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Nov 14, 2008 UAW, DETROIT AUTOMAKERS GATHER SUPPORT FOR IMMEDIATE FINANCIAL AID UAW, DETROIT AUTOMAKERS GATHER SUPPORT FOR IMMEDIATE FINANCIAL AID By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--Including a push from President-elect Barack Obama (D), the Auto Workers and Detroit’s auto makers are gathering political support for immediate... more...
Nov 14, 2008 SPEAKERS: LONG-TERM SLUMP GIVES CHANCE FOR LONGER-TERM RECOVERY MEASURES SPEAKERS: LONG-TERM SLUMP GIVES CHANCE FOR LONGER-TERM RECOVERY MEASURES By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--The present Bush economic crash will last at least 18 months and gives the incoming Obama administration and the new Democratic-run Congress the... more...
Nov 7, 2008 ECONOMY MOTIVATES LABOR MOBILIZATION ECONOMY MOTIVATES LABOR MOBILIZATION By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (PAI)--The recent U.S. financial crash cost Rachelle Pablo further work in her hometown of Albuquerque--and sent her out on the... more...
Nov 7, 2008 CHANGE TO WIN: ELECTION SHOWS MANDATE FOR PRO-WORKER CHANGE CHANGE TO WIN: ELECTION SHOWS MANDATE FOR PRO-WORKER CHANGE By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--The 2008 election results, headlined by Democratic nominee Barack Obama’s White House win, provide a... more...
Nov 7, 2008 LABOR’S LEGISLATIVE AGENDA STARTING TO EMERGE LABOR’S LEGISLATIVE AGENDA STARTING TO EMERGE By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--By bits and pieces, in congratulatory statements to President-elect Barack Obama and in press conferences, labor’s... more...
Nov 6, 2008 AFL-CIO: UNIONISTS WERE 'FIREWALL' FOR OBAMA IN KEY SWING STATES Overwhelming support from unionists and their families became the "firewall" of votes that provided victory for Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama in key swing states such as Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Minnesota, top AFL-CIO officials and their polling analyst said. more...
Nov 6, 2008 EMPLOYEE FREE CHOICE ACT: LABOR'S TOP PRIORITY, BUT ROADBLOCKS REMAIN Passage of the Employee Free Choice Act, to help level the playing field between workers and bosses in union organizing and in bargaining or first contracts, will be labor's top priority in the new 111th Congress, top AFL-CIO officials said. But roadblocks remain for the legislation. more...
Oct 31, 2008 Unions vow to organize world's largest airline Unions vow to organize world's largest airline by Barb Kucera, Workday Minnesota WASHINGTON – In the face of a Justice Department ruling clearing the way for the merger of Delta and Northwest Airlines, unions vowed to organize workers at what is now the world's largest carrier. On... more...
Oct 31, 2008 TANKING ECONOMY PRODUCES PROPOSALS FOR SECOND STIMULUS TANKING ECONOMY PRODUCES PROPOSALS FOR SECOND STIMULUS By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--With the economy tanking and with Congress headed for a lame-duck session at which a second stimulus... more...
Oct 31, 2008 It Ain't Over til It's Over: Why Obama Must Fight to the Finish Community organizers and residents of South Los Angeles and throughout the country are excited that Barack Obama has built a significant lead in this historic presidential election. But victory for Obama is still an uphill struggle, as he and his supporters must overcome the Republican biases... more...
Oct 31, 2008 The World of Labor The gap between the wealthiest and the poorest is wider in the United States than in 30 other developed countries, according to a new three-year study by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). more...
Oct 24, 2008 BARACK OBAMA FOR PRESIDENT In its 55 years as the leading weekly independent news service for unions, their members and their media, Press Associates Union News Service has never endorsed a political candidate. Until now. more...
Oct 24, 2008 HOUSE VOTE SCORES: MASS DEMOCRATIC AGREEMENT WITH LABOR STANDS HOUSE VOTE SCORES: MASS DEMOCRATIC AGREEMENT WITH LABOR STANDS By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--If you were a House Democrat this year--at least before the month-long August congressional recess and the subsequent controversial votes on the $700 billion... more...
Oct 24, 2008 SENATE VOTES: 49 DEMOCRATS, MAINE’S REPUBLICANS AGREE WITH FED SENATE VOTES: 49 DEMOCRATS, MAINE’S REPUBLICANS AGREE WITH FED WASHINGTON (PAI)--In an overwhelming show of party unity, 49 of the Senate’s 51 Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents voted in agreement with stands that the AFL-CIO took on eight key votes the federation... more...
Oct 24, 2008 FED LAUNCHES FINAL GET-OUT-THE-VOTE PUSH; CHANGE TO WIN HITS McCAIN ON WORKER RIGHTS FED LAUNCHES FINAL GET-OUT-THE-VOTE PUSH; CHANGE TO WIN HITS McCAIN ON WORKER RIGHTS WASHINGTON (PAI)--The AFL-CIO led the rest of organized labor in launching its final, intense, get-out-the-vote push for the Nov. 4 election, starting Oct. 20. Meanwhile, Change to Win hit... more...
Oct 24, 2008 PANEL: NEW MEDIA HAVE PROFOUND IMPACT ON POLITICAL DIALOGUE PANEL: NEW MEDIA HAVE PROFOUND IMPACT ON POLITICAL DIALOGUE By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--New media, led by Internet phenomena such as YouTube, blogs, e-mails and Twitter, are having a profound impact on the nation’s political dialogue, a panel convened... more...
