Teamster News
Teamsters Make History With First Ever Organizing Victory At FedEx Freight teamster.org ...A group of 47 drivers at FedEx Freight's East Philadelphia terminal in Croydon, Penn. made history today when they overwhelmingly voted to join Teamsters Local 107 in Philadelphia...
Philadelphia FedEx Freight Drivers Vote to Unionize Wall Street Journal ...A group of Philadelphia FedEx Freight drivers voted on Tuesday to join a local Teamsters union, a landmark move for the company’s drivers who are seeking improved working conditions...
Mexican trucking pilot expires Capital Press ...The Teamsters Union, citing safety and job loss concerns, opposed the pilot program...
Hoffa: Mexican Cross-Border Trucking Program Has Failed teamster.org ...After spending tens of millions of dollars over the past three years to monitor and inspect trucks domiciled in Mexico, the Mexican Cross-Border Trucking Program ends today...
SEPTA, Rail Engineers Reach Tentative Agreement Philadelphia Inquirer ...Negotiators for SEPTA and Regional Rail locomotive engineers reached a tentative agreement, which will avert a possible commuter rail strike if the pact is accepted by the engineers and the SEPTA board...
State Asks Bridgeton Landfill Owners To Do More To Keep Fire From Spreading St. Louis Post-Dispatch ...The owners of the Bridgeton Landfill need to step up their efforts to keep an underground fire from reaching nuclear waste at the adjacent West Lake Landfill, according to a letter released Monday by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources...
Sysco Plying FTC To Save US Foods Deal New York Post ...Executives at Sysco, the nation’s No. 1 food supplier to restaurants and schools, are talking with government regulators in an attempt to save the company’s $3.5 billion purchase of US Foods, The Post has learned...
Trade
Anti-TTIP Demonstrations Seize European Capitals EurActiv ...Some 400 activist groups marched all over Europe on Saturday (11 October) in protest against the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), as the EU-US trade deal crystallises opposition to a wide variety of issues – from shale gas to corporate finance...
State Battles
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker Doesn't Think The Minimum Wage 'Serves A Purpose' Huffington Post ...Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) on Tuesday bluntly put into words how he feels about the minimum wage. "Well, I'm not going to repeal it," he said in an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "but I don't think it serves a purpose…
Philly Teachers Say They Already Give To Keep Schools Afloat Philadelphia Inquirer ...Inez Campbell has paid for students' medicine. Kimberly Lent has footed the bill for prom tickets and class dues. Sharnae Wilson bought her own copier because her school's machine doesn't always work. Emily Cohen has shelled out for enough books to fill a small library. For decades, Philadelphia School District teachers, counselors, nurses, school psychologists, and others made a trade-off, they say...
War on Workers
Nurses at Texas hospital: 'There were no protocols' about Ebola CNN ...A union made troubling allegations Tuesday about the Texas hospital where a nurse contracted Ebola, claiming "guidelines were constantly changing" and "there were no protocols" about how to deal with the deadly virus."...
Second Texas health-care worker tests positive for Ebola USA Today ...A second hospital worker who helped care for Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan has tested positive for the disease, the Texas Department of State Health Services said in a statement early Wednesday...
Union Urges Protection for Federal Workers at Possible Risk for Ebola Exposure Government Executive ...A federal employee union is urging agencies to “take all necessary measures” to protect government employees working at the country’s ports of entry from possible exposure to the Ebola virus...
Construction worker dies after Sept. crash Toledo Blade ...A construction worker critically injured last month in a crash on the Anthony Wayne Trail in Maumee died Monday...
Sharp rise in contract workers killed on the job wsws.org ...Last year 734 contract workers were killed on the job in the US...The Bureau of Labor Statistics only began keeping figures on the deaths of contract workers in 2011. But in that short time there has already been a dramatic increase in the number of such workers killed. In 2012, 715 contract workers died in on-the-job accidents, up from 542 in 2011...
Koch Donors Uncloaked Politico ...New York hedge fund billionaire Bob Mercer wrote the largest check — $2.5 million — followed by Charles and David Koch, who each stroked $2 million checks from trusts in their names. The group received $1 million apiece from Arkansas poultry producer Ronnie Cameron, Wisconsin roofing billionaire Diane Hendricks and Nebraska trucking magnate Clarence Werner...
Walmart’s Cuts To Worker Compensation Are Self-Defeating Al Jazeera America ...Walmart is cutting worker compensation — again. The stealthy way the giant retailer is cutting pay for most of its 1.4 million American workers not only throws sand in the gears of the nation’s economic engine but also misleads investors by disguising the company’s weakening finances...
Miscellaneous
Oil Keeps Crashing Business Insider ...This is just unbelievable what's happening in oil. Every day it's crashing. Markets are drifting lower overall, contributing to the general "risk off", deflationary-winds vibe. But man, oil! It's close to breaking below $80...
Uber Just Got A Failing Grade From The Better Business Bureau Jalopnik ...The heart of the BBB's charge apparently lies in Uber's "surge pricing" model, where the company charges you enormous amounts of money for a ride exactly when you need it most, like when they charged more than seven times the normal rate during a blizzard, or five times the normal rate during a busy conference...
Showing posts with label SEPTA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label SEPTA. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 15, 2014
Monday, June 16, 2014
Today's Teamster News 06.16.14
Teamsters
With strike over, SEPTA riders exude relief Philly.com ...SEPTA's 13 Regional Rail lines returned to normal after the one-day strike by rail engineers and electrical workers, the first in 31 years. President Obama intervened Saturday, signing an executive order to appoint an emergency board to mediate the dispute between SEPTA and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen plus the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers...
Court blocks Teamsters’ bid to thwart company sale Business Management Daily ...A court has ruled that the Teamsters union can’t scuttle the sale of Will Poultry, a Buffalo food distributor. The company had been looking for a buyer for three years when it finally found one. The sale agreement called for terminating all employees and allowing the new owner to determine which ones it would bring back. The new owner would not be obligated to honor the existing collective bargaining agreement or recognize the Teamsters union, which represented workers...
