Teamster taxi drivers get Washington's attention on unfair regulations

Hundreds of Teamster-represented taxi drivers caravaned through the streets of Washington, D.C., today to demand an end to illegal ride services.

According to Teamsters' news release,

The services, such as UberX and Lyft, are operating illegally in the city and are stealing work from D.C. taxi drivers. Last year, the city gave the services an extension to operate until regulations were in place. 

The extension ended several months ago but the city failed to enact fair regulations, giving the private sedan services a big competitive edge. There’s a risk to the public as well. For example, drivers for the private sedan services are not required to undergo thorough background checks. 

“Virginia ordered a cease and desist order on these companies and the District of Columbia needs to do the same,” said Irfan Jamali, a D.C. taxi driver for the past 24 years. “We are tired of seeing our livelihoods harmed because of the city’s inaction. We demand fairness now!”

Taxi drivers have to pay 25 cents to the D.C. Taxi Commission for every ride, while Uber X and Lyft do  not. They have to pay $125 every year for a picture ID, they're required to be fingerprinted, they have to have FBI background checks and they have to have commercial license plates. The unregulated ride-sharing drivers don't have to do any of those things.

Taxi drivers around the world are protesting the unregulated ride services that are eating into their livelihoods. That doesn't mean they're against the drivers. Teamsters are trying to organize Uber and Lyft drivers in California and Seattle.

The Hill reported on today's protest:

The union’s protest involves a slow-moving taxi caravan that began Wednesday morning at Washington’s East Potomac Park. The drivers are planning to proceed to the U.S. Capitol and end at Freedom Plaza, which is located near the City Hall building in downtown Washington.  

Union President Ferline Buie said her members are making the case that the rules governing online cab services were unfair to traditional drivers.  

“The D.C. drivers have seen the protests across the United States and around the world, and today it is their turn to join the growing chorus calling for these services to follow the same rules and regulations that they must follow,” Buie said. “All they want is a level playing field.”

Today's Teamster Caravan on Pennsylvania Ave.

Today's Teamster News 05.14.13

Teamster News
USF Reddaway Teamsters in Las Vegas Approve First Contract  teamster.org   ...USF Reddaway workers, represented by Teamsters Local 631 in Las Vegas, have unanimously ratified their first contract which provides excellent benefits and a grievance procedure, among other improvements. There are 45 workers in the bargaining unit...
Teamster Taxi Association Representatives, Drivers Blast D.C. Council Committee Bill  teamster.org   ...The representatives and drivers said the Council bill, titled the Transportation Network Services Innovation Act of 2014, favors the private sedan service companies and continues to give them an unfair competitive advantage over D.C. taxi drivers...
First Teamsters Contract For Warehouse Workers At IKEA  teamster.org   ...Congratulations to 64 warehouse workers at the IKEA distribution center in Frederickson, WA who voted overwhelmingly last night to ratify their first union contract.  Welcome to Teamsters Local 117!..
National Express Faces Joint Attack From Unite And Teamsters  The Guardian   ...National Express will face combined union pressure from Jim Hoffa Jr. president of the American Teamsters, and Len McClusky from Unite at its annual meeting on Wednesday...
Trade
No final deal on Pacific trade pact expected next week -US official  Reuters   ...Pacific trading partners are not expecting to reach a final agreement on an ambitious free trade pact at a ministerial meeting in Singapore next week, a senior U.S. official said on Tuesday...
Surging Steel Imports Put Up To Half a Million U.S. Jobs at Risk  Economic Policy Institute   ...The U.S. steel industry is facing its worst import crisis in more than a decade...
State Battles
Filling in the blanks on ALEC  Burlington Free Press   ...The American Association for Justice characterizes ALEC as “ghostwriting the law for corporate America,” because it develops legislation funded and designed by those corporations...
War On Workers
Sadness, Shock as Hundreds Perish in Turkish Coal Mine Tragedy  ABC News   ...Women wailed uncontrollably, men knelt sobbing and others just stared in disbelief outside a coal mine in western Turkey as rescue workers removed a steady stream of bodies Wednesday from an underground explosion and fire that killed at least 238 workers...
Sallie Mae, Navient To Pay $139 Million Settling Probes Into Cheating Troops On Student Loans  Huffington Post   ...The Department of Justice and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. accused Sallie Mae and its loan unit, now called Navient, of intentionally violating the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act by overcharging active-duty troops beginning in 2005, a period in which service members were fighting wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The FDIC said Sallie Mae and Navient processed borrowers’ monthly student loan payments in a way designed to maximize late fees...
Banks At Walmart Are 'Exploiting The Poor': Investor  Huffington Post   ...Christopher Grisanti, co-founder of Grisanti Capital Management, said many of the independently-operated banks located in the retailer’s stores take advantage of cash-strapped consumers with nowhere else to turn. They allow poor Americans to overdraw their checking accounts and then subsequently charge overdraft fees...
The National Restaurant Association Spends Big to Keep Wages Low  Center for Media and Democracy   ...A majority of the Senate voted to raise the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour recently, yet the bill failed to clear the 60 vote hurdle necessary for passage -- thanks in no small part to the political power of the National Restaurant Association, the restaurant industry's trade association...
Miscellaneous
When Driverless Cars Break the Law  New York Times   ...There is little doubt that the technology behind driverless cars is nearly advanced enough for mainstream use. Google plans to make its biggest public display yet of its cars on Tuesday...
Germany Sets New Record, Generating 74 Percent Of Energy Needs From Renewable Energy  Think Progress   ...On Sunday, Germany's impressive streak of renewable energy milestones continued, with renewable energy generation surging to a record portion --nearly 75 percent-- of the country's overall energy demand by midday...

