Teamsters
Ryder Drivers At Three Locations In California Join Teamsters Union insurancenewsnet.com ... Drivers with Ryder Integrated Logistics at three California locations have voted to join the Teamsters Union, gaining representation for 105 workers in one week (see also International Brotherhood of Teamsters)...
SBPEA Losing 840 Members San Bernardino Sun ...“Many members, as well as all of us, are excited about the affiliation, and we will spend the next few weeks educating the members on all of the benefits of affiliating with the Teamsters Union,” Rodriguez said....
Middletown Supervisors Approve Contract With Teamsters Union Employees Bucks County Courier Tribune ...Middletown employees belonging to Teamsters Local 107 will get 3 percent pay increases in each of the next three years under a new contract unanimously approved by the township supervisors at Monday night’s meeting....
Eurest Workers Use Pressure Tactics At Halifax Airport NewsWire ...Eurest's 26 workers responsible for maintenance at Robert Stanfield Airport (YHZ) are resorting to pressure tactics 11 months after their collective agreement expired. The points at issue are both various and troubling: no benefits, low pay, unfair treatment by the employer, and others. "These workers clean toilets and don't even have group insurance. So if they get sick, they can't get reimbursed for any prescription drugs they may have to take," said Local Union 927 president Rob Beairsto....
Sysco Merger With US Foods A Step Too Far (opinion) Houston Chronicle ...Management's responsibility at a public company is to maximize shareholder value by grabbing as much market power and profit as possible....
Trade
Facing Dem anger, White House eases restrictions on classified trade files The Hill ...The loudest protests have come from liberal House Democrats who said the rules to view the text were too stringent. They have argued that the White House didn't want them to know the TPP details because they say any deal is likely to be bad for U.S. workers and their wages...
Pelosi Embraces Tough Questions About Obama's Trade Agenda Associated Press ...President Barack Obama's bid for a new trade deal didn't get easier Tuesday when the House's top Democrat said her caucus embraces a dozen demands that may be tough to meet...
Why the TPP will have a devastating impact on unions The Ed Show ...Closed door, classified meetings about the controversial Trans-Pacific Partnership raises questions about transparency from the Obama Administration. Ed Schultz and Leo Gerard discuss...
Trumka Takes Opposition to a TPP Fast-Track to the Peterson Institute Campaign for America's Future ...One of the most troubling aspects of TPP is how few people have seen the entire treaty, Trumka said. So far only leaked portions have been released that clearly favor a race to the bottom, putting corporate interests over investment in human and environmental rights...
State Battles
Missouri Senate Panel Advances 1 Republican Labor Priority Southeast Missourian ...Right-to-work legislation, which would ban contracts that force all workers to pay union fees, was sent on Tuesday to the full Senate. But the Senate Small Business, Insurance and Industry Committee failed to move forward with what supporters call a "paycheck protection" measure that would require annual written authorization from public employee union members before paying union dues...
'Right To Work' Fight Over Public Employee Unions Heats Up In Oregon, May Go To 2016 Ballot The Oregonian ...Oregon may be one of the next big battlegrounds over "right to work" restrictions on unions that have now spread to 25 states. Washington County attorney Jill Gibson, who has been supported by some of the state's major conservative political donors, is moving toward putting a measure on the 2016 ballot that would allow public employees to opt out of financially supporting a union...
Kansas Panel Considers Limits On Public Workers' Collective Bargaining Topeka Capital Journal ...A legislative committee in Kansas is considering a proposal to restrict collective bargaining between public employees and state and local government agencies. Chairwoman Julia Lynn said the Senate Commerce Committee will debate the measure during its meeting Wednesday. Lynn is an Olathe Republican and has said she believes the GOP-dominated panel supports the bill...
Federal Judge Won’t Block Seattle’s $15 Minimum Wage Seattle Post-Intelligencer ...U.S. District Judge Richard Jones has refused to issue an injunction to halt Seattle’s nationally watched $15-an-hour minimum wage, slated to take effect in the Emerald City on April 1. “Great news! This ruling ensures that on April 1, the minimum wage will go up for all Seattle workers,” Mayor Ed Murray said in a statement...
War on Workers
Manufacturing Jobs Are Back, But Wages Are Not Engineering.com ...In 2007, the wage gap between the average manufacturing worker and all private-sector workers was barely noticeable ($19.40 and $19.57 respectively). However, by 2013 the average manufacturing wage had fallen by 85 cents, or 7.7 percent below the median average for all occupations. Today, approximately 1.5 million manufacturing workers – one in four – earn $11.91 or less per hour. Meanwhile, 600,000 workers make just $9.60 an hour...
Report: Energy companies, big banks reap big federal assistance McClatchy ...Big banks and Wall Street firms that took advantage of the bailout following the 2008 economic crash have reaped hundreds of billions, and even trillions, of dollars in assistance, according to Good Jobs First, a nonprofit organization that tracks government subsidies to corporations...
Target to Increase Wages to Minimum $9/Hour for All Workers in April Wall Street Journal ...Target Corp. plans to boost pay of all its workers to at least $9 an hour starting next month, following similar moves by rivals Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and TJX Cos. as competition for lower wage workers heats up...
Higher minimum wages are associated with greater financial well-being London School of Economics ... Even if some low-wage jobs disappear as minimum wages rise, the end result is greater economic security and prosperity overall for people who live and work in countries with higher minimums...
Senate Democrats Consider Raising Their Minimum Wage Proposal To $12 Huffington Post ...Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), ranking member of the Senate's labor committee, has been reaching out to her Democratic colleagues to rally support for a more ambitious minimum wage proposal, according to a Senate source familiar with the conversations. Murray's idea: hike the federal minimum wage to $12 by 2020, rather than the current $10.10 proposal languishing in Congress. The wage floor would then be tied to an inflation index so that it rose with the cost of living...
Worker dies after 11-foot fall in Arkansas Equipment World ...29-year-old Erik Rivera Pontilla fell from a beam he was bolting into place. The Little Rock Police Department told the site that Pontilla lost his footing and fell directly onto a slab below. No one was nearby when he fell and no mention is made of harnesses or nets in the report...
Miscellaneous
IRS may broaden rule to police political nonprofits Politico ...IRS Commissioner John Koskinen said the agency may expand a yet-to-be-released rule governing 501(c)(4), “social welfare” groups, to include political groups known as 527s, which focus on elections. It could require them both — as well as other types of tax-exempt groups — to operate under the same definition of “political activity.”...
U.S. Sets New Record For Denying, Censoring Government Files Huffington Post ...The Obama administration set a new record again for more often than ever censoring government files or outright denying access to them last year under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act, according to a new analysis of federal data by The Associated Press...
Showing posts with label IRS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label IRS. Show all posts
Thursday, March 19, 2015
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Today's Teamster News 01.07.15
Teamsters
Agreement between Los Angeles, Long Beach port truck drivers, Carson firm allows Teamsters to enter negotiations San Jose Mercury News ...Drivers with Carson-based Shippers Transport Express, a wholly owned subsidiary of SSA Marine, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and their supporters plan to host a press conference in Wilmington on Friday to validate their union authorization cards, opening the door for the Teamsters to begin negotiating a contract, according to Justice for Port Drivers and the Teamsters...
Teamsters Local 728 Reaches Tentative Agreement With First Student WTOC ...A representative with Teamsters Local 728 Union has told WTOC it has reached a tentative agreement with First Student after months of negotiations...
Trade
Why The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement Is A Pending Disaster Huffington Post ...Republicans who now run Congress say they want to cooperate with President Obama, and point to the administration's Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP, as the model. The only problem is the TPP would be a disaster...
Stopping the Biggest Corporate Power Grab in Years Foreign Policy in Focus ...How fighting back against one arcane, Nixon-era trade negotiating procedure could put a stop to a global corporate coup...
Austerity Killing You? How About A Trade Deal? Huffington Post ...It is a mark of the delusion of Europe's leaders that the EU is putting its chips on a trade deal with the U.S. -- the so-called Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership. TTIP is not really a trade deal at all but a series of measures intended to promote further deregulation of economic, financial, health, labor, safety, privacy, and environmental protections on both sides of the Atlantic. TTIP was designed by corporations to weaken labor and government -- and would do just about nothing to get Europe out of its austerity trap...
State Battles
Republicans Prefile Right-To-Work Legislation In NM House Albuquerque Business First ...Three members of the Republican-controlled state House announced Monday they prefiled legislation that would prohibit automatic union membership in New Mexico and give workers the right to join or financially contribute to a union — or not...
Butler County Discusses Right-To-Work Ordinance Bowling Green Daily News ...Butler County Judge-Executive David Fields said he expects the Fiscal Court to take a vote on a right-to-work ordinance, but that vote might not come until February...
Fischer Signs $9 Minimum Wage Ordinance Louisville Courier Journal ...Mayor Greg Fischer signed the ordinance increasing the minimum wage to $9 an hour in Jefferson County on Friday. The law increases the wage to $7.75 by July 1, to $8.25 by July 2016 and $9 by July 2017, and ties future increases to the Department of Labor's Consumer Price Index for urban cities in the region...
New IRS Rules On Dark Money Likely Won’t Be Ready Before 2016 Election ProPublica ...The Internal Revenue Service says it won't come out with new proposed rules for so-called dark money groups until late spring at the earliest, increasing the likelihood that no changes will take effect before the 2016 elections...
War on Workers
New GOP Congress Fires Shot At Social Security On Day One Talking Points Memo ...The largely overlooked change puts a new restriction on the routine transfer of tax revenues between the traditional Social Security retirement trust fund and the Social Security disability program. ...experts say it would likely mean any reallocation would have to be balanced by new revenues or benefit cuts...
House Republicans Change Rules on Calculating Economic Impact of Bills New York Times ...The change on “dynamic scoring” — ardently sought since the 1990s by Republicans — could ease passage of major tax cuts by showing that their impact on economic growth would substantially reduce their cost to the Treasury. The move is widely seen as a way for Republican leaders to set ground rules for an ambitious overhaul of the entire United States tax code...
Atlanta Stagehands Fight ‘Labor Pimps’ Pushing Temp Work, Low Wages In These Times ...while those performances net entertainers and concert venues massive amounts of money, the backstage workers like the ones who made Beyoncé’s live performance July 15 in Atlanta possible can’t say the same. Those employees are now attempting to organize a union, hoping to reverse the trend of eroded wages and benefits for the stagehands and others who make these performances so profitable...
Business Groups File Lawsuit To Block NLRB’s Union-Organizing Rule Wall Street Journal ...Several business trade groups filed a lawsuit Monday to block the National Labor Relations Board’s new rule that would speed union-organizing elections, alleging the board overstepped its authority...
Oil plummets, but don't expect lower fares soon Sydney Morning Herald ...Oil prices may have plunged to near six-year lows, but travellers are unlikely to see Qantas or Virgin Australia rush to slash fares any time soon – or lower their much maligned fuel surcharges on international flights...
In the US, one lesson from oil prices: rich people win, again Guardian ...The most visible economic impact is in gasoline prices, with regular pump prices down about 70 cents a gallon from year ago levels, according to AAA. Consumers across the board benefit from this by having a little more disposable income, but Harris said the impact on households is uneven. Rich people win, again. About 56% of the expense savings goes to households in the top two-fifths of the income distribution versus only 24% to families in the bottom two-fifths…
Mercedes-Benz says will move U.S. headquarters to Atlanta Reuters ...Mercedes-Benz will move its U.S. headquarters to Atlanta from northern New Jersey, affecting about 1,000 employees, the company said on Tuesday. The Daimler AG unit is moving to cut costs...
Worker Killed in Mill Accident North Coast Journal ...A 64-year-old contract worker was killed this morning when his boom lift apparently came into contact with a high voltage line at an Arcata mill...
Miscellaneous
Why Uber Will—And Should—Be Regulated Slate ...Nothing is new under the sun, and that includes the Uber controversy. Price regulation of taxis was thrown into disarray in the 1920s when mass production drove down the cost of cars. When that happened, anyone, including part-timers, could pick up a passenger for a high fare during times of peak demand, depriving the taxis of fares from low-cost trips that they needed to survive and reintroducing price confusion. Governments invented the medallion system to block the part-timers from unraveling the market by siphoning off the lowest-cost fares...
Agreement between Los Angeles, Long Beach port truck drivers, Carson firm allows Teamsters to enter negotiations San Jose Mercury News ...Drivers with Carson-based Shippers Transport Express, a wholly owned subsidiary of SSA Marine, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and their supporters plan to host a press conference in Wilmington on Friday to validate their union authorization cards, opening the door for the Teamsters to begin negotiating a contract, according to Justice for Port Drivers and the Teamsters...
