High court hears critical union case

The most important union-related case in more than a generation was heard before the U.S. Supreme Court this morning, and its effects could be wide-reaching for the Teamsters and other unions.

A negative ruling in Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association involving public workers and their unions could hurt all workers nationwide in their fight for their rights and decency on the job. The case pits nine anti-union teachers against the two teachers unions in California who represent them and against the state. The issue is whether states can order anti-union workers – whom, however, the union represents -- to pay “agency fees” to cover costs of contract bargaining and administration, such as defending grievances.

Maryann Parker, associate general counsel for the Service Employees International Unions, said:

This case should be seen for what it is: It would place substantial limitations on the ability of working people to advocate for themselves. In terms of what’s happening in the country [to workers, their wages, their declining standards of living and their rights], it’s very important.

The plaintiffs say such orders and laws violate their free speech rights by forcing them to support union political positions. But in reality, speakers at the Jan. 6 American Constitution Society panel said, Friedrichs is part of a broader movement to strip all workers of their rights.

 They lost, intentionally, in lower courts, but took their case to the High Court at the outright invitation in a prior court ruling by Associate Justice Samuel Alito. In a parallel, but more restricted case two years ago, Alito questioned whether any public worker unions had the right to require non-members to pay agency fees.

He didn’t win then. If he wins now, there would be wide ramifications for all workers, public and private, union and non-union. Parker noted that by outlawing the right for unions to charge anyone even “agency fees” – not to mention membership dues – unions would lose funds that help workers band together and fight for their rights and a better standard of living.

Parker and panelist Anisha Gupta, New York state’s deputy solicitor general, also stressed the practical impact of a decision for the Friedrichs dissidents. It would overturn almost 40 years of laws, precedents and cases involving public workers, following a 1976 High Court ruling in a case, Abood, involving the Detroit school board and its teachers unions.

A decision in the case is not expected until June.

• Press Associates, Inc., contributed to this report.

Mo., Ky. show businesses don't need RTW

Anti-union forces pushing so-called right-to-work (RTW) legislation from state to state often tout the measure as one that will boost business creation. The thinking is RTW boosts business creation by cutting wages.

But that's just not the case, according to new U.S. Census Bureau data. It shows that in the latest numbers available, the top two states for jobs creation nationally were Missouri and Kentucky, states that currently allow collective bargaining but are being targeted by the corporate class and their legislative friends to make them RTW.

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon rejected RTW earlier this year and the Legislature could not overturn his veto. He said the statistics show his state is on the right path:

Small businesses are the engines of our economy, and that’s why we’ve worked hard to help entrepreneurs turn cutting-edge ideas into high-paying jobs for Missourians. This report -- showing Missouri is not only bucking the national trend, but leading the country in new business creation -- is proof positive that our efforts are paying off in a big way.

Business creation increased in 2013 by 16.7 percent. That was followed by Kentucky at 6.1 percent. An additional 1,293 businesses were created in the Show Me State than the previous year, while the Blue Grass State created 251 more than in 2012.

Statistics show that RTW states consistently produce lower pay – thousands of dollars per year per worker -- and fewer protections for workers. But businesses justify their pro-RTW campaigns by saying RTW creates new businesses, which in turn create jobs.

However, only three right-to-work states – Nevada, Arizona and Mississippi – saw any kind of new business growth. Mississippi and Arizona grew less than half a percentage point, while Nevada, at 4.25 percent, lagged far behind Missouri. The other eight growing states, led by Missouri and Kentucky, were non-RTW.

Mike Louis, president of the Missouri AFL-CIO, said:

Right-to-work doesn’t spur new business development. Business is created through innovation and workers earning a decent wage, which they can then invest in the economy.

While Missouri, Kentucky and six other non-RTW states grew, over the same time period, 39 states saw a decrease in new business creation. Of the states that did see an increase in the number of new businesses, Missouri outperformed them dramatically – experiencing a bigger growth in new business creation than all 10 of those states, including the three RTW states on the growth list, combined.

