I noticed recently that CNN gets it wrong on unions and the Employee Free Choice Act.
I know, this is not really a surprise to most people readin this blog, but you never know, perhaps I'm reaching out to those who aren't really familiar with CNN and their anti-worker stances. So, let' me take a few minutes to Fact Check, CNN's Fact Check of McCain's October 13th speech:
In a speech Monday, October 13, in Virginia Beach, Virginia, Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain took on Democratic opponent Sen. Barack Obama's stance on unions. "Senator Obama is measuring the drapes (in the White House), and planning with Speaker Pelosi and Senator Reid to … take away your right to vote by secret ballot in labor elections," he said.
First, let's talk McSame and his rampant anti-unionism.
- He does not support Firefighter's right to collectively bargain - He opposes IAFF's attempts at ensuring all firefighters have the right to join a union - In 1996 He voted for a bill that would have repealed the section of the National Labor Relations Act that allows states to determine their own laws on union security agreements and replaced it with a federal mandate banning such agreements. - In 2005, McCain tried to limit overtime for workers by radically overhauling the Fair Labor Standards Act whereby workers would be paid overtime for hours in excess of 80 in a two week period instead of hours in excess of 40 in a one week period. - In 2005">McCain has blocked legislation (Fillibuster and voting to not end debate) on The Employee Free Choice Act (2007), Striker's Rights (to not be replaced by Scabs - multiple votes), He's voted for the elimination of Davis Bacon's prevailing wage rates,
Okay, got some of that out of the way, let's now talk about how wrong his statement is and then take a look at CNN's bizarro world coverage.
McCain notes in his statement that the Employee Free Choice Act will eliminate secret ballot elections. This is not true, employees can still request an election. But it will give equal time to unions to speak to workers including equal time to the pro-union workers on those jobs.
These comments always fail to note that "Secret Ballot Election" is not really an election in the sense that most Americans understand an election to be. In the US, our labor laws were written in the 30's and anti-unionism was very high and that fear is often represented in the manner in which those laws were written.
Take this op-ed in the Hill by Gordon Lafer, a political scientist at the University of Oregon and the author of Free and Fair? How Labor Law Fails U.S. Democratic Election Standards:
For instance, in elections for Congress or the president, it is illegal for a private corporation to tell its employees anything that favors one candidate or the other. But in workplace elections, it is standard practice for supervisors to hold repeated one-on-one conversations with the individuals they oversee. Here, the person who has the most direct control over hiring and firing, promotion, raises, hours and duties tells their subordinates in no uncertain terms why a union would be bad for them. The message is clear: If you ever want a raise, or a day off to take your kid to a doctor, you better not support the union.
Many of the tactics used to intimidate employees are legal. However, because federal labor law contains no possibility of punitive fines, prison or any other type of sanction, employers break the law at will. Last year, approximately 15,000 Americans were illegally fired, suspended or otherwise financially punished for trying to form a union in their workplace.
An election where one party controls the media, requires voters to attend its rallies, enforces a gag order on opponents and fires voters for backing the opposition is undemocratic and un-American. The Employee Free Choice Act would reform the current system to guarantee that Americans who want to form a union are able to do so in part by ending the charade that we call a Labor Board election by giving workers a second option: the choice to form a union by a majority sign-up process.
CNN is perpetuating a myth that somehow union elections are not only secret elections but also FAIR and they are neither. The message to workers is always clear and pounded into them day in and day out that joining a union will mean no sick days or possible firing or goodness knows what else.
But it's not actually the election that takes a long time. Most elections (about 92%) are actually completed within 60 days of the request. The issue is all of the appeals to the elections and all of the employer's ability to stack the deck in their favor, and with card check, WORKERS get a choice to do a card check by majority signature or to request an election, a fair election.
But Big Money groups like the anti-worker and Orwellian-named Coalition for a Democratic Workplace and CUF, the Center for Union Facts (not), are waging a massive effort to defeat the bill—making these past few days critical for supporters of the bill to make our voices heard. CUF alone is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on full-page ads in The New York Times, The Washington Post and elsewhere, as well as on ads on CNN and Fox (natch) trashing the bill.
These groups' big lie is that the Employee Free Choice Act will take away the secret ballot election process. It would not. Instead, it would ensure workers have another option in addition to the ballot process—majority sign-up (card-check). The employee advocacy group American Rights at Work does a great job here in showing how a ballot election at the workplace is far from democratic—and so it can't be compared with the type of elections we had in this country before Bush.
CNN is wrong. Their Fact check uses the same old LIE from the right wing and makes it "truth." It's laziness to the extreme because there is enough information out there for them to see the difference, hell, if they'd just read the actual legislation they'd see that, instead they post this kind of crap:
Verdict: True. McCain accurately represents Obama's stance, although the candidates disagree on the merits of the plan. Organized labor backs Obama's position, while business groups and some non-union workers support McCain's.
Non-union workers support McCain? My parents are non-union workers and mom supports Obama and Dad, he's still undecided (I'm working on him). Given the chance, 60 million US workers would join a union. The problem is here that there is little chance because doing something in support of a union also means risking suspension, sitting through anti-union propaganda, or risking your family's livelihood.
Card Check is the right thing to do for American workers. We are the back bone of the country and it's about time that both businesses and also politicians understood that point. More importantly, it'd just be nice if CNN understood the difference between a Card Check system with optional FAIR elections and the current systems of intimidation, fear mongering and illegal activities on the part of employers trying to keep out unions through a "secreat ballot election".
I suppose it's too much to ask for that CNN figure out that "Secret Ballot" is really code for "NO UNIONS WANTED" and yeah, that includes the rhetoric of McCain, Mr. Anti-Union himself. But I'm not sure why they think that we aren't going to call them out on this shoddy work. I mean, come on, how long would it have really taken them to do their fucking job and get it right instead of throwing out more ridiculous Right-Wing talking points? This doesn't make you Fair and Balanced, it just makes you fox-light. Of course, perhaps that's what you're really going for, faux style news that always puts forward the Right Wing Talking Points.
CNN, I expect more from you.
But you know, I don't want to close on a sour "I expect more from CNN note" I want to end this with my favorite Union quote this year:
It’s time we had a President who didn’t choke saying the word “union.”
This is exactly what I want out of a President.Read More...
I'd like to say that the candidates talked about union issues tonight, touched on how collective bargaining works or how the Employee Free Choice Act is a baby step toward equalizing the playing field between workers and employers, but nope, none of that. Instead, I got to see (thank you Tivo for letting me skip over it) a once great Democrat wallow in the mud with the anti-union forces against workers rights (yeah again Tivo, just writing that makes me want to take a shower). But nothing angered or pushed me further than this video clip:
I'm not sure how many of you reading this right now might have had this experience before, but let me tell you, talking about workers issues often gets me this comment. The condescending and patronizing, well, "that one" over there doesn't understand. Or "that one" doesn't know what it's like to work for a living, she supports unions...um, hello! Who do you think belongs to unions? Workers!
