Teamsters
Brockton Custodians Ratify First Teamsters Contract Teamster.org ...By a vote of 90-6, custodians, craftsmen and outside ground crews in the Brockton township public school system have voted to ratify their first-ever collective bargaining agreement with Teamsters Local 653 in South Easton, Mass. This continues the tradition of strong contracts and benefits that has been a hallmark of Local 653’s representation of its members...
Labor Unrest At California Ports Continue As More Subcontracted Workers Go On Strike In These Times ...The nation’s largest port—spread across parts of both Los Angeles and Long Beach, CA—is a strangely varied workplace. And after years of tenacious effort, workers throughout the port may soon share one important tool their predecessors once had: a union and, therefore, a better job...
Drivers Who Shuttle Genentech Workers Will Get Wage Increase San Francisco Chronicle ...Shuttle drivers who transport Genentech employees received a wage increase Thursday as negotiations continue between their employer, Compass Transportation, and the Teamsters...
Teachers, Drivers Team Up Against Violence From Students WHAS ...For the first time the Jefferson County Teachers Association and the union for the bus drivers, are teaming up and fighting back...
Truck Driver Run Over By Own Trailer At Port Of Long Beach Last Week, Police Say Long Beach Post ...A truck driver was fatally struck by his own vehicle last week at the Port of Long Beach (POLB) when he attempted to unlatch a trailer from his tractor, which was not adequately parked, authorities said. The International Brotherhood of Teamsters held a press conference yesterday demanding more information from port. Details regarding the fatality were released by the Long Beach Police Department (LBPD) today...
Union Questions Plan To Shift City Workers To GSD Chicago Tribune ...On Monday, Paul Berkowitz, an attorney for Teamsters Local 142, in Gary, sought clarification from the GSD commissioners. He said 37 Teamsters received a letter from the city's human resources department stating they would be transferred to the GSD by Dec. 4. He said 14 members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) would also shift to GSD...
Global Labor & Trade
Car Industry 'Buried Report Revealing U.S. Car Safety Flaws Over Fears For TTIP Deal' The Independent ...The motor industry has been accused of withholding a report that reveals US cars are substantially less safe than European vehicles - for fear that the findings would hamper the drive to harmonise safety standards as part of the controversial Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) deal...
Japan TPP Chief Negotiator: Broad Agreement Is Within Reach: Jiji Reuters ...Japan's chief negotiator for the 12-nation pan-Pacific trade talks said on Friday a broad agreement of the ambitious trade pact was within reach, Jiji news agency reported...
State & Living Wage Battles
The Great Divide In Workplace Benefits New York Times ...For a small, lucky set of parents, the work-family juggle is relatively easy. Their employers give them paid leave; nannies to accompany them on business trips; flexible hours; child and elder care; and even on-site haircuts and nap rooms. For the rest of American workers, life tends to be much more difficult...
Fairness For Franchise Businesses And Workers New York Times ...In California today, nearly 83,000 fast-food restaurants, convenience stores and other franchise businesses generate $94 billion in annual revenue and employ almost one million people. In California, and in the rest of the nation, however, developments in franchise law in recent decades have increasingly reduced the power of franchisees in dealings with their corporate parents. The result has been lower franchisee profits and lower worker pay, while corporate profits and executive compensation soar...
Council Will Consider $15 Minimum Wage For Santa Monica Santa Monica Lookout ...Santa Monica’s lowest wage earners could soon get a raise. The City Council on Tuesday will consider a gradual minimum wage hike that calls for it to reach $15 in 2020...
U.S. Labor
Troubling Signs Emerge In UAW-FCA Contract Voting Detroit Free Press ...Signs began to emerge late Thursday that a proposed contract between the UAW and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is in early trouble as large UAW locals in Sterling Heights, Center Line and Kokomo, Ind. voted against the new four-year deal...
I'm Making Only $2.64 An Hour Working As An Uber Driver AlterNet ...Twenty-six-year-old Takele Gobena is part of the “on-demand” economy, working full-time as a driver for Uber and part time for Lyft. The Ethiopian immigrant quit his job at the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and purchased a new car to drive for the ride-hailing firms, believing it would make him a better provider for his one-year-old daughter. Instead, Gobena now finds himself in debt and, after expenses, making well below minimum wage. But because Uber and Lyft drivers are classified as independent contractors, Gobena is not protected by minimum wage laws...
Social Justice & Other News
We Need To Protect And Preserve Public Housing In New York City New York Amsterdam News ...May 19, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced his 10-year plan to eliminate NYCHA’s operating deficit to prevent the downfall of a program that houses over 600,000 and employs over 11,000 New Yorkers. In fact, 1 out of every 8 New Yorkers lives in NYCHA housing...
John Boehner To Resign From Congress At End Of October Huffington Post ...House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) will resign from Congress at the end of October, his office announced Friday...
