People Before Profit blog

Fast food workers protest low wages, movement catches fire

Fri, 30 Nov 2012 17:00:00 +0000

NEW YORK - Low-wage workers with the help of community groups and labor unions are sending a message to the fast food industry Nov. 29, "We can't live on minimum wages and we won't be intimidated." Fast food workers were the latest to take action for dignity and better wages, joining a movement of Walmart retail and warehouse workers, office cleaners and janitors who say, "Stand up! Join together for a better life."

Shaday Martin from New York Communities for Change (NYCC) was on the line at a Burger King here in downtown Manhattan.

"I'm here to help fast food wage workers to fight for fair wages and respect in their stores. Fast food workers have been under paid and working out of class and disrespected and cheated out of money for years," Martin said.

Just about every grassroots movement in New York City is involved in this quest to help those who have to make choices every day: either pay bills or buy food or get health care for themselves and their families.

NYCC, Make the Road New York and La Fuente - to name just a few grassroots organizations involved - along with the NYC Central Labor Council, SEIU and the entire labor movement has taken up the mantel, along with elected officials.

Donovan Richards, chief of staff to Councilman James Sanders Jr., joined the action.

"I'm here to support the workers of Burger King and all the fast food places, it's time for these corporations to do better by their workers. The way they say we want to super size our fries, they should super size these people's pay checks."

He continued, the workers "should be able to afford to come into their own store and buy a whopper and transportation back home. So it's very important that we are here today. We are super sizing the pockets of these corporations; it's time for them to super size the working people's pockets."

The inertia for this growing movement has roots in the Walmart actions that have been taking place around the country. Black Friday was a high water mark of actions against poor working conditions and low wages at the giant retailer.

Burger King's CEO Bernardo Hees' compensation for 2011 was $4 million. The former CEO, John Chidsey, who stepped down in April 2011, left with total compensation $20 million. Those who do the work earn $7.25. Managers don't fare much better at $8.75 in most cases.

Stanley, who has worked in the fast food industry for five months, was on the line, too. He had this to say, "We work hard and we need more money. $7.25, there is no way we can survive with $7.25, the average money, we can't pay bills. We deserve more money we work hard."

As the workers marched on the sidewalk in front of Burger King, their message was clear: we need to be heard, we want respect and living wages. Some were leafleting, as workers inside Burger King came to the front door and smiled broadly, clearly wishing they could join in.

The people's movement that re-elected Obama is on the move. The atmosphere is charged. One observer said, it's unlike 2008 when the movement seemed to sit back expecting the president to fix the economy without the participation of the people's movement. Actions at fast food establishments took place all day around New York City.

Photo: PW/Gabe Falsetta

Jubilant Steelworkers defeat lockout and win gains

Fri, 30 Nov 2012 11:30:00 +0000

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - A weeklong company lockout at Milbank Manufacturing, a Kansas City, Mo., electrical parts producer, ended Nov. 26 when its 194 Steelworker members overwhelmingly ratified a new three-year contract, the USW said.

Jubilant workers marched back into the plant having won a raise, three days of back pay for the time managers locked them out, and having pushed Milbank to back down from a health care premium payment plan that would have taken 25 percent - $620 - of workers' monthly paychecks, USW Local 13-07 said. The raise is $1.10 per hour.

In return, the local dropped unfair labor practices charges it had filed against the firm after the lockout began one week before. A federal mediator helped "bring this company to its senses" and back to bargaining, chief union negotiator John Wiseman said.

Local President Janet Kirk, a Milbank worker, said "union membership solidarity against the employer lockout said 'enough is enough.' We were not going to accept another increase of our contributions for a family healthcare plan. So we won our position and we even got paid for most of our wages lost due to the lockout."

The lockout drew wide publicity, and support from consumers and other workers, in the Kansas City area. Locked out workers holding signs along major roads were greeted with a chorus of supportive honks.

Milbank workers manufacture electrical meters and circuit-breaker boxes, and union officials said it was particularly ironic that the firm tried to impose a $620-per-worker monthly health care premium at a time when it was making money and had a huge backlog of orders due to power breakdowns as a result of Hurricane Sandy.

Photo via U.S. Department of Labor.

Air traffic controllers push Senate to confirm FAA chief

Fri, 30 Nov 2012 11:30:00 +0000

WASHINGTON - The Air Traffic Controllers are pushing the Senate to confirm a new permanent chief of the Federal Aviation Administration, Michael Huerta, saying he's been acting administrator long enough.

Huerta, the agency's #2, has been acting administrator for months. Democratic President Barack Obama nominated Huerta, a New Yorker and a career transportation executive, in the spring. The Senate Commerce Committee agreed on July 31. But like many other political appointees, Huerta's nomination went on hold this year pending the outcome of the presidential election, which Obama won. NATCA President Paul Rinaldi says the hold has gone on long enough.

The president "made a wise decision to nominate Mr. Huerta," Rinaldi said earlier this month. "He has been a steady hand at the controls of an agency that is making very positive strides forward in serving the public.

"I have seen first-hand Huerta's passion for aviation safety and the great care and determination he puts into working with us, all FAA employees and stakeholders in the aviation community. His continued leadership is essential to maintaining our industry's progress.

"NATCA appreciates his focus on collaborating with air traffic controllers and all aviation safety professionals to improve the safety of U.S. aviation. We urge his swift confirmation so that we can continue working with him as FAA administrator."

The Senate calendar on the day lawmakers returned from their Thanksgiving recess, Nov. 26, shows Huerta's nomination, like dozens of others, has not been scheduled for a vote. If there is no vote before Congress quits, Obama will have to send Huerta's name up again next year.

