Freight train derailment causes huge fire and evacuations in Canada Guardian ...Train of 73 fuel-carrying rail cars was driverless when it derailed at 1am local time Saturday in Lac-Magéntic, in Quebec...
Deaths in the workplace are no accident Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette ...The deaths of two workers in grain bins last month at the Union Mills Co-op and in Veedersburg are even more tragic because they could have been prevented...
Daily CEO Pay Now Exceeds the Average Worker's Annual Salary The Contributor ...These “golden parachute” arrangements have had a negative impact on corporate performance, say experts...
Jobless about to take big hit from sequester NBC News ...As of July 1, the average weekly benefit of $289 will fall by $43 a week, adding pressure at a time when the labor market is trying to find its bearings but has yet to generate the kind of employment that would indicate a strong recovery...
Banks pushing for repeal of credit unions' federal tax exemption Los Angeles Times ...Credit unions have been snatching customers from banks amid consumer frustration over rising fees and outrage over Wall Street's role in the financial crisis. Now banks are fighting back by trying to take away something vital to credit unions — their federal tax exemption...
Jaguar Land Rover production faces shutdown after DHL strike vote Guardian ...DHL workers serving Jaguar's Midlands plants at Castle Bromwich and Solihull vote for industrial action over pay...
Greeks close to getting latest bailout payout BBC News ...Eurozone finance ministers meet on Monday to decide whether to release the next instalment of rescue funds worth 6.3bn euros ($8.1bn; £5.4bn)...Talks have centred around 4,000 civil service jobs that are due to be cut...
Female inmates sterilized in California prisons without approval Center for Investigative Reporting ...At least 148 women received tubal ligations in violation of prison rules during those five years – and there are perhaps 100 more dating back to the late 1990s, according to state documents and interviews...
Fee'd Me: NY AG to Investigate Use of 'Payroll Cards' that Depress Already Low Take-Home Pay The Contributor ...Devonte Yates, 21, who earns $7.25 an hour working a drive-through station at a McDonald’s in Milwaukee, says he spends $40 to $50 a month on fees associated with his JPMorgan Chase payroll card. “It’s pretty bad,” he said. “There’s a fee for literally everything you do...”
America's Most Dynamic (Yet Under-Covered) Movement: Overturning 'Citizens United' The Nation ...On the eve of the nation’s Fourth of July celebrations, Oregon became the sixteenth state to formally call for an amendment. With bipartisan support, the state House and Senate requested that Congress take necessary steps to re-establish the basic American premise that “money is property and not speech, and [that] the Congress of the United States, state legislatures and local legislative bodies should have the authority to regulate political contributions and expenditures…”
Waltham student wins Teamsters scholarship Wicked Local ...Rion Hallaran of Waltham was recently awarded a $2,000 Teamsters Local 25 scholarship...
Showing posts with label sequester. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sequester. Show all posts
Monday, July 8, 2013
Thursday, June 13, 2013
Exposing the economic fantasies of the billionaire sociopaths trying to wreck America
It is now painfully obvious that cutting government spending slows commerce and depresses job creation. That economic reality doesn't matter to the billionaire sociopaths trying to wreck America, but it should to the rest of us.
Billionaires like theBenedict Arnold Koch brothers promote economic fantasies like "government debt slows job growth" as part of their relentless effort to demolish the institutions that support America's middle- and working classes. They spend billions to spread economic fiction like ALEC's silly "Rich States, Poor States" or the MacIver Institute's contorted analysis that shows job-killer Gov. Scott Walker not destroying Wisconsin.
The sad thing is that some people believe it. And they aren't even billionaires.
Even worse, a lot of them are journalists.
The reality is that cutting government spending -- aka austerity -- is sending Europe into a depression. And spending cuts in the U.S. are sending so many people into poverty that half the country is now poor.
As columnist Michael Hiltzik points out in the Los Angeles Times today:
But for non-sociopaths, the reality has become unavoidable. Even Mitt Romney's economic adviser says the government needs to spend money to hire the long-term unemployed into federal jobs.
The Huffington Post posted a great infographic today that shows the havoc wreaked by the billionaire sociopaths:
Billionaires like the
The sad thing is that some people believe it. And they aren't even billionaires.
Even worse, a lot of them are journalists.
The reality is that cutting government spending -- aka austerity -- is sending Europe into a depression. And spending cuts in the U.S. are sending so many people into poverty that half the country is now poor.
As columnist Michael Hiltzik points out in the Los Angeles Times today:
...the dire consequences of austerity have become inescapable. That's especially true in Europe, which hasn't learned the lesson that cutting government spending during an economic contraction is a good way to turn a slump into a Slump with a capital "S."On top of that, the academic foundation for government austerity were recently revealed to be based on a spreadsheet error by Harvard economists Carmen Reinhart and Kenneeth Rogoff. Dean Baker astutely notes,
...the story of the Reinhart-Rogoff error tells us a great deal about how the elites use economists and the prestige of the economics profession in order to impose their will on the public.Here's another reality that the billionaire sociopaths won't like: The federal deficit is shrinking. Hiltzik writes:
The federal deficit is down, spending is down, revenues are up, and the balance sheets of Social Security and Medicare are stable or improving. As a share of gross domestic product, the national debt is down too. In a rational world, this would be seen as providing breathing room to create job-creating programs of real value to the overall economy.Unfortunately that won't stop the ridiculous Pete Peterson from pursuing his life mission of impoverishing retirees. It won't stop the Koch brothers, or the Walmart heirs, Dick DeVos, or Art Pope or the loony Humphreys family
But for non-sociopaths, the reality has become unavoidable. Even Mitt Romney's economic adviser says the government needs to spend money to hire the long-term unemployed into federal jobs.
The Huffington Post posted a great infographic today that shows the havoc wreaked by the billionaire sociopaths:
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Today's Teamster News 06.08.13
Bulk of U.S. Payroll Gain in Jobs Paying Less-Than-Average Wages Bloomberg ...Occupations paying below-average wages accounted for more than half of last month’s U.S. payroll increase, a dynamic that may restrain consumer spending and the economic recovery...
Austerity hampered job growth (opinion) MarketWatch ...Sharp cuts in government spending implemented March 1 as part of the sequester are slowing the recovery...
Under Korea FTA, U.S. Trade Deficit Surges to Highest Point in History (Again) Public Citizen ...The monthly U.S. trade deficit with Korea soared to its highest point in history, topping $2.5 billion for the month of April alone...the unprecedented deficit surge implies 13,500 U.S. jobs lost to trade with Korea in just thirty days...
Walmart Activism Is Effecting Change At World's Largest Retailer, Organizers Say Huffington Post ...“On the store level, people have won all kinds of victories,” said Dan Schlademan, a campaign director for the United Food and Commercial Workers…
More Dissent Is Expected Over a Wal-Mart Scandal New York Times ...A year after a shareholder meeting with strong opposition to Wal-Mart board members after a bribery scandal in Mexico, many investors are asking why more change has not occurred...
NLRB judges give scrutiny to employer confidentiality policies Thomson Reuters ...Confidentiality clauses in the code of conduct and employee handbook used by an American Red Cross unit in Toledo, Ohio, were so broad that they cannot be enforced and must be rescinded, an administrative law judge has found...
Intelligence chief declassifies details of phone-records program after uproar over snooping Associated Press ...Moving to tamp down a public uproar spurred by the disclosure of two secret surveillance programs, the nation’s top intelligence official is declassifying key details about one of the programs while insisting the efforts to collect America’s phone records and the U.S. internet use of foreign nationals overseas were legal, limited in scope and necessary to detect terrorist threats...
Could Right-to-Work be overturned? (opinion) Michigan Radio ...The ACLU has filed a lawsuit, claiming that the way in which right to work was passed violated the state’s Open Meetings Act...
Koch Brothers Admit They're Interested in Buying Sun-Sentinel Broward Palm Beach New Times ...After months of hot and sweaty speculation, we're finally getting some answers out of the Koch Brothers about their interest in the media game...
Majority of women, blacks and Latino seniors on cusp of poverty Los Angeles Times ...A new report on the senior population found a majority of elderly women, blacks and Latinos are precariously close to poverty, according to the nonpartisan Economic Policy Institute report released Thursday...
