TEAMSTERS
Hoffa: Transportation bill loosens political gridlock Detroit News ...For more than a decade, Congress’s failure to approve a long-term transportation spending bill placed infrastructure improvements on the back burner in Michigan and all across the country. That ended last week, however, when members of the House and Senate united behind a five-year, $305 billion plan to pay for road, rail and mass transit upgrades...
Coca-Cola, union agree to federal mediation as strike continues Chicago Tribune ...The union representing striking Coca-Cola workers accepted the company's offer for federal mediation, even as it shot back at a letter the beverage giant mailed to employees defending the company's behavior during contract negotiations. Members of Teamsters Local 727, the union representing 319 production and warehouse workers at facilities in Niles and Alsip, took to the picket lines Thursday to protest what the union calls unfair labor practices...
Teamsters, Activists To Deliver Nearly 50,000 Signed Petitions Calling On UPS To Withdraw From ALEC PR Newswire ...On Thurs., Dec. 10, Teamsters Union representatives in Washington, D.C. and Atlanta, Ga. will be joined by environmental and community activists as they deliver nearly 50,000 signed petitions to UPS offices in both cities. The petitions call on the corporation to withdraw its membership in the controversial American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)...
U.S. Representatives Call on Treasury to Reject CSPF Application for Cuts Teamster.org ...Members of Congress have submitted letters to Treasury Department appointee Ken Feinberg asking him to deny the massive pension cuts proposed in the Teamsters Central States, Southeast and Southwest Areas Pension Plan application. The representatives denounced the plan for the burden it would place on middle class workers and retirees and called for a more equitable solution...
Unions mourn members killed in San Bernardino shooting Workday Minnesota ...Twelve of the 15 people killed – and several of those injured – in the San Bernardino terrorist shooting were members of the Service Employees International Union or the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Both organizations are holding vigils and fundraisers for all the victims. Teamsters (link is external) General President Jim Hoffa said, “Today is a sad day, as we join the San Bernardino community with a heavy heart in mourning this tragic loss"...
Teamsters members at Fieldbrook Foods ratify union contract Observer Today ...The drivers, warehouse and production personnel employed by Fieldbrook Foods on One Ice Cream Drive, Dunkirk, have overwhelmingly ratified a successor collective bargaining agreement. The members approved the new four-year contract by a margin of two to one...
GLOBAL LABOR & TRADE
Sudan: Central Darfur State Workers On Strike All Africa ...The Central Darfur state employees and workers embarked on a brief strike on Tuesday in protest against the non-payment of their November salaries. They gave the authorities 48 hours to pay them their salaries. Otherwise, they will start an open-ended strike on Thursday, the head of the Central Darfur Workers' Union, Tajir Zakaria Idris, told Radio Dabanga...
India not seeking membership in TPP, TTIP Economic Times ...India has not sought membership in either of the two mega trade deals, Trans-Pacific and Trans-Atlantic, the government informed Parliament today. "The government has not sought for membership of either the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) or Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP)"...
Customs bill could reach finish line this week The Hill ...House and Senate lawmakers are nearing an agreement on a customs enforcement measure, even amid some Democratic dissent, which would wrap up another key piece of President Obama’s legislative trade agenda. Levin said that he is concerned a conference report will retain what he called “very troubling changes to the negotiating objectives in TPA [trade promotion authority]...
How the TPP Will Affect You and Your Digital Rights EFF ...By excluding a large sector of communities—like security researchers, artists, libraries, and user rights groups—trade negotiators skewed the priorities of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) towards major tech companies and copyright industries that have a strong interest in maintaining and expanding their monopolies of digital services and content...
TiSA: A Framework for Reregulating the Global Trade in Services? (opinion) Huffington Post ...The EU is negotiating on behalf of its 28 member states, and with 23 other countries including the USA, Japan, Canada, New Zealand and Australia alongside the WTO, for a 'plurilateral' Trade in Services Agreement (TISA). TiSA's main purpose is to set out new rules to make the global trade in services fit for the internet era...
Superbug Apocalypse: How the Trans-Pacific Partnership Harms Public Health Truthout ...If you thought the only reason to be concerned was eight years of government secrecy surrounding the trade deal, its relation to the growing likelihood of antibacterial-resistant strains of bacteria from unchecked antibiotics in our food may give you nightmares...
Anti-austerity protesters march in Dublin city centre Irish Times ...There was a strong Garda presence outside Leinster House today as protestors demonstrated against austerity. Kildare Street and Molesworth Street were closed as up to 200 of people gathered outside Leinster House for a National Demonstration against Austerity. The action was in opposition to the water charges, the property taxes and to austerity imposed by the Government...
