IAM Responds to Crisis in Japan

Thu. March 17, 2011

The IAM is working closely with its alliance partner, the Japan Federation of Aviation Workers’ Unions (KOHKUREN) to provide information, advocacy and support for airline workers who could be impacted by the tragedy unfolding in Japan.

“Our first concern is the safety of Flight Attendants and ground workers who could face hazards associated with the earthquake and the damaged nuclear power plant,” said Transportation GVP Robert Roach, Jr. “The IAM met with KOHKUREN representatives this week in Washington, D.C. and relayed to the U.S. Department of Transportation the unique concerns of flight crews and other airline workers based in and flying through Japan.”

In addition to maintaining constant communications with Continental Airlines and continually assessing the situation, the IAM is assembling a team of volunteer Flight Attendants from Continental and United Airlines to travel to Japan to provide direct assistance and evaluate what additional support may be needed.

“We have expressed our members’ concerns to Continental management,” said District 142 President Tom Higginbotham. “Any Continental Flight Attendant who has concerns about flying through Narita should contact an IAM Representative immediately.”

Additionally, the IAM Disaster Relief Fund is available to assist members who have suffered losses from the earthquake. IAM Flight Attendants and any IAM Transportation Department members who suffer a loss due to the earthquake and its aftereffects should call the office of General Vice President Robert Roach, Jr. at 301-967-4550.

“This is a humanitarian crisis of global proportions and we have a responsibility to respond without delay,” said Roach. “The IAM will continue doing everything possible to protect our members and future members.”

Montana Public Employees Join National, State AFL-CIO

by James Parks, Mar 21, 2011

Public employees in Montana have a stronger voice today after the Montana Public Employees Association (MPEA) announced it will affiliate with the national AFL-CIO and the Montana AFL-CIO. This affiliation will bring Montana’s public employees into the larger union movement at a time when support for the rights of public employees is stronger than ever.

The MPEA is a Montana-born union that has operated independently for 65 years before joining the AFL-CIO. The affiliation of MPEA will expand the size of the Montana State AFL-CIO by 7,500 members bringing the current membership to 46,000.

Quint Nyman, executive director of the MPEA, said:

We realize that by affiliating with the national and Montana AFL-CIO we become a stronger voice for our members and for all workers in the state of Montana. My organization believes in the power of one voice for the Montana labor movement and solidarity with the larger labor movement as it works to defend the rights of workers across the country.

This is the second major affiliation with the Montana state federation in three years. In 2008, the Montana State AFL-CIO welcomed 2,400 newly affiliated members of the Montana Nurses Association.

“When workers stand together on the job, in our communities, and at the voting booth we can do great things,” said Montana AFL-CIO President Jim McGarvey.

I am so pleased to welcome the MPEA into the Montana State AFL-CIO. I am grateful for the contributions they have made to the condition of working families in Montana over the years. I look forward to working with Quint Nyman and the MPEA to promote sustainable Montana jobs so every worker can support their family and have health insurance they can count on and a secure retirement.

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka added:

Over the past few weeks we have seen unprecedented strength and solidarity growing within the labor movement – which makes this news so exciting. The Montana Public Employees Association has a long and proud history of successful representation of its members. We welcome them to the broader labor movement and look forward to even more success as a partner and an affiliate of the AFL-CIO.

New Hire Shows Wisconsin’s Not That Broke

by Mike Hall, Mar 21, 2011

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) says the Badger State is teetering on the brink of financial collapse, yet he finds a spare $150 million for corporate tax breaks and his top aides find a comfy job—with a $12,000 raise—for the girlfriend of one of his staunchest ally’s.

Just goes to show you that when Walker and all the other governors who use state budgets as a pretext to push through harsh cuts and strip rights from teachers, nurses, firefighters, it’s not about economics. It’s all about politics.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that Valerie Cass, a former Republican legislative staffer, was hired Feb. 7 as a communications specialist with the state Department of Regulation and Licensing. According to the Journal Sentinel, Cass, 26, is the girlfriend of State Sen. Randy Hopper (R.) 45, who has filed for divorce from his wife.

Journal Sentinel reporter Daniel Bice writes that top officials in Walker’s administration recommended Cass and then hired her for $43,200 a year job that paid her predecessor $31,200.

Hopper, who voted for Walker’s attack on workers, says he had nothing to do with Cass’s appointment to the job. Click here for Bice’s full story.

BTW, Cass is no rookie to Republican politics. Before her new job, Bice reports she spent part of January in Washington, D.C., helping Reince Priebus with his bid to become the chairman of the Republican National Committee. Always good to have friends in high places.

Brazilian Workers Back U.S. Public Employees

by James Parks, Mar 21, 2011

Six Brazilian labor confederations expressed their solidarity with public employees in Wisconsin and other states who are struggling to defend their right to bargain for middle-class jobs. In a letter to President Barack Obama, who is visiting South America, the trade union leaders called on the United States to guarantee “full freedom of association, collective bargaining, and freedom of expression and assembly” for public employees.

The letter states that the Brazilian workers protest the way some U.S. state governments are limiting and even extinguishing basic rights won by public employees.

The six national confederations that signed the letter are the CUT, Forca Sindical, CTB, UGT, Nova Central, and CGTB. The signees represent nearly 5 million affiliated workers, while bargaining for some 50 million workers in the country.

Merger of AT&T and T-Mobile Good for Consumers, Workers

by James Parks, Mar 21, 2011

The announcement over the weekend that AT&T is buying T-Mobile USA could benefit both consumers and employees. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka says the deal offers tens of thousands of T-Mobile USA employees the opportunity to benefit from the pro-worker policies of AT&T, the only unionized U.S. wireless company. Some 42,000 AT&T mobility employees are represented by the Communications Workers of America (CWA). Trumka adds:

For T-Mobile USA workers who want a voice in their workplace, this acquisition can provide a fresh start with T-Mobile management.