Teamsters Local 728 Reaches Tentative Agreement With First Student WTOC ...A representative with Teamsters Local 728 Union has told WTOC it has reached a tentative agreement with First Student after months of negotiations...
Trade
Why The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement Is A Pending Disaster Huffington Post ...Republicans who now run Congress say they want to cooperate with President Obama, and point to the administration's Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP, as the model. The only problem is the TPP would be a disaster...
Stopping the Biggest Corporate Power Grab in Years Foreign Policy in Focus ...How fighting back against one arcane, Nixon-era trade negotiating procedure could put a stop to a global corporate coup...
Austerity Killing You? How About A Trade Deal? Huffington Post ...It is a mark of the delusion of Europe's leaders that the EU is putting its chips on a trade deal with the U.S. -- the so-called Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership. TTIP is not really a trade deal at all but a series of measures intended to promote further deregulation of economic, financial, health, labor, safety, privacy, and environmental protections on both sides of the Atlantic. TTIP was designed by corporations to weaken labor and government -- and would do just about nothing to get Europe out of its austerity trap...
State Battles
Republicans Prefile Right-To-Work Legislation In NM House Albuquerque Business First ...Three members of the Republican-controlled state House announced Monday they prefiled legislation that would prohibit automatic union membership in New Mexico and give workers the right to join or financially contribute to a union — or not...
Butler County Discusses Right-To-Work Ordinance Bowling Green Daily News ...Butler County Judge-Executive David Fields said he expects the Fiscal Court to take a vote on a right-to-work ordinance, but that vote might not come until February...
Fischer Signs $9 Minimum Wage Ordinance Louisville Courier Journal ...Mayor Greg Fischer signed the ordinance increasing the minimum wage to $9 an hour in Jefferson County on Friday. The law increases the wage to $7.75 by July 1, to $8.25 by July 2016 and $9 by July 2017, and ties future increases to the Department of Labor's Consumer Price Index for urban cities in the region...
New IRS Rules On Dark Money Likely Won’t Be Ready Before 2016 Election ProPublica ...The Internal Revenue Service says it won't come out with new proposed rules for so-called dark money groups until late spring at the earliest, increasing the likelihood that no changes will take effect before the 2016 elections...
War on Workers
New GOP Congress Fires Shot At Social Security On Day One Talking Points Memo ...The largely overlooked change puts a new restriction on the routine transfer of tax revenues between the traditional Social Security retirement trust fund and the Social Security disability program. ...experts say it would likely mean any reallocation would have to be balanced by new revenues or benefit cuts...
House Republicans Change Rules on Calculating Economic Impact of Bills New York Times ...The change on “dynamic scoring” — ardently sought since the 1990s by Republicans — could ease passage of major tax cuts by showing that their impact on economic growth would substantially reduce their cost to the Treasury. The move is widely seen as a way for Republican leaders to set ground rules for an ambitious overhaul of the entire United States tax code...
Atlanta Stagehands Fight ‘Labor Pimps’ Pushing Temp Work, Low Wages In These Times ...while those performances net entertainers and concert venues massive amounts of money, the backstage workers like the ones who made Beyoncé’s live performance July 15 in Atlanta possible can’t say the same. Those employees are now attempting to organize a union, hoping to reverse the trend of eroded wages and benefits for the stagehands and others who make these performances so profitable...
Business Groups File Lawsuit To Block NLRB’s Union-Organizing Rule Wall Street Journal ...Several business trade groups filed a lawsuit Monday to block the National Labor Relations Board’s new rule that would speed union-organizing elections, alleging the board overstepped its authority...
Oil plummets, but don't expect lower fares soon Sydney Morning Herald ...Oil prices may have plunged to near six-year lows, but travellers are unlikely to see Qantas or Virgin Australia rush to slash fares any time soon – or lower their much maligned fuel surcharges on international flights...
In the US, one lesson from oil prices: rich people win, again Guardian ...The most visible economic impact is in gasoline prices, with regular pump prices down about 70 cents a gallon from year ago levels, according to AAA. Consumers across the board benefit from this by having a little more disposable income, but Harris said the impact on households is uneven. Rich people win, again. About 56% of the expense savings goes to households in the top two-fifths of the income distribution versus only 24% to families in the bottom two-fifths…
Mercedes-Benz says will move U.S. headquarters to Atlanta Reuters ...Mercedes-Benz will move its U.S. headquarters to Atlanta from northern New Jersey, affecting about 1,000 employees, the company said on Tuesday. The Daimler AG unit is moving to cut costs...
Worker Killed in Mill Accident North Coast Journal ...A 64-year-old contract worker was killed this morning when his boom lift apparently came into contact with a high voltage line at an Arcata mill...
Miscellaneous
Why Uber Will—And Should—Be Regulated Slate ...Nothing is new under the sun, and that includes the Uber controversy. Price regulation of taxis was thrown into disarray in the 1920s when mass production drove down the cost of cars. When that happened, anyone, including part-timers, could pick up a passenger for a high fare during times of peak demand, depriving the taxis of fares from low-cost trips that they needed to survive and reintroducing price confusion. Governments invented the medallion system to block the part-timers from unraveling the market by siphoning off the lowest-cost fares...
Friday, June 20, 2014
Today's Teamster News 06.20.14
Teamster News
Federal board accuses port trucking firm of labor law violations Los Angeles Times ...The federal government has accused a trucking company in Carson of more than 50 labor law violations, including firing drivers for union activity, retaliating against pro-labor employees and planting an anti-union operative amid its workforce...
Teamsters, Carpenters Protest Over Lost Work But Convention Center Is Not Budging NewsWorks ...About 100 union carpenters and Teamsters rallied outside the Pennsylvania Convention Center Wednesday in the first official protest since a labor dispute last month with center management...
Vermont Maintenance Workers Settle On New Contract San Francisco Chronicle ...Transportation maintenance workers in Vermont's Chittenden County have signed a new three-year-contract that takes effect July 1. Union officials for Teamsters Local 597 say the new contract — signed Thursday — includes wage increases averaging two percent a year and access to promotions through professional certification programs...
Toronto Shooting: The Teamsters Want to Meet with Minister Blainey Teamsters Canada ...A member of Teamsters Local Union 419 is in critical condition following a shooting that occurred last night in Toronto. The victim who works for Garda World Cash Services was in an ambush situation with 3 individuals…."This is not the first time a shooting occurs in the Toronto area or elsewhere in the country for that matter in the past few months," points out Jim Chalmers, director of the Teamsters Canada Armoured Car Division...
Trade
Capitol Hill looks hard at dog treats and processed Chicken from China manufacture this ...1,000 dogs have died, 10 percent of America’s pig population is gone, 5,600 more pets are sick, and three people are ill. And poor safety measures in China may be the cause...
Retirees Gather, Organize For Social Justice People's World ...Retired activists discussed how to stop efforts to cut Medicare and Social Security, raise the minimum wage, and fight back against destructive trade deals like the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership...
State Battles
John Doe prosecutors allege Scott Walker at center of 'criminal scheme' Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ...Prosecutors allege Gov. Scott Walker was at the center of an effort to illegally coordinate fundraising ... to help his campaign and those of Republican state senators facing recall elections during 2011 and 2012, according to documents unsealed Thursday...
Exclusive: Prosecutor Is Closing in on Gov. Christie Esquire ...(U.S. Attorney Paul) Fishman’s challenge is to nail down specific criminal charges on several fronts -- the diversion of Port Authority money to fund New Jersey road and bridge projects; the four-day rush-hour closures of George Washington Bridge lanes in Ft. Lee; and a web of real-estate deals spun by David Samson, long a Christie crony, when he chaired the PA’s Board of Commissioners as Christie’s appointee...
Meet The Hotel Workers Going On Hunger Strike For A $15 Minimum Wage Think Progress ...In Providence, Rhode Island, three hotel workers and a city councilwoman started a week-long hunger strike on Monday, protesting a state bill that would block their efforts to raise the city’s minimum wage to $15 an hour...
War On Workers
Being Out of Work Longer Makes Finding Work Much Harder Wall Street Journal ...Recent research suggests this discouraging silence may have more to do with the time spent out of the work force than with the job seeker’s skills, education or age...
IRS Chief Promises Stricter Rules For 'Dark Money' Non-Profit Groups Philadelphia Inquirer ...The Internal Revenue Service will propose new and specific rules defining how much money “social welfare” nonprofits may spend on political campaigns...
GE Capital Pays Up For Denying Spanish Speakers Access To Credit Card Repayment Program Huffington Post ...Synchrony Bank, formerly known as GE Capital, has reached an agreement with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Justice Department over allegations that it denied access to credit card debt-repayment programs to qualified customers just because they preferred to communicate in Spanish or had a mailing address in Puerto Rico...
Miscellaneous
What Green Revolution? Coal Use Highest In 44 Years Oil Price ...In 2013, enough coal was burned to meet 30.1 percent of the world’s energy demands -- its highest share since 1970, according to new data from BP’s Statistical Review of World Energy...
Federal board accuses port trucking firm of labor law violations Los Angeles Times ...The federal government has accused a trucking company in Carson of more than 50 labor law violations, including firing drivers for union activity, retaliating against pro-labor employees and planting an anti-union operative amid its workforce...
Teamsters, Carpenters Protest Over Lost Work But Convention Center Is Not Budging NewsWorks ...About 100 union carpenters and Teamsters rallied outside the Pennsylvania Convention Center Wednesday in the first official protest since a labor dispute last month with center management...
Vermont Maintenance Workers Settle On New Contract San Francisco Chronicle ...Transportation maintenance workers in Vermont's Chittenden County have signed a new three-year-contract that takes effect July 1. Union officials for Teamsters Local 597 say the new contract — signed Thursday — includes wage increases averaging two percent a year and access to promotions through professional certification programs...
Toronto Shooting: The Teamsters Want to Meet with Minister Blainey Teamsters Canada ...A member of Teamsters Local Union 419 is in critical condition following a shooting that occurred last night in Toronto. The victim who works for Garda World Cash Services was in an ambush situation with 3 individuals…."This is not the first time a shooting occurs in the Toronto area or elsewhere in the country for that matter in the past few months," points out Jim Chalmers, director of the Teamsters Canada Armoured Car Division...
Trade
Capitol Hill looks hard at dog treats and processed Chicken from China manufacture this ...1,000 dogs have died, 10 percent of America’s pig population is gone, 5,600 more pets are sick, and three people are ill. And poor safety measures in China may be the cause...
Retirees Gather, Organize For Social Justice People's World ...Retired activists discussed how to stop efforts to cut Medicare and Social Security, raise the minimum wage, and fight back against destructive trade deals like the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership...
State Battles
John Doe prosecutors allege Scott Walker at center of 'criminal scheme' Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ...Prosecutors allege Gov. Scott Walker was at the center of an effort to illegally coordinate fundraising ... to help his campaign and those of Republican state senators facing recall elections during 2011 and 2012, according to documents unsealed Thursday...
Exclusive: Prosecutor Is Closing in on Gov. Christie Esquire ...(U.S. Attorney Paul) Fishman’s challenge is to nail down specific criminal charges on several fronts -- the diversion of Port Authority money to fund New Jersey road and bridge projects; the four-day rush-hour closures of George Washington Bridge lanes in Ft. Lee; and a web of real-estate deals spun by David Samson, long a Christie crony, when he chaired the PA’s Board of Commissioners as Christie’s appointee...
Meet The Hotel Workers Going On Hunger Strike For A $15 Minimum Wage Think Progress ...In Providence, Rhode Island, three hotel workers and a city councilwoman started a week-long hunger strike on Monday, protesting a state bill that would block their efforts to raise the city’s minimum wage to $15 an hour...
War On Workers
Being Out of Work Longer Makes Finding Work Much Harder Wall Street Journal ...Recent research suggests this discouraging silence may have more to do with the time spent out of the work force than with the job seeker’s skills, education or age...
IRS Chief Promises Stricter Rules For 'Dark Money' Non-Profit Groups Philadelphia Inquirer ...The Internal Revenue Service will propose new and specific rules defining how much money “social welfare” nonprofits may spend on political campaigns...
GE Capital Pays Up For Denying Spanish Speakers Access To Credit Card Repayment Program Huffington Post ...Synchrony Bank, formerly known as GE Capital, has reached an agreement with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Justice Department over allegations that it denied access to credit card debt-repayment programs to qualified customers just because they preferred to communicate in Spanish or had a mailing address in Puerto Rico...
Miscellaneous
What Green Revolution? Coal Use Highest In 44 Years Oil Price ...In 2013, enough coal was burned to meet 30.1 percent of the world’s energy demands -- its highest share since 1970, according to new data from BP’s Statistical Review of World Energy...