Oct 24, 2008 WORKERS ECHO CLINTON CHANT AT PRO-OBAMA RALLY: ‘JOBS, BABY, JOBS!' WORKERS ECHO CLINTON CHANT AT PRO-OBAMA RALLY: ‘JOBS, BABY, JOBS!' By Larry Sillanpa The Duluth Labor World and Press Associates HIBBING, Minn. (PAI)--Led by Sen. Hillary Clinton, workers on Minnesota’s fabled Iron Range have come up with a chant that mimics--and... more...
Oct 19, 2008 Union workers proud of handling, delivering, counting ballots Though nearly all of it is behind the scenes, union members are a big part of making Oregon’s vote-by-mail system clean, fair, and efficient. That’s because much of the handling, delivery and counting of the ballots is done by union workers. more...
Oct 17, 2008 FIRST HIGH COURT LABOR CASE TACKLES RETALIATION AGAINSTWITNESSES IN COMPLAINT ABOUT SEXUAL HARASSMENT ON THE JOB Months after Vicky Crawford, a 30-year veteran worker and head of the payroll office of the Metro School District in Nashville, Tenn., was a witness in a sexual harassment complaint against the district's human relations supervisor, Crawford was suspended and then fired. But was she fired in... more...
Oct 17, 2008 APPELLATE COURTS: WAL-MART LOSES AGAIN A PAI Special Report--Court cases of interest to workers APPELLATE COURTS: WAL-MART LOSES AGAIN By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer DENVER ... more...
Oct 17, 2008 TRW WORKERS: RECESSION, ECONOMIC CRISIS MEANS NEXT PRESIDENT MUST FOCUS ON JOBS TRW WORKERS: RECESSION, ECONOMIC CRISIS MEANS NEXT PRESIDENT MUST FOCUS ON JOBS By Barb Kucera Editor, www.workdayminnesota.org and Press Associates ... more...
Oct 15, 2008 $250 Billion Given to 9 Major Banks; Not a Penny to Help Working People The U.S. Treasury distributed $250 billion to nine of the nation’s largest banks, which, it said, was a step to unfreezing the credit crisis. It is questionable whether some of those banks needed all that money to induce them to offer more loans to businesses and institutions. more...
Oct 10, 2008 Our Historic Election Once every generation or so, with one exception, the U.S. undergoes an historic election, one that bids fair to set the future course of the nation for years to come. more...
Oct 10, 2008 OBAMA PROPOSES FUNDAMENTAL CHANGE BUT ECONOMY, CONGRESS, RED INK MAY HAMPER HIM What's in it for workers if Barack Obama, the 47-year-old Democratic presidential nominee, senator from Illinois and the first African-American ever nominated by a major political party for the highest office in the land, wins? more...
Oct 10, 2008 MCCAIN CASTS HIMSELF AS A MAVERICK, BUT HIS RECORD SAYS OTHERWISE On the campaign trail, and in his "Straight Talk Express," Republican presidential nominee John McCain casts himself as a "maverick," willing to stand up to his party and its leaders when necessary. His record says otherwise. more...
Oct 10, 2008 PRESIDENTIAL RACE: OBAMA'S IN THE LEAD, BUT... With just over two weeks to go until the balloting on Nov. 4--and as voting by mail has already started in 24 states--Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama enjoys a large electoral vote lead and a smaller popular vote percentage edge over Republican nominee John McCain, state-by-state... more...
Oct 10, 2008 SENATE OUTLOOK: '60 IN '08' UNLIKELY SENATE OUTLOOK: ’60 IN ‘08’ UNLIKELY CHICAGO (PAI)--Back in August, at the AFL-CIO Executive Council meeting in Chicago, federation President John J. Sweeney set a lofty election goal for 2008, second only to winning back the White House for workers: “60 in... more...
Oct 10, 2008 HOUSE OUTLOOK: DEMOCRATS TO GAIN, BUT HOW MUCH? ELECTION 2008 OUTLOOK: HOUSE OUTLOOK: DEMOCRATS TO GAIN, BUT HOW MUCH? CHARLOTTE, N.C. (PAI)--Even Sue Myrick is looking over her shoulder, worried. And that should tell you a lot about Democratic prospects for House gains in 2008. Myrick is the 7-term... more...
Oct 10, 2008 LABOR MASS MOBILIZATION ON TWO FRONTS: GETTING OUT THE VOTE, PROTECTING VOTERS LABOR MASS MOBILIZATION ON TWO FRONTS: GETTING OUT THE VOTE, PROTECTING VOTERS By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--Organized labor’s mass mobilization for the 2008 election has two big aims. The first is to maximize labor’s share of... more...
Oct 9, 2008 Labor, Community Protest Palin Fundraiser in Burlingame Several hundred protestors greeted Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin when she visited the San Francisco Bay Area to raise funds for the sagging McCain-Palin campaign Sunday, October 5 in Burlingame. more...
Oct 9, 2008 Water War: IBEW members at TMWA defeat takeover attempt When Jackson Bergland got an early-morning phone call on a Friday in July, he knew immediately what he had to do. more...
Oct 3, 2008 UNION LEADERS BLAST BAILOUT UNION LEADERS BLAST BAILOUT By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--Union leaders, including AFL-CIO President John J. Sweeney and leaders of the Change to Win unions, blasted the $700 billion bailout of Wall Street that lawmakers struggled to pass the... more...
