Saturday, January 22, 2011

Today's Teamster News 01.22.11

US union membership dropped 4% in 2010  AFP  ...After very small gains for a few years, the US recession, which has pushed joblessness to near 10 percent, has further eroded the unions' influence...
Corporate contributions have surged for new Republican leaders in House  Washington Post   ...The new Republican leaders in the House have received millions of dollars in contributions from banks, health insurers and other major business interests, which are pressing for broad reversals of Democratic policies that affect corporations...
Jobless Claims Slide as Recovery Picks Up  Wall Street Journal   ...The economy appears poised to gather momentum this year, as a separate index of leading indicators posted gains at the end of 2010...
Union Seeks Vote to Represent United Ramp Workers  ABC News   ...The IAM wants the federal National Mediation Board to declare that United and Continental are operating as a single carrier. That would trigger an election to pick a union for the combined groups...
Union files grievances over Sullivan pay freeze (Local 445)  Times Herald Record   ...Hundreds of workers represented by Sullivan County's largest union will begin handing written grievances to department heads in the next week in response to a freeze on raises and longevity payments that already has triggered a federal lawsuit and grievances by other unions...
Unions Are Aided By Obama Picks Republicans Can’t Curb  Bloomberg   ...the National Labor Relations Board may soon rule on cases that would give unions greater access to company property for organizing drives. The board may also push for speedier elections after workers petition for a vote...
Los Angeles, Long Beach ports have record-breaking year in 2010  Los Angeles Times   ...Experts said they expected a strong economic recovery to continue, although not at such a rapid pace...
Roxbury school board reaches settlement with school bus driver union  NJ.com   ...Teamsters Local 97, which represents 47 bus drivers, agreed to a new three-year contract that carries no pay increase in the first two years and a 2-percent increase in the contract’s final year...
Central Grocers to Hire Up to Fifty New Workers  Triblocal.com   ...“These are full-time positions that fall in the wage and benefit scale that we have agreed to in our contract with Teamsters Local 703"...
Truck Sales Hit Highest Monthly Peak Since 2006  Journal of Commerce   ...trucking companies put newfound profits into new vehicles...
TransCanada to move U.S. crude through Keystone  The Globe and Mail   ...TransCanada Corp. is filling part of its proposed Keystone XL pipeline with U.S. crude, a move it hopes will mute some of the fierce opposition that has erupted south of the border against the project...
Congressman: Florida high-speed rail should go forward  The Tampa Tribune   ...the Tampa-to-Orlando project should proceed - as long as private interests pick up any costs not covered by a federal grant, U.S. Rep. John Mica, R-Winter Park, reiterated...