Huerta told the Senate Commerce Committee that if he becomes FAA's permanent administrator, he would concentrate even more on implementing the new air traffic control system, NextGen, which FAA and the unionized controllers have worked on. He also said he would involve all stakeholders, including unions, in air traffic modernization. NATCA represents 14,000 controllers.

"NextGen is the total transformation of the way we handle air traffic here and around the world," Huerta said. "We are moving from radar to satellites, from radios to data messages and from airways that zig-zag the country to more direct routes. We need public-private collaboration to create this new way of doing business. NextGen means enhanced safety, greater access to airports, a smaller impact on the environ-ment and more predictable schedules for travelers." He added: "We need to... empower our 48,000 FAA employees to embrace innovation and to work efficiently."

This story was distributed by Press Associates International. Photo via NATCA Facebook page.

Today in Labor History: Fighting Mary and Mother Jones

Fri, 30 Nov 2012 11:19:00 +0000

On November 30, 1854, "Fighting Mary" Eliza McDowell, also known as the "Angel of the Stockyards," was born in Chicago. McDowell began a lifetime of social reform at Hull House, under the guidance of pioneering social worker Jane Addams. Among her many accomplishments for the benefit of poor working class families living "back of the yards," McDowell helped organize the first women's local union of the Amalgamated Meat Cutters in 1902. Membership grew to more than 1,000, comprised predominantly of the low-paid women working in packinghouse canning and labeling operations.

Mary Harris "Mother" Jones died November 30, 1930. An Irish-American schoolteacher and dressmaker, she became a labor and community organizer. She helped coordinate major strikes and co-founded the Industrial Workers of the World. Mother Jones died at the Burgess Farm in Adelphi, Md. She is known for this quote "I'm not a lady, I'm a hell-raiser!"

The book Mother Jones Speaks: Speeches and Writings, edited by Philip S. Foner, is a comprehensive collection of her speeches, letters, articles, interviews and testimony before Congressional committees. In her own words, this brave and determined heroine to millions of workers, active from the end of the Civil War until shortly before her death, explains her life, her mission and her passion on behalf of working people.

Workday Minnesota, dclabor.org and Wikipedia contributed to this story.

Photo: Mother Jones, Wikimedia Commons

Teamsters confront Bill Gates over sanitation firm’s actions

Thu, 29 Nov 2012 13:26:00 +0000

ATLANTA - Declaring Bill Gates should be responsible for the anti-worker conduct of Republic Services, a sanitation firm he owns one-quarter of, a group of Teamsters in Atlanta confronted the Microsoft mogul at Gates' speech there on Nov. 21. The Atlanta branch of Jobs With Justice joined the demonstration.

The Teamsters reported two protesters displaying a banner reading "Republic/Allied: Don't Trash Our Communities" were forcefully removed from Gates' speech at Georgia Tech after attempting to ask Gates why he refuses to stop his attack on workers and their retirement security.

Republic locked out 80 union workers from its Evansville, Ind., plant in May when they refused to approve a contract that would have trashed their retirement benefits. Meanwhile, Republic gave its CEO a $23 million disability/death benefit package and gave stockholders an extra 7 percent dividend after 2^nd quarter profits tripled compared to the year before.

"These workers literally put their lives on the line every day to protect the public health," said Eric Robertson, Teamsters Local 728 business agent. His local represents Republic/Allied workers in Atlanta. "It's outrageous that Bill Gates says he supports public health programs, and yet he's the primary owner of a company that locks out its workers and creates public health crises."

Photo: Flickr

Ohio city OKs raise for manager, city workers get shafted

Thu, 29 Nov 2012 12:00:00 +0000

It was the City Council in Middletown, a small city in southwestern Ohio, that provided the initial push for that state's Republican-dominated legislature to draft SB 5, the attack on public workers' collective bargaining rights last year. The City Council passed a resolution calling on the state to take action against public workers' contracts "so local governments can control their own finances." That was used by the GOP majority in the legislature as the basis for drafting SB 5. While unions and their allies organized a massive fight against SB 5, sending it down in flames, that same council this month took another action that shows that its members are far from learning from that huge defeat.

The Middletown City Council voted 6-1 to change city rules and give the city manager, Judith Gilleland, a big raise. This action came a year after Middletown's public unions had agreed to forgo any raises in their contracts, "to prohibit the city from going into further economic decline."

"This is a real slap in the face of public workers, who've seen the big picture and sacrificed for the good of the city," said Chris Klug, vice president of Local 336, Association of Firefighters in Middletown. "Four firefighters, who were there to protect the people of our city, were laid off last year and two other jobs for retiring firefighters weren't filled, due to a supposed economic crisis. Now they do this. It shows who they really think is important!"

The Middletown city workers' contract includes "longevity raises" equal to 1% of their salary after 10 years with the city, 2% after 15 years and 3% after 20 years. After originating the attack on Ohio public workers' bargaining rights, and pushing Middletown's public unions to agree to freezing these raises, the City Council last week took the unprecedented step of changing city rules ONLY for the city manager, giving her longevity raises of 3% starting after only five years and going up from there.

"This sets a horrible example for the whole city," said Councilman A. J. Smith, the council's only Democrat, who voted against the motion. "They want to cut workers' salaries and give it to management. That is a horrible example."

A joint press release by Middletown's public unions said Gilleland should "lead by example and adhere to the same practices she's asked us to follow."

