Today's Teamster News 12.03.14

Teamster News
Teamsters rallying vs. de Blasio plan to make horse carriage drivers cabbies  New York Daily News   ..."I truly believe that these people are going to stand up for what is right, not what the mayor’s personal feelings are," (Demos Demopoulos) told the Daily News, prodicting support from perhaps several hundred members of other Teamsters members and other union workers at next week's rally, timed to the introduction of a bill phasing carriages out by mid-2016...
School Bus Workers At Chicago Public Schools Vote To Join Teamsters Local 777  teamster.org   ...School bus workers with Paige Bus Enterprises in Chicago have voted overwhelmingly, 59-16, in favor of representation by Teamsters Local 777 in Lyons, Ill. The 104 bus school bus drivers and monitors transport children attending Chicago Public Schools...
NetJets' Teamster Work Force Refuses To Subsidize Pet Travel For The Rich And Famous  teamster.org   ... Berkshire Hathaway’s (BRK/B) NetJets, Inc., continues to demand compensation and benefit cuts from more than 600 workers represented by the Teamsters Union as part of a scheme to lower prices for its wealthy customers...
Delayed Sysco-US Foods Merger Could Create Rival  Nation's Restaurant News   ...When Sysco agreed to buy US Foods nearly a year ago in a deal valued at $8.2 billion, it effectively eliminated its largest competitor and the only other company that could lay claim as a nationwide food distributor. But the delayed merger could create another national distributor, as government regulators seek to ensure competition...
Laird Evans Makes Significant Donation To The Teamsters Archives In Washington, D.C.  teamster.org   ...Laird Evans, the retired principal officer of Teamsters Local 568 in Shreveport, La., recently made the first of several contributions to the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Labor History Research Center at the George Washington University in Washington, D.C...
Trade
US Adds To List Of Items From Child, Forced Labor  Associated Press   ...The Labor Department on Monday expanded its list of products worldwide it says were likely produced by child or forced labor, ranging from garments from Bangladesh and electronics from Malaysia to cotton and sugar cane from India...
State Battles
One representative is making an attempt to bring so-called 'right to work' legislation back  Missouri Digital News   ...Southwest Missouri Republican Representative Bill Lant says he will attempt to bring right-to-work legislation to the House floor in the 2015 legislative session...
Life in a Union  Atlantic Monthly   ...In Vermont, 13.2 percent of workers were represented by unions in 2013, up from 11.7 percent a decade ago...
City Council Committee OKs Emanuel's $13-An-Hour Minimum Wage  Chicago Sun Times   ...Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s plan to raise Chicago’s minimum wage to $13 an hour by 2019 was approved by a key City Council committee Monday evening, clearing the way for it to be brought up before the full Council on Tuesday...
Gov. Rick Scott And Staff Used Private Email Account When Conducting State Business  Miami Herald   ...Florida Gov. Rick Scott exchanged emails dealing with vetoes, the state budget and his speeches from a private email account, according to records turned over to The Associated Press on Tuesday...
War on Workers
Amazon Releasing 15,000 Robots In Its Warehouses  Associated Press   ...the e-commerce giant boasts that it has boosted efficiency — and given workers' legs a break — by deploying more than 15,000 wheeled robots to crisscross the floors of its biggest warehouses and deliver stacks of toys, books and other products to employees...
Inmates' Advocates Say They Have Little Access To Private Prisons  Seven Days   ...Advocates for Vermont inmates housed in private out-of-state prisons told lawmakers today that they have little access to the facilities and limited ability to respond to inmates' concerns and conduct investigations. Defender General Matt Valerio and Prisoners' Rights Office supervising attorney Seth Lipschutz said that they rarely visit prisons in Kentucky and Arizona that are owned by Corrections Corporation of America and house nearly 500 Vermont inmates...
The Broken Promises of Citizens United  Huffington Post   ...In the 2012 election, political scientists estimated that two Americans, Charles and David Koch, had as much political influence as 1,030,000 union members. And billionaire-turned-environmental-activist Tom Steyer spent more than either of them in 2014...
Mercedes Alabama plant violated law by stopping union from handing out literature, board rules  Associated Press   ...The National Labor Relations Board has upheld a ruling that Mercedes violated federal labor laws by stopping United Auto Workers union supporters from handing out literature inside its Alabama plant...
What happened to the middle class?  Daily Local News ...that is the trifecta of middle class ruin. Demonize unions. Reduce taxes predominantly on the wealthy. Engage in trade deals which result in the loss of good paying middle class jobs...
Ocean Isle Beach golf course worker killed  WRAL.com   ...A maintenance worker at an Ocean Isle Beach golf course has died after the equipment he was driving went into some water on the course...
Miscellaneous
3 dead after school buses collide in Tennessee  FOX News   ...Two school buses collided on a Tennessee highway on Tuesday, killing two children and an adult and injuring 23...

