Local 8183 News

Local 8183 Toy Drive - Monday, October 19, 2009
Local 8183 Teams up with Toys for Tots...
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Health Care Update - Tuesday, October 06, 2009
An update on whats going on with Health Care Reform...
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AFL-CIO website helps laid off workers - Tuesday, October 06, 2009
The AFL-CIO has launched a web site to help laid off and jobless workers....
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Obama rules in favor of USW - Monday, October 05, 2009
Preident Obama rules in favor of the USW concerning China's tire imports....
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Cooper Tire breaks ranks - Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Cooper Tire is the first of the major tire companys to come out in the favor of the Chineese goverment....
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Local 8183 Blogs

Interesting Article
By Web Wednesday, December 31, 1969

Article from Alabama that mentions Horsehead as a major enviromental polluter
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Newsletters now online
By John Saunders Wednesday, December 31, 1969

Rome Union Newsletters are now online
[ Read More ]

Horsehead Restarts a Kiln
By Web Wednesday, December 31, 1969

Horsehead restarts a Kiln in Rockwood
[ Read More ]

Web Site
By Bernie Hall Wednesday, December 31, 1969

Welcome to 8183's new web site
[ Read More ]

Meal Ticket Arbitration Heard
By John Jeffers Wednesday, December 31, 1969

Meal Ticket Arbitration heard on July 9, 2009
[ Read More ]

USW Media Center

NEW VIDEO: USW President Talks Chinese Currency Manipulation - Fri, 12 Mar 2010 00:00:00 -0800

USW International President Leo W. Gerard was among those featured in today's panel on the manipulation of Chinese currency hosted by the Economic Policy Institute.

Currency manipulation makes imports artificially cheap and artificially inflates the prices of U.S. exports. This puts U.S. manufacturers "at a huge competitive disadvantage," as President Obama recently noted. 

Research by leading economists has consistently shown that five countries are the most egregious currency manipulators—China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Taiwan and Singapore. 

Check out this video of President Gerard discussing why this is such an important issue:

USW Workers at Bridgestone-LaVergne Giving Back to the Community - Mon, 08 Mar 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Much notice has been given to Bridgestone Tires’ recent acquisition of naming rights to the Nashville Arena, which will be celebrated in a Wednesday, March 10, 2010 ceremony. It is cited as the most recent example of Bridgestone’s good corporate neighbor behavior.

Many United Steelworkers (USW) Local 1055 members, especially some of the 600 laid off last summer when the plant stopped producing passenger tires, are angry when they hear that the company is spending millions on public relations, marketing and advertising while workers are losing jobs and taking pay cuts.

USW Local 1055 members would like to point out that they are contributing to the company and the community at a rate of $7.2 million per year, or nearly $30 million over four years, through concessions that the company said were necessary to improve the plant’s global competitiveness ... more

Talks Break Off Despite Steelworkers' Repeated Attempts to Settle - Sun, 07 Mar 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Mediated discussions between the United Steelworkers and Vale Inco have broken off, despite the Union's repeated and unprecedented attempts to reach a settlement.

"Over 11 consecutive days, our bargaining committee presented several new proposals and made genuine, significant compromises on the key issues," said USW District 6 Director Wayne Fraser.

"This was an all-out effort by our committee to reach a settlement, with the best interests of our members, our community and the company in mind," Fraser said ... more

 

Show solidarity and support with Mexican miners, families - Fri, 05 Mar 2010 00:00:00 -0800

USW Women of Steel are raising funds to help the women of Cananea, Mexico, who are supporting striking miners and fighting an anti-worker, anti-union government. Click here for more.

Some 1,200 members of Mexico's National Miners' and Metalworkers' Union, or Los Mineros, have been on strike since July 2007 at the Cananea mine over health and safety and other contract violations.

Grupo Mexico, the mining giant which operates Cananea, and the Mexican government have continuously tried to end the strike and crush the union. The government of Mexico has threatened and jailed union leaders, illegally frozen union bank accounts and failed to investigate or prosecute assassinations of union members.

On February 11, a federal court gave Grupo Mexico permission to fire the striking workers and terminate the labor agreement, effectively eliminating the right to strike in Mexico. The Mexican government has threatened to use armed force to gain control of Cananea. The Los Mineros members at Cananea are resolved to continue occupying the mine until a fair labor agreement is reached. Los Mineros is one of the strongest and most democratic trade unions in Mexico. 

Click here to sign a petition in support of the miners. And again, click here to support the Women of Steel fundraising effort.

Gerard, USW officers Begin New Term - Thu, 04 Mar 2010 00:00:00 -0800

The Officers and Executive Board members of the USW International took their oaths of office  for new four-year terms March 1 in Toronto, Canada.

President Leo W. Gerard was sworn in by retired International President Lynn Williams, the first Canadian to lead the USW, and John Fera, president of Local 6500 in Sudbury, Ontario, Gerard’s home town.

The audience included hundreds of Canadian members in labor disputes, including representatives of Local 6500, now in the midst of a seven-month strike against Vale Inco, a Brazilian-owned mining giant.

Gerard, the seventh International President, was appointed to replace George Becker 2001 and has been returned to office by the membership every four years since then.

In his speech, Gerard praised the union’s membership and said it is their strength, activism and undying spirit that will see the union through the “Great Recession” that has driven the global economy into a ditch.

“When you come down to it, we’re going to survive this latest disaster and return to fight another day, because it’s what this union does,” Gerard said. “We survive what few could endure because we choose to fight.”

Ken Neumann, National Director of Canada, was the master of ceremonies. The Canadian National Anthem was sung by Joy Klopp of the Canadian National Office. The American National Anthem was sung by Ann English, daughter of retired Secretary-Treasurer Jim English.

Guest speakers included Toronto Mayor David Miller; Jack Layton, leader of Canada’s Federal New Democratic Party; Andrea Horwath, leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party; Greater Sudbury Mayor John Rodriquez, and Ken Georgetti, a Steelworker and president of the Canadian Labour Congress.

Miller, a progressive, praised the USW for its efforts to create jobs of the future, which he said Toronto is doing by building a new rapid transit system with union labor.

“We should never shy away from the idea that when we’re spending public money, money that comes out of people’s taxes, they have the right to say it’s going to be invested in our economy for our jobs and built by union members,” Miller said.

Layton praised the Steelworkers for leading the way towards building an international union response to multinational corporations that try to pit workers against each other.

“It’s time for a newer and stronger brotherhood and sisterhood of workers around the world,’’ Layton said.

Greater Sudbury Mayor John Rodriguez said the USW must stand up to the multinational financial systems that have destroyed jobs and the livelihoods of millions of workers.

“Now, more than ever, unions are essential to the workers of the world,” Rodriquez said to applause, “not only to protect the gains made at the bargaining table, but also for holding governments and the world’s financial systems accountable.”

