Dispatch & Photos from WV Mountaineer Workers Rising Rally, March 7

More than 6,000 workers rallied today in front of the West Virginia Capitol, including 1,000 Teamsters and Teamsters General Secretary-Treasurer Ken Hall who gave a stirring speech to the packed crowd. Workers vowed to fight state legislators' anti-worker agenda.

Here's more from the press release on Teamster.org:

Teamsters General Secretary-Treasurer Ken Hall delivered a rousing speech to thousands of rallying protesters in his home state of West Virginia on Saturday, urging workers to continue their fight against the legislature’s anti-worker agenda currently being pushed by state lawmakers. 

More than 1,000 Teamsters came out to show their support and stand shoulder-to-shoulder in solidarity with their brothers and sisters in the labor movement. 

“The working people of West Virginia deserve better from our politicians, and we won’t sit back as out-of-state interests try to strip us of our bargaining rights, drive down our wages and weaken job protections,” Hall said to the packed crowd. “All workers deserve dignity and respect, and that’s why Teamsters across the country will be standing with West Virginians to stop this horrible assault on workers.” 

Hall was joined by other national labor leaders including: National AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, United Mine Workers President Cecil Roberts, American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten and National Education Association President Lily Eskelsen Garcia. 

Union leaders thanked West Virginia workers for their efforts to form a united voice in opposition to lawmakers seeking to establish right to work legislation, roll back coal mine safety protections, lower the prevailing wage and diminish public education. 

“I’ve always believed what’s bad for one union is bad for all unions. Fortunately, workers were ready for this fight months in advance throughout the legislative session,” said Gary Legg, a member of South Charleston, W.Va.-based Teamsters Local 175, noting that Teamsters joined with miners, teachers and building trades members throughout the session as part of a shared fight to stop this harmful legislation. 

“We have fought too hard and too long in the struggle for workers’ rights to become a right to work state. It's time for delegates to realize that West Virginians don't support this agenda. The assault on workers this session is bad for working-class families and it's bad for our economy. It's an assault on the entire state,” Hall said.

We'll have another dispatch from our Teamster on the Ground later this weekend. In the meantime, check out some more scenes from today's powerful rally:

Today's Teamster News 02.05.14

Allegheny County, Teamsters reach tentative contract for road workers  Pittsburgh Post-Gazette   ...Teamsters Local Union 249 and the county Public Works Department reached a tentative agreement on a contract Tuesday, according to a statement issued by Teamsters president Joseph Rossi Jr...
Momentum building against Fast Track; thank you, Teamsters!  TeamsterNation   ...Tens of thousands of people are taking action to stop politicians in Congress from pulling a fast one and passing a Fast Track bill...
Corporations See an Income Divide, So Why Doesn’t Congress?  teamster.org   ...Income inequality is an issue that is receiving increased attention, especially after President Obama addressed the matter during his State of the Union speech last week...
Unsealed John Doe filings reveal roots of recall probe  Milwaukee Journal Sentinel   ...From the outset, the probe focused on possible "illegal campaign coordination between (name redacted), a campaign committee, and certain special interest groups," according to a filing signed by the five district attorneys in the case. The campaign committee under the microscope? Almost certainly it's the Friends of Scott Walker, the governor's campaign committee. "Good guess," said one source familiar with the probe. "That's it."...
Scott Walker's big money comes from big donors outside Wisconsin  The Cap Times   ...the governor could at least show a little respect for the intellect of Wisconsinites when he makes claims about the money that he raises — which has, since 2010, tended to come in very large checks from very wealthy people in very distant states such as Texas and Florida...
Right-to-work would be an unnecessary and divisive fight in Ohio: editorial  Cleveland Plain Dealer   ...The divisive measure should not be enacted. Putting aside the likely partisan explosion, Ohio's voters signaled as recently as 2011 that they do not favor such measures...
Fast-Track Opponents Rally Support  Wall Street Journal   ...A coalition opposed to overseas trade agreements is building grassroots support, gathering more than half a million signatures and making tens of thousands of calls to lawmakers to argue against trade legislation in Congress...
Vermont Becomes 12th State With Legislation Targeting NSA Spying  Truthout   ...a transpartisan group of four Vermont state representatives introduced legislation that would block some of the practical effects of mass data collection by the National Security Agency (NSA)...
Trade deal is bad for working Americans (opinion)  Nogales International   ...There are two related issues to worry about. One is the agreement itself, which was written mostly by business lobbyists and helps the corporate bottom line at taxpayer expense. It also harms the environment, weakens labor protections and increases the price of medicines here in the U.S. The other issue to watch is what’s called trade promotion authority, which is often referred to as “fast track.” If the House and Senate approve fast track – and the House and Senate already have bills to do just that – it would make it impossible for members of Congress to offer any changes to the agreement before it’s approved...
Tea Party teams with union leaders to fight Obama’s trade plan  The Hill   ...The groups are at separate poles when it comes to taxes, ObamaCare and who should be the next president, but they agree that making it easier for the administration to negotiate and win congressional approval of trade deals is a bad idea...
The Farm Bill Still Gives Wads of Cash to Agribusiness. It's Just Sneakier About It.  New Republic   ...while the parties argued about how much food to take away from poor people, it’s just as revealing to look at the area where they both agreed. Democrats and Republicans alike have pointed to the repeal of $4.5 billion in annual direct cash payments, a long disfavored policy where farmers received a fixed amount of money for every acre they owned, regardless of whether it was planted...
Only About One-Third of Labor Force Dropouts Will Return  Wall Street Journal   ...Millions of people have dropped out of the labor force since the start of the recession in late 2007, and only about a third of them will come back in the years ahead when the economy is stronger...
Welcome Relief for Homeowners, Then the Tax Bill  New York Times   ...Come tax time, JPMorgan Chase will be able to write off the $1.5 billion in debt relief it must give homeowners to satisfy the terms of a recent settlement. But the homeowners who receive the help will have to treat it as taxable income, resulting in whopping tax bills for many families who have just lost their homes or only narrowly managed to keep them...
USW: Jail nun/nurse was fired for union organizing  Pittsburgh Post-Gazette   ...A nun who worked for five years as a registered nurse at the Allegheny County Jail infirmary was fired last week for spearheading unionization efforts, an organizer for the United Steelworkers union said Monday...

