Transport Workers Set to Protest ‘Job Cremator’ Romney
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Members of the Transport Workers (TWU), whose jobs are facing elimination by Bain & Co., will protest outside campaign offices of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney during the days leading up to the Florida primary election on Jan. 31. Calling Romney ”a job cremator, not a job creator,” TWU President James Little says Romney:
made a fortune snatching up companies, closing factories and laying off workers. Now, Bain & Company—which still lines Mitt Romney’s pockets with their profits—has been hired to axe workers at AMR Corporation.
Some of that fortune is on display today, as Romney’s tax returns show he amassed $45 million in the past two years alone.
Airline Unions Form Global Alliance
Fourteen airline unions from the United States and seven other countries have formed a cooperative global organization to give workers a stronger voice in dealing with the world’s major airlines.
The One World of Labor Council was created this week during a two-day meeting of union officials in Washington, D.C., hosted by the Transport Workers (TWU) and sponsored by the London-based International Transport Workers Federation (ITF).
The members of the council, which also includes the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA), represent workers at American Airlines, British Airways, Qantas, Chile-based LAN Airlines, and several other carriers that belong to the oneworld global airline alliance.
Wynn Casino Dealers Approve Historic Contract
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Three years after voting to join a union, dealers at the casino in Wynn Las Vegas late last week ratified a collective bargaining agreement, the first-ever union contract for dealers in Las Vegas.
With the contract, the 600 Wynn dealers, who are members of Transport Workers (TWU) Local 721, now have a voice on the job. They are no longer “at-will” employees who can be fired at any time, and management no longer has the ability to make arbitrary decisions and alter work policies on a whim.
Workers Fired Up About One Nation
Working families are getting fired up about the One Nation Working Together march Oct. 2 in Washington, D.C. One Nation is our chance to tell the country that working people and civil and human rights activists are turning the discussion away from fear-mongering and deficit doomsaying to renewing the American Dream for everyone.
Coming just one month before the fall election, the march could have a huge impact, says Transport Workers (TWU) President James Little:
This November’s congressional and state races will decide our country’s direction for years to come and have vital importance for…working Americans. This mobilization will demonstrate the power of our united One Nation coalition, created by forces of goodwill that stand for hope and change.
It’s not too late to plan to come to Washington or to plan an event in your city. Click here to learn more.
Transit Workers Urge Congress to Save Nation’s Transportation System
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Transit workers, with the support of the two major transit unions—the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) and the Transport Workers (TWU)—are asking Congress to allow local transit systems to redirect some stimulus dollars from capital improvements toward operating expenses.
Thousands of transit workers from across the nation, angry over cuts in service, rallied on Capitol Hill this week for greater and more flexible federal funding of the nation’s ailing public transportation system. More than 40 busloads of transit workers from New York and New Jersey traveled to Washington, D.C., for the rally. They were joined by representatives of civil rights and environmental groups also concerned about what service cuts mean to the public and the environment.
Mentors Training Next Generation of Union Leaders
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When Royetta Sanford retired as director of the Electrical Workers (IBEW) Human Services Department, she did not stop working to improve the lives of working people. Instead, she has begun to train the next generation of union leaders.
Sanford has volunteered to share her knowledge and experience to mentor Carrie Meyers-Herron, a recipient of the Union Leaders of the Future Scholarship.
Says Sanford:
I’m mentoring because I feel it is one of the only ways we can move forward getting women and minorities in the mainstream of the labor movement.
This is a great, well-organized program with some real bright talent, a lot of people with capacity to be good leaders. I want to give back to the movement and do whatever I can to make it stronger and more diverse.
TWU Campaigns Against ‘Outrageous’ Exec Bonuses at American
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Tired of corporate executives taking seven-figure bonuses while other workers are laid off, the Transport Workers (TWU) launched a national advertising campaign to raise awareness about outrageous pending awards at AMR, the parent company for American Airlines and American Eagle.
The union began running ads April 2 in major news outlets such as CNN and in newspapers in Dallas, Chicago, Miami, Tulsa and other major American Airlines markets.
TWU also is reaching out to the public through ads on Google and other Internet sites and search engines. Each message encourages frequent flyers and the general public to play the “American Exec Check” game here. The interactive online game challenges the public to guess how much various CEOs make and to drag their caricatures to a desk marked with differing dollar figures.
Union Civil Rights Activists Vow to Keep King’s Dream Alive
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Union civil rights activists this weekend celebrated the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., by commiting to hold the new administration and Congress accountable and carry on the work they did in the 2008 election to mobilize workers in support of a strong progressive agenda.
More than 800 participants in the annual AFL-CIO King Day celebration in New Orleans, which ends today, also responded to President-elect Obama’s call to honor King with community service. They joined with hundreds of area union members to roll up their sleeves in more than 20 different community service projects in a city that continues to suffer three years later from the effects of Hurricane Katrina. Over two days, the activists helped repair an African American museum, churches and homes in hard-hit St. Bernard Parish.
King Day Participants Celebrate 2008 Wins, Plan for Future
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The inauguration of the nation’s first African American president next week is just the beginning of a historic shift in the nation’s politics, and civil rights activists from across the country are gathering this weekend to honor the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and discuss how to complete King’s dream of a just society.
During the annual AFL-CIO King Day celebration, which begins today and runs through Jan. 19 in New Orleans, more than 200 participants will examine what the 2008 election means for our nation and working families. Responding to President-elect Obama’s call to honor King with community service, the participants will join with hundreds of area union members and roll up their sleeves in more than 20 different community service projects in a city that continues to suffer three years later from the effects of Hurricane Katrina.
