Labor Union Blog

In December, the Obama administration proposed a new rule to bring the nation’s nearly 2 million homecare workers under the protection of the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (FLSA) minimum wage, overtime and other provisions.

But opponents who want to continue to deny these rights to homecare workers are mounting a campaign to derail the proposed rule. With the public comment period now open, they are flooding the Department of Labor with negative comments and a barrage of lies, and their congressional friends are backing a bill (H.R. 3066) that attacks the proposed rule.

You can help these hardworking homecare workers by clicking here to tell the Department of Labor to adopt the new FLSA rule for homecare workers and here to send a message to your lawmakers urging them to oppose the bill.

Homecare workers provide back-breaking personal care assistance to many older adults and individuals with disabilities. When President Obama announced the proposed rule, AFSCME President Gerald McEntee said:

In the wake of the worst recession in our lifetime, the denial of a basic minimum wage and no overtime is a double blow to the millions of home care workers who care for the most vulnerable in our society. This workforce is too critical to the independence and dignity of individuals with disabilities and older adults. Something had to be done to stabilize the workforce and address pay standard.

AFL-CIO President Trumka says the proposed rule is “a long-overdue matter of basic justice for the hundreds of thousands of workers who do the vital work of providing at-home care for our nation’s elderly and disabled citizens.”

More than 1.6 million American jobs in the nation’s auto supply chain are at risk unless China’s illegal trade practices are curtailed, according to three new reports released today. In a conference call with reporters this afternoon, United Steelworkers (USW) President Leo Gerard said:

China is cheating unmercifully in this sector and we are saying to China—and asking our government to stand up to China and say—“enough is enough.” It is time to enforce our trade policies.

Two reports from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) and one from Stewart and Stewart, a law firm that has won cases challenging China’s unfair trade practices, detail China’s persistent and growing violations of World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and outline plans by China’s government to use these same tactics to boost their auto parts exports even further.

In the past 10 years alone, China’s auto parts exports to the United States have increased by 850 percent, while jobs in the parts industry declined by more than 400,000. Says Scott Paul, executive director of the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM):

Taken together, these three reports show beyond a shadow of a doubt that China’s blatant use of illegal government subsidies and a web of predatory trade practices on a massive scale are undercutting companies in the U.S. auto supply chain. It’s essential that federal action be taken to challenge these abuses before they completely undermine the job recovery under way in the U.S. auto industry.

The products in the U.S. auto-parts trade include tires, engines and electrical and electronic equipment. About 75 percent of jobs in the U.S. auto industry are in the auto-parts sector, with direct and indirect auto parts jobs in virtually every state, according to the EPI report, “Growing Threats to the U.S. Auto-Parts Industry from Heavily Subsidized Chinese Tires and Parts.”

A second EPI report, “Putting the Pedal to the Metal: Subsidies to China’s Auto-Parts Industry from 2001 to 2011,” cites $27.5 billion in government subsidies to the Chinese auto-parts industry and notes that China’s central government has committed to disbursing an additional $10.9 billion in subsidies for industrial restructuring and technological development of the industry.

“Between 2000 and 2010,” the report finds,

imports of Chinese auto parts into the United States increased about eight-fold and are expected to continue to increase.

The Stewart and Stewart study offers evidence that the massive government subsidies given to Chinese producers, which are in violation of China’s WTO commitments, will continue for years to come unless challenged by Congress and the president.

China has achieved astronomical growth in its domestic automotive and parts industry through generous government subsidies, performance requirements for foreign investors, technology transfers, discrimination against imported goods, restrictions on raw material exports, and priority support for exports of vehicles and parts. China plans to devote more resources to these policies over the next five years.

Along with the illegal subsidies, says Paul, China also employs currency manipulation to artificially lower the cost of its exports.

This deliberate mercantilism has the potential to cripple the U.S. auto-parts industry.  What’s urgently needed is federal action to address these predatory trade practices before thousands more U.S. jobs are lost.

“Brotherhood Outdoors,” the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance’s (USA‘s) union-dedicated hunting and fishing TV show, was honored with the 2011 Sportsman Choice Award as best combination (hunting and fishing) show. More than 140,000 viewers of the Sportsman Channel cast ballots for the network’s best outdoors shows.