Photo: Middletown, Ohio, firefighters and emergency responders. IAFF336.org

Unionists flood Capitol, demand jobs not cuts

Thu, 29 Nov 2012 11:25:00 +0000

WASHINGTON - More than 150 union activists and leaders, marshaled by the AFL-CIO, AFSCME, the Service Employees, and the National Education Association, flew into Washington Nov. 27-28 to lobby lawmakers to preserve Social Security, Medicare, and domestic programs from budget cutters, while raising taxes on the rich.

The fly-in preceded dozens of rallies and events planned nationwide around the same theme, starting Dec. 1, according to an AFL-CIO website.

The unionists campaigned against any budget package imposing large cuts on Social Security and Medicare while refusing to raise tax rates on individuals making more than $200,000 yearly or families earning above $250,000.

GOP congressional leaders wanted cuts in the two big programs, and another tax cut for the rich, in its closed-door talks with Democratic President Obama.

Obama has repeatedly made the point that he won re-election on a platform of increasing taxes on the wealthiest and on spending to create jobs, especially in infrastructure. Both measures would increase revenue and close the budget deficit, the subject of his talks with congressional leaders.

If Obama and the lawmakers don't act, payroll taxes - which hit the middle class - would rise on Jan. 1, while Bush-era tax cuts for the rich end. Domestic programs - everything from jobless benefits to airport security - would be cut. Economists of all say that combination would throw the economy back into recession.

"Working people, jobless people, and retirees, who just voted for a middle-class economy, shouldn't have to sacrifice their health care and retirement security so that the richest two percent can continue getting more tax breaks," said AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, before sending the workers to Capitol Hill.

"It's time to protect Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid benefits that support our working families. It's time to eliminate tax breaks for the richest two percent. That's fair, reasonable, and good public policy," he added. The worker-lobbyists were armed with an AFL-CIO study of the state-by-state impact of the Medicare and Social Security cuts.

One SEIU Local 105 activist, in a nationwide email, explained why she flew to DC to lobby lawmakers. She declined to give her last name, calling herself "Melissa."

"We won't tolerate cuts to programs that working Americans depend on," her e-mail said. "When I voted for President Obama and other champions for the 99 percent, it was a vote to strengthen the middle class and put people back to work - not for tax breaks for the rich, and attacks on Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.

"It's horrifying to think that Republicans in Congress are willing to balance the budget on the backs of some of the most vulnerable people in our country like seniors, children and the sick. We must work together to oppose this unacceptable assault on working people. There are better ways to reduce deficits and generate revenue without shifting costs to already cash-strapped state budgets and threatening vital services. The rich must pay their fair share.

"Our message of jobs, not cuts doesn't have to end after our visits today," she said, a message the federation said will be transmitted through rallies and marches nationwide, after the legislative lobbying ends. It plans hundreds of events in states and congressional districts during December.

As of Nov. 27, scheduled events included rallies in Dallas (Dec. 1 and Dec. 10), Duluth and Mankato, Minn., Stockton, Calif., Little Rock, Ark., Burlington and Des Moines, Iowa (Dec. 10), and candlelight vigils in Boston and in Portland, Ore. (Dec. 10).

Photo: Union members meet Nov. 28 with Rep. Rick Larsen (D-WA). Photo courtesy of AFL-CIO.

Domestic workers, invisible no more

Thu, 29 Nov 2012 10:55:00 +0000

In recent years, the problems faced by low-income workers - not just Walmart workers but those in restaurants, retail stores, car washes, etc. - have drawn increasing attention. Campaigns have been launched around the country to help them win livable wages and working conditions and overcome abuse and harassment.

Until recently, the situation of domestic workers - nannies, caregivers, housecleaners, etc. - has largely stayed below the radar. Most of the workers are women of color, both immigrant and native-born.

In a far-reaching report, Home Economics: The invisible and unregulated world of domestic work, released Nov. 27 by the National Domestic Workers Alliance, the responses of nearly 2,100 domestic workers to a survey conducted in 14 metropolitan areas and nine languages are ripping the cover from the plight of domestic workers across the country.

"Over the past several decades, in big cities, suburbs, and small towns across the country, a crucial but largely unacknowledged segment of the U.S. labor force has steadily expanded," the report notes.

"Nannies, caregivers, and housecleaners are changing the way middle-class America works, plays, raises their children, and cares for their elders, but the conditions in which they themselves work are barely recognized. The rise of this sector of the labor force involves workers from across the globe, yet it is a thoroughly American story."

Among the findings:

Nearly a quarter of domestic workers, and two-thirds of live-in workers, are paid below the state minimum wage.
Nearly half the workers are paid an hourly wage in their primary job that is too low to adequately support a family.
Most work for employers who don't pay into Social Security, and almost none receive retirement or pension benefits from their primary employer.

As a result, many suffer acute financial hardship.

Working conditions are a major issue:

Over one-third of domestic workers said they had worked long hours without breaks during the previous year, and a quarter said their responsibilities kept them from getting at least five hours of uninterrupted sleep at night.
Of workers who were fired from a domestic job, 23 percent lost their job for complaining about their working conditions.

Domestic workers often experienced verbal, psychological and physical abuse on the job, and most did not complain for fear of losing their job, or because they feared their immigration status would be used against them.

Among the remedies proposed by the Domestic Workers Alliance:

Covering domestic workers under employment and labor laws, with minimum wages, the right to organize, overtime pay, regular meal breaks and uninterrupted sleep, workers compensation, and unemployment insurance.
Building a more equitable economic environment for all low-wage workers, with a higher minimum wage, a stronger safety net, paid sick and family leave, access to affordable medical care, and for immigrant workers, a path to citizenship.

Meanwhile, domestic workers are increasingly acting to improve their wages, working conditions and labor rights.

