw-2B3-2BWLcVoBFNXgDzZ4WphjqITgHjS6p5CB2I3ZBeEjCawreeDuxm wj8XPwLI5TSyrzcZj2-2FeKwoE5uAM1lUh8albLXVp11laC5mhoB99rI09G-2BObIHqDCRTr1kUrCD10JZGYRmHL5A-3D-3D)

Trump Taj Mahal workers have seen a 35% cut in their wages and benefits since Icahn took over the property. Members of UNITE HERE Local 54 went on strike on July 1 after contract negotiations failed to reach an agreement that the workers' negotiating committee could recommend to the members.

The cooks, housekeepers, bellmen and servers from the Trump Taj Mahal are taking a stand for all of us against corporate bullies like Donald Trump and Carl Icahn who abuse the bankruptcy process to make themselves richer while making it harder for everyone else to makes ends meet.

Add your name to tell Carl Icahn, owner of the Trump Taj Mahal casino, that you will stand by the 1,100 Trump Taj Mahal casino workers throughout their fight here: https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/pledge-support-striking-workers-at-trump-taj-mahal-in-atlantic-city.

In Unity,
Beth Allen

------
Beth Allen
Digital Communication Director
Communications Workers of America

CWA
501 Third Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
www.cwa-union.org

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ckaihatsu

14th July 2016, 21:41

Is this how we “Make America Great Again”?

Dear Chris,

When I last I emailed you on July 1, my coworkers and I at the Trump Taj Mahal casino in Atlantic City had just walked out on strike after having our earnings reduced and our health care and other benefits cut.

Since then, I've been overwhelmed by the support we've received. Almost 30,000 people have signed petitions supporting us, and we delivered your signatures this afternoon when we visited Carl Icahn’s ofices in New York City.

While in New York, we also marched to Trump Tower—and I’m hoping you can take action in solidarity with us once again by letting Donald Trump know that you will not allow him to do to American workers what he’s done to Atlantic City’s casino workers like me (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3wA/ni0YAA/t.1yu/a7_BBkEtSdmix8WN_-s31A/h0/hvSeh8qNxe13OlyN0KM4VKf2bE0E2YbVF3gUVckoZ0XMXdFmvK JBPLA2a5jWfc-2B73-2FV0iLGUpyF-2BB-2BEuCFm5Jja77J6Ukv-2BBRtFkwUrG1AAIQAV-2B7HUuV-2BCbmJH-2Bol86UpULcVtI197amzbFLpPwy9icuzhw-2F-2F5duPmlXVg8puorgn4ZRh2GlGXn4uVxTAc4AU-2Bs-2FuqhIpTxG2g3kCqAlu-2FrAUJBeX0Ud8ek1mGA6fpCIDiAa1Mxg7ZCK3RM6UocyCVyIAZ kUgMuo-2BZKHD-2Bl5w-3D-3D).

Many of us on strike at the Trump Taj Mahal have endured multiple bankruptcies in our years working at the casino, including two under the management of Donald Trump—who likes to brag about using bankruptcy as smart business strategy.

What is happening in Atlantic City will happen to America under Donald Trump’s presidency—and he needs to know you don’t approve. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3wA/ni0YAA/t.1yu/a7_BBkEtSdmix8WN_-s31A/h1/hvSeh8qNxe13OlyN0KM4VLhcUeSI-2Fs-2FKaxU1RuXOqT-2FNODl-2FxdWQTao3gXxZD9ffHUn65Gbg8wAIcUDSjYi99lWwJLkwTlT0 ekrZvMHg05uRSmGXeiz5u8Gl2Bkm-2FjvqpHiYmy8nYZWjDEgCRMmTza6nFoXn-2BsWQK7rS1roUnkRsvu2m0JRwd8mjaiGu97SLNLDyqmS54LRse msPh01LBWYVd7cIwycrfafiMXfyJPXcjV97dBF5SNHuBwSOoAL MoxMF3jY55UgdFAsrtzTGkw-3D-3D)

Billionaires like Donald Trump and the Taj Mahal's current owner Carl Icahn—the man Trump wants to have run the economy—have made millions while workers like me have lost our jobs, have had our healthcare cut or have been forced to rely on welfare.

Is this how we “Make America Great Again”?

Donald Trump’s actions and attitude toward what he did to Atlantic City casino workers like me are outrageous. If you agree, help me spread the word online.

Take action! Tweet directly at Donald Trump by clicking the graphic below (we know how much he loves Twitter!).

Don't let @realDonaldTrump & his pick to run the economy do to America what they did at #Trump Taj Mahal #uniteAC pic.twitter.com/dJkbR4HSJD

You can take action on Facebook, too. Click here or copy and paste the text below for your Facebook post:

Will Donald Trump #MakeAmericaGreatAgain? Just ask Atlantic City, where 1,000 workers at the Trump Taj Mahal are on strike. Trump & Carl Icahn—the man he wants to have run the economy—have made millions while workers have lost their jobs, have had their healthcare cut or have been forced to rely on welfare.

Share in support of these workers fighting for a fair contract and better treatment. #uniteAC
It’s time to hold Donald Trump accountable for his role in setting in motion what’s happening to my coworkers and me at the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City. Let him know that he won’t be able to do the same to the rest of the country.

In solidarity,

Valerie McMorris
Cocktail Server, 27 Years of Service
Trump Taj Mahal
Member of UNITE HERE Local 54
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ckaihatsu

23rd July 2016, 14:25

Fired for speaking out (call Walmart today)

Dear Friends,

Thanks to you, over 56,000 CREDO members signed my petition calling on Walmart to pay $15 an hour and provide us with consistent, full time hours. In June, we delivered our petitions directly to Walmart CEO Doug McMillon in Bentonville, Arkansas.

But, just after my petition went public, my store manager pulled me into his office and fired me. Unfortunately, this happens a lot at Walmart. Many workers who speak out for change are unlawfully targeted for retaliation. In fact, a Federal administrative law judge found (http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-walmart-nrlb-ruling-0123-biz-20160122-story.html) that Walmart has engaged in systematic, unlawful retaliation against Walmart workers who spoke out about poverty wages and poor working conditions.

This ends today. Call Walmart and tell them to stop its illegal intimidation tactics and put all workers who were illegally fired for speaking out back to work. (http://act.credoaction.com/call/tell-walmart-stop-retaliating/) You can also call Southern California Market Manager, Lisa Flores directly to tell her to reinstate workers like me in her jurisdiction.

I was proud to work as an overnight stocker at Walmart. Yet just like too many of my co-workers, I didn’t earn enough in wages or work enough hours to survive. As a father of five, nothing in the world is more important to me than my kids – that’s why I had to speak out for change.

Many Walmart workers who launched the movement challenging Walmart to raise pay have been targeted for illegal retaliation. A judge found that these violations of the law were not caused by rogue managers, but instead demonstrated a systematic campaign, orchestrated by senior Walmart officials in Bentonville, to illegally threaten and even fire workers who were speaking out. Their directive was carried out by dozens of store managers in states across the country.

It’s time for this to end. Make a call today. (http://act.credoaction.com/call/tell-walmart-stop-retaliating/)

In solidarity,

Jaffet Alamilla

Jaffet Alamilla started this petition on CREDO Mobilize. If there's an issue close to your heart that you'd like to campaign on, you can start your campaign here.

You received this email because you signed the petition 'Pay workers $15 an hour with consistent, full time hours'. If you don't want to receive emails from the 'Pay workers $15 an hour with consistent, full time hours' campaign in the future, please unsubscribe.

- - - Updated - - -

Ever wonder why the South has the highest rate of poverty in the U.S.?

Dear Chris,

Ever wonder why the South has the highest rate of poverty in the U.S.? Corporate America is calling the shots in the South!

More than 25% of kids in Georgia are living in poverty. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.1z0/ERBZEKzoTtK73OpXP0BONQ/h0/t7MU1k9iVOmh-2B30sbJ5503fePfNF3exjgtiujAnfbV0h4A8WqaleMHUl2f4kQ HCJugqzJymgUMgyEIux0S3LDpsBxHC4DP8WxhzQnTPI7W60EAJ JmSIxvODdgkMo6aMptaTM4jxgbK4I-2FUJPN7oE89C-2Bd94Z8MvdjfTc1HcX5P67mOGHxgMQnmB4I59GlH-2Ft1mj6ypO5ZI0msK-2Fs59M5s0Fjm-2F6umaEATloetdRuMruIO1IMYL6rMwNDTO3T4MUjPBQqHjEdJU YI-2FoEGgWebNoHTe-2BpGnTnjQ1weVhwd4W76qZQyvoWKOZESzaqzyEEgsTLfG7iiUs XDsXkdcv3yLheS1Jx-2FoZFkyQxyva7Aqk466LZEr-2BrgNvpDPQ9yNUB03-2FXj-2FjJbG2rOOwu021Ms-2BfQBCmNv3El-2FnHqjY3nN18nJOTestqyuFrQsGov4K9zl-2B-2FxA46TP8alZlcZlMMAxGpUFiJgTy-2FEuk-2FIbx-2F00IIGA-2FKaig00QGjTiv4O2hp2gv10whRhcOWs5xhpZGOL3-2BC7Le1nfhVV-2F1YXmQ03XEFc-3D) It’s no wonder: Georgia has the fourth lowest rate of union membership in the U.S. And given the fact that union workers’ wages are 27% higher than their non-union counterparts – it’s no surprise that working families are living in poverty. Given the clear union difference, why are just 1 in 20 Georgia workers unionized? Thanks to bodycam footage (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.1z0/ERBZEKzoTtK73OpXP0BONQ/h1/laCycbjzuDwe-2BXNTOL9-2FdrzxTW5bOpCM-2F1xZud55EVc518tYX-2Born019UjIBTPFCScPgVcCrO7SDfd0HhN8tj3cWy6Td-2FSmsecJNmjWlg0ml06hEKB-2Fk5iAQO9EyxaMvY2gKrB0HwXApN-2B4s5yYa0k2cdSCcd2xhN-2BGqZHSxU05UhFjdcgM2Lk7-2BS2-2BzZbf4oy6xlB9gRP4GXKOzoQSqzXnARJT-2FiR-2BPvJyTWkblLpIVVrlAfFqYp1REURicRvXcGQOZ6-2BOY5qzxFCoH3Epvb1yL7lJdFcNjI6Bo1e2z7yRK45OU7IhZFH SqaaEULxgy3-2BfkIT2KvLcP6WQIKD5DZz4-2FXAqoIpCaEJqU-2Fdn6-2F4uW6ilGOk9aj-2BvH2GzDAvqVhGDszynl3Yrh3yQX2KFNru5MkZyoUqOfC87ito Xdsu9VojWnfuiiH-2FrR7jzs1drzplCTbRXXCg-2FlMFySA32pjc6j8nHCHicmCbalkJbkJ3M-3D) released Monday, the curtain has finally been pulled back and we know that corporate America is calling the shots in the South to continue the tradition of exploiting working families!

So who calls the shots in Georgia? XPO Logistics! Click here to watch the video (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.1z0/ERBZEKzoTtK73OpXP0BONQ/h2/laCycbjzuDwe-2BXNTOL9-2FdrzxTW5bOpCM-2F1xZud55EVc518tYX-2Born019UjIBTPFCScPgVcCrO7SDfd0HhN8tj49-2BK7JiW2qLP607U-2FkdIRTQeENQntUHj2wr-2BxCWwdqIGauI7M5u8eV35PEAAjswC4ZvOC7e8dl0ro5aUwZPf bB3-2FWtZ9lgKAxovU1RWYpFuCbccUBYnww2pkGI6ouCAPcEbd3zl6 ojMWAMPfPxgLoV2zR27xTeH7aO-2FjkYeiSVEvsAdHVSg6dDFAc8esS6pt8hwoDtks5Ug579c53K2 FQPmxJ3IR0k2h7JYDIYSC9iuLJn4uxAdrXRVkJgRx7OVD6Bb2D SgQlF-2FpuNgiBpYZVMv-2FfVglPRQnHbLGurZuL1Tfc193njVpUxukIJFSdiX4mCjbvdAK LFcqHo-2BVb0fz3SZ8z4KwAwbjibf-2BCvCqnetwAlscQBD8XiLQB9sQrJdeakClshvQ-2BtlrvqDJ9VMCs0-3D) and sign the petition (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.1z0/ERBZEKzoTtK73OpXP0BONQ/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3A9Yr-2F4ULirJaXqqjZ1WE2VoLUr-2FQVIljcnd71PgjBwBtzzhkpLZtgRcSXjoUQ19Io-2FcSxfJfbpKuYWXxi01OT-2Fpx1-2BCdHH-2F9lOxWEiNXk941lqcF1MEKIoxWMOoDDJuME5UsoEyhvBEoGUs IhqNgUveqVlZHsHOfCp-2B50Ju-2BH40NeF6yjstzfl-2F-2BbZpyptKXv-2F0bnTBmaNYANJuIuOR3zuxRHeazLgD7hPXeaVdvFEgBj6y-2FIPO0xlx-2BdOd-2BlBL5Gt-2FJBQ11EjSoeXH9uk-2Fv9Cu25ERTNzQwBZWY3NgXYSureLXRMfhDzr62yl-2BVzO5j068Nhc3cdvEDBxPvUdlfBDzSWGCc6PECdC9-2FIxM4oILpVmpd8qR1y2Siisn8plJnI-3D).

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/044/302/original/XPOTwitter.jpg

Fast growing XPO Logistics, which is on track to earn $15 Billion in 2016, is now the biggest trucking company at the Port of Savannah. The company’s sketchy business model illegally classifying drivers as “independent contractors” at U.S. ports and rail yards is fueling profits but has XPO in hot water with the law. In So. California alone, XPO faces a potential liability due to driver misclassification of more than $200 million. So the last thing XPO wants is to have drivers in Georgia unionizing. That’s why XPO called the cops on Teamster organizers who were lawfully leafleting on a city street outside XPO!
Read all about it (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.1z0/ERBZEKzoTtK73OpXP0BONQ/h4/dq5YnZm20Z8flOqARKh1-2FhWOA-2FSBG0nFe1xVK6Nzu-2BNaFjMWih3y8PB5d4MMIBgIY0kO4EKqWAYbtmUFBgc-2FvORYrhGDadyaiAmtE3569kaz052RG7vBnTlr37EWioa43j5N jB8LK7NrUyVe436cqMokcviysQdFzSpvrbiNYtOFSjQ3-2Bq95Co65ocso-2F3sxgq-2FoQ6AT5YuE7wwTxz3-2FimfE6ZHrieLpJWb6ybw7dvf7urgiloRqYzEqG6IWEJz-2BFY0N3NZehNw3pnya7cIFbzQyhgKETFOygmGAkpctV0sTqSsi ZO4WEiTVLCX8wjnX5dGlK7Lw8n2vLPMZQq-2F95WDmwpl-2BuCLCDzVxtnYwifMcrRoGytDcnnhmtnkBavG9iIdd2-2BEWDS20HZH12QylSKIroOdIWxEF-2BeUMpba7r-2BlPCnQ1FXezH-2Fx95UxCVqM-2Bs-2F7R-2Bo5PWasi88bqfb8oD990FyDqB5XjzJemxSN488BKl0scK6rJu P4UwgQqN1lL0s4UoSaxviNa3qkdSKYwaA-3D-3D), watch the video (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.1z0/ERBZEKzoTtK73OpXP0BONQ/h5/laCycbjzuDwe-2BXNTOL9-2FdrzxTW5bOpCM-2F1xZud55EVc518tYX-2Born019UjIBTPFCScPgVcCrO7SDfd0HhN8tj8-2BXq6aPHWhAv0kJhGQN24XctJbiRlh2gk0WISXBz5C-2Bdg99Fjy0APHzBzmIJ1S7vgxF97dPcu0MEMMki8Wv5hct1TIb 5nOLPTiehjGBxLzHYG7kBNBeezzsHmDsldt8n2z8kvurQxLJcj eVBIIxFAc-2Bas0GAXoSnUYeiHRgJpDicqG-2Fm6WF-2B-2BZpH1YPjJfo-2BZM28Pyy7QNYze2yRJT-2FPLVT05GSEL-2BswHObqwZhWZQCBhtUKYiqPSZ764Yr9ctuUd-2BKCltOwR0ZUkxoLSMqKI-2BjietOWm-2FGF8qNIvrEM9kAC4IHFgiM6ljnkzWMbbBJsOIoRKg-2BGefM0AMcjCJxz99Lc6wB0fW9wPo1dUNdnWGzMXUStllVSNaJ 7-2FHWB-2BaGUrYBA0WRC2P-2FB9podULmCaA-3D), and sign the petition here (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.1z0/ERBZEKzoTtK73OpXP0BONQ/h6/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3A9Yr-2F4ULirJaXqqjZ1WE2VoLUr-2FQVIljcnd71PgjBwBtzzhkpLZtgRcSXjoUQ19Io-2FcSxfJfbpKuYWXxi01OT-2FOveCDtcO9HpMo5VWOKL36h5HnvWnaqGoy5zJW0iPLNi9nMa8 bKX7O3kJxm0Ozpv4MIDtdvWMeijChi-2B4Bnt0ao04UddbLmiJ6YMPTVknAIG6Y-2FIzAsnnqE9gDs-2B2-2F2NbDYuoxwujlE7bOYEYI9d2GqDuexXRn7ji1iwKkfl175HDm yKGLiIKSTZ2iMLVdSDi7pf3Aw-2Fz-2BzrHGS1yidaiBbojITc4fZ6Q3RnRSiqXRFU08Xc1eMXgSK7mx 9vWWhvQZDOsT0s92sKRjUBEx-2F6Ny0Apo-2BIIL-2FtnWjENEfkUspU-3D)!

When a Teamster organizer asked the Port Wentworth police officer for his badge number, rather than provide it as required by law the officer filed bogus charges against the organizers.

Demand that Port Wentworth drop the charges against Ben and his coworkers. Please sign the petition (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.1z0/ERBZEKzoTtK73OpXP0BONQ/h7/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3A9Yr-2F4ULirJaXqqjZ1WE2VoLUr-2FQVIljcnd71PgjBwBtzzhkpLZtgRcSXjoUQ19Io-2FcSxfJfbpKuYWXxi01OT-2FiYDe-2FfEN-2B9aiSIpFXV1A34RnzOs5u3FtgKvaJDwqaCR6j4tJ2zbuiuWza DzsrgAqHxjMF-2F8-2BZRP1KEV2Im0Y6kENzs60r-2Fl-2B-2FWOc5bchiI2vNM36v9jk7aEnaarP6I4fEwJqkVDfm2p8T6q2a TjCPC0WS4OtxjvugJ6-2Fo2j536vci8VKLcGk-2Bgc7zpyIgND2xRqptJHwWCFh7c5iY9ttu1-2F3XjZUJytSf3F5ZhVcRK4JK7ZTNeqa4eYafbKq2ORnlLGxqFG 7hH1NJURHjlKjmm9RdMLXf3UmknjYkhZfhaA-3D) now.

Thank you!

Justice for Port Drivers

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ckaihatsu

23rd July 2016, 18:46

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2016/07/19/tajm-j19.html

ckaihatsu

27th July 2016, 20:23

BREAKING: Capitol Workers win $1 MILLION in Stolen Pay

Capitol Hill Contractor Ordered to Pay Workers $1 Million in Stolen Wages just as the Democrats Ratify Platform that Calls on US Government to Do Business with Model Employers that Pay Living Wages and Promote Unions.

Read the news clips, below.

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/045/150/original/7.13.16_e_blast_pic.jpg

The Labor Department announced Tuesday that federal contractors had shorted 674 Senate cafeteria workers to the tune of $1 million. Two companies violated the law by misclassifying workers into lower-paying positions and having them work off the clock, the agency said. The Huffington Post (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.1z8/4zab2xLSR5egcR2UtXmL_A/h0/dq5YnZm20Z8flOqARKh1-2FhWOA-2FSBG0nFe1xVK6Nzu-2BOJ4NEozlJvGcRYdmnHsSDzfA4G3O3DuEtIjLxAHMahgg7Nk-2FImUl3ne1JHQFjbYGjvQgG0cvJjY8jChlAXUantwGEMPPzXmT BEG4-2BJdTmcy3dDr2KgiM8YXZa90EAYrsuB7gWLyLtp2zWOw5Bw3G8 BLQyX9QjqEnpLWJrs747fDDl2X0-2B4RTBfjrCjRvybaX44UocnvHII2P3yPbOK5AGfi6Ay9A83m9z 2-2Bp39X6409dJ-2F2ZgEWTcoQAZhfMqJB-2FeLrToiZu-2BV07C9-2Fxq6byLwk3hMa-2FtrM2tN8kLL3fNqKy2n-2B-2B64i-2FaMPQnt58VYQnIfAuz9H2oVv1lmSyK6qwiFRUpwLJAyKmVreb g-2BGuuUCSUX6HBWLQw5lB8hL2M-2FgDWZ7FseBn3VpgemCPBziKYnsOt-2Fsux21Tw02Y-2B6yP1XUA-3D-3D)

THANK YOU FOR SIGNING THE PETITION. CAN YOU FORWARD IT TO 5 FRIENDS? TOGETHER WE CAN STOP WAGE THEFT ON FEDERAL CONTRACTS. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.1z8/4zab2xLSR5egcR2UtXmL_A/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CY-2BMGvMz2ToXOqu3Op9N807Lih0PDhoKzfgRxKFYx5xqJJMFwWt m-2FcBK36JbeFTKyDdugPPB1Oo3sECJ9NvdCIIsSnXQBozOXrtyk RiJxmC-2FZao4exYeJKwYGPLkX8SFz3-2F9LhI6MOMdyJbidNDjHmByFDVyzEDzP0XKfXFDeh6v9wkHuJ-2FJiH-2BjBWe9GksPJOYd4yYXwsKU-2FDcPd1asbkgjaWUWkx7GlVkSBAcQl8kRfZU75mC9pRZt3aUqv LF5q3zv0jOpbLwicfCNpNOleZSpkYxZbUeVP5Fyp2Pu-2FKW7S0PsjOtZcBf3nt0WCL34On6ib8u-2BlatOSc-2BD-2BOKKow7gQp28K5oaT6KJmv0X-2Fs4r6QCg81mxWttu6AWb2NfIQ0PQy3HzgbKtOresuPwaUdL2U 1AmFY-2F4ToKTNaP8sQYvSTugovoIYxet-2Fmiy-2FtNf-2FRzbawrD8LFgkl5rQSLDmUL8iZ2GEq7Va6TLmTdQUH5g-3D-3D)

“The actions taken by the Capitol contractor are despicable and their contract should be terminated,” Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said. “The Senate must refuse to do business with any unscrupulous vendors who flout the law and puts profits above the rights and economic security of their employees.” ABC News (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.1z8/4zab2xLSR5egcR2UtXmL_A/h2/Fs-2F781YsFUl9vnmKXxyXHTj-2FElfmJaiamx4-2Fecw8HqwEfXXq1QEwLeXPV2c1AhlMT-2FjK4c45RD1ruTdwH1u8RoLMyEBWyPMy1ZZ7ZHBXXGVzbkdhvs WnVTQLdyjRjmeb-2BOwRftNMNQZerG-2BRvOoOJ-2BirBiEh-2BNfNIs9tiFNYuK-2FrmKtHi-2FKQZxf5i7qQHYcqGWQfYRGo6Pekvkpb8Zejto8xxV4rS4z-2B-2B6Lwex-2BGUYnyep8EcN78xHgI6gKly6A6WtB7AXcPuaiBDzsh6OBGSzL WAaMgL5TfRBzvSmf1EYG1esjXhDuWNfW-2FF-2BTITSM5EWYkak0rUCLUI8PaXxB5zE99lJi937EhiMuvjMOL86-2FreTDbr-2FSQyhzZgHxkmdMRnb0lwYBNtMCA6MbDtYpy41v0N6rrf-2FLcwkEgURb6NKraRl8s-2F6H8JaERYxM2XgvFgIZsx0aknzquINx-2FCoJRsURatIv1LQuJLCiy2gNCyfuJhmgPzJif-2B700nfWmMjJx)

“This shows that when workers act, workers can win," said Joseph Geevarghese, Director of Good Jobs Nation, a labor advocacy group that argued for the Senate workers. "Because U.S. contract workers went on strike and filed legal multiple complaints, the U.S. government is beginning to stop labor abuses on Capitol Hill." Roll Call (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.1z8/4zab2xLSR5egcR2UtXmL_A/h3/UkDsuAzrTliwK1eSSjcObBrpQKNAdXq83AEswKpgHoOv3lVwTj EyV-2FfgK6LBlS5ed1iC3sH-2BK6yW4i1Ff0BqVU9towe2IrQEo8YqAwGXkXrqlgMnW5sVNF56 M71sFhZNKslnJ5-2FBqHeW-2FtIStFKPbraGOCtwiLiMpTYTvCIaEu-2FT-2BUwA5HSaeVIVQm16AHOq-2F8TzOoEFsQxp6RcKk-2FS-2BqktD-2FI60mNVdWILCcgrbbeke7HCYXb7789gAaNEQDPhUVIaDelR4y auF5a1NDN55MxrscEq2DUDn-2Bk4D8iNchpoiOWwa-2FRYOSAsRf-2BYXOwnlVL-2BCvXZ7vXF-2FymPHOQCXUYoPDfSXJpE-2BkjwaS80vct1skB28wXkjfjCO932JC5ArAobNlp5FMeCkxtP5 N2e-2F18Sdx6JLKVY1pOBjLl-2ByasAsaTB7nLKfiEa03RzjfRrW4g4w2-2Fw4sUKIQ1plo3KmpQPI9yqOiMcDXRBv1N2jWB4-3D)

Good Jobs Nation is calling next President to adopt a “Model Employer” policy of contracting with employers that pay good wages and recognize workers’ right to form a union. Joseph Geevarghese, the Good Jobs Nation director, said the Capitol abuses are “just the tip of the iceberg. If federal contractors feel free to break federal law right under the noses of lawmakers, they probably feel free to violate the rights of workers all across America,” he said. “But the truth is the Labor Department cannot investigate every federal contractor in the U.S. – we need a systemic solution, not just case-by-case fixes.” The Washington Post (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.1z8/4zab2xLSR5egcR2UtXmL_A/h4/mb-2FqhNwiPwHg26xxrzU0i8Q9Frt-2Blva-2BeRc22g73iCEOEFpZoM-2Fa-2FMvfkba7Zbra4PbF4KOO6vM7I26wmvPeUxOhgMOVdvKeN0g5K C0qDrmb7U8QubZ-2FI4VzZ-2BbvyP6E9bkILfyG8p64IX-2Fo8PdqhqXh0-2BhzEbo4LmnyRBklI8dU6kOd3d72xkenaCjSLjqvGKfatOoCxx 2gOs8Dq9HrO34w2UHR3yJMkLtSdy2VGTTRNUWdF22KkeJd-2BArCQSdq71FKz6lC-2Br62Zt46-2FPGD2mFBD060xkBuZT4mTxsP32zOtGg0jSWmCnw7bSwqGPvPf 0uMPkc-2FrnX5wsRognJ4-2F0EZ9vb51rQaa77IeL0gO8nrzjmYXiRI-2F6EA4Whsutk170YC18yzPM-2FAHw3v2c3RytdLwFDaApC1fICQiOpLjc2D5G2Uu0S-2BPBHb999wT-2FyKeu95-2BmLPB2iZ1515XeBBjywIrDvpD4J3RnTn-2Bzt4hSQWPr39nV-2FwkIVoykrIf7X1dk6hqvkIhOuMzwnh-2FsvUgg-3D-3D)

THANK YOU FOR SIGNING THE PETITION. TELL YOUR FRIENDS TO JOIN US! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.1z8/4zab2xLSR5egcR2UtXmL_A/h6/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CY-2BMGvMz2ToXOqu3Op9N807Lih0PDhoKzfgRxKFYx5xqJJMFwWt m-2FcBK36JbeFTKyDdugPPB1Oo3sECJ9NvdCIIsSnXQBozOXrtyk RiJxmC-2FZao4exYeJKwYGPLkX8SFz3-2F9LhI6MOMdyJbidNDjHmByFDVyzEDzP0XKfXFDeh6v9wkHuJ-2FJiH-2BjBWe9GksPJOYd4yYXwsKU-2FDcPd1asbkgjaWUWkx7GlVkSBAcQl8kVRWcp0Y7kYRDq1hJbd Y6iA-2BAglY1PsLX1qCrFcnQwnXBLDpYM5ci-2FfsifCj-2BFOXZFFIs2REJR8Y4SuKnOadpabhjCO11RDvBq2petjJf1RqU Qt-2BzhluzYq9o-2FY47tB81U29Q0pQHAaZmP4b4vfoC9lU2k38NZBl1Ye-2Fh-2BzwrA99-2FI35kPh293QSH1IOnbWhY4KJmjtK72DIaWsFYP09iDQpy04OW mBxO59gw0wZST-2FckcwCq8aEqmsxpK5hIdjMFw-3D-3D)

In Philadelphia, the Democratic Party – for the first time in history – just adopted a platform that states that the US Government should spend taxpayer dollars on “Model Employers” – not corporations that violate workers’ rights.

LET’S TURN THE PLATFORM INTO POLICY! TELL YOUR FRIENDS TO SIGN THE PETITION! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.1z8/4zab2xLSR5egcR2UtXmL_A/h7/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CY-2BMGvMz2ToXOqu3Op9N807Lih0PDhoKzfgRxKFYx5xqJJMFwWt m-2FcBK36JbeFTKyDdugPPB1Oo3sECJ9NvdCIIsSnXQBozOXrtyk RiJxmC-2FZao4exYeJKwYGPLkX8SFz3-2F9LhI6MOMdyJbidNDjHmByFDVyzEDzP0XKfXFDeh6v9wkHuJ-2FJiH-2BjBWe9GksPJOYd4yYXwsKU-2FDcPd1asbkgjaWUWkx7GlVkSBAcQl8kZD6LeOfcmG-2BbDabOJO4iI4wn1h8aVf-2Bvp9-2F1FUgI1mWpvKXMWJQ2mh0qzTFJurNNtJcATv5aV5J-2FJCHutKbZcn32iL9BNYbe6wnRcHixih3kzWJcY7O5cVBZwYD-2Bd6Pkgf7v9NSfUVuJNWWe0Tx3e-2Fm0b1O8LZ7aCTCWvuWWRtRfRNkMTk9oR5dNpKS47Yeu3Qn4gv oKe0gTwjfcOr1QNNpO-2F5O0lF4OuAcx14GliatmRmLz9NUu58uYVCcDrMi-2Fg-3D-3D)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/045/153/original/Stock_FB_Link_Image.png (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.1z8/4zab2xLSR5egcR2UtXmL_A/h8/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiARN-2B1-2Beb-2FW8CxU-2BFea55laG2-2FgPYNyxFpe8tOvKZkEjvwaR79BkXToWQjEhfFGYAh4lFIKeTz XrxYJV-2BWEAiGEek9z1nRTNa3Uhkwz9D86EpR3QHk7v7G-2Ft-2FgMPGMHpgOXxoVej9bKVtDBmLyZuarnt5QPBKzbWd0IoocM41 ervbvx3xKUexkEjA9YH1zD5j0Xxghv103lzhnb9cq6WAh8vddJ 0byolmF-2F9-2FWF7TcprpsVfsp4N47Z-2FCQN-2BJj7yDMYc3H5KR9tFazyWQyH6TiX42zoTChlmpgSUg2DttDqI iQ5E0ThNIZi9Z-2BxzfQsi2cLyvIRsDWa0kBPYYM2Jpvfxrn9CNKFx1ahrJCSJUy HlQDXabny1bzLU-2F0-2F3oYj-2F0A-3D-3D)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/045/154/original/Stock_Twitter_Link_Image.jpg (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.1z8/4zab2xLSR5egcR2UtXmL_A/h9/VE2atosPJwyp5yA4oN-2FSagLp2JjqM783ba-2BatsWCs7a9STSKW-2FA7QAODHuFN3QPgZyqdUaERC8neL0Io3OS9zzfvt-2BVe8WdZ0jJqhjEbthjzPGHEfkIRrI9y2unYmF3bqoRct-2B9qUorXbRmZmxNp-2FKsJhg6ix9uRWH8w28ymGN6w4TTMesvjBjsKAPR0K-2BlNOlwT0qfNrdTfE7u4zV2dnOLtARKvQ-2B7FP9lOaWZCFyCfBIeeYhxFtnHcCorw3IBzNIuJ6eswLbCAus sUB8A8GyyaiB7MjHtj8HScmB-2BWBThtyew1XrJHsAltofdgIPNhUzxOfZ9gze6IJS8F9xvniyN YpV3fP8AgOe6QLo00RlZyHzMnsHpXQkm-2FJxEkYnNXjYo9WeuwRawzqzMaK4lpYQ-3D-3D)

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ckaihatsu

7th September 2016, 14:45

Minnesota nurses rally as strike approaches

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/nursesreadystrike2.jpg

By staff

Minneapolis, MN – Hundreds of Minnesota Nurses Association members, along with their supporters, rallied in Stewart Park Aug. 31 to show support for Allina Health nurses who are set to go on an open-ended Unfair Labor Practice strike on Labor Day. A broad spectrum of labor and community groups, including teachers, AFSCME, and Teamsters attended the rally.

MNA filed the required ten-day strike notice on the five affected Allina Health hospitals and Allina headquarters early on Aug. 26. Picketing will take place at Abbott Northwestern, Allina Commons, Mercy, Phillips Eye Institute, United, and Unity hospitals.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

8th September 2016, 15:09

Class struggle on Harvard campus: Dining workers announce strike vote

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/Harvardworkers.jpg

By staff

Cambridge, MA - The union of the 750 food service workers at Harvard University held a briefing and rally on Sept. 7 to announce their intent to hold a strike vote. The union, UNITE HERE Local 26, has been in negotiations with the university administration since late May, and workers say that little progress has been made on their two major issues.

One of the Harvard workers’ primary concerns is a management proposal to increase their health insurance costs. Similar increases were imposed on Harvard faculty and agreed to by some of the other unions at the university. The dining services workers have rejected this proposal because of the devastating effect that it could have on workers’ health.

Anabella Pappas, a member of the union’s bargaining committee, said during the briefing that university proposed co-pay increases would mean that “many of us will have no choice but to neglect to go to the doctor.” A group of Harvard Medical School students stood beside workers at the briefing and voiced their support for their struggle, arguing that from a medical perspective, the insurance plans being forced on Harvard’s workers are some of the worst in the country and would reduce access to preventative and life-saving medical treatment.

In addition to fighting against health insurance takebacks, the union is also fighting to secure a minimum annual income of $35,000 for Harvard workers. Many of the dining service workers are laid off for four months out of every year- when students are on summer holiday - and are barred from collecting unemployment during that time. Laquiesha Rainey, another member of the bargaining committee, described the hope for a better life that she felt when she got a job at a prestigious university. These hopes were soon dashed by the reality of cyclical layoffs. “I can’t feed my daughter off of prestige,” Rainey said. “I fail to understand how the richest university in the world can’t provide workers with a minimum of $35,000 a year.”

As the Harvard workers spoke, they were surrounded by a wall of photographs of workers who have committed to strike, if necessary. Organizers said there were over 600 photographs. Following the announcement of the Sept. 15 strike vote, workers and students took the wall of photographs and marched through Harvard Yard. Students across the Harvard system have also been organizing in support of the workers’ decision to strike.

Collin Poirot, a second year student at Harvard Law School, said that it is especially important for students to show up in support of staff. “We’re here to show the university administration that students and workers are united, and that we will always have the backs of Harvard workers, just as they have always had ours.”

No strike date has been announced, but the struggle on Harvard’s campus is likely to intensify in the weeks ahead.
Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

8th September 2016, 15:17

Are Chicago Teachers Headed Toward a Strike?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~(((( T h e B u l l e t ))))~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A Socialist Project e-bulletin .... No. 1302 .... September 8, 2016
__________________________________________________ ___

Are Chicago Teachers Headed Toward a Strike?

Lee Sustar

A three-cornered battle between a budget-slashing mayor (Rahm Emanuel), a union-busting governor (Bruce Rauner) and determined teachers (CTU) could result this fall in the second public school strike in Chicago in four years.

At the center of the battle is an effort to force Chicago teachers to pay the equivalent of 7 per cent of their base pay in additional pension costs, reversing an agreement made with the Chicago Teachers Union in lieu of a raise. "If the Board of Education imposes a 7 per cent slash in our salaries, we will move to strike," Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) President Karen Lewis said at an August 8 press conference.

The school district also upped the ante by announcing 1,000 layoffs and further budget cuts that will squeeze special education and force principals to eliminate jobs.

All indicators point to a teachers' strike in the fall. But the political landscape has changed since the CTU won a 2012 strike through rock-solid picket lines, mass protests and widespread popular support. This time around, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who has seen his approval ratings plummet in the wake of police killings of African Americans, has dropped the confrontational rhetoric.

Instead, he's using the state budget impasse created by Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner as a pretext to force teachers to accept a pay cut in the form of covering a higher share of their pension costs. Taxpayers will pay $250-million more to fund school pensions, Emanuel argues, so it's time for teachers to pay their share.

What the mayor omits is the fact that the pension crisis was created by the school district's failure to make pension contributions over the course of a decade. As CTU Staff Coordinator Jackson Potter wrote, "Not only are teachers and paraprofessionals taxpayers who will share in the burden of increased property taxes, but we have seen mass layoffs, program reductions, pay freezes, furlough days and a general lack of regard for the needs of our classrooms."

Continue reading (http://www.socialistproject.ca/bullet/1302.php#continue)

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ckaihatsu

9th September 2016, 14:53

Anti-war activists stand with striking Minnesota nurses

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/antiwarnurse.jpg

By Meredith Aby-Keirstead

Minneapolis, MN - Members of the Minnesota Anti-War Committee picketed with the Minnesota Nurses Association at Abbot Northwestern Hospital during rush hour, Sept. 8. The nurses went out on strike on Labor Day.

Jennie Eisert, a Colombian-born activist with the Anti-War Committee, picketed and said, "I am really glad I was here today to stand in solidarity with the nurses. In May I met with workers with SINTRAMIENERGETICA in Colombia. These coal miners have been on strike for three years. Trade unionists in Colombia are threatened by right-wing death squads for organizing. It is important to me and to the Anti-War Committee to support the right to organize both at home and abroad."

The nurses’ strike in ongoing. A fundraiser is being planned for Friday, Sept. 16, at 7 p.m. at the CWA Hall, 3521 E Lake Street in Minneapolis to raise money for the strike fund.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

9th September 2016, 18:58

Peeps Workers on Strike!

Chris...Two days ago, more than 400 BCTGM Local 6 members who make Peeps, America’s favorite marshmallow treats, went out on strike at the Just Born Inc. plant in Bethlehem, Pa. Sign this Jobs with Justice petition (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.20g/6_zj00OGQD64R6Fk7suP4Q/h0/v542M3eB2ETEUbTj2GSuOZMo3JQsprGqyEKahcnuCm7-2BKyHAN3f0sU3-2FaFCnlCX30uTshHJAsfnVIPWfNyNbU09gv-2B4qRWmjS32Ez-2B95ekBJseP6MQBnzc8QsxZ-2F8qqcKKa5QcEF8WwTE6GQFrO7Kkymt2KDPuV65S5bWd9vpAOn Lm08icku-2FSLv63abuNrEQMU-2FKtpyXWTzndsDlf451igKXA-2FiRCZNXmq7tL36do4UsdSpghO8Hh1xaJJAB5VU3U5-2BEeg9xsxMsZGqbyZUzyGASZGeHMpFgEmJ3UOX62dFh0-2BM2R37XcdN2dtpJrt5e54uGthypxdgdO-2Bjl-2BfK9EkDWb18ezAr5t6FMy0WGJ4FYBCorVwn3PGzHakMBPlao7 vfzWN5ld1ezDumvU0cYAAqLJG7wxzsCFI-2BlKK36Av6Z5ydKBlPscVFzPp3MTvJPxIVC2eKK-2Fdd99TT06YS2L-2BK-2BAHLX3WHYIdlfHDFLl6XeU-2BNMclijcjqYp1dRnsx9fN5cIijL3M7EyPFlRVfZ1onk7URhfQ hdZjNO0T-2FKrm7ix7u58VXOFBTBpQGYr4uAYjI-2F4cegOzuU8TPd5tfFqwwEcoEaIV9wCvGqLRqnjeSBBYwB-2BvSZSyYlCKx-2B6Xdx3reAWWneLAOSqBEvzfkG-2FF3Jmz9tYeYyUZWtmw3zIfM-2B51-2BCV2Gsm-2BF3EvU0F5s03OrQ12J40bz1qiRZbHGS1a0jxrlUP8hGlROsFN oNmp0YAjU3SwcYl9FUpoS22Dtk-2BftiX-2FZunZAhOFkpzw4q2visRhlbP4hwjmO9VH4XYI-3D) to tell Just Born Inc. that you have the workers' backs.

TAKE ACTION NOW! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.20g/6_zj00OGQD64R6Fk7suP4Q/h1/v542M3eB2ETEUbTj2GSuOZMo3JQsprGqyEKahcnuCm7-2BKyHAN3f0sU3-2FaFCnlCX30uTshHJAsfnVIPWfNyNbU09gv-2B4qRWmjS32Ez-2B95ekBJseP6MQBnzc8QsxZ-2F8qqcKKa5QcEF8WwTE6GQFrO7Kkymt2KDPuV65S5bWd9vpAOn Lm08icku-2FSLv63abuNrEQMU-2FKtpyXWTzndsDlf451igKXA-2FiRCZNXmq7tL36do4UsdSpghO8Hh1xaJJAB5VU3U5-2BEeg9xsxMsZGqbyZUzyGASZGeHMpFgEmJ3UOX62dFh0-2BM2R37XcdN2dtpJrt5e54uGthypxdgdO-2Bjl-2BfK9EkDWb18ezAr5t6FMy0WGJ4FYBCorVwn3PGzHakMBPlao7 vfzWN5ld1ezDumvU0cYAAqLJG7wxzsCFI-2BlKK36Av6Z5ydKBlPscVFzPp3MTvJPxIVC2eKK-2Fdd99TT06YS2L-2BK-2BAHLX3WHYIdlfHDFLl6XeU-2BNMclijcjqYp1dRnsx9fN5cIijL3M7EyPFlRVfZ1onk7URhfQ hdZjNO0T-2FKrm7ix7u58VXOFBTBpQGYr4ubVCYod-2FsgMT36Jxl91EfZ3t4AaC94R4MGBDhYmjPoAPvvX5-2Fzen5d8feNVHWEJynAIlUN77bmMy901HGGbDR4QfCUh-2FL-2FX-2Bcao2MskH92SQ1lc699-2Bbn6HmYOAi90rCeMz31iKI5FJq-2FQ0peOYWy-2BTN-2B0BEeCQdZ6fw2PVYXK0AsgWrbrfcAIlkKB9Q4mMwhPPPqfR4Z V5Ad86aG-2BTG5ytX9hVZ9lDEV7Xv9xPE7XkU-3D)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/050/144/original/PeepsOnStrike_jwj.png

Four hundred union workers who make iconic candies and treats in Bethlehem, Pa., are taking a brave stand to earn a fair return on their work. For decades, Local 6 members have dedicated their working lives producing Peeps, Teenee Beanee jelly beans, Hot Tamales, and Mike and Ike candies. And despite $230 million in sales and soaring profits, Just Born Inc. wants to eliminate the workers’ pension plan and increase workers' share of health care costs, while offering substandard market wage increases .
The striking employees of Just Born are drawing a line in the sand over corporate greed. Will you join them? Add your name to this Jobs with Justice petition (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.20g/6_zj00OGQD64R6Fk7suP4Q/h2/v542M3eB2ETEUbTj2GSuOZMo3JQsprGqyEKahcnuCm7-2BKyHAN3f0sU3-2FaFCnlCX30uTshHJAsfnVIPWfNyNbU09gv-2B4qRWmjS32Ez-2B95ekBJseP6MQBnzc8QsxZ-2F8qqcKKa5QcEF8WwTE6GQFrO7Kkymt2KDPuV65S5bWd9vpAOn Lm08icku-2FSLv63abuNrEQMU-2FKtpyXWTzndsDlf451igKXA-2FiRCZNXmq7tL36do4UsdSpghO8Hh1xaJJAB5VU3U5-2BEeg9xsxMsZGqbyZUzyGASZGeHMpFgEmJ3UOX62dFh0-2BM2R37XcdN2dtpJrt5e54uGthypxdgdO-2Bjl-2BfK9EkDWb18ezAr5t6FMy0WGJ4FYBCorVwn3PGzHakMBPlao7 vfzWN5ld1ezDumvU0cYAAqLJG7wxzsCFI-2BlKK36Av6Z5ydKBlPscVFzPp3MTvJPxIVC2eKK-2Fdd99TT06YS2L-2BK-2BAHLX3WHYIdlfHDFLl6XeU-2BNMclijcjqYp1dRnsx9fN5cIijL3M7EyPFlRVfZ1onk7URhfQ hdZjNO0T-2FKrm7ix7u58VXOFBTBpQGYr4uNzD8VEv7EXokrdBBxzFNRppW 8IybVezrlytrULs-2BU6gzJN5QrCN9YPlasdtopuuOoHY6BXNZREcc3TPyjSO4UZVj fqyjsuDDmy5Ks2-2FL-2BKMkK6gapHB8J8DKFqkL6QbJ5N7YuN-2Bpuc7IzMR-2B9bOrXKXlZCPeuw8ZfFsQFgTVAJou-2FY6PPoDl5stu-2Brky8SvO-2BgWc6ba-2FcxLuvePY72bksbMGbn-2BE6lsHHG32x5YLZTI-3D) to say you’ll stand with Local 6 workers for as long as it takes.

No one wants to go on strike. It puts an immense amount of financial stress on working families. The folks who bring us Peeps want to be back at work, bringing their skills and dedication to their jobs. But Just Born isn’t playing fair—and is refusing to listen to employee proposals that would save the company money. To help pressure Just Born to negotiate a fair contract, unite with Local 6 workers on strike in their mission to defend good jobs for their families and those that follow.

Make sure Just Born knows the public stands with the brave union members on strike in Bethlehem. Tell Just Born: No justice, no Peeps (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.20g/6_zj00OGQD64R6Fk7suP4Q/h3/v542M3eB2ETEUbTj2GSuOZMo3JQsprGqyEKahcnuCm7-2BKyHAN3f0sU3-2FaFCnlCX30uTshHJAsfnVIPWfNyNbU09gv-2B4qRWmjS32Ez-2B95ekBJseP6MQBnzc8QsxZ-2F8qqcKKa5QcEF8WwTE6GQFrO7Kkymt2KDPuV65S5bWd9vpAOn Lm08icku-2FSLv63abuNrEQMU-2FKtpyXWTzndsDlf451igKXA-2FiRCZNXmq7tL36do4UsdSpghO8Hh1xaJJAB5VU3U5-2BEeg9xsxMsZGqbyZUzyGASZGeHMpFgEmJ3UOX62dFh0-2BM2R37XcdN2dtpJrt5e54uGthypxdgdO-2Bjl-2BfK9EkDWb18ezAr5t6FMy0WGJ4FYBCorVwn3PGzHakMBPlao7 vfzWN5ld1ezDumvU0cYAAqLJG7wxzsCFI-2BlKK36Av6Z5ydKBlPscVFzPp3MTvJPxIVC2eKK-2Fdd99TT06YS2L-2BK-2BAHLX3WHYIdlfHDFLl6XeU-2BNMclijcjqYp1dRnsx9fN5cIijL3M7EyPFlRVfZ1onk7URhfQ hdZjNO0T-2FKrm7ix7u58VXOFBTBpQGYr4uQnWk02g9TFPrkWpDtB6LRV0N M7iH4LCiF1iDoA5UdmAhGctfHrzgFFxcWT2SG-2FFJo1CZZileXcBJi60WWfdwPM7ZGDdm-2BQF1uG24Q33xb3gBmy-2F1N8LU0L76xdnFdRSxx2B8pE155UU2XngVXEVc-2FdnC0BHjIdl8su6ZrC312jbVPzd-2F7nXMHOvuwZB2SUGGmEl87zfI0TanhsEi5vI9yUbanUpvugy6 eRFDcXcjgd8-3D) – Negotiate fairly NOW!

Thank you so much for your support!

In Solidarity,

David

David B. Durkee
International President, BCTGM International Union

Like Us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Check out our photostream on Flickr! www.bctgm.org Visit us online at www.bctgm.org
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ckaihatsu

12th September 2016, 14:19

Picket lines strong as first week of Minnesota Nurses strike ends

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/useweekoneMNA.jpg

By staff

Minneapolis, MN – Picket lines at Allina hospitals remain strong as the first week of the strike by more than 4000 members of the Minnesota Nurses Association draws to a close, Sept 11. The open-ended unfair labor practices strike began Labor Day, and comes in response to an attempt by Allina to extract major concessions in nurses’ heath care.

A major fundraiser is being planned for Friday, Sept. 16, at 7 p.m. at the CWA Hall, 3521 E Lake Street in Minneapolis to raise money for the strike fund.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected].org

ckaihatsu

14th September 2016, 15:13

Help Save UMass Amherst Labor Center!

National Nurses United

Help Save UMass Amherst Labor Center!

http://nationalnursesunited.org/page/-/files/graphics/the-labor-center.png

The Labor Center, UMass Amherst

UMass Labor Center is Under Attack. What do we do? Stand up, fight back!
Please Sign This Petition (http://nationalnursesunited.org/page/m/6c0b1020/ac073f3/709d45e4/16fc9db8/2308976565/VEsF/) to Save Top Grad Program for Labor Movement

For over 50 years, the UMass Amherst Labor Center has served as one of the premiere labor studies programs in the nation—training union activists, leaders and staff in collective bargaining, workers’ rights, and the history of organized labor. National Nurses United even features Umass Amherst Labor Center alumni in departments union-wide.

Unfortunately, UMass administration has recently eliminated all graduate student funding for the Center—including teaching and research assistantships—as well as part-time faculty funding. They have also effectively eliminated the Center’s professional staff administrator position, and removed the director. These changes—made under the guise that the Center was not enough of a “revenue generator”—have rendered the Center incapable of continuing to welcome all students, labor leaders and activists regardless of background or ability to pay.

Nurses and our allies cannot stand by while one of the most respected labor studies departments in the country—one that trains activists and leaders, including our own union staff, in how to fight the forces that produce inequality—succumbs to a death of 1,000 cuts.

In solidarity, please sign this important petition (http://nationalnursesunited.org/page/m/6c0b1020/ac073f3/709d45e4/16fc9db8/2308976565/VEsC/) to save the UMass Labor Center!

When a premiere program for the continued strength of the labor movement is under attack—what do we do? Stand up, fight back! Please sign the petition today.

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UNSUBSCRIBE | www.NationalNursesUnited.org | www.MainStreetContract.org
National Nurses United | 8630 Fenton Street, Suite 1100 Silver Spring, MD 20910

ckaihatsu

14th September 2016, 15:51

Respect Workers’ Voices

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Last month, the U.S. Department of Labor announced that U.S. Senate federal contract workers like me had been robbed of over $1 million dollars from our paychecks by Compass Group, our employer.

SIGN OUR PETITION. WORKERS DESERVE RESPECT! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.20l/wVy57WnySROqtan3Vt2TzQ/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CHzpcaS6ITMTfzjx6si3Dg1l2yy2o-2F5IVIpVp-2F-2B2RZSrMnhUOb0Ppp73laSCrQDG3K7QKRl4z5D4WRAWssZOxv0 McAEs-2FsuJDgdItwBvFU0t15sDK8WwxAq8E9UDeaW17CutHt3FfKE4c 02PxHIJCY7kax6mK1pEryXYvMgNeIxHm-2B5T6XGpkqCWv-2FyAYywK0K0JXqv5PrRtB5uouZKPT-2BRR9qppXR0NLqqq8GJbvS4RtflKzxA8db-2B5vm8-2BhJb9nx5Hw-2BEeBw8iVR7Wsih2aw)

Within weeks, some of my co-workers started receiving as much as $20,000 in back-pay awards. But I only received $240 in with no explanation of how it was calculated.

I’ve worked at the Senate for over a decade and I believe the company likely stole much more than a couple of hundred bucks from me.

I’m not alone. Over a dozen Senate contract workers received little or no compensation as wage theft victims.

One reason that justice has been delayed that many of us were not contacted or interviewed by the Labor Department or the Architect of the Capitol, the agency that oversees the contract, as part of the investigation.

Even worse, workers and our representatives have not been invited to participate in the settlement talks even though we exposed the illegal conduct and are directly impacted by the results.

If this were a court case, the victims would have their say.

SIGN MY PETITION: TELL THE LABOR DEPARTMENT & AND THE ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL TO RESPECT WORKERS’S VOICES. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.20l/wVy57WnySROqtan3Vt2TzQ/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CHzpcaS6ITMTfzjx6si3Dg1l2yy2o-2F5IVIpVp-2F-2B2RZSrMnhUOb0Ppp73laSCrQDG2LZIKwnNV7F1lPYlE5m2mlS-2FaoP0ZRW5ohL6Vc4TvEzowJ3oFd8WyFagx4r0yBAZNH4Qebrf JkOm5VJSUcOhUImZl9K877Psl4Hv89gq3zYRKHxtp1PEMw4nIB bC-2Blc0psOWewYS1setZMpGruYaXzzjCYKxziDQC-2FbBLGI95e3AUl1GBxyiLRQY2iTc-2FIxU-2F5gPxrNf-2B-2BTDAz611cVNz4)

Every worker at the U.S. Senate should be interviewed by Labor Department investigators and provided with an explanation of how their back-pay awards were calculated.

In addition, workers should be represented during the negotiation of the final settlement. Workers can play a critical role in holding the company accountable to following the law.

Giving workers a voice in the investigation and settlement talks is the best way to prevent wage theft in the future.

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ckaihatsu

15th September 2016, 17:04

Women Against Military Madness stands with striking nurses

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/Wamm%20with%20nurses.jpg

By Meredith Aby-Keirstead

Minneapolis, MN - Members of Women Against Military Madness picketed with the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis, Sept. 11. The MNA went on strike at Allina hospitals on Labor Day.

Mary Beaudoin, a member of Women Against Military Madness (WAMM), told Fight Back!, "WAMM members stand in solidarity with Allina nurses in their struggle to provide good health care for their patients and a fair labor contract needed to sustain it."

WAMM plans to picket again on Sunday, Sept. 18 at 2 p.m. and encourages others in the anti-war movement to join them.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

17th September 2016, 15:13

NNU Nurses Coast to Coast Support Allina Health Strikers

National Nurses United

http://www.nationalnursesunited.org/page/-/files/graphics/0916_Allina-support_sept13_header2.png

NNU Nurses Across U.S. Support Striking Allina RNs
on Day of Action

Deliver Message to Allina Board member, profiteer at
10 Piper-Jaffray Branch Offices

http://www.nationalnursesunited.org/page/-/0916_Allina-support_Chicago_72dpi.jpg
Chicago, IL

On Tuesday, Sept. 13, nurses across the country took part in a national day of action to support our 4000 sisters and brothers in Minnesota who, since Labor Day, have been holding an open-ended strike against five Allina Health hospitals in the Twin Cities. The nurses are standing strong against management's effort to drastically cut their health coverage, and refusal to act on the nurses' concerns about safe staffing and the need for workplace violence prevention.

http://www.nationalnursesunited.org/page/-/0916_Allina-support_SF_3_72dpi.jpg
San Francisco, CA

We know that those who give care deserve care themselves! That’s why RNs in 10 cities—from Houston and NYC, to Winter Park, FL and Sacramento—stood up and delivered a report entitled Time to Pay the Piper, detailing the predatory financial dealings of investment firm Piper Jaffray to its branch offices across the country. The firm has a history of profiting from hospitals and municipalities by arranging risky interest rate swaps. The Chief Financial Officer of Piper Jaffray, Debra Schoneman, is also on the board of Allina Health. Piper Jaffray has made millions of dollars underwriting bonds for Allina Health.

We will continue to highlight the misdeeds of Allina Health and its board members until a contract is won that puts patients first, and protects nurses and their families. Their fight against corporate greed is our fight.

Keep the Solidarity Going: Donate Today to Help Allina Nurses (http://nationalnursesunited.org/page/m/6c0b102b/ac073f3/70907c05/16fceda1/818831892/VEsF/)

Want to help support Allina nurses? Donate to the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) strike fund. (http://nationalnursesunited.org/page/m/6c0b102b/ac073f3/70907c05/16fceda1/818831892/VEsC/) MNA nurses already went on strike for seven days in June, giving up a week’s pay. This open-ended strike continues to send a strong message that Allina RNs will keep holding management accountable for listening to nurses. Donate to their fight today!

http://www.nationalnursesunited.org/page/-/0916_Allina-support_DC_72dpi.jpg
Washington DC

http://www.nationalnursesunited.org/page/-/0916_Allina-support_Houston_72dpi.jpg
Houston, TX

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UNSUBSCRIBE | www.NationalNursesUnited.org | www.MainStreetContract.org
National Nurses United | 8630 Fenton Street, Suite 1100 Silver Spring, MD 20910

ckaihatsu

21st September 2016, 14:22

Wage Theft Victims Shortchanged Again?

Contract Workers Fail to Recover Stolen Wages, Demand Voice in USDOL Investigation of Outlaw Federal Contractor

SIGN OUR PETITION – WORKERS DESERVE A SEAT AT THE TABLE (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3AA/ni0YAA/t.20r/yo_OCVQwToO8iGzBA4KcYg/h0/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CHzpcaS6ITMTfzjx6si3Dg1l2yy2o-2F5IVIpVp-2F-2B2RZSovFmC5DkG6fOkCX8aMC5sm2qzX7CwDSfgTQRvGBrUkrb TSAES92YlTrdPCyZknlBX58PRja-2BWXl3B1GWBlrEp-2BPM93tH23lyCGPAhSDASMwrKvd8LU1t7rrU-2Bc6Zk1XGol4DXBxr8L5V6f9x-2F2-2BoXMc98LBA0VeDLNWsPa9MXkC3hc-2Fd7pzPKUstRSkiEw6b-2FZn8kEvVRydX-2FUOypQMGAmVvJhoIM-2FZC7J1wB1jO4p3RUja0v3DLS90EUt6b23GOA-3D-3D)

Pay Woes Persist for Senate Contract Workers

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Some food workers claim they are not getting the money they're due after a Labor Department investigation found the company that operates cafeterias for the Senate owed more than $1 million in back pay.

Good Jobs Nation said that several workers have reported that they've received little or no back pay compared to some of their colleagues.

Good Jobs Nation's policy and legal director George Faraday wrote in the Sept. 14 letter to the Labor Department that the group knows of at least 19 workers who were not interviewed by investigators — and workers have reported a wide range of payments.

SIGN THE PETITION – WAGE THEFT VICTIMS DESERVE JUSTICE! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3AA/ni0YAA/t.20r/yo_OCVQwToO8iGzBA4KcYg/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CHzpcaS6ITMTfzjx6si3Dg1l2yy2o-2F5IVIpVp-2F-2B2RZSovFmC5DkG6fOkCX8aMC5sm2qzX7CwDSfgTQRvGBrUkr8 op-2Btm2B-2BqjuPOzYN3NQQAIh0NMytqjAvlbSmY6o26xc2DCxnSrX1XlMN nFt54IWTNOy-2Bp1VKMwXrt4IXIMUprHaDqkELSh0CR5CkUComjp4xg-2FIZoNTmFf8DxI-2BfMnGWlZYnWoPu068ZGrW0ijW4nJXqhWKgKUQmRKTToAGTr6p xPMmP4xjcF1kWXJ4KYdXSW9PZUxuxyxw95hKVioOYQ-3D-3D)

In an interview, Faraday raised concerns that roughly half of those workers who were not interviewed by investigators had also participated in recent strikes. Faraday said he doubted the Labor Department would intentionally exclude those workers, but suggested management could have delayed interviews for certain workers.

In the meantime, some workers are still in the dark about the back pay they received.

Alba Morales works as a cashier in the Dirksen Senate Office Building cafeteria. About a month ago, her manager called her into his office, and handed her a check for $238.

Morales was never interviewed by Labor investigators. She questioned whether the payment was correct, noting that she has been working for Restaurant Associates in the Senate for eight years.

Her manager told her that the company gave investigators her employment information.

“I’m still confused,” Morales said. Morales has participated in several strikes where Senate workers have called for higher wages and union representation.

Morales and Faraday both called for workers to be included in future discussions and allowed to consult with a third party.

"We see the moral of this story is … there needs to be an ongoing process for keeping workers collectively in the loop,” Faraday said.

WORKERS NEED TO BE KEPT IN THE LOOP … SIGN OUR PETITION. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3AA/ni0YAA/t.20r/yo_OCVQwToO8iGzBA4KcYg/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CHzpcaS6ITMTfzjx6si3Dg1l2yy2o-2F5IVIpVp-2F-2B2RZSovFmC5DkG6fOkCX8aMC5sm2qzX7CwDSfgTQRvGBrUkrX UvYkZlnmgPuKEnmeT2F5AfOzKRNYcxAROtClyaMFQXBM4-2Bp9YiZ1Nzly8b7GiqbpAV3upiBwH-2FP7bI-2BfP7EwBQdtPmxHI7SwCviRuOxaff-2F4Jd9R0dhtln3VVdS4KkmEUiEpmuNeZoOZjPNr7eULeovcQDv 4xCOTennxUxy-2BltYaLd6kr5Z1Oh4j5nmKwAq5PNsCkMjVkvjRCQV85qDyA-3D-3D)

See more at: http://www.rollcall.com/news/hoh/senate-workers-raise-concerns-about-backpay

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ckaihatsu

26th September 2016, 14:54

Hundreds of AFSCME members join striking nurses’ picket lines

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/AFSCME%20at%20MNA%20strike.jpg

By Brad Sigal

Minneapolis, MN - More than 400 rank-and-file members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) joined the picket lines of the nurses on strike at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis, Friday, Sept. 23. They held a solidarity rally and walked the picket lines together with striking nurses, undeterred by the rain. Eight buses and many cars full of AFSCME members went together from the AFSCME Council 5 convention in Bloomington, which brought together AFSCME members from throughout Minnesota.

Almost 5000 nurses with the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) have been on strike since early September against Allina. Before the solidarity picketing on Friday, MNA President Mary Turner spoke to the delegates at the AFSCME convention, where she was received with warm solidarity and standing ovations for the nurses’ bold determination to strike against Allina’s greedy demands that nurses accept significant health insurance cuts.

AFSCME Executive Director Eliot Seide announced that AFSCME had donated $10,000 to the nurses’ strike hardship fund and would continue to make additional significant donations if the nurses are forced to continue their strike. Several AFSCME local leaders also announced that their locals would make donations to the nurses’ strike fund so the nurses can stay on strike as long as it takes to win.

Later that evening, federal mediators called Allina management and the Minnesota Nurses Association back to the bargaining table this coming Tuesday, Sept 27.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

29th September 2016, 13:39

Changing lives at Intel

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Dear Chris Kaihatsu:

Sitting anxiously with my co-workers and community, I couldn’t hold back my tears when I heard the victory announcement. Being organized and winning a union will change my life, and will also help raise the standard for families across Silicon Valley. Click here to watch and share our story. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3AA/ni0YAA/t.20z/jr9f7kpDR82-9Yx9JtQS2Q/h0/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiOcqXDL0WALTAzslCjfzDDCWAHG67M DjIt3HoYM2J2GjFfg8OxgDWhJb6-2FZP3DDINXgCV0aVNSsheTC66HmGHFu95VG4G7ZbNShZVoN-2BZcoa5MviOtgqF3oRznFHv7DDotPTHkSW4GG7aUAUsLOZue0K 52KNatv22j34FA2V1PLKt7tzQejhMbhula0af9nPPhc0o-2BDSvbD4goutSWB51pkqpRhFCNpUAewKdkeehZuQNLeFD4LTpL GWH4l2nbblyA6o3NZPudwH6YmTa4NBxEvdcIGFcL7xzMaF7AHC sTV7)

Your support has been crucial in helping us transform Silicon Valley into a place all workers can thrive. Since we started organizing ourselves in January, we have won job security, 20% raises, and free individual healthcare. And now we’ve won a union. Your encouraging words have helped fuel our determination to improve our lives.

There are thousands of other food service workers just like me who could see our victory and empower themselves to change their lives, too. Share our story on Facebook and Twitter to spread the word to others who are ready to take the first step. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3AA/ni0YAA/t.20z/jr9f7kpDR82-9Yx9JtQS2Q/h1/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiOcqXDL0WALTAzslCjfzDDCWAHG67M DjIt3HoYM2J2GjFfg8OxgDWhJb6-2FZP3DDINZaqc27GHYl4-2FCmG9-2BRoJ6ZbyyBbD0YXiYW-2Fm6Q-2FPThy7zU8O8ltUowv-2Bzv2URigZN1j5Itp4dLU9dMIT623Y86zJu-2BSNkk99XLgaHsWLpzOiHylElbPO-2BsP3AQldxR2BRJU1rewS-2BigWRbxUkYBDUB-2FhIDE05kJyCDaP911OPOxSYoc-2FiH6FbFO7ZNK4WLxrpGQ3Z9YaW7jwAtF69g8po07qZiMatC5C 9VRpUxHcPmo)

In solidarity,

Monica Moreno
Intel Cafeteria Cashier

UNITE HERE Local 19, 2302 Zanker Road, Second Floor, San Jose, CA 95131 | privacy policy

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ckaihatsu

29th September 2016, 14:16

Nurses rally at General Mills shareholder meeting

By staff

Minneapolis, MN - On the morning of Sept. 27, 400 striking Allina nurses from Abbott, United, Unity and Mercy hospitals, along with members of many unions and community supporters, rallied in the street in downtown Minneapolis, tying up early morning rush hour traffic. The rally was held in front of the hotel where General Mills was having its annual shareholder meeting.

The nurses were there to send a message to John Church, a senior vice president of General Mills and chair of the Allina board of directors, to use his power as chair to reach a decent contract for nurses.

The rally was energetic and spirited with nurses chanting “Where’s John Church?” “Nurses on the outside, trouble on the inside” and “Nurses united will never be defeated.” Allina nurses who got tickets to go inside texted that the chanting could be heard loud and clear - and speakers were having trouble giving their speeches.

Community people and union members spoke at the rally. Ann Maczuag said, “As educators, we know better than most what it means when corporations attack our public institutions. We share many similarities – working with diverse communities, doing more with less, are mostly women, and are advocates for families we serve. That’s why my union, The Minneapolis Federation of Teachers, stands with nurses in this fight today, tomorrow and as long as it takes!”

After the meeting the three Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) proxy shareholder, who were inside, gave reports. Julie Anderson, a mental health nurse said she told the shareholders and directors, “I’ve been assaulted many times and we need security personnel.” Adequate security for patient and staff safety is one of the demands. Barb Forshe said, “It was harder to get in to the meeting then I thought. They actually had security.” She also told attendees at the shareholders meeting, “We want to be on the inside taking care of patients, not on the outside.”

Negotiations between MNA and Allina resumed Sept. 27. The negotiating team was sent off to resume talks knowing the nurses are standing firm and resolved to do what it takes to get a good contract.

Rally & March in Support of Striking Nurses

Friday, September 30, from 4-7 pm @ Anderson United Community School, 1098 Andersen Ln, Minneapolis

March on the Allina Headquarters and show your solidarity with nurses as they get ready to launch their Red October on the picket lines. Organized by Workers United for Nurses.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

2nd October 2016, 15:30

STRIKE! CTU Sets Strike Date for 10/11

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Chris Kaihatsu,

The 25,000 members of the Chicago teachers union have voted overwhelmingly (90%) to authorize a strike, and set a start date of October 11th, if they are unable to reach an agreement and negotiate a contract with Chicago Public Schools.

As you know, we stand in solidarity with the the rank-and-file members and the leadership of the Chicago Teachers Union and encourage you to support them in this fight.

CTU is fighting for the schools Chicago's children deserve: fully resourced and fully staffed schools that will educate and empower every child. You can read more about the negotiations thus far on the CTU website: http://www.ctunet.com/blog/faq-fight-for-a-fair-contract-ctu

IF YOU WILL STAND IN SOLIDARITY WITH CTU ON THE PICKET LINE: http://www.chicagojwj.org/ctu-solidarity-pickets

CONTACT YOUR ALDERMAN AND THE MAYOR: tell them you support CTU and want them to dedicate resources to fund our schools! (312) 744-5000

Thanks and In Solidarity,

Susan Hurley, Executive Director

Chicago Jobs with Justice

DONATE HERE! We need your support to stay in the streets! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.210/14BvVVNXSuCkfuvwMpZZrQ/h3/g-2FqwfR6QOmRkjsV8tiQTTXGcvYFJVfQb-2FDMQ0r81lnXvNmEo05yANzsZrDXIkz9a1RX0jAc7sQizJX75e N-2Fk1FGlsCOgBlKqFx23mBohj86weu4E9o8fo2V98FU1vy7XkB5-2BEDRHCPMStg9B7b39xR5yZzVk929QclYnTxNsKac5WpbGQng9 AC8ofnodei5-2B-2Bgg7JEdRWsGg4rRb-2B3xxaNotyYeFhBNyHFGZe9mEjVc-2FUr03IwtkykATF6P3VZUbvQx-2Bmbq-2FVs2GgoqOpifnRhWJjlwBISGP25XPhyr7i-2FEduv0EDdlriUAu9UJ0QumN)

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ckaihatsu

2nd October 2016, 16:07

Hundreds march on Allina Headquarters in support of striking nurses

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/workers2.jpg

By staff

Minneapolis, MN - More than 200 union members and striking nurses rallied across from Abbot Northwestern hospital, Sept. 30, and then marched on the corporate headquarters of Allina Health to press the demand for a decent contract. The march was organized by the strike support committee called Workers United for Nurses.

More than 4000 nurses have been on strike since Sept. 5. A key issue is Allina’s insistence that the nurses make major concessions on health care.

“We are here to stand with stand with nurses. Your fight is fight. You are an inspiration to all of us,” said Cherrene Horazuk of Workers United for Nurses and president of AFSCME Local 3800.

Striking Minnesota Nurses Association members will vote Monday, Oct. 3 on a new contract agreement. The proposal was placed before MNA members without a recommendation from the MNA negotiation team. At the rally a number of striking nurses expressed opposition to the proposed agreement.

Above: Laurie Bahr, Cardiovascular ICU nurse at Abbott, urges a no vote on a proposed contract.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

3rd October 2016, 19:43

Demand Michael Kors' enforce their code of conduct! Please Share!

Dear Chris Kaihatsu,

I wrote you last week asking that you call Michael Kors' to urge the company to demand that one of their trucking vendors, Intermodal Bridge Transport (IBT), follow U.S. labor laws. Thanks to those of you that made a phone call (and if you didn’t get to it, it’s not too late to call [insert details]).

I am asking for your help by sharing this graphic on Facebook. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.214/_-TPCNZwSI-MxEifHXP0cA/h0/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiIvEHI-2F2KG5GdsRHLElbV6r60yJ03YRdy6C3HpMqSltq38DXBN-2FFdRTAhpZvkUiBWsx2iNdLrswD8kQAxVtUIhIz4Zzf0cbssgb l68Wgj0VXBtNgG-2BR9KC6n8f6VZ70xWoUmk20S0MubJlV2inEbjQKnTIDeo2fhx8-2F6gKXKFexnDlr87DpIDHh2BlcrP8lXpA3MqZDV22joq35mqPt M2JOPoIRGjXjViNpCy1fu87cUbFiJbCTHcvaMUOt8acjkw-2BxXTZveckinzpY5btPBHsCTOm96xeH9LMw8hFETgk8-2FzFmvWhwPLJgGco4Msa0-2FUbJODlgSiui-2BPEYLO8Qyz2VCHKIMcQr0qFo9v69wMDxzrdz8V349HMcXOUZU jRh1wWs7HDns3fLqU-2FrCwC6x81DXSh1urwFIxVFWmAb-2BtNDn2RR48ZhNoqKBWLQHgx8Sf36Y9dHRJtuMbkem2JKe9VwU g31P1f4qYuKVVqLrN2UJ15NieVDP071MHBPjjcJsBA-3D-3D) Can you share this today?

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/052/914/original/MK_Twitter.jpg

I am one of the truck drivers that hauls Michael Kors’ designer clothes from the docks to their warehouse. Michael Kors claims to have high ethical standards for its business partners, but Kors is turning a blind eye to wage theft, unsanitary conditions, and violations of our civil rights by their trucking partner, IBT.

On Sunday, my coworkers and I passed out leaflets at Kors’ Rodeo Drive store in Beverly Hills to bring awareness to these abuses. Customers were appalled by what they learned.

Help us get Michael Kors to enforce his Code of Conduct. Please share this graphic on Facebook (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.214/_-TPCNZwSI-MxEifHXP0cA/h2/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiIvEHI-2F2KG5GdsRHLElbV6r60yJ03YRdy6C3HpMqSltq38DXBN-2FFdRTAhpZvkUiBWsx2iNdLrswD8kQAxVtUIhIz4Zzf0cbssgb l68Wgj0VXBtNgG-2BR9KC6n8f6VZ70xWl2-2BP3y5bOyw27c4cMTGQPq-2F45r0-2BxbhZt79Ah2Vi2Xl9wGDntBdTfXQpRDyI8rheIeNl2N50owMT GtZc27wIn1Wj50-2BCCPtKGbaefptf1C5V7Y-2B8mnk2-2BLLan48PaKpx2NdWZRWrCoUd4iiE34OHIIo5ZzUY8lQbpinV4 OCH8iSkWGfligEDh8LG6SGyGR049e-2B1kTJMnkEnVoIbJ46pMwTQqisI7maGgpE96Up4ydEgvg51iXg Ho47MqZEDwUxPO56FATxNqVQ8mD-2BNouvWf-2F39Zcc3eFrEVT3TqPmtjxTCB4lQ-2FNci0Uga3ibNQcG4-2BaBkXCVmGVlNiUC4WDdsEHUHaweCQIbPf-2BojB-2BZFq-2Brv8l4zEsI-2BBEw6A2-2FOXQ7lPRHH2xgDaiNJsLMP4h7Ht0-3D) asking Michael Kors to stop hurting port truck drivers and our families.

Thanks,

Eddie Ossoy, Port Truck Driver
Intermodal Bridge Transport

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ckaihatsu

5th October 2016, 14:02

Nurses reject contract offer, strike continues

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By staff

Minneapolis, MN - A majority of the striking nurses represented by the Minnesota Nurses Association voted Oct. 3 to reject the latest contract by Allina Health. Nurses from Abbott Northwestern, Mercy, Phillips Eye Institute, United, and Unity hospitals will continue their open-ended Unfair Labor Practice strike.

The nurses’ negotiating team decided to bring Allina’s proposal, which they received at 6:30 p.m. on Sept. 29, to a member vote, but the team did not issue a recommendation on whether to vote yes or no.

“In order to get some sort of monetary safety net to protect nurses moving to Allina’s high-deductible health plans, they were asking us to give more away,” said Abbott Northwestern Hospital Registered Nurse and Negotiating Team Member Angela Becchetti, “The nurses saw through that.”

Nurses told Allina negotiators about the continued problems with staffing and proposed to free the charge nurse from a dedicated patient assignment. Allina responded with a staffing committee to look at the issue.

“The nurses felt that although some progress was made in negotiations with Allina it wasn’t enough progress,” Becchetti said. “Nurses felt that the proposal took more away from nurses than it offered. Nurses said they would end their affordable healthcare plans in the year 2020, but they haven’t been adequately compensated for it.”

Other facets of the Allina proposal included a full-time security guard in the emergency rooms, face-to-face workplace safety training, a staffing committee, retention bonus, and an HSA/HRA account.

The vote result means the strike will continue, and both sides will have to return to the bargaining table to hammer out a deal. There are no plans at this time when that could happen.

“If Allina felt that nurses would accept anything just to return to work in October and get our health insurance back, they were mistaken,” Becchetti said. “This vote should tell Allina that nurses are strong and willing to hold out for a contract that respects their sacrifice and their profession.”

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

6th October 2016, 13:34

Chicago Teachers Union prepared to strike again

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By Daniel Ginsberg

Chicago, IL - Reminiscent of four years ago, the streets of Chicago may again turn red as tens of thousands of Chicago teachers prepare to strike over a concessionary contract when negotiations end on Oct. 11.

Red, the color of the 28,000-strong Chicago Teachers Union (CTU), has to be Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s and Chicago Public Schools (CPS) CEO Forrest Claypool’s least favorite color. Emanuel and Claypool have an agenda of austerity and privatization, against a strong and unified teachers union that demands quality, well-staffed neighborhood schools.

90% of CTU teachers, dissatisfied with Claypool’s proposals, authorized the strike because teachers are demanding modest pay raises, no cuts to health care, strong pensions and adequately-staffed classrooms with full resources for the children, among other demands.

The city has always portrayed the cutbacks in the schools as economically necessary. Again, as in 2012, the strike will be both about defending teachers and students. CTU executive board member Sarah Chambers, a special education teacher at Saucedo School in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood, said, “When Rahm slashes special education and hurts our disabled students, that’s a choice, not a necessity. Laying off librarians until only one out of four schools have librarians is a choice, not a necessity. And Rahm choosing to pay his banker buddies over funding special education is a choice, not a necessity.”

Claypool and Emanuel, who have been making drastic budget cuts and closing dozens of schools, are pushing for a four-year contract that will reduce teacher wages and harm school conditions for the children.

When CTU struck in 2012, Chicagoans embraced them, and tens of thousands of supporters came out to support them, forcing Mayor Emmanuel and CPS to back down. The most recent polling by the Chicago Tribune has shown that 79% of African Americans, 77% of Latinos, and 76% of union households disapprove of Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s handling of education.

Governor Bruce Rauner, a billionaire out to destroy unions, has called for a takeover of CPS and wants CPS to declare bankruptcy. He’s made a special target of the teachers union. According to Chambers, “Rahm and Rauner are no longer the good friends they were when first elected, but the one thing they agree on is their desire to break the strength of the CTU.”

The Chicago Teachers Union has alerted workers everywhere that unions can fight and win, even against a mayor with White House connections and billionaire backing. CTU appears ready for this battle for both their members and their students.

To support CTU, sign up here to receive emails about actions you can take:

http://www.ctunet.com/action

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

6th October 2016, 13:45

Teamsters United rallies members against Hoffa Jr.'s concessions

By Daniel Ginsberg

Chicago, IL - Workers fighting back against economic inequality have something to be hopeful about. One of the largest and most powerful unions in the country, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, will begin mailing ballots early October for members to decide the next general president. Those fighting against concessions to employers and looking for a stronger worker movement are uniting behind Fred Zuckerman and the Teamsters United slate, hoping to unseat long-standing General President James P. Hoffa, Jr.

"I'm supporting Teamsters United because I want our leadership to fight for our members and not the company's interests," said Lena Molina, a nine-year UPS worker from Teamsters Local 63 in California.

The Teamsters have been under the leadership of General President James P. Hoffa, Jr. for 17 years. The son of Jimmy Hoffa, Sr. who ran the Teamsters from 1958 to 1971, Hoffa Jr. has overseen a rise in concessions to employers, the weakening of pensions and a decline in union democracy.

“Teamsters are uniting because of Hoffa’s 17 years of failed leadership. Teamsters are fed up with the corruption and betrayal,” Fred Zuckerman told Fight Back!. “This has resulted in contract concessions, losing our standard of living and for hundreds of thousands of Teamsters losing their pensions. Teamsters are looking for leadership that will stand with them, not with the employers.”

Fred Zuckerman, Hoffa Jr.'s challenger, is the president of Teamsters Local 89, one of the largest Teamster locals. Zuckerman has served the union at every level and rose to national prominence by opposing Hoffa's concessionary contract to UPS and by speaking out against Hoffa's lack of response to such things as the pension crisis and subcontracting.

UPS feeder drivers are in a real struggle to stop the company from undermining their work by using cheaper, nonunion subcontractors.

Andrew May, a feeder driver out of Teamsters Local 344 explained why he favors Zuckerman.

"I am supporting Zuckerman because we need a leader who has fought subcontracting and is willing to fight for stronger language in our contract. Zuckerman fought subcontracting at Holland and was in process of fighting it in UPS before Hoffa forced the contract onto the members."

While some of the latest news in the Teamsters has been the dramatic cuts to 400,000 Teamsters in the Central States Pension Fund, fresh on the minds of UPS workers has been the concessionary contract Hoffa handed UPS at a time when UPS was making record profits.

Mark Timlin, a UPS package driver and leader of the Vote No movement at UPS, decided to get involved with the Teamsters United campaign. He pointed out that Hoffa Jr. was never a worker and doesn't understand worker issues.

"Hoffa Jr. was once a corporate lawyer while Fred Zuckerman came up from the rank and file and listens and understands Teamsters. Zuckerman and his Teamsters United slate will put an end to contracts being negotiated on corporate terms," Timlin commented.

Part-time Teamsters are also campaigning for the Teamsters United slate hoping for more full-time jobs and better working conditions in the warehouses.

"I want to know that when I organize on the shop floor that my union will listen to us. But instead we have this culture brought by Hoffa to accept the conditions we work under and discourage change," said Gabriella Anderson, a part-time UPS worker in Utah.

The campaign is heating up as Teamsters from around the country are organizing to stop Hoffa's concessions. In a time of growing economic uncertainty and disparity, Fred Zuckerman and the Teamsters United slate will bring a new era that Teamsters can be proud of and will also bring a significant contribution to the entire working class in their fight against corporate greed.

"Jimmy Hoffa, Jr. has been running this union since 1999, the entire time I've been working at UPS," said Benjamin Cline, a ten-year Teamster volunteering for the Teamsters United campaign. "I continue to watch companies like UPS reach record profits year after year while our contracts have gotten worse. We want is a leadership with as much fight as the members. This should be inspiring for all workers, not just Teamsters.”

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

11th October 2016, 14:47

Harvard workers revive the strike as students join picket lines

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By staff

Boston, MA - Harvard, the world’s wealthiest university, saw its first workers’ strike in over 30 years this week as Harvard University Dining Service (HUDS). Food service workers, members of UNITE HERE Local 26 took to the picket lines on Oct. 5. Workers were in contract negotiations with the Harvard administration since the end of May. The administration is refusing to budge on key workers’ demands including equitable healthcare, year-round employment, and a racial justice task force to promote equality at work.

Students from across the Harvard system are showing their support for the strike by issuing statements of solidarity, sharing meals with striking workers, and most importantly, reinforcing the picket lines. Almost 3000 students signed a petition supporting the HUDS workers strike, and now over 400 are pledged to stand on picket lines until worker’ demands are met.

A large coalition of student organizations issued joint declarations of support for the strike. Just this week, the Harvard chapter of the National Lawyers Guild and Reclaim Harvard Law released a co-authored, bilingual statement exposing that African American, Latino, Haitian and other oppressed nationalities and women are often given the lowest paying jobs at the law school and rarely receive promotions.

Undergraduate students have also held ‘dine-ins’ with the HUDS workers. Students and workers then share a meal and discuss the HUDS struggle and the experiences of Harvard’s workers.

Last week on Sept. 30, students and workers held a joint rally building towards the strike, followed by a worker speak-out in the main lounge of Harvard Law School. In response to the widespread student support for the HUDS strike, the Harvard Law School administration was forced to shut down law school cafeterias, rather than bringing in scabs to break the strike.

“Harvard has a long history of pitting its own students against workers. One president of the university, Abbott Lowell, owned a steel mill north of campus. The steel workers at the mill joined the famous Bread and Roses Strike of 1912 in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Harvard President Lowell offered students a passing grade on their mid-term exams if they would agree to reinforce the Massachusetts State Militia in harassing the workers and breaking the picket line,” explained Harvard Law student Collin Poirot during an Oct. 6 student-worker solidarity rally.

Poirot finished his speech, “These students traded in their solidarity and support for working-class people in exchange for good grades and upward mobility. We will never make that mistake again.”

While solidarity with the Harvard workers continues to grow on campus, it is apparent that the Harvard administration is negotiating on behalf of the financial elites who control the Harvard Corporation.

The HUDS workers are winning and participation is increasing with the Harvard Union of Clerical and Technical Workers (HUCTW), the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and other workers joining them. On Oct. 7, UNITE HERE Local 26 members from hotels and universities across the city of Boston rallied with Harvard workers.

The HUDS workers are fierce in their commitment to winning this campaign. It is likely that solidarity with Harvard workers will spread to other campuses and cities in coming weeks, showing that reviving the strike is a good way to win.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

11th October 2016, 15:48

BREAKING: Contractors Sue to Block Executive Order!

Lobbyists representing big federal contractors filed a lawsuit to block implementation of President Obama’s Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order.

The Executive Order – set to go into effect on October 25, 2016 – protects low-wage workers on federal contracts from wage theft and other labor law violations. If federal contractors prevail, millions of workers will continue to be victimized by unscrupulous contractors.

TAKE ACTION: Tell Contractors to Stop Blocking Obama’s Executive Order to Stop Wage Theft on Federal Contracts! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6AA/ni0YAA/t.21c/S1unZKIlSx6NZOORKW6jlA/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3DLD6x-2F-2BfhPhurJqxvr0i5U9aaNklp5WRNrltmz4ea1jY-2Fpd2cGpxcuHgGUN-2BXjzPTQdzHC2wt6g5x-2BVS3-2FKkhfU2Zn1xV7I4JEUusHpeKytnxJL0qsXIup-2FU6pMUaKQ3bstQP5OinP2hbb5140KGd7Ji5r-2Bcnac-2BddDmbEiKZWi5-2BwfPImJSFBXCtM-2FtqfTU3OJbep5S1IfisL3HO6y3ESLFSUqtxkHqfA-2B6rIoqXyMwn7tB6GJv9wBImhGHN3-2BOnj1w-2F9JxaLG4h739AHxYzUsYR-2BBnwekn-2FIUqBjZ9yaqeJkNja37CNo9dYs2-2BLjENGedi-2BleV2804HpP-2FWUA56hgt-2BVL0ipkjhsjBxXMDvCduPBVxdlK420IkmouvN0cGuY0jrx2r6 u-2FMXGMfV8Gl-2Fn)

Read below about why the Executive Order is important...

President's Order Protects Workers from 'Outlaw Contractors'

By Professor Gordon Lafer

“ … Lobbyists claim that the U.S. procurement system already has enough safeguards in place to protect workers from unscrupulous contractors.