Trade
Financial services off the table at next round of TTIP talks EurActive.com ... The inclusion or otherwise of financial services in the free trade agreement negotiations is a major point of disagreement between the US and the EU. While the EU insists financial services should be included in any deal, the US Treasury has argued firmly against working with the Europeans to regulate their financial sector...
State Battles
Trade groups sue VT over GMO labeling law Burlington Free Press ...Four national organizations whose members would be affected by Vermont's new labeling law for genetically engineered foods filed a lawsuit Thursday in federal court challenging the measure's constitutionality...
North Carolina Treasurer, Accused of Malfeasance , Defends Secrecy of Private Equity Investments naked capitalism ...the current Treasurer, Janet Cowell, in her role as sole trustee for the state pension (is accused of) ... of supporting a “pay to play” system as well as failing to curb abuses and promoting a secrecy system essential to hiding them. He also estimates that her oversight failures have cost North Carolina $6.8 billion during her term in office...
War on Workers
This Is What Barely Making Ends Meet In America Sounds Like Huffington Post ...According to U.S. Census data, more than 7 percent of workers live below the federal poverty line, with many more above the cutoff but still struggling...
The Question on People Leaving the Labor Force is 41-Year-Olds, Not 61-Year-Olds Center for Economic Policy and Research ... the unemployment rate is considerably lower than would otherwise be the case because so many people have simply given up looking for work and are therefore not counted as being unemployed...
Amazon Is Planning A Way To Let You Hire Babysitters And Plumbers Reuters ...The move takes direct aim at consumer review sites Yelp Inc and Angie's List Inc as well as U.S. home improvement chains Home Depot Inc and Lowe's Companies Inc, which have both invested in ways to connect customers with local plumbers, painters and other service providers...
Miscellaneous
Starbucks to Provide Free College Education to Thousands of Workers New York Times ...Starbucks will provide a free online college education to thousands of its workers, without requiring that they remain with the company, through an unusual arrangement with Arizona State University...
With strike over, SEPTA riders exude relief Philly.com ...SEPTA's 13 Regional Rail lines returned to normal after the one-day strike by rail engineers and electrical workers, the first in 31 years. President Obama intervened Saturday, signing an executive order to appoint an emergency board to mediate the dispute between SEPTA and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen plus the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers...
Court blocks Teamsters’ bid to thwart company sale Business Management Daily ...A court has ruled that the Teamsters union can’t scuttle the sale of Will Poultry, a Buffalo food distributor. The company had been looking for a buyer for three years when it finally found one. The sale agreement called for terminating all employees and allowing the new owner to determine which ones it would bring back. The new owner would not be obligated to honor the existing collective bargaining agreement or recognize the Teamsters union, which represented workers...
Trade
Financial services off the table at next round of TTIP talks EurActive.com ... The inclusion or otherwise of financial services in the free trade agreement negotiations is a major point of disagreement between the US and the EU. While the EU insists financial services should be included in any deal, the US Treasury has argued firmly against working with the Europeans to regulate their financial sector...
State Battles
Trade groups sue VT over GMO labeling law Burlington Free Press ...Four national organizations whose members would be affected by Vermont's new labeling law for genetically engineered foods filed a lawsuit Thursday in federal court challenging the measure's constitutionality...
North Carolina Treasurer, Accused of Malfeasance , Defends Secrecy of Private Equity Investments naked capitalism ...the current Treasurer, Janet Cowell, in her role as sole trustee for the state pension (is accused of) ... of supporting a “pay to play” system as well as failing to curb abuses and promoting a secrecy system essential to hiding them. He also estimates that her oversight failures have cost North Carolina $6.8 billion during her term in office...
War on Workers
This Is What Barely Making Ends Meet In America Sounds Like Huffington Post ...According to U.S. Census data, more than 7 percent of workers live below the federal poverty line, with many more above the cutoff but still struggling...
The Question on People Leaving the Labor Force is 41-Year-Olds, Not 61-Year-Olds Center for Economic Policy and Research ... the unemployment rate is considerably lower than would otherwise be the case because so many people have simply given up looking for work and are therefore not counted as being unemployed...
Amazon Is Planning A Way To Let You Hire Babysitters And Plumbers Reuters ...The move takes direct aim at consumer review sites Yelp Inc and Angie's List Inc as well as U.S. home improvement chains Home Depot Inc and Lowe's Companies Inc, which have both invested in ways to connect customers with local plumbers, painters and other service providers...
Miscellaneous
Starbucks to Provide Free College Education to Thousands of Workers New York Times ...Starbucks will provide a free online college education to thousands of its workers, without requiring that they remain with the company, through an unusual arrangement with Arizona State University...
Sunday, June 15, 2014
Today's Teamster News June 15, 2014
Teamsters
Obama signs order; SEPTA Regional Rails to roll Sunday Philly.com ...President Obama signed an executive order Saturday evening, appointing an emergency board to mediate the SEPTA labor dispute, thus averting a lengthy strike. All 13 SEPTA Regional Rail lines should be back to normal operating schedules Sunday morning...
Trade
Obama’s Free Trade Strategy Falters in Asia Inter Press Service ...Obama’s latest trip to Asia, however, underlined the inability of Washington to balance its economic and geopolitical initiatives in the region. While Obama managed to strike new strategic agreements with leading Southeast Asian countries, namely Malaysia and the Philippines, and strengthen bilateral military alliances with Japan and South Korea, there was, in turn, no concrete development vis-à-vis the ongoing TPP negotiations...
State Battles
Mayor vetoes collective bargaining ordinance WANE ...(Fort Wayne) Mayor Tom Henry has vetoed the ordinance passed by the City Council that would have ended collective bargaining for non-public safety union employees...
International Human Rights Violations in Detroit On the Commons ...The water department has decreed that it will turn the water off to all 150,000 residences that are behind on their bills by the end of the summer although it has made no such threat to the many corporations and other institutions that are in arrears on their bills as well...