• Press Associates, Inc. contributed to this report.

Report details power of collective bargaining

As awareness grows nationwide about the widening gulf between the haves and have-nots, so do the opportunities to combat it. A new AFL-CIO report notes that more than 2.4 million workers are set to bargain on new contract through the end of 2016, creating an opportunity for sizable wage growth for many everyday Americans.

According to the report, working people who bargained for new contracts in the first half of 2015 saw their wages increase by an average of 4.3 percent, an increase of $1,147 a year for an average wage earner in the U.S. These increases are up from 2.9 percent in the first half of 2014, with substantial wage wins occurring in sectors from nursing and oil to airline pilots and teachers.

The Teamsters have registered their share of contract victories this year, whether its was a deal recently struck covering Silicon Valley shuttle bus drivers serving Apple, Yahoo and eBay or an agreement covering nearly 500 Tuscon, Ariz. transit workers who came to an agreement after a 42-day strike. These contracts show the value of union membership.

As the collective bargaining document notes:

We are in the midst of an exceptional moment for raising wages through collective bargaining. Millions of American workers will have bargained contracts by the end of 2016, and considering that most of the largest organized workforces are going to the bargaining table, it is likely that more workers will be seeking raises through the collective bargaining process in 2015–2016 than at any other point in recent American labor history. 

Collective bargaining is our best tool for raising wages in America. It should be front and center as Congress considers policy and as presidential candidates announce agendas. Moreover, the results will illuminate the larger issue underpinning chronic wage stagnation: that vibrant worker organizations are key to restoring the balance of economic power in our country.

That's why the Teamsters and other worker advocates fight so hard against the forces who try to do away with them, like the recent victory in Missouri. Workers lose when so-called right-to-work legislation wins, with big business raking in additional profits.

Unions play a pivotal role in the future of this country. If workers want better salaries, the best way is to join one like the Teamsters. That way workers have a bigger voice at the bargaining table.

