June 2010, Vol. 42 No. 4

News From the AFL-CIO, CtW, International & National Unions

With Congress poised to vote on financial reform legislation, Labor led a nationwide drive for “Good Jobs Now! Make Wall Street Pay.” A coalition comprised of the AFL-CIO, Service Employees Union, Move On, the National People’s Action and others participated in a series of high-profile public events and rallies around the nation to oppose “Big Bank lobbyists” seeking to block or waterdown financial reform legislation. More than 10,000 people recently marched on Wall Street to hold financial institutions accountable. “Amazingly, the Big Banks are spending some $1.4 million a day in lobbying and political expenses to fight legislation that would reform the financial industry and help prevent another economic meltdown,” said AFL-CIO Secy.-Treas. Liz Shuler, who led another big protest event on Washington, D.C.’s K St., home to major lobbying firms.

Union workers and leaders observed Workers Memorial Day, April 28, with activities across the nation in the wake of several recent major disasters and jobrelated worker deaths. With the theme “mourn for the dead and fight like hell for the living,” annual event remembers workers who have died, been injured or made sick on the job. AFL-CIO Pres. Richard Trumka noted that so far this year, 42 workers have been killed in three major industrial disasters: Massey’s Upper Big Branch Mine, the Tesoro Refinery in Washington state and the Kleen Energy plant in Connecticut. Eleven workers are missing and likely dead following the recent catastrophic explosion at the Transocean oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico. Labor is calling for stronger safety and health protections for workers and stiffer penalties for violations.

Top union officials testified April 27 before Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee which held a full committee hearing examining safety and health conditions and protections under MSHA and OSHA. On April 28, the House Workforce Protections Subcommittee of the Education and Labor Committee held hearings on legislation to strengthen the anti-discrimination protections and victims rights under the Occupational Safety & Health Act. Peg Seminario, Director of Safety and Health at the AFL-CIO, will told Senators that OSHA is “too weak to protect workers and to deter employers from violating the law.” AFL-CIO, meanwhile, issued its annual report on job safety which showed that a total of 5,214 fatal workplace injuries occurred in 2008, although the “true toll” is estimated at 4.6 incidents per 100,000 workers due to underreporting of workplace-related injuries and illness.

Change to Win (CtW) federation applauded introduction of the Employee Misclassification Prevention Act (EMPA) which would crack down on bosses who misclassify workers as independent contractors to cut labor costs. “When unscrupulous companies cut corners and misclassify employees as ‘independent contractors,’ workers are cheated out of important benefits and legal protections. Responsible employers who play by the rules are undercut by unfair competition, and our cash-strapped cities and states – already looking at huge budget deficits – are losing out on billions of dollars in badly-needed revenues,” said Anna Burger, Chair of Change to Win. She said misclassification is not a problem of “shady fly-by-nights”, but a widespread corporate business model to cut corners. According to CtW, U.S. Department of Labor conservatively estimates 10-30% of the nation’s businesses misclassify at least some of their workers.

Transportation unions hailed decision by the National Mediation Board to allow for simple majority vote in representation elections under the Railway Labor Act. The previous rule required that a majority of all workers in a bargaining unit had to vote for union representation whether they actually submitted a ballot or not. “Workers should be able to vote for a union in a system that isn’t rigged to arbitrarily assign meaning to votes that weren’t cast,” said Edward Wytkind, president of the AFL-CIO’s Transportation Trades Department. “With the change…union elections in the airline and rail industries stand a real chance of reflecting the true will of the employees that vote.”

AFL-CIO will host first national Young Workers Summit June 10 – 13 in Washington, D.C. Entitled the “Next Up” summit, event is the kick-off of a long-term outreach program by labor to working people under the age of 35. Young people and union activists will share experiences, exchange ideas for building a stronger labor movement and meet with top AFL-CIO and union leaders. “We’re all experiencing the economic crisis—but young workers have been hurt disproportionately,” said AFL-CIO Secretary Treasurer Liz Shuler. “Young people need the union movement and we need young workers to be engaged. Participants at the Young Workers Summit are going to develop an action plan and identify more of what we need to do to make sure we’re fully integrating and calling upon our young members.”

