ckaihatsu
30th March 2013, 22:32
Please endorse and participate in the Rutgers Labor Fightback Conference
[please excuse duplicate postings; to subscribe / unsubscribe, contact [email protected]]
Dear Sisters and Brothers,
By now you may have received one or more postings about the May 10-12 National Labor Fightback conference at Rutgers University (New Brunswick, New Jersey). I am including below a conference update along with the conference call for your information.
I am writing you this note to ask you to please endorse this event and to give serious consideration to participating in it. At the end of this posting, following the endorsement form, you will see the list of eight conference workshops.
You will also find a registration form attached. If you can, please fill it out to let us know you are coming.
Thanks in advance for your interest and support,
In Solidarity,
Alan Benjamin
Co-Editor,
Unity & Independence
* * * * * * * * * *
March 19, 2013
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
When labor activists in New Jersey, together with others in a number of states, began planning the Labor Fightback Conference scheduled for May 10-12, 2013 at Rutgers University, we were convinced that in view of the many severe assaults against the labor movement and working people generally, the conference could serve a useful purpose. It would enable us to discuss and debate how most effectively to counter the attacks, while building unity and solidarity in the process.
Recent events have only emphasized for us the urgency of convening such a gathering. We refer specifically to the onset of the sequestration and the latest reminder by the Obama administration that it is open to revising the cost-of-living formula -- the so-called chained CPI -- which would reduce the monthly benefits of Social Security recipients, and also means testing.
This is only a down payment on the more drastic cuts we can anticipate to follow as part of the strategy of achieving a "Grand Bargain." In other words, place the burden of austerity measures on the backs of lower- and middle-income workers, the unemployed, and the countless millions who are already stretched to the breaking point in their struggle to survive.
Under the circumstances, we sincerely hope that you will join us at Rutgers in May and help deal with the escalating crisis unfolding by the day.
We are also writing to respond to a question that some trade unionists have raised with regard to the purpose of the conference. We have referred them to this paragraph in the original announcement:
"The purpose of the Rutgers conference is to explore how we in labor can most effectively mount an independent fightback action campaign based on such united front demands as putting America back to work; preserving and expanding safety net programs based on No Cuts, No Concessions, No Shared Sacrifice; Medicare for All; retirement security; and redirecting war spending to fund human needs."
[Please see the revised Open Letter below, which makes clear what the focus of the conference is to be, and also the titles of the workshops, which you will find in the attached Registration Form.]
In solidarity,
Carol Gay
Chair of the Host Committee Planning the Rutgers Conference; Retired CWA Staff Representative; and President, New Jersey State Industrial Union Council
* * * * * * * * * *
OPEN LETTER TO CONCERNED TRADE UNIONISTS
[PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY]
Dear Brothers and Sisters:
Please be advised that a national Labor Fightback Conference for concerned trade unionists who want to do something about labor's plight will be held May 10-12, 2013 at the Rutgers University Student Center, New Brunswick, New Jersey. The undersigned urge attendance at this critically needed conference, with any interested union free to send as many representatives as desired.
This conference will address the key question: "What strategy will enable labor to mount the most effective and powerful fightback possible against the corporate assaults?"
The conference is being held in the aftermath of enactment of right-to-work in Michigan and Indiana; destruction of bargaining rights for Wisconsin public employees; the all-out assault on defined pension plans; demands by large corporations making huge profits for substantial concessions; layoffs, curtailment of benefits, and other austerity measures in cities and states across the country; 25 million unemployed or underemployed; and the list goes on.
And in the months to come, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other vitally needed social programs will be targeted for steep cuts, which could imperil the health, safety, welfare and very lives of the tens of millions of people who are dependent on these programs.
Labor's plight -- and the plight of the working class as a whole -- is dire but by no means hopeless.
Despite the defeat of the recall, we take heart in the mobilization of over 100,000 Wisconsin workers and the occupation of the state's capitol building, labor's stunning referendum victory in Ohio, the outcome of the Chicago Teachers strike, victories of the West Coast longshore workers, and the new winds blowing in the struggles of low paid retail workers at Walmart and many food centers for a living wage and basic human rights, including the right to have union representation.