ALEC lies again, tries to hold on to shrinking membership

Yesterday we told you about leaked internal documents that show the secretive lobbying group ALEC is bleeding members and money. Well, it’s also been lying to the public in an effort to hide its likely tax code violations.

ALEC lying? What a shocker!

But unlike its lies about how great right-to-work-for-less laws are and why suppressing workers’ voting rights is such a swell idea, ALEC’s lies about its tax status suggest the corporate legislative clearinghouse is in real trouble.

Documents released by the Guardian yesterday reveal that ALEC has formed the “Jeffersonian Project,” a new 501(c)(4) group established to shield ALEC from IRS investigations into its current 501(c)(3) charitable status.

But that’s not what ALEC told reporters just before it created the “Jeffersonian Project.” PR Watch reports:

In December of last year, ALEC spokesperson Kaitlyn Buss told Bloomberg News "we have no current plans to operate a 501(c)(4) in the near future.”

When Buss said "the near future" and "current plans," she apparently meant "next week."

Just eight days after the Bloomberg story ran, ALEC formed the 501(c)(4) "Jeffersonian Project," according to a certificate of incorporation obtained by the Center for Media and Democracy. (ALEC also failed to mention to Bloomberg that it had incorporated another 501(c)(4), "ALEC NOW" in July of 2012; that entity was dissolved earlier this year.)

ALEC hopes the more flexible lobbying ability of the "Jeffersonian Project" will "provide greater legal protection" and "lessen ethics concerns."

But as our friends at the Center for Media and Democracy point out, this desire sounds like ALEC's admission of what we've known all along: ALEC lobbies way too much to be called a "charity."

ALEC's charitable status had allowed its corporate members to write-off their ALEC membership dues -- which are essentially lobbying expenses -- as tax-deductible charitable contributions.

"In forming a 501(c)(4) arm, it appears that ALEC is on notice that it's not going to get away with abusing our nation's charitable tax laws much longer," said [Steve] Spaulding, [Staff Counsel at Common Cause].

Yesterday's leaked documents also show that ALEC has been lying to its own legislative members about the group's dwindling number of corporate backers. But hey, at least they're considering a "loyalty" pledge to keep ALEC lawmakers subservient to that shrinking body of corporate masters. Yep, the Guardian documents reveal:

[There] is a plan to have the legislators who serve as ALEC State Chairs sign a pledge of "loyalty" and agree to "put the interests of [ALEC] first." This proposal underscored concerns that some ALEC politicians have been putting the interests of ALEC (and its corporate backers) ahead of their constituents, and ahead of their commitment to upholding their state constitution.  

This week ALEC is having its "State & Nation Policy Summit" in Washington, DC. Given all the news about ALEC's lies to cover up IRS trouble and its schemes to survive amid lost members and money, we can't imagine the meetings are going too well.

So workers and activists plan to liven things up tomorrow by crashing the summit with a rally and march against ALEC.

Its been precisely the work of activists and workers that have helped weaken ALEC's war against workers and democracy. So let's keep it up!

Kochs’ vast dark money network exposed

New tax filings by a Koch-funded front group reveal the staggering scope of the political machine that wants to destroy workers' rights and turn us into feudal serfs. Exposed secret political spending by “Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce,” which included $250 million during the 2012 election cycle, shines a light on the vast shadowy network of organizations, LLCs and business groups promoting anti-worker causes.

