Currency Manipulation Should Top U.S.-China Talks

by James Parks, May 9, 2011
China’s currency manipulation should be the main focus of talks this week between high level U.S. and Chinese government officials, says Scott Paul, executive director of the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM).

The meetings in Washington, D.C. May 9 –10 provide an important opportunity for the American delegation—led by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner—to back up the Obama administration’s tough talk on the Chinese government’s undervalued currency with strong action, he says.

If the administration will not get tough and demand that China play by the rules, Congress will have no option but to once again pass tough legislation to counter the artificial advantage China enjoys on trade.

More than 5 million manufacturing jobs have been lost since China joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001, Paul says. Even at the current rate of manufacturing job creation, it would take 24 years to restore all of the lost manufacturing jobs our economy has shed, he adds.

Paul says:

We hear tough talk, but we need equally tough action to level the playing field for American companies and their workers if this economy is to grow and prosper in the coming months and years.

Meanwhile, the unfair trade practices that force production to move overseas are weakening our national defense industrial capabilities, Paul says. We now have to rely on critical components for weapons systems from uncertain trading partners, such as China, who has been restricting exports of rare-earth minerals and elements used in many defense applications. Paul says the U.S. public correctly believes our nation’s economic strength and national security depends on a strong manufacturing sector.

Asian Pacific American Community Active in State Battle Fights

Jenny Ho, a labor economist with AFSCME and secretary-treasurer for the D.C. Chapter of the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA), sends us this report from her experience in Ohio mobilizing residents

The forces against workers’ rights are powerful. Super-rich global conglomerates and a web of very well-funded conservative think tanks are currently fueling GOP-led attacks against working families across the nation, shamelessly lobbying for union-busting and corporate tax cuts in a campaign that even Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin has admitted has little to do with budget deficits. Yet America’s workers have shown time and again that workers, united, have prevailed in the most daunting battles. More than ever, the union movement must build solidarity. We must pull together all the stakeholders of the American Dream.

In Ohio, I joined workers and allies in the campaign against Senate Bill (S.B.) 5—which, if left to stand, would strip collective bargaining rights from thousands of public servants. We reached out to small local businesses who understood that slashing wages and benefits creates a downward spiral detrimental to the local economy. Currently, more than 400 small businesses, which serve a diverse number of neighborhoods and communities across Ohio, are on board, including family-owned restaurants, auto repair shops, independent bookstores and many more.

Taking part in such critical coalition-building activities reinforced my conviction in the power of community partnerships. As an APALA member and chapter leader, I recognize the crucial role that labor constituency groups must play in the current battle to save the middle class. Anti-union legislation such as S.B. 5 will have serious repercussions for the Asian Pacific American (APA) community. There are some 800,000 APA workers represented by public-sector unions and recent research revealed that APA workers and their families depend on the wage and benefit protections that unionization brings. The majority of APA workers are immigrant workers who look to unions as the first line of defense against unfair employment practices. Plus, the APA community faces the deterioration of vital public services. As a result of an initiative spearheaded by APALA, the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA), a coalition of 29 organizations representing a wide range of Asian Pacific American communities, pledged support for public employees in a historic and unified gesture of solidarity in March.

With 13 chapters in eight states, APALA has been a driving progressive force within the APA community since it was founded in 1992. APALA has highlighted the stories of APA workers and APA labor leaders, educated the APA members on their rights in the workplace and solidified the support of community allies. As the fight for workers’ rights intensifies across the country, APALA members are fired up! We have taken part in solidarity events in New York; New Jersey; Washington, D.C.; Detroit; Alameda, Calif., Los Angeles; San Francisco; and Sacramento, Calif. APALA members have traveled to Wisconsin to stand with workers. APALA chapters continue to hold local workers’ rights hearings, bringing together community partners to uplift the voice of workers.

The current political landscape has heightened the urgency for growth and capacity building. Facing escalating attacks against workers’ rights, APALA must expand activities to bridge community groups and labor. We must ensure that the rapidly growing immigrant workforce recognizes its shared interests with the union movement and is actively engaged with us. Growing APALA membership and building new chapters in all 50 states, which APA workers call home, is the only way we can effectively equip APA workers and their families with the knowledge and training to protect their basic human right to organize under the most challenging conditions. Together we can build a stronger movement for every community, every family and every worker.

IAM: America Needs Manufacturing Policy Now

by James Parks, May 9, 2011

Unlike our competitors, the United States does not have a national manufacturing strategy. The “Make It in America” agenda, proposed by House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), is a step toward pursuing policies that will support and create manufacturing jobs, says Machinists (IAM) President Tom Buffenbarger. He urged support for the agenda and praised parts of it as critical to restoring the nation’s economic and national security.

