Making college affordable is key to America's future

The cost of higher education is out of control, and has been for many years. As tuition soared sky-high, more and more U.S. young adults went deep into debt trying to finance their future. And today, many are being crushed by the weight of their borrowing.

College costs are hitting students hard.

Until recently, there didn't seem to be enough lawmakers demanding change when it came to the high cost of college. Sure, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) would decry student loan interest rates, but too many elected officials were silent on the bigger question of reducing the price tag for post-secondary education.

Now, however, there seems to be momentum for a broader solution, one that could even play a role in the 2016 elections. Some 20 Democratic senators support a measure that would spur government to tap down on the spiraling costs of higher ed.

As outlined in The Hill newspaper:

The resolution deals in broad strokes rather than granular details. It calls upon the federal government to provide more support to states, which can then “make increased investments in higher education that will result in lower tuition and costs for students.” It also backs increased financial aid for students — in contrast to the House GOP’s recent budget plan that would freeze Pell grants at their current level — as well as efforts to bend the cost curve of college education downward.

The need for such legislation cannot be overstated. While rising tuition has hampered many students, it has hit those that hail from low-income families the most. Even the brightest of those coming from economically challenged families often can't finish college. Meanwhile, their less intelligent but better-off classmates muddle through.

As detailed in Slate:

What happens to these bright, low-income students? It's not so much that they don't attend college—only 12.4 percent skip higher ed entirely. The problem is that most don't finish, or settle for less than a bachelor's degree, which of course limits their earning power later in life. Sometimes they try to save money on tuition by attending community college, even though most two-year schools have a spotty track record when it comes to helping students graduate. Sometimes they get lost or overwhelmed in a college's bureaucracy, because they don't have educated parents who can help guide them along. Sometimes they try to work through school and simply can't balance the demands of a job with their academics. For one reason or another, they don't make it as far as their talent suggests they should.

America simply cannot allow this continue to happen. It tramples on this nation's history as "The Land of Opportunity" and raises questions about whether working hard is the classroom ultimately does pay off for all students. And it tamps down on innovation and U.S. economic gains.

Education is at the core of what makes this country great. If lawmakers wants to get more people working in good middle-class jobs, they need to prioritize it.

Today's Teamster News 06.04.15

Teamsters
Leaders of Carhaul Local Unions Approve Contract Proposals  Teamster.org   ...Leaders of local unions that represent Carhaul Teamsters overwhelmingly approved contract proposals today in Detroit that will be presented to the employer group on Thursday, June 4 as both sides prepare to negotiate a new National Master Automobile Transporters Agreement (NMATA). “Thanks to our members who filled out surveys and our local unions that sent in proposals, we were able to come up with a package of contract proposals that local unions approved today,” said Kevin Moore, Director of the Teamsters Carhaul Division...
EVSC and Teamsters clash on two points during collective bargaining  Courier & Press  ...Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp. officials called an impromptu news conference late Wednesday afternoon to disclose two key concerns they have in current collective bargaining negotiations with Teamsters Local 215 representatives. EVSC School Board Negotiator Susan Traynor Chastain spoke on behalf of the board to discuss contract negotiations with the five EVSC employee groups represented by the Teamsters — bus drivers, secretaries, custodians, special education assistants and bus aides...

Global Labor & Trade
Progressives Mount Final Push Against Bill That 'Threatens Everything You Care About'  Common Dreams  ...With President Barack Obama "in overdrive" pushing his trade agenda and the House expected to take up so-called Fast Track authority "any day now," progressives are flooding Capitol Hill on Wednesday with phone calls and petitions expressing their opposition to corporate-friendly trade deals...
Barack Obama: China might join trade deal — eventually  Politico  ...China could eventually join the trade pact currently under negotiation with 12 Pacific Rim nations, President Barack Obama said Wednesday. A central part of Obama’s pitch for the trade deal known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership has been that it would prevent China from making the rules in the region...
In ‘Fast-Track’ Pitch, Obama Ready to Fight Unions in Democratic Primaries  Roll Call  ...President Barack Obama will protect pro-trade Democrats in party primaries against unions and others opposed to his “fast-track” trade agenda, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said Wednesday. Earnest said the president is vowing to work hard to get Democrats on board, and that includes a vow to have their back politically...
Mayors leading Obama's charge on trade  Politico  ...President Barack Obama will have to hope America’s mayors are a little more convincing than he’s been. Faced with House Democrats who aren’t buying the administration’s efforts to draw a connection between global trade and local job growth, big-city mayors — most of them Democrats — are stepping up...
Trade deficit drops sharply to $40.9B in April  USA Today  ...The U.S. trade deficit declined sharply in April as exports posted a modest gain and imports fell, raising hopes that trade will not be as big a drag on economic growth in the current quarter. The April deficit dropped 19.2 percent to $40.9 billion...
WikiLeaks Strikes Again: Leaked TISA Docs Expose Corporate Plan For Reshaping Global Economy  Common Dreams  ...An enormous corporate-friendly treaty that many people haven't heard of was thrust into the public limelight Wednesday when famed publisher of government and corporate secrets, WikiLeaks, released 17 documents from closed-door negotiations between countries that together comprise two-thirds of the word's economy. Analysts warn that preliminary review shows that the pact, known as the Trade in Services Agreement (TISA), is aimed at further privatizing and deregulating vital services...
The TPP Gang That Can’t Shoot Straight  (opinion) Other Words  ...As Congress gets ready to vote on whether to “fast-track” the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), its proponents are making weaker and more far-fetched arguments for the deal. And they keep getting their facts wrong and their logic twisted. This hit parade of failed arguments should convince any fence sitters that this is a bad deal...
Zimbabwe Economy in Crisis, Few Jobs, Workers Unpaid  Solidarity Center  ...Zimbabwe’s economy is in deep decline, making it harder for average Zimbabweans to work and live, and leaving them less and less confident in their future, according to Solidarity Center Regional Program Director for Africa Imani Countess, in testimony yesterday on Capitol Hill. “Most workers earn salaries far below the poverty level, and many workers—even in the formal sector—go for months without receiving their wages,” Countess said...
Greek unemployment rate stable at 25.6%  MarketWatch  ...About 1.2 million Greeks remain without a job, with the inactive population--those who aren't in employment or searching for a job, often because they have become discouraged--amounting to 3.4 million. Austerity measures imposed by creditors have allowed Greece to achieve a surplus in the primary budget, which excludes interest payments, but Athens underscores how much of a toll it has taken on economic growth and employment...