The facts show the opposite. In fact, the largest federal contractor at the U.S. Capitol itself has been breaking the law literally under their noses of our elected officials.

Over the past year, Good Jobs Nation — a group representing 2 million low-wage employees of federal contractors — filed multiple legal complaints on behalf of cooks and cleaners at the Senate and Capitol dining halls, aiming to recover stolen wages and stop illegal retaliation for exercising their right to organize a union.

Contract “outlaws” are not, of course, limited to Capitol Hill.

Since 2013, Good Jobs Nation has filed more than 30 legal complaints on behalf of 1500 workers documenting systemic wage theft, misclassification, and other labor law violations at the Pentagon, the Ronald Reagan Building the Smithsonian Museums, and other federal offices in Washington, D.C.

While these workers serve senators, members of Congress, and agency staff, their employers have stolen an estimated $5 million dollars from employee paychecks, and have repeatedly violated health and safety regulations and labor law, according to legal complaints filed by Good Jobs Nation.”

TAKE ACTION: Tell Contractors to Stop Blocking Obama’s Executive Order to Stop Wage Theft on Federal Contracts! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6AA/ni0YAA/t.21c/S1unZKIlSx6NZOORKW6jlA/h9/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3DLD6x-2F-2BfhPhurJqxvr0i5U9aaNklp5WRNrltmz4ea1jY-2Fpd2cGpxcuHgGUN-2BXjzPRLv78e72r-2BuDhbV-2FhUuJum03G4xXE2MzWx3D-2ByrbrijKH4iMenhs0m5auxbI-2F3zp-2FVfLaTyImk6wGD-2FlMby8HyOO9AXH-2Bzul8xaZ3iqHzbX8CWK-2FrMNCNiZiBuwHtJp826r6MdDQDw-2FWi9JC6kO1lJGoJnLlfy0x2YAgY7v-2Fe2HAHooR24L35p67AILLW9B7HJbm5j3oSUDozyzw5t-2FGu7RXM8R5Oh0s7399izs7MFJ-2ByvkUh6Ovu4HrXMX-2FDiNB9Q4vcSuxwuHFUn7ve5QaHiwThBv7SeCF3pziIwfAIMj3 cTbhMHxl2vvqEVwmALL7m9b6qtv3P4VfoiRb4MEjpP)

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ckaihatsu

13th October 2016, 13:43

Oct 14 forum: Striking Harvard U Dining Service Workers Speak!

Please share widely! facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/1623983967899566/

http://www.iacboston.org/harvardstrikeforum.jpg

Harvard U. strike! Trying to survive capitalism

By Phebe Eckfeldt
Cambridge, Mass.

It was 5 a.m. on Oct. 5 and Harvard University Dining Services workers were already marching on a strike picket line, rather than serving up eggs and bacon on a cafeteria breakfast line. The workers, many of them immigrants, half of them people of color, are going toe-to-toe with an elite Ivy League university with a $37.6 billion endowment.

The 750 rank-and-file members of UNITE HERE Local 26 are striking because Harvard has refused to back down from its “take-away” cuts to workers’ retirement and health benefits.

The university has also refused to honor a previous HUDS contract agreement guaranteeing workers a $35,000 minimum yearly wage. Nearly half are earning less than that now. According to the MIT Living Wage Calculator, even that salary is listed as not adequate to support more than a one-person household in Boston. (STAT.com)

In addition, HUDS workers are fighting for the right to establish a task force to combat racism in the kitchens, stop management bias against hiring formerly incarcerated people and permit immigrant workers to take leaves of up to a year with job security.

‘We aren’t budging!’

By midmorning, thousands of workers from 20 dining halls and 40 picket lines, along with supporters, converged and marched into Harvard Square chanting, “Hey, Harvard, you can’t hide! We can see your greedy side!”

The next day, Oct. 6, close to a thousand workers and allies marched again, this time through Harvard Yard in a half-mile trek, banging drums and roaring chants so that even the remotest realms of Harvard’s ivory towers shook with the unstoppable surge. They were joined by Massachusetts AFL-CIO President Steven Tolman. On Oct. 8, HUDS workers and supporters marched and rallied again at the Harvard/Cornell football game.

Local 26 Chief Steward Ed Childs told Workers World, “We aren’t budging!” on demands protecting the minimum yearly wage, retirement and health benefits. He stressed that increased health care premiums and higher co-pays would be particularly devastating for the dining hall workers, who get laid off three months every summer, but as “seasonal educational workers” are not allowed to collect unemployment insurance.

Childs emphasized that the privatized health care system was in failure mode when a multibillion-dollar institution refuses to supply adequate and affordable health care to its workers.

At one of the rallies, a HUDS worker with Type 2 diabetes said she has a hard time, even now, affording her insulin and testing supplies. If her insurance goes up, she could suffer kidney failure or a heart attack without needed medications.

Harvard Medical School students backed up the workers In a StatNews op-ed, saying the university’s attack on workers’ health insurance is a matter of life and death: “As physicians in training, we cannot stand by as the world’s richest university forces its most vulnerable employees to choose between dinner and a doctor’s visit.”

A member of the Racial Justice Coalition at Harvard Medical School, Darshali Vyas, told the press, “We now also know that more than half of HUDS workers identify as people of color -- a level of diversity not reflected elsewhere at the University -- and that many of these workers represent minority and immigrant families living in Boston. Protecting their access to affordable health-care coverage is intimately tied to racial justice.”

“The cuts proposed by Harvard are anti-LGBTQ,” asserted Ted Waechter in his article, “The HUDS Strike Is So Gay,” in the student Crimson newspaper. He explained: “The proposed co-pay increases would devastate queer and trans workers in particular. When we make healthcare unaffordable, we keep queer and trans people from accessing gender-affirming treatments, like hormone therapy and gender-confirmation surgery.”

Local 26 HUDS workers fought for and won one of the country’s first sexual orientation nondiscrimination provisions, and are currently fighting for provisions based on gender identity.

HUDScoalition battles corporate power

Workers at Harvard are up against an “education” corporation that is part of big business profit making and the 1%, in an interlocking relationship with the military-industrial complex and big banks like Goldman-Sachs, Bank of America and Citigroup. The governing body of the university is literally Harvard Corporation -- “the oldest corporation in the Western Hemisphere,” dating back to the mid-17th century. (harvard.edu)

To do battle with this behemoth, the rank-and-file dining hall workers have put together a town-gown-community coalition that is a powerful model for how to win. Coalition members endorsing and organizing for the strike include the undergraduate Harvard School of Public Health, the Student Labor Action Movement, the Undergraduate Council and the Editorial Board of the famed student newspaper, the Crimson. Faculty and nonunion employees are supporting the strike, as they’re also having their health benefits cut.

Unity also comes from Harvard Law School students, who protested university racism by occupying their own college in February. Both the Cambridge City Council and the Boston Homeless Solidarity Committee have endorsed the strike.

And the dining hall workers have built wide solidarity over many years, from their opposition to South African apartheid to their support for Indigenous and Palestinian struggles.

Dedicated union solidarity comes from the “old-style” militant Boston School Bus Drivers Union, Steelworkers Local 8751; the custodians of Service Employees Local 32 B-J; and the IWW “Wobbly” Cambridge local. Teamsters Local 25 has pledged to honor the picket line and refuse to pick up trash or make freight and equipment deliveries.

This strike forcefully raises the class question: How can workers survive a capitalism that will not pay them a wage that they and their families can survive on, and that will not provide adequate health care -- a matter of life or death?

In socialist Cuba, medical care is completely free to all citizens and has no links to profit. In Cuba there is, in fact, no need for “health insurance” or for having to pay out money monthly to have a safety net against for-profit medical or Big Pharma bills.

Harvard University is rich enough to provide affordable health care to all its workers, but it will not do so without a fight. It will not because, like Verizon or Veolia or any other capitalist corporation, it needs profits to survive. Paying health care or other benefits to workers is not profitable. As capitalism decays, corporations and banks are employing fewer workers to do more work at less wages with minimal or no benefits.

HUDS workers have drawn the line.

The strike by the Harvard dining hall workers in their struggle for health care, for adequate pay, for what they need to survive is a new heroic battle in the centuries-old struggle of workers to take back our lives and our work.

Steve Gillis, Martha Grevatt, Milt Neidenberg, Minnie Bruce Pratt and Gerry Scoppettuolo contributed to this article.

http://www.iacboston.org/mmllstatementonharvardstrike.jpg

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ckaihatsu

15th October 2016, 14:49

Tell Lobbyists: Stop Defending Wage Theft in Federal Contracts

Website: www.progressivecongress.org

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ProgressiveCongress

Twitter: www.twitter.com/ProgCongress

Dear Chris,

Stealing wages and denying workers fair pay are some of the worst forms of labor rights abuse. (http://salsa4.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=R1e5OMRnJ0iSoL%2FE1IoWZfp7JmDlZZ8x)

Unfortunately, wage theft at the Senate, the Pentagon and other national landmarks has become a huge problem.

President Barack Obama recently signed the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order (http://salsa4.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=a9IUMQYldchhcXFCG5ta1w0TwoLYfb09) to stop wage theft and other legal violations on federal contracts. That's great news for workers, and apparently terrible news for lobbyists and CEOs who dread paying federal contract workers a fair wage.

Now, lobbyists for powerful federal contractors have filed a lawsuit to block the Executive Order from being implemented. Tell lobbyists to stop defending wage theft. (http://salsa4.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=ZUtzgKxKZSukoEXEr6mIXg0TwoLYfb09)

http://salsa4.salsalabs.com/o/50945/images/Stop%20Wage%20Theft(2).jpg

Our friends at Good Jobs Nation have been doing incredible work to protect employees from discrimination and ensure that they are treated fairly. After pressure from Good Jobs Nation and other labor rights advocates, President Obama has signed an executive order that includes comprehensive protections for federal contract workers that have not existed. This not only ensures the President's good jobs legacy, but ensures that federal contract workers have the same labor rights as other workers and cannot be taken advantage of.

Tell lobbyists: Federal contract workers deserve fair pay and fair working conditions. Stop trying to get away with wage theft. (http://salsa4.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=lfghMzTrq1706giV8iL1Yg0TwoLYfb09)

http://salsa4.salsalabs.com/o/50945/images/Wage_Theft_Workers.jpg
Above: Workers protesting wage theft.

Thank you for helping us to fight for good jobs for all workers.

In Solidarity,

The Progressive Congress Action Fund Team

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ckaihatsu

17th October 2016, 14:47

IUF News

Newly leaked TISA texts expose the scope of the corporate power grab (http://www.iuf.org/w/?q=node/5182)

Posted: 14 Oct 2016 05:56 AM PDT

Newly published leaked documents (https://wikileaks.org/tisa/#October%2014,%202016%20Publication) from the top secret Trade in Services (TISA) negotiations reveal the wide scope of the deregulatory agenda and attack on democratic governance at the heart of the negotiations.

You are subscribed to email updates from IUF News.
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ckaihatsu

22nd October 2016, 13:09

Harvard has $35 billion. Campus workers want $35,000.

Dear Chris

I go to the richest university on the planet, but that hasn’t stopped our administration from trying to make healthcare unaffordable for its dining hall workers. Harvard University Dining Service workers, members of Unite Here Local 26 have been on strike for 17 days to demand fair working conditions. Harvard has an endowment of over $35 billion, and workers on my campus are asking for an income of just $35,000 and no price hikes on health insurance.

Will you support striking Harvard workers and tell President Faust to show them the respect they deserve? (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5QA/ni0YAA/t.21m/qlEkthYRSreHCHsT9rMCLg/h0/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHNgSL-2FZt9z-2BdvBfC9dRNcquwY-2FBqGxyCk0V1vIrkEwFWioON9ziOOLD9QWOX2nduV5vhhuBkad 7dxrOwwXclhZXOmQy-2BNiHB50QevmWd73D6-2BKkWVqR8pm87w9lg9lCf0qotkSbzuOt6m-2FTbZvKfQYxIYgOnn0768842NDJEPioKivNV5hpiITNwh8CvDH 65PLAumXMoHERWmsDzuRht0ESxEEuxsMV4ptSSCd0Zo1BWkKtt Y3YT201uevXgJOVoR8FFCKO2S5vPLfIUGkGUfv-2Fzr3aJaRGe4RJpI-2BLZj6NrsURnk989RwZaU00EziUuHk6SAA2IfBqnDd5coXbw2q juGxmub4BFus-2B9q-2FjcBAdvA-3D-3D)

Student Labor Action Movement, USAS Local 5 is mobilizing students in solidarity with workers to fight back against these attacks. We’re winning huge support already. Half of the undergraduate student body has signed a petition in support of worker demands; the Boston and Cambridge City Councils have joined the Harvard Undergraduate Council in endorsing the strike; and on Monday hundreds of students walked out of class to demonstrate to the administration that workers are an integral part of the Harvard community and we will not tolerate exploitation on our campus. The Harvard Corporation is still hiding behind its greed. We need your help. Tell President Faust to end the strike and offer affordable health care and a sustainable income for Harvard workers. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5QA/ni0YAA/t.21m/qlEkthYRSreHCHsT9rMCLg/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHNgSL-2FZt9z-2BdvBfC9dRNcquwY-2FBqGxyCk0V1vIrkEwFWgqt2jc20tG-2BcLtOLH5MHzHWNTQbelMuhmklQi7zxCg-2BYRctsRjsgh4lxtsyAoYfEhb1Gy9MXDMNMO9tmBjMjqVy5ZX7 cm1b1juKnnUrQxeoKe1W3UxMMEmTfL66oYm3qxrp-2FalO-2FRK3PR34rfUcGhvYigbcv6-2BUW0NGUXSqXpMAFCrkrRP-2F7TPkvpmfCM-2BzO-2B2ibULF-2FHF6jLNjo78ewrRQ08ElG1MaxLorJ73hrGLeEeh-2FcBBGyOEl-2BSqoOZhA3r6JjxcehTLP8tDFdBTAQZ55G9WDNUFXQT0O1KdoY pHNGu64lfheNuu442QQ-2BzJ79Q-3D-3D)

If you are able, please support the Harvard Dining Hall workers’ Strike Assistance Fund (http://tinyurl.com/harvardstrikefund?link_id=2&can_id=3cdf51df4724d7ebfd54a77c2672a397&source=email-harvard-has-35-billion-campus-workers-want-35000&email_referrer=harvard-has-35-billion-campus-workers-want-35000&email_subject=harvard-has-35-billion-campus-workers-want-35000).

We know that when students and workers unite, we’re unstoppable! We’ll be in the streets until dining hall workers get the income and benefits they deserve.

In solidarity,

Tim Shea

Harvard SLAM, USAS Local 5

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/056/660/original/Harvard_Strike.png

United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org
Organizing for Student and Worker Power
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ckaihatsu

25th October 2016, 13:58

Riviera stagehands waiting for contract / Labor Beat video

JAM Productions Stalls on Contract for Riviera Stagehands

On YouTube at: https://youtu.be/DApDAIWZRXM

DApDAIWZRXM

On October 20, 2016 Stagehands Local 2 (IATSE) and friends held a “trick-or-treat” protest in front of the Chicago offices of JAM Productions, demanding that JAM give the workers the union contract they are entitled to after winning a union election at the Riviera theater. Reverend C.J. Hawking from Arise Chicago emceed the rally. A small band made up of members of the Chicago Federation of Musicians (Local 10-208) performed lively tunes. Robert Reiter, Jr., Secretary-Treasurer of the Chicago Federation of Labor, talked about the benefits of having unions, and Stagehands Business Manager Craig Carlson explained the Unfair Labor Practices that Local 2 filed against JAM Productions.

In the Halloween spirit, a number of workers wore masks and costumes, and watched Reverend John Thomas and Father Larry Dowling go up to the 2nd floor offices to try to meet with JAM Productions and deliver a letter. But, as the video shows, they got the door slammed in their faces. No treat, just a rude trick. Length: 11:10

https://s14.postimg.org/6bical6dd/161020_Stagehands_Local_2_IATSE_Jam_Productions.jp g (https://postimg.org/image/us0i5273x/)
Two clergy members knock on JAM’s door to deliver letter. But JAM called the cops. Photo: Labor Beat

Contribute today to the Labor Beat (Committee for Labor Access) fund drive. Info at:
http://goo.gl/xV4ojb

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". On Chicago CAN TV Channel 19, Thursdays 9:30 pm; Fridays 4:30 pm. Labor Beat has regular cable slots in Chicago, Evanston, Rockford, Urbana, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Princeton, NJ; and Rochester, NY.

UPDATE. Labor Beat adds a new city. We welcome Cambridge, MA to our list of cities (7) where we are on cable-tv as a series.

ckaihatsu

26th October 2016, 14:47

Harvard strike escalates as students occupy negotiations office

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/HARVARDPIG.JPG

By staff

Cambridge, MA – Oct. 24 marks day 20 of the Harvard University Dining Service (HUDS) workers’ strike. The HUDS union, UNITE HERE Local 26, has been negotiating since May of this year with management. Harvard bosses refuse to budge on two key demands: fair healthcare and sustainable salaries for all full-time employees.

Harvard’s students and workers are organizing together to put pressure on Harvard administrators.

“There are two competing visions for the future of the Harvard community; a school that runs like a corporation and puts profit over people, or one that teaches solidarity and is controlled by the working-class people who keep this place running,” said Daniel Espo, a second-year student at Harvard Law School.

Workers sent a loud message earlier in the struggle by focusing on the financial elites who rule over the Harvard Corporation. Local 26 coordinated with union locals across the country to send worker solidarity delegations to the corporate offices of each of the 12 fellows of the Harvard Corporation.

Following this strategy of targeted disruption, students at Harvard organized phone bank events. Students called the Harvard Fellows on their personal and work phone numbers, leaving messages to express their outrage at the poor treatment given the people who prepare and serve their meals. One fellow, William Lee, was visited multiple times at his office in downtown Boston, first by workers and then by students. Students also sent hundreds of signed postcards to Harvard Fellows demanding they give HUDS a decent contract.

On Saturday, Oct. 22, Teamsters, SEIU and other unions joined HUDS workers in a march of over a thousand. The rally marched through rain and heavy wind before gathering on the front steps of the Cambridge City Hall. Vice Mayor Marc McGovern came out and spoke in solidarity.

On Oct. 24, Harvard students escalated their tactics. 400 students walked out of their classrooms and into the streets. The students marched to 124 Mount Auburn Street, where negotiations are held. Hundreds of students packed the building lobby, with the crowd erupting into chants, “When Harvard workers are under attack, what do we do? Stand up, fight back!”

Harvard negotiators were peeking out of their office windows to get a better look at the crowd. After 15 minutes of chanting, students decided to launch a spontaneous sit-in. The students chose not to leave the building lobby until Harvard negotiators gave the union a new offer. To keep spirits high, students sang songs including Solidarity Forever and We Shall Overcome.

“The only way to make sure the strike succeeds is to continue this kind of direct action that confronts the financial elites at the top of the ladder,” said second-year law student Collin Poirot.

Poirot continued, “Right now the administration thinks it can handle the strike without causing too much disruption. Our job is to amplify the strike by creating new crises that the Administration can’t handle.”

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

26th October 2016, 14:58

WITH link: ULP Strike against Michael Foods in Lansing, IL - Labor Beat video

ULP Strike against Michael Foods

On YouTube at: https://youtu.be/r0juV0UaBn8

r0juV0UaBn8

Lansing, IL - Oct. 25, 2016. Seventy workers last week went on an unfair labor practices strike at an egg processing plant owned by Michael Foods, Inc. They are organized by UFCW Local 881, and the company is now trying to force employees to train workers who will then end up becoming their replacements after planned layoffs. Arise Chicago has also begun to build support for the predominantly Spanish-speaking workforce.

Jorge Mujica of Arise Chicago interviewed and translated two workers at the plant. Griselda Santana Albores told him “I walked out because of unfair treatment on the part of the company. They told us we would be fired in a short lapse of time and that’s incredibly unfair to be told in two weeks you’re going to be out of a job. There are people here who are elderly, and we all have dependents, I have my kids, and I have to support my parents in Mexico.” She also described the sexual harassment women got from management when ask to take restroom breaks. Length - 7:21

https://s16.postimg.org/ioxfck79h/161025_Griselda_Santana_Albores_with_Jorge_Mujic.j pg (https://postimg.org/image/w5udvfhkx/)
Griselda Santana Albores, striking worker at Michael Foods, with Jorge Mujica. Photo: David Vance / Labor Beat

Contribute today to the Labor Beat (Committee for Labor Access) fund drive. Info at:
http://goo.gl/xV4ojb

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". On Chicago CAN TV Channel 19, Thursdays 9:30 pm; Fridays 4:30 pm. Labor Beat has regular cable slots in Chicago, Evanston, Rockford, Urbana, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Princeton, NJ; Rochester, NY; and Cambridge, MA (new).

UPDATE. Labor Beat welcomes Cambridge, MA to our list of cities (7) where we are on cable-tv as a series. Dining hall workers at Harvard have been on strike and students have gone out in support. Recently the Teamsters donated $10,000 to the workers. This is an important time for Labor Beat to start pro-union cable-tv in that town.

ckaihatsu

27th October 2016, 14:51

Huge victory in Harvard dining hall workers strike
“We accomplished everything”

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/strikeharvard.jpg

By staff

Cambridge, MA - Harvard University dining hall workers will end their strike tomorrow morning, Oct. 27, and return to work after reaching an agreement with the university that meets all of their demands. Harvard dining hall workers are reviewing and voting to ratify the contract agreement through 5 p.m. today, when this decision will become official.

Harvard dining hall workers went on strike Oct. 5 to win affordable health care and sustainable annual incomes. While the world watched, the lowest-paid workers on campus stood up to the richest university in the world. Through a strike of 22 days, this group of food service workers led a national conversation that ultimately forced one of the most powerful educational institutions to concede.

Students, faculty and alumni supported the strike.

A statement from UNITE HERE Local 26 gave the highlights of the strikes accomplishments, stating it is, “A five-year agreement that meets all our goals:

No health care costs will be shifted onto our members. Our health care plan will not change for two years. In 2019 Harvard will institute co-pay increases but will pay them for our members. Additionally, our premiums will go down.

We achieved a sustainable annual income of $35,000. In recognition of workers’ needs for sustainable income, Harvard is offering additional compensation in three installments during the summer. It will begin at $2400 in 2017 and rise to $3000 in 2020.

Retroactive wage increases on par with other unionized workers on campus of more than 2.5% a year.

Diversity and Equality Committee to address concerns regarding diversity and equal treatment of Harvard dining hall employees.

Benefits for Strikers: Harvard will cover the costs of all deductions for strikers for the duration of the strike; including medical insurance, parking, car and home insurance, and T pass deductions.”

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

- - - Updated - - -

I'm on strike & I need your help!

Dear Chris,

My coworkers and I are on STRIKE to STOP wage theft and misclassification in Michael Kors’ supply chain. Intermodal Bridge Transport, my employer and a supplier of Michael Kors, is violating U.S. labor laws and Michael Kors’ own Code of Conduct.

CALL Michael Kors RIGHT NOW: 212-201-8100, press 0 and leave a message that port drivers and warehouse workers are on STRIKE & demand that the company stop doing business with lawbreaking trucking company Intermodal Bridge Transport.

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/057/532/original/Call_MK.jpg

My name is Jose Ortiz and I’m one of the port truck drivers that makes sure these products arrive on time in good condition. And I’m angry that Michael Kors doesn’t require more from the companies that they do business with to ensure that my job is safe and secure. Instead, my coworkers and I are misclassified port truck drivers. Even more, we experience wage theft and even the National Labor Relations Board has found merit to our charges of misclassification and unfair treatment.

Can you call Michael Kors today at 212-201-8100, press 0 and tell them to implement their Code of Conduct on companies like Intermodal Bridge Transport?

I thank you deeply for your support.

Sincerely,
Jose Ortiz
Port Truck Driver
Intermodal Bridge Transport

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ckaihatsu

28th October 2016, 13:33

POLITICO

Good Jobs Nation Launches National Wage Theft Hotline [1-844-PAY-FAIR] & Defense Contract Workers Strike at Los Angeles Port as Texas Court Temporarily Halts Obama Effort to Crack-down on Labor Law Violators. Read more …

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/057/588/original/Port_Strike.jpg

Workers on Strike at the Port of Los Angeles/Long Beach.
By Marianne Levine

Worker advocates blasted a Texas court for issuing a preliminary injunction against final regulations that require companies to disclose previous labor law violations whenever they bid on a large federal contract.

The regulations, which implement a President Obama's Fair Pay & Safe Workplaces Executive Order (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2wA/ni0YAA/t.21s/R8WyMA7tR_K89Mg7bySs1Q/h0/CC2nagnGk893aYIWmEhkhl6P8nCihUFzkZNsMFt-2BF4seD76KDOJaW0Z-2F1pOnDZHX-2FemVeFDeq628u1hum4GnOf9o8nUJ7-2Byc0p9tYNRal-2FAPfHwltSsM-2BN3yyeAkDB48KodGLQWAkuJjhFEp6JbSQT4mwFTU5JJcb6YL6 RopCpMKK-2FQQJN9GLx-2Bv0gvKYrZb5GSPPhxlbrrz0LX2sJ9pLrSXPy6VTnj5lKxxKbP seezJaTOxQqc6I1bqUHmJLg280sggjQuo-2BOToUNmB-2FpNCwqXHt-2Fe4q0hl8ynt3UefFoM-3D), were set to take effect on October 25.

Joseph Geevarghese, director of Good Jobs Nation (http://www.goodjobsnation.org/?link_id=1&can_id=3cdf51df4724d7ebfd54a77c2672a397&source=email-politico&email_referrer=politico&email_subject=politico), a labor group, said that "historically, courts have deferred to the president's power to ensure taxpayer dollars are spent on responsible contractors who follow federal laws." He added that "if the courts respect precedent, the lawsuit will ultimately fail."

Christine Owens, executive director at the National Employment Law Project, said the ruling "merely temporarily delays the full implementation of the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order."

Good Jobs Nation, anticipating the eventual implementation of the order, used the occasion to launch a national wage theft hotline (http://www.goodjobsnation.org/?link_id=2&can_id=3cdf51df4724d7ebfd54a77c2672a397&source=email-politico&email_referrer=politico&email_subject=politico) for workers employed by federal contractors. Paco Fabian, spokesman for the group, explained to Politico that workers may register their legal complaints at 1-844-PAY-FAIR (http://www.goodjobsnation.org/?link_id=3&can_id=3cdf51df4724d7ebfd54a77c2672a397&source=email-politico&email_referrer=politico&email_subject=politico).

The hotline launch comes on the same day that port truck drivers in California went on strike (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2wA/ni0YAA/t.21s/R8WyMA7tR_K89Mg7bySs1Q/h1/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiIvEHI-2F2KG5GdsRHLElbV6rViTKvCZxlApUsNVXhIb5knDj5uQXwi2-2F7fHQibafDjtS3W40rQNIsl4BrIlKGKxcw2C7d4Fnph1KdIza 14a1kgA4VN-2F-2FBiNNW4RkI6fg95l7pkjygMg-2FSrlQBFKlsriWbuksWfKrnKKsotrsjtFjGAlRpSfB4GhXypSH h6RgV36-2FUs5wRHUZuT29PBLK3GhM-3D). The drivers, who work for California Cartage, a federal contractor, allege that they are misclassified as independent contractors.

https://actionnetwork.org/user_files/user_files/000/009/198/original/Stock_FB_Link_Image.png (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2wA/ni0YAA/t.21s/R8WyMA7tR_K89Mg7bySs1Q/h2/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiARN-2B1-2Beb-2FW8CxU-2BFea55laG2-2FgPYNyxFpe8tOvKZkEjvou9VvEFg71yITGIr-2BmNPpDY-2FLNfXb9cB7N8nySstRow18wZLQW4d-2B1lZ-2B0VwpysuMHWFMKeHZQQszqU-2FIe8CK-2FlFjor-2B09BBbHIdriy5o6L-2F0KVt9X4yc01nZSjiZbDskqTwxpMHmrYYygiPfqSJQ-3D-3D)

https://actionnetwork.org/user_files/user_files/000/009/199/original/Stock_Twitter_Link_Image.jpg (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2wA/ni0YAA/t.21s/R8WyMA7tR_K89Mg7bySs1Q/h3/VE2atosPJwyp5yA4oN-2FSagLp2JjqM783ba-2BatsWCs7btj4xkp14YltvP-2F2HZEO7qLL2XjTfK2I6MeO-2FhXV77pQgbQu0dnsJYEpa797CLX0yvkVXK-2F3khcgGH9Dy5ZoODPHwbVLaHhGPOzCYKArZfRnX2B9PMRY4Dq JM0eWdSsGVwcjh5u1p-2Bo08qgBUeW51hx8PMt3tE9clxOWHfs6k0CQ-3D-3D)

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ckaihatsu

29th October 2016, 13:41

Update on the International Campaign in Solidarity with the South African Students

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

Please find attached Special Issue (No. 15) of InfoInter devoted to the international campaign in solidarity with the South African students. InfoInter is the weekly newsletter building the Mumbai Open World Conference Against War, Exploitation and Precarious Labour (Nov. 18-20, 2016).

We are also attaching a very significant statement from AFT 2121 in solidarity with the striking students in South Africa. (This statement just arrived this morning, after the special issue of InfoInter had already gone to the printer's.)

AFT 2121 is the union local that represents the faculty at City College of San Francisco (CCSF), a community college that was placed on the chopping block of privatization a number of years ago by its accrediting agency of junior colleges in California: the ACCJC.

AFT 2121 spearheaded a coalition of faculty, students and campus workers that pushed back this privatization effort and ultimately succeeded in getting rid of the ACCJC.

Countless rallies, student and faculty occupation of administrative buildings, one-day walkouts, marches to City Hall (with takeovers of administrative offices) during these many years got the S.F. City Attorney, Dennis Herrera, to file a lawsuit against ACCJC -- which was ultimately victorious.

As you will read in their statement, AFT 2121's top priority today is to get Prop W passed; this is a ballot proposition that would increase the taxes on the very rich in San Francisco and earmark those funds for City College so that tuition can be free.

Thanks for your continued support to this work,

In solidarity,

Alan Benjamin
Member of the Mumbai Conference
Organizing Committee

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ckaihatsu

31st October 2016, 16:05

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2016/10/31/harv-o31.html

Harvard concedes main demands of dining hall workers to end strike

By Mike Ingram

31 October 2016

After three weeks on strike, Harvard University Dining Service (HUDS) workers returned to work last week with a new contract that appears to satisfy the main issues of health care and wages that prompted the strike. The agreement was ratified in a 537-1 vote Wednesday by members of UNITE HERE Local 26, which represents the workers, concluding the 22-day strike that was the first for the workers since 1983.

The strike had won significant support from both students and faculty at the Harvard campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Following the announcement of the strike on September 17, more than a dozen student organizations at Harvard Law School released a statement supporting the action. More than 3,000 students signed a petition started by the undergraduate Students Labor Action Movement in support of the workers’ demands.

A number of organizations endorsed the strike including Harvard’s Undergraduate Council, the Law School Student Government, the Kennedy School Student Government, and the editorial board of the Crimson, the student newspaper. Even the Boston Globe published official endorsements of the strike and both the Boston and Cambridge City Councils passed resolutions of support.

Students rejected calls by the Harvard administration for student employees to cross the picket line and scab on the HUDS workers and instead joined the picket lines and organized class walkouts and occupations in support. Students at Harvard College and other graduate programs flooded the voicemail inboxes of the 13 fellows who sit on the board of Harvard Corporation with messages of support for the HUDS workers.

According to UNITE HERE Local 26, the union representing HUDS, employees would not see an increase to their out-of-pocket health care costs with the contract, which will last five years. Local 26 President Brian Lang told a crowd gathered at the First Parish Church as voting took place, “we have achieved every goal without exception, with no concessions to Harvard.”

A Diversity and Equality Committee will also be created to “address concerns regarding diversity and equal treatment of Harvard dining hall employees,” according to a Local 26 press release.

While the new contract appears to satisfy the main demands of the union, these demands were based on maintaining the status quo on health benefits and obtaining minimal wage increases. Under the new contract workers’ earnings remain barely above poverty level in a metropolitan area where rents and other living costs are far above the national average.

Harvard had demanded huge increases in both health care premiums and out-of-pocket costs. The proposal by Harvard would have required a worker earning $30,000 a year to contribute a premium of $233 a month in addition to co-pays, deductibles and out-of-pocket costs. This amounts exceeds what can be found on the Massachusetts Health Connector, the state’s version of Obamacare.

Harvard eventually backed down, agreeing to cover copayments as workers are moved to a new health plan, beginning in 2019. The costs will be covered by a flexible savings account paid for by Harvard. While the university made a significant concession in agreeing to cover the higher costs, Harvard achieved the goal of shifting workers onto the new plan, opening the way for imposing these out-of-pocket costs fully onto workers in the future.

The deal gives full-time workers a guaranteed annual income of $35,000, but the wage increases are minimal: 2.5 percent per year. The remainder of the increased income is in the form of a stipend for the period when dining halls are closed during for the summer and winter breaks.

Under the new contract full-time workers will receive an annual $2,400 stipend, rising to $3,000 in 2020. The stipend amounts to about $185 per week for 13 weeks, far less than the $800 per week workers earn during the academic year. For employees who work fewer hours during the academic year, the stipend will be “prorated,” meaning it will be adjusted in relation to the number of hours an employee works. Only full-time employees who are available to work throughout the year will make $35,000 a year.

At some other universities such as Yale dining workers belong to the same union as workers in other trades and are able to work year-round. Many on the picket lines were hoping for a similar agreement with Harvard.

According to the MIT living wage calculator, $35,000 for a full-time worker translates to less than $17 an hour based on the 2080 hours in a year that characterizes full-time work. This is barely above the minimum living wage for one adult of $13.34 and below that for one adult, plus child, at $27.49.

University spokesperson Tania DeLuzuriaga wrote in a statement that the union agreed to changes in retiree health benefits that “will make their insurance plan consistent with all of Harvard’s exempt employees and 5,000 members of other unions on campus.” It is unclear what these changes are.

According to the Human Resources site, the 2016 costs for health insurance range between $91 and $135 for an individual and $246 and $364 for a family in the lowest tier, set at earnings of less than $70,000 a year. Harvard has said it will create a new premium contribution tier for employees who make less than $55,000 per year, in which the university will contribute 87 percent of the cost of the lowest-cost plan, but this won’t be implemented until 2019.

As Harvard returns to business as usual, contract negotiations for dining hall workers at Northeastern University in Boston, also organizing in Local 26, are expected to begin soon. Janitors at nearby Tufts University voted Thursday to authorize a strike if a new contract agreement isn’t reached with the school’s maintenance contractor by October 31. Some 200 workers who clean the university voted unanimously for a strike.

The janitors work for a building services provider for commercial and industrial properties, Newton-based C&W Services. According to Local 32BJ of the Services Employees International Union, which represents the workers, demands are similar to those raised in the HUDS strike—cost-of-living wage increases, opportunities for more full-time jobs and affordable health care benefits.

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ckaihatsu

3rd November 2016, 13:41

IUF News

UK Employment Tribunal: 'self-employed' Uber drivers are workers, with rights (http://www.iuf.org/w/?q=node/5199)

Posted: 31 Oct 2016 06:36 AM PDT

http://www.iuf.org/w/sites/default/files/Uber.jpg

The London Employment Tribunal, in a decision with major implications for the 'gig economy', has ruled that Uber drivers are workers, not 'self-employed', and as workers they have enforceable rights, including a guaranteed minimum wage, paid breaks, and holiday pay. The decision came in response to two test cases brought on behalf of drivers by the IUF-affiliated GMB in June.

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ckaihatsu

3rd November 2016, 13:53

What do Michael Kors, Target, & Military all have in Common?

Dear Chris,

My coworkers and I went on STRIKE last week to STOP wage theft and misclassification at the trucking and warehouse companies patronized by Michael Kors, Target, and the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD). These companies, the California Cartage family of companies and Intermodal Bridge Transport (IBT), are violating U.S. labor laws, in violation of Kors', Target’s, and the DOD’s codes of conduct, and we are fighting back.

I need your help. Please sign our petition calling on Michael Kors, Target, and the U.S. Department of Defense (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.21y/s5JOmLBbQEyfN6UllMbNUA/h0/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3BK8xygwkPXIaNPtrzhZULC4H4jErak4ZLoTZ 2bmhqF0OvJZAx9TOkh6vpLXQPqDXyhqw5-2Bf4ta4DF171-2FEjzXXq0UFaL6TV73Stk1bWz1Mi0nse6Q-2Bdqz4DeeLqo6I29g4BypaPazwUyQRykY-2BMPlrb-2B2GzpyPWIaFBxxHjCcVPWz1XlgB7txfxO-2BoJQtOSFOWQk6ATG6VfM0PomSIdFFmCpJMTPrUhozfrNPrpLB H3UUd4XKZLbaEqCami-2BlpXFa22jB-2BHddUOkFjXaXw6xXWs0FSD9qH-2FAhnsVFwkhyWn10yxFyX8e5CfF4nMqpGIzNg-2FV1awS3PLbD9h84-2BU5m0emCrsm6tpkV6-2Bpd47IIDEcBR2X11RBcayTEzdlNseaOpdW9kpfAddOLscg9sC TpHG-2BB61ixL0UXtaoYPjSRgTA-3D-3D) to enforce their Codes of Conduct to assure that their port trucking and warehouse vendors are following the law. Every dollar paid to lawbreaking companies like Cal Cartage and IBT is sanctioning their persistent wage theft and misclassification.

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/058/481/original/bruce___sergio__cal_cartage_driver___warehouse_oct _2016.JPG

We are the port truck drivers and warehouse workers that makes sure these products arrive on time in good condition. And I’m angry that Michael Kors, Target, and the U.S. DOD don’t require more from the companies that they do business with to ensure that my job is safe and secure. Instead, my coworkers and I are misclassified port truck drivers and temporary warehouse workers instead of being given the benefits of full time permanent employees. Following an extensive investigation, Region 21 of the National Labor Relations Board has issued a complaint against IBT, alleging that it discharged and threatened employees for asserting their union rights under federal law.

Can you sign our petition to Michael Kors, Target, and the U.S. Department of Defense today telling them to implement their Code of Conduct on the companies they use for trucking and warehousing? (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.21y/s5JOmLBbQEyfN6UllMbNUA/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3BK8xygwkPXIaNPtrzhZULC4H4jErak4ZLoTZ 2bmhqF0OvJZAx9TOkh6vpLXQPqDXz192xkzCPySsM-2Be6NV72HYBIdQD5CNrQqWHvfDkBSMDTsU3L2rz1KQ0idphRXH fmUiqYs2XSFStRmj5QtV6FApqaOFW-2BabzltUatm9Ys703Jm9Y-2Fx8-2Fv5-2BFyCLG2yLDoTbU-2BlbgPXojgU2O9RS-2B6Wx3OlVA82t3Nn-2F5ubgmhLiYzHt0wXy5JUgeAJ-2FoNChEGHsDTWsvNMBJRvO1fzykzFlv3gggc5xdQX8HdQOPjek ZYudfyDDZJUffGVg3EtNPIVbdWgSFDxhsvRhwwJx0WVOJdnvip LLb8FcOkm2yiEoNNZ9eyzZ7cUUBlkaWnx-2F5EhLHkBtGrrcSi0LjiJm501hdygYT1rSVmUGxK6jKCvs-2FQ-3D-3D)

We thank you deeply for your support.

Sincerely,

Sergio Gonzalez
Port Truck Driver
California Cartage
&
Bruce Jefferson
Warehouse Worker
California Cartage

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ckaihatsu

3rd November 2016, 14:18

Trump attacks the integrity of postal workers across the country

Brothers and Sisters,

Over the last weekend Donald Trump accused USPS employees of “throw[ing] away” mail-in election ballots. Without any substance or fact, he accused us of breaking our oath as postal workers. Click on the links for Trump’s full comments on Oct. 29th (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4wA/ni0YAA/t.21y/jNrlAZwGQhCO0A9bRc3OGQ/h0/ZMR66zWBz8aFJ1VLw5ozjnPFfTgFiZPDFSiIy1WoY9s-2BqhG-2FZZpG9sUxTPe0ucavWbQScmwq6BSf6jLVRbJe-2BIhDsggpAkmQlEKfZ30kGgIWDN4MQN1rNIEwDn7Y3byoDDvWV wadYcs-2BXLKtrjLjV-2FjeY3uTZOKHGrVlDn2zSDwmtg6qUJzoOCQKLO-2BpjbxohFsBg3t6iSsbcFgkqj82aIu-2BpXXv4LFYxDNibfEEmwUOvi4lfOnGAOoCc-2BJgW41ueoAwXdDhiZErB1-2FaZwR0lD-2B4KjA-2FNBlaEQGt3ecyRw19BkW20Nx6mH9HubL6rfA677RINQXbi4a9 WurBE80RRRLLri2RjrmxlP0XiJIc-2FkyX1-2Ft2ctsofFgZF4sW1zoOcF7RRNjPGHhx1az3LEaverxHlemCOf XZpfcVgAMUSHXEuALrCNprsDC6cYV7V8z2OQ0p6NXZMnOW-2BgIct1DrbqDSGaE36SalFc0HUSsC82JNLvyjDAzS6Nf2bqufG 9PD7-2FKV437pIaG7JQb7S7u6gqolXw-2BOYQtdx2EN4whrAp9hc1G-2FEjmJ-2BZ3RDn2QztN0CwZk-2FhQis7SgU1UH0z2rlURyr28Gt1OHpW-2FASDiSBND-2FbkrCm16I6r1qZ8wcytpPZV6SAYy-2FexF6NTR4-2FFjgXg0nlhHTN74Ajh0O8bM6QREP105HLD0K-2B3XhtqwHnmfdF3ncuAJVFyOhjPPAqD5thgHLy30a3r39IfYSY vwtdLoAs0wt7ZDdklgHPYmAi-2F2zUjf3otED2THugnjwYB0IQfPgSyn5YffLWCbG76d-2BVWg-3D) and Oct. 30th (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4wA/ni0YAA/t.21y/jNrlAZwGQhCO0A9bRc3OGQ/h1/Cx3MiTKZVSZsIZ976XUXkfZd2z-2BIaByWOoejdCHf9CffnYhagbH-2FejlE7MuuRVyv8zMRAbWDSWATD8o8fxCdq5BSv6Yv5rY6qO1J B0r9D3OjvESGWikABQHMFRO-2FIFPYIhFunMseMiNPYLHYYZxHX507apjXYFdwjCQ2E8b8qnzN V7JWM8GaNB2ysc1nYg6iVbAHgvSDer5GGjxu7kg6KUg107CH2n nNYBl4U5Pw2xzXmbMKT9F4mni3x27rK2atr9yC1g9DanJPs-2FTNjvHcwBMWhHDHekNsx9V319nB-2FPNuMmyh9oXQkiwFIZf-2Fy1LhOgp3kKC8TsAuBm6WCRQnxeZ3hstFhxUs-2FZQ9tqZXszGXyHto8mjh-2B-2BiW-2FOSthEX-2F6-2Flb0b8emokN9FXPhqhWyO4c0GLWyRMzZO-2FPEIKtzRsYdz4wDVbJOXN0t0KkxFMutyYpZYLSDrQy-2BLWhdpEjCiQ5tLr7YjRqNKLKElvKi28KddFUf5Uokl0hlqBYY bVEDYbeQNAxL-2BP4T6SJpbnIHoNHNSmVCD3WcsyD4-2Fq4lgdBDRaGC4Rr-2FawAVCmTAozcGW0CYJupf6-2FBXyTLsD739r-2FwUMuwNziEZvNFeTeasHPBvI-2BQXJKy2qzaozPFKGC4-2FNADl8SMYswK5ZLiRs77RoV8HEOFW3KpjmiJFmzfHou9ipGUL-2BV0te9PSQ3Xbl-2BUiFvCBrnLHJGg3oehk-2FlCmIabUMsJ-2FLPj-2BFug7txR6UACYnEfizlhpVNCXt-2F2mjN6).

I urge you not to take his comments lightly. He is willing to throw you and all workers under the bus for his own ego. Quite simply he does not value a public Postal Service and has no respect for the work of any postal employee.

Trump does not support the rights of workers to have a voice in their workplace and to collectively bargain. Right now he is battling a Unite Here! organizing drive at one of his hotels in Las Vegas, NV.

Who you vote for is a personal decision, but I urge you to remember his comments when you fill out your ballot in the next week.

In Union Solidarity,

Mark Dimondstein, President

Action Network
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Action Network is an open platform that empowers individuals and groups to organize for progressive causes. We encourage responsible activism, and do not support using the platform to take unlawful or other improper action. We do not control or endorse the conduct of users and make no representations of any kind about them.
You can unsubscribe or update your email address by changing your subscription preferences here.

ckaihatsu

13th November 2016, 14:01

Unions & Voters push back Right-to-Work! Join us at SHROCX, Jackson, Dec 9-11

https://gallery.mailchimp.com/552d3a984b02de482ee7d0a6b/images/8a8202d3-7a2f-4eff-95dc-fa3f932820d8.png

Despite the Election of Trump, Virginia Voters Reject Right-to-Work (for less) Constitutional Amendment!

The election of Trump as President presents many challenges for workers, our unions, and the broader social justice movement. Trump has a long record of supporting the wealthy 1% at the expense of workers, and attacking Black, immigrant, Muslim, women, disabled and other oppressed people. He has refused to negotiate with newly organized hospitality workers at his Trump Towers, and they have filed NLRB charges against him. Over the coming weeks and months, we will need to continue to build our movement to fightback!

Meanwhile, there were many positive signs at the polls last Tuesday:
Colorado, Arizona, Maine and Washington state all voted to raise their statewide minimum wages to $12 per hour by 2020, Washington to $13.50. All states workers get $1 per year increase over next few years.

https://gallery.mailchimp.com/552d3a984b02de482ee7d0a6b/images/000555ce-199f-42e4-846d-e74c89ca99eb.jpg (http://southernworker.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=552d3a984b02de482ee7d0a6b&id=2afe03dc50&e=48ada11f89)
Unions across Virginia built a broad movement to defeat the Right-to-work amendment there, very notably the role of the Virginia Education Association with thousands of members all across the state helped mobilize the "No" vote.

Unions Defeat Right-To-Work Amendment In Virginia (http://southernworker.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=552d3a984b02de482ee7d0a6b&id=066afb198a&e=48ada11f89)

Dave Jamieson
November 8, 2016
Huffington Post

Virginians voted down an amendment that would have established the states right-to-work status in the state constitution.

In a bit of good news for labor unions, Virginians voted down a ballot initiative Tuesday that would have enshrined the state’s right-to-work status in the state constitution.

Unions in Virginia campaigned hard against the proposal, which was supported by business groups and Republican lawmakers. Virginia has had a right-to-work law on the books for decades, but the ballot measure would have effectively made it permanent.

Right-to-work laws forbid contracts between unions and employers that require all employees in a workplace to pay the union for bargaining on their behalf. Under U.S. labor law, unions have to represent all employees in a particular bargaining unit, even those who want nothing to do with a union. Unions say it’s only fair that everyone chip in to cover the costs of representation.

In states with right-to-work laws, employees in unionized workplaces aren’t obligated to pay any fees to the union, allowing them to opt out completely. Conservatives refer to this as “workplace freedom,” but unions call it “free riding.” Whatever you want to call it, it’s been the reality in Virginia since 1947, when changes in federal law first allowed states to pursue right-to-work laws. It’s one reason union membership is so low in Virginia when compared with other states.

But the prevailing state of affairs in Virginia wasn’t sufficient for backers of what was called Constitutional Amendment Question 1 on the ballot. If approved, the measure would have amended the state constitution so that Virginia could never not be a right-to-work state, save for another change to the constitution. Terry McAuliffe, the state’s Democratic governor, would not be able to veto it.

Those who pushed the amendment claimed it would make Virginia more attractive to employers, who wouldn’t have to worry about the state repealing its right-to-work law (if they ever worried about that in the first place). Typifying this argument, the head of the Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce claimed that cementing right-to-work in the constitution would make Virginia a more “competitive and attractive place for business and job creation.”

Backers of the amendment may have feared that, as Virginia creeps bluer and bluer, a Democratic-controlled statehouse could one day repeal its right-to-work status. But that seems unlikely. When he was Virginia’s Democratic governor, even Tim Kaine, Hillary Clinton’s running mate, said the state’s right-to-work law was something he “strongly supports.” And once a state goes right-to-work, it tends to stay that way ― especially when it’s the long-standing tradition in a place like Virginia. Besides, right-to-work laws are now more popular than ever, to the great detriment of unions.

It used to be that right-to-work laws were confined to the South and parts of the West. But in the past four and a half years, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin and West Virginia have all gone right-to-work. After West Virginia passed its law in February, a majority of states ― 26 ― were right-to-work for the first time ever, making it the norm in the U.S.

The fight in Virginia says a lot about where organized labor finds itself right now. With the help of state Republicans, business groups around the country have been pushing laws that restrict collective bargaining and deplete the labor movement. A case in point is Wisconsin, where in 2011, Republicans stripped most public sector workers of their bargaining rights. When these conservative groups succeed, unions lose out. When they fail, unions don’t make any gains.

In the case of Virginia, unions there were able to mobilize and defeat a constitutional amendment that posed a threat to them. But all their victory accomplished was preserving the status quo.

Join SWA at the Southern Human Rights Organizing Conference (SHROC) 20th Anniversary Conference

Jackson, MS
December 9-11

Register Today!
For more information: 662-334- 1122 or email [email protected]

https://gallery.mailchimp.com/552d3a984b02de482ee7d0a6b/images/becb8053-ee0a-4aeb-98e5-1e0d28b4a6b6.jpg

"SHROC is an important gathering of people from different movements." Sarah White, Board President of Mississippi Workers' Center For Human Rights.

SHROC serves as an important link between US Southern human rights struggles and those in the Global South. The primary goal of SHROC is to identify innovative and practical methods of organizing across the region. Another important objective is to strengthen the capacity of civil rights and social justice organizations in the Deep South. This would enable these organizations to expand their programmatic work beyond civil rights and social justice campaigns to more effectively address international human rights issues.

The reality of globalization demands that the US southern human rights struggle connects with struggles in other parts of the world. Through SHROC, activists and organizers will work together across the region to build an anti-racism movement that adheres to a human rights framework in its struggle toward justice.

Everyone should be aware of their individual and collective human rights and have the capacity to defend them. SHROC uses a collaborative approach to fighting injustice by encouraging activists from the anti-racist, women’s rights, children’s rights, disability rights, and gay and transgender rights movements to come together as a unified force.

"I've met people from all over the world at SHROC. I have learned about their struggles and what it means to be people who are not respected and not treated like human beings. And so I come to every conference so I can learn about the struggles of people of color from wherever they may come." Shelley Inniss, Retired Teacher.

"SHROC reinforces the application of human rights standards and the use of international mechanisms in establishing a standard for human dignity. Also, it keeps the existence and the work of imprisoned political activists and human rights defenders in the minds of the people and on the agenda for liberation." Efia Nwangaza, Director of The Malcolm X Center for Self Determination.

"As the founder of the very first SHROC convening, I am amazed at how the gathering has become an institution in our movement. It is hard to believe that we've been coming together for 18 years, bearing witness to struggles and victories. Raising our voices and making just demands for an end to all forms of slavery, discrimination, xenophobia and colonization. We are really a central point for solidarity and principled unity. May we continue for the next twenty years and beyond. " Jaribu Hill, Human Rights Defender.

Make a donation to support the Southern Workers School! (http://southernworker.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=552d3a984b02de482ee7d0a6b&id=502bb907a6&e=48ada11f89)

Copyright © 2016 Southern Workers Assembly, All rights reserved.
You either attended an event hosted by the Southern Workers Assembly or have signed one of our online petitions.

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Southern Workers Assembly
PO Box 934
Rocky Mount, NC 27802

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ckaihatsu

18th November 2016, 13:16

https://www.goiam.org/news/chicago-local-701-auto-mechanics-strike-protect-pensions-2/

Chicago Local 701 Auto Mechanics Strike to Protect Pensions

IMAIL November 17, 2016

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https://www.goiam.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Roesch.jpg
IAM Local 701 auto mechanics, along with volunteers, strike to protect their pensions at Roesch Ford and Roesch Ford Trucking Center in Bensenville, IL. Photo courtesy of Ryan Kelly of IAM Local 126.

IAM Local 701 auto mechanics working at Roesch Ford and Roesch Ford Trucking Center in Bensenville, IL walked out on strike Thursday, November 10, 2016 when the employees voted not to accept the owner, Dan Roesch’s, offer of a 14-month “extension contract” providing the same terms as the contract which expired July 31st.

“It wasn’t just the offer that had the employees upset,” said IAM Local 701 Business Representative Bill LePinske. “It was the statements made by the owner at the bargaining table that he intended to pull out of the Local 701 Defined Benefit Pension Plan upon the expiration of the 14-month contract.”

There is some history of Roesch coming after his mechanics’ contract, says LePinske. Prior to this last agreement, the dealership was covered under the industry standard contract, the Standard Automotive Agreement (SAA). Roesch purchased what was then Elmhurst Ford. During the purchase Roesch had the right to negotiate a new bargaining agreement and he took advantage of the economic downturn and high unemployment to gut the workers’ agreement.

“Among the worse provisions of the previous agreement was a move to ‘seniority by productivity,’ a change which effectively cost the workers their seniority, as work flow and productivity can easily be manipulated by management,” said LePinske. “Seniority provisions are intended to protect workers who have been with an employer from lay-off based on their date of hire. Naturally as mechanics age, their productivity tends to go down. In a ‘seniority by productivity’ situation, the employer could lay off the employee who has been in service the longest as they slow due to the effects of aging.

In addition to the pension problem and the seniority language, high health insurance premium co-pays were other issues the IAM brought to the table that the employer was unwilling to discuss.

“We are not going to allow Roesch to further gut our contract or let him set the table to take away our pensions in 14 months,” said bargaining unit member Brian Ilic. “My brothers and I will continue to strike until Roesch comes to his senses.”

With the expiration of the SAA on the horizon in August 2017, Local 701 Directing Business Representative Sam Cicinelli and the rest of the business representatives are not interested in moving local membership backwards.

“The Standard Automotive Agreement covers nearly 1,200 of our members at hundreds of other Local 701 represented dealerships and we are not going to allow a substandard contract at Roesch Ford to lower the bar for the rest of our membership,” said Cicinelli. “In the words of our new International President Robert Martinez Jr., we’re going to put the fight back into the Fighting Machinists!”

“IAM members at Roesch Ford and the Roesch Ford Trucking Center are among the most highly-skilled and talented mechanics in the auto industry, said IAM Midwest Territory General Vice President Philip J. Gruber. “We cannot let one-sided negotiations aimed at gutting our members’ rights to retire with dignity continue. We have to fight. As Local 701 members walk the picket line today, we want them to know that we’re standing with them in solidarity. We are with them in their fight for a secure future.”

It should be noted that the Mechanics at Roesch Volkswagen are not on strike – only the mechanics at Roesch Ford and the Roesch Ford Truck Center are on strike. Members and supporters are encouraged to stop by the strike line to show their solidarity. Roesch Ford is located at 333 W. Grand Ave. in Bensenville, IL.

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ckaihatsu

23rd November 2016, 13:32

What Verizon doesn't want you to know about the Philippines

https://s3.amazonaws.com/affiliate.actionnetwork.files/user_neilcwa/standuptoverizon_email-header.png

Workers taking calls for Verizon in the Philippines are being stiffed on their wages. Tell Verizon to stop turning a blind eye and make sure workers are paid what they earned.

SIGN THE PETITION ► (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3wA/ni0YAA/t.22i/AMtuse-TTzyZ1fDshkNcwg/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CYJXDcvJKkVRjhCzLXOtjlX2Qm-2B1RwjfzSpL9C1bDaoUI-2F-2F1pFLG2uwde-2B0Qz2K6BW3mBXKfwOUoirrdrfoNb6lmtKw7vLr-2FSxhGSdfKk-2B2HHZz7UBRSb5R-2F75TvUzaPKM7NWZpDfx5ShrNov3QHpVQ99ZEl9nAK6RiMg0my TlQGJ3pIq7qf91pLWZ-2BfxuJ8v18TBfdRAdDJ9qjPTdXHoA7rhqQwebu9fiq-2BEDh2QSTjVGabeizdP3yLJwylG656pONWCRKTC-2FuETjZjLWf8X5OXxUJxnHd2EcCiy5NBQIQ-2B2g4rvNS8zLd0NQ4uyAon9js-2BoS1zhTbZR26MFdf-2BNIRzQcXTkHHMI4EvAfadMakS-2F-2FisWr7rzUDWuTILEzDcgMtYdIq4xm5kuVKDRR-2BRy-2BIpg25nAHtKy-2BPSTN6NyJczDw4eQWvMSwgyV34Zlcs-2Bo-3D)

Chris,

Verizon likes to pad its huge profit margins by sending work overseas to places like the Philippines where wages are meager. Now, the company is doing nothing to make sure some of those workers are even paid their full wages.

During this year's Verizon strike, workers in the Philippines reached out to workers on strike in the United States to show their support. A group of us - three striking Verizon workers from New York - had the incredible opportunity to visit the Philippines to see the extent of Verizon's offshoring and meet with the workers there.

Filipino workers joined us on a picket line outside the call center where Verizon was forcing workers to work overtime taking calls during the strike. We were pretty shocked at what happened next - Verizon security wearing masks and holding long rifles confronted us. Clearly, the company didn't want us to see what was going on.

Now the same workers who showed us so much solidarity during the strike need our help.

Management at Tech Mahindra - a contractor that manages Verizon's call centers in the Philippines - is refusing to pay workers the correct amount of wages and overtime pay that they earned. They were also late in payment of both base wages and incentive pay. 50 workers in Cebu, Philippines have even been suspended or fired after taking action to demand the company pay them what they have earned.

Will you add your name to the petition (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3wA/ni0YAA/t.22i/AMtuse-TTzyZ1fDshkNcwg/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CYJXDcvJKkVRjhCzLXOtjlX2Qm-2B1RwjfzSpL9C1bDaoUI-2F-2F1pFLG2uwde-2B0Qz2K6CrZ9WaEKBVxhoh8Z11Z6gl7CFGF-2B8C8icMcsjKXllMFHIuOPH5NZ9ZMB9Ml5tWPjDchJrMEQmpS5 1BaetRXr3QQJCXRsZtcjlliEFvbKwIKHosL40mzstuP6NmeT0X xXLPPVPiy3OoOmmf6LzPbzkf7bdUVChcgB7Ad60QoPeR5n16PH sVHOqZaH1OCOu6rj4Yj5ogN5H2czGgkVZfiQDUhWH1jpqk4ZMf j0z7CAIibFt1bpoh4C3zHnsNQPETYJA0Jme2bicJ-2BVmWrUHBrwgZEEubhg1ZzlD1fNxcFqp5s9uA2BT-2BpCuY7XnMi5DMclW4le-2FWAE7rD2wX0tJEBE1-2BNtvmNDOng1QvJqbRyz7j4wlBXwsdbHPcbRbnaGZmX3c-3D) demanding Verizon take action and make sure the workers are paid the wages they earned?

SIGN THE PETITION ► (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3wA/ni0YAA/t.22i/AMtuse-TTzyZ1fDshkNcwg/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CYJXDcvJKkVRjhCzLXOtjlX2Qm-2B1RwjfzSpL9C1bDaoUI-2F-2F1pFLG2uwde-2B0Qz2K6B2GNLM4T0DX6h0qgNTrgmVykmJwUKkOqZ3T9-2FJS9MGSaoLmsgydzig8yilC9v9EnqQOsIkYwLkD8jMSt7YZgr ifFK0LRIxLrcvujz9kv0e5fkO0b2kEBKp2CQzv9KGU1wypCotD xId9x-2BfExfZX1uDou6PJhQV4q1I9z0POS8KVW-2FTfF7fNKMTho-2BNZP2kn5iaI8VvVJrrHWgfmWjogoTp6dFDvO0BF65c2PFzE5A mkKDglo0hpLm-2B8pj-2FTpllhH8Sx-2FCV5jFHAiZt3KBmNsrPsQdIpsJoqMBpgPTcUanELlZJzYossl Ukg-2BhFrE-2FVRZfq-2F-2B1UoEGHJHGkLQ1Az8rIMXHEwUSztfbAILnIPkhHm14mmzYcln SFnTO2Px0LOK0-3D)

It's outrageous that Verizon is turning a blind eye to the exploitation taking place in overseas call centers where workers take calls from their customers.

Verizon doesn't want the public to know what has happened to the good union jobs they've shipped to the Philippines where workers are paid less than $2 an hour, but thanks to the solidarity of workers in the Philippines, we helped spread the word to expose their bad behavior.

It's time to help workers in the Philippines. Please add your name in support. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3wA/ni0YAA/t.22i/AMtuse-TTzyZ1fDshkNcwg/h4/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CYJXDcvJKkVRjhCzLXOtjlX2Qm-2B1RwjfzSpL9C1bDaoUI-2F-2F1pFLG2uwde-2B0Qz2K6CmfI7C-2FzTkDXe-2FLevHBMxQ0x8LAgBJKJcL0BUmuSSMKtbSqiFNGG7JjsqwZGCD r9qX6hWKwsW7mEFAIDh5l6UofU7mWY8WqllzODheBRbr3Q-2Bo1F0S-2FlGm7QTfTbAL4nwcedCXGZDipHNm-2FMAGTMkIunJK-2F5gdkvYI4UqlvMzcn-2FmsSoqorVah-2Fpm5XOSK4nmu7TPZrBvzpeD68-2BaiMWXndTA8FR5b67vd63m0pgXuivPNZIrBZF5XmfZWLwuHvz M9OGHJRk2TxxK-2BvLn-2FXgwrSYEnDXHoBQ-2FXWYfeub5iG9y9YwCPO7b9Q0LGGkTZLzvoDEWv31TtUiOCsZ-2FKIE5uwd3eQyzEJRsM-2FuG-2BxOZdJOeoi0nNQzwaKST9VeWS5-2Fc-3D)

In solidarity,

Simone Kellyman
Verizon Customer Service Rep, CWA Local 1400

P.S. If you'd like to hear more about our trip, please watch and share our video by clicking here. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3wA/ni0YAA/t.22i/AMtuse-TTzyZ1fDshkNcwg/h5/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiFJgKh10MpvXrkiAJvJTqEO-2F6oAq1dWdSkQVDyO-2BmDqA3y4mdgoRlGiO9pkyidAmzXIJxGY3uYHfItnxxH5Yz2OD MSaPjub8hmaQU2fJbLS9H6Dr7be-2BuUR95kbN5eXTRUP7mvIEtHT8yWkqUcpS3aTWuULO6W5TMJWM-2Bx2AuEbZFxOJC3SCKLo4jSC3pdN4p2eKqfDa1-2BDvO0ZYUIjnE-2FuRC87nQ56sRw-2BF6G6-2Fj3leBIKlk8IHvY-2FRAA298HdpGP-2BSdmAHdAQT4ul-2Br5uGKrrtqCGlPnR5BqCI-2FzRSnlmHfUDblSvojxCQNCFgc7SmZByoLgTg1pTu6FU7SN5Me uOMc-2Bq-2BBFhJIU70jyGPGQRzXxovGcKr-2BTVRw4by6gkl74WMbUVU0QVS-2FhmlcyBS8MknqYUR4VJr1jXJlq40H4Su)

Stand Up to Verizon
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Communications Workers of America, AFL-CIO, CLC.
501 3rd Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001

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ckaihatsu

24th November 2016, 14:10

Walmart workers

If you miss a day of work at Walmart because you're sick, you could lose your job. That's not acceptable.

We're talking about the biggest, most profitable retailer in the world. Tell Walmart to give its workers a healthy sick leave policy.

SIGN THE PETITION (https://act.sumofus.org/go/350488?t=1&akid=24866.859590.5wzXVU)

Chris,

On Friday Walmart workers will be waking up early to face masses of Black Friday shoppers.

If you work for Walmart -- one of the most profitable corporations in the world privately owned by one of the richest families in the world -- and get sick, good luck keeping your job.

Right now, if you need to miss a day of work due to illness, even if you have a doctor’s note, there’s nothing stopping a Walmart supervisor from disciplining you -- an “occurrence” in corporate Walmart speak. And you could lose your job.

Nobody deserves to lose their job because they get sick. And every worker deserves paid sick days. Walmart workers across North America are asking for six -- just six! -- paid sick days. Walmart made $132 billion in pure profit last year. I’d say it can afford it.

Tell Walmart to accept doctors’ notes and give all its workers six sick days a year. (https://act.sumofus.org/go/350488?t=2&akid=24866.859590.5wzXVU)

Walmart’s sick leave has never been good -- it’s always operated on the principle that it can maximize profit for the Walton family off the backs of its massive workforce, the largest employer of Blacks and Latinos in the country. But earlier this year, it “streamlined” its sick leave policy and lumped vacation days in with days you are literally too sick to work.

Even doctors’ notes -- which can be prohibitively expensive for workers on a Walmart salary -- are too often ignored by Walmart supervisors. In 2014, a pregnant woman fell ill from the harsh chemicals she used cleaning. Her doctor ordered her to stop because repeated use of the chemicals “could harm her fetus and herself.” She was fired.

No more. Call on Walmart to introduce a sick leave policy that affords its workers basic dignity. (https://act.sumofus.org/go/350488?t=3&akid=24866.859590.5wzXVU)

The funny thing is, Walmart was in free fall last year -- customers were complaining about empty shelves, filthy washrooms and endless checkout lines. And then because of endless pressure by worker-supported organizations like our allies at OUR Walmart, Walmart capitulated and raised wages. And then, suddenly, stores improved and sales went up. Imagine what could happen if Walmart had a sick leave policy that wasn’t a complete disgrace?

SumOfUs members have stood up to Walmart before. After deadly factory fires broke out in Bangladesh over 80,000 of us stood up to Walmart and other retailers to urge them to commit to taking basic steps to ensure the protection of garment workers. Now we must stand up once again. Let’s let Walmart know that every time workers fight back against its destructive business model, we’ll be standing with the workers.

Walmart: give your workers more than six sick days a year and a humane sick leave policy. (https://act.sumofus.org/go/350488?t=4&akid=24866.859590.5wzXVU)

Thanks for all that you do,

Nicole, Toni, Reem, and the rest of the SumOfUs team

**********
More information:

How Did Walmart Get Cleaner Stores and Higher Sales? It Paid Its People More, NY Times, Oct 15, 2016
Walmart’s Pregnancy Policy May Make You Sick, The Nation, Dec 19, 2014
OUR Walmart's Sick Time & PTO Policy Recommendations, OUR Walmart

SumOfUs is a worldwide movement of people like you, working together to hold corporations accountable for their actions and forge a new, sustainable path for our global economy.

Please help keep SumOfUs strong by chipping in $3 or become a SumOfUs core member with a regular monthly donation.

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ckaihatsu

1st December 2016, 13:07

[LaborTech] Amazon Worker Jumps off 12-Story Building After Being Put on Big-Brother-Like 'Performance Improvement Plan'

Amazon Worker Jumps off 12-Story Building After Being Put on Big-Brother-Like 'Performance Improvement Plan'

http://www.alternet.org/labor/amazon-worker-jumps-building-suicide-attempt-after-being-put-employee-improvement-plan#.WD3fKlYpVAw.facebook

Amazon employees live in terror of these performance plans.
By Michael Arria / AlterNetNovember 29, 2016

http://www.alternet.org/files/styles/story_image/public/story_images/2265816229_a7c158ec8a_z.jpg
Photo Credit: Robert Scoble / Flickr Creative Commons

An Amazon worker was injured in a suicide attempt after jumping off a 12-story company building in Seattle, reports Bloomberg.

Authorities did not release the identity of the man, but the story indicates he wrote an email before he tried to kill himself. The email was visible to hundreds of other Amazon workers, and to company CEO Jeff Bezos. The man had recently requested a move to a different department, but was put on a deceptively harmless-sounding "performance improvement plan" or PIP.

In 2014 a former Amazon employee wrote to Gawker about these euphemistic corporate tools. "I would not want such a thing to happen even to my enemy," wrote the worker, who broke down the details of PIPs:

In Amazon, PIP is being used as a tool to fire employees. That is, once you are into a PIP you can be sure that you would be made to quit within a maximum of 3 months.

Before going into the details of PIP, I want to share the confusion I still have regarding the eligibility criteria of PIP. As by the name, PIP stands for 'Performance Improvement Program'. But all the people who were into PIP from my team are super performers. They are all brilliant and experts in their own area of work. To be precise, they are all candidates who deserve a promotion. But it was a huge shocker to all when they were told that they need to take up a PIP.

In Amazon, when an employee is asked to sign a PIP, he or she is not allowed to disclose it to any of the team mates. In case they disclose, and if the manager comes to know of it, the employee would be terminated on the basis of 'Compliance Issue' for sharing confidential information !! So employees doesn't share it to anyone. And also in most cases they feel ashamed to share it to others. Hence the concept of PIP remains a secret to most people until it happens to them....

Amazon's image suffered a serious blow last year when a New York Times story on the company revealed a cutthroat culture that pushes employees to the brink. "Nearly every person I worked with, I saw cry at their desk," a former employee told the paper.

In response to the report, Jeff Bezos sent out a memo to all employees. "The article doesn’t describe the Amazon I know or the caring Amazonians I work with every day," he declared, "But if you know of any stories like those reported, I want you to escalate to HR. You can also email me directly... Even if it’s rare or isolated, our tolerance for any such lack of empathy needs to be zero."

Michael Arria is an associate editor at AlterNet and AlterNet's labor editor. Follow @MichaelArria on Twitter.
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ckaihatsu

3rd December 2016, 13:35

Militant Teamster reformers come close to beating Hoffa, make historic gains

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/Fred%20Zuckerman%20fightback%20photo-1.jpg

By Richard Blake

Jacksonville, FL - On Nov. 18, Teamsters in the U.S. and Canada awoke to find that Jim Hoffa had won re-election as president of the International Brotherhood of the Teamsters after 17 years in office. Instead of the overwhelming electoral victory that Hoffa usually experiences, the Teamsters old guard lost in the Southern Region, the Central Region, the U.S. as a whole, and only barely squeaked by in the International vote.

Teamsters United, the reform slate running against Hoffa, won six vice president spots to split the executive board for the first time since Hoffa has taken office. Led by Louisville Local 89 President Fred Zuckerman, Teamsters United faced an uphill battle from the jump. The vast majority of local leaders around the country urged their members to vote Hoffa. This was demonstrated in the National Teamsters Convention last June where Hoffa's delegates numbered over 90%. These delegates are almost always local union officers. When the vote went to the members, however, he only won 51.5%.

On the other hand, Teamsters United had a committed group of enthusiastic activists and a union full of “pissed off Teamsters.” Members who had enough of Hoffa's concessions during his time as general president found a way to put their frustrations into action. Uniting the two opposition slates from the previous election, the reform slate entered the election with commitments to stop the wave of concessions, put a firm stop to corruption, and organize new workers in the core industries.

While local union officers used their steward structures and Hoffa's top lieutenants did 20-minute photo ops, Teamster United's army of campaigners set up a strong organizations in traditional Hoffa strongholds like Chicago, New York, Florida, Ohio, Los Angeles, and countless other areas. These campaigners used vacations, personal days, break periods and weekends to inform members that they had an opportunity to elect Teamster leaders who wanted to fight the employers just as much as they did.

As the ballot count came in, it was anybody's race, with Hoffa taking an early lead by winning the Eastern Region and Teamsters United taking back the lead until the last few hours. Although Hoffa remains in power for now, this was a massive victory for militants in the Teamsters in particular as well as all who believe the labor movement needs to return to real class struggle instead of constant concessions to employers.

John Palmer, one the vice presidents elected from the Southern Region said, “Teamsters in the South sent a clear message that they want change. As a vice president, I'll make sure their demand for a stronger union is heard.”

Both Teamster employers and old guard officials are becoming terrified of an increasingly strong rank-and-file militant movement that has now split up the rubber-stamp executive board. On top of that, both Fred Zuckerman and Teamsters for a Democratic Union have made public commitments to stay united going forward into future elections and contract campaigns, especially the upcoming 2018 UPS contract. Local activists have followed suit and formed local organizations where none existed before.

Several top Hoffa vice presidents and officials are looking forward to corruption charges from the federal government. Two of the most high-profile cases involve Western Region Vice President Rome Aloise, who is accused of taking gifts from employers in exchange for contract concessions and Secretary Treasurer Ken Hall, who is accused of withholding information from the government's investigation. The future of many old-guard Teamster officials is looking more and more uncertain.

One thing's for sure, it's that the Hoffa machine is dead and Teamsters United killed it.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

9th December 2016, 19:05

VIDEO - O’Hare Airport Workers One Day Strike

View Online (https://cts.vrmailer1.com/click?sk=aIo8B2JgQjBJkBo5XAO8F5J3MXRfAvWru_yBvM1j-gOA=/aHR0cHM6Ly92cjIudmVydGljYWxyZXNwb25zZS5jb20vZW1haW xzLzE3NTkyMTg2MTA1NTQ1P2NvbnRhY3RfaWQ9MTc1OTIxOTAx MzY5MjQ=/A2CE6CFxnkIexvfkbmZVSg==&merge_field_type=%7BVR_HOSTED_LINK%7D&href_id_source=vr2-href-id-source-1)

https://vr2-assets.verticalresponse.com/email_images/17592186437075/17592186048178/original/OHare-Nov-29.jpg

Watch Video (https://cts.vrmailer1.com/click?sk=aIo8B2JgQjBJkBo5XAO8F5J3MXRfAvWru_yBvM1j-gOA=/aHR0cHM6Ly95b3V0dS5iZS92bmxaaTJCZUdBTQ==/nhHR03uCi1Kl3bYwn7Em-Q==&merge_field_type=(?x-mi:(?%3C=href=)[%5Cs]*[%27%22](?%3Curl%3E[%5E%7B%27%22].+?)[%27%22])&href_id_source=vr2-href-id-source-44)

O’Hare Airport Workers One Day Strike

O’Hare Airport workers held a one-day strike rally on Nov. 29, 2016 to underline not only the exploitation, abuse, poverty wages and retaliation at the Chicago airport that they experience. Their concern was also the alarming flaunting of health and safety standards for passengers and well as employees. One worker cleaning airplanes tells us: “I feel it’s not sanitary the way we clean...We shouldn’t be having to clean with the same rag they clean the bathroom with, for the table…We shouldn’t have to use the same solution for everything. We shouldn’t have clean the galley with this and then clean the tables with it. Clean the toilet with this, and then have the table touch it.” Scenes from 2,000 workers mass picketing at O’Hare, and comments at a Jobs with Justice community forum on Dec. 5. Length 26:26.

Video url: https://youtu.be/vnlZi2BeGAM

vnlZi2BeGAM

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat (Committee for Labor Access) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". Labor Beat is on as a cable-tv series in seven U.S. cities; check our website for more info. Chicago schedule: CAN TV 19, Thurs. 9:30 pm, Fri. 4:30 pm.
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ckaihatsu

12th December 2016, 13:53

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2016/12/12/illi-d12.html

Judge temporarily delays imposition of draconian contract on Illinois state workers

By George Gallanis

12 December 2016

Last Tuesday, an Illinois circuit court judge agreed to the request of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) union to place a temporary restraining order on the implementation of a new labor agreement on state workers by Republican Governor Bruce Rauner.

The current labor contract for 38,000 state employees expired on June 30, 2015, six months after Rauner, a private equity investor, came to office. Since January 2016, Rauner has refused to continue negotiations with the union. In mid-November, the governor began unilaterally implementing his contract, which includes a four-year wage freeze, doubling of health insurance premiums, increased outsourcing and privatization, and other concessions.

AFSCME filed its request in court after the Illinois Labor Relations Board (ILRB) declared that negotiations between the state and union had reached an impasse—the legal trigger allowing Rauner to impose his last “offer” or for AFSCME to call a strike. Union lawyers contended that Rauner had illegally begun to implement sections of the contract before the ILRB had formally declared an impasse.

Ruling in favor of the union, the southern Illinois judge in St. Clair County who issued the temporary restraining order (TRO) found that Rauner began “implementing new terms and conditions of employment without notice to and the agreement of the union.”

The TRO is being touted as a great victory by AFSCME District 31, which has not called an Illinois state workers strike in its 45-year history. “Although temporary, this order sends a message to Governor Rauner that he is not above the law. Instead of sparking further conflict in the courts and at state worksites, Governor Rauner should return to bargaining and work with us to find common ground,” said AFSCME Council 31 Executive Director Roberta Lynch.

The judge’s decision is a highly political action. There is widespread consensus within the political establishment at every level and within both big business parties that state workers and other public employees should bear the burden of the economic crisis and decades of tax cuts and other pro-business measures that undermined state revenues. From the Obama administration down, both the Democrats and Republicans are attacking public employee pensions, health benefits and work conditions, and privatizing public services in order to funnel even more money into the hands of bankers, wealthy bondholders and for-profit companies.

There are tactical differences, however, over how this can best be accomplished, revolving around the question of whether it is more effective to carry out these anti-working class attacks with or without the assistance of the trade union apparatus.

AFSCME’s legal maneuvers have two purposes. First is to give rank-and-file workers the false impression that the organization is fighting for their interests. Second is to gain more time to persuade Rauner to work with the union to impose the bulk of his agenda.

In 2010, the anti-working class measures unilaterally imposed by Republican governor Scott Walker in nearby Wisconsin provoked mass protests, which threatened to spread to Illinois, New York and other states. The unions and state Democrats, which sabotaged and suppressed the protests, argued at the time that austerity measures could be more effectively imposed through the collaboration of the unions.

AFSCME officials hope the TRO will give them more time to appeal the declared impasse by the ILRB in order to force Rauner back to the negotiating table by legal means. AFSCME has repeatedly made clear it is willing to implement a majority of the concessions demanded by the Rauner administration.

Rauner’s latest contract proposal intensifies the attack on state workers. It includes a four-year wage freeze, which amounts to a cut in real pay because of inflation. It also proposes an increase in the workweek from 37.5 to 40 hours, with overtime pay going into effect only after 40 hours of work. Another provision would double the cost of premiums for health and dental insurance.

In September, an administrative law judge of the Illinois Labor Relations Board declared the Rauner administration and AFSCME were not at an impasse regarding the issues of wages and health care. Making it clear the union was willing to concede on wages, AFSCME Council 31 director Lynch declared, “We are pleased that today’s recommendation underlines what AFSCME has been saying all along … there is no impasse on key issues, and the parties should get back to the bargaining table to resolve them.”

She further stated, “Ever since Governor Rauner’s representatives broke off negotiations with our union back in January and walked away from the bargaining table, AFSCME has repeatedly made clear we want to reach a fair agreement and we are prepared to do the hard work of compromise to make that possible.”

The ILRB judge ruled that an impasse on subcontracting did exist. The latest contract insists that the state has the right to contract out “any work it deems necessary.” AFSCME proposed to develop a “labor-management team” to see if state employees can underbid private contractors. In other words, AFSCME is arguing that outsourcing is not necessary because it can impose on its members whatever cost-cutting measures are necessary to meet the asking price of the state.

Workers face an escalating attack whether AFSCME succeeds and negotiations resume, or whether the impasse declared by Rauner’s handpicked ILRB holds. In the unlikely scenario that AFSCME calls its first-ever strike, the union bureaucracy would do everything to isolate and suffocate it.

No trust can be placed in AFSCME, which is tied by a million threads to the Democratic Party establishment that is imposing austerity on workers. If a real fight is to be waged workers must take the conduct of this struggle in their own hands by forming independent rank-and-file committees, detached from and in opposition to AFSCME, the AFL-CIO, the Republican and Democratic parties and the capitalist system they all defend. State workers should appeal for the broadest mobilization of the working class to oppose the bipartisan austerity plan and defend and fight for the social rights of all public and private sector workers.

The author also recommends:

Illinois officials prepare all-out assault on state workers

[12 August 2016]

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ckaihatsu

27th December 2016, 14:14

VIDEO - We Move Chicago: Transit Workers Activate

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We Move Chicago: Transit Workers Activate

December 21, 2016. Emphasizing to union membership and to Chicago Transit Authority management that class relationships are moving into a new phase, Locals 241 and 308 of the Amalgamated Transit Union held a day of coordinated actions in 3 locations throughout the city. Although the two locals (241 for buses and 308 for trains) had largely functioned separately in their dealings with management for some 40 years, the two locals have decided to join forces and coordinate strategy, the result of a year of stagnant contract negotiations. This day of action has awoken untapped, potential union power in Chicago. It points toward mobilizations similar, in the words of ATU 308’s President Kenneth Franklin (photo), to the teachers union April 1 one-day strike last spring. Their chant “We Move Chicago” is no fantasy, as transit workers indeed move all the city; it also raises the point that transit workers might also vote NOT to move Chicago. Scenes and interviews. Length 14:34.

Video url:
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ckaihatsu

30th December 2016, 14:20

Southern Workers on the Move! Winter 2016 Newsletter

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Southern Workers On The Move! | Winter 2016 Newsletter of the Southern Workers Assembly

Workers in the South across various sectors are building a movement organize labor in the South, build power in our workplaces and communities, and fightback.

Below are reports and analysis on some of the key struggles throughout the region as part of our Winter 2016 newsletter, which was first distributed at the Southern Human Rights Organizing Conference in Jackson, MS on December 9 - 11. Check out the articles below, and be sure to download the newsletter in its entirety and distribute to your coworkers! (http://southernworker.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=552d3a984b02de482ee7d0a6b&id=54e1f437ca&e=48ada11f89)

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Virginia Workers Push Back Right-To-Work (for less) at Voting Booth

On November 8, a ballot initiative that would have put the state’s right-to-work (for less) status in the state constitution was defeated in Virginia thus securing an important victory for poor and working people everywhere.

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Tennessee is Not for Sale! #TNisNotForSale University Workers Fight Privatization!

n August 2015, United Campus Workers (a Communication Workers of America local union) learned of a secret plan being pushed by Tennessee’s Governor Bill Haslam to privatize the building management, maintenance, and security at every single piece of Tennessee state-owned property – every campus, office building, park, hospital, prison, even the national guard armories – costing the jobs of 1 in 5 state workers! This a threat for all their states if it were to be implemented in Tennessee.

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N.C. City Workers Launch Statewide Organizing Campaign – Fight for Workers Bill of Rights & Host Statewide Summit

UE local 150, NC Public Service Workers Union has launched an exciting new campaign to organize a statewide movement of city workers. In Greensboro, several hundred workers have expressed interest in joining the union and formed a strong Organizing Committee over the last few months. Workers from cities across the state – including Charlotte, Greenville, Raleigh and Durham – gathered in Greensboro for a Statewide Municipal Summit on November 5. Outreach was done to workers in several other smaller cities such as Winston Salem, Rocky Mount, Wilson and Goldsboro.

[url="http://southernworker.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=552d3a984b02de482ee7d0a6b&id=1ba2525ca7&e=48ada11f89)

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Uniting Workers at the Point of Production and Service Against the Racist Police Killings

Since the September 11 World Trade Center attack, the presidential administrations, campaigns and the current 2016 presidential election, have intensify the levels of government repression against working-class Blacks and people of color, and Muslim’s, contributing to widening the divisions within the general US working-class.

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Fight for $15 stages national strike, civil disobedience across US and South

On November 29, fast food and low wage workers in over 300 cities across the US and the South went on strike demanding at least $15/hour and the right to form a union at McDonalds and other fast food restaurants. They were joined in these cities by home healthcare, childcare, airport, and other low wage workers and community members who have joined the Fight for 15 and, in many cases, have begun their own organizing initiatives to demand justice, higher wages, and unions in their workplaces.

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During Election rush, Workers School lifts up Southern organizing

Workers from 12 Southern cities, several workplaces and a number of unions gathered here for the Southern Workers School over the Aug. 5-7 weekend to continue their study of the political economy of the Southern region of the U.S. and develop organizing skills. Attendees also participated in a strategy session about “How might the 2016 elections open opportunities for organizing Southern workers?”.

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With FLOC’s help, Sweet Potato Farmworkers Win a Union Contract

In 2014, four members of FLOC courageously spoke out against issues at Burch Farms in Faison North Carolina, exposing violations that many of their coworkers were too afraid to speak about. They filed a lawsuit for multiple types of wage theft and other labor violations. Last month, the FLOC members and their lawyer negotiated a settlement that included a payment of $7,125 for each plaintiff as well as $40 for each worker for each season that they had worked for Burch from 2012 to 2014. In total, the grower agreed to pay over $200,000

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Nissan manufacturing workers continue 13 year battle to build a union in Mississippi

A growing number of workers at the Nissan car manufacturing plant in Canton, Mississippi desire union representation due to poor working conditions, low wages, and widespread safety issues that have lead to the death of two workers in recent years. By some estimates, as many as 40 percent of the 5,000 workers at the Mississippi plant have been hired as temporary employees who work for years earning significantly lower wages and benefits than regular employees. An overwhelming majority of temporary employees are African-American.

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Copyright © 2016 Southern Workers Assembly, All rights reserved.
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ckaihatsu

31st December 2016, 13:48

BREAKING NEWS - WAGE THIEVES ON NOTICE

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Dear Good Jobs Defenders:

Thank you.

We just put corporate wage thieves on notice.

According to CNN (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6gA/ni0YAA/t.23l/7Qu9_CQ7TD-ZblFFqnKNgA/h0/Cx3MiTKZVSZsIZ976XUXkchZYpHOQNOMDK4FlN6ngK1ZpBVvIt 0Qn-2FGd6v6k9UjzC6S29yq79kioZWbb8-2BiBzegse2HHIEeYGRUYmclKAArgHqQM5lhcaQlhKQD6b9JHMJ O3IVOAIrQ-2FXSDaE-2BG8DTtvPdBsZiBbBWhss5Zq6SAsYago4VBNigND1Vxws6uJRE-2FJoOTe5ff-2FEpYPHFdSujYQCFlTX1oB-2FvWpiQCG0q1ss-2Fq5iL52opOkZmiZOKuUDvbmvWHBXaxs7aecmFbPCd2H2Ri3ej 3C8hh2t1ntiQeM1Ubt6lRKo0K9sH5tVN25gChXrzrgG9-2B10aKEV22nteJAvEXF-2BICIlflbsuo7ScSP-2BhfUdYo6rC-2BDB-2BqfNHCw), the US Department of Labor just debarred a major federal contractor for stealing wages.

