Memorial Day magazine preview: Teamsters Military Assistance Program (TMAP)

Jerry Winkler, Teamster military hero

This Memorial Day, as we honor the men and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country, we are paying tribute to our Teamster military heroes and the Teamsters Military Assistance Program (TMAP).

In the last issue of Teamster Magazine, we introduced you to Jerry Winkler, a Local 416 Teamster who, in his capacity as an Air Force Reservist, took part in an action to save a Kurdish community from the ISIS terrorist group.

But Winkler is far from the only Teamster who proudly wears his military uniform while keeping a firm grip on his union card. Thanks to an innovative training program for veterans, even more of those who have served in the armed forces have the opportunity to transition to Teamster jobs.

Teamsters, through TMAP, have been assisting veterans in obtaining careers in the transportation industry for years.

In the next issue, you’ll meet several more people enlisted in the military who are transitioning to good jobs thanks to the Teamsters Union … people like Fiona O’Brien. From the story in the next issue:

Fiona O’Brien was among the first group of a dozen graduates that have completed the TMAP program at Fort Sill. The 16-year Army veteran had been deployed three times to Afghanistan, but when she completed her service, O’Brien needed to think of her next steps.

“It’s hard for many veterans to get out and find a job, to transition from Army to civilian life. This program gives us one less thing to stress about,” said O’Brien, who is now working for ABF Freight in New Jersey. 

The story details what happened during a recent ceremony at Fort Sill, Okla., honoring graduates of a program that helps military personnel transition to a career in transportation:

Recently, Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa took part in a ceremony recognizing soldiers like Pitkin, the first graduates of a program that helps active military personnel transition to a career in transportation. The ribbon-cutting ceremony was held to inaugurate the Army’s new Industrial Training Complex (ITC) in Fort Sill, Okla. 

“This transition is seamless because the Teamsters, ABF and the Army are partnering. They’ve shown they care about veterans. The impact that this has on soldiers coming out is a tremendous thing,” Pitkin said.

In the next issue, you’ll also read about Covina, Calif.’s Local 396, which has been recognizing veterans at monthly membership meetings, bestowing special Teamster veteran jackets to members of the local in each branch of service.

In the meantime, enjoy this Memorial Day with family and friends -- and don't forget to stock your barbecue activities with American-made, union-made products. 

Unions provide a path to prosperity

The plight of the American worker has been well-documented by the Teamsters and others. Many don't know how much money they will bring home to their families because of uncertain hours and pay. The businesses that employ them are not being held accountable, and we all suffer because of it.

The Teamsters are helping those leaving the military find jobs.

Wages in recent years have been going down, not up, for a majority of workers when inflation is taken into account. Bad trade deals and pro-corporate legislation like so-called "right-to-work" is part of the problem. Retirements are uncertain. And it is having a huge effect on the outlook of many Americans, some of who are ready to give up.

A new study conducted by pollster Anna Greenberg on behalf of George Washington University professor Amitai Etzioni found:

The majority of Americans indeed experience an acute sense of economic anxiety. Americans are most concerned that Social Security will not be there when they retire. They also fear that they will not have enough money of their own when their working days are over. Indeed, even for now, the majority feels it may not have enough money to pay the bills and -- that they may lose their jobs. 

There is no one answer to how the U.S. can rebuild the confidence of our nation's workers and emerge victorious against the growing national scourge of income inequality. But the Teamsters are committed to doing our part, beginning with a partnership with ABF to get those leaving the military their commercial drivers' license and a trucking job.

Speaking to American Legion members today in Washington, D.C., Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa said more parties need to work together to get people back to work:

The whole thing is about partnering. How do we get this job done? We take this tremendous job of transitioning 130,000 people out of the military every year, and find some way to get them into civilian life. And not dead-end jobs. We want to find good jobs, We want to find jobs where they can build their life, make good money, have a family, have health care, have pensions and have a real future.

