Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Today's Teamster News 04.17.13

Congress Quietly Repeals Congressional Insider Trading Ban  NYU Local   ...there’s one piece of legislation that both Democrats and Republicans hate unanimously: the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act, a law passed last year designed to prevent insider trading among lawmakers and government officials by requiring them to post disclosures of their financial transactions online. ... it was repealed on Friday without debate...
The Fed Messed With the Wrong Senator  The Salon   …If foreclosure victims get justice, trace it back to a bad decision to stonewall Elizabeth Warren last week...
14 arrested during Patriot Coal protest  Evansville Courier Press   ...Union leaders say Peabody Energy and Arch Coal spun off assets and set up Patriot to fail in a deliberate plan to end benefit obligations to retirees...
Lawmakers would steer money from sale of liquor stores to transportation projects, not schools  The Morning Call   ...Union official calls bill 'bait and switch' because it runs counter to Gov. Tom Corbett's plan to apply the money to public schools...
AFL-CIO: "Pre-Emption Bill" threatens FL Wages, Economic Development  Public News Service   ...The "Pre-Emption Bill" passed the state House earlier this month and similar legislation is up for a vote in the Senate. The measure, House Bill 655, would prevent local governments from requiring vendors applying for contracts to offer things such as a living wage or domestic-partner benefits for workers...
Pence signs 'jobs bills' that create no jobs   NWI Times   ...expanding Medicaid according to the terms of the Affordable Care Act — which Pence refuses to do — would immediately create 30,000 private-sector jobs, according to the Indiana Hospital Association...
Christie vetoes bill giving unions a leg up in Sandy infrastructure projects  NorthJersey.com   ...Governor Christie vetoed a measure Monday that would have favored unions workers when rebuilding public infrastructure damaged by superstorm Sandy...
Perry Calls for $1.6 Billion in Business Tax Cuts  The American-Statesman   ...Texas Gov. Rick Perry on Monday endorsed $1.6 billion in tax relief for 109,000 Texas businesses, including allowing 85,000 small- and medium-sized businesses to deduct the first $1 million in gross receipts from their franchise tax bills...
Akron Council Passes Resolution Opposing Right-to-Work Push  Akron Beacon Journal   ...Akron City Council passed a resolution this week opposing a statewide push to get a right-to-work amendment on the November ballot...
Analysts From Left and Right Call Kansas Tax Plan the Worst in U.S. Wichita Eagle   ... Kansas’ tax reform plan was named the worst in the nation by analysts from both the left and the right in a feature story by a national magazine...
Teamsters/TA BB battle erupts  Albany Times Union   ...Teamsters and the state Thruway Authority have been battling for months over contract issues and in the past few weeks the conflict has deepened as the Thruway, as they earlier said they would, has laid off approximately 200 workers as a cost-saving measure...
Scott Walker Escalates Assault on Free Speech  The Progressive   ...In the wake of the Walker administration’s massive failure to win convictions against citizens exercising political speech in the Wisconsin State Capitol, it has imposed new emergency rules for limiting dissent in the building that go into effect today...
Republic, Teamsters Strike Spreads  The Vindicator   ...Heading into its third week, the strike among 23 sanitation workers at Republic Services/Allied Waste once again ballooned Monday to include all of the company’s Youngstown workers...
Teamsters at Republic Services Strike in Greater Memphis Area  IBT   ...Sanitation workers employed by Republic Services/Allied Waste [NYSE: RSG] began an unfair labor practice strike at midnight in the greater Memphis area to protest the company’s violations of federal labor law. Workers at Republic/Allied Waste’s hauling yards in Memphis and Millington, Tenn. raised picket lines early this morning...
University of Penn Food Workers to Vote on Teamster Representation  IBT   ...Dining hall employees at Bon Appétit who work at the University of Pennsylvania will vote soon on Teamsters representation. They plan to be unionized so that they can collectively bargain with their employer for fair wages and paid sick days in a written contract.
School Bus Drivers Speak Out About Safety, Human Rights Concerns   IBT ...Yesterday, school bus drivers from Charleston, Beaufort and Summerville’s Dorchester District 2, shared their serious concerns over school bus safety, service and working conditions at Durham School Services with a panel of international union representatives, prom..inent trade unionists from the U.S. and political leaders...
Safety, Civil Rights Concerns Among Topics for Discussion for Union School Bus Drivers, Labor Leaders  Post and Courier   ...Sabrina Isom worries about the safety of Lowcountry school buses. She shares the same concerns as union school bus drivers in Beaufort County, Charleston County and Dorchester 2, and they’re speaking out to ensure those issues are addressed...