News Articles Archives
- Apr 21, 2010 Workers Picket Labor Dept. Chanting "Si se puede, restore the core!" 50 Department of Labor employees - members of AFGE Local 12 - demonstrated outside a high-level meeting of foreign labor ministers at the DOL at noon on Tuesday, calling on Labor Secretary Hilda Solis to implement a more family-friendly "core hour"... more...
- Apr 21, 2010 Workers' Memorial Dedication Set For 4/28 The National Labor College will observe Workers' Memorial Day on April 28th by honoring victims of the mining tragedy in Montcoal, West Virginia and the Tesaro Refinery explosion in Washington State, along with hundreds of other workers who have lost their lives on the job. The ceremony - set... more...
- Apr 21, 2010 Young Trade Unionists Plan First Networking/Career Fair Young metro-area unionists are putting together their first-ever Young Trade Unionists' Networking and Career Fair. The May 1 Fair is being billed as an opportunity for young local labor and community activists to meet with union leaders, elected officials and each other. "Participants will... more...
- Apr 21, 2010 Council Meeting Highlights “With many of our affiliates battling the effects of budget cuts on their members, it was good to have such a great turnout at Monday night’s meeting to hear reports on these ongoing struggles,” reports Metro Council President Jos Williams. Whether it’s county workers and school... more...
- Apr 21, 2010 Labor Passages: Dan Duncan's Father-in-Law Passes The NOVA Labor Federation “with great sadness” last night announced the death of NOVA President Dan Duncan’s father-in-law. Karen Duncan's father, Irving Fernand, 97, passed away in his sleep April 20 in Ft Lauderdale, FL. Graveside services will be held Friday, April 23 at Beth David... more...
- Apr 20, 2010 Council Takes "No Position" In PG County Exec Race The Metro Washington Council voted last night to take “no position” in the Prince George’s County Executive Race after neither leading candidate – Rushern Baker and Michael Jackson --garnered the two-thirds majority necessary to win endorsement. “This vote leaves our affiliates free... more...
- Apr 20, 2010 Union Profile: IUOE 99 Members In Action Chaun Coleman and Mark Wiehoff are among the engineering staff currently working on renovations at the Madison Hotel on 15th Street in the District’s Northwest. Coleman - a General Maintenance Mechanic and member of the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 99 since 2001 -... more...
- Apr 20, 2010 Labor On The Move: Obama To Tap CWA's Boarman For Public Printer Post President Obama has announced his intention to nominate CWA’s William J. Boarman (r) to be the 26th Public Printer of the United States. Boarman is a vice president of the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and president of the union’s Printing, Publishing & Media Workers... more...
- Apr 19, 2010 DOL Workers To Picket G20 Labor Minister's Meeting Frustrated Department of Labor employees will conduct an informational picket Tuesday, April 20 outside the G-20 labor minister's meeting at the DOL. "We're extremely disappointed that Secretary Solis has failed to follow through on President Obama's vision of implementing... more...
- Apr 19, 2010 Discounted Space Available In Labor FilmFest Guide Help celebrate the 10th annual DC Labor FilmFest and save money by reserving space now in the popular FilmFest Program Guide now. Reserve your ad by May 1 and get a 20% Earlybird Discount AND a free 2009 FilmFest t-shirt, a collector’s item not available for sale. Since 2001 the DC Labor... more...
- Apr 19, 2010 Lobbyist Gets The Picture UFCW 1994 Political Director Bob Stewart shows off the photo he presented to lobbyist Gary Alexander at the lobbyist’s end-of-session reception last week. The photo is of the March 9 library worker’s rally outside Alexander’s Annapolis office. The lobbyist – on behalf of the Maryland... more...
- Apr 16, 2010 MD Family Child Care Providers Win Collective Bargaining Legislation Child care providers in Maryland were granted collective bargaining rights by the Maryland General Assembly on Monday. The new law codifies Governor Martin O’Malley’s 2007 Executive Order under which child care providers joined SEIU Local 500, negotiated and ratified a historic first... more...
- Apr 16, 2010 Free* Shopping At Costco Maryland and D.C. AFL-CIO members, their families and friends can shop at COSTCO Wholesale this Saturday without having to pay the usual membership fee. Click here to download the One-Day Shopping Pass; participants will also be eligible to receive up to $25 in Costco Cash Cards. The... more...
- Apr 16, 2010 Labor In The News: Zinn Carries on Family Activism Last week’s victory by University of Wisconsin students over Nike’s sweatshop practices in Honduras has a strong local connection. Wisconsin sophomore Jonah Zinn, part of the student campaign urging the school to cancel the contract, is the 19-year-old son of Roxie Herbekian and Ken... more...
