Today's Teamster News 04.26.14

Teamster News
Republic Nuclear Dump Fire Threatens Investors, Workers  Huffington Post   ...Since 2010, a landfill fire has been moving toward 8,700 tons of unlined illegally dumped radioactive waste in Bridgeton, Missouri. The site is in the middle of working-class neighborhoods, right next to the Saint Louis airport, and near a hospital, schools and a great number of businesses. The Teamsters believe Bill Gates and other investors in Republic Services, Inc. should take a closer look...
Chicago Art Handlers Vote To Become Teamsters, Today  Art World   ...Art handlers with Mana-Terry Dowd LLC may set an industry precedent this month by being the first employees of a major art transportation company in Chicago to unionize...
Mayor de Blasio Laughs Off Idea Central Park Horse-Carriage Drivers Will Be Offered Taxi Cab Medallions  New York Daily News   ...Mayor de Blasio laughed off a report the city is offering tax cab medallions in exchange for their handsome cab licenses. Asked Thursday if a proposal was on the table, de Blasio gave a one word answer: "No."
Trade
Even Without Deal, U.S., Japan Play Up TPP Talks  Wall Street Journal   ...The U.S. and Japan tried to put their best face on their failure to reach a trade deal during President Barack Obama's Tokyo visit, saying major progress was made during nearly round-the-clock talks...
State Battles
Missouri House Republican leaders continue to push for 'right to work' bill  St. Louis Post-Dispatch   ...The prospects of a second vote on “right to work” remain uncertain, but state House Republican leaders said they continue to work on trying to gather enough votes to advance the measure...
Hicks receives warm understanding and support from colleagues and constituents after RTW vote  Missouri Times   ...Hicks initially felt alienated when he took the vote against RTW, but now feels more validated. “When I stood up and voted no, I went against my party for the first time...
The Kochs' Alternative GOP Comes Out Against Columbus Zoo Animals  The Wire   ...Ohio's chapter of American's for Prosperity, the Koch-brothers funded activist zoo group, sent out a mailer opposing a tax increase for the Columbus, Ohio zoo...
Koch Brothers Group Wipes Cliven Bundy Support From Social Media Accounts  Huffington Post   ...Americans for Prosperity Nevada, the state affiliate of the Koch Brothers-backed group, appears to have hastily deleted social media posts expressing support for Cliven Bundy, the renegade rancher who exposed himself as a racist in recent press conferences...
Republican Senator proposes Michigan minimum wage increase to undermine ballot proposal  Michigan Live   ...State Sen. Rick Jones (R-Grand Ledge) on Thursday said he introduced a bill to increase the minimum wage from $7.40 an hour to $8.15 per hour starting Dec. 1, 2014. It also would raise the minimum rate for tipped employees from $2.65 per hour to $2.75 per hour...
Lawmakers advance minimum wage bill  KHON2   ...Lawmakers advanced a bill today to raise Hawaii’s minimum wage for the first time since 2007...
Murray says minimum-wage agreement will take more time  Seattle Times   ...Seattle Mayor Ed Murray said there’s still a few more weeks before a drop-dead deadline for an accord on a $15 minimum-wage proposal...
War on Workers
Northwestern University Football Players To Vote On Union Amid Debate Over Labor Rights  Washington Post   ...Northwestern University football players are scheduled to vote Friday whether to join a union, part of a labor battle that is drawing intense scrutiny from colleges with major athletic programs, national labor leaders and higher education lobbyists in Washington...
Miscellaneous
Americans Have Fewer Credit Cards And Less Debt  FiveThirtyEight   ...A new poll from Gallup suggests that Americans are less reliant on credit cards than any time since 2001. The survey, which was based on a random sample 1,026 adults, found that 29 percent of Americans do not own any credit cards...
Occupy Amazon: Elizabeth Warren, Thomas Piketty, Michael Lewis Books Surging Online  Huffington Post ...If Amazon's top-sellers list is any indication, Americans are fed up with rising income inequality. As of Thursday evening, Sen. Elizabeth Warren's new memoir, A Fighting Chance is the number two best-selling book on Amazon...

Another great win for the Teamsters in New York City!

Teamsters and artists during last year's actions

New York City workers scored a victory this week as the Frieze Art Fair agreed to hire Teamsters and IATSE members after protests erupted last year over Frieze's use of non-union labor -- on city-owned property. 

ArtFCity explains what happened:

For a week during the month of May, the British company descends on Randall’s Island and rolls out a tent, under which wealthy dealers and collectors come from the world over to trade money for art. The residents of Randall’s Island don’t reap much monetary benefit from this form of art tourism—and the city’s labor force doesn’t either. Over the years, Frieze exhibition organizers have been accused of hiring event staff and art handlers from as far away as Wisconsin in order to avoid hiring New Yorkers, particularly union workers. All that’s about to change. After months of meetings with local union leaders, Frieze New York has decided to commit to union labor.

Many people worked to bring the London-based art fair together with the unions.  Teamsters Joint Council 16 is grateful to the Randall's Island Park Alliance for getting Frieze and the Teamsters together. They're thankful for the involvement of Melissa Mark-Viverito, speaker of the New York City Council and former chair of the Parks department.

Teamsters Joint Council 16 President George Miranda called it 'a great win.' The New York Observer reported:

Frieze has agreed to incorporate partial union labor in the upcoming fair, running May 9 through 12 on Randall’s Island, and to only use union labor for the 2015 edition of the fair. 

“It was a great win,” said George Miranda, president of Teamsters Joint Council 16, who chaired the talks. “We’re satisfied with it. Our goal all along was to make sure it was 100 percent union labor, and that’s what we accomplished.”

New York City Teamsters are also very appreciative of the Arts & Labor group, which stood in solidarity with union members from the get-go. Arts & Labor put out a statement on the agreement:

Our tactics have included a series of direct actions both inside and outside the fair, a letter writing campaign, and the raising of awareness via social media. We also want to acknowledge the vital support of artists Suzanne Lacy and Andrea Bowers, curator Nato Thompson, and many others. We thank everyone who put their reputation on the line to create room for discussion when there was none and who created a platform for workers to speak up. We celebrate this victory as a step in the right direction toward a more just art industry and see it as an effective demonstration of the impact of solidarity networks.

Crain's New York Business reported the news about the deal yesterday with a tremendous headline:

After protests, Teamsters take over an art fair

Art in America also gave a shout-out to Lacy, Bowers and Thompson.