15K Alabama consumers to get a check in foreclosure settlement Birmingham Business Journal ...Approximately 15,000 Alabama consumers will receive payments this month, totaling $21.8 million, as a result of the state’s participation in the National Mortgage Settlement...
Feds to pay OSHA whistle-blower $820,000 settlement Charlotte Observer ...U.S. Department of Labor will pay former OSHA official Bob Whitmore $820,000 - one of the largest federal whistle-blower settlements ever approved-under a deal that will end his four-year fight against the government. Whitmore says he was fired because he publicly criticized his agency for allowing companies to underreport workplace injuries...
US Airways Election Dates Announced! IBT ...Telephone electronic voting and Internet voting will take place from July 8 through August 12 for US Airways mechanics and related workers to decide on Teamster representation...
Carson officials support union organizing by port truckers Daily Breeze ...A Teamster Union-organizing campaign by truck drivers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach won the support of the Carson City Council this week...
Negotiations Spur Multi-Year Contracts for Anne Arundel’s Unions Business Monthly ...Twelve out of 13 unions have ratified contracts or have reached tentative agreements with Anne Arundel County, Maryland...
Teamsters Local Awards $36,000 in President's scholarships Teamsters Local 743 ...Thirty-six sons and daughters of Teamsters Local 743 members were awarded the President’s Scholarship for outstanding academic achievement during the local’s general membership meeting on June 3...
Austerity hampered job growth (opinion) MarketWatch ...Sharp cuts in government spending implemented March 1 as part of the sequester are slowing the recovery...
Under Korea FTA, U.S. Trade Deficit Surges to Highest Point in History (Again) Public Citizen ...The monthly U.S. trade deficit with Korea soared to its highest point in history, topping $2.5 billion for the month of April alone...the unprecedented deficit surge implies 13,500 U.S. jobs lost to trade with Korea in just thirty days...
Walmart Activism Is Effecting Change At World's Largest Retailer, Organizers Say Huffington Post ...“On the store level, people have won all kinds of victories,” said Dan Schlademan, a campaign director for the United Food and Commercial Workers…
More Dissent Is Expected Over a Wal-Mart Scandal New York Times ...A year after a shareholder meeting with strong opposition to Wal-Mart board members after a bribery scandal in Mexico, many investors are asking why more change has not occurred...
NLRB judges give scrutiny to employer confidentiality policies Thomson Reuters ...Confidentiality clauses in the code of conduct and employee handbook used by an American Red Cross unit in Toledo, Ohio, were so broad that they cannot be enforced and must be rescinded, an administrative law judge has found...
Intelligence chief declassifies details of phone-records program after uproar over snooping Associated Press ...Moving to tamp down a public uproar spurred by the disclosure of two secret surveillance programs, the nation’s top intelligence official is declassifying key details about one of the programs while insisting the efforts to collect America’s phone records and the U.S. internet use of foreign nationals overseas were legal, limited in scope and necessary to detect terrorist threats...
Could Right-to-Work be overturned? (opinion) Michigan Radio ...The ACLU has filed a lawsuit, claiming that the way in which right to work was passed violated the state’s Open Meetings Act...
Koch Brothers Admit They're Interested in Buying Sun-Sentinel Broward Palm Beach New Times ...After months of hot and sweaty speculation, we're finally getting some answers out of the Koch Brothers about their interest in the media game...
Majority of women, blacks and Latino seniors on cusp of poverty Los Angeles Times ...A new report on the senior population found a majority of elderly women, blacks and Latinos are precariously close to poverty, according to the nonpartisan Economic Policy Institute report released Thursday...
15K Alabama consumers to get a check in foreclosure settlement Birmingham Business Journal ...Approximately 15,000 Alabama consumers will receive payments this month, totaling $21.8 million, as a result of the state’s participation in the National Mortgage Settlement...
Feds to pay OSHA whistle-blower $820,000 settlement Charlotte Observer ...U.S. Department of Labor will pay former OSHA official Bob Whitmore $820,000 - one of the largest federal whistle-blower settlements ever approved-under a deal that will end his four-year fight against the government. Whitmore says he was fired because he publicly criticized his agency for allowing companies to underreport workplace injuries...
US Airways Election Dates Announced! IBT ...Telephone electronic voting and Internet voting will take place from July 8 through August 12 for US Airways mechanics and related workers to decide on Teamster representation...
Carson officials support union organizing by port truckers Daily Breeze ...A Teamster Union-organizing campaign by truck drivers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach won the support of the Carson City Council this week...
Negotiations Spur Multi-Year Contracts for Anne Arundel’s Unions Business Monthly ...Twelve out of 13 unions have ratified contracts or have reached tentative agreements with Anne Arundel County, Maryland...
Teamsters Local Awards $36,000 in President's scholarships Teamsters Local 743 ...Thirty-six sons and daughters of Teamsters Local 743 members were awarded the President’s Scholarship for outstanding academic achievement during the local’s general membership meeting on June 3...
Sunday, June 2, 2013
Today's Teamster News 06.02.13
Frightened Okla. residents opt to flee tornadoes Associated Press ...At least nine people were killed in Friday's storms, including a mother and her baby sucked out of their car as a deadly EF3 twister tore its way along a packed Interstate 40 near the town of El Reno, about 30 miles from Oklahoma City...
NOAA kills agency-wide furlough proposal Washington Post ...Following the recent tornado outbreaks in the Plains, NOAA faced strong Congressional pressure not to furlough National Weather Service employees (as a cost savings measure in response to the budget sequester). The agency gave in late Friday...
Canadian relief for Moore tornado victims denied at border CBC News ...American officials will not allow the 20,000 kilograms of food, blankets and diapers into the country until every item on board is itemized in alphabetical order and has the country of origin of every product noted...
Inequality Rising — All Thanks To Government Policies The National Memo ...A revealing new examination of the top 1 percent in a variety of countries brings into focus how the American government’s tax, union bargaining, inheritance and other rules widen the growing divide between those at the top and everyone else...
One Walmart's Low Wages Could Cost Taxpayers $900,000 Per Year, House Dems Find Huffington Post ...Walmart wages are so low that many of its workers rely on food stamps and other government aid programs to fulfill their basic needs, a reality that could cost taxpayers as much as $900,000 at just one Walmart Supercenter in Wisconsin, according to a study released by Congressional Democrats on Thursday...
Anti-austerity protests: Spain, Germany, Portugal Associated Press ...Anti-austerity protesters on Saturday took to the streets of dozens of European cities, including Madrid, Frankfurt and Lisbon, to express their anger at government cuts they say are making the financial crisis worse by stifling growth and increasing unemployment....
US retailers to forge new safety plan for Bangladeshi apparel factories New York Times ...some labor advocates called the effort divisive and a sham...
Don't reward companies that send profits offshore (LTE) Baltimore Sun ...Rep. John Delaney's new bill offering corporations that repatriate their offshore profits deeply discounted taxes if they invest in a new infrastructure bank, praised in your editorial ("Road work ahead?" May 28), would only serve to reward the very firms that have successfully gamed the tax system in ways that cost the U.S. Treasury $100 billion a year...
Surpluses Help, but Fiscal Woes for States Go On New York Times ...While the fiscal picture is brightening around the country, with many states expecting surpluses this year after years of deficits and wrenching budget crises, mounting Medicaid costs and underfunded retirement promises are continuing to cloud their long-term outlook...
Detroit Citizens Protect Themselves After Police Force Decimated Bloomberg ...As crime hobbles Detroit (9845MF)’s attempts to revive itself, the city is bolstering its police department by having unarmed citizens patrol the streets in a program that costs less than annual salaries and benefits for three officers...
University of Wisconsin students today pay a much higher share of the cost than 40 years ago Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ...Working one's way through a public university in four years with a minimum-wage summer job and part-time campus work study — with little to no family assistance or need-based financial aid — is an outdated ideal of previous generations...
Teamsters Local No. 377 and St. Elizabeth Health Center have a new three-year contract Youngstown Vindicator ...Teamsters Local No. 377 and St. Elizabeth Health Center have agreed to a new three-year contract that will provide union members with raises each year of the contract...