State & Living Wage Battles
Nixon expected to veto Missouri right-to-work measure  KSPR  ...Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon on Thursday is set to take action on the bill alongside United AutoWorkers members near Ford's Kansas City Assembly Plant. The measure would prohibit workplace contracts that require union fees to be collected from nonmembers. Nixon has criticized the bill, which he says could lead to lower wages. Other opponents have said it could undermine unions...
Proposed initiative petition would up state’s minimum wage   Rolla Daily News  ...Three initiative petitions to increase Missouri's minimum wage have been approved for circulation. Secretary of State Jason Kander on Tuesday announced supporters of all three now can begin collecting signatures. The petitions need to be signed by at least 5 percent of legal voters in six of the state's eight congressional districts to make it onto a ballot...
Public sounds off to election board over voter ID law  WNCN  ...The State Board of Elections is giving the public a chance to raise concerns about North Carolina's voter ID law. Officials held the first of nine public hearings Wednesday night to get input from residents. The public hearings are being used to see how residents would like to see this law implemented...
Illinois House to vote on changes to workers’ compensation  KTRS  ...Democratic Speaker Michael Madigan says the Illinois House will consider changes to the state’s workers’ compensation insurance system when it reconvenes Thursday. Madigan put out a release Wednesday noting overhauling workers’ compensation is one of Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner’s top priorities...
In Houston, Clinton to Target Texas' Voter ID Law  Texas Tribune  ...Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will use a speech Thursday in Houston to call for expanded early voting across the country and criticize states like Texas for tightening election laws, according to her presidential campaign.  Speaking at historically black Texas Southern University, the Democratic front-runner will propose a national requirement of at least 20 days of in-person early voting...
Walmart's latest raises show just how low its pay is  Daily Kos  ...You know you're a low-wage employer when you're bragging about raising base pay levels to $15 an hour ... for your managers. And not even all of them: Wal-Mart told The Associated Press late Monday that department managers of complex and service-oriented jobs in areas like produce, electronics and auto care, will start at $13 per hour...
Attempts To Limit Voting Rights Stunted As Efforts To Enhance Voting Access Prevail  Huff Post  ...A number of state legislatures are adjourning, and supporters of expanded access to the ballot box may be sighing in relief as they see some of the major efforts to restrict voting access were stymied during this legislative session. As the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University highlighted Wednesday, "For the third year in a row, bills to expand voters’ access to the ballot box outpace those to restrict voting, both in terms of introduction and enactment"...
Los Angeles City Council approves landmark minimum wage increase  LA Times  ...andmark ordinance boosting the minimum wage in Los Angeles won approval Wednesday from the City Council despite a variety of unresolved issues about how the law would work. The law, which would raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2020, affects hundreds of thousands of workers and makes Los Angeles the largest city in the country to mandate higher pay for workers at the bottom of the income ladder...