 

 

USW Supports Halter in Arkansas Senate Race - Thu, 04 Mar 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Failure of Lincoln to Stand Up for Workers Key in Decision

Arkansas members of the United Steelworkers (USW) today announced support of Lt. Gov. Bill Halter in the U.S. Senate primary challenge to incumbent Democrat Blanche Lincoln.

The USW is the largest union in Arkansas, representing a large slice of the state’s working families. Those workers are sending a message to elected officials around the country that they are looking for real solutions to our economic, health care and other challenges.

“It seems like some politicians in Washington have forgotten about us, everyday people who live and work and raise our families in Arkansas,” said Michael Martin, a machine operator from Malvern, AR. “Bill Halter is a candidate who will stand with us and work for us, not just big corporations. We’re tired of business of usual. It’s time for change in Arkansas and at the U.S. Senate ... more

Union Members can Save Money this year on TurboTax. - Wed, 03 Mar 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Tax time just got less taxing. And less expensive, thanks to your union membership. The Union Plus TurboTax Discount saves you 10%-15% off regular prices. Plus, union members with qualifying adjusted gross income can get free filing of federal tax returns and a discounted filing fee for state returns.

Watch Program Manager Keith Ervin talk about the Union Plus TurboTax Discount.

 

U.S. Department Of Commerce Finds That China and Indonesia Improperly Subsidize Their Coated Paper Producers - Tue, 02 Mar 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Imposes Preliminary Tariffs to Level the Playing Field

Appleton Coated LLC, NewPage Corporation, and Sappi Fine Paper North America – together with the United Steelworkers (USW) -- commended the U.S. Department of Commerce for its preliminary countervailing duty determinations against subsidized coated paper imports from China and Indonesia. 

As a result of these determinations, the Department of Commerce will impose tariffs on imports of coated paper to offset the unfair advantage provided by subsidization.  The Department of Commerce found that Chinese coated paper was subsidized by an average rate of 8.38 percent.  Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) producers Gold East, Gold Huasheng, Ningbo Zhonghua and Ningbo Asia Pulp and Paper received a subsidy margin of 12.83 percent, while Sun Paper received a rate of 3.92 percent.  In Indonesia, APP/Sinar Mas producers Tjiwi Kimia and Indah Kiat received a subsidy margin of 17.48 percent.  All other Indonesian producers/exporters will be subject to this same rate. 

The result of the Department’s actions will be the immediate requirement that these importers of paper from the subject countries will have to post bond or cash deposits in an amount equal to the announced margins pending final resolution of the cases later this year ... more

U.S. Needs to Build Domestic Production of Nuclear Components, say Steelworkers - Fri, 26 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Newport News-AREVA Joint Venture Lauded

A recent letter by United Steelworkers (USW) International President Leo W. Gerard to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission raised concerns about our nation’s current capability to produce component parts for the growth of the nuclear industry in the US. It was written in response to the awarding of loan guarantees by the U.S. government to build two nuclear reactors in Burke, Georgia that could possibly use components built overseas.
 
The USW believes that the majority of the materials used in building these plants such as steel and piping can be sourced from domestic facilities employing its members. As North America’s largest manufacturing union, the USW sees such initiatives as integral to the renewal of manufacturing in America ... more

USW supports striking Mexican miners - Thu, 25 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

On February 19 and 20, 2010, the Mineros held a national forum for respect for the right to strike in Cananea, Sonora, Mexico. The Mineros have been on strike against Grupo Mexico in Cananea for more than 2 1/2 years, and in the last few weeks the Supreme Court of Mexico has ruled that the strike is “inexistent,” or in U.S. terms, not protected. 

This leaves Grupo Mexico free to fire all the employees, break the bargaining relationship with the union and hire new employees and sign a contract with the company union that they have established at some of their other properties. The only hope for the Mineros now is to build enough political pressure to keep the government from using force to break the strike. The forum was a part of this effort.

The forum began on Friday at the union hall in Cananea. A crowd of 1,500 to 2,000 heard messages of support from members of the Electricians and Telephone workers, as well as other non-governmental organizations. Manny Armenta, USW District 12 Sub Director, spoke for the Steelworkers.

On Saturday the forum moved outside to the plant gate. The entire congressional delegation from Cananea (all from the PRI, or Party of the Institutional Revolution) spoke in support of the Mineros and promised to work in the Congress to force a withdrawal of Grupo Mexico’s concession to operate the mine.

USW District 7 Director Jim Robinson spoke on behalf of the Steelworkers. During the rally, the Mineros operated the mine equipment, proving wrong the basis for the court ruling. The ruling was based on the argument that the strikers had left the plant unable to operate through lack of maintenance and vandalism.

Click here for the entire report.

The United Steelworkers has a long history of solidarity with Mexican miners, including adopting 3,000 striking miners' families and providing safe haven in Canada for Napoleon Gomez, the leader of the union to which the Cananea workers belong, the Mining and Metalworkers Union of Mexico (Los Mineros). The government of Mexico improperly removed Mr. Gomez from his position as Los Mineros general secretary on charges that have proven, again and again, in Mexican courts to have been trumped up.

The USW and Los Mineros formed a strategic alliance after Los Mineros provided crucial support in 2005 to USW members striking Asarco, a company owned by Grupo Mexico.

Important Notice To Retirees of Special Metals Corporation - Wed, 24 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

A Federal Court has authorized a notice concerning a proposed class action settlement for workers and retirees from Special Metals North America Inc.

Click here to read more.

USW Health Insurance Tool Kit Updated with Latest Obama Plan - Mon, 22 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

President Obama has released a proposal he says is intended to get the health insurance reform debate back on track. The president will host a bipartisan meeting Thursday with congressional leaders to discuss this important topic.

The USW Health Insurance Reform Tool Kit has been updated with the Obama proposal and other new information. Click here for the latest.

Widows Lawsuit Seeks Damages over Disaster that Killed 65 Mexican Miners Four Years Ago Today - Fri, 19 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Families of deceased coal miners killed four years ago in an explosion at the Pasta de Conchos coal mine in Coahuila, Mexico, today filed suit in U.S. federal court in Arizona seeking damages from Grupo Mexico Inc. and related companies.

The lawsuit was filed by the United Steelworkers union in U.S. District Court in Phoenix on behalf of three widows whose husbands were among 65 coal miners killed in the Mexican disaster.

The miners were trapped underground on Feb. 19, 2006 when a powerful methane explosion rocked the mine in the early morning hours of an overnight shift ... more

Recovery Act Advocates Good Jobs, More Investment Needed - Thu, 18 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Leo W. Gerard, International President of the United Steelworkers (USW), released the following statement to mark the first anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), praising the stimulus bill for creating, sustaining and saving good jobs.

“The United Steelworkers applauds the findings of the Obama Administration report on the first year under the Recovery Act that show it responded to the economic crisis that idled the jobs of industrial workers all across America. The job-creating impact of investments in infrastructure and the ‘Buy America’ government procurement provisions have made a big difference in working family economics during uncertain times.

