Today's Teamster News 02.21.14

Teamster News
Massachusetts Highway Workers Unanimously Ratify Contract  teamster.org   ...Workers with the Newbury Highway Department in Newbury, Mass., have voted unanimously to ratify a strong contract, securing wage increases and job protections. The highway workers, who are members of Teamsters Local 170 in Worcester, Mass., joined the union in December and quickly negotiated a solid agreement...
Baltimore City School Bus Workers Win $1.25 Million Wage Settlement  teamster.org   ...Baltimore school bus drivers and attendants have reached a $1.25 million wage settlement with their employer, Durham School Services, the transportation contractor for Baltimore City Public Schools...
Pleasanton-based Safeway in discussions to sell company  San Jose Mercury News   ...In a move poised to rattle the supermarket industry, one of the East Bay's largest employers, Safeway, announced Wednesday that it is in talks to sell the company...
Film tax credit bill goes live  Sacramento Business Journal   ...Democratic Assemblymembers Raul Bocanegra and Mike Gatto released a film tax credit bill Wednesday that supporters say will protect jobs by keeping film crews in California....
Why privatizing toll collection is a horrible idea  teamsternation   ...If the New Jersey Turnpike Commission privatizes toll collection, workers who have already taken enormous cuts to pay and benefits will suffer...
Eight lies ‘advocates’ told about carriage horses  New York Post   ...the carriage industry is well-regulated and safe. NYCLASS attacks us not with facts and well-reasoned arguments, but with emotional manipulation and outright lies...
Judge strikes down Nebraska law that allowed Keystone XL pipeline  Dallas Morning News   ...A Nebraska judge on Wednesday struck down a law that allowed the Keystone XL pipeline to proceed through the state, a victory for opponents who have tried to block the project that would carry oil from Canada to Texas refineries...
The War on Workers
GOP’s Social Security disaster: Conservatives just lost their chance to cut benefits  Salon   ...The president dropping Chained CPI from his budget is a reprieve for the left -- and a message to the right...
Federal Government Soon to Know Everywhere You've Driven  American Prospect   ...There are more license-plate cameras installed all the time. Now the government wants to put all the data together in one database...
Flu Deaths Rise Among Young and Middle-Aged U.S. Adults  Bloomberg   ...While influenza traditionally affects children and the elderly hardest, adults under age 65 accounted for 61 percent of hospitalizations so far this season, an increase from 35 percent last year, according to a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report...
New Report Exposes America's Highest Paid Government Workers  truthout   ...America’s highest paid "government" workers are not your local teachers, nurses, or sanitation workers. Rather, they are corporate executives who sign lucrative contracts to take over public services and then pay themselves and other executives eye-popping salaries...
Victoria's anti-protest laws pass lower house by one vote  The Guardian   ...Controversial new laws giving police unprecedented powers to disperse protests have passed Victoria’s lower house...
New Report: Port Trucking Companies Steal More Than $1 Billion in Wages From Drivers  In These Times   ...The port brings in close to $16 billion per year, but the drivers only see a tiny bit of that money. This is in large part because they're “misclassified” as independent contractors...
State Battles
Concerned Missourians Deliver More than 6,850 Letters Calling on Speaker To Drop ALEC's 'Right-To-Work' Legislation Attacks  Progress Missouri   ...“We need to be building an economy that works for everyone, not political attacks and favors to special interest donors...”
Employers could pay less in lawsuits over unpaid wages  Indianapolis Star   ...Long-sought changes limiting employers’ liability when being sued by workers for unpaid wages may come to pass under a House bill backed by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. The bill also would set up a framework to allow employers to take money out of wages of employees — if they agree — to repay loans for work-related equipment and job training...
The Top Five Things You Need to Know about the John Doe Emails  Center for Media and Democracy   ... in 2010 while Walker was running for governor, he corresponded consistently with key campaign and county staff from a private account in the middle of the work day and apparently on the secret Wi-Fi system set up by top aide Tim Russell...
Scott Walker Ordered Doctor Fired Because She Was Once A Thong Model  Huffington Post   ... In April 2010, Scott Walker and his staff realized they had a potential problem on their hands that would require them to quietly fire a woman who appeared to be completely competent at her job. The issue was that she had what they perceived to be a "checkered" past: She used to be a thong model...
Chris Christie's Mansion Fund Collected Millions From Political Favor Seekers  Huffington Post   ...A review of IRS records and Drumthwacket donor lists, however, suggest that prospective donors saw the mansion as something more than just an altruistic investment. Contributions to Drumthwacket often coincided with the donors' attempts to win tax breaks, political appointments or other support from Christie and his appointees. In many cases, the donors, like the Strangfelds, got what they wanted...
SC guv says she wears heels to kick unions  teamsternation   ...South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley would rather let the people of her state go without jobs than let them get union jobs...
Trade
“Free Trade” Pacts Were Always About Weakening Nation-States to Promote Rule by Multinationals  naked capitalism   ...the idea behind getting rid of these barriers wasn’t about free trade, it was about reorganizing the world so that corporations could manage resources for “the benefit of mankind”...
Miscellaneous
Madoff said JPMorgan executives knew of his fraud: lawsuit  Reuters   ..."JPMorgan was uniquely positioned for 20 years to see Madoff's crimes and put a stop to them," the lawsuit said. "But faced with the prospect of shutting down Madoff's account and losing lucrative profits," it added, "JPMorgan - at its highest level - chose to turn a blind eye."...

