Teamsters
City Hall strikes contract deal with Teamsters Local 237 Capital New York ...The de Blasio administration on Monday announced a tentative contract agreement with Teamsters Local 237, one of the only remaining municipal unions working under an expired contract. The agreement covering more than 5,500 New York City Housing Authority employees follows the pattern of wage increases every other civilian union has received during de Blasio's 17-month tenure...
BLET/SMART–TD statement on Positive Train Control, crew size following fatal Amtrak derailment in Philadelphia BLE-T.org ...Members of BLET’s Safety Task Force and SMART Transportation Division’s National Safety Team, in addition to representatives from the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division of the Teamsters Rail Conference (BMWED), are working with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to assist in the investigation of the catastrophic May 12 derailment of Amtrak Train 188...
Global Labor & Trade
Congress plots to pay for a trade deal by raiding Medicare Los Angeles Times ...The plan on Capitol Hill is to move the Trade Assistance Program expansion in tandem with fast-track approval of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, possibly as early as this week. Congressional Democrats demanded the expansion of the Trade Assistance Program, Congressional Republicans apparently found the money in Medicare, and the Obama White House, which should be howling in protest, has remained silent...
Warren Expands Criticism of Obama’s Trade Agenda to Labor Rights Bloomberg ...Senator Elizabeth Warren expanded her criticism of President Barack Obama’s trade agenda, arguing on Monday that the U.S. has consistently failed to enforce rules promoting labor rights abroad. Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, released a staff memo outlining “decades of failure” by U.S. administrations to ensure that American trading partners live up to promises in free-trade agreements...
McConnell: Senate to finish trade this week The Hill ...Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) warned senators on Monday that they will finish "fast track" trade legislation this week. McConnell wants to pass the "fast-track" bill, which would allow the president to get his trade deals passed through Congress by a simple majority vote, before senators leave at the end of the week for the Memorial Day recess...
GOP: Business lobby blowing it on trade Politico ...Top House Republicans believe the business community is blowing its chance to clinch a trade deal. Unlike unions, they say, Big Business advocates aren’t flooding Capitol phone lines. They’re not winning over skeptical Republicans. And they haven’t made much headway with business-friendly Democrats who are considering voting for the package, either...
Republicans claim enough votes to pass fast-track trade bill Reuters ...Top Republicans predicted on Sunday that both chambers of Congress would muster the votes to pass the "fast-track" authority sought by President Barack Obama to negotiate major trade deals, despite opposition from Obama's fellow Democrats. "Yes, we’ll pass it. We'll pass it later this week," Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said in an interview with ABC...
Perils of Globalization When Factories Close and Towns Struggle New York Times ...The benefits are not distributed evenly. Trade increases overall prosperity by eliminating less productive jobs. In theory, the workers find new jobs. In practice, studies by Mr. Hanson and other economists show that in cities like Galesburg, global competition is increasing unemployment and reducing wages. Josh Bivens, an economist at the liberal Economic Policy Institute, estimates that increased globalization, aided by a strong dollar that led to a persistent trade deficit, reduced the annual earnings of the roughly 70 percent of American workers...
German train drivers to strike again BBC ...Drivers for Germany's Deutsche Bahn have declared a fresh strike, marking the ninth walkout in just 11 months. GDL union leader Claus Weselsky gave no end date for the strike, but said it would "last a little longer" than the previous five-day stoppage.
GDL wants a 5% pay rise for 20,000 drivers and a shorter working week...
Guatemalan Domestic Workers Reveal a Dirty Business Truthout ...186,000 domestic workers are in Guatemala and more than 50 percent have emigrated to Guatemala City from impoverished rural areas. [Some] work up to 14 hours a day and are usually paid $150 a month, half of the national minimum monthly wage, which is currently $304.68. What makes Castellanos unique is her determination to fight for better working conditions in Guatemala, where labor unionism is weak after the repression of workers' movements under the country's recent history of military dictatorships...
Bolivian army step in as bakers go on strike BBC ...Bolivian soldiers have begun producing tens of thousands of bread rolls because of a bakers strike. The government called in the troops when there were reports of shortages in several neighbourhoods. Bolivian bakers went on a 48-hour strike in protest against a government decision to scrap subsidies for wheat flour...
State & Living Wage Battles
Kansas’ Governor Destroyed The State Budget With Massive Tax Cuts And Now Kansans Are Paying The Price Think Progress ...On one side, die-hard conservatives in the legislature are resisting efforts to unwind a key piece of Gov. Sam Brownback’s (R) signature tax cuts. On the other, a bipartisan group of lawmakers are saying it’s time to admit the governor’s approach is unworkable. While they quarrel, Kansas faces a two-year deficit projected to be well over a billion dollars – a piddling amount in Congress, but equal to nearly 17 percent of the state’s $6 billion annual spending...
Speaker: Missouri 'Right To Work' Veto Override Uncertain Ozarks First ...Governor Jay Nixon (D) says he will veto that bill, but House Speaker Todd Richardson (R-Poplar Bluff) says it's too early to be thinking about whether supporters in the legislature can muster the votes to overturn him. "We'll talk with our members and see if there's a will to override and obviously see if there is not a will to override," said Richardson...
Amid Protest Plans, McDonald's to Ban Media from Shareholder Meeting Common Dreams ...With thousands of workers planning to descend on McDonald's annual shareholder meeting on May 21 to demand higher wages and fairer treatment, the fast food giant has announced it will ban all media from the corporate event—a move that union leaders called "extremely shocking and troubling"...
Bosses Are Turning Poverty-Wage Workers Into ‘Managers’—and Barring Them From Overtime in the Process The Nation ...Welcome to the promotion from hell: Federal law says time-and-a-half is for ordinary laborers, and management is exempt from overtime provisions. So congratulations, as a shop “manager,” you no longer qualify for overtime—but still end up doing basically the same work for less. In the precarious low-wage economy, advocates say employers are hyper-exploiting the system to skirt fair labor laws...
SEIU seeks federal investigation of franchise industry Chicago Tribune ...The Service Employees International Union on Monday said it has asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the franchise industry, seeking information on how some of the world's biggest franchise operators, including McDonald's, set the terms of their business models. The union, which has been pushing to boost the pay of low-wage fast-food workers, said the current structure gives too much power to franchisers...
Prevailing wage, local hiring mandates sidelined at Milwaukee County for more discussion Milwaukee Business Journal ...A proposal to enact local hiring and wage requirements on projects that receive Milwaukee County subsidies was sidelined Monday to create more time for discussion and potential revisions. The proposal builds off earlier “community benefits” laws, including one affecting Milwaukee County’s land in the Park East corridor...
City Council To Consider $15 Minimum Wage Increase Proposal CBS Los Angeles ...The City Council will consider a proposal Tuesday to increase Los Angeles’s minimum wage to $15 an hour over the next five years. The council, which will meet at 10 a.m., was expected to discuss the proposal that was unanimously approved on May 13 by its Economic Development Committee...
U.S. Labor
Contract ending for NC postal workers The Charlotte Post ...North Carolina postal workers have more on their minds this morning than the heavy load of Monday mail. The American Postal Workers Union contract is set to expire on Wednesday. Postal worker Deborah Smith says it's a tough time for postal employees...
GOP lawmaker proposes defunding NLRB The Hill ...Rep. Matt Salmon (R-Ariz.) has introduced legislation to do away with funding for the National Labor Relations Board. Salmon claimed the NLRB, which was created in 1935 to conduct labor elections and manage labor policy, is biased toward labor unions. The Arizona Republican argued that the Justice Department could instead be solely tasked with enforcing labor laws...
UAW seeks to grow skilled trades apprentice programs Detroit News ...Ford, General Motors Co. and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles run jointly administered apprentice programs with the UAW. The union hopes to expand the programs, which were dormant for several years leading up to and immediately following the economic downturn. Securing and growing the programs, as well as skilled trades positions that have shrunk following the recession, will be part of upcoming contract negotiations...
UFW set to protest at Mesa Verde Immigration Detention Center ABC Bakersfield ...Members of the local United Farm Workers will be protesting at the new Mesa Verde Immigration Detention Center in Bakersfield as part of a national push calling for immigration reform. The detention center houses close to 200 foreign nationals who are either waiting for deportation or are appealing the process...
Miscellaneous
Ignoring Businesses, Baltimore Shuts Off Water to 1,600 Homes Common Dreams ...However, community advocates say that in a city with skyrocketing unemployment and poverty, the rising cost of water and sewage is unaffordable to a large sector of the population. Further, in Detroit, where the local government has cut off water to over 17,000 residential households, the policy has been widely criticized by the United Nations as well as other watchdog groups as a violation of the human right to water...
Showing posts with label amtrak. Show all posts
Showing posts with label amtrak. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 19, 2015
Friday, May 15, 2015
Today's Teamster News 05.15.14
Teamsters
Hoffa: Vote Down Fast Track Teamster.org ...Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa on today’s Senate vote for cloture on the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) bill: “By voting to move forward on the fast track legislation today, the Senate has started us down a road that may lead to the passage of a trade deal that could result in American jobs being sent overseas"...
Swift Transportation Shareholders Give Board Mandate for Second Year in a Row Teamster.org ...A Teamster-sponsored shareholder proposal at Swift Transportation won majority support by public shareholders at the company’s 2015 annual meeting Fri., May 8, 2015. The proposal, which calls on the board to develop a recapitalization plan to replace the current dual class stock structure with a one-share, one-vote system, received 82 percent support...
Horse Carriage Drivers Question Impartiality of Consultant Tasked to Review Effects of Ban NY1.com ...Horse carriages still trot in Central Park, but what would the city be like if they are outlawed? That's the question City Hall hired a consultant to figure out. Its conclusions will play a key role in what promises to be a contentious floor fight in the City Council. It has the final word on the ban. But even before the report is done, horse carriage drivers are already calling foul. "It just smells bad, that's all," said Demos Demopoulos of Teamsters Local 553...
Jacksonville community gathers for D'angelo Stallworth, killed by police Fight Back News ...Stallworth worked at the United Parcel Service hub in Jacksonville, which is one of the three largest ground hubs for the company in the U.S. He was on medical leave from UPS when he was killed and was recently diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Stallworth was due to return to work the following week. More than a dozen of his coworkers at UPS attended the vigil, many wearing UPS and Teamsters shirts...
Global Labor & Trade
Dems look to start Senate trade war next week Politico ...A coalition of Senate Democrats who’ve long opposed new trade agreements, led by Sherrod Brown of Ohio, say they are planning to throw up procedural roadblocks and offer amendments that would expand worker protections and undermine GOP support for the fast-track measure...
Senate, in Reversal, Begins Debate on Trade Authority New York Times ...Two days after Democratic senators blocked it, the Senate voted on Thursday to take up legislation that would grant the president negotiating freedom to complete an expansive trade accord with 11 nations on the Pacific Rim, setting off a contentious congressional debate on one of President Obama’s top priorities for his remaining time in office...
The Democratic Party Would Triangulate Its Own Mother Rolling Stone ...Triangulating – beating up on the ideologues within your own party in order to shore up your centrist cred and reassure your money sources – is an especially brilliant solution for Democrats targeting national office. That's surely what happened here with the TPP, a monster deal with the potential to reshape not just our trade profile but our domestic financial regulatory structure...
Senate reversal opens debate on key trade bill Politico ...The Senate voted Thursday to start debate on key trade legislation to “fast-track” a landmark Asia-Pacific free trade deal, reversing an embarrassing setback for President Barack Obama earlier this week and setting the stage for approval of the bill as soon as Memorial Day...
AFL-CIO chief: White House trade bill argument is ‘unadulterated horse waste’ Washington Post ...The head of the nation's largest labor union is ramping up his rhetoric to fight President Obama's Pacific trade pact, calling a key part of the White House argument "horse waste." AFL-CIO President Richard L. Trumka has been speaking out against Obama's bid to win approval for a 12-nation free trade deal in the Asia Pacific region for months...
Human rights abuses in Vietnam make TPP unacceptable (opinion) The Hill ...Among the potential partners in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), Vietnam is the only country that bans independent labor unions and religious groups. It’s the only country considered one of the world’s worst violators of Internet freedom. It harbors severe child labor and forced labor violators. These reasons alone should give members of Congress pause before waiving their power to amend and critically analyze trade pacts like the TPP through regular order...
Defend Workers and the Environment Before Voting Fast Track (opinion) Huff Post ...Fast track puts the politics exactly backward. Workers foresee that service jobs will join manufacturing jobs in the next wave of offshoring. They see a Republican Congress uninterested in supporting those who would be displaced or protecting the environment. In short, Obama and the Republicans in Congress have not made the case to American workers that trade policies under TPP and TTIP will be part of a fair, middle-class, and environmentally sustainable economy...
Major Argentine labor group calls national strike Turkish Weekly ...The General Labor Confederation, a leading faction of the biggest union umbrella group in Argentina, vowed Thursday to join transport workers in a national strike planned for next month. Labor tension is on the rise in Argentina as a stagnating economy and high inflation make it harder for workers to get by...
State & Living Wage Battles
Illinois House votes down right-to-work proposal State Journal-Register ...As expected, the Illinois House on Thursday overwhelmingly rejected Gov. Bruce Rauner's idea to allow local right-to-work zones that would let workers to opt out of paying union dues at jobs covered by unions. The House voted 0-72, with another 37 lawmakers voting "present." All 71 Democrats voted against the bill. They were joined by one Republican: Rep. Raymond Poe of Springfield...