Today's Teamster News 03.22.14

Teamster News
Truckers for Costco and Forever 21 land victory that may allow joining the Teamsters  Salon ...The Port of Los Angeles workers who alleged stolen wages and false "independent contractor" scam now one step closer to organizing with the Teamsters Union...
Truck Drivers Handed Labor Victory That Could Reshape The Industry  ThinkProgress   ...Truck drivers at a Los Angeles-area freight hauling company cannot be treated as “independent contractors” or harassed for discussing the possibility of unionizing, according to a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruling issued Thursday...
Port truck drivers vying to join union get state, federal boost  Los Angeles Times   ...A string of actions by state officials and the National Labor Relations Board has strengthened the hand of truck drivers who say they need union representation to improve pay and working conditions for the thousands who transport cargo out of the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach...
Port Truck Drivers Labeled 'Independent Contractors' Told They Have Right To Unionize  Huffington Post   ...As part of a settlement with the Teamsters that was finalized on Thursday, Pacific 9 Transportation in Carson, Calif., has agreed to hang a posting in the workplace saying workers have the right to form a labor union...
Teamsters Local 722 Highway Maintainers Ratify New Contract  Joint Council 25   ...Carroll County, Illinois, public employees represented by Teamsters Local 722 unanimously approved a new three-year contract with the county’s highway department...
APAC/Old Castle Inc. Drivers Choose Teamsters  Teamsters Local 523   ...Drivers at APAC/Old Castle Inc. in Vinita, Okla. voted to join Teamsters Local 523 in Tulsa, securing a strong voice on the job, despite the company's blatant union-busting tactics...
Teamsters at CCTA find support from fellow workers  Burlington Free Press   ...Drivers with Chittenden County Transportation Authority (CCTA), who are represented by Teamsters Local 597, were joined by numbers of organizations at a rally in support of their strike against the company since Monday....
Teamsters, Pasco reach tentative contract deal  Tampa Bay Times  ...Teamsters Local 79, which represents more than half of Pasco County, Florida's workers, says it has reached a tentative contract deal after a final round of talks...
Georgia Senate votes to bar some workers from unemployment benefits  Atlanta Journal-Constitution   ...The Georgia Senate approved a measure Thursday that would ban bus drivers, cafeteria workers and other people who work for private firms in public schools from claiming unemployment benefits when school is out...
Teamsters reject CN deal, company proposes binding arbitration   The Northern View ...The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference has rejected a second proposed settlement with CN with a vote of 891 against and 852 voting in favor of the agreement...
Teamsters Step Up Fight for D.C. Taxi Drivers   teamster.org ...The Teamsters Local 922-affiliated Washington, D.C. Taxi Operators Association filed a petition on Wednesday demanding that ride-sharing companies adhere to similar regulations that the taxi drivers follow...
Trade
Roberto Azevedo urges U.S. to push for Doha finish  Politico   ...World Trade Organization Director-General Roberto Azevedo urged the United States on Monday to reprise its traditional leadership role in the multilateral trading system by pushing to bring the 13-year-old Doha Round of world trade talks to a swift conclusion...
State Battles
W.Va. governor signs budget that taps reserves  Associated Press ...West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin signed a budget into law Wednesday that dips into millions of dollars in state reserves but gives public employees raises...
Louisiana committee OK's bill to bar teachers unions from public pension system  Times-Picayune   ...The House Retirement Committee on Thursday approved a bill that would bar any future employees of four organizations, two of them teachers unions, from also being members in the state public pension system for teachers...
War on Workers
Real wage stagnation, year 41  Angry Bear   ...The good news is that… real wages advanced somewhat in 2013, from $294.31 per week (in 1982-84 dollars) to $295.51, an increase of 0.4%. Woo hoo! The bad news, of course, is that this is still 13.5% off the peak real weekly wage of $341.73, achieved in 1972... 
Social Security already hit by the austerity squeeze  DailyKos   ... that annual statement you used to get that provided your earnings to date and estimated your monthly benefits is gone now. It was an important educational tool for Social Security, and a reminder that you are paying into a secure retirement fund. The statements are still available, but you have to be able to go online or visit an SSA office...
Microsoft Software Leak Inquiry Raises Privacy Issues  New York Times   ...The company conducted an inquiry by reading through email and instant messages, which may violate its promise of privacy, highlighting the power technology companies have to snoop on their customers...
Fox Has Consistently Minimized Koch Campaign Funding, But The Truth Is Out  Media Matters   ...As the group emerges as a dominant force in the 2014 midterm elections, spending up to 10 times as much as any major outside Democratic group so far, officials of the organization say their effort is not confined to hammering away at President Obama's Affordable Care Act...
Miscellaneous
Discovery of body clock reset mechanism could help shift workers and jetsetters  gizmag   ..."As this work progresses in clinical terms, we may be able to enhance the clock's ability to deal with shift work, and importantly understand how maladaptation of the clock contributes to diseases such as diabetes and chronic inflammation"...
Bernie Madoff: 'JPMorgan knew'  PoliticoPro   ...JPMorgan Chase served as Madoff’s bank for more than two decades and its role in his infamous Ponzi scheme has been the subject of intense interest to both federal authorities and investors who were victims of his fraud...
Hog Wild: Factory Farms are Poisoning Iowa's Drinking Water  Mother Jones   ...Millions of pigs are crammed into overcrowded barns all across the state, being fattened for slaughter while breeding superbugs—all to feed China's growing appetite for Spam...
Revelations of NSA Spying Cost U.S. Tech Companies  New York Times   ...Tech companies in the United States have lost customers and billions of dollars while companies overseas are gaining customers because of the revelations made by Edward J. Snowden,tied these providers to the National Security Agency’s vast surveillance program.