The most recent election shows that workers can no longer rely on government to do what's right. Unions like the Teamsters, who help our members earn better wages, can play a critical role. Joining one is a way workers can get back on their feet.

Today's Teamster News 03.28.15

Teamsters
Hoffa: TPP Investor Language Will Leave Taxpayers On The Hook  Huffington Post   ...Language included in the Investor State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) chapter of the TPP would grant new rights to companies to challenge limitations and exceptions to copyrights, patents and other intellectual property. That means corporations could sue the U.S. or other countries included in the deal if they didn't like their laws. Such challenges would be handled by an unaccountable international arbitration forum. And taxpayers would end up paying the tab if the private sector wins...
Hoffa Addresses First Graduates Of Military Job Training Program  teamster.org   ...Today, Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa took part in a ceremony recognizing the first graduates of a program that helps active military personnel transition to a career in transportation. The ceremony was held at the Army’s new Industrial Training Complex (ITC) in Fort Sill, Okla. A ribbon-cutting ceremony was also held to inaugurate the ITC...
Highway Chief Denies Any Wrongdoing In Legal Action Against Town  Hudson Register Star   ...It has been alleged the Hillsdale Highway Department has not fulfilled legal obligations to their local Teamsters union, a union official wrote in a letter to the town supervisor. The town board recently mediated the dispute at their March 17 board meeting...
Union organizers question wages at McKesson warehouse  Des Moines Register   ...Two Teamsters union organizers questioned Friday whether drug distributor McKesson Corp. would pay fair wages at a new warehouse in northern Iowa. "We as a local (union) and your brothers and sisters in Minnesota are concerned about the jobs being shipped down here at a discounted rate, to be honest with you," Troy Gustafson of Teamsters Local 120 told the Iowa Economic Development Authority Board Friday...
From the ranks of Microsoft’s permatemps  Washington Post   ...In Silicon Valley, contract workers are beginning to organize. Google and Facebook shuttle bus drivers have joined the Teamsters union...
Trade
Now We Know Why Huge TPP Trade Deal Is Kept Secret From the Public  Huffington Post   ...if corporations feel they have been denied "expected" profits by a government regulation, ISDS lets them circumvent a country's courts and go to an international corporate tribunal with their grievance. But if labor organizers are murdered, workers and their families have nowhere to go...
Trade Show: Today In What The Hell Is Going On With The TPP?  Esquire   ... It seems that in their desire to bless us all with the benefits of "free" trade, the negotiators have managed to outsource not only all the manufacturing jobs that are worth a damn, but also the job of domestic environmental spoilage...
State Battles
Plain Talk: Scott Walker a textbook case of why we don't trust politicians (opinion)  The Cap Times   ...Worse, though, is that Walker not only underhandedly cloaks his amibitions, he lies about them, too...
Mandatory Sick Leave Moves Forward In Capitol  Statesman Journal   ...Nearly every Oregon employee could have at least 40 hours of paid sick leave in the near future if the Oregon Legislature succeeds in passing one of two bills currently under discussion in the Capitol...
Minimum Wage, Equal Pay Bills Fail In House Subcommittee  Memphis Business Journal   ...A group of Democratic sponsored bills, including two to raise the state’s minimum wage and another to allow female employees recourse to sue over pay discrimination, failed in a Tennessee House subcommittee Wednesday. Votes on each piece of legislation were divided on party lines...
Buffalo Lawmaker Seeking Further Minimum Wage Hike  Buffalo Business First   ...The proposal would increase the state’s minimum wage to $10.50 now with staggered incremental increases leading to $15 in 2018. After three years of increases, the state’s minimum wage is set to reach $9 on Dec. 31, 2015. The current minimum wage in New York is set at $8.75. Panepinto said that number translates to $18,000 per year...
War on Workers
Metro workers say safety culture doesn’t exist  Washington Post   ...Metro train and bus operators, mechanics and other employees have lined up to criticize the agency’s safety culture nearly three months after a deadly smoke incident left one person dead and spurred new questions about the system’s management and training...
Amazon demands employees sign 18-month non-compete agreement to get a three-month-long job  Pando   ...The agreements last for up to 18 months. Seasonal workers can be employed by Amazon for as few as three. That’s a hell of a trade-off, especially considering that the non-compete agreements prevent Amazon’s employees from working “at any company where they ‘directly or indirectly’ support any good or service that competes with those they helped support at Amazon”...
Exclusive: Upset by Warren, U.S. banks debate halting some campaign donations  Reuters   ...Big Wall Street banks are so upset with U.S. Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren's call for them to be broken up that some have discussed withholding campaign donations to Senate Democrats in symbolic protest, sources familiar with the discussions said...
Wall Street isn’t happy with us  ElizabethWarren.com   ... They want a showy way to tell Democrats across the country to be scared of speaking out, to be timid about standing up, and to stay away from fighting for what’s right. Ok, they have taken their shot, but it will not work...
Middle Class Jobs Are Still Lagging  FiveThirtyEight   ...This U-shaped recovery – faster growth at the top and bottom, slower in the middle – isn’t a new phenomenon. What’s unclear is how long it will last. Mid-tier jobs are often the last to rebound in a recovery. It’s possible that with job growth now picking up, the pattern will begin to reverse, or perhaps has even begun to do so already...
Raleigh Scaffolding Collapse Kills 3 Construction Workers  Raleigh News and Observer   ...Three construction workers were killed and another seriously injured late Monday morning when an exterior lift system tore from the side of an office building under construction in downtown Raleigh...
Oil Trains Put US On Target For More Derailments, Warn Experts  Fox News   ...Activists call them “bomb trains,” and they’re likely rolling through a town near you. The oil boom in North Dakota and Alberta, Canada, has put a record number of train cars on tracks carrying hundreds of thousands of barrels of crude oil each day all across the U.S. Several accidents have already happened, and local leaders say it is a matter of time until more occur...
Miscellaneous
NSA Doesn’t Need To Spy On Your Calls To Learn Your Secrets  Wired   ...Collecting metadata on people means putting them under surveillance...
The Shut-In Economy  Medium   ...the on-demand world isn’t about sharing at all. It’s about being served. This is an economy of shut-ins...