- Apr 16, 2010 Community Rallying To Support Mass Transit Next Tuesday's transit rally is drawing strong community support. The Partnership for Renewal In Southern & Central Maryland (PRISCM) "stands in solidarity" with the hundreds of transit workers whose jobs are at stake, says PRISCM's Rev. Turner. "These Metro employees pray at our... more...
- Apr 16, 2010 Labor Quote Quiz "The strike is a weapon of the oppressed, of men capable of appreciating justice and having the courage to resist wrong and contend for principle.” Who said it? Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Eugene V. Debs or Mary “Mother” Jones? Click here to submit your answer. Winners will be... more...
- Apr 16, 2010 Labor Photo: 27 Ways To Pay Lower Taxes more...
- Apr 15, 2010 PG COPE Makes No Recommendation On County Exec Race After interviewing five candidates for Prince George’s County Executive yesterday, the PG COPE was unable to make a recommendation to the Metro Council’s Executive Board, which will vote on an endorsement at next Monday’s April meeting. Former Delegate Rushern Baker and Prince George’s... more...
- Apr 15, 2010 Labor Rights "Fundamental" To Iraqi Democracy Charging that the Iraqi government is using the same laws that Saddam Hussein used to “attack workers and prevent trade union organization,” dozens of labor rights activists rallied outside the Iraqi Consulate in Dupont Circle at noon yesterday demanding an end to the “systematic... more...
- Apr 15, 2010 Defending Patient Care Against External Pressures "The people that have the best handle on healthcare are the people on the ground, not our senators or insurance executives," says Paul E. Almeida, President of the AFL-CIO Department for Professional Employees (DPE). "What we really need is the people on the ground to be a more influential... more...
- Apr 15, 2010 JUFJ's "Thinking Jewishly": Teacher Exposes Union-Busting at Cesar Chavez HS Local activist and JUFJ Jeremiah Fellow David Krakow has won an important victory for teachers at the Cesar Chavez charter school, including a pledge that the school will not interfere with union organizing. A history teacher at Chavez, Krakow was fired after heading up efforts by... more...
- Apr 14, 2010 Rallying For Iraqi Workers Who Can't Area labor activists will gather at lunchtime today to do something their colleagues can’t do in Iraq. “Punishing workers for organizing and holding peaceful demonstrations to advocate for their interests is an unfortunately common practice in Iraq,” says Solidarity Center Interim... more...
- Apr 14, 2010 Lose Money, Live Worse With Wal-Mart Charging that retail giant Wal-Mart is costing the community millions of dollars in unpaid taxes, members, staff and supporters of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 400 will distribute pamphlets to downtown Metro commuters tomorrow morning highlighting how the mega-retailer dodges... more...
- Apr 14, 2010 Council Directory Updates SEIU 32BJ has moved! To search for the local's new address - and to find the latest contact information for almost 200 area unions - be sure to check out the Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO's online Affiliate Directory . Representing security officers, doormen, porters, maintenance... more...
- Apr 13, 2010 Safety-Net Activists Urge Council To "Be Heroes" Draped in red capes and super-hero masks, dozens of community activists called on the DC City Council to "stand up, be heroes and save our safety net" yesterday as Mayor Fenty tried to justify his proposed budget cuts, which activists say will disproportionately affect social services in the... more...
- Apr 13, 2010 WMATA's Million-Dollar "Shame" Calling WMATA "shameful, litigious and extravagant," ATU 689 President Jackie Jeter last Friday said "The report that WMATA has spent $1 million to deny benefits to Metro workers is an indictment of the Authority's anemic concern for workers and public safety." Jeter called WMATA's million... more...
- Apr 13, 2010 Defending Patient Care Against External Pressures "The people that have the best handle on healthcare are the people on the ground, not our senators or insurance executives," says Paul E. Almeida, President of the AFL-CIO Department for Professional Employees (DPE). "What we really need is the people on the ground to be a more influential part... more...
- Apr 13, 2010 Quote Quiz Winner It was American socialist newspaper editor, politician, Marxist theoretician, and trade union organizer Daniel De Leon (1852-1914, at right) who said "The capitalist class is interested in keeping the workingmen divided among themselves. Hence it foments race and religious animosities that... more...
- Apr 12, 2010 Labor Seder's Impact Grows At just nine years old, the Labor Seder came of age last night. Since 2002 the annual event, organized by Jews United for Justice (JUFJ), has brought together religious, community and labor activists to celebrate and renew the local struggle for justice via the vehicle of the Passover seder,... more...