Missouri Lawmakers Push for Right to Work Measure FourStatesHomepage.com ...House Bill 116 has been approved by both the House and Senate, leaving its future in the hands of the governor. There's no word when that may happen. State law allows for up to 15 days before a bill passed in session becomes law without the governor taking action...
Senate votes 22-15 to repeal prevailing wage laws Detroit Free Press ...The vote was derided by Democrats and some Republicans, who said the issue merely takes money out of the pockets of hardworking construction employees. Gov. Rick Snyder has expressed concern about it depressing wages at the same time he has been encouraging those looking for jobs to explore skilled trades...
Public hearings starting over minimum wage hike WKBW.com ...Governor Andrew Cuomo's Wage Board will soon be holding public hearing across the state. The Wage Board will hold four public hearings, where testimony will be taken. The board is looking into a possible increase in the minimum wage in the fast food industry...
U.S. Labor
Nail Salon Workers Sue Employer Over Allegedly Paying $60 A Day Think Progress ...Employees of a chain of nail salons in New York City filed a class-action lawsuit against the owners for allegedly paying them $60 or less a day. The suit says the salons, Nailsway, Naulo Nails, Nailsmetic and Nailscure, required plaintiffs Blanca Fernandez and Gloria Marca to work 10-hour shifts and also often denied them breaks...
NLRB says Crozer acted unfairly during September strike Philly.com ...The National Labor Relations Board said that Crozer Chester Medical Center management acted unfairly before, during and after a two-day strike in September involving 550 nurses in the Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals. The NLRB said Wednesday that the hospital improperly interfered with informational leafletting and threatened other employees with retaliation...
Crew of nonunion ironworkers goes on unfair labor practice strike at Instafab NW Labor Press ...A group of young nonunion ironworkers has launched an unfair labor practice strike against their employer, Instafab Company, a steel fabrication and erection company based in Vancouver, Wash. The workers decided to take a stand against their employer after years of feeling ignored and disrespected...
UAW joins protest of Lear's pay, working conditions Detroit Free Press ...Hundreds of UAW members joined some workers from Lear's plant in Selma, Ala., this morning outside the supplier's Southfield headquarters to protest low wages and working conditions at the southern plant. The protest was timed to coincide with Lear's annual meeting and allow workers to directly pressure the company's CEO and its board of directors...
The Legacy of Labor Pioneer Walter Reuther In These Times ...At the time of his death, Reuther was not only one of the nation’s most powerful labor union leaders—especially of the progressive wing of the labor movement—but also a key figure in nearly every liberal movement, including the Civil Rights movement, and an influential member of the Democratic party’s power elite, often surpassing the influence of his labor rival, George Meany...
Miscellaneous
'We Will Not Surrender Our Voices': British Teens Lead Thousands-Strong Protest Against Austerity Common Dreams ...A spirited protest against austerity reportedly led by teenagers swept Bristol, England on Wednesday, drawing thousands to the streets and garnering widespread media attention just days after the country's electoral lurch to the right. The group Bristol Against Austerity put a call-out for the mobilization...
As Train Crash Death Toll Reaches 7, GOP Votes to Cut Amtrak Budget by $250M & Delay Safety Upgrades Democracy Now ...Just hours after the crash, the Republican-controlled House Appropriations Committee rejected a Democratic amendment to offer $825 million to speed up positive train control implementation. In addition, the committee voted to cut Amtrak’s budget by $250 million...
Hoffa: Vote Down Fast Track Teamster.org ...Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa on today’s Senate vote for cloture on the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) bill: “By voting to move forward on the fast track legislation today, the Senate has started us down a road that may lead to the passage of a trade deal that could result in American jobs being sent overseas"...
Swift Transportation Shareholders Give Board Mandate for Second Year in a Row Teamster.org ...A Teamster-sponsored shareholder proposal at Swift Transportation won majority support by public shareholders at the company’s 2015 annual meeting Fri., May 8, 2015. The proposal, which calls on the board to develop a recapitalization plan to replace the current dual class stock structure with a one-share, one-vote system, received 82 percent support...
Horse Carriage Drivers Question Impartiality of Consultant Tasked to Review Effects of Ban NY1.com ...Horse carriages still trot in Central Park, but what would the city be like if they are outlawed? That's the question City Hall hired a consultant to figure out. Its conclusions will play a key role in what promises to be a contentious floor fight in the City Council. It has the final word on the ban. But even before the report is done, horse carriage drivers are already calling foul. "It just smells bad, that's all," said Demos Demopoulos of Teamsters Local 553...
Jacksonville community gathers for D'angelo Stallworth, killed by police Fight Back News ...Stallworth worked at the United Parcel Service hub in Jacksonville, which is one of the three largest ground hubs for the company in the U.S. He was on medical leave from UPS when he was killed and was recently diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Stallworth was due to return to work the following week. More than a dozen of his coworkers at UPS attended the vigil, many wearing UPS and Teamsters shirts...
Dems look to start Senate trade war next week Politico ...A coalition of Senate Democrats who’ve long opposed new trade agreements, led by Sherrod Brown of Ohio, say they are planning to throw up procedural roadblocks and offer amendments that would expand worker protections and undermine GOP support for the fast-track measure...
Senate, in Reversal, Begins Debate on Trade Authority New York Times ...Two days after Democratic senators blocked it, the Senate voted on Thursday to take up legislation that would grant the president negotiating freedom to complete an expansive trade accord with 11 nations on the Pacific Rim, setting off a contentious congressional debate on one of President Obama’s top priorities for his remaining time in office...
The Democratic Party Would Triangulate Its Own Mother Rolling Stone ...Triangulating – beating up on the ideologues within your own party in order to shore up your centrist cred and reassure your money sources – is an especially brilliant solution for Democrats targeting national office. That's surely what happened here with the TPP, a monster deal with the potential to reshape not just our trade profile but our domestic financial regulatory structure...
Senate reversal opens debate on key trade bill Politico ...The Senate voted Thursday to start debate on key trade legislation to “fast-track” a landmark Asia-Pacific free trade deal, reversing an embarrassing setback for President Barack Obama earlier this week and setting the stage for approval of the bill as soon as Memorial Day...
AFL-CIO chief: White House trade bill argument is ‘unadulterated horse waste’ Washington Post ...The head of the nation's largest labor union is ramping up his rhetoric to fight President Obama's Pacific trade pact, calling a key part of the White House argument "horse waste." AFL-CIO President Richard L. Trumka has been speaking out against Obama's bid to win approval for a 12-nation free trade deal in the Asia Pacific region for months...
Human rights abuses in Vietnam make TPP unacceptable (opinion) The Hill ...Among the potential partners in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), Vietnam is the only country that bans independent labor unions and religious groups. It’s the only country considered one of the world’s worst violators of Internet freedom. It harbors severe child labor and forced labor violators. These reasons alone should give members of Congress pause before waiving their power to amend and critically analyze trade pacts like the TPP through regular order...
Defend Workers and the Environment Before Voting Fast Track (opinion) Huff Post ...Fast track puts the politics exactly backward. Workers foresee that service jobs will join manufacturing jobs in the next wave of offshoring. They see a Republican Congress uninterested in supporting those who would be displaced or protecting the environment. In short, Obama and the Republicans in Congress have not made the case to American workers that trade policies under TPP and TTIP will be part of a fair, middle-class, and environmentally sustainable economy...
Major Argentine labor group calls national strike Turkish Weekly ...The General Labor Confederation, a leading faction of the biggest union umbrella group in Argentina, vowed Thursday to join transport workers in a national strike planned for next month. Labor tension is on the rise in Argentina as a stagnating economy and high inflation make it harder for workers to get by...
State & Living Wage Battles
Illinois House votes down right-to-work proposal State Journal-Register ...As expected, the Illinois House on Thursday overwhelmingly rejected Gov. Bruce Rauner's idea to allow local right-to-work zones that would let workers to opt out of paying union dues at jobs covered by unions. The House voted 0-72, with another 37 lawmakers voting "present." All 71 Democrats voted against the bill. They were joined by one Republican: Rep. Raymond Poe of Springfield...
Missouri Lawmakers Push for Right to Work Measure FourStatesHomepage.com ...House Bill 116 has been approved by both the House and Senate, leaving its future in the hands of the governor. There's no word when that may happen. State law allows for up to 15 days before a bill passed in session becomes law without the governor taking action...
Senate votes 22-15 to repeal prevailing wage laws Detroit Free Press ...The vote was derided by Democrats and some Republicans, who said the issue merely takes money out of the pockets of hardworking construction employees. Gov. Rick Snyder has expressed concern about it depressing wages at the same time he has been encouraging those looking for jobs to explore skilled trades...
Public hearings starting over minimum wage hike WKBW.com ...Governor Andrew Cuomo's Wage Board will soon be holding public hearing across the state. The Wage Board will hold four public hearings, where testimony will be taken. The board is looking into a possible increase in the minimum wage in the fast food industry...
U.S. Labor
Nail Salon Workers Sue Employer Over Allegedly Paying $60 A Day Think Progress ...Employees of a chain of nail salons in New York City filed a class-action lawsuit against the owners for allegedly paying them $60 or less a day. The suit says the salons, Nailsway, Naulo Nails, Nailsmetic and Nailscure, required plaintiffs Blanca Fernandez and Gloria Marca to work 10-hour shifts and also often denied them breaks...
NLRB says Crozer acted unfairly during September strike Philly.com ...The National Labor Relations Board said that Crozer Chester Medical Center management acted unfairly before, during and after a two-day strike in September involving 550 nurses in the Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals. The NLRB said Wednesday that the hospital improperly interfered with informational leafletting and threatened other employees with retaliation...
Crew of nonunion ironworkers goes on unfair labor practice strike at Instafab NW Labor Press ...A group of young nonunion ironworkers has launched an unfair labor practice strike against their employer, Instafab Company, a steel fabrication and erection company based in Vancouver, Wash. The workers decided to take a stand against their employer after years of feeling ignored and disrespected...
UAW joins protest of Lear's pay, working conditions Detroit Free Press ...Hundreds of UAW members joined some workers from Lear's plant in Selma, Ala., this morning outside the supplier's Southfield headquarters to protest low wages and working conditions at the southern plant. The protest was timed to coincide with Lear's annual meeting and allow workers to directly pressure the company's CEO and its board of directors...
The Legacy of Labor Pioneer Walter Reuther In These Times ...At the time of his death, Reuther was not only one of the nation’s most powerful labor union leaders—especially of the progressive wing of the labor movement—but also a key figure in nearly every liberal movement, including the Civil Rights movement, and an influential member of the Democratic party’s power elite, often surpassing the influence of his labor rival, George Meany...
Miscellaneous
'We Will Not Surrender Our Voices': British Teens Lead Thousands-Strong Protest Against Austerity Common Dreams ...A spirited protest against austerity reportedly led by teenagers swept Bristol, England on Wednesday, drawing thousands to the streets and garnering widespread media attention just days after the country's electoral lurch to the right. The group Bristol Against Austerity put a call-out for the mobilization...
As Train Crash Death Toll Reaches 7, GOP Votes to Cut Amtrak Budget by $250M & Delay Safety Upgrades Democracy Now ...Just hours after the crash, the Republican-controlled House Appropriations Committee rejected a Democratic amendment to offer $825 million to speed up positive train control implementation. In addition, the committee voted to cut Amtrak’s budget by $250 million...
Thursday, May 14, 2015
Today's Teamster News 05.14.15
Teamsters
BLET/Teamsters statement on fatal Amtrak derailment in Philadelphia BLET.org ...As federal investigators in Philadelphia begin to piece together what happened leading up to the horrific Amtrak derailment that occurred on May 12, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) extends our most heartfelt sympathy to the grieving families who lost a loved one in the accident, and also to the many victims who suffered serious injuries...
Teamsters, allies voice outrage at attempts to gut truck safety laws Teamster Nation ...Teamsters joined forces today with safety advocates, crash victims, and law enforcement allies for a press event on Capitol Hill to speak out against proposed rollbacks of major truck safety regulations. The event was held as the Appropriations Committee considers the House Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations Bill for 2016, which includes "riders" that will force truck drivers to work longer hours and drive larger, heavier trucks...
Teamsters trying to organize at north Strip hotel CBS Las Vegas ...The union representing Las Vegas valet workers are protesting what they say is unfair treatment at the SLS Las Vegas hotel and casino on the Strip. Teamsters Local 986 said the group and supporters protested outside SLS Monday. The union wants to organize the casino-hotel’s 50 valet employees...
Global Labor & Trade
Senate compromise revives fast-track bill, but an uphill slog looms in House Washington Post ...One day after Democrats defied their own president with a filibuster that temporarily blocked a key trade measure, Senate leaders said they had reached an agreement to move forward with a series of votes that would break the impasse...
Obama vs. Warren: Trade spat turns personal Reuters ...President Barack Obama's swing at liberal favorite Elizabeth Warren has stirred a controversy that may complicate the chances of a pan-Pacific trade pact and could make it harder for the White House to get its way in future legislative battles. Facing stiff opposition to the trade deal from sections of his own Democratic Party, Obama launched a personalized criticism of Warren's efforts to lead the fight against giving the administration "fast-track" negotiating authority...
White House changes tone on trade The Hill ...Knowing it has to win over more Democrats, the White House shifted its tone on the Massachusetts senator. Earnest sought to downplay the scope of the Obama-Warren rift, emphasizing they agree on a wide array of issues from Wall Street reform to raising the minimum wage, even though they disagree on trade...