Pope Francis’ Challenge To America New York Times ...In an address of memorable passion and nuance, Francis focused widely on the divisive immigration issues at home and abroad, the economic divide driving poverty, the threat to the environment, the “brutal atrocities” and “simplistic reductionism” of the world’s continuing conflicts, and the need, above all, for “courageous actions and strategies” rather than “facile proposals” from leaders responsible for solutions...
Pope To U.N.: Economics, Climate Change, And War Are All Connected Think Progress ...Pope Francis spoke before the United Nations General Assembly Friday morning, articulating an urgent — but intentionally nuanced — call to address the world’s many interconnected problems, especially economic inequality, climate change, and war...
China Says It Will Start The World's Biggest Carbon Market By 2017 Mother Jones ...On Friday, Chinese president Xi Jinping will announce that China will start the world's largest carbon trading system by 2017, according to a statement released Thursday night by the White House...
Astounding Drug Prices Show How U.S. Government Is In Cahoots With Big Pharma AlterNet ...While Shkreli’s move may have been extremely ostentatious, and drawn the public’s attention, the issue of overpriced drugs in America is one that is not confined to Shkreli and Turing Pharmaceuticals...
How Many Deaths Did Volkswagen's Pollution Scandal Cause? Vox ...Using these figures, the extra pollution from Volkswagen's US cars can be expected to lead to an additional 5 to 27 premature deaths per year. If we extrapolated worldwide to all 11 million vehicles, that would come to somewhere between 74 and 404 premature deaths each year...
Showing posts with label public health. Show all posts
Showing posts with label public health. Show all posts
Friday, September 25, 2015
Tuesday, April 7, 2015
Today's Teamster News 04.07.15
Teamsters
Strike delayed, Allegiant pilots union explains stance, next move Tampa Bay Business Journal ...Friday is the next milestone in the labor dispute between Allegiant Airlines and its pilots. That day brings to an end a temporary court injunction preventing the pilots from striking. The pilots are effectively threatening to strike to restore the conditions that existed before they decided to join the International Brotherhood of Teamsters in 2012...
Global Labor & Trade
Health experts worried as Trans Pacific Partnership negotiations conclude Sydney Morning Herald ...Eight health and community organisations have written to the Trade Minister Andrew Robb expressing "grave concerns" about the latest leaked draft of the nearly concluded Trans Pacific Partnership trade agreement. The organisations released a health impact assessment which found that the the investor‐state dispute settlement clauses were a threat to public health and recommended that ISDS be excluded from the agreement altogether...
The global south has free trade to thank for its obesity and diabetes epidemic The Guardian ...You wouldn’t think that free-trade deals could lead to a diabetes and obesity epidemic, but they have. Today, many countries in the global south are seeing an explosion of these afflictions - all because their governments welcomed in transnational food companies looking for new “growth markets”...
Strikes Grow in China as Grassroots Labor Movement Takes Shape Common Dreams ...As the economic landscape in China continues to shift, an awakening working class is demanding fair treatment and higher wages—and the movement is picking up steam...
State & Living Wage Battles
Weeks After Rushing Right-To-Work, Wisconsin Republicans Prepare Their Next Attack On Labor Think Progress ...Rep. Rob Hutton (R-Brookfield) plans to tack his bill to repeal the state’s nearly century-old “prevailing wage” law for construction workers on local and state projects onto the massive state budget that must pass some time in the next few months...
Scott Walker Controls Wisconsin’s Executive and Legislative Branches. Now His Minions Are Gunning For the Judicial The Nation ...Walker’s allies are focused on securing control of the judicial branch of state government in Wisconsin. The Republican Party of Wisconsin and groups that have consistently backed Walker’s agenda are leading the charge to oust a state Supreme Court justice who has championed judicial independence and to change the way in which the high court is organized...
Our Corporate Saviors (opinion) Huffington Post ...Outfits like McDonalds decide to make a virtue of necessity and pat themselves on the back for paying a bit more. They hope that these gestures will take some of the wind out of organizing drives. But moves like these should teach the opposite lesson--namely, that pressure works...
Extreme ‘Religious Liberty’ Bill Could Make Louisiana The Next Indiana Think Progress ...Louisiana is the latest state considering adopting a religious freedom bill, after state Rep. Mike Johnson (R) introduced legislation Friday that could allow businesses to refuse service for same-sex weddings and deny benefits to employees in same-sex marriages...
How Elizabeth Warren Made Expanding Social Security Cool Mother Jones ...For years, Washington politicians and policymakers been talking about cutting Social Security benefits. The Beltway consensus, unduly shaped by deficit hawks and Wall Streeters, has been that the system is broken and must be pared back, and progressives who support Social Security have often had to play defense. But in late March, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the populist Democrat from Massachusetts, entered the fray—and challenged the prevailing view...