“When tax-payer monies are involved, U.S. made products such as steel, glass, rubber and other manufactured inputs should be given preference for infrastructure projects for the construction of roads, bridges, public  buildings and water systems ... more

More and more agree that manufacturing is the answer - Wed, 17 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Support for manufacturing continues to grow in the United States, as the results of a new poll show and as more and more economists - even conservative ones - say that returning to a manufacturing-based economy is what our nation needs to create good jobs. Click here for more.

 

 

New Nuclear Energy Components Must Not be Sourced from China - Tue, 16 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Leo W. Gerard, International President of the United Steelworkers (USW), released the following statement and text of a letter to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Gregory B. Jaczko on the application of Southern Company to build two new nuclear reactors in Burke County, GA.   President Obama is scheduled to announce his approval of loan guarantees for this project under the 2005 Energy Policy Act.

“Today’s announcement by the President that loan guarantees will be offered to the Southern Company to build and operate two nuclear reactors in Burke County, GA., is intended to usher in a new wave of nuclear energy development in the United States.   President Obama’s actions are to implement provisions of the 2005 Energy Policy Act.

“Nuclear energy has been and will continue to be a major source of power in the U.S. and around the world.   Its future development, however, depends on having the full support of the American people ... more

USW Black History Month Blog: Manufacturing the great equalizer - Fri, 12 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

USW International President Leo W. Gerard and Vice President Fred Redmond teamed up in a Steelworker blog celebrating Black History Month. The leaders recall the historic efforts of four North Carolina college freshmen known as the Greensboro Four, who 50 years ago helped turn the civil rights movement into a mass movement for change.

Gerard and Redmond write that as we celebrate that important milestone, we should also pay tribute to the heroes of yesterday by joining with the youth of today to lead a current day revolution for manufacturing, which truly is the great equalizer. They write, in part:

The "Greensboro Four," as they were known, began a wave of nonviolent protests against segregation across America. The sit-ins came just as the demand for Civil Rights grew into a mass movement, one that changed our nation forever.

The involvement of young people in that movement - along with religious, labor and other community leaders - cannot be underestimated. Young people stood together to fight for a better future. They forced America to change for the better, to change for them.

Five decades later, it's time for America's youth to lead another revolution, one that forces the nation to solve the critical civil rights challenge of this time: good jobs to enable all America to thrive into the next century. Good jobs provide health insurance. Good jobs create strong communities. Good jobs support a high quality educational system for all children.

Click here for the rest of the blog.

 

 

 

 

 

USW Statement on Congressman John Murtha's Passing - Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Leo W. Gerard, International President of the United Steelworkers (USW), made the following statement on the death yesterday of Congressman John P. Murtha, 77, (D-PA-12) after complications with gallbladder surgery.

“The passing of Rep. John Murtha is a great lost to the working families of Southwestern Pennsylvania and the veterans who defend the nation. He was a steadfast advocate for Steelworkers in Johnstown, Latrobe and Greensburg, giving decorated service to his country in the U.S. Marine Corps, plus stewardship as chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense ... more

NEW VIDEO: 'Buy, Buy American Pie' Song Humorous, Accurate Portrayal of Trade - Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Our friends at Campaign for America's Future posted a video on their blog called "Buy, Buy American Pie" by The Capital Steps, a political satire musical group. It's a humorous - yet sadly true - portrayal of trade and the negative impact it has had on our nation. Check it our below and check out our Manufacturing a Better Future for America tool kit to find out how you can help turn our country around.

USW Comments on U.S.-Canada Bilateral Trade Deal - Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

United Steelworkers International President Leo W. Gerard today commented on the tentative deal between the U.S. and Canada on bilateral trade relations. 

"Canada and the U.S. have a strong economic and trade relationship. The agreement that's been announced will reportedly enhance the reciprocal nature of that relationship," Gerard said. "The goal of the Steelworkers in government procurement has always been to strengthen our manufacturing base in order to generate the most jobs for our members.

Click here for the entire statement.

The Call Goes Out for All Rapid Response Activists - Tue, 02 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800

The National Rapid Response Conference will be held during the first week of May at the Hilton Washington in Washington, D.C.  A Good Jobs, Green Jobs Conference will occur simultaneously with our Conference, beginning on Tuesday, May 4 at 8:30 a.m. Rapid Response Conference attendees are encouraged to join USW International President Leo Gerard to kick off the Good Jobs, Green Jobs Conference and participate in a series of USW-specific sessions throughout the day on Tuesday.  The Rapid Response Conference will then begin at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, May 5 and will end at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 6 ... more

Union lauds Obama's jobs plan, calls for focus on manufacturing - Thu, 28 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0800

United Steelworkers International President Leo W. Gerard today lauded President Obama's State of the Union address for its focus on creating and protecting jobs.

“We agree that getting people back to work should be our nation’s top priority. With unemployment in double digits, there is no time to waste," Gerard said. "But not just any job will do. We need quality jobs that give our families a real shot at a better life, that support our communities and that serve as the solid foundation for a healthy economy."

Gerard called for a long-term strategy to create jobs and revitalize domestic manufacturing.

"It’s urgent that we keep Main Street in mind as we move forward.  Our members are losing patience with talk; they desperately want action now," he said.

The USW president also called for green jobs that are good jobs, fair and real health care reform that does not tax benefits and caution when dealing with trade. 

"We urge the president and Congress to not let bad trade deals undermine the creation of good jobs. We’ve heard the vow before that trade deals would be good for us. Unfortunately, we’ve felt the pain of those broken promises first-hand. When these agreements are not enforced, it not only costs us millions of good jobs, it’s counterproductive to our commitment to a cleaner environment and human rights worldwide.  And it’s deadly for trade unionists in places like Colombia and South Korea."

Click here for the entire statement.

Global union protests invite of British National Party to white supremacist meeting - Wed, 27 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0800

Leaders of the largest trade unions in the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Caribbean and Canada are protesting the decision of a large hotel chain to host a conference where the leader of the far right British National Party (BNP) Nick Griffin is scheduled to speak.

In a letter sent this week to the Westin Hotel, Workers Uniting expresses deep anger about the decision to allow an individual whose views are so offensive to so many to address a white supremacist conference on its premises.

The Westin Hotel chain has over 160 hotels and resorts worldwide. Workers Uniting, the world’s first global union representing more than three million working people is a partnership between Unite from the United Kingdom and the United Steelworkers (USW) from the United States, Caribbean and Canada.

Unite General Secretaries Derek Simpson and Tony Woodley and USW International President Leo Gerard say in the letter:  “Workers Uniting is appalled that the Westin would allow an individual whose views are so offensive and abhorrent to many to hold a public address on its premises.

“You should be aware that (in the UK) a court order was made against the BNP on the grounds that their membership requirements discriminated on grounds of, among other things, race. In 1996, Griffin received a nine-month prison sentence (suspended for two years) after being found guilty of distributing material likely to incite racial hatred. As well as this, Griffin is reported to have referred to the Holocaust as the 'Holohoax'.”

Simpson, Woodley and Gerard are urging the hotel management to reconsider their decision in order to avoid serious reputational damage to their business. For the full text of the letter, click here.