Barack Obama's Battle With Senate Democrats Is Over. For Now. National Journal ...Of the Senate's 46 Democrats, exactly one voted Tuesday to support a bill that Obama calls vital to the economy. But then, after a day of lousy news coverage and hand-wringing about a president who couldn't even get the support of his own party, it all blew over, and things were pretty much where Obama and his aides predicted they would be heading into Monday...
Democrats yield in Senate trade deal Politico ...After Democrats engineered a stunning defeat of President Barack Obama’s push for new trade deals on Tuesday, negotiators hashed out a compromise that offered both parties a way to save face without scuttling the administration’s trade agenda. At the least, the agreement means the Senate is likely to pass new powers for the president to fast-track trade pacts through Congress...
Fast Track will empower GOP president, McConnell says Washington Post ...In an interview with John Harwood, McConnell said that Republicans should support Fast Track authority, explicitly because — and here’s the rub — it will empower the next GOP president to negotiate trade deals more easily, despite Democratic opposition to them in Congress...
The secret corporate takeover of trade agreements (opinion) The Guardian ...Rules and regulations determine the kind of economy and society in which people live. They affect relative bargaining power, with important implications for inequality, a growing problem around the world. The question is whether we should allow rich corporations to use provisions hidden in so-called trade agreements to dictate how we will live in the 21st century...
Egypt outlaws workers’ right to strike Al-Monitor ...The ruling issued April 28 by the Supreme Administrative Court headed by Judge Labib Halim to criminalize strikes and penalize striking public workers by forcing them into retirement caused an uproar in legal circles and provoked the anger of those interested in labor and human rights...
Mexican Auto Workers Fired After Protesting Sexual Harassment In These Times ...In March, workers on a subassembly line organized a work-to-rule slowdown. That grabbed management’s attention. A meeting was held. Management and the union agreed to handle the problem with the supervisor. “We were informed that we weren’t going to be punished for the demonstration,” said Edgar Capetillo. They were fired without explanation. All 20 of the workers were male...
Dozens Feared Dead After Fire Consumes Factory In Philippines Common Dreams ...At least 65 people have been reported missing or dead after a fire consumed a rubber slipper factory in a suburb of the Philippine capital of Manila on Wednesday. Rex Gatchalian, mayor of the suburb of Valenzuela where the disaster took place, reportedly said that it took fire fighters four hours to quell the blaze and bodies were found inside the building...
State & Living Wage Battles
Missouri passes right-to-work bill, but governor's veto expected Reuters ...Missouri Republican lawmakers passed a bill on Wednesday that would stop workers from being required to join a union or pay dues, but without enough votes to override an expected veto by Democratic Governor Jay Nixon. By a 92-66 vote, the Missouri House of Representatives approved the measure that would allow Missouri to join 25 other states with "right-to-work" laws...
House to vote on Right to Work: 'It's gonna fail. It's meant to fail. And it will fail.' Chicago Sun Times ...“Political theater” or a “serious vote” on which legislators must take a stand. Those are the contrasting views of the Illinois House vote scheduled Thursday for Gov. Bruce Rauner’s much trumpeted right-to-work proposal...
Senate panel OKs bills to repeal prevailing wage laws Detroit News ...The Senate leader and House Speaker Kevin Cotter, R-Mount Pleasant, are making the repeal legislation a major priority, although Republican Gov. Rick Snyder says he doesn’t favor it. The legislation was sent to the full Senate by its Michigan Competitiveness Committee on 4-1 votes following a hearing that lasted about one-and-a-half hours...
Facebook Just Made Sure Even Their Janitors Are Making At Least $15 An Hour Think Progress ...Effective May 1, the new benefits will cover contract employees who work as cooks, janitors, security guards and other support staff at Facebook’s headquarters in Menlo Park, California. The company plans to extend the benefits to third-party vendors with more than 25 employees at its other 16 campuses in the U.S. over the next year...
Union nursing home caregivers seek 'living wage' in State House rally Providence Journal ...With nursing homes and hospitals facing cuts as part of Governor Raimondo's Reinventing Medicaid initiative, Ward and other union health-care workers rallied at the State House on Wednesday to call for better pay and policies that promote better care. They are seeking what they call "a living wage" of $15 an hour...
The Fight For $15 Just Won a Powerful Supporter: Governor Cuomo The Nation ...The 99 percent can savor a small victory, as Governor Andrew Cuomo launches a plan to raise fast food workers’ pay to up to $15 an hour in one sweeping executive action. Last week Cuomo rolled out a new Wage Board, featuring three high-profile appointees tasked with reviewing labor conditions in the industry, with a mandate to secure “honor and justice” for the state’s 200,000 fast-food workers...
L.A. City Council committee votes to raise minimum wage to $15 by 2020 LA Daily News ...Amid a national discussion over economic inequality and following months of heated debate, Los Angeles is poised to dramatically hike the citywide minimum wage. A unanimous vote Wednesday by the seven-member Economic Development Committee laid out a series of increases over five years. Hourly pay would reach $10.50 next year, $12 by 2017, $13.25 by 2018 and $14.25 by 2019 under the plan...
U.S. Labor
Unions call attention to protracted labor negotiations with Southwest Dallas Morning News ...Unions representing pilots and ramp workers at Southwest Airlines sought Tuesday to call attention to their protracted labor negotiations with the Dallas-based carrier. The ramp workers, who are working under a contract that became amendable in June 2011, announced plans to picket outside Southwest’s annual meeting Wednesday in downtown Houston...
AT&T, CWA reach tentative wireline labor agreement Fierce Telecom ...AT&T and the Communications Workers of America (CWA) have hammered out tentative agreements covering nearly 17,000 wireline employees in the Midwest. These tentative agreements cover union employees that work for AT&T Midwest and AT&T Corp...
UAW protests at Lear annual meeting Auto News ...The UAW protested outside Lear's annual shareholder meeting today near Detroit, calling attention to safety issues at the company's seat plants in the South. “Workers at auto parts plants nationwide are standing up and speaking out against low wages and unsafe conditions that now define far too many of America’s auto jobs," UAW Vice President Cindy Estrada said in a statement today...
Strike energizes organized labor before contract talks NWI Times ...Now the strike is over. But contract talks are coming up later this year at Northwest Indiana's big steel mills and at Ford's factories just across the state line, and organized labor in the Calumet Region has a new energy. "The strike helped bring some solidarity to Northwest Indiana," USW District 7 Director Mike Millsap said...
Miscellaneous
Currently Available Technology May Have Prevented Fatal Amtrak Crash. But Congress Never Funded It. Think Progress ...Rather than provide the necessary funding to allow Amtrak to meet the rapidly approaching mandate, the GOP-controlled U.S. House Appropriations Committee voted along party lines to cut about a fifth of Amtrak’s annual federal funds. Instead, a bill proposed in March by Senator Roy Blunt (R-MO) would extend the deadline for PTC implementation until December 2020...
Private Water Industry Says Water Bills "Have to Go Up" Truthout ...The topic that received the most attention was the nation's patchwork of rapidly deteriorating municipal water systems, which are estimated to need more than $1 trillion worth of upgrades. This, water executives said, not only represented a historic opportunity for their businesses, but could also be used as leverage to finally convince Americans to cough up more money for their tap water. It is the classic Shock Doctrine approach - turning a social crisis into a financial shakedown...
MOVE Bombing at 30: "Barbaric" 1985 Philadelphia Police Attack Killed 11 & Burned a Neighborhood Democracy Now ...Today marks the 30th anniversary of a massive police operation in Philadelphia that culminated in the helicopter bombing of the headquarters of a radical group known as MOVE. The fire from the attack incinerated six adults and five children, and destroyed 65 homes. Despite two grand jury investigations and a commission finding that top officials were grossly negligent, no one from city government was criminally charged...
BLET/Teamsters statement on fatal Amtrak derailment in Philadelphia BLET.org ...As federal investigators in Philadelphia begin to piece together what happened leading up to the horrific Amtrak derailment that occurred on May 12, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) extends our most heartfelt sympathy to the grieving families who lost a loved one in the accident, and also to the many victims who suffered serious injuries...
Teamsters, allies voice outrage at attempts to gut truck safety laws Teamster Nation ...Teamsters joined forces today with safety advocates, crash victims, and law enforcement allies for a press event on Capitol Hill to speak out against proposed rollbacks of major truck safety regulations. The event was held as the Appropriations Committee considers the House Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations Bill for 2016, which includes "riders" that will force truck drivers to work longer hours and drive larger, heavier trucks...
Teamsters trying to organize at north Strip hotel CBS Las Vegas ...The union representing Las Vegas valet workers are protesting what they say is unfair treatment at the SLS Las Vegas hotel and casino on the Strip. Teamsters Local 986 said the group and supporters protested outside SLS Monday. The union wants to organize the casino-hotel’s 50 valet employees...
Global Labor & Trade
Senate compromise revives fast-track bill, but an uphill slog looms in House Washington Post ...One day after Democrats defied their own president with a filibuster that temporarily blocked a key trade measure, Senate leaders said they had reached an agreement to move forward with a series of votes that would break the impasse...
Obama vs. Warren: Trade spat turns personal Reuters ...President Barack Obama's swing at liberal favorite Elizabeth Warren has stirred a controversy that may complicate the chances of a pan-Pacific trade pact and could make it harder for the White House to get its way in future legislative battles. Facing stiff opposition to the trade deal from sections of his own Democratic Party, Obama launched a personalized criticism of Warren's efforts to lead the fight against giving the administration "fast-track" negotiating authority...
White House changes tone on trade The Hill ...Knowing it has to win over more Democrats, the White House shifted its tone on the Massachusetts senator. Earnest sought to downplay the scope of the Obama-Warren rift, emphasizing they agree on a wide array of issues from Wall Street reform to raising the minimum wage, even though they disagree on trade...
Barack Obama's Battle With Senate Democrats Is Over. For Now. National Journal ...Of the Senate's 46 Democrats, exactly one voted Tuesday to support a bill that Obama calls vital to the economy. But then, after a day of lousy news coverage and hand-wringing about a president who couldn't even get the support of his own party, it all blew over, and things were pretty much where Obama and his aides predicted they would be heading into Monday...
Democrats yield in Senate trade deal Politico ...After Democrats engineered a stunning defeat of President Barack Obama’s push for new trade deals on Tuesday, negotiators hashed out a compromise that offered both parties a way to save face without scuttling the administration’s trade agenda. At the least, the agreement means the Senate is likely to pass new powers for the president to fast-track trade pacts through Congress...
Fast Track will empower GOP president, McConnell says Washington Post ...In an interview with John Harwood, McConnell said that Republicans should support Fast Track authority, explicitly because — and here’s the rub — it will empower the next GOP president to negotiate trade deals more easily, despite Democratic opposition to them in Congress...
The secret corporate takeover of trade agreements (opinion) The Guardian ...Rules and regulations determine the kind of economy and society in which people live. They affect relative bargaining power, with important implications for inequality, a growing problem around the world. The question is whether we should allow rich corporations to use provisions hidden in so-called trade agreements to dictate how we will live in the 21st century...
Egypt outlaws workers’ right to strike Al-Monitor ...The ruling issued April 28 by the Supreme Administrative Court headed by Judge Labib Halim to criminalize strikes and penalize striking public workers by forcing them into retirement caused an uproar in legal circles and provoked the anger of those interested in labor and human rights...
Mexican Auto Workers Fired After Protesting Sexual Harassment In These Times ...In March, workers on a subassembly line organized a work-to-rule slowdown. That grabbed management’s attention. A meeting was held. Management and the union agreed to handle the problem with the supervisor. “We were informed that we weren’t going to be punished for the demonstration,” said Edgar Capetillo. They were fired without explanation. All 20 of the workers were male...
Dozens Feared Dead After Fire Consumes Factory In Philippines Common Dreams ...At least 65 people have been reported missing or dead after a fire consumed a rubber slipper factory in a suburb of the Philippine capital of Manila on Wednesday. Rex Gatchalian, mayor of the suburb of Valenzuela where the disaster took place, reportedly said that it took fire fighters four hours to quell the blaze and bodies were found inside the building...
Missouri passes right-to-work bill, but governor's veto expected Reuters ...Missouri Republican lawmakers passed a bill on Wednesday that would stop workers from being required to join a union or pay dues, but without enough votes to override an expected veto by Democratic Governor Jay Nixon. By a 92-66 vote, the Missouri House of Representatives approved the measure that would allow Missouri to join 25 other states with "right-to-work" laws...
House to vote on Right to Work: 'It's gonna fail. It's meant to fail. And it will fail.' Chicago Sun Times ...“Political theater” or a “serious vote” on which legislators must take a stand. Those are the contrasting views of the Illinois House vote scheduled Thursday for Gov. Bruce Rauner’s much trumpeted right-to-work proposal...
Senate panel OKs bills to repeal prevailing wage laws Detroit News ...The Senate leader and House Speaker Kevin Cotter, R-Mount Pleasant, are making the repeal legislation a major priority, although Republican Gov. Rick Snyder says he doesn’t favor it. The legislation was sent to the full Senate by its Michigan Competitiveness Committee on 4-1 votes following a hearing that lasted about one-and-a-half hours...
Facebook Just Made Sure Even Their Janitors Are Making At Least $15 An Hour Think Progress ...Effective May 1, the new benefits will cover contract employees who work as cooks, janitors, security guards and other support staff at Facebook’s headquarters in Menlo Park, California. The company plans to extend the benefits to third-party vendors with more than 25 employees at its other 16 campuses in the U.S. over the next year...