NOAA kills agency-wide furlough proposal Washington Post ...Following the recent tornado outbreaks in the Plains, NOAA faced strong Congressional pressure not to furlough National Weather Service employees (as a cost savings measure in response to the budget sequester). The agency gave in late Friday...
Canadian relief for Moore tornado victims denied at border CBC News ...American officials will not allow the 20,000 kilograms of food, blankets and diapers into the country until every item on board is itemized in alphabetical order and has the country of origin of every product noted...
Inequality Rising — All Thanks To Government Policies The National Memo ...A revealing new examination of the top 1 percent in a variety of countries brings into focus how the American government’s tax, union bargaining, inheritance and other rules widen the growing divide between those at the top and everyone else...
One Walmart's Low Wages Could Cost Taxpayers $900,000 Per Year, House Dems Find Huffington Post ...Walmart wages are so low that many of its workers rely on food stamps and other government aid programs to fulfill their basic needs, a reality that could cost taxpayers as much as $900,000 at just one Walmart Supercenter in Wisconsin, according to a study released by Congressional Democrats on Thursday...
Anti-austerity protests: Spain, Germany, Portugal Associated Press ...Anti-austerity protesters on Saturday took to the streets of dozens of European cities, including Madrid, Frankfurt and Lisbon, to express their anger at government cuts they say are making the financial crisis worse by stifling growth and increasing unemployment....
US retailers to forge new safety plan for Bangladeshi apparel factories New York Times ...some labor advocates called the effort divisive and a sham...
Don't reward companies that send profits offshore (LTE) Baltimore Sun ...Rep. John Delaney's new bill offering corporations that repatriate their offshore profits deeply discounted taxes if they invest in a new infrastructure bank, praised in your editorial ("Road work ahead?" May 28), would only serve to reward the very firms that have successfully gamed the tax system in ways that cost the U.S. Treasury $100 billion a year...
Surpluses Help, but Fiscal Woes for States Go On New York Times ...While the fiscal picture is brightening around the country, with many states expecting surpluses this year after years of deficits and wrenching budget crises, mounting Medicaid costs and underfunded retirement promises are continuing to cloud their long-term outlook...
Detroit Citizens Protect Themselves After Police Force Decimated Bloomberg ...As crime hobbles Detroit (9845MF)’s attempts to revive itself, the city is bolstering its police department by having unarmed citizens patrol the streets in a program that costs less than annual salaries and benefits for three officers...
University of Wisconsin students today pay a much higher share of the cost than 40 years ago Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ...Working one's way through a public university in four years with a minimum-wage summer job and part-time campus work study — with little to no family assistance or need-based financial aid — is an outdated ideal of previous generations...
Teamsters Local No. 377 and St. Elizabeth Health Center have a new three-year contract Youngstown Vindicator ...Teamsters Local No. 377 and St. Elizabeth Health Center have agreed to a new three-year contract that will provide union members with raises each year of the contract...
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Today's Teamster News 05.26.13
Millions march against GM crops The Guardian ...Organisers say that two million people marched in protest against seed giant Monsanto in hundreds of rallies across the US and in more than 50 other countries on Saturday. "March Against Monsanto" protesters say they wanted to call attention to the dangers posed by genetically modified food...
France seizes a million doses of fake Chinese aspirin Raw Story ...French customs officers have seized 1.2 million doses of counterfeit aspirin from China, the biggest haul of fake medicines ever in France and the EU, the economy ministry announced Saturday...
France seizes a million doses of fake Chinese aspirin Raw Story ...French customs officers have seized 1.2 million doses of counterfeit aspirin from China, the biggest haul of fake medicines ever in France and the EU, the economy ministry announced Saturday...
Stockholm riots spread west on sixth night The Local ...Nearly a week of unrest, which spread briefly Friday night to the medium-sized city of Örebro 160 kilometres west of Stockholm, have put Sweden's reputation as an oasis of peace and harmony at risk...
Unrest may spread across Europe, warns Red Cross chief The Independent ...Rocketing unemployment and poverty in some areas of Europe could lead to rising civil unrest, unless governments take measures to address the humanitarian consequences of austerity measures, the secretary-general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) has warned...
Sequester guts wildfire prevention, sets up bigger blazes Grist ...the sequester took a 7.5 percent bite out of the Forest Service’s budget, nearly half of which is spent fighting wildfires. That means there will be 500 fewer pairs of boots on the ground and 200,000 fewer acres treated to prevent fires; the agency’s next proposed budget cuts preventative spending by a further 24 percent...
Why are our Bridges Falling? The Economics of the Infrastructure Deficit Economonitor ...We are not spending enough to stay even with our infrastructure deficit. Our bridges, roads, dams, electric grid, sewers, and water treatment plants are wearing out faster than we are replacing them. And that is happening, in large part, because of our misguided obsession with the federal fiscal deficit...
Banner Week for Politicians Trying to Keep Poor People Hungry and Sick Gawker ...Louisiana Senator David Vitter, sad little boy and lover of prostitutes, proposed an amendment to the long-delayed farm bill that would make certain ex-cons ineligible from food stamps for life...
The Corporate Dictatorship of PBS and NPR Truthout ...“Citizen Koch” is a documentary about money and politics, focusing heavily on the uprising that took place in Wisconsin in 2011 and 2012 ... the documentary was originally supposed to air on PBS stations nationwide, but its funding was abruptly cut off when, it appears, David Koch was offended...
Koch Media’s Megaphone and the IRS “Scandal” Wall Street ...For decades, billionaires Charles and David Koch had secretly owned shares giving them 50 percent ownership of the Cato Institute – a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization subsidized by the taxpayer – while pushing a deregulatory agenda for big business. Today, Cato is functioning as a megaphone to spin the current flap over the IRS to advance its agenda...
How exactly would Mike Bloomberg “fucking destroy” the taxi industry? Quartz ...New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg told the head of a taxicab fleet that he plans to “fucking destroy” the city’s taxi industry when he leaves office on January 1...
Fear of art sale sparked by Detroit emergency manager asking for appraisal Reuters ...As part of his efforts to solve Detroit's financial crisis, the city's emergency manager Kevyn Orr has asked for an appraisal of the collection at the Detroit Institute of Arts, sparking fears in artistic and philanthropic circles that he means to auction off the city's artistic jewels...
Wisconsin jobs agency names 4th CFO in 2 years Associated Press ...Gov. Walker and the Republican-controlled Legislature created WEDC in 2011 to help the governor meet his campaign promise to create 250,000 private-sector jobs. But the agency has been beset by problems, including persistent turnover...
Unrest may spread across Europe, warns Red Cross chief The Independent ...Rocketing unemployment and poverty in some areas of Europe could lead to rising civil unrest, unless governments take measures to address the humanitarian consequences of austerity measures, the secretary-general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) has warned...
Sequester guts wildfire prevention, sets up bigger blazes Grist ...the sequester took a 7.5 percent bite out of the Forest Service’s budget, nearly half of which is spent fighting wildfires. That means there will be 500 fewer pairs of boots on the ground and 200,000 fewer acres treated to prevent fires; the agency’s next proposed budget cuts preventative spending by a further 24 percent...
Why are our Bridges Falling? The Economics of the Infrastructure Deficit Economonitor ...We are not spending enough to stay even with our infrastructure deficit. Our bridges, roads, dams, electric grid, sewers, and water treatment plants are wearing out faster than we are replacing them. And that is happening, in large part, because of our misguided obsession with the federal fiscal deficit...
Banner Week for Politicians Trying to Keep Poor People Hungry and Sick Gawker ...Louisiana Senator David Vitter, sad little boy and lover of prostitutes, proposed an amendment to the long-delayed farm bill that would make certain ex-cons ineligible from food stamps for life...
The Corporate Dictatorship of PBS and NPR Truthout ...“Citizen Koch” is a documentary about money and politics, focusing heavily on the uprising that took place in Wisconsin in 2011 and 2012 ... the documentary was originally supposed to air on PBS stations nationwide, but its funding was abruptly cut off when, it appears, David Koch was offended...
Koch Media’s Megaphone and the IRS “Scandal” Wall Street ...For decades, billionaires Charles and David Koch had secretly owned shares giving them 50 percent ownership of the Cato Institute – a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization subsidized by the taxpayer – while pushing a deregulatory agenda for big business. Today, Cato is functioning as a megaphone to spin the current flap over the IRS to advance its agenda...