Griffin is due to be the keynote speaker at the “American Renaissance” conference February 19 -21 at The Westin Washington Dulles Airport, 2520 Wasser Terrace, Herndon, Va. 20171.

Info for USW members, locals wishing to donate to Haiti - Tue, 26 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0800

In the aftermath of the terrible earthquake in Haiti, we've had several USW members and locals ask how they can help. You can make a tax-deductible donation to the Steelworkers Charitable and Educational Organization, the same fund that has collected money for the victims of U.S. hurricanes like Katrina and Gustav.

Please send checks made out to Steelworkers Charitable and Educational Organization to:

United Steelworkers
c/o Vice President Fred Redmond
Human Affairs
Five Gateway Center
Pittsburgh, PA 15222

Please designate on your check that you'd like your donation to go towards Haiti relief efforts.

The United Steelworkers Charitable and Education Organization is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization and contributions are tax deductible. Please note that contributions to the Chariitable and Education Organization for Haiti made BEFORE March 1, 2010, are eligible as tax deductable donations (for an individual who itemizes their deductions) in either 2009 or 2010 at the donors' discretion. 

Steelworkers wishing to donate to the Humanity Fund in Canada can designate donations to Haitian relief efforts on checks sent to:

Steelworkers Humanity Fund
234 Eglinton Avenue East Suite 800
Toronto, Ontario
M4P 1K7

Please note that U.S. donations to the Humanity Fund are accepted but are not tax deductible.

The USW responded immediately to the tragedy by donating $20,000 from its Humanity Fund the day after the quake and pledging continued solidarity. Click here to read the statement.

Also, Union Plus announced today that it is matching donations dollar-for-dollar for Haiti earthquake relief with a $100,000 commitment. Please visit http://www.UnionPlus.org/Haiti for more information about Union Plus' automatic doubling of contributions made to the AFL-CIO's Solidarity Center’s Earthquake Relief for Haitian Workers Fund. That means $10 becomes $20, $25 becomes $50, and $100 becomes $200.

Also, the TransAfrica Forum, a longtime ally of the union movement, also suggested donations to two organizations already providing aid on the ground: Partners in Health (http://www.pih.org/inforesources/news/Haiti_Earthquake.html) and Doctors Without Borders (http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/).

USW President to FOX News: Campaign Finance Ruling Very Troubling - Tue, 26 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0800

USW International President Leo W. Gerard says the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowing unlimited corporate spending in campaigns is very troubling.

In an interview with the FOX News Network last night, Gerard said the decision opens the doors for a flood of big business money in politics. Click here for more from the FOX.

"The four largest Wall Street banks, if they expended one-tenth of 1 percent of their resources in a political campaign, that would eclipse every single penny of union revenue for every union in the country," Gerard said.

Gerard said the decision has concerned a lot of people and reiterates the need for public financing of campaigns in the United States.

“We need to move to public financing of elections. Otherwise, people will get cynical about their votes and will believe participation doesn’t matter," he said. "The vote of the make-up girl in the Fox studio, the teacher, the librarian or steelworker should matter as much as the banker. If people believe the voice of money speaks louder than their vote, they won’t participate in elections. We have to fix this.”  

AFL-CIO Now Blog

 

Bosses in the Bedroom -

This is a cross-post from the AFL-CIO POV section.

Privacy is dead. Get over it. So says Scott McNealy, former president Sun Microsystems.

He’s right. Workplace privacy is dead and buried. Employers can and do read e-mail, eavesdrop on telephone calls, monitor Internet access, and watch workers with hidden cameras (even in bathrooms and locker rooms). Virtually all of this is legal. Technically, employers aren’t supposed to listen to personal telephone calls, but it happens all the time and you have no way of knowing. Some judges have found bathroom cameras to be an invasion of privacy, but other judges allow it.

As bad as this is, it’s getting worse. Bosses are now spying on workers’ home lives. Millions of workers carry company-issued cell phones. Every one of these phones is equipped with GPS. The technology required to track cell phones is readily available and not very expensive. The cost of tracking an employee 24/7 is only $5 a month. Employers often keep GPS tracking a secret, or tell the workers they can turn off the GPS when they go home and continue to track them. The National Workrights Institute (NWI), has already begun receiving complaints about GPS.

Even more serious are the problems created by company-issued laptops. Employers usually tell workers it’s o.k. to use them for personal purposes as well as business. It’s presented as a perk—now you don’t need to buy your own computer.

What employers don’t tell you is that the company’s computer technicians look at your private documents when the computer comes in for upgrading or repair. Not only are your personal e-mail, photographs, and financial records revealed, but the techs tell your boss about anything they don’t like. If you say something negative about the company, tell risqué jokes, or make controversial comments about politics or religion, it can cost you your job.

If you think your boss wouldn’t fire you for something like this, think again. Heidi Arace was fired by PNC bank for telling an off-color joke by e-mail. Nate Fulmer lost his job because he criticized organized religion on his personal website.

The ultimate nightmare comes from webcams. If your company-issued laptop has a webcam, bosses can turn it on whenever they want. If they do it at night, they’ll probably see the inside of your house, maybe your bedroom. A suburban Philadelphia school district was recently caught turning on the webcams in laptops issued to students. Some were in the student’s bedroom.

Unionized workers have some protection against these abuses. While the law on GPS is still emerging, many labor lawyers believe GPS tracking is a mandatory subject of bargaining. Union members are also protected against arbitrary termination. It would be highly unlikely an arbitrator would uphold the termination of a worker who turned off the GPS when they went off duty. Nor would an arbitrator allow an employer to fire a union worker because they said something on their personal blog the boss didn’t like.

But for the rest of us, these practices are legal. Congress has been asleep at the switch when it comes to protecting privacy for the past 20 years. The last federal privacy law was enacted in 1986 and doesn’t even mention electronic communications other than telephone calls. Since then, advancing technology and employer abuse have eliminated any semblance of privacy at work. It’s time for Congress to wake up and take action before our private lives become an open book to employers as well.

Lewis Maltby is president and founder of the National Workrights Institute (NWI), a human rights organization committed to workplace issues, and author of the new book, Can They Do That?: Retaking Our Fundamental Rights in the Workplace.

Time to Take Tough Action Against China Currency Manipulation -

The manipulation of its currency by China’s government is the major problem facing American manufacturing. It’s past time the U.S. government muster the will to take strong action, even imposing emergency tariffs, to level the playing field, several experts, including economist Paul Krugman and United Steelworkers (USW) President Leo Gerard, said yesterday. 

Speaking at the forum on “Currency Manipulation: How Should the U.S. Respond?” sponsored by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) with the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM), Robert Scott, EPI’s senior economist, said China’s currency manipulation has cost between 1.5 million  and 3 million good American manufacturing jobs.

Fred Bergsten, director of the conservative Peterson Institute for International Economics, added:

If there is going to be a serious jobs program, the exchange rate of the dollar must be at the center of the debate.    