Today's Teamster News 03.12.14

Teamster News
Teamsters Back School Bus Drivers in Fight Against ‘Rampant’ Wage Theft  In These Times   ...More than 350 Baltimore-area bus drivers, who are members of Teamsters Local 570, are preparing to celebrate victory in a $1.25 million wage theft case against Durham School Services, an Illinois-based bus-contracting company with operations across much of the country...
Teamsters Stand Up for Port Truck Drivers at Skechers  teamster.org   ...Join port truck drivers who are standing up for their rights by signing this online petition. They were fired by Skechers' trucking contractor, Green Fleet Systems, after they exercised their rights on the job...
Illinois Teamsters Training Fund Certifies 1,300 Drivers in 2013  teamstersjc25.com   ...For the third consecutive year, more than 1,000 truck drivers, students and military veterans across Illinois completed safety and licensing training with Teamsters Joint Council 25...
Teamsters Taxi Association Turn Up the Heat in D.C. Politics   teamster.org   ...In an effort to gain more information to help us fight for D.C. taxi drivers’ interests, the Washington, D.C. Taxi Operators Association has sent a survey to D.C. mayoral candidates and to D.C. City Councilmembers. See the survey here...
UK Pension Funds Join With Teamsters Union In Submitting Resolution To National Express Annual General Meeting  teamster.org   ...The shareholder proposal calls for the Board to expand the role and responsibilities of its Safety and Environment Committee to provide quality oversight of the company's human capital management and to adopt a meaningful and enforceable workplace human rights policy...
Trade
NAFTA Report Warns Of Trade Deal Environmental Disasters  Huffington Post   ...A report aims to offer an object lesson to President Barack Obama: Free trade deals have high costs in unintended consequences for the environment, people's way of life, and local sovereignty...
Trans-Pacific Partnership Reveals Deadly Cost of American Patents  naked capitalism   ... a cancer specialist in New Zealand (one of the TPPA counties) warned that the TPPA would prolong the high cost of treating breast cancer because of new rules to protect biotechnology-based cancer drugs from competition from generics. And this will affect the lives of cancer patients...
Ford to Move Production of Large Trucks from Mexico to Ohio  Fox Business   ...The automaker said it will invest $168 million in the Cleveland-area facility, which currently makes Ford’s E-series vans. Ford expects the plant to begin production of the F-650 and        F-750 commercial trucks early next year before they go on sale in the spring of 2015...
Chinese components found in B-1 bombers and F-16 fighters  RT   ...A Pentagon investigation has found that despite prohibitions by federal law, multiple US aircraft and weaponry are housing Chinese parts and raw materials...
State Battles
Pennsylvania GOP aims to end legal exemptions for unions  Pittsburgh Post-Gazette   ..."It would criminalize members engaged in protected activity," he continued, "such as organizing drives and picket lines..."
How the GOP ambushed the VW union election  The Hill   ...One local group, Southern Momentum, played a critical role in this frenzy of anti-unionism. Southern Momentum claims to represent ordinary Volkswagen workers, but surprisingly for a grassroots organization, it engaged the services of Projections, Inc., one of the nation’s leading union avoidance firms...
Moral Mondays call for change  WBNG 12 Action News   ...Binghamton, NY community members are pushing for a state budget that works more for the middle class. Opposition to Gov. Andrew Cuomo's budget extended Monday from religious leaders and labor groups to parents and working families...
Vermont Governor Shumlin calls for wage increase  Associated Press   ...Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin called on lawmakers Monday to raise the state minimum wage but details about how it will be implemented have yet to be finalized. Shumlin is proposing an incremental increase to $10.10 by 2017...
Wisconsin big business interests back campaign finance bill  The Cap Times   ...A campaign finance bill that would ease a number of political contribution rules and expand the time period during which lobbyists can contribute to state campaigns is backed by two of the biggest special interest groups in Wisconsin...
FBI investigating Idaho prison run by Corrections Corporation of America VT Digger   ...The FBI is investigating Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) after its Idaho prison was so violent inmates dubbed it “Gladiator School,” according to a report by the Associated Press...
War on Workers
Obama Will Seek Broad Expansion of Overtime Pay  New York Times   ...On Thursday, the president will direct the Labor Department to revamp its regulations to require overtime pay for several million additional fast-food managers, loan officers, computer technicians and others whom many businesses currently classify as “executive or professional” employees to avoid paying them overtime...
Deal reached to protect retiree committee in Detroit bankruptcy case  The Detroit News   ...The city’s lawyers Tuesday announced they have reached a deal that will protect members of a retiree committee from lawsuits associated with Detroit’s bankruptcy case...
Port trucking almost at a halt behind Unifor pickets  Vancouver Sun   ...Trucking operations at Port Metro Vancouver container terminals ground to a near-halt Monday as about 300 unionized terminal truck drivers set up pickets to join more than 1,000 non-union drivers who withdrew their services more than a week ago...
5 reasons slaves still catch your seafood dinner  The Salon   ...The $7.3 billion seafood industry in Thailand still use slave labor. What's worse: America keeps giving it a pass...
Americans' Views on Quality Job Prospects Still Recovering  Gallup   ...Twenty-seven percent of Americans say it is now a good time to find a "quality job." This is up from the low levels between 2009 and 2012, but the last time Americans' optimism about job prospects reached 30% was January 2008...
Safety Flaws Found in New Inspections of Factories in Bangladesh  New York Times   ...A team plans to assess 1,500 garment factories by early September. Reports on the first 10 factories ... found that some factories lacked adequate fire doors, did not have required sprinkler systems and had dangerously high weight loads on several floors...

The Democrats Stand Up to the Kochs (Opinion)   New York Times   ...Democrats have for too long been passive in the face of the vast amounts of corporate money, most of it secret, that are being spent to evict them from office and dismantle their policies...           
Miscellaneous
ALEC Launches New Effort To Influence Local Government Policy  ThinkProgress ...The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), an organization known for helping to advance corporate interests by writing and then pushing to pass conservative legislation at the state level, has created a new initiative. The new project “will offer corporate America a direct conduit into the policy making process of city councils and municipalities"...
Greek tax inspectors get anger management classes amid no ease in austerity measures  The Republic   ...Greek tax inspectors are being offered anger management classes after the government said they would have to continue enforcing a deeply unpopular emergency tax...

