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August 29, 2008National/PoliticalLabor Day and the Election Season Labor Day traditionally marks the start of the election season. This year is certainly no different, but the stakes are much higher than they've been in a long time. The economy is in trouble, unemployment is high, bankruptcies are up, and families are finding their budgets crimped by rising gas, food and utility costs. The media reports that even college students are turning to food stamps to make ends meet and sky-rocketing food prices are forcing more and more people to rely on charity food pantries to feed their families. .... Although largely unheralded and unseen, most workers contribute to their workplaces and communities. AFSCME members in particular can take pride in doing the work that makes America happen. Every day, in towns, cities, suburbs and exurbs across our nation, AFSCME members are driving school buses, working in hospitals, caring for children, staffing 911 call centers, fixing bridges and roads, repairing tunnels, providing food stamps and other emergency assistance to families, and doing many other jobs that protect and strengthen communities. Labor Leaders Stress Unions' Importance for Obama A few months ago, it looked as if this might be the year when organized labor's spot in the Democratic Party would slip a notch or two. ... But with the presidential race closer than many expected, labor leaders here at the Democratic convention asserted themselves anew this week and cast their unions as saviors for a candidate who they say needs them more than ever. .... "There's a bit of irony in it," said Gerald W. McEntee, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, who has lined up behind Obama after sharply criticizing him during the primaries, when his union backed Clinton. "They are counting on the American labor movement for boots on the ground and mobilization -- and it's nice to be thought of that way." Democrats Becoming Obama's Party ... Still, many Democrats argue that the party Obama inherits is farther to the left today than it was when Bill Clinton left office eight years ago. "Politically speaking, I think Obama would like to have the party in a place that is very close to where Clinton had the party," said Gerald McEntee, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. "Yet I do believe that after the experiences with Bush and the war that the people that make up the majority of the Democratic Party are a little to the left of center." Experts say Barack Obama needs to talk 'jobs, jobs, jobs' ... Gerald McEntee, national president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, put it more bluntly in a speech to the Ohioans in Denver: "You tell the other people it's bull. . . and go out and build a new America." In an interview, McEntee said unions need to address race "straight on." "We've already been out in the field, and you sense it," he said. "There's a sense that they've never done this before, they have never voted for an individual who is black for any office, and the most important office in the land. And so they are very leery about it. US unions wary of supporting an 'unfamiliar' face ...The race issue was seen in dramatic relief on Tuesday when Gerald McEntee, chief of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, berated some of his own members at a meeting of convention delegates from Illinois. Related articles:
Obama Takes Aim at Bush and McCain With a Forceful Call to Change America Barack Obama accepted the Democratic Party presidential nomination on Thursday, declaring that the “American promise has been threatened” by eight years under President Bush and that John McCain represented a continuation of policies that undermined the nation’s economy and imperiled its standing around the world. The speech by Senator Obama, in front of an audience of nearly 80,000 people on a warm night in a football stadium refashioned into a vast political stage for television viewers, left little doubt how he intended to press his campaign against Mr. McCain this fall. White House Prepares Order On Union Organizing (no link) The Bush administration is weighing an executive order that would eliminate a union-preferred method of labor organizing at large government contractors, according to people familiar with the situation. .. The executive order would require large government contractors to use secret-ballot elections for union organizing or risk losing government contracts, say people familiar with the order. Though companies typically prefer secret ballots, some are willing to accept card checks to avoid a fight. ... Union leaders believe the order, if issued, could derail some current organizing drives. Gregory Junemann, president of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, said his union is negotiating a card-check agreement with a large defense contractor and the order "could very well affect us." The union represents 75,000 engineers and technical workers at Boeing Co., Lockheed Martin Corp. and General Electric Co., among other companies. Obama now needs to target working-class Americans ... Behind the scenes, various unions held an intensive flurry of meetings. The essential theme: finalizing the conversion of Clinton supporters and Edwards supporters into Obama supporters. This process was under way by June when the American Federation of County, State and Municipal Employees, whose umbrella covers 1.4 million members, announced its backing for the then-nominee-in-waiting. Democrats hope economy trumps workers' doubts on race ... Robert Thompson, 54, director of a local American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees in Akron, Ohio, and a delegate in Denver, said he hears first-hand the "undertone" of racism when colleagues discuss the election. "The reality is we have the first African American candidate running for