Oct 3, 2008 NUMBER OF JOBLESS HIGHEST IN 16 YRS. UNEMPLOYMENT RATE STAYS AT 6.1%; NUMBER OF JOBLESS HIGHEST IN 16 YRS. By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--The nation’s unemployment rate stayed at 6.1% in September, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said. But the number of jobless rose by... more...
Oct 3, 2008 WITNESSES: BUSH REGIME LAX ON ENFORCING CHILD LABOR LAWS WITNESSES: BUSH REGIME LAX ON ENFORCING CHILD LABOR LAWS WASHINGTON (PAI)--Add child labor laws to the raft of worker legislation that has fallen victim to non-enforcement by the anti-worker GOP Bush regime. Witnesses told the House Education and Labor... more...
Sep 29, 2008 Union Members Rally In NY to Protest Bailout Just before lawmakers announced they had struck an agreement on principles for a plan to help the worsening financial crisis, more than a thousand union members rallied near the Stock Exchange in Lower Manhattan at noon Thursday. They had called an emergency protest to voice opposition to the... more...
Sep 26, 2008 UNIONS DEMAND TAXPAYER, HOMEOWNER PROTECTIONS IN WALL STREET BAILOUT UNIONS DEMAND TAXPAYER, HOMEOWNER PROTECTIONS IN WALL STREET BAILOUT By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--Faced with fast-moving congressional action, at GOP Bush regime behest, on the $700 billion Wall Street bailout bill, unions lobbied furiously to protect taxpayers... more...
Sep 26, 2008 BAILOUT II: CHANGE TO WIN ADVANCES $350B PLAN TO HELP MAIN STREET, NOT WALL STREET BAILOUT II: CHANGE TO WIN ADVANCES $350B PLAN TO HELP MAIN STREET, NOT WALL STREET WASHINGTON (PAI)--With congressional leaders and anti-worker GOP President George W. Bush working on a projected $700 billion bailout of the financial system, the 7-union 6-million member Change to Win... more...
Sep 26, 2008 SPEAKER: UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE ADVOCATES FACE UPHILL BATTLE SPEAKER: UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE ADVOCATES FACE UPHILL BATTLE By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--Advocates of comprehensive universal health care face an uphill battle to get it approved--one that may take years--and not just because of the financial crisis lawmakers... more...
Sep 26, 2008 Why Barack Obama is Good for Musicians At the musicians’ union, we take our political endorsements very seriously. They serve as a strong indication of our values and our positions on an array of issues from worker safety, increased music and fine arts funding for public schools, pension protection and many others. Barack Obama... more...
Sep 19, 2008 SWEENEY: DEREGULATION LED TO FINANCIAL CHAOS SWEENEY: DEREGULATION LED TO FINANCIAL CHAOS WASHINGTON (PAI)--Massive deregulation and federal failure to oversee and discipline markets led to the financial chaos and collapses that hit... more...
Sep 19, 2008 PANEL: U.S. PENSION SYSTEM NEEDS RESTRUCTURING PANEL: U.S. PENSION SYSTEM NEEDS RESTRUCTURING By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--The U.S. pension system needs massive ... more...
Sep 19, 2008 AFT LAUNCHES TWO BIG INITIATIVES AFT LAUNCHES TWO BIG INITIATIVES WASHINGTON (PAI)--The American Federation of Teachers is launching two big pro-school initiatives, one a pilot program to help its members enhance their... more...
Sep 19, 2008 Film Review: See 'Battle in Seattle' With the recent street clashes at the Republican National Convention and the on-going, multi-billion-dollar bailout of Wall Street, the timing for the release of "Battle in Seattle" couldn't be better. more...
Sep 19, 2008 NEWSPAPER GUILD PRESIDENT LUNZER, A ST. PAUL UNIONIST, BLASTS HEAVY-HANDED POLICING DURING GOP CONVENTION IN HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER GUILD PRESIDENT LUNZER, A ST. PAUL UNIONIST, BLASTS HEAVY-HANDED POLICING DURING GOP CONVENTION IN HOMETOWN ST. PAUL , Minn. (PAI)--Newspaper Guild President Bernie... more...
Sep 19, 2008 NEW VOICES JOIN EFFORT TO MOBILIZE UNION MEMBERS FOR NOVEMBER ELECTION NEW VOICES JOIN EFFORT TO MOBILIZE UNION MEMBERS FOR NOVEMBER ELECTION By Barb Kucera, Workday Minnesota editor Special to PAI DULUTH , Minn.... more...
Sep 19, 2008 THE FINANCIAL CRISIS: A POLITICAL HISTORY September 19, 2008 THE FINANCIAL CRISIS: A POLITICAL HISTORY As the executive branch and Congress deal with the financial crisis that has hit Wall Street for the last month--and that threatens Main Street--it is useful to recount a little political history of how we got where we are. ... more...
Sep 18, 2008 A CRITICAL ECONOMIC STIMULUS Unless Congress and President Bush act quickly, more than one million Americans will soon run out of the Unemployment Insurance benefits they desperately need to survive in these perilous economic times. more...
Sep 12, 2008 UNION ELECTRICIAN SPEAKS OUT ON UNSAFE WORK, ELECTROCUTION OF TROOPS IN IRAQ UNION ELECTRICIAN SPEAKS OUT ON UNSAFE WORK, ELECTROCUTION OF TROOPS IN IRAQ By Michael Gutwig The Northwest Labor Press Special to PAI PORTLAND, Ore. (PAI)--A union electrician from Battle Ground, Wash., is raising... more...