Today's Teamster News 06.25.14

Teamster News
D.C. Taxi Drivers To Stage Caravan For Fairness On Wednesday, June 25  teamster.org   ... Hundreds of D.C. cab drivers affiliated with the Teamsters Union will take part in a “Fairness NOW!” caravan throughout the city on Wednesday, June 25 to demand an immediate stop to illegal private sedan services until a fair resolution is reached...
Delegates to BMWED/Teamsters Take Historic Action At Convention  teamster.org   ...Delegates of the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division convention have elected the first female member of the union's Executive Board, Stacey Moody Gilbert...
Trade
#SOSJobs: The Story of The Rally On The Iron Range  manufacture this   ...Less than a month remains until the US Department of Commerce makes its final decision on a trade case that will affect thousands of steelworkers across the United States...
State Battles
Mayoral veto overturned  Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette   ...City Council members voted along party lines Tuesday to override Mayor Tom Henry’s veto of the new prohibition on collective bargaining for city employees who are not police or firefighters...
Mayors Want Federal Minimum Wage Hike  Dallas News   ...Mike Rawlings oversaw many minimum-wage workers as top executive at Pizza Hut. Now, as the mayor of Dallas, he’s trying to determine what a living wage is for city residents and city contract workers...
Changes To Wage Theft Prevention Law Approved By New York State Legislature  Daily Labor Report   ...The new measure would go even further by increasing penalties for violations to $50 to $200 per day from $50 to $200 per week and raising maximum penalties to $5,000 from $2,000. The bill also would establish penalties of $1,000 to $20,000 for repeat violators. Maximum liquidated damages would be increased under the bill to $20,000 from $10,000...
2nd Bridge Inquiry Said To Be Linked To Christie  New York Times   ...The inquiries into securities law violations focus on a period of 2010 and 2011 when Gov. Chris Christie’s administration pressed the Port Authority to pay for extensive repairs to the Skyway and related road projects, diverting money that was to be used on a new Hudson River rail tunnel that Mr. Christie canceled in October 2010...
Water is a Human Right: Detroit Residents Seek U.N. Intervention as City Shuts Off Taps to Thousands  Democracy Now   ... Since March, up to 3,000 account holders have had their water cut off every week. The Detroit water authority carries an estimated $5 billion in debt and has been the subject of privatization talks...
War On Workers
After Gap Raised Its Minimum Wage, Job Applications Surged  Think Progress   ...As of June, the lowest-paid Gap employees are making $9 an hour, and that will increase to $10 in June of next year. The raise will affect 65,000 employees in the United States. One of the reasons originally cited was to be able to “attract and retain great talent,” and Chairman and CEO Glenn Murphy had said, “Our decision to invest in frontline employees will directly support our business, and is one that we expect to deliver a return many times over.”...
Contract Workers Strike: Government Is The Top Low-Wage Employer Of Women  Moyers & Company   ...Hundreds of women struggling to make ends meet on the low wages paid by federal contractors went on strike in Washington, DC, today....They’re demanding that President Obama sign an executive order allowing them to bargain collectively for better pay, decent health care and paid sick leave...
Fact-Checking Walmart's Fact-Check Of The New York Times  Huffington Post   ...Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Apple and Wells Fargo paid more in taxes than Walmart...
Miscellaneous
Federal Judge Rules US Citizens Placed on No-Fly List Had Their Due Process Rights Violated  firedoglake   ...A federal district court in Oregon has ruled that United States citizens who were placed on the No-Fly List had their rights to “procedural due process” violated. The current process is unconstitutional and the government must “provide a new process” that satisfies the “constitutional requirements for due process.”...
Veterangate: VA whistleblower says records of deceased vets were altered  RT   ...A Veteran Affairs employee has come forward claiming that government officials doctored the medial records of deceased veterans in order to hide the fact that they died waiting for medical care...
Want To Suppress The Vote? Stress People Out  Mother Jones   ...individuals who have higher baseline levels of the bodily stress hormone cortisol are, as a group, less likely to vote. In other words, individuals who are more sensitive to stress don't appear to vote as often...

Today's Teamster News 06.18.14

Teamsters
Assemblyman joins Teamsters in Taylor Farms protest  Tracy News   ...call for worker equality was shouted outside Taylor Farms Pacific on MacArthur Drive on Thursday by members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. The group gathered in large numbers to protest the alleged mistreatment of company employees...
Obama sides with Teamsters in employment non-discrimination order  TeamsterNation   ...President Obama today is signing an order forbidding federal contractors from discriminating against employees because of their sexual orientation, a policy supported by the Teamsters Union...
Teamster Women's Conference To Be Held September 4-6  teamster.org   ...The 2014 Teamster Women's Conference will be held September 4-6, 2014 in Chicago. For details about this conference, click here...
Trade
Trade deals, Investment Treaties and the Death of Democracy – How companies sue whole nations and win.  Golem XIV   ...there is a growing discontent and a determination to question mainstream assurances and find new answers...
State Battles
GDP Numbers Confirm Wisconsin’s Lagging Growth  WI Budget Project   ...Wisconsin’s GDP growth of 4.5% over the last three years has been well below the national average of 6.1%...
A $13.13 Minimum Wage Means 1.2 Million NYers Earn An Extra $100/Week Gothamist ...New York's $8/hour ($9 by 2016) continues to be the lowest of any major city, a fact noted by Comptroller Scott Stringer, who just released a report [PDF] detailing the effects of raising the minimum wage in the city to $13.13/hour: 1.2 million New Yorkers would receive an extra $100/week...
Princeton considering ordinance to protect workers from wage theft The Star-Ledger ...Those seeking landscaping permits to do work in Princeton will first need to acknowledge federal and state wage theft laws pertaining to their employees if the governing body adopts an ordinance that ties the two together...
War on Workers
A Small Increase in Inflation Squeezes U.S. Workers  New York Times   ...Average hourly earnings for private sector American workers rose about 49 cents an hour over the last year, to $24.38 in May. But that wasn’t enough to cover inflation over the year, so in real or inflation-adjusted terms, hourly worker pay fell 0.1 percent over the last 12 months...
A manager agrees – bargaining is better (opinion)  Fort Wayne Journal Gazette   ...The most important and consistent feature of collective bargaining is not disagreement about work rules or compensation – it is problem-solving. ..
The US Chemical Safety Board's Turmoil Is Playing With Public Safety  truthout   ...Inside this fight is a tale of ambition, manipulation and personal games that put public safety and the prevention of chemical accidents at risk...
Fed Issues Surreptitious SNAP Payments to Bankster Welfare Queens At Taxpayer Expense   Wall Street Examiner   ...This is a direct giveaway to the banks at the expense of US taxpayers. The banks will shift as much of their excess cash as they can, subject to the $10 billion per bank limit, from their regular deposit accounts at the Fed (aka reserves) to these higher interest paying term deposits. This is cash which the Fed has given them for free in the first place...
Raise the Minimum Wage to Help Economy, IMF Tells U.S. NBC News ...The International Monetary Fund released its annual review of the U.S. economy on Monday and called on the U.S. to raise its federal minimum wage rate...
Uber Drivers Protest Their Dick Boss  Gawker   ...They're not just protesting autonomous taxis. Uber's drivers say "they feel exploited, don't earn enough money and are taken for granted."...