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Today's Teamster News 03.23.14
Teamster News
Teamsters score a win against “sharecropping on wheels.” But will the trucking industry really change? Washington Post ...Along with auto technicians, fast food workers, and baggage handlers, another profession has been hit by the separation of labor from employer: Port truckers, who haul containers from cargo ships on short trips around the terminal...
Port trucking company agrees to labor settlement with drivers Orange County Register ...Carson-based Pacific 9 Transportation Inc. has agreed to a settlement with 50 independent truck drivers that could force the company to treat them as employees, not independent contractors, according to an agreement filed with a federal labor relations agency in Los Angeles...
Anheuser-Busch, Teamsters reach tentative deal Associated Press ...Anheuser-Busch and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters say they have reached a tentative deal on a five-year contract for workers at the beverage-maker's 12 U.S. breweries...
Canadian National Railway Company and Teamsters Canada Rail Conference resume negotiations PR Newswire ...Today, the Honourable Dr. K. Kellie Leitch, Minister of Labour and Minister of Status of Women, congratulated the Canadian National Railway (CN) and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) for returning to the bargaining table and working to reach a new agreement...
Trade
Debate in US over trade deficit with China heats up South China Morning Post ...A chorus of voices in the United States has been calling for tougher trade action against China, alleging imports from the country are slashing jobs in the US...
State Battles
Right to work bill on the Missouri House schedule Associated Press ...Missouri House Republican leaders are vowing to consider legislation known to supporters as "right to work" when lawmakers return from their weeklong break...
Republican pitches alternative to liquor privatization The Sentinel ...A Bucks County Republican lawmaker opposed to selling off state-run liquor stores on Thursday unveiled an alternative to privatization of Pennsylvania’s market share of the industry...
State DOJ files first appeals in Capitol singalong cases Wisconsin State Journal ..The Wisconsin Department of Justice for the first time Friday appealed a Dane County judge’s decision to throw out tickets related to the Capitol singalong...
More than 100 USM students, faculty protest proposed budget cuts, layoffs Bangor Daily News ...University of Southern Maine students and faculty chanted, yelled and — in one case — stretched out on the floor of the hallway outside the office of Provost Michael R. Stevenson to protest during meetings Friday at which 15 full-time faculty members in nine departments were expected to be laid off...
The War on Workers
Spain austerity: Huge Madrid protest turns violent BBC News ...Violence has broken out at the end of an anti-austerity protest attended by tens of thousands of people in the Spanish capital Madrid...
When Minimum Wage Rises, Many Are Left Looking Up at It New York Times ...so many immigrants are willing to do this work that it is not hard for unscrupulous businesses to find people desperate enough to do it for less than what the law requires...
U.S. IRS audited fewer wealthy Americans in 2013 Reuters ... The U.S. Internal Revenue Service said on Friday that it audited fewer high-income Americans in 2013 than it did in 2012 or 2011, while it conducted more audits of people with no income...
Pixel & Dimed: On Not Getting By in the Gig Economy Fast Company ...For one month, I became the “micro-entrepreneur” touted by companies like TaskRabbit, Postmates, and Airbnb. Instead of the labor revolution I had been promised, all I found was hard work, low pay, and a system that puts workers at a disadvantage...
Industries Across the U.S. Are Stealing Wages From Their Lowest Paid Workers The Real News ...about a quarter of workers had not been paid minimum wage in the week of the survey. Three-quarters of them had not been paid overtime pay even though they had worked overtime hours...
Out of Work, Out of Luck Five Thirty Eight Economics ...Many if not most of the 3.8 million Americans who have been out of work for more than six months will never again hold steady jobs...
The Stone Unturned: Credit Ratings New York Times ...It’s the one question about the 2008 financial crisis that people still ask me more than any other: Why have regulators done so little to rein in the credit rating agencies? Other institutions that contributed to the mortgage debacle have submitted to new rules and compliance requirements, but Moody’s Investors Service and Standard & Poor’s and their peers remained relatively untouched...
S&P Judge Tentatively Rules It Must Face Deception Claims Bloomberg ...McGraw Hill Financial Inc. (MHFI)’s Standard & Poor’s unit must face California’s claims it deceived the state’s pension funds in its ratings of mortgage-back securities, a judge said in a provisional ruling...
Teamsters score a win against “sharecropping on wheels.” But will the trucking industry really change? Washington Post ...Along with auto technicians, fast food workers, and baggage handlers, another profession has been hit by the separation of labor from employer: Port truckers, who haul containers from cargo ships on short trips around the terminal...
Port trucking company agrees to labor settlement with drivers Orange County Register ...Carson-based Pacific 9 Transportation Inc. has agreed to a settlement with 50 independent truck drivers that could force the company to treat them as employees, not independent contractors, according to an agreement filed with a federal labor relations agency in Los Angeles...
Anheuser-Busch, Teamsters reach tentative deal Associated Press ...Anheuser-Busch and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters say they have reached a tentative deal on a five-year contract for workers at the beverage-maker's 12 U.S. breweries...
Canadian National Railway Company and Teamsters Canada Rail Conference resume negotiations PR Newswire ...Today, the Honourable Dr. K. Kellie Leitch, Minister of Labour and Minister of Status of Women, congratulated the Canadian National Railway (CN) and the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) for returning to the bargaining table and working to reach a new agreement...
Trade
Debate in US over trade deficit with China heats up South China Morning Post ...A chorus of voices in the United States has been calling for tougher trade action against China, alleging imports from the country are slashing jobs in the US...
State Battles
Right to work bill on the Missouri House schedule Associated Press ...Missouri House Republican leaders are vowing to consider legislation known to supporters as "right to work" when lawmakers return from their weeklong break...
Republican pitches alternative to liquor privatization The Sentinel ...A Bucks County Republican lawmaker opposed to selling off state-run liquor stores on Thursday unveiled an alternative to privatization of Pennsylvania’s market share of the industry...
State DOJ files first appeals in Capitol singalong cases Wisconsin State Journal ..The Wisconsin Department of Justice for the first time Friday appealed a Dane County judge’s decision to throw out tickets related to the Capitol singalong...
More than 100 USM students, faculty protest proposed budget cuts, layoffs Bangor Daily News ...University of Southern Maine students and faculty chanted, yelled and — in one case — stretched out on the floor of the hallway outside the office of Provost Michael R. Stevenson to protest during meetings Friday at which 15 full-time faculty members in nine departments were expected to be laid off...
The War on Workers
Spain austerity: Huge Madrid protest turns violent BBC News ...Violence has broken out at the end of an anti-austerity protest attended by tens of thousands of people in the Spanish capital Madrid...
When Minimum Wage Rises, Many Are Left Looking Up at It New York Times ...so many immigrants are willing to do this work that it is not hard for unscrupulous businesses to find people desperate enough to do it for less than what the law requires...
U.S. IRS audited fewer wealthy Americans in 2013 Reuters ... The U.S. Internal Revenue Service said on Friday that it audited fewer high-income Americans in 2013 than it did in 2012 or 2011, while it conducted more audits of people with no income...
Pixel & Dimed: On Not Getting By in the Gig Economy Fast Company ...For one month, I became the “micro-entrepreneur” touted by companies like TaskRabbit, Postmates, and Airbnb. Instead of the labor revolution I had been promised, all I found was hard work, low pay, and a system that puts workers at a disadvantage...
Industries Across the U.S. Are Stealing Wages From Their Lowest Paid Workers The Real News ...about a quarter of workers had not been paid minimum wage in the week of the survey. Three-quarters of them had not been paid overtime pay even though they had worked overtime hours...
Out of Work, Out of Luck Five Thirty Eight Economics ...Many if not most of the 3.8 million Americans who have been out of work for more than six months will never again hold steady jobs...
The Stone Unturned: Credit Ratings New York Times ...It’s the one question about the 2008 financial crisis that people still ask me more than any other: Why have regulators done so little to rein in the credit rating agencies? Other institutions that contributed to the mortgage debacle have submitted to new rules and compliance requirements, but Moody’s Investors Service and Standard & Poor’s and their peers remained relatively untouched...
S&P Judge Tentatively Rules It Must Face Deception Claims Bloomberg ...McGraw Hill Financial Inc. (MHFI)’s Standard & Poor’s unit must face California’s claims it deceived the state’s pension funds in its ratings of mortgage-back securities, a judge said in a provisional ruling...
Friday, October 25, 2013
Today's Teamster News 10.25.13
Washington Taxi Drivers Form Association With Teamsters Union teamster.org ...Cab drivers in the nation’s capital are joining together with the Teamsters Union to announce the formation of the new Washington, D.C. Taxi Operators Association…
Hernando County, Teamsters agree on employee contract Hernando Today ...A strong, new contract for about 400 government employees has been approved by the county in Florida and unanimously ratified by the workers, who are represented by Teamsters Local 79…
Gettysburg police union files for arbitration over 2013 wages Hanover Evening Sun ...Teamsters Local 776 has filed for arbitration over 2013 wages on behalf of the police officers who work for the Gettysburg Borough...
US trade union leaders in Dublin to talk about ‘devastating impacts of austerity’ The Journal.ie ...A number of American trade union leaders , including Teamsters, are in Dublin this week as part of the 1913 Lockout centenary celebrations and to talk about what they view as the “devastating impact” of austerity policies...
Multinational Meatpacker Trying to Gut Food Labeling Trade Reform ...Tyson ... will cease and desist buying fed cattle from Canada until the courts overturn the country of origin labeling (COOL) rule implemented by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on May 23, 2013.
“Tyson is flexing its muscle to demonstrate to our U.S. courts that it alone can literally devastate livestock producers in the U.S., Canada and elsewhere if it doesn’t get its way...”
Apple finally begins assembling in the USA manufacture this ...Apple previously announced that it would make its new computer in the U.S., reportedly in Texas...
4 Things You Need to Know About the Plot to Sell Off Your Pensions to Wall Street AlterNet ...“reformers” have changed the law to prevent retirees from even seeing how much of their money is being handed over to hedge fund billionaires....
Many Americans don't expect to ever retire USA TODAY ...In a sign of just how bleak retirement prospects have gotten, more than a third of Americans say they will have to work until they literally can't anymore...
Who Buys the Spies? The Hidden Corporate Cash Behind America’s Out-of-Control National Surveillance State Next New Deal ... In sharp contrast to endlessly repeated claims that big business was deeply suspicious of the President, our statistical results show that a large and powerful bloc of “industries of the future” – telecommunications, high tech, computers, and software – showed essentially equal or higher percentages of support for the President in 2012 than they did for Romney...
Unions score court victory, but it's unclear whether it will stick Associated Press ...Wisconsin union leaders scored a win when a Madison judge ordered state labor relations officials to stop enforcing portions of Gov. Scott Walker's collective bargaining restrictions...but it could be a hollow victory...
Strike authorization vote due by LA County workers Associated Press ...Tens of thousands of Los Angeles County employees are voting this week on whether to authorize a strike that involves 55,000 workers…
Large companies find ways to a zero tax rate USA Today ...Despite widespread groans about the recent disclosure that Apple is finding ways to cut its federal tax bill, an analysis shows the computer giant is one of scores of corporations largely dodging the taxman...
Corporations Reap Billions from Mass Incarceration The Real News ...A new video series called Prison Profiteers exposes the corporations that profit from the nation's incarceration system, including medical companies, bail companies, phone companies, and even police departments...
JPMorgan May Face Federal Sanctions Over Madoff Ties Reuters ...JPMorgan Chase & Co. may be forced to make a deal with federal authorities to avoid criminal prosecution over its handling of accounts of imprisoned swindler Bernie Madoff…
Texas Judge Almost Blocked from Voting Due to New Strict Voter I.D. Law ThinkProgress ...Judge Sandra Watts cautions same could happen to lots of women...
Hernando County, Teamsters agree on employee contract Hernando Today ...A strong, new contract for about 400 government employees has been approved by the county in Florida and unanimously ratified by the workers, who are represented by Teamsters Local 79…
Gettysburg police union files for arbitration over 2013 wages Hanover Evening Sun ...Teamsters Local 776 has filed for arbitration over 2013 wages on behalf of the police officers who work for the Gettysburg Borough...
US trade union leaders in Dublin to talk about ‘devastating impacts of austerity’ The Journal.ie ...A number of American trade union leaders , including Teamsters, are in Dublin this week as part of the 1913 Lockout centenary celebrations and to talk about what they view as the “devastating impact” of austerity policies...
Multinational Meatpacker Trying to Gut Food Labeling Trade Reform ...Tyson ... will cease and desist buying fed cattle from Canada until the courts overturn the country of origin labeling (COOL) rule implemented by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on May 23, 2013.