Today's Teamster News 08.10.13

Leaders From DHL Locals Approve Tentative Agreement  IBT   ...Leaders from Teamsters local unions that represent DHL members met in Washington, D.C. on August 7 and overwhelmingly approved the tentative master agreement and supplements. Ballot materials will be mailed out to members on or about Wednesday, August 21...
Gold Cross Ambulance Employees, Schaefer Ambulance Service Will Negotiate Again Soon Imperial Valley Press  ...More negotiations between Gold Cross Ambulance employees on strike and the company will take place Aug. 20 in Glendale. A federal mediator came Tuesday to assist in negotiations, but Teamsters Local 542 President Phil Farias said it did not go well...
Cal City seeks 'uniformity' in its union contracts, approves deal with Teamster clerical workers  NWI Times   ...The City Council gave its approval Thursday to a two-year deal with the union representing city clerical staff, with city Treasurer Gerald Tarka saying the deal is meant to be comparable with the union contracts given in recent years to other city employees...
Strike continues, transit restoration plans to be presented  Willits News   ...Teamsters and Lake and Paratransit personnel will make an appearance at the Lake Transit Board of Directors meeting Wednesday where Lake Transit Manager Mark Wall will present a plan to restore transit services to Lake County. Wall said he expects representatives of Teamsters Local 665 to present a plan of their own.
It’s wait, see for Globe’s unions  Boston Herald   ...Union leaders at The Boston Globe said they’ll keep an open mind about new owner John Henry even as they face the unpleasant task of immediate negotiations over new contracts, including for delivery drivers who are represented by Teamsters Local 259…
Sale of Post and Globe signals new era in media ownership  Minnesota Public Radio   ...The recent sale of the Boston Globe and the Washington Post, both to businessmen who are billionaires, signals a new era in media ownership. The two will take control of properties that are part of an industry in turmoil...
China Factories Turn to Undocumented Labor as Local Wages Jump  Bloomberg   ...China’s embrace of higher wages to help bolster consumer spending has sparked a jump in factories along the east-coast export corridor bringing in undocumented and lower-paid workers from Myanmar and Vietnam...
Job Market Faces New Problem, Hitting One Unlucky Group Really Hard  Yahoo Finance   ...recent graduates under 25 years-old are in a particularly bad spot right now...
Study: Wall Street Overpaid, Rent Seeking  firedoglake   ...Yet even more evidence to support the emerging consensus regarding our now dominant financial sector being bloated and useless...
The Problem with 401(k) Plans  Baseline Scenario   ...What Ayres and Curtis did was point out the losses that investors in 401(k) plans incur because of high fees charged at the plan level and high fees charged by individual mutual funds in those plans...
Coming Soon: An Epic Mini-Series ‘Strength In Union’  NH Labor News   ...A five-part documentary film mini-series about the history of the American Labor Movement. “Strength In Union” will most likely air on PBS. The films will also be shown at film festivals throughout the country. Be sure to visit "Strength In Union" website for more information and release information...
Moral Monday coming to Charlotte’s Marshall Park on Aug. 19 Charlotte Business Journal   ...The Moral Monday protests in Raleigh that have generated international attention to North Carolina politics — and led to hundreds of arrests of activists — will arrive in Charlotte on Aug. 19...
The Fast-Food Strikers Are Fighting for All of Us  Huffington Post   ...Fast food workers have been conducting one-day strikes for better wages and working conditions in several American cities. They've also been doing much more than that: They're shown the entire country real leadership. They're fighting for all of us, and their fight is our fight...
NSA Intends To Fire 90% Of Their System Administrators To Prevent Future Leaks  Fire Dog Lake   ...Despite the NSA demanding the public just trust them, the agency itself seems to have some trust issues...
Sallie Mae, Education Department Under Fire For Student Loans To Military Service Members  Huffington Post   ...The U.S. Department of Education and Sallie Mae face fresh questions over the student loan business after the largest educational debt company disclosed a raft of likely federal violations that raise concerns over the government’s oversight of its largest corporate contractor...
Seniors Aren't Very Happy With the Republican Party These Days  Mother Jones   ...Erica Seifert writes that polling evidence suggests that seniors are turning against the Republican Party in big numbers. Here are three of her bits of evidence...
Michigan's bargain fees for overweight trucks need review, Snyder says   ...Gov. Rick Snyder said that Michigan should review the nominal permit fees it charges overweight trucks that chew up the state’s roads...
Texas Launches New Legal Attack On Voting Rights Act  Talking Points Memo   ...Texas escalated a confrontation with the Obama administration this week over the Voting Rights Act, staking out an aggressive new challenge to the landmark 1965 law that could send it back to the Supreme Court for yet another review...
Why Don’t Corporations Give to Charity?   Slate Group   ...Go to virtually any museum—and many hospitals, universities, and civic centers—these days, and you will find a prominent example of corporate philanthropy. If you were to judge it simply by the weight of public branding, you would think that the corporate community in the U.S. has stepped up to support charities in a significant way. They haven’t. Their profits soar, yet they only get stingier...
Meet the Low-Key, Low-Cost Grocery Chain Being Called ‘Walmart’s Worst Nightmare’ Time   ...Retail analysts say that the world’s biggest retailer has reason to fear a small grocery chain that’s based in Idaho and boasts a business model that allows it to undercut Walmart on prices...
Prison guards seek millions of dollars from state  Wisconsin Radio Network   ...Prison guards at 10 Wisconsin correctional institutions file a lawsuit, seeking payment for perhaps a few minutes of unpaid time every work day. That extra time could add up to millions of dollars for the guards...