The methods that previous administrations have used to deal with the problem, which include “sweet reason,” have not worked, Scott said, and it’s time we “use a baseball bat” and impose strong tariffs on imports from countries such as China that undervalue their currencies. 

The AFL-CIO, U.S. manufacturers and many economic experts maintain that China deliberately undervalues its currency to keep the value artificially low so it can boost exports and discourage imports—running up the U.S. trade deficit and costing good American jobs. An AFL-CIO report shows China’s fixed currency rate artificially lowers the price of its goods by 40 percent, effectively subsidizing China’s exports, putting U.S. companies at a competitive disadvantage and creating a record trade deficit.   

Scott and Gerard said the United States needs a multistep approach to rebuilding our manufacturing. First, the U.S. Treasury Department must declare China as a country that manipulates currency, which would set off a process by which the administration can impose trade penalties. Next, Congress and the Obama administration must do what previous administrations have not done since the Nixon and Reagan years and impose tariffs on goods made in China.

William Jones, chairman of Cummins-Allison Corp. in Chicago, said that unless the playing field is leveled in currency markets, more and more businesses will close.

Detroit is our future if we don’t wake up and smell the coffee.

He says our lawmakers are living in a dream world and don’t seem to realize that China and other nations are not playing by the rules of free trade.

Krugman, a Nobel laureate, says it’s imperative to act now because the world economy is in worse shape than it ever has been and the capital surplus that China has built up through its currency manipulation “comes at the expense of everyone else.” He points out that other countries like India and Mexico are suffering even worse job losses than the United States because of China’s currency policy.  

But fixing the China currency problem is not the final solution, Gerard said. The nation also needs a national manufacturing policy. The American people were sold “a bill of goods” by Wall Street that we could prosper by deregulating financial markets and focusing on free trade—both have failed miserably, he said.

AFGE’s TSO Election Petition Moving Quickly -

Even though the head of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has not been confirmed, AFGE is moving ahead quickly with its plans, seeking an election so transportation security officers (TSOs) can join a union.

On Feb. 22, AFGE filed a petition with the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) for an election to allow the 41,000 TSOs to vote on union representation. In 2003, the Bush administration stripped the workers of collective bargaining rights. The FLRA is moving the petition through its election process quicker than usual, AFGE President John Gage said on the “Inside Government” radio show.       

Under law, the TSA administrator will decide if workers can have bargaining rights. The workers would then choose a union to represent them. President Obama this week nominated Maj. Gen. Robert Harding as TSA administrator. The previous nominee, Erroll Southers, withdrew after his nomination was held hostage by Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) because DeMint opposes allowing TSA workers the freedom to form a union.

Gage told “Inside Government” today:  

We’re not asking anybody for rights. We have these rights as citizens. We’re basically asking the Congress, the Senate [and] the administration to get out of our way in exercising these rights.  

Download the radio show here.

Wage Gap Between Women and Men Bad, Women of Color Suffer Most -

Click image to view the enlarged version.

The pay gap between female and male workers in this country got a hearing in a Senate committee yesterday. But you wouldn’t even know the hearing happened: The issue apparently doesn’t rank up there with the antics of drunk superstars or foolish golfers to get attention by the corporate media.

Right now, U.S. working women receive 77 cents for every dollar paid to a male worker. The ratio has remained nearly unchanged for years. Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) has been pushing for more than a decade to pass a paycheck fairness bill, and yesterday, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held a hearing on the Paycheck Fairness Act (H.R. 12/S. 182).

The act would amend the 1963 Equal Pay Act, in a way DeLauro describes as a modest reform “that closes longstanding loopholes” and “stiffens penalties” for employers who discriminate based on gender. (Much of the info on the hearing is based on Daily Labor Report, subscription required.)

So why isn’t the 1963 act good enough?

The premise that current laws are effective is wrong, said Deborah Brake, a University of Pittsburgh law professor. Testifying before the Senate committee, she said most of women’s wage gains in pay relative to men occurred in the 1980s and there has been very little movement since.

Economic Policy Institute (EPI) economist Heather Boushey noted the pay gap starts the minute college grads throw their caps in the air, with newly graduated women earning an average 5 percent less than men who graduated from similar universities and engage in similar work. What then follows is a “career pay gap” of up to $434,000 in lifetime lost earnings for women who are the most educated and have higher-paying jobs.

The persistent gender wage gap is one more step on the ladder toward the nation’s growing income inequality. Unequal income leads to unequal wealth, with the persistent wage gap affecting families’ ability to pay the bills, finance their children’s education, buy a home or save for retirement, Boushey said.

The wealth gap differs from the income gap—it’s a person’s total assets, like pension funds and houses. A report out this week shows how bleak the wealth gap is for women, especially women of color.

Nearly half of all single black and Hispanic women have zero or negative wealth, meaning their debts exceed all their assets. The median wealth for single black women is only $100; for single Hispanic women, $120. This compares to just over $41,000 for single white women. About one- third of single Hispanic women and one-fourth of single black women have no checking or savings account.

The picture gets bleaker when these data are compared with men. Mariko Lin Chang, author of  “Lifting as We Climb: Women of Color, Wealth and America’s Future,” says:

Women of color own only a penny for every dollar of wealth owned by their corresponding men of color, of their same race. And in comparison to white women, women of color own only a fraction of a penny for every dollar of wealth owned by white women.

In short, women of color

face a double wealth disadvantage of being both a person of color and a woman.

In Zimbabwe, the Voice of the Worker -

In this cross-post from Border Jumpers, Bernard Pollack, who is taking a leave of absence from the AFL-CIO to travel through Africa, and Danielle Nierenberg send us another report from their journey through Zimbabwe.

Imagine being one of only five opposition voices in a country of 13 million people, where all radio, print and television is strictly controlled by the government. That’s Ben Madzimure’s uphill battle every day as editor of The Worker, the voice of the labor movement, in Zimbabwe—especially because his newspaper is only printed once a month, with only 5,000 copies distributed throughout the country.

“Zimbabwe used to have such a vibrant and independent media but most of the press was shut down,” said Madzimure. Today, many of the print reporters across the country bite their tongues and print the government’s viewpoint. Madzimure, on the other hand, actively seeks out stories the government doesn’t want mentioned, such as worker discontent and political corruption, and provides an unfiltered analysis of current events.

While President Mugabe lost the presidential election of 2008 (despite employing voter suppression strategies), he refused to relinquish power to the victor, Morgan Richard Tsvangirai. Today, under a “power sharing” agreement between the parties of Mugabe and Tsvangirai, the government continues to control all forms of media and mass-communication.

Given that Zimbabwe is one of the most literate countries in Africa, around 90 percent literacy rate, print media is a critical tool in moving a message. Madzimure says that after the newspaper is read, it’s passed on to at least nine other people and it remains a “permanent marker” because people use it to “wrap things or to fill holes.”