“Tyson is flexing its muscle to demonstrate to our U.S. courts that it alone can literally devastate livestock producers in the U.S., Canada and elsewhere if it doesn’t get its way...”
Apple finally begins assembling in the USA manufacture this ...Apple previously announced that it would make its new computer in the U.S., reportedly in Texas...
4 Things You Need to Know About the Plot to Sell Off Your Pensions to Wall Street AlterNet ...“reformers” have changed the law to prevent retirees from even seeing how much of their money is being handed over to hedge fund billionaires....
Many Americans don't expect to ever retire USA TODAY ...In a sign of just how bleak retirement prospects have gotten, more than a third of Americans say they will have to work until they literally can't anymore...
Who Buys the Spies? The Hidden Corporate Cash Behind America’s Out-of-Control National Surveillance State Next New Deal ... In sharp contrast to endlessly repeated claims that big business was deeply suspicious of the President, our statistical results show that a large and powerful bloc of “industries of the future” – telecommunications, high tech, computers, and software – showed essentially equal or higher percentages of support for the President in 2012 than they did for Romney...
Unions score court victory, but it's unclear whether it will stick Associated Press ...Wisconsin union leaders scored a win when a Madison judge ordered state labor relations officials to stop enforcing portions of Gov. Scott Walker's collective bargaining restrictions...but it could be a hollow victory...
Strike authorization vote due by LA County workers Associated Press ...Tens of thousands of Los Angeles County employees are voting this week on whether to authorize a strike that involves 55,000 workers…
Large companies find ways to a zero tax rate USA Today ...Despite widespread groans about the recent disclosure that Apple is finding ways to cut its federal tax bill, an analysis shows the computer giant is one of scores of corporations largely dodging the taxman...
Corporations Reap Billions from Mass Incarceration The Real News ...A new video series called Prison Profiteers exposes the corporations that profit from the nation's incarceration system, including medical companies, bail companies, phone companies, and even police departments...
JPMorgan May Face Federal Sanctions Over Madoff Ties Reuters ...JPMorgan Chase & Co. may be forced to make a deal with federal authorities to avoid criminal prosecution over its handling of accounts of imprisoned swindler Bernie Madoff…
Texas Judge Almost Blocked from Voting Due to New Strict Voter I.D. Law ThinkProgress ...Judge Sandra Watts cautions same could happen to lots of women...
Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Today's Teamster News 05.28.13
Cambodia: Protest at Factory for Nike Reuters ...At least 23 workers were hurt in Cambodia on Monday after the police clashed with workers protesting wages at a factory that makes clothing for Nike, a union representative said...
Fashion retailer issues recall after finding radioactive material in belts The Verge ..."the incident is quite a common occurrence. India and the far east are large consumers of scrap metal," and during the refining process "radioactive sources are sometimes accidentally melted at the same time."...
Groups Targeted by I.R.S. Tested Rules on Politics New York Times ...a close examination of these groups and others reveals an array of election activities that tax experts and former I.R.S. officials said would provide a legitimate basis for flagging them for closer review...
Canadian Federal Court confirms the country’s 2011 election was Fraudulent The European Union Times ...The court emphasized in a Thursday ruling that it has found in no uncertain terms that widespread election fraud took place during the vote...
On Victory Drive, Soldiers Defeated by Debt ProPublica ...Seven years after Congress banned payday-loan companies from charging exorbitant interest rates to service members, many of the nation's military bases are surrounded by storefront lenders who charge high annual percentage rates, sometimes exceeding 400 percent...
Another Day, Another Walmart Class Action Employee Lawsuit About.com ...This month, Walmart (WMT) found itself on the defending end of another massive employee class action suit in California when a California judge certified a class of 10,000 employees who think Walmart broke the law when it refused to provide suitable seating for its cashiers who requested it...
Public Unions Need to Stop Poisonous Koch Brothers From Buying Tribune Papers AlterNet ...They are considering buying the Tribune papers, which comprise eight major publications, including the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune. This would allow the Kochs to spread their right-wing nuttery even more effectively than they do now. But public unions could put a stop to this...
SC Boeing exec sends workers anti-union e-mail Associated Press ...The general manager of Boeing’s new plant in South Carolina has sent out an e-mail telling his workers that Boeing wants to keep the plant union free...
Rick Perry Vetoes GOP-Backed Disclosure Bill Huffington Post ...Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) vetoed a Republican bill Saturday that would have required nonprofits that engage in politics to disclose their donors...
Union-backed pension plan saves more than thought, Democrats say Gatehouse News Service ...A union-backed pension reform plan will cut the state of Illinois’pension debt by more than $9 billion, Senate Democrats said...
Texas prohibits nearly 70 percent of its counties from having a fire code Dallas Morning News ...Despite the lessons from the West Fertilizer Co. fire and explosions about the value of fire prevention, site security and safe storage of dangerous goods, Texas prohibits nearly 70 percent of its counties from having a fire code...
Texas State Legislature approves drug tests for unemployment benefits Daily Caller ...The Texas State Legislature approved a bill that would require workers who lose their job to pass a drug screening in order to receive unemployment benefits Saturday, according to news reports...
The latest WEDC revelations help explain Wisconsin's poor performance The Isthmus ...How much evidence do we need that Gov. Scott Walker's pro-corporate, anti-government rhetoric adds up to a whole lot of freebies for his cronies and absolutely nothing in terms of actually creating jobs?...
Montana using mortgage settlement funds to battle foreclosure Independent Record ...When Montana received nearly $6 million from a $25 billion national settlement with the nation’s five largest banks — a result of their shady mortgage practices — the state tucked away its share of the funding to help homeowners address the threat of foreclosure...
Privatization review bill shelved by Louisiana Senate committee Times-Picayune ...A bill requiring a more thorough review of privatization plans was shot down by a Louisiana Senate committee Monday. The measure, opposed by Gov. Bobby Jindal's administration, had already received unanimous approval of the state House...
Fashion retailer issues recall after finding radioactive material in belts The Verge ..."the incident is quite a common occurrence. India and the far east are large consumers of scrap metal," and during the refining process "radioactive sources are sometimes accidentally melted at the same time."...
Groups Targeted by I.R.S. Tested Rules on Politics New York Times ...a close examination of these groups and others reveals an array of election activities that tax experts and former I.R.S. officials said would provide a legitimate basis for flagging them for closer review...
Canadian Federal Court confirms the country’s 2011 election was Fraudulent The European Union Times ...The court emphasized in a Thursday ruling that it has found in no uncertain terms that widespread election fraud took place during the vote...
On Victory Drive, Soldiers Defeated by Debt ProPublica ...Seven years after Congress banned payday-loan companies from charging exorbitant interest rates to service members, many of the nation's military bases are surrounded by storefront lenders who charge high annual percentage rates, sometimes exceeding 400 percent...
Another Day, Another Walmart Class Action Employee Lawsuit About.com ...This month, Walmart (WMT) found itself on the defending end of another massive employee class action suit in California when a California judge certified a class of 10,000 employees who think Walmart broke the law when it refused to provide suitable seating for its cashiers who requested it...
Public Unions Need to Stop Poisonous Koch Brothers From Buying Tribune Papers AlterNet ...They are considering buying the Tribune papers, which comprise eight major publications, including the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune. This would allow the Kochs to spread their right-wing nuttery even more effectively than they do now. But public unions could put a stop to this...
SC Boeing exec sends workers anti-union e-mail Associated Press ...The general manager of Boeing’s new plant in South Carolina has sent out an e-mail telling his workers that Boeing wants to keep the plant union free...
Rick Perry Vetoes GOP-Backed Disclosure Bill Huffington Post ...Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) vetoed a Republican bill Saturday that would have required nonprofits that engage in politics to disclose their donors...
Union-backed pension plan saves more than thought, Democrats say Gatehouse News Service ...A union-backed pension reform plan will cut the state of Illinois’pension debt by more than $9 billion, Senate Democrats said...
Texas prohibits nearly 70 percent of its counties from having a fire code Dallas Morning News ...Despite the lessons from the West Fertilizer Co. fire and explosions about the value of fire prevention, site security and safe storage of dangerous goods, Texas prohibits nearly 70 percent of its counties from having a fire code...
Texas State Legislature approves drug tests for unemployment benefits Daily Caller ...The Texas State Legislature approved a bill that would require workers who lose their job to pass a drug screening in order to receive unemployment benefits Saturday, according to news reports...
The latest WEDC revelations help explain Wisconsin's poor performance The Isthmus ...How much evidence do we need that Gov. Scott Walker's pro-corporate, anti-government rhetoric adds up to a whole lot of freebies for his cronies and absolutely nothing in terms of actually creating jobs?...
Montana using mortgage settlement funds to battle foreclosure Independent Record ...When Montana received nearly $6 million from a $25 billion national settlement with the nation’s five largest banks — a result of their shady mortgage practices — the state tucked away its share of the funding to help homeowners address the threat of foreclosure...
Privatization review bill shelved by Louisiana Senate committee Times-Picayune ...A bill requiring a more thorough review of privatization plans was shot down by a Louisiana Senate committee Monday. The measure, opposed by Gov. Bobby Jindal's administration, had already received unanimous approval of the state House...
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Today's Teamster News 05.26.13
Millions march against GM crops The Guardian ...Organisers say that two million people marched in protest against seed giant Monsanto in hundreds of rallies across the US and in more than 50 other countries on Saturday. "March Against Monsanto" protesters say they wanted to call attention to the dangers posed by genetically modified food...
France seizes a million doses of fake Chinese aspirin Raw Story ...French customs officers have seized 1.2 million doses of counterfeit aspirin from China, the biggest haul of fake medicines ever in France and the EU, the economy ministry announced Saturday...
France seizes a million doses of fake Chinese aspirin Raw Story ...French customs officers have seized 1.2 million doses of counterfeit aspirin from China, the biggest haul of fake medicines ever in France and the EU, the economy ministry announced Saturday...
Stockholm riots spread west on sixth night The Local ...Nearly a week of unrest, which spread briefly Friday night to the medium-sized city of Örebro 160 kilometres west of Stockholm, have put Sweden's reputation as an oasis of peace and harmony at risk...
Unrest may spread across Europe, warns Red Cross chief The Independent ...Rocketing unemployment and poverty in some areas of Europe could lead to rising civil unrest, unless governments take measures to address the humanitarian consequences of austerity measures, the secretary-general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) has warned...
Sequester guts wildfire prevention, sets up bigger blazes Grist ...the sequester took a 7.5 percent bite out of the Forest Service’s budget, nearly half of which is spent fighting wildfires. That means there will be 500 fewer pairs of boots on the ground and 200,000 fewer acres treated to prevent fires; the agency’s next proposed budget cuts preventative spending by a further 24 percent...
Why are our Bridges Falling? The Economics of the Infrastructure Deficit Economonitor ...We are not spending enough to stay even with our infrastructure deficit. Our bridges, roads, dams, electric grid, sewers, and water treatment plants are wearing out faster than we are replacing them. And that is happening, in large part, because of our misguided obsession with the federal fiscal deficit...
Banner Week for Politicians Trying to Keep Poor People Hungry and Sick Gawker ...Louisiana Senator David Vitter, sad little boy and lover of prostitutes, proposed an amendment to the long-delayed farm bill that would make certain ex-cons ineligible from food stamps for life...
The Corporate Dictatorship of PBS and NPR Truthout ...“Citizen Koch” is a documentary about money and politics, focusing heavily on the uprising that took place in Wisconsin in 2011 and 2012 ... the documentary was originally supposed to air on PBS stations nationwide, but its funding was abruptly cut off when, it appears, David Koch was offended...
Koch Media’s Megaphone and the IRS “Scandal” Wall Street ...For decades, billionaires Charles and David Koch had secretly owned shares giving them 50 percent ownership of the Cato Institute – a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization subsidized by the taxpayer – while pushing a deregulatory agenda for big business. Today, Cato is functioning as a megaphone to spin the current flap over the IRS to advance its agenda...
How exactly would Mike Bloomberg “fucking destroy” the taxi industry? Quartz ...New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg told the head of a taxicab fleet that he plans to “fucking destroy” the city’s taxi industry when he leaves office on January 1...
Fear of art sale sparked by Detroit emergency manager asking for appraisal Reuters ...As part of his efforts to solve Detroit's financial crisis, the city's emergency manager Kevyn Orr has asked for an appraisal of the collection at the Detroit Institute of Arts, sparking fears in artistic and philanthropic circles that he means to auction off the city's artistic jewels...
Wisconsin jobs agency names 4th CFO in 2 years Associated Press ...Gov. Walker and the Republican-controlled Legislature created WEDC in 2011 to help the governor meet his campaign promise to create 250,000 private-sector jobs. But the agency has been beset by problems, including persistent turnover...