Our friends at the Center for Media and Democracy have the story:

The Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce's tax filing also lists the names and amounts of all of the entities it funded between late 2011 and the eve of the 2012 elections. Here is the list of the top five groups to which the Kochs' Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce funneled millions:

• "Corner Table LLC," known as the "Center to Protect Patient Rights" (CPPR): three infusions of cash totaling $114,678,000. CPPR is at the center of a probe by the California Elections Board on "dark money" spent through shell groups to influence two ballot initiatives, among other concerns that have been raised about it.    

• "PR Dist LLC," described as "Americans for Prosperity," which is directed by David Koch: two infusions totaling $31,600,000.  

• "The 60 Plus Association Inc.," $15,660,000  

• "American Future Fund," $13,600,000 

• "Concerned Women for American Legislative Action Committee," $8,150,000

Freedom Partners’ tax report also shows it owns five other shell game groups that all share the same Washington DC street address: “American Entrepreneur Fund LLC,” “American Enterprise Group LLC,” “American Strategies Group LLC,” “MIC LLC,” and “American Strategic Innovations LLC."

Creepy!

CMD reports that the “National Federation of Independent Business” received $2.5 from the Koch-funded “Freedom Partners” group. The NFIB claims to represent the interests of small business owners, yet it’s getting millions from the Kochs’ big corporation ... which would just as soon crush the small businesses that try to compete with it.

And in case you needed a reminder of how intricate and well-funded the right-wing anti-worker arsenal is, there’s more:

Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce spent another $50 million on other groups, cumulatively, some of which are well known and some of which have flown below the public's radar:

• "American Commitment," $6,260,000 

• "Partnership for Ohio's Future," $500,000  

• "West Michigan Policy Forum," $1,000,000  

• "American Energy Alliance," $1,460,000 (has previously been connected to the Kochs) 

• "American Values Action," $230,000 (spent $14 million on "independent expenditures" including phone calls against Obama during the 2012 election; donors unknown/not registered as a PAC)  

• "Common Sense Issues, Inc.," $50,000 

• "Heritage Action for America, Inc.," $500,000 (connected to the Heritage Foundation, which has deep Koch connections)  

• "ORRA LLC (EVANGCH4 Trust)," $5,055,000 

• "POFN LLC (Public Notice)," $5,466,250  

• "Republican Jewish Coalition," $700,000

• "RION LLC (Center for Shared Service Trust), $2,738,000 (closely connected to the Charles Koch Foundation)

• "SLAH LLC (Public Engagement Trust)," $1,500,000 (Arlington)

• "State Tea Party Express," $600,000 (operates out of Willows, California)

• "STN LLC (Themis Trust)," $5,781,000

• "TONA LLC (Libre Initiative Trust)," $3,112,000

• "Tea Party Patriots," $200,000 (operating out of Woodstock, Georgia)

• "TRGN LLC (Generation Opportunity), $5,040,000 (a group aimed at Gen X that tries to pin the economic crash that began under President George W. Bush on Democrats)

• "The National Right to Work Committee," $1,000,000 (which pushes anti-worker, union-busting measures)

The next time you hear about a “grassroots” organization of concerned citizens whining about “big government” and “big labor” while calling for things like “right to work” for less laws and financial deregulation, odds are that those ordinary folks are in fact right-wing billionaire goons – or at least they’re getting paid by right-wing billionaire goons.  

Let's take the fight to ALEC, let's investigate the Kochs

As state legislatures reconvene, ALEC and its allies are mounting fresh assaults against working families. These billionaire-backed front groups are pushing bills to weaken unions, strengthen corporate monopolies, loot taxpayers, exploit consumers and eliminate environmental regulation. Michigan's No Rights At Work bills, for example, were cut-and-pasted from ALEC.

The best weapon we have against these predators is exposure. They have a knack for selling their dangerous ideas as somehow helpful for working families. But the public is less likely to be fooled when they know the true identity of groups like ALEC that are linked to the Benedict Arnold Koch brothers.

Activists around the country are trying to force ALEC into the sunshine. Last year, Democratic lawmakers in Wisconsin and Arizona filed legislation called The ALEC Accountability Act. According to The Huffington Post,

Democratic lawmakers in Arizona and Wisconsin have introduced state legislation seeking public disclosure of who funds the conservative group known as the American Legislative Exchange Council. 

ALEC, as the group is known, finances trips for Republican state lawmakers to learn about model legislation it pushes at the state level. Arizona tate. Rep. Steve Farley (D-Tucson) and Wisconsin state Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison) have separately put forward legislation designed to disclose ALEC's funding sources. The bills, called the Alec Accountability Act and pending in their respective Republican-controlled legislatures, would redefine ALEC as a lobbying organization since it develops model legislation.

We hope they do it again this year. And that the bills become law. 

This year in Minnesota, a bill was filed that would require anyone who promotes cut-and-paste legislation (ALEC's signature tactic) to register as a lobbyist. And legislators would have to disclose any ALEC "scholarship" (i.e., luxury vaction) money they accept. The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported last week,

DFL senators on Monday proposed  expanding who is a lobbyist and what lobbyists need to disclose. 

