10 years after Katrina: Teamsters recall unprecedented disaster, undaunted response

As we approach the 10-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, Teamster Nation looks back at the disaster and its aftermath, focusing on the unprecedented role played by Teamsters in relief efforts. We will be featuring stories throughout the week on the storm's impact on Teamster members and how the union has helped rebuild Gulf Coast communities.

Responding to emergencies of all kinds over the last century has created a strong, unique sense of pride and solidarity among all Teamster members. On the tenth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina’s landfall, the Teamsters Union is looking back on how the people of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast recovered and rebuilt their homes, businesses and lives.

Teamsters raised nearly $1.4 million in disaster relief funds during 2005, distributing aid to more than 2,200 affected members through caseloads of food, water and other supplies. The Teamsters also worked with retailers, employers and others to send truckloads of food and goods to the affected areas as Teamster tractor trailers came from Los Angeles, Oregon, Chicago, Montreal, Boston, New York and everywhere in between.

Going where no other organizations would, Teamster drivers delivered food, water and ice into devastated areas of the city. In New Orleans, where an estimated 80 percent of the city was under water (up to 20 feet deep in some places), Teamsters were moving heavy equipment into 9th Ward to repair breached levees while others were evacuating.

The Teamsters took a leading role in providing national logistical support, assisting the American Red Cross as it moved tons of supplies and equipment into the area. The union joined more than 200 members of labor organizations assisting in the Baton Rouge area alone.

As the labor liaison to the Red Cross, Teamster human rights commissioner and Joint Council 13 member Roy Gillespie assisted more than 600 shelters to reclaim generators, cots and beds, refrigerators, televisions and more. He believes Teamster oversight helped save the Red Cross more than $2 million in costs, not including the more than $4 million worth of aid equipment. Furthermore, Gillespie aided the Red Cross and FEMA in establishing a regional disaster preparedness strategy - which remains in place today - to avoid repeating errors and speed rescue and recovery:

By reviewing transportation invoices, Teamsters were able to stop price gouging of unscrupulous trucking companies. The Teamsters demonstrated how the Red Cross could trim volunteer time and expenses through smarter pick-up and delivery patterns.

Thousands of labor members participated in relief efforts throughout the region. Nationally, nearly $3.6 billion in cash and in-kind services have been donated to aid Gulf Coast hurricane victims, including more than $1 billion from labor unions to build affordable housing, spur economic development and create union jobs.

“Labor’s role cannot be overstated,” Gillespie adds, noting that the Teamsters Union led the way.

Time and time again, the resilience of the Teamster spirit appears in the face of tragedy. As we look back this week on the events of Hurricane Katrina, let us remember the courage and compassion of affected members and the strength of our union.

Today's Teamster News 08.24.15

Teamsters
Google Express Workers Choose Teamsters Representation  Teamster.org  ...Warehouse and shipping workers at Google Express Services voted today by a strong majority in favor of representation by Teamsters Local 853 in San Leandro, Calif. The 151 workers at Google Express in Palo Alto, employed through contractor Adecco, sought out the Teamsters for help with improving working conditions and treatment on the job...
Google Express workers vote to unionize  USA Today  ...Google Express workers in Palo Alto, Calif. voted to unionize Friday, although the news comes as the newly restructured Google closes two delivery hubs in the San Francisco area. The workers seeking representation are employed by human resources company Adecco to work for Google Express...
These Google workers have voted to join the Teamsters union  Fortune  ...Warehouse and shipping workers for Google Shopping Express, the tech giant’s same day shopping delivery service, voted Friday to join a local chapter of the Teamsters union. The 151 workers had sought to unionize because of what they described as poor working conditions, such as lack of ventilation, low wages, poor benefits, harassment to work faster and with damaged equipment, cracked floors, and failing electrical systems...
NLRB case asks who's really the boss of subcontractors' workers  LA Times  ...In the case brought by the Teamsters, the union maintains that Republic has sufficient control over the wages and work conditions of the Leadpoint workers to count as their joint employer with Leadpoint. The NLRB's general counsel, which says it's taking no position on the facts of the case, supports the Teamsters' interpretation of the law. "This issue is creeping into almost every industry where Teamsters work," including trucking, warehousing and food processing, says Doug Bloch...
Teamsters strike against Sun Tran may go on for a while   Tucson News Now  ...The Teamsters Local 104 Union's prediction that the Sun Tran bus strike may go on for weeks, not days, is coming closer to reality. The strike is now in its 16th day and there are still no talks scheduled. According to Teamsters Spokesman Andrew Marshall, "the federal mediator called me at 8:20 this morning and reiterated again there's no proposal from Sun Tran...
Teamsters break strike record, plan to rally  Arizona Daily Star  ... The strike has passed the record for the longest ever. In 2001, the workers were on strike for 12 days. Teamsters Local 104 is holding a rally at 4 p.m. today, at Ronstadt Transit Center, 215 E. Congress St. Sun Tran spokeswoman Kandi Young said the management continues to work with a federal mediator to try to schedule talks with the union. But Teamsters spokesman Andy Marshall called it lip service...

