Working America, Union Members Speak Out on Need for Jobs
 |
||||
|
||||
While top leaders from government, business and labor gathered yesterday at the White House, grassroots union members and struggling families held their own job summits across the country.
In roundtable discussions in Ohio, Minnesota and New Mexico, members of the AFL-CIO’s community affiliate, Working America, joined union members to discuss the continuing challenge of high unemployment and the need to start creating new jobs.
Working America member Pablo Trujillo hosted a roundtable discussion at his home in Albuquerque and said the jobs crisis must be addressed for today’s workers so we can build a stronger economy for generations to come:
We need to be vigilant in the actions we take as a community. The economy is one of those actions we need to focus on, not only for the present but for the future of New Mexico. I want to see my grandchildren grow up with opportunities and be able to prosper.
Watch the White House Jobs Summit Live
Today, the White House has convened a summit to discuss solutions to our nation’s job crisis. President Barack Obama has invited elected officials, academics, union leaders and business executives to talk about how to create jobs and turn our economy around.
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and other union leaders will take part in today’s activities. Trumka will also take part in a breakout session, “Encouraging Business Competitiveness and Job Creation.”
You can watch live coverage of the White House jobs summit here and learn more about the AFL-CIO’s proposals to create jobs here.
After White House Jobs Summit, Check Out Trumka on Ed Schultz
 |
|
Tonight, after the White House jobs summit, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka will appear on MSNBC’s “The Ed Show.”
Trumka will speak with host Ed Schultz about the jobs crisis crippling the nation, the vital need to address it quickly and the AFL-CIO’s five-point plan for job creation. Tune in at 6 p.m. EST, to learn more about what we must do to put America to work.
We’ll also cover the jobs summit and Trumka’s MSNBC appearance today on Twitter and right here on the AFL-CIO Now blog.
At the summit today, Trumka will challenge President Barack Obama and Congress to act quickly to turn around the jobs crisis. The AFL-CIO’s plan is based on five key principles:
- Extend the lifeline for jobless workers.
- Rebuild America’s schools, roads and energy systems.
- Increase aid to state and local governments to maintain vital services.
- Put people to work doing the jobs we need done in our communities.
- Put the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds to work for Main Street.
Some Jobs Taxpayers Don’t Need to Buy
United Steelworkers (USW) President Leo Gerard will join AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and other union and national leaders today to meet with President Barack Obama at the White House jobs summit.
Can’t buy me love
Everybody tells me so
Can’t buy me love
No, no, no, no—From the 1964 John Lennon/Paul McCartney song “Can’t Buy Me Love.”
Maybe you can’t buy love, but you can buy a job.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt did it with the Works Progress Administration (WPA) during the Great Depression. And the $787 billion stimulus package passed in February created jobs to relieve what is now 10.2 percent unemployment.
Job Summit Tomorrow: What Do We Need to Create Jobs?
|
|
Tomorrow, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and other national leaders will meet with President Barack Obama at the White House jobs summit, where they’ll start a much-needed conversation about what to do for the 26 million workers who are unemployed or underemployed.
Across the country, union members and Working America members are joining the conversation by holding roundtable discussions in Ohio, New Mexico and Minnesota on the jobs crisis and the need for quick action.
Trumka will be joined by union leaders, academics, corporate heads and elected officials from across the country. They’ll work to identify what we can do to create jobs and start turning our economy around. The summit will run from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. EST.
Trumka, Union Leaders Headed to Jobs Summit Dec. 3
|
|
President Barack Obama this week is convening a jobs summit to address the urgent need to create jobs for the more than 26 million unemployed or underemployed workers looking for work in an economy in which there are more than six workers for every one job.
An economy in which one in three Americans have either lost his or her job or live in a household with someone who has.
The summit, set for Thursday, Dec. 3, will include more than 100 experts and leaders from business, labor, government and community organizations, including AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and Nobel laureates Joseph Stiglitz and Paul Krugman.