If the measure became law, anyone who promotes or distributes model legislation would be required to register as a lobbyist. Under the measure, lobbyists and lawmakers would have to disclose any scholarship funds they get to attend events or meetings. 

"It is aimed at ALEC," said Minneapolis DFL Sen. Scott Dibble, the bill sponsor. "ALEC is a very strong influential entity." 

The measure would also apply to other national groups that push model legislation, that is, bills that are proposed and written outside of Minnesota and then tailored to the state. 

Virginian activists are fed up with ALEC's initiatives to eradicate public education, roll back clean air and water protections and suppress voting. They've drafted a petition to disclose ALEC conference materials if lawmakers spend tax dollars to attend. Progress VA reports,

Virginia legislators have spent over $230,000 traveling to ALEC conferences where they meet behind closed doors with corporate lobbyists and don't have to tell us a thing about it. 

We've tried to get the records from those meetings, but even though our tax dollars paid for legislators to attend, the conference materials aren't public. Transparency and disclosure have always been the bottom line of Virginia government. So, we've worked with Senator Don McEachin to introduce SB1143, a bill that would require ALEC conference materials to be disclosed to the public if legislators spend our tax dollars to attend.

Sign the Virginia petition here.

Oregonians have their own petition to force ALEC to register as lobbyists (ALEC is claiming it's a "charity.") The petition says:

We demand public disclosure on the workings of American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) in the state of Oregon and that ALEC operate within the rules established for lobbying organizations. 

Sign the Oregon petition here.

A state senator in New York, Daniel Squadron, has a petition to force lawmakers to disclose their ties to ALEC:

Since ALEC won't comply with lobbying laws, we're asking legislators to do it for them. If you're a state legislator or candidate for state legislature, sign this pledge to disclose whether ALEC helps shape any legislation that you introduce. 

Are you a constituent? Click here to sign the petition urging your legislator to take the pledge. Sign the petition here.

In Iowa, lawmakers are trying to pass a bill to enshrine No Rights At Work in the state constitution. Activists see ALEC's fingerprints all over it. They've drafted a petition demanding the bill's sponsors represent Iowa and not ALEC. You can sign that petition here.

Ordinary citizens are blowing the whistle on ALEC through individual efforts. For example, Judith Wiancko of Ennis, Mont., wrote a letter to the editor of the Billings Gazette denouncing ALEC:

There are members of ALEC in our Montana Legislature, working not for the people of Montana, but for corporations. 

There should be no gifts or trips from any lobbyist, and full disclosure from our legislators. After all, if we the people want big money out of elections, we would want big money out of our legislator's vote.

The Center for Media and Democracy is leading the fight to expose ALEC, the corporations and the billionaires behind it. Unfortunately, ALEC isn't the only shady group laundering big money in order to lower America's standard of living. CMD wants you to send an email to your U.S. senators asking them to investigate the Koch brothers, their sham corporations and dark money non profits.  You can start by going here.

Romney running for union-buster-in-chief

We've told you all about Mitt Romney's anti-union record and his promise to make union-busting a White House priority if he becomes president.

Today our friends at IBEW posted a video that shows just how proud Romney is of his crusade against working families.

From his commitment to kill project labor agreements to his desire to make right-to-work-for-less a national policy, Romney’s union-busting agenda is outlined brilliantly in the video – by Romney himself. His recorded comments were delivered last spring to the anti-union Associated Builders and Contractors. So unlike his more recent attempts to reinvent himself as a champion for the middle class two weeks before the election, the Romney in this video was comfortable.

The Transport Workers Union also has a great video it made last week which goes a little deeper, including Romney's repeated commitments to cut funding for Amtrak.

Check out IBEW's video. And if you know any union members out there who are planning to vote for Romney, ask them if they like being a union member.

Then ask them to watch this video.
                                                                             --Union Thug

Legal challenge to RTW-for-less in Ind. gets go-ahead

Here's some good news from the Post-Tribune:

Lake Circuit Court Judge George Paras agreed to let a lawsuit go forward that challenges the legality of Indiana’s right-to-work law. 

The suit claims that the law violates the state constitution by requiring unions to represent workers who are receiving union benefits without contributing to the costs. Article 1, Section 21, of the Indiana constitution reads, “No person’s particular services shall be demanded, without just compensation.” Along with the United Steelworkers, USW District 7 President Jim Robinson and five local union presidents are plaintiffs in the suit.

Feelings still run high since working people lost the battle in February to preserve their right to bargain collectively. The Muncie Free Press reports early voting is surging in Indiana:

One group, the Indiana State Building Trades, is launching a statewide campaign to get out an early vote and defeat Republican Mike Pence after Republican lawmakers and Gov, Mitch Daniels passed a Right to Work law that no longer requires worker to join a union. 