With a population spread out over hundreds of miles in rural areas, The Worker is the main way for the trade union federation, the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU), to disseminate news and inspire activity. “When ZCTU calls for national actions, the media doesn’t report on it at all. The Worker is a main vehicle giving directions to people on how to participate in strikes, elections and public actions,” said Madzimure.

Yet, despite financial support from the ZCTU, the AFL-CIO Solidarity Center in the United States, the Canadian Labour Congress, and others—the $1 USD price tag to purchase the paper is too expensive for most Zimbabweans. With 80 percent job informalization in the country, according to a recent United Nations report, the labor movement relies on its local networks to make sure the message filters throughout the country. Union members at every district are providing reporting as “volunteer correspondents” and several unemployed reporters are also lending a hand.

Madzimure’s dream is to eventually turn The Worker into a daily publication, offering investigative reporting and political analysis. In the meantime, while most Zimbabweans have no access to the computer, this does not stop Ben from promoting widely via every medium at his disposal, including a news blog, a fan page on Facebook (it has 3,800 fans) and on Twitter (12,000 followers).

‘I Am Not Your ATM’ -

Working people have plenty to be angry with Wall Street about. A $700 billion bailout. Toxic assets and loan guarantees to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars. A financial crisis and credit crunch. Billions of dollars in six- and seven-figure bonuses to the Wall Street executives who got us into this mess.

Unemployment reaching 10 percent. A mortgage crisis extending far beyond subprime loans. Abusive credit and debit card fees. More than five job-seekers for every one job.

Wall Street has treated Main Street as a giant ATM—gambling with the economy, then coming back with their hands out for help. But somehow, no matter how much help the banks need to survive, they always have the resources to fight proposals to regulate them or get them to pay their fair share.

That’s why the AFL-CIO community affiliate, Working America, has launched the ”I am not your ATM” campaign. Already, people in Albuquerque, N.M.; Columbus, Ohio; Portland, Ore.; Ann Arbor, Mich.; Little Rock, Ark.; and Minneapolis have been photographed with “I am not your ATM” signs at major banks to let Wall Street know they’ve had enough. Wall Street’s biggest banks need to be held accountable, with a strong, independent Consumer Financial Protection Agency. Rather than asking taxpayers for more money, Big Banks need to start repaying us for the damage they’ve done.

In the coming week, we at Working America will hold more events in cities across the country, but you can participate online. Submit a photo to NotYourATM.com and send Wall Street the message that you’re done being Big Banks’ ATM. It’s time for them to clean up the mess they made, instead of expecting working people to do it for them.

U.S. Income Equality May Equal Mexico’s by 2043 -

Two reports out this week offer a telling glimpse into the direction of the nation.

• The number of U.S. households with a net worth of at least $1 million jumped 16 percent last year after dipping sharply during the financial crisis, according to a new report. The Spectrem Group study also found “ultra-high net worth families—those with at least $5 million—grew 17 percent last year to 980,000.
• Some 6 percent of all workers were living in poverty in 2008, up from 5.1 percent in 2007—the highest proportion since 6.2 percent in 1994, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In 2008, some 8.9 million adults were among the “working poor”—1.4 million more than in 2007.

These are more than one-off data. They are the most recent indicators of the long-term trend toward growing inequality in this nation. The gap between the annual income of the top 10 percent and the rest of us has been widening sharply for the past 30 years. According to one analyst—who estimates that income inequality in the United States is now greater than it has ever been over the past century—the wealthiest 10 percent took between 30 percent and 35 percent of total national income from the early 1940s to the early 1980s. After that, their share rose to its current 45 percent to 50 percent level.

As the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) points out, the 400 American households with the highest incomes also have enjoyed a much faster pace of income growth than the vast majority of households.

The median pre-tax household income for a family of four in 2007 was $50,233, while the top-earning 400 households earned a median $345 million, almost 6,900 times as much income.

Put another way: If our income had kept pace with compensation distribution rates established in the early 1970s, we would all be making at least three times as much as we are currently making. How different would your life be if you were making $120,000 a year, instead of $40,000?

What does it mean for a nation to have an income gap that’s 6,900 times that of the median—not the lowest income, the median-income?

For one, studies show a correlation between unequal societies and an increase in illness and social problems, including mental illness and drug use. The lower the income gap in a society, the healthier it is overall.

Makes sense. Because a massive and growing income gap also means what Business Week, not exactly a radical media outlet, calls “the rise of the permanent temporary workforce.” One in which we see falling pay, vanishing benefits and where no one’s job is secure. When people work one or more jobs and still can’t afford health care or hope for retirement security—and when they can’t count on having a job at all—illness, addiction and other social ills quickly follow.

What does massive and growing inequality mean for the United States? It means that unless lawmakers directly address the crisis through coordinated policies—like establishing a national manufacturing policy and creating tax incentives for corporations to remain in the United States rather than ship jobs overseas, for starters—the United States by 2043 will have the same income inequality as Mexico.

Health Insurance Premiums Soar as New Polls Show Americans Want Reform -

Recent polls show a majority of Americans want Congress to pass comprehensive health care reform now. And for good reason: There’s more news out this week about the enormous increases in health insurance premiums, according to a new report.

A survey from Economist/YouGov released this week shows 53 percent of respondents support changes proposed by the Obama administration. A second poll by Ipsos/McClutchey shows that 53 percent of Americans either support the current reform option or hope for an even stronger reform package. More than a third of those who oppose current reform proposals actually favor stronger reforms.  

Meanwhile, a study by Health Care for America Now (HCAN) shows jaw-dropping insurance premium hikes—up 97 percent for families and 90 percent for individuals between 2000 and 2008. Premiums rose two times faster than medical costs and more than three times faster than wages. Companies like WellPoint are raising premiums by as much as 39 percent in California and by double digits in at least 11 states.

An analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that people who bought insurance on their own between 2004 and 2007 on average paid more of their health expenses themselves—52 percent—than insurance companies. Yet those who had employer-sponsored coverage only paid 30 percent out of pocket.    

The industry front group, America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), heard plenty this week as thousands gathered in Washington, D.C., outside AHIP’s meeting to stage a citizens’ arrest for its crime in blocking health care reform.  

Says Kaiser Family Foundation President Drew Altman:

The recent premium increases in the individual market probably have done more to illustrate the cost of doing nothing in health reform in simple, graphic terms people can understand than anything so far in the health reform debate.

More Jobs but Workers Spend More Time Jobless -

Here are a few items worth noting today.

* Kudos to union members in West Virginia who successfully pushed the state’s legislature to adopt a resolution creating Labor History week following Labor Day. Just last month, Wisconsin union activists succeeded in their years-long effort to get the state legislature to make labor history part of the state’s public education standards. 

* From the Campaign for America’s Future: Huffington Post’s Art Delaney highlights expiring stimulus program that could cost 100,00 jobs: “…more than 100,000 people…will lose their jobs by September unless Congress extends a stimulus bill provision that gives states funding to create jobs programs for low-income parents and young adults….”

* A laid-off worker now spends nearly five months unemployed, longer than any other time on record, according to the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). 