New Service Employees Union President Mary Kay Henry said the union will “refocus” itself by pumping $4 million into organizing African-American and Latino workers, adding funds to their political campaign chest for selected races, and by trying to repair relations with the rest of organized labor, with one exception being the breakaway unit now known as the National Union of Healthcare Workers. In her first statement May 8 after being elected to succeed retiring leader Andy Stern, she said her election by the union’s 73-member board “marks a renewed commitment to our union’s core mission: To improve the lives of all workers who are struggling to make ends meet in this economy.” Henry, 52, a Los Angeles resident and a Detroit-area native, was the union’s International Vice President. Stern, who stepped down in the middle of his term, also strongly endorsed Henry in a statement the union issued. Henry defeated Stern’s chosen successor, Secretary-Treasurer Anna Burger, who withdrew from the race almost two weeks before.

UniStar, NRG Energy, and Southern Company are new signatories to the AFL-CIO Building Trades’ new Nuclear Power Construction Labor Agreement, BCTD President Mark H. Ayers recently announced. The agreements cover the construction of two new reactors at each of the Calvert Cliffs Station (MD); South Texas Nuclear Project (TX); and Plant Vogtle (GA). “This is a no-nonsense agreement that recognizes and makes a commitment to the nation importance of nuclear power,” said Ayers. “The Nuclear Power Construction Labor Agenda implicitly addresses the unique challenges associated with nuclear power plant construction, and tackling problems previously encountered in the construction of nuclear power generation facilities.” He said the re-vitalization of the American nuclear power industry is considered “a cornerstone” towards achieving the twin objectives of reducing the nation’s reliance on foreign sources of energy and reducing global carbon emissions.

International Labor News

Greek unions called for new general strike in May to protest pension reforms. Job action cancelled flights, ferry and rail services, left hospitals on emergency staff and closed schools and public services. Demonstrations were also held in major Greek cities where tens of thousands of people took to the streets to protest austerity measures the center-left Socialist government took to secure an international bailout. Unions say those earning low wages will suffer disproportionately from the proposed increase in retirement ages and pension cuts. Pension changes follow public service pay cuts and consumer tax increases. “To the unfair and anti-social fiscal measures announced by the government, there comes now to be added an equally unfair draft law on the social security system,” said Giannis Panagopoulos, head of the GSEE private sector union. Greece is facing acute debt problems from battered global markets and the weakened euro.

Canadian Auto Workers union President Ken Lewenza said May 3 that the union will not accept demands for concessions on wages and benefits from automotive parts manufacturers who are trying to “whip-saw” each other in attempts to cut costs and maintain contracts with the major vehicle manufacturers. The “no-concession” policy was endorsed by more than 250 CAW officials representing auto parts sector workers, together with the bargaining committees at the Big Three vehicle manufacturing firms, met April 30-May 1 in Port Elgin, Ontario, said Lewenza. “Under the threat of closure or moving work to other plants, employers are coming to our members with outrageous demands and attempting to pit worker against worker,” Lewenza said. “We’ve got to maintain our wage and benefit levels in that sector.”

International Labor Organization recently reported “uneven” progress in global efforts to end child labor. New ILO report said an estimated 215 million children worldwide are still engaged in illegal or hazardous work. “Progress is uneven, neither fast enough nor comprehensive enough to reach the goals that we have set,” ILO Director-General Juan Somavia said in prepared remarks. “We must scale up action and move into a higher gear.” The ILO said the number of child workers continues to decline, “albeit to a lesser extent than before.” The 3 percent decline in child laborers reported over the 2004-2008 period was down from the 10 percent decline registered between 2000 and 2004. “We still have an enormous number of child laborers in the world,” added Constance Thomas, director of the ILO’s International Program on the Elimination of Child Labor.