Pakistan Journalists Assert Human Rights, Worker Rights Solidarity Center ...The recent murders of three Pakistani journalists in separate incidents highlight the dangers media professionals in that country face daily on the job. ollowing the launch of a recent series of Solidarity Center workshops that covered safety as well as gender equality, more than 60 journalists from around 15 local unions in Pakistan came away with the resources and information they need to better protect themselves...
STATE & LIVING WAGE BATTLES
Ohio Democrats rethink strategy against right-to-work, unemployment legislation Cleveland.com ...As Ohio's Republican lawmakers pick up a new battle to reduce unemployment benefits and reduce the power of unions in the state, Democrats say they have a more difficult case against them. The last Republican-lead attempt to limit union power, Senate Bill 5 in 2011, was rebuffed and overturned by outraged voters...
Michigan prevailing wage repeal group preparing to launch second petition drive MLive ...A committee seeking to repeal Michigan's prevailing wage law plans to begin collecting a second round of petition signatures within the month. Protecting Michigan Taxpayers, regrouping after a failed petition drive marred by duplicate signatures, has hired National Petition Management of Brighton...
BIC to push right-to-work during 2016 Legislative Session Metro News ...Supporting right-to-work legislation is one of the top priorities for the West Virginia Business and Industry Council heading into the 2016 Legislative Session, according to chairman Chris Hamilton. The right-to-work bill would allow workers to choose whether to pay labor unions. Meetings will be held throughout the state this month. Hamilton said this is to ensure they are fully prepared for the upcoming session...
The Supreme Court Looks Poised To Blow Up Everything You Think You Know About Redistricting Think Progress ...There is little reason to think that the Roberts Court will take a modest approach to redistricting. To the contrary, Evenwel now seems likely to upset the racial balance of many states’ congressional delegations and throw many states’ redistricting processes into chaos...
Justices appear split in Texas redistricting challenge Washington Post ...The phrase has come to symbolize American democracy: “One person, one vote.” But there was considerable disagreement Tuesday among the justices of the Supreme Court about exactly what it means. When electoral districts are drawn by the states and localities, should they be derived from the total population of a place, as is done in all 50 states? Or, as the challengers to Texas’s redistricting plan propose, should only those eligible to vote be counted?...
Bellingham tells state lawmakers to pass paid sick leave Bellingham Herald ...City Council will ask the state Legislature to require paid sick and safe leave rather than look to pass a rule locally. By a 5-2 vote Monday night, Dec. 7, the council passed a resolution calling on state legislators to require employers to provide their workers paid sick and safe leave...
Christie: Union 'pigs will be charging' to Statehouse if Democrat succeeds him NJ.com ...Warning that "pigs will be charging down State Street" in Trenton if voters elect a Democratic governor after he leaves office, Gov. Chris Christie on Tuesday urged New Jersey's business community to join his fight against public employee unions. Wendell Steinhauer, president of the New Jersey Education Association, responded Tuesday afternoon, saying "Gov. Christie's tired strategy of finger pointing, blame and scare tactics is a smokescreen, not a solution"...
U.S LABOR
UAW reaches 2nd tentative deal with supplier Nexteer Detroit Free Press ...The UAW said late Tuesday that it has reached a new tentative agreement with Nexteer Automotive, an automotive supplier just outside of Saginaw, that ends a strike that began earlier in the day. More than 3,200 UAW members who work at Nexteer went on strike Tuesday, one day after 97% of workers who voted rejected the first contract...
Striking Capitol Workers Take Their Fight To Ted Cruz Think Progress ...The contractors, who work in the cafeterias and clean the buildings, say they were shut out of talks between Republican Senators and federal contractor organizations handling the renewal process. The new contract went into effect on Monday, according to their group’s press release, and failed to include the living wage of $15 an hour or union rights that they have been demanding for years...
Citrus workers go on strike in San Luis Yuma Sun ...Workers from two agriculture companies in the area, Bravo Harvesting and Pacific Avenue Growers, went on strike for a second day Tuesday, demanding higher pay and better working conditions. The strike began on Monday as workers gathered in the entrance and exits of parking lots for both companies...
Company threatens managers: If workers unionize, we'll cut your pay 60 percent Daily Kos ...Bosses have lots of strategies to block their workers from unionizing. Midwestern hardware chain Menards (owned by a huge Scott Walker supporter) really, really doesn’t want unions, it’s safe to say. So much so that the contract that managers sign threatens them with a big pay cut if workers join a union on their watch...