Sep 12, 2008 MACHINISTS OK DUES HIKE, BACK OBAMA AT CLINTON’S URGING Boeing strike looms over conclave: MACHINISTS OK DUES HIKE, BACK OBAMA AT CLINTON’S URGING By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer ORLANDO, Fla. (PAI)--Girding themselves for struggles ahead--and for one with Boeing that... more...
Sep 12, 2008 STEEL WORKERS, ALLIES LAUNCH ‘GREEN JOBS’ CAMPAIGN STEEL WORKERS, ALLIES LAUNCH ‘GREEN JOBS’ CAMPAIGN PITTSBURGH (PAI)--Add “green jobs” to all the other campaigns traversing the country this fall, thanks to the Steel Workers, plus environmental groups. ... more...
Sep 12, 2008 THE PRESIDENCY: DO YOU REALLY WANT THIS JOB? WASHINGTON WINDOW/PAI September 12, 2008 THE PRESIDENCY: DO YOU REALLY WANT THIS JOB? About 45 or 46 years ago, President John F. Kennedy and Arizona GOP Sen. Barry Goldwater had a private chat in the Oval Office. It was... more...
Sep 5, 2008 REPUBLICAN CONVENTION DRAWS PROTESTS, ARRESTS REPUBLICAN CONVENTION DRAWS PROTESTS, ARRESTS By Workday Minnesota and Press Associates ST. PAUL, Minn. (PAI)--As the Republican National Convention convened on Sept. 1 in downtown St. Paul, Minn., more than 10,000 people,... more...
Sep 5, 2008 THOUSANDS 'TAKE BACK LABOR DAY' AT FESTIVAL DURING GOP CONVENTION THOUSANDS 'TAKE BACK LABOR DAY' AT FESTIVAL DURING GOP CONVENTION By Barb Kucera, Workday Minnesota editor Special to PAI ST. PAUL, Minn. (PAI)--Many of the thousands of young people gathered at Harriet Island in the... more...
Sep 5, 2008 NADER, AGAIN RUNNING AS THIRD-PARTY CANDIDATE, DEMANDS TAFT-HARTLEY REPEAL NADER, AGAIN RUNNING AS THIRD-PARTY CANDIDATE, DEMANDS TAFT-HARTLEY REPEAL WASHINGTON (PAI)--In a bid to attract workers’ votes, consumer crusader Ralph Nader, again running as a third-party candidate for the... more...
Sep 5, 2008 NEWS ANALYSIS: UNION LEADERS URGE, PLAN ALL-OUT DRIVE FOR OBAMA NEWS ANALYSIS: UNION LEADERS URGE, PLAN ALL-OUT DRIVE FOR OBAMA By Ed Finkelstein The St. Louis Labor Tribune and Press Associates DENVER... more...
Sep 5, 2008 ON THE OUTSIDE LOOKING IN, VS. ON THE INSIDE LOOKING OUT WASHINGTON WINDOW September 5, 2008 ON THE OUTSIDE LOOKING IN, VS. ON THE INSIDE LOOKING OUT Now that the two major party conventions are over, with their nominees chosen and their platforms adopted, one great contrast strikes... more...
Sep 4, 2008 McCain Communications Tool Kit In this election year, working families have two choices: four more years of jobs moving overseas, skyrocketing oil prices and economic misery; or a chance to turn things around and steer America on the path to change. Use this communicators' tool kit to educate and inform your members on why... more...
Sep 2, 2008 Baltimore Stadium Cleaners Organized by Workers Center Join AFSCME Tanya Diggins, a cleaner at the Baltimore Orioles baseball stadium, considers herself lucky. After four years on the job, she knows she’s going to have work cleaning up after fans. That’s not the case for many cleaners at Camden Yards, who are hired by a subcontractor and gather around the... more...
Aug 29, 2008 SWEENEY, BURGER EMPHASIZE THREAT TO MIDDLE CLASS, AMERICAN DREAM SWEENEY, BURGER EMPHASIZE THREAT TO MIDDLE CLASS, AMERICAN DREAM DENVER (PAI)--The nation’s two top union leaders, AFL-CIO President John J. Sweeney and Change To Win Chair Anna Burger, emphasized the threat to the middle class and the American Dream in their speeches to the... more...
Aug 29, 2008 LEDBETTER TELLS DEMS OF SEXUAL PAY DISCRIMINATION LEDBETTER TELLS DEMS OF SEXUAL PAY DISCRIMINATION DENVER (PAI)--The common story of sexual discrimination in women workers’ paychecks--and how it affects working families--came to the... more...
Aug 29, 2008 UNION LEADERS CONFRONT CONTINUING PROBLEM: CONVINCING RELUCTANT MEMBERS TO BACK OBAMA UNION LEADERS CONFRONT CONTINUING PROBLEM: CONVINCING RELUCTANT MEMBERS TO BACK OBAMA DENVER (PAI)--Union leaders attending the Democratic National Convention in Denver confronted a continuing problem: Convincing some... more...
Aug 29, 2008 NOT SWEETNESS AND LIGHT: LOCAL DEM OFFICIALS BASH TEACHERS UNIONS, DRAW D.C. FED RETORT NOT SWEETNESS AND LIGHT: LOCAL DEM OFFICIALS BASH TEACHERS UNIONS, DRAW D.C. FED RETORT DENVER (PAI)--Not all was sweetness and light between local Democratic elected officials--several big-city mayors and school... more...