War on Workers
Recession linked to more than 10,000 suicides CBS News ...New research suggests that the economic downturn could be linked with more than 10,000 suicides across North America and Europe. The study found that between 2008 and 2010, rates of suicide surged in the European Union, Canada and the United States…
A Three-Pronged Attack on Organized Labor Huffington Post ...The claim that companies leave the U.S. to avoid paying union wages is false. It's an outright lie disseminated by free market fundamentalists, and anyone who believes it is a dupe. The reason companies leave is to avoid paying an American wage...
Who actually earns the minimum wage? CBS News ...While more than a quarter of all low-wage workers were teenagers back in 1979, today only about one in 10 are teens ... almost 37 percent of these employees on low wages, defined as less than $10.10 per hour, are between 35 to 64 years old...
Senior NSA Executive: NSA Started Spying On Journalists in 2002 … In Order to Make Sure They Didn’t Report On Mass Surveillance Washington's Blog ...Senior NSA executive Thomas Drake tells Washington’s Blog that the spying on reporters started12 years ago – in 2002 – and has been fairly systematic...
Miscellaneous
As Iraq fighting rages, gas prices climb CBS Money Watch ...A rising tide of violence in Iraq is driving up prices at the pump...
Wait Times at the VA Angry Bear ...the VA is well beyond the typical private healthcare system in providing “evidence-based protocols of care — not inadvertently ordering up dangerous combinations of drugs, or performing unnecessary surgeries and tests just to make a buck and treating the whole patient and not just one part at a time...”
Obama signs order; SEPTA Regional Rails to roll Sunday Philly.com ...President Obama signed an executive order Saturday evening, appointing an emergency board to mediate the SEPTA labor dispute, thus averting a lengthy strike. All 13 SEPTA Regional Rail lines should be back to normal operating schedules Sunday morning...
Trade
Obama’s Free Trade Strategy Falters in Asia Inter Press Service ...Obama’s latest trip to Asia, however, underlined the inability of Washington to balance its economic and geopolitical initiatives in the region. While Obama managed to strike new strategic agreements with leading Southeast Asian countries, namely Malaysia and the Philippines, and strengthen bilateral military alliances with Japan and South Korea, there was, in turn, no concrete development vis-à-vis the ongoing TPP negotiations...
State Battles
Mayor vetoes collective bargaining ordinance WANE ...(Fort Wayne) Mayor Tom Henry has vetoed the ordinance passed by the City Council that would have ended collective bargaining for non-public safety union employees...
International Human Rights Violations in Detroit On the Commons ...The water department has decreed that it will turn the water off to all 150,000 residences that are behind on their bills by the end of the summer although it has made no such threat to the many corporations and other institutions that are in arrears on their bills as well...
War on Workers
Recession linked to more than 10,000 suicides CBS News ...New research suggests that the economic downturn could be linked with more than 10,000 suicides across North America and Europe. The study found that between 2008 and 2010, rates of suicide surged in the European Union, Canada and the United States…
A Three-Pronged Attack on Organized Labor Huffington Post ...The claim that companies leave the U.S. to avoid paying union wages is false. It's an outright lie disseminated by free market fundamentalists, and anyone who believes it is a dupe. The reason companies leave is to avoid paying an American wage...
Who actually earns the minimum wage? CBS News ...While more than a quarter of all low-wage workers were teenagers back in 1979, today only about one in 10 are teens ... almost 37 percent of these employees on low wages, defined as less than $10.10 per hour, are between 35 to 64 years old...
Senior NSA Executive: NSA Started Spying On Journalists in 2002 … In Order to Make Sure They Didn’t Report On Mass Surveillance Washington's Blog ...Senior NSA executive Thomas Drake tells Washington’s Blog that the spying on reporters started12 years ago – in 2002 – and has been fairly systematic...
Miscellaneous
As Iraq fighting rages, gas prices climb CBS Money Watch ...A rising tide of violence in Iraq is driving up prices at the pump...
Wait Times at the VA Angry Bear ...the VA is well beyond the typical private healthcare system in providing “evidence-based protocols of care — not inadvertently ordering up dangerous combinations of drugs, or performing unnecessary surgeries and tests just to make a buck and treating the whole patient and not just one part at a time...”
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Today's Teamster News 06.11.14
Teamster News
Teamsters’ salaries set Tri-Town News ...The Howell, (N.J.,) Township Council has adopted an ordinance that will provide retroactive salary ranges and raises for employees who are members of Teamsters Union Local 469...
Teamsters Union Joins Steel Industry Call for Trade Enforcement. Trade Reform ...America’s steel manufacturers and workers have joined forces to fight back against dumped imports of steel pipe used in the extraction of America’s oil and natural gas reserves. Now, another major American union is adding its support...
Job-killer Scott Walker goes to New York City, and Teamsters are there to greet him TeamsterNation ...Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker took a break from stifling jobs in his home state and flew to New York City for a fundraiser, where he was greeted by none other than Teamsters Local 553 President Demos Demopoulos -- and quite a few LOUD union members...
About 100 Cumberland County Employees Seek Unionization Through Teamsters The Patriot News ...Cumberland County has received notice that several employees are taking the initial steps of forming a union, which will be the fourth in the county. Chief Clerk Larry Thomas confirmed Monday that the county's court-related employees filed notice in May, indicating they are going through the process of unionizing through the Teamsters...
Trucker in Tracy Morgan crash hadn’t slept for more than 24 hours Washington Post ...Teamsters Union President James P. Hoffa wrote in a letter to the U.S. House of Representatives on Monday... “Drivers feel pressure from their employers to drive more than 60-70 hours a week with insufficient rest.”...
SEPTA To Impose Terms On Regional Rail Workers; Union Says Strike Likely Philadelphia Inquirer ...SEPTA moved Monday to impose management's terms in a long-running labor dispute with Regional Rail workers, which union leaders said could prompt a strike that would halt all commuter rail service at 12:01 a.m. Saturday...
Trade
New hacking allegations surface against China's military manufacturethis ...If we want to see China curtail its hacking activity, maybe we should consider revisiting the favorable trade terms that we grant the world’s largest police state...