- Apr 12, 2010 This Week's Labor Calendar - MONDAY: Citizen Activism And Hope: Hear from Paul Loeb - author of the best-selling books on citizen involvement “Soul of a Citizen: Living With Conviction in Challenging Times” and “The Impossible Will Take a Little While: A Citizen’s Guide to Hope in a Time of Fear” – who... more...
- Apr 12, 2010 Intern Project Expands Labor FilmFest, Union City A lifetime battling in the legal trenches for worker rights has given DC labor lawyer Jules Bernstein (l) a keen appreciation for what works. And Bernstein thinks Union City and the DC Labor FilmFest work. "The DC Labor Filmfest is very exciting and plays a very important role in the... more...
- Apr 9, 2010 Labor Helps Boost Census Response In an effort to boost response to the ongoing 2010 Census, the DC chapter of the A. Philip Randolph Institute (APRI) invites area labor activists to join community organizations Saturday to canvass low-response neighborhoods. Following their regular monthly meeting at IBEW 26 (4371 Parliament... more...
- Apr 9, 2010 What Makes A Great Labor Video? The scathingly funny What Have The Unions Ever Done For Us? was the winner of the recent LabourStart Labour Video Contest, which drew nearly 3,000 votes and over 200 entries. Click here to see results for all six finalists. And to see what the contest judges - who included... more...
- Apr 9, 2010 Reader Survey Deadline Extended "As many action pictures as possible"."more profiles of people in the local area"." follow-up items on stories previously covered"." This is the BEST labor info tool anyplace." Response to our Union City Reader Survey has been so strong - and the suggestions for ways to improve so... more...
- Apr 9, 2010 Labor Quote Quiz "The capitalist class is interested in keeping the workingmen divided among themselves. Hence it foments race and religious animosities that come down from the past." Who said it? Daniel DeLeon, Karl Marx or Ralph Nader? Click here to submit your answer. Winners will be chosen... more...
- Apr 8, 2010 D.C. Teachers Win Tentative Agreement The one thing everyone agreed on was that it had been a long, bumpy and often contentious road to the tentative contract agreement for Washington teachers. But on Wednesday, it was congratulatory handshakes and broad smiles all around as DC Mayor Adrian Fenty, Washington Teachers’ Union... more...
- Apr 8, 2010 Space At The Seder There's still time to register for Sunday's Labor Seder . Jews United For Justice's annual celebration will weave together the Passover freedom story with the struggles of working families in the Washington area. "As leaders across the region face significant budget... more...
- Apr 8, 2010 Building Futures Graduates Third Class The GSA Building Futures Program graduated its third class Tuesday, presenting the 29 graduates with certificates. "These graduates have OSHA 10 and CPR/First Aid certifications and have learned blueprint reading, construction math, tool identification and lots of soft skills needed to... more...
- Apr 7, 2010 MontCo Budget Cuts Impact Detailed It's just an hour. Among the savings in the proposed Montgomery County budget is reducing school health aide's hours from seven to six a day. "But that leaves no one there when a kid bumps his head on the way out of school," 20-year veteran aide Susan Rhoderick told Union City at last night's... more...
- Apr 7, 2010 G'Town Panelists Assess State Of Labor In Obama Era Dozens of students, district workers and labor activists met to discuss how the labor movement can grow and engage with a progressive movement “that speaks to the Obama era” at last night’s panel discussion with labor leaders and political commentators at Georgetown University. ... more...
- Apr 7, 2010 Linking History, Songs And Activism Catch up on your labor history and discover the important role that historians play in the lives of working-class men and women this Friday at the Organization of American Historians convention. AFL-CIO Executive Vice President Arlene Holt-Baker will kick things off at 12:30P with a... more...
- Apr 7, 2010 The Plumber Said It We were only able to fool 12% of you into thinking Cesar Chavez said "Labor never quits. We never give up the fight - no matter how tough the odds, no matter how long it takes," while 24% voted for John L. Lewis; 65% of you knew it was the indomitable George Meany, the plumber who rose to head... more...
- Apr 6, 2010 Labor, The Left And Progressives In The Obama Era Activist and author Barbara Ehrenreich, Washington Post columnist Harold Meyerson, Georgetown history professor Michael Kazin and AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler discuss Labor, The Left And Progressives In The Obama Era with other panelists tonight at Georgetown. Topics include... more...