U.S. Labor
Automakers, labor union face a long, hot summer of contract talks Fortune ...Although the Detroit-based auto industry and the United Auto Workers union are still a few months away from serious negotiations, early signs aren’t favorable for a labor contract settled on mutually agreeable terms...
BP Whiting Refinery strike hits 2-month mark Chicago Tribune ...The union said it gave its last offer to BP on Thursday and has yet to hear from the company. Workers are standing by their union leaders, though some say it has been rough on them and their families financially...
EEOC: New York City owes underpaid minority female employees $246 million NY Daily News ...The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruled that New York City underpaid a thousand black and Hispanic female employees, a finding that could cost hundreds of millions of dollars. The Communications Workers of America lodged the complaint...
Miscellaneous
Nestlé’s despicable water-crisis profiteering: How it’s making a killing — while California is dying of thirst Salon ...While California suffers through a historic 4-year drought, the corporate giant has made billions on bottled water. Nestlé has a 25-year contract with the Morongo Band of Cahuila Mission Indians to draw water from wells in Millard Canyon, in the desert city of Cabazon...
U.S. Spending Historic Amount Fighting Homelessness, And It's Working: Report Huffington Post ...Uncle Sam is prioritizing the fight against homelessness like he never has before. Federal funding for programs addressing homelessness is at its highest level ever, according to a report by the National Alliance to End Homelessness provided to The Huffington Post...
Is Your Favorite Baseball Team's Owner Still An Asshole? Mother Jones ...Chicago White Sox [owner] Jerry Reinsdorf made his fortune as a real estate developer who specialized in building tax shelters. One of the league's most anti-union owners, he was accused of colluding with fellow owners to drive down player salaries. He gives millions to charter schools, but takes even more out of the city's coffers thanks to a sweetheart deal that allows him to pay just 25 percent of the standard property tax rate for the United Center (home of the NBA's Chicago Bulls, which he also owns)...
Strike delayed, Allegiant pilots union explains stance, next move Tampa Bay Business Journal ...Friday is the next milestone in the labor dispute between Allegiant Airlines and its pilots. That day brings to an end a temporary court injunction preventing the pilots from striking. The pilots are effectively threatening to strike to restore the conditions that existed before they decided to join the International Brotherhood of Teamsters in 2012...
Global Labor & Trade
Health experts worried as Trans Pacific Partnership negotiations conclude Sydney Morning Herald ...Eight health and community organisations have written to the Trade Minister Andrew Robb expressing "grave concerns" about the latest leaked draft of the nearly concluded Trans Pacific Partnership trade agreement. The organisations released a health impact assessment which found that the the investor‐state dispute settlement clauses were a threat to public health and recommended that ISDS be excluded from the agreement altogether...
The global south has free trade to thank for its obesity and diabetes epidemic The Guardian ...You wouldn’t think that free-trade deals could lead to a diabetes and obesity epidemic, but they have. Today, many countries in the global south are seeing an explosion of these afflictions - all because their governments welcomed in transnational food companies looking for new “growth markets”...
Strikes Grow in China as Grassroots Labor Movement Takes Shape Common Dreams ...As the economic landscape in China continues to shift, an awakening working class is demanding fair treatment and higher wages—and the movement is picking up steam...
State & Living Wage Battles
Weeks After Rushing Right-To-Work, Wisconsin Republicans Prepare Their Next Attack On Labor Think Progress ...Rep. Rob Hutton (R-Brookfield) plans to tack his bill to repeal the state’s nearly century-old “prevailing wage” law for construction workers on local and state projects onto the massive state budget that must pass some time in the next few months...
Scott Walker Controls Wisconsin’s Executive and Legislative Branches. Now His Minions Are Gunning For the Judicial The Nation ...Walker’s allies are focused on securing control of the judicial branch of state government in Wisconsin. The Republican Party of Wisconsin and groups that have consistently backed Walker’s agenda are leading the charge to oust a state Supreme Court justice who has championed judicial independence and to change the way in which the high court is organized...
Our Corporate Saviors (opinion) Huffington Post ...Outfits like McDonalds decide to make a virtue of necessity and pat themselves on the back for paying a bit more. They hope that these gestures will take some of the wind out of organizing drives. But moves like these should teach the opposite lesson--namely, that pressure works...
Extreme ‘Religious Liberty’ Bill Could Make Louisiana The Next Indiana Think Progress ...Louisiana is the latest state considering adopting a religious freedom bill, after state Rep. Mike Johnson (R) introduced legislation Friday that could allow businesses to refuse service for same-sex weddings and deny benefits to employees in same-sex marriages...