This is what the social safety net could look like for on-demand workers Washington Post ...Less than seven years after the founding of the largest company in the space, Uber, Washington is buzzing with talk of how to overhaul labor law to fit the new category of workers it claims to have created. That might seem like a long time. But the main corpus of regulations governing the work experience hasn’t changed substantially for more than 60 years...
Working Families Party Endorses Bernie Sanders for President NYTimes ...The Working Families Party, the labor-aligned third party that originated in New York and has sought to become a national force, endorsed Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont for president on Tuesday, handing him a symbolic boost from the state that twice elected Hillary Clinton to the Senate...
SOCIAL JUSTICE & OTHER NEWS
Unaccompanied Children Are Crossing The Southern Border Again Think Progress ...Federal officials will open three shelters in response to a resurgent flow of unaccompanied children through the southern U.S. border. Senior Obama administration officials said on Monday that the shelters, set to open in Texas and California, will add at least 1,400 more beds, according to the New York Times. In recent years, tens of thousands of unaccompanied children have fled violence and poverty in the Central America...
Chicago police inquiry triggers long-awaited change but hard choices ahead The Guardian ...Just hours after the US Justice Department announced this week that it would investigate the Chicago police department for civil rights violations, local elected officials went on the offensive. During an often-tense press conference, embattled Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel, who previously called a federal civil rights investigation “misguided”, pledged his full support...
Trump Isn't the Problem. It's the Bigotry of the GOP Base. Slate ...Fifty-seven percent say Islamic values are at odds with American values. As for Trump’s proposal to bar Muslim refugees, when the question is presented without cues, 5 of every 6 Republicans agree with him. The problem is the base—and by many measures, the majority—of the Republican Party. If you think we can’t elect a government in 2016 that would target a religious minority, you’re underestimating Trump. And you’re overestimating America...
With Anti-Muslim Bombast, Trump Doubles Down on 'Fascist Demagoguery' Common Dreams ...GOP presidential frontrunner Donald Trump is doubling down on his xenophobic remarks about Muslims, even as they provoke widespread outrage and condemnation across the political spectrum. On Tuesday, Trump defended his fascist plan for a "total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States" by comparing it with President Franklin Roosevelt's decision to inter Japanese Americans during World War II...
What Do Survivors of War Have to Do to Live in Peace?: Voices from France's Largest Refugee Camp Democracy Now ...Residents of the largest refugee camp in France, situated outside the northern port city of Calais, often call it "The Jungle." It is a maze of wind-swept, ripped tents and muddy walkways where people informally live in sections according to their home countries. Walking through the camp is like walking through a map of the targets of U.S. bombing campaigns...
Showing posts with label Pakistan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pakistan. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 9, 2015
Friday, November 6, 2015
Today's Teamster News 11.06.15
TEAMSTERS
Hoffa Says Release of TPP Text Does Little to Allay Workers' Concerns About Deal Teamster.org ...Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa in response to the White House today releasing the text of the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a deal which would lead to tens of thousands of U.S. jobs being shipped overseas and lower wages for many Americans: "While we are pleased that Congress and the public will now be able to see the entire text of this massive agreement, viewing it in person will not make it any better for U.S. workers"...
Hoffa: Safety Can't Be Compromised as Part of Transportation Funding Bill Huffington Post ...Congress is on the cusp of doing something it hasn't done in more than a decade - approve a long-term highway bill. A bipartisan collection of lawmakers in both the House and Senate should be lauded for the difficult work they have accomplished thus far in attempting to enact a six-year funding measure. This includes rejecting an amendment that would have allowed heavier trucks on the nation's thoroughfares...
House Moves Multi-Year Transportation Bill Forward, but Concerns for Drivers Remain Teamster.org ...Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa after the House today overwhelming approved a six-year, $340 billion transportation funding bill that would invest in much-needed infrastructure improvements while protecting motorists from heavier trucks on the road:
“A bipartisan collection of lawmakers came together today to back a long-term plan for transportation"...
Teamsters Local 700 Stands Up for Firefighters and Paramedics Teamster.org ...Teamsters Local 700 represents 31 hardworking firefighters and paramedics at the Summit Fire Department whose jobs are on the line as the Village of Summit threatens to outsource their services to nearby Bedford Park. Local 700 filed a complaint on Oct. 27 with the Illinois Labor Relations Board against the Village of Summit for violating the collective bargaining agreement...
Pennsylvanians Elect Teamster-Endorsed Judges Throughout Court System PR Newswire ...Pennsylvania's working families won a major victory at the polls on Nov. 3 when voters elected judges throughout the court system that were endorsed by labor unions across the state. The results sent a strong message to special interest groups that poured millions into the state to support anti-union and anti-worker candidates – Pennsylvania's courts are not for sale...