National and Political Events

Employment-based health coverage declined to 56 percent of the non-elderly population in May 2009 from slightly over 60 percent, reported the Employee Benefits Research Institute. The report, The Impact of the Recession on Employment-Based Health Coverage, found that benefits offered under health plans also have significantly been reduced and are more costly. The percentage of workers, for example, with employee-only coverage in a preferred provider organization with a deductible of at least $500 jumped from 14 percent in 2000 to 52 percent in 2009, according to the report. Deductibles in large firms increased from $254 in 2005 to $478 in 2009, an 88 percent increase. The report was based on the Census Bureau’s monthly Survey of Income and Program Participation. According to the study, uninsured workers cited many reasons for not having coverage, including that the insurance was too expensive, lack of insurance through their employers for themselves or dependents, and not working long enough to qualify for coverage.

Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) May 13 said supporters of the Employee Free Choice Act do not have enough votes in the Senate to pass the bill. EFCA would amend the National Labor Relations Act to transfer authority to workers from management to invoke majority card check to decide union representation elections. Senate version did not contain the card check provisions, but did increase penalties for employers who interfere with organizing campaigns and called for binding arbitration of first contracts. He said the special election won by Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) took away the Democrats 60-vote supermajority needed to pass the bill over a filibuster by Republicans. Earlier, at the legislative conference of the International Association of Machinists, Harkin told audience members that he had “no higher priority” than passing EFCA. “It’s unfair that the employer can decide whether to have card check, but employees do not,” Harkin said. “The system is out of balance.”

Regional & Local Union News

Some 310 workers remained on strike after two months at Supervalu-owned Shaw’s Perishable Distribution Center in Methuen, Mass. According to the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, Shaw’s Supermarkets are making demands for “draconian” cuts by workers, including more expensive health care with fewer benefits, eliminating the pension plan for new hires and subcontracting by nearly 50 percent the work performed by union workers. In unrelated news, UFCW Local 1000 and Kroger Texas reached agreement May 13 on new labor pact that covers 8,000 employees working at 87 stores in the Dallas area. “This is a good agreement and continues to provide our members with one of the best compensation packages in our industry, in our region,” Ricky Burris, president of Local 1000 said. Previous four-year contract expired Dec. 4.

Before agreeing to support the proposed merger between United and Continental Airlines, management must develop a plan for labor peace and equitable integration, said the unions representing pilots, flight attendants, and mechanics on May 3. International Association of Machinists, which represents ramp and public contact employees at United, and flight attendants at Houston-based Continental, said the merger proposal would fail if the carriers fail to initially establish “broad employee support.’’ Labor agreements, meanwhile, between United and its six groups of unionized employees became amendable at the beginning of the year, but the carrier has been unable to reach a tentative pact with any of the groups. Association of Flight Attendants, which represents Chicago-based United’s flight attendants, said it would not support the merger agreement until United reaches an agreement benefiting its members. Air Line Pilots Association, which represents pilots at both carriers, demanded a new joint pilot contract, but said it was prepared to support the proposed $3 billion merger.

International Brotherhood of Teamsters April 28 launched a campaign to win legislation to remove FedEx from jurisdiction under the Railway Labor Act. “FedEx’s attempt to preserve its special political favor by arguing the company is an airline is absolutely ridiculous,” said Ken Hall, Teamsters vice president and package division director. Titled, “FedEx Drivers Aren’t Pilots,” campaign points out that FedEx is the only freight and package delivery company in the United States allowed to classify truck drivers, sorters, loaders, and unloaders as airline workers under the Railway Labor Act. Teamster support a provision in the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization act (H.R. 1586) passed by the House in May 2009, which would amend the RLA to remove coverage of “express carriers” from RLA jurisdiction. President Obama April 30 signed an extension of H.R. 1586 until July 3, addressing current funding levels, tax rates, and policy matters, but not addressing the provision that would remove express carriers from RLA jurisdiction.

