pIdaho is the most recent state to roll out budget plans for the new year. In the proposal by Idaho Governor C.L. Otter nearly 100 state employees could be laid off and some positions could see their workweek reduced to four days. California also continues to struggle with a major budget shortfall and the state is warning that money could run out as early as February. If that happens, workers might not get paid. The proposed budget that will begin negotiations in the state legislature today, could result in thousands of layoffs as Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger calls for 10 percent cuts at state agencies./p
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lia href=http://www.laborradio.org/node/10216Some minumum wage earners receive a raise with the New Year/a/li
lia href=http://www.laborradio.org/node/10217SEIU Executive Board prepares for controversial decision/a/li
lia href=http://www.laborradio.org/node/10219Idaho and California deal with budget shortfalls; Workers face repercussions /a/li
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pThe Service Employees International Union will face a controversial decision this week as the executive board meets to determine the fate of a proposal intended to merge three separate branches of the union representing long-term care providers under one banner. The move would combine SEIU Local 6463 in Los Angeles, Local 521 in San Jose, and long-term care workers in United Healthcare Workers-West in Oakland. Members of the latter group, including United Healthcare President Sal Rosselli, have been vehemently against such a merger arguing that the move would undermine the voice, independence, and power of workers within the union. Supporters of the move, including SEIU President Andy Stern, argue that the combined strength of the three SEIU branches under one banner will help workers negotiate against corporations that operate on a global scale. The SEIU executive board recently held an advisory vote among the potentially impacted members to help make the decision on whether or not the units should merge. Only 26,000 of nearly 309,000 ballots were returned. Those that did respond voted in favor of the merger by 86 percent, but a separate 125,000 members mailed in protest petitions regarding the way the vote was conducted. /p
pA number of states saw minimum wage increases on Thursday. In Florida, minimum wage earners saw a 6.2 percent increase in pay as wages went from $6.79 to $7.21 an hour. Since 2004, the minimum wage in the state has been indexed by the state’s Agency for Workforce Innovation. Connecticut minimum wage earners also received a boost as wages jumped by 35 cents to $8 per hour. The Nutmeg State is set for another minimum wage increase of 25 cents in 2010. Montana also had a wage increase. That state’s minimum increased from $6.55 per hour to $6.90 per hour. All states will see a minimum wage inc/p
For most of us, our image of a police officer is usually associated with something unpleasant.
But Scott Baker, a former New York City officer, and freelance writer Tom Philbin say most people don’t see police officers as real people with cares, worries and, most of all, concern for the people they serve.
In their book, A [...]
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