Hosted by noted outdoorsman Tom Ackerman and produced by Warm Springs Productions, “Brotherhood Outdoors” is a unique outdoor TV series that pairs union workers’ commitment to their communities with their love for the great outdoors. Union members can win a guided hunting or fishing trip in North America or the opportunity to show off their skills by taking Ackerman to their own favorite hunting or fishing sites.

USA Executive Director Fred Myers says the show has:

the potential to help shape the American public’s understanding and positive impression of unions. This was a very competitive category and winning clearly demonstrates that America’s sportsmen and women are engaged and respect the dedicated volunteers and conservation heroes prevalent in the union community.

Currently in its second season, “Brotherhood Outdoors” airs in 31 million homes at 8 p.m. EST and PST every Thursday. This week features Robin DeHaven, a member of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) Local 1778 in Austin, Texas. DeHaven—a Helmets to Hardhats graduate—goes on a Colorado elk hunt with Ackerman.

The name of the Iraq war veteran may be familiar to readers of AFL-CIO Now from our February 2010 feature on DeHaven’s daring rescue of five people from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) building in Austin, after a man with a vendetta against the IRS crashed his fuel-laden plane into the building. Click here for more.

“Brotherhood Outdoors” is made possible through the generous support of 10 international unions and contractors, including the Boilermakers (IBB), Bricklayers (BAC), Electrical Workers (IBEW), Electrical Contractors, Machinists (IAM), Mechanical Contractors, IUPAT, Plumbers and Pipe Fitters (UA), and Sheet Metal Workers (SMWIA) as well as corporate sponsors like Buck Knives and Burris/Steiner.

For more information about viewing ”Brotherhood Outdoors’ “ show schedule or to find out how to apply for the show, visit www.BrotherhoodOutdoors.tv.

In December, after being battered in the arena of public opinion, House Republicans reluctantly agreed to a short extension of unemployment insurance (UI) for the nation’s jobless workers. That reprieve runs out Feb. 29 and House Republicans are set to relaunch their attack on UI.

A conference is now underway between the Senate and House over two very different one-year extensions of the UI program passed late last year and the Republican bill would “slash federal benefits, impose harsh new restrictions and move to dismantle the essential lifeline of unemployment insurance,” writes Mitchell Hirsch of the National Employment Law Project (NELP).

Among other things the Republican UI bill would:

• Slash federal UI by more than half in the highest unemployment states;
• Allow mandatory drug testing of unemployment insurance claimants, stigmatizing jobless workers;
• Make jobless workers pay for their reemployment services;
• Deny benefits to those not fortunate enough to finish high school or GED; and
• Let states reduce benefits and divert unemployment benefit funds to other uses.

Rep. Sander Levin (D-Mich.), ranking Democrat on the House Ways and Means Committee says House Republicans:

are threatening another round of brinksmanship by insisting on starting with a rerun of the approaches within the House Republican bill… Department of Labor data shows that 2.8 million Americans would lose unemployment benefits under the House Republican proposal compared to current law… Democrats won’t start from the premise that the unemployed are to blame for unemployment, that weeks can be slashed without harming workers in the hardest hit states.

NELP has published a detailed legislative analysis of the Republican bill, click here and you can click here to send a message to your member of Congress to reject the drastic cuts and restrictions in the Republican UI bill.

There’s income inequality, and then there’s the United States. New research shows that within the developed world, no nation has seen the income share of the top 1 percent grow faster over the past three decades than the United States.

To qualify for the elite status of 1 percent in annual income, an individual makes somewhere in the mid-$300,000s per year (or way more, like Mitt!).

(H/t to the Institute for Policy Studies.)

This is a cross-post from Chaz Bolte of the We Party Blog.

The city of Los Angeles and its mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa, have been leading the national push for Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) to help create jobs for local workers. This trend continued last Thursday as the city and the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) announced that PLAs have been entered into to ensure that 40 percent of the work hours performed on most MTA projects moving forward will be done by people who live in economically disadvantaged communities.

[Project labor agreements are pre-hire agreements between labor and management that require all construction jobs be filled by local  workers; include diversity requirements; establish wages and work rules  covering overtime, working hours and dispute resolution; and ensure that  safety guidelines on the job site are enforced.]

In addition, at least 10 percent of the work hours are to be reserved for people suffering from homelessness, chronic unemployment and other challenges. This kind of pro-active approach to tackling multiple societal ills through infrastructure development is commendable and needs to be mimicked nationwide.