Union nursing home caregivers seek 'living wage' in State House rally Providence Journal ...With nursing homes and hospitals facing cuts as part of Governor Raimondo's Reinventing Medicaid initiative, Ward and other union health-care workers rallied at the State House on Wednesday to call for better pay and policies that promote better care. They are seeking what they call "a living wage" of $15 an hour...
The Fight For $15 Just Won a Powerful Supporter: Governor Cuomo The Nation ...The 99 percent can savor a small victory, as Governor Andrew Cuomo launches a plan to raise fast food workers’ pay to up to $15 an hour in one sweeping executive action. Last week Cuomo rolled out a new Wage Board, featuring three high-profile appointees tasked with reviewing labor conditions in the industry, with a mandate to secure “honor and justice” for the state’s 200,000 fast-food workers...
L.A. City Council committee votes to raise minimum wage to $15 by 2020 LA Daily News ...Amid a national discussion over economic inequality and following months of heated debate, Los Angeles is poised to dramatically hike the citywide minimum wage. A unanimous vote Wednesday by the seven-member Economic Development Committee laid out a series of increases over five years. Hourly pay would reach $10.50 next year, $12 by 2017, $13.25 by 2018 and $14.25 by 2019 under the plan...
U.S. Labor
Unions call attention to protracted labor negotiations with Southwest Dallas Morning News ...Unions representing pilots and ramp workers at Southwest Airlines sought Tuesday to call attention to their protracted labor negotiations with the Dallas-based carrier. The ramp workers, who are working under a contract that became amendable in June 2011, announced plans to picket outside Southwest’s annual meeting Wednesday in downtown Houston...
AT&T, CWA reach tentative wireline labor agreement Fierce Telecom ...AT&T and the Communications Workers of America (CWA) have hammered out tentative agreements covering nearly 17,000 wireline employees in the Midwest. These tentative agreements cover union employees that work for AT&T Midwest and AT&T Corp...
UAW protests at Lear annual meeting Auto News ...The UAW protested outside Lear's annual shareholder meeting today near Detroit, calling attention to safety issues at the company's seat plants in the South. “Workers at auto parts plants nationwide are standing up and speaking out against low wages and unsafe conditions that now define far too many of America’s auto jobs," UAW Vice President Cindy Estrada said in a statement today...
Strike energizes organized labor before contract talks NWI Times ...Now the strike is over. But contract talks are coming up later this year at Northwest Indiana's big steel mills and at Ford's factories just across the state line, and organized labor in the Calumet Region has a new energy. "The strike helped bring some solidarity to Northwest Indiana," USW District 7 Director Mike Millsap said...
Miscellaneous
Currently Available Technology May Have Prevented Fatal Amtrak Crash. But Congress Never Funded It. Think Progress ...Rather than provide the necessary funding to allow Amtrak to meet the rapidly approaching mandate, the GOP-controlled U.S. House Appropriations Committee voted along party lines to cut about a fifth of Amtrak’s annual federal funds. Instead, a bill proposed in March by Senator Roy Blunt (R-MO) would extend the deadline for PTC implementation until December 2020...
Private Water Industry Says Water Bills "Have to Go Up" Truthout ...The topic that received the most attention was the nation's patchwork of rapidly deteriorating municipal water systems, which are estimated to need more than $1 trillion worth of upgrades. This, water executives said, not only represented a historic opportunity for their businesses, but could also be used as leverage to finally convince Americans to cough up more money for their tap water. It is the classic Shock Doctrine approach - turning a social crisis into a financial shakedown...
MOVE Bombing at 30: "Barbaric" 1985 Philadelphia Police Attack Killed 11 & Burned a Neighborhood Democracy Now ...Today marks the 30th anniversary of a massive police operation in Philadelphia that culminated in the helicopter bombing of the headquarters of a radical group known as MOVE. The fire from the attack incinerated six adults and five children, and destroyed 65 homes. Despite two grand jury investigations and a commission finding that top officials were grossly negligent, no one from city government was criminally charged...
Wednesday, May 13, 2015
Today's Teamster News 05.13.15
Teamsters
Hoffa: What America needs from its trade pacts Detroit News ...The U.S. Senate has decided, for now, not to put the Trans-Pacific Partnership on the fast track. That's a good thing. This issue deserves a full debate. Fast track trade authority is would allow bad trade pacts like the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) to sail through Capitol Hill with little debate and no chance to be amended...
Teamsters Applaud Senate Defeat of Cloture for Fast Track Bill Teamster.org ...Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa on today’s defeat of a vote for cloture on the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) bill: “With today’s defeat in the Senate of a vote for cloture on fast track, members of Congress have signaled they will not relinquish their constitutional authority over trade agreements"...
Teamsters protest in Mo. Capitol against right to work Teamster Nation ...Another battle is raging in the state of Missouri against a right-to-work-for-less legislative attack on unions. And Teamsters are on the front line with other union members fighting for American workers. On Monday, workers and union leaders stormed the Missouri Capitol as state lawmakers heard testimony on the proposed bill to make the "Show-Me-State" the 26th "right to work" state in the country...
Global Labor & Trade
Senate Democrats Foil Obama on Asia Trade Deal New York Times ...Senate Democrats on Tuesday blocked consideration of giving President Obama power to accelerate a broad trade accord with Asia, a rebuke that the president helped bring on himself. After more than six years battling Republicans on everything from his signature health care legislation to simply keeping the government open, Mr. Obama is at odds with his own party...
The March Trade Deficit and the Trans-Pacific Partnership Huff Post ...The jump in the March trade deficit, coupled with the weak job numbers for the last two months, should highlight the importance of including rules on currency in trade agreements. Such rules could ensure that the dollar does not remain over-valued and prevent the economy from reaching full employment...
Obama fails first test on trade Politico ...Tuesday was the first test vote on trade, and President Barack Obama failed. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) declared the 52-45 vote “shocking,” labor and progressive groups declared victory, and the White House was left insisting that things really aren’t over yet for fast-track authority and the broader Trans-Pacific Partnership trade treaty that the administration is hoping would follow...
Why Doctors Without Borders Is Lobbying Against Obama’s Trade Deal National Journal ...The physicians group has quietly been opposing the emerging Trans-Pacific Partnership for a few years now, but its efforts are growing more public. It sent multiple letters to Obama in the past few months, as the congressional debate about giving the president fast-track authority has ramped up, warning about the implications for drug costs in other countries...
Jesse Jackson: Don't believe Obama on trade deal Chicago Sun Times ...The president argues the case for a level playing field, but his allies — the Republican majorities in Congress, the business lobby — keep the field slanted against working people. Our global policies aren’t the only reason for this, but they are one contributor to it. The cycle of drugs-in-jobs-out must end. We need to go another way. Fast track sends us the wrong way...
Labour begins indefinite strike in Bauchi Daily Post ...For the failure of the Bauchi State government to pay outstanding March and April salaries, the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Trade Union Congress, TUC and the Joint Public Service Negotiation Council, JPSNC, in the state, have called their members out for an indefinite strike with effect from today, May 13...
Obama’s trade deal: Why he’s in danger of losing (opinion) Washinton Post ...The secrecy makes it appear Obama is hiding something. “If the president is so confident it’s a good deal, he should declassify the text and let people see it before asking Congress to tie its hands on fixing it,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) told my colleague Greg Sargent. Instead of coming clean, Obama prefers to inform fellow Democrats that he’s the smartest guy in the room...
State & Living Wage Battles
Senate Passes ALEC 'Right to Work' Attacks - What's Next? Progress Missouri ...It’s been an ugly 24 hours in the Capitol. Tonight, despite strong bipartisan opposition in both the House and Senate, extremists in the Senate rammed through the American Legislative Exchange Council’s (ALEC) so-called ‘right-to-work’ legislation. Despite all the arm-twisting, ALEC and the Koch Brothers still don’t have the votes to override a veto from Governor Jay Nixon...
Mo. Senate shuts down debate to pass "right-to-work" St. Louis Post-Dispatch ...Missouri Senate Republicans shut down debate Tuesday to pass a “right-to-work” measure after Democrats filibustered the bill for more than eight hours. In return, Senate Democrats plan to shut down everything else until the session ends at 6 p.m. Friday. The rare measure to shut down debate, known as the previous question, has been used in the Senate only 14 times since 1970...
Anti-union bill gains momentum in right-to-work Louisiana Associated Press ...An anti-union bill is stirring up what may be Louisiana's first real battle between business and labor unions in a generation. The measure is scheduled for a Tuesday debate before the full House. If approved, it would bar police, firefighters and teachers from having union dues automatically deducted from their pay...
Ohio Republicans push new voter ID bill MSNBC ...With 2016 approaching, Ohio Republicans are making a new push for a voter ID bill—setting the stage for another battle over voting in the nation’s most pivotal swing state. Legislation introduced last week by conservatives in the statehouse would require that voters show a driver’s license, passport or military ID...
Mich. Senate panel to debate repeal of prevailing wage laws Lansing State Journal ...The contentious issue of repealing Michigan’s prevailing wage laws will get a hearing Wednesday morning at the state Capitol. Gov. Rick Snyder said last week that he doesn’t support a repeal, but that isn’t stopping the Senate’s Michigan Competitiveness committee from taking up a package of three bills beginning at 8 a.m. Wednesday...
N.J. unions protest cuts to pensions in big Statehouse rally NJ.com ...Workers clad in red, blue or green t-shirts carried signs imploring the governor to "fund the pension" and "obey the law." The pension law at the center of the fight requires the state to increase payments into the public employees pension fund, while also freezing cost-of-living adjustments, raising the retirement age and forcing workers to contribute more for their retirement...
A Game-Changing Moment for Fast-Food Workers Huff Post ...Two and half years ago, 200 fast-food workers went on strike in New York City demanding $15 an hour and union rights. Most people, including many in the labor movement, thought the cooks and cashiers from restaurants like McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's had no chance to win. But nine strikes later, and having sparked a global movement for higher pay, $15 doesn't seem so crazy anymore...
Chris Christie Wants To Expand Corporate Tax Breaks Without Any Proof That They Work Think Progress ...New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) has approved $5.4 billion in corporate tax breaks since he took office in 2010. And on Monday, just before he called for cutting corporate tax rates across the country as part of a national economic policy plan, he vetoed a measure that would allow taxpayers to evaluate if the subsidies are actually working...
U.S. Labor
Union and Nonprofit Leaders: Labor Should Shift Its Focus to Organizing Black Workers In These Times ...Despite years of decline, the labor movement continues to provide economic stability in many black communities. Of all demographic groups, black workers have the highest union membership rates. These historic ties have led some to see black workers as a cornerstone to any effort to rebuild a movement in deep decline. And drawing from the national momentum of organizing around police reform, many black labor leaders today are leading the charge...
USW Accuses AP Green of Unfair Labor Practices, Unlawful Lockout at Ohio Refractory Plant PR Newswire ...The United Steelworkers (USW) today said that the union has filed unfair labor practices against AP Green Refractories, Inc. on behalf of more than 40 Local 2324-5 members who have been locked out of their jobs at the company's Oak Hill, Ohio production facility since April 15, 2015...
When Will We Stop Exploiting Home-Care Workers? Dame Magazine ...The work of the nation's 2 million home health-care aides and attendants has been in the public spotlight for a while now, first as those workers rose up and demanded that their labor be valued the same way as other work is, through access to the protections of labor law, and then as the victories they won have been dismantled in court bit by bit...
Miscellaneous
Amtrak Philadelphia train crash: mayor describes 'disastrous mess' The Guardian ...A crash investigation has begun into what caused an Amtrak train to derail in north Philadelphia, killing at least five people and leaving six others critically injured. A sixth person was declared dead by Herb Cushing, medical director of Temple University hospital in Philadelphia...
Amtrak Train Derails in Philadelphia, Killing at Least 6 and Injuring Dozens New York Times ... Emergency crews picked through the wreckage of a derailed Amtrak train Wednesday, looking for survivors and victims. The Northeast Corridor, which runs between Boston and Washington, is one of the railroad’s busiest and most profitable lines. But officials have long complained that the agency needs more subsidies from Congress to improve the railroad’s deteriorating infrastructure and replace aging equipment...
Wall Street greed refuses to die: How lobbyists & dark-money groups are exposing us to another disaster Salon ...After five years, the big banks are already hard at work trying to dismantle regulations that were put in place to prevent irresponsible banking and financial destruction. And “studies” like the one released by the American Action Forum, who for all we know is being funded by the big banks themselves, will help them achieve this goal. Who knows, maybe it will take another, even more disastrous economic collapse to really change the system...
Hoffa: What America needs from its trade pacts Detroit News ...The U.S. Senate has decided, for now, not to put the Trans-Pacific Partnership on the fast track. That's a good thing. This issue deserves a full debate. Fast track trade authority is would allow bad trade pacts like the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) to sail through Capitol Hill with little debate and no chance to be amended...
Teamsters Applaud Senate Defeat of Cloture for Fast Track Bill Teamster.org ...Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa on today’s defeat of a vote for cloture on the Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) bill: “With today’s defeat in the Senate of a vote for cloture on fast track, members of Congress have signaled they will not relinquish their constitutional authority over trade agreements"...
Teamsters protest in Mo. Capitol against right to work Teamster Nation ...Another battle is raging in the state of Missouri against a right-to-work-for-less legislative attack on unions. And Teamsters are on the front line with other union members fighting for American workers. On Monday, workers and union leaders stormed the Missouri Capitol as state lawmakers heard testimony on the proposed bill to make the "Show-Me-State" the 26th "right to work" state in the country...