Global Labor & Trade
Critics of Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal warn about arbitration clause  LA Times  ...Few things have galvanized critics of the 12-nation Pacific Rim trade deal as much as an arbitration clause aimed at protecting foreign businesses from the hazards of investing in countries with weak rule of law and unstable governments. The provision allows multinational investors to sue foreign governments for expropriation and unfair or unequal treatment, giving them the ability to bring cases before a special, extrajudicial arbitration tribunal that is unavailable to domestic investors...
NAFTA countries reignite negotiations over TPP auto-parts dispute  Globe and Mail  ...Negotiators for Canada, the U.S. and Mexico are meeting in Washington to try to break a deadlock over autos – one of the biggest stumbling blocks to a massive Pacific Rim trade pact between 12 countries. They are facing pressure from firms in the Canadian and Mexican auto sectors for a better deal...
Protesters rally against the Trans-Pacific Partnership in Martin Place  Sydney Morning Herald  ...More than one hundred protesters gathered in Martin Place on Sunday to rally in opposition against the Trans-Pacific Partnership. The rally was organised by GetUp! and the Australian Fair Trade and Investment Network and called on Trade Minister Andrew Robb to scrap the United States-led deal, which will "set the rules" for business in the region...
Opponents of secret 'TTIP' trade deal with the US take to the streets  Chronicle Live  ...Campaigners took to the streets on Saturday to campaign against a new trade deal which is so secret that it has to be kept in a locked room in Brussels. Ministers say the planned Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), a treaty due to be signed by the US and EU, will boost exports from the North East by £1.05bn...
Rep. Rosa DeLauro: Now Is The Time to Stop the TPP  (opinion) BNR  ...The latest round of Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations has again failed to produce an agreement, despite intense pressure on the Obama administration to conclude negotiations before the start of the 2016 primary season. The TPP is in trouble because of serious problems with the agreement highlighted by Democrats in Congress and elsewhere. Now is the perfect moment for progressives to speak out about those weaknesses...
Kenya: Workers' Strikes Plunge Health Service in Crisis  AllAfrica  ...The crisis that has gripped health services has worsened as hospital workers in at least 10 counties threaten to strike over labour disputes with the devolved governments. The public health service in nearly all counties has been marred by claims of ethnic profiling, job stagnation, salary delays and withholding of allowances and poor working conditions...
Workers Win New Labor Law in Iraq  Solidarity Center  ...The Iraqi parliament passed a new labor law on Monday, marking a victory for workers and civil society who have long fought for a legal framework that would protect the interests of workers. The consensus version of the law was hammered out by representatives of workers and civil society with government officials earlier this month during a consultative conference...
China’s Stock Market Is Melting Down—and It’s Taking Markets Everywhere With It  Slate  ...Friday was a rout in the stock markets; Monday is already looking worse. The Shanghai Composite index tumbled 8.5 percent—erasing the last of its gains for the year in its biggest single-day loss since 2007. European stocks have plunged nearly 5 percent. U.S. stocks nosedived at the opening bell...

State & Living Wage Battles
Both sides prepare as right-to-work battle heats up  Joplin Globe ...Southwest Missouri Democrats plan a second town hall meeting to support Gov. Jay Nixon's veto of right-to-work legislation. Groups for and against the measure are gearing up in advance of the veto session that starts Sept. 16 in Jefferson City. The Missouri Chamber of Commerce is leading the charge for the veto override and suggests "an increasing likelihood of a successful vote"...
Minimum-wage debate heats up in Pennsylvania  Times Leader  ...Nineteen U.S. cities and counties experienced mandated wage increases this year; 29 states and Washington, D.C., already require employers to pay workers more than $7.25. Pennsylvania isn’t part of this group – yet. There are five bills pending in the state Legislature proposing to raise the minimum wage, with different methods and standards...
Under John Kasich, Ohio's Charter Schools Became a "National Joke"  Mother Jones  ...In the four years that Kasich has been in office, funding for traditional public schools has declined by almost half a billion dollars, while charter schools have seen a funding increase of more than 25 percent. Much of that funding appears to have been misspent. When State Auditor David Yost visited 30 charter schools unannounced this past fall, he found that in more than half of them, attendance was drastically lower...
NC voter ID case back in state court this morning  Progressive Pulse  ...The state court challenge to the 2013 voter ID provisions of the monster voting law is set for a hearing this morning at the Wake County Courthouse on the state’s request to dismiss the case. That request comes on the heels of the recent amendment to the law providing that voters lacking an acceptable photo ID can still cast a ballot after signing an affidavit...
Supporters of Puerto Rico statehood see opportunity as island's woes deepen  US News & World Report  ...With unemployment at 12 percent, and the public debt reaching $72 billion, advocates for making the Caribbean island the 51st state say the economic woes are strengthening their arguments. As a state, Puerto Rico's municipalities and public utilities would no longer be prohibited from restructuring their debts through bankruptcy. It would also receive more of certain kinds of federal funding that other states get...
Washington Supreme Court Rules All SeaTac Workers Be Paid $15 Minimum Wage  Truthout  ...SeaTac workers have a reason to celebrate after the Washington Supreme Court ruled 5-4 yesterday that the $15 minimum wage passed by a recent voter referendum should apply to thousands of airport employees. SeaTac surrounds Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, and many of its 28,000 residents are employed by companies near and in the airport...
Court Ruling Grants Home Care Workers Minimum Wage, Overtime Protections  Think Progress  ...A federal appeals court has reinstated a rule change that is meant to provide home care workers minimum wage and overtime protections. In 2013, the Department of Labor (DOL) announced that it would make changes to the Fair Labor Standards Act so that this workforce, who care for the elderly and disabled in their homes, would be guaranteed the same labor protections as all other workers...