"That One". If you've ever organized, took a stand for workers rights, refused to walk into a Wal-Mart with a family member or friend, you've heard it. But I never expect to hear this kind of shit coming out of the mouth of a candidate for president, and ESPECIALLY NOT from a nominee of any party.
Polls in Ohio ``are showing increased support for Barack Obama,'' because voters are paying attention to McCain's support for privatizing Social Security, backing ``job-killing trade agreements,'' and his backing of deregulation of the banking system, Ohio Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown said on ABC's ``This Week'' program yesterday.
Actually Sherrod, you missed one, it's also because he wants to tax health care benefits provided by employers as income. Even for my dad, that's a bad deal. But the Wall Street Journal (ugh, I can't believe I'm linking to this rag) noted today that in order to do what McCain wants, he'd also have to CUT medicare and Medicaid. MEDICARE cuts would be really hard for many Ohioans to take, and especially hard for my parents who are 65 and 61.
But Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Sen. McCain's senior policy adviser, said Sunday that the campaign has always planned to fund the tax credits, in part, with savings from Medicare and Medicaid. Those government health-care programs serve seniors, poor families and the disabled. Medicare spending for the fiscal year ended Sept. 30 is estimated at $457.5 billion.
snip
In exchange, the government would begin taxing the value of health benefits people get through work. If an employer spends $10,000 to buy a worker health insurance, the worker would pay taxes on that money.
Dad carries the medical for the family (he and mom) and does so through his workplace. It's a really nice benefit. He pays nothing, the company provides the benefit and although he has a high deductible, it's worked for them due to their declining health. Their medical bills last year amounted to nearly 7% of their total income. If they were forced to find health care on the open market, I'm not sure they'd be able to get any and I'm sure they aren't the only ones in this boat. My brother is pretty much there, too.
My brother is a teacher and through his union, he and his wife have excellent health care benefits for their family of 6. Despite his and her recent hospitalizations, surgeries and broken limbs in their kids (they're into sports), their health insurance has made it possible for them to get by and save for retirement.
I'd also like to make one note about the Wall Street post and McCain's anti-unionism...
Mr. Holtz-Eakin said the campaign never intended to apply the payroll tax to health benefits. That means that most people would see a net tax cut, contrary to Sen. Obama's assertions. Only those with very rich benefits packages are likely to see a net increase in taxes.
If your employer pays for your health benefits as is usually negotiated for by your union, that BENEFIT will be taxable for income AND payroll. YOU WILL SEE A TAX INCREASE. For those with mediocre benefits (usually non-union workers where unions compete in the local labor pool), poor benefits (think Wal-Mart type jobs and employers) and no benefits (part time employees working multiple jobs or unable to afford the coverage at all), they MIGHT see some real value, but probably not as good as the Obama tax cuts (try the calculator).
This measure is aimed at eliminating a negotiating tool for unions, their ability to negotiate for benefits. It's aimed at lowering the wages of unionized employees and those who benefit from unionized wages without being in a union in order to drive down wages. And, this is what it will do. Employers are not going to turn around and hand over the benefit cost to employees as income. They're just going to stop offering the benefit and you'll be out on the "open Market" much like the market on WallStreet. And we all know how that worked these past 8 years, don't we?
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written by bendygirl
at Monday, September 22, 2008
I was wandering around the Tubes when I found this fun and interactive link to Calculate Your Obama Tax Cut. I saved $950 (plus change) based on my income and filing status (sort of).
I like how they break out the calculation of the tax cut:
How do we calculate your Obama Tax Cut?
Your Obama Tax Cut is calculated simply by summing the change in Individual Income Tax and Corporate Tax (yes, lots of people pay corporate tax) reported in the following tables compiled by the Tax Policy Center:
Single Married Elderly
If you want to explain the differences between the bottom-line effect of the Obama and McCain tax plans to your friends and family with simple numbers, these are the key points:
Obama will cut taxes for 95% of Americans
McCain will tax 80% of Americans more than Obama
Obama will only increase taxes for the top 1% of incomes; and this isn't really an increase: he's simply going to let the Bush tax cuts expire.
Here's a helpful chart to show your friends and family based on the same data I use
The Chart is from the Washington Post. They did a side by side comparison.
written by bendygirl
at Wednesday, September 10, 2008
First off let me say, I didn’t win yesterday.
Wanted to be clear to all my readers that yeah, I got the message, if I run again, I need to run as Kirsten “UnionGal” Burgard. Seriously, did you have to tell the poll workers you LOVE this blog, but only after you noted you voted for someone else because I didn’t acknowledge the blog is in deed, run by me?
But for those who voted for me and the slate I ran with, thank you. Running for office is always tough, and I want you all to know, I really appreciate your vote, we all do.
It was a tough race and I’ll have more on it tonight from home because I don’t really like to blog politics during the day, after all, this is a labor blog. However, I have to note that I found this political piece on a listserv and thought I should share it, mostly because it mirrors yesterday more than I’d like. Read on, perhaps those of you in DC will see the parallels.
Sometimes politics has the uncanny effect of mirroring the national psyche even when nobody intended to do that. This is perfectly illustrated by the rousing effect that Gov. Sarah Palin had on the Republican convention in Minneapolis this week. On the surface, she outdoes former Vice President Dan Quayle as an unlikely choice, given her negligent parochial expertise in the complex affairs of governing.
Her state of Alaska has less than 700,000 residents, which reduces the job of governor to the scale of running one-tenth of New York City. By comparison, Rudy Giuliani is a towering international figure. Palin's pluck has been admired, and her forthrightness, but her real appeal goes deeper.
She is the reverse of Barack Obama, in essence his shadow, deriding his idealism and turning negativity into a cause for pride. In psychological terms the shadow is that part of the psyche that hides out of sight, countering our aspirations, virtue, and vision with qualities we are ashamed to face: anger, fear, revenge, violence, selfishness, and suspicion of "the other." For millions of Americans, Obama triggers those feelings, but they don't want to express them. He is calling for us to reach for our higher selves, and frankly, that stirs up hidden reactions of an unsavory kind. (Just to be perfectly clear, I am not making a verbal play out of the fact that Sen. Obama is black. The shadow is a metaphor widely in use before his arrival on the scene.)
I recognize that psychological analysis of politics is usually not welcome by the public, but I believe such a perspective can be helpful here to understand Palin's message. In her acceptance speech Gov. Palin sent a rousing call to those who want to celebrate their resistance to change and a higher vision.