- Apr 6, 2010 Guild Leads Charge Against Exec Bonuses At Bankrupt Trib In an unusual development, the union representing 230 Baltimore Sun workers entangled in the Tribune Company’s bankruptcy case led the charge against $20 million in corporate bonuses -- and won. The Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild, TNG-CWA Local 32035, which represents the Sun workers,... more...
- Apr 5, 2010 Last Chance To Weigh In On Metro Cuts Maryland elected officials have joined the chorus of individuals and organizations -- including the Metro Washington Council -- calling on Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley to fund a "Fair Share for Metro." In separate letters, the Prince George's County Council, 21 Montgomery state... more...
- Apr 5, 2010 Montco Cuts Hit Women & Minorities Montgomery County's proposed budget disproportionately affects women and minorities, as well as slashing funds for workers and county programs, says UFCW/MCGEO 1994, which is organizing a major demonstration tomorrow night at the County Council meeting. "These workers are the backbone... more...
- Apr 5, 2010 Drink With Labor Benefits Area Seniors "Thanks to all those who came out to the Big Hunt!" says Cathy Meals from We Are Family , a local non-profit organization that benefited from Drink With Labor's Spring happy hour. "Drink With Labor raised $315, which will support WAF's important senior services and grassroots advocacy work... more...
- Apr 5, 2010 Power Of Organizing The "superpower" of organizers is featured in the April calendar from Ricardo Levins Morales, now available for download . This month's featured artist in Morales' newsletter is Antonio Frasconi, who "played a major role in popularizing the woodcut in the United States" and whose... more...
- Apr 5, 2010 County Workers Rally Against MontCo Budget Cuts Uniting behind the slogan “Don't Californicate Montgomery County,” a coalition of labor, business and community organizations will rally tonight against budget cuts. UFCW Local 1994, which represents thousands of county workers, says that while Montgomery County once led the state in job... more...
- Apr 2, 2010 Phone Workers Say "No Sale!" To Verizon “No sale! No sale! No sale!” chanted an angry sea of red-shirted CWA members Thursday afternoon outside Federal Communications Commission (FCC) headquarters in southwest DC. Hundreds of metro area communication workers were joined by a busload of CWA members from West Virginia, who... more...
- Apr 2, 2010 JUFJ's "Thinking Jewishly": DC residents interrupt Mayor Fenty A diverse group of District residents wrapped themselves in a “safety net” to protest budget cuts at yesterday’s press conference by DC Mayor Adrian Fenty announcing his 2011 city budget proposal. "Our city needs a strong safety net!" declared members of the citizens' group, called... more...
- Apr 2, 2010 "Don't Californicate Montgomery County" County workers plan to rally behind the slogan “Don't Californicate Montgomery County” at next Tuesday’s Montgomery County Council meeting. UFCW Local 1994, which represents thousands of county workers, says that while Montgomery County once led the state in job creation, it’s... more...
- Apr 2, 2010 Labor In The News: White House Seeks Input On Roles Of Private Contractors, Federal Workers; Bridging A Class Divide, One English Lesson At A Time White House Seeks Input On Roles Of Private Contractors, Federal Workers: The Obama administration began seeking formal input from stakeholders on which kind of tasks should be performed by federal workers and which by contractors, reported Ed O’Keefe in Wednesday’s Washington Post.... more...
- Apr 1, 2010 Fed Up DOL Employees "Ready To March" Saying that “Secretary Solis carries on the hostile workplace environment created by Secretary Chao,” workers at the Department of Labor - who are represented by the American Federation of Government Employees Local 12 - expressed their outrage at yesterday's union town hall meeting over... more...
- Apr 1, 2010 Vilsack Gives Union Its Due Just in case any of the assembled USDA workers had any lingering doubts about whose side he was on, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack (r) played his trump card at yesterday’s Employee Listening Session. “I just want all the AFSCME members here to know that I’m a lifetime AFSCME... more...
- Apr 1, 2010 Labor In The News: Washington Post Calls For Fair Share For Metro; Augusta Thomas, 87, Sets The Pace At AFGE Washington Post Calls For Fair Share For Metro: The Washington Post yesterday in an editorial called on local jurisdictions to fund Metro adequately to prevent service reductions. Calling service cuts "dangerous,” the Post said that Metro is “the region's vital strategic linchpin.... more...
- Mar 31, 2010 Telecom Workers, Supporters To Rally At FCC Against Proposed Sale Of Verizon Landlines Nearly 50 CWA members from West Virginia concerned about the potential sale of their telephone lines by Verizon to much smaller Frontier Communications are traveling all day for a short rally at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) tomorrow at 1:30P . Local labor and community... more...