Today's Teamster News 02.07.15

Teamsters
JCPS School Bus Driver Taken To Hospital, Assaulted By Student, Official Says  WHAS   ...A representative from the Teamsters Local 783, the union that represents school bus drivers, tells WHAS the driver was transporting students from the Binet School which serves special needs children. That teamsters representative says a student tried to open the bus' rear door, when a bus monitor intervened. When the bus driver walked back to help, the student allegedly pulled her by the hair, dragging her to the floor. The bus driver was taken to the hospital for arm and shoulder injuries...
CP Rail, Teamsters union tensions near boiling point  CBC News   ...Now, the union alleges the railway is violating a recent ruling regarding the use of union workers to teach CP Rail managers and office workers to operate trains. The union claims managers are telling locomotive engineers to vacate the train seat or be disciplined. The workers are then told to remain on the train engine...
Credentialing The Military  Military.com   ...One program to help military truck drivers get civilian credentials was developed by the Teamsters Union; it provides additional training, through the Teamsters Military Assistance Program, that helps service members earn commercial drivers' licenses. James P. Hoffa, the union's general president, is a featured speaker at the summit...
Air Canada And International Brotherhood Of Teamsters Reach Tentative Agreement On New Contract  AviTrader   ...Air Canada has reached a tentative collective agreement with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) for the airline’s U.S.-based workforce. The agreement is subject to ratification by the union membership...
Fashion Week Will Kick Off With City Horse Carriages Trotting Models Down Central Park South  New York Daily News   ...Fashion Week will kick off next week with a parade of horse-drawn carriages trotting models down Central Park South for the second year in a row, a four-legged tradition that organizers say will be a permanent part of the festivities...
Trade
The Need to Address Currency Manipulation in TPP, and Why U.S. Monetary Policy Is Not at Risk  Huffington Post   ...Over the past decade, currency manipulation by foreign governments has resulted in an increase in unfairly traded imports into the United States and has made it more difficult for U.S. exporters to compete in foreign markets. The practice has cost U.S. workers between one million and five million jobs -- and is responsible for as much as half of excess unemployment in the United States...
The Trans-Pacific Partnership Is a Huge Deal. So Why Is It Being Kept Secret?  In These Times   ...The trade rules of the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership between the United States and 11 Asian nations would cover nearly 40 percent of the world economy—but don't ask what they are. Access to the text of the proposed deal is highly restricted...
‘Secret’ Trade Pact Stirs Up Suspicion  truthdig   ... “The public has a legitimate interest in knowing what has already been decided on its behalf, and what is now at stake with our various countries’ positions on these controversial regulatory issues.”...
Stop fast-track authority from removing the voice of the 100 percent (opinion)  The Hill   ...The morally responsible approach is to learn from damage caused by earlier trade deals and modify our approach. Just consider one example: last month, the Government Accountability Office reported that labor provisions, including the very terms sought by the Obama administration for TPP, have failed to improve working conditions internationally...
State Battles
Reality Check: Right To Work Hurts Working Families (opinion)  Ruidoso News   ... On average, workers who belong to a union and who have the power to bargain collectively with their employer take home nearly 20 percent more in earnings each week compared to workers who are not union members. The decline of union density over the past decades corresponds to the decline in income share for the vast majority, 60 percent, of middle class America....