president and you can't minimize that dynamic," said Thompson, who is black. The party’s over, time to clean up ... “It’s full steam ahead,” said Jaladah Aslam, 48, a Clinton delegate from Youngstown, Ohio, who is fully behind Mr Obama. Voters, she suggested, do not care so much about how many years of experience a candidate has, or whether he is young or old, they simply want to know his story. “He’s going to have to let the voters start to know him,” she said of Mr Obama, who came to national politics in 2004 when he was first elected to the US Senate. Mrs Aslam, a staff representative for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, a large union, said Mr Obama must also prepare to respond to whatever Republicans throw his way. Addressing bread-and-butter issues will win votes, union leaders say .... But union activist Paula Dorsey agreed that it will take some doing to persuade some of her members to "vote their pocketbooks" by choosing Obama. "It's not going to be as easy as people think," said Dorsey, head of a local Wisconsin unit of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. "It's going to be a fight to the finish." Ohio delegation expresses confidence Democrats are unified behind Obama .... Tom Ritchie, a Dayton-area labor leader from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and veteran of five conventions said, "I'm more excited about change than any other time." The most poignant moment, said Ritchie, came when Hillary Clinton asked the convention to nominate Obama by acclamation. Ritchie said he saw tears rolling down the cheeks of labor delegates as they joined hands in unity. "It was the most moving moment of my 32 years in the labor movement, he said. Workers really feeling insecure American workers are worried about job security and want the government to help them gain new skills and prevent jobs from being shipped overseas, according to a national survey. The survey, which Rutgers University released Thursday, shows workers are as anxious now as they were during the 2001 recession, and their worries have persisted despite economic gains after the 2001 terrorist attacks. At Invesco, Obama To Unveil Massive Voter Registration Drive Offering a glimpse of Sen. Barack Obama’s acceptance speech at Invesco Field tomorrow in Denver, a top campaign official said Obama will announce an unprecedented effort to enroll new voters before the November election. Obama Latino Outreach Director Temo Figueroa said, "You're going to be hearing tomorrow from Barack Obama the kick-off of the largest voter registration drive ever in a presidential campaign.” Figueroa’s remarks followed a presentation to the Hispanic Caucus yesterday morning in Denver, where he characterized the resources the campaign will put into the program as, "mind boggling." .... Figueroa said that unlike past elections, the campaign will not "contract out" the job of registering voters. "But we're doing it in-house. We're doing it with our own volunteers, with our own staff," he said. Emergency doctors dispute McCain advisor's take on healthcare Gurney The organization representing the nation's 26,000 emergency medicine doctors fired back today at a John McCain campaign advisor who said, in effect, that as long as there are emergency rooms, no one in American is really uninsured. The advisor, John Goodman, president of the National Center for Policy Analysis in Dallas, told the Dallas Morning News on Wednesday that emergency rooms are a last resort for healthcare for anyone because, by law, emergency rooms can't turn away a patient in need of immediate care. "The next president of the United States should sign an executive order requiring the Census Bureau to cease and desist from describing any American -- even illegal aliens -- as uninsured," Goodman said. 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Feeling No Pain My first reaction to Bill Clinton’s convention speech was sheer professional jealousy: nobody, but nobody, has his ability to translate economic wonkery into plain, forceful English. In effect, Mr. Clinton provided an executive summary of the new Census report on income, poverty and health insurance — but he did it so eloquently, so seamlessly, that there was no sense that he was giving his audience a lecture... But Republicans, very much including John McCain and his advisers, don’t believe there’s a problem. ... Former Senator Phil Gramm made headlines, and stepped down as co-chairman of the McCain campaign, after he described America as a “nation of whiners.” ... Last week John Goodman, an influential figure in Republican health care circles, explained that we shouldn’t worry about the growing number of Americans without health insurance, because there’s no such thing as being uninsured. After all, you can always get treatment at an emergency room. And Mr. Goodman — he’s the president of the National Center for Policy Analysis, an important conservative think tank, and is often described as the “father of health savings accounts,” a central feature of the Bush administration’s health policy — wants the next president to issue an executive order prohibiting the Census Bureau from classifying anyone as uninsured. “Voilà!” he says. “Problem solved.” What would an Obama win mean for states? If elected president, Democrat Barack Obama promises closer ties with states and an infusion of federal dollars that states could use to expand health care, create “green” jobs and fix the country’s crumbling roads and bridges. Bush’s Toxic Labor Day Gift to Workers Here’s an early Labor Day present from the Bush administration—a nice little package of workplace chemicals, toxins and carcinogens all neatly wrapped up with a new proposed rule that Bush’s Labor Department tried to keep secret earlier this summer. The proposed rule, published today on the Federal Register’s website, could increase workers’ exposure to dangerous chemicals and toxins and make it more difficult for the next administration to enact new safety rules. The rule’s development was pushed by Bush political appointees over the objections of career health and safety professionals. 