Teamsters
Teamster Power On Display At Women’s Conference teamster.org ...The Teamsters Women’s Conference continued Saturday with stories of Teamster passion, power and pride. The conference wrapped up its final day in Chicago with memorable lessons and empowerment for the more than 1,000 Teamsters in attendance...
Trade
Foreign Powers Buy Influence at Think Tanks New York Times ...More than a dozen prominent Washington research groups have received tens of millions of dollars from foreign governments in recent years while pushing United States government officials to adopt policies that often reflect the donors’ priorities, an investigation by The New York Times has found...
Malaysia committed to TPPA talks, Najib reaffirms themalaysiaonline ...“Prime Minister Abbott and I agreed that Malaysia and Australia are to continue working together to make progress in the negotiations and look forward to a substantive conclusion on the negotiations in 2015...”
State Battles
John Doe investigation of Gov. Scott Walker's campaign must continue (opinion) Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel ...The governor's campaign urged deep-pocketed donors to give to the Wisconsin Club for Growth because it "can accept Corporate and Personal donations without limitations and no donors disclosure." This is the same governor, by the way, who has trumpeted transparency as the antidote to big money in politics...
War on Workers
Worker’s Death At Denver Scrap Yard An Accident CBS Denver ...The Denver medical examiner’s office on Saturday identified the man as 52-year-old Abel Maldonado Marmoi. The office says the Atlas Metal & Iron Corp. employee died Friday from blunt force trauma to the lower extremities, which he suffered while trying to free material from a jammed baler...
Just 13, and Working Risky 12-Hour Shifts in the Tobacco Fields New York Times ...For years, public health experts and federal labor officials have sought to bar teenagers under 16 from the tobacco fields, citing the grueling hours and the harmful exposure to nicotine and other chemicals, but their efforts have been blocked. Three years ago, Hilda Solis, then the labor secretary, proposed declaring work in tobacco fields and with tractors hazardous — making that type of work illegal for those under 16. Opponents of child labor note that Brazil, India and some other tobacco-producing nations already prohibit anyone under 18 from working on tobacco farms...
Financial Schemes Against the Elderly Are Increasing New York Times ...Financial crimes against elders are taking a toll on lives and pocketbooks. And trusted caregivers — the friends and relatives who offer support and guidance — are often the ones at fault, according to legal and financial specialists...
Miscellaneous
Why Amazon Has No Profits (And Why It Works) Benedict Evans ...When you buy Amazon stock (the main currency with which Amazon employees are paid, incidentally), you are buying a bet that (Jeff Bezos) can convert a huge portion of all commerce to flow through the Amazon machine. The question to ask isn’t whether Amazon is some profitless ponzi scheme, but whether you believe Bezos can capture the future. That, and how long are you willing to wait?...