Unrest may spread across Europe, warns Red Cross chief The Independent ...Rocketing unemployment and poverty in some areas of Europe could lead to rising civil unrest, unless governments take measures to address the humanitarian consequences of austerity measures, the secretary-general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) has warned...
Sequester guts wildfire prevention, sets up bigger blazes Grist ...the sequester took a 7.5 percent bite out of the Forest Service’s budget, nearly half of which is spent fighting wildfires. That means there will be 500 fewer pairs of boots on the ground and 200,000 fewer acres treated to prevent fires; the agency’s next proposed budget cuts preventative spending by a further 24 percent...
Why are our Bridges Falling? The Economics of the Infrastructure Deficit Economonitor ...We are not spending enough to stay even with our infrastructure deficit. Our bridges, roads, dams, electric grid, sewers, and water treatment plants are wearing out faster than we are replacing them. And that is happening, in large part, because of our misguided obsession with the federal fiscal deficit...
Banner Week for Politicians Trying to Keep Poor People Hungry and Sick Gawker ...Louisiana Senator David Vitter, sad little boy and lover of prostitutes, proposed an amendment to the long-delayed farm bill that would make certain ex-cons ineligible from food stamps for life...
The Corporate Dictatorship of PBS and NPR Truthout ...“Citizen Koch” is a documentary about money and politics, focusing heavily on the uprising that took place in Wisconsin in 2011 and 2012 ... the documentary was originally supposed to air on PBS stations nationwide, but its funding was abruptly cut off when, it appears, David Koch was offended...
Koch Media’s Megaphone and the IRS “Scandal” Wall Street ...For decades, billionaires Charles and David Koch had secretly owned shares giving them 50 percent ownership of the Cato Institute – a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization subsidized by the taxpayer – while pushing a deregulatory agenda for big business. Today, Cato is functioning as a megaphone to spin the current flap over the IRS to advance its agenda...
How exactly would Mike Bloomberg “fucking destroy” the taxi industry? Quartz ...New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg told the head of a taxicab fleet that he plans to “fucking destroy” the city’s taxi industry when he leaves office on January 1...
Fear of art sale sparked by Detroit emergency manager asking for appraisal Reuters ...As part of his efforts to solve Detroit's financial crisis, the city's emergency manager Kevyn Orr has asked for an appraisal of the collection at the Detroit Institute of Arts, sparking fears in artistic and philanthropic circles that he means to auction off the city's artistic jewels...
Wisconsin jobs agency names 4th CFO in 2 years Associated Press ...Gov. Walker and the Republican-controlled Legislature created WEDC in 2011 to help the governor meet his campaign promise to create 250,000 private-sector jobs. But the agency has been beset by problems, including persistent turnover...
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Stephen Colbert dissects the IRA scandal (VIDEO)
As usual, Colbert is hilarious. Here he takes up the Tea Party groups complaining they were singled out by the IRS. It turns out they voluntarily submitted requests for exemption, which is what the IRS was looking at.
Or as Dylan Matthews points out, the flap isn't about paying taxes. It's about revealing the people who gave money to the groups.
Today's Teamster News 05.23.13
The IRS controversy isn’t about taxes. It’s about disclosure. Washington Post ...Some of the last week’s headlines might have led you to believe that there’s some controversy over whether tea party groups should have to pay taxes. There isn’t. No one thinks they should. The dispute is over whether they should have to disclose their donors, as a legal matter and as a moral one...
The DC Circuit Court Versus Workers' Rights Truthout ...Republicans and anti-union groups have gone all-out to stymie the work of the labor board, and they have found a powerful ally in the DC Circuit Court of Appeals...
Chile’s Recent Lead Negotiator on Trans-Pacific Partnership Warns It Could Be a “Threat to Our Countries” naked capitalism ...Some of Asian participants in the negotiations (particularly Japan) are also believed to have serious reservations about the provisions of the TPP that would weaken national sovereignity by allowing corporations to challenge laws and regulations as violations of the TPP...
NOAA still planning to furlough storm forecasters Politico ...Congress isn’t rushing to stave off looming furloughs for federal weather forecasters, even after they issued tornado warnings credited with saving countless lives in Oklahoma...
Anheuser-Busch Delivers More Than 51,000 Cans Of Water To Assist Tornado Relief Efforts In Oklahoma City, Also Donates $25,000 to Red Cross Tulsa Business & Legal News ...America's leading brewer, Anheuser-Busch, is providing 2,156 cases of emergency drinking water — or 51,744 cans — for use by relief workers and residents affected by the tornado in Oklahoma City and its surrounding suburbs...
No Arrests on Wall Street, But Over 7,700 Americans Have Been Arrested Protesting Big Banks The Contributor ...the nation’s biggest banks have essentially gained “too big for trial” status, and the federal government has failed to prosecute any executive at a Big Bank for financial fraud...
Nearly 20,000 Nevada homeowners get average of $97,000 in mortgage relief Las Vegas Review-Journal ...Nearly 20,000 Nevada homeowners have received an average of about $97,000 as part of the $25 billion national settlement over questionable foreclosure and lending practices by some of the nation’s largest financial institutions...
Monitor Checking Into Violations of Mortgage Settlement Wall Street Journal ...The announcement that Smith is looking into potential violations comes a week after New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said he would sue BofA and Wells over complaints they did not provide fair and timely service to homeowners seeking relief...
Crowd size and arrest totals increase at latest Moral Monday protest IndyWeek ...Roughly 600 people gathered outside the Legislative Building in Raleigh on Monday as part of a growing wave of protests called Moral Mondays, which have now led to 153 arrests over four weeks…. Policies that are being considered or have already become law include cutting Medicaid and unemployment benefits, instituting voter ID, promoting school vouchers, raising taxes on the poor, rolling back environmental standards and limiting felons' voting rights...
In Indiana, ongoing concerns about subsidized auto parts from China and Japan manufacture this ...more than 400,000 jobs in the U.S. auto supply chain have been lost since 2000. One major problem is China's persistent violations of World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, and another 1.6 million U.S. jobs are at risk unless China's illegal trading practices are curtailed...
Pennsylvania Governor can't find any Latinos to work for him United Press ...Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett said there are no Latinos in his administration because he can't find any...
RI Senate OKs minimum wage hike Associated Press ...Rhode Island’s minimum wage would go up 25 cents to $8 per hour next year under legislation approved in the state Senate...
Illinois Chemical Workers Ratify Four-Year Teamster Contract Teamsters Joint Council 25 ...More than 200 members of Teamsters Local 179 overwhelmingly ratified a new four-year agreement with Stepan Company this month...
Local 115 member and Marine vet wins mayoral primary in Brookhaven (Penn.) Daily Times ...Teamster and Marine veteran Daniel McCray won Tuesday’s primary election and will face Democrat Incumbent Mayor Michael Hess in the November election...
Coca-Cola, Home Depot, UPS among most valuable brands Atlanta Journal-Constitution ...Three metro Atlanta-based companies have something in common when it comes to their brands’ ability to add value to their business...
SOUL letter calls University to stand behind Pierce dining employees Chicago Maroon ...Concerned about the future of employees at Pierce Dining Commons, members of Students Organizing United with Labor delivered letters yesterday afternoon to Director of Campus Dining Richard Mason and President Zimmer’s office, calling on the University to pressure Aramark to negotiate with Teamsters Union representatives...
Bay City negotiators, mid-management union will return to negotiating table after deal rejected Michigan Live ...It’s back to the negotiating table for Bay City Hall and members of the Teamsters State, County & Municipal Workers, Local No. 214, officials say...
The DC Circuit Court Versus Workers' Rights Truthout ...Republicans and anti-union groups have gone all-out to stymie the work of the labor board, and they have found a powerful ally in the DC Circuit Court of Appeals...
Chile’s Recent Lead Negotiator on Trans-Pacific Partnership Warns It Could Be a “Threat to Our Countries” naked capitalism ...Some of Asian participants in the negotiations (particularly Japan) are also believed to have serious reservations about the provisions of the TPP that would weaken national sovereignity by allowing corporations to challenge laws and regulations as violations of the TPP...
NOAA still planning to furlough storm forecasters Politico ...Congress isn’t rushing to stave off looming furloughs for federal weather forecasters, even after they issued tornado warnings credited with saving countless lives in Oklahoma...
Anheuser-Busch Delivers More Than 51,000 Cans Of Water To Assist Tornado Relief Efforts In Oklahoma City, Also Donates $25,000 to Red Cross Tulsa Business & Legal News ...America's leading brewer, Anheuser-Busch, is providing 2,156 cases of emergency drinking water — or 51,744 cans — for use by relief workers and residents affected by the tornado in Oklahoma City and its surrounding suburbs...
No Arrests on Wall Street, But Over 7,700 Americans Have Been Arrested Protesting Big Banks The Contributor ...the nation’s biggest banks have essentially gained “too big for trial” status, and the federal government has failed to prosecute any executive at a Big Bank for financial fraud...
Nearly 20,000 Nevada homeowners get average of $97,000 in mortgage relief Las Vegas Review-Journal ...Nearly 20,000 Nevada homeowners have received an average of about $97,000 as part of the $25 billion national settlement over questionable foreclosure and lending practices by some of the nation’s largest financial institutions...
Monitor Checking Into Violations of Mortgage Settlement Wall Street Journal ...The announcement that Smith is looking into potential violations comes a week after New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said he would sue BofA and Wells over complaints they did not provide fair and timely service to homeowners seeking relief...
Crowd size and arrest totals increase at latest Moral Monday protest IndyWeek ...Roughly 600 people gathered outside the Legislative Building in Raleigh on Monday as part of a growing wave of protests called Moral Mondays, which have now led to 153 arrests over four weeks…. Policies that are being considered or have already become law include cutting Medicaid and unemployment benefits, instituting voter ID, promoting school vouchers, raising taxes on the poor, rolling back environmental standards and limiting felons' voting rights...
In Indiana, ongoing concerns about subsidized auto parts from China and Japan manufacture this ...more than 400,000 jobs in the U.S. auto supply chain have been lost since 2000. One major problem is China's persistent violations of World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, and another 1.6 million U.S. jobs are at risk unless China's illegal trading practices are curtailed...
Pennsylvania Governor can't find any Latinos to work for him United Press ...Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett said there are no Latinos in his administration because he can't find any...
RI Senate OKs minimum wage hike Associated Press ...Rhode Island’s minimum wage would go up 25 cents to $8 per hour next year under legislation approved in the state Senate...
Illinois Chemical Workers Ratify Four-Year Teamster Contract Teamsters Joint Council 25 ...More than 200 members of Teamsters Local 179 overwhelmingly ratified a new four-year agreement with Stepan Company this month...
Local 115 member and Marine vet wins mayoral primary in Brookhaven (Penn.) Daily Times ...Teamster and Marine veteran Daniel McCray won Tuesday’s primary election and will face Democrat Incumbent Mayor Michael Hess in the November election...
Coca-Cola, Home Depot, UPS among most valuable brands Atlanta Journal-Constitution ...Three metro Atlanta-based companies have something in common when it comes to their brands’ ability to add value to their business...
SOUL letter calls University to stand behind Pierce dining employees Chicago Maroon ...Concerned about the future of employees at Pierce Dining Commons, members of Students Organizing United with Labor delivered letters yesterday afternoon to Director of Campus Dining Richard Mason and President Zimmer’s office, calling on the University to pressure Aramark to negotiate with Teamsters Union representatives...
Bay City negotiators, mid-management union will return to negotiating table after deal rejected Michigan Live ...It’s back to the negotiating table for Bay City Hall and members of the Teamsters State, County & Municipal Workers, Local No. 214, officials say...
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Today's Teamster News 05.16.13
Upcoming Trans-Pacific Partnership Looks Like Corporate Takeover Huffington Post ...TPP's negotiations are being held in secret with details kept secret even from our Congress. But giant corporations are in the loop...
Blame Citizens United for the IRS scandal Salon ...The real outrage is why these political groups have tax-exempt status in the first place...
Blame Citizens United for the IRS scandal Salon ...The real outrage is why these political groups have tax-exempt status in the first place...
Unions mobilize as labor board faces paralysis in Obama’s second term The Hill ...Labor is mounting an all-out push to fill the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) as the agency faces the prospect of being sidelined for the rest of President Obama’s second term...
Obama Student Loan Policy Reaping $51 Billion Profit Huffington Post ...The Obama administration is forecast to turn a record $51 billion profit this year from student loan borrowers, a sum greater than the earnings of the nation's most profitable companies and roughly equal to the combined net income of the four largest U.S. banks by assets...