Today's Teamster News 01.16.14

Rockland officer cited for bravery in preventing ‘suicide by cop’  Bangor Daily News   ...Rockland police Officer Joel Neal’s bravery prevented a city resident from committing “suicide by cop” last summer, according to his fellow officers. That bravery was recognized Wednesday when Officer Joel Neal was presented a medal by his chief...
Hoffa: Congress Needs to Help Put People Back to Work  teamster.org   ...Congress erred last month when it approved a budget compromise that did not extend long-term unemployment benefits for some of the nation’s most vulnerable citizens. And now nearly 190,000 Michiganians are paying the price...
Chehalis Agreement With Police Union Includes Pay Increase  The Chronicle   ...The Chehalis City Council unanimously approved a collective bargaining agreement between the city and the police department’s union — Teamsters Local 252 — on Monday night...
Silgan thought to be hiring temporary workers at Modesto plant amid employee lockout  Modesto Bee   ...While 100 Teamsters remain locked out of their jobs, Silgan Containers Corp.’s Modesto can-making plant reportedly has started bringing in six to eight temporary replacement workers per shift to run one of its manufacturing lines...
D.C. Taxi Commission Removes Company As Credit Card Provider  teamster.org   ...The D.C. Taxi Commission has ordered Gleike to cease operating as a Payment Service Provider due to allegations that Gleike has failed to meet DCTC regulations following financial problems that have jeopardized the required payments to drivers and payment to the District of the 25-cent surcharge, and other issues...
Wikileaks on the Trans-Pacific Partnership Environment Chapter: “Toothless Public Relations Exercise”  naked capitalism.com   ...Wikileaks has thrown yet another wrench in the negotiations over the sellout-to-multinationals-masquerading-as-trade-deal otherwise called the Trans-Pacific Partnership...
NAFTA’s Trail of Destruction  In These Times   ...That giant sucking sound predicted by Ross Perot commenced 20 years ago last week. It is the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) vacuuming up U.S. jobs and depositing them in Mexico...
Make Wealthy Pay Social Security Taxes on Their Full Salaries -- and Retirement Benefits Could Likely Be Expanded for All  Buzzflash   ...If the wealthy paid Social Security taxes on their full salaries (and we aren't even talking stock options and other forms of bonuses that are not subject to Social Security taxation) the Social Security Trust Fund would likely be able to expand benefits...
Leaked Walmart Documents Reveal Propaganda Campaign to Fight Workers Attempting to Organize  Alternet   ...A set of internal documents leaked earlier today revealed that Walmart is attempting to win the hearts and minds of its employees by scaring them out of joining OUR Walmart, a collection of Walmart workers who have organized strikes on behalf of all the company’s most vulnerable employees...
Walmart Is Facing Claims That It Fired Protesters  New York Times   ...The National Labor Relations Board, in a sweeping complaint filed on Wednesday, said that Walmart illegally disciplined and fired employees after strikes and protests for better pay. The complaint listed violations of federal law in 14 states involving more than 60 workers and 34 stores...
J.C. Penney closing 33 stores, cutting 2,000 jobs  CBS Money Watch   ...Struggling department-store operator J.C. Penney announced it will cut 2,000 jobs and close 33 stores as it tries to get back on the path to profitability...
Despite Violence, Cambodian Workers Vow To Continue Their Fight   In These Times   ...Though Cambodia’s days of colonialization, war and genocide may be over, the country is still wrestling with political turmoil. At the start of the new year, when workers massed in Phnom Penh to demand fair wages, the government responded with a spray of bullets...
New York agrees $18m settlement with 2004 Republican convention protesters  The Guardian   ...The city of New York has agreed to pay $18m to settle a civil rights claim from hundreds of protesters who were rounded up and detained in overcrowded and dirty conditions after they rallied outside the 2004 Republican National Convention...
Moral Monday Movement Spreads Through the South  Truthout   ...After drawing thousands of protesters to the state legislature and inspiring the arrests of more than 900 people for nonviolent civil disobedience, North Carolina's Moral Monday movement is gearing up for more actions in 2014...
NSA Says It Can’t Search Its Own Database To See If It Spied On Congress  Firedoglake.com   ...There has been a lot of unintentionally hilarious things said during the NSA spying scandal unleashed by leaks from Edward Snowden, but the latest statement from the NSA surely is the most hilarious...
Colorado Legislator Introduces Bill to Ban Collective Bargaining  Education Week   ...A Colorado lawmaker has introduced a bill that would ban collective-bargaining between public employers and employees, including teachers...
Top Ten Examples of Welfare for the Rich  CounterPunch   ...There are actually thousands of tax breaks and subsidies for the rich and corporations provided by federal, state and local governments but these ten will give a taste...
D.C. Council Takes First Step Toward Decriminalizing Marijuana Just Say Now   ...If all goes well possession of less than an ounce of marijuana will soon be decriminalized in the nation’s capital...
Leaders of closed Milwaukee voucher school are now in Florida  Milwaukee Journal Sentinel   ...A husband and wife running a private Milwaukee voucher school that abruptly closed last month — after accepting a total of more than $2.3 million in taxpayer money — now live in a gated community in Florida by the beach, records show...