In the Public Sector

New Jersey state appeals court May 7 struck down provisions of an Executive Order issued by Gov. Chris Christie (R) which sought to extend “pay-to-play” restrictions on political campaign contributions to public employee labor unions and labor organizations. Christie’s Executive Order No. 7 was challenged in three lawsuits filed in February by six unions representing a total of 300,000 state and local government workers, teachers, and police officers which the court consolidated. Three-judge panel said order violated New Jersey Constitution’s separation of powers by intruding on authority reserved for the legislative branch. Court, however, left open the door for the Governor to apply pay-to-play restrictions through legislative action. “We are not, by any means, concluding that what the Governor seeks to accomplish is illegal, impossible, or unwise public policy,” the appeals court wrote.

Wisconsin public employee unions hailed new legislation signed by Gov. Jim Doyle (D) May 12 which makes it an unfair labor practice for the state or University of Wisconsin System to use taxpayer money to hire an outside firm to oppose union organizing activities by employees covered under the state Employment Labor Relations Act. Bill co-author Sen. Spencer Coggs (D-Milwaukee), in a May 12 statement, called the measure an “everyday protection’’ from employers seeking to “abuse their power.’’ Measure states that it is an unfair labor violation to use “any moneys received for any purpose to discourage, to train any supervisor, management employee, or other employee to discourage, or to contract with any other person for the purposes of discouraging, employees in the exercise of their rights guaranteed under state Statute sec. 111.82 and sec. 111.97.’’

Significant Legal & NLRB Decisions

National Labor Relations Board announced April 28 that registered nurses at Cypress Fairbanks Medical Center in Houston voted for the second time in favor of union representation by the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee. The hospital’s 270 RNs first voted for CNA/NNOC representation in March 2008, becoming the first nurses in a Texas private hospital to win collective bargaining rights. Tenet Healthcare Corp., which owns the hospital, filed objections with both NLRB and an arbitrator overseeing the election procedure agreement (EPA) between the union and Tenet. While charges were pending, a petition for decertification filed by a hospital employee led to the second election conducted in June 2009. After counting the votes cast in the June 2009 decertification election, the agency found that 113 nurses voted to retain the union, and 97 nurses voted for decertification. The nine challenged ballots in the NLRB-supervised election were not sufficient to affect the outcome.

Job Safety Starts With Union Workers

William P. Hite
General President, United Association of Plumbers and Pipefitters

Construction work is among the most dangerous jobs in North America. The 345,000 UA members in the U.S. and Canada were reminded of this fact in February when the Kleen Energy plant under construction in Middletown, Conn., exploded, killing six workers, including four UA members. Three other UA Local 777 members were admitted to the hospital. Dozens more were either treated on site or in local emergency rooms. Our hearts and prayers go out to the families and friends of these members.

The investigation into the Kleen Energy accident is ongoing, but it appears that workers were venting a substantial amount of gas from the site when it exploded, a fairly common practice that will now be called into question as a result of this horrific tragedy. But the explosion at Kleen Energy underscores the dangers that union construction workers face every day.

All union construction workers have a special responsibility to be extra vigilant on the job site. When we tell employers that union building trades’ people are the besttrained workforce in the world and why they should employ union workers, we have to include safety into that equation.

Construction unions have always emphasized strong safety programs and the UA is no exception. But construction industry practices change and unions have to constantly review their safety training. In the UA, we now have a Safety Committee that has begun formulating a Standard for Safety much like our Standard for Excellence.

Our Standard for Safety will be based on common sense issues and will in no way interfere with contractor or owner safety programs. This Standard will provide the basis for our ongoing commitment to protecting the health and safety of our members throughout North America. It will also include contractor responsibilities to provide a safe workplace.

To me, this Standard for Safety is as critical to our organization as the Standard for Excellence is concerning our jobs skills. But on the issue of safety, the very lives of our members depend on it.

Since 2008, the UA has lost 20 members. Last year, five UA members died on the job and we have already lost four this year. We need no greater evidence of how critical good safety and health practices are to our membership than those numbers alone. But I will not be satisfied until our fatality rate hits zero. It’s just that simple.