Look at what she stands for:
* Small town values — a nostaligic return to simpler times disguises a denial of America's global role, a return to petty, small-minded parochialism. * Ignorance of world affairs — a repudiation of the need to repair America's image abroad. *Family values — a code for walling out anybody who makes a claim for social justice. Such strangers, being outside the family, don't need to be needed. * Rigid stands on guns and abortion — a scornful repudiation that these issues can be negotiated with those who disagree. * Patriotism — the usual fallback in a failed war. *Reform — an italicized term, since in addition to cleaning out corruption and excessive spending, one also throws out anyone who doesn't fit your ideology.
Palin reinforces the overall message of the reactionary right, which has been in play since 1980, that social justice is liberal-radical, that minorities and immigrants, being different from "us" pure American types, can be ignored, that progressivism takes too much effort and globalism is a foreign threat. The radical right marches under the banners of "I'm all right, Jack," and "Why change? Everything's OK as it is." The irony, of course, is that Gov.
Palin is a woman and a reactionary at the same time. She can add mom to apple pie on her resume, while blithely reversing forty years of feminist progress. The irony is superficial; there are millions of women who stand on the side of conservatism, however obviously they are voting against their own good. The Republicans have won multiple national elections by raising shadow issues based on fear, rejection, hostility to change, and narrow-mindedness
Obama's call for higher ideals in politics can't be seen in a vacuum. The shadow is real; it was bound to respond. Not just conservatives possess a shadow — we all do. So what comes next is a contest between the two forces of progress and inertia. Will the shadow win again, or has its furtive appeal become exhausted? No one can predict. The best thing about Gov. Palin is that she brought this conflict to light, which makes the upcoming debate honest. It would be a shame to elect another Reagan, whose smiling persona was a stalking horse for the reactionary forces that have brought us to the demoralized state we are in. We deserve to see what we are getting, without disguise.
Okay, now back to our regular labor and union related postings!!
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We may not agree on abortion, but surely we can agree on reducing the number of unwanted pregnancies in this country. The reality of gun ownership may be different for hunters in rural Ohio than for those plagued by gang-violence in Cleveland, but don't tell me we can't uphold the Second Amendment while keeping AK-47s out of the hands of criminals. I know there are differences on same-sex marriage, but surely we can agree that our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters deserve to visit the person they love in the hospital and to live lives free of discrimination. Passions fly on immigration, but I don't know anyone who benefits when a mother is separated from her infant child or an employer undercuts American wages by hiring illegal workers. This, too, is part of America's promise -- the promise of a democracy where we can find the strength and grace to bridge divides and unite in common effort.
I know there are those who dismiss such beliefs as happy talk. They claim that our insistence on something larger, something firmer and more honest in our public life is just a Trojan Horse for higher taxes and the abandonment of traditional values. And that's to be expected. Because if you don't have any fresh ideas, then you use stale tactics to scare the voters. If you don't have a record to run on, then you paint your opponent as someone people should run from.
You make a big election about small things.
Obama's acceptance speech. I have nothing to add except there are still tears in my eyes.
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written by bendygirl
at Wednesday, August 27, 2008
McCain gets Graham to stick it to first responders and their union representatives then tries to get IAFF to endorse him? Yep, it’s true, he’s McSame, nothing new here, well, nothing new except for once IAFF didn’t take the bait.
Immediately before voting on several GOP-sponsored amendments to the bill, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) attempted to attach Senator John McCain’s (R-AZ) GI Bill of Rights Bill to S.2123, a move designed both to sidetrack debate on the bill and boost the candidacy of presumptive Republican presidential nominee John McCain.
I rarely agree with IAFF, or maybe it just feels that way, however, reading their endorsement made me, well, not just excited but gave me points that might actually work on my dad, here, take a read:
“Once Senator Dodd stepped aside, we needed to talk to our members, gauge the candidates and examine their positions on the issues critical to fire fighters. Senator Obama has shown fire fighters nothing but support – in the Illinois state senate and in the U.S. Senate,” Schaitberger said.
In addition to collective bargaining rights, the economy emerged as a key concern among fire fighters, according to a poll conducted in June of IAFF members by Zogby.
The poll also found fire fighters believe Senator Obama will be a more effective president on economic issues for working people like them, by a margin of 63 percent to 23 percent.
Senator Obama also supports the right of fire fighters to collect overtime pay, a right established by the Fair Labor Standards Act, while Senator McCain has indicated he favors appointing judges to the federal bench who may overturn court decisions that guarantee overtime pay to fire fighters and other rights outlined in the Fair Labor Standards Act.
Senator McCain’s opposition to collective bargaining for fire fighters was negatively received by 74 percent of fire fighters, according to the Zogby poll, and his vow to appoint judges who would overturn court decisions that ensure overtime pay was viewed negatively by 71 percent of fire fighters.
Senator Obama opposes forcing fire fighters into Social Security and wants to strengthen the system of employer-provided health care that fire fighters earn.
Senator McCain’s health care plan encourages elimination of employer-sponsored health care, preferring to place the burden on individuals to find and purchase their own health care. Employees who do continue to get health care coverage through their employers would have to pay taxes on those benefits. McCain has refused to sign a letter opposing mandatory Social Security coverage for fire fighters, a change that would impose an additional payroll tax on first responders.
Senator Obama has also worked to increase funding for the SAFER grant program, which provides funding to local jurisdictions to hire fire fighters. Senator McCain has sided with the Bush administration in its attempts to zero out that program.
BTW, Dodd was also my first choice. But like IAFF, I’m not only okay with Obama, I’M THRILLED!! Go, Obama, GO!!
If you get a minute, head over to IAFF and check out the entire endorsement and their endorsement video. I'd also suggest you hear Schaitberger, it's long, but I can't think of anything I don't agree with, like he says, it's your union. The union belongs to the membership. I think we all should remember that more often.
I just learned that tonight at the Democratic Convention a former Pillowtex worker from North Carolina and leader of the Southern Region of UNITE HERE, Gloria Craven, will address the Democratic convention to speak on the issue of workers who suffer the loss of medical coverage when the plant they work at closes.
Gloria will take the stage tonight at approximately 8:00 p.m. local time, just a few speakers before Hillary Clinton. With Gloria and Anna Burger of Change to Win speaking tonight it is clear that the Obama campaign truly understands that the way to Renew America's Promise (their theme of the day, is by supporting unions and working people.
Highly recommend you head over and read the rest from Elana Levin of UNITE HERE.
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written by bendygirl
at Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Recently, in DC, Republican incumbent Carol Schwartz has come under fire for her advocacy of and vote for the paid sick leave bill that made its way through Council. Although the bill was extraordinarily weak and pathetic, it’s still a step in the right direction. Her opponent in the Republican primary has been out bashing her for the endorsements she’s received from labor, while he’s also been intimating that Republicans and unions don’t mix (um, does he remember the 80’s and the unfortunate Teamsters’ endorsements? Or IAFF’s endorsement of DeWine in Ohio over Sherrod Brown?), clearly, he’s an idiot who can raise money and thereby threaten an entrenched Republican (I’m yawning here), good for him, even if he's an idiot.
