Vets: Employee Free Choice Affirms Freedoms We Fought For
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This Fourth of July, there will parades, picnics, family gatherings and speeches about what it means to be an American and a patriot.
For the men and women who have served in the military, being a patriot means fighting at home to protect the freedoms they defended in conflicts abroad. And for millions of them, that means belonging to a union.
Take Brett McElfresh, a member of Plumbers and Pipefitters (UA) Local 94 in Canton, Ohio. McElfresh served four years in the U.S. Army, including a tour in Iraq. He is the first member of his local to join the Helmets to Hardhats program sponsored by by the AFL-CIO Building and Construction Trades Department (BCTD). The program has helped more than 5,000 military vets find new careers as electricians, plumbers, roofers and in other skilled trades.
Winning Together—NEA and the AFL-CIO
Congratulations to the seven lucky National Education Association (NEA) members who today won top prizes in the AFL-CIO Winning Together Contest by displaying their knowledge of the power of union solidarity.
The contest was sponsored by the federation’s Unity Partnerships project and was open to NEA members and staff attending the NEA Representative Assembly Expo in San Diego this week.
To enter the contest, participants answered a question about the combined voting strength of NEA and AFL-CIO active and retired households in their home states. Those who answered correctly were eligible for the grand prize and two second prizes. Everyone who submitted an answer was eligible for one of three third prizes.
In today’s drawing, Carol Sampsel of State College, Pa., won the grand prize of a $1,000 Costco gift certificate. Sampsel says, “I Just got a new place to live, so this will come in handy!”
Maine GOP State Legislator Supports Employee Free Choice Act, and Other Highlights from Around the Country
Guess who’s joining the campaign for the Employee Free Choice Act in Maine?
It’s state Rep. Jim Campbell, a Republican who is defying the expectations of pundits and corporate shills by supporting workers’ freedom to form unions and bargain. He has appeared at public events around the state and written in local news outlets to show his support for the Employee Free Choice Act.
Here’s what Campbell says about the need to pass the Employee Free Choice Act and its importance to rebuilding the economy:
Common-sense solutions should be used to create good jobs that can support a family and put money back into our economy. Historically, no institution has been as effective at improving the quality of life for working families as membership in a union. Union members earn better wages, have better health care coverage and can count on a more secure retirement than nonunion workers.
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June Job Loss Hit Most Industries
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The 437,000 jobs lost in June were spread throughout most U.S. industries, according to the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
Manufacturing employment fell by 136,000 in June, while employment in construction decreased by 79,000. Job losses in professional and business services shot up in June, with the industry shedding 118,000 jobs. Retail trade employment was down by 21,000 in June.
Education and health care employment increased by 34,000, and employment in government dropped by 52,000 in June.
The overall unemployment rate increased to 9.5 percent in June, putting it at a 26-year high.
AFL-CIO President John Sweeney said today’s jobs data show that creating jobs is the key to a full economic recovery.
Congress and the Obama administration need to continue to remain focused on stimulus efforts to end the recession. Additionally, this is not just a problem in the United States, but at this stage, job loss is the vortex of the global economic crisis. To address this problem we believe that all governments should focus an extra 1 percent of GDP [gross domestic product] for stimulus focused on job creation.
Unemployment Rate Hits 9.5 Percent—a 26-Year High
The U.S. unemployment rate increased to 9.5 percent in June, a 26-year high, and up slightly from 9.4 percent in May. Some 467,000 jobs were lost in June, according to data released today by the Department of Labor.
The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) increased by 433,000 over the month to 4.4 million. That is an increase of more than 100,000 over the job loss in May.
This is the 18th straight month of job loss, with 6.5 million jobs gone since the start of the recession in December 2007.
Ayers: Employee Free Choice Act a ‘Win-Win’ for Workers, Business
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Cutting through the myths and explaining the importance of workers’ freedom to form unions and bargain, Mark Ayers, president of the AFL-CIO Building and Construction Trades Department (BCTD), makes the case for the Employee Free Choice Act in the upcoming issue of The Voice, the magazine of the Construction Users Roundtable (CURT).
In an op-ed aimed at leaders in the construction industry, Ayers says much of the controversy around the legislation is based on “outlandish claims” by opponents who hope to keep workers from bargaining for a better life. Indeed, Ayers says, the freedom of workers to form unions and bargain is a tool to strengthen the economy.
Hang Up and Fly—Tell Senate to Back In-Flight Cell Phone Ban
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If you get a chance, take a minute and do your part for airline safety and passenger sanity. The Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA) ) is urging the U.S. Senate to maintain the ban on in-flight cell phone use. Click here to send your senators a message.
The ban was included in the House-passed version of the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill (H.R. 915) in May. The Senate is expected to act this summer. The union says:
“Cell phone usage in the cabin would create a new security risk, compromise flight attendants job of safely executing an emergency evacuation, and ability to maintain order within the cabin amongst cabin noise and tension.”
Rural Economies Need Employee Free Choice
In a great new op-ed in Minnesota’s Bemidji Pioneer, Richard Levins, a professor emeritus of applied economics at the University of Minnesota, says the Employee Free Choice Act gives workers in rural economies the ability to bargain for a better life and restore the economy in their communities.
He says the race to the bottom in wages isn’t working anymore for our economy and calls the Employee Free Choice Act a “much-needed stimulus” for rural economies.
SEC Proposals Would Expose Conflicts on CEO Pay
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The AFL-CIO today applauded rules proposed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to give shareholders better information about the potential conflicts of interest of compensation consultants who help set pay for senior corporate executives.
A December 2007 congressional report found that CEOs of companies that use compensation consultants who have potential conflicts, such as providing management with other services, received considerably higher pay than CEOs of companies that used independent compensation consultants.
In a statement, AFL-CIO President John Sweeney said “better disclosure is needed to bring these conflicts of interest out of the shadows.”
Outsized compensation packages for senior executives hurt shareholders, including pension plans investing the retirement savings of America’s working families. Labor union members participate in pension plans with more than $4 trillion in assets. Union-sponsored pension plans hold about $450 billion in assets. Excessive pay packages for top executives are a giveaway of our members’ money.
Covanta Complaint Shows Need for Employee Free Choice Act
Here’s another example of why the Employee Free Choice Act is so important. The National Labor Relations Board this week issued a comprehensive complaint charging Covanta Energy Corp. and all of its U.S. subsidiaries with violating federal labor law.
More than 130 workers at Covanta’s Southeastern Massachusetts (SEMASS) facility in West Wareham, Mass., voted to join Utility Workers (UWUA) Local 369 in May 2008. The facility converts solid waste into energy by shredding and burning the trash. The employees have been trying to negotiate a first contract for more than a year.
If the Employee Free Choice Act were law, this dispute would have been over months ago. The legislation provides the mediation and arbitration assistance to help settle a contract when a company and a newly certified union cannot agree on a contract after three months.