Each month that passes without a comprehensive national plan to rebuild our manufacturing infrastructure is another month this nation suffers needlessly. The time for debate and lip service to the notion of large-scale job creation has past. We need big ideas, big enough to put hundreds of thousands of Americans back to work every month. Our economy will remain stuck in neutral until we do.

Every American should be concerned about the outsourcing of key defense capabilities and loss of this nation’s ability to manufacture the means of our own defense.

The IAM released “Creating And Sustaining U.S. Manufacturing Jobs,” which calls for specific policy changes to bolster manufacturing, including requiring domestic employment impact statements for government program contracts and enforcing trade laws among others.

Read the full report here.

Washington Hospital Center Nurses Ratify Contract

by James Parks, May 9, 2011

After nearly a year without a contract and a temporary lockout two months ago, the 1,650 registered nurses at Washington Hospital Center ratified a contract in voting over the weekend.

The agreement includes a new staffing plan that will increase the number of nurses at the bedside and a new Professional Practice Committee to address and solve issues dealing with patient care and staffing issues. The agreement also requires hospital managers to meet with the nurse committee on a regular basis and respond to proposals to improve patient care.

Most nurses’ wages will increase by 8.5 percent to 9 percent over three and a half years under the new pact. The deal also restores the differential pay for nurses who work evenings, nights and weekends to pre-March 2011 levels for 30 months of the 42-month agreement.

Emma Bioc, a union bargaining committee member, said:

This was a long and difficult struggle. I am proud that the nurses stood in solidarity with each other and for our patients. This contract respects our professional practice, our expertise and dedication.

The agreement also includes a return to work for eight nurses fired during the back-to-back snow storms in February 2010.

Linda Buckman, a 31-year nurse who was fired after the storm, said:

It is only because we have a strong union that my co-workers and I are able to return to work with dignity and care for our patients.

The nurses at the largest hospital in the nation’s capital—owned by the MedStar Health chain—have been without a contract since June. In October, they voted by a 15-1 margin to join the National Nurses United (NNU). In March hospital management temporarily locked out the nurses.

Video Finalists Picked in LabourStart’s Video of the Year Contest

by Mike Hall, May 8, 2011

The five finalists have been selected for LabourStart’s second annual Labor Video of the Year competition and you have until midnight GMT (8 p.m. EDT) May 31 to select your favorite.

The five videos were produced by:
•The United Steelworkers (USW), highlighting Honeywell’s use of inexperienced, temporary workers at a uranium facility following a lockout;
•The Electrical Workers (IBEW), portraying corporate-style “workplace democracy”;
•The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), showing how a union contract means job safety;
•The Transport Workers (TWU), reviewing the fight for workers’ rights in Wisconsin; and
•Melissa Koch, who tracks her father’s outsourced airline mechanic job to China.

Click here to view the entries and vote.

The producer of the overall winning video will receive a subscription to IMDb Pro, worth $100. Winners in the various categories also will be recognized. The overall winning video and runner up will be featured Nov. 18–20 in a special screening at the LabourStart global solidarity conference in Istanbul.

Last year’s winner was “What Have Unions Ever Done for Us?” a Monty Python-like look at a scowling CEO and his minions as they prepare to bring a union to its knees (click here). The video was produced by Your Rights At Work, the Australian counterpart of the AFL-CIO community affiliate, Working America.

Join OSHA’s Safe Workplaces Photo Contest

by James Parks, May 7, 2011

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is sponsoring a nationwide photography contest: “Picture It! Safe Workplaces for Everyone.”

The contest, which is part of OSHA’s yearlong 40th anniversary celebration, will help kick off a national effort to raise awareness about workplace safety and health.

The contest is open to anyone age 18 and older and will run through Aug. 12. Both professional and amateur photographers are welcome to enter. Participants can find contest rules and submit photographs at www.osha.gov/osha40/photo-contest.html.

Photographs must be taken in the United States or its territories. An expert panel of professionals in the fields of photography and public affairs will determine the contest winners. The panel includes photojournalist Earl Dotter; Carl Fillichio, senior adviser to Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis for communications and public affairs; Kathleen Klech, photo director for Condé Nast Traveler magazine; Shawn Moore, chief photographer at the U.S. Department of Labor; and George Tolbert, retired photographer for the U.S. Senate.

First-, second- and third-place prizes will be awarded for the most outstanding portrayals of occupational safety and health in areas of artistic value and the ability to raise awareness about safety and health to the general public.

All winning and finalist photographs will be displayed on the OSHA photo contest webpage. The first-place winner also will receive a framed letter of congratulations from Solis, and the three winning photos will be framed and hung in OSHA’s national office in Washington, D.C.

Along with the general public, OSHA contractors and special government employees may participate in the contest. However, federal OSHA, “state plan” state OSHA employees and on-site consultation employees are not eligible.

If you have questions, call OSHA’s Office of Communications at 202-693-1999 or photocontest@osha.gov.