Even without legal protections for doing so, "Domestic workers are mobilizing in creating ways to improve their position in the industry," the Domestic Workers Alliance says. "Both in the U.S. and globally, a domestic workers' movement for rights and respect has been steadily gaining strength," including the International Labor Organization's establishment last year of global standards for the treatment of domestic workers."

Photo: Domesticworkers.org

Today in Labor History: Medical interns win right to unionize

Thu, 29 Nov 2012 10:03:00 +0000

On this date in 1999, the National Labor Relations Board ruled that medical interns could unionize and negotiate both their wages and working hours. Another decision, made just prior by the California Public Employment Relations Board, further opened the way for unionization.

The NLRB decision was based on a dispute between interns and residents at Boston University's medical education center. The decision recognized the interns as employees, not students, guaranteeing them all rights given to other workers.

Bruce Elwell, with the Committee of Interns and Residents, said at the time that the decision would affect about 50,000 interns in the private sector. The PERB decision affected about 3,300 doctors-in-training at University of California teaching institutions.

Photo via Madison Guy // CC 2.0.

Danny Glover speaks out for Nissan workers in Mississippi

Wed, 28 Nov 2012 12:41:00 +0000

Workers at the Nissan Plant in Mississippi are still fighting for the same rights Nissan workers in Japan have received for many years? Why? Because Nissan USA is anti-union and is pushing to keep workers down!

To often we hear stories of unions aggressively organizing. Or rumors of unions bullying people to join. The problem is that you hardly ever hear about the stories of the companies who are trying to block the unions from having an election. At the Nissan plant in Canton, Mississippi, this is what is going on every day.

This intense anti-union campaign includes making implied threats to close the plant and interrogating and harassing pro-union workers.

Now the workers in Canton, Mississippi, are getting some help from labor unions around the world, and a very friendly (and very well known) spokesman. Actor Danny Glover delivers a special message to the people at the international Labour Start conference.

For those who do not know, Danny Glover is also very well known for his philanthropic endeavors. As the son of postal workers he has spent millions of dollars supporting different organizations to promote social and economic justice, access to health care, and education programs in the U.S. and Africa. Danny was also arrested in 2010 in a labor protest.

"On April 16, 2010 Danny Glover and 11 others were arrested for trespassing at a Service Employees International Union protest at the Sodexo headquarters. SEIU says it was protesting what it calls Sodexo's unfair and illegal treatment of workers" (From Wikipedia).

Danny also received one of the highest honors from the United Auto Workers. Danny was presented with the UAW Walter Reuther Social Justice Award.

"He stood with protesting union members in several states. Wherever there's a fight for workers' rights, he has been there. Wherever workers are oppressed, Danny Glover has been there," UAW President Bob King told the more than 1,200 delegates and activists as he presented Glover the award. Read the full article at the UAW Blog

Now Danny is calling on all the labor unions in the United States and around the world to send this message to Nissan's Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Toshiyuki Shiga. He is asking for Nissan to "DO BETTER." This treatment of U.S. employees would not be allowed in Japanese plants and should not be allowed here. Mr. Shiga has the power to direct the managers of the Nissan Plant in Canton, Mississippi, to respect the workers and allow them to join the union if they choose.

Take one minute to go to the Labour Start Webpage and sign this letter to Mr. Shiga. Help the United Auto Workers give the workers in Mississippi a chance to find their voice.

Dear Mr. Shiga,

I am writing to respectfully voice my concern regarding anti-union, anti-freedom of association activities including the intimidation and harassment of workers seeking to unionize at your Nissan facility in Canton, Mississippi, USA.

I feel this type of aggressive, anti-union, hostility is a dishonor to Nissan's well-respected reputation as a global leader, a long-standing member of the UN Global Compact, and a role model for positive labor relations. Nissan Canton local management's actions are in direct violation of the United Nations Global Compact principles and the ILO standards which Nissan corporate management has committed to abide by.

Nissan's employees in Canton, Mississippi, wish to exercise the same rights that Nissan workers in Japan and elsewhere enjoy. And like the many unionized Nissan workers around the globe, they proudly support their company, but they also want a voice on issues that affect them, their families, and their community.

I urge you to immediately intervene to bring local management in Canton, Mississippi, in line with the values and principles that has established Nissan as a successful and esteemed corporate citizen and allow workers in Mississippi the fundamental right to a fair union election, free of intimidation and fear.

Reposted with permission from The New Hampshire Labor News. Follow them on Twitter at @NHLabor_News.

Today in labor history: Photo engravers go on strike

Wed, 28 Nov 2012 11:52:00 +0000

On November 28, 1953, 400 photo engravers employed by New York City newspapers went on strike, demanding better wages and improved working conditions. The strike lasted for 11 days.

During this time, 20,000 other newspaper workers represented by other unions refused to cross the photo engravers' picket lines.

The strike ended with the workers receiving a $3-per-week wage increase.

Photo: Tumblr

Today in labor history: Workers perform "Pins and Needles" on Broadway

Tue, 27 Nov 2012 13:00:00 +0000

(UCS) -- Today in labor history, Nov. 27, 1937, the pro-labor musical revue, "Pins & Needles," opens on Broadway with a cast of International Ladies Garment Workers Union members.

The show ran on Friday and Saturday nights only, because of the casts' regular jobs. It ran for 1,108 performances before closing. According to theater critic John Kenrick,

"Pins and Needles" is "the only hit ever produced by a labor union, and the only time when a group of unknown non-professionals brought a successful musical to Broadway." The Cradle Will Rock composer Marc Blitzstein was among the contributors for the book, "Pins and Needles."