Joe Watkins, a business agent for Laborers International Union Local 1112, said dozens of workers had been helping register and now get out an early vote after the RTW passage...

The Indiana AFL-CIO is encouraging union members to get out the vote in November on the Stand Up For Hoosiers Facebook page:

Imagine what the other side would say if 500 union members & their families were out knocking doors of other union members across the state reminding them about this election & the candidates that support working families.

Just imagine.

MN carpenter blasts 'right to freeload' (video)

Anti-worker politicians in Minnesota are proposing a right-to-work-for-less amendment to the state Constitution. Our sister in the video above explains why it's a bad idea.

Who's really behind the IN right-to-work for less bill?

You won't be surprised to know it's the Benedict Arnold Koch brothers and their unpatriotic multinational corporate pals. None of whom are from Indiana.

Reports PR Watch:

This bill is no native born Hoosier idea. It tracks key provisions of "model" legislation secretly voted on by corporations and politicians on a task force of the American Legislative Exchange Counsel (ALEC).

Although ALEC calls itself the largest organization of state legislators, it is bankrolled by some of the biggest global corporations in the world, such as Koch Industries, Exxon Mobil, and other companies from outside of Indiana. About 99% of the funding for ALEC's operations come from corporations and sources other than legislative dues, which are $50 per year. ALEC legislators often introduce legislation, voted on behind closed doors by ALEC corporations and politicians, cleansed of any reference to the fact that the bills were pre-approved and pre-voted on by corporations. The current corporate co-chair for Indiana is the North Carolina-based Duke Energy Company, which is tasked by ALEC with raising money from corporations for "scholarships" for ALEC politicians to attend vacation conventions at fancy resorts with schmooze and booze events with corporate lobbyists.
Duke Energy came under fire last year in Indianda for trying to pass off onto customers hundreds of millions in over-budget costs for the Edwardsport Plant in Knox County. That coal gassification plant has gone so far over budget, to the tune of a billion dollars, that the state of Indiana has been looking into whether there was fraud or concealment. Duke has also been called out for paying no net taxes between 2008 and 2010 on over $5 billion in pre-tax profits, according to the Corporate Tax Dodgers Report of the Citizens for Tax Justice (which is uploaded below).

Duke's ALEC's state co-chair is Senator Jim Buck of Kokomo, who also sits on ALEC's Board of Directors, which approves "model" legislation in every area of the law. He is the co-chair of the ALEC Tax Task Force, which has previously opposed taxes on windfall profits of global energy companies and sought to eliminate combined reporting for corporations, thus making it easier for companies to use gimmicks to hide profits out of state.

State Rep. David Wolkins of Winona Lake is also an ALEC co-chair, along with Senator Buck and Duke Energy. He is also the co-chair of ALEC's Energy Task Force, and in 2011 ALEC named him a "State Legislator of the Year" for advancing ALEC's vision. (In some prior years, legislators receiving this designation also received cash "awards," although it is not certain if Wolkins did.)

Indiana is now playing a central role in ALEC's agenda. The Chairman of ALEC's Public Sector Board this year is Representative David Frizell of Indianapolis, who has also been a member of ALEC's Health Task Force. In all, at least 17 Indiana representatives and five state senators are members of ALEC Task Forces, along with an unknown number of other legislators who do not have these known leadership roles with ALEC corporate partners. Representative Richard McClain of Logansport, who introduced H.B. 1044, the latest version of "Right to Work" introduced in the state, is a also member of the ALEC Tax Task Force, along with Senator Buck.

Today's Teamster News 11.26.11

Right-to-work law curbing unions becoming greater political issue  Bloomberg   ...“Unions are the last defense against corporate greed,” said James Hoffa...
ALEC Readies Its Christmas List  Blog for Iowa   ...ALEC is having a little get together before Christmas to let those legislators who owe allegiance to them and not to their voters just what it is they want in the next year...
Stocks: Worst Thanksgiving Drop Since ’32  Bloomberg   ...as S&P cut Belgium’s rating and a report said Greece is demanding private investors accept larger losses on their debt...
Black Friday: Occupy Protests Discourage Shopping On One Of Retail's Biggest Days   Huffington Post   ...Anti-Wall Street protesters took their message about corporate greed to Black Friday shoppers, staging demonstrations in commercial areas around California on one of the busiest days of the year for retailers and bargain-hunters...
Oregonian Buries Lede in Police Overtime Article: Officers are Unnecessary for #Occupiers’ Peaceful Assembly  firedoglake   ...The police presence, with its skyrocketing “associated overtime” costs, appears to be an entirely self-inflicted wound to the city’s coffers...
European Banks Frantically Trying To Dump $7 Trillion Of Crap Assets -- But No One Will Buy Them  Business Insider   ...The balance sheets of European banks are piled high with legacy assets -- mortgages, real-estate, and other loans--that are tying up precious capital and constricting the banks' ability to make new, more productive loans...