Today's Teamster News 04.23.14

Teamster News
Teamsters Urge Buffalo Common Council To Keep Rural Metro Contract  The Buffalo News   ...The unionized workforce of Buffalo's exclusive ambulance provider came to city hall today to urge the common council not to change providers...
Trade
Obama Faces Headwinds On Trans-Pacific Partnership In East Asia Trip  South China Morning Post   ...As US President Barack Obama embarks on a four-nation Asian tour, his effort to push the economic side of the US "rebalancing" towards the Asia-Pacific faces hurdles...
Abe-Obama Deal On TPP Unlikely  The Japan Times   ...Japan and the United States are not expected to announce a broad bilateral agreement for a Pacific trade pact when their leaders meet Thursday in Tokyo, as they remain considerably apart over the issue of market access for agricultural products and automobiles...
State Battles
Missouri Considers Right-To-Work Law  The Patriot Post   ...Following on the heels of some of its Midwest regional neighbors, Missouri's legislature is considering right-to-work legislation. With a heavily Republican legislature it seemed like passage would be a slam dunk. But that hasn't turned out to be the case...
Ohio Labor Supporters Gain Valuable Lesson From Missouri Right To Work Fight  PR News Channel   ...In Ohio, union supporters have so far kept the legislature off the ballot and are working tirelessly to ensure Right to Work doesn’t gain a foothold in their state....
War on Workers
The American Middle Class Is No Longer the World’s Richest  New York Times   ...After-tax middle-class incomes in Canada — substantially behind in 2000 — now appear to be higher than in the United States. The poor in much of Europe earn more than poor Americans...
Moving in with parents becomes more common for the middle-aged  Los Angeles Times   ...For seven years through 2012, the number of Californians aged 50 to 64 who live in their parents' homes swelled 67.6% to about 194,000, according to the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research and the Insight Center for Community Economic Development. The jump is almost exclusively the result of financial hardship caused by the recession...
Cabdrivers Seek To Unionize To Push Case For Fair Hike  Chicago Sun Times   ...Tired of waiting nine years for a fair increase and being pushed around as independent contractors, Chicago cab drivers are trying a different tack to press their case for a "living wage"...
White House approves stricter coal dust rule  The Hill   ...The rule was proposed in 2010 by the Mine Health and Safety Administration in an attempt to reduce black lung disease, a deadly condition that kills hundreds of miners each year and is caused by coal dust...
Sherpas Move to Shut Everest in Labor Fight  New York Times   ...The avalanche that killed at least 13 Sherpas last Friday has prompted an extraordinary labor dispute, as Mount Everest’s quiet workhorses took steps on Tuesday to shut down the mountain for the season, demanding that the government share proceeds from what has become a multimillion-dollar business...
Miscellaneous
U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Michigan Affirmative Action Ban  Think Progress   ...The U.S. Supreme Court upheld Michigan's ban on affirmative action in higher education Tuesday morning, in the latest ruling to effectively weaken affirmative action without killing it...