We are still developing this Standard, but when it is complete, we will present it to our U.S. and Canadian members and urge every one of them to get fully on board with it. We will outline what our members can do to keep themselves safe; to help promote safe jobsite habits, not just with UA members, but including others; and to create a workplace culture that puts safety first.

When I talk about creating a culture of safety, I mean we want construction worksites throughout the U.S. and Canada to have safety at the forefront at all times. Safe practices should be second nature to UA and all union construction workers. We should demand such practices of one another. If you see someone doing something that is unsafe, call them on it. Don’t ignore it! Demand that they do what’s AGENDA JUNE 2010 safe, not just what’s convenient at the time.

Your life and the lives of your coworkers could depend on it.

A safe workplace is also a productive workplace. Smart contractors know that if they promote a jobsite culture that puts safety first, they will ultimately be more profitable. Accidents cost money. A contractor with a less-than-stellar safety record will not be competitive in the marketplace. Safer jobsites mean that everyone prospers, including workers, contractors and owners.

At the same time, contractors who place production schedules and output over safety will eventually find themselves falling behind their competitors. Owners today want safe jobsites and they are demanding that their contractors place a priority on safety. If a contractor has a reputation for doing otherwise, then that contractor will be less and less successful in winning jobs.

I know how easy it is to become complacent on the job. Months or even years can go by without having to confront the ramifications of a really serious accident. But the Kleen Energy tragedy shows how quickly that can change. No one who went to work at Kleen Energy that day expected to be confronted with this kind of disaster. But just because it doesn’t happen every day doesn’t mean we should be concerned about such things every day.

The UA Standard for Safety is just one example of the ways in which the union building trades demonstrate to our contractors and their customers that we, too, are serious about safety, that we are intent on making the best safety practices an inherent part of the craftsmanship that goes with being a union building trades worker.

We grieve the loss of our four UA brothers. But we are recommitting ourselves to being a union that places the safety and health of our members at the forefront of all that we do. I urge all union construction workers throughout North America to make the same commitment. Your own life may someday depend on it!