The move comes after Good Jobs Nation filed multiple wage theft complaints (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6gA/ni0YAA/t.23l/7Qu9_CQ7TD-ZblFFqnKNgA/h1/mb-2FqhNwiPwHg26xxrzU0i8Q9Frt-2Blva-2BeRc22g73iCEOEFpZoM-2Fa-2FMvfkba7Zbra4PbF4KOO6vM7I26wmvPeUxOhgMOVdvKeN0g5K C0qDrmb7U8QubZ-2FI4VzZ-2BbvyP6E9bkILfyG8p64IX-2Fo8PdqhqXh0-2BhzEbo4LmnyRBklI8fEn6L0QuF9VLCGdEBTbeO7xs-2BS5JbWNzUQeF-2BTsr2DxBOJi9T8hKujIfcN6QFqAzSbMtWsdhs7aSznLgDFmm2 mzZM0yVbWwfA-2BO-2BwwpDHWqbxqyhPkRgHnbkz8zCyqfShdf21BxxuCu3yFIOliOy g77Zhk8SUmUZsWl-2FcBRYhfGah2sj7ziKeo-2FrjTTCu6bvPCDnljXIkiywM3ZqNeHLnjww8Tyour4dacrnS6f 5B-2Bd1STZwNeSuetV0FqXLupVwt7K-2FRMnk-2FBcONZf-2B-2FgqotXT1FQyAFTCdBqrW1i-2BQOHTjJ7sFOLQ8QimkEeo1ui2SQ-3D) on behalf of low-wage contract workers at the US Senate and Capitol, recovering over $1 million in back-pay and damages.

We sent a message: If you want to do business with the US Government, you can’t cheat your workers.

THANK YOU to all the Good Jobs Defenders who signed petitions and made lobbying calls; thank you to all the Senate staffers for sponsoring brown bag boycotts; thank you to Senators Warren, Booker, Hirono, Durbin and all the other Senators who joined us in solidarity; thank you to all the faith leaders who prayed with us; and thank you to Senator Bernie Sanders, Rep. Keith Ellison and members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus for joining us on the picket lines.

We’ve won, but we’re not done. According to Demos, federal contractors steal $2.5 billion every year (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6gA/ni0YAA/t.23l/7Qu9_CQ7TD-ZblFFqnKNgA/h2/o3hKGjP2lyKkChtzXOzYGVc8kdzQCH8C2BDBfGxIF3AwZuLG9a tdQfGg-2FF-2BKIk1uLep426-2FJJ4LoWmo2agtS3JMxgWsK58EyBvWHwhtqNjxgJ8Y4sBvD5n4 Ib8T-2BhPvGouohqtCUViY2WvkwZJlNVCUGkyJTZGAsCfScjrMBT4Pj p-2BHFgBxtg-2BXnfnPETqI8DtmldRWFjGlWdC25-2FGcOTuARoZ0Rc-2BxaAhsHCJa0qzOeZfgy0GnWz1RIQBOu8K2d3ezLc9uN8GnqcR qfbqeMEdQpgOvTK2cJbViP9Dfi2mcI6QF8m236nybRPMBxspjR Fs8Q00eTcxVye1A2fCfdHyIZi3LuKX0oha1pMHjbgufwcXTi5-2FiQS7QJIj1QYnVtWmGtN5zXFBs-2BJtHNRNhkWA-3D-3D) from the pockets of low-wage workers.

Join us in 2017 as we hold President-elect Donald Trump accountable to his promise to deliver “more jobs and better wages” by making sure the US Government only does business with model employers (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6gA/ni0YAA/t.23l/7Qu9_CQ7TD-ZblFFqnKNgA/h3/o3hKGjP2lyKkChtzXOzYGVc8kdzQCH8C2BDBfGxIF3AwZuLG9a tdQfGg-2FF-2BKIk1uLep426-2FJJ4LoWmo2agtS3JMxgWsK58EyBvWHwhtqNjxgJ8Y4sBvD5n4 Ib8T-2BhPvGj-2FRtqNaO448dWEo7DONyVotSWFX8PzDH7QDpT-2F32Z4DJJPDZs0YptczoJB4k5cySETR-2BtJ5m1gc-2BgGRYoO1-2BE-2FZbJaXBo76ErCQ8CAYzyZYwYJJ5rftmUEfH382nVze5keVJ-2B1p62X7mp1KDWHXY5XnOAkMVMxcnAjluKukU5Kn8yh4U4KgHe jtemqQz1fkbxN8vRgXnQR5tN5Hio9c6kcM-2Brh319edaenIWKnWQsqtP0dfLC3t0pPYZGPoy2RMKNI0pixwQ 689zPsyNCZLbWg-3D-3D) that create good jobs in America – not corporations that cheat workers and ship jobs overseas.

If we stand together, we can make sure our government sides with the working class, not the billionaires!

Thanks again,

Good Jobs Nation

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ckaihatsu

3rd January 2017, 13:36

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2017/01/03/mome-j03.html

As strike enters third month

Momentive workers fight Trump’s billionaire appointee Schwarzman

By Philip Guelpa

3 January 2017

With the strike of 700 workers against Momentive Performance Materials in Waterford, New York, north of Albany, entering its third month and the plant manned with scab labor, it is clear the company is determined to break the workers’ resistance to sweeping concessions. At the same time, the International Union of Electrical Workers/Communications Workers of America (IUE/CWA), Locals 81359 and 81380, have collaborated in the slow strangulation of the strike.

The company is seeking major cuts in health care, pensions and other benefits. This follows two previous concessions-laden contracts within less than a decade, following a leveraged buyout that left the company with a huge debt burden, leading to bankruptcy.

Developments over the past month highlight the forces arrayed against the Momentive strikers.

It was recently revealed that a key advisor to president-elect Donald Trump, Blackstone Group founder and CEO Stephen Schwarzman, owns a stake in Momentive. The group that bought Momentive from General Electric (GE) a decade ago, Apollo Global Management, includes six billionaires, among them Schwarzman, who are listed by Forbes magazine among the 400 richest people in the US. Schwarzman alone has an estimated net worth of $11 billion, and is ranked number 45 on the Forbes list. Blackstone is the largest hedge fund in the world, currently holding assets valued at about $361 billion.

Schwarzman, a long-time friend of the president-elect, has been named to head the Strategic and Policy Forum, which will advise Trump on economic and tax policy. This group, hand-picked by Schwarzman, will consist of more than a dozen corporate leaders, including former GE CEO Jack Welch. In a recent presentation to Goldman Sachs, Schwarzman predicted that the Trump administration would enact widespread government deregulation and corporate tax cuts.

The utter bankruptcy of the unions was epitomized by Local 81359 President Dominick Patrignani, who appealed to Trump and Schwarzman for “compassion.” He told the Albany Times Union, “I would pray to God that Donald Trump would reconsider what he is doing and have a talk with some of these people, especially Mr. Schwarzman, about what is going on here in Waterford. We are extremely concerned with the loss of jobs, and this guy is supposed to be the new czar of job creation and growth.”

Promoting the lie that Trump is a savior of the working class, Patrignani alluded to the sham ‘saving’ of less than half of the Carrier workforce in Indiana, based on tax cuts and other giveaways to Carrier’s parent company United Technologies. Patrignani said, “It is a new administration, and we have to have faith in the system and hope that he can help, in some way, shape or form.”

On the other side of the political establishment, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, former candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, issued a statement on the Momentive strike saying, “I stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the 700 members of IUE and CWA Locals 81359 and 81380 in your fight against corporate greed and for the economic security of your families.”

Sanders’ toothless statement is without substance. It comes from the candidate who, after winning 13 million votes in the primaries based on the illusory promise that he represented a progressive, even socialist alternative to the parties controlled by the super-rich, threw his support to Hillary Clinton, their bought-and-paid-for representative, who made no pretense of concern for the working class. This enabled Trump to present himself as the only “anti-establishment” candidate in the race.

Mother Jones reported last summer that Bill Clinton received a quarter-million-dollar speaking fee for a presentation to the “vulture fund” Apollo Global Management, which owns Momentive, while his wife was running for president. The contents of the speech were not revealed. In 2013, Hillary Clinton also spoke to Apollo, receiving the slightly smaller payout of $225,000.

Apollo Global Management was created following the 1990 collapse of Drexel Burnham Lambert, a major investment bank that dealt in junk bonds. Apollo has become highly successful at leveraged buyouts of corporations, which are burdened with substantial debts that are then serviced by asset stripping and attacks on the workforce. While the company is seeking to impose its third successive concessions contract on the workers, Momentive’s current CEO, Jack Boss, received $5.4 million in compensation in 2015.

Patrignani praised Sanders’ statement, telling the Daily Gazette, “We are absolutely thrilled that Senator Sanders has taken the time to read up, study the facts and show his support to 700 chemical workers trying to get a fair contract with a corporate bully.”

In the meantime, strikers have been left to man the picket lines under increasingly bitter winter conditions. The company has fired at least three strikers for alleged actions on the picket line. On Friday the driver of an 18-wheel truck who had just made a delivery to the scab operation inside the Waterford plant drove dangerously at the picket line and nearly hit one of the striking workers. The driver was arrested by police, but only received a token misdemeanor charge before being released.

Local news reports indicate that the company is paying Saratoga County $7,560 per day in overtime costs for the sheriff’s detail guarding the Waterford plant. A contingent of six deputies and one sergeant is stationed at the Momentive picket line, along with the sheriff department’s Mobile Command Center. The large police presence is clearly intended to intimidate the workers and to ensure unimpeded access to the plant by the scab workforce.

The Momentive workers must face the truth--they can expect nothing but lies and betrayal from the union and the Democratic Party, let alone the Republicans. The sellout by the Communications Workers of America of the Verizon strike last spring should be carefully studied.

The union has already forced concession contracts on the Momentive workers, in 2010 and 2013, and the company is seeking even more cuts this time. The ascension of Donald Trump to the presidency will ensure that Schwarzman and his billionaire associates will be given free rein in their assault on the Momentive workforce.

If they are not to be starved into submission, the workers must form an independent strike committee that will reach out for real support from other workers throughout the Albany region and beyond and mobilize the full strength of the working class against the strike-breaking operation. Above all, they must realize that this is a political struggle, not only against Momentive’s billionaire hedge-fund owners but against the Democratic and Republican parties that defend them.

Copyright © 1998-2017 World Socialist Web Site - All rights reserved

ckaihatsu

4th January 2017, 14:29

Privatize air traffic control: what could go wrong?

What could go wrong? Let's not find out. (http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=0e5qEPrUeEFBeq9BwnKlvanF6Jh47pk2)

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When Ronald Reagan became president, he began by smashing the air traffic controllers' union. Let's not allow Donald Trump to begin by privatizing their operations.

Sign the petition: Don't privatize our air traffic control. (http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=OU656J4q7kgr9nq9U2GPdanF6Jh47pk2)

There is currently a dangerous effort underway to hand our nation’s Air Traffic Control system to the airline industry. If we give up control of this vital public good, we leave hardworking Americans, travelers and our airspace vulnerable to the whims of a private corporation controlled by corporate airlines.

This is not a solution: it’s a fox guarding the henhouse. Our Air Traffic Control system is too important to risk, and the stakes are too high.

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Currently, some Republicans in Congress are promoting a plan to give away our Air Traffic Control system to the airline industry, setting the precedent for a concerted effort to slowly hand off every American asset to big business including our roads, bridges and public lands. Congress should instead protect public goods by keeping them in the hands of the public and those elected to represent us, not giving them away to an unaccountable private corporation without any benefit to millions of hardworking Americans.

Add your name and tell Congress you will not stand for privatizing our skies. (http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=JMMmJrTch1ZrCFqSUH9DM6nF6Jh47pk2)

Over 100 million Americans have traveled this holiday season, each relying on safe, accessible and reliable access to aviation, but that system is currently in jeopardy. Led by Congressman Bill Shuster, who claims President-elect Donald Trump also favors privatization of Air Traffic Control, some congressional Republicans want to hand our nation's skies to the airline industry.

We already know the negative impacts of privatizing the Air Traffic Control system — record profits for corporations on the backs of American consumers, layoffs for workers and a loss of access for rural communities. The U.S. Senate already voted overwhelmingly to pass a bipartisan bill reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration that shut the door on privatization. Yet despite widespread bipartisan opposition from aviation groups, progressive leaders, a number of unions, rural advocates and legislators from appropriators to tax writers, Congressman Shuster continues to put corporate airline interests ahead of the public interest.

We must come together and tell Congress that we will not back down. (http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=Rl8EN0Z5t0N11JpBSJJKAanF6Jh47pk2)

Our Message to Congress :

I support protecting our Air Traffic Control system from privatization, and urge Congress to protect the public interest over corporate airline interests.

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ckaihatsu

6th January 2017, 15:21

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2017/01/06/nyct-j06.html

New York City transit workers must fight to defend living standards and basic rights!

6 January 2017

The following statement is being distributed to New York City transit workers who are holding a mass meeting Saturday, ahead of the January 15 contract deadline for 30,000 bus drivers, subway workers and other transit authority workers.

The mass meeting of transit workers today, just one week before the January 15 contract deadline, takes place after workers have suffered years of stagnant or falling wages while the super-rich in New York City have accumulated grotesque levels of personal wealth. Now one of New York’s ruling elite, the billionaire real estate mogul and con man Donald Trump, is about to enter the White House and unleash an assault on every gain won by the working class over a century of struggle.

Transit workers, like workers throughout the city, are struggling to keep up with rising costs in the most expensive city in the US. They rightly want to roll back the attacks of recent decades and make up for past sacrifices. Once again, however, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), state and local politicians and the media insist there is no money to provide adequate wages, benefits and work conditions to the 30,000 workers who make New York City move.

While the MTA has not issued all of its concession demands, those that have been publicized add up, along with an insulting pay increase, to a further decline in living standards along with increased productivity, which can only make the job even more onerous, difficult and hazardous. Management also wants to increase the number of part-timers, and reduce payments for reporting, travel and wash-up time. MTA officials also want to expand broadbanding (combining various job titles) and reduce the number of times workers can pick for better jobs.

According to union statistics, at least 235 New York City transit employees have been killed on the job since 1946. The latest fatality took place on November 3, when two construction flaggers tried to jump into an alcove to avoid an oncoming train. Louis Gray, 53, was killed and his partner was seriously hurt. A third victim was the train operator, who could not see them around a curve until it was too late, and had to be taken to a hospital for shock and trauma.

In terms of wages, TWU Local 100 President John Samuelsen said at a rally in mid-November he would not accept a wage offer of only 2 percent. The MTA, however, has only budgeted for 2 percent annual increases in the new contract. Even if the union agreed to pay hikes modestly above that figure, this would represent a cut in real pay over the life of the agreement. The official inflation rate notoriously underestimates the costs of health care, education, utilities and other basic needs.

In the last deal negotiated by Samuelsen, workers got an insulting 8 percent increase over five years. In addition, employee contributions for health benefits were increased from 1.5 to 2 percent, and the time it took for new employees to reach top pay scale jumped to five years compared to the previous three-year period.

Pensions have been another means by which the MTA has chipped away at transit workers’ benefits while pitting newer against older workers. According to the state constitution there can be no reduction in benefits of current employees. However, they can be lowered for newly hired workers and the TWU has gone along with that. As a result, there are now six levels (tiers) of pension plans for state employees, with only a very small number of high-seniority workers still receiving the pension benefits that were won in past struggles.

The struggle facing transit workers, like that of every other section of the working class, is a political one. Transit management says it cannot offer anything more because of a growing financial crisis. According to a recent report issued by New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, the MTA will have a debt of $41 billion by 2020, 43 percent higher than 10 years earlier. The fare has been increased by 45 percent over this period, three times faster than the rate of inflation and six times faster than the increase of average salaries. And the MTA has already held public hearings to impose another 4 percent hike in March 2017, with plans for yet another increase in 2019. An anti-poverty advocacy group found that one-fourth of poor New Yorkers could not afford the present fare.

As usual the MTA officials, politicians and media are seeking to pit transit workers against the riding public, saying any improvements in the living standards of workers would be paid for by future fare hikes. But neither transit workers, nor working people as a whole, are to blame for the financial crisis. It is the direct result of the deepening crisis of the capitalist system and the draining of public resources to finance the Wall Street bailout, tax cuts for big business and servicing the debts owed to the very same banks and financial institutions that crashed the economy in 2008.

New York is the tale of two cities. One is dominated by the super-wealthy speculators and financial parasites that have driven up housing costs and dominate every aspect of economic, political and cultural life. The other is inhabited by the great mass of working people who operate the subways, buses, schools, hospitals, power plants, construction sites, offices and retail shops every day. Although the working class produces the real wealth of society, workers have absolutely no say-so over the distribution of that wealth.

The main problem is that workers have no organizations to defend their interests. The Transport Workers Union functions as a tool of MTA management, Governor Cuomo and Mayor Bill deBlasio. They all agree that the jobs, living standards and working conditions of transit workers must be subordinated to the insatiable demand of the banks and big business for even more profit.

Workers are increasingly determined to defend previous gains, but the unions have worked to keep struggles isolated and suppressed. The powerful six-day Philadelphia transit strike by nearly 5,000 workers that took place in early November was shut down by TWU Local 234, Local 100’s sister local, right before Election Day, in a failed attempt to help Hillary Clinton’s campaign in the state of Pennsylvania.

Local 100, also in bed with the Democrats, supported Bernie Sanders in his campaign, which he obediently dropped in favor of the candidacy of Hillary Clinton, the preferred candidate of Wall Street.

At the Local 100 contract rally in mid-November, TWU national President Harry Lombardo said that the management in Philadelphia wanted health care concessions and “they got none of that.” This is a blatant lie. In reality workers will see their health care contributions rise from 1 percent to 2.5 percent of their pay by December 2019, for the same coverage. For the average worker this means a rise from $46 to $115 per month, and there will also be an increase in co-pays for doctor and hospital visits, as well as prescription medications.

The TWU will not defend workers. It is up to workers to take the initiative. The Socialist Equality Party urges transit workers to elect rank-and-file committees to plan and lead the struggle for a decent contract. A list of demands should be drawn up, which includes a 30 percent increase in wages, the restoration of health and pension benefits and the abolishing of the hated two-tier wage system. Other demands should be elaborated to ensure sufficient rest and break time, adequate staffing levels and workers’ control of health and safety conditions.

A fight by transit workers would inspire millions of workers around the city to take up their own demands for good-paying and secure jobs, affordable housing and health care and high-quality public and higher education. Transit workers should reach out to workers throughout the city and organize rallies, demonstrations and other joint actions to the defend the social rights of the working class.

The electoral victory of Trump, with all of the dangers it poses to every section of workers, is the culmination of decades of reactionary policies, aided and increasingly presided over by Democrats as well as Republicans. Democratic politicians like Cuomo and de Blasio are responsible for policies that allowed Trump to posture as the “anti-candidate” and opponent of the status quo. While saying as little as possible about the right-wing government he is assembling of billionaires, ex-generals and ultra reactionaries that want to destroy Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, the Democrats criticize Trump for not being aggressive enough against Russia as they beat the drums for a new world war.

Democrats like Senator Charles Schumer and top union executives have expressed their support for Trump’s program of economic nationalism, seeking to pit American workers against their brothers and sisters around the world. But transit workers are made up of virtually every nationality on the globe and they know that it is possible to defend their interests only by uniting all workers, regardless of race or nationality.

Transit workers are in a fight against the entire economic and political order, which serves the rich at the expense of the working class. But they have powerful allies in the masses of struggling workers and young people who face the same fight. The battle by transit workers to defend their social rights must be combined with the struggle to build a mass political movement of the working class, independent of the two capitalist parties, and committed to the fight for socialism and real equality.

The Socialist Equality Party and the World Socialist Web Site will provide transit workers with as much assistance as possible in this struggle. We urge you to contact the SEP today.

Copyright © 1998-2017 World Socialist Web Site - All rights reserved

ckaihatsu

7th January 2017, 13:29

WE WON! The Postal Service’s Shady Deal with Staples is OVER!

Dear Chris Kaihatsu,

The Staples boycott is over (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5wA/ni0YAA/t.23q/qDrFg5SzSR-AE7ST1F1QaQ/h1/WClYTsxAKa5zn8xuBrklpwKoGcNvNXIdI7Gp6pZ95te98-2BxMxh0EjiVCo6pwWzbYkWJMp8abk2coDLiKN4uziyhilqdK1-2BqxGU6rsGdU19Xw602OD52jXYSZPjpf1nK2atMCD7GcNwfRux ZYAkOuIWUrdXpuluEsxXrXJbhnbaUJDoalQJnNACF6Ob2KMnVu 2WMoKSMGKxwKCJ3WwcOaDKVw3puZ2nuuLXQ1doA2WMV5zm2VcS H3etvMp-2FBzvJbDioV-2FMmCKE8-2F8AASuZV68pqMLVR1mmnsIauPvk7REkCAr48dI2GPkbhGFSDW g2iDZCGF-2BIDxSmiP6PFklqgJTXa6HUrDPgn8axmf3nSV3Sl9rJ5VXu2BF sTHbmyB4Vb9UN0WwAwo-2BK6mkIILjA7JomxhWEW1-2FTywcx1TTEvIrkDI-3D)!

Postal management informed the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) in writing that the “Approved Shipper” program in Staples stores will be shut down by the end of next month, concluding our three-year struggle.

I salute and commend you along with every other member and supporter who made this victory possible. I never doubted that if we stayed the course, stuck together and kept the activist pressure on, we would win this fight.

This is a victory for all the people of this country who have the right to good quality, secure, and public postal services. It also helps stop the transfer of good living-wage union jobs to low-wage jobs and thwarts postal privatization efforts.

I also applaud the many local and state organizations that joined in the fight; allies who honored the Staples boycott; our retiree and auxiliary chapters who stepped up with enthusiasm; APWU National officers and staff who stayed the course; and especially the many Stop Staples activists, active and retired, career and non-career, who worked day-in and day-out to see this struggle through and were the heart and soul of the campaign.

A job well-done!

In Solidarity,

Mark Dimondstein, APWU President

1300 L Street NW, Washington, DC 20005 | www.apwu.org

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ckaihatsu

11th January 2017, 18:21

We're On Strike to Stop Wall Street from Destroying Our Jobs

CWA
ACTIVIST ALERT

Chris,
We've been on strike at Momentive Performance Materials in Waterford, NY for over two months to save good jobs and stop Wall Street greed from destroying our community.

Every day, Wall Street speculators, hedge fund managers and private equity firms sacrifice communities all across the country for the benefit of their bottom line, but we're standing strong in Waterford to stop them.
Will you stand with us and our coworkers? Sign the petition. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4gA/ni0YAA/t.23w/wVJ9-3txRlWrZfW883jitQ/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CmY8oAISMSTaxA-2BuXslrlehcn-2B47csfbWfxLl3jgOZUQDmCzkoy1MqXEW5zoT-2FZ7u75xSDiyPi0EDOh6CcOXuaDWJnDGkAjBYgNOqysYhaE1dF o-2Bk-2BPQx1gH8XrCmsuhXAvRNN2vbbcf5Abiv4FsI2Ca0DlLrDuB0v FUrDptaYIlbqVeDHf7WvXlCg3VCz-2BVYfGGS1veiCffSwR9a0-2B054th2gfW2Wwc6I2cAd2Ix-2FYLnwnl661oZ0KKBgmE-2BAjR00Ra-2B2Vg9RsOtiIYK37riMoRexI9pK7UZkwP9Pd9fEdzZbo5xHaNy REWDxt7Vz-2BKcsl4p4kWqOYXWhCEXNPlteNzKKoxLfvAPnCvmRsaxFHlgxl hwTluYV8us17dZDeuoPH15xlt3eRIXeV-2BOQmGTzNzxZRE3EGnN5YrK10joOwQ-3D-3D)

SIGN THE PETITION ► (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4gA/ni0YAA/t.23w/wVJ9-3txRlWrZfW883jitQ/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CmY8oAISMSTaxA-2BuXslrlehcn-2B47csfbWfxLl3jgOZUQDmCzkoy1MqXEW5zoT-2FZ7u3oCgHPsE6UQMw3f8-2BVh8R7T-2F4VAg-2BppOeZJSn9-2Fiww4ZWz92gdhDbXEGSSYCQU8Oig0QJrWqa8QVtncyMAFDLW-2F2Com3Wz7wYkKKWVSy0wm35DYXs8FkvIWtMUgUvclJ0G0cdeY LeNWn-2FKAvV1rNHoUglY5AoOAZ5t2UFwWeYhqaL1B0E3TlV6lm7vJK6 x4CwTliXkHK7WXs2Fze1yIsuewFSyke-2FjWQNPBo1UJ20DQ-2FTrCvINomldo6dmN5O3ehE-2Bvhdl7YHDO6VbZTk0qvzVsh3BkfP2IkZ0aClPa-2Fdu-2BwWQ-2F2C9e3HUml-2FxOaYAX0VcYc-2FeO0wejzHXNKG-2Fe9flNTzp5QjdZpRG6zOz6y6MQ-3D-3D)

Our jobs have been good jobs for decades, but hedge fund billionaires are trying to destroy them to line their own pockets, hurting working families and putting upstate New York at risk of a huge environmental catastrophe all at the same time. *

One of the billionaires driving down our standard of living is Stephen Schwarzman. He's the CEO of the private equity firm Blackstone Group which owns a large chunk of Momentive.

And Schwarzman isn't just any Wall Street billionaire - he chairs President-Elect Donald Trump's new “Strategic and Policy Forum," which is supposed to help create good jobs.
Surely if Schwarzman really cares about preserving and creating good jobs in places like Waterford he should stand with us to stop the pay and benefit cuts, support good jobs and put working people before Wall Street greed.

We've seen the changes at the company first hand. Since private equity took over the company from GE in 2006, some of our wages have been slashed up to 50%, our pensions have been frozen, and more of our jobs have been outsourced.

The company is trying to slash not only our healthcare, but eliminate completely the healthcare of our retirees. Some of these folks are dealing with illnesses directly related to their exposure to deadly chemicals at the plant. That's disgustingly greedy.

The wealthy and powerful in charge of the plant are making huge amounts of money while we are being nickel-and-dimed. We have to stop them.

Please sign the petition to stand with us. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4gA/ni0YAA/t.23w/wVJ9-3txRlWrZfW883jitQ/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CmY8oAISMSTaxA-2BuXslrlehcn-2B47csfbWfxLl3jgOZUQDmCzkoy1MqXEW5zoT-2FZ7sImPEFmDobThkRIa-2FI1NanJpgd1FbFic3wOVOZcb0k7ePLuSxmyZJAi8m6ZJD-2FmnDwXcaZobxhCc7UgAJQPlvtNnSs0xT3gGcBefyJF59wBGuB FvDzzkt1fTUSyYcXcrcR7UFg6gKgoQHAVndYoTKLy15pKGt0gR HbcysW6s7mnuqxLqVuOFYyc5Xxk0Q34HBlihDVZETzRoTGnGlr ms0PIXHKTUO8yXE3godSqf4eElno6wZ7Vn7PJ2nouYOSN4oQpD 9Bzu3slzUaYlpt-2FkBBr0vxmootWd5l7kj5g2noo4b-2B7DdRb4-2FCv-2BJaUoMNcwlVcH4RP5LoE6uBbGt7yOTPYjtrfQdocn66q8H1W0 Y9NA-3D-3D)

Thank you,

Donna Taylor and Frank Coreno

* Learn more about environmental disaster waiting to happen at Momentive by clicking here (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4gA/ni0YAA/t.23w/wVJ9-3txRlWrZfW883jitQ/h4/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiKu5-2FfFSRaOHrmn1alwWZaAR-2FcHuRd8RTViUlEcUjE6WnuLSKH3QzX76mT-2B-2FKHOSkkblCezaZfTt3ynp0Cv82l2cU7AaMhGdRcj-2BWj6tpqvpXr-2BV0bcO16cH0OZoYKqnD7RfOhrSdYgFKaQe6RTxPZwfIt3-2BbisYeWCNNfkGAeTuTmeKyXa86Qfp0nlYAm2x03MWGxlwJ62Y-2BUmjCBbZUwAbYhLKY-2BQX3bXkQzYU7mFNrVJhEEfAxyPXPgAa9rUXicoulgtofRj93S Gx40bgc9To30GsaD7B9MCnOv4hbOVPlZmiLGZUu2G9qQPyhX1X fLjeDohZ48Jhe189FAiQ5WIB0uGm3cEBIPH3FCDjZPAF4qsopK rIQYMusSza3XO8x86v32vheLA8OqdjZnOZ2nwCoy-2FX-2B1FI3FgJPFWx3WEx6jD47DPpT1FJnUI8LViqaQ-3D-3D).

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ckaihatsu

11th January 2017, 19:07

Scandal at T-Mobile

Jobs With Justice

Sign our petition: END abusive sales practices harming T-Mobile customers and service reps.

TAKE ACTION NOW! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2wA/ni0YAA/t.23w/GVVbs2xJSGyqHDUAPX1mnw/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CG8LEiB-2BCid2Dqo8FeiXuGMfyzeMe1-2FBjkvhbRTHqT9PizAKktLYBnKO-2BJT90GJmDDA9ETiEiYrLpPjoIBUVk5X8-2FJA68aAJvBwJOkUnzVBwMdoPr0BLb0FbO55dwv-2BY2-2FOsC4fgCBG7fXhygKc0DGFvZyJh95EwHt8xsxjxs0GpFyOAx0 Yhii2YYNLNdK7PX80s8Zyjn-2BFTA-2FuhS1PtzKe-2FG5lnYC0WwiyHd5Ev2QMHv1rJ-2BXPtpuWC-2BNYtJObYgG3OPbnCAEdqZ81ZFT5BHs)

Dear Chris,

Did you think the Wells Fargo scandal marked the end of corporations using predatory sales tactics? Not by a long shot.

The people who work for T-Mobile say they’re under tremendous pressure from management to meet unrealistic performance goals, forcing them to make sales by any means necessary—or risk retaliation in the form of reduced hours, pay cuts, or job loss. An expose found that this pressure led T-Mobile representatives to fraudulently add unneeded services, equipment, and extra phone lines to customers’ accounts.1

Enough is enough: Tell T-Mobile’s CEO John Legere to drop the high-pressure sales goals. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2wA/ni0YAA/t.23w/GVVbs2xJSGyqHDUAPX1mnw/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CG8LEiB-2BCid2Dqo8FeiXuGMfyzeMe1-2FBjkvhbRTHqT9PizAKktLYBnKO-2BJT90GJmDDA9ETiEiYrLpPjoIBUVk5X8-2FJA68aAJvBwJOkUnzVB0hY-2Bl4dNzp06nEn88VRNVu9Ilc71IO2ZC-2FtxEjf-2FIfraFuSLrIwaFxnPicPEJ0h3L32S4J7pdtqUAurDAlaJkzdP YaNO0eLgDa9-2B6c-2F6F72gVimTTIKxHjUpAMVme5BeRdeyHvqQL8GvcwBqyWIXO7B POC8JLMNLDhIiLFjmFYI)

According to a new report, the phony charges stemmed from sales and customer service representatives who were under tremendous pressure to sell not just phones, but unwanted accessories and insurance plans.2 Current and former T-Mobile employees said sales managers also used constantly shifting criteria to judge their performance. And here’s the rub: the salespeople at T-Mobile said that after just one bad month, they could have their hours cut and end up in nearly inescapable sales goal ‘debt’ that gradually decreases their pay.

This isn’t the first time the telecommunications giant has been under fire for something like this. Less than three years ago, they saddled millions of customers with unwanted charges resulting in a $90 million settlement with the government.3 Don’t you think it’s time they learned their lesson?

We’re calling on T-Mobile to do right by its customers, as well as meet with the working men and women of T-Mobile to create fairer performance measures. Can you please take 30 seconds to join us? (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2wA/ni0YAA/t.23w/GVVbs2xJSGyqHDUAPX1mnw/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CG8LEiB-2BCid2Dqo8FeiXuGMfyzeMe1-2FBjkvhbRTHqT9PizAKktLYBnKO-2BJT90GJmDDA9ETiEiYrLpPjoIBUVk5X8-2FJA68aAJvBwJOkUnzVB1CeMe6yzyk3H3wgD8Bl5VV4U7igohX oluWG-2BLEzytAmbB-2BwCce6wvcklpqLdofbDbsodV0bao35xA059gwfQIqNAcXtxPt ql9tc9Xy2B-2BsXUT0HpZtPJ5m3UeOTj67o5-2B1HUCzb4GoSrCeS6dOlgyNmF4vg0KJ6IXBJJZobATaY)

By uniting with the working people of T-Mobile, we know we can win this fight. Remember, after our loud cries, Wells Fargo buckled to consumer and political pressure. The CEO stepped down, and the bank swiftly ended its despicable sales techniques. We have to make our voices heard again so that T-Mobile, and other profitable corporations, can no longer get away with over-the-top, unnattainable sales targets that harm customers and working people alike..

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/petitions/photos/000/040/003/original/TELL_T-MOBILE-.png

Thanks for all that you do,
Liz Cattaneo
Jobs With Justice

1. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2016/12/16/aggressive-sales-goals-pressure-t-mobile-workers-to-sell-unwanted-services-labor-group-alleges/
2. http://callingouttmobile.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Under.Pressure_Dec2016.pdf
3. https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2014/12/t-mobile-pay-least-90-million-including-full-consumer-refunds

Donate (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2wA/ni0YAA/t.23w/GVVbs2xJSGyqHDUAPX1mnw/h5/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBSD9p4T6xn7Ql1kXw4yNstd-2BGemIBy0DJpFBJ9kdzDHbP2bPtVUoiMwJBBsbj3dnXTLvbIUT mu63ZbYOYzhBvxZF3NbOsXkKGepBwrTfCFyUXAIoVhRDrgki5H 02h1opWCj5TiRwpdmp-2FU4YROkkIVBxJB9SR72rWPNJuzH1aeq6ao11g5h2peb3IjT1K 9j8qOZJdLNJCUgyi0OrmUo1WWORyFXHnEqXnfpn2sRJanXjWAp W5xFa4zlVNQN-2FXO7ovPOfBFBFDXWNqSbzcT4Si5U-3D)

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ckaihatsu

14th January 2017, 17:51

Add your name: Stand with these workers against corporate greed

AFL-CIO

Sign the Petition Immediately to Support Working People on Strike at Momentive (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.23z/8mIQSfCYSUm5LtvPE6z_HA/h0/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3D6LSsKMI05g-2BApimA4sdJvJcDeKQwtgCQG2tQIt3hbSYL5i-2B-2BMLCxPwYWOVSluSQW3eXLBOx3B4CxFwNI5OWV5CnlIh4Lo4xH rSzL63IR-2Fxay8TVwSYD3sV60tVyXAu6uQTziRA0jj48u66s8XkXqlBNtM F9xS9YTDS-2By8O0Q-2FBvlMDNROayqWdp4ecGbDonHzGQZ0GHhWk0-2Bn5NgoTL8dfE98gvfBxSM34a8gq4q6HkQTFnikdE5UtHoe5wy u07Ogt2-2FJ0hMzDUUTqUwyppvLK1I2w3-2FjwTKoIQK1FGKJL1kR5McLRE7PFl2ChFNwfaWooZxBblClC65 wN33YlbDyNiOIyOrgwepKGg3XM-2B4s7t5CbLWmqBu-2FUbewgXlwkXbymOB96FY9z1ELzO0u5JsSxrMUZPsV86Y1bJE0 RA-2FPG55Hvs-2BB1lOH4NeejjoWdgwPiuhDkG3ydLUxBm335lRqW982yncscKk Vg04e7YTKkg-3D-3D)

The petition to Stephen Schwarzman, CEO of the Blackstone Group—which owns a major stake in Momentive— says the following:

Stop the pay and benefit cuts, support good jobs and put working people before Wall Street greed.

Sign the Petition Immediately › (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.23z/8mIQSfCYSUm5LtvPE6z_HA/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3D6LSsKMI05g-2BApimA4sdJvJcDeKQwtgCQG2tQIt3hbSYL5i-2B-2BMLCxPwYWOVSluSQW3eXLBOx3B4CxFwNI5OWV5CnlIh4Lo4xH rSzL63IR-2FxbzlV-2B5KDdolt7VyfJb4eQ3m4t-2F2vWBtGpRoWoOWd58xFq7FfoVoW-2BrDt0OB5CjqC8V7K-2FnNrFZCzJSW4qi1qAlvLI5PJiPXFKJ2-2BvPzXnPobTK2feoedLiSrcAFIpnM1L9OMeH1P1FYdSslQh4Ws 3ljJyyKe8OOKAQde5KnMdyxY8I4aSVWbgqRBvvlmjqC5KiuHKO G49EZ6jx1tRvs21m3M8zG707FSmIfNK2j4VOkegEHEIreeJw-2BW2AT9URnNrq-2FOtcT5glQP6fs1u2HD0NZWVHV3bzjVVosE7RlBCCDxXm8taIC DhjLaYIFnJbCOj3xLm-2FYlJq8tbweQxtKaXBi76iFjYXele-2B7cFh-2BaKqGQBViOcXZa5RjweXsxKeWAQ-3D-3D)

Chris,

Working people at Momentive Performance Materials in New York have been on strike for more than two months. They’re fighting to save their retirement and other benefits, but this is bigger than that. It’s about workers saying “enough” and standing up to corporate greed.

Since a Wall Street private equity firm took over the materials manufacturing company 10 years ago, wages have been cut by up to 50% and lots of jobs have been outsourced. And now, the company is eliminating health care and life insurance for retirees—some of whom are dealing with long-term illness associated with their jobs at Momentive.1 Enough is enough.

Sign the petition immediately to call for a fair contract, and support working people at Momentive standing up to corporate greed. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.23z/8mIQSfCYSUm5LtvPE6z_HA/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3D6LSsKMI05g-2BApimA4sdJvJcDeKQwtgCQG2tQIt3hbSYL5i-2B-2BMLCxPwYWOVSluSQW3eXLBOx3B4CxFwNI5OWV5CnlIh4Lo4xH rSzL63IR-2FxZ8G3tKcKqyvlgUPVph2CTNcWJ3-2BLezbF-2BO4c7JPfEGV1t1-2FODsN-2F9LMrBBORmMKiVaJaJ9smbadk2PF7M1fzZUEeFEPV5GB6gxiZ QHLFt5KW1qNHpBdyIkkKphrUjlr-2BI0e80FFO6R2qFdSxJpgj5xXpNPEWIIKtMpcr7lLYrvPCUI63 a3W4Cr4f6A09o0AcTkjlq5BN0jvHXUewzX6J3-2BQBROdkHpbkfu1jFQHK-2BQGltHNRun2-2BFfVlcNSiYdzpp68reEI4Mnze6tYLgYNcgo5ij8CX5Nc9DAYU TyZF4ljfKA7ZhH1QIUgLw-2ByuzdCk6wg-2FkjEGQnrjtfVrM9jSmueoUoWp44KRCVqw5Wu3jMDftPUQI9Kp XbnIYbJ1YDhgQ-3D-3D)

The petition to Stephen Schwarzman, CEO of the Blackstone Group—which owns a major stake in Momentive— says the following:

Stop the pay and benefit cuts, support good jobs and put working people before Wall Street greed.

Greedy CEOs and multinational corporations have made it corporate status quo to attack workers’ wages and benefits just to increase profit. Momentive is following the bad trend of other Wall Street private equity firms and hedge fund managers that routinely increase their revenue at the expense of our communities.

Striking is not easy. Every person who goes on strike wants one thing: to get back to work, but not at the expense of families and communities. The workers at Momentive know that we are, and always will be, strongest together. That’s why they’re not letting up until Momentive offers a fair contract with workers.

I’m asking you now to stand with working people at Momentive and push back against the wealthy few taking from our communities to line their own pockets.

Sign the petition immediately to urge Momentive to settle a fair contract with workers so they can get back to their jobs. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.23z/8mIQSfCYSUm5LtvPE6z_HA/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3D6LSsKMI05g-2BApimA4sdJvJcDeKQwtgCQG2tQIt3hbSYL5i-2B-2BMLCxPwYWOVSluSQW3eXLBOx3B4CxFwNI5OWV5CnlIh4Lo4xH rSzL63IR-2FxT9HghEKkH3NontyEVmSt8LWpr8R1gjVgJsBva5lztjgiFty Xzj-2FbQvnUV19YcFXFWLrOoLu6-2F3gV2YjMRnWvs-2F7nGCmk10Ym4lAbygqemUzpcfQ449uPHi7LAMMbJAH69zSgj7 JkJzTzg78kk1FthSTaB6GevmzISKMywquzJ66L2G1tsUQk4XCa y-2BPC3-2FtqL3aT6OkVNQtCmboz0BXN6GJStVkDV1894M7tlJ06WIXkD0 lM1vzFaxIAPKxB40mQcCNKhCxiuw-2F7-2Fxt71qa2Q2FZks8TyIAHXE-2FnHXzNMrZWEvyOGoVhqk63e1XO7GvX12ywik3w-2Fv-2FkcgDdUnDO9XxeL8trP00GgIey1WPc7y0J9eh84LdScssimk7 Xxntxw-3D-3D)

In Solidarity,

Elizabeth
-----------------
Elizabeth Bunn
Organizing Director, AFL-CIO

1- Nearing, Brian. “State Comptroller urges settlement in Momentive chemical strike.” Times Union, www.timesunion.com/tuplus-business/article/State-Comptroller-urges-settlement-in-Momentive-10849231.php.

AFL-CIO (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.23z/8mIQSfCYSUm5LtvPE6z_HA/h5/GmvsifzDqUiJ01-2B2MhZwY33MKnIS-2FMAQV2hmmP7L0vKrPYdVvv9jmjIj94uF52qwU-2FNoVT-2FNuIdx8nrTixV-2Fo2bvp8tHfzuydyWNuOOk4pTGgWUHqfSz821QrJkCA07usXFG UdJKcBDDlvbjXJ9haH-2BBR2qwUrqwi6ZL8mQ265FgJ6GN9zZryr1R3rI9wdqvQrgdWQW YH0WbBLk1q3-2BkBNO59EzV-2FWEkysASBIycVvnM-2BuusNZ4k-2F3XUw-2FAi0cJIjc-2FVHmwZZ5qYd1AYIz4LpatjBMqfUkCgJQvqxVsvcm-2BFbyw0ilmfxe83A-2BpZ-2B4mH28JqFYeuPXG4bWOYa4UaZybmeEpO7hbeurYy0KT22xV2A 7q3M-2Be8GB-2FStZ-2B24kWUbrL-2FBhFPgwuljxDMSuhD7w-3D-3D) Facebook (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.23z/8mIQSfCYSUm5LtvPE6z_HA/h6/9ZtgBbtsz-2BGzBX39C579VIL2jQ9i-2BKiVA2I-2BF9wgGRQL0fp01PKxf8VudQrkkU39bg7H6uXVv4yKFqf6xwfk 54z6iH68r1MX3ns4d1nEOrxIM9FMIjNBs6AWrzOng4Uxrw5DVY j7zuQXL7snpb6xtGFFg1-2FDL2xYn6jdm0MfzpPAIxMbiSnnD3RcywriKbflUMVGnOPaxRs je7ukh-2FoioKpaA1iYSb2ba4X-2F2M3hWTTPenbF27cvphQN4KLTx7jJTlfgH9M9miAxg4w6w6Yj a4vPnTJWDWYeSVbeOSYpDPDYbHhb5015ZBcuXKDGIw5CNJEnAF lNuU0Il5t2fUtw2AMiV4LUjPXa4QV-2BwplGvS-2FpnHqsrWp4Gz8f85zgFeRmDTsh-2FmtVzz5LWf4vv7a2S0KH0jlpD1rPjy1x3NYdZWM-3D) Twitter (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.23z/8mIQSfCYSUm5LtvPE6z_HA/h7/9RXDenI7BReTpKa-2F42PXTJ7hbSBraPBCb6Z3XIdqxQSeBEjnWFpsJcmitZnkKMWH EByenjudXOPxvS79y3T50jtC-2BLT5Fmvkbo-2FZHCoApI8vQP3wjWVocudgfstQDa60EhSVGPG8AzU9RmLmoZa 1qsGLq29q2B0us6VE5SBkSqKeIRwBMtif3RgbqKBTRvve1ZVgA C5Y4ZfTUhebYcxnfABF6JGkjdbyFx-2FFyZ6xfBdYrAuP4PxAQ-2BZG9HShLc3UsN2Id0r5jJksYpRwyz059jhPEXwJZulB8R7xAK be7lKWb-2Bs-2BLos3VIUIBK-2BaHuSscEpZsyQj2D9IjZdL0FwlQFzhuqF1KRApLvLgxk-2FrJ3HbgDVco5-2BofMh9gWVySrKD94cOqHcznn3dDRpm5kzaf-2BGbcK-2Ftm7UkmFQVRpeC6IM-3D)
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ckaihatsu

18th January 2017, 13:33

Transit Workers Activate - next Labor Beat on CAN TV 19. Starts Jan. 19

A Two-Segment Show:

Chicago - CAN TV Channel 19
Thursday, Jan. 19, 9:30 pm
Friday, Jan. 20, 4:30 pm
Thursday, Jan. 26, 9:30 pm
Friday, Jan. 27, 4:30 pm

We Move Chicago: Transit Workers Activate

December 21, 2016. Emphasizing to union membership and to Chicago Transit Authority management that class relationships are moving into a new phase, Locals 241 and 308 of the Amalgamated Transit Union held a day of coordinated actions in 3 locations throughout the city. Although the two locals (241 for buses and 308 for trains) had largely functioned separately in their dealings with management for some 40 years, the two locals have decided to join forces and coordinate strategy, the result of a year of stagnant contract negotiations. This day of action has awoken untapped, potential union power in Chicago. It points toward mobilizations similar, in the words of ATU 308’s President Kenneth Franklin , to the teachers union April 1 one-day strike last spring. Their chant “We Move Chicago” is no fantasy, as transit workers indeed move all the city; it also raises the point that transit workers might also vote NOT to move Chicago. Scenes and interviews. Can also be viewed at: https://youtu.be/bvrkQ-XhAHE

bvrkQ-XhAHE
Transit Workers march and chant at the busy 95th Street Transit Hub. Photo: Labor Beat

Second Segment:

April 1 Chicago One Day Strike Rally

Video Highlights excerpts from speeches at last Springs's April 1, 2016 giant rally at the Thompson Center (State of Illinois Building) in Chicago's Loop. This event capped the day-long teachers strike and coordinated city-wide actions from Fight For 15, transit workers, Nabisco workers, BYP 100, faculty and staff from Chicago State University, Northeaster Illinois University, City Colleges of Chicago, to name a few.. Can also be viewed at: https://youtu.be/ThTKOcR652E

ThTKOcR652E

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. Labor Beat, 37 S. Ashland Ave., Chicago, IL 60607. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". On Chicago CAN TV Channel 19, Thursdays 9:30 pm; Fridays 4:30 pm. Labor Beat is a regular cable-tv series in Chicago, Rockford, Urbana, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Princeton, NJ; Cambridge, MA.

ckaihatsu

20th January 2017, 15:29

Northeastern University workers announce Inauguration Day strike

By staff

Boston, MA - Food service workers at Northeastern University announced that they will be walking off of the job at 12:00 noon on Jan. 20, in protest of President-elect Donald Trump’s anti-immigrant and anti-worker policy proposals. The one-day, mid-contract work stoppage will continue through the rest of Inauguration Day. The workers are members of UNITE HERE Local 26, the same union which led a 22-day strike of food service workers at Harvard University last October.

The Northeastern workers will be joined by students who are walking out of classes and marching to the Boston Common, which will be the site of mass demonstrations throughout the afternoon and evening.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

25th January 2017, 15:01

Trump’s election sets up potential new attacks on unions (http://fightbacknews.us1.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a29530af96a02fc55d345e735&id=1c9d1bb0bc&e=d323598fe4)

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/AFSCME%20at%20MNA%20strike.jpg

By David Hoskins

Washington, D.C. - Labor officials in Washington D.C. are preparing for the worst and hoping for the best as Donald Trump assumes the office of president of the United States after losing the popular vote by 2.9 million votes but winning enough electoral votes from the states to assume the presidency. Trump secured his Electoral College win by squeaking ahead just slightly of corporate Democrat Hillary Clinton in states like Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan.

The election of Donald Trump has increased anxiety for a labor movement that has already been under sustained attack since 2011 when Tea Party governors began to roll out attacks on collective bargaining rights in states like Wisconsin and Michigan. The attack most recently culminated in Harris v. Quinn when a narrow right-wing majority on the Supreme Court ruled in 2014 that unions could no longer collect fair share fees to cover the cost of representation from certain groups of public employees who opted not to pay their membership fees to the union.

Labor officials fear an intensified assault on workers’ rights in three primary areas. Rank-and-file workers are right to be anxious too about the dangerous possibilities a Trump administration presents. Effectively resisting an anti-labor agenda will require both a sober analysis of the situation and rank-and-file militancy in fighting back in the workplace and in the streets.

Trump Supreme Court pick will likely renew Friedrichs attack

Workers dodged a bullet when Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died in February 2016, depriving the Court of its extreme anti-union majority. Prior to Scalia’s death it looked as if the Supreme Court would undo fair share fees for all public-sector employees in the case of Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association, negatively impacting thousands of labor contracts covering millions of public workers in the process. The death of Scalia gave labor a temporary reprieve as a lower court ruling in favor of fair share fees has been upheld until the Court’s vacancy is filled.

The success of Senate Republicans in blocking Merrick Garland, President Obama’s nominee to the Supreme Court, means that a President Trump will get to nominate Scalia’s replacement; a Republican Senate will be responsible for confirming the nominee.

In September 2016, Trump completed a list of 21 potential nominees to the Supreme Court. According to a USA Today analysis, Trump promised upon releasing his list to appoint justices like Justice Scalia. Ten of the potential nominees are federal judges put on the bench by President George W. Bush; one is a federal judge nominated by the first President Bush. Nine others were placed on state supreme courts by a Republican governor, and four of them clerked for Clarence Thomas, who is often viewed as the Supreme Court’s most conservative justice.

A Trump presidency very likely means a right-wing majority on the Court will take back up the Friedrichs case, or one similar to it, and rule against public sector workers by undermining fair share arrangements and thus starving their union of resources. The Service Employees International Union (SEIU); American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees; National Education Association; and American Federation of Teachers are just a handful of the public-sector unions that will be greatly impacted by a negative ruling on Friedrichs. Many of the labor officials associated with these unions believe it is not a matter of if, but when, the Supreme Court undoes public sector fair share.

A potential Trump NLRB threatens to undo union rights for graduate students and others

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled in August 2016 that graduate research and teaching assistants have the right under the National Labor Relations Act to form a union and collectively bargain with their private university employer. The decision reversed a 2004 NLRB ruling, which had found that graduate assistants at private universities were not employees and had no right to collectively bargain under federal law.

In the months since the August decision, graduate assistant employees at Columbia University have voted to join the United Auto Workers (UAW). Graduate workers at other universities have since filed for their union election as well. Private university graduate workers and union organizers fear that a Trump-appointed NLRB will reverse the 2016 decision and undo recognition of their right to collectively bargain.

In December 2014, the NLRB issued several rules that updated procedures for resolving representation disputes. The rules helped speed up the timeline for elections, which generally benefits workers and the union by limiting the amount of time the boss has to use union-busting tactics to scare and divide workers, allow for the electronic filing of union petitions, and require that employers provide additional available contact information such as personal telephone numbers and email addresses to the union when it provides voter lists.

These rules are minor reforms in the larger landscape of U.S. labor law, but they have helped streamline election procedures on a more level playing field for workers and unions.

According to CNN, Trump will soon appoint three of the NLRB’s five members. He will have the opportunity to fill two of the vacancies immediately upon assuming the presidency. The third spot will open in December 2017. With the terms of the two Democratic members of the Board expiring in 2018 and 2019, Trump may actually end up filling all five spots on the Board. This would dramatically remake a Board that in recent years had taken some concrete steps to make it easier for more workers to join a union and negotiate a first contract. A Trumpian NLRB threatens to undo progressive Obama-era NLRB rulings on graduate worker organizing and union election procedures.

Anti-union legislation looming as Republicans assume power at every level of government

Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton won the popular vote decisively, but the former Secretary of State and corporate Democrat who once served as a member of the board of directors at low-wage employer Wal-Mart led her party to a landslide loss in terms of branches and levels of government. Republicans are now in control the White House, and the U.S. House of Representatives, and the U.S. Senate giving them a lock on the national elected government.

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, the Republican Party was also elected to control of both legislative chambers in 32 states, a record high. Republicans control 33 of the country’s governorships, and Republicans control both legislatures and the governorship in 24 states, giving them complete control in those states.

Total Republican control of the executive and legislative branches of government at the national level and in 24 states has created concern about both national and state ‘right to work’ legislation. ‘Right to work’ is a misnamed law that prohibits private sector unions from negotiating contracts that require all workers covered by a union to pay dues for the cost of negotiating contracts and representing workers. It essentially creates a class of freeloaders who get all the benefits of a union with none of the responsibility that full members share in terms of financial support.

An analysis by the AFL-CIO, the country’s main and largest labor federation, found that ‘right to work’ laws hurt workers in several different ways. States with ‘right to work’ laws have lower wages and incomes, lower rates of health insurance coverage, higher workplace fatality rates, and higher poverty and infant mortality rates. ‘Right to work’ laws do not guarantee anyone in the states that adopt them the right to any sort of job, despite what the name implies.

Labor’s concern about state ‘right to work’ legislation is not unfounded. Kentucky became the 27th state to implement ‘right to work’ legislation on January 7, 2017. Missouri and New Hampshire are considered top targets for additional ‘right to work’ laws that would further undermine worker rights and starve labor unions of much needed resources.

The worst-case scenario is one where the U.S. Congress passes national ‘right to work’ legislation that Trump then signs into law. The likelihood of national legislation is more difficult to predict. Most Republicans, and the section of the U.S. corporate interests who back them, would certainly like to see national ‘right to work’ legislation.

However, Republicans already have their plate full attempting to repeal the Affordable Care Act (commonly referred to as Obamacare) and pass massive corporate tax cuts. It is an open question how long it will take them to implement those parts of their agenda, assuming they are even successful, and if they’ll have the political capital to pass national ‘right to work’ legislation after doing so.

Regardless of what attacks come their way, rank-and-file militancy is required to push many union leaders out of the dead-end strategy of campaign contributions to Democrats and lobbying behind closed doors in between elections. Direct action - especially direct strike actions and mass protest in the streets - is the strongest tool workers have in their arsenal to fight back against the attacks on worker rights.

David Hoskins is a senior research analyst on staff for a major labor union headquartered in Washington, DC. The thoughts and positions in this article are his alone and do not necessarily reflect those of the labor union by which he is employed.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

26th January 2017, 13:16

Stand with Strikers Against Hedge Fund Billionaires

CWA

TAKE ON WALL STREET

On November 2, working people at Momentive Performance Materials in Waterford, NY put their jobs on the line by going on strike. They're standing up against Wall Street greed for each other, the community, and all working people who want to earn a good living in this country.

This strike is bigger than Waterford. Every single day, Wall Street speculators, hedge fund managers and private equity firms sacrifice our communities for the benefit of the wealthy few. Momentive workers are standing strong to stop them.

Will you stand with these brave workers by signing our petition? We're asking Stephen Schwarzman, the CEO of the investment group that owns a large chunk of Momentive, to put working people before Wall Street greed. Click here to add your name. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/DQE/ni0YAA/t.24a/BPUgMz1PTti-qP5tq8F7uw/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CmY8oAISMSTaxA-2BuXslrlehcn-2B47csfbWfxLl3jgOZUQDmCzkoy1MqXEW5zoT-2FZ7u75xSDiyPi0EDOh6CcOXuaDWJnDGkAjBYgNOqysYhaE1dF o-2Bk-2BPQx1gH8XrCmsuhX6NcPzDuvWFnImsadMeks-2FfpRhtHzdJj36V1ewplUR-2FEGEdIkkUPT9PtLjtHoDDDUOcwOoMfUU3hA0GrIoe5k4coAuZ MT70Mc-2FXTV2ms892LQvREMR5Y6vOgRb28UD2vCzyWNaKddwgYBdvcVc y0xEKuKVErD3-2B5aBgfgzL7HV-2F7t4P715hd3e8cKpofaoca5jHI2ld6jquOW5HI5-2BrW9FsMuPTDhD7SjBQuHjqsN1zNVP8v79uyfaDjwJscO4FVj9 wXnNhTcTf1-2BJ9MshmBAE)

Since private equity took over Momentive from GE in 2006, wages have been slashed up to 50%, pensions have been frozen, and jobs have been outsourced. Now, Momentive wants to slash healthcare for active employees, and eliminate completely healthcare and life insurance for retirees - many of whom are dealing with illnesses related to their exposure to deadly chemicals at the plant.

Steve Schwarzman's Blackstone Group has driven down workers’ standard of living over the past decade. And Schwarzman isn't just any Wall Street billionaire - he chairs President-Elect Donald Trump's new “Strategic and Policy Forum," which is intended to help improve economic growth and create good jobs.

A delegation of Momentive workers will be delivering the petition signatures to Schwarzman. Tell Steve Schwarzman if he really cares about preserving and creating good jobs in places like Waterford, NY he should stop trying to make a buck at the expense of good jobs and the future of our communities. Add your name at actionnetwork.org/petitions/i-stand-with-momentive-workers-on-strike.

In Unity,

Beth

-----

Beth Allen
Digital Communications Director

Take on Wall Street
A project of Communications Workers of America
501 Third Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
www.cwa-union.org

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ckaihatsu

27th January 2017, 14:32

CTA Workers Contract Rally MLK Day 2017 - Labor Beat video

CTA Workers Contract Rally MLK Day 2017
View at: https://youtu.be/BU6oenzMa98

BU6oenzMa98

Both Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) unions — ATU 241 and ATU 308 — are preparing to “take this to the wall” to get a proper contract, after about a year of working without one. This contract rally on Jan. 16, 2017, taking place on Chicago’s south side at the historic Mt Pisgah church, further revved up the energy and militancy that was shown last Dec. 21 at protests at the CTA HQ and 95th Street transit hub. Speaking and interviewed in video are: Carlos J. Acevedo (Financial Rec. Sec.-Treas., ATU 241); Kenneth Franklin (Pres./Bus. Agent, ATU 308); Leonard Morris (Ret. former Pres. of ATU 241); Elwood Flowers Sr (Ret. former Pres. ATU 241); Jonathan Jackson (Prof., College of Business, Chicago State University); Tommy Sams (Pres./Bus. Agent, ATU 241). Length - 14:01

https://s30.postimg.org/z54buas75/20170116_ATU_contract_rally_Chicago_Labor_Beat.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/ng0c6c18d/)
ATU contract rally took place at Mt Pisgah church, where Dr. King spoke in 1967. Photo: Labor Beat

https://s29.postimg.org/myec0nd6v/2017_Labor_Beat_fund_drive_graphic.jpg (http://goo.gl/xV4ojb)

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. Labor Beat, 37 S. Ashland Ave., Chicago, IL 60607. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". On Chicago CAN TV Channel 19, Thursdays 9:30 pm; Fridays 4:30 pm. Labor Beat is a regular cable-tv series in Chicago, Rockford, Urbana, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Princeton, NJ; Cambridge, MA. Chicago cablecast info: Thursdays 9:30 pm, and Fridays 4:30pm, CAN TV 19.

ckaihatsu

28th January 2017, 13:36

On Strike to Stop Wall Street from Destroying Our Jobs

Chris,

We've been on strike at Momentive Performance Materials in Waterford, NY since November 2 to save good jobs and stop Wall Street greed from destroying our community.

Every day, Wall Street speculators, hedge fund managers and private equity firms sacrifice communities all across the country for the benefit of their bottom line. We're standing strong in Waterford to stop them, but we can't do it alone.

Stand with us and sign the petition: http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/stand-with-momentive?mailing_id=36624&source=s.icn.em.cr&r_by=1831516

Our jobs have been good jobs for decades, but hedge fund billionaires are trying to destroy them to line their own pockets, hurting working families.

One of the billionaires driving down our standard of living is Stephen Schwarzman. He's the CEO of the private equity firm Blackstone Group which owns a large chunk of Momentive.

And Schwarzman isn't just any Wall Street billionaire - he chairs President Donald Trump's new “Strategic and Policy Forum," which is supposed to help create good jobs. Surely if Schwarzman really cares about preserving and creating good jobs in places like Waterford he should stand with us to stop the pay and benefit cuts, support good jobs and put working people before Wall Street greed.

We've seen the changes at the company first hand. Since private equity took over the company from GE in 2006, some of our wages have been slashed up to 50%, our pensions have been frozen, and more of our jobs have been outsourced.

The company is trying to slash not only healthcare for current employees, but eliminate completely the healthcare of our retirees. Some of these folks are dealing with illnesses directly related to their exposure to deadly chemicals at the plant. That's disgustingly greedy.

The wealthy and powerful in charge of the plant are making huge amounts of money while we are being nickel-and-dimed. We have to stop them.

Please sign the petition to stand with us: http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/stand-with-momentive?mailing_id=36624&source=s.icn.em.cr&r_by=1831516

Thank you,
Donna Taylor and Frank Coreno

This message was sent to Chris Kaihatsu by CWA through MoveOn's public petition website. MoveOn Civic Action does not endorse the contents of this message. To unsubscribe or report this email as inappropriate, click here: http://petitions.moveon.org/unsub.html?i=36624-1831516-OPc1I1

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ckaihatsu

29th January 2017, 12:50

Sign now: Tell Columbia University to respect democracy and let workers unionize

AFL-CIO

Chris,

Research and teaching assistants at Columbia University voted in December to join together in a union to improve their workplace. Unfortunately, university officials are refusing to recognize the vote and delaying approval of the results.

Sign the petition to tell Columbia University administrators to respect the vote of research and teaching assistants to unionize. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5wA/ni0YAA/t.24e/GCV7waUeS0G9RTt_PJt5RA/h0/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3BoH2SXmyaloAHjvhmrfZJbm-2BSszQrPQ-2B2QnVrs2sVRJyVaxLMECxn3EdGzY1hUg5NLRr-2BQvXuaJ8lB-2FBN69w4rAmqI5tTuurfSYTPgm-2FsO27ppR3GBnV7GnsQf88S9dld3ldy9PHn3Rrmo9lE5fhZRx1 gX2Ohk5mTLtzpqJt2oasQcbNVZRIt9DFFBARNm3FHKkvShlW4-2Bd8Zet5Aae-2FRxt4qhdwc9KrFDlD9eSfWqMREN5c2WeT1w3FXJhEFARSGl1k DWdXKZoUs-2Fos3W0EW3odxjeDVwKPdQLtu9HD-2FF7acHcTnIJp7q2de4q8SUO77YHq468qFH3Xwb7lIh7NrgQqB hRwUpuwS4z2RouvZqmRSuEoItf9aavcJ-2FXNKCH8Qz5xwYqH7L25koqsbGL1RVenUdt5vB1DfS6kZT23dh Suu27Cp2ruxiBIO9sC6MxDREH5p23ZxUPo2IFO8YK8kZmhrufd owDKvUDgpGZhfFw3XPD-2B0EJrxbcyApS6wq0yVl6y9raLBjNNvD9LzCPYWDZnqvBheyy2 0dU4tb8eKYgHbTx5Fv-2BpsVam1arndtsJg-3D)

I’m including an email that Andrea Crow, a university teaching assistant, sent out recently that has more info on this important campaign.

In Solidarity,

Elizabeth
---------------
Elizabeth Bunn
Director of Organizing, AFL-CIO

Subject Line: Drop the objections and respect the democratic choice for a union!

Sender: Andrea Crow, Columbia University Teaching Assistant

Chris,

Please sign our petition urging Columbia University to respect our democratic union vote. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5wA/ni0YAA/t.24e/GCV7waUeS0G9RTt_PJt5RA/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3BoH2SXmyaloAHjvhmrfZJbm-2BSszQrPQ-2B2QnVrs2sVRJyVaxLMECxn3EdGzY1hUg5NLRr-2BQvXuaJ8lB-2FBN69w4rAmqI5tTuurfSYTPgm-2FsO27ppR3GBnV7GnsQf88S9dlflqINHR17lM4qPexyr8muVKb xcrsxcbnBKTqrhqznQDp-2BV5LKXSiDOuLh5TVyscu4BKj6qLke8qxaO1TpAh827goxAlyr Iw-2FD4NeRHZ28A9FIiEBC84VlC-2FFgSP0NKwBWmP7OpbogDGpIH2WEo5AmJoKCpAqg1qyOu3Ahx4 u4QEsTw34ue3rQEwq6zv6NSpO5z3rLAcwQ8X8Lacy2GmQM-2BrfslT-2Fi2LhsgqrWRoFNyAilTamCPUBERDLtmbNrgZyTrVvVijreOFk LmOFLVrUfY4DnXbeINYbLT7Cf0YVgW7mJLj2x0h4Z9x0SOGEBo cKhGmGCLMyty-2FXr-2Fu97iYVNGJRX0ARwvgvNxB-2F5fEbA7nU7OtyEX4s-2B-2BmLIcv6frfwlhDGYGsvQnnnQ2KLfkPusPpxjsiICZ-2FsL5aNAxVQvTgnpYUPQY6IeF9xjPaA7-2BiYs-3D)

I got involved in organizing my fellow research and teaching assistants at Columbia because I knew firsthand what a difference a union can make. My father was in a union when I was growing up, and without the benefits and security his contract provided, I would never have been able to go to college in the first place. Now as a worker at a university, I see my colleagues' and myself struggling to make ends meet in the most expensive city in the world, with precarious benefits and no real workplace rights.

https://actionnetwork.org/user_files/user_files/000/011/699/original/columbia-graphic.jpg

This is why, over the past three years, I've been part of the organizing a graduate worker union on my campus. In December, these efforts culminated in an overwhelming 1,602–623 Union Yes vote in a historic National Labor Relations Board election. Unfortunately, however, our university's administration has refused to respect the results of our election, filing flimsy objections to our election in an effort to drag out our campaign and undermine our movement. The pending inauguration of an anti-labor presidential administration means that we need to have our union recognized and get to bargaining right away to secure our rights now.

We are all in this together as working people. Strong unions protect our democracy and give us basic security. Please consider signing our petition to urge the Columbia University administration to stop delaying and respect our democratic vote.

SIGN THE PETITION. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5wA/ni0YAA/t.24e/GCV7waUeS0G9RTt_PJt5RA/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3BoH2SXmyaloAHjvhmrfZJbm-2BSszQrPQ-2B2QnVrs2sVRJyVaxLMECxn3EdGzY1hUg5NLRr-2BQvXuaJ8lB-2FBN69w4rAmqI5tTuurfSYTPgm-2FsO27ppR3GBnV7GnsQf88S9dlfaVCkch3z575RVfEr2UbU3Lk j8TTyT9FlSrCJE0-2Bxh-2BCHbdO41ieMEqPrHzJLcWdJkBg3qGDgvE7YhByLZJI0GfTvyf e8rzThXFphHR-2BG1SK0QB5SDRyKjmYN64fOZywpv9v9CYhEjj5GtIjWnBVdlpX ia6m0bY8P3flJ8zbwM0tag3a1pklMeFVQUntTvs-2By8sK4ep1WwCxu2uYgktJ2-2Fzbc9-2Fn-2F7LO7IlkAj8cnufDnEtOTbZIOdxMXI8jShRtlmayUsPICkELY dNVkGBbembjQWbjbaw5qIAxT8K-2FiC4Kjl364CZCC3gffc-2FYEwI0R-2FDBqzj6eddH17v1XQaV1pP6hWs9n8pYoVwEC2fHJwvsjnULJL VgM0FJEECOqpS48P4pudOaxjDZeX9KsVqd1MEnf5XtRfk5VkWC ETpJGbbXi74OUJyXpiws6vncWJdtU-3D)

In Solidarity,

Andrea Crow
Columbia University Teaching Assistant

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ckaihatsu

2nd February 2017, 19:18

Don’t let greed destroy good jobs.

Jobs With Justice

Join with the people on strike at Momentive to save good jobs and stop Wall Street greed from destroying our communities.

TAKE ACTION NOW! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.24i/d7yx35GZTSW9qatotFTNCg/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3D6LSsKMI05g-2BApimA4sdJvm8MPnxz0EgRGh8tFP6X-2B-2FGLR23BA7qGwH4hV0z0Qd8M04y6MxvIdt8d6STbDNEhwhlJIR Kw6crdT183wZecpkcqL9aEbHh7OxJh1keOqygC955SCAS3526E tqtr4bDDW3BMta2zNCxpLC-2FPm6eh1e-2FAYdsqfU4LHUPKvWEBakeN8JNxBoUFg1nzK5rmvHcua15eLzw NjxKvdooR6GklLjFIli4-2BoRhWCqa25RevkV4cVlGxdnFzjQnEzEwgRxjKBaeCXm8de4Wk yoH4GHotu1-2B1LcPphH4rPKD7r-2BYM3OAvVzxsa41uZ0mDwT0BzrkOX)

Dear Chris,

On November 2, working people at Momentive Performance Materials in Waterford, NY put their livelihoods on the line to stand up against Wall Street greed - for each other, their community, and for everyone who wants to earn a good living in this country.

Will you stand together with the 700 people on strike at Momentive? Sign the petition now. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.24i/d7yx35GZTSW9qatotFTNCg/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3D6LSsKMI05g-2BApimA4sdJvm8MPnxz0EgRGh8tFP6X-2B-2FGLR23BA7qGwH4hV0z0Qd8M04y6MxvIdt8d6STbDNEhwhlJIR Kw6crdT183wZecpkcqL9aEbHh7OxJh1keOqygAlnK4mE3qpMoA KcYxPAMBy2uXg7c4GAsRwKewKcapvrMIdszYy5HdNWy45xQ2r8 VjQtz0y-2BvSF-2FKS-2FpMf3NyUReO4ehaVaRqp08WQJQHfs-2FRwGsoCzmgH2Hf2nlRcsd1VgBPMO-2FO8selBwAXyCEY2nMvCaCDz3HhWglnime5HAmkQ1e1SEm7j9v i1L8PubjRfk-2F-2BCuGjc7j8eZFikV1A7d)

For decades, the people who work at Momentive joined together to create a great workplace at their chemical plant. But since hedge fund managers and private equity firms took over in 2006, the company outsourced jobs and slashed wages by up to 50 percent. The wealthy and powerful people in charge of the plant profit handsomely, while nickel-and-diming the ones who make them so successful.

Show the working people of Momentive that you have their backs. Add your name to our petition, and we’ll make sure it gets delivered to Momentive’s Wall Street investors next week. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.24i/d7yx35GZTSW9qatotFTNCg/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3D6LSsKMI05g-2BApimA4sdJvm8MPnxz0EgRGh8tFP6X-2B-2FGLR23BA7qGwH4hV0z0Qd8M04y6MxvIdt8d6STbDNEhwhlJIR Kw6crdT183wZecpkcqL9aEbHh7OxJh1keOqygDXvt163CDrszA-2BWK6WQ-2B-2BHqrt6mdpOQVcpr3nU-2FX4B9IVgFBsEGGv91zdpDeNsQ2ZySiuDQdJ4kJIcqeqSY4bsA H5T7iA7Wistrd4Tg0wtB3QqGuvBp2Za9IenpdFjo-2F0e9ibIGqSmGKT0vHXxec8UhPiwRTriv5MAfelcUnQuHbf6OU dK60ZjveBryy8rSQyOHLm6pgeTNwny-2BwbVDc-2Bd)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/071/041/original/momentive.png

Stephen Schwarzman is CEO of the private equity firm Blackstone Group (which owns a large chunk of Momentive), and one of the hedge fund billionaires who is demanding that Momentive employees agree to massive pay and healthcare cuts. Despite an estimated net worth of $11 billion, Schwarzman wants the team at Momentive to work more for less, so he can continue to line his incredibly wealthy pockets.
We need you to act now. For three long months, the working people at Momentive literally have put their lives on the line to stop the greed and demand a fair return on their work.

This strike goes way beyond Waterford. Every day, Wall Street speculators, hedge fund managers, and private equity firms sacrifice communities all across the country for the benefit of their bottom lines.

Join the people on strike at Momentive to save good jobs and stop Wall Street greed from destroying our communities. Sign the petition today! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.24i/d7yx35GZTSW9qatotFTNCg/h6/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3D6LSsKMI05g-2BApimA4sdJvm8MPnxz0EgRGh8tFP6X-2B-2FGLR23BA7qGwH4hV0z0Qd8M04y6MxvIdt8d6STbDNEhwhlJIR Kw6crdT183wZecpkcqL9aEbHh7OxJh1keOqygABwoJVbv0srHO IsqzIvqz0X7z3SQtXzVET6zUz7i4xwSEQ4aT7WcgrOazzJl4fH vS68ej7C7-2BUxhaQinOPug1sI-2F80SOaBzhbVPRZ6Vwcxneu9pzBNblWGwTR-2BqycYfk-2FdEV-2Bd4mzQ6YCqYM-2BgNPfvuvd-2B7Z-2FyE4a1YBCrHeUhlXuWeDBvK4LFxN4AiAsxX-2BXF2y5ITuwIFnKaqSEDUti0)

In solidarity,

Ehmonie,
Jobs With Justice

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ckaihatsu

3rd February 2017, 13:46

"A Moment Bursting with Possibility": Lead Articles in January 2017 Issue of The Organizer Newspaper

IN THIS MESSAGE:

* Editorial: "A Moment Bursting with Possibility"

* Which Side Are You On?: Trump, Labor and Construction Jobs

* TWU President Speaks Out Against Trump's Executive Order on Immigration

* Senate Democrats Roll Over for Trump

* What It Will Take to Secure Women's Rights and Women's Liberation

* * * * * * * * * *

"A Moment Bursting with Possibility"

As Protests Sweep the Nation,
Union Activists Discuss Need
For New Strategy for Labor

EDITORIAL

In reply to a report sent out by The Organizer newspaper on the nationwide protest actions against Trump, a longtime reader of The Organizer wrote us the following: "Great S.F. labor rally [on Jan. 20]. Also, incredible D.C. demo for women's rights, vast and young. This is a moment bursting with possibility."

This is very true: The moment is bursting with possibility.

More than 3 million people -- mainly women -- took to the streets on Jan. 21 in more than 600 cities across the United States to demand women's rights (right to choose an abortion, right to contraception, equal pay for equal work) and to signal their determination to resist any and all attempts to turn the clock back to the days of back-alley abortions, Jim Crow segregation, the KKK, banned unions, mass deportations, bans on people traveling to the United States, and the rest of the reactionary agenda announced by the incoming Trump administration.

The largest actions (New York City, Washington DC, Los Angeles) each gathered around 500,000 people. Chicago had an estimated 250,000 protesters. In Madison, Wisconsin, more than 75,000 turned out -- about the same numbers that turned out at the height of the Occupy the Capitol movement in 2011. In some smaller cities and towns in the Midwest or in the hinterlands of the coastal states, close to one-fourth of the towns' populations turned out in the streets.

Some of the speakers in the mass rallies pushed the Democrats' call to take back the Congress in 2018, but the overwhelming sentiment in the streets was "Resistance Now!" and "We're Not Going Back!"

Three Days of Protest, Not Just One!

This same outrage was expressed during the two preceding days of protest against Trump's impending attacks against the working class and the poor.

On Jan. 19, the Alliance to Reclaim Our Schools (AROS), supported by the two national teachers' unions (the AFT and NEA), organized a National Day of Action in Defense of Public Education. Actions by teachers and parents were held before, during, and after school in hundreds of cities nationwide to protest Trump's nomination of Betsy DeVos, a bitter enemy of public education, as Secretary of Education.

A wrap-up report by AROS put it this way:

"'We must protect public education and our communities!' That message was loud and clear yesterday in hundreds of cities across the country. Some of these actions focused on Donald Trump's attacks on immigrants and communities of color. Some focused on the disinvest-and-dismantle agenda of Education Secretary-nominee Betsy DeVos."

And on Jan. 20, Inauguration Day, protest actions took place in hundreds upon hundreds of cities, towns, and college campuses. High-school students walked out of classes just about everywhere. Teach-ins, mass rallies, and marches were held throughout the day. In San Francisco, protesters blocked major intersections and shut down Wells Fargo and other financial institutions.

The San Francisco Labor Council (AFL-CIO) organized a Labor Rally with its specific labor demands as a feeder rally to the larger march and rally organized by the ANSWER coalition [see accompanying article].

Most important, the ILWU dockworkers shut down the Port of Oakland. An article by Peter Cole describes the action:

"The workers who load and unload cargo ships, chose not to report to their hiring hall to express their discontent with Donald Trump's inauguration. They stopped working. Their strike demonstrated the potential power ordinary people have on the job, when organized." ("Want to Stop Trump? Take a Page from These Dockworkers, and Stop Work," In These Times, Jan. 23)

The Labor Movement Was Largely MIA

While the actions by the San Francisco Labor Council and the port shutdown by ILWU Local 10 show what is possible if labor acts independently of the parties of the bosses, and while the teachers' actions on Jan. 19 were significant, the inconvenient truth is that the labor movement was largely Missing In Action on Jan. 20-21.

Tens and tens of thousands of trade unionists participated in the mass actions from coast to coast, but they did so mainly in an individual capacity, with their co-workers, friends and family -- not as part of labor contingents. (There were a few exceptions on a local level, but nowhere was a strong labor presence to be seen.)

The overall absence of the labor movement from the Jan. 20-21 actions should come as no surprise. By and large, the top leadership of the labor movement did not support these protests. One week earlier, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka met with Trump and announced to the press that he and the president-elect had just concluded a "productive first meeting" during which they discussed a whole host of issues.

Trumka, according to press reports, told Trump that the labor movement supports Trump's decision to go ahead with the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline.

This critical support expressed by Trumka for some of Trump's early decisions pales in comparison, however, with the over-the-top praise for Trump by the group of leaders of the Building Trades Unions who met with the new president at the White House on Jan. 24. [See the accompanying article titled "Which Side Are You On?: Trump, Labor, and Construction Jobs."]

"The respect that the president of the United States just showed us ... was nothing short of incredible," reads a statement from the North American Building Trades Unions under the headline, "North America's Building Trades Unions Celebrate Presidential Action to Jumpstart Keystone XL and Dakota Access Pipeline Construction." The final paragraph is the most telling: "In politics, there are people of words, and people of deeds. North America's Building Trades Unions are grateful that President Trump is a man who puts action behind his words."

Trumka, the leaders of the Building Trades Union, and other top labor officials are clearly looking to strike deals with the incoming Trump administration, just as they had hoped to secure deals from Obama -- or with Democratic Party nominee Hillary Clinton. Labor's subordination to both wings of the capitalist class -- the Democrats and Republicans -- has been a constant, year after year. This reliance on the bosses' parties, in fact, has been the main obstacle facing the working class and all the oppressed in their struggles to preserve, let alone improve, their jobs and working conditions -- and to safeguard their basic rights.

This is why we have stated time and again in the editorial columns of The Organizer that the fight to affirm the independence of the trade union movement in relation to the Democrats and Republicans is one of the central tasks facing labor activists in this country today. The trade unions are the only organizations that represent and organize the workers on a class basis.

Labor's Independence in the Streets . . .

Securing labor's independence begins with the need for the labor movement to embrace and provide leadership to the mass protest actions against each and every one of Trump's attacks on the working-class majority.

In more than 60 airports across the United States, protest actions were held on Jan. 28-29 to demand an end to the ban on citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the country. In some cities this demand was coupled with the call to free the many refugees and citizens detained by Homeland Security. At New York's JFK Airport, the Taxis Drivers Workers Alliance, many of whose members are Muslim, staged a one-hour strike at rush hour to support the protest and express their outrage. But the rest of the unions at the airport were MIA.

The power of these airport actions, coming on the heels of the massive women's rights actions the weekend before, forced the courts to overturn one part of the ban: the part concerning green-card holders. This shows the power of independent mass action. But nothing has been resolved, and the ban is still being implemented at all ports of entry into the United States.

If labor were to get on board with these protests, the fissures at the highest levels of government could be deepened. And it is not out of the question that the "power of the people," buoyed by labor's full participation, including with extended strike action, could force Trump to end the ban. Many unions issued statements denouncing the travel ban, which is good, but now is the time for action in the streets and at strategic chokepoints -- not just words!

A reader of The Organizer who participated in the Jan. 29 action of several thousands at San Francisco's International Airport put it this way:

"Our action at SFO was focused on the bigoted position of banning Muslims from seven Middle Eastern countries. Our actions already forced a partial overturn of the ban. If Trump continues to exclude travelers who don't meet a religious criterion, this could create a Constitutional crisis.

"The labor movement could play a crucial role here. On Inauguration Day, ILWU Local 10, which represents dockworkers in Oakland and San Francisco, shut down the Port of Oakland. Only by the labor movement moving toward center stage will it be possible to add the necessary battalions needed to stop the bosses and their government from implementing their policies.

"The heavily immigrant Taxi Drivers Workers Alliance in New York City showed the way with its strike against Trump's policies. By generalizing and homogenizing our grievances, we can begin to bring together the working class in opposition to Trump and to all those leaders, Democrats or Republicans, who would acquiesce to Trump's bigotry and attacks on the working class.

"I counted dozens of union buttons and a few union banners at SFO today. What we need are tens and tens of thousands of organized unionists out in the streets. We need to prepare the groundswell that, sooner rather than later, could extend the labor strikes against Trump and his anti-labor agenda. We have to take a page from ILWU Local 10 and shut down production. We have to make it unprofitable for Trump and all his cronies in the bosses' parties to continue business as usual."
. . . And Labor's Independence in the Political Arena

Our reader added one more dimension to his letter with which we concur fully:

"The dangers ahead include, among other things, the channeling of the growing movement in defense of democratic rights into an electoral campaign by the Democrats, who are busy trying to capitalize on this discontent. The movement, should be open to everyone, but it should NOT subordinate its independence as a movement to the Democratic Party, which is equally guilty of human rights violations as Trump and the Republicans."

The co-optation machine is already out there working at full throttle.

Elizabeth Warren addressed the Women's March in Boston and urged all the participants to "go out and form your Democratic Party Clubs so that, together, we can take back the Congress in 2018." Senator Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told PBS News Hour on Jan. 23 that he applauds the fight for women's rights, but now the task is to "move from the nation's streets to the polling booths in November 2018."

Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders is crisscrossing the country urging his supporters to join him in the fight to redress the Democratic Party. "It is time for a new direction for the Democratic Party; it is time to rectify a failure of the party," he said at a press conference in Washington, DC, on Jan. 26, held jointly with NNU/CNA President RoseAnn DeMoro.

But these politicians' task of wooing voters back to the Democrats is much harder now. Huge numbers of traditional Democratic Party voters rejected their party's nominee, Hillary Clinton, who they viewed (correctly) as Wall Street's candidate. A near-record number of working class voters simply abstained, while many others voted for Trump as the "lesser evil." We must not forget that the devastation wrought to the industrial heartland by Obama's Wall Street bailout is what paved the way for Trump's victory.

As for Bernie Sanders, he has been discredited in the eyes of growing numbers of workers and youth for turning his huge following over to Clinton, one of the most unpopular presidential candidates in U.S. history. Sanders' call to "reform" the Democrats is falling more and more on deaf ears, as workers and youth begin to understand that the Democratic Party is funded, run, and controlled by Wall Street and Big Business. It is a party that cannot be reformed.

Ed Ferris, president of ILWU Local 10, is one person who has reached such conclusions. (Ferris's union shut down the Port of Oakland on Jan. 20.) In an interview with Labor Video Project, he stated:

"Trump is not going to help the American workers. He's a snake-oil salesman. He is actually going to screw us. He's only going to reward his cronies in the 1%, just as the Democrats have done.

"I think we need to reconsider this two-party system and get into a party that represents the workers and the middle class. The Democratic Party clearly does not represent us. I think the only viable candidate in the last election was Bernie Sanders, and he got screwed by his own party."

A rank-and-file member of ILWU Local 10, Anthony Levedge, echoed this sentiment:

"We need a permanent change. We need a Labor Party that can stand tough and fight to defend what we have won. All our movements -- from the Civil Rights movement on down -- have been drained into the Democratic Party. We need 100% change. We need to control the wealth in this country so that it can be used for human needs.

"Working people have to see that the enemy is the economic system; it's the ruling class -- no matter who's in office. The same attacks have occurred under the Democratic Party; they're just a wolf in sheep's clothing." (Interview with Labor Video Project)

How Do We Get There From Here?

Yes, this is a moment bursting with possibility. But it is also a moment that can soon be transformed from possibility into the political dead-end of the Democratic Party if steps aren't taken -- soon -- in the direction of independent working class political action.

Working people, as the interviews with the ILWU Local 10 unionists demonstrate, are looking for alternatives.

Nnamdi Scott ran as an independent Black working-class candidate for City Council in Baltimore and garnered 7% of the vote, with only a small and poorly funded campaign. What is needed are dozens of Nnamdi Scott-type campaigns around the country in 2018.

What's needed now is a national organizing committee -- with labor, Black and Latino leaders at the helm -- that promotes a new political strategy for labor. Such a committee, modeled after Labor Party Advocates, would, of course, promote independent mass actions of resistance in the streets, but its focus would be to get the ball rolling to run genuinely independent labor-community candidates for local and state office in 2018.

Follow the Example of the Cleveland 19 Trade Unionists

Three years ago, in the aftermath of the crushing Democratic Party debacle in the 2014 mid-term elections, 19 rank-and-file trade unionists in Ohio, at the initiative of the now-deceased secretary of the Labor Fightback Network, Jerry Gordon, sent an Open Letter to the Cleveland Central Labor Council urging it to run independent labor-community candidates for public office. Their message is of great relevance today. They wrote, in part:

"In our view, labor -- together with our community partners -- needs to run its own independent candidates for public office and not rely on any political party to do for us what we must do for ourselves. . . .

"Polls show that 60% of the U.S. population favors the formation of a new, independent political party. People are fed up with the two major parties. It's time for a change! It's time to develop an effective alternative!

"The lack of a critical voice from labor and its allies in the electoral arena has resulted in a monopoly of power by the big corporations and their political bagmen.

"Therefore, we urge and hope that the North Shore AFL-CIO Federation of Labor will schedule a debate on these questions in the days ahead. Subjects that we believe should be discussed include:

1. The need for labor to develop its own independent electoral strategy;

2. Viewing elections as the culmination of year-round coalition building and mass activities on major issues, not as a separate activity;

3. Forming a Labor Representation Committee to train union members (and community leaders) as possible labor/community candidates;

4. Developing a strategic plan that lays the basis for running independent labor/community candidates, with the goal being to build a local and statewide political organization that could become an independent political/activist party;

5. Deciding what platform and issues should be paramount for labor and its community allies to better motivate and create change for the betterment and empowerment of the working class."
The time is now to take this Open Letter and transform it into resolutions to be submitted to unions and labor councils across the country. The time is now to hold a broad-based conference of labor and the oppressed to promote running independent-labor community candidates and moving the discussion around the need for a new political party of the working class majority -- a party based on the unions and the communities of the oppressed.