Aug 29, 2008 GOP DELEGATES MAY GET SOME SURPRISES: TRUTH COMMISSIONS, 'POOR PEOPLE'S MARCH,' ANTI-BUSH BUS, SEIU DEMONSTRATION GOP DELEGATES MAY GET SOME SURPRISES: TRUTH COMMISSIONS, 'POOR PEOPLE'S MARCH,' ANTI-BUSH BUS, SEIU DEMONSTRATION By Workday Minnesota and Press Associates MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL (PAI)--Republican convention... more...
Aug 22, 2008 BIG PUSH ON AT DEM CONVENTION FOR EMPLOYEE FREE CHOICE ACT BIG PUSH ON AT DEM CONVENTION FOR EMPLOYEE FREE CHOICE ACT DENVER (PAI)--A big push to get the Democratic Party solidly behind the Employee Free Choice Act and workers’ right to organize will be one of the two main goals for unionists at the Democratic National Convention.... more...
Aug 22, 2008 DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION: WORK--WITH SOME FUN DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION: WORK--WITH SOME FUN By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer BLOOMINGTON, Ill. (PAI)--For Mike Matejka, the Democratic National Convention will be hectic. There will be caucuses, volunteer work, and lobbying, all rolled into four frantic... more...
Aug 22, 2008 LEE: DEM PLATFORM STRONG ON WORKERS’ ISSUES LEE: DEM PLATFORM STRONG ON WORKERS’ ISSUES By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer DENVER (PAI)--The Democratic platform is a strong document on workers’ issues, including an open endorsement of the Employee Free Choice Act, says a top AFL-CIO staffer who served on the key... more...
Aug 22, 2008 MCCAIN TARGETED BY AFL-CIO CHINA TRADE MAILER, CHANGE TO WIN TRUTH SQUAD, VIDEOS MCCAIN TARGETED BY AFL-CIO CHINA TRADE MAILER, CHANGE TO WIN TRUTH SQUAD, VIDEOS WASHINGTON (PAI)--Organized labor is targeting Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) in several innovative ways, with the AFL-CIO aiming a mailer linking McCain’s trade policies to the loss of U.S.... more...
Aug 22, 2008 LABOR AT TABLE IN PLANS TO SLOW GLOBAL WARMING LABOR AT TABLE IN PLANS TO SLOW GLOBAL WARMING By Don McIntosh The Northwest Labor Press Special to PAI PORTLAND, Ore. (PAI)--Global warming isn’t coming. It’s already here. From floods... more...
Aug 15, 2008 UNION GROUPS DEMAND FEDS ACT VS. WAL-MART ANTI-OBAMA VOTING ORDER UNION GROUPS DEMAND FEDS ACT VS. WAL-MART ANTI-OBAMA VOTING ORDER By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--The AFL-CIO, American Rights at Work, Change to Win and WakeUp Wal-Mart formally asked the... more...
Aug 15, 2008 EPI: CHINESE TRADE SURPLUS WITH U.S. COSTS ALMOST 2.3M JOBS EPI: CHINESE TRADE SURPLUS WITH U.S. COSTS ALMOST 2.3M JOBS WASHINGTON (PAI)--China’s trade surplus with the U.S., created by undervalued currency, low or no pay for Chinese workers and a deliberate drive for industrial... more...
Aug 15, 2008 COURT: BUSH FAA OWES OVERTIME TO HALF OF ALL AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS COURT: BUSH FAA OWES OVERTIME TO HALF OF ALL AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--Even as the anti-worker GOP Bush Federal Aviation Administration continues to battle its air... more...
Aug 12, 2008 15,000 reporters, but will we get the true story? In the years I've lived in the Twin Cities, I've witnessed some pretty high-profile events: a Super Bowl and the visit of Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev. But nothing compares to the hype surrounding the upcoming Republican National Convention. more...
Aug 8, 2008 UNION LEADERS CONFRONT RACE-AND-POLITICS ISSUE HEAD-ON UNION LEADERS CONFRONT RACE-AND-POLITICS ISSUE HEAD-ON By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer CHICAGO (PAI)--Facing the fact that many unionists may be reluctant to vote for Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) for the presidency because he is African-American, union leaders meeting in... more...
Aug 8, 2008 FED GOAL: FILIBUSTER-PROOF SENATE MAJORITY FED GOAL: FILIBUSTER-PROOF SENATE MAJORITY By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer CHICAGO (PAI)--The AFL-CIO has set a political goal, second only to helping presumed Democratic nominee Barack Obama win the White House, of achieving a filibuster-proof 60-vote pro-worker Senate... more...
Aug 8, 2008 SWEENEY: OBAMA CAMPAIGN TO SEEK 3M VOLUNTEERS, UNIONISTS INCLUDED SWEENEY: OBAMA CAMPAIGN TO SEEK 3M VOLUNTEERS, UNIONISTS INCLUDED By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer CHICAGO (PAI)--Imagine mobilizing one of every 100 Americans, a population equal to that of the entire city of Chicago, and putting them out on the campaign trail.... more...
Aug 1, 2008 OBAMA TO UNION LEADERS: 'WE CAN'T DO IT WITHOUT YOU' OBAMA TO UNION LEADERS: ‘WE CAN’T DO IT WITHOUT YOU’ By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--Prospective Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) told more than 2,500 union leaders... more...
Aug 1, 2008 WITNESSES WARN OF TURBULENCE AHEAD IF DELTA BUYS NORTHWEST WITNESSES WARN OF TURBULENCE AHEAD IF DELTA BUYS NORTHWEST WASHINGTON (PAI)--Union leaders and a labor economist whose university has spent eight years studying the airline industry are warning of turbulence ahead I... more...