U.S. Labor
NLRB Declines To Rule On Northwestern Football Players’ Union, Setting Back Player Organizing  In These Times  ...Faced with a decision about whether Northwestern University’s football team players could vote on whether they wanted a union, the five members of the National Labor Relations Board borrowed a tactic from the petitioning players’ game: they punted. They claimed that they could have decided, as the regional director did in March 2014, that the players were employees of the university. But the NLRB declined...
UAW activists pressure Detroit Three to end two-tier wages  Detroit Free Press  ...Auto workers need to continue to speak out to pressure UAW leaders as well as the Detroit Three to eliminate the two-tier wage structure in this year's contract negotiations, according to union members and retirees who spoke Sunday at an event in Detroit. “It’s now or never on ending two tier," said Jim Tyson, who drives trucks that deliver parts for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles...
California high court to hear Gerawan, UFW case  The Packer  ...California’s Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case involving the United Farm Workers and Gerawan Farming Inc., but it could be well into 2016 before the justices rule on whether the union and state officials can force the grower’s workers to join the union. The Fresno-based grower of stone fruit and grapes has been fighting the union and the California Agriculture Labor Relations Board...
Why One Company Is Experimenting With A Four-Day Workweek  Think Progress  ...Fast Retailing, which owns Uniqlo, Theory, and J Brand, will give about a fifth of its employees the option to work four days a week starting in October, Bloomberg News reports. In exchange for a three-day weekend, workers will have to put in 10-hour days when they are at work and some will have to work Saturdays and Sundays...
USW stages massive rally  NWI Times  ...At least 3,000 steelworkers marched through downtown Gary to the gates of U.S. Steel's Gary Works mill, demanding a fair contract that preserves benefits previous generations fought for. Steelworkers carried signs saying "Fair Contract Now" and "Mario Got His $15,000,000. Where's Ours?"...
Robert Reich: In the New Economy, Workers Take on All the Risk  Alternet  ...As Labor Day looms, more Americans than ever don’t know how much they’ll be earning next week or even tomorrow. This varied group includes independent contractors, temporary workers, the self-employed, part-timers, freelancers, and free agents. Most file 1099s rather than W2s, for tax purposes...
Oil Field Workers Keep Dying, and the Feds Want to Know Why  Mother Jones  ...The oil boom in North Dakota and elsewhere has helped the US become the world's leading energy provider and has captured the attention of Hollywood producers. It also has claimed the lives of dozens of oil field workers. Now, that fallout from the boom is drawing renewed attention from government scientists...

Social Justice & Other News
Donald Trump Changes His Tune On Taxing The Super Rich  Think Progress  ...On Sunday, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump struck a populist tone when talking about hedge funds and the taxes they pay. But Trump has not always stuck up for the less well off in his tax reform proposals. As recently as 2011, in his book Time to Get Tough, he actually called for lowering the tax rate on capital gains income as well as dividends... 
We Need to Fix Our Democracy: Lawrence Lessig Weighs Presidential Run to Rid Money from Politics  Democracy Now  ...The 2016 presidential race is shaping up to be the most expensive political race in history. Experts predict as much as $10 billion could be spent by candidates, parties and outside groups on the campaign. A recent analysis by The New York Times shows fewer than 400 families are responsible for almost half the money raised to date...

U.S. has the power, but needs dollars, to upgrade energy networks

Technology can be a magnificent thing. Nearly every home in America contains at least one device that has taken away chores that once occupied the time of family members. In a world of finite resources, however, technology can do something even more valuable -- make power usage more efficient.