U.S. Labor
SEIU, County close the gap in latest labor deal  Sun Gazette  ...Tulare County Services Employees International Union (SEIU) are looking forward to a padded pocketbook in their new deal with the County pending ratification and acceptance. In previous years SEIU has attempted to gain back some of its pay held by the County as they struggled through the Great Recession. As recent as last year SEIU Chapter 251 fought for a 9% raise that they were not able to garner. However, now there appears to be a deal that satisfies both parties...
Northwestern University still awaiting ruling from National Labor Relations Board  Chicago Business Journal  ...A full 10 months after legal teams from Northwestern University and the College Athletes Players Association (CAPA) submitted their final filings to the full National Labor Relations Board in Washington, D.C., there's still no indication when the NLRB will issue a final ruling on whether Northwestern University's football team can unionize under the CAPA banner...
Talk of Philly newspaper strike, unionizing move at Gawker, big window onto media labor relations  Poynter  ...Union members in Philadelphia will vote Wednesday evening on whether to give leaders the right to call a walkout and potentially trigger an American labor relations rarity: a big city newspaper strike. And, by total coincidence, what could prove a notable if unrelated labor relations happening is playing out in New York: an attempt to unionize workers at Gawker Media...
Streetcar pact signed by SORTA, transit union  Business Courier  ...The union that represents Cincinnati transit workers has signed a deal with the Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority, clearing the way for its members to operate Cincinnati’s streetcar – if the City Council chooses to go that route...
US Unemployment Aid Applications Drop to 276,000  AP  ...Fewer Americans sought unemployment benefits last week, a sign that job cuts remain low as employers are confident enough in the business outlook to hold onto their staffs. The Labor Department says applications for unemployment aid dropped 8,000 to a seasonally adjusted 276,000. The four-week average, a less volatile figure, ticked up 2,750 to 274,750...

Miscellaneous
All This Economic Inequality Sucks, Say Most Americans  Common Dreams  ...The new poll, conducted jointly by the New York Times and CBS News, found that a "strong majority"—more than six out of 10 people across party lines—think the nation's "wealth should be more evenly divided" among its people and only slightly less (with Republican support falling off) think government policies should drive the effort to reduce the gap between the rich and the poor...
New US trucking technology mandate to contribute to higher rates  JOC  ...The U.S. federal government on Wednesday mandated that heavy trucks be equipped with electronic stability controls by Aug. 1, 2017, the latest in a series of actions taken by the federal government to improve safety that will ultimately contribute to higher truck rates. Once implemented, the National Highway Transit Safety Association said the controls could prevent 1,700 crashes annually... 
After Ruling That McDonald’s Can’t Pay Workers In Bank Cards, The Bank Pays Up  Think Progress  ...Paying employees through prepaid debit cards that incur fees when workers try to withdraw their cash is illegal in Pennsylvania, a judge ruled Tuesday. The lawsuit targeting a McDonald’s franchisee in the eastern-central part of the state has already prompted a powerful Wall Street bank to voluntarily give money back...

Live from the IBT -- Steve Earle!

Steve Earle performed at the IBT headquarters Monday night.

The Teamsters hosted a fundraiser Monday night to support the Plastic Pollution Coalition and the port truck drivers who are battling wage theft and unfair employment practices. The reception featured a live performance from Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Steve Earle – “the workers’ warrior.” 

Before the concert, Earle sat down with the Teamsters Communications Department for a far-ranging interview to discuss ports, plastic, Pete Seeger and more. Listen here.

Today's Teamster News 06.03.15

Teamsters
Crystal Motor Express Drivers Choose Teamsters  Teamster.org  ...Drivers at Crystal Motor Express in Lynnfield, Mass., have voted overwhelmingly to join Teamsters Local 42 in Lynn, Mass. The newly organized group consists of 55 drivers. “Teamsters Joint Council 10 continues to focus on organizing in core industries. We welcome these freight drivers to the Teamster family,” said David W. Laughton, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Joint Council 10...
Teamsters Urge Investor Support for Executive Pay Safeguard at Allegiant Travel Co.  Teamster.org  ...The International Brotherhood of Teamsters, a long-term investor of Allegiant Travel Company urges fellow shareholders to vote FOR Item #3 on the company’s proxy—a proposal that would help prevent unearned windfall awards being paid to executives in the event of a change of control. The shareholder proposal will be presented at the company’s annual meeting, which will be held June 18, 2015, in Las Vegas...
Teamsters Protest Sysco in Michigan  Teamster.org  ...Teamsters protested Sysco Corporation outside the Michigan Restaurant Association’s Capitol Day in Lansing, Mich., today. Sysco is the largest foodservice distributor in the nation. Sysco faces a federal investigation of 30 alleged violations of labor law and 35 objections to a May 7 Grand Rapids, Mich., union election in which a lead union supporter was fired and workers were threatened with the loss of benefits or their jobs if they voted for union representation...
President Pierce testifies for two-person crews, PTC at Congressional hearing  BLET.org  ...Dennis Pierce, National President of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) and President of the Teamsters Rail Conference, testified before the U.S. House of Representatives today and urged the timely implementation of Positive Train Control (PTC), coupled with a minimum two-person operating crew to ensure safety along the nation’s railroads...
Truckers say working conditions likely cause for recent tragedies  WSAV  ...Responding to two recent accidents involving trucks that resulted in ten deaths, a groups of local truck drivers say long hours may have been a likely factor. Teamsters Local 728 representative Jerome Irwin, Sr. stood with local drivers this morning...
For truck drivers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, it's a waiting game  KPCC  ...More than 40 percent of U.S. imports flow through the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. An army of 14,000 short-haul truck drivers are tasked with hauling that cargo from the port complex to warehouses and rail yards around Southern Calfornia. But some of those truckers say, despite their critical role at the ports, they are among the lowest paid workers there, due to ridiculously long wait times...