War On Workers
Trafficked into slavery on Thai trawlers to catch food for prawns Guardian ...The Thai fishing industry is built on slavery, with men often beaten, tortured and sometimes killed - all to catch 'trash fish' to feed the cheap farmed prawns sold in the west...
These Waiters Don't Make Tips. Instead They Make $15 An Hour Think Progress ...Packhouse Meats, a restaurant that opened in Newport, Kentucky in January, doesn’t allow tipping. Instead, it pays its employees a decent wage. Servers at the restaurant make a minimum wage of $10 an hour. But they can also make 20 percent of their sales in commission — which is based on sales volume, the quality of service, and a few other factors — if it’s higher than that wage. This means that, on average, the servers are making $15 an hour...
Will Loan Forgiveness Offer Long-Term Student Debt Solution? PBS ...The average student who graduated last year had nearly $30,000 in student loan debt. Today, in the White House East Room, President Obama signed an executive order that would allow borrowers who took out federal loans prior to 2007 to tie their repayments to their incomes...
Number Of Unemployed Without A Safety Net Hits 3 Million Think Progress ...The number of long-term unemployed workers who would be getting benefits if the program hadn’t been allowed to lapse hit 3 million on Monday, according to the House Ways and Means Committee...
Miscellaneous
Union-Made Father's Day Shopping Ideas AFL-CIO Now ...If you're thinking of splurging, spring for some game-day tickets so you can watch your favorite baseball players, who are members of the Major League Baseball Players Association, and make sure dear old dad gets a heaping cup of Budweiser beer, made by the Teamsters and IAM...
Finding A Job Opening Has Gotten Easier, But Getting A Job Hasn't FiveThirtyEight ...The good news for the unemployed is that more openings means more chances to land a job. There were 2.2 jobseekers for every available position in April, the best ratio since before the recession began. But those openings don’t mean much if companies won’t fill them...
NSA: Our Systems Are So Complex We Can't Stop Them From Deleting Data Wanted For Lawsuit Washington Post ...The National Security Agency recently used a novel argument for not holding onto information it collects about users online activity: it's too complex...
Big Three Automakers Pledge $26 Million To Help Save Detroit's Art Wall Street Journal ...Top U.S. auto makers pledged $26 million to help protect Detroit's art collection from being broken up or sold during the nation's largest municipal bankruptcy case...
Union-Made Father's Day Shopping Ideas
Teamsters’ salaries set Tri-Town News ...The Howell, (N.J.,) Township Council has adopted an ordinance that will provide retroactive salary ranges and raises for employees who are members of Teamsters Union Local 469...
Teamsters Union Joins Steel Industry Call for Trade Enforcement. Trade Reform ...America’s steel manufacturers and workers have joined forces to fight back against dumped imports of steel pipe used in the extraction of America’s oil and natural gas reserves. Now, another major American union is adding its support...
Job-killer Scott Walker goes to New York City, and Teamsters are there to greet him TeamsterNation ...Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker took a break from stifling jobs in his home state and flew to New York City for a fundraiser, where he was greeted by none other than Teamsters Local 553 President Demos Demopoulos -- and quite a few LOUD union members...
About 100 Cumberland County Employees Seek Unionization Through Teamsters The Patriot News ...Cumberland County has received notice that several employees are taking the initial steps of forming a union, which will be the fourth in the county. Chief Clerk Larry Thomas confirmed Monday that the county's court-related employees filed notice in May, indicating they are going through the process of unionizing through the Teamsters...
Trucker in Tracy Morgan crash hadn’t slept for more than 24 hours Washington Post ...Teamsters Union President James P. Hoffa wrote in a letter to the U.S. House of Representatives on Monday... “Drivers feel pressure from their employers to drive more than 60-70 hours a week with insufficient rest.”...
SEPTA To Impose Terms On Regional Rail Workers; Union Says Strike Likely Philadelphia Inquirer ...SEPTA moved Monday to impose management's terms in a long-running labor dispute with Regional Rail workers, which union leaders said could prompt a strike that would halt all commuter rail service at 12:01 a.m. Saturday...
Trade
New hacking allegations surface against China's military manufacturethis ...If we want to see China curtail its hacking activity, maybe we should consider revisiting the favorable trade terms that we grant the world’s largest police state...
War On Workers
Trafficked into slavery on Thai trawlers to catch food for prawns Guardian ...The Thai fishing industry is built on slavery, with men often beaten, tortured and sometimes killed - all to catch 'trash fish' to feed the cheap farmed prawns sold in the west...
These Waiters Don't Make Tips. Instead They Make $15 An Hour Think Progress ...Packhouse Meats, a restaurant that opened in Newport, Kentucky in January, doesn’t allow tipping. Instead, it pays its employees a decent wage. Servers at the restaurant make a minimum wage of $10 an hour. But they can also make 20 percent of their sales in commission — which is based on sales volume, the quality of service, and a few other factors — if it’s higher than that wage. This means that, on average, the servers are making $15 an hour...
Will Loan Forgiveness Offer Long-Term Student Debt Solution? PBS ...The average student who graduated last year had nearly $30,000 in student loan debt. Today, in the White House East Room, President Obama signed an executive order that would allow borrowers who took out federal loans prior to 2007 to tie their repayments to their incomes...
Number Of Unemployed Without A Safety Net Hits 3 Million Think Progress ...The number of long-term unemployed workers who would be getting benefits if the program hadn’t been allowed to lapse hit 3 million on Monday, according to the House Ways and Means Committee...
Miscellaneous
Union-Made Father's Day Shopping Ideas AFL-CIO Now ...If you're thinking of splurging, spring for some game-day tickets so you can watch your favorite baseball players, who are members of the Major League Baseball Players Association, and make sure dear old dad gets a heaping cup of Budweiser beer, made by the Teamsters and IAM...
Finding A Job Opening Has Gotten Easier, But Getting A Job Hasn't FiveThirtyEight ...The good news for the unemployed is that more openings means more chances to land a job. There were 2.2 jobseekers for every available position in April, the best ratio since before the recession began. But those openings don’t mean much if companies won’t fill them...