From the LA Times blog L.A. Now:

“I am proud that the MTA board voted unanimously to become the first transit agency in the nation to use federal and local dollars to create jobs targeted at economically disadvantaged communities and individuals,” Villaraigosa said. “This landmark program is part of a strategy to deliver public transit projects while creating jobs that will lift people out of poverty and into the middle class.”

While the unemployment rate in Los Angeles County declined in 2011, it still hovers around 11 percent, some two points above the national average. Ensuring local hire on big projects can get the chronically unemployed back to work and allow them to contribute to the stimulation of local economies. Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, who sponsored the bill, said the following about the broad-ranging PLA:

This is a matter of justice. As a result of this groundbreaking victory, Los Angeles is now a model for the rest of the nation. We have demonstrated that job creation —and not the creation of just any jobs, but highly skilled union jobs that lead to a middle class standard of living for workers—can and should be a standard component in transportation infrastructure projects.

California, generally, and Los Angeles, specifically, has long been supportive of PLAs and 2011 was a particularly PLA-friendly year for the state. The unemployment rate among California construction workers was 27.1 percent in 2010, but the use of PLAs has had a hand in lowering that number. The latest PLA will also set up apprenticeship programs for those looking to begin a career in the Building and Construction Trades. Metro.net described how the PLA will have a positive impact in California:

The PLA covers all MTA transit and highway projects with a cost of over $2.5 million, which— if Metro fully implements its Long Range Transportation Plan—could amount to as much as $70 billion in construction work over the next three decades. The PLA ensures a skilled and trained workforce that is paid prevailing wages to get these projects done on time and on budget.

The construction industry throughout the nation is depressed and communities are suffering from extraordinary and harmful levels of unemployment and poverty. The PLA and Policy help remedy these problems by directing opportunities to those individuals and communities who need them most.

Rep. Karen Bass (D) gave the following statement on the MTA’s new Project Labor Agreement:

Today’s vote to approve the Project Labor Agreement and Construction Careers Policy represents a huge step toward providing relief to many of the communities which are currently experiencing historic hardships including unemployment, underemployment and general economic distress. With more than $700 million in transit and highway construction projects planned in Los Angeles over the next 30 years, investing 40 percent of the jobs in disadvantaged communities is a tremendous step in the right direction and I applaud Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, LA County Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board of Directors and the Los Angeles/Orange County Building Trades Council for working diligently to craft this significant policy and agreement. I look forward to continuing to support efforts to bring jobs and economic opportunities to the people and neighborhoods that need them the most.

As the economy continues to improve and major infrastructure projects begin to take root, PLAs will be seen as an excellent opportunity to bolster communities through pro-active hiring provisions. Villaraigosa’s effort to maximize the benefits of infrastructure spending through the use of PLAs should be viewed by other cities as an excellent example.

Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer

The red-carpet glamor and prestige of the 18th annual Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards last night put the pre-Oscar spotlight on the cast of “The Help” in the theatrical motion picture category, with actors themselves choosing the best of the best.

“The Help” cast also was recognized with Viola Davis taking the award for best performance by a female lead and Octavia Spencer receiving the honor for best supporting female actor. Jean Dujardin (“The Artist”) was credited with best performance in a male leading role and Christopher Plummer (“Beginners”) took the award for best supporting actor. Top television performance awards went to Alec Baldwin, Steve Buscemi, Paul Giamatti, Jessica Lange, Betty White and Kate Winslet, with television ensemble honors taken by “Boardwalk Empire” and Modern Family.” Mary Tyler Moore received SAG’s highest honor, the 48th annual Life Achievement Award. See the full list of awards here.

This year’s awards came as the national boards of SAG and AFTRA (Television and Radio Artists) in separate meetings over the weekend approved a merger between the two mega-entertainment unions.  SAG National President Ken Howard said the agreement, which will be voted on by members in February and March, is a “terrific outcome.”

Professional performers are now an important step closer to the strongest union representation possible.  Just as our boards have, I believe our members will decisively approve this merger and that SAG-AFTRA will be a leader in shaping the entertainment and media industries.

Months of discussions of the merger between the two unions included a “listening tour” by Howard and AFTRA National President Roberta Reardon. According to Reardon:

We now have the opportunity to finally stand united through one union to secure more union work and better benefits for our members, and for the generations of entertainment and media professionals who follow us.