Already, the use of smart meters -- which use broadband Internet networks -- can allow utilities and residents to monitor usage and even turn devices on-and-off remotely. It can save consumers money and curb usage. The meters are an essential part of a movement to create a smart power grid. There is much to be gained from moving forward with such a network, the Council on Foreign Relations stated:

A “smart grid” system can increase reliability and reduce power outages. Special meters on houses and businesses and sensors along transmission lines can constantly monitor demand and supply, while mailbox-sized devices known as "synchrophasors" measure the flow of electricity through the grid in real time, allowing operators to foresee and avoid disruptions. Smart appliances can "talk" to the grid and shift electricity use to off-peak times, which eases the burden on the grid, lowering prices and helping to avoid blackouts. Decentralized "microgrids" can be paired with new battery technology to allow for power to continue flowing to local communities even when severe weather or other outages afflict the broader power system.

But the U.S. lags substantially behind other nations in taking advantage of such tech marvels. The reason? Lack of infrastructure to bring such innovation nationwide.

It's a continuing saga for this country these days. Whether it's energy, transportation or water, a lack of investment in infrastructure is undoing America's greatness. And if the U.S. wants to remain a world leaders, that's got to change.

Investing in infrastructure will create good jobs for everyday Americans. Working on energy, transportation and water projects will put thousands to work in construction jobs across the country. It will also improve this nation's essential networks, which in turn will help business and improve the U.S. economy.

If Congress gets America working on the nation's 21st century needs, it will provide a brighter future for our families.

Today's Teamster News 08.21.15

Teamsters
Labor, Community And Environmental Advocates Call On McDonald's To Protect Workers In Its Supply Chain  Teamster.org   ...Advocates from labor, community and environmental organizations joined together to today at a rally outside a McDonald’s in downtown San Francisco, to demand that the company adhere to its own supplier code of conduct and protect workers’ rights throughout supply chain...
Teamsters Break Strike Record, Plan To Rally  Arizona Daily Star   ...The strike has passed the record for the longest ever. In 2001, the workers were on strike for 12 days. Teamsters Local 104 is holding a rally at 4 p.m. today, at Ronstadt Transit Center, 215 E. Congress St...
EVSC, Teamsters Plan To Meet Again In Late August  Evansville Courier & Press   ...Teamsters Local 215 and the Evansville Vanderburgh School Board negotiating teams have scheduled a collective bargaining session for Aug. 29 to further discuss contract proposals exchanged a week ago...
Carriage Horse Drivers Hesitate To Declare Victory Over Animal Rights Advocates On Proposed Ban  New York Daily News   ...Round one of the carriage horse wars goes to the Teamsters union — but drivers are skittish about declaring a runaway victory over animal rights activists...
Teamsters Win Union Recognition For Fuelers At Newark Airport  Patch   ...In a decision announced on Wednesday, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ordered Allied Aviation Service Company of New Jersey to recognize and bargain with Local 553, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, AFL–CIO, which represents a group of about 40 workers at the airport...
Support Staff, Board Agree On Contract After Eight Years  Akron Leader   ...For the first time in eight years, support staff in the Copley-Fairlawn City School District will be working under a contract. The district’s Board of Education approved the contract with support staff represented by Teamsters Local 348 at a special Aug. 13 meeting and board retreat. The contract was presented to the union in May and union members voted Aug. 8 to accept it, said Treasurer John Wheadon...
Driver Drug Testing: Teamsters, Other Labor Groups Ask House To Reject Senate Changes  Overdrive   ...17 workers’ advocate associations, including the Teamsters and a branch of the AFL-CIO, have asked those in the House tasked with crafting the lower chamber’s version of the DRIVE Act to nix the provision that would make hair testing a regulator-recognized option. The House has not yet taken up the Senate’s version of the legislation, and House lawmakers have not indicated whether the lower chamber will in its upcoming fall session...

Global Labor & Trade
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras Calls For New Elections  New York Times   ...Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras of Greece called Thursday for new national elections in a bid to consolidate his power and press ahead with the 86 billion euro bailout plan he agreed to with European creditors...
Macedonia Troops Fire Stun Grenades At Crowds Of Migrants On Border  Huffington Post   ...Macedonian special police forces fired stun grenades Friday to disperse thousands of migrants stuck on a no-man's land with Greece, a day after declaring a state of emergency on its border to deal with a massive influx of migrants heading north to the European Union...
Congress Is Sick of the Secrecy Around the TPP  The Nation   ...This has consistently irritated members of Congress, especially those already suspicious of the wide-reaching pact. Their aggravation is especially sharp now that the deal is nearing completion—this is the period in which legislators can actually influence the shape of the document. Once the deal is signed, Congress will not be able to amend the TPP, as per the rules of the fast-track legislation passed earlier this summer, and the deal will only need a simple majority in the Senate...