Legislators Hear From Union Workers At Forum  Huntington Herald Leader   ...A major portion of attendees were union workers who spoke out against the prevailing wage and right to work bills, the first of which would eliminate the requirement of prevailing hourly rate wages for public improvement projects and the second of which would prohibit the requirement for workers to be in a union...
Gov. Rauner, Union Leaders Tangle During Mount Vernon Stop  The Southern   ...“He can call it as many ways as he can, but it’s right-to-work and it’s taking away from working class families in Southern Illinois, especially,” said Will Attig, a laborer from DeSoto. “We’re just out here to let him know, he’s not welcome here.” Bret Seferian, who works with the Illinois Education Association, based in Carterville, on behalf of SIU and John A. Logan employees’ unions, said it’s clear to him Rauner isn’t interested in “supporting employees.”...
Senate Democrats Pass $11-An-Hour State Minimum Wage In Rebuff To Rauner  Chicago Tribune   ...Senate Democrats on Thursday pushed through what could end up being a symbolic measure to raise the state's minimum wage to $11 an hour by 2019, bucking Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner's call a day earlier for a smaller increase that would be phased in over a longer period of time...
Kentucky Minimum Wage Bill Passed In House Labor And Industry Committee  WLKY   ...Kentucky House Speaker Greg Stumbo presented his minimum wage bill to the state Legislature Thursday. After discussion and voting, the bill passed in the House Labor and Industry Committee on a 13-to-3 vote...
Oh Sweet Irony: Walker Caught Lying About Removing "Search For Truth" from UW Mission Statement  Daily Kos   …He introduced a budget that removed several lines from the University of Wisconsin System's mission statement (aka a little thing known as "The Wisconsin Idea"), including the phrase, "basic to every purpose of the system is the search for truth."...
War on Workers
Only 20% are Middle-Class, Most Don't Come Close  Economic Populist   …The number of 18-29 year olds who consider themselves  lower-middle-class has doubled since 2008 reaching 49%...
How Nebraska Took Its Energy Out of Corporate Hands and Made It Affordable for Everyone  Alternet   ...In Nebraska, 121 publicly owned utilities, ten cooperatives, and 30 public power districts provide electricity to a population of around 1.8 million people. Public and cooperative ownership keeps costs low for the state’s consumers. Nebraskans pay one of the lowest rates for electricity in the nation and revenues are reinvested in infrastructure to ensure reliable and cheap service for years to come...
Gallup CEO Fears He Might “Suddenly Disappear” for Questioning U.S. Jobs Data  Wall Street on Parade   ... the percent of full time jobs in this country as a percent of the adult population “is the worst it’s been in 30 years.”...
Coke Settles Labor Dispute With Dismissed Employee  Atlanta Journal Constitution   ...Coca-Cola has settled a National Labor Relations Board complaint with a former employee who claimed the beverage giant fired him in retaliation for his role in trying to organize a union at a metro Atlanta bottling plant...
Comcast Employee Killed While Working On Utility Pole In Glen Ridge  NJ.com   ...A Comcast worker was killed while apparently working on a utility pole in Glen Ridge this morning...
Miscellaneous
What will passengers stand for?  The Economist   ...YET again a story has surfaced of an airline trying to get approval for a standing section on a plane. Previously the idea was mooted by Michael O’Leary, the boss of Ryanair—although that was probably more attention-seeking than serious proposal. Now reports suggest that Spring Airlines, a Chinese budget carrier, is trying to get approval for standing posts, to which passengers could be strapped, presumably in a similar fashion to a Wall of Death fairground ride, although the airline might want to think of a better name than that...