- Mar 31, 2010 Click Here! Fake Union Advertising Scams Flourish Online UnitedWorkForce.org might sound like a good source for learning about or advocating for unions. But in reality, it is a wacky mix of overt pitches for Christianity, tacky patriotic messages and the logos of major unions, including the UFCW, Steelworkers and AFSCME. A button for... more...
- Mar 30, 2010 Labor Night At The Nats Set For July 9 Mark your calendars for the fourth annual Labor Night at the Nats, scheduled for Friday, July 9 at 7P. The family event benefits the Community Services Agency's Emergency Assistance Fund, which helps area families in crisis. This year the Nationals will play the San Francisco Giants. Tickets... more...
- Mar 30, 2010 U-Liners Celebrate Merle Haggard's Working-Class Songbook Catch the Working Man Blues this Saturday at the U-Liner’s Merle Haggard tribute at the IOTA Club . A Working' Man Can't Get Nowhere Today, White Line Fever, Working Man Blues and The Way I Am are just a few of Merle Haggard’s working class repertoire and U-Liners frontman Joe... more...
- Mar 30, 2010 When DCLabor Tweets, 300 Follow Over 300 area activists are now the first to hear about job postings, labor events and updates in the DC area via the Metropolitan Washington Council's Twitter account! Got labor news? Tweet us! Click here to sign up free today. To get the tweets as text messages on your phone,... more...
- Mar 29, 2010 Bricklayer's "Speedbowlers" Collect Most Bowling Pledges The members of the Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers Speedbowlers team have won the prize for the most pledges collected for the annual Bowling For Gold tournament, held last January to benefit the Community Services Emergency Assistance Fund. The Speedbowlers raised $1,710 for the Fund,... more...
- Mar 29, 2010 Last Chance To Vote For Labor Video Of The Year Wednesday’s the deadline to vote in the first-ever global Labour Video of the Year . “Watching these very short videos will make you laugh and they will make you think,” says LabourStart’s Eric Lee. “And they will remind us why we are trade unionists.” Lee promises that “you... more...
- Mar 29, 2010 JUFJ's "Thinking Jewishly": Gray Confirmed for Seder DC City Council Chairman Vincent Gray (r) has agreed to speak at this year's Labor Seder, making this an important opportunity to weigh in with a key decision-maker about the importance of preserving the safety net in DC's budget. There’s still time to reserve your space at the Seder,... more...
- Mar 29, 2010 Healthcare Workers The Heart Of Baltimore "Local healthcare workers launched an intensive ad campaign Friday spotlighting Baltimore caregivers who are paid so little they can't afford health insurance for their own children," reports 1199SEIU. "The radio, billboard, bus shelter and direct mail ads are part of the Heart of Baltimore... more...
- Mar 26, 2010 Local Corporation Running For Congress Murray Hill Inc. wants your vote for Congress. "We're a corporation running for Congress to cut out the middleman," says Eric Hensal, the designated human spokesman for Murray Hill. "Why should a corporation pay a congressperson to vote their way when they can now just run themselves?"... more...
- Mar 26, 2010 "Forgotten" In Detroit Tonight If you're in Detroit tonight, you'll want to be sure to catch the performance of Forgotten: The Murder at the Ford Rouge Plant . The jazz/blues opera was composed by DC's own Steve Jones and the Detroit performance is directed by National Labor College teacher - and Detroit native --... more...
- Mar 26, 2010 Westin Boycott Launched "All workers must have the right to organize," declared DC Councilmember Phil Mendelson, who then led a chant of "Boycott! Boycott!" at last night's hotel worker demonstration outside the Westin City Center. "A decent hotel must treat its workers decently," Mendelson (top, right) said,... more...
- Mar 25, 2010 Hotel Workers Bring Their Fight To DC Hundreds of hotel workers, labor and community activists are expected to turn out at today's 5P demonstration targeting the Westin City Center, where the workers will officially launch their boycott of the Columbia Sussex-owned hotel. Responding to years of union-busting and mistreatment,... more...
- Mar 25, 2010 March Council Minutes Now Online Draft minutes from the March Metro Washington Council Executive Board and Delegate meetings are now available for download on the Metro Council’s website . Mark your calendars for next month’s meeting on Monday, April 19 at 6:30P ; watch Union City for further details. more...
- Mar 25, 2010 Labor On The Move: Shierholz & Lindsley Join EJC Board The DC Employment Justice Center has added two new members to the EJC Board, Heidi Shierholz (r) and Lisa Lindsley. Shierholz is a labor economist with the Economic Policy Institute. Her areas of research include trends in employment, unemployment, and compensation, income and... more...