* * * * * * * * * *

Which Side Are You On?:
Trump, Labor and Construction Jobs

On Sept. 15, 2016, the national leadership of the AFL-CIO, no doubt acting at the behest of the Building Trades Unions, issued a statement "in support of pipeline construction as part of a comprehensive energy policy that creates jobs, makes the United States more competitive, and addresses the threat of climate change." The statement explicitly called for support to the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL).

In separate meetings at the White House, first AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, and then leaders of the Building Trades Unions, met with Donald Trump to tell him that the labor movement supports the president's proposal to step up construction of pipelines, including the DAPL. Trump, a part owner in the company charged with building the pipeline, was thrilled to hear this, according to media reports.

But Trumka and the Building Trades don't speak for all of labor -- not by a long shot.

The January 2017 issue of The Dispatcher, the monthly newspaper of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), reported that its "Executive Board voted unanimously to oppose the DAPL and to stand in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe." The ILWU opposed the construction of the pipeline primarily on the grounds that it violates the sovereign rights of the Sioux. "Native Americans across the continent," The Dispatcher wrote, "have pledged their solidarity with Standing Rock because it threatens Native lands and water."

The ILWU is one of seven major unions (Amalgamated Transit Union, American Postal Workers Union, Communications Workers of America, National Nurses United, Service Employees International Union, and the United Electrical Workers) that have supported the resistance at Standing Rock.

Support has also come from six AFL-CIO constituency groups - including the A. Phillip Randolph Institute, the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, and the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists. In addition, hundreds of union locals, and numerous central labor councils have pledged their support for Standing Rock.

Trump has vowed to bring in the bulldozers to tear down the encampments of the Sioux and their supporters - including the labor encampment set up by rank-and-file building trades unionists - in his drive to renew the construction of the DAPL.
Confrontations between the Sioux Nation, fighting to preserve their livelihood and sacred lands, and Trump and his goons are bound to ensue. The question that is posed to Trumka and the Building Trades is, which side will you be on when this battle for sovereignty and human rights takes place?

- - - - -

A Letter from a Reader on Infrastructure Repairs

Dear Editor,

We desperately need decent-paying jobs, but Trump is out to repair only those aspects of the infrastructure that will make money for the developers and contracting bosses.

If he gets some unions to back this, he's far along to splitting effective opposition -- and such a short-sighted attitude only paves the way for impending national "right-to-work (for less)" legislation and roll-back of basic on-the-job protections. (Besides the Building Trades Unions seem to be silent on Trump's horrid discriminatory policies against women and immigrants.)

With economic inequality in the country at record extremes we need to back a government-sponsored infrastructure jobs program, not for-profit ventures for Trump's cronies.

A Reader,
Kansas City, Missouri

- - - - -

Unions, Don't Do This!

(excerpts from Jan. 24 article by Hamilton Nolan reprinted from The Concourse)

Organized labor has the potential to be one of the great forces for equality and sanity in our nation over the next four years. Orrrrrr, they can do what the building trade unions are doing now.

Yesterday, Donald Trump met with a group of a group of leaders of building trade unions and told them he wants to pursue some sort of big public-private infrastructure program, which he has said many times before. This sort of government spending would presumably benefit the construction industry. Among the topics that Trump did not discuss with these union leaders:

* His avowedly anti-union Labor Secretary nominee.

* His stated support for "right to work" laws that could decimate union membership in America.

* His tax plan that will primarily benefit the very rich and exacerbate economic inequality, not to mention

* His statement that wages are "too high," or

* The actual union-busting campaign that his company ran against its workers in Las Vegas.

On balance, you might say that Donald Trump did not address most of the things that should be of concern to America's workers and their unions. So what was the response of these labor leaders when they emerged from the meeting? They stood in front of television cameras and, like children who had just been dazzled by a behind-the-scenes White House tour, praised Trump to the hilt, stating that they are "grateful that President Trump is a man who puts action behind his words."

Yeah, you guys are real heroes for throwing your support behind the right-wing, anti-labor guy as soon as he takes a moment away from plotting to deregulate Wall Street with his cabinet of billionaires in order to toss your specific industry a few jobs. If every labor union in America is willing to fall in line with Donald Trump in exchange for the privilege of getting on their knees and licking the crumbs off his floor, we are in more trouble than we thought.
Don't forget the part of the slogan that says, "Divided We Fall."

* * * * * * * * * *

TWU President Speaks Out Against Trump's Executive Order on Immigration

[Note: While the AFL-CIO, Change to Win, and most other U.S. labor bodies have remained relatively silent about Trump's attacks on immigrants, some unions have spoken out, including Roofers Local 36, Los Angeles; the United Universities Professionals [State University of N.Y. Teachers and Professionals]; and notably the 38,000-member Transport Workers Union Local 100 (New York). Below are excerpts from a statement from TWU Local 100 President John Samuelsen on Trump's Executive Order on Immigration.]

On every level, I am descended from immigrants and refugees. The Transport Workers Union was built by immigrants and refugees. So was N.Y.'s subway system. The founder of our great union, Michael J. Quill, fled Ireland in the 1920s, the victim of political and religious persecution.

The Irish men and women who formed the backbone of my union in its earliest days came to the U.S. to escape these same forms of discrimination. They came for the economic opportunity they were denied in Ireland. I would be dishonoring the memory of the founders of the TWU, if I did not speak out against the inhumane and discriminatory Executive Order on immigration signed by President Trump last week.

The story of the TWU is intertwined with the story of immigration. In its earliest days, immigrants from Ireland, Italy, England and Germany provided the bulk of our members and leaders. As the face of immigration has changed, so has the TWU. Chapters of our story were written by Black workers who migrated from the U.S. South to escape persecution and violence. New chapters are being written by members and officers from the Caribbean, Bangladesh, countries of the former Soviet Union, Nigeria, and dozens of other nations. Like our founders, and all of my grandparents, they are coming for economic opportunity and to be free from religious and political persecution. They are welcome in the TWU.

My own beliefs have combined with my sense of personal and institutional history to lead me to speak out against barring refugees from entering the U.S., against giving a preference to members of one faith over another, and against denying sanctuary to people in desperate need of it.

I stand with my Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, and non-believing sisters and brothers against efforts to demonize every Muslim as a potential terrorist. I stand with all those calling for a fair and humane immigration policy that provides welcome and comfort to the victims of war and persecution.
This is a real American response, the correct response.

* * * * * * * * * *

Senate Democrats Roll Over for Trump

(excerpted from article by Paul Blest published in The Week on Jan. 26.)

Senate Democrats are acting like a bunch of spineless jellyfish.

Several of Trump's cabinet nominees -- James Mattis for Defense, John Kelly for Homeland Security, Mike Pompeo for CIA director, and Nikki Haley for ambassador to the United Nations -- have been confirmed. Rex Tillerson is slated to get the nod as Secretary of State.

It now seems all but certain that basically all of Trump's controversial nominees are going to be confirmed sooner rather than later.

Incredibly, Democrats -- despite having no obligation to do so -- are actually voting for these people.

California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who announced publicly that she would "head up the resistance against Trump" in the Senate was among the Democrats who voted for Pompeo. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and 2016 vice presidential candidate Tim Kaine also voted for Pompeo.
Pompeo is a notorious fan of waterboarding and other forms of torture and wants Edward Snowden to face the death penalty. As CIA director, he will be all of the worst things about the Bush administration -- and more.

* * * * * * * * * *

What It Will Take to Secure Women's Rights and Women's Liberation

The estimated 3.3 million people who marched for women's rights on Jan. 21 in more than 600 cities across the United States shook the nation and the entire world. Nothing of this magnitude was expected to result from the proposal -- issued by just one woman in Hawaii last November -- for women to demonstrate for their rights the day after Trump's inauguration.

As the movement gained momentum from below, with ad-hoc organizing committees forming in city after city, leading Democratic Party politicians jumped on the bandwagon, lest they be left behind. In many cities they were among the rally speakers, where they lashed out sharply against Trump's racism and misogyny . . . but conveniently forgot to point out the serious erosion of women's rights under the eight years of the Obama administration, including the years when the Democrats held a majority in both Houses of Congress.

Speaking on the PBS News Hour on Jan. 23, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) applauded the millions of women and men who took to the streets two days earlier for women's rights. He then added, "Now, if we are to defend and expand women's rights, we will have to move from the nation's streets to the polling booths next November 2018." (Interviewed by PBS anchor Judy Woodruff)

But will bringing back a Democratic House and/or Senate in 2018 represent a path to secure women's rights and women's liberation? Hardly! Let's examine, if only briefly, the way in which women's rights were gutted under the Obama administration.

What the Record Shows

The overall deepening crisis facing the entire working class had specific and harsh consequences for working women. State and Federal agencies, while forcing all working and poor people to pay for an economic crisis created by Wall Street, pushed through austerity measures that specifically targeted working and poor women. (Let us never forget that Obama bailed out Wall Street -- to the tune of more than $6 trillion -- NOT Main Street! In fact it was the devastation in the U.S. industrial heartland caused by Obama's Wall Street bailout that set the stage for Trump's victory.)

The first of these attacks came in the form of the Stupak-Pitts Amendment to the proposed Affordable Care Act. Introduced by Representatives Bart Stupak (D-Mich.) and Joseph Pitts (R-Penn.), the amendment's stated purpose was to prohibit the use of Federal funds "to pay for any abortion or to cover any part of the costs of any health plan that includes coverage of abortion." This restriction mainly affected women of color.

Both Democrats and Republicans proceeded to step up their attacks on women by de-funding many Planned Parenthood services utilized by mostly low-income women, women without health care, and women under 18 seeking confidential services. This was not only an attack on reproductive rights and the right of women to control their bodies, it was an attack on overall family planning, something the far-right in this country has pushed since the victories in the early 1970s. Thus, it was not only abortion, but a whole gambit of specialized health care for women, that came under attack as a general offensive by the capitalist class against women specifically, and against the working class in general.

That was not all. Just two weeks after the decision to strip Planned Parenthood of its funding, the House leadership introduced H.R. 3, also known as the "Stupak on Steroids Bill." H.R.3 -- which was later adopted -- attacked the health, safety and privacy of women in a number of far-reaching ways. The bill banned coverage of abortion in the new health-care system and imposed tax penalties on those with private insurance plans that included abortion coverage. It also denied Medicaid for abortion to statutory rape and incest survivors over the age of 18, banned the use of Washington D.C.'s local funds to subsidize abortions for low-income women, and finally denied women in the military the right to an abortion at oversees hospitals.

The sex-specific nature of the budget cuts and current economic crisis extend beyond a woman's right to choose. Along with an overall increase in national poverty rates, women make up the largest growing group, comprising 59% of those living in poverty. Unmarried women have been hit particularly hard, making up nearly three-quarters of this total. Women have an overall higher rate of long-term unemployment: 12% compared with a national average of 9.7%. For women of color the statistics are even higher. Compared with unmarried, white women -- who make up 18.5% of women in poverty -- Black and Latina women have poverty rates of 30% and 28.5% respectively.

The reduction, and in some places elimination, of Federal and State funding for necessary social services has left women even more vulnerable to physical and sexual assaults -- both of which have increased with the economic crisis. Rape-crisis and domestic-violence shelters, which provide critical services for women and their children facing life-threatening situations, have been drastically cut. Shelters servicing tens of thousands of women each year are now reporting a budget shortfall of 38% in the funding required.

Need to Break with the Democratic Party

Within the context of an increasingly deepening crisis of capitalism, women have come to bear the brunt of this system's assaults. In the long run, the only way forward to secure women's rights and win women's liberation is the total abolition of the oppression of women through the destruction of the system based on the private ownership of the means of production.

The need for women's political independence is of burning importance today. Not only can women's true liberation not exist within the confines of capitalism, but truly fighting for it today means breaking definitively with both the Democrats and the Republicans (the twin parties of Capital). In fact, the reason that the gains of the women's liberation movement of the 1970s are being taken back is because women's organizations were co-opted by the Democratic Party. It is this lack of political independence that has facilitated the attacks on women's rights.
It is in this vein that the importance of building an independent Labor Party comes to play. Women, who today are uniting with their working-class brothers and sisters in fighting back all forms of austerity and racism, as they did in the streets across the country on Jan. 21, must be integral to forming an independent Labor Party that breaks with the twin parties of Capital. Only independent political action by women can protect their past gains, reclaim new ones, and establish a society free of sexual oppression. -- The Editors

* * *

ckaihatsu

3rd February 2017, 14:01

U&I Supplement: A Discussion on the Party We Need -- Open Forum

[From the January 2017 Unity & Independence Supplement to The Organizer Newspaper. U&I is an Open Discussion Forum on the need for independent working class politics. Your comments on these and other articles published in The Organizer are welcome.]

IN THIS MESSAGE:

* A Discussion of Blueprints and the Party We Need -- by John Leslie

* Open Letter to Delegates Attending the National Single Payer Strategy Conference in New York City -- from the Labor Fightback Network

* Unionists and Labor Rights Activists Rally in Front of Carl's Jr. in S.F. to Protest Trump's Anti-Labor Agenda; Medicare For All Takes Healthcare Off the Bargaining Table

* * * * * * * * * *

A Discussion of Blueprints and the Party We Need

[Note: Following are excerpts from a longer piece that was first published in Resistance Marxist Journal. The full piece can be accessed at: https://resistancemarxistjournal.com/2017/01/27/a-discussion-of-blueprints-and-the-party-we-need/]

By JOHN LESLIE

The potential exists for a reinvigorated socialist movement. However, such a movement is doomed to fail if it is trapped in the confines of the Democratic Party. For those of us who hold to a vision of a party independent of the Democrats, it is important not to simply rely on the same old arguments. We have to explain to our comrades and friends, who are not yet convinced of the need for a break with the Democrats, without relying on boilerplate arguments. It's time for the U.S. left to move beyond marginalization and isolation.

"Our fight must be political as well as on the shop floor"

I was a member of the 1990s attempt to build a Labor Party. It seems to me that the Labor Party's failure to contest elections was an error. Given the unwillingness of union bureaucrats to break with the Democrats, Labor Party Advocates should have remained a mass membership organization with two purposes: (1) To propagandize for the idea of a Labor Party and a break with the Democrats, and (2) To provide a labor-left pole of struggle for national health care, immigrant rights, jobs, education, and other issues.

Our fight must be political as well as on the shop floor. We have to put forward the vision of a working class movement that fights for all working people and the oppressed. This is only possible if the labor movement speaks in its own independent voice. We can't get there by continuing to support the "soft" party of neo-liberalism.

Any alternative party we build must necessarily be rooted in the unions and organizations of the oppressed. Yes, the unions (the main defensive organizations of the working class) are in a weakened state after 30 years of a one-sided class war. Some of this is self-inflicted, because of a failure to mobilize the rank and file against the employers' offensive, concessions, and a leadership that has consistently subordinated the interests of the rank-and-file to the Democrats.

Building a movement for an independent working class political instrument has to be combined with a struggle to rebuild the unions as democratic fighting institutions.

The lessons of Wisconsin

Faced with a union-busting law stripping public employees of bargaining rights by the Scott Walker regime in Wisconsin, the unions fought back in an inspiring mass movement. Solidarity between unions, alongside support from farmers and other sectors of society, showed the potential for mass mobilization in the U.S. to fight back against the bosses. Unfortunately, this movement was diverted into the Democratic Party, with the unions supporting a half-baked recall effort that failed to oust Walker or regain any of the ground that had been lost.

Could a workers' party win?

The ballot access obstacles, while daunting, are insurmountable. The unions, even in their weakened state, have more than 14 million members. This is not to mention the millions of people (46% in 2016) who stayed home on Election Day, who could respond to a political alternative. I have personally seen the union get-out-the-vote (GOTV) effort in a national election. If these energy and resources were wielded in our own name, the result would be phenomenal. The Democrats are dependent on union money and boots on the ground to win elections.

The Labor Party is, in part, a solution the chicken-and-egg problem of building an independent political party. Since unions already have staff and infrastructure across the country, a genuine Labor Party effort could quickly win city council and county offices, and challenge for state offices and Congressional districts, without going through years of building up a duplicate structure. This relationship between party and unions would also enable unions starved of funds by "right-to-work" laws and denial of agency fees to rebuild their capacities as fighting organizations.

Not a new idea

The idea of a Labor or Workers Party in the U.S. is not a new one. From the Workingmen's Parties of the early 19th century, the Farmer-Labor Parties of the early 20th and the call for a Labor Party during the Great Depression, there have been attempts to form a new party.

Early attempts to form a workingmen's party were hampered by an inability to deal with the special oppression of African-Americans and women, the hostility of bourgeois society, and the fact that various Utopian socialist and middle-class reformers joined these parties.

In the period immediately following the First World War, an attempt to form a Labor Party was short circuited by left sectarianism, liberal attempts to co-opt the movement, government repression of the unions, and the reluctance of more conservative union leaders to join. The energy of a potential Labor Party was diverted into the 1924 campaign of "Progressive" Senator Robert LaFollette.

The call for a Labor Party gained new ground as workers fought back during the Depression of the 1930s, as the Congress of Industrial Organizations organized basic industry and unemployed councils fought for relief for the victims of the crisis. Unfortunately, this movement was done in by the popular front policies of the Communist Party and labor leaders' accommodation to Roosevelt's New Deal.

Good cop, bad cop

All strategies based on running candidates in the Democratic primaries are a recipe for continued dependence on the Democrats and continued powerlessness. Can any of us think for a minute that the Democrats won't smash any attempt to "primary" socialists in their party? Just look at the active sabotage of the Sanders campaign by the DNC in the most recent primary contest.

Many Sandernistas assert that the Senator from Vermont would have beat Trump in the general election. It seems to me that history shows the opposite.

DNC officials did everything in their power to undermine Sanders' challenge to the establishment's preferred candidate, Hillary Clinton. Clinton, while adopting some of Sanders' rhetoric on income inequality and trade, was clearly the candidate of Wall Street, a fact made plain by the leak of her speeches to big business money men. This was not accidental; the DNC holds the Democrats accountable to their capitalist masters. They would rather lose an election and silence the party's rank and file than lose control of the Democratic Party machinery.
In 1972, the liberal-left antiwar candidate, George McGovern, mounted a challenge to the Democratic Party establishment -- and the Party hierarchy responded by abandoning their own candidate. Democratic money and resources were either withheld or diverted to Nixon. McGovern's defeat was staggering.

In another instance, Democratic Socialists of America member Zoltan Ferency's very moderate campaign for Michigan governor in 1982 was sabotaged by the UAW bureaucracy and the Democratic Party. Solidarity House in Detroit decided that Ferency, an open democratic socialist, was too radical -- and sank his bid.

The Democratic approach to the electorate can be compared to the "good cop-bad cop" scenario that police use in interrogations. One cop threatens and intimidates you, while the other offers you coffee and assures you that they want to "help" you. All the while, they are working together to break you. The lesser-evil game played by the Democrats, and their supporters on the left, is very much the same.

The Democrats serve as a prop to continued capitalist domination. U.S. party politics is a combination of coercion and co-optation. There is no mechanism for accountability for the so-called base of the party. The levers of power in the Democratic Party are held by the Democratic National Committee (DNC), which consists of party officers, elected officials, union tops, fixers, and hustlers. The prime directive of the DNC is to raise money for the party. Corporate money is the lifeblood of the party, and understanding this is the key to understanding who really calls the tune in the Party.

Cutting the umbilical cord

The U.S. socialist Eugene V. Debs said:

"This struggle is political as well as economic and will, because it must, be fought out accordingly, and this can only be done when labor has a political party as well as an economic union of its own to express its interests, declare its aims, and develop its power to fight its battles and achieve its victory."

The party we need is not a "progressive" or populist party. We need a party that stands up for all of the victims of this system - a workers' party based on the organizations of workers and the oppressed. A party that fights in the street - and not just the ballot box.

Many doubt that a Labor Party can be built because of the rotten role all too often played by trade union bureaucrats. Many leftists point to other social movements and forces as the possible base of a "Progressive" or left party. This ignores the social power that working people potentially wield in society.

In the current political situation, a new party should include not just the unions, but also the organizations of the specially oppressed. By affiliating the organizations of African-Americans, Latinos, Women, LGBTQ and immigrant rights movements, to name a few, a new party would unite the resistance to this murderous system.
Imagine a political movement based on rejuvenated unions, the Black Freedom movement, women's rights organizations, environmentalists, and immigrant rights fighters. Such a movement-party would have the strength to turn our defensive struggles into a fight to reshape society according to a more democratic and egalitarian vision.

* * * * * * * * * *

Open Letter to Delegates Attending the National Single Payer Strategy Conference in New York City

From the Labor Fightback Network

Dear Sisters and Brothers:

The Call for the National Single Payer Strategy Conference begins with an affirmation with which we agree wholeheartedly:

"We believe that a powerful resistance movement anchored in the labor and social movements can turn the tables on Trump and all that he represents. To win, we must inspire Americans to fight for what they need, not what the political establishment tells them they can get."

And what they need is Single Payer, now! The American people support Single Payer (or Medicare For All) overwhelmingly. The Bernie Sanders campaign made Single Payer a household term; his call for it galvanized young people and workers from coast to coast.
With the Affordable Care Act now under attack by the incoming Trump administration, a wing of the establishment -- the corporate Democrats -- are telling us to hold our horses on Single Payer and focus on the defense of ACA. Many are the same people who told us that Single Payer could not be included in the Democratic Party platform or raised during the final months of the presidential campaign.

Yes, we must defend the gains contained in the ACA, but we cannot and must not defend the ACA as such. Nor should we put the ACA on the same level as Medicare and Medicaid, two historic gains.
The ACA was a law written by insurance industry lobbyists and representatives of other price-gougers in healthcare. Under ACA, hundreds of billions of dollars meant for the care of patients are siphoned off as profits for the big healthcare insurance companies -- money that would be saved by their elimination from the system. This money could be used to ensure quality and comprehensive coverage for all residents.

The ACA's flaws are fundamental: rising premiums (which are scheduled to spike big time in 2017), rising deductibles, rising co-pays, tens of millions still without coverage, exclusion of undocumented immigrants, bloated and wasteful administrative costs, growing problems in collective bargaining in negotiating good benefits programs, etc.

Labor economist Jack Rasmus summed it up well:

"In his farewell address, President Obama touted the fact that on his watch, 20 million of the 50 million uninsured got health insurance coverage, half of them covered by Medicaid, which provides less than even 'bare bones' care, assuming one can even find a doctor willing to provide medical services. The rest covered by ACA mostly got high deductible insurance, often at an out-of-pocket cost of $2,000 to $4,000 per year. Thus, millions got minimal coverage while the health insurance industry got $900 billion a year. . . .

"In the wake of ACA's passage, big pharmaceutical companies have also been allowed to price gouge at will, driving up not only private health insurance premiums but Medicare costs as well, and softening up the latter program for coming Republican-Trump attacks."

Indeed, the Democrats' failure to campaign for Single Payer played right into Trump's hands. This was best explained by Jack Kingston, a Republican former member of Congress from Georgia:

"One of the reasons that Hillary Clinton lost the election is the widespread anger in the Rust Belt and other regions over the rising costs of healthcare under Obamacare. It might not be a top media story, but it is certainly a discussion at the dinner tables in working-class and middle-class households across the country. Everyone is concerned that premiums and healthcare costs are going to soar in 2017 under Obamacare. Trump said that Obamacare has to go, and he got a real hearing." (from interview on PBS at the Republican election-night gathering)

At a time when the national discussion is heating up around the question of what the ACA should be replaced with, the labor movement needs to go on the offensive with the call to replace ACA with Medicare For All. This, in fact, is the best way to defend and expand the gains contained in ACA. Trump claims that he is for solutions that make good business sense. Well, Single Payer is that and more!
To focus, as the Democrats are urging labor to do, on defense of ACA is a losing proposition. To win, we must inspire Americans to fight for what they need, not what the political establishment tells them they can get -- and that includes the Democratic Party wing of the establishment.

It is time for labor to break with its "lesser-evil" approach to politics and assert its independent voice. It is time for labor to break with its ties of subordination to the Democratic Party and launch a full-scale offensive to demand: Single Payer Now!
This is the message, we believe, that needs to come out of the National Single Payer Strategy Conference.

In solidarity,

The Steering Committee of the
Labor Fightback Network

[For more information about the Labor Fightback Network, please call 973-975-9704 or [email protected] or write Labor Fightback Network, P.O. Box 187, Flanders, NJ 07836 or visit our website at laborfightback.org. Facebook link https://www.facebook.com/laborfightback.]

* * * * * * * * * *

Unionists and Labor Rights Activists Rally in Front of Carl's Jr. in S.F. to Protest Trump's Anti-Labor Agenda

SAN FRANCISCO -- Trade unionists from 14 different unions in the city braved the torrential rain on January 20 (Inauguration Day), to protest Trump's anti-labor agenda. The labor rally was held in front of Carl's Jr. to denounce Trump's nomination of Andrew Puzder as the new Secretary of Labor. (Puzder, the CEO of Carl's Jr., is opposed to an increase in the minimum wage; in fact, he does not believe in the need for any minimum wage.)

The Labor Rally was co-sponsored by the San Francisco Labor Council (AFL-CIO) and Jobs with Justice SF. The leaflet calling for the Rally put forward the following demands, all of which were addressed by the rally speakers:
* No to Privatization of Social Security & Medicare!
* No to Right-to-Work (For Less) Laws!
* There Is a Real Solution: Single Payer Now!
* Money for Jobs and Social Services, Not War!
* End All Deportations, Stop All Hate Crimes!

* $15 Minimum Wage and a Union!

The labor rally was chaired by two co-emcees: Alisa Messer, Political Director, AFT 2121; and Kung Feng, Lead Organizer, Jobs with Justice San Francisco. Both highlighted the powerful protest marches, rallies, and actions held earlier in the day throughout downtown San Francisco.

Six speakers addressed the labor gathering. They were: Tim Paulson, Executive Director of San Francisco Labor Council; Fakhra Shah, Mission High School Teacher and member of United Educators of San Francisco; Raquel Botello, Organizer with La Colectiva, the San Francisco Women's Collective and leader with the California Domestic Workers Coalition, Lucia Lin, Senior Movement Building Coordinator with the Chinese Progressive Association and leader with the Progressive Workers Alliance; Jonathan Meade, Chairperson of Campaign for a Healthy California San Francisco Chapter and retired member of SEIU Local 1021; and Michael Gene Sullivan - San Francisco Mime Troup Collective and member of SAG-AFTRA

Following are excerpts from the presentation by Jonathan Meade.

- - - - -

'Medicare For All Takes Healthcare Off the Bargaining Table'

[Note: Following is the presentation by Jonathan Meade, member of SEIU Local 1021, to the J20 Labor Rally in San Francisco.]

It's good to see all of you union members out here today. Because we know that what's going on here today is more than a protest. This is the beginning of a fight. And fighting is what we do.

It doesn't matter if it's our employer, Donald Trump and the Republicans in Washington, or corporate democrats in California: If you come after me -- if you come after my family, after my grandchildren -- you don't know what you're in for.

I've been asked to talk to you about defending Medicare, Medical, and Social Security. I worked the streets of San Francisco for 30 years as a paramedic, so I know about healthcare. If the Affordable Care Act is dismantled, if Medicare is privatized, if Medical is cut to the bone, if your retirement age is raised and your Social Security benefits are cut - millions of people will be thrown into poverty, and thousands will die.

They don't care. And what will happen to our union healthcare benefits? We've been fighting that fight at the bargaining table for the last 20 years, and we are not winning.

From 1999 to 2014 healthcare premiums across America rose by 191% -- and worker contributions rose by 212%. Many union members and union leaders still think we can protect our healthcare benefits through contract negotiations and fighting our own individual fights. That is dead wrong. The last 20 years have already proved that.
We can't win by just trying to hang on to what we, as union members, have. If millions of people lose their healthcare coverage in California, you think they are going to care what happens to our benefits? Everyone needs healthcare. Not just union members -- everyone deserves healthcare.

The only way to protect our union healthcare benefits from the death of a thousand cuts at a thousand different bargaining tables is to create a healthcare system in California that provides decent healthcare benefits to everyone. Some people call this Single Payer - some call it Medicare for All, but just like in Canada, in England, in France, in Germany, in Japan, in Taiwan, in Cuba -- we can have universal health coverage. Medicare for All covers everyone, costs less than we are spending now, and takes healthcare off the bargaining table. No insurance companies -- guess what, we don't need them; they add nothing of value to our healthcare system. By cutting out the middleman, we can save tens of billions of dollars every year.

This is not pie in the sky. We can actually do this. Californians are not going to accept the dismantling of Obamacare, the gutting of Medical, and the privatizing of Medicare. We have an opportunity to go big and go on the offensive, through the California legislature, or through the ballot initiative process.

The only things standing in our way are the insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies, and ourselves. We know that if all of California labor unites around an issue we can win. We've done it before. It's time to unite -- and fight -- and win. Thank you. Long live unions.

ckaihatsu

4th February 2017, 13:12

What does the Foxx say?

Dear Chris,

I can’t believe it’s only been two weeks. Trump has only been President for fourteen days, and I can barely keep up with the news. His administration has wasted no time gutting critical regulations, ramming through extreme Cabinet appointees, and passing horrific laws to ban people from our country based on their religion.

And now, while they think we’re distracted, Republicans are trying to destroy a critical piece of progress we won under President Obama: the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order. Yesterday, their bill passed the House, and now it's headed to the Senate so we need to act fast.

Add your name to our petition -- protect the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces order. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.24j/Jh-5U_nMSh6U-OLeTsbNWA/h0/v2UaZxAfTwponN4gT1qVLgyDAh80SSlnHNeOS7Q-2FrAiPBLqAfmNS9UaWBU5LLBchYmG-2BFOlYgP62dB11aW79ay4UREzI-2BKWHumvCWj-2FzksND27RoMt0mT4p22dK4-2BwkhLFJo53gy8MNyfpBoiRowi6hiUP0kkwL5CbnFo8D7QOn9E SwTO4A0S8APs9YQygmeMnllFvDPWkhM093NbELoiSucSGXTr6g 41aY6MzWqngdsM16o7UfVx1-2BrIXTM6Q00)

The Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order, which President Obama signed in 2014, isn’t complicated, and it shouldn’t be controversial. It simply mandates that any company applying for a federal contract larger than $500,000 has to disclose whether they’ve violated labor laws. That’s it. It’s a way to make sure that taxpayer dollars reward employers who follow the rules, not employers who break the rules.

But for Republicans like Virginia Foxx, it’s a threat to the anti-worker plutocrats who line their pockets and are filling Trump’s Cabinet. So she’s determined to help unscrupulous employers get a leg up, at the expense of workers who serve our country. Federal contractors steal over $2.5 BILLION -- yes, billion -- from workers every year, but Rep. Foxx doesn’t care about that. She only cares about making billionaires bosses happy so they’ll carry on funding her campaigns.

Yesterday, federal workers and allies headed to Virginia Foxx’s office on Capitol Hill to call on her to drop her attacks on workers’ rights. She refused to meet with us, and tried to sneak out a side door, but we chased after her to make sure our voices were heard. Now she needs to hear from you too, Chris.

Click here to watch a video of our sit-in at Rep. Virginia Foxx’s office -- and then sign our petition to tell Republicans not to roll back the clock for workers’ rights. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.24j/Jh-5U_nMSh6U-OLeTsbNWA/h1/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiARN-2B1-2Beb-2FW8CxU-2BFea55lbDMelUIJogG-2BwmWnWbpGlAUkJVU5pDS2iTffQlzqKtiW-2FEtmqpUT78eM-2BTsxzMpn76EqoU4j15k797D4RdbqaX3u5bqHsSYrgPSk24Z3B 2itmOn2iAF02-2B194LvTKx6y4bR0pe2sCghLH07gkhgCIxl3Jfp1Zy4aVqKX8Z aN-2F3UkScaHBR5wrkS47ckuFk-2BvPmlyTr42CKsA6w6h9UEUvI7j-2F8574y0iMKQ-2BNQufjCdM1KUYH3G6DpJEiLIOx7m6-2Bpc6S3uzVWRvgA5rPsW58z)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/071/816/original/WHAT_DOES_THE_FOXX_SAY-_(2).png

During his presidential campaign, Trump promised to make all his policy decisions based on one simple test: “Does it create more jobs and better wages?” Trump is already making good on some of his promises, including the horrifying Muslim Ban. But this is one promise we’d actually like him to keep.

Instead of keeping his promise to be a champion for workers, Trump is doing nothing as his Republican colleagues queue up to gut the protections that millions of us rely on. Virginia Foxx and her colleagues haven’t made much fanfare about their plans, because they hoped we wouldn’t notice.

But we have noticed, and we’re fighting back.

Please, add your name to our campaign. It’ll only take a moment, but we have to show Republicans that we won’t stand for their anti-worker agenda. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.24j/Jh-5U_nMSh6U-OLeTsbNWA/h3/v2UaZxAfTwponN4gT1qVLgyDAh80SSlnHNeOS7Q-2FrAi3mKmB3L2qLeS-2BvtBuDc7jSJ5uSaQhmj6i3v17nxdR0buU9i8Prfu40k3p88G-2BpA4vLMUX0GWfxIpB04za8UDzwQiSQze7hPWLbj0rY25qD1Gx wWwT9g7IuO-2FBM3LyqcbELIKuxslBBFUmplpGVtkyc-2FzSxvVseDP8mpVlV7Dj-2BUIFmsyNTPwz-2FhFwm9YpIBOFyZZo8l5twY7fN6BY4DEr)

Thank you for being a Good Jobs Defender,

Paco Fabian
Communications Director, Good Jobs Nation

P.S. Check out this op-ed from the New York Times!

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/072/019/original/The_New_York_Times_logo.png

How Trump Could Protect Workers' Rights

Teresa Tritch, February 2nd

President Trump has found something worth saving from the Obama era. According to a statement issued this week by the White House, Mr. Trump will retain an executive order from 2014 that bars discrimination against LGBTQ people at companies that do business with the federal government.

The order was one of several issued by President Obama to improve working conditions for people whose employers are federal contractors or subcontractors. As the nation’s chief executive, the president has both the duty and the prerogative to set rules for companies that contract with the government.

Still, such orders often serve a political as well as a practical purpose. By establishing rules for companies that do business with the government, presidents communicate the standards they would like to see throughout the entire work force.

Mr. Trump has sided with Mr. Obama — and with history and decency — by retaining the LGBTQ anti-discrimination order. But for his stance against discrimination to have broad impact, it needs to be paired with support for Mr. Obama’s other workplace protections.

As early as this week, Congress will likely send Mr. Trump a fast-track bill to roll back final rules intended to implement the “Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces” executive order, signed by Mr. Obama in 2014. The order requires federal contractors to disclose their labor law violations when bidding for federal contracts to ensure that violations are resolved before government contracts are awarded. One provision in the order specifically protects workers who allege discrimination on the basis of sex, race, ethnicity or religion or harrassment of a sexual nature. It prohibits employers from requiring that such allegations be resolved in private arbitration. Rather, accusers would have the right to go to court to resolve their disputes.

No president, no American, can claim to support the rights of others while closing the courthouse door to those whose rights have been violated. The bill to undo “Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces” deserves a veto. Signing it would undercut Mr. Trump’s own statements about defending American workers, in general, and LGBTQ rights, in particular.

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Twitterhttps://actionnetwork.org/user_files/user_files/000/009/199/original/Stock_Twitter_Link_Image.jpg (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.24j/Jh-5U_nMSh6U-OLeTsbNWA/h6/VE2atosPJwyp5yA4oN-2FSagLp2JjqM783ba-2BatsWCs7btj4xkp14YltvP-2F2HZEO7qLL2XjTfK2I6MeO-2FhXV77pQgbQu0dnsJYEpa797CLX0yvkVXK-2F3khcgGH9Dy5ZoODQBKEzwFELiE2AYkcZUlmUwpzm0XlKGiwF aFUTls5UUAXCbXHs0NIQNmyTu6D-2BkQL0UGB-2BHjvhc9f8EiykoI3sN-2BXfj8g6Vf46UdXzreYeSgXgNG6STH09xzzOPXmYGB6QCWTgje 51-2BFitAGxLNJntQ-3D-3D)

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ckaihatsu

4th February 2017, 18:59

[LaborTech] Uber CEO, Trump Face Defeat by New York City's Mainly Immigrant Taxi Workers' Union

Uber CEO, Trump Face Defeat by New York City's Mainly Immigrant Taxi Workers' Union

http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/Uber-Trump-Face-Defeat-by-NYCs-Mainly-Immigrant-Taxi-Union-20170203-0016.html

Published 3 February 2017

Uber CEO retreats from White House group after organized immigrant drivers protested the "Muslim ban" and #DeleteUber went viral.

New York City taxi drivers are celebrating a resounding victory after the shame-faced Thursday resignation of Uber CEO Travis Kalanick from President Donald Trump's business advisory group.

The departure comes after the company faced a massive boycott in the form of the #DeleteUber social media campaign urging users to boycott the ride-sharing app. The boycott was the backlash from an Uber attempt to break a one-hour taxi strike by the New York Taxi Workers Association, or NYTWA, in response to Trump's Muslim travel ban.

The strike, called by NYTWA on Jan. 28, asked the city's yellow cabs, green cars, black limousines and app-hailed Uber and Lyft drivers to refrain from dispatches to JFK International Airport in protest of what the association considered a discriminatory anti-Muslim travel ban.

The strike received overwhelmingly positive coverage amid outrage versus the ban.

http://www.telesurtv.net/export/sites/telesur/img/news/2017/02/03/nytwa.jpg_1060656027.jpg

Uber then made a move to suspend “surge pricing” – higher fares imposed during times of maximum demand – in a miscalculation seen as an opportunistic scabbing attempt rooted in Kalanick's collaboration with the White House.

Facing a cascade of deletions, the company went on the defensive, declaring that “experience has taught us that change comes from having a seat at the table and speaking up for what is right.” The statement added that the Uber CEO's advisory role “should not be taken as an endorsement of the new administration’s policy positions.”

Invigorated by the outpouring of solidarity, the NYTWA organized a demonstration Thursday at Uber's Long Island City headquarters alongside allied groups and unions to demand that Kalanick pull out of Trump's business advisory group.

On a Facebook event page, the union stated, “Now is the time for all those who value justice and equality to join together in holding Uber accountable, not only for its complicity with Trump’s hateful policies but also for impoverishing workers.”

“I used to work for Uber but I quit. They treated you like an animal. They treat you bad,” Mohammad Salim, a 20-year cab driver and immigrant from Pakistan who attended the protest, said to news site Vocativ. “Trump’s policies are really bad and wrong. We will stand against him and stand united so they can hear our voices.”

Shortly after the protest, the libertarian Kalanick announced his departure from the White House advisory group. However, the damage was already done: the brutal consumer response had already led to 200,000 deleted accounts. Disney CEO Bob Iger pulled out of the group shortly afterwards.

Disney saw what happened with #DeleteUber and backed out of that Trump meeting like pic.twitter.com/6bdEZgheqY

— Matthew A. Cherry (@MatthewACherry) February 3, 2017
In a statement celebrating the Uber mogul's retreat, NYTWA organizers noted the coinciding interests of the Trump administration and tech entrepreneurs such as Kalanick.

“Trump hurts immigrant and Muslim families with his executive orders. Uber, Lyft, and their cohorts hurt immigrant and Muslim workers with their business practices. Neither believe in minimum wage laws or other basic worker protections. That’s the real connection between the titans of the so-called gig economy and Trump,” the statement said.

The statement ended with a call to continue supporting the workers as they fight “against both the Muslim ban and Uber’s policies of poverty.”

RELATED:
Pesky Humans! Uber Introduces 'Robo Taxis' to Cut Labor Costs

http://www.telesurtv.net/export/sites/telesur/img/news/2017/02/03/uberalles.jpg_1660960360.jpg

Uber has faced pressure from taxi workers' associations and legislators across the globe for its treatment of drivers, who have complained of poor treatment by the company along with unstable scheduling, deteriorating work conditions and diminished cab fares.

Last November, U.K. Labour MP Frank Field released a blistering reportcharacterizing Uber conditions as resembling “Victorian-style sweated labor.” The report noted that the company's profits are due to the sacrifices of a “sizeable group of people who bear the largely unseen human scars of the 'gig economy.'”

The report also expressed a growing fear that without curbing Uber's practices, growing numbers of workers would find themselves “toiling through anxiety and insecurity, for unsafe lengths of time across seven days a week, in return for poverty pay.”

In an interview Monday with Democracy Now!, NYTWA executive director and co-founder Bhairavi Desai said that the largely Muslim and Sikh immigrant workforce her union represents is “deeply fragmented and impoverished” by Uber's “absolutely atrocious policy in its treatment of the workers,” making it “harder for people to rise up and take collective action.”

Despite the adverse conditions experienced by Uber's drivers, however, Desai expressed pride New York cabbies' coordinated job action: “This was a real act of courage, you know, particularly to have a workforce that’s predominantly black and brown stand up in this time.”
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ckaihatsu

6th February 2017, 13:31

Yay, 16,453 sigs on our petition to "Unions, Refuse to Build the Wall" -- Please help us reach 20,000.

Dear Union Supporters,

Good news. Over 16,000 people have signed our petition "Unions, Refuse to Build Trump's Wall." Thank you for adding your name and for promoting worker solidarity to resist
Trump's anti-immigrant agenda.

Please share the petition link below to help us collect 20,000 or more signatures.

https://diy.rootsaction.org/petitions/unions-refuse-to-build-trump-s-wall before

we present the petition to labor leaders who recently met with Trump.

If you are a labor leader or organizer who would like your name or union highlighted

in a press release about this petition, please email me, Marcy Winograd, at [email protected] or follow me on twitter @marcywinograd and send me a message there or on facebook. Please include your name, your affiliation, and a comment.

Lastly, a shout out to the 300 members of the Building Trades Council who volunteered their time and skills to help repair water pipes in Flint -- and many thanks to union brothers and sisters who have passed resolutions or taken public stands opposing the wall and the ban on immigrants from seven majority Muslim nations. Indeed, the whole world is watching and inspired by your courage.

In solidarity,

Marcy Winograd

Public High School Teacher & Union Member

##

Marcy Winograd started this petition on RootsAction. If there's an issue close to your heart that you'd like to campaign on, you can start your campaign here.

You received this email because you signed the petition 'Unions, refuse to build Trump's wall.'. If you don't want to receive emails from the 'Unions, refuse to build Trump's wall.' campaign in the future, please unsubscribe.

ckaihatsu

7th February 2017, 12:31

How Postal Workers Removed the Staples (http://www.socialistproject.ca/bullet/1365.php)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~(((( T h e B u l l e t ))))~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A Socialist Project e-bulletin .... No. 1365 .... February 6, 2017
__________________________________________________ _

How Postal Workers Removed the Staples

Jamie Partridge

"We Won! The U.S. Postal Service and Staples deal is over!" proclaimed the headline on the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) website. A three-year battle against the outsourcing of living-wage, union postal jobs to the low-wage, nonunion Staples ended January 5 when USPS management informed the APWU that the "approved shipper" program in Staples Office Supply stores will be shut down by the end of February 2017. The union-initiated boycott of Staples was called off.

"I never doubted that if we stayed the course, stuck together and kept the activist pressure on, we would win this fight," said APWU President Mark Dimondstein in a statement.

The hard-fought battle engaged thousands of union activists and supporters since Staples opened "pilot" postal counters inside 82 stores in California, Georgia, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania in early 2014.

A newly elected union leadership, under Dimondstein's direction, took a bottom-up, direct-action approach to the fight, paying postal workers on "union time" to organize community pickets, petitioning and leafleting at the "pilot" stores. Postal retirees, activists from the three other postal unions and solidarity from the entire labor movement kept the heat on for three years.

Continue reading (http://www.socialistproject.ca/bullet/1365.php#continue)

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ckaihatsu

9th February 2017, 12:31

WATCH: workers stage "right-to-work” teach-in on Capitol Hill

Dear Chris,

When politicians lie to workers, what do we do? We go directly to their doors to demand the truth.

Last week, 50 workers rallied at the office of Rep. Virginia Foxx to fight her attempts to roll back President Obama’s executive orders protecting federal contractors. She tried to run away from us, even knocking over a table in the process, but she couldn’t ignore our powerful message.

This week, we have a new target. Anti-worker Republican Joe “You Lie!” Wilson is gearing up to pass a so-called “right-to-work” law. This law, which would strip union rights from workers across the country, is a giveaway to bosses and a slap in the face for workers.

We won’t stand for these attacks on our rights, and we’re making sure Rep. Wilson knows that. Workers just left Joe Wilson’s office on Capitol Hill, where they called on him to drop his right-to-work bill.

Click here to watch -- and join our campaign to stop attacks on our right to organize. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3wA/ni0YAA/t.24o/Pj5mKEPKQSKD5nSVx46QTg/h0/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiARN-2B1-2Beb-2FW8CxU-2BFea55lbDMelUIJogG-2BwmWnWbpGlADM9joNwyhFlz0I9ZR6rhKxYyXc3N5-2FkK-2BeP1wxOUk2IUMQaSMIJxw4okxPQ3vcQVQyAc0MwlwY1xG-2F4K0Y5-2FX-2Fa5oQJ0VsRF5mRlbVwU1d9b7iOIT5D6N8roxVH9nv4EZkhyNQ 5GMbIrkxylm426fMrYkPNLskzigXBSY14OfQkdRJUX-2B4kj61-2BmgDfhuVpDoyoGJQ9eiCjyrAg-2FPcx8Wc6m0jF1elD-2Blr6u5iJAcZDM4l-2BdkYjy2Rf5pdO5VqHb6PspCFYTc8sNQlxkY-2BoIGwO-2F9yP9MfofkI8iPRy54pehDAxQoAQC9dKov5kEG0FoLRgQpt6h t74wrIDzcGaX1cxey0u3IQN-2FI6FmCKRW8xbUfl9VhciFPFfFwBMBKVni)

Donald Trump promised to be a champion for workers, but instead of fighting for us, he’s appointed a cabinet full of Wall Street billionaires. He’s doing nothing as his Republican colleagues like Joe Wilson queue up to bust unions, lower wages, and make life miserable for the working class.

There’s only one thing we can do: organize and fight back. That’s what we did in Virginia Foxx’s office last Wednesday. That’s what we did just now in Joe Wilson’s office. And that’s what we’ll do every Wednesday. We’re calling it #WorkerWednesdays, and we’ll be taking the fight to a different politician each week and broadcasting the whole thing live on Facebook.

We’re putting politicians on notice: if you stand with workers, we’ll be by your side. If you’re an enemy of the working class, we’ll fight you every step of the way.

Watch as workers remind Joe Wilson that we’re watching and fighting back. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3wA/ni0YAA/t.24o/Pj5mKEPKQSKD5nSVx46QTg/h1/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiARN-2B1-2Beb-2FW8CxU-2BFea55lbDMelUIJogG-2BwmWnWbpGlADM9joNwyhFlz0I9ZR6rhK6tzR8YMpCvnkytDap QkqDwCjqZGXIhB1-2FAdSZ1ZSAyIc8YDsIccCezKl-2BbVaAEVXezRPPt5mTq5RfjoWEiX-2BWSG9liyyCArLUVI3NVAQ1dMzmVrD0pf1ZdwwLc9bJDtdAa00 6dKQWEVXFjZcCypQGkqdogZDPDMjZPNpN-2FxhDJzzjthbWMMogSH9snOm6qJK6PuGcrbG9JA2hxdQNNZnvI YcmdC-2BCAou-2BxVxoeG00O7HXv7FA8q8g5iVxJci9d9-2BL13-2Bl3EKxQV4fNXCFEOI8KGuThKF1pMN4xJZPC4i5meVa-2FxOBgwnVH5-2FHv86CAp2hdmZHYK2IrtpJRZYpJtugivM4xMV43IfWud11aGj l6l)

Thank you for being a Good Jobs Defender,

Joseph Geevarghese
Director, Good Jobs Nation

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ckaihatsu

10th February 2017, 13:27

Breaking Momentive Strike News

Activist Alert

Chris,

Big news! Momentive workers have reached a tentative agreement to end the 14-week strike in Waterford, NY.

Supporters like you came out to the picket line, signed petitions, came to rallies, and donated thousands of dollars that helped support the working families on strike.

Your help has been invaluable and we offer our sincere thanks.

Details of the agreement are being withheld until they are presented to workers at contract explanation meetings this weekend, but we are confident the agreement addresses the concerns of workers about retirement and health and pension security.

Workers will vote on the contract next week and, if the contract is approved, will return to work on Wednesday, February 15.

Thank you again for standing with the working families on strike. Your support helped strengthen the power of working people not only in Waterford, but across the country.

In Unity,
Bob Master
Communications Workers of America

CWA District 1
80 Pine Street, 37th Floor
New York NY, 10005
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ckaihatsu

12th February 2017, 14:39

[LaborTech] NYC TWU 100 Rookie conductor tries to mobilize his fellow transit union members to vote down MTA contract deal "The conductor started Progressive Action last year as an internet radio show, blog and bustling private Facebook group that's attracted nearly 7,000 members."

NYC TWU 100 Rookie conductor tries to mobilize his fellow transit union members to vote down MTA contract deal "The conductor started Progressive Action last year as an internet radio show, blog and bustling private Facebook group that's attracted nearly 7,000 members."

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/rookie-brooklyn-conductor-leads-fight-mta-contract-deal-article-1.2970016

http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.2970014.1486847014!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/article_750/str.jpg
Tramell Thompson, an MTA conductor and founder of Progressive Action, hands out flyers to campaign against the MTA union contract agreement on the platform at the Jay Street MetroTech station Thursday in Brooklyn. (BYRON SMITH FOR NEW YORK

DAILY NEWS/FOR NEW YORK DAILY NEWS)
BY
DAN RIVOLI
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Saturday, February 11, 2017, 4:06 PM

The transit union heralded its recent contract deal with the MTA as a rare victory for workers during dark times for the labor movement.

But that's not how Tramell Thompson, a 35-year-old conductor from Brooklyn who's been on the job for a scant three years, sees it.

"The contract was one of the worst contracts we've ever had," Thompson said of the deal Transport Workers Union Local 100 president John Samuelsen cut.

The Flatbush native may be new to the tracks and even newer to the union hall, but he's organizing an aggressive campaign for the group's rank-and-file members to vote down the contract. TWU members have until Wednesday to mail in their ballots.

MTA, Transit Workers Union reach deal on raises, TWU says

Meanwhile, Thompson is building recognition among the TWU ranks for a movement he calls Progressive Action.

The conductor started Progressive Action last year as an internet radio show, blog and bustling private Facebook group that's attracted nearly 7,000 members.

"They respond better through internet interactions versus the old-fashioned tactics the union is using, (like) mass membership meetings," Thompson said.

He is acerbic and blunt when it comes to TWU leadership, critical of how it runs the organization and the benefits it gets for workers.

MTA urged to nix planned Uber contract for Access-A-Ride

A flank of the TWU that supported former union president Roger Toussaint, who organized the 2005 transit strike, has allied with Progressive Action.

"We're like-minded," said Joe Campbell, a car inspector for 27 years with the MTA who twice ran unsuccessfully against Samuelsen and was a Toussaint ally. "He's bringing along a lot of the younger members."

On the Facebook group, transit workers have been posting pictures of their contract ballot with the "no" box checked.

To push the no vote, Thompson and three fellow union members hit the Jay St.-MetroTech station in Brooklyn during Thursday's snowstorm to hand out flyers to conductors passing by the platforms. He claimed 200 members were involved with Progressive Action's no vote campaign.

Strike's off! MTA chairman, LIRR union leader sign contract

http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.2970015.1486847016!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/article_750/twu12n-1-web.jpg
Transit union workers protest amid contract negotiations with the MTA Nov. 15 outside the Bowling Green subway station in Manhattan. (ROSE ABUIN / NY DAILY NEWS/NEW YORK DAILY NEWS)

The deal that 38,000 union members are voting on calls for 5% raises over 28 months, plus a $500 bonus, outpacing inflation. It also holds sweeteners to certain workers, like a pay boost for drivers behind the wheel of accordian-style buses.

The flyers implore workers, "Don't fall for their 'alternative facts.' " The flyers point out the raises come to 2.14% a year and "even the 'perks' don't perk."

Thompson and his team dashed between both sides of the station platform to make sure conductors pulled out of the station with a flyer in their hand. If a conductor said the ballot never arrived in their mailbox, they scrambled to give them a business card with a number to request one.

"Why should I vote 'no'?" one F train conductor asked while giving the flyer a glance.

LIRR unions ratify tentative contract with MTA

Another conductor told Thompson he was "on the fence."

Thompson replied that he's "gonna get off that fence."

Eric King, a conductor on an A train, stuck his head out of his cab to start a hearty chant of "Vote 'no'! Vote 'no'!" as his train pulled out of the station.

King later told the Daily News the size of the pay bump and benefits simply don't cut it in the city nowadays. He also said he sees a familiar face in Thompson.

"I see Tramell as a modern-day Toussaint," said King.

Samuelsen may agree, though not in the complimentary manner King intended. Samuelsen — himself once an insurgent at the TWU who led a slate that toppled its leadership — denounced Thompson and Progressive Action as "proteges of Toussaint."

Samuelsen rejected the suggestion that Thompson had any substantive following in the TWU. He angrily and repeatedly denounced Thompson as a "scab" — a reference to a Facebook post in which Thompson said he wouldn't strike under the TWU chief's leadership. Thompson said it was "hyperbole."

http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.2970013.1486847012!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/article_750/str.jpg
After Thompson handed him a flyer, conductor Eric King stuck his head out of his cab to start a hearty chant of "Vote 'no'! Vote 'no'!" as his train pulled out of the station. (BYRON SMITH FOR NEW YORK DAILY NEWS/FOR NEW YORK DAILY NEWS)

Thompson's critics have posted memes on Facebook with his face superimposed on a picture of a crusty old wound and left flyers in crew rooms.

"Tramell Thompson is a scab. He supported scabbing Local 100 if this ended up in a strike," Samuelsen said.

"There's been a 'no' vote for every contract in local 100 history, except there's never been a 'no' vote that's been led by a scab before," he added.

Samuelsen also defended the deal he cut for his members as one that boosts pay higher than the 2% the MTA wanted and shielded workers from higher health care costs.

"Once ... they take a look at the world around them and the contracts that other unions have delivered, they recognize that this is a solid contract that absolutely deserves to be ratified," he said.

Zachary Arcidiacono, a train operator and union official, also said the contract is a good deal, even if it was not what all members had hoped they'd get.

"It locks us in against a lot of the changes roiling the city, state and the country," he said.

But Thompson's message against the contract has resonated with some younger workers like train operator Kimberly McLaurin, 33, of Harlem.

McLaurin, who helped pass out flyers, said she started to follow Progressive Action after seeing criticism that Thompson faced. She wanted to learn more about how her union operates.

"I actually was a sleeping member for a while," she said. "You start realizing everything is not just about a paycheck. The quality of living down here is horrible. That's what woke me up. And I think that's waking up a lot of members."
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ckaihatsu

14th February 2017, 15:50

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2017/02/13/mome-f13.html

Backed by Democrats, union pushes sellout deal to end Momentive strike

By Philip Guelpa

13 February 2017

As the strike of 700 workers at Momentive Performance Materials, a specialized chemical plant in Waterford, New York, entered its fourth month, a tentative contract was reached late last Wednesday between the company and International Union of Electrical Workers-Communications Workers of America (IUE-CWA) union Locals 81359 and 81380.

The final negotiations were reportedly conducted with the direct intervention of aides to New York’s Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo. Over the last few weeks, Democratic politicians, including the governor, both US senators and the state’s comptroller put on a full court press to force another concessions-filled contract onto the strikers.

A ratification vote will be held on Monday and Tuesday. Full details of the proposed contract have not yet been publicly disclosed. However, some information is available. The Times Union reports the agreement includes pay increases of 2 percent per year over the next two years and maintains the company’s matching payment to the employees’ retirement fund. The offer also includes a $2,000 signing bonus to exploit the economic difficulties of strikers.

These meager increases are more than made up by reductions in health insurance coverage and vacation accruals. In addition, the company will terminate health and life insurance benefits for retirees. These last two are especially egregious given that Momentive workers are affected by long-term exposure to toxic chemicals, which impact their health and longevity.

The pay increases are an insult to the workers, barely covering current inflation and doing nothing to make up for past losses. Momentive workers had suffered severe cuts in wages and benefits under contracts negotiated by the union in 2010 and 2013. These attacks were undertaken by a group of asset-stripping hedge funds, which purchased what became Momentive from General Electric in 2006. To finance the purchase, Apollo Global Management borrowed $3.8 billion, which it now must pay back by extracting super-profits from its workforce.

In a further attack, the company plans to cut the workforce by up to 100 workers, leading to increased pressure on the remaining workforce. The proposed agreement also gives Momentive latitude for increased automation.

Another issue is the fate of workers fired during the strike. Reports vary, but up to 40 workers were accused by Momentive of alleged acts against the company, either while on the picket line or in some form of sabotage within the plant prior to the strike. Preliminary reports indicate that instead of insisting on the reinstatement of all the fired workers, the union has agreed to accept the results of a supposedly independent review process conducted by a panel appointed by Governor Cuomo, which leaves the workers in great jeopardy.

There is strong sentiment among the workers that they all should return together. One worker, Craig Finigan, told The Alt, “Of the 200 people I spoke with today, we still believe this isn’t good enough. They’re not going to let everyone back in at the same time. Workers like me would still be spending three to six months on the sidelines.”

Momentive workers overwhelmingly rejected the previous concessions-laden contract proposal negotiated by the IUE-CWA and forced the union to call a strike. From the beginning, workers expressed their firm determination to make up for the previous losses. The latest sellout proposal by the union would put workers even further behind and exposes the utter bankruptcy and betrayal of the organization that supposedly represents them.

The union is presenting this proposed contract as a victory. Dennis Trainor, vice president for CWA District One, said, “We believe we have reached an agreement that addresses the concerns of our striking members about retirement health and pension security.” (Trainor tried to claim the same thing after helping sell out 39,000 Verizon strikers in the summer of 2016, leaving them open to job losses, increased health care costs and other attacks).

Many Momentive strikers view the deal very differently.

One worker, speaking to the Times Union, expressed exasperation at the choice they confront. He asked, “But what will happen if we vote this down? The governor, [US Senators Charles] Schumer, [Kirsten] Gillibrand, [state Comptroller Tom] DiNapoli and everyone else is already supporting it. If we vote ‘no,’ we will have no support from anyone.”

The unions have pushed the lie that workers need the “support” of the Democrats. In fact, they are big business politicians thoroughly hostile to the needs of workers. DiNapoli, for example, controls the New York State pension fund, which has a roughly $34 million investment in Apollo Global Management, the hedge fund that is currently the largest minority owner of Momentive, and therefore has a vested interest in maintaining its profitability.

This strike has put these 700 industrial workers in direct conflict with the new Trump administration. Their situation mirrors that of tens of millions of workers and their families across the country who have seen their lives devastated over the last several decades by stagnant or declining wages, cuts in benefits, increases in housing costs, etc., as the economy came to be dominated by financial speculators under both Democratic and Republican administrations. The accession of Trump and his coterie of billionaires and ultra-right wing enemies of the working class means a sharp escalation of these attacks.

Several strikers told the media they had voted for Trump based on his campaign promises to bring back jobs. The Daily News quoted one Momentive striker, Carmine Cervini, as saying, “Trump promised to help America, to get us good jobs. Well here we are, fighting for our good jobs. I voted for him. I’m going to give him a chance.” Another worker said, “I gave him my vote because of what he promised--now I want to see him earn it.”

These illusions began to be exposed when Trump nominated Stephen Schwarzman as chairman of his “Strategic and Policy Forum,” a body of corporate executives from top US corporations, along with union officials such as AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka. Schwarzman is a billionaire who made his fortune in private equity deals, buying and stripping companies’ assets. He is founder and CEO of the Blackstone Group, a part owner of Momentive. Unlike Trump’s earlier and completely bogus intervention with Carrier, not even a token gesture has been made by the administration regarding the Momentive workers.

Another striker, Amber Izzo, expressed her concerns about Trump to the Daily News. “I never voted before in my life, my first vote was for Trump. I like his straight talk. But then I heard he’s got Schwarzman creating jobs, and I thought, ‘Oh man, that’s a problem.’”

As an illustration of utter bankruptcy of the union’s effort to bolster illusions that pressure can be exerted on Republican or Democratic politicians, last week the union staged a protest outside of Schwarzman’s home in Manhattan. The CWA held another diversionary stunt in Washington, with union members handing out leaflets near the White House as Trump met with Schwarzman.

In addition to the intervention in the negotiations by Cuomo aides, other politicians, including both of New York’s senators, Schumer and Gillibrand, had recently intervened in an attempt to end the strike. Last week, a group of 10 state legislators and the state comptroller, Thomas DiNapoli, made photo-op visits to the picket line to urge a settlement.

The union expressed high praise for Cuomo’s intervention, with the head of the New York AFL-CIO stating that the governor had exhibited “true leadership.” The resulting sellout agreement reveals the true nature of this “leadership,” and the unity of Democrats, Republicans and union bureaucracy in the all-out assault on working people.

For its part, IUE-CWA, a large, national union, with hundreds of thousands of members, has left the strikers to walk the picket line for three months, under increasingly harsh winter conditions, as scabs were bused in every day. While other local workers would frequently join the picket line, the union blocked any effort to unify strikers with workers across the country who themselves have suffered from decades of attacks and deteriorating living standards.

Such a mobilization, the unions fear, would have led to a direct confrontation not only with the Trump administration, but the Democrats as well.

The proposed Momentive settlement, which must still be ratified by the workers, is being hailed by the press, the union and the politicians as a tremendous victory. As was the case with last year’s deal between the CWA and Verizon, it is nothing of the sort. This proposal must be rejected!

To take this fight forward Momentive workers must break from the straightjacket imposed on them by the union and form independent strike committees to marshal the vast potential support from workers across the country and around the world who face the same struggle as you. The Socialist Equality Party stands ready to assist workers in this fight. Contact us via the World Socialist Web Site.

The author also recommends:

Momentive workers strongly oppose tentative agreement

[7 November 2016]

Strikers at Momentive plants vote down union-backed sellout deal

[9 November 2016]

Momentive workers fight Trump’s billionaire appointee Schwarzman

[3 January 2017]

Copyright © 1998-2017 World Socialist Web Site - All rights reserved

ckaihatsu

15th February 2017, 18:31

CTA workers contract rally + women's march in Chicago - next Labor Beat on CAN TV 19, starts Feb. 16

A Two-Segment Show:

Chicago - CAN TV Channel 19
Thursday, Feb. 16, 9:30 pm
Friday, Feb. 17, 4:30 pm
Thursday, Feb. 23, 9:30 pm
Friday, Feb. 24, 4:30 pm

CTA Workers Contract Rally MLK Day 2017

Both Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) unions — ATU 241 and ATU 308 — are preparing to “take this to the wall” to get a proper contract, after about a year of working without one. This contract rally on Jan. 16, 2017, taking place on Chicago’s south side at the historic Mt Pisgah church, further revved up the energy and militancy that was shown last Dec. 21 at protests at the CTA HQ and 95th Street transit hub. Speaking and interviewed in video are: Carlos J. Acevedo (Financial Rec. Sec.-Treas., ATU 241); Kenneth Franklin (Pres./Bus. Agent, ATU 308); Leonard Morris (Ret. former Pres. of ATU 241); Elwood Flowers Sr (Ret. former Pres. ATU 241); Jonathan Jackson (Prof., College of Business, Chicago State University); Tommy Sams (Pres./Bus. Agent, ATU 241). Can also be viewed at: https://youtu.be/BU6oenzMa98

BU6oenzMa98

https://s15.postimg.org/ahqdanz93/20170116_CTA_ATU_contract_rally_Labor_Beat.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/ahqdanz93/)
ATU contract rally took place at Mt Pisgah church, where Dr. King spoke in 1967. Photo: Labor Beat

Second Segment:

Women’s March in Chicago

Among the historic marches throughout the U.S., the Chicago version of the Women’s March on January 21, 2017 (official count 250,000) ushered in a new era of activism. Sarah Chambers (Chicago Teachers Union Executive Board member and Special Education teacher) provides a running commentary interwoven with scenes and interviews. On the surface it was a protest against Trump’s inauguration. But the political content of the event pointed beyond that and beyond mainstream politics. Flexing its new muscles, this inchoate sea of resistance reached beyond women’s rights only. Can also be viewed at: https://youtu.be/WHwr4HGMtvs

WHwr4HGMtvs

https://s15.postimg.org/91eusiwc7/20170121_Women_s_March_in_Chicago_Labor_Beat.jpg (https://postimg.org/image/91eusiwc7/)
Part of crowd of 250,000 in Chicago, January 21, 2017. Photo: Labor Beat

https://s29.postimg.org/myec0nd6v/2017_Labor_Beat_fund_drive_graphic.jpg (http://goo.gl/xV4ojb)

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. Labor Beat, 37 S. Ashland Ave., Chicago, IL 60607. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". On Chicago CAN TV Channel 19, Thursdays 9:30 pm; Fridays 4:30 pm. Labor Beat is a regular cable-tv series in Chicago, Rockford, Urbana, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Princeton, NJ; Cambridge, MA.

ckaihatsu

19th February 2017, 13:58

“Right-to-work” laws hurt working people—union or not

Chris,

Donald Trump’s presidency could usher in a crisis for working people across the country.

Buoyed by election victories, Republican lawmakers in state legislatures and Congress are aggressively pushing so-called “right-to-work” laws. They’re paving the way for corporations to increase their power in workplaces and in state and national politics.

Since Election Day, Kentucky’s and Missouri’s legislatures have already passed “right-to-work” legislation. Others—including Colorado, Connecticut, and Maine—are considering such laws.

In the U.S. House, Reps. Joe Wilson (R-SC) and Steve King (R-IA) have introduced similar “right-to-work” legislation. And recently, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said that “the president believes in ‘right-to-work’” and wants to do “what’s in the best interest of job creators.”

These policies won’t lead to more manufacturing plants or better jobs. They will only lead to weaker unions, less bargaining power for working people, and lower wages—both union and nonunion.

Stand up for workers’ rights, fair wages, and the right to collectively bargain. Sign the petition telling state and federal lawmakers that “right-to-work” laws lower wages for union and nonunion workers alike. (http://epi.us4.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=ec2361f981a14ee1d45cccaa9&id=62ab15260e&e=73ae589068)

Pushed by corporate lobbyists and the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), so-called “right-to-work” laws’ only real purpose is to lower wages and weaken unions.

Working people in “right-to-work” states earn at least $6,000 less than other people on average, and EPI research (http://epi.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ec2361f981a14ee1d45cccaa9&id=a891b69b57&e=73ae589068) shows that even after controlling for other differences between states like the cost of living, people in “right-to-work” states earn 3.2 percent less―or $1,558 less per year. So-called “right-to work” laws lower the wages of everyone who works for a living―union and nonunion alike.

In 2011 and 2012 two states, New Hampshire and Indiana, debated the same “right-to-work” legislation. New Hampshire’s governor vetoed the bill while Indiana, by contrast, enacted it in 2012.

Today, New Hampshire continues to enjoy the lowest poverty rate in the nation―at 8.2 percent―while Indiana is stuck in the middle of the rankings at 26th with a poverty rate of 14.5 percent.

In 2015, New Hampshire’s per capita income was 33 percent higher than Indiana’s―$55,905 vs. $41,940.

Presented with this data, why are state and federal lawmakers pushing “right-to-work” legislation? The answer is simple: Republican lawmakers seek to weaken unions financially and politically, making it harder for working people to bargain for higher wages and stronger workplace protections.

Sign the petition to state and federal lawmakers telling them that so-called “right-to-work” laws lower wages for everyone―union and nonunion alike. (http://epi.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ec2361f981a14ee1d45cccaa9&id=e1f2d94aef&e=73ae589068)

We all benefit when working people can join together to negotiate better wages and benefits. Unions bring about a better standard of living for everyone—not just union members. Politicians and CEOs pushing “right-to-work” laws want to weaken unions and increase corporate profits because their goal is to make the rich richer.

EPI Policy Center opposes laws that weaken unions, that give a free ride to employees who don’t pay dues but get the benefit of higher union wages and benefits, and that force union members to represent non–dues payers when they need the union to defend them when the collective bargaining agreement is violated.

Together, we must stand united to protect workers’ rights in the face of corporate interests and conservative lawmakers who seek to weaken unions and slash the wages of working people.

Thank you for all that you do to create an economy that works for all of us, not just the wealthy few.

Sincerely,

Ross Eisenbrey
Vice President, EPI Policy Center

Sign the petition (http://epi.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ec2361f981a14ee1d45cccaa9&id=6cdefd2fd6&e=73ae589068)

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ckaihatsu

22nd February 2017, 15:16

Sign the Petition: Fight Back Against "Right to Work" Laws

Chris,

Donald Trump’s presidency has ushered in a crisis for working people across the country.

Buoyed by election victories, Republican lawmakers in state legislatures and Congress are aggressively pushing so-called “right-to-work” laws. They’re paving the way for corporations to increase their power in workplaces and in state and national politics.

Since Election Day, Kentucky’s and Missouri’s legislatures have already passed “right-to-work” legislation. Others—including Colorado, Connecticut, and Maine—are considering such laws.

In the U.S. House, Reps. Joe Wilson (R-SC) and Steve King (R-IA) have introduced similar “right-to-work” legislation. And recently, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer said that “the president believes in ‘right-to-work’” and wants to do “what’s in the best interest of job creators.”

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/075/587/original/RighttoWork.jpg

These policies won’t lead to more manufacturing plants or better jobs. They will only lead to weaker unions, less bargaining power for working people, and lower wages—both union and nonunion.

We all benefit when working people can join together to negotiate better wages and benefits. Unions bring about a better standard of living for everyone—not just union members. Politicians and CEOs pushing “right-to-work” laws want to weaken unions and increase corporate profits because their goal is to make the rich richer.

Stand up for workers’ rights, fair wages, and the right to collectively bargain. Sign the petition telling state and federal lawmakers that “right-to-work” laws lower wages for union and nonunion workers alike. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/-wA/ni0YAA/t.250/-KPQdGvzRkS0EkAW4qkkgw/h1/mHN54uPhY25EOaArZ7tBPpruPpiqAP8Le6PVJfehVgzNWPzC61 vCAOt-2BR4MexqRuQEIVfi5-2F7bw1kOC9MMxYpVunxAu7Szclt5bOZIIdGHKgbRyc3lRcg-2BnI8yUZafp5OkiS3CTVsvFbS3iLmztiG50VMdhrvrQ5kU0TlQ X9Nmho4VOk59JsW3GPLH6Evtwcl3inOXE7cpC7qmSoY-2BgIeE0G8Ias8hosUrW-2FwbQXGBZD-2BTCF51n7Q1VEVHl1VXsHMtGsRKJlK1EHM8SzJTU2q1lCzqOZ7 theYV6sXcczMMZ2D46AflEQxrDuPFZfLwDaxjngGauaUnbBVY4 oD3Rt0hTjpDzyU2PhEj7DKlQLGHZQytubzpD4SuKaTPXXW-2F6R9H5cmFj4gF-2FurSyohXTcUuAkuS92OZaQ8EtbIdLHeiiIJjQCs-2BA3QfnJ9nKtP2Pg)

In 2011 and 2012 two states, New Hampshire and Indiana, debated the same “right-to-work” legislation. New Hampshire’s governor vetoed the bill while Indiana, by contrast, enacted it in 2012.

In 2015, New Hampshire’s per capita income was 33 percent higher than Indiana’s―$55,905 vs. $41,940.

Republican lawmakers seek to weaken unions financially and politically, making it harder for working people to bargain for higher wages and stronger workplace protections.

Sign the petition to state and federal lawmakers telling them that so-called “right-to-work” laws lower wages for everyone―union and nonunion alike. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/-wA/ni0YAA/t.250/-KPQdGvzRkS0EkAW4qkkgw/h2/mHN54uPhY25EOaArZ7tBPpruPpiqAP8Le6PVJfehVgzNWPzC61 vCAOt-2BR4MexqRuQEIVfi5-2F7bw1kOC9MMxYpRpIMYwYKs4F-2BB9aa3YerhNqdEk5hgEmInoi04pqgNORPqRVsxbPCObY5pYLj eebv1RGf6rrl-2F5ByI2jCnnpzomrw-2BapKRLEZYiArbuUGL1Ek0maAZ5PhXG0Kq3Qm969CLV2U0Xks-2BUCCnXhCeEZeZ04xhfKbN0g2AK3-2BVHKHfpPQ2CrfuO7u47Zwmd4sId15yr4EAXfBsfeHG65JHFv0 PYvvydxNc8-2FqPq981SOnOKxfndjjqClUS5MijBV-2Bzjv97zeFewCqVHz8evG7orALrnd9JO-2F8Tzj9-2BIKEfSYXn90XSyPTUL-2BVnwy0KwJ2EluIGgZgV6Unb8lCnZbAzE9RwDcrdmLuJ2Rb8hT yXPUi3w7)

Thank you for all that you do to create an economy that works for all of us, not just the wealthy few.

In solidarity,

Andrea Miller
Executive Director

Sign the Petition (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/-wA/ni0YAA/t.250/-KPQdGvzRkS0EkAW4qkkgw/h3/mHN54uPhY25EOaArZ7tBPpruPpiqAP8Le6PVJfehVgzNWPzC61 vCAOt-2BR4MexqRuQEIVfi5-2F7bw1kOC9MMxYpeAC7XP6sAPXUdWglJ7B-2FYXvuRUxZV21gBcSkPzwjoG6DUWCBCmR4iD1lyIdzeyceVRhk Jg7KYXQ-2BsLFmwXP2iWOE7ZHDxAL85QdTGG0efN06Ff8QrYWui5-2BY-2B9lIUCS-2BFYtx3I1S8-2Bp7TY-2B9WXNDTIFJGU3tsR-2BZen5qk-2Bo1KitH4Y7NTkzqDPEroKontGVctUiZfmrC8zMiTOni-2FkWx2TQ4U2a61zQIYu17QlTYo1Z4Seyq9on62rrA8Mnse0-2FmCPJiI8-2FdPRgpYeoijcsuznBLn4xLr9n2AqDy2I7I8udMAGPNxC-2BvByFEIJSgRAhV7TMjOGZU-2FbSP1wfR0vCQDA7ighqIssxmJhXFboEaCnx)

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ckaihatsu

22nd February 2017, 15:41

Where do you find hope?

Dear Chris

Where do you find hope?

In your family? In your church, synagogue, or mosque? In your union?

Last Thursday, I found hope in Upper Senate Park in Washington DC, as over one thousand workers and allies came together to celebrate our successful campaign to stop Andrew Puzder.

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/075/928/original/JLA_5053.JPG

Thanks to our efforts, union-busting, poverty-paying, wife-beating fast food CEO Andrew Puzder won’t be Secretary of Labor. We came together, fought like hell, and stopped him. It’s a big win, and it shows that our growing labor movement can make change even against tough odds.

But we can’t rest on our laurels. As I write this, Republicans are scheming to pass a so-called “right-to-work” bill that would strip union rights from millions of workers. We need to fight back with the same ferocity we brought to our fight to stop Puzder.

Add your name to our petition to stop “right-to-work” -- tell Republicans we won’t stand for their attacks on our right to organize. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/9gA/ni0YAA/t.251/VMEAu9UdROGWmzHXlRLKDA/h1/mHN54uPhY25EOaArZ7tBPpruPpiqAP8Le6PVJfehVgzNWPzC61 vCAOt-2BR4MexqRuRIbF9Q8MYRrtiHyhhIrdyESG6-2FuHrtE0ZfrvJXb-2FWkDXtokGO5ADYnHEsPYwE9g0jW6uaycP-2B06CG8Ry-2BZVRk735H8RylAOhn42h73MxVXLbms4pAyuNtUphVf4rAWIoe on7JKYM2xqQb3QFUWATgk9WDKuMH13woE-2BI7WAkx6QxBd5oqaf6O-2B1N2ODtMqu8a-2BAp2Fi6JDFhE-2BaWWsDh6QExVaGyxN6wfBXiXyWx-2Blg-3D)

I can’t sugarcoat this: we’re at the beginning of a long fight, not the end. Republicans are wounded by our grassroots campaign to take down Puzder, and now they want revenge. They’re going to come for our jobs, our paychecks, and our rights in the workplace.

That’s what a “right-to-work” bill would do. It wouldn’t create jobs, and it certainly wouldn’t raise wages. Instead, it would crush unions, and make it easier for the 1% and their Republican lackeys to slash pay, kill jobs, and screw workers.

We’re going to have to fight like hell, starting right now. Click here to add your name to our campaign to stop right-to-work. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/9gA/ni0YAA/t.251/VMEAu9UdROGWmzHXlRLKDA/h2/mHN54uPhY25EOaArZ7tBPpruPpiqAP8Le6PVJfehVgzNWPzC61 vCAOt-2BR4MexqRuRIbF9Q8MYRrtiHyhhIrdyEJMSB2Yg156TE1ANaQK U7A-2FMhG7A3xMIvtlPouZMFNC24zNA70XNhqd5ASKP6dP63BWgyKF VUCGclpLfZqAmTDEWO2TZMj5qFttVMprAXAp3aGdBbdnxu0H6n XoY07tivRIg-2BkhNxwTqWNkBy2yPGEUHRaE3fwV9qFFy67Um4fTkuGQt4bTlu QbSG6G-2B5YdsOpeUnFfbsNFM1LctgJfjbI-3D)

Thank you for being a Good Jobs Defender,
Benjamin Todd Jealous
Founding Chair, Good Jobs Defenders

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ckaihatsu

25th February 2017, 14:11

[LFN] Call to the Third National Conference of the Labor Fightback Network -- July 21-23, 2017 - Cleveland, Ohio

Call to the Third National Conference of the Labor Fightback Network
July 21-23, 2017 -- Cleveland, Ohio

For the labor movement, business as usual is no longer an option. If the eight-year aftermath of the 2008 economic crash did not send the message loudly enough, the November 2016 election of Donald Trump as president of the United States surely has done so. The jury is in; the verdict is unanimous. It has been proven beyond a reasonable doubt that what the labor movement has been doing is no longer working.

Organized labor's campaign to bring back the "good old days" -- when employers and unions shook hands over contracts that provided a pay raise in each year of the agreement, increased health and retirement benefits, and high enough wages to support a family comfortably -- may have made sense at one time. During the quarter century after the Second World War, American workers, by and large, enjoyed a better standard of living than any working people at any time or place in history. But those days are gone, and they are not coming back.

Organized labor's very survival is in question. The threat that a labor-hating Republican Congress will pass a national "right to work" law and send it to the desk of a labor-hating Republican president is a clear-and-present danger. Indeed, the human species' very survival is in question, as the science-denying Congress and president green-light pipelines for Bakken crude oil and dirty oil from tar sands. Efforts to curb the causes of climate change are off the agenda under this administration. In this light, the AFL-CIO officials' support for the building of the Dakota Access Pipeline is inexcusable.
But all is not doom and gloom. Far from it! The working class majority is fighting back against Trump -- and challenging the entire establishment in the process. Millions have taken to the streets in the historic January 21 Women's March and in protest actions taking place up and down the country on an almost daily basis. The Resistance movement is growing by the day, and it is already scoring some victories -- such as the decision by Andrew Puzder to withdraw his nomination as incoming Secretary of Labor.

Immigrant rights activists are demanding "Not One More Deportation!" Black Lives Matter activists are demanding an end to police killings and a halt to the disenfranchisement of Black voters. Labor and community activists are protesting the illegal travel ban and denouncing the rise of Islamophobia, as they ratchet up the fight for a $15 minimum wage and a union. "We Won't Go Back!" to the days of back-alley abortions and Jim Crow segregation is a chant that is sweeping the country.

The big question now is: What direction for this Resistance movement? Does it get channeled back into the Democratic Party, as so many politicians are already urging, or does it chart a new and independent course?

And what should labor's role be in all this? If the strategies employed by the labor movement in recent years have not worked, what will?

Should the labor movement continue to rely on Democrats and heed the call to bring back the Democrats in 2018? Can the Democratic Party be "reformed," as Bernie Sanders is proposing?

Or should labor embrace a new strategy, an independent mass-action strategy (including mass strike action, following the example of ILWU Local 10's port shutdown in Oakland, Calif., on Inauguration Day) with hundreds of thousands of union members in the streets, in union contingents, joining with the millions who, since the epic January 21 Women's March, have launched this ever-growing Resistance movement? Should labor not be making common cause with the activists and youth fighting against misogyny, racism and police violence, homophobia, immigrant-bashing, Islamophobia, environmental degradation, and other such scourges?
And should such a mass-action strategy not be coupled with the drive to promote labor's own independent political voice in the electoral arena, including the possibility of running independent labor-community candidates for local office?

These discussions are already taking place on the campuses, in the union halls, and on the shop floors. New appeals are springing forth calling on Bernie Sanders to form his own party (a petition by Bernie activists has gathered thousands of endorsers around this call), or calling on labor to form its own party.
There is a growing sense that labor needs a new strategy, a new direction. But what direction is this exactly?

We need to share our ideas, our proposals, our energy, and our dedication to a better future -- indeed, simply a future -- for working people. For that reason the Labor Fightback Network calls on working people dedicated to peace and social justice, whether union members or not, to attend a national conference at Cleveland State University in Cleveland, Ohio, from the afternoon of Friday, July 21, through the morning of Sunday, July 23.

We need you to be there. Information on workshops, speakers, registration, housing, costs, and other logistics will be forthcoming. Please make plans to attend!

ckaihatsu

25th February 2017, 15:43

Announcing a Union for Bank Workers

Committee for Better Banks

Dear Chris,

A union for bank workers: it's the norm throughout most of the world where bank workers enjoy well-paying, secure jobs and workplace protections against problems like sales goals and favoritism. Here in the US, frontline bank workers like me struggle with low wages and predatory metrics that may force us to choose between our jobs and our customers. That's why a union for US bank workers is an idea whose time has come.

This week, my fellow Santander Bank employees delivered letters demanding Santander executives respect our right to form a union and treat US workers and customers with the same standards that the bank has everywhere else. At the same time, thousands of Santander workers in Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Chile, Spain, Italy, Portugal, and Germany held protests in support of their American co-workers.

Santander employees who are in unions in almost every other nation have vastly better working conditions than the non-union Santander workers in the USA.

- For example, Santander workers in Spain make $15,000 more than the national average wage. If Santander workers were paid as well in the US, they'd be making around $65,000.

- In the US, Santander workers' job performance is based on arbitrary and perverse metrics, but in Santander's union branches, workers have a say in how their job performance is evaluated.

The difference isn't a matter of luck! Santander workers in other countries came together in their own organizations, to speak with one voice and push for fairness and better working conditions. Santander workers in the United States deserve respect and a voice on the job too!

Calling for a union is a big step for the bank worker members of the Committee for Better Banks. Our workers work at dozens of banks throughout the US, and organizing at Santander is only the start.

Show your support of bank workers by sharing this graphic on Facebook. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6wA/ni0YAA/t.254/eQj6ByVIQTeg7rggI-QW8g/h1/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiPQsfZ9S-2BTxybbxIJTybCuuNVwtEgeOTsHJYEa39eVB-2FKm20ATF23FSYJ-2BIFZeuBCKjjnXQ99SwUz2-2Fb5ZhvqwL-2Bu73v42ptUChi1MuRjJVM3K6ymggrnbGSfHIIorssCSP42yoD mCtl0XBEE-2F85qgE2J40crNvrQVjuodrWEQM9liIRn0VCT6pSI6WgSLxwwA G1F8MFAIp6X-2BkRVVgyGxxm34qDIxqtSllbJziIAl2XXcKdH6ISTOvK0qUMJ0 Wpymp028SacHyTBF2BBmNifnIAPoBgv8cfyhBT-2FNAmFBBJxFko2BwfRLnWTybm3-2Fg-2FfRn9CATtEhE0W8wLgNmXDVfo8eek99bPVvtS5hpUGLD0NgIn hWgccGGxEaiYQOD4IfWd6rWyxCQYpvkIuTThdT5-2FSgKCsL0sQRqiAJldHJezod4LnJg3qGwkFraLWWk9Ow-3D-3D)

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If you don't use Facebook that's ok, just reply to this email and we will get you involved!

In Solidarity (solidarity means standing together with -- that's the name of our campaign, #SantanderSolidarity),

Juan,
Santander Employee in NYC
member of the Committee for Better Banks (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6wA/ni0YAA/t.254/eQj6ByVIQTeg7rggI-QW8g/h3/g-2Be9eSGxRhnCDugbtWGfmFuM6IATs6V1T6vk9uVOxT-2B5lLfS3AOS1Hqim0wWCQ8bPcrX8M6hQajIUH2FxeEanhuXSLd CHnZhlBWhua21mXqw3QVoRI7lXvBa6l-2BLD80RDzG0sB0hq2DPpfXBVI4dHxAzfFdGyMkjP6tfTOCNQbh AqPBf-2BB9mvKYnqss1iRd2Xz-2Fk5qT59olYM-2FdR4XBuxta0JxvLyoSfplPq-2B8Y1Q4CCGBjw3uadaKyXlQ1c8Bu227VFUjgdH4YrXK-2BvLCxnc200sEp1-2BhL0RUBDWb77pT-2F3zygWcnScD-2FMJvh6JSNDM)

Committee for Better Banks
501 Third Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
www.betterbanks.org

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ckaihatsu

25th February 2017, 15:56

ASPIRA Charter Teachers Approve A Strike - Labor Beat video

ASPIRA Charter Teachers Approve A Strike

View at: https://youtu.be/bYSAKiRG6vA

bYSAKiRG6vA

February 22, 2017 – At the end of a spirited rally at an ASPIRA charter school campus on Chicago’s Pulaski Avenue, ballots were counted and it was announced that 99% of the teachers approved a strike — 92 for, 1 against. Includes interviews with Chris Bahrend (President of ChiACTS AFT Local 4343, Chicago's charter school union) and Marines Martinez (acting President of ACE, the charter network’s council in ChiACTS Local 4343). Martinez discusses the ASPIRA administration’s poor management and how it has led to inadequate support at the classroom level. For Labor Beat, Bahrend comments on Trump's new Department of Education head Betsy DeVoss, and the overall failure of the business model in education.