Global Labor & Trade
Wikileaks offers $100,000 for details of Obama’s trade deal  Washington Post  ...Wikileaks put a hit out on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal Tuesday, offering $100,000 to anyone who turns over the chapters that have yet to be leaked. The government-document exposing organization already published some chapters of the secret deal, but it wants the whole thing. It’s also using crowdfunding to raise the money to pay the bounty...
Hoyer Urges Civility Among Democrats in Trade Debate  Roll Call  ...He specifically discussed labor’s outsized influence in pressuring members to oppose legislation that would give President Barack Obama latitude to negotiate a major trade deal with Pacific nations. The AFL-CIO in particular has threatened Democrats who support so-called fast-track authority...
Liberals plot new way to blow up Obama’s trade deal  Washington Post  ...In the House, a big bloc of liberals has hit on what they hope will be a new way to sink Fast Track. It turns on an obscure aspect of this debate that has gone under-covered: A problematic funding mechanism for a program, which would be part of the whole deal, that grants assistance to workers displaced by trade. The Senate version of TAA is funded in part by cuts to Medicare growth...
Barney Frank: Obama Is Making 'A Big Mistake' On TPP  Huffington Post  ...Frank said Obama should leverage the trade deal, now being negotiated with 11 Pacific nations, to pass policies that would reduce income inequality, but are currently opposed by the powerful corporations backing TPP. Among the policies that Frank said that Obama could exchange for the trade deal are an increase in the minimum wage, stronger protections for unions, and the end of tax breaks for corporations that ship jobs overseas...
Rana Plaza Charges: ‘A Long-Delayed Step Toward Justice’  Solidarity Center  ...Reports that at least 41 government officials have been charged in the deadly 2013 collapse of Rana Plaza in Bangladesh “represent a long-delayed step toward justice,” says Solidarity Center Asia Regional Program Director Tim Ryan. “Finally, after more than two years, the Bangladesh government is moving toward holding accountable those who were responsible for the deaths and injuries of hundreds of women and men toiling for pennies in those five garment factories”...

State & Living Wage Battles
Nevada minimum wage raised to $9 for workers without insurance  Las Vegas Sun  ... Nevada’s minimum wage is increasing to $9 an hour for workers not offered company health insurance. A conference committee of the Senate and Assembly agreed on amendments to SB193 that would raise the wage from $8.25 an hour...
Union workers oppose right-to-work  Effingham Daily News  ...Union workers packed Effingham City Council Chamber Tuesday evening to explain to city officials how the establishment of a right-to-work zone in the city would hurt their livelihoods. Gov. Bruce Rauner has pushed for the state to allow local communities to establish such zones...
New prevailing wage method won’t change much, union leader says  WV Gazette  ...New methodology for calculating prevailing wage rates for state-funded construction projects is not likely to dramatically change wages for construction workers, the executive director of the Affiliated Construction Trades Foundation said Tuesday. “In general, it should be about the same,” Steve White said of the new methodology for calculating prevailing wage, released Monday by WorkForce West Virginia...
WNC public hearings set on voter ID law  Citizen-Times  ...The State Board of Elections is holding the first of nine public hearings on the rules governing North Carolina's voter identification law. The first hearing is scheduled for Raleigh beginning at 5 p.m. on Wednesday at board headquarters. The other hearings will be held throughout the state during June...
St. Louis mayor supports a $15 minimum wage  USA Today  ...St. Louis could be the next city to raise its minimum wage significantly, if Mayor Francis Slay has his way. Slay spokeswoman Maggie Crane on Tuesday confirmed that the Democratic mayor wants to raise the city's minimum. A starting point for discussion is $15 per hour by Jan. 1, 2020...
Walmart is a cultural sickness: How the American workplace is enriching the wealthy — and destroying everyone else  Salon  ...The Waltons are among the wealthiest people on the globe, yet their business won’t guarantee American workers the fundamental dignity of having a child without fear of repercussion. And so it goes with workers’ rights across sectors of the economy. In any moral society, this would be considered a crime. And in more advanced societies, Walmart is forced to grant their workers more rights, like unionization...

U.S. Labor
United Auto Workers Units Draw Up Strike Plans  Wall Street Journal  ...With about 100 days remaining on a four-year labor pact, local United Auto Workers units are drawing up strike plans to prepare for potentially contentious negotiations with Detroit auto makers awash in profits. UAW officials—representing about 140,000 General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co. and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles employees—will soon begin negotiating a new deal ahead of a Sept. 14 contract deadline...
MedStar, nurses union reach tentative agreement  Washington Business Journal  ...Nurses at MedStar Washington Hospital Center stand to earn increases of up to 12.5 percent over the next four years if they ratify a tentative agreement with the hospital later this week. Officials from both MedStar and National Nurses United confirmed nurses will vote on whether to ratify the four-year contract by Friday. If approved, the contract will take effect immediately...
NLRB Office: Saint Xavier Adjuncts May Count Union Votes  Inside Higher Ed  ...A local National Labor Relations Board office decided this week that adjuncts at Saint Xavier University may count their union election votes. The count was halted four years ago after the Roman Catholic University opposed the National Education Association-affiliated union drive...
NLRB approves union at Golden Dragon plant  Montgomery Advertiser  ...A federal agency last week certified a vote to unionize a plant that Gov. Robert Bentley touted as an example of economic development. The National Labor Relations Board issued a certificate of recognition Thursday to workers at GD Copper USA at Pine Hill in Wilcox County. The workers voted 75 to 74 in November to unionize under the United Steelworkers...
Union files another charge with NLRB against Kittanning hospital  Trib Live  ...The technicians and licensed practical nurses union filed another charge with the National Labor Relations Board against ACHM Hospital Tuesday, alleging administrators have discriminated against its members.
“The hospital has discriminated against the employees for participating in union activities and have continually engaged in bad-faith bargaining,” said Curtis Dahn, spokesman for the Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals union...