Today's Teamster News 07.23.13

Teamsters labour dispute with IKEA drags on; mediation to resume Tuesday  Vancouver Sun   ...At the Richmond Ikea store in British Columbia, Canada, the indoor showroom was tidied for the Sunday morning crowds and cashiers were hustling shoppers through as usual. But every car driving into the half-filled parking lot was made aware of an ongoing labour dispute between the company and its union, Teamsters Local 213...
Union History Displayed At Teamsters Headquarters  IBT   ...Historical items from the printing industry that were donated by the Graphic Communications Conference, including an 1872 Washington Press, are on display at the Teamster Headquarters, 25 Louisiana Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. 20001. View the slideshow of the items here...
Teamster Essay Contest Announced  IBT   ...Children and grandchildren of Teamster members have until Sept. 30 to enter the James R. Hoffa Memorial Scholarship Fund Essay Contest, which gives higher-education students the opportunity to win one of 50 $1,000 awards awarded by the union annually. Click here for more information...
Cries of Betrayal as Detroit Plans to Cut Pensions  New York Times   ...Kevyn D. Orr, the city’s emergency manager, has called for “significant cuts” to the pensions of current retirees. His plan is being fought vigorously by unions that point out that pensions are protected by Michigan’s Constitution, which calls them a contractual obligation that “shall not be diminished or impaired...”
The changing face of American union workers  MSNBC   ...When people think of unions, the image of a white construction worker is still one of the first to come to mind for many people, but it’s not what labor looks like anymore. Tom Perez, the new secretary of Labor, is more representative of the current makeup of unions in the United States...
6 Ways A $12 Minimum Wage Would Help The Economy  Huffington Post   ...After the D.C. Council approved a bill that requires large retailers to pay their workers a "living wage" of $12.50 -- and Walmart retreated from the capital in protest -- we thought it'd be worth considering what that requirement could do for the economy...
The tax break that corporate America wants kept secret  CNNMoney   ...Oracle, Google, and Amazon are just a few of the hundreds of large companies that have cut confidential deals with the IRS to help lower their tax bills, and critics want the agency to disclose the details of these complex pacts...
Hanging by a thread? Proposed trade pact could doom last of local textile industry  Salisbury Post   ...Free Trade Agreements with North and Central American countries — known as NAFTA and CAFTA-DR — also could keep those international workforces from competing with duty-free exporters like Vietnam, opponents say, costing more than 1.4 million jobs...
U.S., Urging Worker Safety, Outlines Steps for Bangladesh to Regain Its Trade Privileges  New York Times   ...The Obama administration publicly recommended a series of steps that the Bangladesh government should take to have its trade privileges with the United States restored...
Americans Say They Are Willing To Spend To End Child Labor  Holmes Report   ...Most Americans say they are willing to spend a little extra when it comes to making sure the products they buy are made without the use of child labor, according to a new survey…
Things don’t go better with the Kochs (opinion)  Pittsburgh Tribune-Review   ...Billionaire Charles Koch is causing some consternation by launching a $200,000 media campaign in the Wichita, Kan., area calling for the U.S. to embrace greater “economic freedom” — which translates to fewer safety and environmental protections and fewer services for people who haven't made it to the top of the economic ladder...
Can Pennsylvania safeguard against another West, Texas explosion?  Pittsburgh Post-Gazette   ...On April 17, when 30 tons of fertilizer detonated in West, Texas, 15 people died and 200 were injured. A plant in Donora, Pennsylvania stores more than 400 times more ammonia that what was there at the West, Texas facility at the time of the explosion. What can be done to avoid another disaster?...
OSHA Wants Ergonomic Conditions for Hospital Workers  Business 2 Community   ...A new campaign that focuses on using ergonomics to prevent injuries in the workplace is being directed at healthcare workers, according to a July 18 release by the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA). The agency said that healthcare workers, especially those responsible for patient care, are more prone hazards that can lead to musculoskeletal disorders than those in any other field...
In Climbing Income Ladder, Location Matters  New York Times   ...A study finds the odds of rising to another income level are notably low in certain cities, like Atlanta and Charlotte, and much higher in New York and Boston...
MacKenzie and Andrews: Sturm, Ruger chose N.C. to maximize profits at workers’ expense (opinion)  New Hampshire Union Leader   ...As the top labor leaders of two states with very different experiences with right-to-work, we maintain that right-to-work is not a viable strategy for economic growth. In North Carolina, the right-to-work for less law has encouraged the development of a low-wage economy, institutionalized poverty and an environment that puts corporate profits ahead of the well-being of North Carolina families...

VIDEO: Short, funny history of unions

Thanks to the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO for this witty history lesson.