U.S. Senate Passes Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) with Buy America Amendment Included. manufacture this ...The Merkley/Brown amendment #866 included in the legislation would ensure that American-made iron, steel, and manufactured goods are used in projects financed by a new Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Authority (WIFIA) program whenever they are available and competitively priced...
U.S. tax dollars promote Monsanto's GMO crops overseas: report Reuters ...U.S. taxpayers are footing the bill for overseas lobbying that promotes controversial biotech crops developed by U.S.-based Monsanto Co and other seed makers, a report issued on Tuesday said...
U.S. Senate Passes Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) with Buy America Amendment Included. manufacture this ...The Merkley/Brown amendment #866 included in the legislation would ensure that American-made iron, steel, and manufactured goods are used in projects financed by a new Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Authority (WIFIA) program whenever they are available and competitively priced...
U.S. tax dollars promote Monsanto's GMO crops overseas: report Reuters ...U.S. taxpayers are footing the bill for overseas lobbying that promotes controversial biotech crops developed by U.S.-based Monsanto Co and other seed makers, a report issued on Tuesday said...
The reason France has gone into double-dip recession The Guardian ...This isn't a uniquely French problem – EU nations of various political hues are in trouble because of a fixation on austerity...
Texas Fertilizer Explosion Victims in No Mood to Pay Property Taxes ABC News ...After a fertilizer plant explosion destroyed part of a small city last month, the leaders of West, Texas, find themselves in the difficult financial position of having to collect property taxes from residents whose homes were destroyed...
Missouri legislation could weaken public labor unions St. Louis Post-Dispatch ...The Missouri Legislature is sending a bill to Gov. Jay Nixon that would make public employee unions ask their members each year if they want to continue being members...
Michigan bill would impose fines on unions for illegal picketing Lansing State Journal ... Individuals and labor unions could face steep fines for engaging in illegal pickets if the Michigan Legislature takes up a bill that a Republican lawmaker recently reintroduced...
$483M tax windfall brightens Michigan's budget picture Detroit Free Press ...The state of Michigan will have more than $640 million in unanticipated revenues to work with as it finalizes the 2013-14 budget, John Nixon, the state budget director, said after yesterday’s revenue estimating conference at the state Capitol. But the bulk of that money will be “one-time money” that the state can’t build into ongoing budgets...
Health advocates oppose NC Senate smoking bill Associated Press ...Health advocates say a North Carolina Senate bill would repeal hundreds of local and community college rules restricting smoking outdoors...
Defense furloughs clobber Arizona employees Arizona Republic ...Thousands of civilian defense employees across Arizona will face sharp reductions in work and pay through the rest of the fiscal year as the Department of Defense implements furloughs…
New Jersey Property Taxes Rise to Record as Growth Slows Bloomberg News ...New Jersey’s average residential property-tax bill rose 1.6 percent to a record $7,885 last year as most towns abided by Governor Chris Christie’s 2 percent cap on the levies, slowing the growth rate, according to state data...
Why are women so absent from Georgia leadership? Atlanta Journal-Constitution ...None of Georgia’s eight statewide constitutional offices, from governor through agriculture commissioner, is held by a woman. None of the five members of the state Public Service Commission, elected statewide to regulate utilities, is a woman. Likewise, none of Georgia’s 16 seats in Congress — 14 in the House and two in the Senate — is held by a woman. For those keeping score at home, that’s zero for 29...
Illinois passes law to make Busch divest beer distributorship Chicago Tribune ...A bill that will require Anheuser-Busch to sell its minority stake in Chicago's City Beverage has passed the Illinois Senate. Anheuser and the Illinois Liquor Control Commission have been involved in a string of litigation on this issue since the commission blocked the world's largest brewer from acquiring City Beverage in 2010...
Pa. Dems line up to run vs. hobbled Corbett Politico ...Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett may be the most vulnerable incumbent governor in the country — and Keystone State Democrats are lining up to challenge him...
U.S. DOT Allowing Unsafe Mexico-Domiciled Truck Companies to Participate in NAFTA Pilot Program Threatening Safety of Motorists IBT ...The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the agency within the U.S. Department of Transportation charged with overseeing the cross-border long-haul Pilot Program on North American Free Trade Agreement Trucking Provisions, has not taken definitive action to bar participation of unsafe Mexico-domiciled motor carriers...
Teamster Taxi Operator Shares His Experiences at Unity Conference Teamsters Local 117 …Local 117 is on the forefront of a new effort by the Teamsters Union to organize thousands of taxicab operators across the country...
Texas Fertilizer Explosion Victims in No Mood to Pay Property Taxes ABC News ...After a fertilizer plant explosion destroyed part of a small city last month, the leaders of West, Texas, find themselves in the difficult financial position of having to collect property taxes from residents whose homes were destroyed...
Missouri legislation could weaken public labor unions St. Louis Post-Dispatch ...The Missouri Legislature is sending a bill to Gov. Jay Nixon that would make public employee unions ask their members each year if they want to continue being members...
Michigan bill would impose fines on unions for illegal picketing Lansing State Journal ... Individuals and labor unions could face steep fines for engaging in illegal pickets if the Michigan Legislature takes up a bill that a Republican lawmaker recently reintroduced...
$483M tax windfall brightens Michigan's budget picture Detroit Free Press ...The state of Michigan will have more than $640 million in unanticipated revenues to work with as it finalizes the 2013-14 budget, John Nixon, the state budget director, said after yesterday’s revenue estimating conference at the state Capitol. But the bulk of that money will be “one-time money” that the state can’t build into ongoing budgets...
Health advocates oppose NC Senate smoking bill Associated Press ...Health advocates say a North Carolina Senate bill would repeal hundreds of local and community college rules restricting smoking outdoors...
Defense furloughs clobber Arizona employees Arizona Republic ...Thousands of civilian defense employees across Arizona will face sharp reductions in work and pay through the rest of the fiscal year as the Department of Defense implements furloughs…
New Jersey Property Taxes Rise to Record as Growth Slows Bloomberg News ...New Jersey’s average residential property-tax bill rose 1.6 percent to a record $7,885 last year as most towns abided by Governor Chris Christie’s 2 percent cap on the levies, slowing the growth rate, according to state data...
Why are women so absent from Georgia leadership? Atlanta Journal-Constitution ...None of Georgia’s eight statewide constitutional offices, from governor through agriculture commissioner, is held by a woman. None of the five members of the state Public Service Commission, elected statewide to regulate utilities, is a woman. Likewise, none of Georgia’s 16 seats in Congress — 14 in the House and two in the Senate — is held by a woman. For those keeping score at home, that’s zero for 29...
Illinois passes law to make Busch divest beer distributorship Chicago Tribune ...A bill that will require Anheuser-Busch to sell its minority stake in Chicago's City Beverage has passed the Illinois Senate. Anheuser and the Illinois Liquor Control Commission have been involved in a string of litigation on this issue since the commission blocked the world's largest brewer from acquiring City Beverage in 2010...
Pa. Dems line up to run vs. hobbled Corbett Politico ...Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett may be the most vulnerable incumbent governor in the country — and Keystone State Democrats are lining up to challenge him...
U.S. DOT Allowing Unsafe Mexico-Domiciled Truck Companies to Participate in NAFTA Pilot Program Threatening Safety of Motorists IBT ...The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the agency within the U.S. Department of Transportation charged with overseeing the cross-border long-haul Pilot Program on North American Free Trade Agreement Trucking Provisions, has not taken definitive action to bar participation of unsafe Mexico-domiciled motor carriers...
Teamster Taxi Operator Shares His Experiences at Unity Conference Teamsters Local 117 …Local 117 is on the forefront of a new effort by the Teamsters Union to organize thousands of taxicab operators across the country...
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Today's Teamster News 05.14.13
The 182 Percent Loan: How Installment Lenders Put Borrowers in a World of Hurt ProPublica ...Katrina Sutton stood at a gas pump and swiped her debit card. Insufficient funds. But that couldn't be. She'd been careful to wait until her $270 paycheck from Walmart had hit her account. The money wasn't there? It was all she had. And without gas, she couldn't get to work. She tried not to panic, but after she called her card company, she couldn't help it. Her funds had been frozen, she was told, by World Finance. Here’s how and why...
Bangladesh Garment Factories Shut Down Amid Worker Unrest, Minimum Wage Change Huffington Post ...Following worker protests and a decision by the Bangladeshi government to reevaluate the minimum wage, the lone national association of garment manufacturers on Monday shut down all factories in Ashulia, one of the country's major garment industry hubs...
Moms Working At Walmart Earn Less Than They Need To Feed Their Kids Huffington Post ...As Mother's Day approached, Charlene Fletcher, mother of two, found herself occupied with the needs of other families, attending to the crush of shoppers last week at the Walmart in Pasadena, Calif., where she works. But like many employees at Walmart, the largest private employer in the United States, she earns so little that she has to rely on government assistance to feed her kids...
IRS Set To Close Next Week Forbes ...A number of taxpayers will be taking next Friday off by choice. It is, after all, the day before the Memorial Day weekend begins – the perfect time to grab an extra day. But what if you were forced to take the day off as an unpaid furlough day?...
White House orders look at pay equity inside government Washington Post ...President Obama has called for creation of a government-wide strategy “to address any gender pay gap in the Federal workforce,” focusing on how salaries are set when employees are first hired and when they are promoted...
Early campaigns for Virginia governor toil on both the national and local stage Washington Post
If Virginians weren’t foggy-headed enough from last year’s barrage of political ads and robo-calls, now comes a race that’s producing double vision — the two men running for governor this year are each running two campaigns featuring different issues, calendars and strategies...
Landmark $240M EEOC verdict to be slashed to $1.6M Associated Press ...A landmark $240 million verdict awarded to 32 mentally disabled Iowa plant workers who were subjected to years of abuse by their handlers will be reduced to just $1.6 million because of a federal cap, attorneys in the case agree...
Florida lawmakers pay peanuts for health insurance Miami Herald ...Florida House Republicans last month loudly and proudly rejected billions of dollars in federal money that would have provided health insurance to 1 million poor Floridians. Quietly, they kept their own health insurance premiums staggeringly low...
Rand Paul's Iowa visit triggers talk of 2016 White House bid Mankato Free Press ...Sen. Rand Paul brought his national ambitions to Iowa on Friday, ripping potential Democratic rival Hillary Clinton while urging his own Republican Party to broaden its appeal as he campaigned like it was already 2016...
N.J.'s plan to seize $142M in unspent COAH money from towns is 'a real slap in the face to property taxpayers' Times of Trenton ...Municipal officials are angrily criticizing the state’s plan to seize money from their unused affordable housing trust funds, saying the Christie administration is trying to balance the state budget by grabbing resources meant for those who need it the most...
Minnesota budget deal: Tax hikes on high earners, tobacco Star Tribune ...New revenue would boost school spending and fund a property tax relief plan. GOP responded with scorn...
Inspiring Stories Captivate Unity Conference Attendees IBT …The war on workers and what the Teamsters Union is doing to fight back took center stage today at the 2013 Unity Conference, and the attendees were uplifted by powerful speeches by leaders, members and soon-to-be members...
Bangladesh Garment Factories Shut Down Amid Worker Unrest, Minimum Wage Change Huffington Post ...Following worker protests and a decision by the Bangladeshi government to reevaluate the minimum wage, the lone national association of garment manufacturers on Monday shut down all factories in Ashulia, one of the country's major garment industry hubs...
Moms Working At Walmart Earn Less Than They Need To Feed Their Kids Huffington Post ...As Mother's Day approached, Charlene Fletcher, mother of two, found herself occupied with the needs of other families, attending to the crush of shoppers last week at the Walmart in Pasadena, Calif., where she works. But like many employees at Walmart, the largest private employer in the United States, she earns so little that she has to rely on government assistance to feed her kids...
IRS Set To Close Next Week Forbes ...A number of taxpayers will be taking next Friday off by choice. It is, after all, the day before the Memorial Day weekend begins – the perfect time to grab an extra day. But what if you were forced to take the day off as an unpaid furlough day?...
White House orders look at pay equity inside government Washington Post ...President Obama has called for creation of a government-wide strategy “to address any gender pay gap in the Federal workforce,” focusing on how salaries are set when employees are first hired and when they are promoted...
Early campaigns for Virginia governor toil on both the national and local stage Washington Post
If Virginians weren’t foggy-headed enough from last year’s barrage of political ads and robo-calls, now comes a race that’s producing double vision — the two men running for governor this year are each running two campaigns featuring different issues, calendars and strategies...
Landmark $240M EEOC verdict to be slashed to $1.6M Associated Press ...A landmark $240 million verdict awarded to 32 mentally disabled Iowa plant workers who were subjected to years of abuse by their handlers will be reduced to just $1.6 million because of a federal cap, attorneys in the case agree...