How Elizabeth Warren Made Expanding Social Security Cool Mother Jones ...For years, Washington politicians and policymakers been talking about cutting Social Security benefits. The Beltway consensus, unduly shaped by deficit hawks and Wall Streeters, has been that the system is broken and must be pared back, and progressives who support Social Security have often had to play defense. But in late March, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, the populist Democrat from Massachusetts, entered the fray—and challenged the prevailing view...
U.S. Labor
Automakers, labor union face a long, hot summer of contract talks Fortune ...Although the Detroit-based auto industry and the United Auto Workers union are still a few months away from serious negotiations, early signs aren’t favorable for a labor contract settled on mutually agreeable terms...
BP Whiting Refinery strike hits 2-month mark Chicago Tribune ...The union said it gave its last offer to BP on Thursday and has yet to hear from the company. Workers are standing by their union leaders, though some say it has been rough on them and their families financially...
EEOC: New York City owes underpaid minority female employees $246 million NY Daily News ...The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruled that New York City underpaid a thousand black and Hispanic female employees, a finding that could cost hundreds of millions of dollars. The Communications Workers of America lodged the complaint...
Raising Wages From the Bottom Up American Prospect ...The third way cities and states can build worker power is to stop the illegal practice of worker misclassification. Over the past several decades, many U.S. companies have relieved themselves of the obligation to provide their workers with benefits or pay them an adequate wage, through the expedient of declaring their workers not to be their employees.
Douglas County Fined For Violating Child Labor Laws Grand Island Independent ...A federal agency has fined Douglas County for violating child labor laws by letting four teenagers load a wood chipper last summer. The U.S. Department of Labor issued $3,100 in fines after discovering that four underage employees operated a wood chipper while temporarily working on a maintenance crew for the county engineer. Child labor laws allow only adults to do this...
Douglas County Fined For Violating Child Labor Laws Grand Island Independent ...A federal agency has fined Douglas County for violating child labor laws by letting four teenagers load a wood chipper last summer. The U.S. Department of Labor issued $3,100 in fines after discovering that four underage employees operated a wood chipper while temporarily working on a maintenance crew for the county engineer. Child labor laws allow only adults to do this...
Miscellaneous
Nestlé’s despicable water-crisis profiteering: How it’s making a killing — while California is dying of thirst Salon ...While California suffers through a historic 4-year drought, the corporate giant has made billions on bottled water. Nestlé has a 25-year contract with the Morongo Band of Cahuila Mission Indians to draw water from wells in Millard Canyon, in the desert city of Cabazon...
U.S. Spending Historic Amount Fighting Homelessness, And It's Working: Report Huffington Post ...Uncle Sam is prioritizing the fight against homelessness like he never has before. Federal funding for programs addressing homelessness is at its highest level ever, according to a report by the National Alliance to End Homelessness provided to The Huffington Post...
Is Your Favorite Baseball Team's Owner Still An Asshole? Mother Jones ...Chicago White Sox [owner] Jerry Reinsdorf made his fortune as a real estate developer who specialized in building tax shelters. One of the league's most anti-union owners, he was accused of colluding with fellow owners to drive down player salaries. He gives millions to charter schools, but takes even more out of the city's coffers thanks to a sweetheart deal that allows him to pay just 25 percent of the standard property tax rate for the United Center (home of the NBA's Chicago Bulls, which he also owns)...
Friday, February 21, 2014
Today's Teamster News 02.21.14
Teamster News
Massachusetts Highway Workers Unanimously Ratify Contract teamster.org ...Workers with the Newbury Highway Department in Newbury, Mass., have voted unanimously to ratify a strong contract, securing wage increases and job protections. The highway workers, who are members of Teamsters Local 170 in Worcester, Mass., joined the union in December and quickly negotiated a solid agreement...
Baltimore City School Bus Workers Win $1.25 Million Wage Settlement teamster.org ...Baltimore school bus drivers and attendants have reached a $1.25 million wage settlement with their employer, Durham School Services, the transportation contractor for Baltimore City Public Schools...
Pleasanton-based Safeway in discussions to sell company San Jose Mercury News ...In a move poised to rattle the supermarket industry, one of the East Bay's largest employers, Safeway, announced Wednesday that it is in talks to sell the company...
Film tax credit bill goes live Sacramento Business Journal ...Democratic Assemblymembers Raul Bocanegra and Mike Gatto released a film tax credit bill Wednesday that supporters say will protect jobs by keeping film crews in California....
Why privatizing toll collection is a horrible idea teamsternation ...If the New Jersey Turnpike Commission privatizes toll collection, workers who have already taken enormous cuts to pay and benefits will suffer...
Eight lies ‘advocates’ told about carriage horses New York Post ...the carriage industry is well-regulated and safe. NYCLASS attacks us not with facts and well-reasoned arguments, but with emotional manipulation and outright lies...
