Assistance Needed for Special Election in Cedar Rapids Area

Attached please find a flyer on the Special Iowa House District 33 Election on November 24, 2009. They need volunteers THIS Saturday for Labor Walks:
HD 33 VOLUNTEER FLYER

As you are aware, the Labor Movement in Iowa still has four major issues we need passed by the Iowa Legislature and signed by the Governor. HD 33 seat needs to remain a worker friendly seat. The Iowa Federation of Labor has endorsed Kirsten Running-Marquardt.

Please contact Ben Murry, WIN Organizer: 515-205-2595 (cell)

The Iowa Federation of Labor is opening a office starting on Monday 9, 2009 through to the election at the IBEW Local 405 Hall to facilitate Kirsten’s victory. Volunteers are needed to help. If your local has members/retirees in or around Cedar Rapids Area, please share this flyer with them and encourage volunteers.

(submitted by Francis Giunta, President CWA 7110)

AFL-CIO kicks off Health Care Reform Ad Campaign

AFL-CIO Kicks off National Week of Action on Health Care Reform Ad Campaign Highlights the Fair Way to Pay for Health Reform AFL-CIO Asking 1 Million Members at Work to Write and Call Congress. As the House moves to vote on health care reform, with the Senate close behind, working men and women across the nation are planning to make their voices heard through thousands of phone calls to Congress from November 5 through November 13. The AFL-CIO will kick off a national week of action on health care reform and ask 1 million members to participate in phone banks, rallies and events across the country to generate hand written letters and phone calls to members of Congress. As part of the national week of action, the AFL-CIO is also running ads in Washington newspapers including Politico, Roll Call, The Hill and The Washington Post to highlight the House health care legislation as a model for reform. The House bill includes a public health insurance option to lower costs for all and keep insurance companies honest. It covers 96 percent of Americans, is entirely paid for and reduces the deficit. It includes a surtax on the very wealthy who benefited so richly from the Bush tax cuts. And it guarantees that employers pay their fair share by requiring them to provide insurance or pay into a common fund so responsible employers don’t have to pick up the tab for freeloaders. “Thursday, November 5, will be the kickoff of the largest mobilization to generate phone calls to members of Congress the labor movement has ever undertaken,” said AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka. “We are closer than ever to achieving national health care reform and providing relief for working families, and we are committed to driving it across the finish line.”

Republicans block Department of Labor appointment – or – A tale of two administrations

Nine months has passed since the start of the Obama administration, and Republicans continue to block the appointment of M. Patricia Smith as Labor Department Solicitor, the nation’s top cop prosecuting labor law violations. 

M. Patricia Smith was nominated for Labor Department Solicitor in the spring, and her confirmation hearing was held last May. Yet, after the Senate HELP Committee finally voted to approve her nomination on October 7, Republican Senator Mike Enzi of Wyoming (the country’s least populous state) filed procedural motion to delay the appointment.

At a time when wage theft among low-wage workers is rampant, this is no fluff appointment. On September 2, 2009, “Broken Laws, Unprotected Workers”,  the largest survey of low-wage workers ever conduced was released, revealing widespread abuse of low-wage workers. Twenty-six percent of those surveyed reported they were not paid the minimum wage, while seventy-six percent said they were not paid overtime wages as required by law. The study also found that sixty-eight percent of those surveyed reported at least one pay-related violation had occurred in the previous week.  Women – especially minorities – were far more likely to suffer minimum wage violations, and African Americans had a violation rate triple that of white workers. Worker compensation law violations were also common as was employer retaliation when workers complained or reported abuse.

Though the report focused on the large urban areas of New York, Chicago and Los Angeles, the investigation into child labor and other labor law violations at the Agriprocessors Plant in Postville in 2008 proves that rural states like Iowa are not immune to such practices. 

To address these types of abuses against the working poor, as New York State’s Labor Commissioner M. Patricia Smith implemented New York Wage Watch, a program designed to work with labor unions and groups advocating on behalf of low-wage immigrants to help uncover wage and hour violations. As a consequence, New York State increased its recovery of wage underpayments by thirty-seven percent. It also increased its collection of fines against wage law violators by twenty percent.

Smith executed her job so well that she received accolades from Kenneth Adams, president of the Business Council of New York State, the state’s leading business group. Adams wrote to the Senate HELP Committee in support of Smith’s nomination saying that Smith’s work enforcing labor laws in New York State was “thorough, fair and judicious.”  

Compare Smith’s approach to Labor Law to former President Bush’s Labor Secretary Elaine Chao who, as a policy analyst for the Heritage Foundateion, referred to affirmative action and minimum wage laws as a hindrance to “free enterprise”. Under Chao’s initiative, the Labor Department focused on “compliance assistance” and other voluntary reporting requirement for companies instead of actual labor law enforcement. The modus operandi of the Department of Labor for the subsequent eight years had been to let the fox guard the hen house.

Which brings us back to Smith and rampant wage violations.  

