Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Today's Teamster News 02.13.13

Fired America  Economic Populist   ... a full 23% of Americans have been fired in the last four years... a full 22% (of those) cannot find another job...
The One Percent Gobbled Up the Recovery, Too  The New Republic   ...the one percent didn’t just gobble up all of the recovery during 2010 and 2011; it put the 99 percent back into recession...
TARP: The bailout success story that wasn’t (opinion)  MarketWatch   ...As of Dec. 30, TARP was still owed $67.3 billion, including $27 billion in realized losses — which is to say, that money is gone and is never coming back...
State Of The Union: Obama Calls For Controversial Trade Deals  Huffington Post   ...President Barack Obama used his State of the Union address Tuesday night to urge the United States to pass two key trade agreements, including the controversial Trans-Pacific Partnership and a new deal with the European Union that human rights say will impede access to medicines and degrade labor standards...
Obama announces voting rights commission to tackle broken system  The Guardian   ...Obama has ordered the creation of a non-partisan commission on voting rights in the US in an attempt to remove the hurdles to democratic participation that dogged the 2012 presidential election...
Slower Growth of Health Costs Eases Budget Deficit  New York Times   ...A sharp and surprisingly persistent slowdown in the growth of health care costs is helping to narrow the federal deficit, leaving budget experts trying to figure out whether the trend will last and how much the slower growth could help alleviate the country’s long-term fiscal problems...
Greek Factory Under Workers Control  The Nation   ...after a series of general assemblies the workers convened, they've started occupying the factory and operating it under direct democratic workers’ control...
General Assembly may be divided on future of “right to work” legislation  MO Politics   ...the Senate Majority Floor Leader, said there is “a lot of talk” in the House about legislation that would prevent union membership from being a condition of employment, but believes it would be a hard sell in the Senate...
Two years since Walker 'dropped the bomb,' and state economy is still shattered  The Capital Times   ...On Feb. 11, 2011, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, in his own words, "dropped the bomb" when he announced that he would eliminate collective bargaining for public workers in the state...Walker promised to create 250,000 jobs during his tenure, but is well short of that total...
Mich. Gov. Rick Snyder's approval rating down sharply since right-to-work law passed  Detroit Free Press   ...A poll released to the Free Press today suggests that support for Gov. Rick Snyder dropped sharply after he did an about-face in December and backed the speedy passage of controversial right-to-work legislation...
Could Washington state trucker reclassification be near?  Land Line Magazine   ...On the move at the Washington statehouse is a bill that could soon result in many truck drivers being reclassified as employees...Supporters say that some employers classify people as subcontractors to avoid paying insurance and other benefits due employees...
Dems decry ALEC influence on working Kansans  Capital Journal   ...Kansas Democrats say Republicans in charge of the House and Senate have loaded the legislative session with "anti-worker" bills straight out of the American Legislative Exchange Council's playbook...
Rhinebeck school bus drivers reject contract offer but defer strike  Daily Freeman   ...bus drivers who take Rhinebeck school district students to and from school have rejected a contract offer but do not plan to strike immediately...Rather, the Durham Student Services drivers in Teamsters Local 445 plan to continue negotiations...
Teamsters Bring Protest, Inflable Rat To SuperInvestor  PEHub.com   ...Members of the Teamsters union who transport chemicals for Nexeo Solutions showed up in front of San Francisco’s famous Fairmont Hotel, site of this week’s SuperInvestor private equity conference...The Teamsters said that TPG Capital “loaded” the company with $600 million in debt and then quickly slashed the retirement and health care benefits of Nexeo employees...
Gettysburg police union files complaint against the borough  The Evening Sun   ...A complaint has been filed by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local Number 776 against the borough and Police Chief Joseph Dougherty, claiming that they violated police department employees' First and 14th Amendment rights...