The purpose of the Rutgers conference is to explore how we in labor can most effectively mount an independent fightback action campaign based on such united front demands as putting America back to work; preserving and expanding safety net programs based on No Cuts, No Concessions, No Shared Sacrifice; Medicare for All; retirement security; and redirecting war spending to fund human needs.
We also strongly believe that labor must resurrect campaigns to organize the South and repeal repressive anti-labor legislation, especially Taft-Hartley. In this regard, we welcome the development of the Southern Workers Assembly at its recent meeting in Charlotte, North Carolina, which drew hundreds of trade unionists and others.
At the centerpiece of a fightback action campaign, in our opinion, is the building of labor-community coalitions. The Chicago teachers set an example for the entire labor movement by the way they forged an alliance with community groups and activists, which was key to the teachers' victory. The Rutgers conference can help advance the formation of such coalitions on a local and national level.
It is through building labor-community coalitions that we will be able to mobilize the largest number of people. Confining ourselves to lobbying and nothing more will not get the job done. Street heat that will move hundreds of thousands -- even millions when you consider the 90 million people who depend on Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid -- is what is needed now more than ever.
Finally, at Rutgers we can discuss how to hold accountable politicians whose loyalty is to the corporations, not the working class majority -- politicians we often supported in the past and who betrayed our trust. How best can we fight for our own agenda? Isn't it high time to assert labor's independence in our workplaces and in the streets? Isn't it time to open a discussion on what it will take for labor to be more effective in the electoral arena?
We hope that you agree that there is a compelling need for trade unionists concerned about the issues cited above to convene for a free-wheeling discussion and debate leading to an action program. Please plan to join us for the Rutgers conference (a registration form is posted separately). We look forward to seeing you there!
An endorsement form is below. We encourage your union to endorse the conference and do everything possible to build and publicize it.
For further information, please call 973-944-8975 or email [email protected] or write Labor Fightback Conference, P.O. Box 187, Flanders, NJ 07836 or visit our website at http://laborfightback.org/conference/
In solidarity,
Ken Riley
President
South Carolina AFL-CIO
Donna Dewitt
Retired President
South Carolina AFL-CIO
Kevin Gundlach
President
South Central Federation of Labor, Wisconsin
Charity Schmidt
Co-President
University of Wisconsin-Madison Teachers Assistants' Association (TAA)
Executive Board, South Central Federation of Labor, Wisconsin
* * * * * * * * * *
ENDORSEMENT OF THE LABOR FIGHTBACK CONFERENCE
(I) (We) endorse the call for the Labor Fightback Conference scheduled to be held in the Rutgers Student Center in New Brunswick, New Jersey, May 10-12, 2013. This conference will bring together trade unionists and labor activists from around the country to discuss what the labor movement can more effectively do to counter the severe assaults coming down against us that undermine our right to function and impede the building of a strong independent labor movement.
ENDORSEMENT COUPON
NAME:
UNION/ORGANIZATION:
TITLE (list if for id. only):
ADDRESS:
CITY:
STATE:
EMAIL:
PHONE:
(Please fill out this form and email to [email protected] or send to Labor Fightback Conference, P.O. Box 187, Flanders, NJ 07836.)
* * * * * * * * * *
Rutgers Conference Workshops
1. Solidarity and the Fight to Protect Labor's Rights
2. Protecting and Expanding Earned Benefits -- No to Cuts in Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and Other Safety Net Social Programs
3. The Key to Labor Fightback: Building Labor/Community Coalitions and Mobilizing in the Streets
4. Guaranteeing Access to Quality Education: Yes to Defending Public Education and No to Privatization
5. Labor's Stake in Organizing the South
6. Immigrant Rights: a Working-Class Position on Deportations, Legalization, and a Path to Citizenship
7. Redirecting War Spending to Meet Human Needs: Stopping Unjust Wars and Occupations
8. What Will It Take for Labor to Be More Effective in the Political Arena?
[please excuse duplicate postings; to subscribe / unsubscribe, contact [email protected]]
Dear Sisters and Brothers,
By now you may have received one or more postings about the May 10-12 National Labor Fightback conference at Rutgers University (New Brunswick, New Jersey). I am including below a conference update along with the conference call for your information.