How exactly would Mike Bloomberg “fucking destroy” the taxi industry? Quartz ...New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg told the head of a taxicab fleet that he plans to “fucking destroy” the city’s taxi industry when he leaves office on January 1...
Fear of art sale sparked by Detroit emergency manager asking for appraisal Reuters ...As part of his efforts to solve Detroit's financial crisis, the city's emergency manager Kevyn Orr has asked for an appraisal of the collection at the Detroit Institute of Arts, sparking fears in artistic and philanthropic circles that he means to auction off the city's artistic jewels...
Wisconsin jobs agency names 4th CFO in 2 years Associated Press ...Gov. Walker and the Republican-controlled Legislature created WEDC in 2011 to help the governor meet his campaign promise to create 250,000 private-sector jobs. But the agency has been beset by problems, including persistent turnover...
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Today's Teamster News 04.30.13
Texas Blast Recalls Chemical Safety Bill Sunk by Business Lobby Bloomberg ...Guess who fought against a 2009 bill aimed at tightening “security standards of chemical factors, fertilizer depots and water-treatment plants.” None other than “Mining companies, refiners, paint makers, explosive fabricators and fertilizer plants...the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and American Farm Bureau...”
How Austerity Is Literally Killing People (opinion) Think Progress ...Austerity in the United States and Europe isn’t just placing an unnecessary drag on economic growth that has harmed the global economic recovery from the Great Recession...
Banking group says new regulations could push consumers into risky payday loans The Hill ...A leading banking group says tighter guidelines on deposit advance loans could push consumers into higher-risk payday credit...
US electricity giant rejects privatization plan Financial Times ...Push-back. President Obama recently floated the notion that it might be time to privatize the TVA. TVA’s Chief Executive says “the authority ‘isn’t broke’ and could fund the investment it needed while staying in the public sector.” TVA’s electricity prices are “significantly below the US average...”
Wealth Gap Among Races Has Widened Since Recession New York Times ... Millions of Americans suffered a loss of wealth during the recession and the sluggish recovery that followed. But the last half-decade has proved far worse for black and Hispanic families than for white families, starkly widening the already large gulf in wealth between non-Hispanic white Americans and most minority groups, according to a new study...
Bill to end sequester's air travel delays flies through Congress Los Angeles Times ...Lawmakers, among the nation's most frequent fliers, OK a bill allowing the FAA to transfer $253 million to stop furloughs of air traffic controllers...
But the sequester could hurt federal tax collections, IRS says Washington Post ...The head of the Internal Revenue Service is warning that the government-wide spending cuts that took effect last month could hurt federal tax collections...
Push to Require Online Sales Tax Divides the G.O.P. New York Times ...Legislation that would force Internet retailers to collect sales taxes from their customers has put antitax and small-government activists like Grover Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform and the Heritage Foundation in an unusual position: they’re losing...
Sanford, Colbert Busch Campaign Day After Debate Associated Press ...Republican Mark Sanford and Democrat Elizabeth Colbert Busch planned to hit the campaign trail a day after a spirited debate in their race for a vacant congressional seat along the South Carolina coast. "I rocked it," Colbert Busch said…
Citations drop for child work violations in Mass. Boston Globe ...Child-labor laws in Massachusetts were tightened then following on-the-job deaths of several teenagers, including a 16-year-old who was killed after losing control of a golf cart at a Salem country club. But enforcement citations appear to have dropped ...
Minimum wage hike goes to Minnesota House for vote Associated Press ....Many Minnesota workers would get a pay hike, extra time to spend with newborns and recently adopted children and more overtime pay in the minimum wage bill that is headed to the House floor.
Tax Shuffle Could Shake Up Missouri St. Louis Post-Dispatch ...Missouri’s Republican-led legislature is poised to send Gov. Jay Nixon a bill that would cut the state income tax, especially for small businesses, while raising the sales tax to benefit three legislative priorities…
Right-to-work will lower wages and weaken the economy (opinion) Southeast Missourian ...Currently, Missouri Republicans are bent on passing so called "right-to work" legislation. Even though the president pro tem of the Senate said it isn't a priority of the Senate and it faces veto by the governor, they press on while they could be working to modernize our economy...
Feds approve New Jersey's plan to spend $1.8 billion in Sandy aid New Jersey Star-Ledger ...The federal government has approved New Jersey's plan to spend more than $1.8 billion in disaster aid, Gov. Chris Christie announced yesterday...
Sandy credited for rise in NY construction jobs Crain’s New York ...Thanks, in part, to a boost from post-Sandy work, employment in New York state's construction industry is inching its way back to its pre-recession peak...
Art Pope Groups Push Extreme ALEC Tax Agenda in North Carolina PR Watch …An array of right-wing organizations in North Carolina are arguing loudly for Gov. Pat McCrory to radically alter how corporations and people pay taxes in the state -- and the not-so-hidden hand behind the effort is North Carolina millionaire Art Pope, a close ally of the Koch brothers, who funds the groups…
Airport Privatization Takes Off in Puerto Rico Truth-Out ...About 17 years ago, lawmakers slipped an obscure section of text into the annual federal aviation bill. In February, the intent of that law was enacted for only the second time when the FAA approved the privatization of Puerto Rico's Luis Munoz Marin International Airport. Numerous elected officials, lawyers and economists have denounced it as a bad bargain...
Virginia can block out of state use of FOIA, Supreme Court rules Associated Press ...The Supreme Court ruled Monday that it's legal for a state to limit use of its Freedom of Information Act to its own residents...
Marvel filming most of latest 'Captain America' movie in L.A. Los Angeles Times ...Disney-owned Marvel Studios is producing most of 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' in L.A., a region that has seen the steady exodus of big-budget features. Teamsters Local 399, represents the film’s casting directors, location managers and drivers...
How Austerity Is Literally Killing People (opinion) Think Progress ...Austerity in the United States and Europe isn’t just placing an unnecessary drag on economic growth that has harmed the global economic recovery from the Great Recession...
Banking group says new regulations could push consumers into risky payday loans The Hill ...A leading banking group says tighter guidelines on deposit advance loans could push consumers into higher-risk payday credit...
US electricity giant rejects privatization plan Financial Times ...Push-back. President Obama recently floated the notion that it might be time to privatize the TVA. TVA’s Chief Executive says “the authority ‘isn’t broke’ and could fund the investment it needed while staying in the public sector.” TVA’s electricity prices are “significantly below the US average...”
Wealth Gap Among Races Has Widened Since Recession New York Times ... Millions of Americans suffered a loss of wealth during the recession and the sluggish recovery that followed. But the last half-decade has proved far worse for black and Hispanic families than for white families, starkly widening the already large gulf in wealth between non-Hispanic white Americans and most minority groups, according to a new study...
Bill to end sequester's air travel delays flies through Congress Los Angeles Times ...Lawmakers, among the nation's most frequent fliers, OK a bill allowing the FAA to transfer $253 million to stop furloughs of air traffic controllers...
But the sequester could hurt federal tax collections, IRS says Washington Post ...The head of the Internal Revenue Service is warning that the government-wide spending cuts that took effect last month could hurt federal tax collections...
Push to Require Online Sales Tax Divides the G.O.P. New York Times ...Legislation that would force Internet retailers to collect sales taxes from their customers has put antitax and small-government activists like Grover Norquist’s Americans for Tax Reform and the Heritage Foundation in an unusual position: they’re losing...
Sanford, Colbert Busch Campaign Day After Debate Associated Press ...Republican Mark Sanford and Democrat Elizabeth Colbert Busch planned to hit the campaign trail a day after a spirited debate in their race for a vacant congressional seat along the South Carolina coast. "I rocked it," Colbert Busch said…
Citations drop for child work violations in Mass. Boston Globe ...Child-labor laws in Massachusetts were tightened then following on-the-job deaths of several teenagers, including a 16-year-old who was killed after losing control of a golf cart at a Salem country club. But enforcement citations appear to have dropped ...