 

Today's Teamster News 11.16.13

Supervisors reach agreement with Teamsters  Herald-Standard   ... Supervisors say they "dodged the bullet" regarding a grievance filed with the US. Dept. of Labor and Industry by the Teamsters on behalf of a township employee...
Raritan Township workers get four-year Teamsters contract  Hunterdon County Democrat   ...A four-year contract has been approved for the township’s 18 employees represented by the Teamsters Union. It covers 2012 through 2015...
Caught On Video: DC Taxi Commission Discriminates Against Foreign Speakers at Public Meeting AlterNet   ...Washington D.C. taxi drivers recently joined the Teamsters Union, and judging by this video released by the union, they’ll need all the help they can get considering the questionable practices of the city’s Taxicab Commission...
International Unions To Organize Support For Locked Out Ikea Workers  Left Labor Reporter   ...After conducting a fact finding inquiry, a panel of international trade union representatives said that they would return home and organize support for more than 300 IKEA Teamster workers in Richmond, B.C. locked out since May...
12-year-old children are working — and dying — on America’s farms  Salon   ...the Labor Department’s 2011 attempt to update child labor laws … fell through in the face of pressure from the Farm Bureau and other agricultural lobbies … Since the proposals were scrapped … four farmworkers under the age of 16 died, and 16 others were injured, doing jobs that would have been off-limits…
Is IKEA the New Model for the Conservative Movement  The New Yorker   ...In every state in the country, there is at least one ostensibly independent “free-market” think tank that is part of something called the State Policy Network— there are sixty-four in all, ranging from the Pelican Institute, in Louisiana, to the Freedom Foundation, in Washington State. ... the think tanks are less free actors than a coördinated collection of corporate front groups—branch stores, so to speak—funded and steered by cash from undisclosed conservative and corporate players...
Ted Cruz and Koch Brothers embroiled in shadowy Tea Party scheme  Salon   ...Meet the right-wing group masquerading as a mainstream nonprofit -- but pushing extremist laws across the country...
Walmart Worker Strikes Reach Chicago  The Huffington Post   ...Walmart workers from three separate stores in the Chicago area went on strike Wednesday. The walkouts are the latest in a series of worker demonstrations in protest of what associates describe as the retailer's low wages, unpredictable hours and unjust retaliation against workers...
Next wave of Walmart, low-wage strikes is here  TeamsterNation   ...Another massive wave of low-wage worker strikes may be upon us as labor unrest is rising at the Port of Los Angeles and Walmart workers walked off the job in three cities over the past 10 days...
Colombian union activist murdered; Colombia still not safe for union members  Left Labor Reporter   ...A 25-year employee at the Nestle food processing plant in Bugalagrande and a member of SINALTRAINAL, the Colombian food workers union, was gunned down on November 9 after receiving a death threat from a group described as “a violent drug-running and crime syndicate formed several years ago from disbanded right-wing paramilitary groups.”...
Secret Trade Treaty Exposed  Economic Populist   ...Thank you WikiLeaks and we hope they obtain more parts of trade treaties being crafted in secret by large multinational corporations in future...
151 House Democrats, Bloc of GOP Announce Opposition to ‘Fast Track’ Trade Authority  Public Citizen   ...A letter sent today to President Barack Obama opposing Fast Track authority, signed by 151 House Democrats, signals the end of a controversial Nixon-era procedure used to railroad contentious trade pacts through Congress. Obama has asked Congress to delegate to him its constitutional trade authority via Fast Track for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and other pacts...
Falling Exports under Korea FTA Likely to Bolster Fast Track Opposition  Public Citizen   ...This week's government release of trade data highlights a stunning decline in U.S. exports to Korea, a rise in imports, and a ballooning of the U.S. trade deficit under the Korea Free Trade Agreement (FTA)...
Secrecy, Spying Shouldn’t Be Associated With TPP  teamster.org   ...There is no shortage of good reasons to oppose the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)...
The 10 Giant Corporations That Have Taken Over Much of Our Economy  AlterNet   ...There was a time when there was competition in the American marketplace, when one corporation didn't own 200 other companies -- that time is long gone...
JPMorgan Paid Daughter Of Ex-Chinese Prime Minister $75,000 A Month  New York Times
To promote its standing in China, JPMorgan Chase turned to a seemingly obscure consulting firm run by a 32-year-old executive named Lily Chang...
Unemployment in Greece remains over 27%  EnetEnglish   ...A total of 6,557 people joined the dole queues in June, bringing the total number out of work to 1,365,406...
U.S. Postal Service reports $5-billion yearly loss  Los Angeles Times   ...The beleaguered U.S. Postal Service on Friday reported a $5-billion loss in the last fiscal year and again urged Congress to take legislative action that would help the agency shore up its finances...
Walker Donations Undergo Sex Change  Wisconsin Democracy Campaign   ...Governor Scott Walker recently amended his campaign finance report for the first six months of 2013 to lower contributions made by some of his high-end donors in order to protect them from being found in violation of campaign finance law...
A Rare Win for Labor’s Rank and File  Counterpunch   ...Machinists at Boeing resoundingly voted down mid-contract concessions yesterday and then booed the union leaders who had pushed the proposal on a shocked membership...
Unionized state employees protest proposed labor contract as negotiations go to impasse panel  Michigan Live   ...Dozens of state workers held a rally on Wednesday morning, demanding a fair contract as an impasse panel began hearings on disagreements over wages and benefits...
Port of Oakland wants court to stop truckers protesting over pay, CARB  Land Line   ...The Port of Oakland wants a restraining order against truckers who have organized protests there to stay in place...