I am writing you this note to ask you to please endorse this event and to give serious consideration to participating in it. At the end of this posting, following the endorsement form, you will see the list of eight conference workshops.
You will also find a registration form attached. If you can, please fill it out to let us know you are coming.
Thanks in advance for your interest and support,
In Solidarity,
Alan Benjamin
Co-Editor,
Unity & Independence
* * * * * * * * * *
March 19, 2013
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
When labor activists in New Jersey, together with others in a number of states, began planning the Labor Fightback Conference scheduled for May 10-12, 2013 at Rutgers University, we were convinced that in view of the many severe assaults against the labor movement and working people generally, the conference could serve a useful purpose. It would enable us to discuss and debate how most effectively to counter the attacks, while building unity and solidarity in the process.
Recent events have only emphasized for us the urgency of convening such a gathering. We refer specifically to the onset of the sequestration and the latest reminder by the Obama administration that it is open to revising the cost-of-living formula -- the so-called chained CPI -- which would reduce the monthly benefits of Social Security recipients, and also means testing.
This is only a down payment on the more drastic cuts we can anticipate to follow as part of the strategy of achieving a "Grand Bargain." In other words, place the burden of austerity measures on the backs of lower- and middle-income workers, the unemployed, and the countless millions who are already stretched to the breaking point in their struggle to survive.
Under the circumstances, we sincerely hope that you will join us at Rutgers in May and help deal with the escalating crisis unfolding by the day.
We are also writing to respond to a question that some trade unionists have raised with regard to the purpose of the conference. We have referred them to this paragraph in the original announcement:
"The purpose of the Rutgers conference is to explore how we in labor can most effectively mount an independent fightback action campaign based on such united front demands as putting America back to work; preserving and expanding safety net programs based on No Cuts, No Concessions, No Shared Sacrifice; Medicare for All; retirement security; and redirecting war spending to fund human needs."
[Please see the revised Open Letter below, which makes clear what the focus of the conference is to be, and also the titles of the workshops, which you will find in the attached Registration Form.]
In solidarity,
Carol Gay
Chair of the Host Committee Planning the Rutgers Conference; Retired CWA Staff Representative; and President, New Jersey State Industrial Union Council
* * * * * * * * * *
OPEN LETTER TO CONCERNED TRADE UNIONISTS
[PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY]
Dear Brothers and Sisters:
Please be advised that a national Labor Fightback Conference for concerned trade unionists who want to do something about labor's plight will be held May 10-12, 2013 at the Rutgers University Student Center, New Brunswick, New Jersey. The undersigned urge attendance at this critically needed conference, with any interested union free to send as many representatives as desired.
This conference will address the key question: "What strategy will enable labor to mount the most effective and powerful fightback possible against the corporate assaults?"
The conference is being held in the aftermath of enactment of right-to-work in Michigan and Indiana; destruction of bargaining rights for Wisconsin public employees; the all-out assault on defined pension plans; demands by large corporations making huge profits for substantial concessions; layoffs, curtailment of benefits, and other austerity measures in cities and states across the country; 25 million unemployed or underemployed; and the list goes on.
And in the months to come, Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other vitally needed social programs will be targeted for steep cuts, which could imperil the health, safety, welfare and very lives of the tens of millions of people who are dependent on these programs.
Labor's plight -- and the plight of the working class as a whole -- is dire but by no means hopeless.
Despite the defeat of the recall, we take heart in the mobilization of over 100,000 Wisconsin workers and the occupation of the state's capitol building, labor's stunning referendum victory in Ohio, the outcome of the Chicago Teachers strike, victories of the West Coast longshore workers, and the new winds blowing in the struggles of low paid retail workers at Walmart and many food centers for a living wage and basic human rights, including the right to have union representation.