Judge strikes down Nebraska law that allowed Keystone XL pipeline Dallas Morning News ...A Nebraska judge on Wednesday struck down a law that allowed the Keystone XL pipeline to proceed through the state, a victory for opponents who have tried to block the project that would carry oil from Canada to Texas refineries...
The War on Workers
GOP’s Social Security disaster: Conservatives just lost their chance to cut benefits Salon ...The president dropping Chained CPI from his budget is a reprieve for the left -- and a message to the right...
Federal Government Soon to Know Everywhere You've Driven American Prospect ...There are more license-plate cameras installed all the time. Now the government wants to put all the data together in one database...
Flu Deaths Rise Among Young and Middle-Aged U.S. Adults Bloomberg ...While influenza traditionally affects children and the elderly hardest, adults under age 65 accounted for 61 percent of hospitalizations so far this season, an increase from 35 percent last year, according to a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report...
New Report Exposes America's Highest Paid Government Workers truthout ...America’s highest paid "government" workers are not your local teachers, nurses, or sanitation workers. Rather, they are corporate executives who sign lucrative contracts to take over public services and then pay themselves and other executives eye-popping salaries...
Victoria's anti-protest laws pass lower house by one vote The Guardian ...Controversial new laws giving police unprecedented powers to disperse protests have passed Victoria’s lower house...
New Report: Port Trucking Companies Steal More Than $1 Billion in Wages From Drivers In These Times ...The port brings in close to $16 billion per year, but the drivers only see a tiny bit of that money. This is in large part because they're “misclassified” as independent contractors...
State Battles
Concerned Missourians Deliver More than 6,850 Letters Calling on Speaker To Drop ALEC's 'Right-To-Work' Legislation Attacks Progress Missouri ...“We need to be building an economy that works for everyone, not political attacks and favors to special interest donors...”
Employers could pay less in lawsuits over unpaid wages Indianapolis Star ...Long-sought changes limiting employers’ liability when being sued by workers for unpaid wages may come to pass under a House bill backed by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. The bill also would set up a framework to allow employers to take money out of wages of employees — if they agree — to repay loans for work-related equipment and job training...
The Top Five Things You Need to Know about the John Doe Emails Center for Media and Democracy ... in 2010 while Walker was running for governor, he corresponded consistently with key campaign and county staff from a private account in the middle of the work day and apparently on the secret Wi-Fi system set up by top aide Tim Russell...
Scott Walker Ordered Doctor Fired Because She Was Once A Thong Model Huffington Post ... In April 2010, Scott Walker and his staff realized they had a potential problem on their hands that would require them to quietly fire a woman who appeared to be completely competent at her job. The issue was that she had what they perceived to be a "checkered" past: She used to be a thong model...
Chris Christie's Mansion Fund Collected Millions From Political Favor Seekers Huffington Post ...A review of IRS records and Drumthwacket donor lists, however, suggest that prospective donors saw the mansion as something more than just an altruistic investment. Contributions to Drumthwacket often coincided with the donors' attempts to win tax breaks, political appointments or other support from Christie and his appointees. In many cases, the donors, like the Strangfelds, got what they wanted...
SC guv says she wears heels to kick unions teamsternation ...South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley would rather let the people of her state go without jobs than let them get union jobs...
Trade
“Free Trade” Pacts Were Always About Weakening Nation-States to Promote Rule by Multinationals naked capitalism ...the idea behind getting rid of these barriers wasn’t about free trade, it was about reorganizing the world so that corporations could manage resources for “the benefit of mankind”...
Miscellaneous
Madoff said JPMorgan executives knew of his fraud: lawsuit Reuters ..."JPMorgan was uniquely positioned for 20 years to see Madoff's crimes and put a stop to them," the lawsuit said. "But faced with the prospect of shutting down Madoff's account and losing lucrative profits," it added, "JPMorgan - at its highest level - chose to turn a blind eye."...
Massachusetts Highway Workers Unanimously Ratify Contract teamster.org ...Workers with the Newbury Highway Department in Newbury, Mass., have voted unanimously to ratify a strong contract, securing wage increases and job protections. The highway workers, who are members of Teamsters Local 170 in Worcester, Mass., joined the union in December and quickly negotiated a solid agreement...
Baltimore City School Bus Workers Win $1.25 Million Wage Settlement teamster.org ...Baltimore school bus drivers and attendants have reached a $1.25 million wage settlement with their employer, Durham School Services, the transportation contractor for Baltimore City Public Schools...
Pleasanton-based Safeway in discussions to sell company San Jose Mercury News ...In a move poised to rattle the supermarket industry, one of the East Bay's largest employers, Safeway, announced Wednesday that it is in talks to sell the company...
Film tax credit bill goes live Sacramento Business Journal ...Democratic Assemblymembers Raul Bocanegra and Mike Gatto released a film tax credit bill Wednesday that supporters say will protect jobs by keeping film crews in California....