10 Things You Can Do to Celebrate Labor Day Before you head off to the hot dogs and veggie burgers at the backyard barbecue this weekend (because who can afford the gas money to drive anywhere?), take a minute to celebrate Labor Day in a way that honors America’s working women and men. Long Division: The Debate Over the Value of Preschool (no link) Parents and policy makers have long debated whether preschools provide any educational benefit -- and whether it makes sense for states to spend millions of taxpayer dollars to fund them. A study appearing Friday in the journal Science could reignite the debate. In the study, researchers in England found that the benefits of attending a good preschool, including improved mathematic and reading ability and social skills, can last for several years and give children a leg up when they enter elementary school. For example, 10-year-olds who had attended a high-quality preschool -- a designation based on the researchers' observations -- scored 27% higher in math than those who had attended poor preschools. That may sound obvious, but the study follows a recent one that compared kids who attended preschool with those who didn't, with similar results. "We found that [good] preschools offer learning opportunities over and above what most homes can provide," says Edward Melhuish, a co-author of the paper and professor of human development at Birkbeck, University of London. "Children's ability to work independently improves significantly, and that's a high predictor of future academic success." ... Critics complain that universal preschool education will mainly benefit teachers unions and other special-interest groups. Ellison’s pay hike sparks shareholder angst Some Oracle Corp. shareholders are angry at Chief Executive Officer Larry Ellison’s 38 percent pay increase and are pressing for a say on compensation in the software company, according to Bloomberg News. .. “Ellison's compensation was already sky high and didn't need to go higher,” Scott Adams, the AFSCME union's pension and investment analyst in Oakland, Calif., told the business news service. Related articles:
State/LocalState to cut 450 jobs, close parks and historic sites The Blagojevich administration is planning to cut more than 450 jobs and close nearly two dozen state parks and historic sites in response to the state’s lingering budget impasse. One union official described the plan as a ’’bloodbath’’ that will have wide-ranging effects on the services provided to state taxpayers. .... The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union vowed to fight to keep its workers on the job. ’’Lawmakers should return to Springfield as soon as possible to take whatever action is necessary to fix the budget and stop these cuts,’’ AFSCME Council 31 Executive Director Henry Bayer said. Related articles:
Big Boost for AFSCME Union employees in Illinois may soon see a bigger paycheck. As part of a tentative contract deal with the state, AFSCME workers could see as much as a 15 percent pay raise over a period of four years. Current workers will still have to pay a bit more for healthcare costs, but retired state workers will pay more for coverage. Union officials say the deal is not finalized. Members still have to vote on the proposal. No word yet on when that vote will take place. Carcieri, Council 94 ordered into arbitration R.I. Supreme Court Chief Justice Frank J. Williams today ordered the Carcieri administration and Rhode Island Council 94 into mediation, putting on hold all legal actions over their ongoing contract dispute. .. In the meantime, Council 94’s unfair labor practices complaint with the R.I. Labor Relations Board has been put on hold. So has the governor’s effort to unilaterally increase health care fees for members of Council 94 of the American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO, who work in the state’s executive branch. Related article from the Providence Journal: Mediation ordered for governor, union Tiverton teachers, lacking a contract, slated to attend orientation today With the labor dispute between the School Committee and the teachers’ union entering its second year, about 200 teachers are expected to report to work for orientation today under provisions of a long-standing Superior Court order that keeps them in the classroom... The 71 employees are represented by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. Tough questions for SPRTC / St. Peter forum leaves some unconvinced With a lot of change happening these days at the St. Peter Regional Treatment Center and Minnesota Security Hospital campus, officials there agreed to hold a public forum to answer questions. But when it was over Wednesday, some in attendance weren’t quite satisfied with the way the forum was held or the answers Department of Human Services officials gave to submitted questions. The forum was meant to answer questions about layoffs at the SPRTC, budget shortfalls, security issues in the wake of patient escapes and other topics. ... John Knobbe — who is an official representative of the Association of Federal, State, County and Municipal Employees — said their presentation sounded good but didn’t address some key community issues. One issue he used as an example was how new shifts being introduced are longer than normal, which would be tough to pull off for families with kids who need day care. North Oakland Medical will rehire half of staff after sale Once the bankrupt North Oakland Medical Center changes hands in October, more than half of the current staff will be rehired. This was among the details confirmed Thursday during a press conference called by hospital and city officials to announce