Now, it appears that this little race, and more specifically the issue of paid sick leave, has some very interesting national implications that the AP (I know, the dreaded AP which seems to be cleaning up their act) actually reported today (not the local race, the implication of it on the nation):
Some 46 million U.S. workers lack paid sick days, but lawmakers in 12 states — including California, Connecticut, Minnesota and West Virginia — have proposed legislation in the past year that would require businesses to provide them.
Snip
The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that 43 percent of the private industry labor force worked in 2007 without paid sick time, a group primarily made up of low-paid employees at small businesses.
That means that the waitresses at your table, the cooks in your kitchens and the school bus drivers (who aren’t yet unionized through the Teamsters' efforts) are helping you to a nice heaping serving of whatever they are carrying from viruses to bacteria. They’re treating you to more and more sickness. I know, it’s sweet, isn’t it?
But fear not, if you live in DC, and don’t work in the food industry or health care industry, are on the job for at least a year, you might be able to qualify for prorated sick days depending on how many hours you work up to a maximum number of days. I know complicated, I prefer how San Francisco did it:
Paid sick days are already law in Washington, D.C., where employees earn days off based on the number of hours worked and the size of the business, and in San Francisco, which requires one hour sick leave for every 30 hours worked.
The Golden Gate Restaurant Association, which represents 900 restaurants, did not endorse or oppose the ballot measure that enacted the local ordinance, but won several changes, such as allowing employers to require a worker give "reasonable notice" when calling in sick, said Kevin Westlye, executive director. The law has been successful, he said.
"There's been some concern that employees are abusing the ordinance. There's been a little bit of that, but not as widespread as people thought at the beginning," Westlye said.
Interesting, no abuse and the association didn't bother to step into it, sweet.
But what you should pay attention to is who currently supports such measures on the national level, because if we’re fortunate enough to elect him President:
Sen. Barack Obama, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, supports the legislation.
I suppose the real thing to think about here is why vote for anyone other than Obama? But in DC... you have a choice as a Republican in the primary on September 9th, supporting an incumbent concerned with some citizen’s services and a guy who seems to think just like John McCain. Hmm, which should DC voters chose? Hmm, they both kind of suck.
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I got an e-mail about a diary on Dailykos and I wanted to share:
The largest retailer in the world is playing the fear card. WAL*MART is holding meetings with its store managers and department supervisors around the country to warn that if Democrats win power in November, they'll likely change federal law to make it easier for workers to unionize companies -- including Wal-Mart.
Of all companies to be whining about money. WAL*MART the so-called American company with 600 factories in CHINA and zero in America, they have the audacity to be pushing this line on their underpaid front-line employees.
While Lee Scott and the Waltons live in huge mansions and travel with bodyguards, paid for by the labor of their employees, these folks have the audacity to "fear" their employees into voting AGAINST their own pocketbook.
This is the same company that encourages its underpaid workers to seek out gov't assistance.
This company is as tolitarian as any country could be. If you are a manager or supervisor at WAL*MART, you are expected to "goose-step".
Let's see if the MSM picks this up.
"SPREAD THE WORD !!!
So, I decided that after reading this, I'd head over to the ultra-right wing Wall Street Journal and check out the rest of the story. I particularly enjoyed this quote:
"The meeting leader said, 'I am not telling you how to vote, but if the Democrats win, this bill will pass and you won't have a vote on whether you want a union,'" said a Wal-Mart customer-service supervisor from Missouri. "I am not a stupid person. They were telling me how to vote," she said.
Wal-Mart then denied that they're doing this, but the WSJ goes on to point out that Wal-Mart is not alone, they are in great company with Cintas:
Other companies and groups are also making a case against the legislation to workers. Laundry company Cintas Corp., which has been fighting a multiyear organizing campaign by Unite Here, relaunched a Web site July 14 called CintasVotes. The site instructs visitors to take action by telling members of Congress to oppose the legislation.
"We feel it's important that our employee partners fully understand the implications that the Employee Free Choice Act could have on their work environment and benefits," said Heather Trainer, a Cintas spokeswoman.
Business-backed organizations are also running ads aimed at building opposition to the bill, including the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace, which counts several hundred industry associations as members. Another group, the Employee Freedom Action Committee, is run by former tobacco lobbyist Rick Berman. The groups, which aren't affiliated with each other, say they have a total of $50 million in funding. Neither will disclose which companies or individuals have provided funding.
Berman is afraid of the Employee Free Choice Act and is going to run a PR campaign to ensure that Obama loses (I doubt he cares who wins...wonder if he's donated to McCain yet) so that the Employee Free Choice Act and the ability of workers to organize through majority rule, a very democratic concept, much more so then the current way we have to do things.
So, I wonder if Cintas and Wal-Mart will be successful in telling their employees how to vote in the general election. If the woman from Missouri is any indication, I'm guessing the answer might just be "no".
Small note, WSJ, UNITE-HERE is not spelled Unite Here. It means
UNITE (formerly the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees) and HERE (Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union) merged on July 8, 2004 forming UNITE HERE. The union represents more than 450,000 active members and more than 400,000 retirees throughout North America.
but hey, WSJ, way to minimize their work.
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Last night at the DC Democratic State Committee, members of the committee adopted an add-on measure to the DC platform. Added last night was an entire plank provided by Fred Allen. In addition, the body adopted language noting that it fully supports the right for workers to organize. To which they further noted their support for passage of the Employee Free Choice Act. (okay, I'm cheering myself here, it was my measure!!)
There was significant debate on the measure and a number of "no" votes, however, it still passed!!! Whew!!
The most disturbing thing for me last night were the number of abstention votes from members of the body who seemed not to know about the Act or what it does for workers, despite my explanations. The Right Wing talking points for some reason resonated with some of the members, and these are pro-union democrats.
This weekend, Uniongal Blog will be hosting an Obama platform meeting on Labor: Finding Our Seat At the Table. Part of this discussion will focus on our talking points about the Employee Free Choice Act and how best to use them.
If you will be in DC and have not already done so, I urge you to sign up for the event. Use the "Listening" widget on the upper right hand corner of this blog.
I'm excited not only about an Obama victory this November, but also the ability of my brothers and sisters in labor to work toward representation for all workers. It really is as simple as as one of my favorite quote from Harry Bridges "The most important word in the language of the working class is `solidarity.'"
In Solidarity.