Today's Teamster News 01.16.14

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

 

Today's Teamster News 09.19.13

Teamsters Praise SEC For Proposed Rule On Corporate Pay  teamster.org   ...The International Brotherhood of Teamsters today applauded the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announcement of a new proposed rule requiring corporations to disclose the ratio between chief executive and worker pay...
Ballots for Seven UPS Supplements/Riders Mailed September 18  teamster.org   ...Ballots for UPS Teamsters covered under the following supplements and riders were mailed yesterday, September 18...
Cardinal Health’s Political Spending Target of Teamsters’ Shareholder Proposal  Columbia Business First   ...Cardinal Health Inc. is the latest public company fielding a shareholder proposal for more reporting on corporate political contributions in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision...
Darigold Walks Out of Federal Mediation  teamster.org   ...Darigold walked out of federal mediation late Monday night setting the stage for a potential lockout or strike at the company’s production facilities in Issaquah and Seattle...|
Jack Cooper Set To Buy Allied Holdings  Automotive Logistics   ...North American vehicle hauler Jack Cooper is to acquire the business of bankrupt rival Allied System Holdings following a successful bid confirmed this week...
Jack Cooper Purchase Clears Another Hurdle; Next Step Is Anti-Trust Review  teamster.org  ...On Tuesday, September 17, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher S. Sontchi approved the sale of most of Allied Systems Holdings assets to Jack Cooper Transport...
Marquez union supporters press on despite setbacks  Hanford Sentinel ...Workers will have another shot at supporting the Teamsters in an election on Oct. 4 despite the company’s decision earlier this month to no longer recognize the union...
Government Hands More Than $1 Trillion to Wealthy While Deficit Is $642 Billion  truthout   ...All tax breaks for individuals will exceed $1 trillion this year, with about 17% of the biggest individual tax breaks going to the top 1% of earners...
China's second richest man has tendons in hand severed after labourer begged for job and was turned down  Daily Mail   ...He sought out Mr Zong near his home after seeing him help impoverished migrant workers on a television programme and asked the self-made billionaire for a job...
Women Waiting Tables Provide Most of Female Gains in U.S.  Bloomberg   ...the gains have been largely in lower-paying industries such as waitresses, in-home health care, food preparation and housekeeping. About 60 percent of the increase in employment for women from 2009 to 2012 was in jobs that pay less than $10.10 an hour, compared with 20 percent for men...
Young People's Unhappiness Comes from Our Broken Economic System -- And They Shouldn't Shut Up About It  Alternet   ...realities are quite harsh — making around $25,000 a year while trying to afford rent and food while paying back their more than $20,000 student loans...
Missouri treasurer wants to ban 'pension advances'  St. Louis Post-Dispatch   ...Missouri State Treasurer Clint Zweifel wants the state to ban “pension advance” offers aimed at state retirees. He says they're bad deals...
Expand Medicaid to help senior citizens  St. Louis Post-Dispatch (opinion)   ...In the editorial “Do no harm" (Sept. 3), the editorial board highlights some of the hardships facing Missouri if we don’t pass Medicaid expansion. The editorial does not specifically mention the especially large burdens of our senior citizens...
Commerce secretary touts opportunities in Mexico, Pacific trade pact  Los Angeles Times  ...Recently installed U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker said trade opportunities with Mexico will expand as economic and security conditions improve in America's southern neighbor...
Will the Supreme Court Stop Cops From Reading Your Text Messages?  Mother Jones   ...In many states, police can rifle through your smartphone—even if you've just been arrested for not putting on your seat belt...
Millions Living Above The Poverty Line Also Struggle To Get By  Huffington Post   ...For nearly 30 years, Elena Keating made a career helping low-income Americans find and keep affordable housing. Now, she's the one struggling and one of millions in this country just scraping by after being out of a job for the past nine months...
Unemployment Gap Between Rich And Poor Widens To A 10-Year Extreme  MintPress News   ...Unemployment gaps between the wealthiest and the poorest Americans have reached their highest level since government officials began tracking the statistic a decade ago...
Workers win wage battle against Victoria’s Secret  Finance Post   ...Victoria’s Secret has apparently had several secrets. Low wages and few hours for part-time workers were among them. However, some employees have taken the secrets public and the result was an increase in wages...
JPMorgan Chase Is Said to Admit Fault in Settlement of Trade Loss  New York Times   ...JPMorgan Chase has agreed to pay about $800 million to a host of government agencies in Washington and London — and make a groundbreaking admission of wrongdoing — to settle allegations stemming from a multibillion-dollar trading loss...
Nationwide protests against neonazi murder  Enet English   ...Police fired fired tear gas and deployed water canon at a number of the protests after some protesters set dumpsters on fire and started hurling projectiles at police lines...
In New York, Having a Job, or 2, Doesn’t Mean Having a Home  New York Times   ...With New York City’s homeless population in shelters at a record high of 50,000, a growing number of New Yorkers punch out of work and then sign in to a shelter, city officials and advocates for the homeless say...
Wisconsin: Judge rules state can't enforce parts of Walker law  Milwaukee Journal Sentinel...A Dane County judge ruled Tuesday the state cannot enforce key provisions of a law limiting collective bargaining against local government unions...