- Mar 24, 2010 AG Dept Workers Win New Contract Demonstrating real labor-management cooperation, the members of AFSCME 3870 and their management at the U.S. Department of Agriculture have negotiated a new contract two months ahead of the May expiration of the previous contract. "This was a great victory for both sides," said Local 3870... more...
- Mar 24, 2010 Metro Holds Hearings This Week On Proposed Cuts Proposals to drastically reduce WMATA bus and rail service are scheduled for public hearings this week . Proposed reductions include fewer rail cars in the peak period, longer waiting times of up to 30 minutes, elimination of off-peak service on much of the Yellow Line, later opening and... more...
- Mar 24, 2010 Labor Quote Quiz Returns! Our popular Labor Quote Quiz is back! Each week we'll publish a labor quote and give you a chance to guess who said it. Winners will be chosen at random from those answering correctly and every month a grand prize-winner will be chosen from the weekly winners. The Quiz is another collaboration... more...
- Mar 23, 2010 Brother Can You Spare A Million? “Can you spare a few million for our bonuses?” pleaded “bankers” holding out their tophats outside Bank of America at 18th and K Streets yesterday at noon. “Take an investment banker to lunch?” asked another, as noontime passersby laughed and took flyers at the Big Banks Panhandle... more...
- Mar 23, 2010 Labor Shows Support For Thomas DC Councilmember Harry Thomas Jr. expressed deep appreciation to the Metro Washington Council and all his labor allies at Friday's Labor Breakfast fundraiser. Washington Building Trades Council Executive Secretary-Treasurer Vance Ayers noted that Thomas "has been on labor's side of every issue... more...
- Mar 23, 2010 "Tell The Mayor To Save Our Safety Net" As DC Mayor Adrian Fenty prepares to release this year’s budget proposal – which local activists expect will slash funding for basic safety net services – the Save Our Safety Net campaign is urging people to sign a petition asking the Mayor to “strengthen our safety net, not target... more...
- Mar 23, 2010 Drink With Labor Benefits "We Are Family" Tomorrow night's Drink With Labor benefits We Are Family," a local organization that serves seniors in the Shaw, North Capitol Street, Adams-Morgan, Petworth, and Columbia Heights neighborhoods. "They bring advocacy, services, organizing, and companionship into the homes of the elderly,... more...
- Mar 23, 2010 Labor Photo: Songs of Solidarity in Charm City more...
- Mar 23, 2010 Metro Holds Hearings This Week On Proposed Cuts Proposals to drastically reduce WMATA bus and rail service are scheduled for public hearings this week (SEE BELOW). Proposed reductions include fewer rail cars in the peak period, longer waiting times of up to 30 minutes, elimination of off-peak service on much of the Yellow Line, later... more...
- Mar 22, 2010 Hotel Boycott Spreads To DC Westin The hotel workers’ battle with Columbia Sussex is coming to the District. On March 25 UNITE HERE is expanding its boycott to Columbia Sussex’s Westin City Center hotel at 14th & M with a 5P demo. “What this company has been doing is union-busting, pure and simple,” UNITE HERE’s... more...
- Mar 22, 2010 Washington Hospital Center Suspends More Snow-Bound Workers Washington Hospital Center is at it again. After making front-page news a few weeks ago for summarily firing more than a dozen nurses for failing to make it to work during last month’s record-breaking blizzards, the hospital has suspended or disciplined about 80 other hospital workers who... more...
- Mar 22, 2010 JUFJ's "Thinking Jewishly": Safety Net Seder The bad news keeps coming -- this week we read in the Washington Post that residents and workers in both Montgomery and Prince George's counties will be facing deep cuts in safety-net programs. Virginia is cutting core services such as education and public safety. There’s a $500... more...
- Mar 19, 2010 DC Streets Heating Up Springtime in the nation’s capital and demonstrations are popping up all over town. Here’s a quick rundown of the next week: - Saturday: "Bring All The Troops And Tax Dollars Home" , 11A, AFL-CIO: Join District workers, labor leaders and anti-war activists for a march and rally to... more...
- Mar 19, 2010 Abigail Chibebe Continues The Struggle For Human Rights In Zimbabwe Abigail Chibebe (r), wife of Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions' Secretary General Wellington Chibebe, spoke movingly with local trade unionists last Friday about her struggles as a union leader's wife and the attacks on her family as they struggle to gain political freedom in Zimbabwe. Mrs.... more...