SC guv says she wears heels to kick unions

Ew.

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley would rather let the people of her state go without jobs than let them get union jobs.

She actually said that. She said she didn't want any auto manufacturers moving to her state if they bring unions with them.

Really.

Here's how Wonkette put it: 

Governor Nikki Haley just wants to assure the people of South Carolina that they will never have to worry about high wages or job security, because those communist notions have no place in the Palmetto Bug State. After attending an automotive conference in Greenville, she told the Greenville News that she discourages companies from opening factories in South Carolina if they have any plans to allow unions, because she does not want any organized labor cooties getting on the state: 

“It’s not something we want to see happen … We discourage any companies that have unions from wanting to come to South Carolina because we don’t want to take the water.”

The water? Never mind. Who knows what goes on in that little head of hers. She said it's good news that unions aren't coming to her state -- good news, probably, for the billionaire sociopaths who fund her campaigns. Not so good for the people of South Carolina.

Wonkette continued:

Haley promised to keep fighting against union penetration. 

“You’ve heard me say many times I wear heels. It’s not for a fashion statement,” she said. “It’s because we’re kicking them every day, and we’ll continue to kick them.” 

It’s downright inspiring to see how far a governor will go to help bring prosperity and success to the people bloated plutocrats of her state.

Today's Teamster News 12.18.13

Teamsters Stand in Solidarity with Korean Railway Workers on Strike  teamster.org   ...The Teamsters and the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division of the Teamsters are standing in solidarity with striking Korean railway workers...
Port Workers In IKEA Supply Chain Hold Solidarity Actions Over Lockout  teamster.org   ...hundreds of dock workers at 10 ports around the globe held rallies to show their support for the 350 Teamsters who have been locked out from their jobs without pay for seven months at IKEA’s store in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada...
Teamsters Donating Toys to Hershey Ronald McDonald House  teamster.org   ...Teamsters Local Union 776 in Harrisburg will be donating more than $7,500 in toys to the Ronald McDonald House in Hershey...
SCI Deceives Grieving Family For $15,000 Funeral, Relatives Outraged  teamster.org   ...“We had no clue there was a change of ownership,” Johnson said. “We went there on the memory of a good family business only to find out it is owned by this huge conglomerate that is mistreating workers and basically spitting on the memory of my mom...”
Northern Tier Refinery Workers Vote To Strike  teamster.org   ...workers from the Northern Tier refinery in St. Paul Park, Minn. voted overwhelmingly to strike if necessary, rejecting cuts proposed by management that could dramatically undermine the safety of operations. The refinery workers are represented by Teamsters Local 120...
GES Exposition Services Threatens Chicago's Convention Business  teamster.org   ...The company is demanding a laundry list of concessions from the Teamsters, including more work-rule restrictions, further crew-size reductions and changes in seniority...
It’s Time to Halt Middle-Class Housing Crisis  teamster.org   ...10 million homeowners still owe more than their homes are worth...
Accidental Tax Break Saves Wealthiest Americans $100 Billion  Bloomberg   ...By shuffling his company stock in and out of more than 30 trusts, he’s given at least $7.9 billion to his heirs while legally avoiding about $2.8 billion in U.S. gift taxes since 2010, according to calculations based on data in Adelson’s U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings...