Kirsten Burgard
PS, I kind of lost it a little last night with a member of the committee who is anti-worker. I'd like to say that won't ever happen again, but let's face it, when it's something as important as organizing and having a voice in your workplace, I doubt I'll be able to hold back. So, yeah, I yelled, but at least I did ask him to step outside and beat the shit out of my fellow Democratic committee member. Oh and if I'd had that opportunity, I'd have been able to knock him down a few pegs. Clearly, that's not what I should be thinking about, but, there yuo have it. Even I can lose my cool. So, I'll be practicing my talking points this weekend. It's much better than beating them into someone else!!!
So, also in my e-mail this morning is a story about the commencement at the National Labor College:
90 GRADUATE FROM LABOR COLLEGE: "Brothers and Sisters, this is where you take your degrees to wage the next battle of workers rights in this country," former presidential candidate John Edwards told the National Labor College (NLC) 2008 graduating class Saturday. "This is where you become our next leaders to fight for what working men and women need to get ahead." Edwards addressed more than 800 students and family members, union officials and elected leaders who attended the 10th annual commencement exercises on the NLC’s campus in Silver Spring, Maryland. The NLC conferred 76 bachelor's degrees in labor studies disciplines and American University handed out 14 Master of Science in Organization Development degrees as part if its graduate partnership with the NLC. "Ours is a college dedicated to service," said NLC president William E. Scheuerman, "to our members, to our communities, to our brother and sister workers both here in the U.S. and around the globe. Having built our movement through the sacrifices of others you must help to make it possible for others to gain the benefit of union membership."
Way to go! Congrats to all the graduates and way to go Edwards for providing the commencement speech, not get out on the campaign trail for Obama, we need every vote!!
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I'm on an Obama listserv and today, I got something by e-mail that I just had to share!!
Albuquerque, New Mexico June 23, 2008
It’s great to be back in New Mexico, and to have this opportunity to discuss some of the challenges that working women are facing. Because I would not be standing before you today as a candidate for President of the United States if it weren’t for working women.
I am here because of my mother, a single mom who put herself through school, followed her passion for helping others, and raised my sister and me to believe that in America, there are no barriers to success if you’re willing to work for it.
I am here because of my grandmother, who helped raised me. She worked during World War II on a bomber assembly line – she was Rosie the Riveter. Then, even though she never got more than a high school diploma, she worked her way up from her start as a secretary at a bank, and ended up being the financial rock for our entire family when I was growing up.
And I am here because of my wife Michelle, the rock of the Obama family, who worked her way up from modest roots on the South Side of Chicago, and who has juggled jobs and parenting with more skill and grace than anyone I know. Now Michelle and I want our two daughters to grow up in an America where they have the freedom and opportunity to live their dreams and raise their own families.
But even as these stories speak to the progress that we’ve made, we know that too many of America’s daughters grow up facing barriers to their dreams, and that has consequences for all American families. For decades we’ve had politicians in Washington who talk about family values, but we haven’t had policies that value families. Instead, it’s harder for working parents to make a living while raising their kids. And we know that the system is especially stacked against women, and that’s why Washington has to change.
Now Senator McCain is an honorable man, and we respect his service. But when you look at our records and our plans on issues that matter to working women, the choice could not be clearer.
It starts with equal pay. 62 percent of working women in America earn half – or more than half – of their family’s income. But women still earn only 77 cents for every dollar earned by men. In 2008, you’d think that Washington would be united in its determination to fight for equal pay. That’s why I was proud to co-sponsor the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act, which would have reversed last year’s Supreme Court decision, which made it more difficult for women to challenge pay discrimination on the job.
But Senator McCain thinks the Supreme Court got it right. He opposed the Fair Pay Restoration Act. He suggested that the reason women don’t have equal pay isn’t discrimination on the job – it’s because they need more education and training. That’s just totally wrong. Lilly Ledbetter’s problem was not that she was somehow unqualified or unprepared for higher-paying positions. She most certainly was, and by all reports she was an excellent employee. Her problem was that her employer paid her less than men who were doing the exact same work.
John McCain just has it wrong. He said the Fair Pay Restoration Act “opens us up to lawsuits for all kinds of problems.” But I can’t think of any problem more important than making sure that women get equal pay for equal work. It’s a matter of equality. It’s a matter of fairness. That’s why I stood up for equal pay in the Illinois State Senate, and helped pass a law to give 330,000 more women protection from paycheck discrimination. That’s why I’ve been fighting to pass legislation in the Senate, so that employers don’t get away with discriminating against hardworking women like Lilly Ledbetter. And that’s why I’ll continue to stand up for equal pay as President. Senator McCain won’t, and that’s a real difference in this election.
As the son of a single mother, I also don’t accept an America that makes women choose between their kids and their careers. It’s not acceptable that women are denied jobs or promotions because they’ve got kids at home.[Bendygirl's note, yeah, this happened to me about 7 years ago because I was a single mother, nice, huh?]It’s not acceptable that forty percent of working women don’t have a single paid sick day. That’s wrong for working parents, it’s wrong for America’s children, and it’s not who we are as a country.
I’ll be a President who stands up for the American family by giving all working parents a hand. To help with childcare, I’ll expand the Child and Dependent Care tax credit, so that working families can receive up to a 50 percent credit for their child care expenses. I’ll double funding for afterschool programs that help children learn and give parents relief. And I’ll invest $10 billion to guarantee access to quality, affordable, early childhood education for every child in America.
And with more and more households headed by two working parents – or a single working parent – it’s also time to dramatically expand the Family and Medical Leave Act. Since more Americans are working for small businesses, I’ll expand FMLA to cover businesses with as few as 25 employees – this will reach millions of American workers who aren’t covered today. We’ll also allow workers to take leave to care for elderly parents. We’ll allow parents to take 24 hours of annual leave to join school activities with their kids. And we’ll cover employees who are victims of domestic violence or sexual assault.
I’ll also stand up for paid leave. Today, 78 percent of workers covered by FMLA don’t take leave because it isn’t paid. That’s just not fair. You shouldn’t be punished for getting sick or dealing with a family crisis. That’s why I’ll require employers to provide all of their workers with seven paid sick days a year. And I’ll support a 50-state strategy to adopt paid-leave systems, and set aside $1.5 billion to fund it. I have a clear plan to expand paid leave and sick leave, Senator McCain doesn’t, and that’s a real difference in this election.
And at a time when folks are struggling with the rising price of everything from gas to groceries, I’ll provide working women with immediate relief. While Senator McCain wants to continue the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans who don’t need them and didn’t ask for them, I’ll pass a middle class tax cut of $1,000 for each working family. This will deliver tax relief for over 70 million working women. And we need to help folks at the bottom of the ladder. Almost 60 percent of Americans who benefited from raising the minimum wage were women. I won’t leave any working people behind. That’s why, unlike Senator McCain, I’ll index the minimum wage to inflation so that it goes up each year to keep pace with rising costs.