State & Living Wage Battles
Roseville Rep. Chirkun Seeks To Repeal Right-To-Work Laws  Macomb Daily   ...John Chirkun, a Roseville Democrat, announced Wednesday he is introducing a pair of bills that would overturn the right-to-work legislation that eliminated compulsory dues for unions in many workplaces. In a release, he said the pair of House bills “would return Michigan to a ‘free bargaining’ state, where unions are better positioned to negotiate for pay, benefits and working conditions on behalf of their members.”...
Minimum Wage Petition Is Approved For KC’s November Ballot, But It Could Get Withdrawn  Kansas City Star   ...The Kansas City Council agreed Thursday to place a citizens petition initiative on the November ballot that seeks a local minimum wage increase to $15 per hour by 2020. But the council also said the petition may get withdrawn from the ballot if the Missouri General Assembly acts in September to prevent a higher minimum wage...
Court Says Minimum Wage Increase Applies To Airport Workers  ABC News   ...A divided Washington Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a first-in-the nation initiative to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour in the city of SeaTac should apply to thousands of workers at the airport. In its 5-4 ruling, the majority upheld the entirety of Proposition 1, writing that there was no indication that the law would interfere with airport operations. SeaTac's minimum wage was raised to $15 an hour in 2014 and increased again to $15.24 this January because it is tied to the consumer price index...
The Housing Crisis Is More Complex Than A Few People Paying Too Little In Rent  Washington Post   ...Affordable housing programs need more money to revamp old units, build new ones for mixed-income use and provide vouchers generous enough to get people out of bad neighborhoods and into better ones. Otherwise, wait lists will not go down, and those on them will have no chance to make their way up...

U.S. Labor
U.S. Factories Still Haven’t Recovered From The Recession  Washington Post   ...It took less than a year for America's factory output to rebound from the 1991 recession. It took 3½ years to bounce back from the 2001 recession. Now, six years clear of the Great Recession, manufacturing output still hasn't returned to the pre-crisis levels it reached in 2007, according to revised economic data from the Federal Reserve...

Social Justice & Other News
Consumers Are Cutting The Cord To Gain Choices And Pay Less  New York Times   ...On the whole, cutting the cord with cable should benefit consumers. It will help people save money and gain more control over their entertainment by allowing them to pay only for what they want to watch. Many Americans chafe at having to pay about $67 a month for dozens of TV channels they never use so they can watch a handful of shows. The price of cable and satellite TV service has roughly doubled over the last 20 years, rising about twice as fast as inflation, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics...
Can Our Transit System Get Any Worse?  New York Times   ...Of course, we must find money to repair and expand our subway systems, and we must sort out the interstate political rivalries at the Port Authority. But it’s our crisis-driven approach to infrastructure that most needs to change...
FAA Records Detail Hundreds Of Close Calls Between Airplanes And Drones  Washington Post   ...Before last year, close encounters with rogue drones were unheard of. But as a result of a sales boom, small, largely unregulated remote-control aircraft are clogging U.S. airspace, snarling air traffic and giving the FAA fits...
“People Know Next To Nothing About Reconstruction”: The Pernicious Civil War Revisionism Poisoning American History Students  Salon.com   ...Yes, slavery got washed out of the writing on the war. But it didn’t happen in a straight line. When it comes to the Civil War, what historians write is a reflection of the world they are living in at the moment...
The Largest Movie-Theater Chain In America Is Going To Start Searching Your Bags  Think Progress   ...Regal Cinemas, the biggest movie-theater chain in the United States, will start to search ticket-buyers’ bags before they enter any of its movie theaters...

Trade deficits, job losses are more reasons to fear TPP

Bad trades deals have a real cost to regular Americans. And a new Economic Policy Institute (EPI) analysis makes it clear what that is -- jobs.

The huge U.S. trade deficit, especially in manufactured goods, led to the loss of all 5 million U.S. factory jobs that have disappeared since 2000, EPI stated. Analyst Robert Scott’s issue paper adds productivity gains in factories were responsible for virtually none of the losses, counter to many prevailing
economists’ claims.

U.S. factories lost just over 5 million jobs since 2000, when factories employed upwards of 18 million people. They fell to 11.5 million during the Great Recession, and recovered 800,000 jobs since. But productivity rose at least 3.7 percent yearly through 2007, and 1.7 percent since then. The reason for so small a factory recovery is the trade deficit, Scott says.

The leading cause of growing U.S. trade deficits is currency manipulation, which distorts trade flows by artificially lowering the cost of imports and raising the cost of exports. More than 20 countries, led by China, have been spending about $1 trillion per year buying foreign assets to artificially suppress the value of their currencies. Ending currency manipulation can create between 2.3 million and 5.8 million jobs for working Americans, and about 40 percent of those jobs -- between 891,500 and 2.3 million -- would be in manufacturing.

As the analysis explains:

A rising trade deficit indicates that U.S. manufacturers are losing business to manufacturing industries in other countries like China and Japan, who manipulate their currency to make their goods cheaper and therefore more appealing to consumers in the United States and elsewhere. This leads to reduced demand for goods produced by U.S. manufacturers, both at home and abroad.

Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa went further into the potential damages currency manipulation could wrought on American workers in a piece he authored this week. With the Trans-Pacific Partnership still looming, concerns about future job lost maybe even more important than those from the past.

• Press Associates, Inc. contributed to this report.

Today's Teamster News 08.20.15

Teamsters
City Council Stands In Way Of Carriage Horse Ban, de Blasio Tells Activists  New York Times   ...Mayor Bill de Blasio made a promise as a candidate to animal-rights activists that he would end the Central Park horse-carriage industry on the first day of his administration. Nearly 600 days into his tenure, the horses are still clopping. And the mayor has a new message for activists: Talk to somebody else...
Strike Out  Tucson Weekly   ...Shortly after his return, he had an altercation with a bus rider who snuck in a beer. The man ended up throwing the beer in Kirk's face, after Kirk asked him to get rid of it. "Passengers realize that there is no accountability ... the disrespect ... they don't have to abide by any rules," he says. All-in-all, there have been 22 assaults on bus drivers in the past 13 months, according to the Teamsters Local Union 104, which is leading the strike. That includes beer-throwing, spitting and more violent incidents...
Bus Service Resumes To Normal In Loudoun County  Washington Post   ...Teamsters Local 570 and Transdev have been in talks over a collective bargaining agreement for the past six months, according to Loudoun County officials...

Global Labor & Trade
Chinese Shares Trade Lower Again After Days Of Volatility  BBC News   ...The mainland's benchmark Shanghai Composite was 1.5% down to 3,735.92 points. The negative open comes after the index had seen strong volatility since the beginning of the week...
Russia Used To Have A Powerful Weapon In Its Energy Sector. Not Anymore.  Washington Post   ...For years, Russia’s ability to choke off energy shipments any time tensions spiked with the West was a potent threat, one that could force much of Europe to shiver during the wintertime. But with energy prices swooning, the Kremlin’s pipeline politics are looking a lot less threatening...

State & Living Wage Battles
Unions Press Congress To Take Off On FAA Bill  The Hill   ...The AFL-CIO’s Transportation Trades Department is pushing Congress to approve a new round of funding for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) when lawmakers return to Washington next month. The FAA bill, which includes funding for air traffic controllers, is scheduled to expire on Sept. 30...
Missouri Orders New Measures To Prevent Spread Of Bridgeton Landfill Fire  St. Louis Post Dispatch   ...Missouri regulators are ordering the owner of the smoldering Bridgeton Landfill to add more safeguards and develop a backup plan to prevent the spread of an underground fire past existing defenses...
Landfill Fire Slowing, Closer To Radioactive Waste  KMOX   ...The Pattonville Fire Protection District is keeping a close eye on the Bridgeton Landfill, after new data shows the underground fire may be getting closer to nuclear material buried in the nearby Westlake Landfill...
Justice Dept. Presses Civil Rights Agenda In Local Courts  New York Times   ...Burlington, Wash., was a small city fighting what seemed like a local lawsuit. Three poor people said that their public lawyers were too overworked to adequately represent them in municipal court cases. The dispute went mostly unnoticed for two years, until the Obama administration became involved. Unannounced, the Justice Department filed documents in the case and told the judge that he had broad authority to demand changes in Burlington and nearby Mount Vernon. The judge quickly agreed and ordered the cities to hire a new public defense supervisor. He also said he would monitor their legal aid program for three years...
After Criticism, HUD Says It’s Trying To Give The Boot To Public Housing Families Who Earn Too Much Money  Washington Post   ...In response to an unsparing audit by its watchdog, the Department of Housing and Urban Development has flipped its stance and now says it is urging housing authorities nationwide to evict tenants who earn too much to qualify for government subsidies...
Court Documents: Legal Challenge To N.C. Voter ID Could Be Settled  Winston-Salem Journal   ...The recent federal trial on North Carolina’s Voter Information Verification Act that ended about two weeks ago did not deal with the state’s photo ID requirement that goes into effect in 2016. It only dealt with other provisions of the law, which reduced the early voting period, eliminated same-day voter registration, prohibited county election officials from counting ballots cast in the wrong precinct but correct county, and abolished preregistration for 16- and 17-year-olds...
KC City Council To Meet, Clarify Minimum Wage Issues  WDAF   ...Workers in Kansas City could get some clarity on the minimum wage issue Thursday afternoon after the City Council meets to discuss the ordinance. The council meets at 3 p.m...

U.S. Labor
Uber Missed Criminal Records Of Drivers, Prosecutors Assert  New York Times   ...For more than a year, regulators in various cities have questioned whether Uber, the ride-hailing service, vets its drivers for criminal backgrounds as carefully as traditional taxi companies. Now the district attorneys of San Francisco and Los Angeles have offered perhaps the most concrete evidence to date that people convicted of murder, sex offenses and various property crimes have driven for Uber, despite assurances from the company that it employs “industry-leading” screening...
Private Prison Firms Buy Access To Public Officials At Lavish Industry Conferences  Truthout   ...The prison industry in the United States has grown so large that there are no less than seven professional associations for people who work at prisons and jails. The industry conferences held by these associations provide a perfect venue for private corrections companies to influence government officials with little public oversight, according to a recent report by the watchdog group In The Public Interest (ITPA)...