NSA: Our Systems Are So Complex We Can't Stop Them From Deleting Data Wanted For Lawsuit Washington Post ...The National Security Agency recently used a novel argument for not holding onto information it collects about users online activity: it's too complex...
Big Three Automakers Pledge $26 Million To Help Save Detroit's Art Wall Street Journal ...Top U.S. auto makers pledged $26 million to help protect Detroit's art collection from being broken up or sold during the nation's largest municipal bankruptcy case...
Union-Made Father's Day Shopping Ideas
Friday, March 21, 2014
Today's Teamster News 03.21.14
Teamster News
Striking VT Teamsters Fend Off Binding Arbitration, Enjoy Support of Local Community, Gov’t
The We Party ...In Burlington, Vermont nearly 70 bus drivers have gone on strike hoping to receive a fair contract from management. The drivers are represented by Teamsters Local 597 and work for the Chittenden County Transportation Authority (CCTA). Chittenden County is Vermont’s most populated county...
Trade
Conn. suffers losses under U.S.-Korea trade treaty Stamford Advocate ...U.S. monthly net exports to Korea of helicopters -- Connecticut's second largest export -- have plummeted 81 percent on average under the FTA...
Tech Companies Urge Senator Wyden to Reject Fast Track and Bring Transparency to TPP Electronic Frontier Foundation ...More than 25 leading technology companies have joined a public letter urging Senator Ron Wyden, the newly appointed Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, to firmly oppose any form of "fast track" authority for trade agreements like the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)...
In Trade Talks, It's Countries vs. Companies Bloomberg ...to many people, arbitration looks profoundly undemocratic. Countries that sign the treaties give away a lot: The arbitration panels are unelected tribunals of three experts (usually lawyers, one chosen by each side and one picked by mutual consent or a third party) that are empowered to overrule a nation’s highest authorities. The panels have come under attack from environmental groups, labor unions, and developing nations including Venezuela, Ecuador, and South Africa....
Rights group alarmed by Colombian port killings Associated Press ... illegal armed groups have forcibly disappeared scores if not hundreds of people in Colombia's main Pacific port of Buenaventura in the past two years, killing and dismembering some in so-called "chop-up houses."… the situation is among the most alarming it has seen in years…
State Battles
New York law makes it illegal to misclassify truckers Land Line ...Employers who misclassify truckers in New York face civil and criminal penalties under a new law that takes effect April 10. Classification has ramifications not only for employee drivers but also for owner-operators and leased operators...
Judge: Arizona can require proof of citizenship from new voters Capitol Media Services ...A federal judge on Wednesday ordered the Election Assistance Commission to require would-be Arizona voters to provide proof of citizenship when they register...
Governors siphoning mortgage settlement money: It's disgusting Los Angeles Times ...Gov. Jerry Brown diverted more than $350 million from California's share of the 2012 national mortgage settlement with the banking industry to reduce the state's 2013 budget deficit. A coalition of homeownership advocates and religious organizations has filed suit against the state to force Brown to restore the money...
Md. Senate chair seeks pay raise for workers who care for developmentally disabled Washington Post ...The chairman of a key Maryland Senate Committee said Wednesday that he does not plan to act on a bill to raise the minimum wage until a related issue is resolved involving the way the state reimburses workers who care for the developmentally disabled...
Michigan Plan Would Allow Students to Attend College 'For Free' Newsmax ...Students would be able to initially attend college for free under a new plan introduced recently in the Michigan Legislature, but they would have to pay for it down the road...
Pennsylvania among states to block food stamp cuts Pittsburgh Tribune-Review ...Pennsylvania will join more than a half-dozen states and the District of Columbia to block as much as $1.2 billion in food stamp cuts, relying on a wrinkle in federal law to preserve aid for millions of people...
Wisconsin Poised to Pass ALEC's Deadly Asbestos Bill Center for Media and Democracy ...Wisconsin could become the latest state to narrow access to the courts for asbestos victims in a bill up for a vote on March 20, joining a national coordinated effort that can be traced back to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce...
Gov Haley fires back after machinists union opens office for Boeing employees WCSC News 5 ...South Carolina's Governor Nikki Haley responds to a machinists union opening an office in North Charleston to educate workers at Boeing...
War on Workers
Koch Group, Spending Freely, Hones Attack on Government New York Times ...Americans for Prosperity — the group backed by David H. and Charles G. Koch that has been pouring millions of dollars into competitive Senate races...
Google Sued For Data-Mining Kids' Emails in Its Education App Alternet ...Google admitted in a sworn statement that it scans millions of students’ email messages to compile keywords for advertisements, despite not displaying any visual ads on its app...
Just 11% of US long-term unemployed find jobs Associated Press ...The number of people unemployed for more than six months has tripled since the recession began at the end of 2007...
This J.C. Penney Worker Was Fired For Telling The Truth About Its 'Fake' Prices Huffington Post ...J.C. Penney is going to war against a former employee who outed the department store for its questionable discounting practices...
Chicago voters support raising minimum wage The Chicago Reporter ...A symbolic victory on the non-binding referendum gives advocates and progressive aldermen the boost needed to press for an ordinance raising Chicago's minimum wage...
Walmart workers in China blockade store in protest at closure plan USI ...Nearly 150 workers have been picketing a Walmart store in the central Chinese city of Changde for two weeks, after management announced 4 March that the store would close down on 19 March...
Miscellaneous
New Report: Fortune 100 Companies Have Received $1.2 Trillion in Corporate Welfare Recently AlterNet ..Military contractors, oil companies and banks are the biggest 'welfare queens' around...
Starbucks to expand evening beer and wine service Guardian ...The chain first offered beer and wine after 4pm at one of its Seattle cafes in 2010. The drinks are now in about 26 cafes, with plans to reach 40 by the end of the year...
Residents Still Not Drinking Tap Water Two Months After West Virginia Spill Truthout ...It was a harsh start to 2014 for West Virginia, though in this state, events over the last two months have been only the latest twists in a long and familiar story...