BMWED/Teamsters Holds Advanced Officer Education Program Teamster.org ...Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes (BMWED) members from several System Federations gathered once again in Hendersonville, Tenn. to participate in the BMWED two-week Advanced Officer Education Program this past July. The educational courses take place at Volunteer State Community College, with curriculum focused on union-specific subjects...
Teamsters Address Outstanding Contract Proposals With Coke, Company Cuts Meeting Short Local 727 ...Even before contract negotiations resumed on Thursday, November 5, Coca-Cola representatives made it clear to Teamsters Local 727 they had to cut the day short. Management kicked off the morning by addressing just one lone provision among its dense and varied contract proposals. The company initially offered no movement or other specifics regarding the remaining proposals on the table...
GLOBAL LABOR & TRADE
21 Workers Die in Pakistan Factory Collapse; Many Missing Solidarity Center ...Workers once again gave their lives for their jobs when a plastic bag factory collapsed in Lahore, Pakistan, yesterday, killing at least 21 and injuring dozens. Between 150 and 200 workers, including child laborers, were in the factory when the building collapsed. Rescuers, who mostly include members of the Pakistan Army, report hearing voices in the rubble, and family members say they have received calls from relatives trapped in the debris...
Obama tells Congress he will sign TPP The Hill ...President Obama notified Congress on Thursday that he intends to sign a broad trade agreement spanning from Asia to Latin America. The president’s notification was expected soon after the final text of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was released around 3:30 a.m. Thursday. The message kicks off a period of at least 90 days before Obama can sign the agreement...
Obama Faces Tough Battle In House To Pass TPP Forbes ...President Obama now faces probably his toughest political challenge since passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2009 – persuading Congress to approve the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Republicans, who have been reliable yes votes on free trade agreements since the beginning of time, aren’t so sure about this one...
Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP): ‘Worse Than We Thought’. A Total Corporate Power Grab Nightmare Global Research ...As expert analysis of the long-shrouded, newly publicized Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) final text continued to roll out on Thursday, consensus formed around one fundamental assessment of the 12-nation pact: It’s worse than we thought. In fact, Public Citizen charged, the TPP rolls back past public interest reforms to the U.S. trade model while expanding problematic provisions demanded by the hundreds of official U.S. corporate trade advisers...
Civil Society Reacts to Finally-Released TPP Text CTC ...The United States formally entered into negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) in February 2008. For years afterwards, the public had to rely on leaked documents to learn what U.S. negotiators were proposing in our names. On November 5, 2015, text for the TPP was officially released for the first time. Within hours, a broad range of civil society organizations representing the labor, environmental, family farm, consumer, LGBT and other social movements issued statements...
TPP nations agree to abstain from currency wars Japan Times ...The dozen countries that signed the Trans-Pacific Partnership have committed to refraining from competitive currency devaluations and to being transparent about their exchange-rate policies, the U.S. said. Negotiators for Pacific Rim nations including Japan, Australia and Vietnam agreed last month to the deal...
TPP Caves to the Tobacco Industry, Threatens Public Health CPATH ...The vacuous “tobacco control” provision in the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) virtually capitulates to the demands of multinational tobacco corporations, jeopardizing nations’ health and economic welfare. Public health and medical advocates in the U.S. and abroad consistently urged negotiators to exclude tobacco control protections from trade challenges under the TPP...
As US Promotes TPP As A Way To Improve Labor Standards, Guatemala Shows Failed Promises Of Previous Trade Deals IBTimes ...When the country joined the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement in 2006, proponents of the deal said it would improve conditions for workers, raise wages and make it easier for laborers to organize. Seven years later, Guatemala was named the most dangerous country in the world for trade unionists. Supporters of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) are making many of the same promises...
Mass European Protest against TTIP corporate Takeover: EU Commission Sanctions “Revolution Against Law” Global Research ...The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) has its objectors – mainly the citizens of the countries involved in what can only be seen as confirmation of a corporate takeover. Governments have confirmed that democracy is no longer a principle worth pursuing. Three million citizens have signed a petition voicing their opposition, of which 500,000 were from Britain alone...
Canada’s Montreal hit with massive student anti-austerity protest RT ...A few thousand students marched through the streets of Montreal protesting the Canadian government’s austerity measures and calling for “a massive reinvestment in public services.” Around 2,000 members of a local student organization ASSÉ (Association pour une Solidarité Syndicale Étudiante) took part in a large demonstration against what they call the “pillaging of public services” by Quebec’s provincial government...