Social Justice & Other News
U.S. Consumer Prices Rise For Sixth Straight Month  Wall Street Journal   ...The consumer-price index, which reflects what Americans pay for everything from razors to radishes, rose a seasonally adjusted 0.1% in July from a month earlier, the Labor Department said Wednesday. From a year earlier, prices are up a very mild 0.2%, but when excluding volatile food and energy categories, the gain in the so-called core index was a more solid 1.8%...
The Military’s Outdated Gender Standards Are Finally Breaking Down  Think Progress   ...While women still face numerous obstacles when it comes to serving in the military, one barrier is soon to be broken. In an interview with the Navy Times Tuesday Adm. Jon Greenert said women would soon be welcome to participate in one of the military’s most elite units: – the Navy SEALs...
Goldman Sachs' New Loan Program Enters Underregulated, Potentially Abusive Loan Marketplace  Truthout   ...Though the bank itself hadn't directly seeded high-interest mortgages into communities of color around the country, like Countrywide or other banks that offered mortgages directly had done, Goldman Sachs had profited from selling subprime mortgage-backed securities - and from betting on the failure of these same products. "That was one of the reasons the [financial] crisis really took off," Murray said...
Ohio Planned To Import Death Penalty Drug Illegally  Mother Jones   ...The state of Ohio planned to illegally import sodium thiopental, a drug used for executions, according to a Food and Drug Administration letter obtained by BuzzFeed through a Freedom of Information Act request...
A Regulator’s Deal With Promontory Skirts A Big Problem  New York Times  ...Since by necessity it focuses on specific allegations, it leaves untouched a larger problem that goes beyond breaches of consultants’ supposed independence: the increasing extent to which regulators and prosecutors have come to rely on consultants to investigate suspected bank wrongdoing, rather than devoting the time and resources to do investigations themselves...
Black Lives Matter Isn't Stopping  Politico   ...Memo to 2016 candidates from Black Lives Matter: We will continue to disrupt your events no matter what you do or say, and we won’t stop anytime soon...
Obama Administration Plans To Overhaul Rules On Student Debt Forgiveness  Washington Post   ...The Obama administration said Wednesday it will overhaul the loan forgiveness process for students who believe they have been defrauded by their colleges, in light of the collapse of controversial for-profit Corinthian Colleges...

Today's Teamster News 08.19.15

Teamsters
Teamsters Call On SFMTA To Adopt Labor Harmony Resolution  Teamster.org   ...Teamsters and drivers for Bauer’s Intelligent Transportation held an action next to the Mission Street BART station last week, urging SFMTA pass the labor harmony resolution that was unanimously adopted by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in March...
Salary Hike For Montco Correctional Officers  The Intelligencer   ...The county’s correctional officers in December 2013 voted to be represented by a union. The vote was 120-82 in favor of representation by Teamsters Local Union 384 of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters...
Flexjet Pilots Win Jobs Back, Made Whole for Company's Labor Law Violations  Teamster.org   ...In a decision by distinguished arbitrator Joshua Javits, three pilots with Flexjet, LLC, have been reinstated to their positions with the carrier and made whole for their terminations. The arbitrator found the terminations were without cause and that the pilots’ terminations resulted from retaliation for protected union activity in violation of federal labor law...

Global Labor & Trade
Turkey In Political Crisis As Violence Spirals  Huffington Post   ...Gunmen opened fire on Turkish police outside an Istanbul palace and eight soldiers were killed in a bomb attack in the southeast on Wednesday, heightening a sense of crisis as the country's political leaders struggle to form a new government...
German Parliament Overwhelmingly Approves Greek Bailout  Huffington Post   ...Germany's parliament overwhelmingly approved a third bailout for Greece on Wednesday, removing a key hurdle to providing new loans to the country and keeping it from defaulting on its debts in as little as 24 hours...
EC's Transparency Spin Falls Flat As TTIP Made Even More Secretive  Huffington Post   ...The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) is the biggest trade deal ever negotiated. Yet all British MPs know about it is what little the European Commission (EC) decides to tell them -- and that's about to become a lot less. Last week German website Correct!v revealed that one of the only sources of information for what happens in secret TTIP negotiations will end...
South Sudanese President’s Chilling Threat Against The Lives Of Journalists  Think Progress   ...The pressure to sign a civil-war ending peace agreement may be getting to South Sudanese President Salva Kiir. On Sunday, the embattled leader threatened to kill journalists reporting “against the country.”...