We can’t afford an economy where folks keep working harder for less. We can’t let the women in our workforce get paid even less for doing the same work. And we can’t keep pushing more and more of the burden on to the backs of working parents who are struggling to balance their jobs and their family. Because what binds us together, what makes us one American family, is that we stand up and fight for each other's dreams, and for the dreams of all of our children.
I want my daughters to grow up in an America where they have opportunities that are even greater than their mother had, or their grandmothers, or their great grandmothers – an America where our daughters truly have the same opportunities as our sons.
Standing here today, I know that we have drawn closer to making this America a reality because of the extraordinary woman who I shared a stage with so many times throughout this campaign – Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. And in the months and years ahead, I look forward to working with her to make progress on the issues that matter to American women and to all American families – health care and education; support for working parents and an insistence on equality. Because I want Sasha and Malia to grow up in an America where both work and family are a part of the American Dream, and where that Dream is available to all. That’s why I’m running for President of the United States.
It's so nice to be on this listserv sometimes, I really get to feel, see and read the words, but I have a feeling that being there, during the delivery would have made me feel like an Obama Presidency will be transformational. That it's true, TOGETHER, YES WE CAN!!Read More...
Well, I hope the AFL-CIO doesn't mind me cross posting their stuff, cause I'm going to do it anyway:
The U.S. Senate today moved a step closer to approving legislation that would protect the collective bargaining rights of tens of thousands of firefighters, police officers, emergency medical technicians and other public safety officers.
By a 69–29 vote, the Senate killed a filibuster led by several extreme anti-worker Republican senators against the workers’ rights bill. Eighteen Republicans joined all Democrats in backing the move to end the filibuster. The vote on final passage is expected later this week.
Some 20 states do not fully protect the bargaining rights of firefighters, police officers and other first responders. Two states—Virginia and North Carolina—prohibit public safety employees from collectively bargaining.
With final passage near certain, the only thing that stands in the first responders’ path to securing the workplace rights most other workers enjoy is a veto threat from the Bush administration. But today’s veto-proof vote, coupled with last July’s 314–97 House vote, provides more than the two-thirds majority needed in each chamber to overturn a veto.
Says Fire Fighters (IAFF) President Harold Schaitberger:
More than 80,000 of our brother and sister firefighters in more than 20 states do not currently enjoy basic employment rights. This bill will ensure that every firefighter has the right to collectively bargain.
The bill, the Public Safety Employee-Employer Cooperation Act of 2007 (H.R. 980), guarantees first responders:
The right to join a union. The right to have their union recognized by their employer. The right to bargain collectively over hours, wages and terms and conditions of employment. A mediation or arbitration process for resolving an impasse in negotiations. Enforcement of the bill’s provisions through the courts. Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) says:
Fairness means firefighters and police officers having a voice at the table in life-and-death discussions about their work. They know best how to do their jobs effectively, efficiently and safely. Everyone benefits when they’re given the chance to share that knowledge at the bargaining table.
But last week in a letter to Senate leaders, Labor Secretary Elaine Chao, Attorney General Michael Mukasey and Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff wrote they will suggest that President Bush veto the bill. In addition to the veto threat, the trio wrote that if first responders were allowed to join unions, it would hinder the nation’s ability to respond to terrorist and other threats.
Says AFL-CIO President John Sweeney:
This claim impugns the integrity of first responders who risked and sacrificed their lives on 9/11 and in the aftermath of Katrina. Every one of the 343 firefighters who perished at Ground Zero was a card-carrying union member.
In a May 12 response to the letter by Chao, Mukasey and Chertoff, Schaitberger said:
Your decision to attack the integrity of America’s firefighters cannot be left unanswered. Claiming that the legislation will hinder the nation’s ability to respond to terrorist attacks is both factually inaccurate and offensive. Every one of the 343 firefighters who perished at Ground Zero on September 11, 2001, was a card-carrying union member who enjoyed collective bargaining rights. Most of the responders to the horrific tragedy were not even on duty that day. They simply did what firefighters always do: They put their own safety at risk to save the lives of others.
The same is true of the courageous responders to Hurricane Katrina. Despite losing their own homes and fearing for the security of their own families, union firefighters waded into the toxic floodwaters for days on end searching for survivors. To suggest that their collectively bargained contracts hindered these life-saving efforts flies in the face of reality.
Says Kennedy:
Collective bargaining is good for our national security, and it’s good for public safety officers. These heroic men and women deserve more than just our gratitude and respect. They deserve the right to be treated fairly on the job
The reason this is so important is that even when unions exist for firefighters, they still run into cities and other municipalities screwing them over kind of like the way that Calitics pointed out 2 months ago and CBS also ran a story on it...
Vallejo Fire Department temporarily closed two fire stations on Thursday in a deal with its firefighters union aimed at helping the city avoid bankruptcy, officials said.
>snip<
Firefighters described the closings as a sad situation.
"Everyone's moving, everyone's getting new crews and we're all going to get a lot busier," said Fire Capt. Eric Diaz, who had been working out of station 22.
In addition to the closure of the fire stations, minimum staffing levels will be reduced from 28 firefighters to 22 firefighters per day as well as staffing reductions in Fire Administration, Fire Prevention and Fire Training Divisions, officials said.
City Hall has not rescinded the paramedic layoffs - they have simply postponed their decision. Threatening lay-offs is an attempt to force firefighters to agree to the city's demand to reduce Vallejo 's minimum staffing requirement. Even paramedics who may lose their jobs will never agree to cut minimum staffing, because any cuts would jeopardize the safety of their fellow firefighters and the public. Firefighters took this job to protect the public, and they will gladly lose their jobs for the same reason - if City Hall persists in their threats.
To protect the city, we must have a combined total of 28 firefighters scheduled daily. The City wants to eliminate 4 positions per day. This would take us from 28 to 24 firefighters per shift. These cuts mean shutting down the ladder truck, closing additional engines/stations, laying off 13 paramedics, and an emergency services coordinator.
Communities like Vallejo have opted for lower taxes. Maintaining lower taxes means less revenue to pay for necessary services like Fire and Police. As a mom, this isn't an acceptable level of risk for my family.
A few years ago, my 12 year old was propositioned and then touched by a high school student as she walked home from school. The police in DC were so helpful. Although they never caught the kid who did it, my daughter felt like she had a safe place to go and someone she could call if she were in danger again. Not only did a horrible incident bring about her ability to find help and believe in herself, but it also illuminated for her and I the kind of work that our police do on a daily basis.
I won't try to sugar coat the lack of solidarity I see among 1st responders, it's there. They are called on to turn hoses on protests or to arrest demonstrators and I don't think we need to revisit the images of the recent American Axle Strike rally and a Detroit Police Officer chokeholding a woman crossing the street or the vile things he said to the strikers. There's work to do with First responders. Of course, I think the first step is to make sure that they can be represented by a union. Like the fire fighters in Vallejo. If they hadn't had a union, I have no doubt that the staffing numbers would have been further reduced.