Bush used a recess appointment to bypass the Senate’s blockage of Eugene Scalia (yes – that Scalia’s son) as Labor Solicitor in January 2002. Scalia was best known for fighting workplace injury cases on behalf of employers, referring to repetitive motion injuries, a well documented and often highly debilitating form of injury, as a myth invented by doctors.

If the Senate cannot muster the sixty votes necessary to override Senator Enzi’s hold, I would think that Obama would take a play from Bush’s book and make a recess appointment of Smith. When workers are suffering high unemployment, wage cuts and continued layoffs, wage law violations in this country must be prosecuted.

Baseball Players Come Out Swinging for Employee Free Choice Act

Ads in The Hill, Politico, and Roll Call call on Congress to act on labor law reform (Washington, October 28)

On the eve of the World Series, 12 of baseball’s top names, all members of the Major League Baseball Players Association, are appearing in a new ad co-sponsored with the AFL-CIO urging passage of the Employee Free Choice Act.

The players – Heath Bell, Dave Bush, LaTroy Hawkins, Torii Hunter, John Lannan, Andrew Miller, J.J. Putz, Jimmy Rollins, Mark Teixeira, Justin Verlander, Shane Victorino and Adam Wainwright – have signed a statement saying:

“all Americans should have the same opportunity we’ve had—to be able to join a union without being fired and to negotiate with their employers without being penalized. Today, our country is facing some tough times. Health care costs are skyrocketing. Families are losing homes. Savings and retirement income are disappearing overnight. Now more than ever, we need a strong union movement to protect our jobs, our pensions, and our future. The Employee Free Choice Act simply guarantees a level playing field for all workers. It makes sure everyone plays by the same rules. That’s as important in the workplace as it is in baseball.”

The ad, running in The Hill, Roll Call, and Politico, pictures each of the players with his position and hometown on what looks like a baseball card.

“Baseball is a defining American tradition. And so is the freedom to bargain together for a better future,” said AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka. “In these troubling economic times, it’s more important than ever for working people to have a fair shot at getting ahead—and unions are the best way to make sure everyone has that chance. It’s time to hit this one out of the park and pass the Employee Free Choice Act.”

“Unionization and collective bargaining have produced tremendous gains for generations of baseball players. All American workers should have a fair opportunity to decide whether to join together to bargain on an equal footing with their employer. That’s what the Employee Free Choice Act provides,” said Michael Weiner, the incoming Executive Director of the Major League Baseball Players Association.

A critical piece of legislation pending before Congress, the Employee Free Choice Act would guarantee all workers the freedom to bargain collectively for fair wages and better benefits. It holds corporations accountable by increasing penalties for those who break the law and ensures workers will get a contract by requiring a neutral third party to determine and enforce a fair agreement.

WHAT TO SAY WHEN SOMEONE SAYS HEALTH REFORM IS BAD FOR SENIORS

• Tell them that it will begin closing the “donut hole” in Medicare Part D, the one that guarantees that the insurance companies keep getting their monthly premiums even when they aren’t giving you any benefits –
• Tell them that health reform is a chance to finally allow Medicare to negotiate for volume discounts with the drug companies. Savvy seniors know you pay less when you buy in bulk –
• Tell them that it will end wasteful taxpayer subsidies to the private insurance companies who run Medicare Advantage plans. We all pay an extra $3.60 per month in premiums just for the care and feeding of these companies –
• Tell them that it will end waste and inefficiency in the way hospitals and medical equipment providers are reimbursed –
• Tell them that it will keep you healthier by eliminating the co-pay for Medicare preventive services such as check-ups and cancer screenings –
• Tell them that it will provide help for lower-income seniors so they can better afford their Part D premiums –
• Tell them that it will allow you to change your Part D plan at any time during the year, so you won’t have to wait until open season if your medical needs change – Tell them that without health reform these changes will not happen!

tellthem-talking points

Illinois Alliance for Retired Americans 1634 W Van Buren, Chicago IL
312-243-6296 illinoisara@sbcglobal.net
National ARA: 815 16th Street, NW 4th floor, Washington, DC 20006
202-637-5399
www.retiredamericans.org

President Trumka at Showdown in Chicago

Showdown in Chicago!

 

For More information:

Locked out workers rally outside GPC in Muscatine

On Saturday, October 24, 2009, over a hundred people came out for a rally in support of the locked out workers at the Grain Processing Corporation in Muscatine, Iowa. Grain Processing Corporation is a leading manufacturer of corn-based products such as food items or pet care products.

The Back to Work Rally, held by UFCW Local 86D, the union that represents the workers, was held to keep the spotlight on the hundreds of workers who have remained locked out since last August 22, 2008.

Workers had anticipated that when their five-year contract expired at midnight more than a year and two months ago, they would continue to work under the terms of the existing contract as is the standard practice when a contract expires during negotiations.

However, at 7p.m., GPC pushed them out and has continued to operate with replacement workers – unfair certainly, but unfortunately perfectly legal under current labor law.

The lockout has had dire consequences on the faltering economy in Muscatine County, Iowa, whose unemployment rate at seven percent is twenty-three percent higher than the rest of the state.