Aug 1, 2008 HOUSE OKS PAYCHECK FAIRNESS ACT FOR FEMALE WORKERS HOUSE OKS PAYCHECK FAIRNESS ACT FOR FEMALE WORKERS WASHINGTON (PAI)--Turning back objections from big business and yet another veto threat from the anti-worker GOP Bush regime, the House July 31 passed the Paycheck... more...
Aug 1, 2008 POSTVILLE TAKES CENTER STAGE IN NATIONAL IMMIGRATION DEBATE POSTVILLE TAKES CENTER STAGE IN NATIONAL IMMIGRATION DEBATE By Deborah Rosenstein Workday Minn esota and Press Associates POSTVILLE, Iowa (PAI)--The... more...
Jul 30, 2008 AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust Pledges $7.8 Million to Keep NYC Housing Complex Affordable AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust Pledges $7.8 Million to Keep NYC Housing Complex Affordable by AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust NEW YORK-The AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (HIT) has committed to invest $7.8 million in Big Six Towers, a cooperative housing complex in Queens with long ties to... more...
Jul 28, 2008 AFL-CIO Labor Day Communicators' Tool Kit The AFL-CIO has issued a Communicators' Toolkit for Labor Day. Goodies include tips for putting together a workers' roundtable discussion, media outreach materials, artwork, posters, and more! more...
Jul 28, 2008 The Stench... The stench was appalling. Men were working in the dust without benefit of masks or even a bandanna pulled across their faces. The mounds of dirt along the road had just hours before been layers of Cedar River mud settled several feet deep making the thoroughfare impassable. This was day three of... more...
Jul 25, 2008 BUSH LABOR DEPT. TWISTS RULES TO HARM WORKPLACE SAFETY BUSH LABOR DEPT. TWISTS RULES TO HARM WORKPLACE SAFETY By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--In yet another demonstration of its anti-worker attitudes, the GOP Bush regime’s Labor Department is using an... more...
Jul 25, 2008 WITNESSES: IMMIGRATION’S IOWA RAID SMASHES FAMILIES, TOWN WITNESSES: IMMIGRATION’S IOWA RAID SMASHES FAMILIES, TOWN By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--The Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency’s now-infamous raid on the nation’s biggest kosher meat... more...
Jul 25, 2008 NEWSPAPER GUILD PROTESTS CUTS AT THE BALTIMORE SUN NEWSPAPER GUILD PROTESTS CUTS AT THE BALTIMORE SUN BALTIMORE (PAI)--Waving signs that said, among other things, “Sell Zell!”, more than 100 members of the Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild protested cuts engineered... more...
Jul 24, 2008 Students Take to Interactive Union Education “We’ll just let these two ladies clean the bathroom because that’s a woman’s job,” declared Lee Medley, president of the Galveston Central Labor Council, with a sly glance toward the men. It was play-acting, but with a purpose. more...
Jul 21, 2008 A SUMMER OF DEADLY HEAT A SUMMER OF DEADLY HEAT By Dick Meister The summer heat is posing serious dangers for the farmworkers who've helped make California the nation's leading supplier of fruits and vegetables. The state has rules designed to protect workers from the devastating temperatures in the... more...
Jul 18, 2008 WITNESSES: BUSH LABOR DEPT. WAGE & HOUR ENFORCEMENT DROPS, WORKERS CHEATED WITNESSES: BUSH LABOR DEPT. WAGE & HOUR ENFORCEMENT DROPS, WORKERS CHEATED By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--Enforcement of wage-and-hour laws, to ensure workers get at least the minimum wage and the overtime pay they deserve, has dropped drastically under the GOP... more...
Jul 18, 2008 UNIONS, ALLIES MAKE GOP PRIVATIZATION OF SOCIAL SECURITY AN ELECTION ISSUE UNIONS, ALLIES MAKE GOP PRIVATIZATION OF SOCIAL SECURITY AN ELECTION ISSUE By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--Unions and their allies launched a drive to make GOP schemes to privatize Social Security an election issue--and this time their target is presumed... more...
Jul 11, 2008 UNIONS HELP FORM LARGE COALITION TO PUT UNIVERSAL AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE ATOP CAMPAIGN, 2009 AGENDA UNIONS HELP FORM LARGE COALITION TO PUT UNIVERSAL AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE ATOP CAMPAIGN, 2009 AGENDA By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--The nation’s unions, including the United Food and... more...
Jul 11, 2008 TRUMKA TO WORKERS: LOOK PAST OBAMA’S RACE TO HIS ECONOMICS TRUMKA TO WORKERS: LOOK PAST OBAMA’S RACE TO HIS ECONOMICS LAS VEGAS (PAI)--Taking on an electoral problem usually mentioned in whispers, or avoided completely, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka has challenged white voters who have doubts about Sen.... more...
Jul 11, 2008 AFL-CIO LAUNCHES NEW UNION VETERANS GROUP WITH ELECTION, LOBBYING FOCUS AFL-CIO LAUNCHES NEW UNION VETERANS GROUP WITH ELECTION, LOBBYING FOCUS WASHINGTON (PAI)--Saying that unionists who are veterans should band together to protect their interests as veterans as well as their interests as workers, the AFL-CIO... more...
Jul 10, 2008 Think it's easy to form a union? Better think again Have you seen the ads? Center for Union Facts, a business-funded anti-union group, has been running a pair of television ads in Oregon and several other states. One uses humor, the other sarcasm, but their key message is that "union bosses" are trying to change federal law to force people to join... more...