State & Living Wage Battles
Ohio Lawmaker: Now Is Time For Right To Work  Cincinnati.com   ...The proposal, which is being drafted, would prohibit mandatory union membership at workplaces. The change would give employees the choice to opt out of unions and their dues, said Brinkman, R-Mount Lookout. Twenty-five states have right-to-work laws, including recently passed proposals in Wisconsin, Michigan and Indiana...
Obama's Paid-Leave Policies Make Progress In Cities  USA Today   ...In his State of the Union Address in January, President Obama said he would go around Congress if necessary and push states to adopt paid-leave laws. Eight months later, only one state — Oregon — has passed such a law. But 17 cities have...
Compromise On Raising Bangor Minimum Wage Fails, Talks To Continue  Bangor Daily News   ...The City Council’s Business and Economic Development Committee failed Tuesday to move forward a proposed compromise on a local minimum-wage increase...

U.S. Labor
Transportation Secretary And New Jersey Officials Meet To Discuss Hudson River Rail Tunnels  New York Times   ...After Mr. Foxx met with Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey and the state’s two Democratic senators, Cory A. Booker and Robert Menendez, the officials signaled a new level of cooperation on the project. The four released a joint statement calling the meeting “substantive and productive,” and indicated that they would work to obtain “a substantial federal grant contribution” and other funding options for the plan, known as the Gateway Project...
One-Quarter Of Mothers Return To Work Less Than 2 Weeks After Giving Birth, Report Finds  Huffington Post   ...The researchers looked at a survey of 2,852 workers who took leave in 2012, honing in on the 93 women who took time off to care for a new baby. Of those women, nearly 12 percent took a week or less; another 11 percent took between one and two weeks off, according to the analysis. Among college graduates, longer leaves ruled the day: Eighty percent of the women who took at least six weeks leave had a degree. Only 54 percent of women without a degree were able to do so...
Amazon's Brutal Workplace Is An Indicator Of An Inhumane Economy  Los Angeles Times   ...What, ultimately, is the point of all this high-intensity labor, 16 hours a day most days of the year? If it is to make men such as Bezos extremely rich, it has done that, but what is in it for the workers who devote their lives to his vision for two or three years and then wearily stumble away from the company? Have they built something important and soul-enriching? Or did they just shave some minutes off the time it takes to fill the shopping carts of impatient, lazy consumers? Shouldn’t there be a little more to life than that?...
A Simple Practice Can Transform The Lives Of First Responders  Huffington Post   ...Firefighters are known for their physical strength and bravery, but they also face an immense amount of emotional stress and pressure. And just as first responders train for fitness, so too should they work on sharpening and preparing their minds, according to neuroscientist Amishi Jha...

Social Justice & Other News
As Immigration Judges' Working Conditions Worsen, More May Choose Retirement  Los Angeles Times   ...“I just really didn't like telling these young kids they had to go back to this situation. It really was very stressful for me and distressing,” she said. “I started out my career representing people with asylum claims, and a lot of those were Central American. I didn't want to sign my name on something and send someone back somewhere where they could potentially lose their life.”...
Americans Back Federal Funds To Planned Parenthood For Health Services, Poll Shows  Huffington Post   ...Support for federal funding of Planned Parenthood itself to provide those women's health services was even stronger, according to the Reuters/Ipsos released on Wednesday...
These Former Debt Collectors Decided To Ditch The Industry, Buy Up Medical Debt And Forgive It  Truthout   ...When Paola Gonzalez received a phone call from RIP Medical Debt, she was certain what she heard was a mistake. A prank, maybe. The caller said a $950 hospital bill had been paid for in full: It would not affect her credit and she wouldn't have to worry about it again. "They wanted to pay a bill for me," she said. "I was just speechless."...
How Black Lives Matter Moved From A Hashtag To A Real Political Force  Washington Post   ...Black Lives Matter has evolved well beyond a hashtag attached to sometimes-smart and often-snarky posts about policing, jailing and racial disparities in the United States. Black Lives Matter, it would seem, has evolved into a social movement with political aims, policy demands and a disparate set of individuals motivated to push those issues into the 2016 campaign...
Confederate Flag Controversy: More US Schools Consider Bans On Display Of Southern Symbol As Charleston Unveils New Policy  International Business Times   ...Weeks after a white gunman opened fire in a historic black church in South Carolina, the Charleston County School District this week updated its code of conduct for the 2015-2016 school year, which began Monday, to include a ban on the Confederate flag. The policy prohibits students from wearing clothing, jewelry or other apparel featuring images of the rebel banner...
Science Isn’t Broken  FiveThirtyEight   ...If we’re going to rely on science as a means for reaching the truth — and it’s still the best tool we have — it’s important that we understand and respect just how difficult it is to get a rigorous result. I could pontificate about all the reasons why science is arduous, but instead I’m going to let you experience one of them for yourself. Welcome to the wild world of p-hacking...