Union Leaders Praise Obama's Support for Nuclear Plant

by James Parks, Feb 17, 2010

Union leaders praised President Obama’s announcement yesterday of federal loan guarantees for the construction of two advanced reactors at the Plant Vogtle nuclear power station in Georgia. They said it is a major step forward in addressing the nation’s energy needs as well as creating badly needed jobs. And they urged the president to ensure all the components used in the plant are made in America.

Obama made the announcement during a visit to an apprenticeship training facility in the Washington, D.C., suburbs that is jointly administered by Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 26 and local electrical contractors. Check out a video of the announcement here.

Sweatshop Report Throws Personal Foul Flag on NFL Jersey Maker

Chi Fung worker’s home


Some of the fancy replica jerseys bearing the names of NFL stars like Peyton Manning, which fetch upwards of $80 each in U.S. sporting goods stores, were sewn by workers in El Salvador who made about 10 cents for each jersey, according to a new report by the National Labor Committee (NLC).

The report, “NFL and Reebok Fumble: Women Paid 10 Cents to Sew $80 Peyton Manning Jerseys,” says that for the past four years the 550 workers—about 80 percent women—at the Chi Fung factory in San Salvador were forced to work unpaid overtime, cheated of wages and harassed by managers. One worker told the NLC investigators:

We knew the shirts were expensive. But now we realize the real price is $80, it makes us angry, because it isn’t fair that they pay us such a low wage. The people [who buy these jerseys] don’t imagine everything we have to bear in the factory when we sew these shirts.

With just one $80 shirt, they pay our wages for two weeks. It could be said that with the cost of a single shirt, I have to maintain my family for two weeks. The supervisors are right when they say to us that our wage is not enough to pay for a jersey if we make a mistake.

Most Workers Hurt by Tax on Health Benefits Are Not in Unions

by Mike Hall, Feb 18, 2010

A new study shows that a proposed tax on workers’ health care benefits goes far beyond union workers’ plans. In fact, at least 80 percent of the workers hit by the tax would be nonunion.

The study by the University of California, Berkeley’s Center for Labor Research and Education looked at both the excise tax on so-called Cadillac plans in the Senate health care bill and the revised version reached Jan. 14 between the Obama administration and union leaders that lessens the tax’s impact on all working families.

Ken Jacobs, chair of the Labor Center and one of the study’s authors, says the tax’s impact is not just a union issue as was portrayed in much of the media coverage.

Union members are relatively a small fraction of the total population that would ultimately be affected by the tax, under either the Senate bill or the proposed amendment….The vast majority of employees affected by the excise tax are not covered by a union contact.

One Year Later, the Recovery Act Is Working

by James Parks, Feb 17, 2010

If there’s one thing Americans agree on, it’s that we need more jobs now. That reality is often twisted by conservatives, who say the one-year-old economic recovery plan has failed. But they are just wrong.

The AFL-CIO is pushing for much greater investment to create the millions more jobs we need to get us out of our current hole. Check out the federation’s five-point plan to put America back to work here.

The fact is that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is still working, generating more than 2 million jobs and laying the foundation for future economic growth.