Miscellaneous
‘I Am Disappointed': Elizabeth Warren Blasts Top Financial Industry Overseer For Failing The Public  Think Progress   ...Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) head Mary Jo White is under renewed scrutiny Tuesday after Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) published a blistering 13-page letter to the commissioner listing the various ways in which she says White has failed to keep her promises to Warren and other senators since being sworn in in the spring of 2013...
US Congress passes surveillance reform in vindication for Edward Snowden  The Guardian  ...The US Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that would end the bulk collection of millions of Americans’ phone records, the most significant surveillance reform for decades and a direct result of NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden’s revelations to the Guardian two years ago. Senators voted 67-32 to pass the USA Freedom Act...
America's crumbling infrastructure  Yahoo News  ...America’s infrastructure could be reaching a breaking point. Literally. When it comes to our transportation infrastructure — that’s railroads, water pipelines, ports, dams, bridges, airports and roads — the United States has gotten way off track. In fact, the American Society of Civil Engineers’ most recent report card gave America’s infrastructure a D+. And according to the World Economic Forum, the U.S. ranks 16th in quality of overall infrastructure...

USTR won't let public view TPP text!

Protesters knocked on the USTR's door Tuesday but received no answer.

Teamster members and some 200 other fast track opponents were denied entry to the U.S. Trade Representative's office in Washington Tuesday after they demanded to see the text of the still-secretive Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

Union members were joined by House members and other fair trade advocates in calling for increased transparency so that the public and lawmakers can read the full text of the 12-nation TPP. The USTR and big business need fast track legislation to be approved by the House so they can ram the job-killing Pacific Rim trade deal through Congress.

Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Texas told attendees that “the book doesn’t match the cover” when it comes to fast track and how it will affect workers:

Rep. Doggett addressed the crowd.

There are vital issues here about workers, about the environment. This drives down the standard Democrats achieved during the Bush administration of all places on food safety where [Rep.] Rosa [DeLauro] has lead the way, about secret courts that will give foreigners more rights in these arbitration panels than American citizens have. It's about our health and safety and being able to preserve the decision making of local city councils and county councils and state legislators.

Larry Cohen, president of the Communications Workers of America, stated while fast track supporters like to point at companies such as Nike that claim they will create thousands of new jobs if fast track is passed and the TPP is ultimately implemented, it is largely a ruse. While he said there might be new "skyscraper jobs" in U.S. corporate headquarters, any growth in manufacturing will be done overseas.

That's why those fighting against fast track need to be diligent, Rep. DeLauro of Connecticut told the crowd:

This is not an easy fight. Do you think we will win it? Yes? Hell yes! But it isn't an easy job.

Teamsters need to speak up tomorrow by contacting their House members and telling them that fast track is the wrong track for America. Keep an eye on your e-mail, texts and the Teamster Facebook page to see how you can help!

Today's Teamster News 06.02.15

Teamsters
The Sinister Motives Lurking Beneath Amazon.com's Minnesota Debut  Teamster.org  ...Teamsters Local 120 and workers across Minnesota are questioning the motives behind Amazon.com, Inc., as the company prepares to break ground on a new distribution facility, while driving down wages for workers. After facing community pressure, Amazon, a multi-billion dollar corporation, recently withdrew its request for more than $6.4 million in tax incentives...
Teamsters Local 284 President Paul Suffoletto Responds to Management Changes at NetJets  Teamster.org  ...Today, the Teamsters Union was informed of a change in leadership at NetJets, Inc., which could impact hundreds of Teamsters Local 284-represented flight attendants, mechanics and related employees, stock clerks, maintenance controllers and flight dispatchers. The Teamsters Union was informed that CEO Jordan Hansell has left NetJets. Adam Johnson will replace Hansell as Chairman and CEO...
Port truck drivers: Companies must share blame  WJCL News  ...Drivers of trucks that service the Savannah ports have scheduled a press conference Tuesday at which they are expected to make the claim that trucking companies must share the blame for the recent spate of truck-related fatal accidents in the area. Drivers said in a press release issued Monday that long hours, low pay, and pressure from the trucking companies to deliver as many loads as possible a day all contribute to unsafe working conditions...