“We want to work,” said Local 86D President William Poggemiller, “we wanted to work while settling our contract differences, but GPC locked us out.”

The union has set up a hardship fund to help the workers, but there hasn’t been enough to cover everyone’s bills for such a long period of time. Some workers have reported that they have lost their cars and others are close to losing their homes. In addition to losing their jobs, the workers health care benefits were cut effective the day of the lockout. Though eligible for COBRA benefits, at $350 a month they remain unaffordable for many families whose sole source of income are unemployment benefits.

Despite the economy downturn, the initial cause of the lockout was not wages or benefits, but language concerning outsourcing and job security. GPC wanted to alter contract language to be able to outsource any portion of its workforce for any time and for any reason. The union objected to that risk. The locked out workers average close to twenty years of service to the company.

“It’s really about keeping good jobs here in Muscatine,” said Bob Weatherman, one of 86D’s vice presidents. “We need to stand up for job security – for our families and for Muscatine’s economy.”

The two sides last negotiated with each other in early June 2009. The union has also expressed concerns about safety due to inadequate training of replacement workers.

More info and updates:

http://www.ufcw86d.org/index.html or http://www.muscatinefirst.com/economy.html

10 Question about the GPC Lock out

1. Q.  Of the 300 Union employees of GPC, were they locked out or out on strike? A. They’ve been locked out.

2. Q.  What’s the difference? A.  A strike occurs when the Union votes down a company’s contract offer and VOTES to Strike. A lock out is the result of a company refusing to let their hourly employees to work. The Union has no vote or choice.

3. Q. Did GPC lock out their employees due to sabotage? A.  Sabotage, accident, or excuse. We may never know for sure they have offered no proof of their claim.
4. Q. GPC claims the lock out was due to economics. A.  Yes, one month after the lock out Gage Kent donated $150,000 to Washington, Indiana for an aquatic center.  They also had funds to buy insert land and a road on the south end of town. Yet at the same time, they have frozen salaried workers wages and lowered the company’s profit sharing contributions from 15% to 3%. The hourly workers for GPC get a contribution of 2%.

5.  Q. Has GPC put an outsourcing clause in the proposed contract? A.  Yes, which means seniority means nothing. ZERO! The company could use outside contractors to replace hourly employees at ANY time.
6.  Q. Why hasn’t GPC and the Union board met in months to negotiate? A. The company asked the Union board not to call unless they are willing to buckle under and give the company a proposal.

7.  Q.  Does GPC offer sick leave to it’s hourly employees? A.  NO, GPC is the only food-grade plant that does not give it’s workers sick leave without prior approval.

8.  Q. Has GPC denied prior earned vacation to the locked out workers?  A.  Yes, they have denied the employees requests for vacation days that they have previously earned. The company has also denied funds from the employees 401K profit sharing accounts.

9.  Q. Do the locked out Union members have medical insurance? A.  NO, GPC had the right to let these people keep their insurance or take it away. Sadly, they chose to take it away.

10. Q.  Do “You” Union workers make good money, why should I support you? A.  Because we’re fighting the very fight that EVERY working class American needs to support. We’re telling big businesses they can’t give away our jobs, that our seniority IS important, that blue-collar workers deserve to be compensated too. Not just the CEO’s and upper management. This entire country rests on the backs of the working class. Ask yourself this; what happens to this nation when those backs break and there is nothing left to give.

America’s Broken Labor Standards

…and how to fix them

Across the United States, growing numbers of employers are breaking, bending, or evading long-established laws and standards designed to protect workers, from the minimum wage to job safety rules to the right to organize. This “gloves-off economy,” no longer confined to a marginal set of sweatshops and fly-by-night small businesses, is sending shock waves into every corner of the low-wage – and sometimes not so low-wage – labor market. What can be done to reverse this dangerous trend?

A new report Confronting the Gloves-Off Economy, based on the book The Gloves-Off Economy: Labor Standards at the Bottom of America’s Labor Market (a Labor and Employment Relations Association volume published by Cornell University Press), provides a comprehensive yet compact summary of gloves-off practices, the workers who are affected by them, and strategies for enforcing workplace standards.

The editors, four prominent labor scholars, have brought together economists, sociologists, labor attorneys, union strategists, and other experts to offer varying perspectives on both the problem and the creative, practical solutions currently being developed in a wide range of communities and industries. Bernhardt, Boushey, Dresser, and Tilly and the volume’s 18 other authors combine rigorous analysis with a stirring call to renew worker protections. Based on contributions from: Glenn Adler, Annette Bernhardt, Heather Boushey, Laura Dresser, Maurice Emsellem, Sarah Gammage, Ana Luz Gonzalez, Mark H. Greenberg, Jill Hurst, Stephen Lerner, Elizabeth Lower-Basch, Stephanie Luce, Edwin Meléndez, Ruth Milkman, Debbie A.

Available on-line: Confronting the Gloves-off Economy

Public Option all about good old American competition