Today's Teamster News 01.28.15

Teamsters
Robert Morales  IBT   ...We are saddened to report the death of Robert Morales, who passed away on January 26, 2015...
Credentialing Crunch  American Legion   ...Starting this winter, the Teamsters – with logistical support and backing from The American Legion – will begin offering civilian CDL training to enlisted military truck drivers. The training-to-placement program will set up shop on military bases and offer drivers the opportunity to earn their civilian CDLs before they are discharged...
Turbulance Ahead At Allegiant Air As Pilots Prepare For Strike  Global Travel Industry News   ...The International Brotherhood of Teamsters will host a call to update Allegiant Travel Company investors, industry analysts, customers and press regarding the current status of contract negotiations for Allegiant Air pilots, their recent strike authorization vote and the union's request for a proffer of arbitration from the National Mediation Board...
Teamsters Protest Labatt Beer At NHL All-Star Game  teamster.org   ...At the National Hockey League’s All-Star Game on Sunday, Teamsters who work at Heidelberg Distributing provided information to fans about anti-worker behavior by the company, which distributes Labatt Beer products in Ohio...
Leaked Memo: YRC Seeks To Outsource Unprofitable Runs  Kansas City Business Journal   ...A Dec. 18, 2014, memo obtained by the Kansas City Business Journal, details a change-of-operations request to the International Brotherhood of Teamsters that would allow the company to increase its use of interline carriers — third-party transportation providers — in areas currently served by YRC Worldwide Inc. employees...
Trade
TTIP Is Sputtering, But Other 'Trade' Deals Threaten Our Sovereignty  Ecologist   ...So far the talks have achieved little in terms of reaching agreement for specific market sectors. And they are facing increasing scepticism because of TTIP's plans to deregulate goods and services like health through 'harmonisation' of EU and US standards - something that in practice usually means levelling down...
Anti-Trade Deal Protesters Hijack Senate TPP Hearing  RT   ...Protesters opposed to a major, multi-national trade deal being negotiated in secret by a dozen countries – including the United States – hijacked a US Senate hearing early Tuesday to speak out against the proposal. Capitol Police removed no fewer than three demonstrators Tuesday morning during testimony delivered before the Senate Committee on Finance by US Trade Representative Michael Froman concerning the controversial Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP...
State Battles
Ky. attorney talks right-to-work  Politico   ...The conservative push to pass right-to-work ordinances at the county level has as its ultimate aim passage of right-to-work at the state level, according to Warren County, Kentucky’s public attorney...
Union says it won’t stand by as GOP attacks collective bargaining  Las Vegas Sun   ...Republicans are attacking working families with their proposals to upend collective bargaining in Nevada, Danny Thompson, executive vice treasurer of the Nevada AFL-CIO, said at a press conference this morning...
War on Workers
Middle Class Shrinks Further As More Fall Out Instead Of Climbing Up  New York Times   ...In the late 1960s, more than half of the households in the United States were squarely in the middle, earning, in today’s dollars, $35,000 to $100,000 a year. Few people noticed or cared as the size of that group began to fall, because the shift was primarily caused by more Americans climbing the economic ladder into upper-income brackets. But since 2000, the middle-class share of households has continued to narrow, the main reason being that more people have fallen to the bottom...
This Map Reveals Just How Unequal The So-Called Recovery Is  Huffington Post   ...In 39 U.S. states, the top 1 percent of earners gobbled up at least half of all of the income gains between 2009 and 2012. And in 17 of those states, the top earners got every bit of the income growth in those years...
Wall Street's Threat To The American Middle Class (opinion)  Huffington Post   ...Presidential aspirants in both parties are talking about saving the middle class. But the middle class can't be saved unless Wall Street is tamed. The Street's excesses pose a continuing danger to average Americans. And its ongoing use of confidential corporate information is defrauding millions of middle-class investors. Yet most presidential aspirants don't want to talk about taming the Street because Wall Street is one of their largest sources of campaign money...
Miscellaneous
CBO: Deficit To Narrow, Then Widen In ’18  Wall Street Journal   ...Existing budget restraints and stronger economic growth will chip away at the federal deficit into 2017 before the gap begins to widen again, the Congressional Budget Office said, providing ammunition for both parties ahead of the White House’s first budget proposal to the Republican-controlled Congress...