More Koch brother shenanigans in MI

The Benedict Arnold Koch brothers are at it again. When they aren't selling capital goods to America's No. 1 enemy, they're trying to destroy the American middle class.

The Koch-funded Tea Party front group, Americans for Prosperity, put out a poll in Michigan that alleged strong support for right-to-work legislation to destroy unions.

There was one teensy little problem. The words "right to work" didn't appear in the poll.  The question asked was, "Do you support or oppose giving Michigan workers the right not to be forced to join a union?"

As all good Teamsters know, it is against federal law to force someone to join a union.

Ironically, the "poll" from AFP actually showed that 71 percent of Michigan voters essentially support Michigan's current free bargaining system, which does not "force" workers to join a union.

Today's Teamster News 08.11.11

Wisconsin’s Warning to Union-Busters (opinion)  New York Times   ...Republicans will not admit this, but the numbers showed significant strength for Democrats even in the districts they lost — strength that could grow if lawmakers continue cutting spending and taxes while reducing the negotiating rights of working families...
Moderate Republicans could be most powerful in Wisconsin Legislature  postcrescent.com   ...moderate Republicans — essentially pushed aside the past six months — could now be the most powerful and important people in the Legislature...
Labor and Dems lost. They should be proud of what they accomplished.  Washington Post   ...By staging a fight that drew national attention, labor and Wisconisn Dems revealed an unexpected level of national sympathy for public employees, and, yes, for unions and their basic right to exist...
Grassroots "Progressive Freedom Fund" Looking to Raise $100,000 to Air TV Spot Against Kasich  PR Newswire   ...The grassroots organization PROGRESSIVE FREEDOM FUND today unveiled new TV spots, website and Facebook page...
Muskegon County Board considers right-to-work resolution too hot to touch  mlive.com   ...the right-to-work issue is so controversial to many on the Muskegon County Board of Commissioners that a piece of communication on the topic from another Michigan county won't even be placed on file...
Verizon union members say strike worth hardship   Boston Globe   ...The unions ... are fighting to keep employee pensions, affordable health care benefits, and a clause that makes it more difficult for Verizon to lay off union workers. If that job security is wiped away, union members fear they will lose their jobs and the work will be outsourced overseas or shifted to company facilities in other parts of the country...

Today's Teamster News 08.05.11

Note to readers: Light blogging over the next week as we are on vacation. But we'll keep you posted on the WI recalls.

Nearly 30 outside interest groups pour millions in Wis. recall elections, watchdog group says  Washington Post   ...The Wisconsin Democracy Campaign reports 29 groups that are required to register campaign fund-raising and spending with state election officials reported spending $12.5 million in the recalls...
WI Republican Election Observer Guidelines Contain "numerous significant and factual errors"  DailyKos   ...The GAB recently posted a memo on its website urging local election officials to exercise "Caution Against Reliance on Third-Party Election Information." The memo mentions only one group by name - a shadowy group called We’re Watching Wisconsin Elections ... nothing more than a right-wing "election bully" training organization...
Senate Bill 5 ballot language set  Dayton Daily News   ...The language for this fall’s most controversial issue, the referendum of Senate Bill 5, favors rejection of the collective bargaining reform law if Ohio history is a guide...
Michigan Governor Rick Snyder Tells a Tea Party Leader He Won’t Pursue Right-to-Work  We Party Patriots  ...State Representative Amanda Price reaffirmed what Governor Rick Snyder proclaimed earlier this year to members of the state’s Building Trades unions: that “Michigan is not Wisconsin” and that he will not sign a Right-to-Work (RTW) bill into law...
DSCC asks Justice to halt Florida voting law  Politico   ...the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has stepped out of its usual legal lane to file a formal comment to the Department of Justice, urging him to object to Florida's new law...
Speaker O'Brien planning special House session  Manchester Union Leader   ...Lawmakers will return to Concord in September to vote on a series of new bills, still being drafted, that will cut the new budget, try to block parts of a pending state employee contract and bar increased support to women who have children while on welfare...
Debate 'right to work' (opinion)  The Journal Gazette   ...proponents can’t explain why non-union companies such as Honda or Toyota currently have plants in Indiana if right-to-work status is a deal-breaker. Honda has 1,000 Indiana workers in Greensburg, with plans to double that number with the addition of a second shift...  