Photo: Wikipedia/CC

Today in labor history: Fire kills 25 women workers in Newark

Mon, 26 Nov 2012 15:51:00 +0000

On this day in 1910 almost two dozen women employed by the Wolf Muslin Undergarment Company of Newark New Jersey died after the building caught fire. Six were burned to death and 19 died from jumping in an attempt to avoid the fire. The Newark inferno preceded the Triangle Shirt Factory Fire by four months. The Newark fire, while horrific, has been largely forgotten and until recently no monument or plaque recognizes the tragedy. The centenary of the tragedy and crime against the workers passed two years ago.

NHL lockout is major labor struggle

Mon, 26 Nov 2012 14:50:00 +0000

The National Hockey League locked out its players on Sept. 15. This is the fourth sports lockout within the last two years. It is the third lockout and fourth labor stoppage for NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman.

The now-expired collective bargaining agreement between the NHL and the players was a result of the entire 2004-2005 season being lost in a lockout. The owners stated that they needed a number of emergency measures to maintain the long-term health of the league. As a result, they gained a host of concessions from the players including a hard salary cap (a maximum amount of money to be spent on salaries), a cap on rookie bonuses and a 24 percent rollback on player salaries. These concessions have created over $1 billion for the NHL since their implementation.

Journalist Armin Rosen of The Atlantic wrote about the current state of the NHL's fiscal health heading into the new bargaining sessions: "The NHL is in the middle of what should be its golden age. Twenty-one of the league's teams played their home games at 95% capacity or higher last season; 16 of them sold out every home game. The league just signed the largest national television deal in its history, and last year marked the first time that every game of the two-month-long Stanley Cup playoffs was available to American TV viewers." Yet, the league continues to claim that the current state of the NHL is imperiled and that the only solution is for the union to make more concessions.

It is true that some franchises are struggling but that is due to poor management by the owners/league. One of the hallmark projects of Commissioner Bettman's tenure has been the relocation and expansion of NHL franchises to the American South. The strategy has been an abysmal failure, which has created dire financial straits for those franchises while denying opportunities for success in cities with rabid fan bases. The lack of adequate revenue sharing between the successful franchises and the struggling teams has also contributed to smaller markets' struggles. The NHL's owners are also seeking to protect themselves from themselves. Since the institution of the salary cap, long-term contracts with the money frontloaded have been a popular way to subvert the intent of the cap. The owners are attempting to limit player contract rights in the new collective bargaining agreement because they want to be protected from their own tendencies in offering contracts.

The league has been more profitable than ever and is currently valued at approximately $3 billion. The limited problems the league has are due to owner mismanagement, a lack of proper revenue sharing and continuing to keep struggling franchises in non-viable markets. Instead of looking at themselves to mitigate these problems, the owners have instead demanded a multitude of concessions from the union.

The NHL has made a series of laughable offers including initial demands for another 24 percent rollback in current player contracts, limiting eligibility for free agency/salary arbitration, not paying out the full amounts due on current player contracts since they would exceed the player share of hockey-related revenue, and requesting the players take a 14 percent revenue concession. These proposals were quickly rejected and the public quickly turned against Commissioner Bettman and the NHL owners, blaming them for the lockout.

To stem the growing tide of public discontent, the NHL developed a relationship with Republican strategist Frank Luntz. Luntz's branding created the buzzwords of "shared sacrifice" and "50-50 deal." The success of the propaganda can be seen in the growing numbers of people blaming the union or just telling both sides to get a deal done so hockey can be played. Yet, a simple analysis finds the truth: It is far from "shared sacrifice." It is an owner-initiated lockout, which they can end at any time. Players have offered to play. The current proposals have shown significant movement on the players' part to get a deal done while the NHL's owners continue to demand more. The idea of "50-50" which sounds fair on its face isn't truly equal since the owners get to take a percentage of money off the top before any revenue splitting occurs.

The current state of affairs is a stalemate. The players association has conceded to a 7 percent decrease in hockey-related revenue but has requested a "make whole" provision where all player contracts would be honored, even if their payouts would exceed the players' share of 50 percent of revenue. The NHL has steadfastly refused to give anything more than a pittance of what is necessary to properly ensure current contracts are honored.

Despite getting exactly what the the NHL wanted in terms of revenue, the owners are refusing to concede on free agent and salary arbitration contract language. After recent negotiations, NHL Players Association Executive Director Donald Fehr said: ""On the big things there was as of today no reciprocity in any meaningful sense, no movement on the players' share, no movement on salary-arbitration eligibility, no movement on free agency eligibility, no agreement on a pension plan."

This current labor fight fits within the framework of union battles throughout the country. A very profitable company demands concessions from its workers to account for the company's own mismanagement and simply because it thinks it can get them. These attacks need to be seen for what they are, put in the wider understanding of the labor movement, and a vigorous defense of the players/workers must be mounted in our communities.

Video: Nationwide actions greet Walmart on Black Friday

Mon, 26 Nov 2012 13:55:00 +0000

This year on "Black Friday" over 1,000 demonstrations and picket lines took place at Walmart stores all over the country in virtually every state. Hundreds of Walmart workers were joined by thousands of supporters to protest Walmart's anti-worker, anti-union treatment of its employees.

Actions ranged from picket lines to in-store actions. These included giving Walmart workers on the job a turkey sandwich in sympathy because they had to work on the Thanksgiving holiday. They also got a leaflet explaining to them their rights to organize and bargain for better wages, working conditions and benefits. Many shoppers were greeted with smiles and leaflets outlining Walmart's terrible labor record and mistreatment of what Walmart calls their "associates."

In Chicago, large groups of demonstrators converged on several area Walmart stores and got a great response from shoppers (video below).

Walmart Black Friday Chicago from Scott Marshall on Vimeo.