U.S. preparing civil charges against Citigroup, Merrill Lynch: sources  Reuters   ...Civil investigators have compiled evidence that allegedly shows that investors lost tens of billions of dollars after purchasing securities Citigroup had marketed as safe even though the bank had reason to believe otherwise...
Elizabeth Warren’s New Bill Aims to Stop Employers Discriminating Against the Poor  truthdig   ...Employers often use credit scores to weed out poorer applicants despite the fact that studies show these numbers have nothing to do with productivity or dedication, but the Equal Employment for All Act introduced Tuesday would prohibit this form of discrimination from taking place...
Why are we letting China buy American companies?  New York Post   ...The Smithfield buyout is a great loss because the company has become a huge exporter, to Japan and elsewhere, and has developed, with taxpayer assistance, systems and technologies that are best in class. Of course, that was why it became a target and why China Inc. overpaid to get it. But the only American beneficiaries will be a handful of investors. The rest of Smithfield’s stakeholders, and the American economy, will be bruised...
Another Apple Supplier in China Admits Gross Violations of Worker Rights  Economic Policy Institute   ...In a swift reaction to ugly publicity about suicides, injuries, and mistreatment of workers, Biel Crystal, one of Apple’s most important suppliers of touchscreen cover glass for its iPhones, reached an agreement with the Chinese labor rights group, SACOM, to take three steps toward better conditions by January 2014...
Mexico's rights body warns of growth of vigilantes  Associated Press   ...Raul Plascencia, president of the National Human Rights Commission, said the growth of these groups are already undermining the rule of law but could also lead to more violence. He blamed the emergence of such groups on an official failure to provide security...
Merkel compared NSA to Stasi in heated encounter with Obama  The Guardian   ...German chancellor furious after revelations US intelligence agency listened in on her personal mobile phone...
Court: Occupy Columbia can sue Haley over arrests  Associated Press   ...Gov. Nikki Haley isn't immune from being sued by Occupy Columbia protesters who were kicked off the Statehouse grounds in 2011, a federal appeals court ruled Monday...

How about restoring taxpayer control over public assets?

Bad things happen when government let corporations loot public assets, our friends at the Center for Media and Democracy remind us. (They're the wonderful folks who brought us AlecExposed.org.)

Brendan Fischer at CMD tells us two sordid tales of privatization gone awry.

• In Chicago, a Morgan Stanley-backed company took control of 36,000 public parking meters with a 75-year contract -- and as a result, parking fees have exploded, meters run until 10pm, and taxpayers must reimburse the company for lost meter profits when they want to hold a parade or street fair. The plan was quickly pushed through the City Council and passed with no public input or debate.
• In South Carolina, after the state outsourced its water system, the for-profit corporation failed to pay state employee payroll taxes, lost track of tens of thousands of dollars, and lost millions of gallons of water. But the private company refused to come clean about what happened and comply with the public records law's transparency requirements, despite being funded by public dollars.

But you all knew about disastrous highway privatization in Indiana, liquor privatization in Washington state and prison privatization in Texas (to name a few).