NSA: Tech Companies Knew About PRISM The Whole Time Huffington Post ...Since leaked documents revealed that Internet companies like Apple, Facebook and Google were giving the National Security Agency vast access to people's online information under a scheme codenamed PRISM, those Silicon Valley titans have taken pains to deny participation in such a program. But now, the NSA's top lawyer says that just isn't true...
Bad news about American retirement McCook Daily Gazette ...How much do you have put away for retirement? A million dollars? Five hundred thousand? Five hundred dollars? If you're like a third of Americans, the final answer is closer to the truth...
Striking VT Teamsters Fend Off Binding Arbitration, Enjoy Support of Local Community, Gov’t
The We Party ...In Burlington, Vermont nearly 70 bus drivers have gone on strike hoping to receive a fair contract from management. The drivers are represented by Teamsters Local 597 and work for the Chittenden County Transportation Authority (CCTA). Chittenden County is Vermont’s most populated county...
Trade
Conn. suffers losses under U.S.-Korea trade treaty Stamford Advocate ...U.S. monthly net exports to Korea of helicopters -- Connecticut's second largest export -- have plummeted 81 percent on average under the FTA...
Tech Companies Urge Senator Wyden to Reject Fast Track and Bring Transparency to TPP Electronic Frontier Foundation ...More than 25 leading technology companies have joined a public letter urging Senator Ron Wyden, the newly appointed Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, to firmly oppose any form of "fast track" authority for trade agreements like the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)...
In Trade Talks, It's Countries vs. Companies Bloomberg ...to many people, arbitration looks profoundly undemocratic. Countries that sign the treaties give away a lot: The arbitration panels are unelected tribunals of three experts (usually lawyers, one chosen by each side and one picked by mutual consent or a third party) that are empowered to overrule a nation’s highest authorities. The panels have come under attack from environmental groups, labor unions, and developing nations including Venezuela, Ecuador, and South Africa....
Rights group alarmed by Colombian port killings Associated Press ... illegal armed groups have forcibly disappeared scores if not hundreds of people in Colombia's main Pacific port of Buenaventura in the past two years, killing and dismembering some in so-called "chop-up houses."… the situation is among the most alarming it has seen in years…
State Battles
New York law makes it illegal to misclassify truckers Land Line ...Employers who misclassify truckers in New York face civil and criminal penalties under a new law that takes effect April 10. Classification has ramifications not only for employee drivers but also for owner-operators and leased operators...
Judge: Arizona can require proof of citizenship from new voters Capitol Media Services ...A federal judge on Wednesday ordered the Election Assistance Commission to require would-be Arizona voters to provide proof of citizenship when they register...
Governors siphoning mortgage settlement money: It's disgusting Los Angeles Times ...Gov. Jerry Brown diverted more than $350 million from California's share of the 2012 national mortgage settlement with the banking industry to reduce the state's 2013 budget deficit. A coalition of homeownership advocates and religious organizations has filed suit against the state to force Brown to restore the money...
Md. Senate chair seeks pay raise for workers who care for developmentally disabled Washington Post ...The chairman of a key Maryland Senate Committee said Wednesday that he does not plan to act on a bill to raise the minimum wage until a related issue is resolved involving the way the state reimburses workers who care for the developmentally disabled...
Michigan Plan Would Allow Students to Attend College 'For Free' Newsmax ...Students would be able to initially attend college for free under a new plan introduced recently in the Michigan Legislature, but they would have to pay for it down the road...
Pennsylvania among states to block food stamp cuts Pittsburgh Tribune-Review ...Pennsylvania will join more than a half-dozen states and the District of Columbia to block as much as $1.2 billion in food stamp cuts, relying on a wrinkle in federal law to preserve aid for millions of people...
Wisconsin Poised to Pass ALEC's Deadly Asbestos Bill Center for Media and Democracy ...Wisconsin could become the latest state to narrow access to the courts for asbestos victims in a bill up for a vote on March 20, joining a national coordinated effort that can be traced back to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce...
Gov Haley fires back after machinists union opens office for Boeing employees WCSC News 5 ...South Carolina's Governor Nikki Haley responds to a machinists union opening an office in North Charleston to educate workers at Boeing...
War on Workers
Koch Group, Spending Freely, Hones Attack on Government New York Times ...Americans for Prosperity — the group backed by David H. and Charles G. Koch that has been pouring millions of dollars into competitive Senate races...
Google Sued For Data-Mining Kids' Emails in Its Education App Alternet ...Google admitted in a sworn statement that it scans millions of students’ email messages to compile keywords for advertisements, despite not displaying any visual ads on its app...
Just 11% of US long-term unemployed find jobs Associated Press ...The number of people unemployed for more than six months has tripled since the recession began at the end of 2007...
This J.C. Penney Worker Was Fired For Telling The Truth About Its 'Fake' Prices Huffington Post ...J.C. Penney is going to war against a former employee who outed the department store for its questionable discounting practices...
Chicago voters support raising minimum wage The Chicago Reporter ...A symbolic victory on the non-binding referendum gives advocates and progressive aldermen the boost needed to press for an ordinance raising Chicago's minimum wage...
Walmart workers in China blockade store in protest at closure plan USI ...Nearly 150 workers have been picketing a Walmart store in the central Chinese city of Changde for two weeks, after management announced 4 March that the store would close down on 19 March...
Miscellaneous
New Report: Fortune 100 Companies Have Received $1.2 Trillion in Corporate Welfare Recently AlterNet ..Military contractors, oil companies and banks are the biggest 'welfare queens' around...
Starbucks to expand evening beer and wine service Guardian ...The chain first offered beer and wine after 4pm at one of its Seattle cafes in 2010. The drinks are now in about 26 cafes, with plans to reach 40 by the end of the year...
Residents Still Not Drinking Tap Water Two Months After West Virginia Spill Truthout ...It was a harsh start to 2014 for West Virginia, though in this state, events over the last two months have been only the latest twists in a long and familiar story...
NSA: Tech Companies Knew About PRISM The Whole Time Huffington Post ...Since leaked documents revealed that Internet companies like Apple, Facebook and Google were giving the National Security Agency vast access to people's online information under a scheme codenamed PRISM, those Silicon Valley titans have taken pains to deny participation in such a program. But now, the NSA's top lawyer says that just isn't true...