Jul 5, 2008 REFLECTIONS ON INDEPENDENCE AND FREEDOM Independence Day, 2008 REFLECTIONS ON INDEPENDENCE AND FREEDOM by Mark Gruenberg Another Independence Day has been celebrated, complete with the now-familiar rituals of parades, pompous speeches, fireworks, pompous speeches, backyard barbeques, and still more speeches--many... more...
Jul 3, 2008 Wal-Mart violated worker rights more than 2 million times, Minnesota judge rules Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer, violated the law more than 2 million times over a six-year period by denying workers time for breaks and forcing them to work "off the clock" for no pay, a Minnesota judge has ruled. more...
Jul 3, 2008 JOINT BARGAINING, ORGANIZING TOP GOALS OF STEEL WORKERS-BRITISH UNION PACT JOINT BARGAINING, ORGANIZING TOP GOALS OF STEEL WORKERS-BRITISH UNION PACT LAS VEGAS (PAI)--Joint bargaining and organizing across the Atlantic Ocean, presenting multi-national corporations with a multi-national union arrayed to battle for its workers, are the top goals of the new pact... more...
Jul 2, 2008 Fed. Court Finds Sites Not Responsible for Comments Fed. Court Finds Sites Not Responsible for Comments by Jason Lefkowitz Many union communicators are interested in embracing the new “Web 2.0” world of interactive Web services such as blogs and forums, where users are invited to post their own thoughts instead of being... more...
Jun 28, 2008 AFL-CIO ENDORSES OBAMA AFL-CIO ENDORSES OBAMA By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--As expected--it just took time for emotions to cool and to round up the needed votes--the AFL-CIO on the afternoon of June 26 announced it endorsed Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) for the presidency.... more...
Jun 27, 2008 USWA'S GERARD, AUSTRALIAN UNION LEADER: WRONG ENERGY BILL COULD DEVASTATE MANUFACTURING USWA’S GERARD, AUSTRALIAN UNION LEADER: WRONG ENERGY BILL COULD DEVASTATE MANUFACTURING By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--The wrong type of energy legislation could devastate manufacturing, causing even more high-paying industrial jobs to shift to low-wage... more...
Jun 27, 2008 ANTI-BUSH BUS GETS ROLLING NATIONWIDE ANTI-BUSH BUS GETS ROLLING NATIONWIDE WASHINGTON (PAI)--Call it the carrier of chronicles of calamity. A 28-ton 45-foot “Bush Legacy Bus” detailing the disasters the anti-worker GOP White House denizen and his GOP congressional minions have foisted on the country... more...
Jun 20, 2008 OPEN DOOR POLICY: COMMUNITY SCHOOLS School is not just where Valeria Marquez works. It’s a place where she and her family are welcome to drop in around the clock for learning, healthcare, fun and games, volunteer projects and more learning. more...
Jun 20, 2008 HOUSE VOTES PAID FAMILY LEAVE FOR FEDERAL WORKERS HOUSE VOTES PAID FAMILY LEAVE FOR FEDERAL WORKERS WASHINGTON (PAI)--By a 278-146 vote, the Democratic-run House June 20 voted for between four and eight weeks of paid family leave for the nation’s 2.7 million federal workers. The paid leave bill says the remaining four... more...
Jun 20, 2008 HIGH COURT KILLS CALIF.COMPANY NEUTRALITY LAW HIGH COURT KILLS CALIF.COMPANY NEUTRALITY LAW By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--Labor’s campaign to ensure company neutrality in Californian organizing drives died June 19 in the U.S. Supreme Court. By a 7-2 margin, the justices killed... more...
Jun 20, 2008 MACHINISTS CHEER GAO RULING OVERTURNING AIR FORCE TANKER DEAL MACHINISTS CHEER GAO RULING OVERTURNING AIR FORCE TANKER DEAL UPPER MARLBORO, Md. (PAI)--The Machinists cheered a Government Accountability Office ruling--unusual in federal contracting--to overturn the Air Force’s award of a $35 billion contract to build 179 refueling... more...
Jun 20, 2008 NEW LEADERSHIP GUIDE FOR UNION WOMEN NEW LEADERSHIP GUIDE FOR UNION WOMEN WASHINGTON (PAI)--Prompted by twin findings that female-run units are more successful at winning union organizing drives, but that female organizers often “burn out,” a Michigan State professor has written a new leadership guide for... more...
Jun 19, 2008 Veterans Benefit from Members' Expertise of GI Bill PEF members at the state Division of Veterans' Affairs Bureau of Veterans' Education play an integral role in helping veterans throughout the state access millions of dollars in GI awards each year. more...
Jun 19, 2008 AFSCME ENDORSES OBAMA; FEDERATION ENDORSEMENT 'WITHIN NEXT TWO WEEKS' AFSCME ENDORSES OBAMA; FEDERATION ENDORSEMENT ‘WITHIN NEXT TWO WEEKS’ By Mark Gruenberg PAI Staff Writer WASHINGTON (PAI)--By unanimous vote, the AFSCME Executive Board voted June 18 to endorse Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), his party’s presumed presidential ... more...
Jun 18, 2008 Retired Northwest Labor Press editor, columnist Gene Klare dies Gene Klare, retired editor of the Labor Press, 1978-79 ILPA president and the longest-serving columnist in the newspaper's 109-year history, died May 30 from complications following a mild heart attack. He was 81. more...