* In the “here’s how hard up we are for good news about jobs” category: The ratio of job seekers per job opening dropped from six to one in December to 5.4 in January. How sad is it that this is good news?

We Remain United: In Zimbabwe’s Labor Movement, a Voice for Human Rights and Democracy -

Bernard Pollack, who is taking a leave of absence from the AFL-CIO to travel through Africa, and Danielle Nierenberg describe their visit with Wellington Chibebe, the secretary general of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU).

In Harare, on the way to our meeting with Wellington Chibebe, the secretary general of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU), even our driver was excited for us.

He is a good, good man. I’ve only seen him on TV, but he fights very hard for the people and to promote democracy!

Since the early 1990s, ZCTU grew increasingly opposed to the government of Robert Mugabe and was the main force behind the formation of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). In fact, MDC’s leader and the current prime minister of Zimbabwe, Morgan Richard Tsvangirai, held the same position with the ZCTU before Chibebe.

Chibebe is one of the most vocal—and effective—voices in civil society promoting respect for human rights and democracy. Despite being brutally beaten, tortured and having his life threatened over the last two decades, Chibebe remains more positive than ever about the direction of his country. It was largely due to Zimbabwe’s labor movement that in the 2008 presidential election Tsvangirai defeated Mugagbe. Yet, despite MDC’s victory, Mugabe refuses to step down and the nation has a “power sharing” agreement.

When we met with Chibebe, he was cautiously optimistic about the power-sharing agreement and the future of democracy in Zimbabwe.

Our role as the labor movement is to fight for democracy and good governance, respect for people’s basic rights and also social and  economic rights.

He says that while the MDC plays a critical role in promoting democracy, the mission of the union movement will be to hold all political parties accountable to these principles. “We just can’t afford to repeat the same mistake by treating any government or political party as angels from heaven,” he says. While he described the beginning of the power-sharing agreement as “terrible,” Chibebe felt strongly that “things are now getting better, we are able to make some positive changes happen.”

Chibebe was born 300 miles south of Harare. His upbringing herding goats and farming built both a sense of responsibility and social consciousness, he says.

Rural kids grow up different from urban ones, you start fighting for your rights at a very early age. If you aren’t aggressive, you’ll get abused.

He also described how in rural life he had no access to books or libraries, so everyone listened to their elders, learning about the importance of struggle and hearing passionate tales of resistance against the ruling government. Not even a teen when his mother passed away, Chibebe became passionately involved in political struggle for social and economic justice that has lasted his whole life.

Being at the helm of the Zimbabwe labor movement at this moment is no easy task. The country faces unemployment rates of more than 90 percent. The media is controlled by the government. Union leaders are routinely harassed and imprisoned. And the Mugabe government instituted draconian laws to thwart unions, such as arresting any meeting of more than four people. Yet the affiliates of the ZCTU, representing more than 30 unions and every sector of the economy, have remained united. Says Chibebe:

While it is very difficult at times with unemployment so high to convince people to be in unions, we are still able to recruit and grow.

Chibebe works tirelessly to bring attention to Zimbabwe’s economic and human rights realities and to pressure the government to reform its ways. As workers struggle to survive inflation and low-paying informal employment, Chibebe has expanded the work of the ZCTU to represent all workers in both formal and informal employment. ZCTU fights for economic and social justice not just for his members, but for the fundamental rights of all of Zimbabwe’s workers.

In 2002, Chibebe and the ZCTU had the vision of helping informal sector workers—everyone from street vendors to musicians and artisans—form unions. The desire for social and economic change spread like wild fire when the Zimbabwe Chamber of Informal Associations (ZCIEA) started in 2002. Presently with more than 1.5 million paying members (out of 3.5 million members), the informal workers now have access to all the resources of the ZCTU such as their lobbyists, their research arm, and the strength and power of their affiliate unions.

Chibebe, and everyone we met with at ZCTU, speaks with great pride about the support they’ve been given by the American labor movement through the AFL-CIO Solidarity Center, which maintains an office in the country. “Because of the Solidarity Center and the American worker, we’ve had incredible moral and material support,” Chibebe said. Some of the examples he cites are the role the Solidarity Center plays in supporting their research institute, expanding distribution of their newspaper, The Worker, their ability to fund a lobbyist, create a paralegal program, training activists and leaders and getting support from international governments and politicians through organizational delegations such as the visit from the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU).

This is a cross-post from Border Jumpers.

Anti-Union Rep Admits His Group Opposes Majority Rule -

The vice president for one of the nation’s most anti-union, anti-worker organizations showed what we knew all along: Those fighting workers and their unions oppose the democratic process. 

During a hearing yesterday on a House bill to expand bargaining rights for the police and firefighters, Rep. Phil Hare (D-Ill.) exposed the myths and lies spun by the Big Brother-named National Right to Work Committee.

Doug Stafford, the group’s vice president, attempted to portray the bill as forcing “monopoly bargaining on every police and firefighter.”

Hare, a former president of and steward for his union, would have none of it.

The bill provides unions only will be established in places where a majority of officers and firefighters choose to form one, is that correct?

Stafford:

I believe that’s true, however….

Hare:

Can you point to anywhere in this bill that would force this union into existence against the wishes of majority?

Stafford:

Against the majority, no, but what about the other 49 percent?

Hare:

All of us are elected here by majority. I would assume, that wouldn’t be the majority rule? I mean if the majority of these folks want [a union], you’d find a problem with that?

Stafford:

Yes.

Case closed.

Get Set for March Actions to Make Wall Street Pay -

The union movement and our allies are taking our fight for good jobs now to the biggest Wall Street banks whose reckless greed has gone a long way to wreck the U.S. economy and kill American jobs.

From March 15-26, working people will hold rallies and demonstrations at branches of the Big Six Wall Street banks—Bank of America, Chase, Citigroup, Wachovia-Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley—across the country. They will tell the banks “We Are Not Your ATMs” and “Make Wall Street Pay for Creating New Jobs.”

You also can tell Wall Street executives to pay to create good jobs by sending a letter urging them to do the right thing. Just click here.

Find out about events in your area here. If you take part in an event, be sure to send us your photo or video here.

The AFL-CIO Good Jobs Now site has all the tools you’ll need to let Wall Street know we mean business. There’s a Wall Street fact sheet, along with an explanation of our stand on making Wall Street pay to create good jobs, arguments for extending unemployment insurance benefits, creating good, green jobs with benefits and other issues.

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said working Americans have three demands of the banks:

Stop refusing to pay your fair share to restore the jobs you destroyed, stop fighting financial reform and start lending to your communities, small businesses and others starved for credit.

While millions of Americans continue to lose their homes, their jobs and their retirement saving, it’s been business as usual for Wall Street doling out record pay and bonuses to their CEOs.

While working families lost jobs, homes and hope, Wall Street took $700 billion in taxpayer bailouts and went right back to business as usual—choking off credit, handing out about $145 billion in 2009 pay and bonuses to the executives who tanked our economy and hiring an army of lobbyists to fight financial reform.