Missouri expands collective bargaining

Some good news from Missouri yesterday: The state Supreme Court ruled that most government workers have collective bargaining rights and their employer must bargain in good faith.

St. Louis Public Radio reports,

The Court issued two rulings Tuesday - one dealing with unionized teachers at a St. Louis charter school, and the other dealing with police officers in University City and Chesterfield who wanted to unionize. 

"Essentially, they're complete victories for the labor side," said Bruce Feldacker, a labor attorney who is an adjunct professor at Saint Louis University law school. "There's no question that governmental employers have a much clearer duty to bargain in good faith to teach and agreement now than was the status before these two rulings." 

Two rulings from the Missouri Supreme Court have strengthened collective bargaining for public employees in the state. 

The ruling in the police officer case overturned 55 years of precedent. In a 5-1 decision, the Court ruled that Article I, Section 29 of the state constitution imposes on public bodies the duty to bargain with its employees with the intent of reaching an agreement. An earlier ruling from 1957 said that Article I, Section 29 means that employers cannot block employees from organizing, but do not have to negotiate with the union.

Call it a battle victory in the war on workers.

Today's Teamster News 09.22.12

Lawmakers may push "fiscal cliff" deadlines into 2013  Reuters   ...Slowly and quietly, the U.S. Congress may be arriving at a consensus on how to avoid falling off the "fiscal cliff" on December 31 - by simply putting off its own deadline for most of the major year-end budget and tax decisions...
The decline of collective bargaining and the erosion of middle class incomes in Michigan  Economic Policy Institute   ...This divergence between pay and productivity and the corresponding failure of middle-class incomes to grow is strongly related to the erosion of collective bargaining. And collective bargaining has eroded more in Michigan than in the rest of the nation, helping to explain Michigan’s more disappointing outcomes...
It’s official: Quebec tuition hikes are history  Canadian Press   ...The tuition increase that triggered such social strife in Quebec was cancelled Thursday during an action-packed first full day in office for the Parti Quebecois government...
Editorial: Electronic voting is the real threat to elections  USA Today   ...While state lawmakers burn enormous energy in a partisan fight over in-person vote fraud, which is virtually nonexistent, they're largely ignoring far likelier ways votes can be lost, stolen or changed...
Concord city employees protest furlough days  KGO-TV   ...Members of teamsters Local 856 agreed to 13 furlough days per year back in 2009, but now they say the city is doing so much better and it's time for the furloughs to end...
CL bus drivers, attendants ink deal  Northwest Herald   ...Teamsters Local 731 represents about 60 bus drivers and bus attendants in Crystal Lake school Districts 47 and 155 employed by the Transportation Joint Agreement...

