Lorain steelworkers rally for health care
LORAIN, Ohio – A crowd of 200 steelworkers and retirees cheered May 28 as Rep. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) announced that he has introduced legislation to force the government to pick up the health care benefits of steel retirees losing benefits due to corporate bankruptcy. The spirited rally at the United Steelworkers of America (USWA) Local 1104 Union Hall also urged a no vote on Bush’s proposal for fast track on trade agreements.
Union holds rally for embattled professor
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Over 100 years ago, workers chose the first day of May to fight for an eight-hour day. This year we were reminded that sometimes we’re simply fighting for our right to work at all.
Hotel room cleaners on strike
SAN FRANCISCO – The 50 room cleaners at the Marriott Courtyard on Fisherman’s Wharf had enough of substandard pay and overwork, so they hit the bricks for the past three weekends and continued into this week. The room cleaners, all women, were joined by other unions as well as their own Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees (HERE) Local 2, creating a large and energetic picket line, complete with whistles, drums and chants.
Mexican maquila workers visit Louisville
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Louisvillians gathered at the Steelworkers Local 106 Hall June 7 to welcome Mexican workers who came to tell what happens with Kentucky jobs once they cross the border. It wasn’t the first time that Mexican and Kentucky workers had found the need to learn each other’s story and seek each other’s support.
Did Ross Perot help Enron bilk California?
WASHINGTON – The Bush administration and the rightwing GOP leadership on Capitol Hill have quietly shelved any tough legislation to curb Enron-style corporate abuses, yet new disclosures keep popping up. The latest was a 44-page document, a step-by-step guide to “gaming” the California electricity market, prepared by Perot Systems, a software firm owned by Dallas millionaire Ross Perot. The document was found in a box of materials turned over to a California Senate Committee by Reliant Energy.
Homeland Security doesnt mean union busting
Dangerous men like John Ashcroft and Tom Ridge have been loosed on the American people. They are the bent personalities that front the most sweeping attack on civil and democratic rights since the McCarthy red scare of the 1950s.
AKSteel workers win victory on tax abatement
Locked out Armco-Kawasaki (AK) steelworkers in Mansfield, Ohio won a significant victory last week when the city council voted against renegotiaing with AKSteel on its 1995 tax-abatement agreement with the city.
Who is really in charge of national security?
Taking a cue from Ronald Reagan’s reign, George W. is looking into ways to privatize the air traffic controllers. Ronald Reagan started his anti-labor presidency by busting the air traffic controllers’ union, PATCO.
Jury rules against FBI, Oakland Police
OAKLAND – It took 11 years and a five-week trial, but a jury of eight women and two men meeting in the Federal Court House here, unanimously decided that the FBI and the Oakland Police Department connived to frame Judi Bari and Darryl Cherney for the 1990 bombing of their car. The federal jury found that the FBI and Oakland Police violated the pair’s constitutional rights to free speech and protection from unlawful searches.
Ridge speaks to Mayors' Conference
MADISON – At the annual summit of the U.S. Conference of Mayors here June 17, homeland security czar Tom Ridge’s appearance was highlighted in materials both promoting and disparaging the summit.