Members of CWA joined with their colleagues at ver.di, the German telecommunications workers union in 2009 to create TU—a global union for T-Mobile workers. CWA President Larry Cohen says of all the possible partners for T-Mobile, AT&T will mean better employment security, a management record of full neutrality toward union membership and a bargaining voice.

Read Trumka’s statement here and Cohen’s statement here.

Republican Budget Cuts Would Cripple NLRB

by Mike Hall, Mar 21, 2011

Proposed Republican budget cuts to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) could force the agency to furlough workers for as many as 64 days between now and Sept. 30, according to a new report by the Congressional Research Service (CRS).

The CRS report says if the $50 million cut House Republicans are seeking for the remainder of fiscal year 2011 was enacted, “the substantial reduction in work days would be dramatic.”

Other NLRB activities that could be affected include Board decisions, remedies to ULPs [unfair labor practices], collection of back pay, requests for court injunctions to stop ULPs, responses to public inquires, outreach, completion of financial and other reports, and other activities.

In a letter to the leaders of the House and Senate Appropriations committees, Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.) writes:

As you know, the NLRB’s mission is vital to enforce protections for American workers and private businesses under the National Labor Relations Act. According to the CRS, “[r]educed NLRB staffing could affect employers, employees, and unions.”

Miller says that while Congress should identify and cut “any wasteful or inefficient spending”:

these cuts to the NLRB are misplaced and are inherently destructive to labor-management relations. They have no place in final legislation.

Librarian Refuses to Be Scott Walker’s Scapegoat

Librarians protest Wisconsin Republican attacks on workers.

by James Parks, Mar 12, 2011

Audrey Barbakoff, a librarian at the Milwaukee Public Library, is being anything but quiet. In a column in American Libraries Magazine, she says the vilification of public workers—teachers, fire fighters, police officers, nurses and, yes, even librarians—could cause immeasurable long-term damage beyond the loss of jobs and the middle-class lifestyle.

She says when Gov. Scott Walker and others plant the notion that public employees only work for the benefits, they ignore the real sacrifices they make and tremendous good they do every day. And public workers need to speak out loudly about their value to their communities:

I won’t apologize for making a living wage, for being able to visit a doctor when I need one, or for choosing a job that will help me build adequate retirement savings. I deserve and expect those things….But that isn’t why I became a librarian….I became one because I wanted to give.

We need to speak up about the value we bring to our communities. We need to have a presence at community meetings, in the newspapers and—should it come to that—at protests.

Bad budgets and bad legislation will hurt us for a time. Silent acquiescence to the idea we are valueless to our communities will hurt us forever.

PROMISES, PROMISES: Obama Shies Away from Protests

AP Photo/Morry Gash

Mar 12, 5:51 PM EST
By SAM HANANEL
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Union leaders urged Vice President Joe Biden during a White House meeting last month to go to Wisconsin and rally the faithful in their fight against Gov. Scott Walker's move to curtail collective bargaining rights for most public employees.

Request rebuffed, they asked for Labor Secretary Hilda Solis.

So far, however, the White House has stayed away from any trips to Madison, the state capital, or other states in the throes of union battles. The Obama administration is treading carefully on the contentious political issue that has led to a national debate over the power that public sector unions wield in negotiating wages and benefits.

A few labor leaders have complained openly that President Barack Obama is ignoring a campaign pledge he made to stand with unions; most others say his public comments have been powerful enough.

Wis. Labor Protesters Say Next Fight at the Polls

AP Photo/Morry Gash

Mar 13, 1:48 AM EST
By TODD RICHMOND
Associated Press

MADISON, Wis. (AP) -- Clogging the Wisconsin Capitol grounds and screaming angry chants, tens of thousands of undaunted pro-labor protesters descended on Madison again Saturday and vowed to focus on future elections now that contentious cuts to public worker union rights have become law.

Protests have rocked the Capitol almost every day since Gov. Scott Walker proposed taking nearly all collective bargaining rights away from public workers, but the largest came a day after the governor signed the measure into law. Madison Police estimated the crowd at 85,000 to 100,000 people - along with 50 tractors and one donkey - by late afternoon. No one was arrested.

Speakers delivered angry diatribes while the crowd carried signs comparing Walker to dictators and yelled thunderous chants of "this is what democracy looks like."

Lockout, Court Cases Put Popular NFL on Hold

Mar 13, 6:19 AM EDT
By HOWARD FENDRICH
AP Pro Football Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Welcome to The NFL Lockout.

As far back as May 2008, it became a possibility.

As recently as a week ago - when owners and players agreed to extend the deadline for a new collective bargaining agreement - Commissioner Roger Goodell made it sound avoidable.

And yet here we are: The country's most popular sport - water-cooler fodder for six months of Mondays; generator of more than $9 billion in annual revenues; responsible for the two most-watched programs in U.S. TV history, the 2010 and 2011 Super Bowls - is stuck in a holding pattern, thanks to its first work stoppage in nearly a quarter of a century.

The owners imposed a lockout on the players Saturday, essentially shutting down operations. That came hours after talks broke off and the union dissolved itself, meaning players no longer are protected under labor law but instead are now allowed to take their chances in federal court under antitrust law. Nine NFL players, including superstar quarterbacks Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Drew Brees, and one college player headed for the pros filed a class-action lawsuit in Minnesota and asked for a preliminary injunction to block a lockout, even before it went into effect.