Alliance for Retired Americans - Friday Alert, May 6, 2011

May 06, 2011

May is Older Americans Month

Honoring the contributions of older Americans across the nation, President Obama proclaimed the Older Americans Month theme this year is “Connecting the Community.” The President acknowledges how social media and new technology allow seniors to remain actively engaged in their communities and connected to their far-away friends and families well into their later years. The proclamation also relates to seniors’ health care.
Read More »

TWU Video Shows Strength of Pa. Rally

by Mike Hall, May 6, 2011

Earlier this week 5,000 workers from dozens of unions marched on the Pennsylvania Capitol in Harrisburg to let Gov. Tom Corbett (R) know his budget is an attack on workers and communities. Said Gordy Moretton of Transport Workers (TWU) Local 2009:

The governor wants to make cuts to services that everyday people need. We need to stop this attack on the middle class.

Check out this TWU video for a great wrap up of the rally and click here to read more from the TWU blog.

Taxing Family Health Care for Deficit Reduction is Wrong

by Mike Hall, May 6, 2011

More than 156 million Americans get their health care coverage through their employers. Employer and most worker contributions to health insurance premiums are excluded from workers’ taxable incomes.

Even after health care reform is fully phased in, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that nearly 160 million people will hold employer-sponsored insurance plans.

But recent proposals—under the guise deficit reduction—have called for ending or reducing that exclusion. The most recent came from last year’s budget deficit commission report that calls for a cap on the premium tax exclusion before eliminating it entirely.

A new report from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) finds that the cap would impact almost all family health plans by 2018, including “middle of the road” plans—not just high-cost plans. Not only would taxing the plans encourage employers to drop coverage, it would also lead to less comprehensive care for working families.

The report “Reducing the federal deficit by increasing households’ risk: Phaseout of tax exclusion for health insurance premiums leads to less health and financial security,” also finds that despite claims by its backers, the tax cap and eventual complete exclusion won’t lead to reduced health care costs, just reduced health care coverage for working families.

Removing the tax exclusion has the potential to create a financial hard­ship for many working families, particularly those who rely on comprehensive coverage to cover costs of their se­rious illnesses. It is equivalent to a cut in benefits, a cut in total compensation, and a shift of risk onto workers. While it is touted as a cost-containment mechanism, the tax ex­clusion may simply lower health care usage, not prices, and actually increase total health costs for chronically ill people who go without cost-effective treatments.

Click here for the full report.

This Money Trail Leads Straight to Prisons—Private Ones

by Mike Hall, May 6, 2011

After the November elections, with its raft of new Republicans in governors’ seats and in control of state legislatures, we’ve seen many of those states implement a corporate agenda that includes attacks on workers rights, new corporate tax cuts and privatization of state services.

Some of the biggest privatization prizes are state prison systems. A new report from AFSCME follows the money from corporations to the lawmakers who are now pushing lucrative prison privatization contracts in several states.

According to, “Making A Killing: How Prison Corporations Are Profiting From Campaign Contributions and Putting Taxpayers at Risk,” the three largest private prison companies are The GEO Group, Inc., Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), and the Management & Training Corporation (MTC). Each election cycle, according to the report, these corporations

pour hundreds of thousands of dollars into the campaigns of governors, state legislators, and judges, in the hopes f advancing their political agenda—establishing more private prisons and reducing the number of public ones.

November’s Republican victories provided the private prison industry with new friends on the state level.

The upshot is a broad network of powerful private prison companies and pro-privatization legislation and budget initiatives linked by thousands of dollars in political donations to the party in power. This year, the industry is betting on these newly-elected allies to deliver the contracts they were losing under former state leadership.

Here are two examples from the report.

Florida: The Miami Herald reports that since 2001, the Florida GOP has received more than $1.5 million from the two largest prison contractors and their affiliates. Over two thirds of that total can be traced to the GEO Group of Boca Raton, which manages two of the state’s private prisons. The Florida Senate is now pushing to outsource corrections facilities to private companies in 18 additional counties.

Texas: In Texas, private prison companies and their PACs have given over $130,000 to candidates for public office since 2006. Texas has more privately operated correction facilities than any other state in the country. Harris County—the most populous county in the state—is now deliberating a plan to privatize the state’s largest jail.

The AFSCME report also points out that private prisons “routinely experience more inmate escapes and higher rates of violence due to chronically lax security and poorly trained minimally paid staff.” It also notes that there is no

conclusive evidence showing that private prisons save states money. Policy Matters Ohio, a state think-tank whose report on prison privatization was released earlier this year, stated: “While debate over prison privatization has been heated and divisive, there is little or no consensus on whether it actually saves money…” In fact, in some cases, the opposite is true.

Click here for the full report and check out this report from the Teamsters (IBT) on the move to privatize prisons in Florida.