Global Labor & Trade
Dems in pressure cooker on trade  The Hill  ...House Democrats are in a pressure cooker ahead of a high-stakes vote on a vital piece of President Obama's ambitious trade agenda. The White House, joining the powerful business lobby, is applying a full court press in an effort to rally lawmakers behind contentious fast-track legislation that would grant the administration new powers to seal enormous international trade deals that would rank atop Obama's economic achievements...
Congress may take up Trans Pacific Partnership trade deal this week  Michigan Radio  ...Michigan’s congressional delegation is divided as a major new trade deal tops the agenda this week. The “Trans Pacific Partnership” would cover U-S imports and exports from a dozen nations. Flint Congressman Dan Kildee says the deal doesn’t do enough to address human rights and currency manipulation...
WikiLeaks Launches Campaign to Offer $100,000 "Bounty" for Leaked Drafts of Secret TPP Chapters  Democracy Now  ...Critics, including a number of Democratic lawmakers, oppose the TPP, saying it will fuel inequality, kill jobs, and undermine health, environmental and financial regulations. The negotiations have been secret, and the public has never seen most of the deal’s text. This morning the whistleblowing group WikiLeaks launched a campaign to change that. The group is seeking to raise $100,000 to offer what they describe as a bounty for the leaking of the unseen chapters of the TPP...
Australian MPs allowed to see top-secret trade deal text but can't reveal contents for four years  The Guardian   ...Australian politicians have been told they can view the current confidential negotiating text for the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement, but only if they agree not to divulge anything they see for four years, despite expectations the deal could be finalised within months...
Don't Reward Human Traffickers  (opinion) Roll Call   ...The horrors along the Thai-Malaysian border revealed in the past week have shocked our consciences, and put the scourge of human trafficking at the front of international news. As shocking as those stories are, they are not the first reports from Malaysia. This reality is why I introduced an amendment to the “fast track” trade promotion bill that for the first time prohibits expedited, unamendable congressional consideration for any trade deal including the very worst human trafficking country...
UK rail strikes suspended after 2% pay rise offer  BBC  ...Planned rail strikes by workers from the RMT union have been suspended after an offer of a 2% pay rise this year, the arbitration service Acas has said. Acas said four days of talks helped "formulate" revised proposals for the RMT and other unions to consider. The RMT has 16,000 members at Network Rail in operations and maintenance...
Two Years Later, Murder Charges for Rana Plaza Tragedy, But Justice Elusive  Common Dreams  ...Bangladeshi police on Monday formally filed murder charges against 41 people for the Rana Plaza factory collapse over two years ago that killed 1,138 workers in what is is believed to be the worst single tragedy in the history of the world's garment industry. However, officials from the numerous Western retail corporations that did business with the factory—including Walmart, The Children’s Place, Benetton, Zara, and Mango—were not named among those facing charges...

State & Living Wage Battles
Right-to-work opponents run TV ads to press governor to follow through with his veto  St. Louis Public Radio  ...Although Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon already has declared he’ll veto an anti-union bill known as “right to work,’’ a labor coalition has launched a TV ad campaign anyway. The ad blitz is likely just the first salvo in what could be a summer-long effort by both sides to sway the public and politicians on the bill...
California Senate approves another minimum wage hike  KTVL  ...The California Senate has approved a plan to again raise California's minimum wage, lifting it to $13 an hour in 2017, then tied to the rate of inflation after that. Senators on Monday approved the bill, SB3 by Sen. Mark Leno, on a 23-15 vote, with Republican lawmakers opposed...
California lawmakers advance 'wage theft' bill for workers  KSBY  ...California lawmakers have advanced a "wage theft" bill in an effort to crack down on employers that shortchange workers. The state Senate on Monday approved the proposal on a 24-12 vote. SB588 by Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon would make it easier for the state labor commissioner to collect unpaid wages on behalf of workers...
Absentee voter ID bill dead in Alabama Legislature, lawmakers say  AL.com  ...A bill that would require voters to submit a copy of their photo ID when requesting an absentee ballot in the state of Alabama is dead, Rep. Reed Ingram said. Currently, Alabama is one of only three states that require a photo ID to submit an absentee ballot. The new rule would have required absentee voters to submit a copy of their photo ID on the frontend as well...
Legislature reinstates prevailing wages as part of deal with Dems  Las Vegas Review-Journal  ...Prevailing wages for school construction projects were resurrected Monday on the last day of the legislative session in an end-game concession to the Democratic minority. The state Senate amended Assembly Bill 172, rescinding a law already signed by Gov. Brian Sandoval that exempts schools from prevailing wage requirements...
Nevada legislature approves state's largest-ever tax hike  USA Today  ...The Nevada legislature approved the state's largest-ever tax hike that will raise up to $1.1 billion in new and extended taxes to initiate far-reaching reforms in Nevada's struggling K-12 education system. In a 30 to 10 vote Sunday, the Assembly approved all three major facets of Republican Gov. Brian Sandoval's tax plan...
How the Retail Industry Keeps People of Color in Poverty  The Nation  ...A new report by the think tank Demos and the NAACP shows that the retail industry, a leading source of employment in the post-recession "recovery,” is creating many more bad jobs than good ones—and blacks and Latinos are stuck in the lowest-paid positions with the least opportunity for advancement. Some leading retailers have faced legal challenges in recent years over racial or gender discrimination against workers, but the most harmful forms of racial bias operate just below the surface...
Robert Reich on the Real Texas Disaster: Clueless Pols Who Hate the Feds Until They Don't  Alternet  ...Texas dislikes the federal government so much that eight of its congressional representatives, along with Senator Ted Cruz,opposed disaster relief for the victims of Hurricane Sandy – adding to the awkwardness of their lobbying for the federal relief now heading Texas’s way. Yet even before the current floods, Texas had received more disaster relief than any other state...