the hospital's bankruptcy filing this week and sale of the city-owned hospital to a group of private physicians. ... Officials are scheduled to meet will all four of the hospital's bargaining units [Ed note: AFSCME] to begin discussions on new agreements, Graham sai How to practice medicine without a license Doctors not licensed to practice medicine in California are allowed to practice medicine in California as long they restrict their decisions to injured workers who claim on-the-job injuries. This convenient niche is favored by insurance companies and acquiescent utilization review companies retained by the insurance companies. They argue that utilization review doctors aren't practicing medicine. ... The Medical Board of California, the Osteopathic Medical Board of California, the Board of Chiropractic Examiners, the Board of Podiatric Medicine, the California Medical Association, the California Labor Federation and the AFL-CIO are among many organizations that support AB2969 (authored by Assemblywoman Sally Lieber, D-Mountain View), which would require doctors who do utilization review for injured workers in California to be licensed in California. This legislation is sponsored by the California Society of Industrial Medicine and Surgery, the California Society of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and the Union of American Physicians and Dentists. Financial woes might close long-running hotel-turned-prison It started life as a hotel and was used by politicians to establish the territory of Nevada nearly 150 years ago. A cynic might suggest its later conversion to a prison didn't change the clientele much. But the Nevada State Prison, which went from life as the Warm Springs Hotel to the "graybar hotel" in 1862, could soon see the end of its storied history as a place of incarceration. The aging facility, one of the oldest continuously operated prisons west of the Mississippi, is on the table for possible closure by the Department of Corrections because of the state's bleak financial picture. ... Kevin Ranft, a correctional officer at the Northern Nevada Correctional Center and regional vice president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 4041, said it is the close link between the prison and the Carson community that is of concern to department employees. DMR staff offered $5,000 buyout incentives Workers at most of the large residential facilities operated by the state Department of Mental Retardation are being offered $5,000 bonuses if they will take voluntary buyouts. .. Peter Wright, spokesman for American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 93, said he could not speak about ongoing talks on what may follow the voluntary layoffs. But, referring to the bonuses, he said, “ at least they’re doing something for somebody after 16 years of Republican administrations that would just lay people off” without benefits. Mayor wants City Council to reconsider union deal NEWBURYPORT — The mayor will reach out the City Council this week in hopes of a meeting to discuss terms of a proposed contract with the city's second-largest union in an effort to get them to reconsider the deal before heading back to the bargaining table. On Aug. 11, the council narrowly rejected funding a request that would have covered the terms of a new agreement between the city and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees — the union that includes Department of Public Works, library and City Hall employees. Municipal workers' deal creates 4-day week .. The local American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees has about 45 members in town administration, said local union vice president Cheryl Duarte. Provincetown has a year-round population of 3,400, but that can swell to 30,000 or more in summer. Town voters turned down two Proposition 2½ override attempts in the last year that would have given raises to union workers who are in the town administrative offices. In the meantime, police and school departments staff did receive increases. Provost's Update -- Good News Provost and Executive Vice President Terry L. Hickey sent the following update to UCF faculty and staff on Thursday afternoon: ... We anticipate the one-time lump sum bonuses and merit-based increases for out-of-unit employees (those not represented by a union) will be included in the paychecks received on Friday, October 24, 2008. The funds required to compensate in-unit employees (those represented by AFSCME, PBA, or UFF) will be held centrally, awaiting the concurrence of the respective unions. Maryland May Face $1 Billion Shortfall Maryland could face a budget shortfall of up to $1 billion in its next fiscal year despite a series of tax increases and spending reductions that were intended to largely solve the state's chronic fiscal problems. Georgia keeps Medicaid, PeachCare intact As Georgia’s money problems cause public services to be slashed, state health officials announced a plan Thursday to preserve intact two of the most important programs for needy people – Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids – for the next two years. Social service advocates celebrated the news that the state had no plans to cut services or restrict eligibility for the two government insurance programs. “We are blessed that the governor and Commissioner Medows have their priorities in order,” said Carolyn Wetzel, a board member with Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition of Georgia. “They are going to put the kids first.” Office Depot to repay state $2.5 million after audit finds overcharges Office Depot has agreed to repay the state of California $2.5 million for overpayments, state officials said Thursday, as they released a state audit concluding that state workers routinely failed to get the best value when buying office supplies the past two years. |
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