Tens of Thousands March for Voting Rights
Marvin Bing, a member of the AFL-CIO Special Committee on Labor-Community Partnerships, sends us this report.
Tens of thousands of labor and civil rights activists on Saturday marched from the New York offices of Koch Industries, whose owners have supported restrictive voting legislation modeled by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a right-wing think tank funded by brothers David and Charles Koch. Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.), who took part in the event, put it this way:
You can’t accomplish anything if you’re not prepared to fight.
The coalition of labor, civil rights and community organizations marked Dec. 10, International Human Rights Day, with the Stand for Freedom march and rally where they voted to roll back new voting rules passed in several states.
Some of the laws passed in more than a dozen states around the country include Read the rest of this entry »
Eleanor Roosevelt: She Was One of Us
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Just came from a great event that served as a reminder of why it’s so important to observe Dec. 10, Human Rights Day, which marks the passage of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations.
Here at the AFL-CIO in Washington, D.C., author and historian Brigid O’Farrell discussed her new book, “She Was One of Us: Eleanor Roosevelt and the American Worker.” Introducing O’Farrell to the packed crowd, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler said, “Eleanor worked tirelessly to ensure all people enjoy” basic workplace rights. In fact, Roosevelt was the mover behind adoption of the Declaration of Human Rights, and—less known—labor worked with her to push hard for passage of Article 23, which states in part that:
Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions….
Human Rights Day: Fighting for Domestic Workers
Today, International Human Rights Day, the National Domestic Worker Alliance is joining with domestic workers around the world to launch a campaign to call for improved labor standards for their industry.
Domestic work, which includes housecleaning, child-care and elder care, is not covered by many basic labor laws, leaving those who perform this work extremely vulnerable to abuse and exploitation on the job. Domestic workers across the globe are demanding the creation of international labor standards for domestic work through the passage of an International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention on Domestic Work. They also are proposing policy changes at the state and national levels to ensure basic labor protections for domestic workers.
Human Rights Day, 2008: U.S. Workers Still Lack the Freedom to Form Unions
The Employee Free Choice Act, a vital bill to restore workers’ freedom to form unions and bargain for a better life, is a top priority for working families in the new Congress. Today, as we commemorate the 60th anniversary of the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights, it’s important to remember how crucial it is to protect the right of workers to form unions to protect fair pay, good benefits and a safe work environment.
Around the country today, union volunteers are marking the anniversary by leafleting worksites and getting the message out about the Employee Free Choice Act. In coming weeks, labor councils around the country hold meetings to spread the word about this critical bill to restore worker power and rebuild the middle class.
The Employee Free Choice Act is under heavy attack from CEOs and Big Business lobbyists. One of the country’s largest employers, McDonald’s, is taking the anti-worker side in the fight over the bill.