Big retail businesses started calling the Friday after Thanksgiving "Black Friday." This is supposed to be their biggest shopping day of the holiday season. They advertise and hype Black Friday; they promote all kinds of "bargains" and "deals." Walmart especially treasures news stories about all the pushing and shoving to get in the doors of their stores for the "big deals."

Black refers to black ink. In pre-computer age accounting "black ink" meant profits or pluses and "red ink" meant losses or minuses. Some retailers expect to do a full 40% of their yearly sales from Black Friday through the end of the year, in little over a month. So yeah, Black Friday is a big deal for Walmart.

Walmart workers and supporters are feeling momentum building in the fight for workers' rights on the job. The demonstrations are shedding a lot of publicity on Walmart's ill treatment of their workers. OUR Walmart (Organization United for Respect at Walmart) made up of Walmart workers, is growing across the country. OUR Walmart is a grassroots shop based organization of workers who are building solidarity and setting the stage for a union at Walmart.

Photo: PW/Scott Marshall

Indy stands up for Walmart workers

Mon, 26 Nov 2012 13:50:00 +0000

INDIANAPOLIS - Nearly 40 community and union members showed up at an East Side Walmart here to show solidarity with the store's workers who were forced to work Thanksgiving Day. Central Indiana Jobs with Justice organized the event, which saw dozens of community members turn out on a holiday on short notice. The action saw results as some people pulled into the parking lot, but then turned right around and left after seeing the signs or reading a leaflet. The leaflet explained Walmart workers' struggles; they suffer intimidation, harassment and firings if they stand up for better pay, benefits, and respect.

Walmart is taking in $16 billion in profits and compensating its executives $10 million each. Workers and community leaders have been calling on Walmart and Chairman Rob Walton to address the wage gap the company is creating.

At the same time frontline Walmart workers are facing financial hardships, the Walton Family - heirs to the Walmart fortune - are the richest family in the country with more wealth than the bottom 42 percent of American families combined.

Photo: OURWalmart Facebook

Unions focus ads on “fiscal cliff” issues

Mon, 26 Nov 2012 13:33:00 +0000

WASHINGTON (PAI)-Three of the nation's largest unions, AFSCME, the National Education Association and the Service Employees, aired a "close to $300,000" radio, television and online ad blitz over the 4-day Thanksgiving weekend targeting nine key lawmakers on "fiscal cliff" issues, their government relations directors said.

Citing a survey the unions commissioned from the Mellman Group, the ads urge lawmakers to solve the nation's budget hole by raising taxes on the rich and by creating jobs, the platform that brought Democratic President Barack Obama's re-election.

The "jobs not cuts," ads inform the lawmakers, including Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., both Colorado Democratic senators and both Virginia Democratic senators, that the poll - and the Nov. 6 election - show huge majorities oppose cuts in Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, federal aid to education and funds for police and fire fighters.

The ads also target four House Republicans: Reps. Jo Ann Emerson, R-Mo., Don Young, R-Alaska, and two from Pennsylvania. That's because all four showed a past willingness to work for bipartisan compromise on solving the deficits-and-debt tissue, said Mary Kusler of NEA. The four were among 40 GOP signers of a letter earlier this year, taking that stand, she said in a Nov. 20 telephone press conference.

"We're just starting with these four. There's no policy to let the 36 others go," she told Press Associates Union News Service afterwards. The 40 "have shown a willingness to say the word 'revenue' and be part of the dialogue" on fixing the mess.

Obama and congressional leaders opened talks the week of Nov. 11 on resolving the "fiscal cliff," the combination of tax increases - on the rich and the rest of us - and spending cuts due to start Jan. 1. Union leaders agree with Obama. But Congress, with a Democratic-run Senate hamstrung by GOP filibusters and a GOP-run House dominated by Republican tea partyites, must approve any "grand bargain," to avoid the cliff.

Economists of all political stripes say the combination could remove up to $609 billion from the economy just in 2013 alone, throwing the U.S. back into recession. But a huge majority of the ruling House GOP - not including the four targeted by the ads - refuses to raise taxes on the rich.

The Tea Party wants just cuts in spending, a position that 23 percent of the 1,000 voters Mellman polled support. By contrast, 53 percent want a solution that calls for the rich to pay their fair share and Congress to concentrate on job creation to solve the deficit ills. Another 16 percent want a "grand bargain" with tax hikes and cuts in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Mellman's poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percent.

"We're calling on those (House) Republicans willing to put people ahead of the party line," Kusler of NEA explained. The radio ads, she said, will run in St. Louis and Cape Girardeau, Mo., for Emerson, Anchorage, Alaska, for Young and the Philadelphia media market for Reps. Mike Fitzpatrick and Patrick Meehan, both R-Pa.

The TV ads in Missouri, the D.C. metro area - for the two Virginians - and Denver tell those five Senate Democrats that "the way to prosperity is to put people back to work," said SEIU Legislative Director Peter Colavito.

The ad blitz and other moves by the three unions to campaign for jobs for the middle class and tax hikes on the rich may continue beyond the "lame duck" session of the 112th Congress, which is supposed to tackle the "fiscal cliff" issue, said AFSCME's Chuck Loveless.

"We'll monitor the lame duck and do whatever it takes, but we haven't specifically decided what to do next" if Congress fails and the budget cuts and tax hikes - including reversal of a past cut in workers' payroll taxes - kick in on Jan. 1, he added. "If this issue does go into next year, we'll be there to continue the campaign," he promised.