The nation is more than 11 million jobs in the hole. We need good jobs now—and it’s time Wall Street helps pay to create them.

The AFL-CIO supports four proposals for banks to pay a fair share to restore the economy: fees on Wall Street banks to pay back the cost of the bank bailout; a special levy on Wall Street bonuses, as proposed in the United Kingdom; a tax on the income of hedge fund and private equity managers, the wealthiest people in the country, at ordinary income rates, by closing the carried interest loophole and a financial speculation.

In addition to these efforts, Working America, the 3 million-member community affiliate of the AFL-CIO, is launching a campaign called “I am not your ATM.” People across the country will be submitting photos of themselves in front of ATMs, asking “Where’s my bailout?” and delivering the message to Wall Street: ”I am not your ATM.” To see the photos already submitted, click here.

New Legislation Would Create 1 Million Jobs -

Members of Congress and a bipartisan group of mayors today announced new legislation they say will create or save up to 1 million public- and private-sector jobs. Jobs saved would include those such as firefighters, police and teachers and others whose jobs are in jeopardy because of local government budget cuts. 

The nation’s economic crisis is forcing states and municipalities to cut jobs that are critically important to local communities. State and local governments and school districts face $178 billion in budget deficits this year alone. Last month, AFSCME members across the country rallied in state capitals to urge legislators to raise revenue to save needed public services. 

The Local Jobs for America Act, developed with mayors, county officials and others, also contains job-creation strategies to enable small businesses to help hundreds of thousands of individuals get private-sector jobs. A bill number has not yet been assigned.

Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, made the announcement along with Reps. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) and Phil Hare (D-Ill.), Elizabeth Kautz, president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors and  Ronald  Loveridge, president of the  National League of Cities.

Speaking this morning on CNBC, Miller said:

If we lose another million jobs over this year, it’s going to impact our local communities. And these are vital services. They’re health services, fire fighting services, police services, parks and recreation services, health inspections, housing inspections. These are what keep the civil side of America together. To have the loss of these jobs doesn’t serve the national economy and certainly doesn’t serve the local economies and the quality of life in our schools and our communities. 

Specifically, the bill allows for community block grants to local governments to fund jobs providing local services for two years. The money is allocated as follows:

• $75 billion for 750,000 jobs providing needed local services with $52.5 billion directly to communities with at least 50,000 residents.
• $22.5 billion directly to governors to distribute to communities with fewer than 50,000 residents-job creation funding will sent to towns, counties, or private non-profits outside communities eligible for the funding above. Local governments will apply to the governor for the funding.
• $23 billion to help states support an estimated 250,000 education jobs; $1.18 billion to put 5,500 law enforcement officers on the beat; and $500 million to hire and retain fire fighters
• $500 million for approximately 50,000 additional on-the-job training positions slots to help private business expand employment.

Insurance Victims Tell Congress: Pass Health Care Reform Now -

A panel of 24 victims of insurance industry abuse and their families told their heart-rending stories directly to members of Congress this morning and asked the lawmakers to listen to the American people and pass health care reform that works for us, not Big Insurance.

Marcelas Owens is spending his 11th birthday telling lawmakers it’s time to provide real health care to all Americans. Marcelas, who lives in Seattle, lost his mother, Tiffany, in 2007. She was too sick to work and lost her job as manager of a fast-food restaurant. She also lost her health insurance. She died of pulmonary hypertension at age 27.

Today’s forum on Capitol Hill, where Congress is debating how to fix the nation’s broken health care system, follows nationwide rallies yesterday, including one in Washington, D.C., where we told Big Insurance that blocking health care reform is a crime.

Members of Congress also heard from Leslie Boyd of Asheville, N.C., whose uninsured son died in 2008 at age 33 after a delayed diagnosis for colon cancer because he could not afford colonoscopies. Boyd’s husband also recently suffered a heart attack after his insurance company delayed approving his doctor’s request for a stress test.

They heard from Marcus Grimes of Woodbridge, Va., a former teacher who lost his sight because he did not have the $3,000 down payment for doctor-recommended surgeries that would have saved his sight (see video above). Speaking to the rally yesterday, Grimes said:

When you leave here to go to your congressman, go to your senator and tell them: “We’re mad as hell and we’re not going to take it anymore.” We ask you senators. We ask your representatives. What side of history do you want to be on? We should have no more people dying….We stand as one. We walk softly, but we carry a big stick.

The forum on Capitol Hill, and yesterday’s rally, were sponsored by Health Care for America Now (HCAN), a coalition of more than 100 organizations, including the AFL-CIO and many union affiliates. You can read the stories of all 24 victims of insurance abuse here.

Wendell Potter, a former vice president of insurance giant CIGNA and now senior fellow at the Center for Media and Democracy, moderated today’s forum. He points out the insurance industry is trying to drown out the voices of ordinary Americans in the health care debate.

The insurance industry is working hard, spending millions of our premium dollars, on a propaganda campaign designed to either kill reform or make sure reform benefits insurance companies and their shareholders far more than average working Americans.

The big for profit-companies that now comprise a cartel in the industry are accountable first and foremost to their shareholders, and they will promise to do whatever it takes to meet those shareholders’ expectations and the expectations of a handful of enormously influential and powerful financial and investment analysts.

Central Falls Superintendent Stalling on Talks With Teachers -

Less than a week after agreeing to negotiate with fired teachers at Central Falls (R.I.) High School and their union, the school superintendent is delaying the talks.

In a statement, Jane Sessums, president of the Central Falls Teachers Union, an AFT affiliate, urged Superintendent Frances Gallo to “resume negotiations with the teachers union and to accept (Rhode Island Education) Commissioner Deborah Gist’s offer to provide impartial mediation.”

We must not keep this school, its students, teachers and staff on tenterhooks any longer.

The school superintendent fired all teachers at Central Falls High on Feb. 23. She agreed March 3 to resume bargaining and include the union in all discussions on a comprehensive education plan that will help students and teachers succeed. The move followed a nationwide public outcry, with thousands signing an online petition to tell school officials the students deserve better and they should work with teachers to build on improvements at the high school. (Keep the pressure on the Central Falls school administration. Sign a petition here.)

On Tuesday evening, a group of  about 40 current and former Central Falls High students held a candlelight vigil in honor of the fired teachers and staff. Priscilla Villa, 18, a freshman in college told the Providence Journal:

All the teachers here have been a big part of my life. The teachers here inspired me to go to college.

The teachers union has presented a comprehensive education plan to transform the school, Sessums said. The proposal includes serious recommendations for implementing high school reform programs that have succeeded in other low-performing districts and it needs to be an integral part of what the parties discuss when they return to the table, she added.

Sessums adds:

As we have consistently said, the Central Falls Teachers Union is ready to resume negotiations. We are committed to a reform plan that will put Central Falls High School on a pathway to excellence. Delaying negotiations is done at a cost to the students of Central Fall High. We urge Superintendent Gallo to reconsider her ill-advised resistance to beginning that process.