Bad news about American retirement McCook Daily Gazette ...How much do you have put away for retirement? A million dollars? Five hundred thousand? Five hundred dollars? If you're like a third of Americans, the final answer is closer to the truth...
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
Today's Teamster News 03.19.14
Teamster News
Teamster bus drivers at CCTA will continue strike Associated Press ...About 70 bus drivers, represented by Teamsters Local 597, went on strike Monday leaving about 9,500 people who ride the buses every day in Burlington, Vermont scrambling...
Teamster Simulator Technicians at Southwest Approve New Contract Dallas Morning News ...Southwest Airlines and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters announced Friday that flight simulation technicians have approved a two-year contract...
Teamsters: Ask Congress to Fund High Speed Rail and Amtrak teamster.org ...The Republicans in the House have taken a whack at funding for Amtrak and eliminated funding for high speed rail. They want to cut federal spending on Amtrak by 29 percent and eliminate funding for High Speed Rail...
Pepsi Lays Off 60 Workers WREG-TV ...Meetings are underway between the PepsiCo company and Teamsters Local 984 after 60 employees were laid off unexpectedly Thursday. The company says it was a matter of efficiency, but the union says PepsiCo violated the law by not giving workers a 60 day notice...
Teamsters: Poverty Is Bad For Your Health teamster.org ...Covering the tab for life’s basic needs has always been tough for lower income people. But increasing reports make it clear that being a member of the working poor is also hazardous to your health and could drive you to an early grave...
Trade
New Study Shows Dangers of Trade Agreements that Help Corporations Sue Governments naked capitalism ...Pacific Rim/OceanaGold is ... one of 31 oil, gas, and mining corporations suing governments in Latin America in the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), based at the World Bank. ICSID is the most frequently used tribunal under existing pro-corporate, anti-democratic trade and investment rules...
Korea Trade Agreement – Exports Actually Decrease Trade Reform ...the USTR is embarrassed that our exports to Korea actually decreased since the Korea trade and global government agreement was passed. Yes. Exports (not net exports) decreased...
State Battles
New York Settles With McDonald's Restaurants In Wage Theft Investigation Huffington Post ...New York state has reached a settlement with the owner of seven McDonald's franchises that will give nearly $500,000 to fast-food workers who claimed they were shorted on pay, according to state Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman...
Calif. Gov. Brown takes swipes at GOP, praises labor unions Los Angeles Times ...Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown gave a rousing pro-worker speech to a ballroom filled with union representatives Monday night, thanking organized labor for helping pass his vote-approved tax hike in 2012 and worker's compensation reform and vowing to be “around for the next five years.’’...
How Auto Dealers Are Muscling State Legislatures Into Barring Tesla Motors AlterNet ...New Jersey is the latest state to ban the electric car company from selling directly to consumers, which threatens auto dealers' business model. Is New York next?...
RI pension settlement ballots mailed Associated Press ...Mail ballots have been sent to the retired and active public workers who will soon decide the fate of a proposed settlement in the litigation surrounding Rhode Island’s 2011 pension overhaul...
War on Workers
The rich strike back Politico ...“I hope it’s not working,” Ken Langone, the billionaire co-founder of Home Depot and major GOP donor, said of populist political appeals. “Because if you go back to 1933, with different words, this is what Hitler was saying in Germany. You don’t survive as a society if you encourage and thrive on envy or jealousy...”
Southern California Port Truck Drivers Allege Labor Exploitation New America Media ...A new report by a national labor rights group says that the port truck driving industry is rampant with examples of companies employing tactics to exploit drivers, from misclassification as an independent contractor, to depriving drivers of employee benefits, workplace standards and proper wages…
Fifth financial executive with ties to JPMorgan found dead Housing Wire ...Just over 11 weeks into 2014 comes tragic news that an 11th financial executive has apparently committed suicide...
The Plummeting Labor Market Fortunes of Teens and Young Adults Brookings ...Employment prospects for teens and young adults in the nation’s 100 largest metropolitan areas plummeted between 2000 and 2011. On a number of measures—employment rates, labor force underutilization, unemployment, and year-round joblessness—teens and young adults fared poorly, and sometimes disastrously...
Inside Low-wage Workers’ Plan to Sue McDonald’s — and Win Portside ...The wall that fast food workers hope to blast through with these class-action suits is the franchise system. All of the lawsuits name McDonald’s itself as a defendant, even though most of the targeted restaurants are owned not by McDonald’s but by McDonald’s franchisees...
Union chief accuses SEPTA of trying to provoke strike Philadelphia Inquirer ...With no bargaining talks scheduled between SEPTA and transit workers, the president of the agency's largest union accused it of trying to provoke a strike...
Amazon’s near sweatshops and awful conditions: It doesn’t have to be this way Salon ...Labor conditions at Amazon and Wal-Mart are like the pre-New Deal era. These reforms, working elsewhere, would help...
The Shocking Ways Debt Collectors Are Hounding U.S. Military Service Members AlterNet ...Companies use threats of rank reduction and courts-martial...
Miscellaneous
Coalition Files Lawsuit Against Idaho Ag-Gag Law That Targets Journalism, Whistleblowing & Speech Fire Dog Lake ...A coalition of groups and journalists are challenging a law passed in Idaho, which makes it possible for anyone who secretly films or records animal abuse to be jailed for up to a year...
2013 Was a Record Year For Oil-Train Accidents, and Insurers Are Wary Alternet ...All told, railcar accidents spilled more than 1.15 million gallons of crude oil in 2013, federal data shows, compared with an average of just 22,000 gallons a year from 1975 through 2012 — a fifty-fold spike...
24 States Pressure Walmart, Walgreens To Stop Selling Cigarettes Huffington Post ...Attorney Generals from 24 states, Washington D.C., and three U.S. territories sent letters to the country's biggest pharmaceutical retailers Monday, including Walmart and Walgreens, asking them to stop selling tobacco products...