In The Public Interest -- an offshoot of AFSCME -- summarizes the pitfalls of privatization:

Outsourcing means taxpayers have very little say over how tax dollars are spent and no
say on actions taken by private companies that control our public services. Outsourcing
means taxpayers cannot vote out executives who make decisions that hurt public health
and safety. Outsourcing means taxpayers are contractually stuck with a monopoly run
by a single corporation – and those contracts often last decades. And outsourcing too

So often it's true.

often means a race to the bottom for the local economy, as wages and benefits fall while corporate profits rise.

Recently, In The Public Interest came up with a legislative agenda to empower taxpayers to take back the assets they own. The Taxpayer Empowerment Agenda includes some great ideas. Here are a few of our favorites:

• Regularly post online how much taxpayers are spending on private contracts and how many workers are employed by those contracts, just as government does. 
• Make sure every contract allows government to cancel the contract if the company doesn’t live up to its promises of quality and cost savings.
• Prohibit any company that has evaded taxes or broken the law from taking over public services. (YES!!!)
• Require companies that privatize public services to pay their employees a living wage and provide reasonable benefits.
• Ban contract language that guarantees company profits. 
• Ensure that public service workers have the opportunity to submit their own plan to save money and provide quality services.

Read more about it here.

Teamsters tell European union leaders about National Express's abuses

Sheryl Drake, a Durham school bus driver for Dorchester District 2

Sheryl Drake, a 25-year-school bus driver, told an international panel of union leaders that Durham School Services cheats its workers and lets its buses fall into disrepair.

Drake is speaking tonight at a North Charleston, S.C., forum about National Express, Durham's U.K.  parent company. Attending are local political and labor leaders and trade unionists from Unite the Union in the UK, the International Transport Workers Federation and German unions ver.di and EVG.

Durham contracts with three South Carolina school districts and is the second-largest school bus company in the United States. The Teamsters represent 4,700 National Express workers in North America. The company reports that 94 percent of the U.K. work force is covered by a collective bargaining agreement, compared to only 32 percent of its North American work force.

Here's what Sister Drake told the panel:

The seats on many of the buses are torn and ratty and children shouldn't be forced to sit on them. Durham used to repair the seats but they quit doing this because they didn't want to pay for it.  The buses also leak badly when it rains and the seats get wet and the kids are forced to just endure it.  These kids shouldn't be put into this position of having to ride a bus in this condition. 

At our March safety meeting last month we took a bus from Hilton Head to the meeting because the tires were bald and we wanted to show Sara Johnson, Durham's safety manager in Beaufort.  When we showed Ms. Johnson the tires she told us that the tires were fine and  we should continue to drive the bus.  I have been a trainer for many years and would tell any trainee that these tires shouldn't be driven on...

Buses are never repaired when safety issues are reported.  When mechanics are asked about the reports that Zonar (the system were drivers report repair issues) should be giving them they say they never received them. We even went back to writing paper reports on repairs because the mechanics weren't getting the information from Zonar.  Even with the written reports repairs aren't done in a timely manner. 

...I was shorted 5 hours one week and went to talk to Sara Johnson who also does the payroll.  She told me that Gary Bradley, area manager, shortened the hours.  When I asked Gary Bradley about it directly he said he knew nothing about this issue.  We double up on routes regularly with no extra pay even though Durham is getting aid for both routes.

Drivers also can't call in sick because management belittles them and doesn't understand why they  can't come to work.  I had the flu and knew I shouldn't drive.  When I called in and they couldn't understand why I couldn't work.  I came in and worked part of the morning but was so sick I called and told dispatch that I couldn't safely do my job.  We had a driver that was at her doctor's office and called in from there because she was so sick and wanted her doctor to talk to the management.  She was berated over the phone for not coming into work.  The doctor was amazed that her boss was acting like this when she was doing the right thing by not being responsible for driving kids home when she was too ill to do so.

