Labor Union Blog

The attack by corporations and their media mouthpieces on the Buy American provision in the economic recovery package illustrates just how far removed Big Business is from the needs of U.S. workers—and, ultimately, from what will benefit the nation.

Last night on the PBS “NewsHour with Jim Lehrer,” AFL-CIO international economist Thea Lee honed in on the false arguments pushed by corporate interests who mutter darkly about how Buy American provisions will lead to “trade wars.” The Buy American provision mandates that only U.S.-made goods be used in projects funded by the bill—and requires that these steps are taken in a manner consistent with U.S. international trade obligations. So screams of “protectionism” are a red-herring.

Says Lee:  

I think we have to make a distinction between protectionism in a sense of raising tariff barriers…and stopping trade and government procurement decisions, where governments choose to spend their own tax dollars in a way which is targeted towards creation of good jobs at home. And it’s actually a rational step for governments to take in a time where we don’t have the coordination of fiscal stimulus.

U.S. taxpayers are going into debt to pay for the nation’s economic recovery—shouldn’t those dollars create jobs for Americans? As Lee notes, the U.S. taxpayer wants to

stimulate the U.S. economy, not the global economy…to create good jobs at home in their own communities. They want their tax dollars spent that way. And other countries may not step up to the plate and do the appropriate level of fiscal stimulus, if they think they can free ride off of what the United States has done.

Take the example of Canada. As the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) points out, the United States and Canada are both parties to the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Government Procurement (GPA), which was signed by 37 other governments, including the European community, Hong Kong, Japan and Korea, but not mainland China, Brazil or Russia. In addition, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) also contains further, bilateral commitments on government procurement requirements. 

The GPA and NAFTA specify which government agencies are subject to the agreement, the types of goods and services that are covered, and monetary thresholds that determine when the agreements come into force.  So the governments of both countries have already conducted very detailed negotiations that have specified exactly which purchases are covered by Buy American provisions and which are exempt.

Trade agreements are created for a reason. And as Lee says: 

as long as we are observing our international obligations, there’s no reason for any other country to complain.

So, U.S. corporations have no reason to oppose U.S. job creation through the Buy American provision. Except for greed.

Ruling deals casino workers new hand.

Looking for another reason workers need the Employee Free Choice Act? Read on.

In May 2007, when some 400 dealers at the Trump Marina Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, N.J., voted on joining the UAW, they already had experienced the full weight of employer harassment.

During the course of the campaign, management suspended Mario Spina, a 20-year veteran casino dealer and union activist. Management had interrogated workers about their support for the union and their organizing activities. Also weighing heavily on their minds that day were threats from Trump Marina managers that they would lose their jobs if they voted for a voice at work with the UAW.

That’s a lot to think about, and on May 11, the fear created by the casino’s anti-union campaign carried over to the balloting, with the result that by only eight votes, 183-175, the workers voted against joining the union.

But now, the workers have another chance to form a union. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ordered a new election Feb. 17 because it found the threats, intimidation and other actions by Trump Marina management violated federal labor law.

The board also ordered the casino to refrain from those unlawful actions in the new election, make up the pay and benefits the suspended longtime casino dealer suffered, and post a notice that says the NLRB found the casino had violated labor law and pledges not to engage in such conduct again. (You can read the full NLRB decision here.)

The NLRB ruling is good news, but it comes nearly two years after workers first sought to join the UAW. Two years in which a contract could have been negotiated and workers could have been pocketing bigger paychecks and enjoying better benefits for their families.

If the Employee Free Choice Act had been law, Spina, the lead union organizer, would not have been suspended on some phony pretext in order to intimidate his co-workers. The NLRB wrote Spina’s suspension

caused a fear of reprisal among the voters, some of whom stopped attending union meetings and were watchful of what they said and did regarding the topic of the union or the campaign.

If the Employee Choice Act had been law, the workers would not have been subjected to the interrogations about their union sympathies and support, the threats about losing their jobs and the disciplinary action that the NLRB found the Trump Marina workers were forced to endure.

If the Employee Free Choice Act had been law, the workers could have signed union authorization cards in an atmosphere free of intimidation, threats and harassment. When a majority of workers signed the cards, they would have their union and be ready to bargain for a better life, nearly two years ago.

One more reason we need the Employee Free Choice Act.