Why privatizing toll collection is a horrible idea teamsternation ...If the New Jersey Turnpike Commission privatizes toll collection, workers who have already taken enormous cuts to pay and benefits will suffer...
Eight lies ‘advocates’ told about carriage horses New York Post ...the carriage industry is well-regulated and safe. NYCLASS attacks us not with facts and well-reasoned arguments, but with emotional manipulation and outright lies...
Judge strikes down Nebraska law that allowed Keystone XL pipeline Dallas Morning News ...A Nebraska judge on Wednesday struck down a law that allowed the Keystone XL pipeline to proceed through the state, a victory for opponents who have tried to block the project that would carry oil from Canada to Texas refineries...
The War on Workers
GOP’s Social Security disaster: Conservatives just lost their chance to cut benefits Salon ...The president dropping Chained CPI from his budget is a reprieve for the left -- and a message to the right...
Federal Government Soon to Know Everywhere You've Driven American Prospect ...There are more license-plate cameras installed all the time. Now the government wants to put all the data together in one database...
Flu Deaths Rise Among Young and Middle-Aged U.S. Adults Bloomberg ...While influenza traditionally affects children and the elderly hardest, adults under age 65 accounted for 61 percent of hospitalizations so far this season, an increase from 35 percent last year, according to a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report...
New Report Exposes America's Highest Paid Government Workers truthout ...America’s highest paid "government" workers are not your local teachers, nurses, or sanitation workers. Rather, they are corporate executives who sign lucrative contracts to take over public services and then pay themselves and other executives eye-popping salaries...
Victoria's anti-protest laws pass lower house by one vote The Guardian ...Controversial new laws giving police unprecedented powers to disperse protests have passed Victoria’s lower house...
New Report: Port Trucking Companies Steal More Than $1 Billion in Wages From Drivers In These Times ...The port brings in close to $16 billion per year, but the drivers only see a tiny bit of that money. This is in large part because they're “misclassified” as independent contractors...
State Battles
Concerned Missourians Deliver More than 6,850 Letters Calling on Speaker To Drop ALEC's 'Right-To-Work' Legislation Attacks Progress Missouri ...“We need to be building an economy that works for everyone, not political attacks and favors to special interest donors...”
Employers could pay less in lawsuits over unpaid wages Indianapolis Star ...Long-sought changes limiting employers’ liability when being sued by workers for unpaid wages may come to pass under a House bill backed by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce. The bill also would set up a framework to allow employers to take money out of wages of employees — if they agree — to repay loans for work-related equipment and job training...
The Top Five Things You Need to Know about the John Doe Emails Center for Media and Democracy ... in 2010 while Walker was running for governor, he corresponded consistently with key campaign and county staff from a private account in the middle of the work day and apparently on the secret Wi-Fi system set up by top aide Tim Russell...
Scott Walker Ordered Doctor Fired Because She Was Once A Thong Model Huffington Post ... In April 2010, Scott Walker and his staff realized they had a potential problem on their hands that would require them to quietly fire a woman who appeared to be completely competent at her job. The issue was that she had what they perceived to be a "checkered" past: She used to be a thong model...
Chris Christie's Mansion Fund Collected Millions From Political Favor Seekers Huffington Post ...A review of IRS records and Drumthwacket donor lists, however, suggest that prospective donors saw the mansion as something more than just an altruistic investment. Contributions to Drumthwacket often coincided with the donors' attempts to win tax breaks, political appointments or other support from Christie and his appointees. In many cases, the donors, like the Strangfelds, got what they wanted...
SC guv says she wears heels to kick unions teamsternation ...South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley would rather let the people of her state go without jobs than let them get union jobs...
Trade
“Free Trade” Pacts Were Always About Weakening Nation-States to Promote Rule by Multinationals naked capitalism ...the idea behind getting rid of these barriers wasn’t about free trade, it was about reorganizing the world so that corporations could manage resources for “the benefit of mankind”...
Miscellaneous
Madoff said JPMorgan executives knew of his fraud: lawsuit Reuters ..."JPMorgan was uniquely positioned for 20 years to see Madoff's crimes and put a stop to them," the lawsuit said. "But faced with the prospect of shutting down Madoff's account and losing lucrative profits," it added, "JPMorgan - at its highest level - chose to turn a blind eye."...
Thursday, September 5, 2013
TPP’s effect on tobacco, trade deficits is reason enough to stop deal
Facts about the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) continued to
dribble out and they’re not good. The latest on the secret Pacific Rim trade
pact is the U.S. backs watered-down language about tobacco that would allow the scourge of
smoking to continue to spread globally.
As it stands, the TPP will cost U.S. jobs, put Americans’
health at risk, hurt the environment and threaten Internet freedom. But now the
Obama administration is backing away from tobacco tariffs that would keep
cigarette costs high and reduce the health risks of smoking. Public health
officials are rightfully angry.