STATE & LIVING WAGE BATTLES
Pennsylvania Supreme Court sweep gives Democrats legislative redistricting control Daily Kos ...In what was by far the most important victory of the night, Democrats swept three seats on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, giving them a five to two majority; previously, Republicans had controlled the bench three to two, with two vacancies. This victory isn't simply about ensuring a more just court, though undoubtedly the cause of fairness will benefit greatly. It will also have an enormous impact on the next round of legislative redistricting...
Failed prevailing wage repeal petition drive prompts calls for investigation, prosecution MLive ...A group seeking to repeal Michigan's prevailing wage law turned in an estimated 161,781 invalid signatures, prompting rejection by the Board of State Canvassers and calls for investigation, prosecution and a review of circulator laws. The board officially killed the petition drive Thursday afternoon...
Reform Wins: Ohio Bans Gerrymandering While Maine and Seattle Bust Big Money The Nation ... In Ohio, 71 percent of voters backed Issue 1, a constitutional amendment to ban partisan gerrymandering and establish a bipartisan Ohio Redistricting Commission to draw legislative district lines that promote real competition. In Maine, 55 percent of voters backed a proposal to dramatically strengthen the state’s 19-year-old old Clean Elections system...
Activists in Portland and beyond fight for $15 minimum wage Oregon Live ...The latest minimum-wage movement caught fire in New York City in 2012, when a couple of hundred fast-food workers walked off the job and demanded higher pay. Since then, their $15-an-hour rallying cry has reverberated across the country. In the Northwest, local leaders say Seattle City Council member Kshama Sawant, a socialist elected in 2013 on a platform that included a $15-an-hour minimum, sparked action...
Elizabeth joins municipal paid sick leave movement NJ Biz ...Earlier this week, Elizabeth became New Jersey's 10th municipality to pass a paid sick leave initiative after voters approved a ballot-box question. The new ordinance will largely mirror those that have come before it in other New Jersey municipalities, allowing private-sector workers the ability to accrue up to an hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked, with a 40-hour-per-year cap for workers at businesses with 10 or more employees...
U.S. LABOR
Sweet Relief: A Strong October Jobs Report The Atlantic ...After three consecutive months of disappointing jobs reports, October finally delivered the strong numbers economists had been hoping for. The report from the Labor Department shows that the unemployment rate fell to 5 percent, and the economy added 271,000 jobs in October—beating expectations of 180,000. That’s the strongest showing in 2015 thus far...
GM and UAW Come to Agreement US News & World Report ...United Auto Workers union members at General Motors appear poised to approve a new four-year contract with the company. Workers at two union locals at a huge factory in Lordstown, Ohio, east of Cleveland, and at an SUV assembly plant near Lansing, Michigan, voted overwhelmingly for the deal on Friday. Glenn Johnson, president of one of two locals at the sprawling Lordstown complex that makes the Chevrolet Cruze, said 72 percent of 3,000 workers at the assembly plant voted yes...
Kaiser mental health workers set to strike Nov. 16 SF Gate ...Nearly 1,400 Kaiser mental health workers in Northern California will walk off their jobs Nov. 16 to protest what union officials say are too few mental health care employees to meet patient demand. The workers — psychologists, social workers and therapists — criticize Kaiser’s management, which they say understaffs mental health services...
ATI to terminate health insurance for 2,200 USW workers at end of November Ellwood City Ledger ...The United Steelworkers have claimed in a posting on their website that Allegheny Technologies will terminate healthcare coverage for all of the 2,200 locked out union workers at the end of November. USW representatives said ATI recently mailed a letter to the homes of all locked out union workers detailing its intent to cut insurance benefits on Nov. 30...
3 Depressing Findings From A Huge New Study Of The Gender Pay Gap Think Progress ...On the whole, the average woman with a year-round full-time job can expect to make just 79 percent of what a man doing the same makes in a year. There are many factors that go into the disparity. But new data released from PayScale on Thursday tells a different story. Even with all of the variables taken into consideration, women in the survey made 2.7 percent less than men...
Now White People Are Dying From Our Terrible Economic Policies, Too The Nation ... A demographic analysis of public health trends in recent years shows that middle-aged whites are living more miserable and sicker lives—and also appear to be dying at a higher rate. From 1999 to 2013, Princeton University researchers observed a disturbing jump in deaths among whites aged 45 to 54...
SOCIAL JUSTICE & OTHER NEWS
Austerity’s Grim Legacy New York Times ...The Obama administration and its counterparts realized that in a slumping economy budget deficits were helpful, not harmful. And the money-printing and borrowing worked: A repeat of the Great Depression, which seemed all too possible at the time, was avoided. Then it all went wrong. And the consequences of the wrong turn we took look worse now than the harshest critics of conventional wisdom ever imagined....