Minimum wage hike goes to Minnesota House for vote Associated Press ....Many Minnesota workers would get a pay hike, extra time to spend with newborns and recently adopted children and more overtime pay in the minimum wage bill that is headed to the House floor.
Tax Shuffle Could Shake Up Missouri St. Louis Post-Dispatch ...Missouri’s Republican-led legislature is poised to send Gov. Jay Nixon a bill that would cut the state income tax, especially for small businesses, while raising the sales tax to benefit three legislative priorities…
Right-to-work will lower wages and weaken the economy (opinion) Southeast Missourian ...Currently, Missouri Republicans are bent on passing so called "right-to work" legislation. Even though the president pro tem of the Senate said it isn't a priority of the Senate and it faces veto by the governor, they press on while they could be working to modernize our economy...
Feds approve New Jersey's plan to spend $1.8 billion in Sandy aid New Jersey Star-Ledger ...The federal government has approved New Jersey's plan to spend more than $1.8 billion in disaster aid, Gov. Chris Christie announced yesterday...
Sandy credited for rise in NY construction jobs Crain’s New York ...Thanks, in part, to a boost from post-Sandy work, employment in New York state's construction industry is inching its way back to its pre-recession peak...
Art Pope Groups Push Extreme ALEC Tax Agenda in North Carolina PR Watch …An array of right-wing organizations in North Carolina are arguing loudly for Gov. Pat McCrory to radically alter how corporations and people pay taxes in the state -- and the not-so-hidden hand behind the effort is North Carolina millionaire Art Pope, a close ally of the Koch brothers, who funds the groups…
Airport Privatization Takes Off in Puerto Rico Truth-Out ...About 17 years ago, lawmakers slipped an obscure section of text into the annual federal aviation bill. In February, the intent of that law was enacted for only the second time when the FAA approved the privatization of Puerto Rico's Luis Munoz Marin International Airport. Numerous elected officials, lawyers and economists have denounced it as a bad bargain...
Virginia can block out of state use of FOIA, Supreme Court rules Associated Press ...The Supreme Court ruled Monday that it's legal for a state to limit use of its Freedom of Information Act to its own residents...
Marvel filming most of latest 'Captain America' movie in L.A. Los Angeles Times ...Disney-owned Marvel Studios is producing most of 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier' in L.A., a region that has seen the steady exodus of big-budget features. Teamsters Local 399, represents the film’s casting directors, location managers and drivers...
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Colbert mocks right-wing economists who can't do math. Part II. (VIDEO)
More great stuff from Stephen Colbert. Love the takedown of premium wine enthusiast Paul Ryan.
Friday, March 22, 2013
Today's Teamster News 03.22.13
Is JPMorgan a farmer? Salon ...How the nation's biggest banks use the little-covered House Agriculture Committee to gut regulations...
Sequester halts new military tuition assistance KTVZ ...In response to a call for cuts due to federal sequestration, the Department of Defense has suspended its federal Tuition Assistance program for all military members...
Audit faults Freddie Mac's oversight of mortgage servicers Los Angeles Times ...At least eight big providers of mortgage customer service have failed to properly track and resolve serious complaints about servicing fraud, the audit says...
Icelandic bank Kaupthing's top executives indicted over market rigging Guardian ...Icelandic banker Sigurdur "Siggi" Einarsson, who ran Kaupthing bank from offices in Mayfair until its collapse five years ago, is among nine former senior staff who have been variously charged in Reykjavik with orchestrating five large-scale market manipulation conspiracies...
In Michigan, GOP governor finds a tax to like Associated Press ...confronting one of the automobile-addicted state's most visible problems - crumbling roads - Snyder has roiled conservatives by calling for a major tax increase. He has proposed boosting the gasoline tax from 19 cents to 33 cents a gallon and hiking car license plate fees by 60 percent...
Wisconsin lost more jobs than any other state in 2011 and '12 City Pages ...The latest BLS numbers make Gov. Scott Walker's February 2010 promise "to bring 250,000 jobs and 10,000 new businesses to Wisconsin by 2015" look increasingly absurd...
Teamsters file complaint against Mt. Diablo school district Contra Costa Times ...The Teamsters have filed an unfair labor practices complaint against the Mt. Diablo school district after an attorney told union representatives they couldn't distribute fliers outside district headquarters...
Teamsters To Republic Services: 'Your Abuse Of Communities And Workers Stinks' IBT ...At the national Residential Recycling Conference today, the Teamsters Union protested against Republic Services Inc., bringing attention to the company's appalling treatment of communities, workers and the environment...
Sequester halts new military tuition assistance KTVZ ...In response to a call for cuts due to federal sequestration, the Department of Defense has suspended its federal Tuition Assistance program for all military members...
Audit faults Freddie Mac's oversight of mortgage servicers Los Angeles Times ...At least eight big providers of mortgage customer service have failed to properly track and resolve serious complaints about servicing fraud, the audit says...
Icelandic bank Kaupthing's top executives indicted over market rigging Guardian ...Icelandic banker Sigurdur "Siggi" Einarsson, who ran Kaupthing bank from offices in Mayfair until its collapse five years ago, is among nine former senior staff who have been variously charged in Reykjavik with orchestrating five large-scale market manipulation conspiracies...
In Michigan, GOP governor finds a tax to like Associated Press ...confronting one of the automobile-addicted state's most visible problems - crumbling roads - Snyder has roiled conservatives by calling for a major tax increase. He has proposed boosting the gasoline tax from 19 cents to 33 cents a gallon and hiking car license plate fees by 60 percent...
Wisconsin lost more jobs than any other state in 2011 and '12 City Pages ...The latest BLS numbers make Gov. Scott Walker's February 2010 promise "to bring 250,000 jobs and 10,000 new businesses to Wisconsin by 2015" look increasingly absurd...
Teamsters file complaint against Mt. Diablo school district Contra Costa Times ...The Teamsters have filed an unfair labor practices complaint against the Mt. Diablo school district after an attorney told union representatives they couldn't distribute fliers outside district headquarters...
Teamsters To Republic Services: 'Your Abuse Of Communities And Workers Stinks' IBT ...At the national Residential Recycling Conference today, the Teamsters Union protested against Republic Services Inc., bringing attention to the company's appalling treatment of communities, workers and the environment...
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Today's Teamster News 03.12.13
This New Puerto Rican Law Makes Wealthy People Want To Move There To Avoid Taxes Business Insider ...Billionaire hedge funder John Paulson, who famously bet against the subprime housing market, is reportedly weighing a move to Puerto Rico to take advantage of a new tax law there...
Illinois settles SEC fraud charges over pension fund disclosures Reuters ...Illinois failed to inform investors about the impact of problems with its pension funding schedule as the state offered and sold more than $2.2 billion worth of municipal bonds from 2005 to early 2009...
Ex-Detroit mayor Kilpatrick convicted of range of corruption charges NBC News ...Prosecutors said that Kilpatrick, 42, steered $83 million in city work to a friend and contractor, Bobby Ferguson, in exchange for hundreds of thousands of dollars in kickbacks...
After Watering Down Financial Reform, Ex-Senator Scott Brown Joins Goldman Sachs’ Lobbying Firm ThinkProgress ...During his nearly three years in the U.S. Senate, Scott Brown (R-MA) frequently came to the aid of the financial sector — watering down the Dodd-Frank bill and working to weaken it after its passage — and accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign cash from the industry...
Congress wants role as Obama pushes trade agenda Associated Press ...A strong trade agenda, said Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah requires close cooperation and consultation with Congress. Members of Obama's Democratic Party tend to oppose "fast track," arguing that trade pacts negotiated by past administrations have resulted in job losses in America and given short shrift to environmental and labor and human rights issues...
Sequester scuttling Sandy shape-up? Manufacture This ...New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, are still repairing after Hurricane Sandy, five months later. But now there's a new complication: the sequester has taken a bite out of federal aid money...
Missouri Senate Backs Union Paycheck Bill Associated Press ...The Missouri Senate has given first-round approval to a measure that would require public employee unions to seek annual consent to automatically deduct dues from members' paychecks...
Judge Cans Soda Ban Wall Street Journal ...Mayor Michael Bloomberg was dealt a stinging blow on Monday when a state Supreme Court Judge quashed his plan to ban the sale of large sugary drinks in the city's restaurants and other venues...