- Mar 19, 2010 Labor In The News: Raising the Profile of Wage Theft Struggle The local battle against wage theft got front-page coverage in Wednesday’s Washington Post when Post reporter N.C. Aizenman covered last Saturday’s effort by day laborers to track down a contractor who’d cheated them. “He'd hired them to remodel a wine shop in the Northwest... more...
- Mar 19, 2010 More Evening With Labor Photos Now Online A complete selection of photos from last Saturday’s Evening With Labor awards dinner is now available online. Click here now to see photos of this year’s award winners, special guests and attendees. Email streetheat@dclaborarchives.org for name corrections. more...
- Mar 18, 2010 Big Banks To Panhandle For Jobs Top-hatted Big Bankers will panhandle for more bailouts next Monday at noon to save their bonuses and the jobs of their butlers and chauffeurs. Part of the AFL-CIO's national Jobs Campaign, this event is part of a two-week campaign of actions targeting banks across the country. Click... more...
- Mar 18, 2010 Labor Joining March To "Bring All The Troops And Tax Dollars Home" Metro-area workers and labor leaders are planning to join anti-war activists for a march and rally Saturday to "bring our troops and dollars home, invest in healthcare not warfare, build schools not bombs, and create jobs at living wages for everyone who needs one," says event... more...
- Mar 18, 2010 Why Jill And Isabella Are Marching For Immigration Reform Jill from Sioux City, IA is marching for immigration reform this Sunday because her fiancé "works 10 hours a day for minimal pay because of his status. He has so much potential and could do so much better but is stuck at the same dead-end job because of his status." Isabella, an immigrant who... more...
- Mar 17, 2010 Council Meeting Highlights Solidarity and struggle were the watchwords at Monday night’s meeting of the Metro Washington Council. CASA de Maryland Executive Director Gustavo Torres reported that over 100,000 people from 42 states are expected to demonstrate for immigrant worker rights and economic justice for all this... more...
- Mar 17, 2010 ADA & ILCA Added To Council Directory The Metro Council has added two new allies to its Directory, Americans for Democratic Action (ADA) and the International Labor Communications Association (ILCA). “In light of the ADA’s long history of working in support of worker’s rights we’re delighted to officially add the ADA as... more...
- Mar 16, 2010 NPR Attempts To "Divide And Conquer" Broadcast Employees Gusting winds and drizzling rain failed to dampen the spirits of dozens of broadcast technicians and audio engineers at National Public Radio who walked the picket line at noon yesterday chanting “Hey hey, ho ho, union busting has got to go” in front of NPR’s Massachusetts Avenue... more...
- Mar 16, 2010 Local AFGE Steward "Speaks Truth To Power" At DOL AFGE Local 12 Steward David Richardson (r, at last night's Council meeting) drew kudos from the local’s members and leaders last week when he challenged Labor Secretary Hilda Solis on working conditions at the Department of Labor. Local 12 President Alex Bastani applauded Richardson’s... more...
- Mar 16, 2010 Evening With Labor Award Winner Photos Now Online Photos of award-winners at Saturday’s 33rd Annual Evening With Labor are now available for viewing online. Click here ; watch Union City for more photos later this week. - Bill Grooms from IUOE 77 is presented with the Tri-County COPE Award at Saturday's Evening With Labor; photo by Bill... more...
- Mar 16, 2010 Union Voice: Readers Write: Re-energizing and Inspiring “I am new to your website and just wanted to let you know that I think it is great,” writes Lillian Covarrubias, President of TNG-CWA 34043 in from Toledo, OH. “The stories at your site re-energize me and make me hopeful. The pictures and stories of workers' fight for... more...
- Mar 15, 2010 DC Labor Movement Lauded At Evening With Labor "DC shows the rest of America what being a Union City is all about," AFL-CIO Secretary Treasurer Liz Shuler (r, with Metro Council President Jos Williams) told the nearly 1,000 labor leaders, activists and politicians gathered Saturday night for the 33rd annual Evening With Labor. "Unity,... more...
- Mar 15, 2010 Broadcast Techs To Protest At NPR Broadcast technical professionals at National Public Radio (NPR) will protest NPR’s demands for concessions and givebacks at a noontime demo today outside NPR. “The 65 members of NABET-CWA each took wage/benefits cuts of $17,000 in crisis bargaining to help NPR during the uncertain... more...
- Mar 15, 2010 Metro Council Meeting Today Don't miss tonight's Metro Washington Council delegate meeting , jam-packed with the latest updates on the local labor movement. Reports on the Community Services Agency, Union City, Evening with Labor, COPE updates, and the 2010 DC Labor FilmFest highlight Monday's meeting. Also, hear from... more...