Global Labor & Trade
Senate Democrats Foil Obama on Asia Trade Deal New York Times ...Senate Democrats on Tuesday blocked consideration of giving President Obama power to accelerate a broad trade accord with Asia, a rebuke that the president helped bring on himself. After more than six years battling Republicans on everything from his signature health care legislation to simply keeping the government open, Mr. Obama is at odds with his own party...
The March Trade Deficit and the Trans-Pacific Partnership Huff Post ...The jump in the March trade deficit, coupled with the weak job numbers for the last two months, should highlight the importance of including rules on currency in trade agreements. Such rules could ensure that the dollar does not remain over-valued and prevent the economy from reaching full employment...
Obama fails first test on trade Politico ...Tuesday was the first test vote on trade, and President Barack Obama failed. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) declared the 52-45 vote “shocking,” labor and progressive groups declared victory, and the White House was left insisting that things really aren’t over yet for fast-track authority and the broader Trans-Pacific Partnership trade treaty that the administration is hoping would follow...
Why Doctors Without Borders Is Lobbying Against Obama’s Trade Deal National Journal ...The physicians group has quietly been opposing the emerging Trans-Pacific Partnership for a few years now, but its efforts are growing more public. It sent multiple letters to Obama in the past few months, as the congressional debate about giving the president fast-track authority has ramped up, warning about the implications for drug costs in other countries...
Jesse Jackson: Don't believe Obama on trade deal Chicago Sun Times ...The president argues the case for a level playing field, but his allies — the Republican majorities in Congress, the business lobby — keep the field slanted against working people. Our global policies aren’t the only reason for this, but they are one contributor to it. The cycle of drugs-in-jobs-out must end. We need to go another way. Fast track sends us the wrong way...
Labour begins indefinite strike in Bauchi Daily Post ...For the failure of the Bauchi State government to pay outstanding March and April salaries, the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Trade Union Congress, TUC and the Joint Public Service Negotiation Council, JPSNC, in the state, have called their members out for an indefinite strike with effect from today, May 13...
Obama’s trade deal: Why he’s in danger of losing (opinion) Washinton Post ...The secrecy makes it appear Obama is hiding something. “If the president is so confident it’s a good deal, he should declassify the text and let people see it before asking Congress to tie its hands on fixing it,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) told my colleague Greg Sargent. Instead of coming clean, Obama prefers to inform fellow Democrats that he’s the smartest guy in the room...
State & Living Wage Battles
Senate Passes ALEC 'Right to Work' Attacks - What's Next? Progress Missouri ...It’s been an ugly 24 hours in the Capitol. Tonight, despite strong bipartisan opposition in both the House and Senate, extremists in the Senate rammed through the American Legislative Exchange Council’s (ALEC) so-called ‘right-to-work’ legislation. Despite all the arm-twisting, ALEC and the Koch Brothers still don’t have the votes to override a veto from Governor Jay Nixon...
Mo. Senate shuts down debate to pass "right-to-work" St. Louis Post-Dispatch ...Missouri Senate Republicans shut down debate Tuesday to pass a “right-to-work” measure after Democrats filibustered the bill for more than eight hours. In return, Senate Democrats plan to shut down everything else until the session ends at 6 p.m. Friday. The rare measure to shut down debate, known as the previous question, has been used in the Senate only 14 times since 1970...
Anti-union bill gains momentum in right-to-work Louisiana Associated Press ...An anti-union bill is stirring up what may be Louisiana's first real battle between business and labor unions in a generation. The measure is scheduled for a Tuesday debate before the full House. If approved, it would bar police, firefighters and teachers from having union dues automatically deducted from their pay...
Ohio Republicans push new voter ID bill MSNBC ...With 2016 approaching, Ohio Republicans are making a new push for a voter ID bill—setting the stage for another battle over voting in the nation’s most pivotal swing state. Legislation introduced last week by conservatives in the statehouse would require that voters show a driver’s license, passport or military ID...
Mich. Senate panel to debate repeal of prevailing wage laws Lansing State Journal ...The contentious issue of repealing Michigan’s prevailing wage laws will get a hearing Wednesday morning at the state Capitol. Gov. Rick Snyder said last week that he doesn’t support a repeal, but that isn’t stopping the Senate’s Michigan Competitiveness committee from taking up a package of three bills beginning at 8 a.m. Wednesday...
N.J. unions protest cuts to pensions in big Statehouse rally NJ.com ...Workers clad in red, blue or green t-shirts carried signs imploring the governor to "fund the pension" and "obey the law." The pension law at the center of the fight requires the state to increase payments into the public employees pension fund, while also freezing cost-of-living adjustments, raising the retirement age and forcing workers to contribute more for their retirement...
A Game-Changing Moment for Fast-Food Workers Huff Post ...Two and half years ago, 200 fast-food workers went on strike in New York City demanding $15 an hour and union rights. Most people, including many in the labor movement, thought the cooks and cashiers from restaurants like McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's had no chance to win. But nine strikes later, and having sparked a global movement for higher pay, $15 doesn't seem so crazy anymore...
Chris Christie Wants To Expand Corporate Tax Breaks Without Any Proof That They Work Think Progress ...New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) has approved $5.4 billion in corporate tax breaks since he took office in 2010. And on Monday, just before he called for cutting corporate tax rates across the country as part of a national economic policy plan, he vetoed a measure that would allow taxpayers to evaluate if the subsidies are actually working...
U.S. Labor
Union and Nonprofit Leaders: Labor Should Shift Its Focus to Organizing Black Workers In These Times ...Despite years of decline, the labor movement continues to provide economic stability in many black communities. Of all demographic groups, black workers have the highest union membership rates. These historic ties have led some to see black workers as a cornerstone to any effort to rebuild a movement in deep decline. And drawing from the national momentum of organizing around police reform, many black labor leaders today are leading the charge...
USW Accuses AP Green of Unfair Labor Practices, Unlawful Lockout at Ohio Refractory Plant PR Newswire ...The United Steelworkers (USW) today said that the union has filed unfair labor practices against AP Green Refractories, Inc. on behalf of more than 40 Local 2324-5 members who have been locked out of their jobs at the company's Oak Hill, Ohio production facility since April 15, 2015...
When Will We Stop Exploiting Home-Care Workers? Dame Magazine ...The work of the nation's 2 million home health-care aides and attendants has been in the public spotlight for a while now, first as those workers rose up and demanded that their labor be valued the same way as other work is, through access to the protections of labor law, and then as the victories they won have been dismantled in court bit by bit...
Miscellaneous
Amtrak Philadelphia train crash: mayor describes 'disastrous mess' The Guardian ...A crash investigation has begun into what caused an Amtrak train to derail in north Philadelphia, killing at least five people and leaving six others critically injured. A sixth person was declared dead by Herb Cushing, medical director of Temple University hospital in Philadelphia...
Amtrak Train Derails in Philadelphia, Killing at Least 6 and Injuring Dozens New York Times ... Emergency crews picked through the wreckage of a derailed Amtrak train Wednesday, looking for survivors and victims. The Northeast Corridor, which runs between Boston and Washington, is one of the railroad’s busiest and most profitable lines. But officials have long complained that the agency needs more subsidies from Congress to improve the railroad’s deteriorating infrastructure and replace aging equipment...
Wall Street greed refuses to die: How lobbyists & dark-money groups are exposing us to another disaster Salon ...After five years, the big banks are already hard at work trying to dismantle regulations that were put in place to prevent irresponsible banking and financial destruction. And “studies” like the one released by the American Action Forum, who for all we know is being funded by the big banks themselves, will help them achieve this goal. Who knows, maybe it will take another, even more disastrous economic collapse to really change the system...
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Today's Teamster News 10.30.13
Newsday drives off with new union pact New York Post ...Just two weeks after rejecting a new labor contract, workers, who are members of the IBT/Graphic Communications Conference at Newsday, ratified the same pact that cuts 25 driver jobs but hikes pay for the remaining workers by 6 percent over four years...
Grocery worker contract vote begins Tuesday KIRO TV ...Voting on the proposed contract will take place at several locations Tuesday and Wednesday for the unionized grocery workers, including members of Teamsters Local 38...
YRC requests meeting with Teamsters for company update Kansas City Business Journal ...YRC Worldwide Inc. is calling its members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters to Dallas to talk about the company's future...
UPS TCI Supplement Passes teamster.org ...The UPS TCI Supplement has passed by a vote of 87 to 12. That brings the total number of revoted local supplements and riders that have been approved by members to seven...
Rail optimistic on union deal as strike deadline nears Reuters ...Canadian National Railway Co., the country's largest railroad, said on Monday it is still talking with the union representing about 3,300 conductors and other workers and expects the two sides will be able to avoid a strike...
U.S. sham corporations aid drug lords CNN ... the Russian "Merchant of Death" Victor Bout used a global network of shell companies to move the funds of his international outfit, which authorities say provided weapons used to fuel conflicts throughout Africa, South America and the Middle East. At least 12 shell companies in Texas, Florida and Delaware have been linked to him...
Dutch Rabobank fined $1 billion over Libor scandal Reuters ...U.S. and European regulators have fined Dutch lender Rabobank $1 billion for rigging benchmark interest rates, making it the fifth bank punished in a scandal that has helped to shred faith in the industry...
'We got away with murder': £2.2m avoidance boast of Gordon Ramsay's tax expert in leaked memo Daily Mail ...Gordon Ramsay ‘really got away with murder’ as his company hid ‘incriminating evidence’ of alleged fraud from the taxman, a leaked memo claims...
The Coming Food Stamp Cut Will Hit 900,000 Veterans ThinkProgress ...Benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), otherwise known as food stamps, will automatically drop come Friday thanks to the loss of additional funds from the 2009 stimulus bill. That cut will hit about 900,000 of the country’s veterans...
Senate OKs Obama pick for NLRB general counsel The Guardian ...Senators voted 62-37 Tuesday to end Republican delaying tactics against Richard Griffin, who Obama nominated to be NLRB general counsel...The general counsel investigates and prosecutes cases before the board. Griffin is a Democrat and long-time labor lawyer...
Another View: Americans' appetite for Amtrak service growing (opinion) Des Moines Register ...On the heaviest traveled passenger rail corridor in the nation, the Northeast Corridor, Amtrak keeps breaking ridership records...
Municipal workers, nurses, pensioners protest against austerity Cyprus Mail ...Tuesday, in the Republic of Cyprus, was a day of protests outside parliament and the finance ministry as nurses, pensioners and municipality workers all gathered to voice their discontent at government imposed cuts. Municipality workers from trade unions PEO and DEOK went on strike for four hours to protest against a further 12 per cent cut to state funding for 2014...
8 Scary Facts About The Trans-Pacific Partnership BuzzFeed ...The Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP, is a massive, secret trade agreement being negotiated behind the backs of Congress and the American people...
Brunei Sultan Raises More Worries About TPP teamster.org ...The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) has rightfully come under fire for its potential to make things worse for workers and consumers both in the U.S. and the 11 other countries which are currently involved in negotiations...
Snyder rejected pension fund conditions Detroit News ...Gov. Rick Snyder’s testimony Monday in Detroit's historic Chapter 9 case marked a dramatic turn, featuring a sitting governor forced to defend a series of decisions likely to set a national precedent for union protections and pension rights in municipal bankruptcy...
Republican Says He'd Bring Back Slavery If His Constituents Asked Him To AlterNet ...A Nevada Republican sparked outrage after he told members of the GOP that he’d bring back slavery if that’s what his constituents wanted...
More follies from the Kasich circus! Toledo Blade ...A Blade investigation of Ohio’s taxpayer-funded job-creation efforts discovered that businesses did not create thousands of jobs that state documents said they did. The probe also revealed that Ohio development officials awarded tens of millions of dollars to companies they knew little about. Much of that money is now lost...
Gov. Walker says he cannot yet comment on alleged discrepancies in his book WKOW ...Governor Scott Walker (R-Wisconsin) says he cannot yet comment on alleged discrepancies between what is reportedly published in his upcoming book and the recording of a phone conversation he had with a blogger posing as billionaire Republican donor David Koch on February 22, 2011...
Grocery worker contract vote begins Tuesday KIRO TV ...Voting on the proposed contract will take place at several locations Tuesday and Wednesday for the unionized grocery workers, including members of Teamsters Local 38...
YRC requests meeting with Teamsters for company update Kansas City Business Journal ...YRC Worldwide Inc. is calling its members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters to Dallas to talk about the company's future...
UPS TCI Supplement Passes teamster.org ...The UPS TCI Supplement has passed by a vote of 87 to 12. That brings the total number of revoted local supplements and riders that have been approved by members to seven...
Rail optimistic on union deal as strike deadline nears Reuters ...Canadian National Railway Co., the country's largest railroad, said on Monday it is still talking with the union representing about 3,300 conductors and other workers and expects the two sides will be able to avoid a strike...
U.S. sham corporations aid drug lords CNN ... the Russian "Merchant of Death" Victor Bout used a global network of shell companies to move the funds of his international outfit, which authorities say provided weapons used to fuel conflicts throughout Africa, South America and the Middle East. At least 12 shell companies in Texas, Florida and Delaware have been linked to him...
Dutch Rabobank fined $1 billion over Libor scandal Reuters ...U.S. and European regulators have fined Dutch lender Rabobank $1 billion for rigging benchmark interest rates, making it the fifth bank punished in a scandal that has helped to shred faith in the industry...
'We got away with murder': £2.2m avoidance boast of Gordon Ramsay's tax expert in leaked memo Daily Mail ...Gordon Ramsay ‘really got away with murder’ as his company hid ‘incriminating evidence’ of alleged fraud from the taxman, a leaked memo claims...