Florida lawmakers pay peanuts for health insurance Miami Herald ...Florida House Republicans last month loudly and proudly rejected billions of dollars in federal money that would have provided health insurance to 1 million poor Floridians. Quietly, they kept their own health insurance premiums staggeringly low...
Rand Paul's Iowa visit triggers talk of 2016 White House bid Mankato Free Press ...Sen. Rand Paul brought his national ambitions to Iowa on Friday, ripping potential Democratic rival Hillary Clinton while urging his own Republican Party to broaden its appeal as he campaigned like it was already 2016...
N.J.'s plan to seize $142M in unspent COAH money from towns is 'a real slap in the face to property taxpayers' Times of Trenton ...Municipal officials are angrily criticizing the state’s plan to seize money from their unused affordable housing trust funds, saying the Christie administration is trying to balance the state budget by grabbing resources meant for those who need it the most...
Minnesota budget deal: Tax hikes on high earners, tobacco Star Tribune ...New revenue would boost school spending and fund a property tax relief plan. GOP responded with scorn...
Inspiring Stories Captivate Unity Conference Attendees IBT …The war on workers and what the Teamsters Union is doing to fight back took center stage today at the 2013 Unity Conference, and the attendees were uplifted by powerful speeches by leaders, members and soon-to-be members...
Monday, May 13, 2013
Today's Teamster News 05.13.13
Garment Workers Gather To Demand More Wages, Better Conditions Voice of America ...Thousands of garment workers gathered in a demonstration to demand better salaries and improved working conditions for the hundreds of thousands of workers in Cambodia’s factories. Workers say a government increase of the minimum wage, to $80 per month, is not enough to keep up with the rising cost of living in the country...
Mark Weisbrot: Proposed international trade pacts no aid to workers Appeal-Democrat ...The Trans-Pacific Partnership is a very special trade agreement. It is so special that our government officials who are negotiating it want to keep it completely secret from us...
Furlough Watch: Agency-by-Agency Impacts of Sequestration Government Executive ...Across-the-board budget cuts known as sequestration are having have serious implications for federal workers, as mandatory unpaid furloughs planned for hundreds of thousands of employees begin to take effect. Check out the list of possible agency-by-agency plans and effects...
Large Corporations Seek U.S.–European 'Free Trade Agreement' to Further Global Dominance AlterNet ...The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership is the latest plan of conglomerates to strengthen their grip over the planet...
Obama, in Texas, presses middle-class jobs agenda Associated Press ...Offering a more upbeat view of the economy, President Barack Obama resurrected his jobs proposals Thursday, advancing modest initiatives as he pushed for action on more ambitious efforts that face resistance from congressional Republicans...
Detroit Fast Food Workers Join Strike Wave Labor Notes ...“Want to know what all the fuss is? “We are standing up for justice!” At a busy intersection dotted with fast food brands, that is what 80 fast food workers and supporters chanted outside a Detroit Popeye’s Friday morning...
Demand more from Walmart (opinion) Boulder Weekly ...Walmarts have been popping up all over the country in the last five years. For several years, Walmart has placed or tied for last among department and discount stores in the American Customer Satisfaction Index. The situation for the workers is even less satisfying...
In Ga. and NC, Republican legislators reach into local governments controlled by Democrats Associated Press ...Even with Republicans holding unprecedented political power across the South, Democrats remain mostly in charge of urban centers in otherwise conservative states. Yet increasingly that control is threatened, not at the ballot box, but by Republican-led legislatures...
Missouri lawmakers OK state income tax cut Associated Press ...Battling back against tax cuts in neighboring Kansas, Missouri lawmakers gave final approval Thursday to an income tax cut for businesses and individuals that could reduce state revenues by about $700 million annually when fully phased in...
Florida prepares for massive insurance signup Sun Sentinel ...Facing the next big health-care challenge in Florida, Uncle Sam plans to enlist hundreds of consumer "navigators" over the next several months to help enroll up to 3.5 million uninsured state residents by January, when everyone is required to have health insurance...
After Plant Explosion, Texas Remains Wary of Regulation New York Times ...Five days after an explosion at a fertilizer plant leveled a wide swath of West, Texas, Gov. Rick Perry tried to woo Illinois business officials by trumpeting his state’s low taxes and limited regulations. Asked about the disaster, Mr. Perry responded that more government intervention and increased spending on safety inspections would not have prevented one of the nation’s worst industrial accidents in decades...
Michigan health centers get $3.8M to boost staff Associated Press ...Michigan’s community health centers can receive about $3.8 million from the federal government to help uninsured Americans enroll in health insurance coverage under the Federal Affordable Health Care Act...
Workers complete spire on New York's One World Trade Center Reuters ...Workers cheered and whistled as they completed the spire on New York's One World Trade Center on Friday, raising the building to its full height of 1,776 feet and helping fill a void in the skyline left by the September 11, 2001 attacks...
Illinois Senate passes pension bill, sets up showdown with House Chicago Tribune ...Senate President John Cullerton sent his version of pension reform to the House, setting up a high-profile clash with the rival plan Speaker Michael Madigan already pushed through the House...
Liquor store union ad campaign raises questions in Harrisburg The Sentinel ...There’s a good chance you’ve heard a commercial running on Harrisburg radio stations, but it’s mostly intended for the ears of lawmakers who are mulling liquor privatization...
Tax breaks, lawsuit liability left for Missouri Legislature in final week Kansas City Star ...With next year's budget plan finalized and an income tax cut passed, Missouri lawmakers now will turn their attention to resolving differences over tax credits and liability lawsuits before their mandatory adjournment on Friday...
NC Senate plan expands sales tax base far and wide Associated Press ...Senate Republicans argue that exponentially expanding the number of transactions subject to the sales tax would promote fairness in a North Carolina tax system now packed with exemptions and loopholes...
Washington state courts hacked; potentially up to 160,000 Social Security numbers accessed Associated Press ...The Washington state Administrative Office of the Courts was hacked sometime between last fall and February, and up to 160,000 Social Security numbers and 1 million driver’s license numbers may have been accessed during the data breach of its public website, officials said...
Teamsters Energized at 2013 Unity Conference IBT …The 2013 Teamsters Unity Conference convened Sunday, May 12, welcoming thousands of Teamsters from the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico to share their accomplishments, their challenges and the work they are doing to advance the lives of workers…
Hoffa Statement On YRCW Efforts To Acquire Frieght Division Of ABF IBT ...Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa issued a statement regarding recent reports that YRC Worldwide Inc. attempted to acquire ABF Freight Systems...
Slippery slope? NYC threatens to fire school cafeteria workers for buying butter Washington Times ...The butter police are on the job. New York City school kitchen managers said they’re being targeted and “bullied” by bureaucrats who have threatened “disciplinary action” for buying butter, in violation of a five-year-old policy against using or offering the spread in cafeterias...
Advanced Business Agents’ Seminar Scheduled July 29-31 IBT ...The IBT Training and Development Department will conduct an Advanced Business Agents seminar July 29-31, 2013 at Teamsters Joint Council 25 in Chicago...
Mark Weisbrot: Proposed international trade pacts no aid to workers Appeal-Democrat ...The Trans-Pacific Partnership is a very special trade agreement. It is so special that our government officials who are negotiating it want to keep it completely secret from us...
Furlough Watch: Agency-by-Agency Impacts of Sequestration Government Executive ...Across-the-board budget cuts known as sequestration are having have serious implications for federal workers, as mandatory unpaid furloughs planned for hundreds of thousands of employees begin to take effect. Check out the list of possible agency-by-agency plans and effects...
Large Corporations Seek U.S.–European 'Free Trade Agreement' to Further Global Dominance AlterNet ...The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership is the latest plan of conglomerates to strengthen their grip over the planet...
Obama, in Texas, presses middle-class jobs agenda Associated Press ...Offering a more upbeat view of the economy, President Barack Obama resurrected his jobs proposals Thursday, advancing modest initiatives as he pushed for action on more ambitious efforts that face resistance from congressional Republicans...
Detroit Fast Food Workers Join Strike Wave Labor Notes ...“Want to know what all the fuss is? “We are standing up for justice!” At a busy intersection dotted with fast food brands, that is what 80 fast food workers and supporters chanted outside a Detroit Popeye’s Friday morning...
Demand more from Walmart (opinion) Boulder Weekly ...Walmarts have been popping up all over the country in the last five years. For several years, Walmart has placed or tied for last among department and discount stores in the American Customer Satisfaction Index. The situation for the workers is even less satisfying...
In Ga. and NC, Republican legislators reach into local governments controlled by Democrats Associated Press ...Even with Republicans holding unprecedented political power across the South, Democrats remain mostly in charge of urban centers in otherwise conservative states. Yet increasingly that control is threatened, not at the ballot box, but by Republican-led legislatures...
Missouri lawmakers OK state income tax cut Associated Press ...Battling back against tax cuts in neighboring Kansas, Missouri lawmakers gave final approval Thursday to an income tax cut for businesses and individuals that could reduce state revenues by about $700 million annually when fully phased in...
Florida prepares for massive insurance signup Sun Sentinel ...Facing the next big health-care challenge in Florida, Uncle Sam plans to enlist hundreds of consumer "navigators" over the next several months to help enroll up to 3.5 million uninsured state residents by January, when everyone is required to have health insurance...
After Plant Explosion, Texas Remains Wary of Regulation New York Times ...Five days after an explosion at a fertilizer plant leveled a wide swath of West, Texas, Gov. Rick Perry tried to woo Illinois business officials by trumpeting his state’s low taxes and limited regulations. Asked about the disaster, Mr. Perry responded that more government intervention and increased spending on safety inspections would not have prevented one of the nation’s worst industrial accidents in decades...
Michigan health centers get $3.8M to boost staff Associated Press ...Michigan’s community health centers can receive about $3.8 million from the federal government to help uninsured Americans enroll in health insurance coverage under the Federal Affordable Health Care Act...
Workers complete spire on New York's One World Trade Center Reuters ...Workers cheered and whistled as they completed the spire on New York's One World Trade Center on Friday, raising the building to its full height of 1,776 feet and helping fill a void in the skyline left by the September 11, 2001 attacks...
Illinois Senate passes pension bill, sets up showdown with House Chicago Tribune ...Senate President John Cullerton sent his version of pension reform to the House, setting up a high-profile clash with the rival plan Speaker Michael Madigan already pushed through the House...
Liquor store union ad campaign raises questions in Harrisburg The Sentinel ...There’s a good chance you’ve heard a commercial running on Harrisburg radio stations, but it’s mostly intended for the ears of lawmakers who are mulling liquor privatization...
Tax breaks, lawsuit liability left for Missouri Legislature in final week Kansas City Star ...With next year's budget plan finalized and an income tax cut passed, Missouri lawmakers now will turn their attention to resolving differences over tax credits and liability lawsuits before their mandatory adjournment on Friday...
NC Senate plan expands sales tax base far and wide Associated Press ...Senate Republicans argue that exponentially expanding the number of transactions subject to the sales tax would promote fairness in a North Carolina tax system now packed with exemptions and loopholes...
Washington state courts hacked; potentially up to 160,000 Social Security numbers accessed Associated Press ...The Washington state Administrative Office of the Courts was hacked sometime between last fall and February, and up to 160,000 Social Security numbers and 1 million driver’s license numbers may have been accessed during the data breach of its public website, officials said...
Teamsters Energized at 2013 Unity Conference IBT …The 2013 Teamsters Unity Conference convened Sunday, May 12, welcoming thousands of Teamsters from the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico to share their accomplishments, their challenges and the work they are doing to advance the lives of workers…
Hoffa Statement On YRCW Efforts To Acquire Frieght Division Of ABF IBT ...Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa issued a statement regarding recent reports that YRC Worldwide Inc. attempted to acquire ABF Freight Systems...
Slippery slope? NYC threatens to fire school cafeteria workers for buying butter Washington Times ...The butter police are on the job. New York City school kitchen managers said they’re being targeted and “bullied” by bureaucrats who have threatened “disciplinary action” for buying butter, in violation of a five-year-old policy against using or offering the spread in cafeterias...
Advanced Business Agents’ Seminar Scheduled July 29-31 IBT ...The IBT Training and Development Department will conduct an Advanced Business Agents seminar July 29-31, 2013 at Teamsters Joint Council 25 in Chicago...
Monday, April 29, 2013
Today's Teamster News 04.29.13
Report: Hidden overseas accounts quietly rising to surface Washington Post ...The IRS has recouped more than $5.5 billion under a series of programs that offered reduced penalties and no jail time to people who voluntarily disclosed assets they were hiding overseas. In all, more than 39,000 tax cheats have come clean. But there’s more...