Why liquor privatization still faces a long road PennLive ...While some legislators say a bill introduced this week to end the state's longtime monopoly is on the fast track, others say they aren't so sure such a swift timetable is in the cards...
Behind Closed Doors: Americans for Prosperity chapter leader is no stranger to Pence Indianapolis Star ...Americans for Prosperity is a national group launched by Charles and David Koch, billionaire brothers and influential conservative leaders who financially supported Pence’s campaign for governor...
Minnesota Poll: Majority supports raising state minumum wage Minneapolis Star-Tribune ...But Minnesotans are divided on how high to go, $7.50 an hour vs. $9.50...
Realtors asked for budget provision expanding foreign ownership of state land The Cap Times ...Wisconsin Realtors look to be next in line to benefit from Gov. Scott Walker’s “Wisconsin is open for business” vow...
Teamsters begin picket at Thorn Creek Basin facility NWITimes.com ... About a dozen Teamsters Local 705 members began pickets Monday at the Thorn Creek Basin Sanitary District facility in frustration with the current negotiations for a new contract...
Teamsters rally in Memphis behind Republic Services workers Commercial Appeal ...The nation’s second-most powerful Teamster came to Memphis Sunday with Teamsters from across the nation to express their support to sanitation workers employed by Republic Services. About 180 employees are working under an expired contract to serve about 200,000 Memphis-area residents...
Teamsters Educate City Leaders About Republic Services' Poor Record IBT ...More than 2,000 mayors, city councilmembers, and local administrators at the conference were greeted by Teamsters holding a banner that stated "Republic Services Trashes American Cities." The League of Cities attendees also received leaflets that read, "Tell Republic: Do It Right or Pay the Penalty."...
Illinois settles SEC fraud charges over pension fund disclosures Reuters ...Illinois failed to inform investors about the impact of problems with its pension funding schedule as the state offered and sold more than $2.2 billion worth of municipal bonds from 2005 to early 2009...
Ex-Detroit mayor Kilpatrick convicted of range of corruption charges NBC News ...Prosecutors said that Kilpatrick, 42, steered $83 million in city work to a friend and contractor, Bobby Ferguson, in exchange for hundreds of thousands of dollars in kickbacks...
After Watering Down Financial Reform, Ex-Senator Scott Brown Joins Goldman Sachs’ Lobbying Firm ThinkProgress ...During his nearly three years in the U.S. Senate, Scott Brown (R-MA) frequently came to the aid of the financial sector — watering down the Dodd-Frank bill and working to weaken it after its passage — and accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign cash from the industry...
Congress wants role as Obama pushes trade agenda Associated Press ...A strong trade agenda, said Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah requires close cooperation and consultation with Congress. Members of Obama's Democratic Party tend to oppose "fast track," arguing that trade pacts negotiated by past administrations have resulted in job losses in America and given short shrift to environmental and labor and human rights issues...
Sequester scuttling Sandy shape-up? Manufacture This ...New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, are still repairing after Hurricane Sandy, five months later. But now there's a new complication: the sequester has taken a bite out of federal aid money...
Missouri Senate Backs Union Paycheck Bill Associated Press ...The Missouri Senate has given first-round approval to a measure that would require public employee unions to seek annual consent to automatically deduct dues from members' paychecks...
Judge Cans Soda Ban Wall Street Journal ...Mayor Michael Bloomberg was dealt a stinging blow on Monday when a state Supreme Court Judge quashed his plan to ban the sale of large sugary drinks in the city's restaurants and other venues...
Why liquor privatization still faces a long road PennLive ...While some legislators say a bill introduced this week to end the state's longtime monopoly is on the fast track, others say they aren't so sure such a swift timetable is in the cards...
Behind Closed Doors: Americans for Prosperity chapter leader is no stranger to Pence Indianapolis Star ...Americans for Prosperity is a national group launched by Charles and David Koch, billionaire brothers and influential conservative leaders who financially supported Pence’s campaign for governor...
Minnesota Poll: Majority supports raising state minumum wage Minneapolis Star-Tribune ...But Minnesotans are divided on how high to go, $7.50 an hour vs. $9.50...
Realtors asked for budget provision expanding foreign ownership of state land The Cap Times ...Wisconsin Realtors look to be next in line to benefit from Gov. Scott Walker’s “Wisconsin is open for business” vow...
Teamsters begin picket at Thorn Creek Basin facility NWITimes.com ... About a dozen Teamsters Local 705 members began pickets Monday at the Thorn Creek Basin Sanitary District facility in frustration with the current negotiations for a new contract...
Teamsters rally in Memphis behind Republic Services workers Commercial Appeal ...The nation’s second-most powerful Teamster came to Memphis Sunday with Teamsters from across the nation to express their support to sanitation workers employed by Republic Services. About 180 employees are working under an expired contract to serve about 200,000 Memphis-area residents...
Teamsters Educate City Leaders About Republic Services' Poor Record IBT ...More than 2,000 mayors, city councilmembers, and local administrators at the conference were greeted by Teamsters holding a banner that stated "Republic Services Trashes American Cities." The League of Cities attendees also received leaflets that read, "Tell Republic: Do It Right or Pay the Penalty."...
Monday, March 11, 2013
Today's Teamster News 03.11.13
How H-1B Visas Are Screwing Tech Workers Mother Jones ..."The H-1B worker learns the job and then rotates back to the home country and takes the work with him,"...
Hill Poll: Voters see economy getting worse after sequester cuts The Hill ...A strong plurality of voters believe economic conditions in the United States are getting worse, not better, according to a new poll for The Hill — and believe the $85 billion package of cuts known as the sequester will only make things worse...
Lessons of the Sequester Baseline Scenario ... The sequester was supposed to be so painful to both sides that they would compromise, but it’s actually not so painful to politicians who only need to listen to their base...
Greek Prime Minister says no more austerity Raw Story ...Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras on Saturday promised his recession-weary nation that there would be “no more austerity measures” as international creditors prolonged an audit of crisis reforms...
Foreclosure crew clears wrong Texas building Associated Press ...Workers tasked with emptying a Central Texas home set for foreclosure instead dragged away a 16-foot boat, a backhoe, wedding dress and love letters from a neighbor's barn...
Wealthy investors keep buying metro Phoenix homes to rent Arizona Republic ...At the end of 2012, almost 25 percent of all the region’s homes were owned by investors, according to an Arizona Republic analysis...
GOP union bill expected to pass in Senate this week MissouriNet ...The bill requires government employees to give permission for public employee unions to withhold fees from their paychecks...
Local union protests possible Emergency Financial Manager for Detroit WXYZ.com ...Members of AFSCME Council 25 are spending their Sunday marching in protest against the possibility of an Emergency Financial Manager for Detroit...
Hill Poll: Voters see economy getting worse after sequester cuts The Hill ...A strong plurality of voters believe economic conditions in the United States are getting worse, not better, according to a new poll for The Hill — and believe the $85 billion package of cuts known as the sequester will only make things worse...
Lessons of the Sequester Baseline Scenario ... The sequester was supposed to be so painful to both sides that they would compromise, but it’s actually not so painful to politicians who only need to listen to their base...
Greek Prime Minister says no more austerity Raw Story ...Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras on Saturday promised his recession-weary nation that there would be “no more austerity measures” as international creditors prolonged an audit of crisis reforms...
Foreclosure crew clears wrong Texas building Associated Press ...Workers tasked with emptying a Central Texas home set for foreclosure instead dragged away a 16-foot boat, a backhoe, wedding dress and love letters from a neighbor's barn...
Wealthy investors keep buying metro Phoenix homes to rent Arizona Republic ...At the end of 2012, almost 25 percent of all the region’s homes were owned by investors, according to an Arizona Republic analysis...
GOP union bill expected to pass in Senate this week MissouriNet ...The bill requires government employees to give permission for public employee unions to withhold fees from their paychecks...
Local union protests possible Emergency Financial Manager for Detroit WXYZ.com ...Members of AFSCME Council 25 are spending their Sunday marching in protest against the possibility of an Emergency Financial Manager for Detroit...