The Coming Food Stamp Cut Will Hit 900,000 Veterans ThinkProgress ...Benefits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), otherwise known as food stamps, will automatically drop come Friday thanks to the loss of additional funds from the 2009 stimulus bill. That cut will hit about 900,000 of the country’s veterans...
Senate OKs Obama pick for NLRB general counsel The Guardian ...Senators voted 62-37 Tuesday to end Republican delaying tactics against Richard Griffin, who Obama nominated to be NLRB general counsel...The general counsel investigates and prosecutes cases before the board. Griffin is a Democrat and long-time labor lawyer...
Another View: Americans' appetite for Amtrak service growing (opinion) Des Moines Register ...On the heaviest traveled passenger rail corridor in the nation, the Northeast Corridor, Amtrak keeps breaking ridership records...
Municipal workers, nurses, pensioners protest against austerity Cyprus Mail ...Tuesday, in the Republic of Cyprus, was a day of protests outside parliament and the finance ministry as nurses, pensioners and municipality workers all gathered to voice their discontent at government imposed cuts. Municipality workers from trade unions PEO and DEOK went on strike for four hours to protest against a further 12 per cent cut to state funding for 2014...
8 Scary Facts About The Trans-Pacific Partnership BuzzFeed ...The Trans-Pacific Partnership, or TPP, is a massive, secret trade agreement being negotiated behind the backs of Congress and the American people...
Brunei Sultan Raises More Worries About TPP teamster.org ...The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) has rightfully come under fire for its potential to make things worse for workers and consumers both in the U.S. and the 11 other countries which are currently involved in negotiations...
Snyder rejected pension fund conditions Detroit News ...Gov. Rick Snyder’s testimony Monday in Detroit's historic Chapter 9 case marked a dramatic turn, featuring a sitting governor forced to defend a series of decisions likely to set a national precedent for union protections and pension rights in municipal bankruptcy...
Republican Says He'd Bring Back Slavery If His Constituents Asked Him To AlterNet ...A Nevada Republican sparked outrage after he told members of the GOP that he’d bring back slavery if that’s what his constituents wanted...
More follies from the Kasich circus! Toledo Blade ...A Blade investigation of Ohio’s taxpayer-funded job-creation efforts discovered that businesses did not create thousands of jobs that state documents said they did. The probe also revealed that Ohio development officials awarded tens of millions of dollars to companies they knew little about. Much of that money is now lost...
Gov. Walker says he cannot yet comment on alleged discrepancies in his book WKOW ...Governor Scott Walker (R-Wisconsin) says he cannot yet comment on alleged discrepancies between what is reportedly published in his upcoming book and the recording of a phone conversation he had with a blogger posing as billionaire Republican donor David Koch on February 22, 2011...
Friday, September 13, 2013
Today's Teamster News 09.13.13
Teamster Proposal for FedEx Independent Board Chair Backed by Leading Proxy Advisers teamster.org ...The country’s two largest proxy advisers, ISS and Glass Lewis, have both recommended that FedEx shareholders support a Teamster proposal calling for an independent chairman of the board at the company’s annual meeting Sept. 23...
Video: Teamsters and Allies Fighting For Workers’ Rights, Worldwide Thom Hartmann’s The Big Picture ...Tim Beaty, Teamsters Director of Global Strategies, was interviewed about the relationships the union has with labor organizations around the world. Jim Hoffa recently signed an agreement with a top Brazilian labor leader that will help both organizations fight for workers’ rights...
DHL Teamsters Approve National Master Portions Of Tentative New Agreement And All Operational Supplements teamster.org ...Teamsters working at DHL Express across the country overwhelmingly approved the new tentative National Master Agreement. However, a small number of local riders were not approved...
35 to lose jobs at Franklin Foods Duluth News Tribune ...Dairy giant Kemps on Monday told workers at its Duluth milk processing facility that production was being shifted to a Minneapolis facility, meaning 35 workers will be out of a job at Franklin Foods on Oct. 4...
BMWED Members: Amtrak Arbitration Agreement teamster.org ...The Passenger Rail Labor Bargaining Coalition has finalized an agreement with Amtrak to arbitrate and settle the BMWED contract dispute...
Verizon's diabolical plan to turn the Web into pay-per-view Industry Standard ... The country's No. 1 carrier is fighting in court to end the Federal Communications Commission's policy of Net neutrality, a move that would open the gates to a whole new -- and wholly bad -- economic model on the Web...
Bailout Nr. 5? Euro Zone Eyes Slovenia's Troubled Banks Der Spiegel ...The euro crisis has been on the back burner lately, but the problems facing banks in Slovenia are coming to a head. Billions of euros in bad loans make the country a candidate for the next bailout...
Why Do We Spend Billions on the National Security State While We Let Detroit Go Bankrupt? Alternet ...During a peace-time economy, the budgets of the five intelligence agencies have grown exponentially while urban cities and social services have dwindled...
California Legislature Passes Historic Laws Protecting Immigrant Workers from Abusive Employers teamster.org ...The California State legislature has passed new protections designed to stop unscrupulous employers from retaliating against immigrant workers who stand up for their rights. The bills await signature by Governor Jerry Brown...
Gov. Rick Snyder announces appointments to truck safety commission ABC 10 News ...Michigan’s Gov. Rick Snyder today announced two appointments and five reappointments, including Dave Goller, a Teamsters Local 406 business representative, to the Michigan Truck Safety Commission...
Bike night and car show has great attendance in Slatington Times News ...The Slatington Fire Department in Pennsylvania held a bike night and car show in honor of longtime firefighter Milt "Bup" Greene, who passed away last year. The event was hosted by the Teamster Horseman Motorcycle Club of which Greene, a firefighter for 35 years, was a member...
5 Years Later, Wall Street Still Sucking Life Out of America Like Vampires at a Blood Drive AlterNet ...On Sept. 15, 2008, the Lehman Brothers collapse became the 9/11 of the financial world, sending the global economy into panic, leading to the ugliest financial episode since the Great Depression—mostly because the financial sector had gotten out of control…
Why doesn’t NSA spy on Wall Street? Salon ...The government claims NSA conducts surveillance to avert financial crises. Seems like they have the wrong suspects...
Report:New Trade Pact Will Hurt U.S. Wages CBS Money Watch ...The new trans-Pacific trade pact being pushed by the U.S. government will hurt most American workers' wages despite promises it will help them, according to a new report...
GE Ex-Labor Chief Switches to Defend Retirees’ Benefits Bloomberg News ...Ten years ago, Dennis Rocheleau sat across the bargaining table from General Electric Co. (GE)’s unions, pushing health-care cuts so deep they led to the first nationwide strike at the company in three decades...
Florida task force takes shape to study mandatory paid-sick-leave Miami Herald ...Florida Senate President Don Gaetz has announced the first four members of a task force that will study how state law affects the benefits companies can offer employees, including mandatory paid-sick-leave...
Oregon’s Revenue Department violated labor laws, state says Statesman Journal ...The Oregon Department of Revenue has been violating its agreement with employees for years by refusing to pay for some meal periods, according to a recent ruling released by the Employment Relations Board...
L.A. Mayor Garcetti working to rebuild ties to labor unions Los Angeles Times ...Months after much of organized labor fought hard to block his election as mayor of Los Angeles, Eric Garcetti tried to mend fences Wednesday with a call for solidarity with unions in their struggle for jobs that pay middle-class wages...
Video: Teamsters and Allies Fighting For Workers’ Rights, Worldwide Thom Hartmann’s The Big Picture ...Tim Beaty, Teamsters Director of Global Strategies, was interviewed about the relationships the union has with labor organizations around the world. Jim Hoffa recently signed an agreement with a top Brazilian labor leader that will help both organizations fight for workers’ rights...
DHL Teamsters Approve National Master Portions Of Tentative New Agreement And All Operational Supplements teamster.org ...Teamsters working at DHL Express across the country overwhelmingly approved the new tentative National Master Agreement. However, a small number of local riders were not approved...
35 to lose jobs at Franklin Foods Duluth News Tribune ...Dairy giant Kemps on Monday told workers at its Duluth milk processing facility that production was being shifted to a Minneapolis facility, meaning 35 workers will be out of a job at Franklin Foods on Oct. 4...
BMWED Members: Amtrak Arbitration Agreement teamster.org ...The Passenger Rail Labor Bargaining Coalition has finalized an agreement with Amtrak to arbitrate and settle the BMWED contract dispute...
Verizon's diabolical plan to turn the Web into pay-per-view Industry Standard ... The country's No. 1 carrier is fighting in court to end the Federal Communications Commission's policy of Net neutrality, a move that would open the gates to a whole new -- and wholly bad -- economic model on the Web...
Bailout Nr. 5? Euro Zone Eyes Slovenia's Troubled Banks Der Spiegel ...The euro crisis has been on the back burner lately, but the problems facing banks in Slovenia are coming to a head. Billions of euros in bad loans make the country a candidate for the next bailout...
Why Do We Spend Billions on the National Security State While We Let Detroit Go Bankrupt? Alternet ...During a peace-time economy, the budgets of the five intelligence agencies have grown exponentially while urban cities and social services have dwindled...
California Legislature Passes Historic Laws Protecting Immigrant Workers from Abusive Employers teamster.org ...The California State legislature has passed new protections designed to stop unscrupulous employers from retaliating against immigrant workers who stand up for their rights. The bills await signature by Governor Jerry Brown...
Gov. Rick Snyder announces appointments to truck safety commission ABC 10 News ...Michigan’s Gov. Rick Snyder today announced two appointments and five reappointments, including Dave Goller, a Teamsters Local 406 business representative, to the Michigan Truck Safety Commission...
Bike night and car show has great attendance in Slatington Times News ...The Slatington Fire Department in Pennsylvania held a bike night and car show in honor of longtime firefighter Milt "Bup" Greene, who passed away last year. The event was hosted by the Teamster Horseman Motorcycle Club of which Greene, a firefighter for 35 years, was a member...
5 Years Later, Wall Street Still Sucking Life Out of America Like Vampires at a Blood Drive AlterNet ...On Sept. 15, 2008, the Lehman Brothers collapse became the 9/11 of the financial world, sending the global economy into panic, leading to the ugliest financial episode since the Great Depression—mostly because the financial sector had gotten out of control…
Why doesn’t NSA spy on Wall Street? Salon ...The government claims NSA conducts surveillance to avert financial crises. Seems like they have the wrong suspects...
Report:New Trade Pact Will Hurt U.S. Wages CBS Money Watch ...The new trans-Pacific trade pact being pushed by the U.S. government will hurt most American workers' wages despite promises it will help them, according to a new report...
GE Ex-Labor Chief Switches to Defend Retirees’ Benefits Bloomberg News ...Ten years ago, Dennis Rocheleau sat across the bargaining table from General Electric Co. (GE)’s unions, pushing health-care cuts so deep they led to the first nationwide strike at the company in three decades...
Florida task force takes shape to study mandatory paid-sick-leave Miami Herald ...Florida Senate President Don Gaetz has announced the first four members of a task force that will study how state law affects the benefits companies can offer employees, including mandatory paid-sick-leave...
Oregon’s Revenue Department violated labor laws, state says Statesman Journal ...The Oregon Department of Revenue has been violating its agreement with employees for years by refusing to pay for some meal periods, according to a recent ruling released by the Employment Relations Board...
L.A. Mayor Garcetti working to rebuild ties to labor unions Los Angeles Times ...Months after much of organized labor fought hard to block his election as mayor of Los Angeles, Eric Garcetti tried to mend fences Wednesday with a call for solidarity with unions in their struggle for jobs that pay middle-class wages...
Thursday, August 1, 2013
Today's Teamster News 08.01.13
Teamsters Protest McKesson's Worker Abuse And Executive Pay At Shareholder Meeting IBT ...Teamsters from across the country protested today outside the annual shareholder meeting of San Francisco-based McKesson Corporation, North America’s leading pharmaceutical distributor...
No end in sight for Teamsters strike against Gold Cross Imperial Valley Press ...The Gold Cross ambulance employees strike entered its third day Tuesday, and with talks between the company and the employees’ union at a standstill, there is no end in sight...
UPS Freight Negotiations Update IBT ...The UPS Freight National Negotiating Committee met today to discuss concerns that members have raised about the tentative agreement that was rejected. The committee also discussed the next steps for continuing negotiations with the company so that an agreement can be put to another membership vote. View the memo here...
Civil Service ruling in Scranton Parking Authority case seen as harbinger Scranton Times-Tribune ...A state Civil Service Commission dismissal of a furlough appeal by Scranton Parking Authority's former executive director may be a harbinger in an unrelated arbitration case involving union workers, who are members of Teamsters Local 229, who also were laid off...
2013 Teamsters Leadership Academy (TLA) Course Summary and Registration Form IBT ...Check out the Teamsters Leadership Academy schedule of programs for Teamster leaders that available for the remainder of this year. Download the schedule here...
Economic Recovery by Statistical Manipulation Counterpunch ...he Obama administration will announce a major revision of how it calculates GDP which will bump up GDP numbers by as much as 3% according to some estimates...
New Amtrak trains, made in USA manufacture this ...The Department of Transportation reports that the first of Amtrak's new fleet of electric locomotives, called Cities Sprinters, rolled out of a Siemens plant in Sacramento, CA...
Trucks transported 60.8% of U.S.-NAFTA trade in May 2013 Trucker News Services ...The Bureau of Transportation Statistics released May, North American Free Trade Agreement freight numbers showing that trucks carried 60.8 percent of the $98.6 billion of freight moved in May 2013 between the United States and its NAFTA partners, Canada and Mexico...