Other findings from Mellman's poll included 86 percent saying "you can cut the deficit without cutting Social Security," 84 percent with the same view about Medicare, and 83% said the deficit could be cut without cutting federal funds to local governments for police and Fire Fighters. Some 62 percent said the deficit could be cut without cutting education aid.

That contrasts with a poll by the moderate New Democrat Network, released the same day, showing 82 percent support for a compromise - terms unspecified - to help slow the flow of red ink. Mellman didn't see a contradiction between the two surveys, since NDN's poll did not ask about specific program cuts, while his survey did.

"Both parties need to listen to the will of the voters and focus on rebuilding the middle class and strengthening our economy by investing in jobs, not cuts. We will forcefully oppose any budget deal that puts working families and the economic recovery in jeopardy," Colavito told the telephone press conference. "It makes no sense to rob Peter to pay Paul, especially when Peter is a 5-year-old who simply is trying to learn in school. It's short-sighted," Kusler added then.

"The voters spoke loud and clear and rejected any cuts in Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security," Loveless concluded.

Photo: SEIU.org

Las Vegas Teamsters beat Coke decertification attempt

Mon, 26 Nov 2012 13:13:00 +0000

LAS VEGAS (PAI) -- Coca-Cola's attempt to get rid of the Teamsters and a union contract in Las Vegas fizzled out like so much bad soda.

On Nov. 8, a surreptitious campaign by Coke management and its minions culminated in an 85-54 National Labor Relations Board-ballot box spanking of the company. The defeat of Coke's attempt at decertifying Teamsters Local 14 came on the heels of Coke trying to circumvent longtime contract language on seniority bidding of overtime work.

The battle began when 14 agents slapped down Coke's direct bid to negate the contract and established past practices. A decertification notice "surprisingly" appeared on the company fax machine.

Contractual relations between Local 14 and Coke in Las Vegas have decades of history behind it. Local 14 President Al Ghilarducci, business agent at Coke for over six years until agent Jaime Olvera was assigned to the company, asked the on-site general manager what his problem was.

"He feigned surprise about the decertification," Ghilarducci said. "But what we found out was that a guy had been promised a sales job for filing the petition. We also found out that another bargaining unit member who used to be in management was pushing it and is a union-hater."

Local 14 Secretary-Treasurer Larry Griffith said the decertification effort is what Coke fosters across the country against Teamster units.

"They opened up the company checkbook and brought in the hired-guns, a union-busting company from back east. They followed that by shipping in Coke management people to work over our Teamsters in captive meetings. It turns out they didn't have any bullets to b---s--- our members," he said. The 2-month campaign was on.

At the end, on voting day, many Teamsters found themselves forced to work overtime away from balloting held at the company. In the meantime, the union-busters and supervisors hammered the Teamsters in group and individual settings.

The company made repeated pleas of "give us a chance for one year to show what Coke can do for you (without the union)." But Griffith and Ghilarducci advised members to ask the company reps to put their pie-in-the-sky promises and possibilities in writing. They asked. And the company wouldn't.

Leading the members' responses, questions and discussions at the company-controlled meetings were primarily stalwart Teamsters Homar Parra and Marty Craw.

"They were definitely our inside leaders and kept the group together and from being ramrodded by the company," Griffith said.

Meanwhile, Local 14 conducted scheduled meetings with its members at the union hall on Oct 6, 11, 20 and Nov. 3, and informal get-togethers on the street. Teamsters organizer Jason Gateley participated at each meeting. But, daily, business agents Olvera and Ghilarducci covered all shifts and departments on site.

"I cannot reiterate enough how this election was almost solely won by the members at Coke. It was their singular resolve, toughness and respect for their union. Single-issue professionals who devote their lives to busting the union worked our members over hard. And they didn't crack," Griffith said.

While union-busters spewed their venom, Teamsters Joint Council 42 President Randy Cammack contacted Western Conference of Teamsters pension manager Walt Pentz for pension input. A pension rep from Northwest Administrators landed in Las Vegas armed with a personal Teamster pension workup-in writing unlike Coke's verbal act-on every Local 14 member working at the company.

At a meeting the rep distributed the paperwork and explained what pension credits they had accrued as Teamsters, noting that 47 percent of the shorter-term workforce were not fully vested and coverage would be lost if the company went non-union.

As election day neared, Cammack dispatched the council's show truck to the company gates. For two days Teamsters from far and wide picketed and rallied with the Coke members up to voting time.

"The solidarity and brotherhood during this ordeal by the members inside the plant was intense, and the support from Teamsters across the country was phenomenal," Griffith said.

Teamster reps with Coke contracts were on hand from locals in Covina, Los Angeles, and South El Monte in California, plus Spokane and Seattle, Wash., and Reno, Nev. Dennis Hart from the union's Brewery and Soft Drink division, and Steve Jones from North Carolina also came.

Dozens of Local 14 members and shop stewards were on the line. "What a victory for Teamsters. What a victory for good Teamster jobs," Griffith said.

Paul Mihalow is Editor of Southern California Teamster

Photo: Teamsters Local 14

Walmart workers strike on Black Friday

Mon, 26 Nov 2012 11:46:00 +0000

PORT ANGELES, WA. - Nearly 100 supporters joined Walmart workers who walked out on strike, here Nov. 23. They joined a picketline in front of the store chanting, "What do we want? Respect!" and "Walmart, Walmart, you're no good! Treat your workers the way you should."

The walkout in this papermill town was one of dozens against the retail giant across the nation protesting Walmart's bully tactics aimed at silencing the "OUR Walmart" worker upsurge.

It was a dreary day after Thanksgiving with sullen clouds hanging over Mount Angeles. Yet the strikers' spirits were high. Many couples brought their young children who walked with the picketers carrying bright green helium balloons.