9 Retailers Closing The Most Stores 24/7 Wall St. ...Brick-and-mortar retailers have been suffering from slow economic activity for years, as well as from increased competition from online retailers. The rise in store closings is a prominent sign of their struggles...
Teamster bus drivers at CCTA will continue strike Associated Press ...About 70 bus drivers, represented by Teamsters Local 597, went on strike Monday leaving about 9,500 people who ride the buses every day in Burlington, Vermont scrambling...
Teamster Simulator Technicians at Southwest Approve New Contract Dallas Morning News ...Southwest Airlines and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters announced Friday that flight simulation technicians have approved a two-year contract...
Teamsters: Ask Congress to Fund High Speed Rail and Amtrak teamster.org ...The Republicans in the House have taken a whack at funding for Amtrak and eliminated funding for high speed rail. They want to cut federal spending on Amtrak by 29 percent and eliminate funding for High Speed Rail...
Pepsi Lays Off 60 Workers WREG-TV ...Meetings are underway between the PepsiCo company and Teamsters Local 984 after 60 employees were laid off unexpectedly Thursday. The company says it was a matter of efficiency, but the union says PepsiCo violated the law by not giving workers a 60 day notice...
Teamsters: Poverty Is Bad For Your Health teamster.org ...Covering the tab for life’s basic needs has always been tough for lower income people. But increasing reports make it clear that being a member of the working poor is also hazardous to your health and could drive you to an early grave...
Trade
New Study Shows Dangers of Trade Agreements that Help Corporations Sue Governments naked capitalism ...Pacific Rim/OceanaGold is ... one of 31 oil, gas, and mining corporations suing governments in Latin America in the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), based at the World Bank. ICSID is the most frequently used tribunal under existing pro-corporate, anti-democratic trade and investment rules...
Korea Trade Agreement – Exports Actually Decrease Trade Reform ...the USTR is embarrassed that our exports to Korea actually decreased since the Korea trade and global government agreement was passed. Yes. Exports (not net exports) decreased...
State Battles
New York Settles With McDonald's Restaurants In Wage Theft Investigation Huffington Post ...New York state has reached a settlement with the owner of seven McDonald's franchises that will give nearly $500,000 to fast-food workers who claimed they were shorted on pay, according to state Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman...
Calif. Gov. Brown takes swipes at GOP, praises labor unions Los Angeles Times ...Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown gave a rousing pro-worker speech to a ballroom filled with union representatives Monday night, thanking organized labor for helping pass his vote-approved tax hike in 2012 and worker's compensation reform and vowing to be “around for the next five years.’’...
How Auto Dealers Are Muscling State Legislatures Into Barring Tesla Motors AlterNet ...New Jersey is the latest state to ban the electric car company from selling directly to consumers, which threatens auto dealers' business model. Is New York next?...
RI pension settlement ballots mailed Associated Press ...Mail ballots have been sent to the retired and active public workers who will soon decide the fate of a proposed settlement in the litigation surrounding Rhode Island’s 2011 pension overhaul...
War on Workers
The rich strike back Politico ...“I hope it’s not working,” Ken Langone, the billionaire co-founder of Home Depot and major GOP donor, said of populist political appeals. “Because if you go back to 1933, with different words, this is what Hitler was saying in Germany. You don’t survive as a society if you encourage and thrive on envy or jealousy...”
Southern California Port Truck Drivers Allege Labor Exploitation New America Media ...A new report by a national labor rights group says that the port truck driving industry is rampant with examples of companies employing tactics to exploit drivers, from misclassification as an independent contractor, to depriving drivers of employee benefits, workplace standards and proper wages…
Fifth financial executive with ties to JPMorgan found dead Housing Wire ...Just over 11 weeks into 2014 comes tragic news that an 11th financial executive has apparently committed suicide...
The Plummeting Labor Market Fortunes of Teens and Young Adults Brookings ...Employment prospects for teens and young adults in the nation’s 100 largest metropolitan areas plummeted between 2000 and 2011. On a number of measures—employment rates, labor force underutilization, unemployment, and year-round joblessness—teens and young adults fared poorly, and sometimes disastrously...
Inside Low-wage Workers’ Plan to Sue McDonald’s — and Win Portside ...The wall that fast food workers hope to blast through with these class-action suits is the franchise system. All of the lawsuits name McDonald’s itself as a defendant, even though most of the targeted restaurants are owned not by McDonald’s but by McDonald’s franchisees...
Union chief accuses SEPTA of trying to provoke strike Philadelphia Inquirer ...With no bargaining talks scheduled between SEPTA and transit workers, the president of the agency's largest union accused it of trying to provoke a strike...
Amazon’s near sweatshops and awful conditions: It doesn’t have to be this way Salon ...Labor conditions at Amazon and Wal-Mart are like the pre-New Deal era. These reforms, working elsewhere, would help...
The Shocking Ways Debt Collectors Are Hounding U.S. Military Service Members AlterNet ...Companies use threats of rank reduction and courts-martial...
Miscellaneous
Coalition Files Lawsuit Against Idaho Ag-Gag Law That Targets Journalism, Whistleblowing & Speech Fire Dog Lake ...A coalition of groups and journalists are challenging a law passed in Idaho, which makes it possible for anyone who secretly films or records animal abuse to be jailed for up to a year...
2013 Was a Record Year For Oil-Train Accidents, and Insurers Are Wary Alternet ...All told, railcar accidents spilled more than 1.15 million gallons of crude oil in 2013, federal data shows, compared with an average of just 22,000 gallons a year from 1975 through 2012 — a fifty-fold spike...
24 States Pressure Walmart, Walgreens To Stop Selling Cigarettes Huffington Post ...Attorney Generals from 24 states, Washington D.C., and three U.S. territories sent letters to the country's biggest pharmaceutical retailers Monday, including Walmart and Walgreens, asking them to stop selling tobacco products...
9 Retailers Closing The Most Stores 24/7 Wall St. ...Brick-and-mortar retailers have been suffering from slow economic activity for years, as well as from increased competition from online retailers. The rise in store closings is a prominent sign of their struggles...
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