Union leader says BART contract talks were unproductive KTVU News ...BART management met with union leaders again Tuesday to try to reach an agreement before the contract for the transit agency's employees expires Sunday night but a union official said the talks weren't productive...
Protests about low wages continue in Kansas City Kansas City Star ...Stand Up KC, a campaign to give a collective voice to low-paid fast-food workers, staged a rally and march Tuesday afternoon at which 500 people advocated for higher pay and union rights...
Bankrupt Detroit Receives Less U.S. Aid Than Colombia Bloomberg News ...President Barack Obama proposed giving Colombia about $323 million in aid next year, mostly to combat drug trafficking and violence. Detroit, with an 81 percent higher homicide rate, will get $108.2 million...
Walmart Embroiled in D.C. Wage Battle KNWA-TV ...Walmart is threatening to pull out three of its stores that are planned to open this fall in the nation's capital. If the mayor signs the Large Retailer Accountability Act that was passed by the D.C. Council, the corporation could be forced to pay its employees more than $4 above minimum wage...
Fox Claims That Feeding Seniors In Need Is An Effort To Buy Their Vote Media Matters for America ...Fox News continued its campaign to demonize programs that provide necessary food assistance to millions of Americans by attacking the AARP's effort to enroll eligible seniors in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), baselessly claiming the program was an effort to buy their vote and dismissing the fact that many eligible seniors find it difficult to get the assistance they need...
Prison Guard Union Still Smarting Over Closure Announcement WXXI News ...Correction officers say they are still in “shock”, that late on a July Friday, with very little advance warning, New York's Gov. Cuomo’s prison agency announced the closure of four prisons within the next year...
Group accuses Apple supplier of labor abuses Associated Press ...A labor rights group Monday accused a Chinese company that makes iPhones for Apple Inc. (AAPL) (AAPL) of abuses including withholding employees' pay and excessive working hours...
Opinion: NC House Dances With Joy Over Their Accomplishments CNN iReport ...It should have been a solemn day last Thursday when the NC General Assembly passed legislation that has been called the most severe voter restrictions ... in the country, but instead there was fiddling, dancing and ice cream...
No end in sight for Teamsters strike against Gold Cross Imperial Valley Press ...The Gold Cross ambulance employees strike entered its third day Tuesday, and with talks between the company and the employees’ union at a standstill, there is no end in sight...
UPS Freight Negotiations Update IBT ...The UPS Freight National Negotiating Committee met today to discuss concerns that members have raised about the tentative agreement that was rejected. The committee also discussed the next steps for continuing negotiations with the company so that an agreement can be put to another membership vote. View the memo here...
Civil Service ruling in Scranton Parking Authority case seen as harbinger Scranton Times-Tribune ...A state Civil Service Commission dismissal of a furlough appeal by Scranton Parking Authority's former executive director may be a harbinger in an unrelated arbitration case involving union workers, who are members of Teamsters Local 229, who also were laid off...
2013 Teamsters Leadership Academy (TLA) Course Summary and Registration Form IBT ...Check out the Teamsters Leadership Academy schedule of programs for Teamster leaders that available for the remainder of this year. Download the schedule here...
Economic Recovery by Statistical Manipulation Counterpunch ...he Obama administration will announce a major revision of how it calculates GDP which will bump up GDP numbers by as much as 3% according to some estimates...
New Amtrak trains, made in USA manufacture this ...The Department of Transportation reports that the first of Amtrak's new fleet of electric locomotives, called Cities Sprinters, rolled out of a Siemens plant in Sacramento, CA...
Trucks transported 60.8% of U.S.-NAFTA trade in May 2013 Trucker News Services ...The Bureau of Transportation Statistics released May, North American Free Trade Agreement freight numbers showing that trucks carried 60.8 percent of the $98.6 billion of freight moved in May 2013 between the United States and its NAFTA partners, Canada and Mexico...
Union leader says BART contract talks were unproductive KTVU News ...BART management met with union leaders again Tuesday to try to reach an agreement before the contract for the transit agency's employees expires Sunday night but a union official said the talks weren't productive...
Protests about low wages continue in Kansas City Kansas City Star ...Stand Up KC, a campaign to give a collective voice to low-paid fast-food workers, staged a rally and march Tuesday afternoon at which 500 people advocated for higher pay and union rights...
Bankrupt Detroit Receives Less U.S. Aid Than Colombia Bloomberg News ...President Barack Obama proposed giving Colombia about $323 million in aid next year, mostly to combat drug trafficking and violence. Detroit, with an 81 percent higher homicide rate, will get $108.2 million...
Walmart Embroiled in D.C. Wage Battle KNWA-TV ...Walmart is threatening to pull out three of its stores that are planned to open this fall in the nation's capital. If the mayor signs the Large Retailer Accountability Act that was passed by the D.C. Council, the corporation could be forced to pay its employees more than $4 above minimum wage...
Fox Claims That Feeding Seniors In Need Is An Effort To Buy Their Vote Media Matters for America ...Fox News continued its campaign to demonize programs that provide necessary food assistance to millions of Americans by attacking the AARP's effort to enroll eligible seniors in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), baselessly claiming the program was an effort to buy their vote and dismissing the fact that many eligible seniors find it difficult to get the assistance they need...
Prison Guard Union Still Smarting Over Closure Announcement WXXI News ...Correction officers say they are still in “shock”, that late on a July Friday, with very little advance warning, New York's Gov. Cuomo’s prison agency announced the closure of four prisons within the next year...
Group accuses Apple supplier of labor abuses Associated Press ...A labor rights group Monday accused a Chinese company that makes iPhones for Apple Inc. (AAPL) (AAPL) of abuses including withholding employees' pay and excessive working hours...
Opinion: NC House Dances With Joy Over Their Accomplishments CNN iReport ...It should have been a solemn day last Thursday when the NC General Assembly passed legislation that has been called the most severe voter restrictions ... in the country, but instead there was fiddling, dancing and ice cream...
Friday, June 28, 2013
Today's Teamster News 06.28.13
U.S. to Suspend Trade Privileges With Bangladesh New York Times ...The Obama administration on Thursday will suspend trade privileges for Bangladesh over concerns about safety problems and labor rights violations in that country’s garment industry, according to administration and Congressional officials...
Macy’s Agrees To Pay $175,000 Civil Penalty For Immigrant Worker Treatment; Here Are The H1 Visa Workers Macy's Asked For In 2011 International Business Times ...Congress is currently debating a major immigration reform bill that would increase the number of these and other categories of guest workers allowed to work in the United States...
Chilean police evict student protesters from schools The Guardian ...Chilean police have evicted student protesters from 21 Santiago schools that will be used as polling stations for the weekend's primary elections, a day after a massive march for education reform in the capital...
Ecuador Scraps Trade Pact Over U.S. Threats in Snowden Case Bloomberg ...Ecuador, the South American nation considering an asylum request from fugitive U.S. intelligence leaker Edward Snowden, renounced its U.S. trade benefits today, saying they were being used as “blackmail.”...
Mulally warns feds about impact of Japanese trade on U.S. auto sales Detroit News ...Ford Motor Co. Chief Executive Alan Mulally warned senators and Obama administration office about the impact of Japanese trade and currency policies on U.S. auto sales. He said his message was needed for free trade agreements and the “importance of letting the markets establish the currencies” and ensuring that they reflect “the global trade rules.”...
The Koch Brothers' PAC Is Off To Its Fastest Start Ever In A Federal Election Cycle Business Insider ...KOCHPAC donated $559,000 to federal-level political candidates and committees during the first five months of the year, according to a Center for Public Integrity review of Federal Election Commission disclosure released today...
License-plate readers let police collect millions of records on drivers ThinkProgress ...At a rapid pace, and mostly hidden from the public, police agencies throughout California have been collecting millions of records on drivers and feeding them to intelligence fusion centers operated by local, state and federal law enforcement...
Public Research for Private Gain East Bay Express ...UC Regents recently approved a new corporate entity that will likely give a group of well-connected businesspeople control over how academic research is used...
Toronto propane firm guilty in fatal 2008 blast CBC News ...The directors of Sunrise Propane have been found guilty of environmental and workplace safety violations following an explosion in 2008 in northwest Toronto that killed a worker and forced thousands from their homes...
Judge approves $139 million settlement in lawsuit against News Corp. Associated Press ...A Delaware judge on Wednesday approved a $139 million cash settlement between News Corp. and shareholders in a lawsuit over the British phone hacking scandal and the media conglomerate’s purchase of an entertainment company run by News Corp. founder Rupert Murdoch’s daughter...
Florida’s governor wants you to go to work sick The Guardian ...As attempts to dehumanize the workplace go, few could be more sadistic than forcing workers to come to work sick, but that’s precisely what the Florida legislature and Governor Rick Scott recently did...
RI Senate to vote on paid family leave bill Associated Press ...A proposal that would allow workers in Rhode Island to take paid time off to care for a new child or sick loved one is heading to a vote in the state Senate...
Paid sick leave is now the law in NYC Washington Post ...It will now be much easier for many New Yorkers to take a sick day from work . Early Thursday, lawmakers overrode a veto by Mayor Michael Bloomberg to pass a law that would require businesses to offer paid sick leave for their workers...
At New York City Hall, fast-food workers rally for better pay and allege 'wage theft' Staten Island Live ...Fast food workers had a simple message outside City Hall Thursday morning: "We can't survive on $7.25."...
BART Negotiations Underway as Strike Looms NBC Bay Area ...BART has asked Gov. Jerry Brown not to order a 60-day cooling off period that would delay a strike if an agreement isn't reached by Sunday. The unions' contracts expire Sunday at 11:59 p.m. If no agreement is reached, a Monday strike looms.
Teamsters Approve National ABF Agreement; Most Supplements Also Approved IBT ...Teamsters employed at ABF Freight System, Inc. have voted to approve the national master portion of the ABF National Master Freight Agreement as well as 21 of the 27 supplements. Some local/area supplemental agreements, however, were rejected and issues in those areas must be addressed before the national agreement can be implemented...
Ask Congress To Fund High Speed Rail And Amtrak IBT ...The Republicans in the House have taken a whack at funding for Amtrak and eliminated funding for high speed rail. They want to cut federal spending on Amtrak by 29 percent and eliminate funding for High Speed Rail. Please ask your representatives in Washington to support expanding the system in 2014...
Publisher threatens to close NJ's largest paper by year's end if unions don't make concessions Associated Press ...The owners of The Star-Ledger plan to close New Jersey's largest newspaper by year's end if its production unions don't make concessions in contract negotiations, the publisher said...
'Landmark' union agreement will help Detroit auto show, officials say Michigan Live ...A new labor pact between five unions and the Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority should help improve the North American International Auto Show...
Unfair Labor Practice Charges Filed Against Funeral Giant SCI IBT ...Teamsters Local 727, which represents funeral directors and drivers at Service Corporation International (NYSE: SCI), filed unfair labor practice charges against the company today...
Getting Down With The ‘Roots! Rick Smith Show ...The Rick Smith Show came to San Jose June 21-22 to talk to attendees at the Netroots Nation conference about the state of labor where employees of Wal-Mart and Google also shared the challenges they face in the workplace. Listen here. Visit the People’s Tour of America page daily to hear the latest from Rick Smith’s road travels...
Macy’s Agrees To Pay $175,000 Civil Penalty For Immigrant Worker Treatment; Here Are The H1 Visa Workers Macy's Asked For In 2011 International Business Times ...Congress is currently debating a major immigration reform bill that would increase the number of these and other categories of guest workers allowed to work in the United States...
Chilean police evict student protesters from schools The Guardian ...Chilean police have evicted student protesters from 21 Santiago schools that will be used as polling stations for the weekend's primary elections, a day after a massive march for education reform in the capital...
Ecuador Scraps Trade Pact Over U.S. Threats in Snowden Case Bloomberg ...Ecuador, the South American nation considering an asylum request from fugitive U.S. intelligence leaker Edward Snowden, renounced its U.S. trade benefits today, saying they were being used as “blackmail.”...
Mulally warns feds about impact of Japanese trade on U.S. auto sales Detroit News ...Ford Motor Co. Chief Executive Alan Mulally warned senators and Obama administration office about the impact of Japanese trade and currency policies on U.S. auto sales. He said his message was needed for free trade agreements and the “importance of letting the markets establish the currencies” and ensuring that they reflect “the global trade rules.”...
The Koch Brothers' PAC Is Off To Its Fastest Start Ever In A Federal Election Cycle Business Insider ...KOCHPAC donated $559,000 to federal-level political candidates and committees during the first five months of the year, according to a Center for Public Integrity review of Federal Election Commission disclosure released today...
License-plate readers let police collect millions of records on drivers ThinkProgress ...At a rapid pace, and mostly hidden from the public, police agencies throughout California have been collecting millions of records on drivers and feeding them to intelligence fusion centers operated by local, state and federal law enforcement...
Public Research for Private Gain East Bay Express ...UC Regents recently approved a new corporate entity that will likely give a group of well-connected businesspeople control over how academic research is used...
Toronto propane firm guilty in fatal 2008 blast CBC News ...The directors of Sunrise Propane have been found guilty of environmental and workplace safety violations following an explosion in 2008 in northwest Toronto that killed a worker and forced thousands from their homes...
Judge approves $139 million settlement in lawsuit against News Corp. Associated Press ...A Delaware judge on Wednesday approved a $139 million cash settlement between News Corp. and shareholders in a lawsuit over the British phone hacking scandal and the media conglomerate’s purchase of an entertainment company run by News Corp. founder Rupert Murdoch’s daughter...