The location was the joint campuses of ASPIRA Early College and Antonia Pantoja High School, where the student composition is largely low income and Latino. If the teachers do finally hit the bricks, it will mark the first charter school strike in U.S. history. Length 10:31.

http://s11.postimg.org/kcixxk49v/20170222_ASPIRA_teachers_strike_Labor_Beat.jpg (http://postimage.org/)
Rally for strike authorization in front of ASPIRA charter schools in Chicago. Photo: Labor Beat

https://s29.postimg.org/myec0nd6v/2017_Labor_Beat_fund_drive_graphic.jpg (http://goo.gl/xV4ojb)

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. Labor Beat, 37 S. Ashland Ave., Chicago, IL 60607. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". On Chicago CAN TV Channel 19, Thursdays 9:30 pm; Fridays 4:30 pm. Labor Beat is a regular cable-tv series in Chicago, Rockford, Urbana, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Princeton, NJ; Cambridge, MA.

ckaihatsu

27th February 2017, 14:45

Tell Congressional Democrats to block low-wage “right to work” laws (sign the petition)

CREDO action

Tell Congressional Democrats: Block low-wage “right-to-work” laws (https://act.credoaction.com/sign/trump_right_to_work?t=1&akid=21861.247355.bD6StC)

Petition to Congressional Democrats:
"Block and resist low-wage ‘right-to-work’ laws that drag down the wages and benefits of all working people, unionized or not."

Add your name:

Sign the petition ► (https://act.credoaction.com/sign/trump_right_to_work?t=2&akid=21861.247355.bD6StC)

https://d2omw6a1nm6pnh.cloudfront.net/images/main-st-wall-st-bull2-180.jpg

Dear Chris,

Tell Congressional Democrats: Block low-wage “right-to-work” laws

When Republicans help Wall Street attack unions, we all end up poorer. But now that radical conservatives and financiers have a friendly puppet in the White House, they are planning a national assault on unions.1

The right-wing American Legislative Exchange Council and big corporations have been pushing low-wage work laws across the country for years. These so-called “right to work” laws let people who have good-paying jobs because of unions weasel out of paying union dues, pitting workers against each other and giving Wall Street far more power. Now, House Republicans led by right-wing extremist Steve King have introduced a new, national low-wage “right-to-work” bill, and they have an ally in Donald Trump.2

Too many Democrats have abandoned unions for far too long. We need to force them to find their spines and fiercely oppose this disastrous legislation.

Tell Congressional Democrats: Block and resist low-wage “right-to-work” laws. Click here to sign the petition. (https://act.credoaction.com/sign/trump_right_to_work?t=4&akid=21861.247355.bD6StC)

Since seizing power in 2010, Republicans in state legislatures have stood side-by-side with Wall Street to mount attack after attack on unions. Now, 2017 is poised to be a disastrous year for working people. Two states have already adopted low-wage work laws, and more could follow. Worst of all, Republicans in the House have proposed a national law – and for the first time they have an ally in the White House. Trump said during the campaign he supports such laws, and his press secretary recently confirmed it.3,4

Trump’s plan appears to be to drag American workers down to the level of their global counterparts and race China to the bottom – no surprise from a man who makes many of his products overseas.5

Low-wage work laws hurt everyone. In states with these laws, working people make $6,000 less per year, regardless of whether they are in a union or not. Income inequality is higher. And fewer people have access to the benefits that unions fight for, like health care and pensions. Unions check unlimited corporate power and bring balance to the economy, making everyone better off.6

Tell Congressional Democrats: Block and resist low-wage “right-to-work” laws. Click here to sign the petition. (https://act.credoaction.com/sign/trump_right_to_work?t=5&akid=21861.247355.bD6StC)

The same people pushing these low-wage work laws routinely fight against worker safety, the right to organize and higher wages. They are a sneak attack to give international corporations more power by undermining the unions that dare to stand up to them.7 Now Trump is poised to help his wealthy pals by attacking working people, including some of the people who voted for him.

For the sake of their party and the country, Democrats need to unequivocally side with working people against low-wage work laws. We need to make sure they get the message.

Tell Congressional Democrats: Block and resist low-wage “right-to-work” laws. Click below to sign the petition:

https://act.credoaction.com/sign/trump_right_to_work?t=7&akid=21861.247355.bD6StC

Thank you for speaking out,

Murshed Zaheed, Political Director
CREDO Action from Working Assets (http://act.credoaction.com/go/109?t=8&akid=21861.247355.bD6StC)

Add your name:

Sign the petition ► (https://act.credoaction.com/sign/trump_right_to_work?t=9&akid=21861.247355.bD6StC)

Bryce Covert, “House Republicans push forward anti-union ‘right-to-work’ bill,” ThinkProgress, Feb. 1, 2017.
Ibid.
Ibid.
Berry Craig, “Spicer: Trump 'believes in right to work',” DailyKos, Feb. 4, 2017.
Michael Hayne, “Here Are All of the Trump Products Made Overseas,” AlterNet, Oct. 11, 2016.
Covert, “House Republicans push forward anti-union ‘right-to-work’ bill.”
Ibid.

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ckaihatsu

27th February 2017, 21:03

Help make XPO a great place to work!

Dear Chris,

Today, adjacent to America’s largest port complex, we stood strong together (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/-AA/ni0YAA/t.257/YpDerulIS3657Z1PEnYgqQ/h0/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiIvEHI-2F2KG5GdsRHLElbV6r60yJ03YRdy6C3HpMqSltq38DXBN-2FFdRTAhpZvkUiBWsx2iNdLrswD8kQAxVtUIhIz4Zzf0cbssgb l68Wgj0VX3hwQJU638Wa36atykE5sOT-2BfrfuLz4UqFqO27hUb807aKqjb3LUJUt2uixEJWpCTv2ZO0H6 IuiCtORQ-2BQ7Yjyq0JBaLM3Z6E-2BpJDziOJbS9mF6tmx5Jrl2VgRx6JDxKygb277Vpd3qCMlf1LA ljRxpNGN-2FdAiIWOXUROq3XJS6IA8LzR6kzv7uF5XE-2BXux-2B-2Br9Fjm6esHnsD776VTE-2BVKNDCP0AyiiHkCwr8zsmq7QfEqQGZJPe6UJ7bfWlim8A7TRE CNoiYGX6oz6J-2Fy-2FnPSOA4NFtQIZCOn5Wq3ZdjD-2BwgbjX9MRSjIZWSyU0KtiCxA0g1pAwFhJXFwGNM60A-2Bgukf0u2sTKhRJzGbDUPD-2Bb5WLP1wfgezIwTgPUTviN7CHuSa-2BkmKR1CwjdG9Uu4AO0Lc4O0CST-2BWT0iBejDdrRo-3D) as the truck drivers and warehouse workers who haul and handle America’s freight and imported cargo. We work for XPO Logistics, a rapidly growing U.S. company (NYSE: XPO). We are united (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/-AA/ni0YAA/t.257/YpDerulIS3657Z1PEnYgqQ/h1/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiIvEHI-2F2KG5GdsRHLElbV6r60yJ03YRdy6C3HpMqSltq38DXBN-2FFdRTAhpZvkUiBWsx2iNdLrswD8kQAxVtUIhIz4Zzf0cbssgb l68Wgj0VX3hwQJU638Wa36atykE5sOT-2BfrfuLz4UqFqO27hUb807aL3EJv-2BHeZNq-2B3wPfl4x5a9EFlk2aJyE0QVGZyStaUGYbUepEJbPiQ-2FoU58D1lzGI8OmbBOowyGffaMe-2FxGziR2d-2FApJCJjKh8VdQ25oQHbAPC8mGZtOP-2BlHXIlZbHx-2FLFgvPECUn6GncyM-2FTBTJBmYgf-2FCedqeK-2FVhcH8vydanztF3KcgUsO0hQD5pZxwe-2FLR8z5HIuPW8SO44TnmiP2imnUDuUVeU1BSoQ5B3TYFjeW3zK hGQgoudI4kb-2BGhRhyDhh0h6aUAVWONcj0DxK4mB-2F-2Fnzqc7bfgfeEtmvVADR7fyiKONM243SNw1enYdpQCrJ8yfska E3dr1xKDLv2bKTpGphT4zsNEOUwl9wVb3zXyeZtoQeTXAI-2FAaOqIlOk-3D) in our fight for a safe workplace, affordable health care, and a fair wage – and an end to wage theft for the many of us whom XPO misclassifies as “independent contractors.”

Today, we raised our voice to show XPO that we will not back down.

Today, we confronted Bradley Jacobs, CEO of XPO, and demanded he meet with us to address our concerns.

Today, we need your help to make sure XPO doesn’t forget the power of workers united in struggle, with the community by our side. Specifically, we ask that you please sign our petition (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/-AA/ni0YAA/t.257/YpDerulIS3657Z1PEnYgqQ/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3DWgOJxb1QVPyzoAXD0q49tCbU2qBLlmA5hk-2BJqO5-2Fncwh-2FWCHWcUEOA1NPZUJAuDKyNiD5TwCpHOhmOUyBmvmmXBa1Npf7 dbVYq4q89OPOC5rAoT-2B4xqsb0Ocv7AVlTqvqvslI6tRTpEBfGxTns9pZ2NX36fH58xX b2U1Fg0sDyJFiMnPXkyu3VMInHhEqtPy6iN315cgN5c3oEgRIy fkWWSipUcqbQ-2Bsa6WQYYx66y3Lc26BZQSgTTlMrShdt-2F1-2FNskN703lbXiS-2FOU4uBUIgnz-2FShopjQGusjxTfk70yo-2FLg-2B2BAPA5Qhv6zpcwyUOjc7-2Bcr7GIjx64iheseafFvReoMMMXS9ALJAJrR8gqhUA-3D-3D) and share this graphic (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/-AA/ni0YAA/t.257/YpDerulIS3657Z1PEnYgqQ/h3/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiIvEHI-2F2KG5GdsRHLElbV6r60yJ03YRdy6C3HpMqSltq38DXBN-2FFdRTAhpZvkUiBWsx2iNdLrswD8kQAxVtUIhIz4Zzf0cbssgb l68Wgj0VX3hwQJU638Wa36atykE5sOT-2BfrfuLz4UqFqO27hUb807Ogwksl3GU-2BbqJvYi3EijFv7GVHgMiH2SZwj5dZoVhmji9xJmm3L6eBKnbd rsh9CiBtPAqwu1g9fpWTEMHzxvkQB5m72mDmgiSpI4Y2TUAQaW cz4lp9-2BQxEFT1-2BAZ8ic2as6cAit50khphk6RSdskqTO37HiKDe7t9ybySqkBKQ OONfk6hY54SFUjea2dggWGWtC8k0xpg7m-2BfjEaO9NvyDyNBLxzgN7kRo5NspBoY2XTSdeapDP4qnkS-2FsnA1-2BSPaMFkRkDSTQSAK2JJD78QOXU-2BGMmVJxZIRTEHFV34-2FHy9iANet7buwdR2KcEe7NCYmxA4Hqs14t5dYU5h6-2BtDEhUrEdOrYofIh-2F4pEdznCAWgY5HN7QjR3SgulH7Q31aI-3D) on Facebook? Be sure to include @XPO so the company sees that you stand with us.

We know that we can count on you to have our backs! Please sign our petition (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/-AA/ni0YAA/t.257/YpDerulIS3657Z1PEnYgqQ/h4/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3DWgOJxb1QVPyzoAXD0q49tCbU2qBLlmA5hk-2BJqO5-2Fncwh-2FWCHWcUEOA1NPZUJAuDKyNiD5TwCpHOhmOUyBmvmmiEzw8-2F3HUCcA98a1GPOOkPin1nBZSUCLM9HAme63PMAG5P7puTl8jd ujyq9Ms-2FIyPPUoj0-2FOb8esehL3lELcPXiQOP-2BNU-2FCBP80x7s-2FFBmB9d2XU17-2Ba2PNcsxIQ7bgKvgZV9NCQI2bh9nHi8r-2BBrg2wiMxulXQeH4D2hYgH9Xrlg9CbTPh7Nreqqdy2XhzMm4r szulew-2F4x8amv7nBJiutCDoOc-2BcEFn5SkIbKWzQqVYcZsVb5HjmjkCBdrnLbuqIezs4podgu87 Jbe488wkg-3D-3D) and share this graphic (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/-AA/ni0YAA/t.257/YpDerulIS3657Z1PEnYgqQ/h3/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiIvEHI-2F2KG5GdsRHLElbV6r60yJ03YRdy6C3HpMqSltq38DXBN-2FFdRTAhpZvkUiBWsx2iNdLrswD8kQAxVtUIhIz4Zzf0cbssgb l68Wgj0VX3hwQJU638Wa36atykE5sOT-2BfrfuLz4UqFqO27hUb807Ogwksl3GU-2BbqJvYi3EijFv7GVHgMiH2SZwj5dZoVhmji9xJmm3L6eBKnbd rsh9CiBtPAqwu1g9fpWTEMHzxvkQB5m72mDmgiSpI4Y2TUAQaW cz4lp9-2BQxEFT1-2BAZ8ic2as6cAit50khphk6RSdskqTO37HiKDe7t9ybySqkBKQ OONfk6hY54SFUjea2dggWGWtC8k0xpg7m-2BfjEaO9NvyDyNBLxzgN7kRo5NspBoY2XTSdeapDP4qnkS-2FsnA1-2BSPaMFkRkDSTQSAK2JJD78QOXU-2BGMmVJxZIRTEHFV34-2FHy9iANet7buwdR2KcEe7NCYmxA4Hqs14t5dYU5h6-2BtDEhUrEdOrYofIh-2F4pEdznCAWgY5HN7QjR3SgulH7Q31aI-3D) on Facebook right now. Thank you!

In struggle,

Jose Ramirez, XPO freight driver

Monica Abraham, XPO warehouse worker

Domingo Avalos, XPO Port/Rail Truck Driver

Action Network
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ckaihatsu

2nd March 2017, 14:06

SIGN THE PETITION: Stop the Republican assault on workers

Dear Chris,

First they came for Muslims. Then they came for refugees. Now Republicans are coming for every single worker in America -- and we’re going to stand up to this threat like we’ve stood up to the others.

Across America, Republicans are introducing legislation that supposedly guarantees the “right to work,” but actually bankrupts unions and strips workers of key protections -- leading directly to lower wages, loss of health insurance, raised poverty rates, and higher unemployment.(1)

But there’s hope. In every state there is massive organized resistance to the Republican agenda, with people of every background more involved than ever in fighting for their rights. If we fight for workers' rights like we've fought the Muslim ban and the immigration attacks, we can stop the "right to work" attack on workers.

Click here to tell Congress and state legislatures to vote NO on the "right to work" attack on working people. (http://act.couragecampaign.org/go/4672?t=1&akid=3876.2053337.6f1gq-)

28 states already have these destructive laws on the books, and more bills have been introduced in Michigan, Missouri and New Hampshire. Just recently, Iowa Congressman Steve King introduced a “right to work” bill in the Republican-controlled Congress, where a Republican president eagerly awaits his opportunity to take power from working people and put it into the hands of corporations.

These bills are bad news -- they let nonunion members opt out of paying for the services unions are required to provide all workers -- nonunion and union alike. That makes it much more expensive for unions to provide services that protect workers, like negotiating for higher wages, better benefits, safe working conditions, and company accountability.

It’s all part of a cynical attempt to gut unions by driving them out of business. Thanks to the infamous Supreme Court ruling, Citizens United, big corporations and right wing zealots like the Koch brothers have funneled money into supporting these falsely named “right to work” laws.(2) Walmart, AT&T, Chevron, and other companies that want lower labor costs have worked closely with Republican legislators through American Legislative Exchange Council and the National Right to Work Committee to see their vision of cutting wages and redistributing wealth back to the top come to life.(3)

Tell Congress and state legislatures to vote NO on the "right to work" attack on working people. (http://act.couragecampaign.org/go/4672?t=2&akid=3876.2053337.6f1gq-)

In the 28 states with these laws on the books, workers pay the price with a lower standard of living. People who live in “right to work” states make on average $1,558 less each year than their counterparts in unionized states. 29.6% of them work in low-wage jobs as a result. Poverty rates are higher overall, with rates as high as 15.3%.(4) And in states without union protections 13% of employees are uninsured and workplace deaths are 49% higher.(5)

"Right to work" supporters were recently dealt a massive blow when their bill failed in New Hampshire.(6) People there recognized that this isn’t just an attack on unions -- it’s an attack on nearly anyone with a job. People all over the nation are standing up to attacks on their rights. The fight against “right to work” laws is no different. Now your voice is needed to help defeat these laws around the nation.

Tell Congress and state legislatures to vote NO on the "right to work" attack on working people. (http://act.couragecampaign.org/go/4672?t=3&akid=3876.2053337.6f1gq-)

Yours in the fight,

Raquel, along with Alma, Annie, Brenna, Caitlin, Cassie, Cheyenne, Eddie, Emma, Kelsey, Lindsay, Molly, Scottie, Tim, and William (the Courage team)

Footnotes
1. http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/unions-fear-states-approve-right-to-work-laws-article-1.2977016
2. http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2016/02/majority-states-now-have-right-work-law & http://www.msnbc.com/the-ed-show/right-wingers-koch-alec-pushed-michigan-r
3. http://www.npr.org/2010/10/29/130891396/shaping-state-laws-with-little-scrutiny & http://www.commoncause.org/democracy-wire/who-still-funds-alec.htm
4. http://www.epi.org/publication/right-to-work-states-have-lower-wages/ & http://www.epi.org/files/page/-/BriefingPaper300.pdf
5. http://www.aflcio.org/Legislation-and-Politics/State-Legislative-Battles/Ongoing-State-Legislative-Attacks/Deceptive-Right-to-Work-Laws-Hurt-Everyone
6. http://nhpr.org/post/despite-gop-majority-nh-house-votes-down-right-work-bill#stream/0 & http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/new-hampshire-lawmakers-reject-right-to-work/article/2615071

Like what we do? Chip in to help fund the fight for a more progressive nation. Or find us on Facebook or Twitter.

Donate Today (https://secure.actblue.com/contribute/page/donate_cc?recurring=15&refcode=sw_em_p_NoRTW&akid=3876.2053337.6f1gq-)

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http://www.couragecampaign.org?akid=3876.2053337.6f1gq-

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ckaihatsu

6th March 2017, 20:41

Olive Garden, is this how you treat family?

Green America

Facebook (http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=FApRUUwY5fQ8DTwSJlUDTPjLtiq%2F8O29) Twitter (http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=nonjOjofoYrYk9LLdsqHhPjLtiq%2F8O29) Pinterest (http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=k8FXOGB8xYDRXEtgjk7PDPjLtiq%2F8O29) Instagram (http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=5ydbH04AJavwF6r3Xqw0DPjLtiq%2F8O29)
Hey, Olive Garden, serve green, healthy, and fair food

http://action.greenamerica.org/images/OliveGardenAction-slider550x300.jpg

Dear Chris,

Olive Garden’s parent company, Darden, is the nation's largest casual restaurant company, with $6 billion in sales. That translates to a lot of food—but unfortunately, most of it is not healthy for people, the planet, or animals.

Their slogan is “When you’re here, you’re family,” but the way the company treats its workers, and the food it serves the public, are anything but family-friendly.

Tell Darden to reduce its impact on the environment by purchasing from local sustainable family farms. (http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=QSUmMsvZFsav4QXnDK9ZevjLtiq%2F8O29)

With more than 1500 restaurants, serving 320 million meals every year, Darden’s purchasing and menu decisions have a huge impact on people’s health and our environment. These restaurants source food from large-scale highly-polluting factory farms with inhumane conditions, that travels thousands of miles to reach our dinner plates.

Darden can help reduce food waste, conserve water, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and shift production away from filthy, polluting factory farms by purchasing from local sustainable family farms, in turn benefiting local economies and communities. By increasing the purchasing of organic food, Darden can cut down on its environmental impact and increase the quality of food being served to its customers.

Tell Darden, parent company of Olive Garden, it’s time to green their plates! (http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=JJ4sRUnEGhKZB899D1zd%2FPjLtiq%2F8O29)

A healthy and sustainable food system cannot be achieved without fairness and dignity for the people who make and serve our food. Darden currently pays 20% of its 150,000 employees the federal tipped minimum wage of $2.13 an hour. Low wages make it hard for many Darden’s workers to meet their families' basic needs, let alone afford healthy and sustainable food.

Tell Darden to put the well-being of its workers ahead of investor profits and pay a living wage. (http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=Z1YRP6NpQVelPKZ8GXjI9fjLtiq%2F8O29)

Big Food must take responsibility for its role in promoting an unsustainable food system. As the nation’s largest casual restaurant company, Darden has the power to affect positive change and shift the food system. It’s time for Darden to step up and serve more local and organic food and improve conditions for its workers.

Tell the nation’s largest full service restaurant company: Serve greener meals that are better for our health, the planet, and the workers! (http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=fE58vOmoNM0VgIcXOYKaJvjLtiq%2F8O29)

Thanks for all you do for a greener and fairer world,

AnnaTodd(signature)
Anna Meyer
Food Campaigns Manager
Green America

P.S. Your support means we can do even more to help grow a green economy that truly works for people and the planet. Please contribute today. (http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=DkewseDABquy%2FekMr3CC6O9%2BlGmVrWtv)
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ckaihatsu

6th March 2017, 20:56

Urgent: Call your senator NOW to stop permanent repeal of workplace protections

Chris,

Another weekend with Donald J. Trump as president. Another weekend with wildly irresponsible tweets.

It's easy to get distracted — but we need your help. Right now.

The Senate is scheduled to vote today to permanently repeal Obama administration rules that require companies vying for federal contracts to disclose violations of federal labor or civil rights laws and forbid federal contractors from forcing employees into arbitration for claims of sexual assault, sexual harassment and other discrimination under Title VII.

If this repeal goes through, President Trump will sign it, and no administration will ever be able to make similar rules again.

Call your senators right now at 202-224-3121 and urge them to stand with working families by voting NO on HJ Res 37.

Here's why so much is at stake:

More than one in five people in this country are employed by companies that contract with the federal government. Yet government studies show that federal contractors are some of the worst offenders when it comes to labor law violations, and many federal contract jobs pay low wages and offer few supports.

In fact, one in five people employed by federal contractors are paid wages that fall below the poverty level, and many of them are women.

The rules that the Senate is poised to wipe out improve conditions for the federal contracting workforce by holding companies accountable for wage, safety and other labor law violations and incentivizing appropriate and lawful employer conduct.

That's why we must stand strong and speak out.

Call your senators right now at 202-224-3121 and urge them to vote NO on HJ Res 37.

Thank you!

Vicki Shabo headshot 2013Vicki Shabo signature
Vicki Shabo
Vice President

1875 Connecticut Avenue NW
Suite 650
Washington, DC 20009
202.986.2600
[email protected]
www.NationalPartnership.org (http://go.nationalpartnership.org/site/R?i=zzCD2C3sm6h31Oo-DPRL9Q)

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ckaihatsu

8th March 2017, 14:35

Left off the menu at KFC, Taco Bell & Pizza Hut

Jobs With Justice

Paid leave must be available to all working people, not just those already at the top. Tell Yum Brands and CEO Greg Creed to do the right thing and make sure everyone working for the fast-food chain has paid parental leave. Sign our petition now. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5wA/ni0YAA/t.25f/E2E_m7saRTW5XZ8mN_UZMQ/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3DOpZkwmeDIusqyvyq2GLOOzqSz1UI4swchPK ZlLbFxEk8b83Jwj0s-2FM-2FcZ1Ssl1jh7zRXAQoBHyyrKpm-2FPmVWNtuD4ntWOJc1FbVN3SLKFjsCpbxHGTME6xAKAFhGbE06 WRW5svc-2FLzmcWiOe7qJeCQmjhraHTfQzWymuQaFnAzRicRISpYc5XwDG u2GhIbHdbdcBJYy8W5UO3BXfsYJ8t2mVizPUrlypgdq0BKNg3w Qx3N1JSrpDbyFSVuYkEQJiwyb6PrEqhMw9JO0nrMSwzFSK4oYf GWXhCDX-2FjHU00kkLYuZXliwbq0vuP7c8OhtJw7cfOjLXXVQPCtGzJqQ-2BA)

Dear Chris,

Last week, Yum Brands—the parent company of Taco Bell, KFC, and Pizza Hut—announced a new policy providing 18 weeks of paid leave to new mothers and eight weeks of paid leave to new fathers.

It’s awesome news for the folks who work at the chain’s corporate headquarters. But Yum Brands deliberately excluded the hundreds of thousands of employees who make the fast-food conglomerate successful. We can’t stomach the news that the corporation left the people who serve their tacos, fry their chicken, and bake their pizzas behind.

SIGN THE PETITION: Tell Yum Brands to expand their new paid leave policy to everyone who works at KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5wA/ni0YAA/t.25f/E2E_m7saRTW5XZ8mN_UZMQ/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3DOpZkwmeDIusqyvyq2GLOOzqSz1UI4swchPK ZlLbFxEk8b83Jwj0s-2FM-2FcZ1Ssl1jh7zRXAQoBHyyrKpm-2FPmVWNtuD4ntWOJc1FbVN3SLKFjqD6RfxW-2BrsduHUd2AerohskCOI9CjmGPbhSnMotbPVLltIfXVJO1J1zE PKryHVjZ1YWdogKEpQCZpWeVAYvrLBndhRBYwZsUa4G4-2FuMqeKRgEF6k0eujpllMkmWEuhDqNIzDShPw9-2FOIQ8As849AQ6IufjNZsMGHyXHeZNoZ7lJ-2FkvUOkMCivyKb4SZoSwIswer1w4-2BgZRR2EU-2FIs01K94SjtEP25vIsph9sal7ZJDs)

TAKE ACTION NOW! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5wA/ni0YAA/t.25f/E2E_m7saRTW5XZ8mN_UZMQ/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3DOpZkwmeDIusqyvyq2GLOOzqSz1UI4swchPK ZlLbFxEk8b83Jwj0s-2FM-2FcZ1Ssl1jh7zRXAQoBHyyrKpm-2FPmVWNtuD4ntWOJc1FbVN3SLKFjk1RdVbFPAIjCcAPmjJ-2BdG0wrUQuKpEfa4d3r9hnHMRZ7JRoNDIC9AoADvWXdDdbu5fZ U8Es-2B-2Fm4ZAFbRRYHD4RlWbZvgGBvTwrcaiRTAuO5t6eRuH9nAzrdRC KSdBpw4Puop-2BFZut70TJ6Ln2hrdboIpxZ5WUYM0rD74I3cpAn0-2FkIytv-2FeJz5kLZphmVoLHoGZkD3fuWax1zMqJXgrkhN6DoFG2hexohT YQ30pII0V)

Connie, a mom of three who has worked at a combination KFC / Taco Bell in Miami for five years, said:

“I’m glad Yum is taking the right steps towards working mothers in the corporate offices but why is the company excluding those of us working in the kitchen from these great benefits? They should have more consideration for those of who break our backs everyday doing manual kitchen labor and are already paid less.”
Paid time off to take care of a newborn or adopted child shouldn’t just be a corporate perk. By leaving the people who work in his restaurants out of the policy, Yum Brands CEO Greg Creed is hurting those who need it the most. More than a quarter of men and women working in fast food are parents, and most struggle to make ends meet. Right now, too many people working for fast-food giants have to choose between their jobs and their families when a baby is born. It doesn’t have to be this way.

Paid leave isn’t a luxury; it’s a necessity. Will you add your name to make sure Yum Brands hears our demand? (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5wA/ni0YAA/t.25f/E2E_m7saRTW5XZ8mN_UZMQ/h4/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3DOpZkwmeDIusqyvyq2GLOOzqSz1UI4swchPK ZlLbFxEk8b83Jwj0s-2FM-2FcZ1Ssl1jh7zRXAQoBHyyrKpm-2FPmVWNtuD4ntWOJc1FbVN3SLKFjty-2FAmkHlxnQ0cmdLDU4gpmM2pWw0QghTu-2FNGuNcZx5dH81EjtLKWJVy6cDlnUtJ3wo-2BdgXvE-2BYdzvhMKbMYMj2n6uzNDzGNJ9aKIhfatDxnUMJJm03My4e0YL i3C8tCVek5r7-2BNNFihMm5YmVmV-2BNO7-2ByPXK8EEG91wiq-2BJSY0757hqZntLMQAROoVIWSM0hJav7uof0RpKLxGGuhDYuDY UlBdUctsSKVIdDtNnahQi)

In promoting the new generous leave policy for corporate staff, Yum’s HR director said "It sends a message of trust that we value them so much.” What’s the message the fast-food chain sent to hundreds of thousands of men and women who weren't covered by the family-friendly policy?

For years, working people at Yum and across the fast-food industry have come together to demand a fair return on their work and workplaces that value families. To date, Yum has refused to give an inch and even fought hard against city and state proposals for universal paid sick and family leave. That’s why we’re calling on Creed, who makes more in a day than many of his employees make in a year, to offer the same benefits across the board.

Paid leave must be available to all working people, not just those already at the top. Join us and tell Yum Brands to do the right thing and make sure everyone working across the fast-food chain has paid parental leave. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5wA/ni0YAA/t.25f/E2E_m7saRTW5XZ8mN_UZMQ/h5/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3DOpZkwmeDIusqyvyq2GLOOzqSz1UI4swchPK ZlLbFxEk8b83Jwj0s-2FM-2FcZ1Ssl1jh7zRXAQoBHyyrKpm-2FPmVWNtuD4ntWOJc1FbVN3SLKFjk9PoyIWy0rP1UxmMvBHmCB 7qpJPVWgvW0MFOJpJFBavcedPdKdrFoy-2B78f4J-2FASTTI6QY5J96UnNm-2BPliJjfkFFPa2w9UI8Re5eWGy7hjam0e2RRZ6TnGTxsCM6X2E sEaFnfbfUhqnDpLxl6RomOPDdZxFZrsQeiU8xCsW7qElnvvJpW dhPWdiWWOnNJ4B-2B7gq6zLJTl6gX012H58qjrM9PvG1AAkKpVkA4qn0G5DUR)

In Solidarity,
Ethan
Jobs With Justice

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ckaihatsu

16th March 2017, 15:50

Support a $15 min wage for IL

Action Now

Chris --

We have some great news!!

http://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/actionnow/mailings/113/attachments/original/imageedit_1_5797699049.jpg?1489610143

The fight to raise wages continues in Illinois. This week, legislation is being introduced in the IL House of Representatives that would raise the state minimum wage to $15 an hour, which would directly benefit 2.3 million workers and give an incredible economic boost to our state.

We need your help right now to give this bill the best shot of becoming law. Send a letter to Labor & Commerce Committee Chairperson Rep. Jay Hoffman. (http://www.actionnow.org/r?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsalsa4.salsalabs.com%2Fo%2F50914 %2Fp%2Fdia%2Faction4%2Fcommon%2Fpublic%2F%3Faction _KEY%3D21345&e=d22bd9bf8aa6ce93f093163292da0316&utm_source=actionnow&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=15_minimum_wage&n=2)

Before the $15 minimum wage bill can be brought for a vote, it has to get out of committee. By sending a letter you will help show Chairperson Hoffman that the people in our communities support this legislation.

Lobbyists for corporations that profit from paying poverty wages are going to do everything they can to prevent this bill from being brought for a vote! That’s why we need you to send a letter right now to make sure the $15 minimum wage bill gets out of committee!

Click here to send a letter to Rep. Jay Hoffman. (http://www.actionnow.org/r?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsalsa4.salsalabs.com%2Fo%2F50914 %2Fp%2Fdia%2Faction4%2Fcommon%2Fpublic%2F%3Faction _KEY%3D21345&e=d22bd9bf8aa6ce93f093163292da0316&utm_source=actionnow&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=15_minimum_wage&n=3)

With your help, we can make sure workers throughout Chicago and the state get the wages they so desperately need.

In solidarity,
Action Now
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ckaihatsu

18th March 2017, 14:44

What women workers at the CTA face

View Online (https://cts.vrmailer1.com/click?sk=aIo8B2JgQjBKjQTVXAO8F5GzihDU7ppIi1Faoje0k v6g=/aHR0cHM6Ly92cjIudmVydGljYWxyZXNwb25zZS5jb20vZW1haW xzLzE3NTkyMTg2MTE5NTE0P2NvbnRhY3RfaWQ9MTc1OTIxOTAx MzY5MjQ=/WOHA9AhzsHvB69SBwA5WBg==&merge_field_type=%7BVR_HOSTED_LINK%7D)

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International Women's Day: CTA Workers Want a Contract

On International Women’s Day, Amalgamated Transit Union women working at the CTA were facing intolerable conditions, as their locals have now been without a contract for over a year. The two unions — ATU 214 (buses) and ATU 308 (rail) — held practice pickets at several transit hubs, and demanded to speak to the Board of Directors at the downtown Chicago Transit Authority headquarters. The CTA tried, but failed, to bar union members and supporters from entering its March 8, 2017 Board meeting. In addition to decrying the fact that the bus drivers are forced to used porta potties, the unions presented disturbing photos of the unsanitary and unsafe conditions that workers are forced to deal with on the El trains, photos that the public can view here. Length 16:04.

Video url:
https://youtu.be/izoMgK7CGCo

izoMgK7CGCo

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ckaihatsu

18th March 2017, 16:02

Unions rally to ‘Defend the Working Class’ in Jacksonville (http://fightbacknews.us1.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=a29530af96a02fc55d345e735&id=c6f4c3e08b&e=d323598fe4)

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By Fernando Figueroa

Jacksonville, FL – Over 150 trade unionists and activists rallied March 11 in downtown Jacksonville to defend the working class. Beginning at 2 p.m. in Hemming Park, organizers held a militant event focused on building the struggle against national ‘Right to Work’ legislation proposed last month in Washington.

The event also focused on building the fight against other attacks on organized labor and the working class as a whole, such as attempts to privatize public education and cut Social Security and Medicare. The rally to defend the working class was endorsed by several important local trade union organizations and community groups, including the North Florida AFL-CIO Central Labor Council (CLC) and the Women’s March Florida – Jacksonville Chapter. About two-thirds of those who attended the rally were in unions.

Speakers representing unions gave spirited speeches about the need to rebuild a militant rank-and-file working class labor movement, including representatives from the AFL-CIO, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Communication Workers of America, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Iron Workers, American Postal Workers Union, International Longshoremen’s Association, United Faculty of Florida, and many others.

The rally included two very special guest speakers: Kimberly Schultz and John Palmer, recently-elected Southern Region vice presidents for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) who ran on the Teamsters United Slate last year with Fred Zuckerman. Zuckerman himself praised the rally the next day at a large Teamsters United meeting in Orlando.

After union leaders delivered their speeches, organizers with the Young Workers of Jacksonville began leading the crowd in chants such as “Working class unity - always leads to victory!” “When workers’ rights are under attack, what do we do? Stand up, Fight back!” “Banks got bailed out - workers got sold out!” and “Workers party now!” Organizers led the crowd of people onto the streets and on a march all the way down to the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce, where several more speakers addressed the crowd about the need to build a strong labor movement.

The rally inspired many to learn more about the rich history of struggle that working people have. Many of the young people in attendance showed a great deal of interest in getting union jobs and fighting for workers’ rights on the shop floor alongside the activism they do in the community, like fighting police crimes.

“Today’s rally is momentous for the working class in Jacksonville,” said Dave Schneider, a rank-and-file Teamster and one of the lead organizers for the event. “We brought together union and non-union workers to fight against national Right to Work legislation and the new employer-led attacks on organized labor. Marching on the Jax Chamber of Commerce with 100 workers was about taking the fight directly to the 1% that rules the city and the entire country. The way forward is uniting workers of all nationalities to resist these attacks, and allying with the movements of the oppressed nations.”

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

21st March 2017, 15:10

Urgent: Take 2 Minutes to Keep Nursing Home Residents Safe!

SEIU Healthcare Illinois/Indiana

Dear Chris,

We are writing to you because you care about the health of Illinois seniors and we need your help today.

THIS WEDNESDAY, March 22nd, there is a vote in the State House that would penalize nursing home operators who fail to staff according to state standards. Right now, there is no penalty, and staffing suffers every day.

Legislators in Springfield are voting on the Safe Staffing Enforcement Bill that would both improve staffing and also prevent nursing homes from denying beds to residents returning from a hospital visit.

Nursing home owners are fighting hard against this bill—but with your help, we will win. Illinois seniors who live in nursing homes are relying on us to advocate for the staffing they deserve.

Take two minutes RIGHT NOW to tell lawmakers you support the Safe Staffing Enforcement Bill (HB3392) by filling out a "Witness Slip" online as a “proponent” -- Do it BEFORE 4pm Tuesday.

Create a Witness Slip on HB3392 by CLICKING HERE (http://hcilin.seiu.org/page/m/18a0fcf6/179da51/4311e4aa/1ff0fb79/3197171557/VEsH/), and following these instructions:

Complete your contact information

For the category of “Firm/Business or Agency”, you can enter where you work, if you like and it's applicable, or something like "self" or "constituent" or "citizen"

For the category of “Title," you can fill in your job title if you listed an employer under "Firm/Business" or again enter something like "self" or "constituent" or "citizen"

For the category of “Persons, groups, firms represented in this appearance, please enter “Self”

Check the “Proponent” button

Check the “Record of Appearance Only” button

Type the appropriate text

Check the Terms of Agreement

Click “Create Slip” (Important--this is the part that saves your "Witness Slip"

Nursing home owners are trying to flood Springfield with their own witness slips in opposition. Fill out your Witness Slip today, and then ask friends and family members to do it, too.

Because, when we are united, we win!

In Solidarity,

Shaba Andrich
Vice President, SEIU Healthcare Illinois

SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION HEALTHCARE ILLINOIS/INDIANA

2229 S. Halsted, Chicago IL

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ckaihatsu

21st March 2017, 15:23

Stand with Women Workers!

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Bottom: Judy Gearhart with Sophorn Yang, getting ready to march to the U.S. Department of Labor. Photo by Getty Images for V-Day.

Dear Chris,

I continue to be inspired by all the powerful worker testimonies and artistic performances from the Women Workers Rising rally held at the Department of Labor on March 8th, International Women’s Day. Together, women workers from a multitude of industries – nurses, teachers, restaurant workers, retail workers, and federal government contractors – demanded respect, safety, and decent, living wage jobs. This was a great start to our Women Workers Rising campaign, which we hope you will support both financially (https://laborrights.z2systems.com/track//servlet/DisplayLink?orgId=laborrights&emailId=f6580af259fd3244d0126b90e219afb8fm8527746f 65&secureId=OF4U7VVi3j8ydugyp4m%2FrA%3D%3D&linkId=15178&targetUrl=http://laborrights.org/donate) and by joining upcoming actions online and in the street!

I was especially thrilled on March 8th that we could have Sophorn Yang with us from the Cambodian Alliance of Trade Unions, one of the most inspiring women worker leaders I know. As the only female president of an independent Cambodian union federation, Sophorn represents 10,000 mostly women garment workers who are facing some very tough obstacles to securing decent wages and having their voices heard at work. Her story of rising up from garment worker to union leader provides hope for so many workers. Sophorn has faced threats, including at gunpoint, and continues to face years of legal harassment in retaliation for organizing workers. Yet she continues to fight!

After teaching the March 8th protesters how to chant “Women Workers Resist!” in Khmer, Sophorn joined the United Methodist Women’s delegation at the UN Commission on the Status of Women meetings in New York City. Her testimony and advocacy helped to advance the calls for a new International Labour Organization Convention to stop gender-based violence at work.

Sophorn also called on Nike to stop trying to repress worker voices in their supply chain. Nike is currently trying to block the Worker Rights Consortium – which monitors factories supplying U.S. universities in response to worker complaints. This week we kicked off a U.S. speaking tour with Sophorn, together with United Students Against Sweatshops, to help build awareness about Cambodian workers’ struggle and to pressure Nike to change course -- find out here if the tour is coming to a city near you (https://laborrights.z2systems.com/track//servlet/DisplayLink?orgId=laborrights&emailId=f6580af259fd3244d0126b90e219afb8fm8527746f 65&secureId=OF4U7VVi3j8ydugyp4m%2FrA%3D%3D&linkId=15180&targetUrl=http://laborrights.org/tour).

Wherever you live, there are both online and offline actions that you can do to help echo the demands of the tour. Click here to find sample posts for social media and more. (https://laborrights.z2systems.com/track//servlet/DisplayLink?orgId=laborrights&emailId=f6580af259fd3244d0126b90e219afb8fm8527746f 65&secureId=OF4U7VVi3j8ydugyp4m%2FrA%3D%3D&linkId=15170&targetUrl=http://nikesweatshops.org)

Thanks in advance for your support for this tour and campaign!

In solidarity,

Judy Gearhart
Executive Director

P.S. Today, please consider supporting ILRF’s work that makes this Women Workers Resist! tour possible. A donation of $25, $50, or $100 (https://laborrights.z2systems.com/track//servlet/DisplayLink?orgId=laborrights&emailId=f6580af259fd3244d0126b90e219afb8fm8527746f 65&secureId=OF4U7VVi3j8ydugyp4m%2FrA%3D%3D&linkId=15179&targetUrl=http://laborrights.org/donate) makes an incredible impact in our work with partners around the world. Thank you!

This email was sent by the International Labor Rights Forum (https://laborrights.z2systems.com/track//servlet/DisplayLink?orgId=laborrights&emailId=f6580af259fd3244d0126b90e219afb8fm8527746f 65&secureId=OF4U7VVi3j8ydugyp4m%2FrA%3D%3D&linkId=15172&targetUrl=http://laborrights.org).
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ckaihatsu

23rd March 2017, 14:40

Worker Safety Under Attack

No Images? Click here (http://iamaw.cmail20.com/t/d-e-hhtkjry-hhjhhkkri-tr/)

IAM iMail

http://i1.cmail20.com/ei/d/99/AE1/0BF/054844/csfinal/03_21_2017_Memberwelding.jpg

Urgent: Tell Your Senators to Vote NO on Gutting Worker Safety Reporting Rules (http://iamaw.cmail20.com/t/d-l-hhtkjry-hhjhhkkri-j/)

March 21, 2017 -- The U.S. Senate is voting today on S.J. Res. 27, which will reverse 45 years of worker protections and compromise worker safety and health in many of the most dangerous industries. More >> (http://iamaw.cmail20.com/t/d-l-hhtkjry-hhjhhkkri-t/)

http://i2.cmail20.com/ei/d/99/AE1/0BF/054844/csfinal/mail.RTW1.jpg

NLRB: Federal Law Preempts Wisconsin Right-to-Work Law, Metalcraft Ordered to Pay Back IAM Dues (http://iamaw.cmail20.com/t/d-l-hhtkjry-hhjhhkkri-d/)

An administrative law judge for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has ruled against Wisconsin metal fabrication company Metalcraft’s union busting tactics and has ordered the company to pay back union dues owed to IAM Local 2053 of Iron Ridge, WI. More >> (http://iamaw.cmail20.com/t/d-l-hhtkjry-hhjhhkkri-k/)

[...]

ckaihatsu

23rd March 2017, 20:35

“We are the strength of the union”: a report from Monterrey

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/082/044/original/MTY_group_pic_edit.jpg
After a two day training in Monterrey, union members are ready for another year of organizing!

This year’s training (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3AA/ni0YAA/t.25v/V4XEpeGKQVmeHkVXDOkCag/h0/X4FIVDACC-2F1mbYwHI4-2Bu6NN0-2F0Jw9p7IbtLP5bK2EwpiL554hWu6zZYQkgVjrd1-2FifD-2FDJ0WUvIgWSg1fMHykPmTQpVjvx9sFry7PqxTmt-2BPx0YQ8s5ds4lARIeB6ia1YObLdKpdfCmavzzKkl5FzWxhu6f Mqi5TQ1n7zWGgmgtuFyDXGM6h7-2Fu5cjNG5W-2BOcHPnCIJYoD6aad1F98XzYDwHqr3yduTYji7uKt8MIuRypsV AzmZVezQk0fvkpw1EUqAMykDR6pXT3Q3bK11CJ8c-2BnzJbyR0nPPYeTwRh-2BigAWxfemLVtf1oC0VSZyS91Y4nEr7vMxz8cJ6entdmDqXCzB k3U-2B-2F-2BrIaV1y8-2FVpJdYBvrZwvA-2F4InoIzg90N72NDBsZ5xMGiwWth7xaZMp86lIsUX84wH28Iwr x8UBG56HWdE-2FMXaUK6ep9rxqOs-2Bz) on March 18 and 19 laid the groundwork for the 2017 quadrennial convention where members will vote for the union’s leadership, goals, and direction for the next four years. Members formed committees and discussed resolutions to present at the convention including a possible boycott of a Reynolds American tobacco product. Click here to support the 2017 convention! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3AA/ni0YAA/t.25v/V4XEpeGKQVmeHkVXDOkCag/h1/lX4AS6aXAKvcAj3S1N25NsAM3cR-2FynqR1QCFOpjdc1PFEzZKSUVoGH4vlOkniW4-2BTGEbLiX3gNAE419HkFQ4Daw0tg5FrRM2kl-2BgXXBYahINi7MwJKplyO-2BBXuTuDEygEgZCl2wp4ZTJx-2Bu9luwPzBOgygdeSEFXh7dF37Cz6DSenVobvuHxvd1X9DTewS fQdvhWNFryMM-2B5lgsPCMwvIb8SsJjzrylKTntpbS9mVnvbkWDr2xkIqW2ZF13-2B1r-2FUnDYcRTYTDgmvFwgIs6zwXLTZciB4ih6xxiKLtcMI1EJq-2FASALR4MtHJWMlKqhT6RHKGfL3eb2C-2FpWLjyv97ZkqkMaWAeC8AictDYTny5EhWGP1t-2BBDOD-2BWpPNJA2kttLfiMuKqATC1O3w9l8i5j6Rg-3D-3D)

“We are the strength of the union. [In Monterrey], we proposed what will be carried out in the convention in Ohio. In each group that was formed, we discussed what we wanted, and from these we will bring a summary to Ohio to analyze and see what things the people are asking for and what are the needs of the union members.” - FLOC member Rene Rubio

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/082/049/original/Screen_Shot_2017-03-23_at_12.28.59_PM.png
FLOC members Felipe, Albino, and Eli also gave reports on their experiences as members of the negotiating team that helped negotiate a new 4-year union contract between FLOC and the North Carolina Growers’ Association. They covered specifics of the new agreement and highlighted how members can use the contract and its grievance mechanism to be their own camp inspectors and advocates for change. Read more about the training here! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3AA/ni0YAA/t.25v/V4XEpeGKQVmeHkVXDOkCag/h2/X4FIVDACC-2F1mbYwHI4-2Bu6NN0-2F0Jw9p7IbtLP5bK2EwpiL554hWu6zZYQkgVjrd1-2FifD-2FDJ0WUvIgWSg1fMHykKTK-2FUvGH9L9ju5KkP7aC1gJXuPpFY2nYya9cWvY3rXfmN1EcvoJY b-2FrGKKVL9zzK-2BGEolwNO1tF3qxumz1VimXj7G2TjA6gJ0depPxlLR5tVSKFtp H7xvDeQ5MfrZlUczrg-2Fkl85g4dLpzF5tP-2BsmcpTdfV0Jb7e2uP-2FW7RvOEm3ICVxV7IvZDl0w7oAb4-2FQC96tzgqKknOX1yfEZTVGzBhquaPVul6o2rIDRnDSxN4ebiA unI18IX1RXbIlhMSVXXJmcN495MJPsrlJRpy6dBNZ1B3DVS-2BUSttjOhSA7Qt-2Fu-2FFbohZhrpx-2FyT-2FqHvAJTmkt-2FNmwoA4HobpcHKrk47YhxbL-2Fiuptqdzw8Z8BVJ4)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/082/050/original/Screen_Shot_2017-03-23_at_12.29.44_PM.png
A special thanks to the Solidarity Center of the AFL-CIO for sponsoring the training and to all of the supporters who helped make this event possible! Click here to make a donation to support the 2017 convention! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3AA/ni0YAA/t.25v/V4XEpeGKQVmeHkVXDOkCag/h3/lX4AS6aXAKvcAj3S1N25NsAM3cR-2FynqR1QCFOpjdc1NZpIShB-2BpaFDyc-2FNbT7HChuZEMz9RIGEvZgb2HcU8pTf-2B3XpkgX-2BIzQHBCYMMMqM6ZHkID2wDBj7rEpnt-2FZalkrtQt0mdVaoAKmhNm48kamCtFoO0b7G7QC1xCKfGafFir 7r0B-2B50qFrZuXcR7LM5PYg9TPzrWHqMf3x1WYdkq9cdkyGwn1G5v5 YYtNn-2FLIWSBN3dQIbvP-2B9Jqr0-2BYpOoLG7fcevISWJsuhckX3yukovWPb4AykIlUhoQC6MZGFv3 97HFzUdsqhIYL5-2BseGA05oudIlftMkRY4ggO9yIiej-2F25fu4PqZMHarP06SRhiPiNe6fqq6ysrXVfdY-2BPTrd85vkktHEJNRDEvwQQmrBEHg-3D-3D)

Hasta La Victoria,

The FLOC Team

To find out more about the Farm Labor Organizing Committee, AFL-CIO, please visit our website at www.floc.com (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3AA/ni0YAA/t.25v/V4XEpeGKQVmeHkVXDOkCag/h4/X4FIVDACC-2F1mbYwHI4-2Bu6JVgdD2AVE4TcmHE30tde1zR1w-2F9OkOtlmgx0wIn2TMoTWys4Ho0WAZ8EnAqje-2F0H1rV5dS0IoPAInBNk0Z53W-2F1COw9BnfzQnngjrM-2Fhng41Cy-2BzsPBGQmAGpQJ6zyzTUAnQiP9WVNT-2FyfwFIi2598kLE3r-2BuR7Lzce8xNwvJccQYcWwDaz5kvQaETLBYdicCmEt-2FoCKYIgnhXkqFnMQq-2F2R-2FKRTPIjnVjBUkSiUtrKks3-2BKYoQiRVHC2bG6egZbWpvbvkEpMOsfxyBdyN8EhRDbMHliDMw nG0nEdcyzrgP1jkxb-2FpgCdU3Dqf59sIvl0X-2BTjyyWBF08qHFLGSU4AlHqSZbeQLhMcBK3YyXeKZi).

Sent via ActionNetwork.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3AA/ni0YAA/t.25v/V4XEpeGKQVmeHkVXDOkCag/h5/55uI0ZjpoLA9-2FYhqE-2F4Eitwb7nFGaBM-2BttuyqSTdMS4-3D). To update your email address or to stop receiving emails from Farm Labor Organizing Committee, AFL-CIO, please click here.

ckaihatsu

23rd March 2017, 21:17

Bargaining Update

Share This Article: Facebook (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.25v/N5NK5nRTS3udNXmo0pAQ5g/h2/UVpHk-2Fi5eD23H0Zp5bDe-2Bji7hX8fcWSJMFp-2FpJvRh-2B1affFjank4JjVN850dAMB3WOnrvNYsoWIZ011Xp-2B1C5VHDhVYX4ZBDQwcDQpaBbtxyT8iqOKOMOrunNBLiv1oblw YHls8vIjWb3a63yg8qSI5gyJFoNIMBOk-2ByYcsehupWASIPy7uVjkMaxbIvmF3oMSuq9AtCTlMMevHdhfN eijt-2Bj-2FCNlgGPjeH8sfWOt5IRWBxUuYlmVlnOW3aSRQkeJkIBILnyaL 8ttZvuiRC8zBCmbQh4Jygluo0-2By1p1EqVRV9TGLsARvM-2B-2B-2FWpK4V5d1N2pNx9BtN6ILdk7LhfeaenZHt35srt6eXJhyZ4DX ocsBn9wNTQWbCl7N-2BRiHZX1guM3j-2BwCah4xqQxsxTdjAxC0TfvRYs-2FfAyD5FEMLonU-3D) Twitter (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.25v/N5NK5nRTS3udNXmo0pAQ5g/h3/UVpHk-2Fi5eD23H0Zp5bDe-2Bji7hX8fcWSJMFp-2FpJvRh-2B0SPYZolHJ-2BMFK66-2BLY65zDxKUz7pGmGKVLupAb6Z7XV-2BgZDI6bj62-2BWXOqYj1KiuDTD3trymhdso2wdlNipL3sacRp04w-2BkVeIgXPi2kcLIi62DaBCWpv5k9p5NiNPgxvk5mH9GkhnfIN5 6cJpdmJ0YBkdKuBxmfCqG54oDfKP5Py4R6u-2Bt9-2Bb6tnYqrn6uvG1ZDu1HxjV195BPVQQVzKpvMMHIwkxKM3-2BzIVVm8xB5UHhh08DRKmAvV-2BtvoFHh2IyWIVAVfTeqn8m88ujNF1vYnNQZ4R4Q6nqRK-2F4wei7-2FtiEX-2FR-2FuSQkYfW1CIloGI5hYI-2BjA-2Fgo9Ctaqf0DxqaXT7K80OFOexd7sJNzkaNfb7mkosdDm7kbCY kX-2FxRy1IY-3D) More... (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.25v/N5NK5nRTS3udNXmo0pAQ5g/h4/kxe-2Fa-2FuVJq6dxE1P0DoW3b7yvOCIHwWAAyW0-2BLCvXFtw3WWtW0K431d11-2F1fv-2B-2FzjyFQ58-2BTFRgdKQl8xgJK6Xl8O3VyI5zE2-2FXAxYGLVi58mS0OtVBetzi6xhJdVxe4kafPzruQbIprYk6E5S L5K85Wj7I2-2FHIQTbZga7kQq9ve4oZeqEOSTwDFwsvLtv3ygJh8xL-2Ff6mdSqr4ROm-2BGBC70C9Gb-2BqC0wHYrxWYJ8qSBOQhDgjjKWf5aOoAiL4-2Fd-2FrKv5nP1RxUEkv3OEPWWLUkXi3WCMb8f2SvGVcFHEDXVX-2FGp-2B2VGuytGWJDc0mqyanlCkKnxBkv4quiBsMNwJA1HzWQKgBSvX hZoHPEeXbs-3D)

AT&T West

CWAers at AT&T West picketed locations throughout California and Nevada on March 22, walking off the job in a grievance strike to protest the company's change in working conditions for technicians.

To end the strike, AT&T agreed that it would no longer require technicians to perform work assignments outside their areas of expertise and classification.

"We went on strike to demonstrate to the country that we will not do more work for less pay, especially when it puts us in a position not to deliver the best possible service," said Robert Longer, an AT&T technician in Sacramento and a member of Local 9421.

Keep up with the latest here. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.25v/N5NK5nRTS3udNXmo0pAQ5g/h5/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiKr4Ao12I3-2Fpo0H6nd8VNcjvMTnEEPvo8tW6x6b-2Fz0-2B2MoQ7M4EEIYrS4GxKJ7UGliOUShEiDh6H8HZHAnjg6LfN5qx J7edJf7Ntco-2B8JkUyVpD8-2FRXpjuHJjANTYUZH97Fi9p3zD9RPJ5MHw1mM-2BsYV0cM-2Bu1bTidZggz-2FemhGe1iMiJrb3d9WBvuVEfXxBon-2BMm7E6xBq-2FmtjzgQ-2Bx9UZ7OlpxSdPS7AlX6hPqMIU5wwBWuUrPe17EkqgpvDJQGyL hCq1fuEeXQrm8la9y-2FHo-3D)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/082/068/original/1_AT_T_West_Collage_Mar23_600.jpg

CWAers at AT&T West set up pickets throughout California and Nevada. Clockwise, from top left: Local 9416, Bakersfield; Local 9414, Chico; Local 9509, San Diego call center; Local 9413, Reno, Nev.; Local 9511, Escondido; Local 9413, Carson City, Nev.; Local 9412, Hayward central office; Local 9510 Tustin call center; Local 9412, Hayward; Local 9404, Vallejo; Local 9432, Diamond Springs.

[...]

ckaihatsu

1st April 2017, 14:36

VIDEO - They Fired Me And 'Made' Me Into An Organizer

View Online (https://cts.vrmailer1.com/click?sk=aIo8B2JgQjBKafyNXAO8F5B9QjL6VBNNRILWwTbGN Gtg=/aHR0cHM6Ly92cjIudmVydGljYWxyZXNwb25zZS5jb20vZW1haW xzLzE3NTkyMTg2MTIwMjg5P2NvbnRhY3RfaWQ9MTc1OTIxOTAx MzY5MjQ=/eilCid0kchkdNjZ_Q3sgrA==&merge_field_type=%7BVR_HOSTED_LINK%7D&href_id_source=vr2-href-id-source-1)

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Watch Video (https://cts.vrmailer1.com/click?sk=aIo8B2JgQjBKafyNXAO8F5B9QjL6VBNNRILWwTbGN Gtg=/aHR0cHM6Ly95b3V0dS5iZS82bUFTdHFMMWI3SQ==/zVDcmDiyXrHISfyASO3dRA==&merge_field_type=(?x-mi:(?%3C=href=)[%5Cs]*[%27%22](?%3Curl%3E[%5E%7B%27%22].+?)[%27%22])&href_id_source=vr2-href-id-source-27)

They Fired Me And 'Made' Me Into An Organizer

The Chicago Transit Authority over a year ago fired a union shop steward at its big north side bus garage — for trying to actually enforce the contract! The CTA hoped that Erek Slater would just fade away, but Slater disappointed them, and turned his firing into an organizing opportunity. He began the fight to get his job back while also continuing his duties as a member of the ATU 241 Executive Board, despite lackluster interest from his union president. And he finally won, with full back pay. Slater took advantage of the time-off-work that management forced on him, and put in a very productive year of labor organizing and international activism. And recently he won, by an overwhelming margin, his re-election as Executive Board member for his North Park Garage, representing 600 workers. But his union’s president polled last of four candidates and didn't make the run off in his re-election try. Lessons drawn, with narration augmenting archival footage. Length - 17:10

Video url:
https://youtu.be/6mAStqL1b7I

6mAStqL1b7I

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat.

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ckaihatsu

3rd April 2017, 20:19

Here's what Santander Bank workers like me just did!

Committee for Better Banks

Dear Chris,

Massive news: Santander bank workers like myself, and our community supporters took over the lobby of Santander Bank headquarters in Boston this past weekend. We delivered the message that bank workers need a union.

Click here to support Santander Bank workers organizing to improve our working conditions and hold the company accountable. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6gA/ni0YAA/t.265/LF2ZdCigQp-tZdIorFAArA/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CpyM7kXseQrDq67nQpuvN1zX0YmpycznvdDM uftoXoERfAwDg1Ikor0jki3GmgnOzU2FoJW4XDYEL6Q-2BEgWeN1joRnjM-2BkNdfpZDsmavz86dqOhsJ9kUNOc2pmHl-2FNiSP39xQSMd71qltRdD5q88c5swCFVUAMDja3zbYLiomGjLV pChBWYtRyBVwSSt8kTZULDRfeocdsbvtNA4E-2FWK59lEoyBokIhEI4WExCYpvytI3H0bNAzVUCvKnmE1POUZdw wOHvyC2JoUPVyzXyigD-2BxvARdAPe2DQTthlr5Fg1I5NBy1gZYVKO0U2GJiVbMZUTRJql JtjVCT6flJzDE4hDW4-2FosZQbmoPenyn54ybAACR-2Bw6HmrhzyIloT-2FRwU7Ale6Y97Z5Onwxnms412qlxH)

Together we filled the lobby of the Bank’s US headquarters. The Boston Globe, American Banker, The Hill, and more wrote about our action and people on the street cheered us on!

This is a major step towards addressing the problems that front-line bank workers experience at Santander Bank, Wells Fargo, and other US banks. We struggle with favoritism, dangerously high sales goals, metrics, and wages as low as $12.50 an hour.

However, our counterparts around the world are members of unions. They have a say in how their performance is measured, and earn salaries above the national average. We know that joining a union will mean we’ll finally have a seat at the table when it comes to how we are treated-- and we’ll be better able to serve our customers.

Click here to join with us and the thousands of unionized bank workers all over the world who agree: Santander Bank USA needs a union. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6gA/ni0YAA/t.265/LF2ZdCigQp-tZdIorFAArA/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CpyM7kXseQrDq67nQpuvN1zX0YmpycznvdDM uftoXoERfAwDg1Ikor0jki3GmgnOxbBKVlQNZ-2B3TFWvhptvgmhK3Fotc3fAmsObFo-2BufNv9HZ35uAWkE98zuUcvsgSRU11-2FF37YgjtRiA-2B0w-2BTk0Du6on7D3FWtYfho-2Fj16kDAj0E8DBE6MKEu-2BpxcqAGKXIGEkx7hxldm-2B9W5hH9umywU1uEdmt-2FN9FTZFqrexbnRzGLjs012pavLe7ahdCBySVDteP96aauWf7d L9FIEPnp85gK6YS5lZwfnHxOkpVvNqUfeAn7tJj0hkiq8X7KlM du5y-2ByKUJtmNR-2BcZjxzUSCb-2BtMWgL5yQTgWjvuodBzr-2FnVrOosLKctHzEYDQMQKVnSZ3yQx-2FRtBELMce8cbh0bu)

Sincerely,

Juan
Santander Worker and member of The Committee for Better Banks (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6gA/ni0YAA/t.265/LF2ZdCigQp-tZdIorFAArA/h3/g-2Be9eSGxRhnCDugbtWGfmFuM6IATs6V1T6vk9uVOxT-2B5lLfS3AOS1Hqim0wWCQ8bPcrX8M6hQajIUH2FxeEanhuXSLd CHnZhlBWhua21mXqY5ekVT9NE6NSRGUfi-2B5Iy8IWIsht6HHVXAp5J3HuLlVBswotota7iXbNFnZVYjkaPl XLFefrkzAd5akFi3BFsCLyZXnDHJtVyTIICGTxFNnOCxm6S8an vjgTtqHjbfkCwXJ-2FfWhDHpTfMdY6SpwdWeuvw1CTZ24XEZN6-2FgoS2jta4EGZH-2FYkEpWm2CzMGOBC5MytN4wDTE16uGbqDGDs66jiBLQ7cwCoSm RJKlshGKZaqG5TXgRofSds0cNmRBKg-3D)

Committee for Better Banks
501 Third Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
www.betterbanks.org

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ckaihatsu

5th April 2017, 20:31

What's Nike Got to Hide?

If you're having trouble viewing this email, you may see it online (https://laborrights.z2systems.com/track//servlet/DisplayLink?orgId=laborrights&emailId=a895c0b0ad318d5df85dd928dbbc44fdam3806566a 89&secureId=OF4U7VVi3j8PwfNl7D1YAQ%3D%3D&linkId=15897&targetUrl=http://laborrights.z2systems.com/np/clients/laborrights/viewOnlineEmail.jsp?emailId=a895c0b0ad318d5df85dd9 28dbbc44fdam3806566a89)

Take Action Now! (https://laborrights.z2systems.com/track//servlet/DisplayLink?orgId=laborrights&emailId=a895c0b0ad318d5df85dd928dbbc44fdam3806566a 89&secureId=OF4U7VVi3j8PwfNl7D1YAQ%3D%3D&linkId=15891&targetUrl=https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/55278-end-nikesweatshops)

https://laborrights.z2systems.com/neon/resource/laborrights/images/nikeoption2.jpg
photo by United Students Against Sweatshops

Dear Chris,

Greetings from the road! I’m writing to you from the final leg of the Women Workers Resist! Tour with Sophorn Yang, president of the Cambodian Alliance of Trade Unions. After traveling across the Northeastern, Midwestern and Southern United States, the tour has reached the birthplace of multinational corporation Nike – the Pacific Northwest. Will you join us from wherever you are right now to support the fight against #NikeSweatshops? (https://laborrights.z2systems.com/track//servlet/DisplayLink?orgId=laborrights&emailId=a895c0b0ad318d5df85dd928dbbc44fdam3806566a 89&secureId=OF4U7VVi3j8PwfNl7D1YAQ%3D%3D&linkId=15894&targetUrl=https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/55278-end-nikesweatshops)

Nike, the world’s largest athletic wear brand, is abandoning its decades-old corporate social responsibility commitments by blocking respected labor rights experts from assessing their supplier factories. Nike's refusal to honor its commitment to allow the Worker Rights Consortium (WRC) access to its supplier factories effectively cuts off a critical means for workers to secure their rights at work. As ILRF Executive Director Judy Gearhart explains in her latest Huffington Post blog (https://laborrights.z2systems.com/track//servlet/DisplayLink?orgId=laborrights&emailId=a895c0b0ad318d5df85dd928dbbc44fdam3806566a 89&secureId=OF4U7VVi3j8PwfNl7D1YAQ%3D%3D&linkId=15900&targetUrl=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/58deba30e4b0d804fbbb72b7), "Nike is closing down a channel through which workers could raise concerns and be ensured an objective, independent investigation of their complaints...among factory monitoring initiatives, the WRC is often the only one with a presence on the ground that connects directly with workers and their organizations."

Students and community members, led by United Students Against Sweatshops, are taking action in support of those workers. Since 2000, a growing number of universities, many of which have multimillion dollar contracts with Nike, have affiliated with the WRC for independent monitoring of factories making university-licensed apparel. The key difference between the non-profit WRC and for-profit monitors, is that the WRC does not accept money from either corporations or labor unions. Instead, their investigations are fully transparent and informed by continuous engagement with local organizers and worker leaders.

https://laborrights.z2systems.com/neon/resource/laborrights/images/nikeoption3.jpg
photo by Christie Miedema

Although Nike wishes to dismiss this departure from its prior policy of allowing independent monitors access to their factories as insignificant, it serves to have a chilling effect on both worker testimony and human rights advocacy. Will you help us stop #NikeSweatshops? Please add your voice to our Thunderclap. (https://laborrights.z2systems.com/track//servlet/DisplayLink?orgId=laborrights&emailId=a895c0b0ad318d5df85dd928dbbc44fdam3806566a 89&secureId=OF4U7VVi3j8PwfNl7D1YAQ%3D%3D&linkId=15892&targetUrl=https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/55278-end-nikesweatshops) Together, we can keep this global giant from turning the clock back on nearly two decades of progress.

In solidarity,

Sarah Newell

This email was sent by the International Labor Rights Forum (https://laborrights.z2systems.com/track//servlet/DisplayLink?orgId=laborrights&emailId=a895c0b0ad318d5df85dd928dbbc44fdam3806566a 89&secureId=OF4U7VVi3j8PwfNl7D1YAQ%3D%3D&linkId=15890&targetUrl=http://laborrights.org).
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ckaihatsu

13th April 2017, 13:36

Action Needed for Franklin Street Bakery Worker

The Franklin Street Bakery workers in Minneapolis continue to fight aggressive actions by management during their ongoing effort to become members of BCTGM Local 22. On Tuesday, workers and community members joined union supporter Rosa Baires in her effort to return to work. We learned that Rosa will be back to work TODAY!

However, management has not stopped its intimidation tactics. It is being reported that management has suspended Ned Neterval, an organizing committee member, supposedly for his role in helping Rosa get her job back.

Ned and his co-workers need your help. Franklin Street Bakery’s owners need to know that workers and their supporters will not stand for these intimidation tactics.

The workers have two asks. First, please call Franklin Street Bakery owner Wayne Kostroski’s office at 952-835-7621 and tell him:

“I am calling to ask you to return Ned Neterval to work at Franklin Street Bakery immediately and sign a neutrality agreement so workers can choose whether to unionize without interference or intimidation.”

Second, please call Franklin Street Bakery at 612-871-3109 and ask for Sid Larson, the general manager, and tell him the same thing.

On behalf of the Franklin Street Bakery workers - thank you for your continued support!

Like Us on Facebook (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.26d/C3IB8kmfRFeFgeJoquRW6w/h0/znCKxBoqte9uKGXTnTD6Q1auOdb1qVgais4RKb-2B1fxXOzRRqgpX1j2h1apbVSNm2nrnXOGJmd7bpkYapRYBeada o-2Fhg0Yg7rV9QnzNEwKwvxJe2H3On4c31F0vU-2BCpaU-2BpCjN5X6o3Pi-2BiO-2B6aGYDPDlAlQJ1Y3yK5pGBORnTXK5QstLatGzW7-2FYfAj0V2LOx7vcixVBWWYwipQ7-2Fz9V2tyyLGH6q50QaSLdT-2FljqUYNa-2BmdmEq-2FymaEmtK0u5CxWp9S3nI5umVt-2B3DWHQSxqM8XiHXwaQMm8y1YzWNWcS7k-2FQU0LTlolgWBFik8aDkMor7njzzj7TWNh785n7u8sgY-2FMvmIocJU-2FPJZGlf7YP8-3D) Follow us on Twitter (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.26d/C3IB8kmfRFeFgeJoquRW6w/h1/jUHm9GLkUg-2F6wGvtqh3JSoaPITHS72fhnGDE-2FxYO91BEfe6QrPYm7y3h-2F08-2FKJzY5vuy7qsqp29BYJ6Y9lvesomfy2AoY3ticJSLR5y4UuRF iwm0HBE8H1U7PxaXXBlwsacmqGXLQvv0hgK66sXSJq2u-2FtepnPlJFF5U8qacey6exJe-2FbmSInT2vwxWyLvmJXwNE2CMnPbXRlCRXwdbqtsERhmULlBXp UfW4LqvUGh2plzWZyCIMhU4x3WJOGmO7-2FhX5uINk18XXa9llF0sc-2Bk5SUHODg4c0S3Yt6OF-2FDv9k7NdtPHRxFF8TMogfnZE7dPO1RSbkwSFgeCkKSUy-2BawRc9qDRzps3w-2F7gFA6-2BY-2Fg-3D) Check out our photostream on Flickr! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.26d/C3IB8kmfRFeFgeJoquRW6w/h2/1bSRIaHQn3DWaci1q8T9n00DFjy3cSJsDpfsD3-2BVoKT5NGVmFNXjnNJjChlacu73pBAhlJUCGuHljtWzmnpnBw5 gOBZ8iDAuGcU-2FDuf7xl8RZ5rJaIC-2BjtxWeR2sVV3sSeAWNqvrgcFjX-2FmoXNbsZ6du3Q-2BdPelj6FulB7JH3x84841sVVUtmUsVJRQ1bJe-2B7ZJufS4pOcuLK6jmt6HLFLi6cNSWNgtVDQd4YR4J2zlwOKn8 GpjLTsePjFsX1zCUOTVSlP42lXGE0PpO1bZkm3cHFkUWG4-2B9gawtEN2xAoqKDz9u6uecKcUB-2FqGxPKj-2F-2BaR88ylYmed2sS6Gb2e3PrQd67D-2BjRf95H9yI5cOGYQ-3D) http://bctgm.org/media/2012/03/Logo.png (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.26d/C3IB8kmfRFeFgeJoquRW6w/h3/jUHm9GLkUg-2F6wGvtqh3JSn7sCrNe3fEUAzOLGLk3xPEI1-2Bfyq7lOckdnEbb7AnIbDY69SUkwEB9WlkK4TB-2B1qYjmzlNQuVxAtHii-2B8bwrjc2gbDla3lXgHepPF4BL82pzR2nQbapBJHkB4W2z8tLh 5Fa5L98LHYa27H7GCUJwv9mRvaJNvpqDP4xA4oaoyW6Q3kf8Aq 4Eq-2BRs2qmecVNmA54ayiKZ4b4nFryziXsB7YH9M9RuJFxEUhQ-2FL2wZiVTXgNjhJ7u7iKEfaPxU5-2BtWMODufAqzqmp0bboEcv1CTZvX4NRL-2BSNFx0ehjOrkOT920C123eLARwNaWlE0-2FlELrpMwtueB77PAkXHuCgwJ-2FM-3D) Visit us online at www.bctgm.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.26d/C3IB8kmfRFeFgeJoquRW6w/h4/jUHm9GLkUg-2F6wGvtqh3JSvp0Vczxps4egdnKgIs4oQGaGTPhN2uKPBEFD9-2FAyW1xe-2F39jDz4hSmg9yPIsHsqyPtxYMs-2FQIoBC0qOEN16M74R8yoZW4rCRxTbyHtfpH07uYuMEXUwf3a5 u6g6Wk4-2BaRGJVFBEyP5i7CGUlvzx8CHA863qdjn2STgjUlzgc2cYOCl5 zpAv-2F-2BmDUcsk4qNg7htNQwj4w-2BFkvUHSujwFPl0r2yhJjTXyKfNdAHDEsAoja2gqzsfSaJEyPz gJMHd8MpPjhPT-2FylOpJ8Mru3-2BAmBeIDC0lplgj0EDFOdJbrk5ddLwdu10lJdzDuTnNVX4b74I pWSboXx-2Fg0ZRC-2FZATbJU-3D)
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ckaihatsu

13th April 2017, 13:46

CWA International President Chris Shelton On AT&T District 9 Fight For A Contract In San Jose

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANwYz-cc9Sk

ANwYz-cc9Sk

CWA international president Chris Shelton came to San Jose, California at an AT&T Mobility store protest on April 9, 2017 support the 17,000 CWA District 9 AT&T workers on the on year anniversary of working without a contract. He also discussed the Trump administration and also the healthcare proposal of Trump and the Republicans.

The interview was done by KPFA Steve Zeltzer

Additional media
https://youtu.be/wQoyeX6NRN0

wQoyeX6NRN0

https://www.cwa-union.org/news/releases/att-wireless-workers-vote-authorize-strike-announce-coast-coast-rallies-in-35-cities
https://www.cwa-union.org/news/att-mobility-orange-contract-2017-bargaining-report-14
http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article130612419.html#storylink=cpy

Production of Labor Video Project
www.laborvideo.org

"This Is For The Working Class" CWA AT&T Workers In California Rally For Against Concessions & Contracting Out

https://youtu.be/eC6eYkrWBHc

eC6eYkrWBHc

Hundreds of CWA District 9 AT&T workers, their families and labor supporters rallied in San Jose at a AT&T Mobility store on the one year anniversary of the expiration of their contract. AT&T has make billions of dollars in profits wants to outsource more work and is demanding that CWA AT&T members pay up to 32% of their health care costs. Workers talked about the long hours of commuting on the jobs and the increasing difficulty of surviving in California with high housing costs and the stress on them and their families. They also discussed the degradation of phone and telecom services by the company to increase their profits.

Also joining the action and rally was Chris Shelton, international president of the CWA.

For more media:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANwYz-cc9Sk

ANwYz-cc9Sk

https://youtu.be/wQoyeX6NRN0

wQoyeX6NRN0

https://www.cwa-union.org/news/releases/att-wireless-workers-vote-authorize-strike-announce-coast-coast-rallies-in-35-cities
https://www.cwa-union.org/news/att-mobility-orange-contract-2017-bargaining-report-14
http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article130612419.html#storylink=cpy

Production of Labor Video Project
www.laborvideo.org

ckaihatsu

15th April 2017, 14:36

CA Supreme Court to hear Gerawan Farming case!

Gerawan Update

http://action.ufw.org/page/-/Dangerawanmeme7.jpg

It’s been awhile since we’ve reached out to you about the workers’ campaign at Gerawan. Most of what we've been doing meanwhile has been the groundwork of day-to-day organizing.

Agribusiness giant Gerawan Farming is one of America's largest tree fruit producers, employing more than 5,000 workers at peak. Gerawan was ordered to honor a union contract that was issued in 2013 by a neutral mediator and approved by the State of California’s Agricultural Labor Relations Board. Gerawan, which sells its produce under the Prima label, is avoiding millions of dollars it owes thousands of workers in pay increases and other benefits by refusing to honor the contract. The average money owed to a Gerawan worker is approximately $3,000.00.

Gerawan challenged the constitutionality of the 2002 Mandatory Mediation law put in place to stop agricultural employers from failing to negotiate contracts with their workers and elected unions. That left workers waiting for the California Supreme Court to hear the case and issue a decision. But an end to that wait is quickly approaching—the Court will hear oral arguments soon. Workers are hoping for a victory and to finally be able to enjoy the benefits they have been waiting so long for.

In the coming weeks, we will be calling upon you to show your support for the Gerawan workers.

Let justice be delayed no further!

Want to support our work? Start a monthly donation here (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9955/14552b18/451de0ae/2b74b814/3164720912/VEsE/) or chip in a one-time donation here (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9955/14552b18/451de0ae/2b74b815/3164720912/VEsF/).

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United Farm Workers, P.O. Box 62, Keene, CA 93531 •http://www.ufw.org • Privacy Policy (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9955/14552b18/451de0ae/2b74b81d/3164720912/VEsHBA/)

ckaihatsu

18th April 2017, 14:25

State judge: Gerawan is guilty of bad-faith bargaining ...

http://action.ufw.org/page/-/alrb417.JPG (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9954/14552b18/450249b0/2b74a5ec/1712783048/VEsE/)

State judge: Gerawan is guilty of bad-faith bargaining & illegally excluding some of its workers from the benefits of a union contract

Judge admonishes company’s ‘extreme’ ‘self-serving’ philosophy

A blistering 60-page decision issued Friday (April 14, 2017) by a state administrative judge found Gerawan Farming Inc. guilty of refusing to bargain in good faith with the United Farm Workers during 2013 and of illegally excluding from union contract benefits Gerawan employees supplied by farm labor contractors (Page 52).

Affected by the decision from Agricultural Labor Relations Board (ALRB) Administrative Law Judge William L. Schmidt are approximately 5,000 Gerawan workers who were directly hired by the company that year (P. 10). Also impacted are an additional 800 to 1,500 workers hired through Gerawan’s farm labor contractors (P. 10). The family-owned company, operating on “about 12,000 acres (about 19 square miles) of farmland in Fresno and Madera counties,” is considered “the largest stone [tree] fruit producer in the United States” (P.10). (All quotes and page citations are from the judge’s decision, which can be read in its entirety at http://action.ufw.org/alj41417)

Judge Schmidt’s ruling invoked the state farm labor law’s “make whole” remedy, ordering Gerawan to make its workers whole for the increased wages and benefits they would have received between January 18 and June 6, 2013, the period during which Gerawan failed to bargain in good faith for a union contract and refused to negotiate at all over its labor contractor-supplied employees (Ps. 53-58). Other remedies imposed by the judge include requiring Gerawan to mail and post notices admitting it broke the law and promising not to do so again, and having those notices read by ALRB agents to all of its workers assembled at worksites on company time. Gerawan will also have to provide the notices to all workers hired within the next 12 months.

The judge admonished Gerawan Farming and its owners for proposing contract terms that were “clearly grounded on its own personal and very self-serving philosophy of freedom of choice” for its workers (P. 50). “That philosophy ultimately became so extreme that [Gerawan] even proposed to [a state mediator] that the union satisfy a one-year learning curve with its operations and its employees before” it could collect dues for fulfilling its legal duty to represent all workers and the sprawling company. “This ludicrous proposition has no support in the ALRA [Agricultural Labor Relations Act] or the history of its interpretation by the ALRB or the courts of California (P. 50).”

Such negotiating “proposals seek to impose [Gerawan’s] own special qualifications on the UFW in order to satisfactorily qualify as a proper representative of [the company’s] employees (P. 50). Nothing in any labor relations statute authorizes an employer to impose its own qualification standards on the employee representative. Indeed [both the state farm labor law and the National Labor Relations Board] prohibit employers from doing just that in order to protect the right of employees to independent representation (P. 50).”

Other key elements of the judge’s decision include:

• Gerawan illegally insisted on excluding farm labor contractor workers

California’s Agricultural Labor Relations Act “excludes farm labor contractors [FLCs] as employers…by design and deems an agricultural employer utilizing labor provided by an FLC to be the employer of the FLC workers for purposes of collective bargaining under the ALRA (P. 8).” Gerawan “violated [the law] by persistently refusing to bargain about the wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment of those unit employees who are employed by farm labor contractors (P. 53).”

“The statute aside, a substantial basis exists to infer that all parties [Gerawan and the UFW] understood and agreed that this specific bargaining unit [all the farm workers employed by Gerawan] included the agricultural employees employed by Gerawan’s FLCs (P. 9).”

Judge Schmidt ruled that Gerawan “violated its duty to bargain in good faith…by its insistence on…the exclusion of FLC workers from the core benefits of a collective-bargaining agreement (P. 52).”

• Gerawan illegally engaged in bad faith bargaining

The judge examined the parties’ bargaining history during the 1990s, after the UFW was certified as bargaining representative of Gerawan’s workers following its victory in a 1990 state-conducted secret-ballot election (Ps. 13-15). “I find it’s fair to infer that at some point in the mid-1990s [Gerawan] deliberately chose to ignore its duty to bargaining under the ALRA altogether (P. 46).” He added that, “there is scant evidence from which I have been able to discern from the history between these two parties that [Gerawan] harbored any intention of reaching any kind of agreement with the UFW. The more recent bargaining history [starting in 2013] strongly supports that conclusion (P. 46).”

Judge Schmidt noted that, “the UFW’s request to bargaining in October 2012, initially went completely unanswered for nearly three weeks. A response from [the company] emerged only after the UFW wrote again at the end of the month threatening to file an unfair labor practice charge in the absence of a prompt response (P. 46).” Gerawan’s “principals finally replied with a letter containing an unctuous tone, not one mention of the requested information [from the UFW], and a lecture about the UFW’s potential intent to evoke the [state’s Mandatory Mediation law] process that it set about in the following months to virtually guarantee (P. 46-47).” The 2002 Mandatory Mediation law allows farm workers to bring in neutral state mediators to hammer out union contracts if growers refuse to negotiate them during regular or voluntary bargaining.

“[Gerawan] delayed furnishing critical economic information until late June or early July 2013, following 12 bargaining sessions, plus two sessions with a [state] mediator. By doing so, the UFW asserts with some justification that it could not formulate a complete economic proposal through most of the voluntary bargaining period (P. 47).”

Meanwhile, the judge observed, Gerawan “engaged in a series of serious unfair labor practices away from the bargaining table in an effort to undermine and dislodge the UFW as the bargaining representative of its employees (P. 52).” (In a separate 81-page decision issued on April 15, 2016, the full Agricultural Labor Relations Board found Gerawan guilty of numerous violations of the law.) Judge Schmidt found “that the record supports the conclusion that [Gerawan] engaged in the bargaining examined here with no intention of ever reaching an agreement with the union and by persistently refusing to bargain concerning the employment terms of the FLC workers (P. 52).”

Therefore, “Commencing on January 18, 2013, and continuing through August 2013, [Gerawan] violated [the ALRA] by engaging in collective bargaining with the UFW concerning the wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment of the agricultural employees in the above unit with no intention of reaching an agreement with the UFW (P. 53).”

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ckaihatsu

18th April 2017, 14:40

Stealing overtime from working people

Chris,

Republicans in Congress are offering working people a false choice between time off and money. What they’re really doing is stealing overtime pay from working families.

The “Working Families Flexibility Act” (HR 1180)―also referred to as the comp time bill―would erode basic overtime protections for working people. The bill would allow employers to delay paying any wages for overtime work for as long as 13 months.

Most low- or moderate-wage working people whose paychecks are not enough, would always prefer to work extra hours to receive extra pay. Under comp time, these employees give up their right to overtime earnings in exchange for the promise of future time off (but with no guarantee of taking leave when they need it).

Write your Representative today and tell them to reject the “Working Families Flexibility Act,” which steals overtime from working people and erodes basic worker protections. (http://epi.us4.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=ec2361f981a14ee1d45cccaa9&id=b6047925dd&e=73ae589068)

Overtime pay is an opportunity for working people to earn a little more while creating a disincentive for employers to overwork employees. The misnamed “Working Families Flexibility Act” would result in a pay cut for working people without any guaranteed flexibility or time off.

Under current law, an individual who works 60-hour weeks for five weeks at an hourly wage of $20 an hour would earn $7,000 (200 hours of straight time ($4,000) plus 100 hours of overtime ($3,000).

Under the comp time bill, the employee lends the $3,000 of overtime pay to the employer, without interest or security. The employer keeps the $3,000 until it agrees to pay it out as paid time off―or it pays the money back at the end of a year.

Congress is expected to take up this bill next week when they return from recess.

Write your Representative right now and tell them to reject the comp time bill, which gives employers the “flexibility” not to pay for overtime for as long as 13 months after it is worked. (http://epi.us4.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=ec2361f981a14ee1d45cccaa9&id=a803169237&e=73ae589068)

Together let’s create an economy that supports working people and families, not one that allows employers to overwork and underpay their employees.

Thank you,

Heidi Shierholz
Senior Economist and Director of Policy, EPI Policy Center

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ckaihatsu

25th April 2017, 15:23

Volkswagen: stop union-busting in Chattanooga

Sign petition and support workers at Volkswagen, Chattanooga, USA, who are denied their legal right to forma union.
View this email in your browser (http://mailchi.mp/industriall-union/volkswagen-stop-union-busting-in-chattanooga?e=732a6f1991)

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Tell Volkswagen to stop union-busting!

In December 2015, an overwhelming majority of more than 70 per cent of the skilled-trades workers voted to be represented by IndustriALL affiliate United Autoworkers (UAW).

Yet VW Chattanooga is refusing to bargain with UAW Local 42, even after the U.S. government has ordered the company to enter into negotiations.

Unionization would mean staff can directly address concerns about excessive production demands, inadequate health and safety measures and exhausting work schedules.

Sign and share this petition and support workers at Volkswagen (http://industriall-union.us5.list-manage.com/track/click?u=3f908bd1636f1b0a4e2fd2e79&id=9da0849d0b&e=732a6f1991), who is violating a federal order and denying workers their right to form a union.

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ckaihatsu

26th April 2017, 18:54

These working families need your help

Chris,

Unless Congress and President Trump act this week, more than 22,000 coal miners and their families will lose desperately needed healthcare.

Without this coverage, tens of thousands of working families won’t be able to get the care they need. Many already are suffering from serious illness or injury as a result of their years in the mines, and the cost of care will bankrupt families and cause tremendous suffering.

These working people were promised they’d be covered for life. Congress needs to keep that promise—but time is running out.