As it stands, the TPP will cost U.S. jobs, put Americans’
health at risk, hurt the environment and threaten Internet freedom. But now the
Obama administration is backing away from tobacco tariffs that would keep
cigarette costs high and reduce the health risks of smoking. Public health
officials are rightfully angry.
The Center for Policy Analysis on Trade and Health noted that instead of making it easier
for corporations to sell tobacco, the U.S. should be making it harder:
U.S. laws prohibit the U.S. from using trade agreements to promote the sale or export of tobacco products. But the U.S proposes to eliminate tariffs on tobacco for TPP countries, which would mean cheaper prices for cigarettes, and increased consumption and use, especially among younger people.
Meanwhile, the Obama administration and some members of Congress
want to plow ahead and vote on the TPP without debating its merits. No doubt multinational
corporations are working hard to persuade them that the deal is good for
America. It really isn’t.
Just look with what’s happening with trade between the U.S. and China. New numbers show that America’s
trade deficit with China reached a record $30.1 billion in July, up 13.3 percent. Behind
that number are lost jobs – good manufacturing jobs. More jobs are likely to be lost under the TPP.
That’s why the deal can’t just be pushed through Congress.
Top TPP negotiators from the U.S. and 11 other involved
nations are expected to meet Sept. 18-21 in Washington to continue talks.
American trade negotiators must oppose unfair trade rules that threaten jobs
and health.
The U.S. government needs to remember that most citizens support trade, but they don't support trading well-paying American jobs and safe American products for lost jobs, lower wages and products that make our families sick.
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Today's Teamster News 01.10.13
Hilda Solis Resigns Talking Points Memo ...Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis is stepping down, having served since 2009...
Americans less healthy than others AFP ...Americans are in worse health, die earlier and suffer from more disease than residents of other wealthy nations, according to a new study out Wednesday...
Wal-Mart teams with UPS to fight Amazon The Slant ...Big-box giant offers same-day delivery to fend off e-commerce nemesis...
AIG Generously Decides Not To Sue The Country That Bailed It Out zero hedge ...American International Group Inc.'s directors decided Wednesday not to participate in a lawsuit that accuses the U.S. government of taking advantage of the company in its rescue from the financial crisis...
A dozen inmates from controversial work release facility sent back to prison Tampa Bay Times ...A dozen inmates living at a Goodwill-run work release center were sent back to prison this week after state authorities conducted a surprise security audit...
State ranked 42nd in job creation at midyear, census report shows Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ...The data, which covers the 12 months from June 2011 to June 2012, shows that Wisconsin's position worsened from a rank of 37 in the previous period from March 2011 to March 2012...
Horizon Air, Teamsters Ratify Six-Year Contract Benzinga ...Horizon Air and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters announced today that the carrier's 610 pilots ratified an agreement to extend the current contract for three years, creating a new six-year pact. Among pilots who voted, 77 percent approved ratification...
Teamsters Hail Fact-Finder's Report To End Concord Furloughs, Raise Pay Local 856 ...City workers' union urges city council to take control of the process...
Americans less healthy than others AFP ...Americans are in worse health, die earlier and suffer from more disease than residents of other wealthy nations, according to a new study out Wednesday...
Wal-Mart teams with UPS to fight Amazon The Slant ...Big-box giant offers same-day delivery to fend off e-commerce nemesis...
AIG Generously Decides Not To Sue The Country That Bailed It Out zero hedge ...American International Group Inc.'s directors decided Wednesday not to participate in a lawsuit that accuses the U.S. government of taking advantage of the company in its rescue from the financial crisis...
A dozen inmates from controversial work release facility sent back to prison Tampa Bay Times ...A dozen inmates living at a Goodwill-run work release center were sent back to prison this week after state authorities conducted a surprise security audit...
State ranked 42nd in job creation at midyear, census report shows Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ...The data, which covers the 12 months from June 2011 to June 2012, shows that Wisconsin's position worsened from a rank of 37 in the previous period from March 2011 to March 2012...
Horizon Air, Teamsters Ratify Six-Year Contract Benzinga ...Horizon Air and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters announced today that the carrier's 610 pilots ratified an agreement to extend the current contract for three years, creating a new six-year pact. Among pilots who voted, 77 percent approved ratification...
Teamsters Hail Fact-Finder's Report To End Concord Furloughs, Raise Pay Local 856 ...City workers' union urges city council to take control of the process...
Friday, November 23, 2012
Today's Teamster News 11.23.12
U.S. Deficit Shrinking At Fastest Pace Since WWII, Before Fiscal Cliff Investors Business Daily ...the only time the deficit has fallen faster was when the economy relapsed in 1937, turning the Great Depression into a decade-long affair...