Teamsters, friends rise to food stamp defense

Americans angrily watching their standard of living decline look for blame in two places: above them, at predatory corporations and greedy billionaires, or below them, at people who need government help to survive.

We often point out that the predatory corporations and greedy billionaires also need government help -- a lot of it. Take Walmart: The six Walmart heirs own more than the bottom 40 percent of the U.S. population, according to Sen. Bernie Sanders. And yet Walmart couldn't employ its army of low-wage workers if the U.S. government didn't step in with Medicaid and food stamps (not to mention subsidizing the operations of its air fleet).

David G Perry gets it:

Poor people are not the problem ! Corporate welfare is !!

Lots of Teamsters and allies get it, in fact. We posted this badge on our Facebook page recently. See the responses below:

Elizabeth Luise The point is that anyone who is an E1 to E3 is living in poverty and if they can't get base housing they're really screwed. The number should be bigger. The shame of it is they're asked to put their life on the line for us and we keep them in poverty because of ignorant people following the GOP who think it's better to give someone the finger instead of a hand. 

Kymberly Lewis The point being - you don't KNOW the circumstances of those on food stamps. The single mom in the nice car? - it's her boss's car, he let her borrow it until she can afford to get hers fixed. The lazy freeloader who is able-bodied? - he has extreme PTSD and no access to mental health care. The "welfare queen" with the brand new, pretty finger nails? - her best friend paid for those as a birthday gift.

The point being - judge not lest ye be judged. I'm not Christian - but damn it if that isn't great advice. 

Roger N Esta Shelton Uh, I'm sorry, but if it were only ONE food stamp recipient that listed their occupation as "active duty military," that would be too damn many! 

Carol Ann Rose This is to those that think that people are collecting food stamps are not working. You are so wrong and why are you so jealous in the first place? Most people are working, but can't make ends meet on $7.25 an hour and besides, who knows, you just might be the next person that needs a little help. So keep quiet and Thank God that you are not there yet. God said to help the people. 

Alan Nejmeh That is why we need a minimum Livable Wage in this country for all nationalized citizen and adults. No exceptions! Then you will see a real economy with people that would be able to live. 