Will you send a letter to your members of Congress and ask them to keep their promise by passing the Miners Protection Act before time runs out? (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3wA/ni0YAA/t.26t/3UfF_Dp7Teu_M5O0_bnTFw/h0/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHON1psNezMexxdykRBTqZNIjILZ22Xos67CIfU-2FB786Lxg3pocYESVq-2BnE7ErFFUc8C71qz-2B7DWGRXiG4SO-2F0IQ8kwM0fD0KoSThF6pkKAKLUMN4ozJO1T5VvKOZT-2BdAwfcLQ8aIMV9eQF6tWrL9zSwDWV7f26kBTXuXzZrvnCxRHp gEeNnotDg3wuSbDVWAQEgmOcZL9bjJdMUpvRO8D6Tw0JKA3nTH r95-2FJE4MjO2HbrTLTyLxFv3DyYFcTFTm-2Fmw6tooFppam1KfLGf2uXN29UJyYPvom-2BpoxJAPqvK4NxSaa4s0pln-2FpEyLZyBFuDE-3D)

During the presidential campaign, Trump promised to look out for coal miners, but he’s been silent as thousands of hard-working families face the possibility of losing care they need.

More than 70 years ago, President Harry Truman forged an agreement with coal companies to ensure miners would be covered in retirement, but that agreement is now in jeopardy. As coal companies close down and declare bankruptcy, the fund that provides the healthcare must get more support from Congress.

Congress is dragging its feet. And despite Trump’s big talk of looking out for coal miners and standing up for the little guy during the campaign, he hasn’t said a single word publicly about this bill.

Demand that Congress keep its promise to working families and pass the Miners Protection Act now. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3wA/ni0YAA/t.26t/3UfF_Dp7Teu_M5O0_bnTFw/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHON1psNezMexxdykRBTqZNIjILZ22Xos67CIfU-2FB786L1SzoOQNqpEnlXD2q1r-2BvmLVFy0jhWX1L-2FG3NS3ZmFF1drlzALvvSgB5lJWfoIkjuiNW3BRrZjyXrl9JH5 MV4EQ1klUmBwZHFfs4zNPMBKX3BIrlfo2PgOw96Sw1VidSRCMt WTTGlCHA4fLy-2FKS5eHfz1s6b-2B-2B85izcvSYnNZuD1GljhqcdRX9ANyd1TbNmjHChhojyxNRZtqo NXhsLPxnfc7-2FUq89bP-2BFrWj2W7MmhfMy-2Fm6rbOkeVWBEVpKldZeKBWzNPt2jYhAsaRWbCsYBw-3D)

Through our work in McDowell County, W.Va., and during my travels in coal country, I’ve had an opportunity to meet and get to know the hard-working families of coal country. These men and women are just asking that Congress keep its promise—a promise made and kept for nearly 70 years. We stand in solidarity with these working families. Will you stand with us by asking Congress to keep its promise? (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3wA/ni0YAA/t.26t/3UfF_Dp7Teu_M5O0_bnTFw/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHON1psNezMexxdykRBTqZNIjILZ22Xos67CIfU-2FB786L-2BLy9tTy-2FTExbdz-2FqUC-2Bf0CozGsU36fmdjp-2Ff22RpLTHJeJ1gdnYlPrPyrQje-2BYehYUBKjGOVaJyUKpLMZ0QKR4XYwm7HaX7Dv36fjS0RtK2n0 3-2FSUctKk3hH73iEghPX0V8BxL5xVMpWbtdr-2F2nrNr7uaHH3t8E5xQlxVbWn0vU-2FEQDgIBdaJ-2BTZwmqL9sOKJBb-2BqC0LFqe5Ctira0Q1wnJe45sQglS5knhf8-2Fr9omGaHlvwklpeGuXH91tICLAR1hf9JHs1ZS4BiLYg9-2BGM5A-3D)

In unity,
Randi Weingarten
AFT President

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ckaihatsu

27th April 2017, 13:52

TAKE ACTION: After 14 months, there’s still no update in Gerawan workers’ pesticide-spraying case (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9941/14552b18/4501e52b/2b749b10/4076762596/VEsE/)

In February 2016, farm workers pruning peach orchards at Gerawan Farming (Prima brand) were sickened by pesticide drift from a neighboring farm while taking a break.

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Take Action (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9941/14552b18/4501e52b/2b749b10/4076762596/VEsF/)

Worker Miguel Miranda describes the scene, "We entered work at 7am and I saw that on the west side of the field, there were some machines fumigating the almonds. In block 118D, five crews were working in the same area. We got out for lunch at 10am and they were still fumigating. One of the machines came out in front of two crews. Our crew was about 15 rows from where the machine came out of. The foreman didn’t make any attempt to move us from the area. After a while I felt my eyes burning. I know that many felt ill, but didn’t report anything due to fear of retaliation from the company.”

After their break was up, the workers were ordered to return to their rows with no medical attention even though they complained of nausea, dizziness, and eye irritation. Workers weren’t even able to change out of their pesticide-drenched clothes!

This wasn’t the first time workers were sickened by exposure to pesticides while laboring at Gerawan Farming. Thousands of farm worker supporters cried foul and insisted the authorities do something quickly. The Fresno County Ag Commissioner has yet to take action! In a prior incident, it took the Ag Commissioner 15 months to find Gerawan guilty of violating the law — and the $5,000 penalty amounted to little more than a slap on the wrist.

This time, it’s been 14 months and this incident still remains under investigation. When we called the Fresno County Ag Commissioner on April 12th, we were told that these incidents take time to investigate. But during all this “time”, workers are left with no assurance that this won’t happen again. Shouldn’t their safety be a priority?

The CA Department of Pesticide Regulation's website says to contact them if you feel your complaint was not adequately investigated by your local Ag Commissioner's office. Fourteen months of hearing nothing is not adequate. Contact them now! (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9941/14552b18/4501e52b/2b749b10/4076762596/VEsC/)

Take Action! (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9941/14552b18/4501e52b/2b749b10/4076762596/VEsD/)
http://action.ufw.org/gerawan417

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ckaihatsu

27th April 2017, 14:06

Stand with Bernie to raise the minimum wage

Dear Chris,

This is big news, so I’ll keep it brief.

This morning, hundreds of low-wage federal contract workers went on strike to hold Donald Trump accountable to his promise to deliver “more jobs and better wages” for America’s workers. Trump’s first 100 days are nearly up and the promise is overdue.

That’s why Bernie Sanders and Keith Ellison made a big announcement at our rally today: they’re introducing a bill to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour.

A $15 minimum wage would lift millions of families out of poverty, including hundreds of thousands of federal contractors who serve our country, support our troops, and still get paid wages that are too low to support their families.

Click here to add your name as a citizen co-sponsor of Bernie and Keith’s bill. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.26t/fYFMGTTjSR28KQNIU_YUxQ/h0/v2UaZxAfTwponN4gT1qVLt0R-2F9irOZZSFxm2mJqtthtthVhL1-2FmF8InyygfRQ-2BRxL55KkHWZpd1Pw8uhSpY5s-2BhCbK3UqVlqxZZRHgOc81A1vTZTajMlmOM-2BdWF5-2FveOAdX7RrmRcclY5ot7oNcKS3DinO2hCyGhKly0wRJbrwLLV P0DHd0TGHmDgXoJgXozKfPGvTvmSrDfh1qsdyvgYA-2BQ5dYKHG9W-2FLTQXy1w90-2F1Q2MRq2HbR-2FbjmP-2BZpFwnm1EqVewvKpYcfHUO0gBOKHijm0gzUMyAWCZ7kMd9GQd tBt0v90INYpdnUwc1U1JMp8nC9PhXyHaceDfnKqxg9Q-3D-3D)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/089/059/original/426SandersB.png (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.26t/fYFMGTTjSR28KQNIU_YUxQ/h1/v2UaZxAfTwponN4gT1qVLt0R-2F9irOZZSFxm2mJqtthtKNndDZQD9BEMR-2Bdmtom5AvUMKVPYWjFBLE4YQZe2LoUrQQLq8o6TSIwjM3iws4 SRGJUMI-2Fm-2FxzCE2L6RLPscfyMfyP3ga4ruHcqFpI9H4c9rtDbZdZokNps6 VJQiAD4GDQoAhShZWn0YCwiHJCfLdP-2BBBIZqiCdnsHPkdlWTLAUOhSl-2FjgUNrK-2FzB-2Bihr1PSDLFc1f7gn9xKypEhHoT4YVZ-2BxWkdx7SpMA8ykGWG-2BJvA9nugYu47zrgNEFAoOaRwBIaDOPhaGPIZHWzkThZa5c3yn rrP61FCAro-2B4rioXkw-3D-3D)

You don’t need me to tell you that anti-worker Republicans and big business will go all-out to defeat this bill, and keep wages low so their profits stay high. That’s why we need to send a message, loud and clear: Americans want a $15 minimum wage.

As Huffington Post noted (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.26t/fYFMGTTjSR28KQNIU_YUxQ/h2/dq5YnZm20Z8flOqARKh1-2FhWOA-2FSBG0nFe1xVK6Nzu-2BM3dvyiIggysgloiHOcKWFtu09E1mp9tm-2BXWq-2BgDEw8NSs2RIbvjBxP3HcLKjnofe12RVmwFPZK1mr4RVca1Al XUdQ8KTNscRFrcEJxKOd2TWCcc-2Fo6DtD76dNNVF5jW5n6kMGkfoSa-2FEC9gc-2FaQ-2FzbezSqy16wHwElPxvZP7oQMFfSoMQdgUIsMowTVlimSYjTQ5 P9mtrtSKr3OuHTMOKFoCX6773MW6N95pjwr4qUW8D-2BgJnE-2FhuEF17wMwcQrD-2FQBCvn1QK4xOCB41-2FrV1VFua1SuLsIOR3ddY2lrTe3pkOe28yk8GHYRVrbxT9lOOS Nu0le4kV-2BfbV-2FO-2BDV0izmdFOvVptFmJJFUreFWqQvLAuLKvSc7UQueTEplnLWY0 ypM-2F6IqAmGWhCtuQ1tTsUX), Congressional Democrats are uniting behind a $15 minimum wage. But to make it reality, we have to show that tens of thousands of Americans, from every part of the country, are demanding fair pay for workers.

Do you support a $15 minimum wage? If you do, click here to support Bernie and Keith’s bill. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.26t/fYFMGTTjSR28KQNIU_YUxQ/h3/v2UaZxAfTwponN4gT1qVLq-2FoZeziiGEM3wWcRVfn4diZuICMY9yFntDsUfncnCzdulO13yl 9dAknffcBRUCXpXRIubn6yYtWifWcA2Bu-2BoyTI-2BGj42hT6G0W12gyp-2FivQh217lNkQOfCL6sac4ICrGS7hH0crQfvN-2B1fATUXbS71ElQe9KZE6H19heCTdmYvaFx720XLROVUj8-2FkUE0OgoSv33yvvcTn-2B2JEzomZr6R3ZY6wlyZR3rzU-2BYB8hbLppAFhHm4Ga2GrOgy2fvKUD72TqMJS79ODtDh2jRCSj H7jYDK1yFnSd9yeq1qA1dThysacDqPJ7QV6Q6wXV-2FjjlZsWSuox8BzKNbNEqeM0fu8-3D)

Thank you for standing with us.
Joseph Geevarghese

P.S. If you missed our rally earlier, click here to watch it! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.26t/fYFMGTTjSR28KQNIU_YUxQ/h5/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiARN-2B1-2Beb-2FW8CxU-2BFea55lbDMelUIJogG-2BwmWnWbpGlAFaLJIx3sEsmRutMcDcfc5aqljQnfZWsqMJHqtu Ucq39KT0dIMnJ2-2B3khClisilbQl1J1fgSMnOJR-2BpHWV9LrkHMSjclI-2B0jwxigFy-2BcquyTA4ZJza4rYjy4FiDv25TPcFhTK1IanqlDoWT4BpTM6Zz rYI8LgI3DZjEh945ch7vhq7PASpwxWHu4dq0TnfAvLa5VV9cnv DCj-2BdjPL31ZJLRXP1HxwAotYM9Kk3hQbn9b-2BfTZ134LyjTAqgh-2FvuybEFc8Jla3Ltf8d85ZQcOeQxCLzDDPUONFVB-2F0NIessHV4mBAASpkV4MHUbx-2FRm4s1j)

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Sent via ActionNetwork.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.26t/fYFMGTTjSR28KQNIU_YUxQ/h9/55uI0ZjpoLA9-2FYhqE-2F4Eitwb7nFGaBM-2BttuyqSTdMS4-3D). To update your email address or to stop receiving emails from Good Jobs Nation, please click here.

ckaihatsu

29th April 2017, 14:48

Help make a $15/hour minimum wage happen! (http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=fM0OE16tUSAyB%2BUcsK%2BH%2BH3FLRa5PXxj)

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A full-time worker in the U.S. today can live in poverty, and millions do.

The United States has become a "developing nation" in which most people lack economic security, MIT economics professor Peter Temin concludes in a new book. Already numerous studies had found that the United States trails behind many countries in economic mobility.

To quickly send an email to your members of Congress -- expressing support for a $15-an-hour minimum wage -- click here. (http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=3BGrIHe8po%2BZWgdG9EkcSX3FLRa5PXxj)

To meet very basic needs in most of the United States already requires a full-time job at $15 per hour or more. Bills are now being introduced in both houses of Congress to create that standard by 2024, by which time $15 will be worth less -- and in the years that follow it would become worth even less -- except that miraculously this new legislation finally takes the step of indexing the minimum wage to the cost of living.

Click here to easily send one email to your Representative and your two Senators (http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=%2F6%2F0hE2ppPRyx%2F6OBE0v7n3FLRa5PXxj) telling them to pass these bills and to be sure to include indexing the minimum wage to the cost of living.

The "Raise the Wage Act of 2017" is being introduced by Senators Bernie Sanders and Patty Murray, and Representatives Bobby Scott and Keith Ellison. It needs our support!

A standard of $15 may not seem like much, but it more than doubles the current federal minimum wage of $7.25 -- and gradually brings the tipped-employees minimum of $2.13 up to $15 as well. (Several states have set higher minimum wages.)

Since 1968, the federal minimum wage has lost much of its value. And as long as the struggle to raise it goes on, we will have to fend off the same tired old lies about what a minimum wage does. But the past many years – with some states and cities increasing minimum and living wages -- have produced enough data to make it crystal clear that:

- The majority of people whose wages are raised, directly and indirectly, by minimum wage increases are not teenagers.

- Minimum wage increases do not significantly increase unemployment.

- Minimum wage increases greatly benefit the economy as a whole.

- Minimum wage increases are very popular with the general public.

Click here to move this basic standard of human decency forward now. (http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=d6pJPBPAeHdWeS9YTW5qAn3FLRa5PXxj)

After signing the petition, please use the tools on the next webpage to share it with your friends.

This work is only possible with your financial support. Please chip in $3 now. (http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=ygPLqkAn5SFGiLUtsz3uVJqwE5i9Wo3S)

-- The RootsAction.org Team

P.S. RootsAction is an independent online force endorsed by Jim Hightower, Barbara Ehrenreich, Cornel West, Daniel Ellsberg, Glenn Greenwald, Naomi Klein, Bill Fletcher Jr., Laura Flanders, former U.S. Senator James Abourezk, Frances Fox Piven, Lila Garrett, Phil Donahue, Sonali Kolhatkar, and many others.

Background:
> Ruptly TV: "Bernie Sanders calls on Congress to introduce $15 US minimum wage"
> Washington Post: "Sanders and 21 Democrats introduce bill to raise minimum wage to $15 an hour"

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ckaihatsu

29th April 2017, 15:11

We might strike at AT&T soon...

Good Jobs at AT&T Mobility

Chris Kaihatsu,

This is not a drill. AT&T wireless workers have been fighting for months for a fair union contract that protects good, family-supporting jobs and we're more frustrated than ever. So frustrated, we just took a big step and gave our 72-hour notice to the company that we may walk out at anytime. That means we're one step closer to 21,000 workers in 36 states striking for good jobs.

Today, we're taking our fight straight to AT&T's shareholders at their annual meeting in Dallas. Hundreds protested this morning outside the event and we delivered the petition you and over 67,000 other concerned customers and community members signed.

Will you stand with us again today? Share this on social media to spread the word about our fight.

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/089/455/original/istandwithworkersgraphic.png (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5QA/ni0YAA/t.26v/ZJWY67LJSVSW3TsvcFTIxw/h1/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiFXl0q-2BRIfRmbcfQajl0t6RAU-2F0CDQByperECzLXA-2FUs5b0I1rN0ushtLOxiUh4DdXEeDkGYdsmsXhfP2kFzOp9HGN CKnumZes3txpTVLo1w3GC9u0PbPC0L7X6Ya9O0ZkGqFoC5oWpR oPQCyHugLtViiZ-2FvWC2HFzsc-2FsiNIuuKS-2Bqbk22cqgtolC2n8z3YFUFA0VkZTUSPsX-2B9bcwog5AeZ0Fu-2BlIlhDrTf77Hsq2F8QGRrC36Iu4SxscZ7vVaRYMLLtWMK1-2FgKDJcxs5FvJT8ZaBINEzK0ybxVLL1P7JjwN7od28jdTH-2FuULwIf3ewMD5e-2BlIhGdod309ugyislmzR91KWdhdzL1RQnd0wMiM7sUnEivji4 Gm3aMs915-2Brw-3D-3D)

SHARE ON FACEBOOK ► (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5QA/ni0YAA/t.26v/ZJWY67LJSVSW3TsvcFTIxw/h2/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiFXl0q-2BRIfRmbcfQajl0t6RAU-2F0CDQByperECzLXA-2FUs5b0I1rN0ushtLOxiUh4DdXEeDkGYdsmsXhfP2kFzOp9HGN CKnumZes3txpTVLo1w3GC9u0PbPC0L7X6Ya9O0ZkGqFoC5oWpR oPQCyHugLtVTGJEHZauDnD5dO3t8LzwcpspviKZ4ZL1rIhkUy4 odeyY6vF3nmFpnmmhcAPQTkmPlEvhMj4tCvVjFWzWoxgci6Mt5 5fjYt24uMRilmI65yCjcKvjSWaYOEUxhjidL9YcwrmYfQlf6dj 0BXEsxO5-2FVLVZ5J0NLWdZseF0JqGH0sCfibxHpbK3S0xvTx6A8Br0rh-2BEUB10XBfE0hvpvc1tuOD5RFp4Oaml5yyrVJMzsug-3D-3D)

TWEET ► (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5QA/ni0YAA/t.26v/ZJWY67LJSVSW3TsvcFTIxw/h3/k1jc7ZFd-2FCJ1Rj2-2FmsIt0YlFjS3l75rs1faiJzOKzdfEq3etCPRWtjPLPWSeAVHt am3L-2FjyXdnPlDkJiBMQpsCM9GDsML33cJ150uJUl1pGnfNqVKc7EE vkwPp98YCDbizuNGT-2BD8G2SUdI0oMe2o2q19P7C0BoN46d2K6WJfDyJqROOqs10UPN VsqU46pnZ7VyuXszLZ1hkqZSr1NOlOrCTuXmHhKh-2FMvaPc5rPTG679ODfE-2Fd-2Fc-2BgzWeJDWfsfAqFCSp7tqXHrUMj-2BI9Fefg-3D-3D)

Last month, 17,000 AT&T landline workers on the West Coast - who've been working without a union contract for over a year now - walked off the job in a one-day strike. Following the news, AT&T's share price fell by 1%.*

We're not afraid to show our power to make sure AT&T stops taking advantage of working people. The company brings in $1 billion a month because of our hard work, but they keep offshoring more of our jobs out of the country and outsourcing operations to low-quality 3rd party dealers where customers regularly complain of deceptive sales practices.

If we strike, we'll let you know how you can help. In the meantime, thank you for your support and please show your support for our fight on social media.

In unity,
Dennis Trainor
Communications Workers of America

* http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-ct-att-strike-20170323-story.html

Good Jobs at AT&T
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ckaihatsu

29th April 2017, 17:31

Make a statement on May Day

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/089/294/original/May_Day_2017_Button.png (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.26u/Ndz-aXRiSjKb43kK_JmB0Q/h0/Sygmo-2FKvb-2FQ4AODqTq-2BEgIa3gpDeoSB7Z8PFynD7RSgLHePHTPXqm1MSG9FQdLQAAuv G0-2FSecu5XCd42WoEkqGbcyF4RWHxu3aWH2ldTEwG5cB1Vh2CoRG 0GFrONy7MjumzMHRI-2Bjww9hGkhJdX9ga4LSx9tHqf18JFaA8psDyXgVbwtNHtrWbEf y53e0jlT4146rvzYiRqu64Yn-2FC-2B7Keo9w3yyFhxT4Qyl-2FLv8-2Ft-2BE6a-2BnPAXrTQnGGWCLeBNuxmiaJ8u0G8QzNksSPWB6d8nG0nmbRm-2FSZx63Y8tOdX-2F42s1VH0DYHtdHOJmkjes1)

Dear Chris:

May 1 is International Workers’ Day, when working people around the world demonstrate to commemorate hard-fought victories for basic worker protections led and won by immigrants to stand for the advancement of all working people.
This year’s May Day holds particular significance given the anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim climate and policies that have emerged under Trump.

More than 30,000 UNITE HERE members in dozens of cities will take part in actions in their communities, and will button-up in solidarity at their workplaces - sending a strong message that we will push back against attacks on our communities.

You can join in sending a message that we’re stronger when we stand together by changing your profile picture to reflect the buttons hospitality workers across the country are wearing for May 1. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.26u/Ndz-aXRiSjKb43kK_JmB0Q/h2/Sygmo-2FKvb-2FQ4AODqTq-2BEgIa3gpDeoSB7Z8PFynD7RSgLHePHTPXqm1MSG9FQdLQAc5l mII4IczuqtuQlvZr40ijP93ZuolhD-2BFTwdTpnDficZe4CAj6zWfPydqQpUX7Xv4fCNwyVawd-2FdEYWMhgllr6SELjzdICgqPKFlDo4mxcgJPYAhBXYB1fCXeWr oz0cYDNP6-2B4wR0mlSYv5WRcgFBCF2MUNKSVg-2FTbyTGB2-2BEetjM-2FsB2T5V-2FMAfG8aHolJ1Wek-2B4Uf-2F2YU-2B6BwVc17bqj3gcGh1BTell7z5KAbhY92rPVhNAaWnNxfPdntN xao)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/089/290/original/Screen_Shot_2017-04-27_at_11.58.03_AM.png (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.26u/Ndz-aXRiSjKb43kK_JmB0Q/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBWV8Azi28s6QICZKh179pjR2uWi4QNw QcZC4Tnp8MTNWMoiFFMZhy8TPOOZ-2Bx1LAXpnDHkDUFaPMzGpZoyLZWRlLaBu-2FRx8ZwOwCM36JeGYvDU36xsT-2Biehft1JqjF7HT1z5R2HnD7EfMeyTj34GIva37xy1l9aSv5bF ywOeU3DqgXcoyl6Bmcw1mQifM-2FtzVi4fGtqqCj-2BghYiBDZRRr-2F0uQVFKxp4Inv4x0lfjSRyIDjLcv-2FcheCBCts-2BpLtBjP4eBKc8jO3oERwBVvVjpmnqW-2BZDd1xEhb1x4HKCz6Ix-2BKgj-2BARkcfJSLwR-2FEf6o3-2Bw-3D-3D)

March with us in one of the dozens of cities UNITE HERE members will join May Day actions; search by zip to find the closest to you. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.26u/Ndz-aXRiSjKb43kK_JmB0Q/h4/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBWV8Azi28s6QICZKh179pjR2uWi4QNw QcZC4Tnp8MTNWMoiFFMZhy8TPOOZ-2Bx1LAXpnDHkDUFaPMzGpZoyLZWRncEREkoiwwMZvczxpd1ail qRdOiKNvR0XCMFiFtDhxotw2L24G1NEyokow4XgmOHChjVBA0J qAG3EBEA6OmITeADxFHPrT1pC9G4IEHLDegTEcVAGEvsXAhpms ewrHV1P-2FDLeM-2FUZRbe1P9K0TTA1eeKVpAxbAkw9LGbTif-2B1Nn0QXfcFNSZ0hSKyZ8eg0UFlb1aTmQ00t08onXXV5kGGUSw z1NxzoIZK-2B4mML5IS-2BNA-3D-3D)

On May 1, we are showing that we have the power and courage to push back against all the attacks on our communities – and win.

In solidarity,
Maria Elena Durazo
UNITE HERE Vice President Immigration, Civil Rights and Diversity

Connect with us!

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UNITE HERE | 275 7th Ave., New York, NY 10001 | www.unitehere.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.26u/Ndz-aXRiSjKb43kK_JmB0Q/h10/uQHZJSxyOoM8AOi7mHZ1COeVDuqxsQ6c888agoWbUvOMV8mOBB TQDAj-2FiWXUG-2BtNyvp5IKwxZX8xb0SkHC3vyhn2LdgfjTPYgUIz0vUbnxR3yh q6sxSWsgknhaz5jmbno-2FLjI1YW2jQuB6FFMV5H1PUhyPNeIkD4stp5UfI4YUNmpeu15n 4nvl01bXdMTp585TqaWY67uRq2CvhN20kk9gdEsY1jPxxHrv47 PzXIShxCvcEXSbDhH3fcx9SO-2F-2BcmrVJtAod3zbwCwNYWbxOD8g-3D-3D) | privacy policy (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.26u/Ndz-aXRiSjKb43kK_JmB0Q/h11/BRqO4f3K3UDDeHhwTnFpjkjO1a9725O2YP75Bifzf3-2FRj014oUb3cUVfB2dvMd42aWvTojpmBum-2BlIIYkdGdWdhz3I3uu0CGYUod1T-2B1SjCWosknw0opkejBM3DFjcRjuN1K78J2EN7KpkLVfBctHKQ 3xnqrqBN2prMSvjq18yTJ7MkmAO9Zqew9gsqbr1vOIN5osSAyD TngPzmxt0jVWu8lW35UtkdDIoX6wDNgIks5wa-2B9urrGenWpxLnuxZ4VQM-2B7sCaxb4ta-2FfNHXC6wpJePpk4kCF6tk6IU95BbdWQ-3D)

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ckaihatsu

29th April 2017, 17:41

Important Update and Breakthrough in the Reynolds Campaign!

Chris,

For the past 10 years, FLOC has marched in Winston Salem, denouncing labor violations and human rights abuses in Reynolds American Inc's supply chain. Earlier this year, British American Tobacco (BAT) announced that they will pay $49 Billion to acquire the remaining 58% of Reynolds, making BAT the world’s biggest tobacco company. When FLOC began the Reynolds campaign, both Reynolds and BAT stated that they would never meet with FLOC. Thanks to your support and the organized efforts of FLOC members, we have been meeting with both companies for a number of years and have seen them change their position on various issues. Since there is no Reynolds shareholder meeting, there will be no march on Reynolds next week, but our work is not yet over.

Yesterday, on the eve of Workers Memorial Day, leaders of FLOC traveled to London for the 7th time to challenge BAT during their Annual General Meeting (AGM) (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.26u/7EwDA9bqSKWeQ8hgty7cjQ/h0/X4FIVDACC-2F1mbYwHI4-2Bu6ASje4NO4pQDDMrUg4U-2BKtAnZM-2BC8dByKbH-2FrOn8OWyppCTuyLUbPT-2FS9O0kINTENsWFtSRrF7CI-2FQ5Z3XiCwF-2FIm2gfpL7fFZtHAVQf4TO0d-2FKdl6bDu1PCESNH7KqqpUC1Ihoue3hmKGHclEaAhoE7OD7ia6 lxWsuybPQbP-2F-2BHmjB6-2Bvrf52P1aMyv7P4sGeXzezof0aLMG-2FWx2DS9oARVWj-2BUJAr9iTjDv22V9XOkzjttzwHp1oda28A5Tm8JIe2xaGGq5N3 d-2Fd6zteUaycxYmD3GjYjXE289Icj040XhAwm7SoWz3ssKQTzdG YE-2FaThwcZoM8TcE4pZHnSmvbmDhrFzEzcVzzxFV13ZWh0wMiGqu gmmcId2pHhEAh8cbVVuUnLEumN1AaX4arHao5gBZLRvJ24Q-2B6kGYZiwSWoZMBp3xD4IIus6GvePP2O-2BEhw-3D-3D) about their failure to be transparent and take concrete action despite numerous reports detailing human rights abuses on BAT contract farms. In BAT’s own audit report, they admitted instances of worker death by heat stroke, workers being sprayed by pesticides, and poor housing conditions, many of the same violations found in Reynold's own 2015 audit report. These human rights violations will continue until BAT stops taking cosmetic approaches and agrees to guarantee freedom of association and implement a practical mechanism that allows farmworkers to denounce abuses and act as their own auditors! Click here to read more about FLOC's meeting with BAT! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.26u/7EwDA9bqSKWeQ8hgty7cjQ/h1/X4FIVDACC-2F1mbYwHI4-2Bu6ASje4NO4pQDDMrUg4U-2BKtAnZM-2BC8dByKbH-2FrOn8OWyppCTuyLUbPT-2FS9O0kINTENsWFtSRrF7CI-2FQ5Z3XiCwF-2BjU-2BIBM4oGGWnTWVlFo4zfhcJeRRYl3p5gOsE0cn22nVHosHbzwB aOzUY-2BhxH9ImhkNhPuVaXy2ogVoV48R-2FZlhhAJurypoWy7Uuw1HXpCmgI3oJngMMitksU56da1AB3YB2 jNOPmICFYsITJl83-2BTJR1cxHitaDWkjNRcANeYVNaBTi7vh4EkLL-2B-2F-2F1KUoefnlshcqLnq6qFSJb8vhnnq-2BZDXbQVKQzcpIe91jhZQ4bWknZIlXrX8AC9LqwRspmVdlkUcF IpGVmRC-2FDaOo2CPkoaZagfceInLOfvgoAS-2FNYy1Uh8x0OtidoH-2FqyztqzRZ1kXYdfgfG2Vx0qT-2FZU1lpSK00J7v-2B04cf99K-2Fp-2FB6A-3D-3D)

Even though there is no march on Reynolds, you can still support worker efforts (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.26u/7EwDA9bqSKWeQ8hgty7cjQ/h2/lX4AS6aXAKvcAj3S1N25NsAM3cR-2FynqR1QCFOpjdc1Ni7gPV9i02b6DdNuQNaItWvhpUC2z2iAdd LfM-2BCGU0j-2B7F9tX-2BpYqXV-2Bae30SqnZhNYfuHL5gjAr0rQWclradnzeTagovSwJB0TbrGb5 XPCQM-2FAMuQd5fq6FE-2BOMeh-2BZf13MC7BfJRX46BcV7XJCWOPFU1x3DaOlDkVamPZFzM4mc9A EywMA-2FddUs-2BIFNkVFotJ2Wc-2FD77kw8IF3a4psaL-2FEedYNASkkuBDH0cxvD7uC1mpSi5RLqsJI4LazT8pX2Jxn1x7 XrwH7l3UlHUHhIiKCAquBsII1EogTG8KbzbRDZJlPoMPIuG4J6 A9GE-2B5bs9pX0S-2BZLYMlGtgsp7EJrTK4JS9wNrnEmogwx9x3hA9XbJBUFNspoMx dj-2FClFYvPE-3D) to improve working conditions by making a donation (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.26u/7EwDA9bqSKWeQ8hgty7cjQ/h3/lX4AS6aXAKvcAj3S1N25NsAM3cR-2FynqR1QCFOpjdc1NZpIShB-2BpaFDyc-2FNbT7HChuZEMz9RIGEvZgb2HcU8pTf-2B3XpkgX-2BIzQHBCYMMMqM6ZHkID2wDBj7rEpnt-2FZalkaH3bzItTtsVPoozqh6MdulsWb38s7ag9FwWSxT69aRFE RZ1K1eK4p9s03eOHS3u9qrO2xUnfB6tXSHanm8K1Ta1nFud8xe N4F-2Fi5CfH-2BhSeqVDevMy0wajiTQgAqAtP-2BEYGXLF0KY7caGgLcmDql0LvpNkOT3DUh1SjCBZ-2Fg9sHdBDjL5W-2FudA-2F7qkHCae6VaMlkfVu6Thr3OBp5qDe9nsRH3djhPen1JEsNWGo sxCkYDmmLNbaLLYvmth8fz0VJBkIZDo4IF2-2FxoUaiBS5DrUkvHDZ7gv07-2BIMbLSXFEgg-3D) to FLOC's partner organization the Campaign for Migrant Worker Justice.

Hasta la victoria!

The FLOC Team

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/089/339/original/thumbnail_IMG_20170426_120511.jpg

To find out more about the Farm Labor Organizing Committee, AFL-CIO, please visit our website at www.floc.com (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1QA/ni0YAA/t.26u/7EwDA9bqSKWeQ8hgty7cjQ/h4/X4FIVDACC-2F1mbYwHI4-2Bu6JVgdD2AVE4TcmHE30tde1zR1w-2F9OkOtlmgx0wIn2TMoTWys4Ho0WAZ8EnAqje-2F0H1rV5dS0IoPAInBNk0Z53W8sLhd1npbTHm4ia3-2BbKhLKROR0L9ni-2FxhldY3S-2FfvYqo4GTTQpawyiGJq7NAg4dMKLtlsTPHiR6pZE0LXi7sFyY oSTLnovami7isWZwQ3tRRErbakeGrl0QM3hBFFQVwxtZ-2Bbb51fxV4RGGXGVFTihvtFHIx-2BDdPKJLbF75J6GcYmXOsGmUvs5bOAtjS6c0CVqSiUQMpMKEVC d4tj9k0GMg0c1szD1Zxpe3lfafLoMRmD3t43D8kCxx-2F70XBInVgS4dOU8oK-2FgU5YxVwYsNnZ0GyG7Fas24nGr10OL-2BPH8SA-3D-3D).

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ckaihatsu

29th April 2017, 18:28

Join a May Day Event!

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/089/776/original/20170428mayday400.jpg

This year hundreds of thousands are expected to participate in demonstrations, strikes, and shows of solidarity surrounding May Day, the International Day for Workers’ Solidarity.

Coast to coast, workers and allies will join together and fight for respect, dignity, equal rights, and opportunity for working people of all backgrounds – whether they be immigrants, coal and steel workers, services employees, grocery story workers or day laborers.

APWU encourages all members to take part in this historic day, and bring attention to workers’ issues at home and across the world!

May Day, the annual holiday recognizing the international working class, originated in the 1880s. The holiday was born out of the historic fight for the eight-hour day, centered in Chicago . (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.26v/eHUTmwFYTx2kq7FS_NSncg/h0/WClYTsxAKa5zn8xuBrklp9YrE3AoVEugDfk-2BrEX3vvK0-2FWy1EN2mhAfrUYrGxrWM5C-2B7Ivjsa96lgUoaSJpz0S2ryekcEcvLzUF-2Frwncm3TO-2BcLtrzY6GGNW4XTXccVCYPlfjy7qQyPUNfBjDh1MpZ3y9UubD j9vSCm-2Bd3eiVkD-2F25Av6j5kFd5n81bTBxXCZC-2BK9z0mQ65WUpZjdM-2BDWFVAtFM-2FFnpNdWxHziNWuxtvTOHKJWvehodi6v0WjQDhEE6J29cy-2FgmnauUFU3elbWX70MckYDxX1uVYUw-2BUlq73QhgJY4CmLgEfGkTcxfQT)

May Day is currently celebrated in over 80 countries, with mass rallies and in many countries a paid day off from work (though it is not recognized in the United States as a federal holiday).

On May Day 2006, workers mobilized in droves to protest proposed anti-immigrant legislation by the Bush administration. Eleven years later, history is repeating itself, as workers across the country prepare to come together in solidarity.

Check local listings for an event in your area.

May Day, the international day of worker solidarity, lives!

If you take part in an event, please send pictures of you, your family and/or co-workers to [email protected] for a chance to be featured on the APWU website or in future publications. Remember to wear your union gear!

1300 L Street NW, Washington, DC 20005 | www.apwu.org (http://www.apwu.org/)

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ckaihatsu

2nd May 2017, 14:56

Will you support the fight for Press Freedom?

NewsMatters

Dear Chris kaihatsu,

Journalism is under attack, and members of The NewsGuild-CWA are at the frontlines of a fight to ensure our communities have access to accurate reporting.

That fight isn’t simply about government attempts to undermine the work journalists do – in many cases, it’s also about the companies that own newspapers. As an example, our NewsGuild brothers and sisters at GateHouse and Digital First Media have endured brutal staffing cuts – all to benefit a privileged few at each of those Wall Street companies.

I’m ready to take action to support my brothers and sisters at GateHouse and Digital First Media, and to stand up for press freedom nationwide. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.26y/IiXkzBv0S7CHrBhBBr8OLQ/h2/QOe2WvaIXzRibL1xZqAPjFP2f9GqQRBpweT3Np9QOAkNEXj-2F7WkqjzLDN8Ycw3p4Wh66QWI3-2B2tPm5nhsLMW78aYr9iYGxcBaNkKrS2B8l-2B0lepfPXOEsfmETfi1AIwCxlCp0gQyY6mLf3AdyRQEx2PcYbc oyXF8I11xDDbiju8SUcLI-2FA-2Bxppo64uYO08pFAvWLoNrowc4WWSzCD7WoD-2BvjzjFBCWCvsPSzYd6KeEX0JFGorQwTbkZivKi-2BUtXh3i-2BKl4RmaAbOarV-2B5zJxT8RtwOYF4DXQ3O9u7O1Li43e0PWGVkDwtWZsO3OK2vpu bpQMKsY4hY2nCVLoYJS1yBWVxQWaqh6EM3Qzv1NmTMaBWi-2BAq81uaM20YAk8Tol6)

May 3 marks World Press Freedom Day. Now more than ever, our democracy depends on journalism. But these two Wall Street companies - and others - are plundering newsrooms and damaging the critical role that newspapers play locally and nationally.

At Digital First Media, staffing levels have been cut by 30 percent in the last year alone. One week after the East Bay Times won a prestigious Pulitzer Prize, Digital First Media announced in April that it would lay off more than 20 percent of the staff. At GateHouse Media, our brothers and sisters face a similar plight, having endured dramatic staff cuts and no raises for several years.

You stood with us last year in our successful campaign for pay increases at Digital First Media – the first raises that many employees had received in more than a decade from DFM’s owner, New York hedge fund Alden Global Capital. We’re grateful for your support.

Now I’m ready to stand with my union brothers and sisters once again. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.26y/IiXkzBv0S7CHrBhBBr8OLQ/h3/QOe2WvaIXzRibL1xZqAPjFP2f9GqQRBpweT3Np9QOAkNEXj-2F7WkqjzLDN8Ycw3p4wN-2BF28iuR4jWX5hNCQymp3g-2FOjUctmG3ZEl2hG2QznjgZ1HgfyUwDUl3TKNZ9K9BGHpuHCm5 aTx3wzsTHrlaZ9GSJTYH1L30SIwNhzMZ9xT-2BLMN4at46M6ptILqUxdmXXT1z3vLjWTlYnsWRPbiBoZnnpzXn 9TYr17qY7-2FHKjtT7exsh1AGobn7W7Ai6vFmXsYwfA2XJpquzBB19GbIcEQ ngPTEY31f1k8dYO5gktWsnnq-2FgAfHD21ok0ueKdLhbz79bV1uq8f3gMEDy-2Bftsh-2B5sWs6Uq1bxSR6c1lV9n4wuxAzcSIQimazqRCcJhMGK)

We’re fighting for fair contracts at newspapers owned by GateHouse and Digital First Media, but we’re also taking part in a nationwide effort to call attention to the importance of press freedom.

You can support our contract campaigns, and our fight for press freedom, by signing our petition at www.righttoreport.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.26y/IiXkzBv0S7CHrBhBBr8OLQ/h5/QOe2WvaIXzRibL1xZqAPjFP2f9GqQRBpweT3Np9QOAkNEXj-2F7WkqjzLDN8Ycw3p4oYMVIbHnmpGvS6YUfisdqExjohBdLXXP KbdASRtjvESGlMfwyRpuXJiQ9aZPfZG99O2F-2B-2BW-2BH5cKBD5mJzNutdkuGf3OllBvqkjopZJ6sEGworXWJRNEn4pd u78P9UUJXnZJVTQt6zNCVOOfKc9-2FdiOTda3Uh9ohSNElht4gi2q-2Fcjxlktq07BwJF61DDJcYHx5U8VqbUQeWeAbLjXHsDPyZ65-2F-2Fg1sM7NQtiN4PDzjSSTXuOCF0gcO3CbJdQr-2FH8GLLp0-2Bc6RevRGa1i2184dhfinogi1t0ecghTecMYipSgx4-2Fs-2FKCNdO1CUHitbQc). Once you’ve signed, please share the news on Facebook and Twitter using the hashtags #PressFreedom and #Right2Report.

It’s time for all of us to stand up for press freedom and for our brothers and sisters at newspapers nationwide. Can we count on your support?

Yes, I’ll sign the petition in support of press freedom and against Wall Street profiteering at the expense of journalism. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.26y/IiXkzBv0S7CHrBhBBr8OLQ/h6/QOe2WvaIXzRibL1xZqAPjFP2f9GqQRBpweT3Np9QOAkNEXj-2F7WkqjzLDN8Ycw3p4xCnOdMYLmckuB5oBt-2Bnsy1vCMkmGVR8qw2ws-2BoBhdsAQlWofpDWiaudNpNVaSYqyoIRulQcDrnn8RwIHKoVBq hwc2PO-2Ft9moFLeY-2Baq4vFdan13a03-2FECPVp41bHoE0sYhAZstZQfcnc3FP8y6wHWesQ4FnagGnT3nV J3zOOfgqcDqorkPIUPSBEqkuz7qOSdsIgs7etm5zj6-2BWA2TKkchmYXfdo34gUr1L6MNjudZhcWdu2yGfb6tvSBBgsnL 7MHaAPHca0y8-2Fv4UEADpflRevl8uz1LeH7a6LPXnerJDMGZLFIVt0ixhiIRyl Syswy)

Your support is crucial to defending newspapers and our democracy.

In solidarity,

Bernie Lunzer
President
The NewsGuild-CWA

A NewsGuild Project
TNG-CWA
501 Third Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
www.newsguild.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.26y/IiXkzBv0S7CHrBhBBr8OLQ/h8/wcZhySX3nESEv6IQvS3OT0tjDDEan6vg6i2H3n-2Bj96Kd6gWP1hWkhWOks3ZZ4NUC9PwC96aUf-2BkTqtXjWolI1WqpUKdYQqgrQKa6gcciudph9v6HEtIsiARzq-2F2A9cA7VrwScpAisRup9CmG-2B-2FeyYFCjcoYNy4C6EqR6khw-2FrtpN22xaeMJeosltY7l5pp35G2TSqfUZ1oXtZ3iJKCsq1-2Bdc-2BqaMcfXU5IToxKfZi-2B28PS-2BOUUqdvBv-2B5PsxfVnfxsaX3AxfRlpnkOA1NT-2Ffg-2FGPQFyVuoLSsdfm9Vkd0NDaYdmmmHyAjJ9U7D1x-2FPwERphrjP0yIiBo4LNAHfR4zw-3D-3D)

Facebook (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.26y/IiXkzBv0S7CHrBhBBr8OLQ/h9/9ZtgBbtsz-2BGzBX39C579VPsL24Tm1j13nx4arRnbNRkxYYkeGGHq06vXAS WSjOtlMXM5DLNKVcjMWuv-2FSJxxTKc0Ly1wowhzojB5Ro6WlgXRNNJg6ibFpqiOppsBDsnm BYbtP1h35RI2NW48vBLdTyhAHR65L01FeXPkuGTMWfnh9riHrO WwzLklHYGR4mU5eBBu7F9cIyDplluJVEurh8gdNm5TEBs2HfMu RO-2B8Mv3KvxAn5mTn0Fr7bBXgyyOEYjih6DKyFseZd0Q8zSefyFc 99Ff13CqGeNbBH80MidwlBb4IyKHOGcF0QCbk87hL1Ew0TrNMw 3vzawg1raCwcj4Jqkzh6VqTSOiy4WiQFiw-3D) Twitter (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5AA/ni0YAA/t.26y/IiXkzBv0S7CHrBhBBr8OLQ/h10/VE2atosPJwyp5yA4oN-2FSak942aq-2FZwVhB4Et-2FeARGSZ01UwPIHQR26Wesbbn4JUFAeO1fkX-2BMAoUwYcYovVETIShmqtHVQ-2BqlW-2F6SYA6NQwUsGexdkpIG0gjP4oibS042fmdPIPBg2OROPaxf2k Aw4mWVPHz74RfnpnRE1J7gQzxCtfGNCieS3HKXwrmuCO7ldE3V sK9Y-2BGOJof6mCkTXdWkUb0wFM6lIgN8tFcG0DDiiv4TnGBjxoraNr dOKOAziPLneJDZoj7gtSYDsVT1tnGqUJt2DW8hdfF1kE3qPvMH 2tUWuznArD5LMp-2BjUNrGKrs53eV-2Fkb9Mvg8w-2BA0GoeHui-2Bbeq-2FP1aZyWtOMtX4U-3D)

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ckaihatsu

3rd May 2017, 15:25

Tech workers hit the streets

Silicon Valley Rising

Dear Chris Kaihatsu,

Yesterday, tech industry janitors, security officers, and cafeteria workers took to the streets, joining thousands for May Day in Silicon Valley. Together we marched through San Jose, tearing down symbolic walls of oppression and saying it’s time to build bridges, not walls.

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/090/484/original/may_day_2017_collage.jpg
Tech service workers march on May Day

Check out this article from CNN: “May Day protests put spotlight on tech's other immigrant workers.” (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3QA/ni0YAA/t.26z/BZ-eCZtzSIe0w6tq2PBzNQ/h0/rSH83G0cyXDbNAuZMthFhzj7rpOGYQ1lW2DgVkLvcSvycUK5-2FRDDKqzJ1o8Pm7bN6CknFWlN93TKsMmX1fWyaV6-2Fj56ovHeqcyaaZqXPSk86Mjzaw-2Btr-2Fymmfgkto3QglXYK3SH10-2FQa4MD7oLoIp-2BuvFEGvw5N7TKRCtJtfYgUIFPFlUn8YibqWdkWSIWC-2Ftb2FLp-2BxvjELdxp4sXahdTx-2BfmqzFXhgsaB51w9NY9NnAcqt9PPEmcLrvruUK1tIFLvZoOpD s0lV5s-2BsqOGZpb-2B0ecbzFLSLnpXO8e6jPwXkeJY2OslPyfGUPMbb6vf9l8Q3SME oERvcYOvKmqeGyw-3D-3D)

Thank you for helping move Google and other tech firms to ensure their service workers could take action yesterday. We'll need your support as we keep inspiring the tech industry to build an inclusive middle class.

In the coming months, we’ll be engaging the industry to tackle our region’s housing crisis, raise wages and working conditions for tech service workers, and leverage tech’s enormous power and wealth for good.

Thanks for standing with us!

In solidarity,

Derecka Mehrens
Co-founder

Contact Info:

2102 Almaden Road, Ste. 112
San Jose, CA 95125
Phone: 408.809.2120 Fax: 408.269.0183
Connect With Us:

Follow us on Twitter (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3QA/ni0YAA/t.26z/BZ-eCZtzSIe0w6tq2PBzNQ/h1/9RXDenI7BReTpKa-2F42PXTMYWRhXyvntUnOFGKN-2BzreRJbP1RiyiNX-2FtSOlzicyl1sG3mTbmUHPaS1OSs4s9DYVM12y-2F5llJk9W2frbpiDCQJgibkjhi76tb1ynjcYI0qC-2Fc7prfBJyX1-2BRzJsJMJeyjcBKY8hROx6bt-2Bzarsj63qjGC1PwFTR17czdTGeVKLVvHr4qj3HZmTPXQzYiga 5I07-2FAxtDZZsgyqZer-2FPo7JiYfi6KSqp3wTfKgp3wwzAz9EAOg4BtKT7BJXapnVonA-3D-3D) Like us on Facebook (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3QA/ni0YAA/t.26z/BZ-eCZtzSIe0w6tq2PBzNQ/h2/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiOayY-2Fr3jG2xXFu1wH9VkVMifmqpSPjv83lM2igbFXkmRUe2R4Zjtl pEC-2Bzq7qMltNGp-2BNCUo55fzdM7pfF-2BoLbgyo6JiDwRkHoRQgCdhQu-2FTmtfBCEDY33-2FR04r2UCdcWB6qEdkCNMF9JAyjRX4yhfiZ5CDy4uUqdkUBcnw pxk51QU6If6LNmDgGgELEiZj0EnnE3sLUZUd2RgME8yB2hyuNj BzssmcNrWZ2w4UCF9zhlXoeuL5nXS552etEJMbzBmxKeFyP2tg 2mQWXQN9bMY-3D) Email to [email protected] ([email protected])

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ckaihatsu

5th May 2017, 15:17

Working Class Hero

Dear Chris Kaihatsu,

“My name is Jose Herrera and for the past 17 years I’ve been hauling cargo at the ports and rail yards. I came to California from El Salvador in 1977 due to the civil war raging in that country at the time... It was a long fight, but 16 years after arriving I proudly became a U.S. citizen.” This is how the letter begins that I personally delivered to the mayors of Los Angeles and Long Beach because corporate lawbreakers across America – including those doing business on port property! – have driven hard working Americans like me into poverty.

Join me in calling on the LA and Long Beach Mayors to take a stand against corporate lawbreaking by ending wage theft at America’s largest port complex! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6AA/ni0YAA/t.271/M747dKcLSb-YjvHDLtEvNA/h0/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiIvEHI-2F2KG5GdsRHLElbV6r60yJ03YRdy6C3HpMqSltq38DXBN-2FFdRTAhpZvkUiBWsx2iNdLrswD8kQAxVtUIhIz4Zzf0cbssgb l68Wgj0VXL-2BZgW-2FZmjDbv3zfRss-2BR8bNrF51ZVPAX4G4oB81cbbTFScXrI0VQnRwBt7rbzWZO9n1 tMDdjlYLB8Ww04dQD532mpSmb8U-2FGfDYqx7kelmiR2DUtsor0ubWzq-2B4HqMOKlbVqHgVoIACFZPLXaVsVKg4vy3veMlfUNDmOS66cre OPdp7DuTh6pBoGEtK4R5a-2Bn2i3Cd3Z6GeXPAwQq6IEpin-2Fl7K9434uO3Ic3Go3Kzm-2Fukl3xfDUwvd9nLRzSsJLO2wwCR-2Bk6yfN8kKRrFcrP6Rrd-2BtQro5Uyo9wJdYpIwtSBw19nM-2BOutxc8L-2FGR9piVM7Fb9ek2crtQ9zCWhgpU9BvljNXltTZssNxbHrOspB Urq9sru7cfrNlT9bMaGRYHD-2B3lM3vNz6jHsFPeGJrqw-3D-3D)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/090/891/original/Herrera_FB.jpg (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6AA/ni0YAA/t.271/M747dKcLSb-YjvHDLtEvNA/h1/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiIvEHI-2F2KG5GdsRHLElbV6r60yJ03YRdy6C3HpMqSltq38DXBN-2FFdRTAhpZvkUiBWsx2iNdLrswD8kQAxVtUIhIz4Zzf0cbssgb l68Wgj0VXL-2BZgW-2FZmjDbv3zfRss-2BR8bNrF51ZVPAX4G4oB81cbbSyBpbRPhmglB-2BQZTOPNwEMCRAGJD1VI2YxFYLQ9H8zUaz3-2BXc8xxDD2OYhLfBoeDpNC-2F8QHQ1GV5f3M325LM3QzSgnsSBgc6BUmVnVIqF061YVH945mu 35KLfew864RHqGa4z6wt2IMY9B8eLjUpyUSIg5Wg7TASKiCy60 rLEyuke7DtAqJLP5FkSTSYtmnPLH-2BbmpJiZi0U2lmQvRAmobi1gM4XuAIXXjqrNQK7QxYib3t7m3S Dz-2B6Jsgs5zym1k3IktKAVS6L8Y42uh3aE30FADg9FffUr2ZFQL6 BQIff6DtD-2BJ-2Bk0LjVZpm5ismACBOmt-2BYpUtl3H3WIRQTmHpuf9XdgeiwHgxWkYFV6TletQ-3D-3D)

I want to share my story with you (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6AA/ni0YAA/t.271/M747dKcLSb-YjvHDLtEvNA/h2/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiIvEHI-2F2KG5GdsRHLElbV6r60yJ03YRdy6C3HpMqSltq38DXBN-2FFdRTAhpZvkUiBWsx2iNdLrswD8kQAxVtUIhIz4Zzf0cbssgb l68Wgj0VXL-2BZgW-2FZmjDbv3zfRss-2BR8bNrF51ZVPAX4G4oB81cbbTmb5CXD89b8oLyT1s-2ByNTVOoHwd-2FaTrfQxuIiNg4GQjuSMrNUlR7mvCpUepH3uYY7NzbCSJ-2B-2Fazlk5giywyggdggmhs2pikMtlvX-2BnRpd5G-2FCximg5k0IbM3uAYvgIuHAiQiYXgCEgSLg8-2Fa7PhNb5SEwkFkoJakRDn8KPUXKkJtgFj09FdpNEq1mUWMU4z uXVpzZaRuBLZ2vek50X0n-2F7GmMVDq1Di4UVEnbbcNHeky0pptO-2Bcm4LNioWn3q7155MjaFsJwKy3VP84guDamKDP7-2F2cpsCaQu33s6pdLGcnnetFAsNIfi-2BWd2v-2B2l7djASvFXFlB4J1qRGSqJl9HPRgusR7QKDdl6JolHFz7-2FCgw-3D-3D) because I know there are millions of people who are fighting against a rigged system that has stolen the American Dream from us. It is time for us to come together and fix the rigged economic system that allows corporations like XPO Logistics to steal from workers, break the law, and hurt our communities. Here’s why I’m fighting and calling on the mayors of Los Angeles and Long Beach to stop corporate lawbreakers hurting workers at our ports:

I have been truck driver for XPO Logistics’ Cartage division since 2010. The company calls me an “independent contractor” so they can make deductions from my paycheck and discard me if I get hurt on the job. Last week, three of my co-workers and I got a letter from the California Labor Commissioner proving that I’m really an employee and awarding me money for the many illegal paycheck deductions the company took and the 4,325 hours of work they never paid me for. XPO has appealed the ruling and continues to misclassify me and deny me my employee rights.

Can you believe that a company can get away with stealing from one of its workers? Corporate lawbreaking is rampant, and it happens all across America. And there are 10,000 truck drivers at the Ports of LA and Long Beach in the same situation as me! Because it’s not just my future at stake but the stake of working men and women across America, I decided to stand up and fight by organizing and going on strike with my coworkers six times against XPO and other trucking companies.

I ask for your support by joining me in calling on the Mayors of Los Angeles and Long Beach to stop corporate lawbreakers hurting workers at our ports.

Will you join me by sharing this graphic on Facebook in an effort to get the mayors of LA and Long Beach to take action? (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6AA/ni0YAA/t.271/M747dKcLSb-YjvHDLtEvNA/h3/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiIvEHI-2F2KG5GdsRHLElbV6r60yJ03YRdy6C3HpMqSltq38DXBN-2FFdRTAhpZvkUiBWsx2iNdLrswD8kQAxVtUIhIz4Zzf0cbssgb l68Wgj0VXL-2BZgW-2FZmjDbv3zfRss-2BR8bNrF51ZVPAX4G4oB81cbbSEihNfx2FibZiCRMnycbemkT5 Qk3uF4neY8ggd2x2H1BkHKKwiS-2BaLlqd8yx81KfjYsFqhQvfpEKBazgvLftjS-2FqyozzrKc-2B7QKbFPg0Qt3tXQWATSgimdJTNU5AGaJUkRu0O9BU1rxVOttF GxZiZgyk7Md90OelCUp1YPcZjqgY951RT27Fp6jokIl7qqVG8j SCiG8jeTFPxqO2jTEWMScFpwZH8otbEKTEQm7oGal4NTWC128z MqbsHPa76lFdAtDp2OdsuPoAgTAq6HWaTSuz779VTbjcv9wgTb TrDBmmKDIF-2FpUAAhs5MDRDktG2VwWBMgGT15v-2FQ-2FL2nzZZ-2BD-2F60khv5-2FiEw280g7WZyFhA-3D-3D)

Thank you,

Jose Herrera
Misclassified Los Angeles/Long Beach Port Driver
XPO Logistics

Action Network

Sent via Action Network, a free online toolset anyone can use to organize. Click here to sign up (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/6AA/ni0YAA/t.271/M747dKcLSb-YjvHDLtEvNA/h5/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBeswRxTeJTvTCywcJ22h-2BqMbAhpXdLM1Mwvq3x3MINrm) and get started building an email list and creating online actions today.

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ckaihatsu

5th May 2017, 15:29

Students faced assault and eviction for speaking out

Students at Fordham University faced assault, eviction and now charges.

My name is Gina Foley, member of Fordham Students United, USAS Local 150. Our group has been organizing alongside adjunct faculty since 2015 in their fight for a union, and a voice at the table.
Last week, members of our group led a peaceful march to our President’s building to demand an answer on our faculty’s right to organize, and were instead met with physical assault by university employed public safety officers, disciplinary sanctions, and evictions.

Instead of protecting our right to free speech and collective action on campus - we were physically assaulted by our university safety officers. As we marched across campus to the President’s office, public safety officers approached our group and physically engaged our students - yanking on our shirts and bags. As we attempted to enter the building, we were roughly pushed, grabbed and pressed up against walls by public safety. Despite chanting louder and louder for them to “Let Us Go!”, the officers responded with escalated aggression. Several of our members left injured and traumatized by this experience.

Our President, Reverend Joseph McShane S.J. hid in his office while public safety officers physically assaulted students.

Join us in calling on Father McShane to end violent assault of student protesters. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.271/oPuYFhKkQzSROYov9Sbnew/h0/OruBZfFd4tTcgEs0dEEPEXQkB4I-2BRnL1NyjI88Q3ANuiQJCiPUNzjluhN5cTsgSci34fbixWWUNh 3DqrodmWc5tUCodysWgkKrdLTaCsM4syXaXdEWEITSIC9BG-2B8TG-2FHc6wHp-2F3SEUdxqzR8qymtzSz41qFJ8sWETaDEzcumt9U5d2recQS00n-2By8kFZzBP5b4efx0DLKs9LizzArwc1x3l-2FgtVVuYW7fdSjDzoHdPmAnUjqt04amEmzOCfMWZP-2BDH0TLYf3GLo9NtKKRkgWzB0z5-2F8kDkxV97PQxttGAkqr018lj-2BYB9ikrqXwudvNJ9ZKLsJlu5aR2lDBu3oYLhPNi5Rx-2Fa-2FWzB9m5i73XRKI-2BoC05Z8dtOQfwheARymt)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/090/937/original/fordham.jpg

Rather than address these attacks, the university is now charging multiple students with assault, evicted students out of on campus housing without notice, banned students from campus outside of class and work, and has demanded fourteen members of our group attend disciplinary hearings.

We need your support to show Fordham that intimidation and violence against students won’t stop our movement.

Call Father McShane now to demand an end to this retaliation. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.271/oPuYFhKkQzSROYov9Sbnew/h1/OruBZfFd4tTcgEs0dEEPEXQkB4I-2BRnL1NyjI88Q3ANuiQJCiPUNzjluhN5cTsgScl7-2Fx8mppjGY2piliBGKzDJYH9Fe9bJz7uX8NlLFwcc9zP9BeBxs XmPB8oPdpMpnrzeiLCdjMlbzMPxeRKgoe4RQai63gm0K3o6JNt OiepFdYcNvBT8x-2FX5dhn-2FXIL9joS09ftFd-2B8IglqYIApKvexTWwpMCTmP3SsRe10bN4ayYFzMdGDv-2FfhWl8xbZ-2FuiinxnTHjA2m4OyYgAr01FeCGXgdQdfltLe7NcHWdzMz6aEL 5YN87DlvDwE4ZyQ1Xc6UiOFYr2QTjZrHJlutd9Lv8-2FgBDXT5e2-2B5r8xBAlB5IKyp58-2BNHRbkf00Whmtf693r)

If Fordham University can get away with this severe retaliation against student organizing, it sets a dangerous precedent for other universities to follow. Our Jesuit community is supposed to be rooted in values of social justice and cura personalis, “care for the whole person,” but instead, Father McShane continues to put profit over worker’s rights - and ignore student voices.

We ask your solidarity with students and faculty at Fordham University. Father McShane cannot stop us, we will continue to demand dignity for all of our faculty at Fordham University.

In solidarity,

Gina Foley

Fordham Students United

USAS Local 150

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/090/943/original/mcshame.png

Facebook (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.271/oPuYFhKkQzSROYov9Sbnew/h2/hSL9bD-2BrTXUxbAIixEW3koAcGNxUDICwx-2FTBKECq5hHs9i05Qg7fssq9989S3YJIhXnaFIFUdTBDDFzMSQ AJ3Q7Efm97jv1A2zecFdVDeyLwuxOCs25sh-2FVP3ENHb5AJ5xMY10BFeOiyyH6Jq0eAH1jG3L3IMsebPopUOz jFcdfHgJJzPFyU8ryb4pgf9iAZhWBwASkvOqgjygCF4ZCBcykI iZ5G9TxnoKmCwbDBXRF9Cies-2FM8zC9sNyQunsvO0K3qxFTOhBu7YDCpIJdBWlSAxOf-2F1Jw5YStQmuFQoSkTiWz47EadnneAZuTka6Pl7hriZ1wwtJBy QYEs5kpwJ2D2p-2Bd2eriHT-2F-2FStSZ3el5-2FxB-2F-2FjcJoeImwr448lN77nDyKdAsocaWv6Tworjp4R7g-3D-3D) Twitter (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.271/oPuYFhKkQzSROYov9Sbnew/h3/9RXDenI7BReTpKa-2F42PXTEV1SxwLSlSa1-2B2ZbN3pGeDy7Eknaem2wSaNuZqT04JxffFGfI4MzA-2BuZgyo7o04wRVIe1SPBJk0dE72M1YgNMcuZwTYyj1BLQ274A7 EoIRDedUfr8u-2B9-2B-2BUTJzV4tDLKlCYXlggOfDJ95mbFVlKwXuAOQOqZh-2BK-2FYG81WBcdKdmx5GZIP1UUkG0cREl-2FtOde9O0GnvUUtglpDQuc7LnrtAInx5ITQq8rghdcvqXkbbTo dBKf4SIZbyhhgICBmjdBsGVyHCczwbOxSe-2BHCqVy42G4ubv71j6vutT-2B3ny1izoz6745T09-2BLWE-2BYCqbgRhWJoVhXh4Q15x8kAvd9VuhDM-3D)

United Students Against Sweatshops | USAS.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.271/oPuYFhKkQzSROYov9Sbnew/h4/OruBZfFd4tTcgEs0dEEPEeTfMISweQaUCW0FVJDjHmStmImNLu 29wk0q0VBtCT4jvOtdsZpZhcDb0UhYBo-2FHomhEIsEBXuD9aSmwVD-2BEKA3ZMG-2Belt0iy6B6Brbm7o67TfSvwnAVItOc-2Fh3qkeb-2BhPpmvBsoSrm-2BGfH3vpxtUIRGlMCiSJEexRloDIE5ZXt1mz8HP6blft5lJQPv BDwSuT2SemGArOSjWD50-2FIOuptckcCTRZ7XClUI4NBzZVKJtgrmuRpHooe8c-2FuDzzuvYW8HHTU6aKgmmBf1KjSqmLwpys4uJV5WOnkElVR5-2B-2FC-2Fdrj9qqgP0fp1T7Oid0whoxg-3D-3D)
Organizing for Student and Worker Power

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ckaihatsu

5th May 2017, 15:39

Listen to #Walmartwomen

Dear Chris Kaihatsu,

My name is Janie Grice and next month I’ll be speaking at Walmart’s annual shareholder meeting near Bentonville, AR.

As you can read in this article (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.271/754mEOrxQXegWUztVa4JRQ/h0/xU8j-2FjXGdvXQkOEAoNNoVBm6dfnvJfVG98MScRzTRqC-2FHKobICcNdMVaMP6Gf5gDE5J-2BC5yUPoLBrtQEpNEMBPTRvBBkbBwKiDYiKAG-2ByM1cCUnMR7lb-2F9UWlX9-2F55uaD3-2B0gBUZzLp0Tp7LZYCSY9ZFAiu2ZxcS4hZjiDqTtV9PP0gU7qm iMSy4UzWD3SB8PW8vwN2LeGCsbKgeMSHW3oJWBIoEVFjkdeypJ bqXUFmKJMYPerSd3bhwkbdvMdovpwUReMuamSyfZpjWPn2dsJz s1cMf1F3D7K9KnONg9OPZrL6ifxFCA8sSMDd7xh9l5ykkAe1wR IJf-2FI3Jn0kGz1-2B2rriOpNgyN-2F3s5xGLzFA-3D), the women who work at Walmart (together with our brothers, but we women are the majority!) are fighting for real policy changes at Walmart that will bring economic stability to our families.

Please support us by reading and share this on your FB page to let your friends know you stand with us:

What Walmart and the Trumps Get Wrong About #WomenWhoWork (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.271/754mEOrxQXegWUztVa4JRQ/h1/xU8j-2FjXGdvXQkOEAoNNoVBm6dfnvJfVG98MScRzTRqC-2FHKobICcNdMVaMP6Gf5gDE5J-2BC5yUPoLBrtQEpNEMBPTRvBBkbBwKiDYiKAG-2ByM1cCUnMR7lb-2F9UWlX9-2F55uaD3-2B0gBUZzLp0Tp7LZYCSY2qdLKpqFFCXhHXxbBPo-2BewlE1DbhZdlVgH3P6f4S3d1dBcLQAhVcyNesyHL8nGGH59dS S7qpOg8xGGkziPRiIhTofQpgWkT2tJq1ZaD-2FbpR-2FJxdOK3RdzZE49fyu6kSjiJG-2FAJajPGQeoL7xio-2BB8CSfQIfujoukMHisY-2FmdTdVzVI0FO7A8wOUx1V1ePNlFX-2FCmmVEt-2BGMHL4cRwbjZPE-3D)

Wages are only part of the picture, having a sick day policy that allows us to care for ourselves and our children is also critical. So is a fixed schedule, so we can arrange for day care and even get a second job to pay the bills.

Women have had enough of the empty words from Walmart’s CEO and from Trump and his daughter. People who work at Walmart and all U.S. workers need real pro-woman policies, not empty promises.

Please also join us by reading, sharing and signing on to Walmart Women’s Call for Economic Stability (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.271/754mEOrxQXegWUztVa4JRQ/h2/uQHZJSxyOoM8AOi7mHZ1CNDLc8btqos-2ByquDwVbVaZ-2FmPKdG3tQKpPA-2Fv4A7GeDLXWBE4jIK-2FN5ModVofLwj-2BPc-2BkhFDHB3NRu6rhSV99n-2BIdvo5NusZT5xoZFP7KpnxrGG8pZDogvgofqO44pFc-2BpKfHVT624PIg6dUDouecia2gsncm2OJKHdVq8WwD8i0dxo0I tZ-2B6ZLFVr-2BELM7FfeMq2lEPuTCU9TrOntxnTIwrb-2BeG9oFvKRksQpkUmpkd1SeSUJZxlA0qlNwkRtDPFw-3D-3D) signed by #WalmartWomen across the country and many leading women's rights and economic justice organizations.

Together we’ll win for #Walmartwomen! We'll send you more soon on how you can get involved - winning a public commitment to real policy changes will take all of us.

Thank you,

Janie Grice, South Carolina

OUR Walmart

P.S. We’re also challenging Walmart and the Waltons to end their greenwashing and do more to protect our environment. Here’s a preview of how we’ll also bring that message to the shareholder’s meeting. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.271/754mEOrxQXegWUztVa4JRQ/h3/dq5YnZm20Z8flOqARKh1-2FhWOA-2FSBG0nFe1xVK6Nzu-2BPcAm34nLdxjmglQi3W-2B2wb4O7jQkBrFEvMFHPVeXogIQS2LU6uFKeoi2gENBXX-2Fr56g2jpGsPdYxV9v418RTtS5fUhSdGK-2F-2Fr3IqOqSDXGGQRCeHCkxfxepdblocAy6jHPfoMhCdBcaCS2td WHi8QAqCxmjvUiq14TuSsznvaJv-2Bm7H54kHzfgto7FJoB2Ii0vi5P2MacNsVrMNzm6D8jdev-2FuN4Dw3BwarUNOWbogiZPCo77xBBzxLEe0Ei-2F-2FiWeebIGOkV-2B-2Bn5a8wiqhd0gyFukQGD7z3LdlQNKJKHpzSjv-2BXIH-2BgqOI-2FyVjAWMComVkb9enSXLEPF1sT-2B9xI8EA)

Organization United for Respect (OUR) is a non-profit organization, organized under the laws of the District of Columbia. OUR brings together low-income workers, their families and communities to improve working conditions in the retail industry throughout the United States, promote human and civil rights secured by law, build strong and healthy communities, and end all forms of discrimination. OUR Walmart is a project of OUR. OUR does not intend or seek to represent retail employees over terms and conditions of employment, or to bargain with retail employers, including Walmart.

Sent via ActionNetwork.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.271/754mEOrxQXegWUztVa4JRQ/h4/55uI0ZjpoLA9-2FYhqE-2F4Eitwb7nFGaBM-2BttuyqSTdMS4-3D). To update your email address or to stop receiving emails from OUR Walmart Alliance , please click here.

ckaihatsu

6th May 2017, 13:42

UIC workers picket for end to wage discrimination (http://fightbacknews.us1.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a29530af96a02fc55d345e735&id=43b906ef7a&e=d323598fe4)

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/UIC%20May%201%202017%20picket.jpg

By staff

Chicago, IL - On May 1, over 250 workers at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) picketed to demand a fair contract. Many members of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 73 have been without a contract for almost two years.

In February, the University of Illinois campus in downstate Urbana-Champaign, settled with Local 73 members there for a three-year deal with modest wage increases in each year. UIC workers are being offered a wage increase in only one year of a four year contract. This is despite the fact that the cost of living is higher in Chicago.

Samella Wright, an administrative worker, was picketing because of the history of a racist pay disparity at UIC. When UIC opened in 1965, the mainly Black workers were hired at wages $1 or $2 an hour less than the mainly white workers in Urbana-Champaign. SEIU Local 73 fought for years to win pay equity with Urbana, finally winning in 2001 for most job titles.

Ms. Wright started working at UIC right out of high school in the early 1970s. By the time her title re-ceived parity with her Urbana counterpart, she had worked 60,000 hours at the lower pay rate. When the UIC workers finally gained the Urbana pay grade, there was no back pay in the agreement.

Mood of the masses

The Local 73 members who marched included building service and food service workers, nurses aides, medical assistants, lab techs and professionals. Jeff McCaster, a union steward and member of the Service and Maintenance bargaining committee helped lead chants. After the picket line, he said, “The members are ready for a fight for the deal that Urbana got.” Regina Russell, a customer service repre-sentative and part of the clerical bargaining team, said “The members in Patient Access are pissed off that once again, the university is introducing unequal wages and discriminating against us.”

The picketers started with the chant: “One, two, three, four! We won't take it anymore. Five, six, seven, eight, UI must not discriminate!”

As the picket line swelled, another chant rose from the crowd. “U – I, you know, racist treatment has got to go!” And then the mainly Black and Latino union members took up the chant from the Black Lives Matter movement, “What do we want? Justice? And if we don’t get it? Shut it down!”

More than 4000 workers are covered by the four expired contracts. Bargaining will continue in the coming days with a federal mediator.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

6th May 2017, 15:27

Workers Blacklisted for Speaking Out Need Your Help

Chris Kaihatsu,

In October 2015, 8 tobacco farmworkers decided to speak out against pervasive wage theft and intimidation on their farm in Newton Grove, NC where they were employed through the Farm Labor Contractor Jr. Perez. After the workers spoke to auditors from the tobacco company Phillip Morris International (PMI) as well as the US Department of Labor about the issues and saw no results, they collaborated with FLOC to stage a work stoppage to recover their stolen wages. The workers were then retaliated against and blacklisted by Jr. Perez, who continues to deny them employment.

PMI boasts having higher labor standards than most tobacco companies including freedom of association and collective bargaining rights for workers in their supply chain, but when FLOC has pressed them on how these standards apply to real life situations, they are silent. To date, PMI has not informed FLOC of any actions taken to protect and defend the 8 workers who risked their livelihoods to fix inequities in PMI’s supply chain.

On May 3, 2017 during PMI’s shareholders meeting (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.272/zxZfYRcPTbC0R3Cx6T0tZQ/h0/X4FIVDACC-2F1mbYwHI4-2Bu6ASje4NO4pQDDMrUg4U-2BKtCbeHbnX7fMFCltkVB8X7QbdZQMMysO9rN-2BDmJRGZUH1dFF6sOCYm2llDPtxCpIkP2PbXGcceFrL6JnS9ko oXuzVViitdSdeHE7Llyw454m-2BLxjlJGd-2B91orzPgOJeESHFf0-2Fnp9tw7CTcG2-2BVR7ivG8vhegtBjxbaxs9bBjwoj-2Bvil2sudQ-2FSo0cZS9gYXOafXzKlQy1nidgXcayRl6YZ3stHkkBjwUCpwUI F45tPAHj2uftigxbC1K4wNRqSynNMzSPSqaselDnTVLVGYSsJb YPryPOgAcPhxn99SNjRVoC3VCfGG0zO4VS66kV-2Bv30nQIF4FCOiuy-2Fnj4PmYDkD0wTlVioRGP-2BlAbPSEko-2B70KDL5KpZyU1A9hBahHSn1tJmrs-2FivoHdz6M0OE5RYoB2) in New York, President Velasquez and New York religious leaders questioned PMI on their lack of response to the blacklisting of the 8 FLOC members. They also presented a resolution that would allow PMI to fix systemic issues in their supply chain and empower more workers to come out of the shadows. In response, PMI Chairman Camilleri stated that they would work with both the Farm Labor Practices Group as well as FLOC to create a proper grievance mechanism that would transform their written policies into real tools that workers can use to correct labor violations. PMI needs to act fast, not just for the 8 workers blacklisted by Jr. Perez, but for all farmworkers who face human rights abuses but are silenced by the threat of retaliation. For more information on the meeting, click here! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.272/zxZfYRcPTbC0R3Cx6T0tZQ/h1/X4FIVDACC-2F1mbYwHI4-2Bu6ASje4NO4pQDDMrUg4U-2BKtCbeHbnX7fMFCltkVB8X7QbdZQMMysO9rN-2BDmJRGZUH1dFF6sOCYm2llDPtxCpIkP0i0XssnqlXIKwXkyZb YypYGuTsIHz6g-2BOcG4lHVwCNmLGrrXc-2F43gh16RX-2FqnsTrOc52ahhfYIFoiWYL0wc6NuMtgGMF3FCa4HAwSxCuLey ZmiLagsLEupjkHfAl3Rx-2B8PM69QvOwWANfHakZmkysltw8RQMnn-2Fx-2BC21zDfBSEpXJw0B9BLvDq0pLQ3viBAsvmYBwqTmf4iMScMxL ObcAgFfC2EoedyB8muZn9kFvyepxalg08Z3WWyFQnSug93viXA EY8ccwH-2BCDBhISLHryVJqLq4MkOVSNKtvpdlwcAvWxO-2B6CLrIv3-2Bo9Wbb7jS-2FIchBGkKsXrQ6TUpI5R05-2BG)

Here are some tweets you can share in support of the 8 blacklisted workers and FLOC’s global campaign for freedom of association for all tobacco farm workers!

@InsidePMI standards without a mechanism to enforce them = no standards. Work with @SupportFLOC to #EndRetaliation

@InsidePMI No more empty promises! #Farmworkers need protections from retaliation and threats #EndRetaliation

@InsidePMI #Farmworkers are risking their livelihoods to fix inequities in your supply chain. How will you protect them? #EndRetaliation

@InsidePMI Do what’s right and use your power to #EndRetaliation and remove the 8 @SupportFLOC members from Jr. Perez’s blacklist!

Hasta La Victoria!

The FLOC Team

To find out more about the Farm Labor Organizing Committee, AFL-CIO, please visit our website at www.floc.com (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/1gA/ni0YAA/t.272/zxZfYRcPTbC0R3Cx6T0tZQ/h2/X4FIVDACC-2F1mbYwHI4-2Bu6CbGgSd****wkgZGsHlAjq8ePqDARm6-2BlZBuhqx-2Fimuv1jJ-2FCJBkrr-2BjsmRc3O1nX9Iw2sw2rL-2FJMOTdhrIilwhSkJ94MU8DOZX7jjcbMH3yckiI-2FBmRgsnlLIqjEmrc1w77pXN-2FduREP9fgW1vYX2rzSc2-2FeyQIrMICDpAlqh9TKNRbbT24CndVeeb5-2BKljxhFe0q8CCl5peeL459z9FR6A-2F2ClwY7-2Fdxsh-2BsKnDCT-2BNy6pwjjEeCcDfyfkoPL8C4b0ojzIgxGuq773yLLzNHKUAJIM bgg1ShfXRaA1iPTsfyda5DDdYIDFXvYeec53yag5gsrzqe-2B0SrX1usiaR-2Bs-3D).

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ckaihatsu

7th May 2017, 14:09

Teachers vote unanimously to strike at one of Chicago’s oldest charter schools (http://fightbacknews.us1.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=a29530af96a02fc55d345e735&id=77d0716f20&e=d323598fe4)

By staff

Chicago, IL - Union educators at Passages Charter School voted overwhelmingly to strike, May 4, after nearly a year of bargaining with management has failed to produce a decent contract. Teachers voted 43 to zero to strike, in a bargaining unit of 46 members. The May 4 vote authorizes the bargaining committee to set a strike date in the coming weeks if they do not receive an acceptable offer.

The strike would be the first of a charter school network in the nation.

Passages was one of the first charter schools created in Chicago, and today serves roughly 500 students -- including a large population of immigrant and refugee students of Asian and African heritage. Passages’ 46 union educators - including teachers, teachers assistants and paraprofessionals - were certified last April as members of ChiACTS Local 4343, which represents educators at 32 charter schools in Chicago. The school’s educators have been negotiating for a new contract since May of 2016.

“We care deeply about our students,” says third grade teacher Gina Mengarelli, a member of Passages’ ChiACTS bargaining team. “Many of our kids, as refugees and immigrants, look to the school as an environment to support the hopes and dreams they bring to their new country. It is simply wrong for management to invest so little in these children and the frontline workers who are responsible for their education. The primary reason we formed a union at Passages in the first place was so that we could have more voice in decisions that affect our students. And now we’re demanding a contract that allows that.”

The union educators charge that the school’s management spends too much on management and overhead compared to other single-site charters, and too little on staff and students. Many teachers with BAs and even master’s degrees earn salaries in the $30,000 - $40,000 range for work weeks that can top 60 hours. Spending on students’ education at Passages is also at the bottom of the barrel among comparable publicly-funded charter schools in Chicago.

At the same time, the current and former CEOs of AHS - Asian Human Services, the agency that runs Passages - together last year earned more than twice that of Forrest Claypool, the CEO of Chicago Public Schools (CPS) and its 400,000 students. Last year, Passages paid their retired CEO $381,000 - and paid $540,000 in total last year to two people, their current and former CEOs. The combined current salaries for Passages’ 46 bargaining unit members is $1.7 million.

Besides refusing to consider teachers’ proposals to improve compensation, which is currently on average 20% lower than that at comparable charter schools in Chicago, management has also proposed eliminating paid maternity and paternity leave, a proposal completely unacceptable to educators at a workplace where the vast majority of employees are women. In addition, management in recent years has cut classes that include music and Spanish, which, along with Urdu, is the language most commonly spoken by immigrant students, and failed to fulfill promises to create recreational programs like basketball for students.

Teachers are also calling for greater fiscal oversight at the school, including improvements in the percentage of dollars that management spends on students instead of on its own compensation.

AHS spends a greater percentage of the Passages school budget on management costs and a lower percentage on direct student and personnel costs than every other single-site charter in the city except one. The average single-site charter spends a quarter on management and overhead for every dollar they spend on school staff and students, whereas Passages spends 50 cents for every dollar. Passages is also an outlier when it comes to teacher salaries, with teachers earning 20% less than teachers at other Chicago charters. That low spending level for the school’s dedicated teachers and staff lands Passages far below the average in budget comparisons across charters.

“We really believe in the mission of this school, but management needs to provide us the resources to carry out that mission, says Passages paraprofessional Ann Stella-Tayler. We’ve been negotiating for almost a year, and our members are united in telling AHS that it’s past time that they treat Passages students, teachers and staff fairly.”

Passages has no income outside of what it collects from Chicago Public Schools, and union members charge that the disparity in salaries for Passages educators and those at other charters is driven by AHS mismanagement of funds and the fact that AHS simply does not contribute enough to the school’s budget from its own funds. Chicago’s other single-site charters typically provide 5-10% of their financial resources from private fundraising revenue - a practice touted in the early days of the CPS push for charters as a way to harness private dollars to support publicly funded education. Passages raises zero dollars from private fundraising revenue.

“These educators are the heart of the school and their students’ greatest advocates,” says Chris Baehrend, President of ChiACTS Local 4343. “No teacher wants to strike. We want to be in class, with our students, where we belong. But if it takes a strike to force change that improves the education of Passages’ students, then our members will be on the picket line until we achieve those improvements.”

Passages’ union educators will be back at the bargaining table next week.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

10th May 2017, 14:28

Teachers OK Strike at Passages Charter - Labor Beat video

Teachers OK Strike at Passages Charter
https://youtu.be/b9arBD4vKP0

b9arBD4vKP0

Teachers at one of Chicago’s oldest charter schools have voted 100% in favor of authorizing a strike, if Passages Charter School makes it necessary to do just that. ChiACTS Local 4343 announced the vote of 43 Yes, 0 No at a May 4, 2017 rally in front of the school. Charter school unionization and faculty militancy has been increasing in the last year or so, with overwhelming pro-strike votes at Chicago charters UNO and ASPIRA more recently, the latter two votes convincing management to agree to a contract, thus averting any strike at the last minute. If Passages doesn’t see the slogan writing on the wall, this would become the first strike in charter school history nationally. Chicago is taking a lead in charter school unionization, complicating things for Education Secretary Betsy DeVoss’ school privatization/profit dreams. Length - 4:53

https://s18.postimg.org/s87wmuxih/20170504_Gina_Mengarelli_Passages_Charter_School.j pg (https://postimg.org/image/eray3zn6t/)
Gina Mengarelli, 3rd grade teacher, announces vote results. Photo: Labor Beat

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat. For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org. 312-226-3330. Labor Beat, 37 S. Ashland Ave., Chicago, IL 60607. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". On Chicago CAN TV Channel 19, Thursdays 9:30 pm; Fridays 4:30 pm. Labor Beat is a regular cable-tv series in Chicago, Rockford, Urbana, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Princeton, NJ; Cambridge, MA.

ckaihatsu

10th May 2017, 14:42

Chris Kaihatsu, sign this to stop Volkswagen’s anti-union tactics

AFL-CIO

Tell Volkswagen to End Its Anti-Union Campaign at Its Chattanooga Plant (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4wA/ni0YAA/t.275/-CBYMIcLTNyG1V_1WK1ymA/h0/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CHkbZDs0f6TVTt-2FzEyGF-2BqcpX-2BriYDL-2F9y-2FTYUGAQI1cwddLpuPxKDUFxpFxOrWzHwYHn-2Fpa1x5szDzoDQLlVMnwx1teTeKRREThsa1JagkRw-2FF7ND7k72e9IAAtgVV1NVyhoxUQRPgvrE2-2FekeIdA3-2FVSFu9DEUcxct-2B-2FgMJEDhIURID7VjTz1lVJOUUJzag4yq3JC-2BN6VLo9LvZEGIn9bylNzNe0gWx3YNEoevu0g8kQbG22JpYOca x84sh-2FZQUFQ-2BEfLQoMa28nUUVOL6N0hlVzUpK2FdehkNXwublr9uKoiVg62O QAFFgDohj0f9oQQVYnHtR-2FJELhy9sZpqvwIWPJBzqCfUzSwYiSrFiwI9SI1SCQiM8Q4nXI PXQ5-2BZ8o355Cz830iEK3CdFMEm6nmtrYOhpX2pQiN6tCgoOrGPcK8 oOn051RmtOGV1SY3gr5NNVTXBwigALUHHhWd-2F4DhSSiACKR2HfkBhHqb72JmDfIcZz2QVe54z0g88TvnEI-3D)
The petition to Volkswagen CEO Matthias Müller says the following:

End union-busting and abuse of workers in Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA.

Sign the Petition Immediately › (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4wA/ni0YAA/t.275/-CBYMIcLTNyG1V_1WK1ymA/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CHkbZDs0f6TVTt-2FzEyGF-2BqcpX-2BriYDL-2F9y-2FTYUGAQI1cwddLpuPxKDUFxpFxOrWzHwYHn-2Fpa1x5szDzoDQLlVMFIoexJAxMkgfMe0A7PLItZnUtWEy-2FTJQhW3dLBKyUtEsMfUlVTsijWn8mY7BUerGAo5PwCicHWHdj dtKky-2B5CuUaRZTPeXlrnQlSinFe17jK7ngQc-2FIDA8jEAIAeAr3kGAD6qwEI5EIjZ9NBbBYOtSf6ZtcV8n2TQ1 y4dlgBxqFiyjs8OnCrWSL8P9hQSQxmEdzQUltHxc2eCe8vHEkY Pc4ob2fdO5HVm5oMGGHdXYpiLHcAQngR7X2KzhCEnjmCjPMpIX aC6k8uWCxGPL5TICvBJJQIOVZwr2UfW72bBNXVjQVWH80hyulh XmJ2-2B2r8XlfZbhFQADnydFTsRpUv3q14BKLEzRYse4Qc2cnR-2BREwkdwcHPIg1nnKxIietaJBE8Q9IliTyc8rEx2CSA4dCD64b o9wfA74JHgR1eFAv1w-3D)

Chris Kaihatsu,

Working people from the Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, will be headed to Germany for the company’s shareholder meeting this week.

They’ll have one simple message: Respect our right to bargain together for a better workplace.

Skilled trades workers voted in 2015 to come together in a union, so they could make a good living and support their families. But Volkswagen executives have refused to sit down and negotiate with workers since the vote, even ignoring a National Labor Relations Board ruling last year that ordered the company to the negotiating table.