AIL/NILICO Labor Board Meets

The AIL/NILICO Labor Advisory held its annual meeting in April and reviewed the company’s labor support activities over the past year. The featured speaker at this year’s meeting was radio talk show commentator Bill Press, the host of The Bill Press Show, nationally syndicated by Dial-Global Radio Networks. His show, on from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. ET, puts a humorous spin on the day's events. He discussed current events and hot issues facing Labor. Press is also the former co-host of CNN's Crossfire and MSNBC's Buchanan and Press. AIL/NILICO President and CEO Roger Smith gave an update on the company’s activities and growth. In addition, the company released its annual report to the board, titled “Jobs, Investment & Growth.” “Our business philosophy supports the positive values of the labor movement,” said Smith. “And we believe in putting our philosophy into action.” Smith reported that the number of agents with the company now exceeds 4,200 nationwide. In addition, the company has hired nearly 200 public relations representatives as part of its national P.R. expansion program. AIL/NILICO employees are union members, represented by Office & Professional Employees International Union Local 277. Many AIL/NILCO employees serve as state and local federation officials. Despite the recession, Smith said the company continues to expand with sales more than 14 percent higher in the first quarter of 2010, compared to the previous year. He announced an ambitious fiveyear program to grow sales to more than $290 million. “Our partnership with Labor has paid off in growth and profits for the company which is good for investors, employees and our customers,” he said. The AIL/NILICO Labor Advisory Board, unique in American business, is comprised of the nation’s top federation, international and national union leaders. Board members advise the company on Labor and Labor-endorsed activities to financially support, and on the policy needs of working families.   Labor Board Welcomes Smith Glass, Molders, Pottery, Plastics and Allied Workers International Union President Bruce R. Smith is the newest member of the AIL/NILICO Labor Advisory Board. “I am happy to accept this appointment on behalf of the GMP International Union,” Smith said in response to the invitation to join the board. He joins more than 50 federation, international and national union leaders who comprise the AIL/NILICO Labor Advisory Board. The Glass, Molders, Pottery, Plastics & Allied Workers (GMP) International Union is one of the oldest labor unions in America, with its origins dating back to 1842. Several mergers have since taken place and this growing union is now known as the GMP International Union. The GMP represents thousands of workers in the glass, molders, plastics, pottery, cast metals, fiberglass, defense, fine china, glass and plastic containers, insulation and sanitary-ware industries as well as workers in government, healthcare and a variety of other industries. Smith was sworn in as the President of the Glass, Molders, Pottery, Plastics and Allied Workers International Union (AFL-CIO, CLC) on January 26, 2010. He has served as the union’s International Secretary Treasurer since July 2004, and was re-elected by acclamation to a second fouryear term in 2008. AIL Contributes to Kennedy Institute AIL/NILICO joined with Labor and other groups to contribute to the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate which will be built on the UMass Boston Campus, adjacent to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. AIL/NILICO Public Relations official Susan Kelleher recently participated in the Massachusetts Building & Construction Trades convention, where she made the announcement about the company’s financial contribution to the institute. According to the institute’s website, the primary audience will consist of middle and high school groups and their teachers, college/university students and faculty, new senators and government officials, as well as casual visitors and life-long learners. In particular, University of Massachusetts faculty and students will make regular use of the Institute. Plans for the institute have been in the works for years, but Sen. Kennedy’s illness and death last year accelerated implementation. Fundraisers expect to raise at least $50 million for the building that will include classroom space, research rooms, exhibits, and, most prominently, an exact replica of the U.S. Senate chambers. "It is the single most important thing, other than family and health, that Senator Kennedy is focused on," said Paul Kirk, a former Kennedy aide and chairman of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, in a newspaper article. "He will be gratified if things go forward as a salute to him and an institution he loves, at a place he loves." According to news reports, planners hope the institute will include a training program for incoming U.S. Senators to learn about parliamentary procedures used in their chamber, how to organize their staff, and ways to preserve their paperwork. Kennedy spent 45 years in the Senate and advisers told the news media that he wanted to house the center at UMass- Boston because its students are mostly from working class backgrounds, advisers said. He ruled out other interested universities, including Harvard, where he was an undergraduate and where his family has close ties. Jobs Fight in Taunton, Mass. Scores of union members and supporters, including AIL/NILICO representatives, recently marches to save the jobs of 85 union workers at Haskon Aerospace in Taunton, Mass., who will lose their jobs by the end of the year. They were joined by U.S. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) The workers are represented by United Electrical and Machine Workers of America Local 204. Its parent company, Bellevue, Wash.-based Esterline Technologies Corp., intends to consolidate the plants operations to California and Mexico. Peter Knowlton, UE Northeast Region president, said there remains some hope the aerospace firm can be convinced to keep Taunton’s silicone-rubber manufacturing site operational. Knowlton also says if Esterline does in fact close the Taunton plant this year his workers deserve a more generous severance package than the one currently being offered. He said Esterline has offered a maximum eight-weeks severance pay (the company bought the plant just less than nine years ago), which is the equivalent of a week per year worked. “It’s something we’re going to fight,” Knowlton, 56, said. “It’s not acceptable to us.” Labor Leads Financial Reform Effort One hundred forty-five billon dollars. That’s how much Wall Street should pay back to American workers because of the financial meltdown caused by the greed and corruption of America’s financiers and stock traders. For several weeks, U.S. unions have led a campaign in support of the recently passed historic financial reform bill by Congress that the banks and Wall Street firms pulled out every tactic to stop. AIL/NILICO representatives were on hand at major events around the country in support of the campaign. In Connecticut, for example, a major demonstration was held in front of the Bank of America office in Hartford. There, a check was presented for $145 billion representing the amount of Wall Street bonuses that should be paid to working families. Last month, 3,000 marchers showed up on Washington, D.C.’s K Street, home to major lobbying firms working for the banks to block financial reform legislation. AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler made it clear at the event that Wall Street “needs to pay for the jobs its reckless practices destroyed.”