Friday, March 1, 2013
Today's Teamster News 03.01.13
Bureaucratic Blunder helps over 100 Oil Companies Avoid Paying Royalties Oil Price.com ...Democratic lawmaker Representative Edward Markey of Massachusetts ... claims that more than 100 oil and gas producers, including Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX), BP Plc (NYSE: BP), Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM), Royal Dutch Shell Plc, (NYSE: RDS-A) and ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP), have benefitted from bungled leases awarded by the federal government. The leases enabled the companies to drill for oil and gas in federal waters without paying, or at least paying at a much lower rate, any royalties...
Wal-Mart Struggles to Restock Store Shelves as U.S. Sales Slump Bloomberg ...Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT), already struggling to woo shoppers constrained by higher taxes, is “getting worse” at keeping shelves stocked, the retailer’s U.S. chief told executives...
Big Energy Firm Agrees to Replace Coal-Burning Plants with Wind and Solar Operations AllGov ...American Electric Power (AEP) will stop using coal by 2015 at power plants in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. It intends to replace the energy produced by the plants with new wind and solar investments in Indiana and Michigan...
Revised GDP: Economy grew 0.1 pct in fourth quarter CBS News ...The U.S. economy grew at a 0.1 percent annual rate from October through December, the weakest performance in nearly two years...
Spain falls further into recession as GDP plunges by 0.8% The Guardian ...Spain's recession worsened dramatically at the end of last year as the government made a final austerity push in order to meet deficit targets imposed by Brussels. GDP fell by 0.8% over the final quarter of 2012, as state spending was reduced and the public sector continued to shed jobs...
13 arrested as 200 march on Wells Fargo demanding fair banking practices Occupy Homes MN ...demanding turnover of vacant homes to community control and fair banking practices. The march, organized by Occupy Homes MN, Neighborhoods Organizing for Change, and allies from faith and labor communities, began at the home of Gayle Lindsey, fighting her foreclosure...
Only 6% Rate News Media As Very Trustworthy Rasmussen Reports ...25% use the Internet as their main source of news, while only 10% still rely on print newspapers...
Governor to announce EFM decision tomorrow; State takeover of Detroit possible WXYZ ...Detroit Mayor Dave Bing says ... the governor will announce his decision regarding the possible appointment of an Emergency Financial Manager for the city of Detroit on Friday...
Proposed union law a bad idea, city workers tell Assembly Anchorage Daily News ...Hundreds of union workers jammed Assembly Chambers at Loussac Library, spilled out into the lobby, and filled another meeting room Wednesday night for an Assembly hearing on Mayor Dan Sullivan's plan to limit the power of city labor groups....
Maverick Maine Democrat signs on to public sector right-to-work bill Bangor Daily News ...Rep. Terry Hayes, D-Buckfield, will be the only Democratic co-sponsor of the bill...
Does Taylor teacher pact flout right-to-work law? Detroit Free Press ...The union agreed to a 10% wage cut over the first three years of the contract in exchange for the lengthy contract...
Carlson Takes Aim at ALEC, Seeks to Rein In Undeclared Lobbyists Burnsville Patch ...Carlson is one of several co-authors listed on a bill authored by District 61 Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL) that would define ALEC—and other organizations that propose "model legislation" for legislators as lobbyists. Such a move would require those groups to adhere to stricter financial reporting requirements under Minnesota campaign finance laws...
"Paycheck Protection" Bill Remains Stalled In Mo. Senate KBIA ...The Missouri Senate spent a few hours Wednesday debating legislation that would bar labor unions for public workers from withholding money from public employees’ paychecks....
The Tuesday Count: Effort underway to introduce “Right-to-Work” laws in Ohio Ballot News ...Chris Littleton, of the group Ohioans for Workplace Freedom, is sponsoring the initiative effort and believes he will be able to deliver the necessary 396,000 names by July in order to place the measure on the ballot this year...
Deal Reached for Dorchester 2 Bus Drivers, Durham SummervillePatch ...Durham School Services and Dorchester Two spokespersons released statements confirming Teamster Local 509 members have ratified an agreement with the private company that runs the bus system...
Charleston bus drivers to vote on new contract Associated Press ...The drivers plan to vote on a new contract Saturday. The president of Teamsters Local 509, L.D. Fletcher, says if union members reject the contract, a strike would begin Monday...
Council OKs contract for Transit employees The Leader Herald ...the Common Council unanimously passed a resolution establishing a new contract with the city's transit union...Teamsters 294 Business Agent Thomas Quackenbush said the union is pleased that an agreement finally has been reached between the transit employees and the city...
OSHA Finds Norfolk Southern Railway Violated Federal Railroad Safety Act BMWED ...OSHA, after a full investigation, concluded that NS fired Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division (BMWED) members merely for seeking medical attention for on-the-job injuries...
City reaches agreements with employee unions The Beach Reporter ...The city and its Police Officer and Firefighter Associations, as well as California Teamsters Local 911, have successfully negotiated three-year Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) following several months of labor negotiations...
Wal-Mart Struggles to Restock Store Shelves as U.S. Sales Slump Bloomberg ...Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT), already struggling to woo shoppers constrained by higher taxes, is “getting worse” at keeping shelves stocked, the retailer’s U.S. chief told executives...
Big Energy Firm Agrees to Replace Coal-Burning Plants with Wind and Solar Operations AllGov ...American Electric Power (AEP) will stop using coal by 2015 at power plants in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. It intends to replace the energy produced by the plants with new wind and solar investments in Indiana and Michigan...
Revised GDP: Economy grew 0.1 pct in fourth quarter CBS News ...The U.S. economy grew at a 0.1 percent annual rate from October through December, the weakest performance in nearly two years...
Spain falls further into recession as GDP plunges by 0.8% The Guardian ...Spain's recession worsened dramatically at the end of last year as the government made a final austerity push in order to meet deficit targets imposed by Brussels. GDP fell by 0.8% over the final quarter of 2012, as state spending was reduced and the public sector continued to shed jobs...
13 arrested as 200 march on Wells Fargo demanding fair banking practices Occupy Homes MN ...demanding turnover of vacant homes to community control and fair banking practices. The march, organized by Occupy Homes MN, Neighborhoods Organizing for Change, and allies from faith and labor communities, began at the home of Gayle Lindsey, fighting her foreclosure...
Only 6% Rate News Media As Very Trustworthy Rasmussen Reports ...25% use the Internet as their main source of news, while only 10% still rely on print newspapers...
Governor to announce EFM decision tomorrow; State takeover of Detroit possible WXYZ ...Detroit Mayor Dave Bing says ... the governor will announce his decision regarding the possible appointment of an Emergency Financial Manager for the city of Detroit on Friday...
Proposed union law a bad idea, city workers tell Assembly Anchorage Daily News ...Hundreds of union workers jammed Assembly Chambers at Loussac Library, spilled out into the lobby, and filled another meeting room Wednesday night for an Assembly hearing on Mayor Dan Sullivan's plan to limit the power of city labor groups....
Maverick Maine Democrat signs on to public sector right-to-work bill Bangor Daily News ...Rep. Terry Hayes, D-Buckfield, will be the only Democratic co-sponsor of the bill...
Does Taylor teacher pact flout right-to-work law? Detroit Free Press ...The union agreed to a 10% wage cut over the first three years of the contract in exchange for the lengthy contract...
Carlson Takes Aim at ALEC, Seeks to Rein In Undeclared Lobbyists Burnsville Patch ...Carlson is one of several co-authors listed on a bill authored by District 61 Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL) that would define ALEC—and other organizations that propose "model legislation" for legislators as lobbyists. Such a move would require those groups to adhere to stricter financial reporting requirements under Minnesota campaign finance laws...
"Paycheck Protection" Bill Remains Stalled In Mo. Senate KBIA ...The Missouri Senate spent a few hours Wednesday debating legislation that would bar labor unions for public workers from withholding money from public employees’ paychecks....
The Tuesday Count: Effort underway to introduce “Right-to-Work” laws in Ohio Ballot News ...Chris Littleton, of the group Ohioans for Workplace Freedom, is sponsoring the initiative effort and believes he will be able to deliver the necessary 396,000 names by July in order to place the measure on the ballot this year...