Sign the petition immediately to demand Volkswagen stop its anti-union campaign and we’ll make sure to include your signature in a petition at the Volkswagen shareholder meeting. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4wA/ni0YAA/t.275/-CBYMIcLTNyG1V_1WK1ymA/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CHkbZDs0f6TVTt-2FzEyGF-2BqcpX-2BriYDL-2F9y-2FTYUGAQI1cwddLpuPxKDUFxpFxOrWzHwYHn-2Fpa1x5szDzoDQLlVMdJEFrTJA7TbPxUF8oNIJUXhA6E2HzE93 k0-2FkLSBUYlEwOLRO-2BmPUqpRHa6ouxzY6t83mUWq-2BjrkV4H8aiHmTtifDzMRBC3FlIzi-2B8O-2BainI4vIwl6fU-2Fqbi7lRJC7lkTUkao0t26CO9o7xwTJFNk33w0-2F1svfJausly9D35cIZROz6mKq-2BOqpm-2FrhC4TK5NFUz3YVk1uUuyPnVEvprt4DvolOrB7MKV-2BAtz0TRM9POnj-2FwgxGDTxRzmCNuEGgm611qXudCoNVQMpHbdqUYWAARu8ozk-2Bmb1SPh6pSCgUPBawzKSs-2BhkqGH26g4Tvw3eJtZzuR-2FC4uSExSxYNfEtyT6FRumz6gYMPe-2FNZvMLdk9CkuWnFCWrgSX3iObaX-2FZOK-2F2TIiE9xrF7Bnlvx8R5dh5kabjyVcCkw3WdWjYsJwgQ-3D)

Working people at the Chattanooga plant have been fighting nasty anti-union tactics for years now. In 2014, Tennessee politicians and out-of-state, right-wing interests ran a dirty campaign to get workers at the plant to vote against forming a union. Tennessee lawmakers did everything they could to silence the voice of workers, even going so far as to threaten to take away economic incentives from Volkswagen if they allowed people at the plant to join together in a union.

Volkswagen has continued with these deceitful tactics. The company’s refusal to negotiate with skilled trades workers is not only a reversal of its pre-election statements, but violates its own Declaration on Social Rights and Industrial Relationships.

But working people at the plant aren’t giving up. They’re taking a stand this week, and they need your support.

Add your name immediately to the petition to tell Volkswagen to end its deplorable anti-union campaign at its Chattanooga, Tennessee, plant. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4wA/ni0YAA/t.275/-CBYMIcLTNyG1V_1WK1ymA/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3CHkbZDs0f6TVTt-2FzEyGF-2BqcpX-2BriYDL-2F9y-2FTYUGAQI1cwddLpuPxKDUFxpFxOrWzHwYHn-2Fpa1x5szDzoDQLlVMaOFU8FqY1KfTXHq64kxHpL-2BTRW-2FnP-2F4t76eLvpSo2QD6xmH9SBVV06cuSj9OC-2FXi3NWfA9tIaSQSb1rBXLD4Gw781E7R7yyD4Zuti413YYp9e0 Pj-2FSlD9hL6xETbWCSl6E7Hosy4jJYxGYNO1Hxqtr76DVX2MeLfs HmLlprJb8J-2FNCmZgpK0WFVrJiL4-2BSM112Kb0-2FQTUOsmLXsC-2BALVHlU92SwIPelYnUnbtlWewa0g8TTRbpN3aOjp7u9dL555q UyZdE8aL7OV3hioexvCx-2Fsu-2Fi4thH0WXcRnglQxYCk4-2BB31jxuvg0dI4s30NgTmd-2BNKuHcowV9tlg8sxMa0CpUuyd1-2F4AWm9L3DiquIanpnl4A-2BcfFVjd-2FHNLo8B-2FGUbLOndFDF8W37jpMTSc9Vd4u8UdxkQI86gXmwh29PX3w-3D)

In Solidarity,

Tefere
------------------
Tefere Gebre
Executive Vice President, AFL-CIO

AFL-CIO Facebook Twitter
Visit us at www.aflcio.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4wA/ni0YAA/t.275/-CBYMIcLTNyG1V_1WK1ymA/h7/GmvsifzDqUiJ01-2B2MhZwY5V4Z7xmVq7ploS5QwJAcIoBBt0MuCk5m7ut5L8iDgT-2B48JbhLvqh8kpC9cTF5GM3sLxGjDKXFQsB-2FwbxPPevhtcsm8ypnlFd6Rd3ymrbYLFostaM4WtEGdk79fqdG-2B4T5921Xtt-2F2N1-2FcYFy5k2sgudyXu7vrqEInLHy6uRvvZJjYGn3VS-2FcK78m-2BlO95-2FFb4OZ1ek-2FCX4gBnA1dcn-2BtBCGXV3LucAymOYP0lNAUhYMATpC7GIx3XgWeZZ7LsjHUnqF 1vedNznwcafTGI6UemzYJl1KbAkNXDUfGImnLIg-2Fe2DeKrnWsDVwASW9TmzgSenh-2FixgGs-2F98NBx6gNU9PBB7hNo80Zk4A-2BD5bLY7aI2rHuwSqjVZzoElGiG8zu8iB3XMpAH9IZYG3wRtPP kWg3a8ltXBJf4UWFjebIo1Vv7) | Facebook (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4wA/ni0YAA/t.275/-CBYMIcLTNyG1V_1WK1ymA/h8/9ZtgBbtsz-2BGzBX39C579VIL2jQ9i-2BKiVA2I-2BF9wgGRQTeyVWL1kCVQK-2Bs6OjWLry2O5VmBi7nfLjd5-2BmCKGJzFmAayN2q3FJXQRnyyKhWAnAnHmyiCVSTrMMPLH56ei YFPIFEVjFlapItQCqVQfBFRcIoe57TKD5454Cwp9i-2BxTVhecMrOrZUM97HSceR6kI61HK-2F1PBcLnpcVvP5Kr61kxpuST9XMhzHcIwI-2Fvz0rNKQxkBdESsbC-2F79llUotOvbh-2FdjKXbd1AbN5grYmfdWcjxcw8pzWx9WdZktDovLke5ScXwYL3-2F07VxmCZ5hOplujsvmXwrWHMnRV3FN3ty6ANI068BjI5tQ2Zl SfTrP3LBM6RUKMXI-2FRyy9HbIs82e5Rh70Z6Pbwh9ZtH0TIh5QPxH8z6zdRBuG7d9t stQcaB16mD7Qjvpz92lwQZkGAmnOzSO2-2B-2F4HLyXek8VSFd3pg-3D-3D) | Twitter (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4wA/ni0YAA/t.275/-CBYMIcLTNyG1V_1WK1ymA/h9/9RXDenI7BReTpKa-2F42PXTJ7hbSBraPBCb6Z3XIdqxQS-2FL3u-2Bw5RrzbgcDSGwYQ40I8n6di9CL5PW5kufvgWeJiHn0SsAK-2FQX5nFp-2BBUghOKvPOp2MAu6Zpb-2B3SimulgkFrPrcbtQSfwZM0l-2BWJArnZR4QHETPiYq0maBY-2BE03iNR-2FAmQ7qf8YJ2uOei8pn9XhFZyh59BIll3L5K-2BsU6KKAOlGhxfYzcPh9iYicSHxLSbhB-2FdsLvW92dZf9xP7pmVFU906Vpbj7DlSHRoVGtN-2BRm9y74pUoX2Q-2FAkHVA-2BdJ3Qdnfkffz84Mre9jW-2BAXj21nsOvKBJYtDxMU1Z6vnXP-2F5O6lvHkIQ7RDWzyLH5oTkP8q1vgh0RQLxZWgEJvgCY20HbLb P45X9CXBdPd2dFHVfxOftIlO6dXlDrlGwblmhoWlMBt-2FMY4uiktga63j6kCZ5F7g-2BYwaT5IRBmwGIKng-3D-3D)
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ckaihatsu

10th May 2017, 14:52

Don’t let Gerawan trash workers’ health insurance

Breaking the law doesn’t seem to bother Gerawan, one of the nation’s largest fruit growers, who markets under the Prima label. Gerawan has committed a litany of violations against their workers, who are fighting hard for their contract. Included in this laundry list of violations is what we charged to be the illegal action Gerawan took to change the health plan they offered workers, without bargaining with the union over these changes. The UFW filed charges with the ALRB in January 2015 about this. We have been pushing for a response practically every time we’ve talked to the ALRB since then--including as recently as April 2017. So far, no action has been taken. Click here to e-mail the ALRB today. (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9942/14552b18/450466fa/2b7483a6/4130964977/VEsC/)

http://action.ufw.org/page/-/Oscar_Health%20plan%20meme%201.png
Take Action! (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9942/14552b18/450466fa/2b7483a6/4130964977/VEsF/)

The law is very clear. Despite Gerawan workers still being without a contract because the company is resisting implementing the contract through various delay tactics, the UFW is the workers’ certified union. Gerawan is NOT legally allowed to make unilateral changes in the workers’ pay or benefits without negotiating or advising the UFW.

But as usual, Gerawan seems to think the law does not apply to them. Under Gerawan’s prior plan, only Gerawan workers who were employed close to a year-round basis qualified, leaving few with access to this option. And of those who qualified, even fewer opted in, as they were expected to pay nearly $500 a month for family coverage as well as have a $1,500/$3,000 deductible (individual/family). This was way beyond the means of these workers.

Only 13 of the more than 5,000 workers had health coverage under the previous plan.

Then, Gerawan unilaterally changed the workers’ health plan from bad to something way, way worse back in December of 2014. If workers want insurance, they have to pay more than $825 a month for the family plan PLUS a $5,000/$10,000 per year deductible (individual/family). If workers were not able to afford the previous plan for their families, how does Gerawan think they could afford this?!

Gerawan did not have to go with this option. During negotiations, the UFW offered them a medical plan with a low $5 deductible covering up to 80% of the workers’ health care costs—and it would cost the company almost $400 less per worker for family coverage.

Two years is too long for the ALRB to make workers wait for a ruling on Gerawan’s conduct that makes health care even less affordable for working families. The ALRB must act. Send your e-mail today! (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9942/14552b18/450466fa/2b7483a6/4130964977/VEsD/)

Take Action! (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9942/14552b18/450466fa/2b7483a6/4130964977/VEsA/)
http://action.ufw.org/Gerawan_health

After you sign the petition, please ask your friends and family to sign too. You can send them an e-mail, post this campaign on your Facebook and/or Twitter page by clicking here (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed9942/14552b18/450466fa/2b7483a7/4130964977/VEsP/) or by going to http://action.ufw.org/page/share/Gerawan_health

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ckaihatsu

10th May 2017, 18:45

Walmart kept me from my son

Dear Chris Kaihatsu,

Two weeks after my youngest son Zyon was born, I had to leave his side to go back to work at my job at Walmart.

I wasn’t ready to go back because my baby needed me and I was still recovering from a complicated pregnancy. But there was no choice; if I didn’t go back to work, we would lose our apartment.

That’s because despite having worked at Walmart for three years, the company didn’t even provide me even one day of paid leave after the birth of my child. Sign our petition calling on Walmart to provide all of its workers with quality paid family leave. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5gA/ni0YAA/t.276/AcZoVNyESNGRTldBEylTXA/h0/uQHZJSxyOoM8AOi7mHZ1CHbYmNB70CXBTc05r6JSFoWyFf6N5G fCSXbocAXztWAfsWGy-2BukY-2Ff3dgaTiAT5qwsP-2FA-2BwVxXi6D3u7FuIUJw2GUUXPV5jcy3gQ5O6MZ8oDOmekHHz44p drxpshC3y-2BzS2JAtOpAFHUqeDpMcssfTTvCSblZ2XgkfR-2FxITKE05RG3JhaM1f60XiFqOfs7GCjlAJlakyvYzczZTeqBiq hPvyNG42WcHCj3o0p7bq9o4mpAWT2DQ0JRNzonk6b0o5qfyvpP 0ifQ9gyBJ59XfKEIRVEhknU8NZzX4-2FlUBQnQJ8)

When I took Zyon to his two week checkup, the pediatrician expressed alarm. Something was wrong -- and Zyon needed to go back to the hospital, urgently. We went by ambulance to the hospital, and I was terrified for my baby and terrified I was at risk of losing my job at Walmart for coming in late. I called to let them know about the emergency, but it didn’t matter -- I was still penalized by the store manager.

Zyon was admitted into the NICU (intensive care for newborns), and for four months, I had to leave his side so I could go to my shift at Walmart, and then I would go straight back to the hospital. It was incredibly hard to leave him every time. I ended up having to quit my job at Walmart because of the time I needed to spend with Zyon at the NICU.

And after he was discharged, I still worried. I was stressed about making sure Zyon got his regular medication and oxygen while I was at work. I would stay up late, crying and stressed about how I could be the best parent to my kids, or wondering how I could stretch what little savings I had put aside. Please add your name. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5gA/ni0YAA/t.276/AcZoVNyESNGRTldBEylTXA/h1/uQHZJSxyOoM8AOi7mHZ1CHbYmNB70CXBTc05r6JSFoWyFf6N5G fCSXbocAXztWAfhBpKuSZXnl1UkZXKkw2tBuAMzxIseIrz3x8Y 6rBB7y6X6Nbft-2BH0ePSmMXeENrJJhuh2dM5sOpQfK40EaaqYc9rvR1KsQbgZk3 yU5bWpMZRcx7fr4jTjHWjy5DdcMBskU68pO0-2Fem7SnAA1wGxaJHD5dx6GKJckvg6WNyQ7glv6LG-2FyCKFiNYwLgFI2nqLcmLvi8MtMLw9NY-2Bni00r7G4ac3HhGpiW3ZB1W2FhapcK8WIQrvhcv4-2BnZr1g9-2BaWh1)

Walmart says they are “guided by good.” Walmart defines company culture as its values in action. But Walmart’s corporate policies for working moms and dads don’t reflect those values and leaves members of the Walmart retail family flailing in the storm.

Join OUR Walmart and PL+US in calling on Walmart to do the right thing -- ensure all of Walmart retail and corporate employees have access to quality paid family leave. Sign our petition today. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5gA/ni0YAA/t.276/AcZoVNyESNGRTldBEylTXA/h2/uQHZJSxyOoM8AOi7mHZ1CHbYmNB70CXBTc05r6JSFoWyFf6N5G fCSXbocAXztWAfDO3MhaZbL4-2FJSkAS31TbzM1JLA7X-2FjKCkNkQZqEjMhVqXTSyVzqH7sVFkGjr5nL8e5NEDFTyMl4fs ZMbxd2nByENPeJ9H91N85ngGxbFaMcCGTWWH7t0AgNrvXyCARx gMzIUDONwtdzZSoWYCsGEvPRl-2B5TyvK21ciPcpC8BNJRQjAkTYuP6X04Uppfy22x3e4KSjIFK3 2kFXfvREpHYBK-2FJJqE7S9Q7TS-2FwZlec9FOCQcbHmRt5D-2FCqRDccYKOc)

Jasmine Dixon
Proud mom, OUR Walmart leader, and former Walmart worker
Denver, CO

P.S. Female executives at Walmart get 12 weeks paid family leave. Hourly associates get none. Help us fix it! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5gA/ni0YAA/t.276/AcZoVNyESNGRTldBEylTXA/h3/uQHZJSxyOoM8AOi7mHZ1CHbYmNB70CXBTc05r6JSFoWyFf6N5G fCSXbocAXztWAf4Khvo-2FsaPMavoa9VEJOFAwyPDZyJ35wPMSiIu8LH5-2BNABAItElfUGt9GcBzUKmrhA8zDFYqoMPii8IAw6HNbpKWdmj 2vYl4MLVNoXxayigWGu8shs9kinGe-2B894zURb82ImM6UNQQeSiZMceQlkR-2FVCf72d41go-2B-2BbM8w-2B5kgzOGqMIIHhqggkISR1Ys8QTIjgBwSerjFnGo15DRusN-2F2Lbjp3x0J8JdIIJkv3QoOV4KJw4LBVBFdBoqQnuXy-2FPu)

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Organization United for Respect (OUR) is a non-profit organization, organized under the laws of the District of Columbia. OUR brings together low-income workers, their families and communities to improve working conditions in the retail industry throughout the United States, promote human and civil rights secured by law, build strong and healthy communities, and end all forms of discrimination. OUR Walmart is a project of OUR. OUR does not intend or seek to represent retail employees over terms and conditions of employment, or to bargain with retail employers, including Walmart.

Sent via ActionNetwork.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5gA/ni0YAA/t.276/AcZoVNyESNGRTldBEylTXA/h4/55uI0ZjpoLA9-2FYhqE-2F4Eitwb7nFGaBM-2BttuyqSTdMS4-3D). To update your email address or to stop receiving emails from OUR Walmart Alliance , please click here.

ckaihatsu

10th May 2017, 20:14

Get Ben & Jerry’s on Board With Farmworker Rights

Jobs With Justice

Dear Chris Kaihatsu,

Cherry Garcia. Half Baked. Chunky Monkey. Who doesn’t know and love Ben & Jerry’s ice cream?

So maybe you’ve never had Phish Food, but you likely know the iconic Vermont-based company loves to boast about its socially-responsible business. Its mission “aims to create linked prosperity for everyone that’s connected to our business: suppliers, employees, farmers, franchisees, customers, and neighbors alike.”

That’s why we’re so disappointed to hear the brand is dragging its feet in committing to join Milk With Dignity - a landmark human rights plan it agreed to in June 2015. The people who work on the dairy farms that supply Ben & Jerry’s with milk need our help. Tell Ben & Jerry’s: Live up to your promise to join the Milk With Dignity program. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2gA/ni0YAA/t.277/_Rr5Ck7pQ96Fe-0954btpA/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHMa9DsFl9-2BV7LfPyrq10mawrF-2F-2FlbEKhrzuikJHM6-2Bbk30PYmRvpNy-2FHqWj76Dp-2BJWnjy0fbjVmbzHRdzv0-2F7u8p4v-2F-2Bq-2BEMk-2B-2F7QBz9FghLFGUVe92u-2FoRK2veWlM7ZBpnlHw0t5ltJ2l76r-2FOqMyprPJ86np4e5dtcIdLp663wA8w1hQqpky4ejXZgXIhtok BVSMWZ2o0gOJ1Am1bfemv2fzzTyiY9Txenz-2FklqffmGf1xIy73ytytmnfL9wa3fmWstTMNhnFyPQOoK-2BfqtyILDu03JKYDWv88lhS-2FM7WvOXZMjR5dR2tBkVG-2Fx9v-2FO4jkZ8PjtRWWFdWx3dJikSw)

Since 2010, Vermont dairy workers who are members of Migrant Justice have educated Ben & Jerry’s about serious human rights violations in its supply chain. In 2014, they called on the company to join a new program to secure humane conditions on farms. After public pressure, Ben & Jerry’s finally pledged to adopt Migrant Justice’s Milk With Dignity plan in its Northeast dairy supply chain.

Two years have passed and Ben & Jerry’s still has not officially signed onto or implemented the program!

Meanwhile, these jobs remain dangerous. Dairy workers often slog grueling hours – nearly 70 a week – without adequate breaks, and for low pay. Forty percent of farmworkers report having no days off and making less than Vermont’s minimum wage. The Milk With Dignity agreement would enable the people who work on dairy farms to achieve basic health and safety protections, rest periods and humane schedules, and the means to make ends meet for their families.

With your help, Ben & Jerry’s can make a huge difference in the lives of hundreds of dairy workers. Send a message to Ben & Jerry’s now to do the right thing! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2gA/ni0YAA/t.277/_Rr5Ck7pQ96Fe-0954btpA/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHMa9DsFl9-2BV7LfPyrq10mawrF-2F-2FlbEKhrzuikJHM6-2Bbk30PYmRvpNy-2FHqWj76Dp-2BJWnjy0fbjVmbzHRdzv0-2F7u8p4v-2F-2Bq-2BEMk-2B-2F7QBz9FghLOOQGewjZL3-2FjCiIk9AcZLwnXlSoM28ynsylHELZUafHnLXb5x5Qo9Y-2FQq6Cc-2Bq09WcG75Grlgdj124ZSPslckwPRFxm6uH3HdPZ0b3nDQ2Hdd TjeXhbUVlwACwkKgSWeqWJa4y-2BhFsvN97ZOsFSR-2BV4cj9rQ5cTOn1nGVbUjvWM7TZnkaVpzA44KzMb-2Bj3qw5t6TpZD8gpuQq-2FA05OJqUdr2nDq7oxJP6cv1mlaRL-2BR)

Please take a minute to get involved. Your actions matter here – as a customer, Ben & Jerry’s fan, or someone who cares about how corporations treat the people who make them successful. Ben & Jerry’s cares deeply about its socially-responsible image, and if enough of us raise our voices, we can compel them to do the right thing.

Send your note to Ben & Jerry’s CEO Jostein Solheim and tell him to make good on his 2015 commitment to sign onto the Milk With Dignity agreement, without further delay! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2gA/ni0YAA/t.277/_Rr5Ck7pQ96Fe-0954btpA/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHMa9DsFl9-2BV7LfPyrq10mawrF-2F-2FlbEKhrzuikJHM6-2Bbk30PYmRvpNy-2FHqWj76Dp-2BJWnjy0fbjVmbzHRdzv0-2F7u8p4v-2F-2Bq-2BEMk-2B-2F7QBz9FghLNhhT9lqaNerLfOrEURDCOL9CYIpmR8zGckXgzo6 Uinwl7LRPYKCo5WVXq0nnCcVXBLjDjOKxk6RF-2Fddmmcyz-2Fj6joEiwQsQiseZb6PtbksoKUHJ3poDsk-2FMQh204qVFtq5EOgRTGfoOOfmoEtaaaeM7ZHQyOvPF0X8RYAc zzza-2F8OveyYWnkH-2BcwiJwhO5mat8nvxps-2BxiozXV3uUQij2MlDXxIfCfHGdM0fc7dbEA4)

Thanks for all that you do for working people,

Liz
Jobs With Justice

Donate (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2gA/ni0YAA/t.277/_Rr5Ck7pQ96Fe-0954btpA/h4/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBSD9p4T6xn7Ql1kXw4yNstd-2BGemIBy0DJpFBJ9kdzDHbP2bPtVUoiMwJBBsbj3dnXTLvbIUT mu63ZbYOYzhBvxZF3NbOsXkKGepBwrTfCFyUW3-2FDT1ldwRDMxWTaCU9DurZrtfxUu4AXOoEKjwQaDpudwoxetzk KMt-2BAt9OaYgze2AlpuNsVl-2FWuCHHWC7sdSY2PvB9ATrneIHyvC-2Byq8N4emJ2GmhB491VV05J9cvqZM7GQrTEspKh8A0Uwli2oW2 ZPSAW-2FWKhTnlr3ckChDSFZHUNjSLnbOKbl4DIsFF5ohTExJNqnaHZ3 sGPiAjibf3rmoplQsAQAXkfm8CTEl6k-3D)

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ckaihatsu

11th May 2017, 14:29

IUF News (http://www.iuf.org/w/?q=rss-english)

US union solidarity with Phillips Seafood workers in Indonesia (http://www.iuf.org/w/?q=node/5565)

Posted: 10 May 2017 02:53 AM PDT

http://www.iuf.org/w/sites/default/files/disposablejobs.jpg

The IUF-affiliated UFCW leafleted customers at Phillips Seafood's flagship Baltimore restaurant on a busy May 9 evening in solidarity with the union fight for permanent jobs at the company's crabmeat factory in Lampung, Indonesia, where workers with up to 15 years of service are still denied permanent employment contracts.

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ckaihatsu

14th May 2017, 16:17

UPDATE 3: What You Can Do to Support Student Protestors—May 12, 2017

View this email in your browser (http://mailchi.mp/27c394a0dea9/update3-what-you-can-do-to-support-student-protestors-may-12-2017?e=718ad3e93a)

May 12, 2017

Hello to all 1650+ signers of the petition in support of the students sanctioned in the 4/27 demonstration at Cunniffe House,

We’re writing to provide you with a set of updates. A lot has happened in the past week, so this letter will be somewhat long. At the end, you’ll find both our call to action and our most important piece of new information—namely, that the administration repeatedly violated the university’s procedures in this matter. So please do read this through, especially the final paragraphs.

First, there are three different procedures under way, all of which are consuming the students’ time and causing them great stress, even as many of them are finishing exams and even preparing—hoping—to graduate.

1. One is the “hearing” process. Fourteen students have been charged with long lists of violations of university regulations. These range from demonstrating without permission to participating in acts of violence. The hearings, according to the student life procedures (http://fordhamfacultyrights.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u=0bf1f56fdfd8b68a13953f567&id=05ef5b52ea&e=718ad3e93a), consist of one-on-one, closed door meetings with either the Dean of Students or a designated representative. Dean of Students Christopher Rodgers has threatened at least three students with expulsion. He has made these threats in the hearings, and also in phone calls to parents.

2. An internal investigation is being conducted by two Public Safety Officers. The lead investigator is named Patricia Scaglione. Each of the accused students, plus several additional participants in and witnesses of the demonstrations on 4/27, has been called in to speak to these officers. Students are allowed to bring a faculty member with them at these meetings, which has made at least some students find them less stressful. We are getting mixed reports about the tenor of the discussions. Some students report that the investigators seem open to hearing the full story of the events on 4/27; others perceive these meetings as little more than part of their persecution and the cover up of the full story.

3. On 5/11, several students and others received letters from University Counsel Elaine Crosson, notifying them of yet another inquiry. “To ensure objectivity, the University has hired an independent, outside investigation firm called T&M Resources, LLC (http://fordhamfacultyrights.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u=0bf1f56fdfd8b68a13953f567&id=85e8b467c3&e=718ad3e93a) to look into the recent interaction with Public Safety.” We have little information as of yet what the purpose of this inquiry might be, or whether it will be credible.

Second, to avoid too many long e-mails, we are sharing information at http://fordhamtestimonials.blogspot.com/. It’s possible to subscribe to the blog to get regular updates as more material is posted there. We’re posting media coverage, copies of statements that the students provided to the investigators, and other documents related to the events and their aftermath, and also sharing (when we have explicit permission) some of the moving and passionate comments that accompanied many of your signatures on the original petition. We’ve only just started, so there’s not a lot there yet, but either subscribe or check back regularly to stay up to date.

Finally and most importantly, we want you to be aware that:

1. There are clear university regulations governing the university’s response to “obstructive or disruptive demonstrations,” which you can read at the bottom of this web page (http://fordhamfacultyrights.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u=0bf1f56fdfd8b68a13953f567&id=f2d57e164a&e=718ad3e93a).

2. Rose Hill Dean of Students Christopher Rodgers and the Public Safety Officers at Cunniffe Hall violated nearly every one of those regulations.

3. Those violations are at least in part responsible for the altercation that took place on 4/27.
The remainder of this note is devoted to demonstrating these three points.

In the petition we sent to President McShane last week, we refrained from making accusations against Public Safety Officers or Dean Rodgers because at the time none of us had a clear understanding of what had occurred. But based on all reports that have been made public, and on the reports of faculty eyewitnesses some of whose accounts you can read on the blog (http://fordhamfacultyrights.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u=0bf1f56fdfd8b68a13953f567&id=48a3866543&e=718ad3e93a), it’s clear that:

• The students entered the administration building through an unlocked door, carrying not weapons but flowers. They had entirely nonviolent intentions. They were seeking a reply to questions they had about the President’s stance on Fordham’s use of contingent faculty--a reply they had been promised days before.

• The Public Safety officers responded by physically blocking the students’ entry to the President’s office suite. In other words, they used physical force to prevent a peaceful group from entering the president’s office to ask questions.

Pointing this out is not to say that the Public Safety officers initiated the altercation. We don't know that, and the claim here is not that all students are innocent of every charge against them. But it does mean that Public Safety and the Dean of Students violated the university’s written procedures about how to handle an unruly demonstration. Specifically (quoting, in red, from the procedures, which you can find in full at the bottom of this web page here. In bold and in brackets following each item you'll see our commentary):

“The Dean of Students, in consultation with the Dean of the College or the official responsible for the specific building or area affected, will determine the point at which the normal operations of the specific building or area are disrupted.” [Is a group of students entering an office to ask questions—even loudly and boisterously—a disruption of a building’s normal operations? Was Dean Mast or an official responsible for Cunniffe Hall asked to help determine the nature of this alleged disruption? If not, then Dean Rodgers and the Public Safety Officers violated university procedures.]

“If it is decided that the demonstration is disruptive or obstructive, the Dean of Students will take the following steps:

Inform the demonstrators that their actions are disrupting the normal process of the area in question and that they should cease and desist their activities. The demonstrators will also be informed specifically how they may continue their demonstration in a manner which is not disruptive or obstructive.

If the demonstrators fail to respond to the request to cease and desist their activities or if they fail to modify them in such a manner as to permit the undisturbed operation of the area in question the warning will be repeated and clearly stated as a final warning.” [There is no video of the event showing either of these warnings taking place. If they did, there should be video to prove it. If not, then Dean Rodgers and the Public Safety Officers violated university procedures.]

“If the second warning is ignored and demonstrators persist in the obstructive or disruptive action, the Dean of Students will apprise the President and/or Senior Vice President for Student Affairs of the situation and based upon the situation will recommend:” [Were the President and/or Senior Vice President apprised of the situation? If not, then Dean Rodgers and the Public Safety Officers violated university procedures.]

“That the New York City Police be summoned and that they be requested to arrest violators and clear the area.” [It is very clear that this did not occur. This is an unambiguous violation of university procedures.]

“The University initiate action to obtain an injunction against the continuance of the disruptive activities.” [It is very clear that this did not occur. This is an unambiguous violation of university procedures.]

Nothing in these procedures authorizes Public Safety Officers to take physical action to force demonstrators to “cease and desist their activities” or to “modify them in such a manner as to permit the undisturbed operation of the area in question.” Nothing instructs them to prevent students from passing through hallways and opening doors. It now seems clear that if Public Safety Officers had simply allowed the demonstrators to proceed from the vestibule of the building, which they entered through an unlocked door, and into the President’s office suite, no physical altercation could possibly have taken place.

To continue quoting the official procedures:

“If at any time during a demonstration, physical violence and/or destruction of property occurs, the Dean of Students will instruct the demonstrators to leave the area immediately. If the demonstrators do not leave the area immediately upon hearing the Dean's instruction, the President and/or Senior Vice President of Student Affairs will be informed of the situation and will be requested to summon the New York City Police to arrest violators and clear the area.” [As far as we know, no destruction of property is alleged. However, the Dean of Students alleges that physical violence occurred, resulting in injuries to two Public Safety Officers. There have been no allegations that those injuries were deliberate. We are sure everyone regrets those injuries. However, it is very clear that the next step taken was not a request to summon the NYC police to arrest violators and to clear the area. This is an unambiguous violation of university procedures].

“During actions to quell an obstructive or disruptive demonstration, an officer of the University, the President of the Faculty Senate, and the college Deans should be present to observe the actions of all involved.” [Evidently no effort was made to make the President of the Faculty Senate aware of the situation. No college dean was informed of the events at all, let alone brought to observe. Indeed, at the very moment the events were taking place, Dean Rodgers was scheduled to be at a Rose Hill College Council meeting, so he knew precisely where Dean Mast could be found. This is an unambiguous—and especially flagrant—violation of university procedures].

The point of this lengthy exposition is not just to demonstrate that at least four unambiguous violations of University procedures took place, and that further investigations may reveal other violations. It is also to show that these violations by both Public Safety Officers and the Dean of Students were at least part of the cause of the altercation that took place. Every available account of the events on 4/27 underscores this point. If the Public Safety Officers had allowed the students to enter the space and deliver their demands, none of this would have happened.

This fact does not mean we think every student acted uniformly admirably, nor that they should be free from sanctions for their actions. But we think these facts lead to two inescapable conclusions:

1. No sanctions should be imposed until all the factors in the case have been thoroughly investigated. These factors may not exonerate the students. But if university officials and employees violated procedures that were designed precisely to govern a situation like this one—and to prevent such conflict from escalating—those violations surely constitute mitigating circumstances that should be taken into account in any hearing and in any decision about sanctions. As should the fact that several of the students were sanctioned before any adjudication of their cases had occurred.

2. Because it is clear that Dean Rodgers participated in violations of University Procedures himself, and thus helped to cause the situation, he cannot possibly be the right person to hold the hearings on the students’ actions and to decide on their sanctions.

Now for the call to action: If you agree with these two points, we urge you to communicate them both to those investigating these matters and to authorities who have the power to change the path the university is on. Please send these e-mails to:

• President McShane ([email protected] or [email protected])
• Senior Vice President for Student Affairs Jeffrey Gray ([email protected])
• John Carroll, Associate Vice President of Safety and security ([email protected])
• Patricia Scaglione, Investigator, Office of Public Safety ([email protected])
• Elaine Crosson, General Counsel and initiator of the external investigation ([email protected])

Also, if you are willing to have your communications published on our blog, please send them to [email protected] And again, please keep up with the situation on a more regular basis by subscribing at http://fordhamtestimonials.blogspot.com/.

Thank you for your concern for and support of our students,

Justice for Fordham Students + Faculty
Andrew Clark, Glenn Hendler, James Kim, Jacqueline Reich, Jordan Stein
News coverage of student protest:

Sanctioned Student Shares Personal Account of Demonstration for Faculty Rights (http://fordhamfacultyrights.us15.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=0bf1f56fdfd8b68a13953f567&id=974a78c5ed&e=718ad3e93a)
The Paper (May 4, 2017)

Fordham University Staff in Battle with Administration Over Salary and Health Benefits (http://fordhamfacultyrights.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u=0bf1f56fdfd8b68a13953f567&id=aa23b1f2b7&e=718ad3e93a)
NY1 (April 28, 2017)

Student Protesters Barred From Campus (http://fordhamfacultyrights.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u=0bf1f56fdfd8b68a13953f567&id=1eaf67c5dd&e=718ad3e93a)
The Paper (April 28, 2017)

Protest Escalates at Cunniffe House (http://fordhamfacultyrights.us15.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=0bf1f56fdfd8b68a13953f567&id=992f8f7bee&e=718ad3e93a)
Fordham Ram (April 28, 2017)

Students Face Physical Resistance from Public Safety During Protest for Contingent Faculty Rights (http://fordhamfacultyrights.us15.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=0bf1f56fdfd8b68a13953f567&id=e2b3f551e0&e=718ad3e93a)
The Paper (April 28, 2017)

Student Protesters Clash with Public Safety (http://fordhamfacultyrights.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u=0bf1f56fdfd8b68a13953f567&id=1a237206c5&e=718ad3e93a)
The Fordham Observer (April 27, 2017)

Twitter (http://fordhamfacultyrights.us15.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=0bf1f56fdfd8b68a13953f567&id=981e13e663&e=718ad3e93a) Facebook (http://fordhamfacultyrights.us15.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=0bf1f56fdfd8b68a13953f567&id=d4b42c29ff&e=718ad3e93a) Website (http://fordhamfacultyrights.us15.list-manage.com/track/click?u=0bf1f56fdfd8b68a13953f567&id=0089a1ab85&e=718ad3e93a)

Copyright © 2017 Fordham Faculty Students United, All rights reserved.
You signed the petition concerning the handing of student protestors at Fordham University. This is an update on that matter.

Our mailing address is:
Fordham Faculty Students United
441 East Fordham Road
Bronx, NY 10458

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ckaihatsu

14th May 2017, 16:55

Do you have my back if I strike?

Good Jobs at AT&T Mobility

Chris Kaihatsu,

I may be on strike soon along with 21,000 of my coworkers at AT&T. I’m a single parent of four and there is a lot on the line for me. My kids are the reason I’m fighting so hard and why I’m ready to do whatever I have to do to make sure they have a good life. We hope to avoid having to strike, but we may have to make that sacrifice to make sure our livelihoods are secure.

Please stand with us. Click here to email AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson now and demand that he settle a union contract that protects good jobs. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5gA/ni0YAA/t.27a/NJj4vJYMQkqfVwttJkir6A/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHPfNDA0IAjHLFZhnVcS9My02uLe7GEX5JxMJt68-2BF2RsohdsEd6yXzw-2BJTTpQbt1RtM246sLjLUVVhn0ohcqCjQ3OI88M0NY2enCfRhw mzvN7mMFBcmo33coX1jTj7RWQUpljZ8Qdqa9HU-2F0pxT89F4p3V8vmtBGjgvKPWTbqTTV1tMXUlrOcxctlR5hY-2B2gX7aP5a8XTzzUw201ajamL-2BDDboFAN9YUzSTmguTJ6URf0QZLbkvnJxnCsrcvD0lE7Ppl6p 2xgMXKoUnrXGaw1usQyAyW0oPfh9ESV-2BAbK6RNw-3D-3D)

I work at an AT&T retail store, but the company wants to keep closing stores and instead send work to third-party dealers where workers make super low-wages and don’t have the union protections we have. Meanwhile, my co-workers at AT&T call centers worry that their jobs will be sent overseas.

CEO Stephenson made $28.4 million last year, while he cut our commissions, which meant I took home less pay than the year before. This fight is about making sure working people can make a decent living in this country. We are up against unaccountable corporations that are working us harder for less in order to pad their bottom line.

As the only income for a family of five, my budget is tight as it is, and the money I may lose if I go on strike isn’t something I take lightly. That’s why I’ve been preparing, saving money, stocking up on groceries, and making a plan.

Please take action and send a message to the CEO that you support workers fighting for their livelihoods. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5gA/ni0YAA/t.27a/NJj4vJYMQkqfVwttJkir6A/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHPfNDA0IAjHLFZhnVcS9My02uLe7GEX5JxMJt68-2BF2RslXvHruApXfwr4vW5HIUO5-2BWBABWTexz6XxyHssElc5SfSzoc9l82gCnCrChCCJ4yYT9wiD Y7KnLJJtvlDKPrgZsWR0q7iRG0lGsg7bgy8Kv137BhUf9QRjwV ulYELenzv7rlY9uZfqu9xyAZzrL4-2BVUfgv0CvFW5eWzqaATz3vwhxLCPcvJ0sggXHkJppMf-2B-2FCdciQKfNryWXIBomSWjVa6G8VF3-2B4GKuUstBiqFGemH1zEva-2F2Z9i0eUYgP78QFg-3D-3D)

There is too much on the table for us to sit back and let the company take advantage of us anymore. We want to be treated like human beings.

If we strike, we’re following in the footsteps of our brothers and sisters at Verizon who last year struck for 49 days and won big improvements for themselves, their families, and sent a message that corporate giants can be beat if working people stick together.

Thank you for your support. If we strike, we'll be back in touch with more information about how you can support us on a picket line near you. Until then, I hope you’ll email CEO Stephenson to make sure he knows his customers and members of the community have our back. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/5gA/ni0YAA/t.27a/NJj4vJYMQkqfVwttJkir6A/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHPfNDA0IAjHLFZhnVcS9My02uLe7GEX5JxMJt68-2BF2RsulwGKJKCFu5ZodbrhUGz9pixkW6bzxxwNhptw3JLvBKX p6Mv5TT3R0PZ-2BNLrEj1caLp2TsKhREj9BLY-2FX2bL-2FmkeQGViFLIisKI3-2F0uCGi8KTKz8q-2BueODzekTmhvPQ9CPa3Nw5P6ecE9zaehS6TQPtPoOP9urY0xI 0gPStL1mniogNEqKrM5KNFyz7ekGaXVajja8bbcQYvyo-2BxLsbRqBa88qOAxmvwJND7vCXHESHrNlOwK85NBiBin5UGoJ4 7w-3D-3D)

Thank you for listening to my story,

Cindi Chesters
AT&T Sales Support Representative, Shelton, CT

Good Jobs at AT&T
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ckaihatsu

15th May 2017, 14:22

When workers aren’t even paid the minimum wage

EPI News—Our most important stories this week

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Employers steal billions from workers’ paychecks each year

In a new report (http://epi.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ec2361f981a14ee1d45cccaa9&id=f271e99d39&e=73ae589068), EPI’s David Cooper and Teresa Kroeger estimate that minimum wage violations—failure to pay the legally required minimum wage—cost American workers $15 billion each year. This form of wage theft doesn’t just harm workers and their families; it also costs taxpayers money and can hurt state and local economies. The authors find that workers suffering minimum wage violations lose nearly one-quarter of their earned wages—receiving, on average, only $10,500 in annual income if they work a full year. As a result, these workers are more likely to rely on taxpayer-funded public assistance programs and to have less money to spend in their local communities. Read the report » (http://epi.us4.list-manage.com/track/click?u=ec2361f981a14ee1d45cccaa9&id=4d69dccab8&e=73ae589068)

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Employers steal billions from workers’ paychecks each year.
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ckaihatsu

20th May 2017, 14:38

VIDEO: 94% of low income people have no access to paid family leave

Chris Kaihatsu--

In the United States today, 94% of low-income working people have no access to paid family leave. OUR Walmart leader Jasmine Dixon, made a video together with our friends at PL+US telling her story of what it's like to have to return to work at Walmart right after having a child.

http://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/plus/mailings/64/attachments/original/PLUS_OURWalmart_Jasmine_Video_Thumb.jpg?1495031278 (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3gA/ni0YAA/t.27g/HULD2WXXQCmjeE0M-EXP5w/h0/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiDnRq9k7TvBm1Z0HLvX3boMkmqihVJ 7zn0V8sQap-2F2jwArCGVIbVGHwW4UQk5HZHy-2FkFxyOVMg9zJ8CvO3FzYjMdiZAefLu03c0-2BB9x1Hn6z30yqEC3d8a0dPz9j-2F0FTzhU-2F83qAOBU1QqpdClgVwvEuOJeypZWRjy9t-2FWbGyQD8BAetl1RiZuz855LY7fCIJMAn1iWQh8Wm8ix2D2pu1 TWwTvAHktB7sFcdeJdsfrVmdZAY3y2WHrFbWIIN91WFrp5LRhI 7p-2BNGXaNlThq1chhSlUc0n57RCW3QQAv7Komcoz3-2B45bouEpx6NfZNA9qvr7ayhPQ1lH45ylnFzp6zkSEOVgVyb1n fCzvbUiSSKSTurO8A2OZIGLFzGrVqLlLkliVpGsIPD4tGxn7Kr 8Q71u8NsiCqqROFcjVoZlQ-2FiDRR5VXGMzOHvz13Pn-2BqIg-2BcIGI5UfCy9f-2F4egnKujOI-2F-2F4yyv-2BzElSFjnYtFESUhgd)

Watch and share Jasmine’s story about the need for paid family leave. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3gA/ni0YAA/t.27g/HULD2WXXQCmjeE0M-EXP5w/h1/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiDnRq9k7TvBm1Z0HLvX3boMkmqihVJ 7zn0V8sQap-2F2jwArCGVIbVGHwW4UQk5HZHy-2FkFxyOVMg9zJ8CvO3FzYjOUqS5eOZblZHM-2BwROuJLG3M-2FQ7aulmP1XkMk1-2Bamzvqir0nWhyFrSliIjRAT-2BFxjncVlF6G-2Bwi6G5C45eghfL4knaEu5l53Ul2pnC-2BAWmuL5ebuhni0-2Bj8jT1FjRna0Pg8KeXvGPasY-2Ffa4X3goWWxfTlDDDsHHDDy-2Fl98ugVsBhT6aVep67TJRwY0jeKDSuMaagSHvgR8Rbg7mWWzS AFoCxt0pDRNVnb2hd4KAiWDnm2DBcMiOyf3U31wDPMWqlttsUn xmEO13ioaNrLrYOBk6Dn8nhZKkX6DvNwn9W7-2FQ04nBsxoaaOdiDtk0SVqLDtSOgEtuxFACo2O-2BZPWe6h1twtf47KBDCL58O75fe7rbrbChJm3ppNreCD5e7sdM pKEpG-2FhpsZRJNwEekLMhTrI)

Jasmine no longer works at Walmart, but she's sharing her story with the hope that by speaking out we can get Walmart to publicly commit to change their policy.

Executive women at Walmart get 12 weeks of paid time off. It's time for a fair paid family leave policy for EVERYONE at Walmart.

Please help us get her story out - will you click here and share Jasmine's video on Facebook now? (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3gA/ni0YAA/t.27g/HULD2WXXQCmjeE0M-EXP5w/h2/9ZtgBbtsz-2BGzBX39C579VPKnH9tskLwOyTqqbK1ygPqs8217KqFAVvk8eu 7ngPtHPDXrWyJ6ed-2Fx92y2HCCPfHsLSMZNLG99hp-2FfzUoFtUhUg6zgdQyXJAe0VApl1GCGWrGztNALR9bmQl0bTV9 M6pykt3lP9nUtGhEKpFTONn2jaUqH0rcNmCGx-2Fsj24L997WgDqH-2BjfVeCJPjgvtkpfR5M3AgKVriwTVx68dEI6hVjYQfd3ewevuL nfa4natm29QonrcAltx0vrCAmBv3-2BkdXZ05CveVbFMkw7YKkmjutIhsiMTOk8UotQTT9u5whBP16N-2FNS-2F0lsWpPcPMFtE8y7QShlklb1rwCuu9ngMnWtX96D-2B7YRxrWixZIGvCKJx-2BOODV1ebwS-2FmO142SWV03W0KUV-2F-2B7fbWWVYqoTOz1eQ9VGg6YXOfEEH2G6lNMT5Onh7BFNEN3jAt UXitYnETfh9B3twCoTD699mY4aVPceUQNlrXQKaN3vElAVnjxs 1yXq3ESQrwZYpiXDTmY6-2BLGtQl6kYWEwTmFkBBBSs-2BUiaVCOEYSc-2Fksf4EYspbX6JC)

Thank you,

Everyone at OUR Walmart

Organization United for Respect (OUR) is a non-profit organization, organized under the laws of the District of Columbia. OUR brings together low-income workers, their families and communities to improve working conditions in the retail industry throughout the United States, promote human and civil rights secured by law, build strong and healthy communities, and end all forms of discrimination. OUR Walmart is a project of OUR. OUR does not intend or seek to represent retail employees over terms and conditions of employment, or to bargain with retail employers, including Walmart.

Sent via ActionNetwork.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3gA/ni0YAA/t.27g/HULD2WXXQCmjeE0M-EXP5w/h4/55uI0ZjpoLA9-2FYhqE-2F4Eitwb7nFGaBM-2BttuyqSTdMS4-3D). To update your email address or to stop receiving emails from OUR Walmart Alliance , please click here.

ckaihatsu

20th May 2017, 14:49

It was like being in a real-life horror movie

http://action.ufw.org/page/-/cabbage.jpg

“I have always known how dangerous pesticides can be,” she says. “But I never thought I would one day have to go to the emergency room because of them.”
- Aylin, cabbage worker

DONATE (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b0/14552b18/45f2e29c/2b74e443/3942364107/VEsF/)

On May 5th, Aylin was working on a cabbage farm near Bakersfield, CA, where 50+ workers were exposed to a pesticide from a nearby farm. An hour into her shift, Aylin noticed all of the cabbage pickers around her suddenly stopped working. Then some of her co-workers fainted. Others started vomiting. Aylin also became sick. Her lips were tingling. Her mouth was dry. Aylin told us they weren’t instructed on anything related to pesticides before or after they fell ill and they had no warning.

According to news reports, emergency responders performed a mass decontamination. But Aylin and most of the workers had left by the time medical help arrived. Aylin went to the ER on her own and following a visual checkup and no tests was told she was okay.

Something alarming happened after Aylin got home. “I didn’t dare come inside my house when I arrived because I was afraid I would also contaminate my brother and sister who live with me,” Aylin said. “I changed clothes outside. My mom’s boyfriend accidentally used my soiled shirt to pat his face dry in the backyard. Moments later, his eyes and face got irritated... I hope nobody brought their clothes inside or hugged their children or loved ones when they got home wearing their work clothes.”

Chlorpyrifos, one of the pesticides sprayed nearby, may be the chemical responsible for the mass poisoning. Because of its extreme toxicity, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires workers handling it to wear protective equipment and restricts entry into fields after use. This pesticide belongs to the same chemical family as sarin, which works by attacking the nervous system. Research has shown that chlorpyrifos slows brain development and lower IQs in children.

Working in solidarity with environmental groups, we recently came very close to ridding America’s farms of chlorpyrifos. The EPA finally moved to ban it in 2015. Then came Trump and the corporations that contributed to his campaign. Dow Chemical, the leading producer of chlorpyrifos, donated $1 million to Trump’s inaugural committee.

http://action.ufw.org/page/-/pesticide_sign1.jpg

On March 29, Scott Pruitt, the new anti-science EPA head, preemptively abolished the regulation banning chlorpyrifos, rejecting the EPA’s own scientists’ findings. In the last week, he also postponed the implementation of the Worker Protection Act and the Certified Pesticide Applicators rule that the UFW and their allies spent decades fighting for. Plus, Trump’s Republican Congress is pushing bills that would destroy decades of progress for workers, the environment and the safety of our food supply. We’re currently working to defeat 3 bills that just passed the House and are now in the Senate. And unfortunately we don't expect it to stop here.

Exposure of children, pregnant women, farm workers and other Americans to pesticides is a growing risk— even more, thanks to recent actions of the Trump administration. Please donate (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b0/14552b18/45f2e29c/2b74e443/3942364107/VEsC/) to allow us to continue our lobbying and legal work as well as allow us to do outreach and education for workers who are so critically affected. Donate (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b0/14552b18/45f2e29c/2b74e443/3942364107/VEsD/) so we can be there for workers like Alyin.

DONATE (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b0/14552b18/45f2e29c/2b74e443/3942364107/VEsA/)
https://secure.ufw.org/drift517

Chris, Thank you for receiving our emails -- we appreciate everything you do!

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ckaihatsu

21st May 2017, 13:45

Grad teachers are standing up to Yale. Sign now to show your support!

AFL-CIO

Chris,

Yale is one of the most prestigious and influential universities in America. Every year, the school recruits from the best and brightest students and teachers in the world to create an academic environment that should be a shining example of what the best college education in the United States should be.

But its efforts to stop graduate teachers from joining together in a union are putting that at risk. Graduate teachers voted to unionize in February, but the university administration is refusing to sit down and negotiate with them. Eight graduate teachers now are fasting to get the university to respect their rights.

Sign the International Solidarity Statement now to stand with the courageous young scholars at Yale University who have chosen to fight for their future. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3gA/ni0YAA/t.27h/HYt0ujijQim_R96qha0uig/h0/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBbZZ8k6zBVQtuO7myuMWelm0zu0Hed8 vwUnr-2Fw-2BZmACsxbuG47HPvdjmLtEBJAaaGTC0HTfQxZ4HWm8eoupNTpp K1nNIohy0tzJ3j29yYS-2BsYfG3Z-2FRnqW93ksVN38-2FqEymEapPW4t8cFdVcJp5crXv54ZtqEZM3596x-2F4-2BHuWxMr-2BU7suD-2BVwocSU0WkPqhmfCjE6h34LdS6ahwavgufCFeWfmbjxtoKnKf yxzeCMAFYTgp73naax8DjZM2yg7MvYq5xHuVW9T2lhSKaMyIE-2FwYQ551KxtzhEARCpjhli6Dl2pHFnisLTtu9KsL5sHJuMg8K0 0PZDVdBGAoDRA-2FFB9mG5B6cf-2FXz44nmKi8vUyB-2BDKub8mQmGBXn-2Fg9fMpkmU-2BW0-2FEk3GHPMZkrrAQ5SR7hItTPh8vL00lin31BqUi4etM7zl-2Fu7Uzu8gxeCvdOT9mEejSyJeF3KCJi9ikhKYyDbtzn8oPpa1S ru8xOiYBY)

Yale’s graduation ceremony is Monday, May 22, and graduate teachers are doing everything they can to keep the pressure up before then. Teachers, students and community members have marched, protested, engaged in civil disobedience and, for more than three weeks, have fasted to bring recognition to their struggle to be heard, respected and protected.

So far, university officials aren’t budging on their anti-union stance. They’re delaying negotiations with graduate teachers in the hopes that Donald Trump will appoint people to the National Labor Relations Board who will invalidate the right of graduate teachers to form a union.

But we can make the university administration feel enough pressure that they’ll drop their union-busting tactics.

Add your name to the International Solidarity Statement to demand that the Yale Corporation and Yale President Peter Salovey immediately stop their tactics of delay and respect the values of equality and democracy. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3gA/ni0YAA/t.27h/HYt0ujijQim_R96qha0uig/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBbZZ8k6zBVQtuO7myuMWelm0zu0Hed8 vwUnr-2Fw-2BZmACsxbuG47HPvdjmLtEBJAaaGTC0HTfQxZ4HWm8eoupNTpp K1nNIohy0tzJ3j29yYS-2BsYfG3Z-2FRnqW93ksVN38-2FqEymEapPW4t8cFdVcJp5crXvWPx2adEx1CP7zNS6UWW2MGn5 ertKxFSlauZM-2FWUUIc8pKNxH6z3cDNJdbN3LtLAUuwGiR1l6wXsycW7Dhgkd7 UFwIfGFzPCEWNAMe-2BGRUvgz2FhPs0jExS0bh3YPqIrwKGwfJJF6e0ek9mFR9NPojf t4JQdaoCY-2BppCWnICclkvY6aq82td2Bd2DUmilp3bG54oLOem8e5JM7cOn DkMJIDsiIrQi1NdpWG9FroUvUHV6WV7iE7ejApxOYrzOq-2BQF2CHaWszpJ2VDjp7dDtt7XwE68EdzqCrl-2FsrWCzHp3GBh8bpaCr208NdxIXumNyb8dVmXJiHWGQDoxFdyv VKgQ)

In solidarity,

Liz
--------------
Liz Shuler
Secretary-Treasurer, AFL-CIO

AFL-CIO Facebook Twitter
Visit us at www.aflcio.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3gA/ni0YAA/t.27h/HYt0ujijQim_R96qha0uig/h5/GmvsifzDqUiJ01-2B2MhZwY33MKnIS-2FMAQV2hmmP7L0vKrPYdVvv9jmjIj94uF52qwU-2FNoVT-2FNuIdx8nrTixV-2Fo2bvp8tHfzuydyWNuOOk4pQdRP0hDmYUrWiSaipzHy0lUWVX IeGjSabx1pclG4oZILEZUIFLBgoHrc9UwJNxSYmdEAhFTzqGIc jChDXxxrx7RpfhzbTSmCJFubTbIMl9K8Fa5eJbPOQj4nr2-2F9n32rnLr6pOTR4vA0lKE5jTk0ciyk8b44Kh8beOdyM3ebLmx FmV-2B8CbTb2KpT7gN4jnngXcX1UqdVSiVndtxwFE4dYVSsLCBcMlc yB7tVZxIPkb9rcXXLrANgvKT3UnoMZT-2FSA-3D) | Facebook (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3gA/ni0YAA/t.27h/HYt0ujijQim_R96qha0uig/h6/9ZtgBbtsz-2BGzBX39C579VIL2jQ9i-2BKiVA2I-2BF9wgGRQL0fp01PKxf8VudQrkkU39bg7H6uXVv4yKFqf6xwfk 54z6iH68r1MX3ns4d1nEOrxnkIAfEM5-2FKlsIa7R9mWUW-2BlxwROpVQ4QGGlX-2BFtLQmvTm1K-2BEQYVNtQJtWKL4UYpPnDVr4W4F59OUJyhwWixyy0HZguFN3Wp Wc1oTt5MDZ6XfhKgHuyF90Cfz4anaT8IKNXpk9VZtlSklGpkac OyXauP3xVDLr7AdrzJS9HlBv0KLb2Z4du4N26-2BmrZQmaMp1U10g-2BaD6IFzMljMJ1alspnizAgaCiyzaBJrVj-2BBMg82UY28gDJrkDnkrwNZISYDwe8ft7ECGev2hVhN-2BVmlL) | Twitter (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/3gA/ni0YAA/t.27h/HYt0ujijQim_R96qha0uig/h7/9RXDenI7BReTpKa-2F42PXTJ7hbSBraPBCb6Z3XIdqxQSeBEjnWFpsJcmitZnkKMWH EByenjudXOPxvS79y3T50jtC-2BLT5Fmvkbo-2FZHCoApI-2FvawGm2bjxVqH-2BcrH7hNcKKdJWbm6KV36wMl8Kdd6OUQ7SLXzWZEYqpr3Y1xkh 8KddSmb5Z8NUnNAvR5E7nXTlKfUdbD87oTZKNhPWmU-2FukGC-2FbeVTYOTadhnKVzcZlWRlvaG9zBiZ9jdsESPdCebJz3B52Mc2 2OFjrPe0fBkNRME9Cu9fYeHInbAU6BvtqgE6oIPbXL47zWWxNg QzdmzafiIZbZWD3nHyj6bKl9oo411215yOhwdraFH09h5l6LsT JzUt1vI2mwgFIps6Fw-2FY)
Text WORK to AFLCIO (235246) to join our text action team. (Message and data rates may apply.)

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ckaihatsu

24th May 2017, 17:55

Join Low-Wage Food Workers Telling Airlines That We're Fed Up!

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/094/896/original/DharonFedUp.jpg

Dear Chris,

My name is Dharon Golding and I’ve been an airline food worker serving United Airlines flights at O’Hare Airport in Chicago for 3 years. I’m writing to ask for your support because your business and my hard work have made it possible for the airlines to reap historic profits, yet we are not getting the treatment we deserve!

Sign the petition today to tell the airlines that you, like me, are Fed Up! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.27l/8e86PgfsRIekHTkpN1UcXA/h0/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3As5Pb78jC5a7c65cFwc0V1pXr-2FNJmtLCUuLMZddoF1yNVex1sB5IIrH4lcguHgv9ZEzy4T0OlU fivc1WqJbM0QpsNTW3OPbe2JOsHDRLa3Stx8KOyL7mjAXG0hc6 FgfPGyz6wL-2B-2B1-2B8v0LnJ3p1GpzTaTsbac-2FE3NHS6A2MhICvgFAgFi6joQQaiw09dsQx30l16ISpvktiBqK OJdXBMuAj59UwPMJi2WwN-2B1mmQubupWCQS6DOJD09kTKn0rQllp2k9d3-2B5ru6u74AiPb01H2jETYQoAiM0Cz0DpCVCHc3YMgE0jKg38qx 3uF0rM-2FXMGip43SkvoiOMpK6dKoy83f)

The airlines made $35 billion in profits in 2016, yet my raise this year was just 30 cents. After this year I won’t get ANY raise because my employer isn’t giving them to workers with more than three years of service.

And it’s not just workers who are getting a bad deal—from overbooked flights to hidden fees, passengers like you are not getting the treatment you deserve, either.

This morning I went to United’s annual shareholders meeting to deliver that message straight to the company’s leadership. And next month, I'll join 12 other airline food workers from across the country for a tour through Charlotte, Washington, D.C, Philadelphia and New York, where we’ll attend American Airlines’ annual shareholder meeting.

After you sign the petition (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.27l/8e86PgfsRIekHTkpN1UcXA/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3As5Pb78jC5a7c65cFwc0V1pXr-2FNJmtLCUuLMZddoF1yHEziH7Vwv7BAwdfj3tP92YjzXwK3I7U rD1PrTZHLuS-2BTjqMEMVdy0qy0bBzuJWXZVoVYiabjL-2FFjEa7HqHOpyloVKjCcnM-2ByPx-2FXSCMAAa4sOV7eNhbB-2BnMdPz5VTjCIN-2Fix-2F7C494bAFVO4ERberATXCNqKTK1JFJ6mPjd4tX5Ve8YSABp-2B4D-2BB30K7juIztlmVhqGxMHmHWMvx-2BHs9R0Np3x6H3t9DYhKnfhnc-2FN-2B5h9JtG2WmwKvwaZYiF78LAjCyo7uDJRmY-2F2M-2BStFeesFncUdoXAYgtR-2F8IPiwUEn), we'll personally deliver a postcard with your message to American Airlines’ leadership.

Together, let’s tell the airlines that we are Fed Up and ready for a change! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.27l/8e86PgfsRIekHTkpN1UcXA/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBV0Frf8aO-2BhheoIczpshG3As5Pb78jC5a7c65cFwc0V1pXr-2FNJmtLCUuLMZddoF1yI-2FybIeA3vGfAqS5Hc1wrxSfj1Ubyw8Kr-2F-2FuquqjR1djg2F7fGw0m1b7Y76maKiY4aJ4Ir2isLMgMUoUd-2B5cMXJnP-2BYoTz0GQWvcauV0Ks7-2F4obpTdIaNwgqslv3wQ3eS3dWwJ6U6-2FIJQhcFDXuuaN4bgyyu3IdNj4bQb5YhdZpyqtHRujobbNbhmo sdhsJge5R7AwheZiN-2FIuSXzy3M3Kpy1Zmw42pd80JyEBsUSflWCAt0Ks-2FZ-2FQ0NQprRXiaeN0QXQDDjfeCvwoNHpftH7XNMfAlf-2BTNURRn2QjI97FVL)

In solidarity,
Dharon Golding

Connect with us!

UNITE HERE | 275 7th Ave., New York, NY 10001 | www.unitehere.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.27l/8e86PgfsRIekHTkpN1UcXA/h6/uQHZJSxyOoM8AOi7mHZ1COeVDuqxsQ6c888agoWbUvP3-2Bzbl9VZC79yE-2BJv0nSra9JUZPqG0fsOBKSBEz0sv2eBGJD-2FU30WpuPatR-2FP2e9MG5D9wsiKccKXluOuqpX0jWt6fvNbMNlEkbrTcu-2B1wOCsjXWqR6rhuRZgcobbIek-2FJMZ7yOd4nM3Rq5y2UlIVCqnQYeFraSIpgHya9z85unopHPre N-2BQ62zRFVVidu9ITGhofmySE0XRulqoGPuozYWLldOBV5dHSoF spvFbuyXOv9t-2BWiN-2FYsbkyySqkBHCupSkvqbJuB4hGZcb4vCv0TEvBR5DybKH2Z6P p10EzFKw-3D-3D) | privacy policy (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4QA/ni0YAA/t.27l/8e86PgfsRIekHTkpN1UcXA/h7/BRqO4f3K3UDDeHhwTnFpjkjO1a9725O2YP75Bifzf3-2BW163vCIIFFu5pDvbeqy1-2BT392-2FReB5uZ5JNSZVhLWqlfqWVuMEd-2BfMApx4LAIr56offdKE4ns-2BNHtWvuUFBj8dv18VYiULCHV3iJaJWJmoumFKwOHWxZvHCKzy pZhu5NgT0KM3crW53CKFOe0wUV6fvo8d2Z-2B4qNrHCRH-2FMjhuktmD3iDo8n-2FnfczE-2BnfndKhS0D-2BBbMd4DBANYxQcDTS1O-2BUJCR6xAH0O7WnxqFiYfKAhLfEr90nry2wCcxq7TVoT5PPHrq euRkcAlT-2FiXvxG0NNjHzYNI9J6e0NdJ8MV2oGbzduOZ-2B-2FenW-2F8Jp2WiA-3D)

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ckaihatsu

25th May 2017, 13:34

Action: It's time for paid sick days in Illinois

Dear Chris,

One-and-a-half million workers in Illinois cannot earn a single paid sick day.

When they get sick or a family member needs care, they risk losing pay or even their jobs. Missing just a few days of work can compromise families’ entire monthly grocery budgets, their ability to heat their homes or pay their rent.

Right now, the Illinois Senate is considering a bill that would guarantee working people across the state the right to earn paid sick days.

Take action: Urge your state senator to support the Healthy Workplace Act &raquo (http://go.nationalpartnership.org/site/R?i=Nteta9tJWfwRV548eMTL1Q)

This vital legislation, which the Illinois House already passed, would allow employees to earn up to five paid sick days per year that they can use for their own or a family member’s illness; because of domestic or sexual violence; or for a public health emergency that closes an employee’s place of business or a child’s school.

Ask your senator to stand with working families in Illinois by passing the Healthy Workplace Act » (http://go.nationalpartnership.org/site/R?i=ZRaif797zKIeUAlxTtMqmg)

Take Action (http://go.nationalpartnership.org/site/R?i=Srpxlh9jAwDRU2LdyP5zDg)

Thanks!

Vicki Shabo headshot 2013
Vicki Shabo signature
Vicki Shabo
Vice President

1875 Connecticut Avenue NW
Suite 650
Washington, DC 20009
202.986.2600
[email protected]
www.NationalPartnership.org (http://go.nationalpartnership.org/site/R?i=C9TkXG8O49uaadNoLbdL8w)

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ckaihatsu

25th May 2017, 19:16

Tell Congress to Support the Raise the Wage Act

Stand with working families. Take action now! (https://click.everyaction.com/h/191128/1658211?nvep=ew0KICAiVGVuYW50VXJpIjogIm5ncHZhbjovL 3Zhbi9OV0xDL05XTEMvMS81OTM4NCIsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXR pb25JZCI6IG51bGwsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXRpb25VbmlxdWVJZ CI6ICI2Zjc5MzA3Zi03MjQxLWU3MTEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDR iMDgiLA0KICAiRW1haWxNZXNzYWdlSWQiOiAiYTkyMWJjYTgtN Tc0MS1lNzExLTgwYzItMDAwZDNhMTA0YjA4IiwNCiAgIkVtYWl sTWVzc2FnZUNvbnRlbnRJZCI6ICJhYTIxYmNhOC01NzQxLWU3M TEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDRiMDgiLA0KICAiRW1haWxBZGRyZXN zIjogImNrYWloYXRzdUBnbWFpbC5jb20iLA0KICAiRGlzdHJpY nV0aW9uVHJhY2thYmxlSXRlbUlkIjogMA0KfQ%3D%3D&hmac=6PfWTIbYNCubz-KOIhflKBLsWoqzzrSbTEjpNquGG6U=&emci=aa21bca8-5741-e711-80c2-000d3a104b08&emdi=6f79307f-7241-e711-80c2-000d3a104b08&fn=Chris&mn=&ln=Kaihatsu&em=ckaihatsu%40gmail.com&add1=4130%20N%20Campbell%20Ave%20&ci=Chicago&st=IL&pc=60618&hp=7739164028&mp=&wp=&ep=&oc=&p=Mr&s=)

Dear Chris,

Since January, Republican leaders in Congress have targeted working families. The House of Representatives voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which would strip health care from 23 million people. The Senate confirmed conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court, along with a Cabinet full of individuals like Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, and Secretary of Health and Human Services Tom Price, who have each promoted dangerous policies that will hurt women and their families. And Congress repealed the Fair Pay and Safe Workplace executive order issued by President Obama, which means it will be harder to hold federal contractors responsible for discrimination.

It’s long past time for Congress to stand up for working people. And thankfully, there’s a clear way for members to prove they’re on our side: by fighting for a $15 minimum wage and supporting the Raise the Wage Act.

Urge Your Members of Congress to Support the Raise the Wage Act (https://click.everyaction.com/h/191130/1658213?nvep=ew0KICAiVGVuYW50VXJpIjogIm5ncHZhbjovL 3Zhbi9OV0xDL05XTEMvMS81OTM4NCIsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXR pb25JZCI6IG51bGwsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXRpb25VbmlxdWVJZ CI6ICI2Zjc5MzA3Zi03MjQxLWU3MTEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDR iMDgiLA0KICAiRW1haWxNZXNzYWdlSWQiOiAiYTkyMWJjYTgtN Tc0MS1lNzExLTgwYzItMDAwZDNhMTA0YjA4IiwNCiAgIkVtYWl sTWVzc2FnZUNvbnRlbnRJZCI6ICJhYTIxYmNhOC01NzQxLWU3M TEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDRiMDgiLA0KICAiRW1haWxBZGRyZXN zIjogImNrYWloYXRzdUBnbWFpbC5jb20iLA0KICAiRGlzdHJpY nV0aW9uVHJhY2thYmxlSXRlbUlkIjogMA0KfQ%3D%3D&hmac=6PfWTIbYNCubz-KOIhflKBLsWoqzzrSbTEjpNquGG6U=&emci=aa21bca8-5741-e711-80c2-000d3a104b08&emdi=6f79307f-7241-e711-80c2-000d3a104b08&fn=Chris&mn=&ln=Kaihatsu&em=ckaihatsu%40gmail.com&add1=4130%20N%20Campbell%20Ave%20&ci=Chicago&st=IL&pc=60618&hp=7739164028&mp=&wp=&ep=&oc=&p=Mr&s=)

Tell your lawmakers to stand with working families and women.

Take Action (https://click.everyaction.com/h/191131/1658214?nvep=ew0KICAiVGVuYW50VXJpIjogIm5ncHZhbjovL 3Zhbi9OV0xDL05XTEMvMS81OTM4NCIsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXR pb25JZCI6IG51bGwsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXRpb25VbmlxdWVJZ CI6ICI2Zjc5MzA3Zi03MjQxLWU3MTEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDR iMDgiLA0KICAiRW1haWxNZXNzYWdlSWQiOiAiYTkyMWJjYTgtN Tc0MS1lNzExLTgwYzItMDAwZDNhMTA0YjA4IiwNCiAgIkVtYWl sTWVzc2FnZUNvbnRlbnRJZCI6ICJhYTIxYmNhOC01NzQxLWU3M TEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDRiMDgiLA0KICAiRW1haWxBZGRyZXN zIjogImNrYWloYXRzdUBnbWFpbC5jb20iLA0KICAiRGlzdHJpY nV0aW9uVHJhY2thYmxlSXRlbUlkIjogMA0KfQ%3D%3D&hmac=6PfWTIbYNCubz-KOIhflKBLsWoqzzrSbTEjpNquGG6U=&emci=aa21bca8-5741-e711-80c2-000d3a104b08&emdi=6f79307f-7241-e711-80c2-000d3a104b08&fn=Chris&mn=&ln=Kaihatsu&em=ckaihatsu%40gmail.com&add1=4130%20N%20Campbell%20Ave%20&ci=Chicago&st=IL&pc=60618&hp=7739164028&mp=&wp=&ep=&oc=&p=Mr&s=)

Millions of workers—mostly women and disproportionately women of color—struggle to make ends meet for themselves and their families on poverty-level wages. The Raise the Wage Act, would give one in three women a raise, lifting millions of families out of poverty. It would:

• Increase the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 per hour by 2024, then make sure it continues to rise along with wages for other workers.

• Ensure that tipped workers—who are mostly women—have paychecks they can depend on, by phasing in a requirement for employers to pay their tipped employees the regular minimum wage before tips.

• Help close the gender wage gap.

• Reduce poverty and strengthen the economy.

Tell your members of Congress: Make hardworking families a priority by supporting the Raise the Wage Act. (https://click.everyaction.com/h/191132/1658215?nvep=ew0KICAiVGVuYW50VXJpIjogIm5ncHZhbjovL 3Zhbi9OV0xDL05XTEMvMS81OTM4NCIsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXR pb25JZCI6IG51bGwsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXRpb25VbmlxdWVJZ CI6ICI2Zjc5MzA3Zi03MjQxLWU3MTEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDR iMDgiLA0KICAiRW1haWxNZXNzYWdlSWQiOiAiYTkyMWJjYTgtN Tc0MS1lNzExLTgwYzItMDAwZDNhMTA0YjA4IiwNCiAgIkVtYWl sTWVzc2FnZUNvbnRlbnRJZCI6ICJhYTIxYmNhOC01NzQxLWU3M TEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDRiMDgiLA0KICAiRW1haWxBZGRyZXN zIjogImNrYWloYXRzdUBnbWFpbC5jb20iLA0KICAiRGlzdHJpY nV0aW9uVHJhY2thYmxlSXRlbUlkIjogMA0KfQ%3D%3D&hmac=6PfWTIbYNCubz-KOIhflKBLsWoqzzrSbTEjpNquGG6U=&emci=aa21bca8-5741-e711-80c2-000d3a104b08&emdi=6f79307f-7241-e711-80c2-000d3a104b08&fn=Chris&mn=&ln=Kaihatsu&em=ckaihatsu%40gmail.com&add1=4130%20N%20Campbell%20Ave%20&ci=Chicago&st=IL&pc=60618&hp=7739164028&mp=&wp=&ep=&oc=&p=Mr&s=)

The Trump Administration has made it clear that its attacks on the well-being of women and working families won’t stop. That’s why we need to make sure our representatives in Congress will stand up to these assaults—they work for us, after all.

The Raise the Wage Act puts women and families first. It’s time for Congress to side with working families over corporations.

Tell Congress: Show us your support for this important legislation, now (https://click.everyaction.com/h/191133/1658216?nvep=ew0KICAiVGVuYW50VXJpIjogIm5ncHZhbjovL 3Zhbi9OV0xDL05XTEMvMS81OTM4NCIsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXR pb25JZCI6IG51bGwsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXRpb25VbmlxdWVJZ CI6ICI2Zjc5MzA3Zi03MjQxLWU3MTEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDR iMDgiLA0KICAiRW1haWxNZXNzYWdlSWQiOiAiYTkyMWJjYTgtN Tc0MS1lNzExLTgwYzItMDAwZDNhMTA0YjA4IiwNCiAgIkVtYWl sTWVzc2FnZUNvbnRlbnRJZCI6ICJhYTIxYmNhOC01NzQxLWU3M TEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDRiMDgiLA0KICAiRW1haWxBZGRyZXN zIjogImNrYWloYXRzdUBnbWFpbC5jb20iLA0KICAiRGlzdHJpY nV0aW9uVHJhY2thYmxlSXRlbUlkIjogMA0KfQ%3D%3D&hmac=6PfWTIbYNCubz-KOIhflKBLsWoqzzrSbTEjpNquGG6U=&emci=aa21bca8-5741-e711-80c2-000d3a104b08&emdi=6f79307f-7241-e711-80c2-000d3a104b08&fn=Chris&mn=&ln=Kaihatsu&em=ckaihatsu%40gmail.com&add1=4130%20N%20Campbell%20Ave%20&ci=Chicago&st=IL&pc=60618&hp=7739164028&mp=&wp=&ep=&oc=&p=Mr&s=).

Thanks for everything you do for women and families.

Sincerely,
Emily J. Martin
General Counsel and Vice President for Workplace Justice
National Women's Law Center

We the Resistance is our fight to protect our rights and freedoms and to defend the most vulnerable among us through powerful collective action. Every conversation you have with a loved one about the issues important to you, every call you make to Congress, every rally you attend is a part of that resistance. Join us — sign on to the We The Resistance manifesto (https://click.everyaction.com/h/191134/1658217?nvep=ew0KICAiVGVuYW50VXJpIjogIm5ncHZhbjovL 3Zhbi9OV0xDL05XTEMvMS81OTM4NCIsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXR pb25JZCI6IG51bGwsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXRpb25VbmlxdWVJZ CI6ICI2Zjc5MzA3Zi03MjQxLWU3MTEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDR iMDgiLA0KICAiRW1haWxNZXNzYWdlSWQiOiAiYTkyMWJjYTgtN Tc0MS1lNzExLTgwYzItMDAwZDNhMTA0YjA4IiwNCiAgIkVtYWl sTWVzc2FnZUNvbnRlbnRJZCI6ICJhYTIxYmNhOC01NzQxLWU3M TEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDRiMDgiLA0KICAiRW1haWxBZGRyZXN zIjogImNrYWloYXRzdUBnbWFpbC5jb20iLA0KICAiRGlzdHJpY nV0aW9uVHJhY2thYmxlSXRlbUlkIjogMA0KfQ%3D%3D&hmac=6PfWTIbYNCubz-KOIhflKBLsWoqzzrSbTEjpNquGG6U=&emci=aa21bca8-5741-e711-80c2-000d3a104b08&emdi=6f79307f-7241-e711-80c2-000d3a104b08&fn=Chris&mn=&ln=Kaihatsu&em=ckaihatsu%40gmail.com&add1=4130%20N%20Campbell%20Ave%20&ci=Chicago&st=IL&pc=60618&hp=7739164028&mp=&wp=&ep=&oc=&p=Mr&s=).

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National Women's Law Center
11 Dupont Circle NW, Suite 800
Washington, DC 20036
United States

ckaihatsu

26th May 2017, 12:50

On Strike from Coast to Coast

[see source for links in text]

CWA NEWSLETTER
May 25, 2017

Send tips to [email protected] or @CWANews (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27m/FuFiOdhNQ7q19aiCDcW49w/h1/2RVzWDSIG55zp08xQdQltdRFWoDrP021xL8TmiMvugSCh-2FTx9ZLAJpTHKa1IR5whvJmqCm1xusw1q-2F2SQCXebMF1JLWP7IPHKltYCnH9lzwVCcwSPPiJ1iDF1YHqKZ CWcNyJMNE5zrOMqu1g0e6GeZ9dQ7W62kcbhky3lbbAc64wokWR OJ8N49yRXcfRllj8yHCJWaHJvlDi4lNVZGmxCCjXAM-2FrquW5oCYq-2FppIipyKhiCb-2BoBz6PCyhCzDJ2V-2F).

Bargaining Update
Any New NAFTA Deal Must Benefit Working People, Not Corporations
IUE-CWA Local 84901 is CWA Strong
CWA-Endorsed Candidate Wins in New York
CWA Condemns Budget Handout to the Top 1%
Customer Service Update
Organizing Update
Court Interpreters' Lobby Day

Bargaining Update

Share This Article: Facebook (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27m/FuFiOdhNQ7q19aiCDcW49w/h2/UVpHk-2Fi5eD23H0Zp5bDe-2Bji7hX8fcWSJMFp-2FpJvRh-2B1affFjank4JjVN850dAMB3WOnrvNYsoWIZ011Xp-2B1C5VHDhVYX4ZBDQwcDQpaBbtxyT8iqOKOMOrunNBLiv1oblw YHls8vIjWb3a63yg8qSI5gyJFoNIMBOk-2ByYcsehuqB-2B38pU8of-2BE5S0m5zQs6sbv7AC6jmexpA5LnGCp7quUUoITovIGDMiATwn PxgGxawLi4wuugi-2BMJFbIigY-2BWEI0xN69GOD3qw6-2BMg03s64O-2BaX7qNsOtlqxC4ZeKVKcV4wDh5dpblw1lDMHn-2BAGfklUoNhzVmAfBzLd2Rt-2FL4L1fSj5wUv948HMxnXgt6vSvC0qxM6wRtpJeMWb9xpIucWV Jh6mo7vNsWSE3cAv32berYLQAqR83bGuwKo0OhgTA-3D) Twitter (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27m/FuFiOdhNQ7q19aiCDcW49w/h3/UVpHk-2Fi5eD23H0Zp5bDe-2Bji7hX8fcWSJMFp-2FpJvRh-2B0SPYZolHJ-2BMFK66-2BLY65zDxKUz7pGmGKVLupAb6Z7XV-2BgZDI6bj62-2BWXOqYj1KiuDTD3trymhdso2wdlNipL3sacRp04w-2BkVeIgXPi2kcLIi62DaBCWpv5k9p5NiNPgxsVESwOw7Nlgjnq bynYT3G0f8p2D9-2FVOp4H-2BPAiX6SJFlXjqexKVg3qqFl3IKA9kAQN9OwlFPUwdraFAnpn2 tgp10OGfh9ac-2B2FkRH8of4MNKBTp0SjgCSbSJdm8jVlUH9y0XBGy77WXmoygA Fwlhur9-2Fj1fRtEPmoscl00F5atdlI17EXx2jDR-2Fe-2BLfIdwtqlb7Mm8kVt7ikSCCjmOcPIt0IQTUgDlwKcapJVZuyg XhGBMe7v4iO5-2FrjE3I2-2BWbNA-3D) More... (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27m/FuFiOdhNQ7q19aiCDcW49w/h4/kxe-2Fa-2FuVJq6dxE1P0DoW3b7yvOCIHwWAAyW0-2BLCvXFtw3WWtW0K431d11-2F1fv-2B-2FzjyFQ58-2BTFRgdKQl8xgJK6Xl8O3VyI5zE2-2FXAxYGLVi58mS0OtVBetzi6xhJdVxe4kafPzruQbIprYk6E5S L5K85Wj7I2-2FHIQTbZga7kQq9sAJYTz-2BXxunDYjRSwxJoJXX3ifNNfjOOjrJhWh7qXTA-2FiTrKXMTri7ZIi58dRKmis2QVYxz0Z23-2BMyVe-2BHdblXMAV9eSoFz4XfPlJT3-2FZbM-2Br-2BR2oZ4mXZaCAfbgUC588thbjtFtwdZAiUlJ5daMAPx98xwfQS zSj1tGuCOLIq5Pqg9KQQTKYZJqVunduciMo-3D)

AT&T

In an historic weekend, CWA members at AT&T wireless, wireline (CA, CT, and NV), and DIRECTV technicians (CA and NV) walked off the job from coast to coast. From Philadelphia to Oregon, many elected officials – including Sen. Jeff Merkley (OR), Rep. Tim Ryan (OH), Reps. Dwight Evans and Bob Brady (PA), Congressman Ro Khanna (CA), Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney, NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio, Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown, California Assemblymember Kevin McCarty, Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant, and others – supported AT&T strikers' fight for a fair contract.

In their first strike, AT&T wireless workers walked off the job in unprecedented numbers – marking likely the largest national retail strike in U.S. history. Hundreds of stores closed across the country, while many others closed early during the strike.

Sarrah Nasser, an AT&T wireless call center representative from Paramus, NJ, said, "CWA is looking forward to returning to the bargaining table with the expectation we see genuine proposals that protect good jobs and quality service from AT&T. We are organized – with the support of our families, neighbors, elected leaders, and customers – and if AT&T doesn't do what’s right, we’ll keep doing what we need to win. AT&T: it's your move."

The strike, picket lines, and rallies caught the attention of major media outlets including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Associated Press, Fortune, CBS MoneyWatch, Buzzfeed, VICE, Chicago Tribune, New York Daily News, LA Times, St. Louis Post-Dispatch and many others.

Check out all the action here (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27m/FuFiOdhNQ7q19aiCDcW49w/h21/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiPilxRTgDD3o6EiBGmLOAgttLG8hfM 8jm3X6IH5GPL9mLO2n6Cs0n8qiPQGXwolYigGn9u5-2Berfry-2FBBgNn9b-2BfRvdLMGpL6c0Xtp3kafAl4Q-2Bjt6S6rNW8HnvcoVvODecJaNLVSIxinId8I1CzNuJBuVtvEdK EDsUCfFGyHwRZ-2Fa5HDflQodYYrRr795-2F-2F-2BWxi-2FxN5T76yLvdQ5kNOI62XQ25H5WvkTh84FXPIhCC7wiosoIUI0 Yck7OEaXGR08v35VXnKNbLux4aViY2lbG7lWfY-2B3Q3ZkYodCfUCe4lXD), here (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27m/FuFiOdhNQ7q19aiCDcW49w/h22/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiPilxRTgDD3o6EiBGmLOAgttLG8hfM 8jm3X6IH5GPL9mLO2n6Cs0n8qiPQGXwolYigGn9u5-2Berfry-2FBBgNn9b-2Be3hMMAG2bT94pMLFKpXs-2FiPM0cVZUcEsDqA94tTdROCIKtTl1AUb9dJfR1qqhLH5bz4-2BTSQ9MZVB6FKaloQsbmlWGHeLhqWc0SixMQCznsNbhEYdCYQp It0Ei5-2F9mGA-2BIvLHf-2FbgLyREwX5aUdJb2g7eeX9f2-2Fig3agLRwBUMH7UM1Q24DMjM5mEsxjtUleN7l309pJ2vmtqF-2B301yd1P6), and here (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27m/FuFiOdhNQ7q19aiCDcW49w/h23/laCycbjzuDwe-2BXNTOL9-2FdrzxTW5bOpCM-2F1xZud55EVemXqGu8tI6mcVWBlo4uD7OOrdRR4eh2UhQm48CJ Uj7TJKu-2B7IkvJFizHPFlKTCZznf6N1HjVJ7U0GSxijKR-2FlXv5ERf0gCxEmcyKFCw-2FbM7MIVwBo7miNyfeLwCisZkkv03Yb2u-2BCDg-2BBNOfHYLaZx-2F99V36qBPDANYFriaSx-2FbLVccpYkNCf0-2Bemi7zVDdZVLKdMshU6VwKqGZNWouaNl6PAJDHzx0umbESXHE X26cjxzJu9k1W0LRyiZrPDCY8o-3D).

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/095/109/original/1A_ATT_Collage_600.jpg

Across the country, CWAers at AT&T stood together for fair contracts. Clockwise, from top left: Members of CWA Local 4603, Milwaukee; Local 9415, Hawaii; Local 1298, Connecticut, and Local 9412, Reno, Nevada.

###

CenturyLink

District 7 CWAers at CenturyLink (legacy Qwest) joined a tele-town hall call this week about the tentative contract. Locals will share the contract explanation materials with members and conduct a ratification vote. The vote must be reported to the D7 office by noon MDT, June 16.

The tentative agreement extends the current contract for three more years and provides for substantial wage increases, among other changes. It has been unanimously recommended by the bargaining committee.

Read more here. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27m/FuFiOdhNQ7q19aiCDcW49w/h24/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiI2-2FJlCLLr50eZlM5ay5nkXUtKiMMiCRd1SqgyLZrdVLvzTEAfQG LEYYQFcqRN0iYyOcyfjUCqVp7zgb-2FsT7HKryFtEaxXGmZFBWIm85R8zksD6hUjnqCPa8wxSh-2BC-2FA2OQfjqhIie8NL7i85jdbl5m37nyBcM5HSEaSsvwi7grirAz Oq-2BC3vkZ1epsyHKYXKlVi4cfoIT8FoBQH-2B0hBTeGxasWctjIBhzfIOfRFrJaQzWKA4ts-2BkZBdTd4ocaObmQ-3D-3D)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/095/110/original/1B_Barg_Update_CenturyLink_7803_600.jpg
CWA members at CenturyLink stand together for a fair contract. Above, members of Local 7803 in Renton, Wash. Below, CWAers from Local 7101 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/095/111/original/1C_Barg_Update_CenturyLink_7101_600.jpg

###

CenturyLink Florida

CenturyLink workers in Florida, members of Local 3176, voted down an unacceptable package CenturyLink proposed and approved authorization for a strike.

The local has launched a website CenturyLinkDoesNotCare.com (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27m/FuFiOdhNQ7q19aiCDcW49w/h25/vIMLPoNJ9NmnnwwQtOeLB8LhnJy-2BfblpCxMmu-2FUJgh3-2FVpKPLZ71ogR2HCB-2BteRn), which explains the workers' issues and brings attention to the 12 NLRB charges and 1 UC Petition filed against the company. The local also continues to hold weekly pickets through the central Florida area.