SAG awards are determined by the votes of SAG actors, with 10,000 actors eligible to vote. The live televised awards show last night included a tribute to SAG’s regional branches, spotlighting memorable moments created by actors who live and work across the nation.

Laura Markwardt, senior communications associate at the Alliance for Retired Americans, sends us this.

Hundreds of Florida seniors and others turned out for a rally in Tampa Friday against voter suppression. The rally was followed by a hearing inside the courthouse about the new law chaired by Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin who came to investigate whether the state law denies voters their constitutional rights. Durbin is chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights.

Recent changes in Florida’s election rules will have a dramatic impact on Florida’s seniors and other voters. The new law passed in the Florida legislature cuts early voting from 14 days to seven days before the election, which hurts many seniors who vote early because they are physically unable to stand in a long line or make it to the polls on Election Day. Limiting the ability to vote early will indeed impact Florida’s seniors and will disproportionately affect African Americans, Latinos, working families and young voters.

Florida Alliance for Retired Americans President Tony Fransetta spoke at the rally about his concerns about voter suppression saying,

The law is an effort to limit voter turnout – and it shouldn’t stand.

In addition to his senior peers, who will be severely impacted by the new law, Fransetta, a retired autoworker, Korean War veteran, and grandfather, expressed disgust that “our black brothers and sisters had their last day of voting taken away from them.” He was referring to the law’s elimination of early voting the Sunday before an election, which disproportionately impacts African American and
Hispanic voters, who make up the vast majority of those who vote the Sunday before an election.

The changes were made in the name of reducing voter fraud have less to do with fraud and more to do with restricting certain groups of people from voting. Between January 2008 and last March, for example, there have only been 31 election fraud cases being investigated – nationwide.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott, who signed the bill into law and is one of its most popular supporters, did not accept an invitation to speak at the hearing on Friday.

Sen. Durbin (Chair of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights) said in a statement after the Florida hearing:

Over 30 states have new or pending changes to current voting laws. States seeking to change their laws have passed or proposed provisions that significantly reduce the number of early voting days, require voters to show restrictive forms of photo identification before voting and make it harder for volunteer organizations to register new voters. Supporters of these laws argue that they will reduce the risk of voter fraud. The overwhelming evidence, however, indicates that voter fraud is virtually non-existent and that these new laws will make it harder for hundreds of thousands of elderly, disabled, minority, young, rural, and low-income Americans to exercise their right to vote.

Florida Sen. Bill Nelson said the law will have to be changed by the courts because the state legislature would not do it.

The Florida Alliance for Retired Americans and countless advocacy groups in the state will continue to push for justice and the reversal of the law.

From Union Communications Services:

Joe Glazer, known by many as labor’s troubadour, had for more than 50 years used his voice and guitar to rally supporters to the union cause, including for this timely tune, “Downsized.”

Before his death in 2006, he had performed in a hundred union halls, on dozens of picket lines and at scores of political and protest rallies and union conventions.  He appeared in nearly every state in the union and in 60 countries around the world and recorded more than 25 LP albums, cassettes and CDs of labor and political music.

Click here to listen to “Downsized.”

You can purchase songs by Glazer and other labor music from the non-profit, labor-supported Labor Heritage Foundation.

You’ve got to check this out…it’s meant for kids, but, really, how can you go wrong at a website that rocks noisy engine revs, animated potato chips and full-color awesomeness?

It’s a new site, ManufacturingIsCool.com, and it’s the definition of fun-while-learning.

Produced by the Society for Manufacturing Engineers, the site uses an interactive “desk” to send kids on a journey through everything from how paper, Pringles and bike helmets are made, to the ins and outs of building a concept car—and way, way beyond.

Our friends at the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM) sent us the link, and we agree—it’s great to get kids excited about manufacturing. AAM is a partnership of the United Steelworkers and a group of leading manufacturers with a mission to strengthen manufacturing in the United States.

AAM Executive Director Scott Paul praised President Obama’s State of the Union bid to increase incentives for manufacturers who make goods in the United States—and hike taxes on companies that outsource. Community colleges, Obama said, should aim to train 2 million Americans with skills needed by local businesses.

As Paul told the Marketplace radio program:

We haven’t seen this amount of attention given to manufacturing by any president at least for 25 years. It gives me some hope we can translate the ideas in this speech into some practical policy solutions that will help to grow jobs.

Growing kids who appreciate what it means to make things—and make them here in the United States.

That’s a cool idea, too.