With the "Robin Hood Tax," a Grassroots Movement Seeks to Bring Wall Street to Heel Truthout ...Across the country, movements are rising up to challenge politicians who balance public budgets on the backs of working people instead of taxing corporations. "Municipal frugality" and "shared sacrifice" are examples of the political doublespeak and hypocrisy that governments employ while the 1% hoards its record levels of wealth...
Obama to reject Keystone XL pipeline in victory for environmental activists The Guardian ...Barack Obama is expected on Friday to reject a proposal from TransCanada to build the Keystone XL pipeline through the American heartland, the Guardian has learned. The decision, to be announced with US secretary of state John Kerry from the White House, ends years of review and debate about the project...
Locked Up & Neglected After Fleeing Danger, Immigrant Women Detainees Launch Hunger Strike in Texas Democracy Now ...Last week, 27 immigrant women detained at the for-profit T. Don Hutto facility in Austin began refusing meals, demanding an end to mistreatment and their immediate release. Most are asylum seekers from Central America, which has seen a surge in migrants fleeing violence and abuse. The detainees said they’ve faced threats and unjustified surveillance as they languish in custody without hope of freedom...
Hoffa Says Release of TPP Text Does Little to Allay Workers' Concerns About Deal Teamster.org ...Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa in response to the White House today releasing the text of the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a deal which would lead to tens of thousands of U.S. jobs being shipped overseas and lower wages for many Americans: "While we are pleased that Congress and the public will now be able to see the entire text of this massive agreement, viewing it in person will not make it any better for U.S. workers"...
Hoffa: Safety Can't Be Compromised as Part of Transportation Funding Bill Huffington Post ...Congress is on the cusp of doing something it hasn't done in more than a decade - approve a long-term highway bill. A bipartisan collection of lawmakers in both the House and Senate should be lauded for the difficult work they have accomplished thus far in attempting to enact a six-year funding measure. This includes rejecting an amendment that would have allowed heavier trucks on the nation's thoroughfares...
House Moves Multi-Year Transportation Bill Forward, but Concerns for Drivers Remain Teamster.org ...Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa after the House today overwhelming approved a six-year, $340 billion transportation funding bill that would invest in much-needed infrastructure improvements while protecting motorists from heavier trucks on the road:
“A bipartisan collection of lawmakers came together today to back a long-term plan for transportation"...
Teamsters Local 700 Stands Up for Firefighters and Paramedics Teamster.org ...Teamsters Local 700 represents 31 hardworking firefighters and paramedics at the Summit Fire Department whose jobs are on the line as the Village of Summit threatens to outsource their services to nearby Bedford Park. Local 700 filed a complaint on Oct. 27 with the Illinois Labor Relations Board against the Village of Summit for violating the collective bargaining agreement...
Pennsylvanians Elect Teamster-Endorsed Judges Throughout Court System PR Newswire ...Pennsylvania's working families won a major victory at the polls on Nov. 3 when voters elected judges throughout the court system that were endorsed by labor unions across the state. The results sent a strong message to special interest groups that poured millions into the state to support anti-union and anti-worker candidates – Pennsylvania's courts are not for sale...
BMWED/Teamsters Holds Advanced Officer Education Program Teamster.org ...Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes (BMWED) members from several System Federations gathered once again in Hendersonville, Tenn. to participate in the BMWED two-week Advanced Officer Education Program this past July. The educational courses take place at Volunteer State Community College, with curriculum focused on union-specific subjects...
Teamsters Address Outstanding Contract Proposals With Coke, Company Cuts Meeting Short Local 727 ...Even before contract negotiations resumed on Thursday, November 5, Coca-Cola representatives made it clear to Teamsters Local 727 they had to cut the day short. Management kicked off the morning by addressing just one lone provision among its dense and varied contract proposals. The company initially offered no movement or other specifics regarding the remaining proposals on the table...
GLOBAL LABOR & TRADE
21 Workers Die in Pakistan Factory Collapse; Many Missing Solidarity Center ...Workers once again gave their lives for their jobs when a plastic bag factory collapsed in Lahore, Pakistan, yesterday, killing at least 21 and injuring dozens. Between 150 and 200 workers, including child laborers, were in the factory when the building collapsed. Rescuers, who mostly include members of the Pakistan Army, report hearing voices in the rubble, and family members say they have received calls from relatives trapped in the debris...