All updated information can be found by going to www.cwa3176.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27m/FuFiOdhNQ7q19aiCDcW49w/h26/D9-2FjdC4X4JiFqBc4xDMWsiebjbwfKS91GQk9AJohWgUtORIj2yj j6xvD1Bc5E6D8CKuvxsywpm79s8KduRJ1NZyaJMOtLCl5BIj1a NEvCbECeQqqBwAEr9gyXEtz20aRXeRJTv-2F2plG6BIksJfBuyby82W4PcOlWRaMhHk8zYZZp-2B618rwi3syCOQ7kPLUz9BKBNNLdY2O1WW5cnkqrImhPpionUs BnwlHYWKfg0cS0tF5ed4xvhOBxG9ocJ5Vn6).

###

State of New Jersey

CWA is challenging Gov. Chris Christie's illegal action denying public workers the pay increments due after contract expiration. Christie did this to bully CWA members into accepting inadequate pay increases.

"CWA will not be bullied," the bargaining committee said. The state also is demanding extreme concessions that CWA has rejected in the areas of arbitration rights, discipline, layoff and recall rights, and more. "Although we will pursue negotiations with the administration, we reject the demands to gut our contract of respect and dignity language, due process protections, overtime and leave rights, layoff and job security rights, and other issues," the committee said.

CWA public worker members in New Jersey will be joining a telephone town hall call on Wednesday, May 31, at 7 p.m. ET, for an update on the latest in contract bargaining.

###

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/095/112/original/1D_Barg_Update_NJ_Local_1040_300.jpg
Members of Local 1040 put the school district on notice that workers will fight for job security.

Camden City School District

Camden City, N.J., School District custodian and maintenance workers, members of CWA Local 1040, are mobilizing for job security as part of contract negotiations. More than 40 workers delivered a petition to Superintendent Rouhanifard calling for job security. Members are receiving strong support from CWA locals and other unions, as well as clergy and local activists.

[...]

CWA
501 Third Street NW
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ckaihatsu

26th May 2017, 13:19

Victory! Charter Teachers in Chicago...

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/095/187/original/DAnycOIXgAIre2e.jpg

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/095/188/original/20170524_160615.jpg

Chris,

Charter teachers in Chicago are organizing and winning!

Late last night a strike was averted at Passages Charter School at Bryn Mawr and Ashland. Teachers organized with Chicago ACTS fought successfully to direct more resources to the classroom instead of the administration.

Our heartfelt congratulations to the hard-working members of Chicago Alliance of Charter Teachers and Staff!

When we fight, we win!

Chicago Jobs with Justice was there, along with parents, students and staff (and Alderman Cappleman!) Check out more photos and video on our twitter feed: @ChicagoJwJ (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2AA/ni0YAA/t.27m/7Yfz__EvTGyNDlnmSS_l0Q/h0/VE2atosPJwyp5yA4oN-2FSagzRTocDxEwqY7B3EnKphxklNbYsAw6MmN4mNW56nozKMK7 79HUVB9hSztodFwj6VvdgQoc8OnxTAeKp4w8vYkM0ei73Ke4Mo 8Q-2Bb8Zl3Vee9FIxmxjPrSx-2FCIAP1zbMtu7yVVSCWZPsmgRfBD8ZLJY-2FYd8ZxiO066iy0gCA-2FRbJbPVLdhOS9J4mmpEGdrPHLb3Ds3rsqTTIFkHxMuryTEZWF TLuohOWGI5urLStb8LmK74h0XKxNYMz59iRAG-2FmRrQzs6gCrNhqOAJYARHXPRVXokgKgwMA-2B7MprgOeigN6)

This is what we do and who we are. You can join us! Be a part of our solidarity committee-we have mobilized in the last week for charter teachers, airport workers, fast food workers, bakery workers, and more. Be a part of large and small victories every day, with Chicago Jobs with Justice.

Click here to sign up to receive urgent solidarity action text alerts! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2AA/ni0YAA/t.27m/7Yfz__EvTGyNDlnmSS_l0Q/h1/g-2FqwfR6QOmRkjsV8tiQTTbaMtzLx2fYTc-2FRXII1k3decGMIaHTTMO9YmNxSDsPucdtmZVz00oDENntLqdo IqfKnZuiuDJzvFOKJqzzVVe18oq3GmsDbcOSzwB249a-2F5hDKGzc24rKjR6qPJ0kSMdBlkVoNMGZ2XvyKXIHhsc3E5knw 1LdB33VT2I1hwKKK0WLGT9o4dV21xQR3TxUHXV23tV6lDDe5-2B8u7J-2BvazNwp-2BoZNAmmxROhbF-2FXTo5-2FBV83tcRmmFv6y596-2ByxnM1mMrb-2FPlmvBjnQjCGe8qdAMj2ccB2WXEhDzId-2FEOqzs4c8jrfVTu86qB3g-2BH7Am6j4AA-3D-3D)

You can also email me directly at [email protected], or call me at 312-738-6161.

Thanks and In Solidarity,

Susan Hurley

Chicago Jobs with Justice

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ckaihatsu

26th May 2017, 14:18

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2017/05/26/cons-m26.html

Rampant safety hazards, wage theft on Nashville construction sites

By Warren Duzak

26 May 2017

Construction has always been a dangerous job, but it has never been more dangerous in large southern US cities like Nashville, Tennessee.

In a survey of 1,435 construction workers in six major southern cities, Nashville ranked number one in frequency of injuries, almost double the average of construction related injuries in Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Miami and Charlotte, North Carolina in 2016.

The injury rate reported by the 200 Nashville construction workers was one in four compared to the one in seven average for the entire survey, which is published in a new report entitled “Build a Better South: Construction Working Conditions in the US South. (http://www.forworkingfamilies.org/sites/pwf/files/publications/BBS%20Full%20Report%20Digital.pdf)” The study was conducted by the Workers Defense Project (Proyecto Defensa Laboral), Partnership for Working Families and Urban Planning, and Policy Collage of Urban Planning and Public Affairs, University of Illinois at Chicago.

http://www.wsws.org/asset/afb00c94-4011-45aa-892e-ea4914245f1D/image.jpg?rendition=image480
Workers on new home in West Nashville working on roof without any safety equipment to prevent falls

Construction of high-rise apartment buildings has been quite common in Nashville over the past few years. At one point one could count 12 giant 19-ton, 150-foot high “Tower” cranes in and near the Nashville downtown area at a time.

Residential development has also demanded more construction workers. Older, one-story, wood frame houses in working-class neighborhoods have given way to gentrification and expensive narrow townhouse/row house-style homes.

Older neighborhoods seem to disappear overnight in the city. The threat of a housing bubble seems to mean nothing to bankers and builders caught up in fevered construction anarchy, with each hoping to be the one with the last loan paid off or the last home built and sold before the bubble bursts.

“These cities are the engines of growth in the South and are home to some of the largest and most important construction markets in the US,” the survey stated. “Nearly 1 million construction workers were employed in these six cities in 2013, accounting for 43% of all construction workers employed in the five states. Furthermore, more than one in four construction workers who are employed in the South are located in one of these six cities, and nationally one in 10 workers labor these six southern cities.”

An increasing number of construction workers are undocumented immigrants who are subjected to even greater frequencies of wage theft and other exploitation by employers who exploit their fear of arrest and deportation. Thirty-two percent of respondents in Build a Better South reported that they lacked legal documentation to work in the US.

Builders and contractors will turn to temporary employment agencies to keep down costs while the “temp” companies feed off the workers’ need for a job.

Injured economically by their employment status, temporary workers also run a higher risk of being injured on the job. The survey showed that workers hired through temporary employment agencies suffered a high injury rate that could be traced to “constantly changing work environments and poor access to training.”

Again, Nashville topped the list, with 18 percent of workers reporting that they got their jobs through temporary “staffing” companies.

One worker said temporary jobs added insult to injury because it seldom led to a full-time position. “Many times, you’ll get close to a permanent job and you get switched out or they don’t hire you,” he told reporters.

Nashville workers may suffer greater injuries because more than one-third are not provided most proper safety equipment. According to the survey 36 percent of the workers are not provided eyewear protection; 36 percent have no harness or fall protection, with nearly the same rate for those without hardhats (32 percent) or gloves (29 percent).

“Working or living in these new buildings, or gazing at their beautiful facades, you can no longer sense the presence of those construction workers and the challenges they faced, toiling long, hard hours to support their families,” David Michaels, PHD with the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University, said in the forward to the report.

“The evidence of pervasive wage theft, and of widespread employment misclassification, disappears once the buildings are finished and the crews go home,” Michaels added. “There is no more blood on the rebar where workers fell, and no signs of the back injuries that came from lifting too heavy loads or the gasping for air that comes from breathing silica dust day after day...

“The outrage is that dangerous, unjust employment occurs in plain sight, in our downtowns and suburban malls and office parks, abetted by owners and builders who participate in this system without complaint...We can no longer be silent knowing that our homes and commercial centers, our universities and hospitals, are built by men and women who work long hours but who can barely feed their families, who face dangerous working conditions daily with no recourse or compensation if they are injured, and whose labor rights are too often violated.”

The survey listed a litany of crimes against this group of workers:

* Just 5 percent of workers who were injured in the past 12 months had workers’ compensation insurance to cover their medical expenses.

* Workers may not even receive the most basic safety protections like rest breaks or access to drinking water. One-third of workers do not have drinking water provided on their worksite, a basic necessity that employers are required to provide under federal law.

* Few construction workers have access to basic employment benefits. Less than half (43 percent) of construction workers are offered medical insurance by their employer. The problem of access to medical insurance is exacerbated by the fact that only 45 percent have an employer that has workers’ compensation insurance.

* Approximately three out of four workers lack paid personal time (73 percent) or paid sick time (78 percent). More than half (57 percent) of workers surveyed earn less than $15 per hour despite high average levels of experience in the industry.

* One in seven workers has been injured during their construction career, and more than one in three of these workers have suffered an injury in the past 12 months.

*Thirty-six percent of workers struggle to pay for basic necessities, such as rent or food, even though 82 percent of workers reported working overtime with their current employer.

In 2015, based on US Department of Labor statistics, a construction worker died every nine hours for a total of 924 that year, the report noted.

The Department of Labor also reported that in 2015 several construction occupations recorded their highest fatality totals in years, including construction laborers (highest since 2008); carpenters (2009); electricians (2009); and plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters (2003).

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ckaihatsu

26th May 2017, 18:24

[LaborTech] AIRBNB Employees Speak Out About Company Bullying Tactics & "Toxic" Work Environment

AIRBNB Employees Speak Out About Company Bullying Tactics & "Toxic" Work Environment

http://brokeassstuart.com/blog/2017/05/25/airbnb-employees-speak-out-about-company-bullying-tactics/

25 MAY 2017

ALEX MAK - MANAGING EDITOR 2 2 5

According to current and former employees, the corporate culture at Airbnb has become ‘toxic’ over the last year. In 2015, Glassdoor ranked the company as the #1 place to work, in 2017 that ranking dropped to 35th (https://www.glassdoor.com/Award/Best-Places-to-Work-LST_KQ0,19.htm), and many employees are speaking out. A person who has worked in Airbnb’s Food Department for more than 2 years first approached us with grievances concerning company’s changing work environment, and when we reached out for more sources to confirm the story, many were all too happy to share.

http://brokeassstuart.com/wp-content/pictsnShit/2017/05/airbnb-office.jpg
Airbnb Office, San Francisco

“The original working culture at Airbnb was ‘be a host to each other‘, but that’s not how it is anymore”. Claims a source inside Airbnb, who insisted on remaining anonymous. “It’s become a toxic work environment where management bullies the staff, I know several people who have left and several people threatening to leave.”

When we pressed for specifics: “Many complaints have been filed to HR against management, because of ‘bullying tactics’, and passive aggressive management. At one point people were even afraid to file for overtime even if we were working longer hours, because management was so hostile.”

Another Airbnb employee’s email complaint about management was leaked to us, it voices concerns about a hostile work environment and suspicions of a management strategy to force full time employees out. Screenshots of the actual emails have been removed as requested by their original source for fear of retribution:

“THIS IS A COMPANY OF BELONGING AND INCLUSION, EVERYTHING OUR NEW MANAGEMENT HAS DONE THUS FAR PERSONNEL WISE HAS BEEN THE OPPOSITE OF THAT”

“THERE IS A CONCERN THAT UPPER MANAGEMENT IS NOT INCLINED TO HELP TENURED EMPLOYEES SUCCEED, AND RATHER IS DOING EVERYTHING THEY CAN TO MAKE CERTAIN PEOPLE LOOK BAD AND MAKE THEM BECOME FRUSTRATED”

“THERE IS A BUSINESS NEED TO ELIMINATE FULL TIME EMPLOYEES…AND MOVE TOWARDS ALL CONTRACTED EMPLOYEES”

Several Airbnb Food Department employees felt there was a corporate strategy to push out full time employees (FTE’s) so that they might be replaced with cheaper contractors.

A third Airbnb employee sent us his feelings on the department: “(I) saw a lot of my friends treated like dirt, manipulated and exploited for their hard work, while being completely ignored as contributing members to the team.”

We looked at Glassdoor employee reviews (https://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Airbnb-Reviews-E391850.htm) to see if these trends existed in other departments. The reviews on Glassdoor are anonymous, so should be taken with a grain of salt, but there is a clear trend of long term employees speaking out against new management in several departments. Many reviews complaining about ‘inexperienced’ or ‘uncaring management’, as well as a corporate structure that does not allow for upward mobility. Which should come at no surprise given their business model of relying on cheaper, part-time contractors as way of cutting costs and company responsibilities.

There were also of course many positive reviews from employees, and feel free to read them yourself glassdoor.com (https://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Airbnb-Reviews-E391850.htm). Below, we’ve concentrated on reviews that brought up concerns with management, company culture, and growing pains in May of 2017, to which there were many in several departments:

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“HONESTLY EVERYONE SEEMS MISERABLE AND LIKE THEY’RE PHONING IT IN. IT’S SUCH A FAR CRY FROM THE MAGICAL OFFICE I JOINED THREE YEARS AGO.” – AIRBNB EMPLOYEE

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“PEOPLE ARE TREATED LIKE CATTLE”

Airbnb’s growth in the last 4 years has been astronomical. In March 2017, Airbnb continued to raise money and was valued at 31 billion dollars. This growth has not come without pains. Airbnb owes much of its success to the ‘sharing economy’, a model that allows corporations to pass off costs of doing business to their own work force. Like Uber or Taskrabbit, these companies avoid paying taxes or benefits to their workers by mostly supporting part-time positions. At the same time they find ways to duck governmental regulations and taxes, thereby gaining a huge advantage on traditional competitors. As a result labor unions and local city governments have been fighting Airbnb’s aggressive expansion for years.

http://brokeassstuart.com/wp-content/pictsnShit/2017/05/airbnbfairshareFB2.png
San Francisco ‘Yes’ on Prop F campaign sign. A campaign to regulate Airbnb in 2015.

The silicon valley term for these types of companies is ‘disruptors’. In the industries they are changing, and to the cities they are manipulating, these companies are sometimes called far worse. In San Francisco for example the chief concern was that +8,000 unregulated Airbnb ‘hotels’ were taking away much needed housing stock during a historical housing shortage. City Residents fought to regulate Airbnb’s ‘temporary’ hotels, so that they could make sure Airbnb would pay their fair share of taxes. But Airbnb spent over $8 million in a smear campaign full of obvious untruths and scare tactics (http://brokeassstuart.com/blog/2015/11/02/san-francisco-housing-attorney-explains-airbnb-law/) to defeat regulation.

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‘No on F’ Airbnb advert. Prop F asked Airbnb hosts to file their guest bookings just like a hotel, so that they do not skip out on paying their taxes.

This year, under judicial pressure, Airbnb has agreed to register it’s hosts who rent homes and rooms to tourists (http://www.sfchronicle.com/business/article/How-does-Airbnb-s-deal-with-SF-work-11139753.php). This is an important step in a city where housing costs have sky rocketed as more and more homes are taken off the market to be used as unregulated hotel rooms.

Now that Airbnb is worth 31 billion dollars, maybe it’s time they think about treating their employees and the cities who host them with a little more respect. As the first Airbnb employee who interviewed put it:

“IT’S A COMPANY ABOUT BELONGING ANYWHERE, BUT HOW CAN WE BELONG IF WE FEEL LIKE THEY ARE TRYING TO PUSH US OUT”. – CURRENT FULL-TIME AIRBNB EMPLOYEE, SOON TO BE REPLACED WITH ANOTHER PART-TIME CONTRACTOR.

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ckaihatsu

27th May 2017, 13:56

More Wins! Kale Workers Reach Settlement with Teachey Produce

On June 24, 2016, Pedro went to pick corn for Teachey Produce in Rose Hill NC. When he got to the field, he realized there was no water despite dangerously high temperatures. That day, he had a heat stroke and had to be hospitalized. What made the situation worse was that the Teacheys then refused to file a workman’s comp claim or help Pedro with the hospital bill that was equivalent to almost a whole season’s worth of Pedro’s wages.

Meanwhile, Teachey Produce was stealing wages from three other farmworkers at their farm, at times making unauthorized deductions from their checks or outright refusing to pay them for their day's work. Pedro along with his three coworkers decided to stand up for their rights and demand justice.

“When we got a lawyer in the case, [the owner] brought me out and told me that if you don’t drop this case, I am gonna call immigration, and immigration is gonna take you and kick you back to Mexico,” says [Victoria] Hernandez.
However, the workers didn’t back down. Instead, they filed a class-action lawsuit alleging violations of wage and hour protections, safety laws, and retaliation for speaking out.

Payday Report: Kale Workers In NC Show How Immigrants Can Win in the Trump Era (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2gA/ni0YAA/t.27n/kbzXYV70QAe6iCxmGMn05w/h0/fJ3RjA-2FaLrLsCvOS8nlfvGPvb4XsVSwCZ0Z5Wgj1aDvSI-2BfFpLZNk-2B6vc0qj7D-2Bz537Gf67SVeoOYK8v2WQJ-2BkwTqr3DvlrIyoA1BiE5aY8LIB9-2F3aKVFmT-2FBqVcphVFG4wHu66U4ZwpXAwybIkqg-2BcmUa6BjH9zngabO5hgSeRnz-2F-2B3uM-2BBjQRM3s6jwD4VpfZHExW-2BSJTe7D9Ploo1g7c4E2KpJbYusStSYh06nnJQWSRafhlQfaG5 cjNaowXMvgS4fj7WJNIWJfPnF-2B6gFoSDM0XpbwuzHBiUB2AauVcCMeFJUO1B7Nkf-2FDPhQuPZTiins4M8qr4X9RNux8-2BpX4KxAowu-2FKAhWU7gVe-2BdTTe1jvSg0h5BE0iwURjRUCPJoSCkYaN9eJFzUh98c5WkBYu bW822hMJJyg-2F-2FJu2AKXmtMUXZMnwX-2BVwm-2BqSl5zy9Xk6SpiEXQvoIniqmwPHaLLoGJ6V2AtS-2F3OYFZB5beWE-3D)

Last month, with the assistance of FLOC, a settlement was reached (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2gA/ni0YAA/t.27n/kbzXYV70QAe6iCxmGMn05w/h1/X4FIVDACC-2F1mbYwHI4-2Bu6L6kp-2BFwuLuwvJX-2BS9qTl7RRQhb5OW1tDTT2CFgCDZm3h8lrQcS37JEy-2Bd8FVz-2F2uG5IN9GOg1-2BD7JyrdBCi0bN8JO6hw47e4xhfRODaW-2B4SDodplMskhun7EcpY8pJd3PSk-2BQzC5gitToMM7UOE3OVRAqKpujrxV9MshEgr-2FBuGHVn2KjP9CiSOPgbI0s-2BOLyq5b4RD43-2FlC3bUCUURumawyOKRx8Pbzlb-2Bp1-2BywDF8RqhHvmDXUKobXOiUngPnJlunJYEbbMXCkgDiTLA2riP yJ9o0h9zr3B4a-2BRP-2FhR4An7-2BwbzNabb73Vn-2FK9-2FcBLxSxRwZpbOuNZ3drompWJQlsLmJsFcfLKsMgpf2gw5l1UE y7WBjmiYdaYmeQzCMrqssS08IA8BokUXNcDmgA-2FPq66VP4aMS0xhkIETnp5Cf3), and in total, Teachey Produce will pay over $60,000 to resolve all claims. Read more here! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2gA/ni0YAA/t.27n/kbzXYV70QAe6iCxmGMn05w/h2/X4FIVDACC-2F1mbYwHI4-2Bu6L6kp-2BFwuLuwvJX-2BS9qTl7RRQhb5OW1tDTT2CFgCDZm3uzQ8xdTdadGUzrl8Mo4L kLhzwjtFWSt2ICj4wIp-2Blq76Z-2FpgpEYEUFVao1iv9oJJDkM3tVyUwAkyQaVMK2Wl71-2FxcoM7WOs0qlPCigvHflB7Hbfg0d6KkgBwP9ITnq1NADFrDuo S6avPIc0yhwsS3gliuMPA8c48yuHodo6tLOdYUB2ra8T4AoV6Z xYmuJ-2BDst9bRwl1Z4Gw7e3xSiX643uVtDsIS5aBZBfmt7sZaaok756 077gk1Ra2LVywvVVDr8kepP48QNZzkktZZ5H5fieF2g44VId5m kAcl5bZfFlTVwLjLN3lN5VG4YD3J9yqC9Ava5E7I6O87B2TODI XkNoT3zow8i4NyamwBs9HbsP9lT8CAoNLlQAcCtf0yu96)

Join us in celebrating this victory by sharing this image on Facebook (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2gA/ni0YAA/t.27n/kbzXYV70QAe6iCxmGMn05w/h3/HE2UYZIDTZxfLuJ8qHDFiDIKAtXNkXIwij8mOPD2r9V0gHIIf5 viB2RaxZwOHXibUdjRmK-2BjXN1QtNkyjojp0eIn9R2QNY4GxjlodqUhCnm8j7-2B5RHXinoA7SbLZUWPzT8324MYpf2BBYd35lIX15qP5p0qRLyb 5Dr22GOqmFYrt5abozSvvc5ytnWFzQAqT6vGHvmalXDp7aU4Y9 OTz5SJRBjig0tjlYbo3nM1acQ1zLoC5Olg2GnlRpmMJXGpegD8 dnh6-2F8avSBoE9-2FA3HaO63CcZn6dkdYIUBzu4NNf-2Btk8HCvwQnucquNhE2F7XfIIv4rtKknWj5Av4q4GcvmzgyLVG-2BI1PPKGIyu8HvTUh3PTRghaMYpIufVsNWp0epX2-2FjYcWZWvs55crwDujjYzuM9vDXLiBs4YDYEnbd7tnVYsLXbh3 OB0pzotYgIp3QMB107phcKMvgJ2X0xIY1iBJ0m2By0-2BIc0k4KN08CFxJlm03k5XR-2Ft2ZOSlFJQMYtiR0iS9QBkjZV2L2o6Sz8bnDcOcOl-2BqjP0xW26WDMhXY-3D). And please consider making a donation (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2gA/ni0YAA/t.27n/kbzXYV70QAe6iCxmGMn05w/h4/lX4AS6aXAKvcAj3S1N25NsAM3cR-2FynqR1QCFOpjdc1NBCAeahAY9vP55IjVvx0-2B0WyuD17KGAEq7t5lOCcq9b96wpfl-2FB7kz4O2AmdoUeXad-2FybQO3nGygi4ar5dbWuFMz2XM1lfRZ4cLhpi8jR4GfGk29sMK UILT5zABnbWH0JFcoq8IjDHAjpxzRt1Eh70Yj6pGewMyaCMAkh CKYF4mqkXuJrSd-2B90wX4dBB4hHERRvSJ8EQKJg-2FZZh8F1VgQdNkTQ1NeeykDszme5FT6hChNNK2U9QdYU1gjP5L 6IfY8-2FrGYojM4TH-2Furu-2BPzlsAIFK004P1lyKN81I7BDAREf6WfKC9r8kySXJBYpHb8Iq 9RtQruycZ7-2FD0uTnTOdwt8WsGOuz73G9eY-2FuuwTYfS4P7-2F6PspGDnYWKPCsQ4g2ew-3D) to help even more farmworkers stand up for justice!
Hasta La Victoria,

The FLOC Team

To find out more about the Farm Labor Organizing Committee, AFL-CIO, please visit our website at www.floc.com (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2gA/ni0YAA/t.27n/kbzXYV70QAe6iCxmGMn05w/h5/X4FIVDACC-2F1mbYwHI4-2Bu6G8JzDtYQ2cHBij625t2-2FAmQRT8-2F60OTvYMCFtn4ucRe3S1mLI8XFCokj1q4oKam6XhVRqvqFZeA jHlk5ydwzLW-2FCerrIXPmFcKZ3-2FX4mrBLJLsMY3EIlNSZww7Qx0uk-2BBioJasURrxYxKbb8SwLIJ9gMN4DZeE-2FaFd7Uw4bOdVRwYnOwMlt4p-2BrSEmBUWbn0yGxXLYTAsZgU-2B7UeBuvJFs2ZhYrXiV5yZrz7fJ91yi-2Br8srcqWK5pPhg9WacabgDR4EDwLN0DCUtvU1To-2BfKVCmzP1AD2as71-2BkbTgV4PwopCPdrLbH78c6zFiBzJBGFp4RtZZ1T-2BTanQWVCYoc2ktzPrQVOQPWACuS5p1oZqcFjdDjtdIAQ6Wj-2BOXLUyDBqQ-3D-3D).

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ckaihatsu

29th May 2017, 15:08

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2017/05/29/amaz-m29.html

Amazon workers speak out

Ex-worker: I was close to heatstroke and Amazon forced me to keep working

By our reporters

29 May 2017

Hundreds of Amazon workers have signed up (https://tools.wsws.org/wsws/forms/amazon-newsletter.html) for the International Amazon Workers Voice newsletter in recent days. Workers continue to send in their horror stories of exploitation, and workers in fulfillment centers in North America, Europe, Asia, Latin America, and Africa are discussing the need for an international strategy to fight back.

Here is what workers are saying:

Amazon to worker on verge of heatstroke: keep working

Amazon tries to keep the lid on scenes like this one, described by an ex-Amazon worker who feared he would die on the job.

http://www.wsws.org/asset/1c22ebcc-d47c-479a-b8ac-6181ad49b63N/image.jpg?rendition=image480
Amazon-owned distribution center in Kentucky

“I worked there [for Amazon] for a year and I was treated like complete trash,” the young worker said. “One day I actually got really bad heat exhaustion from there when I was trying to keep myself hydrated. I was on water bottle number seven by lunchtime and that still wasn’t cutting it. Everyone agreed at my fulfillment center that it was hotter than usual, and the managers weren’t doing anything about it.”

The company only cared about shipping its goods and making profit.

The worker continued, “I almost passed out while rebinning. I was taken to Amcare [the company medical team] and was told I was only allowed there for 20 minutes because I had to get back on the floor when they knew I was getting very close to having a heat stroke. They even said I was very close to having a heat stroke. So I left Amazon that night and never returned because I felt like my life was more important than dying at the job. If I died there that night I would be number four on the list of people who died while working at my fulfillment center, and I didn’t want that.”

“Why not share the benefits of industrial progress, instead of accepting our fate as slaves for the rich?”

One former warehouse worker in the UK explained: “I worked in a warehouse in Manchester as a picker for XPO/Missguided under conditions very similar to those recounted by Amazon workers. Workers were demeaned with a barrage of dictatorial policies and pushed to the limit of physical and mental endurance. A few workers passed out due to overexertion.”

The worker continued, “Why shouldn’t society share equally the benefits of productive development? After all, it was the workers who built the warehouses, and the means of production and operations, not Bezos. Why not share the benefits of industrial progress, instead of accepting our fate as slaves for the rich? The social condition today is appalling and given the productive forces available, entirely medieval.”

No to nationalism! Unite Amazon workers across the world!

One worker in the UK messaged the International Amazon Workers Voice to report stressful and dangerous conditions at their facility. The worker thanked the IAWV for exposing Bezos’ wealth, but said that part of the problem is that English workers are mistreated while Polish workers are favored.

The International Amazon Workers Voice responded:

“The rich want you to compete with workers of different national origins so that all workers don’t unite and fight the real enemy: the rich. We are socialists, that means we’re for the international unity of the working class, regardless of national origin. English workers have much more in common with workers from Poland than they do with David Cameron, and the Polish workers have more in common with you than they do with Polish oligarchs, too.

“Imagine how much power Amazon workers would have if they united in the US, UK, Poland, Germany, Mexico, China, Germany, India, and all over, in a common struggle for social equality. Divided by nationality, the workers are powerless. But united across the world, the working class is a powerful force that can change the course of history.”

The worker responded with a “thumbs-up.”

Amazon workers, if you have stories to share, sign-up for our newsletter (https://tools.wsws.org/wsws/forms/amazon-newsletter.html) and send them in the comments field. We keep all sources anonymous to protect from arbitrary firing.

http://www.wsws.org/en/media/photos/legacy/frontpage/amazon-newsletter490.png (https://www.wsws.org/en/special/amazon-newsletter.html)

Copyright © 1998-2017 World Socialist Web Site - All rights reserved

ckaihatsu

1st June 2017, 18:13

Walmart - Women workers' rights?

At Walmart’s Annual Shareholders' Meeting, women will call on the CEO and Walton family to treat women workers right.

Stand with women who work at Walmart in their fight for equal pay, reliable hours, and paid family leave.

SIGN THE PETITION (https://act.sumofus.org/go/353385?t=2&akid=30866.859590.iX0tr3)

Chris,

Next week, women workers who have borne the brunt of Walmart’s sexist policies will have the chance to confront CEO Doug McMillon and the Walton family.

At Walmart’s Annual Shareholders' Meeting, McMillon and the Walton’s will have to answer for years of workplace mistreatment of women. From pay discrimination to inconsistent work hours, it’s high time Walmart commit to policy changes that bring economic stability to working women.

As the largest corporate employer of women, Walmart has the power to shape industry standards for equal pay, opportunity, and family leave. That’s why it’s so crucial we stand with the brave women taking on Walmart executives at its Annual Shareholders' Meeting.

Stand with women demanding Walmart adopt policies for equal pay, reliable hours, and paid family leave. (https://act.sumofus.org/go/353385?t=3&akid=30866.859590.iX0tr3)

Women like Janie Price are representative of the workplace concerns of countless women working at Walmart. Janie has struggled to support her family because Walmart refuses to give her full-time work, all while issuing last minute schedule changes that make it difficult to find childcare.

And it’s not just Janie -- Walmart is no stranger to allegations of worker mistreatment. This year, workers filed a class action lawsuit alleging that Walmart had refused to accommodate the work schedules of pregnant women. And just last month, Walmart settled a multimillion dollar lawsuit for denying spousal benefits to same-sex couples.

There’s nothing more powerful than when workers organize to improve their work conditions -- especially when they’re backed by a loving community of concerned consumers. That’s why we need to support the brave women who will confront Walmart executives next week over the company’s egregious record of mistreating women workers. Let’s show Walmart there’s power in numbers, and that the concerns of working women won’t be ignored.

Support women who work at Walmart in their fight for equal pay, reliable hours, and paid family leave. (https://act.sumofus.org/go/353385?t=4&akid=30866.859590.iX0tr3)

Thanks for all that you do,

Maggie, Reem, Emma, Fatah, Angus, and the team at SumOfUs

More information:

What Walmart and the Trumps Get Wrong About #WomenWhoWork, Medium, May 2, 2017.

SumOfUs is a community of people from around the world committed to curbing the growing power of corporations. We want to buy from, work for and invest in companies that respect the environment, treat their workers well and respect democracy. And we’re not afraid to stand up to them when they don’t.

Please help keep SumOfUs strong by chipping in $3

Chip in $3 (https://actions.sumofus.org/a/donate-wrapper?t=6&akid=30866.859590.iX0tr3)

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ckaihatsu

2nd June 2017, 18:40

"Time off is fine, but it doesn't pay the bills"

Dear Chris,

You don’t need me to tell you that Republicans are scheming everyday to screw workers and bust unions.

But if that wasn’t bad enough, House Republicans just passed a bill to kill overtime pay for America’s low-wage workers. It’s a brazen attempt to legalize wage theft and force workers to put in longer hours for less pay.

Now the bill is on its way to the Senate, and we need to kill it there. That's why we're partnering with our allies at Interfaith Worker Justice to fight back. Click here to email your Senators: tell them to protect overtime pay. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2AA/ni0YAA/t.27t/MOE1kMDOTpOxfFAPH_0MnQ/h0/5jklvx-2BEEDmRsxbc9hRjR20rg0QAQDPSeQ9BIvPqmltRMp-2BZmHOBv79PAL4ZVqfZn-2BNzeVahO4dWKYSE1pg4MNppSk6q6FjG6B9fC911jb-2FL-2FK1dyZAKiunrJLzubJH-2FzfTkNT9p4Qsb0gqHc296TEMKnFcbYup793g3CLVZ9XuJbV2X 4Trq5qWblMcv3Zvt51X77vyi8B7URGOsF64QUVABDqT1wwQwoJ 0u-2BNjaNFq82fAY1yhsRqJiud-2B6fJMtUOBQvKWPNlVixNTw4Tx1zQQT1lTWRmzK3-2BkSbLv7t7jElIFcm52A2CNlNIxXqh5asyrwIYBAJknFWHi653 WQfw0Gv4OD1kN9qu5VLLM7iSUPBmUpDVoRTaU6Ekm-2FDX8uPKnlGliSzP1qjDhp7sGFxsuXjr9iTSLyjnYW9c3g9hI-3D)

As the law stands now, people who work over 40 hours a week get extra pay for overtime. That might not seem like a big deal, but for low-wage workers like Mercedes Rodriguez, overtime pay is critical.

Mercedes, a Good Jobs Nation member, serves meals to generals at the Pentagon but only earns $12 an hour. WIthout the extra money she makes from working overtime, Mercedes wouldn’t be able to make ends meet and help her son pay for college.

But Republicans want to pull the rug out from under Mercedes’ feet. They want to allow bosses to withhold workers’ overtime pay and make them take unpaid time off instead.

Mercedes said it best: “Time off is fine, but it doesn’t pay the bills.”

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/096/289/original/mercedes.png (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2AA/ni0YAA/t.27t/MOE1kMDOTpOxfFAPH_0MnQ/h1/5jklvx-2BEEDmRsxbc9hRjR20rg0QAQDPSeQ9BIvPqmltRMp-2BZmHOBv79PAL4ZVqfZn-2BNzeVahO4dWKYSE1pg4MNppSk6q6FjG6B9fC911jb-2F8gwzuTJ9GoFO3801uMh-2F7LA5GDej9U96PBeY4kZjsEkvvTG3kpa-2Ff-2FP-2BnWOetSZxO8GTfaaAX3rIGF4MwZL0gzNNhYpuL57L0TnG0Ha7 O1yd4GTONCnE6XmQ54X-2FsuE8gzvX6rjzNI7ifv35hyr968QlgCormYNL95pzP-2FzNCLIkjVysf6ynKZo-2BNq4il-2FZA0oYdP6MZFyjtq5bbisbJUjbhzr4vB0TBc04mcHDQubM0kp IMiU6rme-2F4uanjlHJCFODVPcGyG5occxLMzggsOWwxhWv8ARYp0HQ-2BFX5vlbRSZH5uCoSB00KCRQfLDFRo-3D)
Workers like Mercedes depend on overtime to pay their bills, but Republicans are trying to strip it away. Email your Senators, and tell them to vote NO on attacks on our overtime pay. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2AA/ni0YAA/t.27t/MOE1kMDOTpOxfFAPH_0MnQ/h2/5jklvx-2BEEDmRsxbc9hRjR20rg0QAQDPSeQ9BIvPqmltRMp-2BZmHOBv79PAL4ZVqfZn-2BNzeVahO4dWKYSE1pg4MNppSk6q6FjG6B9fC911jb-2FPMv7e9MtoOIQNqP2epCjE4ZwQLnvWzjKbvXCKQnb9gcBW9gd GcEpwu4aRLp2tvvwgS54Al-2BH26XsKmHneQGxFXL5pLteo6lx-2BmgmSqCHY0fgQLHED042zhnD4lsflgB-2FW11PgosmS-2F0ihLAfb-2BIaUrkFUdUOBeQNHFzjKIq3IwkD7NbczyBPvHvz8iyz62ZNMe jtavbuoxqXhOq9CCZBr01JvBLAH9AhD2v9T209vCjP1FOGcaC2 9DJgzNRCyX1hhTEANKCv5-2FQY-2FqXVT1eIDra63vt7QeoNi0HvBDwReQvFCIe8jaIhPFTKoV9Si pW0-3D)

If this bill passes, low-wage workers will see their pay slashed, and bosses will have another excuse to work their employees to the bone. We need to stop the GOP war on workers -- act now!

Thank you for fighting for workers,

Mikey Franklin
Digital Director, Good Jobs Nation

P.S. By taking this action, you'll be signed up to receive emails from our friends at Interfaith Worker Justice. But don't worry, you can unsubscribe at any time!

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https://actionnetwork.org/user_files/user_files/000/014/909/original/GJNshield2017.png (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2AA/ni0YAA/t.27t/MOE1kMDOTpOxfFAPH_0MnQ/h5/VfzlZutPe92aW3yi1vDujEaQ1AS6dgk92wesNbuwCnJRFQT1sa NUZ2SHkabJK3OKP-2Fd41Z-2FJmMAelKRE2vHXCrnoRnYCutOh5YACg2pE8hq-2BTASRdIXJS81hhR24FdMwnKmCI89sYRN1AqQmQi-2B4-2FqLyUbJk87bd0r01NjtguO8WSNF7SafwRosVx3-2FokERUZvKanwrWrrQRjz5xRk4ldSFwjmjzrgsrcnM0DJ93O-2FothBD0zPdorokP1DJbEb6hNyLo-2BeNzgbw5LHkFJq-2B88fx-2FVx1nPjlxdYdRQWziY9S-2FP7NofrZMlA7IYOpgzjlWEjRRuzl7Ug6lssEdJ3Z4gxXKG4hC 58PZgXLSCBNvU20-3D)

Sent via ActionNetwork.org (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2AA/ni0YAA/t.27t/MOE1kMDOTpOxfFAPH_0MnQ/h6/55uI0ZjpoLA9-2FYhqE-2F4Eitwb7nFGaBM-2BttuyqSTdMS4-3D). To update your email address or to stop receiving emails from Good Jobs Nation, please click here.

ckaihatsu

2nd June 2017, 19:02

https://www.goiam.org/news/tell-congress-oppose-attack-federal-workers/

Tell Congress to Oppose the Attack on Federal Workers

GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES (https://www.goiam.org/news/departments/hq/government-employees/) June 1, 2017

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Tell Congress to Oppose the Attack on Federal Workers

https://www.goiam.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/federal.jpg

Federal Workers, including IAM government employees and National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE-IAM) members need your help now.

Tell your Representative to Vote “NO” on H.R. 1461. Call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121

The IAM and the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) are calling on all members to contact their Representatives to demand that they vote “NO” on the VET Protection Act of 2017 (H.R. 1461). Introduced by Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-TX) and further amended by Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN), the bill breaks the independent voice of unions and employees at the Department of Veterans Affairs, under the guise of improving accountability.

The bill as amended will cap official time and representation at 25% for all employees, and prohibit all employees who provide direct care or make more than $100,000 in base salary from serving in official time capacities. In addition, it extends probationary periods for new employees to two years, discourages direct communication with Congress, and allows union members to drop their dues at any time.

H.R. 1461 intends to break unions and cut their influence at the VA, and it aims to weaken the rights of federal employees first at the VA, then everywhere.

This bill could go to the House Floor the week of June 5th so NOW is the time to contact your Representative to tell them to say “NO” to H.R. 1461.

Call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121

The IAM and NFFE-IAM represent more than 100,000 federal workers. Tell your representative to vote no on these attacks on federal workers.

ckaihatsu

2nd June 2017, 19:25

Winning Contracts: Chicago’s Unionized Charter Schools

View Online (https://cts.vrmailer1.com/click?sk=aIo8B2JgQjBIIW71YAO8F5CW7DZLxoSaSk4jC9ltj NoM=/aHR0cHM6Ly92cjIudmVydGljYWxyZXNwb25zZS5jb20vZW1haW xzLzE3NTkyMTg2MTIzMDc0P2NvbnRhY3RfaWQ9MTc1OTIxOTAx MzY5MjQ=/6PQvsoQpHHCZRRK1jdbqcw==&merge_field_type=%7BVR_HOSTED_LINK%7D&href_id_source=vr2-href-id-source-1)

https://vr2-assets.verticalresponse.com/email_images/17592186513030/17592186048178/original/Three-schools-fan-still.jpg (https://cts.vrmailer1.com/click?sk=aIo8B2JgQjBIIW71YAO8F5CW7DZLxoSaSk4jC9ltj NoM=/aHR0cHM6Ly95b3V0dS5iZS82R2M1MGZBcFpGbw==/EY2IlhqPf2MgqyO0vzqG7w==&merge_field_type=(?x-mi:(?%3C=href=)[%5Cs]*[%27%22](?%3Curl%3E[%5E%7B%27%22].+?)[%27%22])&href_id_source=vr2-href-id-source-9)

Watch Video (https://cts.vrmailer1.com/click?sk=aIo8B2JgQjBIIW71YAO8F5CW7DZLxoSaSk4jC9ltj NoM=/aHR0cHM6Ly95b3V0dS5iZS82R2M1MGZBcFpGbw==/EY2IlhqPf2MgqyO0vzqG7w==&merge_field_type=(?x-mi:(?%3C=href=)[%5Cs]*[%27%22](?%3Curl%3E[%5E%7B%27%22].+?)[%27%22])&href_id_source=vr2-href-id-source-27)

Winning Contracts: Chicago’s Unionized Charter Schools

A documentary on the contract successes in the 2016-17 school year for Chicago ACTS Local 4343/AFT, the charter school union. Key moments in the campaigns and subsequent victories for contracts at UNO, ASPIRA, and then Passages, whose teachers authorized strikes with 96%, then 99%, then 100% approval respectively — convincing administrators to settle at the last minute. Is Chicago now the charter unionizing capital of the U.S.? Length - 29:15

Video url:
https://youtu.be/6Gc50fApZFo

6Gc50fApZFo

Produced by Labor Beat. Labor Beat is a CAN TV Community Partner. Labor Beat is a non-profit 501(c)(3) member of IBEW 1220. Views are those of the producer Labor Beat.

For info: [email protected], www.laborbeat.org (https://cts.vrmailer1.com/click?sk=aIo8B2JgQjBIIW71YAO8F5CW7DZLxoSaSk4jC9ltj NoM=/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5sYWJvcmJlYXQub3JnLw==/MUELZ1lEIAFo2v_4xZBUoQ==&merge_field_type=(?x-mi:(?%3C=href=)[%5Cs]*[%27%22](?%3Curl%3E[%5E%7B%27%22].+?)[%27%22])&href_id_source=vr2-href-id-source-16), 312-226-3330; Labor Beat, 37 S. Ashland Ave., Chicago, IL 60607. For other Labor Beat videos, visit YouTube and search "Labor Beat". Labor Beat is on as a cable-tv series in six U.S. cities: Chicago, Rockford, Urbana, IL; Philadelphia, PA; Princeton, NJ; Cambridge, MA. Chicago schedule: CAN TV 19, Thursdays 9:30 pm, Frdays 4:30 pm.

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ckaihatsu

2nd June 2017, 19:35

#RealSuperHeroesWearVests

Dear Chris,

It really seems like our economy is set up to be against people like me and my co-workers who work hard every day and expect a fair day’s pay. That’s why I hand delivered a letter to the Los Angeles and Long Beach Mayors insisting that they need to make companies at the ports (like the California Cartage warehouse where I work) follow the law. If you feel the deck is stacked against regular people, join our League of Working Class Heroes. Please sign up so we can fix this unjust system together.

Can you join our League of Working Class Heroes today? (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.27u/ADRAUxqTT8GZzlWbL4_6kQ/h0/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBbZZ8k6zBVQtuO7myuMWelkh5-2F-2F-2Bu6YIgxQhTn27F-2FhAbMsbXiZs0N3886pa6uAvo79jeNC3tzgGV8-2FPortZRa1iOsPB0kbwjxU-2FvXjlm0ghgg8nD2kxDaGvMvRhqY-2BL2038DEDHmiaD4KHU7WftGTOdwPXN2Bh1l3wsXaOycxZPKIb WyH7AwoVEHPQGUVC6YFRGitH-2BnQ1Qj6lJ-2BhoJeVj-2FgEqPEHZ1m6XYG24LnNER-2B5QWEbvmFZ17paJO-2B72iKnt0eBnFxpB39iRJRAacgqhHpWL6r16UHOzAaF9oIMnVg 7HmrSCj9Ps6PnlOW-2FqfpNX1hUogpVkKA00cgKE8fxl0TWilpjzotFmLkdHUcfDm)

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/096/055/original/working_class_heroes_bruce_small.png (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.27u/ADRAUxqTT8GZzlWbL4_6kQ/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBbZZ8k6zBVQtuO7myuMWelkh5-2F-2F-2Bu6YIgxQhTn27F-2FhAbMsbXiZs0N3886pa6uAvo79jeNC3tzgGV8-2FPortZRa3LLvoKfLjgDukNh0v2sYyIZOeSzyNCo9-2FWcBQsFeeYvBRheJu-2BkrTR6apdrpkXqQ8tm4vY08h0nZOmHQjCxEymKqdOPH0AWgBm O0WGnYTJYnGKmOBBSbnZNf8x-2FfwfhFLXlm3lu9bei4uNVQUU-2BwDKia4JXIYZqnE92kkPFDl-2Frlp5IgxNtcoKjZR1NPhHL7SYF2I1Pwd3oUzEfHJ05lfZBSYx nDBQcr2Z4Hm5gUkbxkfDtHgB-2BSP-2B2bRtT-2FKc3YpE35usqp9BJrVkPaLoqo5H)

Join our League of Working Class Hereos

My letter to Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia described how my co-workers and I have faced wage theft and harassment daily from a company leasing government property.

“I have worked at this warehouse for three years, but the company still tells me that I’m a temporary worker. Before I was a tire chocker, every morning, California Cartage would make me stand in line with hundreds of my fellow temp workers to see if one of the supervisors would pick me. Sometimes I would be standing around half an hour before being picked to work or sent home and it was time that I wouldn’t get paid for. It’s degrading and reminds me that we still have a long way to go in this country before all workers, regardless of skin color, are treated with dignity and respect.”

The politicians we elect should make sure that working families get a fair shake, especially when it involves government property or our tax dollars. For example, the Mayors of Los Angeles and Long Beach have the power to end this demeaning treatment at our country’s largest ports. Until something changes, my co-workers and I are ready to continue striking and taking action.

Please, join our League of Working Class Heroes so we can win this fight against wage theft together. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/2QA/ni0YAA/t.27u/ADRAUxqTT8GZzlWbL4_6kQ/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBbZZ8k6zBVQtuO7myuMWelkh5-2F-2F-2Bu6YIgxQhTn27F-2FhAbMsbXiZs0N3886pa6uAvo79jeNC3tzgGV8-2FPortZRa1bbX9BYUcEHYsU3Jp2ZjLycFaIHAXZfZuIk25jPeH lc6Vdvf8KdVRZ4N9N2k7EtPKJ25cPcgMF7Ovlw-2Bu9z5uyePYRkch8yM1yxNSHepj9lW7bK-2BMX-2BnogtB5-2BYCZexyg-2BXMn0pJDf0djdJ4wz2E2JhMl5Xocdxq0qHOJ8-2FryqmQNWfh9RsQdAucDJsXnYYs8pd1XhCwYXtjjwmAFFHTs3M KAktTdDKxxcsBC0dh-2F-2ButW7A4BvijxmM7AZgq1vSsPcctn5I-2BeOJ-2FqEVSDta0oH)

I believe that we will win!

Bruce Jefferson
Warehouse Workers
California Cartage

Action Network

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ckaihatsu

7th June 2017, 13:09

We did it!

Chris -

What a week!

We're just back from Bentonville, AR where we spoke to a crowd of 15,000 executives, associates and shareholders gathered at Walmart’s Annual Meeting, delivered a petition signed by over 85,000 people calling for quality Paid Family Leave, and took those same concerns directly to Walmart heir and richest woman in the U.S., Alice Walton.

The Walmart PR machine was on steroids telling the world about how much they "invest in associates" but we were able to disrupt their narrative by bringing the truth and speaking out about the issues that matter most to us and our 1.5 million coworkers. Please read the entire story here (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27y/KAjLOYW5TYmJODlSkKeTlQ/h0/z4e-2FZypHP60K88wQ2YStoxGX-2FlKxfNyploI7p1RR9WhamFueDbPHQe-2FjAdcz9nlWP2kDMcn0KwG5xMsSpCmfd3gzKDIadx1gLaYwOoF IMZIudMLZBm-2BxVcAxCHqfKzHGjVA8jXr2thciOb1V9L-2Fy4kB-2BYqGo1570u5jA0brxOyo9gIUEEw2Hp4qrcDcU-2BuJ475FbRs-2BAPF5wh8BXM51Q5dZQ-2B7n57dwj-2B967rrXgYHqa50CXzK5tLTq-2FWzEExSC1FDHtkdQ77VVkl6RfnczoOg-3D-3D).

You can see from the press below, we were heard and we're fired up for what's next. Thank you for your support!

Love and strength,

Janie, Carolyn, Liz and Betsy & the OUR Walmart Team

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/097/070/original/Screen_Shot_2017-06-06_at_7.56.28_AM.png

Select Press:

Washington Post: Gwen Stefani, Mary J. Blige, and calls for better pay: Inside Walmart’s annual shareholder meeting (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27y/KAjLOYW5TYmJODlSkKeTlQ/h1/mb-2FqhNwiPwHg26xxrzU0i8Q9Frt-2Blva-2BeRc22g73iCEEX-2FAjFRvxqL5dcpKOFZLd4D-2B9JTBeoffnGOFXHRE1kcx6PW1fX2mWYuVpv3lWAXgvUGmmEZg eL-2BuIc33sszt8m27nrYUiiqN1yXZ3-2BtufUVJqtxox3TdsWagyUGz5oXEWXMQO1R-2FrHPWXkU-2BGy7m8o8L1-2F-2BNz3Naa0fL8lcL2p33xZInhs2GE84NLc1sVF1-2BmDJ3qfpYTXChRrc5r7TgRfyGFHFgBX4dPrec5Y8FXIXlud6L cz-2F9qWFky9IrkHGxBeL5oBTt9HYqMCMZ3cvgW95v4ZgqhPRD-2FnZWB7bFvK4BJtrhS6bmLpDq8BH39IMt1Zf-2FGTNnrl-2FDyT-2BZ3jzmg8yyeKX5iFcZqUfkseQ9GpmeKJHAm7TFe0wFbihuJV6 g-3D)

"....shareholders and Walmart workers presented proposals at the meeting, calling on the company to treat its workers better by offering higher wages, improved benefits and more predictable schedules.

“An unfair leave policy, reduced hours and low pay make it difficult for most of us to pay our bills and take care of our families,” said Carolyn Davis, who works at a Walmart store in Outer Banks, N.C., and was representing the activist group Organization United for Respect Walmart. “Walmart can, and should, live up to the promises it makes: letting us take care of our children when they are sick, and accepting our doctor’s notes.”

Janie Grice, an employee from Marion, S.C., asked the company to offer more information on gender and racial information on the company’s part- and full-time workers. “Too many of us are still part-time,” she said. “Too many of us have schedules and hours that change so frequently, we can’t plan our lives or line up a second job. Too many of us still can’t pay our bills.”

Buzzfeed: Walmart Workers Want A Racial Breakdown Of Who Gets Full-Time Hours (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27y/KAjLOYW5TYmJODlSkKeTlQ/h2/i4v64T3hGi-2BtS5O-2Fcvz-2F5FsWu9haz5-2B8p3WcNtaBGDgkvc4-2B3-2FIxwZmHWo7ZM7m2ZHV3cCA4b9Qjh6yeBW9cjZs-2Bk4YH4YhvioA-2BaXEhR2yKi6GqT-2FNdx0E9WDrtNzzk16c4zpUyO5fpZHQjXSteEjIhCIq28Utsvu OOn1eDhowIt0W3qDKqXJkyasCUugwHKVV2Nm7MrXBjpRkAndPu uM1Vobi-2FmIwI-2FaiUFnB2sIfNp61lrkerreY0nK0Jvu1jNcDSM9kIVKraIkbIz chNvuj6HmwFKQwVN7DfQZjmxbmmWIhbwf92PcgDt3GjJfv4)

"Labor advocates and workers say that women, especially Hispanic [Latina] and black women like Grice, are disproportionately concentrated in the less secure, lower-paying part-time work, and they want Walmart to open its books to find out."

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/097/172/original/Screen_Shot_2017-06-06_at_11.22.33_AM.png

[In Open Letter to Walmart, (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27y/KAjLOYW5TYmJODlSkKeTlQ/h3/W0HiLjcE64FPqHO8d7uztFGfcpAlvJ6kRkQDYkqic5Sgh5Rqky h9KF2w8iq0QwFeOS56-2BsjLMwi7y9pcP3rxFBgxfqKr5-2B8X2t3pTqCLdbTAe5fDGFemwoib4KfKaxhciNe2Jlkfdfj43X KBU0Zt3pR9TN0bItcidOwUTMKkeQUpvMLM9a7TlLiBEp0-2BnQiPKxveG3kpAUWneQKkr-2FEfDcwvvpDIpeKGpbJZARueTVwWdMtDSGgR63D91hTmCzBwLl IK-2FlYCBxmAMjGGn7xBZQ1dInLdoqxqlT678aOypYiXACnv9lJZe 7pujqtYXP8mgjtjQ8vtR6yNZYi6Qo5HNewRABPiUYnIzhAV80S FlklgphH-2Bu9fdp3odAA0TtN6jw4Wsx3mXrL1k5RlF3sI8zA-3D-3D) racial justice and labor leaders and academics wrote]..."We are very concerned that one major explanation for this disparity in representation might be that people of color are disproportionately concentrated in these 50 percent part-time jobs," they wrote, since part-time positions offer fewer ladders for career advancement. "Voluntarily releasing this information is clearly consistent with Walmart’s commitment to diversity... and transparency, and using metrics to measure progress toward your inclusion goals."

Also, A Better Balance published a powerful report accusing Walmart of having violated the ADA and FMLA with their sick time policy. The NYT did an amazing, deep story: Walmart Is Accused of Punishing Workers for Sick Days (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27y/KAjLOYW5TYmJODlSkKeTlQ/h5/UK13yW9FzGShifppdxBQhCyz3qyIJhVJr0zYR558dh3OQYoaQ8 zJjfbo2kFHnhvdScUy310MNbRYpDFVloTgG3WHllkP0rFpj52l SySk0WfBaIrZwl5CADNGoQb4TJvTmnAKXPhSop2D5gq0gCPXfI Sd7Ec2iQvuM15Y8lPGfJeOqX1IqmcS9Uto6r-2Fsl4EXUYpb-2FZlngV6qMDCOjuE6aEOHLZZGB7tEbKPZcWEsw-2FmWxO3L5nB3d-2BoQkDCAcij7MeoYLaHm5-2BLN4ItW4L0v-2BFv3iNwQrHSvrgyYH3-2BRzmZ8KGwq9R49hrlQWDTkGBMZ)

"A report (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27y/KAjLOYW5TYmJODlSkKeTlQ/h6/R1N1XDcMMk2faU4RYJpcoMVm-2FtkdSz8IggPjig3PCt9VhTPgeMt-2F1eA7wL1UldF-2Fb5fmkKRnTTIyTglIU1wOM32zUumCpzclsifi5xp-2FAi2FpaJQP9WwlX45ktKEi-2Bwueu-2BxN0CD2AoiWVHiyahZsmIDO9D-2BufDif-2F51Qwqzb25sSAwf3LfwXDTVdxyLqVV0kRB-2BNM3ATcrT3HsGFyNgvMKszrd86cCkoHbqJkoQtmRhXhLILMhU jZPFtPEmc-2FFd) released Thursday by a workers’ advocacy group says Walmart, the nation’s largest private employer, routinely refuses to accept doctors’ notes, penalizes workers who need to take care of a sick family member and otherwise punishes employees for lawful absences."

And following up on PL+US's powerful report (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27y/KAjLOYW5TYmJODlSkKeTlQ/h4/R1N1XDcMMk2faU4RYJpcoMVm-2FtkdSz8IggPjig3PCt9VhTPgeMt-2F1eA7wL1UldF-2FYK-2F7uag6N3-2Fvt5duU2Ii8Udx6xt3vcjDF0KwEgh5BwyKlrhJ1Znxf0ffACW MAt8MUzwzWwhwmce5qpuLs7N8piZuLXn40WsFYo-2B62UhT9YHo8U-2Fr8Ka8jcr4-2BDPGKyT-2FiSWY5-2BzXeUhvA4aWtFsb-2FW5LvrmJ35VbT2972P9YC4Aax5j1sMuo8nE14iC3pxcT) on unequal access to corporate leave policies and amazing Walmart Employees Deliver Petition with 70,000 Signatures for Expanded Family Leave (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27y/KAjLOYW5TYmJODlSkKeTlQ/h8/laCycbjzuDwe-2BXNTOL9-2FdrzxTW5bOpCM-2F1xZud55EVcMVyjGcuK0Dn4UXB-2B6izauJL-2Bd4SHI0oZUvgXbU1QM-2Bmm-2FhRlUSir1-2Fly9RptiLZPIiQmjzjjnzaASNsJrU6fS6N4ysjKHka2t7-2BFluus7J4Mb4SD-2Fx2-2FW1m31DP3KqtdI0AupOIRxhcsoksu8eskMhOe-2FnGezV8qSld8hDHu-2FBfQHJQneqhlNL97B3Al-2Fpk-2FYoLvjTh2VA3h9U6mfHIR3Yb8BU7WfZ4FymBJOl9htbQ-3D-3D"}video[/url] featuring OUR member Jasmin Dixon; OUR members delivered the 85,000 signatures from the petition we did with PL+US and Family Values at Work, CREDO, Ultraviolet, Color of Change, Parents Together and Sum of Us for the right to paid time at home with new babies. The action got on the evening news: [url="http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27y/KAjLOYW5TYmJODlSkKeTlQ/h9/abMfrv6OJuVkR4XpKN4j6cs3UK6OAHOSd6awvDRQZMD8K0xfbj bROyH67tHZuKwTlmAwYPyOzmo-2BfZGXdc6dsj5GR5LEjLn3YLJCiYn9dVyP9eg0r-2B-2FsPEKLPtf9Y2ftfHWwVGEFPiDb55mmyIvgL7-2FLi-2Fb55fUuRRBigf-2BULcXfrANw7DLnrD4rIOCIvY8B8Yq2cePqW6FGnwDeC8c-2BNsGmqQkhonnUXlO0zDEjyCeTtOfzuCKV77zRDU50mhCMsfZw T62e-2Bw8tq9f-2BV9hr7s0o-2FbHGXk8h9OzLab7aYNMCbiAXvyIyQ3d3sG9YokatsTAIQ8Oa6 SxrbMpjfae99J0rM9v-2FfSXvCoxmpYnBUmk-3D)

"The problem is that for most hourly associates, Walmart has no paid family leave, and for the rest of us, we don't get enough pay to stay home and care for our newborns. I'm due this November, and I'll need to be right back to work because I can't afford to stay home under Walmart's policy," said [Liz] Loudermilk.

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/097/176/original/Screen_Shot_2017-06-06_at_11.31.03_AM.png

USAToday: Paid Leave is an Elite Benefit in the US (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27y/KAjLOYW5TYmJODlSkKeTlQ/h10/Cb41Rc-2FBZhaJOAIRXzgaFFwvVuQLwylGdgLeCxC7qXc87cyuS6PrH2U-2FLJOcWcj0jdpLkZu4ndnX975679BE38f6NyaWsc-2FvAPJfLOTj3dh1wEDndYaBMyM9Hod3DhD3Gtu2tIdpP-2FfhkdzxewhRBAWaivgRB00ckR5BCEL85gfoqbt5glyjhUWIzu takCmUSUx30-2BRWkWVz7Jq3z164un3tKmylWcLqD4a3s-2FTSxaPGW6DTaHr2ktQ2VTzihQQe-2BLc78fuIx0XoIO-2B4AZAG9qZT0On39uOnaatMFsmiGQv5-2FSdiWcZppMv64QAxmj76yDHk24LyIzzQjEgIn6uhqw-3D-3D)

"Walmart, the nation's largest private employer, has no full paid leave policy for its 1.2 million hourly employees, PL+US reports. Full-time birth moms are eligible for 6-8 weeks of disability leave at 50% pay.

Liz telling Alice Walton about the need for quality Paid Family Leave.

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/097/129/original/Screen_Shot_2017-06-06_at_9.18.24_AM.png

P.S. We can't do it without your support. OUR Walmart depends on small donations to make sure we have a big impact. Please chip in $7 so we can keep up the pressure! (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/0wA/ni0YAA/t.27y/KAjLOYW5TYmJODlSkKeTlQ/h11/oh2PHrZUR7ExLbv54KbkBPSiejOdLG8mevPU2D4ADNiW5N-2FVBpZNXHG3Yw2aX2ifS23cSDOEfgD3LRC5rsAsL0Ddrbt7-2BTYl0X1EOgGbiG6386yCSIZIWMUk-2F4fi-2FkKOFyT0xd6drBD-2BxtKdgDFrJRWJ4O8odsoXkTqg64w7T4qlHb477YGJK48M2oB2 0m83fKbcFZihmrgUh1vhHkph75eZnZIMwUydfCwMnxty7Gaf-2Bqa1RMspAkB7yOMC2DY4)

Organization United for Respect (OUR) is a non-profit organization, organized under the laws of the District of Columbia. OUR brings together low-income workers, their families and communities to improve working conditions in the retail industry throughout the United States, promote human and civil rights secured by law, build strong and healthy communities, and end all forms of discrimination. OUR Walmart is a project of OUR. OUR does not intend or seek to represent retail employees over terms and conditions of employment, or to bargain with retail employers, including Walmart.

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ckaihatsu

9th June 2017, 16:20

Stop Union Busting at StoryCorps

Activist Alert

Chris,

You have probably heard StoryCorps' work on the radio. They record, archive and share people’s heartfelt personal stories with the goal of a more connected, just, and compassionate world.

But a week ago, the workers at StoryCorps in New York City filed for a union election to join the Communications Workers of America, and instead of embracing their values and listening to the voices of their workers, management has gone full anti-union. Workers have been forced to attend captive audience meetings and listen to anti-union lectures aimed at preventing them from exercising their right to organize and demand a voice on the job.

SEND A MESSAGE ► (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4AA/ni0YAA/t.27z/lSMne9kYSVWsgteddUvUBw/h1/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHPxjIBMMQGiSt-2BoeVdlSnaKMdqYDWZB9YS3ehghl-2FcIRVkSELyIHPXzn675RX3AssIV0RQlnQ2D8R4MhcPUU3FU6S-2BlkR9akHRUdwlhMx38vUjJRhA-2FrsDzI-2B5uG-2Fo-2FynX9WfmXlpsekDDu6ccbnIHrRiYOmEklL-2FOq752qFbfw-2F6X-2F7qfXCyqGJLw5Fl8paK1ek62ans3QdVnvA4ZqwtcSB-2BD6Ctfh3v-2Fst5LA-2Bl-2B7oJT0RQPKN0wCbvE44azY-2FCsrYa-2BBkg4akxeuTZW5-2Fpnk3jnTFXhqrxCrZHMOsoO6TdPfQ1Etf0jZmUzBsCTUiwc-3D)

We expect more from a progressive organization with a mission like StoryCorps. Support the working people who are trying to join our union. Email the CEO and founder of StoryCorps and tell them to stop the union busting and allow workers to exercise their right to organize. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4AA/ni0YAA/t.27z/lSMne9kYSVWsgteddUvUBw/h2/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHPxjIBMMQGiSt-2BoeVdlSnaKMdqYDWZB9YS3ehghl-2FcIRUEnAOkvOiP1aQJ5sAxd-2FNCBFuY-2FhVwga0oO51nFfjBNkzYUBsv-2Bdy8e8cpKbzaZ5gnAQiO4-2Bk7Esa5448xvuBkjYtnBm1KOMeiKP9TWmC2k0CKIa-2B9qKhZsycFWgoTKtl4-2BmwsBPfQb-2BVTfvFRhHLLouSPUBtgIEHr68qCvly4ttYsYaRYEIiZ2c1vls QJWsWw8NdRvHZGcktPRaAZIfy1HYWX-2Boekx6bVEJiNYIlNDFvXPHtP51aen4RoeqpOSZpjDM3m58lvj bV8AfiZ6Rwo-3D)

StoryCorps workers want a voice on the job and a say in their working conditions. Anti-union captive audience meetings should not be something any worker has to endure to exercise their rights on the job - especially not at an organization that claims to have a work environment "where respect and dignity are paramount."

https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/data/000/097/345/original/storycorpsworkers.png

Please take a stand with working people fighting for a voice on the job. Click here to send a letter. (http://click.actionnetwork.org/mpss/c/4AA/ni0YAA/t.27z/lSMne9kYSVWsgteddUvUBw/h3/WQ-2BlIwq7W2eCmkkcwbDiBewM-2BBXwXmVcDr-2FHe7DI-2FHPxjIBMMQGiSt-2BoeVdlSnaKMdqYDWZB9YS3ehghl-2FcIRRz5Wdadke61jzyXsLp3i9dz8CHv4AZQHsNWiEr3MbNX9W 32OSVoExzan3vlJIUx00fAhNnvK9IQRt7QwLfyk3Q5KhCH-2FSDcdeTX-2B7HIlSewfxw5f-2BG-2FwnfLHMQ0H2Fbvq4gRSLc38yFADIM-2BYA6uNvNZLAQCyjXdn5fkjLHmlYcqsSR5Kd-2Bg3z0glSFnFYLS67MpVURtMAz4l986oPMJXDbW42cFJ46A-2B-2FzKQ-2Bet7kbS1vuSXGym9cmk77KPeHgzPiAm5YAwB2qbBUWxrNMLTk-3D)

Thank you,
Dennis Trainor
CWA District 1 Vice President

CWA District 1
80 Pine Street, 37th Floor
New York NY, 10005
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ckaihatsu

10th June 2017, 14:16

Twin River Casino workers vote to strike (http://fightbacknews.us1.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a29530af96a02fc55d345e735&id=2181aae9f9&e=d323598fe4)

By staff

Lincoln, RI - Nearly 400 food and beverage workers at Rhode Island’s Twin River Casino announced Wednesday afternoon, June 7, that they have voted to authorize a strike. The vote followed a rally in the Rhode Island state house last week, where Twin River workers announced their readiness to strike. The workers are members of UNITE HERE Local 26. The union’s bargaining committee announced that the results of the vote were 327 voting to authorize a strike to just 5 ballots cast in opposition.

Julie Procaccini, a banquet captain at Twin River and a bargaining committee member, said that the union is giving the company until 3:59 a.m. on Friday to meet the workers’ demands. If an agreement is not reached by this deadline, the Twin River workers will be on strike beginning at 4 a.m.

One of the primary demands being made by the workers is affordable health care coverage. The casino made a unilateral change to health insurance benefits earlier this year, which resulted in significant increases in costs for workers. Beverage server Alexis Maciel commented on the unaffordable health insurance by saying, “If I were to put me and my daughter on Twin River’s health care, it would cost up to $1200 a month – as much as rent or a mortgage. I’d have to move my family to afford Twin River’s health care.”

If the Twin River workers strike, it will be the first strike of UNITE HERE members in Rhode Island since 1980.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

10th June 2017, 16:44

U of MN unions hold their own hearing on budget after regents cancel public testimony (http://fightbacknews.us1.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a29530af96a02fc55d345e735&id=83e6301d16&e=d323598fe4)

http://www.fightbacknews.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/article-lead-photo/MickIBTedit.jpg

By staff

Minneapolis, MN – A row of chairs reserved for the University of Minnesota Board of Regents sat empty while university unions held their own public hearing on university budget, June 8. Each June, the University of Minnesota budget proposal is presented to the board of regents at a public hearing. It is the one time each year when faculty, staff and students testify to advocate for their needs and the importance of investing a portion of the budget to benefit their campus community. This year the regents canceled the hearing. The administration presented a budget that short-changed university workers, by allocating a mere 2% for compensation increases.

Cherrene Horazuk of AFSCME Local 3800 said, “This year, the one opportunity for university stakeholders to testify and speak directly to the regents was eliminated. The current administration has been embroiled in scandal after scandal, spending university resources to clean up their mess. Now they’re shutting down an opportunity to hold them accountable.”

Horazuk continued, “Union workers at the U are currently in contract negotiations. The administration presented the regents a budget that does not include adequate cost of living increases for our members, at the same time they raise student tuition and increase debt to astronomical levels. We are not interested in the tired story that there is no money for the core institution while they find cash to pay high administrator salaries, lawsuit settlements and legal fees.”

Nicole Masika, a member of the executive board of AFSCME Local 3937, told the crowd, “Working at the U has brought me to the edge of bankruptcy.” Masika also pointed out that the university has made money, $29 million since 2002, off the employee medical and dental insurance plans.

Mick Kelly, a member of the Teamster 320 negotiating committee said that the university was “awash with money” and that now is the time to press for a major pay increase.

Read more News and Views from the Peoples Struggle at http://www.fightbacknews.org. You can write to us at [email protected]

ckaihatsu

14th June 2017, 13:51

Did you hear what ICE's Director said today? (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b7/14552b18/45ea7bb8/2b74d28f/3253513952/VEsE/)

http://action.ufw.org/page/-/americanflag.jpg

Take Action! (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b7/14552b18/45ea7bb8/2b74d28f/3253513952/VEsF/)

Farm workers are scared. We’re hearing stories of people being afraid to leave their houses except to go to and from work. And their fear was confirmed today by ICE Acting Director Thomas Homan. In testimony before the House Appropriations Homeland Security Subcommittee today, Homan defended the Trump Administration’s targeting of formerly ‘low priority,’ non-criminal undocumented immigrants using the justification, “We shouldn't wait for them to become a criminal.”

What happened to America’s innocent until proven guilty philosophy? Homan’s insulting and inaccurate statement assumes that all undocumented laborers are dormant criminals who are going to commit a crime. In fact the truth is the exact opposite. Undocumented immigrants commit fewer crimes than native-born Americans.

A solution (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b7/14552b18/45ea7bb8/2b74d28f/3253513952/VEsC/) to this fear is critically important to the UFW and the community we serve. According to researchers at University of California, Davis, approximately 70% of all the farm workers here who put food on America’s tables are undocumented. And these hard-working people who are a vital part of our economy are scared.

One of the ways you can help is to e-mail your US Senators and Congressional Representative today (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b7/14552b18/45ea7bb8/2b74d28f/3253513952/VEsD/) and ask them to support the Agricultural Worker Program Act of 2017 (AWPA), the UFW’s new immigration bill for farm workers.

As we wrote to you last week, on May 3rd Senator Dianne Feinstein (CA-D) introduced the AWPA alongside 4 original co-sponsors. On May 25 Rep. Luis V. Gutiérrez introduced this bill into Congress with 30 original co-sponsors.

The AWPA takes care of a real need in the farm worker community. It will protect farm workers from deportation and put them on a pathway to legalization and citizenship -- if they have worked 100 days or more in agriculture the past two years and continue to work in agriculture for at least 100 days/year for 5 years or 150 days/year for 3 years and meet other conditions. The AWPA would help ensure a stable, legal workforce in agriculture to the benefit of farm workers, employers and consumers.

This bill is critically important in the current atmosphere of Trump’s America and statements like today's. Please help. (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b7/14552b18/45ea7bb8/2b74d28f/3253513952/VEsA/)

http://action.ufw.org/immig617Take Action! (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b7/14552b18/45ea7bb8/2b74d28f/3253513952/VEsB/)

After you sign the petition, please ask your friends and family to sign too. You can send them an e-mail, post this campaign on your Facebook and/or Twitter page by clicking here (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b7/14552b18/45ea7bb8/2b74d28c/3253513952/VEsHBQ/) or by going to https://secure.ufw.org/page/share/immig617

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ckaihatsu

15th June 2017, 13:16

Outrageous

http://action.ufw.org/page/-/americanflag.jpg

Did you hear what ICE’s Director said yesterday? (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b6/14552b18/45e8cfbf/2b74d0ed/2299599722/VEsE/)

Thank you for e-mailing your US Senators and Congressional Representative and asking them to support the Agricultural Worker Program Act of 2017 (AWPA), the UFW’s new immigration bill for farm workers.

We need to ask you for more help. We're hearing stories of farm workers being afraid to leave their houses except to go to and from work.

And their fear was confirmed yesterday by ICE Acting Director Thomas Homan. In testimony before the House Appropriations Homeland Security Subcommittee, Homan defended the Trump Administration’s targeting of formerly ‘low priority,’ non-criminal undocumented immigrants using the justification, “We shouldn't wait for them to become a criminal.”

What happened to America’s innocent until proven guilty philosophy? Homan’s insulting and inaccurate statement assumes that all undocumented laborers are dormant criminals who are going to commit a crime. In fact the truth is the exact opposite. Undocumented immigrants commit fewer crimes than native-born Americans.

A solution to this fear is critically important to the UFW and the community we serve. According to researchers at University of California, Davis, approximately 70% of all the farm workers here who put food on America’s tables are undocumented. And these hard-working people who are a vital part of our economy are scared.

The AWPA takes care of a real need in the farm worker community. It will protect farm workers from deportation and put them on a pathway to legalization and citizenship -- if they have worked 100 days or more in agriculture the past two years and continue to work in agriculture for at least 100 days/year for 5 years or 150 days/year for 3 years and meet other conditions. The AWPA would help ensure a stable, legal workforce in agriculture to the benefit of farm workers, employers and consumers.

Can you please forward this email to friends and family and ask them to e-mail their US Senators and Congressional Representative as well and request their elected officials support the Agricultural Worker Program Act of 2017 (AWPA)?

This bill is critically important in the current atmosphere of Trump’s America and statements like yesterday's. Please take this extra step for farm workers. Thank you.

E-mail your U.S. Congressmembers in support of new immigration bill for farm workers
It is critical that we find a solution to the immigration problem in agriculture. Our nation’s food supply relies on the hard working men and women who labor to put food on our tables. Click here to e-mail your Congressmember today! (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b6/14552b18/45e8cfbf/2b74d0ed/2299599722/VEsC/)

The first steps towards a solution began last month. On May 3th Senator Dianne Feinstein (CA-D) introduced the Agricultural Worker Program Act of 2017 (AWPA) alongside 4 original co-sponsors. On May 25 Rep. Luis V. Gutiérrez introduced this bill into Congress with 30 original co-sponsors. This bill is critically important in the current atmosphere of Trump’s America.

According to researchers at University of California, Davis, approximately 70% of all the farm workers here who put food on America’s table are undocumented. And these hard working people who are a vital part of our economy are scared. The threat of deportations has caused disruptions to agricultural production.

The AWPA of 2017 takes care of a real need in the farm worker community. It will protect farm workers from deportation and put them on a pathway to legalization and citizenship -- if they show consistent employment in US agriculture and meet other criteria.

This bill sends a clear signal that there are leaders in Congress ready to work constructively on immigration. The AWPA would help ensure a stable, legal workforce in agriculture to the benefit of farm workers, employers, and consumers.

Please join this important effort to protect those who put food on our tables. E-mail your US Senators and Congressional Representative today (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b6/14552b18/45e8cfbf/2b74d0ed/2299599722/VEsD/) and ask them to support the Agricultural Worker Program Act of 2017.

Take Action (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b6/14552b18/45e8cfbf/2b74d0ed/2299599722/VEsA/)
http://action.ufw.org/immig617

Huffington Post Politics (6/13/17): (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b6/14552b18/45e8cfbf/2b74d0ea/2299599722/VEsO/) ICE Director To All Undocumented Immigrants: ‘You Need To Be Worried’

Non-criminals won’t be spared from deportation, Thomas Homan said.
By Elise Foley

WASHINGTON ― The Trump administration will continue arresting undocumented immigrants who haven’t been convicted of crimes and won’t apologize for it, the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Tuesday.

“If you’re in this country illegally and you committed a crime by entering this country, you should be uncomfortable,” Acting Director Thomas Homan told the House Appropriations Committee’s Homeland Security Subcommittee. “You should look over your shoulder, and you need to be worried.”

Following up on Trump’s campaign promise to drive out more undocumented immigrants, ICE arrests rose significantly during the president’s first 100 days in office, compared with the same period the year before. About one-quarter of those arrested ― more than 10,800 people ― were non-criminals, meaning they did not have authorization to be in the U.S., but had not been convicted of a crime. (Being in the U.S. without legal status is a civil offense, although it is a crime to cross the border illegally.)

The Trump administration has come under fire from activists and Democratic lawmakers for its deportation practices. Homan, testifying before the subcommittee to explain the agency’s request for additional funding, devoted much of his prepared remarks to arguing those criticisms are unfair. He echoed Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, who has said ICE is enforcing laws passed by Congress.

ICE requested a $1.2 billion increase in funding for next fiscal year. Nearly $4.9 billion would expand immigrant detention to more than 51,000 beds from about 34,000 beds ― the number Congress requires ICE to maintain. The budget request also would allow the agency to hire an additional 1,000 enforcement officers and about 600 support staff to increase the rate of removing people.

"If we wait for [non-criminal undocumented immigrants] to violate yet another law against a citizen of this country, then it’s too late. We shouldn’t wait for them to become a criminal." ICE Acting Director Thomas Homan

Even with additional funding, officials have said there is a need to prioritize enforcement, since ICE doesn’t have the funds to deport all of the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S.

Click to read full article (http://action.ufw.org/page/m/3bed99b6/14552b18/45e8cfbf/2b74d0ea/2299599722/VEsP/)

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ckaihatsu

15th June 2017, 13:34

Noble: No Neutrality Agreement on Union Organizing

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Noble: No Neutrality Agreement on Union Organizing

At the June 2017 board meeting of Noble charter schools in Chicago, the board refused to negotiate a neutrality agreement during a union organizing campaign. Teachers (represented by ChiACTS Local 4343 / AFT) said that such an agreement would assure a "fair, neutral process by which educators could have conversations about a union without intimidation or interference.” Joining with the teachers were parents who were upset by Noble’s draconian discipline measures, excessive expulsions of students, and teacher turnover; a strong union would give teachers a voice against such policies. Length - 12:30

Video url:
https://youtu.be/o8rdmEPtFEw

o8rdmEPtFEw

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ckaihatsu

16th June 2017, 17:22

Tell Congress to Support Fair Work Schedules

Help working families succeed. Take action now!

Dear Chris,

Unpredictable work schedules make it hard to plan your life. When you only get a few days—or a few hours—of notice before you have to work, it can be impossible to make child care arrangements, schedule doctor’s visits to get the health care you need, go to school, or hold down another job to make ends meet.

Millions of working women—particularly those working in low-wage industries like retail and restaurants—face this reality every day. But now we have a chance to make sure that their schedules actually work for their lives—and we need your help.

Working People Need Schedules That Work (https://click.everyaction.com/h/221352/1805740?nvep=ew0KICAiVGVuYW50VXJpIjogIm5ncHZhbjovL 3Zhbi9OV0xDL05XTEMvMS81OTM4NCIsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXR pb25JZCI6IG51bGwsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXRpb25VbmlxdWVJZ CI6ICI2ZjY4NTRkNy1hOTUyLWU3MTEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDR iNzkiLA0KICAiRW1haWxNZXNzYWdlSWQiOiAiODg2NzE4OTktO WU1Mi1lNzExLTgwYzItMDAwZDNhMTA0Yjc5IiwNCiAgIkVtYWl sTWVzc2FnZUNvbnRlbnRJZCI6ICI4OTY3MTg5OS05ZTUyLWU3M TEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDRiNzkiLA0KICAiRW1haWxBZGRyZXN zIjogImNrYWloYXRzdUBnbWFpbC5jb20iLA0KICAiRGlzdHJpY nV0aW9uVHJhY2thYmxlSXRlbUlkIjogMA0KfQ%3D%3D&hmac=k3_eewoHqvzhU8wL8p8QuzX1adbq9qpLwV1-g-tRdJc=&emci=89671899-9e52-e711-80c2-000d3a104b79&emdi=6f6854d7-a952-e711-80c2-000d3a104b79&fn=Chris&mn=&ln=Kaihatsu&em=ckaihatsu%40gmail.com&add1=4130%20N%20Campbell%20Ave%20&ci=Chicago&st=IL&pc=60618&hp=7739164028&mp=&wp=&ep=&oc=&p=Mr&s=)

Urge your lawmakers to co-sponsor the Schedules that Work Act today.

Take Action (https://click.everyaction.com/h/221353/1805741?nvep=ew0KICAiVGVuYW50VXJpIjogIm5ncHZhbjovL 3Zhbi9OV0xDL05XTEMvMS81OTM4NCIsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXR pb25JZCI6IG51bGwsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXRpb25VbmlxdWVJZ CI6ICI2ZjY4NTRkNy1hOTUyLWU3MTEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDR iNzkiLA0KICAiRW1haWxNZXNzYWdlSWQiOiAiODg2NzE4OTktO WU1Mi1lNzExLTgwYzItMDAwZDNhMTA0Yjc5IiwNCiAgIkVtYWl sTWVzc2FnZUNvbnRlbnRJZCI6ICI4OTY3MTg5OS05ZTUyLWU3M TEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDRiNzkiLA0KICAiRW1haWxBZGRyZXN zIjogImNrYWloYXRzdUBnbWFpbC5jb20iLA0KICAiRGlzdHJpY nV0aW9uVHJhY2thYmxlSXRlbUlkIjogMA0KfQ%3D%3D&hmac=k3_eewoHqvzhU8wL8p8QuzX1adbq9qpLwV1-g-tRdJc=&emci=89671899-9e52-e711-80c2-000d3a104b79&emdi=6f6854d7-a952-e711-80c2-000d3a104b79&fn=Chris&mn=&ln=Kaihatsu&em=ckaihatsu%40gmail.com&add1=4130%20N%20Campbell%20Ave%20&ci=Chicago&st=IL&pc=60618&hp=7739164028&mp=&wp=&ep=&oc=&p=Mr&s=)

Unstable and unpredictable work schedules mean unstable and unpredictable paychecks, which hurts women’s economic security. They can also lead to negative health outcomes if women can’t find time to go to the doctor or take their kids to the doctor—and the stress these scheduling practices create for families can undermine children’s well-being.

The Schedules That Work Act would:

• Give employees the right to request a change in their work schedules without risking retaliation.

• Give working people who need a schedule change because of critical obligations, like caregiving, a right to receive that change if there’s no good business reason not to grant the request.

• Require employers in certain low-wage industries to provide two weeks’ notice of work schedules—and to provide extra pay to hourly employees who have shifts changed or added at the last minute, or are sent home without working their scheduled shifts.

This bill hasn’t been formally introduced in Congress yet—and it might not be if Congress doesn’t hear from you. We need your help to make sure your members of Congress know it’s time for schedules that work and sign on in support. Ask your members of Congress to co-sponsor the Schedules That Work Act today. (https://click.everyaction.com/h/221354/1805742?nvep=ew0KICAiVGVuYW50VXJpIjogIm5ncHZhbjovL 3Zhbi9OV0xDL05XTEMvMS81OTM4NCIsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXR pb25JZCI6IG51bGwsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXRpb25VbmlxdWVJZ CI6ICI2ZjY4NTRkNy1hOTUyLWU3MTEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDR iNzkiLA0KICAiRW1haWxNZXNzYWdlSWQiOiAiODg2NzE4OTktO WU1Mi1lNzExLTgwYzItMDAwZDNhMTA0Yjc5IiwNCiAgIkVtYWl sTWVzc2FnZUNvbnRlbnRJZCI6ICI4OTY3MTg5OS05ZTUyLWU3M TEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDRiNzkiLA0KICAiRW1haWxBZGRyZXN zIjogImNrYWloYXRzdUBnbWFpbC5jb20iLA0KICAiRGlzdHJpY nV0aW9uVHJhY2thYmxlSXRlbUlkIjogMA0KfQ%3D%3D&hmac=k3_eewoHqvzhU8wL8p8QuzX1adbq9qpLwV1-g-tRdJc=&emci=89671899-9e52-e711-80c2-000d3a104b79&emdi=6f6854d7-a952-e711-80c2-000d3a104b79&fn=Chris&mn=&ln=Kaihatsu&em=ckaihatsu%40gmail.com&add1=4130%20N%20Campbell%20Ave%20&ci=Chicago&st=IL&pc=60618&hp=7739164028&mp=&wp=&ep=&oc=&p=Mr&s=)

Thank you for taking action.

Sincerely,
Emily J. Martin
General Counsel and Vice President for Workplace Justice
National Women's Law Center

We the Resistance is our fight to protect our rights and freedoms and to defend the most vulnerable among us through powerful collective action. Every conversation you have with a loved one about the issues important to you, every call you make to Congress, every rally you attend is a part of that resistance. Join us — sign on to the We The Resistance manifesto (https://click.everyaction.com/h/221355/1805743?nvep=ew0KICAiVGVuYW50VXJpIjogIm5ncHZhbjovL 3Zhbi9OV0xDL05XTEMvMS81OTM4NCIsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXR pb25JZCI6IG51bGwsDQogICJEaXN0cmlidXRpb25VbmlxdWVJZ CI6ICI2ZjY4NTRkNy1hOTUyLWU3MTEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDR iNzkiLA0KICAiRW1haWxNZXNzYWdlSWQiOiAiODg2NzE4OTktO WU1Mi1lNzExLTgwYzItMDAwZDNhMTA0Yjc5IiwNCiAgIkVtYWl sTWVzc2FnZUNvbnRlbnRJZCI6ICI4OTY3MTg5OS05ZTUyLWU3M TEtODBjMi0wMDBkM2ExMDRiNzkiLA0KICAiRW1haWxBZGRyZXN zIjogImNrYWloYXRzdUBnbWFpbC5jb20iLA0KICAiRGlzdHJpY nV0aW9uVHJhY2thYmxlSXRlbUlkIjogMA0KfQ%3D%3D&hmac=k3_eewoHqvzhU8wL8p8QuzX1adbq9qpLwV1-g-tRdJc=&emci=89671899-9e52-e711-80c2-000d3a104b79&emdi=6f6854d7-a952-e711-80c2-000d3a104b79&fn=Chris&mn=&ln=Kaihatsu&em=ckaihatsu%40gmail.com&add1=4130%20N%20Campbell%20Ave%20&ci=Chicago&st=IL&pc=60618&hp=7739164028&mp=&wp=&ep=&oc=&p=Mr&s=).

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