Today's Teamster News 07.25.11

Republican tactics hurt democracy (opinion)  Milwaukee Journal Sentinel   ...There is a trend under way throughout the country and in Wisconsin for the party in power to use its position to pass laws that have as their goal keeping that party in power...
State workers to rally today in Detroit over possible concessions  Detroit News   ...State employees are to rally outside Cadillac Place in Detroit at noon today amid talk of possible layoffs as negotiations begin Tuesday on $145 million in concessions sought by Gov. Rick Snyder's administration...
Right-to-work debate considered  Nashua Telegraph   ...Windham Republican Rep. David Bates is trying to bring together the warring factions for a debate on the right-to-work issue...
Think you have a tough job? Try being Rick Scott's lawyer  St. Petersburg Times   ...As a defendant in at least seven lawsuits since he took office in January, Scott could be the most sued governor in Florida history...
Miller is Tasteless, Says Sacramento Community at State Fair  Teamsters Joint Council 7   ...More than 100 members of Teamster Local Unions 150 and 439 converged on the California State Fair today to provide information to the public about the greedy business practices of DBI Beverage, the distributor of MillerCoors products in Northern California...
Is Indiana really as rosy as Gov. Daniels believes?  (opinion)  nwi.com   ...Median income is falling -- by 15 percent in the last decade. The real unemployment rate, which includes those too discouraged to look for work, stood at 17.4 percent last year...

Today's Teamster News 05.10.11

Teamsters Denounce Florida Legislature Plan to Privatize Prisons  IBT   ...With the passage of this bill, correctional officers at facilities in 18 counties in the state will face an uncertain future as their livelihoods and families’ future will be sold to the lowest bidder...
Employees Plead for Congress, State to Help Save Their Jobs  The Bay Citizen   ...Congresswoman Jackie Speier...told ... anxious Teamsters Monday that she would do everything in her power to keep the medical supply company VWR from leaving Brisbane and taking more than 150 jobs with it...
Feds reject Wisconsin bid to upgrade Milwaukee-Chicago rail line  The State Journal   ...the federal government on Monday announced the destinations for $2 billion in federal high-speed rail money that had been rejected by Florida...
Unions criticize Gov. Walker's labor relations pick  Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel   ...Walker has named a former partner from an aggressively pro-management law firm to run the state commission overseeing relations between public employees and their employers...
Teachers union OKs $54 assessment to aid referendum on collective-bargaining law  Columbus Dispatch   ...The Ohio Education Association will assess active members ... to generate $5 million as fuel for a referendum to repeal the state's new collective-bargaining law...
Efforts to curtail private-sector unions faltering  The Associated Press   ...Of the 14 states where "right-to-work" bills barring mandatory union fees were considered, only New Hampshire has passed the legislation, and it is uncertain whether Republican lawmakers can overcome an expected veto by the Democratic governor...
Latest developments in Gov. Rick Snyder's plans to cut back education, prisons and other budget items   mlive.com   ...Just like the vote on pensions, Snyder’s budget asks GOP lawmakers for a tough vote on a pretty big cut to their local districts...

Update: WOW on hold in MO

Teamsters protest anti-worker legislation on Friday in St. Louis.

Good news (sort of): The Missouri Senate did not pass anti-worker legislation last night.

The Senate debated for three hours on right to work (for LESS) legislation before postponing further discussion until after spring break. The issue will likely not be revisited until March 28 at the earliest, when the weeklong break is over.

"Right-to-work" (for LESS) has nothing to do with rights and nothing to do with work. It's part of the corporate agenda to weaken unions, lower wages and eliminate requirements for workplace safety.

Teamsters have more than a week to call their senators to tell them they strongly oppose this anti-worker, anti-middle class bill. Here are some facts they might want to share with their elected representatives: 

• Right to work (for LESS) laws lower wages for everyone. The average worker in states with right to work (for LESS) laws makes $5,538 a year less than workers in other states.

• They endanger safety and health standards that protect workers on the job. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the rate of workplace deaths is 52.9 percent higher in states with these right to work (for LESS)laws.

• They hurt communities by lowering workers’ buying power. Higher  unionization within a community means consumers have more to spend. That’s good for local companies, especially those in retail sales and services.

Rally recap: MO protests anti-worker bill backed by Shame-ber

Kiener Plaza in St. Louis on Friday.

Rally Girl brings us this update from Missouri, where anti-worker legislation is being taken up by the Senate today: 

The U.S. Shame-ber of Commerce's President Tom Donohue paid a visit to the St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association on Friday—a visit that had Teamsters doing more than just talking.

Joint Council 13, in conjunction with the St. Louis Labor Council, held a rally against corporate greed on Friday to protest Donahue’s visit. Some lawmakers want to make Missouri a right-to-work (for LESS) state. The Shame-ber supports the bill as part of its agenda to lower workers' wages and destabilize working families by making it easier to attack unions and to ship jobs overseas.
More than 4,000 gathered in Kiener Plaza to send a message to Donohue and his cronies in the Missouri Legislature. Said Marvin Kropp, President of Teamsters Joint Council 13:

Enough is enough. We’re tired of politicians playing the same old games. After every election, they care more about punishing their opponents than solving the problems that face working families.

Protestors, who included community organizers and religious groups, pointed to a CNN report released in February that showed middle-class wages have remained steady since the 1980s while the incomes of the upper class—those making $380,000 or more—have increased by 33 percent. Kropp said:

This is just another blatant attack on workers’ rights. It’s time to stop the power struggle, restore the balance and focus on creating decent jobs in America.