U.S. Labor
Texas court upholds labor board's union election rule  The Hill  ...The Obama administration should be allowed to speed up the process by which employees unionize, a federal judge ruled Monday. Judge Robert Pitman of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas tossed out a lawsuit from business...
30,000 Teachers Walk Out in Protest of Big Class Sizes in Washington State  In These Times  ...On Tuesday, May 19, thousands of demonstrators marched through downtown Seattle to support a rolling strike by public school teachers across Washington state. The teachers are protesting what they say are unacceptably high class sizes and low pay, stemming from their state legislature’s failure to fully fund public education...
GE Begins Union Contract Talks  Finances  ...GE today began negotiations on a new national contract with the International Union of Electronic Workers/Communications Workers of America (IUE-CWA). Negotiations with the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) will begin tomorrow, June 2, 2015. GE holds separate talks with each union. The current four-year contracts with the unions expire at midnight on June 21, 2015...
For UAW members, two-tier wage issue is personal  St. Louis Post-Dispatch  ...The Austin family's dilemma is an emotionally charged example of why UAW President Dennis Williams is under pressure from rank-and-file union members to overhaul the two-tier wage system in contract talks this summer with the Detroit Three automakers. For decades, the UAW fought to get comparable pay for union members doing similar work. But in 2007, as the Detroit automakers were starting to bleed cash, UAW leaders agreed to create two classes of workers...

Miscellaneous
Glenn Greenwald: As Bulk NSA Spying Expires, Scare Tactics Can’t Stop "Sea Change" on Surveillance  Democracy Now  ...The government’s authority to sweep up millions of Americans’ phone records has expired. The practice exposed by National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden could now face limited reforms as the Senate weighs the USA FREEDOM Act, which would require the government to ask phone companies for a user’s data rather than vacuuming up all the records at once... 
New Data Offer First Infuriating Glimpse At How The Richest 0.001 Percent Pay Income Taxes  Think Progress  ...Tax day doesn’t sting much if you live at the gilded edge, according to new data on how the top one-hundredth of one percent and the top one-thousandth of a percent of all filers pay their income taxes. People who make tens of millions of dollars enjoyed falling income tax rates and ballooning wealth for a decade as middle-class taxpayers floundered...

Today's Teamster News 06.01.15

Teamsters
Strike at Del. soft drink distributor slows soda flow  Delaware Online  ...A nearly two-week strike by workers at a soft drink distribution center in New Castle shows no signs of ending soon, leaving some stores running low on certain brands of soda and bottled water. "The last offer the company put forward didn't have any of the changes the workers were looking for," said Joe Smith, president of Teamsters Local 326, which represents the striking workers...
Tracy Morgan Settles In Fatal Tractor-Trailer Crash As House Works To Make Highways More Dangerous  Think Progress  ...Whether its pay-per-mile, sleep rules, or the physical arrangement of a truck, the FMCSA’s job is to create a system that addresses those lowest common denominators — but the regulator won’t be free to do so if the current House transportation funding bill becomes law...

Global Labor & Trade
Obama's Trade Agenda Faces Tougher Odds Heading Into House  Associated Press  ...After several near death experiences in the Senate, the trade agenda that President Barack Obama is pushing as a second term capstone faces its biggest hurdle yet in the more polarized House. Anti-trade forces have struggled to ignite public outrage over Obama's bid to enact new free-trade agreements, but Democratic opposition in Congress remains widespread...
House trade vote will be tight, like in 2001  Politico  ...House Republicans hoped to avoid a replay of the gut-wrenchingly close vote on fast track trade legislation that took place in 2001, but stiff Democratic opposition makes it likely history will repeat itself. The bill is expected to hit the floor in coming weeks, but with a number of Democratic and Republican votes still up in the air, Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy was non-committal on Friday about the exact timing...
Obama Seeks Rare Business Support  Wall Street Journal  ...President  Barack Obama, who frequently has tussled with corporate America, now is relying heavily on an array of large U.S. companies to help enact a major Pacific trade deal. From Hollywood studios to drug makers and manufacturers, such as  Caterpillar Inc.,  some major American companies are lending key support in the complicated push to negotiate the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership...