Today's Teamster News 11.15.13

Teamsters Support Walmart Strikers   teamster.org   ...Teamsters are out front supporting Walmart worker protests in the run-up to the nationwide strike planned for Friday, Nov. 29, or Black Friday. Walmart workers want respect, a living wage and the right to form a union...
Teamsters Support 'SAFE SKIES ACT Of 2013  teamster.org   ...The Teamsters Union applauds today’s re-introduction of the ‘Safe Skies Act of 2013’ by Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA). The bill would bring air cargo and supplemental pilots under the same safety regulations as air passenger pilots, standardizing rules within the industry...
Teamsters Condemn Cab Commission's Denying Driver Time To Speak At Public Meeting  DCist   ...At yesterday's extremely chaotic D.C. Taxicab Commission meeting, which was attended by over one hundred city cabbies, a driver without copies of his testimony for the commissioners was told he could not speak...
Maine Teamsters Endorse Michaud For Governor, Jackson For Congress  Teamsters Local 340   ...Teamsters Local 340 in South Portland, Maine announced that its executive board unanimously voted to endorse both Rep. Mike Michaud (D-2nd District) in his run for governor and State Senator Troy Jackson who is running for the 2nd Congressional District seat being vacated by Michaud...
Hoffa: Lawmakers Increasingly Realize Fast Track Is a Fraud  Huffington Post   ...The Teamsters for years have been an outspoken critic of fast-track trade authorization which allows bad proposed trade agreements to move through Congress on just a quick up-or-down vote. And in the last week, we were joined by 185 House lawmakers who feel the same way...
The more you know about the odious Trans-Pacific Partnership, the less you’ll like it  The Guardian   ...That is why it's been negotiated in secret meetings dominated by governments and corporations...
US trade deficit widened 8% in September  Associated Press   ...imports increased to the highest level in 10 months while exports slipped. The wider gap suggests growth was somewhat slower over the summer than previously estimated...
US mobility for young adults falls to 50-year low  Associated Press   ...Among adults ages 25-29, just 4.9 million, or 23.3 percent, moved in the 12 months ending March 2013. That's down from 24.6 percent in the same period the year before. It was the lowest level since at least 1963. The peak of 36.7 percent came in 1965, during the nation's youth counterculture movement...
Facebook and Microsoft help fund rightwing lobby network, report finds  The Guardian   ...State Policy Network rejects climate change, opposes workers' rights – and is backed by some top US tech and telecoms firms...
Koch-backed nonprofit spent record cash in 2012  Center for Public Integrity   ...Americans for Prosperity — the main political arm of billionaire industrialist brothers Charles and David Koch — spent a staggering $122 million last year as it unsuccessfully attempted to defeat President Barack Obama and congressional Democrats, according to a Center for Public Integrity review of documents filed in Colorado...
How McDonald's And Walmart Became Welfare Queens  Bloomberg   ...It seems that welfare queens are back in the news these days. This time, they are even bigger, richer and less deserving of taxpayer support...
An example of how the banking cartels control countries  the unbalanced evolution of homo sapiens   ...The biggest private banks created a complex financial environment with complex financial destructive "tools" which governments are unable to manage. Governments are forced to turn to the same banks for "advising services" while they are flooded with former bank executives placed in key positions. This explains why the biggest private banks receive bailout packages of billions at the expense of taxpayers, loading governments with more debt...
Justices grill lawyers over neutrality agreements between employers and unions  Washington Post   ...Supreme Court justices seemed reluctant Wednesday to disallow a type of agreement between employers and unions that has become increasingly important to the labor movement as it tries to grow its ranks...
Poverty Is America's #1 Education Problem (opinion)  AlterNet   ...Teachers' unions are not the reason America's schools are in trouble...
Troubled Youth Prison Company Wins Even More Contracts  Huffington Post   ...Despite voluminous evidence that inmates have suffered violence, sexual abuse and neglect inside the facilities of a private juvenile prison operator, the state of Florida has in recent weeks awarded fresh contracts to the company...
Lockheed to cut 4,000 jobs as U.S. government spending wanes  Reuters   ...Defense contractor Lockheed Martin Corp said on Thursday it plans to cut 4,000 jobs, or more than 3 percent of its worldwide workforce, to cope with declines in U.S. spending...
Swiss voters likely to reject salary cap bill for executives  Raw Story   ...Swiss voters look set to reject a law to rein in executive pay in a looming referendum, with a poll released Wednesday showing only around a third back the plan...
German union's incoming boss warns VW about avoiding unions  Reuters   ...The incoming leader of an influential German union warned Volkswagen AG on Wednesday about trying to avoid unions in Tennessee, where the German automaker has an assembly plant...
Giant, Safeway workers authorize possible strike   Washington Post   ...Unionized employees at Washington area Safeway and Giant Food stores voted Wednesday to authorize a strike against the grocery chains if the two parties fail to agree on a new contract...
Any proposal to ban BART workers from striking is not a simple matter (opinion)  San Francisco Examiner   ...The California Supreme Court has gone back and forth on whether public-sector employees, such as these BART workers last month, are allowed to walk off the job...
Boeing machinists soundly reject labor deal Reuters   ...Boeing machinists soundly rejected an eight-year labor contract extension on Wednesday that would have let them build the company's newest jetliner in Washington, a historic decision that could forever alter the course of Boeing's 97-year presence in the state...