Florida’s governor wants you to go to work sick The Guardian ...As attempts to dehumanize the workplace go, few could be more sadistic than forcing workers to come to work sick, but that’s precisely what the Florida legislature and Governor Rick Scott recently did...
RI Senate to vote on paid family leave bill Associated Press ...A proposal that would allow workers in Rhode Island to take paid time off to care for a new child or sick loved one is heading to a vote in the state Senate...
Paid sick leave is now the law in NYC Washington Post ...It will now be much easier for many New Yorkers to take a sick day from work . Early Thursday, lawmakers overrode a veto by Mayor Michael Bloomberg to pass a law that would require businesses to offer paid sick leave for their workers...
At New York City Hall, fast-food workers rally for better pay and allege 'wage theft' Staten Island Live ...Fast food workers had a simple message outside City Hall Thursday morning: "We can't survive on $7.25."...
BART Negotiations Underway as Strike Looms NBC Bay Area ...BART has asked Gov. Jerry Brown not to order a 60-day cooling off period that would delay a strike if an agreement isn't reached by Sunday. The unions' contracts expire Sunday at 11:59 p.m. If no agreement is reached, a Monday strike looms.
Teamsters Approve National ABF Agreement; Most Supplements Also Approved IBT ...Teamsters employed at ABF Freight System, Inc. have voted to approve the national master portion of the ABF National Master Freight Agreement as well as 21 of the 27 supplements. Some local/area supplemental agreements, however, were rejected and issues in those areas must be addressed before the national agreement can be implemented...
Ask Congress To Fund High Speed Rail And Amtrak IBT ...The Republicans in the House have taken a whack at funding for Amtrak and eliminated funding for high speed rail. They want to cut federal spending on Amtrak by 29 percent and eliminate funding for High Speed Rail. Please ask your representatives in Washington to support expanding the system in 2014...
Publisher threatens to close NJ's largest paper by year's end if unions don't make concessions Associated Press ...The owners of The Star-Ledger plan to close New Jersey's largest newspaper by year's end if its production unions don't make concessions in contract negotiations, the publisher said...
'Landmark' union agreement will help Detroit auto show, officials say Michigan Live ...A new labor pact between five unions and the Detroit Regional Convention Facility Authority should help improve the North American International Auto Show...
Unfair Labor Practice Charges Filed Against Funeral Giant SCI IBT ...Teamsters Local 727, which represents funeral directors and drivers at Service Corporation International (NYSE: SCI), filed unfair labor practice charges against the company today...
Getting Down With The ‘Roots! Rick Smith Show ...The Rick Smith Show came to San Jose June 21-22 to talk to attendees at the Netroots Nation conference about the state of labor where employees of Wal-Mart and Google also shared the challenges they face in the workplace. Listen here. Visit the People’s Tour of America page daily to hear the latest from Rick Smith’s road travels...
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Teamster tells Congress why Amtrak needs funding
Amtrak desperately needs long-term funding, but Republicans in the House of Representatives want to cut federal spending on Amtrak by 29 percent and eliminate funding for high speed rail.
Brother John Tolman from the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen today urged members of Congress to support long-term funding for Amtrak. Tolman was speaking on behalf of 37,000 active BLET members and over 70,000 Rail Conference members. He told the Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials subcommittee:
Tolman cited Amtrak's successes:
Brother John Tolman from the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen today urged members of Congress to support long-term funding for Amtrak. Tolman was speaking on behalf of 37,000 active BLET members and over 70,000 Rail Conference members. He told the Railroads, Pipelines and Hazardous Materials subcommittee:
The BLET supports of the concept of a unified national plan for our nation’s passenger and freight railroads, as it is consistent with our desire for long-term planning and financing of rail. It also is imperative that any National Rail Policy would protect the interests of the men and women who work in the railroad industry.
In order for our nation to meet the economic and environmental challenges that we face, we must continue to invest in infrastructure and to develop and plan for new means to get goods and people from place to place, in the most fuel efficient means possible; Rail clearly is the best means of doing this.
On the passenger side, Amtrak and other intercity and commuter railroads, and its employees, have the knowledge, skills and abilities to develop, implement and grow passenger rail in this country. They have done great work and continue to set ridership records, across the US. Passenger rail is a great example of the old quote (Field of Dreams) “if you build it, they will come”. On Amtrak, this cycle of underfunding must end, they desperately need long term funding.And he pleaded for safety:
Too often, cost benefit analysis is used as the sole objection against moving ahead on a Rail Safety Projects.
If we could rewind time and freeze the moment before any fatal accident — such as Macdona, Texas or Graniteville, NC, occurred and talk to that train crew, or residents, who among us would like to explain them that they would die in the accident, not from the accident itself but from smoke or hazardous materials inhalation because the Congressionally-mandated emergency escape breathing apparatus or switch point indicators failed a cost benefit analysis?
Let’s work to implement feasible, protective safety opportunities for the public and the employees. As Ed Hamburger, testified last week in the Senate, and stated “Job Safety is the number 1 issue, for the industry.” Let’s walk the walk and talk the talk, and get things done together.You can join the chorus of voices urging adequate funding for Amtrak and high-speed rail by sending a letter to Congress here.
Today's Teamster News 06.27.13
U.S. CEO sets a record with $159 million pension Associated Press ...McKesson’s Chairman and CEO John Hammergren has set a new record in corporate America: Largest pension around...
CEO Pay in 2012 Was Extraordinarily High Relative to Typical Workers and Other High Earners EPI ...Average CEO compensation was $14.1 million in 2012...
Jeff Olson, California Man, Faces 13 Years In Jail For Writing Anti-Big Bank Messages In Chalk Huffington Post ...a judge had decided to prohibit Olson's attorney from "mentioning the First Amendment, free speech, free expression, public forum, expressive conduct, or political speech during the trial..."
Foreclosure settlement a billion-dollar bust USA Today ...The renegotiated settlement created a $3.6 billion pot to compensate borrowers for shoddy foreclosure practices that ran the gamut from wrongful foreclosures to lost consumer documents.About two-thirds of the recipients received $300 — the smallest possible amount. Fewer than 1,200 got $125,000, the most allowed...
Trans-Pacific Partnership and Monsanto ZCommunications ...Something is looming in the shadows that could help erode our basic rights and contaminate our food...
OSHA Citations Follow Fatal Explosion at Cincinnati Hazardous Waste Plant Waste Management World ...Environmental Enterprises, an environmental services company specializing in industrial and hazardous waste management, has been cited by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) with 22 safety and health violations following a fire and explosion at its Cincinnati waste treatment facility on December 28 last year...
Amtrak: $1.45B Senate appropriation 'workable' The Hill ...The safety and efficiency of Amtrak is at stake. The Senate is proposing to fund the railroad at $1.4 billion, which is simply too low. The proposed funding would jeopardize Teamster locomotive engineers and maintenance of way members...
Nevada attorney general urges stronger service member protections KNTV-13 ...Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto urged the U.S. Department of Defense to strengthen regulations of the federal Military Lending Act, to protect service members and military families from abusive lending practices...
NY Legislature OKs Employee-Driver Bill Journal of Commerce ...The New York State Legislature gave final approval to a bill creating the presumption that commercial drivers are company employees unless they meet certain standards showing they are independent contractors...
Teamsters Approve National UPS Contract IBT ...The Teamsters Union announced yesterday that a majority of UPS Teamsters have voted to approve a new five-year national contract that contains significant wage increases and other improvements. However, the UPS Freight agreement was rejected in a separate referendum...
Lake Transit workers plan strike following contract negotiations breakdown Lake County (Calif.) News ...The county's transit agency is preparing for a strike action by transit workers that's expected to take place early next week. The strike by members of Teamsters Local 665 is anticipated to take place on Monday, July 1, and Tuesday, July 2, in response to a breakdown in negotiations with Paratransit Services…
Brunswick City Council opposes ‘right-to-work’ legislation Medina-Gazette ...City Council members in Brunswick, Ohio approved a resolution opposing “right-to-work” legislation Monday night, with the support of more than 30 union members and their families in attendance...
The University of California – Teamster Strong! Rick Smith Show ...On June 19, the Rick Smith Show visited Teamsters Joint Council 42 in Los Angeles and spoke with Don Thornsburg, labor historian about the origins of Los Angeles labor unions and the various industries that were essential for the growth of southern California. Listen here. Visit the People’s Tour of America page daily to hear the latest from Rick Smith’s road travels...
Teamsters contract ratified, but dispute with Manchester teachers’ union continues New Hampshire Union Leader ...The Manchester, New Hampshire Board of School Committee ratified two-year contracts with the district’s principals and the directors and coordinators, who are represented by Teamsters Local 633...
County Board OKs labor agreement, pay raises Duluth News Tribune ...St. Louis County commissioners on Tuesday gave preliminary approval to salary agreements for three categories of employees that include Teamster members...
Teamsters on strike at RL Lipton The Vindicator ...Workers are on strike at RL Lipton Distributing Co. in Austintown, Ohio. The members of Teamsters 377 started picketing Tuesday morning at the company…
Durham Driver Speaks Out About Poor Working Conditions Drive Up Standards ...“My co-worker said, ‘I cannot afford to miss a day from work,’ even though she’s the one that found her mama dead that afternoon.” --Latrisha Pringle, a school bus driver, talks about poor working conditions at Durham School Services in S.C. The Teamsters are fighting for justice at Durham. Watch the video here...
CEO Pay in 2012 Was Extraordinarily High Relative to Typical Workers and Other High Earners EPI ...Average CEO compensation was $14.1 million in 2012...
Jeff Olson, California Man, Faces 13 Years In Jail For Writing Anti-Big Bank Messages In Chalk Huffington Post ...a judge had decided to prohibit Olson's attorney from "mentioning the First Amendment, free speech, free expression, public forum, expressive conduct, or political speech during the trial..."
Foreclosure settlement a billion-dollar bust USA Today ...The renegotiated settlement created a $3.6 billion pot to compensate borrowers for shoddy foreclosure practices that ran the gamut from wrongful foreclosures to lost consumer documents.About two-thirds of the recipients received $300 — the smallest possible amount. Fewer than 1,200 got $125,000, the most allowed...
Trans-Pacific Partnership and Monsanto ZCommunications ...Something is looming in the shadows that could help erode our basic rights and contaminate our food...
OSHA Citations Follow Fatal Explosion at Cincinnati Hazardous Waste Plant Waste Management World ...Environmental Enterprises, an environmental services company specializing in industrial and hazardous waste management, has been cited by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) with 22 safety and health violations following a fire and explosion at its Cincinnati waste treatment facility on December 28 last year...
Amtrak: $1.45B Senate appropriation 'workable' The Hill ...The safety and efficiency of Amtrak is at stake. The Senate is proposing to fund the railroad at $1.4 billion, which is simply too low. The proposed funding would jeopardize Teamster locomotive engineers and maintenance of way members...
Nevada attorney general urges stronger service member protections KNTV-13 ...Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto urged the U.S. Department of Defense to strengthen regulations of the federal Military Lending Act, to protect service members and military families from abusive lending practices...
NY Legislature OKs Employee-Driver Bill Journal of Commerce ...The New York State Legislature gave final approval to a bill creating the presumption that commercial drivers are company employees unless they meet certain standards showing they are independent contractors...
Teamsters Approve National UPS Contract IBT ...The Teamsters Union announced yesterday that a majority of UPS Teamsters have voted to approve a new five-year national contract that contains significant wage increases and other improvements. However, the UPS Freight agreement was rejected in a separate referendum...
Lake Transit workers plan strike following contract negotiations breakdown Lake County (Calif.) News ...The county's transit agency is preparing for a strike action by transit workers that's expected to take place early next week. The strike by members of Teamsters Local 665 is anticipated to take place on Monday, July 1, and Tuesday, July 2, in response to a breakdown in negotiations with Paratransit Services…
Brunswick City Council opposes ‘right-to-work’ legislation Medina-Gazette ...City Council members in Brunswick, Ohio approved a resolution opposing “right-to-work” legislation Monday night, with the support of more than 30 union members and their families in attendance...
The University of California – Teamster Strong! Rick Smith Show ...On June 19, the Rick Smith Show visited Teamsters Joint Council 42 in Los Angeles and spoke with Don Thornsburg, labor historian about the origins of Los Angeles labor unions and the various industries that were essential for the growth of southern California. Listen here. Visit the People’s Tour of America page daily to hear the latest from Rick Smith’s road travels...
Teamsters contract ratified, but dispute with Manchester teachers’ union continues New Hampshire Union Leader ...The Manchester, New Hampshire Board of School Committee ratified two-year contracts with the district’s principals and the directors and coordinators, who are represented by Teamsters Local 633...
County Board OKs labor agreement, pay raises Duluth News Tribune ...St. Louis County commissioners on Tuesday gave preliminary approval to salary agreements for three categories of employees that include Teamster members...
Teamsters on strike at RL Lipton The Vindicator ...Workers are on strike at RL Lipton Distributing Co. in Austintown, Ohio. The members of Teamsters 377 started picketing Tuesday morning at the company…
Durham Driver Speaks Out About Poor Working Conditions Drive Up Standards ...“My co-worker said, ‘I cannot afford to miss a day from work,’ even though she’s the one that found her mama dead that afternoon.” --Latrisha Pringle, a school bus driver, talks about poor working conditions at Durham School Services in S.C. The Teamsters are fighting for justice at Durham. Watch the video here...
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