(The AFL-CIO issued the following on September 7.)
New members reported in this week’s WIP: 2,547
New members reported in WIP, year to date: 83,833
GRADUATING TO A UNION–The 2,000 graduate employees at the University of Illinois Chicago campus are now members of a union after the university agreed last week to recognize the Graduate Employees Organization, an affiliate of the Illinois Federation of Teachers/AFT. The workers chose the union in April under the state’s majority verification law, in which workers win their union when a majority signs authorization cards indicating the desire to join a union.
(ARM)STRONG UNION–More than 400 workers at Armstrong World Industries in Macon, Ga., overwhelmingly voted to merge their directly affiliated local union with the Steelworkers Aug. 31. Under terms of the agreement, the group now becomes USWA Local 461.
AFTER THE FREEZE, A UNION–Some 90 workers gained a voice on the job with AFSCME recently. The decision by Northampton County, Pa., government to freeze the salaries of its court-appointed professional employees led 50 parole, probation and domestic relations workers to vote to join AFSCME Council 13. Other workers who chose AFSCME recently include 30 direct care workers at Fairfax Manor in Ypsilanti, Mich., who voted for Council 25 on July 6, and 10 Head Start workers from the Ecumenical Community Development Organization in New York City, who chose Council 1707 through a majority verification process.
TEAMSTERS WINS–A total of 57 workers joined the Teamsters recently, including 35 employees of Land-O-Sun/PET Dairies in Lenoir and Shelby, N.C., who voted for Local 61. The workers are milk and ice cream route drivers, distribution/route supervisors, office workers and shipping department workers. Elsewhere, 15 emergency operators/dispatchers for the town of Mishawaka, Ind., joined Local 364 through majority verification. Also, seven workers at Detroit Center 1 and 2 Garages, managed by Standard Parking, voted for Local 283.
STILL IN THE JOBS HOLE–“More than three years after the recession ended, [the nation] is still not adding enough jobs to stay even, much less climb out of the hole dug over the past four years,” AFL-CIO President John Sweeney said of the latest unemployment figures released Sept. 3 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 144,000 new jobs created in August fall far short of many economists’ predictions and the White House promise of 306,000 new jobs each month when it pushed through the most recent tax cuts. The official unemployment rate remained essentially unchanged in August, dipping slightly to 5.4 percent, primarily because 150,000 more people dropped out of the job market. The unemployment rate for Latinos rose from 6.8 percent to 6.9 percent; African American unemployment improved slightly, from 10.9 percent in July to 10.4 percent in August. For more information, visit http://www.aflcio.org .
MONITORING NEVADA AND ARIZONA–After monitoring the Aug. 31 primary election in Florida, volunteer voter advocacy coalition teams in the AFL-CIO’s My Vote, My Right campaign will monitor primaries Sept. 7 in Nevada and Arizona and Sept. 14 in Minnesota, Washington and Wisconsin to ensure every vote is counted and to look for any problems like those that marred the 2000 elections. To learn more about the My Vote, My Right campaign, click on http://www.myvotemyright.com .
WORKERS MOBILIZE ON LABOR DAY–Working families celebrated labor’s heritage and mobilized for the future by sending the message that the nation needs good jobs, strong communities and health care coverage for all. Workers kicked off the holiday weekend Sept. 1 when 40,000 people demonstrated outside the Republican National Convention in New York City against the anti-worker policies of the Bush administration. On Sept. 2, more than 15,000 union members carried out the largest single-day election mobilization in the union movement’s history, going door-to-door to the homes of some 1 million other union members about the issues at stake in the presidential election. On Sept. 3, thousands of IBT members picketed the Danish embassy in Washington, D.C., and Danish consulates in 22 cities to urge the Danish government to call on Copenhagen-based Maersk Sealand steamship company to treat its U.S. workers with respect. On Labor Day, Sept. 6, some 15,000 people attended the annual Labor Day picnic in Cincinnati, while Seattle working families put a spotlight on the growth of temporary jobs in place of family-supporting manufacturing jobs by demonstrating in front of a Manpower Services office. Hundreds of union members also spoke in congregations about workplace challenges and ties between religious and union communities as part of the Labor in the Pulpits program. More than 40 AFL-CIO Executive Council members and other top union leaders joined working families at rallies and celebrations across the country.
STATE OF AMERICA IS JOBLESS–The U.S. economy is not creating enough jobs to put most of the 10 million unemployed workers back to work, and the jobs that are being created don’t pay enough to support families, according to “The State of Working America 2004/2005,” released Sept. 5. The biannual report by the nonprofit Economic Policy Institute (EPI) said the current unemployment rate of 5.4 percent is significantly higher than the 4.3 percent rate of three years ago and would jump to 7.3 percent if people who have dropped out of the workforce since 2001 were counted. But for those with jobs, the situation also is bleak. In industries where jobs are growing, total annual wages and benefits for workers averaged $35,546 between November 2001 and June 2004, compared with $61,983 in industries that are shrinking, EPI said. For a copy of the report, visit http://www.epinet.org .
HOTEL WORKERS RALLY–Hundreds of members of UNITE HERE Local 25 in Washington, D.C. rallied Sept. 3 for a fair contract with higher wages and better working conditions. The contract between the union and 14 large Washington-area hotels expires Sept. 15 and covers 3,800 workers. While tourism in the nation’s capitol has increased sharply after dropping after Sept. 11, 2001, hotel workers have not enjoyed the benefits, union leaders say. Negotiations are continuing. The workers are seeking to keep their employer-paid health care benefits, a $1-an-hour raise and better working conditions.