Bernadette Catherine Jo Cox Look, I work and have since I was 16 and I am not ashamed that for the last 13 years I have received assistance (my daughter is 13). I have worked 2 jobs, put myself through school, received no child support and he still has yet to be arrested or be in contempt when making an effort of $5 for three months is ok. It PISSES me off when people say people on assistance are free loaders. I have always had nice cars that my parents paid for, a cell phone that they paid for and clothes they paid for -- NOT ME. You know since I was busy holding down a minimum wage job going to school full time and being a single mom. They did those things to help me to get where I am today: teaching college, supporting myself and helping them out. Don't judge people, help them. Of course there are people who abuse the system. Report them. Don't look at my 5-year-old car and cell phone and name brand clothes from Goodwill and call me lazy. Folks, I busted my ass to get a college degree and I went without things that were basic necessities -- not wants. But family and friends helped me along the way. The state bought food, daycare and covered health insurance for my child, I qualified for help for me and cash but I never once took it, I just needed the basics. As far as military families on food stamps that's just well fucked up. These men n women put their lives on the line. Meanwhile, the pro athletes are millionaires? Priorities, people, come on! 

Elaine Taylor Amen, judge not. Had a man get pissed off when me and my small children were in Mc D's after Christmas. It was a gift card.

Today's Teamster News 08.01.13

Teamsters Protest McKesson's Worker Abuse And Executive Pay At Shareholder Meeting  IBT   ...Teamsters from across the country protested today outside the annual shareholder meeting of San Francisco-based McKesson Corporation, North America’s leading pharmaceutical distributor...
No end in sight for Teamsters strike against Gold Cross  Imperial Valley Press   ...The Gold Cross ambulance employees strike entered its third day Tuesday, and with talks between the company and the employees’ union at a standstill, there is no end in sight...
UPS Freight Negotiations Update  IBT   ...The UPS Freight National Negotiating Committee met today to discuss concerns that members have raised about the tentative agreement that was rejected. The committee also discussed the next steps for continuing negotiations with the company so that an agreement can be put to another membership vote. View the memo here...
Civil Service ruling in Scranton Parking Authority case seen as harbinger   Scranton Times-Tribune   ...A state Civil Service Commission dismissal of a furlough appeal by Scranton Parking Authority's former executive director may be a harbinger in an unrelated arbitration case involving union workers, who are members of Teamsters Local 229, who also were laid off...
2013 Teamsters Leadership Academy (TLA) Course Summary and Registration Form  IBT   ...Check out the Teamsters Leadership Academy schedule of programs for Teamster leaders that available for the remainder of this year. Download the schedule here...
Economic Recovery by Statistical Manipulation  Counterpunch   ...he Obama administration will announce a major revision of how it calculates GDP which will bump up GDP numbers by as much as 3% according to some estimates...
New Amtrak trains, made in USA  manufacture this   ...The Department of Transportation reports that the first of Amtrak's new fleet of electric locomotives, called Cities Sprinters, rolled out of a Siemens plant in Sacramento, CA...
Trucks transported 60.8% of U.S.-NAFTA trade in May 2013   Trucker News Services   ...The Bureau of Transportation Statistics released May, North American Free Trade Agreement freight numbers showing that trucks carried 60.8 percent of the $98.6 billion of freight moved in May 2013 between the United States and its NAFTA partners, Canada and Mexico...
Union leader says BART contract talks were unproductive  KTVU News   ...BART management met with union leaders again Tuesday to try to reach an agreement before the contract for the transit agency's employees expires Sunday night but a union official said the talks weren't productive...
Protests about low wages continue in Kansas City  Kansas City Star   ...Stand Up KC, a campaign to give a collective voice to low-paid fast-food workers, staged a rally and march Tuesday afternoon at which 500 people advocated for higher pay and union rights...
Bankrupt Detroit Receives Less U.S. Aid Than Colombia  Bloomberg News   ...President Barack Obama proposed giving Colombia about $323 million in aid next year, mostly to combat drug trafficking and violence. Detroit, with an 81 percent higher homicide rate, will get $108.2 million...
Walmart Embroiled in D.C. Wage Battle  KNWA-TV   ...Walmart is threatening to pull out three of its stores that are planned to open this fall in the nation's capital. If the mayor signs the Large Retailer Accountability Act that was passed by the D.C. Council, the corporation could be forced to pay its employees more than $4 above minimum wage...
Fox Claims That Feeding Seniors In Need Is An Effort To Buy Their Vote  Media Matters for America   ...Fox News continued its campaign to demonize programs that provide necessary food assistance to millions of Americans by attacking the AARP's effort to enroll eligible seniors in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), baselessly claiming the program was an effort to buy their vote and dismissing the fact that many eligible seniors find it difficult to get the assistance they need...
Prison Guard Union Still Smarting Over Closure Announcement  WXXI News   ...Correction officers say they are still in “shock”, that late on a July Friday, with very little advance warning, New York's Gov. Cuomo’s prison agency announced the closure of four prisons within the next year...
Group accuses Apple supplier of labor abuses  Associated Press   ...A labor rights group Monday accused a Chinese company that makes iPhones for Apple Inc. (AAPL) (AAPL) of abuses including withholding employees' pay and excessive working hours...
Opinion: NC House Dances With Joy Over Their Accomplishments  CNN iReport  ...It should have been a solemn day last Thursday when the NC General Assembly passed legislation that has been called the most severe voter restrictions  ... in the country, but instead there was fiddling, dancing and ice cream...