The purpose of the Rutgers conference is to explore how we in labor can most effectively mount an independent fightback action campaign based on such united front demands as putting America back to work; preserving and expanding safety net programs based on No Cuts, No Concessions, No Shared Sacrifice; Medicare for All; retirement security; and redirecting war spending to fund human needs.
We also strongly believe that labor must resurrect campaigns to organize the South and repeal repressive anti-labor legislation, especially Taft-Hartley. In this regard, we welcome the development of the Southern Workers Assembly at its recent meeting in Charlotte, North Carolina, which drew hundreds of trade unionists and others.
At the centerpiece of a fightback action campaign, in our opinion, is the building of labor-community coalitions. The Chicago teachers set an example for the entire labor movement by the way they forged an alliance with community groups and activists, which was key to the teachers' victory. The Rutgers conference can help advance the formation of such coalitions on a local and national level.
It is through building labor-community coalitions that we will be able to mobilize the largest number of people. Confining ourselves to lobbying and nothing more will not get the job done. Street heat that will move hundreds of thousands -- even millions when you consider the 90 million people who depend on Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid -- is what is needed now more than ever.
Finally, at Rutgers we can discuss how to hold accountable politicians whose loyalty is to the corporations, not the working class majority -- politicians we often supported in the past and who betrayed our trust. How best can we fight for our own agenda? Isn't it high time to assert labor's independence in our workplaces and in the streets? Isn't it time to open a discussion on what it will take for labor to be more effective in the electoral arena?
We hope that you agree that there is a compelling need for trade unionists concerned about the issues cited above to convene for a free-wheeling discussion and debate leading to an action program. Please plan to join us for the Rutgers conference (a registration form is posted separately). We look forward to seeing you there!
An endorsement form is below. We encourage your union to endorse the conference and do everything possible to build and publicize it.
For further information, please call 973-944-8975 or email [email protected] or write Labor Fightback Conference, P.O. Box 187, Flanders, NJ 07836 or visit our website at http://laborfightback.org/conference/
In solidarity,
Ken Riley
President
South Carolina AFL-CIO
Donna Dewitt
Retired President
South Carolina AFL-CIO
Kevin Gundlach
President
South Central Federation of Labor, Wisconsin
Charity Schmidt
Co-President
University of Wisconsin-Madison Teachers Assistants' Association (TAA)
Executive Board, South Central Federation of Labor, Wisconsin
* * * * * * * * * *
ENDORSEMENT OF THE LABOR FIGHTBACK CONFERENCE
(I) (We) endorse the call for the Labor Fightback Conference scheduled to be held in the Rutgers Student Center in New Brunswick, New Jersey, May 10-12, 2013. This conference will bring together trade unionists and labor activists from around the country to discuss what the labor movement can more effectively do to counter the severe assaults coming down against us that undermine our right to function and impede the building of a strong independent labor movement.
ENDORSEMENT COUPON
NAME:
UNION/ORGANIZATION:
TITLE (list if for id. only):
ADDRESS:
CITY:
STATE:
EMAIL:
PHONE:
(Please fill out this form and email to [email protected] or send to Labor Fightback Conference, P.O. Box 187, Flanders, NJ 07836.)
* * * * * * * * * *
Rutgers Conference Workshops
1. Solidarity and the Fight to Protect Labor's Rights
2. Protecting and Expanding Earned Benefits -- No to Cuts in Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and Other Safety Net Social Programs
3. The Key to Labor Fightback: Building Labor/Community Coalitions and Mobilizing in the Streets
4. Guaranteeing Access to Quality Education: Yes to Defending Public Education and No to Privatization
5. Labor's Stake in Organizing the South
6. Immigrant Rights: a Working-Class Position on Deportations, Legalization, and a Path to Citizenship
7. Redirecting War Spending to Meet Human Needs: Stopping Unjust Wars and Occupations
8. What Will It Take for Labor to Be More Effective in the Political Arena?