U.S. panel members included South Carolina state Rep. Wendell Gilliard (D-111), former National Labor Relations Board general counsel Fred Feinstein, South Carolina AFL-CIO president Ken Riley, and senior policy analyst with America Rights at Work Michael Wasser, who served as the delegation chair.

Sebrina Isom, a former Durham driver and member of Teamsters Local 509 in West Columbia, spoke to the panel about the importance of holding the company accountable for its actions in the U.S.:

These drivers are speaking out to raise awareness of what we deal with every day on the job. We transport children, we work hard and it’s not too much to ask that National Express take more responsibility and treat us with fairness and respect.

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued 57 formal complaints since 2001 against Durham. These complaints resulted in settlements. The complaints came as a result of charges by Durham workers that include disparate treatment; discipline and discharge of employees engaged in union organizing; surveillance of workers engaged in union activity; and threatening workers with reduction in benefits, working conditions and the loss of employment for supporting unionization.

The delegation will travel to Santa Rosa, Fla., to hear from additional Durham workers on Thursday.

Today's Teamster News 02.18.13

Congressional staffers often travel on tabs of foreign governments  Washington Post   ...Hill staffers had reported taking 803 such trips in the six years ending in 2011. Lawmakers themselves are increasingly participating, disclosing 21 trips in 2011, more than double the figure in prior years...
Green groups rally on climate, urge Obama to reject Keystone project  The Hill   ...Organizers said 35,000 activists attended the rally, where speakers portrayed the battle over the pipeline as a struggle between grassroots green groups and deep-pocketed special interests...
Federal Reserve: Weak demand -- not taxes -- preventing job growth  Bold Progressive   ...Using survey data from the National Federation of Independent Business, the two researchers found that when businesses complained most of lack of sales and demand, unemployment was highest...
How HSBC hooked up with drug traffickers and terrorists. And got away with it  Rolling Stone   ...For at least half a decade, the storied British colonial banking power helped to wash hundreds of millions of dollars for drug mobs, including Mexico's Sinaloa drug cartel, suspected in tens of thousands of murders just in the past 10 years... The bank also moved money for organizations linked to Al Qaeda and Hezbollah, and for Russian gangsters; helped countries like Iran, the Sudan and North Korea evade sanctions; and, in between helping murderers and terrorists and rogue states, aided countless common tax cheats in hiding their cash...
Senator Orrin Hatch Drops a Bombshell at Jack Lew’s Confirmation Hearing  Wall Street On Parade   ... One only gets a $940,000 bonus from Wall Street’s Citigroup if you can land a “full time high level position with the United States Government or a regulatory body.”...
Thousands rally against Portugal austerity  AFP   ...Under the weight of cutbacks in public spending, the unemployment rate rose sharply in the fourth quarter of last year to 16.9 percent while the economy contracted by 3.2 percent in 2012...
Thousands protest to end evictions in Spain  AFP   ...protests were called in Barcelona and 50 other Spanish cities, the latest of months of demonstrations driven by anger at Spain's recession and the conservative government, which is imposing austere economic reforms...
SC Gov. Nikki Haley Named As Other Woman In Divorce Case  Crooks and Liars   ...According to court documents obtained exclusively by FITS, Jennifer Marchant – wife of prominent S.C. State House lobbyist Larry Marchant – is suing her husband for divorce on the grounds of infidelity. One of the three women Marchant accuses her husband of cheating on her with? You guessed it … Haley...
Bill would make it illegal to videotape farm or industry conditions  Indianapolis Star   ...“We don’t need vigilantes out entering people’s private property, industrial operation, factory or farm, doing things surreptitiously... for no other reason than to annoy and harass,” said Sen. Travis Holdman...
New state law conceals records of abuse, neglect in nursing homes  The Cap Times   ...It also makes such records inadmissible in criminal cases against health care providers accused of neglecting or abusing patients. The changes were included in a tort reform measure, the first bill Gov. Scott Walker proposed...