Today's Teamster News 11.14.13

Drivers Rally Outside D.C. Taxicab Commission Meeting  teamster.org   ...Hundreds of taxi drivers rallied outside the monthly meeting of the D.C. Taxicab Commission today to protest the unfair towing and ticketing of cabs and to demand a voice in the regulatory process. Also, watch this video of D.C. taxi drivers rallying November 4 at Freedom Plaza and delivering a letter outlining their concerns to Washington, D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray...
Hoffa: Congress, Detroit Have Role in Improving Retirement Confidence  teamster.org   ...A secure retirement used to be seen as a right for all hardworking Michiganders. Whether you were a city government employee in Detroit or a private sector worker in Pontiac, if you put in the time and did your job well, you would be rewarded with a nest egg for your golden years that would allow you live comfortably...
Wal-Mart Workers Strike, Target Workers Threaten to Join Black Friday Walkout  Portside   ...Sub-contracted Twin Cities janitorial workers who clean stores for Target and other corporations plan to announce today that they’re prepared to strike that day as well...
Reports shed light on how Koch brothers' money flows to campaigns  The Cap Times   ...A slew of reports released Wednesday reveal that a network of conservative think tanks, funded by multinational corporations and industrialists — most notably Charles and David Koch — comprise a vast dark-money campaign funding mechanism that funnels cash to conservative candidates, including Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker in last year’s recall election...
Scalia’s chance to smash unions: The huge under-the-radar case  Salon   ...A Supreme Court case being argued Wednesday could take away a tactic that's kept unions alive...
You won’t believe how much companies make every single second  Salon   ...The highest grosser on the list is Samsung, which hauls in almost $6,500 a second (In the five minutes it took us to write this post, Samsung made almost $2 million). It is followed closely by Apple at $4,540 a second...
House Pushing Back on Trade Deal; More Detail on How Secret Arbitration Panels Undermine Laws and Regulations   naked capitalism   ...Wow, this is amazing. Word has apparently gotten out even to Congressmen who can normally be lulled to sleep with the invocation of the magic phrase “free trade” that the pending Trans Pacific Partnership is toxic...
WikiLeaks releases major trade agreement draft chapter  Salon   ...“One could see the TPP as a Christmas wish-list for major corporations, and the copyright parts of the text support such a view...”
Bank Of America, Freddie Mac May Settle $1.4 Billion Mortgage Dispute  Reuters   ...The Bank of America is in talks with Freddie Mac to resolve disputes involving more than $1.4 billion in defective mortgages that Freddie wants the bank to take back...
Apple under investigation in Italy for alleged tax fraud  Reuters   ...U.S. tech giant Apple is under investigation in Milan for allegedly hiding more than 1 billion euros ($1.34 billion) from the Italian taxman, a judicial source with direct knowledge of the matter, confirming a local media report...
Congressional Approval Sinks to Record Low  Gallup   ...Americans' approval of the way Congress is handling its job has dropped to 9%, the lowest in Gallup's 39-year history of asking the question...
A Living Wage in Bangladesh (opinion)  New York Times   ...The government of Bangladesh is expected to soon announce an increase in the minimum wage for workers in the country’s clothing factories, which are big suppliers to Western retailers like Walmart and H&M. Its decision could improve the lives of millions of families that struggle to eke out an existence on as little as the equivalent of about $38 a month, the current minimum wage...
Costco, Nordstrom Refuse To Ruin Thanksgiving  Huffington Post   ...If you make a last-minute run to Costco on Thanksgiving Day, you'll be out of luck...
Top Democratic Pollster Says Don't Mess with Social Security -- Or Else Face the Wrath of Voters in 2014  Alternet   ...more than half of the 77 million baby boomers heading toward their mid-60s and older—especially women and people of color—have literally no retirement savings, and will fall into poverty as they age...
Occupy Wall Street activists buy $15 million of Americans' personal debt  The Guardian   ...A group of Occupy Wall Street activists has bought almost $15,000,000 of Americans' personal debt over the last year as part of the Rolling Jubilee project to help people pay off their outstanding credit...
Socialist candidate leading in Seattle City Council race  Raw Story   ...With about 62,000 ballots from King County yet to be counted following the Nov. 4 election, 41-year-old economics professor Kshama Sawant was reportedly ahead of longtime incumbent Richard Conlin by 41 votes, with Sawant gathering 79,751 votes against 79,710 for Conlin...
Corporate crime wave in Texas: How a crackdown could be coming  Salon   ...The nation’s fourth-largest city, Houston, is slated to vote today on cracking down on an alleged national epidemic: companies not paying employees the wages they’re legally owed. The proposed ordinance would make companies found guilty of serious “wage theft” ineligible for city support...
Koch Brothers’ Dark Money Flowed into Wisconsin Recall Fight  Express Milwaukee   ...Group busted in California gave serious money to Wisconsin Club for Growth...
In Unintimidated, Scott Walker Reveals Depth of Disdain for Unions, Protesters  Portside   ...He ...charges that collective bargaining "isn't a right, but a racket."...
Michigan bill would ban employers from asking about felony convictions on job applications Michigan Live   ...Michigan lawmakers are considering banning felony conviction check boxes on job applications. Supporters of the measure say the check boxes unfairly discriminate against people with criminal histories and hinder their ability to become successful members of society...
Freedom of Information Act requests could be cheaper, easier under Michigan House bill  Michigan Live   ...A state House panel on Tuesday unanimously approved a bill designed to update Michigan's Freedom of Information Act and ensure that government offices are not making it unnecessarily difficult for citizens to access public records...
State employee unions launch campaign to highlight government waste  Detroit Free Press   ...A coalition of unions representing 35,000 state employees has launched an effort to highlight areas where Michigan government can be more efficient and improve services to citizens...

Hundreds of Teamster taxi drivers rally for freedom in DC

Teamster-affiliated taxi drivers jam the lobby of the Washington, D.C., cab commission today.

Hundreds of Teamster-affiliated taxi drivers in Washington, D.C., showed up today at the monthly meeting of the local taxicab commission today to protest the unfair towing and ticketing of cabs. The drivers, who are independent, want freedom from onerous and unfair regulation, and they are demanding a voice in the regulatory process.

The drivers just recently formed the Washington, D.C. Taxi Operators Association, which is affiliated with Teamsters Local 922. They quickly found their voice. Last week, they filed a lawsuit to stop the regulations and elicited an apology from the mayor's spokesman for saying Washington has a 'third-world taxi system.'

Jesse Black, a 40-year D.C. taxi driver, said:

The city is hell-bent on destroying our livelihoods at any cost. This is an honorable profession that has a proud history in the District of Columbia of giving African Americans and immigrants the ability to provide for their families. It’s shameful that the city wants to kill off our good, middle-class jobs.

Said driver Kolawole Akinadewo:

All over the city drivers are having their vehicles towed and impounded without due process. It is outrageous that rather than working with drivers to educate them and give them more time, inspectors are destroying the livelihoods of families who already struggle every day to make ends meet. 