Today's Teamster News 07.04.12

China Requests Consultation On 22 U.S. Countervailing Duty Orders  Trade Reform   ...China’s request focuses primarily to the issue of the provision of manufacturing inputs for “less than adequate remuneration.” In all 22 cases, petitioners alleged that China provided inputs such as raw materials, land, and electricity for “less that adequate remuneration,” i.e., below a market benchmark price. These subsidy programs accounted for a large portion of each Chinese exporter’s total subsidy rate...
Why is Nobody Freaking Out About the LIBOR Banking Scandal?  Rolling Stone   ...This story is so outrageous that it shocks even the most cynical Wall Street observers...
Rep. Joe Walsh Blasts Double Amputee’s Military Service, Says She’s Not A ‘True Hero’  ThinkProgress   ...The Tea Party freshman opened the Elk Grove town hall by arguing that Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) was reluctant to discuss his own military service in 2008, which made him a “noble hero.” By contrast, “Now I’m running against a woman who, my God, that’s all she talks about,” Walsh said...
Challenge to collective bargaining petition fails  Associated Press   ...State officials say they can't reject the nearly 700,000 signatures filed recently to get a measure protecting collective bargaining rights on the November ballot...
Strike heats up at Anheuser-Busch warehouse in Riverside  The Press-Enterprise   ...“Strikes aren’t pretty,’’ Local 166 president Mike Pharris said, but the Bloomington-based union is following the rules. “What we’re doing is exercising our First Amendment rights, our freedom of speech. We’re exercising our rights to freedom of assembly.”...
Teamsters decry new Raleigh police 'quasi-quota' evaluations  WRAL.com   ...More than 100 Raleigh police officers are filing formal grievances against the department over a new performance evaluation program that grades officers by counting the number of activities they perform on duty, a Teamsters group said Tuesday...

Today's Teamster News 05.27.11

State Senate limits collective bargaining rights; approves $30.5b budget  Boston Globe   ...The Massachusetts Senate voted tonight to curb the collective bargaining rights of police officers, teachers, and other municipal employees, making it likely the overwhelming Democratic state will limit union power in an effort to ease budget woes...
Judge Voids Wisconsin Law Curbing Unions  New York Times  ...Some Democrats could flee the state again, and some Republican senators are facing recall elections...
Ohio schools cut jobs anticipating funding cuts  Associated Press   ...Ohio school districts already are cutting thousands of jobs in anticipation of losing funding in the upcoming state budget, as unions and other education groups lobby hard at the Statehouse to get some of it restored...
Collective bargaining bill revived for June 2 hearing  Portland Daily Sun  ...A Thursday, June 2 public hearing on a controversial "right-to-work" bill in Augusta could be a prelude to quick passage of a piece of Maine legislation that critics say is similar to what happened with collective bargaining rights in Wisconsin...
Bully House speaker shows his true colors  Seacoast Online   ... O'Brien retreated to wait for a time when the numbers in the House chamber are stacked in his favor. He and his leadership team are literally going to wait until enough Democrats or anti-Right to Work Republicans are away and then, when they think they have the numbers, they'll call the vote...
Massive corporate tax cut becomes law in Michigan  The American Independent   ...Gov. Rick Snyder has signed legislation which eliminates the state’s Michigan Business Tax and Surcharge, replacing it with a six percent tax on businesses...

