AFL-CIO Now Blog

ALEC Has Deep Ties, Big Money in Wisconsin Lawmakers and Governor

superuser — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:10:00 -0400

A new report reveals the “extraordinary influence” the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has had in the Wisconsin legislature during the past 16 months—the same 16 months since Gov. Scott Walker (R) took power. The Center for Media and Democracy (CMD), which released the report, says ALEC's influence:

undermines the rights of Wisconsin families while advancing the agenda of huge corporations.

Boeing Pilot Instructors Vote 4-to-1 to Join SPEEA

superuser — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:10:00 -0400

Fifty-nine pilot and flight simulator instructors at The Boeing Company voted by a 4-to-1 margin to join the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace (SPEEA)/IFPTE Local 2001 in an election that was certified today.

Check Out New Online Women’s Health Community

superuser — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:10:00 -0400

Our sisters at the Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW) want to get the word out about a new online women’s health community just launched by the non-profit group Healthy Women that CLUW has partnered with on many projects. CLUW President Karen See says the new online community offers:

a safe health haven for women and a place where women can ask health questions, get answers and share their own experiences with other women, as well as with health care experts.

Enter Union Plus Contest for Free Week’s Car Rental

superuser — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:10:00 -0400

Vacation season is fast approaching and you still have time to let Union Plus put you in the driver’s seat. Just enter the Union Plus contest for a chance to win a weeklong car rental. All you need to do is click here and register for program e-mails and mobile alerts. Union Plus will keep you posted about valuable new benefits, future contests and more.

House Republicans Rebuff Nuclear Worker Safety

superuser — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:10:00 -0400

House Republicans have blocked efforts to maintain strong workplace health safety rules for workers at the nation’s nuclear weapons facilities. Republicans leaders rejected even a vote on an amendment to the Defense Authorization bill that would have preserved the current standards.They are pushing an extreme proposal to deregulate worker safety and allow employer self–regulation and self-oversight.

New Tariffs Imposed on Chinese Solar Cells

superuser — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:10:00 -0400

China has been dumping solar cells on the U.S. market at artificially low prices, the U.S. Commerce Department ruled today, imposing stiff new tariffs of about 31 percent on 60 Chinese firms to provide U.S. manufacturers a fair playing field.

NLRB Issues Complaint Against Verizon Over Firings

superuser — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:10:00 -0400

The National Labor Relation Board (NLRB) has taken action against Verizon for the firing and disciplining of its workers after a two-week strike last August. NLRB Region 2 has authorized the issuance of a complaint against Verizon for 58 of the 63 cases of unfair dismissal or discipline charges brought by the Communications Workers of America (CWA).

Nurses Lead Chicago Rally for Robin Hood Tax

superuser — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:10:00 -0400

Thousands of National Nurses United (NNU) activists and others called for a Robin Hood tax on Wall Street in a massive demonstration in Chicago. Said NNU co-President Karen Higgins, during the rally in Daley Plaza:

We are watching and seeing Wall Street throwing our money away as we see people suffer and die. It will not continue. We pay sales tax. It is time for Wall Street to start paying back what they owe the rest of the country and they need to pay sales tax.

Revisions to Alabama’s HB 56 Are No Fix

superuser — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:10:00 -0400

Despite promising a veto, Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley (R) on Friday signed into law revisions to the state’s notorious anti-immigrant measure HB 56. The new version (HB 658) maintains the worst of the original law’s provisions.

Safety Inspections Save Lives, Don’t Hurt Business

superuser — Mon, 21 May 2012 15:10:00 -0400

We’ve known this for decades and now the journal Science has empirical proof that workplace safety and health inspections by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) save lives, reduce employers’ costs for workers’ compensation and do not have any negative economic effect on the inspected businesses.

The authors of the study—three professors from the University of California, Harvard Business School and Boston University—say they set out to answer a simple question: Do government regulations kill jobs—as business groups such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Republican lawmakers claim—or protect the public?