Monday, November 4, 2013

Today's Teamster News 11.04.13

OSHA Weaknesses Force Workers to Choose: Report Safety Violations, or Keep Their Jobs?  In These Times   ... the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) inspects only 1 percent of workplaces in the United States in a given year. In the absence of inspections, that means more of the burden to report safety abuses falls on individual workers themselves. However, the CEG study shows that due to weak protection laws, many workers find themselves choosing between reporting a safety violation and keeping their jobs—creating a vicious cycle that can lead to workers too fearful to report potentially deadly workplace hazards...
State Department Apologizes for Calling Unionization a Security Threat  truthout   ...at a private meeting with labor groups earlier this month, the State Department opened the door to collective bargaining by workers who perform critical services for the American government overseas...
Billionaire apologizes for wealth he accumulated 'at expense of workers' and says rich should pay more taxes  Daily Mail   ...‘Congratulations. Smoke that cigar, enjoy that Chateau Lafite 1989. But (mostly you guys) acknowledge your good fortune at having been born in the '40s, '50s or '60s ... and having had the privilege of riding a credit wave and a credit boom for the past three decades,’ he writes...
Inside the Psyche of the 1%  Synthesis/Regeneration   ...Do the rich and super-rich tend to be psychopaths, devoid of guilt or shame? Are the 1% lacking in compassion? Does their endless accumulation of possessions actually bring them little to no happiness? To each of these, the answer is “yes”—but a very qualified “yes” with lots of subtleties...
CITI: Rich Families Are Hoarding Cash  CNBC   ...A new survey of family offices by Citi finds that the wealthy are cash heavy—meaning they may fall short of the investment returns they're expecting...
U.S. food banks struggle to meet new demand caused by food stamp cuts  Raw Story   ...37 million Americans were reliant on food banks to meet their nutritional needs in 2010, up from 25 million in 2006. The numbers have only grown through the recession brought on the deregulation of the financial markets and cuts to social programs...
Another Congressman and stunning subsidies to his district  Angry Bear   ...AB had a post on Congressman Steve King, an advocate of austerity and shut down yet received $9.17 billion in subsidies 1995-2012 for his district without offering cut backs for his district to share the sacrifices needed for austerity...
Koch brothers slam Harry Belafonte’s Ku Klux Klan remark  Politico   ...“Already we have lost 14 states in this union to the most corrupt group of citizens I’ve ever known,” Belafonte said at the First Corinthian Baptist Church, according to Capital New York. “They make up the heart and the thinking in the minds of those who would belong to the Ku Klux Klan. They are white supremacists...
Colombian Farmers and Union Activists Under Attack  The Real News   ...In Colombia terror is systematically used as a weapon for social oppression, violence against farmers and unions continues; and while President Santos allowed protests, there are still scars of Uribe government’s alleged violence and ties to paramilitary organizations...
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: @GovChristie to Teacher: "I Am Tired Of You People!"  Jersey Jazzman   ...Is it not obvious that there has been an enormous amount of frustration and anger building up over Chris Christie's condescension toward teachers, parents, and students?...