Obama’s Trade Deal Faces Bipartisan Peril in the House  New York Times  ...The bruising battle over President Obama’s push for the power to negotiate two potentially far-reaching trade pacts will shift this week to the House, where the White House faces entrenched opposition from Democrats and the stirring of rebellion from the Republicans’ right flank...
Arguments for TPP don’t make sense  (opinion) Boston Globe  ...It is absurd to imagine that TPP could wrest China — soon to be the world’s largest economy — from a preeminent role in Asia. The United States is far more likely to buttress its influence in Asia by leveraging rising Chinese prosperity and working with China than by ignoring it or attempting to bypass it...
Obama is no progressive: Why Teddy Roosevelt is grousing in his grave  (opinion) Salon  ...Given that reality, insisting that “TPP will end up being the most progressive trade agreement in our history” – in the most benevolent interpretation — is at best an attempt to engage in focus-grouped wordsmithing. Ultimately, Mr. Obama leaves no other conclusion than that at heart he is an unabashed corporatist, protecting the interests of large corporations...
The Limited ''Victory'' Won by Mexican Farm Workers  Truthout  ...The farm workers of the San Quintin Valley have gotten the federal government to commit to facilitating negotiations for a wage hike, the central demand of the more than 80,000 agricultural laborers in this region of Baja California. But Lucila Hermandez, a spokesperson for the movement, warns that the agreement is still not a clear victory...
Network Rail strike talks to go into fourth day  BBC  ...Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union members are set to hold a 24-hour strike from 17:00 BST on 4 June and a 48-hour strike from 17:00 BST on 9 June. On Thursday the union rejected a fresh pay offer by Network Rail. Both sides have been talking with conciliation service Acas since Friday...

State & Living Wage Battles
Will Connecticut Go Robin Hood on Low-Wage Bosses?  The Nation  ...Call it a Robin Hood Tax for big-box stores: take from the rich to give to the poor, by forcing companies that pay unlivable wages to support the public benefits that impoverished workers need to survive. According to one economic assessment, the “true cost” of low-wage jobs in Connecticut amounts to some $486 million per year paid through various public welfare programs. So the logic goes, the most heavily state-subsidized companies should pay their fair share...
Texas Lawmakers Are Busy Making It Harder to Vote  Truthout  ...One measure (HB 1096) that would make it more difficult for voters to confirm their residency recently cleared the House. Another bill approved by the Senate (SB 1934) would eliminate nonexpiring photo identification cards for the state’s senior citizens. Because unexpired photo IDs or IDs that have been expired no more than 60 days are required to vote, this change would make it even harder for Texas seniors to get their ballots counted...
An American workplace war that's reached a tipping point  CNBC  ...With Wisconsin's adoption of so-called right-to-work legislation earlier this year, 25 states now prohibit mandatory union dues, and with legislation being pushed in several more states, the right-to-work movement is talking about a national "tipping point"...
Kansas Republicans Finally Consider Changing Course On Their ‘Tea Party Experiment’  Think Progress  ...Republicans in Kansas, facing a $400 million budget hole due to tax cuts pushed by Gov. Sam Brownback, are now finally considering raising taxes to compensate for the shortfall. Legislators are considering rolling back an exemption on nonwage income for small businesses they passed a few years ago and replacing it with a 1 percent tax credit...

U.S. Labor
If You’re In A Nail Salon In New York, You’ll Now See A Workers’ Bill Of Rights On The Wall  Think Progress  ...All nail salons in New York City will now be required to display a “manicurists’ bill of rights” that’s easily visible to both employees and customers — the latest attempt from city officials to crack down on the rampant labor abuses in the industry detailed in a recent New York Times investigation...
California Walmart Workers Go on Hunger Strike After Stores Closed in ‘Retaliation’ for Organizing  In These Times  ...With tents and sleeping bags in tow, workers set up camp outside a Los Angeles Walmart this week and held a one-day fast to protest the corporation’s retaliation against their organizing. Walmart recently closed five stores, including one in Pico Rivera, California, where workers were especially active in OUR Walmart, the Food and Commercial Workers-backed effort to boost standards at the retail giant...
NLRB Certifies USW Representation for Workers at Golden Dragon Copper  PR Newswire  ...The United Steelworkers (USW) today said that the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has certified the union as the exclusive bargaining representative for production, maintenance and warehouse workers at Golden Dragon Copper. In a very close, secret ballot election conducted on Nov. 7, 2014, workers at Golden Dragon voted in favor of USW representation, even after outsiders, including Gov. Robert Bentley, campaigned against the union...
Elizabeth Warren Gets Job Security and the Uber-ization of the Economy Completely Wrong  Alternet  ...Her remarks in response to moderators talking about the rise of Uber-style contract-based part-time work were less inspiring. She dismissed these concerns as primarily about technology, not the nature of work, and then later failed to answer a question asking if Uber-style contract workers should be classified as full-time employees, which would give them greater rights...

Miscellaneous
Foreclosed nation: Wall Street, the dispossessed & the quality of American democracy  Salon  ...Why has the continued crisis of dispossession not been treated as a national emergency? Given the scale of the foreclosure crisis, the policy response has been muted. Congress and the Obama administration have repeatedly rejected demands for a national moratorium on mortgage foreclosures. Legislators in several states introduced foreclosure moratorium bills, but few states enacted them...
Emergency bridge repairs to snarl Virginia-to-D.C. traffic  Daily Kos  ...There are 61,000 structurally deficient bridges in the United States, but transportation is on the long list of things congressional Republicans refuse to invest in. A two-month bill extending the Highway Trust Fund recently passed, but two months of funding makes it more than a little difficult to do long-term planning and investment...