Unions, Allies: Once in a Lifetime Opportunity to Create Jobs of the Future
California Labor Federation communications organizer Rebecca Greenberg reports on the organization’s Building Workforce Partnerships conference.
Economic stimulus, green jobs, energy efficiency…these are terms workers have been hearing quite a bit about lately. This week in San Jose, Calif., unions, government, business and environmentalists joined leading economists at the California Labor Federation’s annual Building Workforce Partnerships conference to address the potential of jointly addressing economic security, energy independence and government stimulus to build a fundamentally stronger economy for America’s workers.
A Renewed Covenant with America: The Employee Free Choice Act
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Steve Smith, director of communications at the California Labor Federation, describes one of many recent actions in California and around the country in support of the Employee Free Choice Act.
A broad coalition of California interfaith leaders gathered at a West Los Angeles Wal-Mart this week to demand an end to the Wal-Martization of America and to support a renewed covenant with America’s workers through passage of the Employee Free Choice Act. Nationwide, dozens of faith groups have joined with environmental, community and academic organizations in support of the legislation, which would level the playing field for workers seeking to form unions.
Republican Senators Say They Will Hold Up Solis Nomination
With unemployment at the highest level in decades, Senate Republicans are saying they will hold a vote on the nomination of a key Cabinet member in the fight to restore jobs in this ailing economy. Some conservative lawmakers are vowing to hold up a vote on Rep. Hilda Solis’ (D-Calif.) confirmation as labor secretary because of their opposition to the Employee Free Choice Act, which she supports.
Solis, who comes from a union family, has been a champion of workers for more than 15 years combined in Congress and the California legislature, where she was the first Latina elected to the state Senate.
Solis backers have created two Facebook groups in support of her nomination: ”Americans for Hilda Solis as Secretary of Labor,” and “1,000,000 Strong For Hilda Solis as Secretary of Labor“—and each has some 300 members who signed up in the past few days. The groups give information on how to contact your senators to urge that Solis be confirmed. Sign up for both is open to any Facebook member.
Confirmation Hearings Today on Solis for Labor Secretary
As Congress holds confirmation hearings on the nomination of Hilda Solis as secretary of labor this morning, we will get our first extended look at how she plans to return the U.S. Department of Labor to its primary mission of protecting the lives, wages and rights of working people.
Solis, a four-term U.S. House member from California’s 32nd District, was tapped last month by President-elect Barack Obama to be his secretary of labor. As today’s hearings before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee get under way, we will bring you updates.
As Obama said repeatedly throughout the campaign, the Bush administration and outgoing Labor Secretary Elaine Chao spent eight years attacking workers’ rights, strong workplace health and safety rules and unions while they carried the water for Big Business. Obama summed up the Chao regime this way:
Remember, this is supposed to be the Department Labor, not the Department of Management.
Arnie’s Next Pay Cut Plan: Kill Overtime
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) has come up with a cruel way to solve the Golden State’s budget impasse—take away the eight-hour day and cut overtime pay for private-sector workers. Those changes to basic workplace protections are part of his so-called compromise budget released this week.
His move followed the executive order he issued July 31, cutting the pay of some 200,000 state workers to the federal minimum wage of $6.55 an hour and laying off thousands of state workers. The pay cut is now in the courts and workers will receive their full August pay.