This week, Jobs with Justice (JwJ), a national grassroots workers’ advocacy group, has been fighting for the freedom to form unions through local actions in support of the Employee Free Choice Act, side by side with the union movement.

JwJ has dubbed this week Worker Justice Week, and they’ve visited members of Congress at their home offices to thank them for supporting the Employee Free Choice Act and to ask for quick passage of the bill this year. At their website, JwJ notes the importance of taking this message to members of Congress: 

This week is an opportunity to deliver a broad-base of support to inform our elected officials that this is a community-wide issue that impacts all of our lives as well as our overall economy.  

The campaign has included at least 15 events around the country, including visits to undecided members of Congress to tell them about the importance of passing the Employee Free Choice Act, as well as leafleting, rallies and letter-to-the-editor efforts.

To help make the case for the Employee Free Choice Act, JwJ is working with civil rights leaders, workers’ advocates and religious leaders from around the country. JwJ also put together a student organizing kit for students interested in joining the fight for Employee Free Choice.

The workers, students and community leaders of Jobs with Justice are a critical element of the national grassroots mobilization for the Employee Free Choice Act.

Activists from the Alliance for Retired Americans are wrapping up the last of nearly 70 meetings this week with U.S. Senate and House members who are on congressional recess back in their states or districts. The retired union members are speaking out about the need to strengthen Medicare as a cornerstone of health care reform.

In the meetings, Alliance members are outlining measures to lower the cost of prescription drugs, strengthen the Medicare Trust Fund and expand Medicare coverage for retirees ages 55-64.

Doug Hart, president of the Arizona Alliance for Retired Americans, writes in a Tucson Citizen guest column this week:

Medicare has helped millions over the years, but lately it has been taking better care of drug and insurance companies than retirees.

In November, many of us went to the polls with one thing on our minds: Reform health care now. President Obama and Congress must act quickly before the special interests—who are making big profits off the status quo—stand in the way.

Alliance Executive Director Edward F. Coyle says there are several steps that should be taken to strengthen Medicare, which provides health care coverage for nearly 45 million seniors.

• Allowing Medicare to negotiate volume discounts with drug manufacturers. The Veterans Affairs does this and its prescriptions cost 30 percent less.
• Ending wasteful taxpayer subsidies to private insurance companies who run Medicare Advantage programs at a cost nearly 20 percent higher than Medicare.
• Providing early retirees the option to purchase Medicare coverage. Many of the 5.1 million Americans between ages 55 and 64 who lack health insurance are victims of mass layoffs.

Pointing to the private Medicare advantage programs, Hart writes Congress must

stop a law, set to take effect in 2010, that would turn even more of Medicare over to private companies. This creeping, back-door privatization benefits big corporations at the expense of retirees struggling with their medical bills.

Click here to read the full column.

While the meetings are focusing on Medicare and health care reform, Alliance members also are urging lawmakers to form Seniors Advisory Committees and to support the Employee Free Choice Act to help workers negotiate for higher wages and health care and retirement benefits.

Earlier this week, Barbara Easterling, former secretary-treasurer of the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and the AFL-CIO, took over the reins of the Alliance, succeeding George Kourpias who retired this month.

Behold, the winner of the World Press Photo of the Year 2008 award.

For those outside the United States, this is the image of our nation:

U.S. Economy in Crisis: Following eviction, Detective Robert Kole must ensure residents have moved out of their home in Cleveland, Ohio, 26 March 2008.

Eight years of the Bush administration and the United States is not projecting the strength of democracy but the power of greed. The broken remains of a family’s life, with the potential physical violence implied by the gun is outdone by the violence visited on families, communities and our nation, by the avarice of Wall Street and the complicity of Bush administration hucksters. Over at the Campaign for America’s Future, Terrance Heath calls this image “class war photography.”

In their attempt to block President Obama’s economic recovery package, Republicans in Congress tried hard to continue the failed policies of their regime, pushing for tax cuts for the wealthy rather than relief for working families hard hit by job loss, foreclosure and health-related debt.

House Minority Leader John Boehner even threw a tantrum in the House, ripping up the bill and tearing up as spoiled children are wont to do when they don’t get their way.

But none of the Republican antics worked. And the image above shows why.

This is a cross-post from the Firedoglake blog.