District 141 Election Update

Nominations Complete

With February nominations complete, the next step is run-off elections, scheduled throughout March. The times and locations depend on the local lodge to which you belong. Check your local lodge bulletin board for official information. For convenience, March RunOffs on iam141.org has times and places, subject to change by your local.

Illinois State Council of Machinists Welcomes Governor Pat Quinn

Illinois Governor Pat Quinn addresses the IL State Council of Machinists

Tue. March 02, 2010

Illinois Governor Pat Quinn laid out his 5 point plan to create jobs in Illinois at the State Council of Machinists conference in Springfield, IL. “This is a choice between pay stubs and unemployment checks,” Governor Quinn says. “Under my plan, Jobs and Growth for Illinois, we will create jobs today and set the stage for longterm, sustainable growth over the years to come," said Governor Quinn.

Machinists Union members from all over Illinois as well as those in attendance from District 9 and 837 in Missouri praised Governor Quinn who clearly understands we need JOBS Now!

Pratt and Whitney Appeals Court Decision

Tue. March 02, 2010

Pratt & Whitney is adding insult to injury by filing an appeal of the court decision castigating them for failing to make an effort to preserve work in Connecticut. The appeal comes a day after the company announced layoffs in the locations they were barred by court order from closing.

Since last July, Pratt and United Technologies (UTC) have repeatedly rejected requests from federal, state and community leaders to consider ways to work with their employees, the Machinists union and the state government to keep open profitable work centers in Cheshire and East Hartford.

IAM Delivers for Workers at Lockheed Martin Space Systems

Fri. March 05, 2010

On Friday, February 26, 2010, more than 420 IAM members employed at Lockheed Martin Space Systems voted to accept a new three-year contract. The members are from District 112, Local Lodge 2772 in Kings Bay, GA and District 160, Local Lodge 282 in Seattle, WA.

IAM - Fighting for America's Jobs

The IAM's 730,000 active and retired members can be found in all 50 states in the U.S. and 10 provinces and three territories of Canada.

Our union is organized into seven territories to better serve our members. Geography defines five of those territories. Transportation covers a series of related industries. Headquarters combines administrative functions with recently merged or affiliated districts and lodges.

Egyptian Workers to Receive Meany-Kirkland Award

Striking Egyptian property tax collectors demonstrate in downtown Cairo in 2007.

by James Parks, Mar 6, 2010

Angered by severe economic pressures and frustrated by inadequate representation, Egyptian workers started to take to the streets in a wave of strikes and other public protests in the early 2000s. Despite strong government repression, more than 2 million Egyptian workers have been involved in 3,000 strikes, demonstrations and sit-ins since 2004.

The AFL-CIO Executive Council, meeting in Orlando, Fla., this week, awarded the Egyptian union movement for the 2009 George Meany-Lane Kirkland Human Rights Award. The award will be formally presented later this year.

Secretary Napolitano Meets with Airline Industry CEOs...International Aviation Security

Release Date: March 4, 2010

For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
Contact: 202-282-8010

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Napolitano today met with CEOs of the member airlines of the Air Transport Association of America (ATA), the largest airline trade association in the United States, and the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which represents approximately 230 airlines and more than 90 percent of the world's air traffic—part of her ongoing efforts to bring together major domestic and foreign air carriers to work on ways to bolster international aviation security.

2010 Legislative Report

Florida State Capitol

BY: Tony Kiwak, Legislative Director for
the Florida Alliance for Retired Americans (FLARA)

HOW TO TRACK BILLS

First, consider a call to your local legislators. Their staffs have detailed information on many bills and can provide help in many cases.

To check on a bill yourself, go to the Florida Senate's Web site -- www.flsenate.gov

-- or the Florida House of Representatives: www.myfloridahouse.com.

Report: New Communications Technology = Good, Green Jobs

by James Parks, Mar 5, 2010

New communication technologies can be a key part of making our economy more energy-efficient and help create good jobs in the future, according to a new report.

“Networking the Green Economy: How Broadband and Related Technologies Can Build a Green Economic Future,” illustrates how a highly-networked economy with smart buildings, smart grids, teleconferencing and digital education will reduce carbon dioxide emissions and retain good, green jobs. The report was released yesterday at a Capitol Hill press conference by the Progressive States Network, Communications Workers of America (CWA), Sierra Club and the Blue Green Alliance. You can read the report here.