When our safety is concerned, isn't it worth ensuring that 1st responders are able to be represented? I think it is. And now, let's work on that darn solidarity thing. Cause I have to also point out here that in typical McCain fashion, he didn't even bother to show up to vote on this. Clinton and Obama both voted yea. That should speak volumes to every American interested in their safety and it should be even more important to Police, Fire fighters and other first responders who often vote Republican. In the end, who's really got your back?
Well, looks like GM may finally enter the Fray on American Axle and Dick Dauch’s resolve not to negotiate, from CBS channel 3 News in Michigan:
(NEWSCHANNEL 3) - It looks like striking American Axle workers will stay on those picket lines a little longer.
UAW President Ron Gettelfinger says the company didn't do much negotiating with the union over the weekend.
He says he's not sure when they'll actually reach an agreement.
I think they might have gotten this information from the AP or perhaps the Detroit News. There’s also the Ft Wayne Paper…
Gettelfinger told reporters before speaking to a Detroit-area Democratic Party dinner that American Axle isn't negotiating much.
>snip<
"I would hope we could resolve Axle, but we cannot negotiate an agreement with ourselves," he said before a speech to Livingston County Democrats. "It seems like it's all give on our side."
>snip<
Gettelfinger said in his speech that American Axle Chairman and CEO Richard Dauch made $258 million from 1997 through 2007 but wants workers to work for nothing. "They use the word competitive until they wear it out, but are they competitive with their own salaries?" he asked.
What is interesting in all of this is that GM still isn’t putting public pressure on Dauch to bargain in good faith, of course, I do hope they are putting the screws to him behind closed doors, but that’s probably a pipe dream . With more than 30 GM factories affected by the strike, I have to wonder when they will. I suppose Fort Wayne Indiana is also thinking about it.
The unemployment rate for the Fort Wayne metropolitan area shot up to 6.4 percent in March, 1.5 percentage points higher than the 4.9 percent rate from March 2007, a state unemployment report showed Friday.
>snip<
The strike at American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. was cited as one of the factors. The strike, which began in late February, has caused several shutdowns and layoffs in the auto manufacturing industry.
“Unfortunately, the effects of the American Axle strike are being felt here and have had an impact on our unemployment numbers,” Teresa Voors, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, said in the report.
American Axle is a key supplier to General Motors Corp., which has a truck assembly plant in southwest Allen County. Production at the plant was shut down between Feb. 29 and April 7 because of a lack of parts, affecting 2,500 hourly workers. Currently, the Allen County plant is back to normal production on a temporary basis.
With the American Axle strike now affecting employment rates in other states, over 30 GM plants, and the workers at American Axle as well, perhaps it’s finally time for the candidates to address this issue and take a stab at understanding what it really means to HAVE to WALK A PICKET LINE and how important this strike is for US workers. Of course, it's also time for GM to get its head out of the sand and publicly address Dauch and his cronies on this. Of course, it's been time for the candidates and GM to answer this call. Wonder when they finally will.
Read More...
There are lots of reason why I decided to support Obama once my candidate (Dodd) dropped out and 1st among those is best summed up by Senator Obama:
In this time of change and uncertainty, these questions are expected, but this isn’t the first time we’ve heard them. These are the same kinds of questions I heard over two decades ago after I turned down a job on Wall Street and went to work as a community organizer on the South Side of Chicago. The job was to help lift up neighborhoods that had been devastated by the closing of local steel plants. So I worked with unions and the city government to organize job-training for the jobless and hope for the hopeless, and block by block, we turned those neighborhoods around.
It showed me the fundamental truth that’s been at the heart of America’s success – and at the heart of the labor movement in this country – the idea that we all have mutual obligations to one another, that I am my brother’s keeper; I am my sister’s keeper, and that in this country, we rise and fall together.
Ayers opened it yesterday with a line that I think will now be at the top of my page:
Ayers went on to state the building trades’ case against John McCain. "Ladies and gentlemen, I was always taught that charity begins at home, that true patriotism hates injustice in its own land more than anywhere else. The America we know and love, the America we have and will defend, deserves better than John McCain."
But I'm not here talking about Ayers today, I'm here to talk about why he's my candidate.
Even though I decided that he was my candidate, I continued to listen to Senator Clinton. And what I continue not to hear or read from her is the committment to community, to organizing, to solidarity that I'd like to see from her.
I had this little list os strikes against her from Penn to NAFTA. She's just not a viable candidate for me. Nor is McSame. Mr. Right To Not Work State will continue to fill the NLRB with the same industry types and the work we do to show Elaine Cho's shameful behavior will need to be doubled with McSame at the helm.
That's how I came to Obama, with the eye toward how bewildered I've felt due to this administration, and Obama nailed it today in his speech before the trades with this one:
It’s not just that this administration hasn’t been fighting for you; they’ve actually tried to stop you from fighting for yourselves. This is the most anti-labor administration in our memory. They don’t believe in unions. They don’t believe in organizing. They’ve packed the labor relations board with their corporate buddies. Well, we’ve got news for them – it’s not the Department of Management, it’s the Department of Labor, and we’re here to take it back. That’s why I’m running for President of the United States of America.
I think of American Axle and Kongsberg and the Writer's strike, Smithfield, Hard Hatted Women, Aramark, American Eagle, Men's Warehouse, the Teamsters and their battle to keep trucks from Mexico from driving our roads, and I think of the ILWU and the May 1st STRIKE...and he's got me thinking about what we can do. Finding hope for a new tomorrow. I find that hope in statements like these:
Your voices will be heard. If you have any doubts, you can ask the union leaders in Illinois. When I was home talking to some of the local leaders there a couple of years ago, they told me they were being underbid on projects because unscrupulous builders were gaming the system. And I listened. They said that on some construction jobs, those builders were calling their employees “independent contractors” to get out of having to pay employment taxes and workers comp or overtime.
That didn’t sound right to me. So I set about leading an effort with Senator Durbin, Senator Kennedy and others in the Senate to end this practice. Because if you’re doing the same work as other employees, you should have worker protections, the same ability to organize, and the same wages and benefits. And I’ll fight to make that the law of the land when I’m President of the United States.
It's other statements like these:
It’s time we had a President who didn’t choke saying the word “union.” It’s time we had a Democratic nominee who didn’t choke saying the word “union.” We need to strengthen our unions by letting them do what they do best – organize our workers. If a majority of workers want a union, they should get a union. And that is why I’ll fight for and why I intend to sign the Employee Free Choice Act when it lands on my desk in the White House.