Obama tells Congress he will sign TPP The Hill ...President Obama notified Congress on Thursday that he intends to sign a broad trade agreement spanning from Asia to Latin America. The president’s notification was expected soon after the final text of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was released around 3:30 a.m. Thursday. The message kicks off a period of at least 90 days before Obama can sign the agreement...
Obama Faces Tough Battle In House To Pass TPP Forbes ...President Obama now faces probably his toughest political challenge since passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2009 – persuading Congress to approve the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Republicans, who have been reliable yes votes on free trade agreements since the beginning of time, aren’t so sure about this one...
Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP): ‘Worse Than We Thought’. A Total Corporate Power Grab Nightmare Global Research ...As expert analysis of the long-shrouded, newly publicized Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) final text continued to roll out on Thursday, consensus formed around one fundamental assessment of the 12-nation pact: It’s worse than we thought. In fact, Public Citizen charged, the TPP rolls back past public interest reforms to the U.S. trade model while expanding problematic provisions demanded by the hundreds of official U.S. corporate trade advisers...
Civil Society Reacts to Finally-Released TPP Text CTC ...The United States formally entered into negotiations on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) in February 2008. For years afterwards, the public had to rely on leaked documents to learn what U.S. negotiators were proposing in our names. On November 5, 2015, text for the TPP was officially released for the first time. Within hours, a broad range of civil society organizations representing the labor, environmental, family farm, consumer, LGBT and other social movements issued statements...
TPP nations agree to abstain from currency wars Japan Times ...The dozen countries that signed the Trans-Pacific Partnership have committed to refraining from competitive currency devaluations and to being transparent about their exchange-rate policies, the U.S. said. Negotiators for Pacific Rim nations including Japan, Australia and Vietnam agreed last month to the deal...
TPP Caves to the Tobacco Industry, Threatens Public Health CPATH ...The vacuous “tobacco control” provision in the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) virtually capitulates to the demands of multinational tobacco corporations, jeopardizing nations’ health and economic welfare. Public health and medical advocates in the U.S. and abroad consistently urged negotiators to exclude tobacco control protections from trade challenges under the TPP...
As US Promotes TPP As A Way To Improve Labor Standards, Guatemala Shows Failed Promises Of Previous Trade Deals IBTimes ...When the country joined the Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement in 2006, proponents of the deal said it would improve conditions for workers, raise wages and make it easier for laborers to organize. Seven years later, Guatemala was named the most dangerous country in the world for trade unionists. Supporters of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) are making many of the same promises...
Mass European Protest against TTIP corporate Takeover: EU Commission Sanctions “Revolution Against Law” Global Research ...The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) has its objectors – mainly the citizens of the countries involved in what can only be seen as confirmation of a corporate takeover. Governments have confirmed that democracy is no longer a principle worth pursuing. Three million citizens have signed a petition voicing their opposition, of which 500,000 were from Britain alone...
Canada’s Montreal hit with massive student anti-austerity protest RT ...A few thousand students marched through the streets of Montreal protesting the Canadian government’s austerity measures and calling for “a massive reinvestment in public services.” Around 2,000 members of a local student organization ASSÉ (Association pour une Solidarité Syndicale Étudiante) took part in a large demonstration against what they call the “pillaging of public services” by Quebec’s provincial government...
STATE & LIVING WAGE BATTLES
Pennsylvania Supreme Court sweep gives Democrats legislative redistricting control Daily Kos ...In what was by far the most important victory of the night, Democrats swept three seats on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, giving them a five to two majority; previously, Republicans had controlled the bench three to two, with two vacancies. This victory isn't simply about ensuring a more just court, though undoubtedly the cause of fairness will benefit greatly. It will also have an enormous impact on the next round of legislative redistricting...
Failed prevailing wage repeal petition drive prompts calls for investigation, prosecution MLive ...A group seeking to repeal Michigan's prevailing wage law turned in an estimated 161,781 invalid signatures, prompting rejection by the Board of State Canvassers and calls for investigation, prosecution and a review of circulator laws. The board officially killed the petition drive Thursday afternoon...
Reform Wins: Ohio Bans Gerrymandering While Maine and Seattle Bust Big Money The Nation ... In Ohio, 71 percent of voters backed Issue 1, a constitutional amendment to ban partisan gerrymandering and establish a bipartisan Ohio Redistricting Commission to draw legislative district lines that promote real competition. In Maine, 55 percent of voters backed a proposal to dramatically strengthen the state’s 19-year-old old Clean Elections system...