Today's Teamster News 05.25.11

New York Election Results: Kathy Hochul Projected Winner  Associated Press   ...Democrats picked off a heavily Republican upstate New York congressional seat Tuesday night in a special election that became a referendum on Medicare...
Note to Boeing's Jim McNerney: All We Are Saying Is Give the Truth -- and Your Union -- a Chance  Huffington Post   ...he is defending Boeing's decision to retaliate against its union workforce in Everett, Washington, by moving thousands of jobs to a non-union location in South Carolina, with statements that are among the most misleading and disingenuous by a major American CEO ever...
New dollars would go to malpractice fund, delay union concessions  Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel   ...The state would use a huge influx of new tax money expected over the next two years to help pay a looming debt to a medical malpractice fund but drop some $30 million in concessions from state workers, under draft legislation circulated Tuesday by Republican lawmakers...
Walker’s wasteland budget threatens families  Madison.com   ...In the last four months, Gov. Scott Walker has launched an unprecedented attack on Wisconsin’s families, freedom, environment and future...
Speaker may be shy 5-10 votes   Nashua Telegraph   ...A bare-knuckles showdown between House Speaker William O’Brien, R-Mont Vernon, and Gov. John Lynch over a right-to-work bill set for today could be put off, officials said...
Vermont Health Plan Advances  Wall Street Journal   ...Vermont is moving one step closer to a goal of its Democratic governor: a state-run health plan that would insure most of its 625,000 residents...
Unions want judge to void 2 new Arizona laws  East Valley Tribune   ...Calling the measures illegal, public and private unions want a federal judge to void two new laws they say interfere with the rights of their members...
Lawmakers scheduled to have final vote on Neb. bill to overhaul collective bargaining process  Daily Journal   ...A bill that would alter Nebraska's collective bargaining process is set for a final legislative vote...

Today's Teamster News 05.05.11

Unions refocus political activity  USA Today   ...Feeling under siege in more than a dozen states, some of the nation's largest labor groups are focusing their political activity to challenge state laws that sharply curb union rights or to oust the legislators who crafted them...
AFL-CIO to withdraw funds from M&I Bank  Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel   ...The Wisconsin State AFL-CIO announced Wednesday that it would withdraw more than $105,000 from M&I Bank as part of its "Move Your Money" campaign...
After sit-ins, meetings and arrests on Capitol Hill, disabled Wisconsinites say they'll keep protesting Ryan budget  Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel   ...A group of Wisconsinites with disabilities vowed Wednesday to keep protesting the Ryan budget after many of them were arrested this week demonstrating in congressional office buildings...
Florida legislature agrees to privatize prisons  Florida Independent   ...Budget negotiators from the Florida House and Senate agreed to a plan that would privatize state prisons in an 18-county region that includes the southern part of the state — the entire area below a line from Manatee County in the west to Indian River County in the east...
Vote on right-to-work not veto proof  Nashua Telegraph   ...The state Legislature moved to make New Hampshire the 23rd state and only one north of Virginia to keep nonunion members from having to financially support one...
Christie pushes for stricter rule for white-collar workers to qualify for overtime in N.J.  NorthJersey.com    ...the state Labor Department wants to eliminate a provision that requires private employers to pay employees overtime if they spend less than 80 percent of their time on administrative work...
Collective bargaining bill for Tennessee teachers stalls  The Commercial Appeal   ...The bill to end collective bargaining by Tennessee teachers suffered a setback Tuesday, and the top House Republican leader said it may be difficult to pass this year...

Woo-hoo! Judge blocks WI collective bargaining bill

YES!!!!! The twittersphere tells us a judge ordered Wisconsin's secretary of state NOT to publish the anti-worker law (meaning it won't become law) because it was passed in violation of the state's open meetings law.

Dane County Judge Maryann Sumi issued a temproary restraining order halting the bill stripping public union employees of their collective bargaining rights. The bill passed earlier this month.

news3jessica tweets

Sumi: I am issuing restraining order halting implementation of this act.

and cislyn tweets:

Yes! A temporary restraining order has been ordered regarding the crappy legislation GOP senators pushed through! #wiunion #winning

Before you get too excited,

RT @jvanegeren: Despite Sumi's ruling, lawmakers can give proper notice and hold joint conference committee meeting again #wiunion

The next hearing is March 29 at 8:30 a.m.