World Trade Organization Attacks Successful Canadian Clean Energy Program Public Citizen ...The WTO ruled that Ontario’s renewable energy incentives – or “feed-in tariff” – program violated the WTO rules that forbid treating local or domestic firms and products differently from foreign firms and products...
Women's Longevity Declining in Parts of the US truthout ...While many scientists believe that smoking and obesity are driving the downward spiral, a growing chorus of experts contends that chronic stress may be a key culprit, too — especially the stress of juggling work and family...
Black Friday Strike Will Test the Power of High-Stakes Online Organizing The Nation ...Long-time labor leaders and scholars say that the coming strike’s use of Internet organizing offers an experiment worth watching...
Fog suspected in 100-vehicle Texas wrecks that claim at least two lives CNN ...At least two people were killed and as many as 120 injured in Thanksgiving pileups involving an estimated 100 cars on a foggy stretch of highway in southeast Texas, authorities said...
Teamsters Local 25 Collecting Toys For Tots Charlestown Patch ...Teamsters Local 25 in Charlestown will once again serve as a collection point for the U.S. Marine Corps' annual Toys for Tots holiday campaign...
World Trade Organization Attacks Successful Canadian Clean Energy Program Public Citizen ...The WTO ruled that Ontario’s renewable energy incentives – or “feed-in tariff” – program violated the WTO rules that forbid treating local or domestic firms and products differently from foreign firms and products...
Women's Longevity Declining in Parts of the US truthout ...While many scientists believe that smoking and obesity are driving the downward spiral, a growing chorus of experts contends that chronic stress may be a key culprit, too — especially the stress of juggling work and family...
Black Friday Strike Will Test the Power of High-Stakes Online Organizing The Nation ...Long-time labor leaders and scholars say that the coming strike’s use of Internet organizing offers an experiment worth watching...
Fog suspected in 100-vehicle Texas wrecks that claim at least two lives CNN ...At least two people were killed and as many as 120 injured in Thanksgiving pileups involving an estimated 100 cars on a foggy stretch of highway in southeast Texas, authorities said...
Teamsters Local 25 Collecting Toys For Tots Charlestown Patch ...Teamsters Local 25 in Charlestown will once again serve as a collection point for the U.S. Marine Corps' annual Toys for Tots holiday campaign...
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Today's Teamster News 03.22.11
Senator's girlfriend had help getting job Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel ...Even though the state is supposedly broke, top officials in Gov. Scott Walker's team were able to scrape together enough money to give a state job to the woman identified as Sen. Randy Hopper's girlfriend...
Kapanke given toughest odds in recall election Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel ...Dan Kapanke, a Republican from La Crosse with a strong Democratic tinge to his district, may be the state senator most vulnerable to being removed in a recall election...
Ohio Democrats feeling revived Cincinnati Enquirer ...A poll released last week...(showed) Ohioans ...would re-elect Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland over Kasich by a 15 percentage point margin...
Now #Indiana gets to be #Wisconsin The Maddow Blog ...So far Indiana Democrat have beaten back one union-busting bill and now they're moving on one that would expand charter schools...
GOP freshman Pompeo turned to Koch for money for business, then politics Washington Post ...Pompeo ... hired a former Koch Industries lawyer as his chief of staff and proposed legislation in his first weeks in office that could benefit many of Koch’s business interests...
Too broke for immunization programs? Washington Monthly ...California has experienced the worst whopping cough outbreak in more than 50 years...But ... Republicans in Congress have proposed slashing millions in federal funding for immunization programs...
Teamsters Local 727 Opposes Bill That Jeopardizes Illinois' Film Industry IBT ...Senate Bill 4 Puts State Film Tax Credit Program In Question...
Kapanke given toughest odds in recall election Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel ...Dan Kapanke, a Republican from La Crosse with a strong Democratic tinge to his district, may be the state senator most vulnerable to being removed in a recall election...
Ohio Democrats feeling revived Cincinnati Enquirer ...A poll released last week...(showed) Ohioans ...would re-elect Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland over Kasich by a 15 percentage point margin...
Now #Indiana gets to be #Wisconsin The Maddow Blog ...So far Indiana Democrat have beaten back one union-busting bill and now they're moving on one that would expand charter schools...
GOP freshman Pompeo turned to Koch for money for business, then politics Washington Post ...Pompeo ... hired a former Koch Industries lawyer as his chief of staff and proposed legislation in his first weeks in office that could benefit many of Koch’s business interests...
Too broke for immunization programs? Washington Monthly ...California has experienced the worst whopping cough outbreak in more than 50 years...But ... Republicans in Congress have proposed slashing millions in federal funding for immunization programs...
Teamsters Local 727 Opposes Bill That Jeopardizes Illinois' Film Industry IBT ...Senate Bill 4 Puts State Film Tax Credit Program In Question...
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