Deal Reached for Dorchester 2 Bus Drivers, Durham SummervillePatch ...Durham School Services and Dorchester Two spokespersons released statements confirming Teamster Local 509 members have ratified an agreement with the private company that runs the bus system...
Charleston bus drivers to vote on new contract Associated Press ...The drivers plan to vote on a new contract Saturday. The president of Teamsters Local 509, L.D. Fletcher, says if union members reject the contract, a strike would begin Monday...
Council OKs contract for Transit employees The Leader Herald ...the Common Council unanimously passed a resolution establishing a new contract with the city's transit union...Teamsters 294 Business Agent Thomas Quackenbush said the union is pleased that an agreement finally has been reached between the transit employees and the city...
OSHA Finds Norfolk Southern Railway Violated Federal Railroad Safety Act BMWED ...OSHA, after a full investigation, concluded that NS fired Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division (BMWED) members merely for seeking medical attention for on-the-job injuries...
City reaches agreements with employee unions The Beach Reporter ...The city and its Police Officer and Firefighter Associations, as well as California Teamsters Local 911, have successfully negotiated three-year Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) following several months of labor negotiations...
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
'Sequester' is anti-growth and anti-prosperity (video)
Some call it the Sequester. We call it austerity.
The spending cuts aren't even the worst part of austerity. The destruction of jobs and stifling of business activity -- which will lead to more cuts -- are the worst part of it.
The Europeans tried austerity and it's destroying the Eurozone. Alternet did a nice summary last month:
Most of the recent economic data out of Europe has been exceedingly grim. A record high number of workers across the Eurozone are unemployed. Economies are shrinking. Debts are rising.
The anecdotes, though, are even worse. Hospitals are asking patients to supply their own syringes due to lack of funds. Trees on public land are being cut down by workers desperate for firewood to warm their homes. An entire generation of young workers is going to experience lower wages for the rest of their lives, due to years of being unemployed while in their 20s.
At this point, it’s safe to say that Europe’s response to the financial crisis of 2008 and its ensuing recession has failed. Austerity packages that were meant to jumpstart business investment and reduce what were viewed as unsustainable debt loads have instead crippled growth and caused untold amounts of human misery.Memo to premium-wine enthusiast Paul Ryan: Austerity is the opposite of a pro-growth policy that promote prosperity.
Today's Teamster News 02.27.13
IT'S OFFICIAL: Cutting Government Spending Is Hurting Our Economy Business Insider ...When we cut government spending, we reduce economic growth and we put more people out of work...
Take the Sequester Seriously... if Not Literally Huffington Post ...some federal expenditure ... won't be on the chopping block -- things the taxpayers will continue to pay for. Perhaps most outrageously, $10 billion in subsidies to the oil industry -- a substantial part of which flow directly to the Treasuries of foreign countries like Saudi Arabia and Nigeria -- will continue...
Wall St bonuses rise 9% amid job cuts Financial Times ...The average cash bonus paid to Wall Street employees has jumped 9 per cent, thanks to rebounding financial industry profits and dramatic job cuts that spread the rewards across a smaller pool...
Teenager spotted walking 10 MILES in the snow to interview for $7-an-hour job is given work on the spot by restaurant owner - who doubled his pay Daily Mail ...A teen's luck appears to have changed after a chance encounter with an Indiana restaurant owner during a 10-mile trek through ice and snow for a minimum wage job interview...
Kerry pushes for trans-Atlantic free trade agreement during stop in Germany Associated Press ...U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry pushed Tuesday for a free-trade agreement between the United States and Europe...
Arizona Senate chief Andy Biggs says union bills are priority Associated Press ...President Andy Biggs, who backs anti-union legislation that would impact police and firefighters, told The Associated Press that he remains optimistic about the effort despite signs that some state Senate Republicans aren't too keen about going to war with the unions that often help bankroll their campaigns...
House votes to shrink political power of teachers NWI Times ... Schools would be barred from automatically deducting from paychecks the portion of teacher union dues used for political purposes under legislation approved Monday by the Indiana House...
Taylor teachers' contract clause appears to buck state's right-to-work law Detroit Free Press ...A recently ratified teacher contract in the Taylor School District has caught the eye of state legislators because it includes a 10-year union security clause that will guarantee union dues be paid -- just weeks before the state's right-to-work law goes into effect March 27...
Michigan lawmakers revive divisive proposals The Detroit News ...Among those is one that would outlaw prevailing wage requirements on public works projects...
Mo. Senate stalls on 'paycheck protection' bill St. Louis Post-Dispatch ...Debate has stalled in the Missouri Senate on legislation that Democrats say is part of the state's "war on labor...
Gov. Kasich should put Ohio Turnpike promises to paper, Democrats say" Plain Dealer ...Ohio House Democrats are questioning the credibility of promises Gov. John Kasich made with his plan to use Ohio Turnpike tolls to pay for transportation projects...
Pa. lawmakers want to end prevailing wage for transportation projects Pottstown Mercury ...Pennsylvania’s prevailing-wage law sets standard wages and benefits for all government-funded construction projects that cost more than $25,000...
Federal panel opens GOP computers in Wisconsin redistricting case Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ...A federal court gave groups suing the state broad access Monday to three computers used by the Legislature to develop Republican-friendly voting maps...
Take the Sequester Seriously... if Not Literally Huffington Post ...some federal expenditure ... won't be on the chopping block -- things the taxpayers will continue to pay for. Perhaps most outrageously, $10 billion in subsidies to the oil industry -- a substantial part of which flow directly to the Treasuries of foreign countries like Saudi Arabia and Nigeria -- will continue...
Wall St bonuses rise 9% amid job cuts Financial Times ...The average cash bonus paid to Wall Street employees has jumped 9 per cent, thanks to rebounding financial industry profits and dramatic job cuts that spread the rewards across a smaller pool...
Teenager spotted walking 10 MILES in the snow to interview for $7-an-hour job is given work on the spot by restaurant owner - who doubled his pay Daily Mail ...A teen's luck appears to have changed after a chance encounter with an Indiana restaurant owner during a 10-mile trek through ice and snow for a minimum wage job interview...
Kerry pushes for trans-Atlantic free trade agreement during stop in Germany Associated Press ...U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry pushed Tuesday for a free-trade agreement between the United States and Europe...
Arizona Senate chief Andy Biggs says union bills are priority Associated Press ...President Andy Biggs, who backs anti-union legislation that would impact police and firefighters, told The Associated Press that he remains optimistic about the effort despite signs that some state Senate Republicans aren't too keen about going to war with the unions that often help bankroll their campaigns...
House votes to shrink political power of teachers NWI Times ... Schools would be barred from automatically deducting from paychecks the portion of teacher union dues used for political purposes under legislation approved Monday by the Indiana House...
Taylor teachers' contract clause appears to buck state's right-to-work law Detroit Free Press ...A recently ratified teacher contract in the Taylor School District has caught the eye of state legislators because it includes a 10-year union security clause that will guarantee union dues be paid -- just weeks before the state's right-to-work law goes into effect March 27...
Michigan lawmakers revive divisive proposals The Detroit News ...Among those is one that would outlaw prevailing wage requirements on public works projects...
Mo. Senate stalls on 'paycheck protection' bill St. Louis Post-Dispatch ...Debate has stalled in the Missouri Senate on legislation that Democrats say is part of the state's "war on labor...
Gov. Kasich should put Ohio Turnpike promises to paper, Democrats say" Plain Dealer ...Ohio House Democrats are questioning the credibility of promises Gov. John Kasich made with his plan to use Ohio Turnpike tolls to pay for transportation projects...
Pa. lawmakers want to end prevailing wage for transportation projects Pottstown Mercury ...Pennsylvania’s prevailing-wage law sets standard wages and benefits for all government-funded construction projects that cost more than $25,000...
Federal panel opens GOP computers in Wisconsin redistricting case Milwaukee Journal Sentinel ...A federal court gave groups suing the state broad access Monday to three computers used by the Legislature to develop Republican-friendly voting maps...
Detriot newspaper workers agree to new 3-year contract Detroit Free Press ...new three-year contracts provide annual across-the-board 1% wage increases and different health insurance coverage with lower premiums...The four unions covered by the contracts are the Newspaper Guild of Detroit, plus Teamsters Local 372...
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