Asian Pacific Americans Tell Their Stories at First National Workers’ Rights Hearing
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Ricky Lau, an electrician with the Electrical Workers (IBEW) and a Chinese immigrant, worked for 10 to 12 hours a day, six days a week for his former employer, a contracting company. He and his mostly immigrant co-workers, many of whom did not speak English, were ripped off, he says. While they worked 60 to 70 hours, their weekly time cards read 16 to 20 hours. They had no benefits and no health care coverage.
Fed up, he and three other co-workers left the company and joined IBEW. With the help of his union, Lau and the other workers have been able to assert themselves. Now the four workers are suing the company in a class-action suit for back wages.
Shuler to IBEW: Let’s Fight for Jobs
At this week’s Electrical Workers (IBEW) conference, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler said we must focus on creating jobs and building a strong, sustainable and fair economy for the future.
Shuler, who rose to leadership as an IBEW organizer, congratulated the union’s members on their efforts in mobilizing and contacting members of Congress on behalf of health care reform and other key issues.
We still have a long way to go before we can truly have economic recovery, Shuler said, noting that as she travels around the country, the word she hears most often is “jobs.” The AFL-CIO worked hard for the economic recovery package passed by Congress, but the union movement still has much to do to address the massive unemployment and underemployment around the nation, she said. The AFL-CIO is pushing for more stimulus dollars to invest in energy, transportation, communications and school construction—for investment in green jobs and for more aid to state and local governments that have been slammed by biggest budget hits in decades. Most critically, Shuler said, if the union movement doesn’t push to make this happen, no one will.
Shuler said extending unemployment benefits was an urgent priority that will prevent further damage to our economy. With 26 million people looking for work, or discouraged entirely from the job market, and long-term unemployment at its highest level in more than 25 years, it’s critical to give some relief, she said.
Green jobs and a new energy economy have the potential to revitalize the country, Shuler said, but only if those jobs are good jobs, with fair wages and benefits. We can protect the environment and build a more prosperous future, she said, by getting a headstart on new technologies and increasing energy efficiency.
Shuler also laid out her vision for the policies we need to build a stronger economy—including health care reform, the Employee Free Choice Act and financial reform.
Shuler in Oregon: The Sharks We Defeated Are Still Circling
At the Oregon AFL-CIO convention, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler, who got her start organizing in Oregon, spoke yesterday to hundreds of delegates from across the state and encouraged them to start now on educating and mobilizing union members. Shuler told delegates:
Last year, you helped transform our country. And everything you did in 2008, we must do from now to 2010—and here’s why. The sharks you defeated last November are still circling out there. They’ve never given up. They’re just as vicious now, and they want to destroy everything you won. Don’t let them do it.
You have a big job next year: electing a governor who’s pro-working family, pro-union, pro-us; making sure we re-elect the representatives who stand up for what’s right; and beating back the two initiatives that our right-wing pals have dreamed up for 2010….So it’s not too early to get ready.
Shuler: We Need to Let Young People Know About Unions
Nearly 300 young activists and students came to Washington, D.C., last week for the A Better Deal 2009 conference, and AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler was on hand to let these young people know that the labor movement is here to fight for them.
Sponsored by Demos and an array of youth and progressive organizations, A Better Deal 2009 looked at jobs, debt, education, health care and other issues facing young people in a challenging economy. The Electrical Workers (IBEW) were there as well and have a great new video on the conference and young people’s concerns about building a strong economic future.
Here’s what Shuler has to say on the need to make the union movement accessible, relevant and attentive to the next generation:
I think now is the perfect time to reach out to young people, because of the economic devastation that we’ve been experiencing. I think young people have been disproportionately affected, and we need to connect the dots for them and make sure they know that the labor movement is the best answer to their economic troubles.
Shuler in Pennsylvania: We Must Inspire Next Generation
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Speaking at last night’s annual dinner of the Southeastern Area Labor Federation of Pennsylvanian, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler told the state’s union members we must get energized and active so that we can address the needs of a generation of young workers left behind by an economy that isn’t working:
We need to reach out to millions of unorganized workers who just don’t see us as the answer to their problems. To tell you the truth, they don’t see us at all. Above all, that means young workers in their 20s and 30s….They don’t have a connection to the union movement….No wonder young workers don’t realize what we have to offer them.
Shuler, who has been traveling nearly non-stop since becoming the youngest person ever elected as a top AFL-CIO officer last month, cited the AFL-CIO report “Young Workers: A Lost Decade,” which found that workers under age 35 have been hit especially hard by the economic crisis. The economic hardship damages their earning power now and well into the future.
Shuler: Young People Must Take Lead in Building a New Economy
Today at Demos’ A Better Deal 2009 conference, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler got a chance to lay out her vision for a new economy—and to hear from young leaders about what they need.
Shuler, the youngest person ever elected as secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO, is making outreach to young people her top priority as a leader in the labor movement.
In a wide-ranging speech that touched on making sure new jobs are good jobs, financial reform, health care and the Employee Free Choice Act, Shuler talked about the crisis the nation faces—and the opportunity we have to fundamentally rebuild our economy so it works for future generations.
I don’t need to tell you that we’re in an economic crisis. Your generation is living it.
Live Coverage of Liz Shuler at A Better Deal 2009
Seth Michaels is posting live from the 2009 A Better Deal Conference.
Today, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler is speaking at “A Better Deal 2009.”
The conference, which runs today and Friday, is hosted by Demos, an advocacy organization focused on building a fairer economy, and a variety of sponsor organizations focused on youth and the economy.
Shuler will speak about the challenges facing young people and the policies we must fight for to build a better future.
We’re covering Shuler’s speech live on Twitter, and you can follow it right here.
Tomorrow, Join Us for ‘A Better Deal’
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Tomorrow, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler will give the keynote address at the A Better Deal 2009 conference here in Washington, D.C.
The conference, which runs tomorrow and Friday, is hosted by Demos, an advocacy organization focused on building a fairer economy, and a variety of sponsor organizations focused on youth and the economy.
Shuler Kicking off Conference for ‘A Better Deal’
Continuing the fight to build a fairer economy now and for future generations, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler will give the keynote address at the upcoming A Better Deal 2009 conference hosted by Demos, an advocacy organization focused on building a fairer economy.
The conference, set for Oct. 15-16 in Washington, D.C., will look at the crisis facing today’s young people in an economy that just isn’t working for them. As documented in the AFL-CIO report, “Young Workers: A Lost Decade,” young people are struggling to find good jobs that provide them with fair wages, health benefits, retirement security and decency on the job. The next generation could be on track to be the first in a century to be worse off than their parents, and that sets a dangerous standard for generations to come.
Union Members Ramp Up Mobilization for New Jersey Election
Vice President Joe Biden came to New Jersey yesterday and joined AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler to mobilize union members for the Nov. 3 election. In less than four weeks, New Jersey voters will hit the polls in this critical election for governor. And every day between now and then, union volunteers will hit the streets and the phones to educate union voters about the stakes in the race between Gov. Jon Corzine and his opponent, Chris Christie.
The New Jersey State AFL-CIO has endorsed Corzine and made his re-election a top priority this fall. On issues like education, health care and jobs, Corzine has the right priorities for New Jersey’s working families, while Chris Christie, who got a political appointment from George W. Bush after serving as a major fundraiser, would take the state in the wrong direction.