In the crowd were members of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and other unions. MoveOn members from Clallam County and Jefferson County joined the march.

The strikers carried signs charging Walmart with unfair labor practices for firing or otherwise punishing workers who dared to speak out against the company's employment practices.

Edythe, a 15-year veteran worker at the Port Angeles Walmart store said, "This picket line is for the thousands of Walmart workers who are going out on strike and the thousands more who are afraid of losing their jobs if they speak out."

When she began working at Walmart, Sam Walton, then Walmart's CEO, paid time-and-a-half to any worker working on Sunday. After Walton died, "that was cut to a dollar-an-hour extra for Sunday work," Edythe said. "It's the same for shift differential. Anybody hired after January 12 of this year does not get that 50 cents per hour shift differential."

Walmart claims the average pay for their employees is $12.85, she continued. But a recent analysis proved that the average Walmart worker is paid only $9.04 per hour---less than the minimum wage in Washington State. "That is not a living wage," Edythe charged. Walmart reported profits of $16 billion last year.

Elena Perez, a leader of the Making Change at Walmart Puget Sound Coalition told the World, "This is a national campaign. A coalition is building across the country to hold Walmart accountable. One of our main goals is to support the workers, to make sure that management knows that we will stand by the workers. These are our neighbors and retaliating against our neighbors will not be tolerated. We're not going away. As long as these workers stand up, we're going to stand up with them."

Dave Schmitz, President of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 21 in Seattle, came with a dozen other UFCW workers to show support for the Walmart workers in Port Angeles. "You think of everything that has happened over the years. These are some of the most courageous, the bravest workers I have ever known taking on this retail giant."

He pointed out that Walmart filed a lawsuit with the National Labor Relations Board against the UFCW. "They claim this is a 'union recognition' fight when in reality it is workers taking a stand against the company's retaliation" on workers exercising their freedom of speech."

Schmitz said it is a sign of Walmart's panic that in one store they expelled Walmart shoppers mistaking them for protesters. There were walkouts by Walmart workers in Mount Vernon, Renton, and Seattle as well as in California, Colorado, and in Florida where one protesting worker was arrested.

When Schmitz and other protesters arrived at the vast, half empty parking lot, the Walmart chief of security walked up and told them they were trespessing. "This is a strike and federal law allows pickets on company property during a strike," Schmitz replied. The Walmart security chief threatened to call the county sheriff. A half hour later, sheriffs deputies arrived. But they did not order the picketers to vacate the premises.

The picketline continued, loud and clear, in front of the Walmart store.

Photo: OURWalmart Facebook

Oakland port and airport workers strike over unfair labor practices

Mon, 26 Nov 2012 11:21:00 +0000

OAKLAND, Calif. - In a pre-Thanksgiving action, over 220 maintenance, administrative and other support workers at the Port of Oakland and Oakland Airport, members of SEIU Local 1021, shut down the nation's fifth-busiest port and walked picket lines at the airport Nov. 20. They said their one-day unfair labor practices strike was brought on by the port's refusal to provide financial information needed in the bargaining process, and its failure to set new dates for bargaining talks.

The night before the strike, hundreds of port workers, union and community supporters gathered at the airport to launch the action.

"This is an unfair labor practices strike for a number of reasons," Local 1021 Vice President Gary Jimenez told the crowd. "First and foremost, one of the key elements is the critical financial information the port refused to provide us in a timely fashion, in order to negotiate a fair and equitable contract for our members here at the port. "

Jimenez said the workers have been without a contract for over 16 months, and despite the workers' calls for port management to return to the bargaining table, no talks are taking place now, and the port has not proposed dates and times to resume bargaining.

"The port talks about investing in the port's future," Jimenez said. "Our workers are the key to that future. What about investing in us?"

Jimenez said the port is insisting on takeaways that add up to about 15 percent in pay and benefit cuts, or the equivalent of more than seven weeks of work.

Interviewed before the rally, painter Gino Valente, who says he maintains the runway stripes that guide arriving and departing planes, said the expired contract covering some 220 workers is supposed to be renewed on a month-to-month basis, but the port has been unilaterally changing provisions including workers' benefits.

"They're trying to capitalize on claims they don't have enough money," Valente said. "But our work is a profit-generating resource for the port and the city."

The rally brought pledges of support, from California Labor Federation head Art Pulaski, Alameda Labor Council leader Josie Camacho, University of California at Berkeley union leader Kathryn Lybarger and others.

Camacho cited a recent Port of Oakland press release saying the port's economic activity supports more than 73,000 jobs in the region and is connected to nearly 827,000 jobs across the nation. "Those workers contribute to our region's economic vitality," she said. "Don't Local 1021 workers contribute to that vitality?"

Al Loera, president of the port workers chapter of the local, emphasized that the struggle "is for all workers. It has to do with being respected as working men and women, individuals who day in and day out, labor to provide for their families and their future. We deserve, and we expect, respect across the table."

Early the next morning, while picketing continued at the airport, the focus shifted to the port itself. There, the picket lines set up by the Local 1021 workers were honored by longshore workers (members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union), effectively shutting the port down.

Ships and trucks alike found themselves waiting at six of the port's seven terminals, with no way to load and unload.

Though the port claims it is in deficit, the union contends that the port is running a $37 million surplus, and points to top management salaries exceeding $200,000 a year.

The union workers have also been upset over recent revelations of "ethically questionable" expenditures by management officials, including thousands of dollars spent on strip club bills, "dessert wine" and expensive golf trips. As a result, the port's executive director, Omar Benjamin, has resigned and its maritime director, James Kwon, is on administrative leave.

Photo: Flickr