Bangladesh factory collapse: police detain owners, as death toll exceeds 350 The Observer ...Police in Bangladesh have detained two factory owners for criminal negligence over the deaths of at least 352 workers at an eight-storey building that collapsed on Wednesday – a day after warnings had been given that it was unsafe...
Who really pays for our cheap clothes? (opinion) CNN ...The sad fact behind the building collapse in Bangladesh is that it isn't an isolated problem. The story will leave the headlines at the end of this week but today, hundreds of thousands of workers will return to factories that are frankly further tragedies waiting to happen, and will keep producing clothes for high street brands...
Bill to boost California minimum wage approved by panel Los Angeles Times ...AB 10, which would give California its first minimum wage increase since 2008, was approved by the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee on a party-line vote...
Pa. beer laws add juice to liquor privatization debate Associated Press ...Where you can buy beer in Pennsylvania will be the subject of debate in the coming weeks in the state Senate, pitting profit-seeking businesses against one another and perhaps even against beer drinkers’ wishes...
Anti-Worker "Paycheck Protection" Bills Moving in Missouri PR Watch ...Missouri is the latest front in the attack on organized labor with so-called "paycheck protection" bills moving through the legislature, with backing from the usual array of corporate interests. But according to the Washington D.C.-based Economic Policy Institute, the bills primarily disadvantage workers while preserving privileges for corporations...
New York City Employee Pension Funds Sue BP Over Gulf Oil Spill Bloomberg News ...New York City pension funds sued BP for at least $39 million in investment losses, saying the oil company failed to disclose the risks and safety issues leading to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico...
Primacy of pensions in city bankruptcy may be issue for U.S. court in July Reuters ...A U.S. judge in July could take up the issue of whether a bankrupt city can shield workers' pensions while inflicting heavy losses on bond holders and other creditors, a lawyer for California's pension fund for public employees said on Friday...
Moody's, S&P settle lawsuits over debt ratings Associated Press ...King County, WA and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank sued Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s and Morgan Stanley, accusing “them of hiding risky investments” (this goes back to the mortgage crisis). There has been a settlement; details were not disclosed...
Teamsters Urge "Special Pay Issue" Raises For Florida Correctional Officers IBT ...The following is a statement from Teamsters International Vice President Ken Wood recalling a Presidential Proclamation on Correctional Officers issued on May 5, 1984...
Teamsters Local Win $5M for Department of Aviation Members IBT ... Teamsters Local 700 has recouped approximately $5 million in lost wages for City of Chicago workers who were sent home early without pay while working snow removal shifts at area airports from 2009-2011...
Bangladesh factory collapse: police detain owners, as death toll exceeds 350 The Observer ...Police in Bangladesh have detained two factory owners for criminal negligence over the deaths of at least 352 workers at an eight-storey building that collapsed on Wednesday – a day after warnings had been given that it was unsafe...
Who really pays for our cheap clothes? (opinion) CNN ...The sad fact behind the building collapse in Bangladesh is that it isn't an isolated problem. The story will leave the headlines at the end of this week but today, hundreds of thousands of workers will return to factories that are frankly further tragedies waiting to happen, and will keep producing clothes for high street brands...
Bill to boost California minimum wage approved by panel Los Angeles Times ...AB 10, which would give California its first minimum wage increase since 2008, was approved by the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee on a party-line vote...
Pa. beer laws add juice to liquor privatization debate Associated Press ...Where you can buy beer in Pennsylvania will be the subject of debate in the coming weeks in the state Senate, pitting profit-seeking businesses against one another and perhaps even against beer drinkers’ wishes...
Anti-Worker "Paycheck Protection" Bills Moving in Missouri PR Watch ...Missouri is the latest front in the attack on organized labor with so-called "paycheck protection" bills moving through the legislature, with backing from the usual array of corporate interests. But according to the Washington D.C.-based Economic Policy Institute, the bills primarily disadvantage workers while preserving privileges for corporations...
New York City Employee Pension Funds Sue BP Over Gulf Oil Spill Bloomberg News ...New York City pension funds sued BP for at least $39 million in investment losses, saying the oil company failed to disclose the risks and safety issues leading to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico...
Primacy of pensions in city bankruptcy may be issue for U.S. court in July Reuters ...A U.S. judge in July could take up the issue of whether a bankrupt city can shield workers' pensions while inflicting heavy losses on bond holders and other creditors, a lawyer for California's pension fund for public employees said on Friday...
Moody's, S&P settle lawsuits over debt ratings Associated Press ...King County, WA and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank sued Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s and Morgan Stanley, accusing “them of hiding risky investments” (this goes back to the mortgage crisis). There has been a settlement; details were not disclosed...
Teamsters Urge "Special Pay Issue" Raises For Florida Correctional Officers IBT ...The following is a statement from Teamsters International Vice President Ken Wood recalling a Presidential Proclamation on Correctional Officers issued on May 5, 1984...
Teamsters Local Win $5M for Department of Aviation Members IBT ... Teamsters Local 700 has recouped approximately $5 million in lost wages for City of Chicago workers who were sent home early without pay while working snow removal shifts at area airports from 2009-2011...
Friday, April 12, 2013
Today's Teamster News 04.12.13
The TPP Could Destroy the American Middle Class Economy in Crisis ...Now the United States is moving forward with a disastrous, misguided agreement that would expand this sort of arrangement to even more low-wage countries: the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)...
U.S. Warns WTO Global Trade Talks "Hurtling Towards Irrelevance" Reuters ...The United States launched a blistering attack on fellow World Trade Organization member states on Thursday for failing to do more to cut global barriers to trade, criticizing India in particular for trying to introduce a "massive new loophole..."
Ex-IMF official warns austerity ‘untenable’ FT ...Ashoka Mody, the IMF’s former mission chief to Ireland, said on Thursday it was time to ease up on Europe’s policy of austerity, warning further delay in changing course risked dragging out the continent’s economic recovery...
Elizabeth Warren Tears Into Federal Regulators For Shielding Big Banks Think Progress ...Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) embarrassed government regulators during a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Thursday morning as she demanded to know why they won’t reveal how frequently big banks illegally foreclosed on homeowners...
IRS: We Can Read Emails Without Warrant The Hill ...The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has claimed that agents do not need warrants to read people's emails, text messages and other private electronic communications, according to internal agency documents...
Wal-Mart Executive Who Called Sales “Total Disaster" Has Left Reuters ...Jerry Murray, the mid-level Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N) executive who called the chain's early February sales "a total disaster" in an email made public by Bloomberg, left the world's largest retailer last week, Wal-Mart confirmed on Wednesday...
Correct flawed partisan redistricting process Facebook ...Freshmen Democratic legislators from the (Wisconsin) State Assembly today announced new legislation that would remove the redistricting authority from politicians and assigns it to a non-partisan body...
State employees say LePage pressured them to deny jobless benefits Maine Sun Journal ...Gov. Paul LePage pressured hearing officers at the Department of Labor to decide unemployment-benefit cases in favor of business owners over workers...
Poll: Voters back paid sick days, distrust lawmakers Orlando Sentinel ...Florida residents strongly back laws requiring paid sick time and "living wages" for workers, but they don't trust state lawmakers to handle such issues, a statewide poll released today finds....
Comcast Looms Large in Paid Sick Days Fight in Philly Center for Media and Democracy ...Almost all of the $108,429.25 Comcast spent on lobbying in 2011 was in opposition to paid sick days. It also is a major contributor to Mayor Nutter, contributing $7,500 to his campaign in 2011 and an additional $8,500 in 2012...
72% of 2012 NYC Construction Deaths Took Place on Non-Union Work Sites We Party Patriots ...A new report from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) shows that construction deaths more than tripled on NYC work sites last year with 21 workplace fatalities versus six the year before...
Missouri Residents: Take Action to Stop Paycheck Deception Bill AFL-CIO Now ...Despite testimony overwhelmingly opposing the bill and universal opposition from the committee's Democrats, the Missouri legislature's House Workforce Development and Workplace Safety Committee passed S.B. 29, a paycheck deception bill, which is now headed to the House floor...
MEDC says right to work may generate big profits Lansing State Journal ...The state agency tasked with attracting business investment to Michigan claims the state’s new right-to-work laws will mean “higher potential profits” for companies, but officials at the Michigan Economic Development Corp. declined this week to provide data to back up their statement or answer questions on why the claim was made...
Red Cross Workers in Pomona, CA, Join Local 63 IBT ...Workers in the Logistics, Kitting and Warehouse departments of the American Red Cross in Pomona, California, have recently voted to become members of Local 63. Local 63 already represents other job titles at the Pomona facility and this new unit brings the total to nearly 200...
Hernando County, FL, Employees Ratify Teamster Contract IBT ...Teamster members working in utilities, DPW, road maintenance, office/clerical and facilities management for Hernando County, Florida, have ratified a new agreement...
Teamsters strike at AFC Cable South Coast Today ...Local 59 Teamsters went on strike Wednesday at AFC Cable Systems, picketing in front of a company site inside the New Bedford Business Park...
U.S. Warns WTO Global Trade Talks "Hurtling Towards Irrelevance" Reuters ...The United States launched a blistering attack on fellow World Trade Organization member states on Thursday for failing to do more to cut global barriers to trade, criticizing India in particular for trying to introduce a "massive new loophole..."
Ex-IMF official warns austerity ‘untenable’ FT ...Ashoka Mody, the IMF’s former mission chief to Ireland, said on Thursday it was time to ease up on Europe’s policy of austerity, warning further delay in changing course risked dragging out the continent’s economic recovery...
Elizabeth Warren Tears Into Federal Regulators For Shielding Big Banks Think Progress ...Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) embarrassed government regulators during a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Thursday morning as she demanded to know why they won’t reveal how frequently big banks illegally foreclosed on homeowners...
IRS: We Can Read Emails Without Warrant The Hill ...The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has claimed that agents do not need warrants to read people's emails, text messages and other private electronic communications, according to internal agency documents...
Wal-Mart Executive Who Called Sales “Total Disaster" Has Left Reuters ...Jerry Murray, the mid-level Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N) executive who called the chain's early February sales "a total disaster" in an email made public by Bloomberg, left the world's largest retailer last week, Wal-Mart confirmed on Wednesday...
Correct flawed partisan redistricting process Facebook ...Freshmen Democratic legislators from the (Wisconsin) State Assembly today announced new legislation that would remove the redistricting authority from politicians and assigns it to a non-partisan body...
State employees say LePage pressured them to deny jobless benefits Maine Sun Journal ...Gov. Paul LePage pressured hearing officers at the Department of Labor to decide unemployment-benefit cases in favor of business owners over workers...
Poll: Voters back paid sick days, distrust lawmakers Orlando Sentinel ...Florida residents strongly back laws requiring paid sick time and "living wages" for workers, but they don't trust state lawmakers to handle such issues, a statewide poll released today finds....
Comcast Looms Large in Paid Sick Days Fight in Philly Center for Media and Democracy ...Almost all of the $108,429.25 Comcast spent on lobbying in 2011 was in opposition to paid sick days. It also is a major contributor to Mayor Nutter, contributing $7,500 to his campaign in 2011 and an additional $8,500 in 2012...
72% of 2012 NYC Construction Deaths Took Place on Non-Union Work Sites We Party Patriots ...A new report from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) shows that construction deaths more than tripled on NYC work sites last year with 21 workplace fatalities versus six the year before...
Missouri Residents: Take Action to Stop Paycheck Deception Bill AFL-CIO Now ...Despite testimony overwhelmingly opposing the bill and universal opposition from the committee's Democrats, the Missouri legislature's House Workforce Development and Workplace Safety Committee passed S.B. 29, a paycheck deception bill, which is now headed to the House floor...
MEDC says right to work may generate big profits Lansing State Journal ...The state agency tasked with attracting business investment to Michigan claims the state’s new right-to-work laws will mean “higher potential profits” for companies, but officials at the Michigan Economic Development Corp. declined this week to provide data to back up their statement or answer questions on why the claim was made...
Red Cross Workers in Pomona, CA, Join Local 63 IBT ...Workers in the Logistics, Kitting and Warehouse departments of the American Red Cross in Pomona, California, have recently voted to become members of Local 63. Local 63 already represents other job titles at the Pomona facility and this new unit brings the total to nearly 200...
Hernando County, FL, Employees Ratify Teamster Contract IBT ...Teamster members working in utilities, DPW, road maintenance, office/clerical and facilities management for Hernando County, Florida, have ratified a new agreement...
Teamsters strike at AFC Cable South Coast Today ...Local 59 Teamsters went on strike Wednesday at AFC Cable Systems, picketing in front of a company site inside the New Bedford Business Park...
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