Monday's battle in the WOW: MO

Monday's battleground in the war on workers will be in Jefferson City, Mo., where the state Senate will take up an anti-worker bill.

The bill has been promoted by the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation,  a union-busting group that the Koch brothers have supported for years. The Missouri Senate bill is one of more than a dozen right-to-work (for LESS) bills being rushed through Republican-dominated legislatures around the country. They are part of a coordinated effort by the Kochs and other corporate CEOs to lower workers' wages.

The bill's supporters claim it would create jobs. That probably sounds familiar. Koch whore Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker said his union-busting bill was about balancing the budget. But to argue that jobs are created by these so-called "right-to-work" bills is like saying jobs are created by trade deals that make it easier to move factories overseas.

Missouri Rep. Tim Meadows, who is also vice president of Teamster Local 600, told us in an interview:

This is a blatant attack on the working middle class in this country, and it is just the start of our battle. We need every member to become educated in the issues and participate so we can turn this thing around.

Meadows urges all Teamsters to participate in their local unions and to get involved quickly. Their help is needed to educate one another about the broad attacks on the middle class. He said

We all have to take a stand and fight. I hope we’re able to overturn what happened in Wisconsin.

When it comes to voting, I realize there are gun issues, abortion issues, all kinds of social issues people stand behind, but this is your livelihood. It’s everything. People need to vote in their economic interests.

Today's Teamster News 02.24.11

Indiana Right-To-Work Bill Now Moved to Study Committee  IndianaNewsCenter.com  ...President Pro Tem of the Indiana State Senate David Long says the Right to Work Bill is dead this legislative session...
Indiana Official: "Use Live Ammunition" Against Wisconsin Protesters  Mother Jones   ...The Indiana attorney general's office has confirmed to Mother Jones that Jeff Cox was terminated Wednesday...
Teamsters President Arrives in Madison  WISN  ...Hoffa arrived in Madison on Wednesday today, shaking hands with protesters...
Ohio public worker collective bargaining fight wins support of Rev. Jesse Jackson   kypost.com   ...In a Columbus Teamsters Hall gathering that was part revival and part rally, Rev. Jackson urged 200 union members to continue their fight against Senate Bill 5...
Union Protests Continue in Lansing  Interlochen Public Radio   ...Hundreds of unionized firefighters and police officers marched on the Capitol, calling on the Legislature to reject a bill that would repeal the requirement that puts local government labor disputes into binding arbitration...
VP defends unions against conservative 'social agenda'  The Hill   ...Unions are not the cause of the country's economic woes, Vice President Biden said Wednesday...
The Most Dangerous Union in the World  unsettling economics   ...we can call the Chamber of Commerce a union. This union is so powerful that the present United States must come before as a humble supplicant. This union was at the forefront of the deconstruction of the New Deal...
Top Six Revelations in the Call Between Fake David Koch and Governor Scott Walker  Huffington Post   ...1. Walker and the Senate Republicans are conspiring to withhold Democratic lawmakers' paychecks.
Colorado School Bus Drivers Choose Teamsters Union  IBT   ...School bus drivers with First Student in Pueblo West, Rye, Mesa and Beulah, Colo., have voted to become members of Teamsters Local 455 in Denver...

Today's Teamster News 02.19.11

Unions aren't to blame for Wisconsin's budget (this is a must read)  Washington Post   ...Let's be clear: Whatever fiscal problems Wisconsin is -- or is not -- facing at the moment, they're not caused by labor unions. That's also true for New Jersey, for Ohio and for the other states...
Wisconsin protests escalate over public worker rights  monstersandcritics   ...Wisconsin is gripped by a large-scale protest over the rights of public sector workers that has been catapulted into a national debate over the role of labour unions and how to handle state budget woes across the United States...
Debate over workers' rights heats up in Ohio  CNN   ...A bill to limit the collective bargaining power of some public-sector workers has sparked protests in Ohio this week...
Indiana House committee to hear right-to-work bill  Louisville Courier-Journal   ...A House committee will consider controversial right-to-work legislation at a hearing Monday, just hours before a key deadline for committee action...
Union approval low, but more still side with labor over gov't  NBC News   ...Public approval of corporations has plummeted even more sharply than that of unions in the past decade.
Diesel cost driven up: Truckers, industry feel paycheck and profit pain  The Modesto Bee   ...It's true that more truckloads are shipped by rail when fuel costs rise, but most experts are blaming the recent fuel increase on the unrest in Egypt and the rest of the Middle East...
FedEx launches new Colorado data center  Datacenter Dynamics   ...Facility to replace Memphis data center in 3 years...
W. Va Teamsters reject Armstrong contract proposal  (Local 175)  Associated Press  ...Teamsters Local 175 president and international vice president Ken Hall says members voted 2-to-1 Thursday to reject the proposal. The plant in Beverly employs about 550 Teamsters members...