Jun 17, 2008 3,500 ATTEND MEDIA REFORM CONFERENCE; LABOR MEDIA LARGELY ABSENT The National Conference for Media Reform came to Minneapolis June 6-8, attracting more than 3,500 participants from across the nation. The conference, hosted by the advocacy group Free Press, celebrated recent victories in the fight to oppose increasing corporate consolidation in media ownership... more...
Jun 13, 2008 HOUSE PASSES JOBLESS BENEFITS BILL t took two tries and a lot of parliamentary maneuvering, but the Democratic-run House on June 12 finally passed a bill lengthening jobless benefits in most states from their present 26 weeks to 39 weeks, and to 52 weeks in states with unemployment rates of at least 6%. more...
Jun 13, 2008 AFL-CIO TO SENATE: DON'T UNDERMINE HEALTH CARE Efforts to reform the nationâ��s health care system should make it universal, comprehensive and affordable without undermining the better aspects of the present employer-based health care system, the AFL-CIO says. more...
Jun 13, 2008 INTL. UNION COALITION BLASTS U.S. LACK OF WORKERS RIGHTS In a scathing and comprehensive report, the International Trades Union Congress has blasted the U.S. for its lack of workers’ rights, telling the World Trade Organization that U.S. deficiencies there should be part of the powerful agency’s biannual review of U.S. trade policy. more...
Jun 10, 2008 FEDERATION, ALLIES STAGE BLITZ FOR INCREASED JOBLESS BENEFITS The AFL-CIO activated its state and local leadership and is appealing to its members to stage a massive blitz on June 10-12 of e-mail and phone calls to Congress, urging passage of a new bill lengthening jobless benefits from their present 26 weeks to 39 weeks in most states and 52 weeks in... more...
Jun 6, 2008 UNION LEADERS, LAWMAKERS UNVEIL NEW TRADE LEGISLATION Saying it is time that trade pacts work for workers, not just for multi-national corporations, top union leaders and several lawmakers unveiled a new comprehensive trade bill on June 5. more...
Jun 6, 2008 LETTER CARRIERS FOOD DRIVE SETS NEW RECORD: 73.1M LBS. Rising generosity from the nation’s postal customers helped the Letter Carriers set a new record for their annual food drive for the needy, collecting 73.1 million pounds of food, the union announced on June 2. more...
Jun 6, 2008 UNION LEADERS, LAWMAKERS UNVEIL NEW TRADE LEGISLATION Saying it is time that trade pacts work for workers, not just for multi-national corporations, top union leaders and several lawmakers unveiled a new comprehensive trade bill on June 5. more...
Jun 6, 2008 FARM WORKERS MARCH IN MEMORY OF PREGNANT MOTHER WHO DIED ON JOB In protest of one of the more-horrifying recent incidents of worker exploitation in the nation’s fields, the United Farm Workers conducted a mass march June 1-4 from Lodi to Sacramento, Calif., in memory of a pregnant mother who died on the job in a California vineyard. more...
Jun 6, 2008 LETTER CARRIERS FOOD DRIVE SETS NEW RECORD: 73.1M LBS. Rising generosity from the nation’s postal customers helped the Letter Carriers set a new record for their annual food drive for the needy, collecting 73.1 million pounds of food, the union announced on June 2. more...
Jun 6, 2008 GREAT LABOR ARTS EXCHANGE SETS SEMINARS, SCHEDULE It’s one of the most “fun” events on labor’s calendar, but the Great Labor Arts Exchange and the Conference on Creative Organizing is fun with a point: To find innovative ways, using music, comedy, dance, the arts and a lot of brainstorming, to energize organizers and attract thousands of... more...
Jun 6, 2008 FARM WORKERS MARCH IN MEMORY OF PREGNANT MOTHER WHO DIED ON JOB In protest of one of the more-horrifying recent incidents of worker exploitation in the nation’s fields, the United Farm Workers conducted a mass march June 1-4 from Lodi to Sacramento, Calif., in memory of a pregnant mother who died on the job in a California vineyard. more...
Jun 5, 2008 WITH PRIMARIES OVER, UNIONS START PLANNING FALL CAMPAIGN With the Democratic and Republican primaries over, and with Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.) their partiesâ?? presumed presidential nominees, unions are turning their attention to the fall campaign. more...
Jun 4, 2008 Why Unions Do Politics The union needs you to help develop the political power to change the law. Today, every union in the country is asking its members the same thing: get active! This is the year to save the American middle class. more...
May 30, 2008 LABORERS LAUNCH MASSIVE PRO-INFRASTRUCTURE CAMPAIGN Calling rebuilding America a bipartisan and nonpartisan issue, the Laborers have launched a massive grass-roots campaign to mobilize both unionists and citizens in favor of dedicated, massive investment in reconstructing the nation’s airports, highways and railroads, union President Terry... more...
May 30, 2008 FLIGHT ATTENDANTS PREPARE FOR FIGHT AT NORTHWEST AFTER DELTA VOTE LOSS The Flight Attendants are preparing to defend themselves and their union at Minneapolis-based Northwest Airlines after AFA -CWA lost an union recognition vote at Atlanta-based Delta Airlines, Minneapolis local president Kevin Griffin says. more...
May 30, 2008 TARPINIAN TO STEP DOWN AS CTW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Greg Tarpinian, Change to Win’s executive director since its founding in 2005, will step down from that post on July 6 to return to the New York-based Labor Research Association, the 7-union group said on May 27. UNITE HERE chief of staff Chris Chafe will succeed him. more...
May 30, 2008 AMERICAN AXLE WORKERS APPROVE NEW PACT, END STRIKE, FACE CUTS