Here’s what else we’ll do – we’ll put Americans back to work. I applaud your partnership with Helmets-to-Hardhats. I believe we have a responsibility to serve our soldiers as well as they’re serving us, and by helping make sure they have the skills to work in the trades when they come home, you’re living up to that responsibility. As President, I’ll support funding for this critical program.
And we won’t just promote job-training, we’ll promote job-creation. That’s why we’ll pass what I’m calling the Patriot Employer Act that I’ve been working on since I got to the Senate – because in my administration, we’re not going to give tax breaks to companies that ship jobs overseas; we’ll give them to companies that create good jobs with decent wages here in America.
It's his support of EFCA, his organizing his WILLINGNESS and ABILITY to not only SAY the word UNION, but to show that he knows what it freaking means.
When strikes are called, they are the last resort for the union and workers. It usually means that the companies are pushing for things the workers just can't accept. In the case of American Axle, this strike is a problem for this country, not just these workers, but nothing has been heard from these candidates.
American axle is asking its HOURLY workforce to take up to a 60% pay cut but won't talk about management and executive salaries and perks.
From the Detroit Free Press (virtually the only source of news on the strike)
On Feb. 26, 3,650 UAW members at American Axle went on strike after negotiations on a new contract collapsed. The company is seeking to cut wages and benefits in half, saying it needs to cut labor costs to compete with other suppliers that have won concessions from their unions.
The UAW, which has said it needs more data to substantiate those demands, argues the cuts are too steep for a company that is not in bankruptcy and made a profit last year.
I asking everyone to help here because we've become so consumed with the current primary that we're missing the kind of impact this strike is having on these workers and our economy.
As companies draw closer to the end of the first quarter, a Wall Street analyst warned that he expects the strike to take a toll on profits. Earlier this week, Deutsche Bank auto analyst Rod Lache cut first-quarter earnings estimates for GM, American Axle, Lear Corp. and Magna International Inc. because of the strike.
"There is concern that the prolonged shutdown could cause significant distress amongst smaller suppliers, ultimately translating to additional costs for tier 1 suppliers and automakers," Lache said in a note to investors Wednesday.
So far, the strike has forced GM to cut production or shut 29 factories. That number is expected to rise to 30 by Monday.
>snip<
Lache expects GM to lose $2.41 a share in the first quarter, compared with his previous estimate of $1.05.
This strike has affected their suppliers as well as GM and that means, it is affecting other communities outside of the striking facilities from the Adrian Daily Telegram
ADRIAN — The strike at Detroit-based American Axle & Manufacturing Inc. has entered its fourth week, and its impact has extended to some local companies.
Inteva Products LLC in Adrian, which is the former Delphi Interiors and Closures facility, and Hi-Lex Controls Inc. in Hudson are among companies affected as a result of the strike that started Feb. 26 after American Axle failed to reach a contract agreement with the United Auto Workers union on economic issues.
UAW Local 2031 President Melissa Rogers said Tuesday the strike is the reason employees are experiencing job layoffs from Inteva Products. Those layoffs officially began March 3.
This is a HUGE ISSUE and we aren't discussing these families, these cities, these companies, we aren't asking any of the three candidates to even address these issues and we certainly aren't putting pressure on Dick E Dauch or his son, an executive with American Axle, Dick F Dauch, to fairly negotiate with the UAW.
So, today, I'm begging each of you to take a minute and do something, I'm asking you to:
1. contact the campaigns of Clinton, McCain, and Obama 2. ask them where they stand on the American Axle strike and 3. ask them what they're going to do about it.
When you've done that, let the strikers know by contacting the locals and the region. Your support is more important than you know.
Well, really this is more about TeamsterPower. I've had the pleasure of meeting him and talking to him about union issues. He totally rocks. I try to keep up on anything he posts on all the diary based sites, but things do fall through the cracks. For instance, I missed his recent post on Dailykos which detailed why every union worker should vote for Obama.
He opens with
Two words: Replacement workers.
And it just gets even better after that...
Permanent replacements have been around since 1938 when the Supreme Court said in NLRB v. Mackay Radio & Telegraph Co. that a company does not have to reinstate "economic strikers" if it hired strikebreakers to continue the business. Now, for you business majors out there, that may sound well and good. Why should I rehire a worker who went on strike for a raise if I can find someone to do the job for less money? Why? Because it's fair. It's the right thing to do. Because many times, these workers have sacrificed to make your business a success and when it succeeds they should be rewarded, not treated like draft animals or machines.
Consider the workers at Diamond Walnut in Stockton, Calif. In 1985 Diamond was facing bankruptcy and turned to its workers for help. The workers, Teamsters from Local Union 601, agreed to take pay cuts of up to 40% to help the company weather the tough times.
By 1991 Diamond had reached the Fortune 500 and bragged of record profits. But instead of giving those profits back to its employees, the company demanded more concessions.
On Sept. 4, 1991, the workers went on strike -- a fight that would last 14 years only because Diamond was prepared. As soon as the strike was called the company began hiring replacement workers.
I hated Diamond, but I really loved how the workers on strike for 14 years were able to work with the scabs and bring both groups into the same union. More from TeamsterPower on Diamond Walnuts and supporting Obama.
But today, Barack Obama is the only presidential candidate left who supports a ban on permanent replacement workers. (Edwards also supported such a ban.)
If you value your union, if you value the right to collective bargaining, if you value the labor movement, then you will vote for Barack Obama. The Employee Free Choice Act is important. Renegotiating NAFTA and stopping other trade agreements that sell out working Americans is important. But if workers continue to be denied the right to strike, they lose the ability to fight for economic justice. Unions must organize more and more workers to exceed losses. And what value is solidarity if you're all unemployed?
The members of Local 601 are heroes. They took a stand on principal and through ingenuity and perseverance actually succeeded in a situation where most strikers fail.
After more than a year of crossing the picket line, the replacements realized they were Diamond's pawns. See, even "permanent" replacement workers can be fired at will without a union contract to protect them. They voted with the strikers for union representation with the Teamsters. The workers turned the tables on Diamond.
Having followed the Diamond strike (yep, I really am that girl, surprise surprise!!), I knew everything that he wrote about, but I couldn't put it so eloquently.
So, way to go TeamsterPower!
And, here's hoping today's voting reminds every union household out there who has always supported worker's rights (read UNITE-HERE's endorsement for more on that) through actions and not dissing workers by sitting on the board of Wal-Mart.
written by bendygirl
at Wednesday, February 20, 2008
So, that is now UNITE-HERE, UFCW, SEIU and now the Teamsters. Only the UFW has endorsed Clinton from the Change to Win unions. I suppose they take their name seriously, huh? We really do need to Change to Win, change the party, change the way we organize, change the way we look at the country and our foreign policy. (BTW, it's CNN that broke the story for me, no link yet)