During today's meeting the drivers are speaking out against proposed regulations that would force hundreds of drivers off the streets by restricting older-model vehicles. Ferline Buie, president of Teamsters Local 922, said,

Drivers are fed up with not having a say in the rules and regulations that affect their lives every day. Now we confront a new issue – the new vehicle age policy. This is yet another example where drivers have been left out of the process.

Drivers work long days—often up to 16 hours, seven days a week—and earn about $25,000 to $30,000 per year providing a valuable service. The unfair towing and ticketing has severely hurt them and their families.

Read their whole statement here:

Today's Teamster News 11.08.13

Teamster Taxi Drivers Call On D.C. Mayor To Apologize For Offensive Comment  teamster.org   ...“District taxi drivers are calling on Mayor Vincent Gray to publicly apologize for the shameful and callous comment made by his spokesman yesterday in an online Washingtonian article about a lawsuit filed by the Teamster-affiliated Washington, D.C. Taxi Operators Association...
New lawsuit targets D.C. taxicab rules  Washington Post   ...D.C.’s new Teamsters-affilliated cab drivers group has wasted no time raising its profile. On Monday, less than a week after holding their first organization meeting, the members marched to deliver a letter to Mayor Vincent Gray protesting the city’s decision to impound taxis that failed to install new dome lights by Nov. 1...
Talks Begin Between A-B InBev, Teamsters  CBS KMOX News   ...It’s uncharted territory as the Teamsters begin contract talks with Anheuser-Busch InBev for the first talks since InBev purchased A-B five years ago...
A Message to our Active-Duty Military and Veterans from Jim Hoffa  teamster.org   ...On this Veteran’s Day, I want to say thank you for your service to our country. The Teamsters Union is so grateful to all the men and women in uniform, from recent active duty veterans returning from Afghanistan and Iraq to those who have served in previous years...
International Fact-Finding Mission To Probe IKEA’s Behavior In Canada  itfglobal.org   ...An international fact-finding team has arrived in Canada to examine an ongoing dispute at Swedish retail giant IKEA’s Richmond, British Columbia, store. The team is tasked with investigating the situation at the store, where 350 workers who are members of Teamsters Local 213, have been locked out by the company...
Greensburg City Council budget to call for no tax increase or service cuts, raises for public workers Pittsburgh Tribune-Review   ...Greensburg City Council will introduce a 2014 budget next week that calls for no increase in real estate taxes or cuts in services, and a contract that includes a pay increase for the public service workers represented by Teamsters Local 30 in Jeannette, Pennsylvania...
Tearing out asbestos with bare hands: Meet the boss from hell  Salon   ...A group of immigrants say their boss wielded their status as a weapon when they stood up to extreme abuses: from hanging from the top of a four-story building without scaffolding, to removing asbestos without gloves...
“They have blood on their hands”: Meet Wal-Mart’s worst nightmare  Salon   ...A top Bangladesh labor leader slams retailers, issues a plea to consumers, and explains why her life is in danger...
Anonymous Wal-Mart workers unload and urge protests on new website  Salon   ...On second day of a strike, a labor group unveils the latest tool for combining the web with old-fashioned organizing...
How Can the New York Times Endorse an Agreement the Public Can't Read?  Electronic Frontier Foundation   ...The New York Times' editorial board has made a disappointing endorsement of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), even as the actual text of the agreement remains secret. That raises two distressing possibilities: either in an act of extraordinary subservience, the Times has endorsed an agreement that neither the public nor its editors have the ability to read. Or, in an act of extraordinary cowardice, it has obtained a copy of the secret text and hasn't yet fulfilled its duty to the public interest to publish it...
Exxon “disappointed” with $2.7 million fine for Arkansas pipeline spill  Salon   ...The company was found to have violated safety regulations in the 5,000-gallon spill in Arkansas that forced residents to evacuate their homes…
Senate bill targets corporations that deduct settlement payouts  Washington Post   ...JPMorgan Chase’s pending $13 billion settlement with the Justice Department has revived calls from some in Congress that corporations should be prevented from claiming tax deductions on such deals...
Wall Street Bonuses May Rise 10 Percent This Year  Reuters   ...Wall Street's biggest risk takers - its bond traders - will probably see their bonuses drop this year, while people in safer roles, such as money managers, will likely get a boost, according to a forecast by compensation consulting firm Johnson Associates...
Three Graphs That Show How Being A Young Adult In America Is A Financial Nightmare  The Atlantic   ...Poverty is an astonishingly common experience here in the world's richest country. Almost 40 percent of American adults experience it for at least a year by age 60...
The Cost Of Childcare Rose Last Year, Is More Than Rent Or Food  ThinkProgress   ...Families paid more for childcare in 2012 than in 2011, with the costs of center care rising by 2.7 percent for an infant and 2.6 percent for a four-year-old, which eat up a huge amount of families’ budgets, according to a new report...
FBI ‘Accidentally’ Investigated Anti-War Site For Six Years  Fire Dog Lake   ...When the managing editor of antiwar.com, sent an email to the FBI requesting help in dealing with threats to hack his website he probably didn’t realize HE was going to become the subject of the investigation. But that is exactly what happened. How do you "accidentally" do something for six years?...
C.I.A. Is Said to Pay AT&T for Call Data  New York Times   ...The C.I.A. is paying AT&T more than $10 million a year to assist with overseas counterterrorism investigations by exploiting the company’s vast database of phone records, which includes Americans’ international calls, according to government officials...
As Twitter Goes Public, Taxpayers Stand To Lose Billions On Tech Stocks  ThinkProgress   ...The hotly anticipated Twitter IPO calls attention to stock option tax breaks that cost taxpayers billions...
Wells Fargo to pay $335M to settle FHFA dispute  Associated Press   ...Wells Fargo will pay $335 million to resolve claims that it misled Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac about risky mortgage securities that it sold them prior to the housing collapse...