Soldier: Unions fight for us in America

Army Specialist John P. Murphy is a member of Teamsters Local 25 in Boston. He was wounded in Afghanistan a few weeks ago and has been recommended for the Medal of Valor. Murphy came to the 28th International Brotherhood of Teamsters Convention last week and said something that may surprise a few people:

What you may not realize is how much the American military appreciates the men and women like yourselves, and I’ll tell you why.

As soldiers serving overseas, we are constantly thinking about our future and the welfare of our families. As men and women return from combat and conclude their careers in the military, there are no guaranteed jobs for us waiting.

However, with the help of the people in this room and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, soldiers can take comfort in knowing that while we defend America’s freedom overseas, men and women like yourselves are fighting  for us and the rights of every working man in this country.

You can see more highlights from the Teamsters convention at www.teamster.org/convention.

To save lives, military turns to renewable energy

The New York Times had a great story today about how the military is going green because it's safer for the troops. Perhaps it's a parable for the whole planet. Around the world, workers are dying on oil rigs and in refinery explosions, not to mention the wars that start over oil fields.

Today the Times reports that truck convoys hauling fuel to bases in Iraq and Afghanistan have been sitting ducks for the enemy. One person is killed for every 24 fuel convoys that set out. And so,

With insurgents increasingly attacking the American fuel supply convoys that lumber across the Khyber Pass into Afghanistan, the military is pushing aggressively to develop, test and deploy renewable energy to decrease its need to transport fossil fuels.

The military's appetite for equipment that runs on renewable energy brings with it a bright promise. Combined, the Army, Air Force, Navy and Marines have the buying paper to create products and markets.

Some cool things the military is doing include:

• A Marine company from California brought to Helmand Province portable solar panels that fold into boxes; energy-saving lights; solar tent shields that provide shade and electricity; solar chargers for computers.
• The Navy introduced its first hybrid vessel, an amphibious assault ship called the U.S.S. Makin Island. It runs on electricity under 10 knots runs on electricity instead of fossil fuel
• The Air Force has flown test flights using a mix of plant-based biofuel and jet fuel.

Teamster General President Jim Hoffa has argued for years that we need to get America running on clean energy. The Teamsters are pushing for green jobs that pay workers decent wages and benefits.

Good to know the military is helping to pioneer our transformation into an economy based on renewable energy.