TAINTING HALLOWED MEMORIES–Edward Sullivan, president of the AFL-CIO Building and Construction Trades Department, condemned the Bush campaign’s attempt to politicize and misrepresent the thousands of union construction workers who volunteered to work on World Trade Center rescue and recovery teams following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s (R) remarks at the Republican National Convention included an impassioned reference to construction workers at Ground Zero. But when Bush’s 2001 photo-op with the workers was over, Sullivan said, Bush eliminated project labor agreements, undercut their rights to organize and bargain fair wages, put their health care and pensions in jeopardy and weakened job safety regulations.
CASHING IN ON JOB EXPORTING–Chief executive officers at companies that export the most jobs are receiving bigger raises than CEOs at other companies, according to a new report, “Executive Excess 2004: Campaign Contributions, Outsourcing, Unexpensed Stock Options and Rising CEO Pay.” The report, by United for a Fair Economy and the Institute for Policy Studies, showed the average CEO compensation at the 50 firms exporting the most service jobs increased 46 percent in 2003, compared with an average 9 percent for CEOs at 365 large companies surveyed by “BusinessWeek.” The report can be downloaded at http://www.faireconomy.org/press/2004/EE2004_pr.html .
BARGAINING FOR SECURITY–USWA members at four B.F. Goodrich Tire plants in North America ratified new contracts guaranteeing no layoffs or plant closures, plus $150 million in capital improvements. The contracts, which expire July 22, 2006, cover 4,400 workers at plants in Opelika and Tuscaloosa, Ala., Fort Wayne, Ind., and Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, where some 1,000 workers had been on strike since June 1.
AVON STANDARD FOR QUEBECOR–Members of Graphic Communications and other union allies are calling on Avon Corp., a company that says it respects workers’ rights, to insist that Quebecor World, Avon’s catalog printer, treat its workers fairly. GCIU accuses Quebecor, the world’s largest printer, of trying to thwart workers’ choice to form a union by disciplining, demoting and firing union supporters. To urge Avon to act, visit http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/Avon . For more information on the organizing campaign, visit http://www.justiceatquebecor.org .
AIDING FRANCES’S VICTIMS–While cleanup continues from the damage done by Hurricane Charley in Florida, the union movement and the Red Cross are mobilizing to help those affected by Hurricane Frances. Union members have volunteered materials and skills to help those in need. Union Privilege announced hurricane victims who participate in the Union Plus credit card, loan and mortgage programs may be eligible for payment extensions. For more information, visit http://www.unionprivilege.org . The Union Community Fund is collecting donations to help the victims of both hurricanes. For information, visit http://www.unioncommunityfund.org or mail checks payable to the Union Community Fund, 815 16th St., N.W., Washington, DC 20006 and designate “Florida Hurricane Relief” on the checks. Meanwhile, two Electrical Workers’ members were killed as they headed home after repairing downed power lines in after Hurricane Charley. Thomas Mattison, 44, of Manchester, Conn., a member of Local 42, and John Vahey, 47, of Fremont, N.H., a member of Local 104, died when the truck they were traveling in hit a parked tractor-trailer on Interstate 4 in central Florida. Visit http://www.ibew.org to make a donation to help their families.
DOLLARS AND SENSE–Reuters’ news agency announced Aug. 9 it will replace 20 editorial staffers in the United States and Europe, including a dozen Newspaper Guild-CWA members, with 60 workers in Bangalore, India. TNG-CWA filed unfair labor practice charges against Reuters after it barred two Guild representatives from entering the company’s New York headquarters and filed complaints related to the exporting of work.
SHOPPING UNION–The AFL-CIO Union Label and Service Trades Department’s new website, http://www.shopunionmade.org , which debuted Sept. 1, allows you to identify and shop online for union made products. “People have seen millions of good jobs disappear, and they are looking for ways to take a stand and make a difference,” said Matt Bates, the department’s secretary-treasurer. Local unions can provide information through the website on products their members produce. Also, the Union Plus Union Dream Ride Giveaway is offering a 2004 union-made vehicle as grand prize and two 2004 Harley-Davidson Sportsters and a Grand Bahamas vacation for two as other prizes. For more information, visit http://www.uniondreamride.com .
BAHR TO RETIRE IN 2005–Morton Bahr, president of CWA since 1985, announced he will retire at the end of his term in August 2005. Following his announcement, the union’s executive board unanimously endorsed Bahr’s recommendation for a new top leadership team of CWA Executive Vice President Larry Cohen to succeed Bahr, Secretary-Treasurer Barbara Easterling to continue serving in that post and District 4 Vice President Jeffrey Rechenbach to fill Cohen’s position.
SOLIDARITY CENTER LAUNCHES SITE–The AFL-CIO’s Solidarity Center launched a redesigned and expanded website, http://www.solidaritycenter.org , last week. The site features an updated area detailing Solidarity Center programs and activities and a new section for the Global Voice@Workcampaign. Also, all Solidarity Center publications on worker rights now are on the website.
Work in Progress is also available on our website at
http://www.aflcio.org/aboutaflcio/wip .