Activists in Portland and beyond fight for $15 minimum wage Oregon Live ...The latest minimum-wage movement caught fire in New York City in 2012, when a couple of hundred fast-food workers walked off the job and demanded higher pay. Since then, their $15-an-hour rallying cry has reverberated across the country. In the Northwest, local leaders say Seattle City Council member Kshama Sawant, a socialist elected in 2013 on a platform that included a $15-an-hour minimum, sparked action...
Elizabeth joins municipal paid sick leave movement NJ Biz ...Earlier this week, Elizabeth became New Jersey's 10th municipality to pass a paid sick leave initiative after voters approved a ballot-box question. The new ordinance will largely mirror those that have come before it in other New Jersey municipalities, allowing private-sector workers the ability to accrue up to an hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours worked, with a 40-hour-per-year cap for workers at businesses with 10 or more employees...
U.S. LABOR
Sweet Relief: A Strong October Jobs Report The Atlantic ...After three consecutive months of disappointing jobs reports, October finally delivered the strong numbers economists had been hoping for. The report from the Labor Department shows that the unemployment rate fell to 5 percent, and the economy added 271,000 jobs in October—beating expectations of 180,000. That’s the strongest showing in 2015 thus far...
GM and UAW Come to Agreement US News & World Report ...United Auto Workers union members at General Motors appear poised to approve a new four-year contract with the company. Workers at two union locals at a huge factory in Lordstown, Ohio, east of Cleveland, and at an SUV assembly plant near Lansing, Michigan, voted overwhelmingly for the deal on Friday. Glenn Johnson, president of one of two locals at the sprawling Lordstown complex that makes the Chevrolet Cruze, said 72 percent of 3,000 workers at the assembly plant voted yes...
Kaiser mental health workers set to strike Nov. 16 SF Gate ...Nearly 1,400 Kaiser mental health workers in Northern California will walk off their jobs Nov. 16 to protest what union officials say are too few mental health care employees to meet patient demand. The workers — psychologists, social workers and therapists — criticize Kaiser’s management, which they say understaffs mental health services...
ATI to terminate health insurance for 2,200 USW workers at end of November Ellwood City Ledger ...The United Steelworkers have claimed in a posting on their website that Allegheny Technologies will terminate healthcare coverage for all of the 2,200 locked out union workers at the end of November. USW representatives said ATI recently mailed a letter to the homes of all locked out union workers detailing its intent to cut insurance benefits on Nov. 30...
3 Depressing Findings From A Huge New Study Of The Gender Pay Gap Think Progress ...On the whole, the average woman with a year-round full-time job can expect to make just 79 percent of what a man doing the same makes in a year. There are many factors that go into the disparity. But new data released from PayScale on Thursday tells a different story. Even with all of the variables taken into consideration, women in the survey made 2.7 percent less than men...
Now White People Are Dying From Our Terrible Economic Policies, Too The Nation ... A demographic analysis of public health trends in recent years shows that middle-aged whites are living more miserable and sicker lives—and also appear to be dying at a higher rate. From 1999 to 2013, Princeton University researchers observed a disturbing jump in deaths among whites aged 45 to 54...
SOCIAL JUSTICE & OTHER NEWS
Austerity’s Grim Legacy New York Times ...The Obama administration and its counterparts realized that in a slumping economy budget deficits were helpful, not harmful. And the money-printing and borrowing worked: A repeat of the Great Depression, which seemed all too possible at the time, was avoided. Then it all went wrong. And the consequences of the wrong turn we took look worse now than the harshest critics of conventional wisdom ever imagined....
With the "Robin Hood Tax," a Grassroots Movement Seeks to Bring Wall Street to Heel Truthout ...Across the country, movements are rising up to challenge politicians who balance public budgets on the backs of working people instead of taxing corporations. "Municipal frugality" and "shared sacrifice" are examples of the political doublespeak and hypocrisy that governments employ while the 1% hoards its record levels of wealth...
Obama to reject Keystone XL pipeline in victory for environmental activists The Guardian ...Barack Obama is expected on Friday to reject a proposal from TransCanada to build the Keystone XL pipeline through the American heartland, the Guardian has learned. The decision, to be announced with US secretary of state John Kerry from the White House, ends years of review and debate about the project...
Locked Up & Neglected After Fleeing Danger, Immigrant Women Detainees Launch Hunger Strike in Texas Democracy Now ...Last week, 27 immigrant women detained at the for-profit T. Don Hutto facility in Austin began refusing meals, demanding an end to mistreatment and their immediate release. Most are asylum seekers from Central America, which has seen a surge in migrants fleeing violence and abuse. The detainees said they’ve faced threats and unjustified surveillance as they languish in custody without hope of freedom...
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