- Mar 15, 2010 Big Insurance Rally Photos Now Online A selection of photos from last Tuesday's march and rally to stop big insurance ("Blocking Healthcare Reform Is A Crime!", Union City 3/10/2010) is now available online. Click here to go there now, and click here to view video footage of the rally on the AFL-CIO's Now blog.... more...
- Mar 15, 2010 JUFJ's "Thinking Jewishly": Labor Seder Focuses on Safety Net As the economic crisis drags on and local budgets are slashed, the ax is falling disproportionately on the working families and low-income folks who need services the most. The upcoming annual Labor Seder on April 11 will be the largest event to highlight this issue this spring, bringing... more...
- Mar 15, 2010 UFCW 400 Follows Through On Girl Scout Cookie Pledge Fulfilling a pledge made when they learned that Ahold/Martin’s banned Richmond-area Girl Scout troops from selling cookies in front of Ukrop’s stores, members of United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 400 purchased the first 100 boxes of Girl Scout cookies sold in front of a... more...
- Mar 12, 2010 Faith Jones Trade Unionist Of The Year Faith Jones (l), ACE/AFSCME Local 2250, winner of the JC Turner Award for Outstanding Trade Unionist of the Year, has been a stellar, visible representative of organized labor in Prince George’s County and in the state of Maryland. Jones and the rest of the 2009 award-winners will be honored... more...
- Mar 12, 2010 Broadcast Techs To Protest At NPR Broadcast technical professionals at National Public Radio (NPR) - who are represented by the National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians, CWA - will protest NPR’s demands for concessions and givebacks at a noontime demo Monday, March 15 outside NPR. The current... more...
- Mar 12, 2010 Metro Council Delegate Meeting Monday Don’t miss Monday’s Metropolitan Washington Council delegate meeting , jam-packed with the latest updates on the local labor movement. Reports on the Community Services Agency, Union City, Evening with Labor, COPE updates, the 2010 DC Labor FilmFest, and next Sunday’s rally for... more...
- Mar 12, 2010 Vote Now For Labor Video Of The Year Last week, Hollywood had its Oscars. “Now it's our turn,” says LabourStart’s Eric Lee, announcing that voting has begun to choose the first-ever global Labour Video of the Year . “Our distinguished panel of judges has selected a shortlist of six films out of more than 200... more...
- Mar 12, 2010 UFCW 400 Follows Through On Girl Scout Cookie Pledge Fulfilling a pledge made when they learned that Ahold/Martin’s banned Richmond-area Girl Scout troops from selling cookies in front of Ukrop’s stores, members of United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 400 purchased the first 100 boxes of Girl Scout cookies sold in front of a... more...
- Mar 11, 2010 Transit Workers Urge Action To Oppose Cutbacks In Metro Service With WMATA proposing drastic reductions in Metrorail and Metrobus service, a broad coalition has formed to urge area jurisdictions to provide more funding to keep Metro running. ATU Local 689 has joined with transit, environmental and community groups to wage a "Fair Share for Metro" campaign... more...
- Mar 11, 2010 Elbridge James This Year's "Outstanding Citizen" Elbridge James (l) - this year’s Evening With Labor Wilhelmina Rolark Outstanding Citizen award-winner - has a stellar public interest record. For years he’s been a community leader, a state vice-president for the NAACP, a vice-president for the Montgomery County NAACP, and a... more...
- Mar 11, 2010 Employment Justice Center Releases '09 Impact Report The DC Employment Justice Center's 2009 Annual Impact Report is now available on the EJC’s website. “Thanks to you, we celebrated many victories on behalf of low-wage workers in 2009,” reports Executive Director Melvina Ford. “We returned over $580,000 [in stolen wages] to... more...
- Mar 10, 2010 Maryland Public Library Employees Fight For Choice For A Voice Library workers from across Maryland went to Annapolis Tuesday, March 9 to protest the hiring of "union avoidance" and lobby firm of Alexander & Cleaver by several Maryland counties to oppose legislation granting collective bargaining rights to county library systems. The librarians,... more...
- Mar 10, 2010 "Blocking Healthcare Reform Is A Crime!" As health insurance lobbyists holed up in the Ritz-Carlton behind dozens of police in riot gear, thousands of healthcare activists surrounded the downtown DC hotel yesterday in a peaceful but pointed demonstration of anger and support for healthcare reform, sponsored by Health Care for America... more...
- Mar 10, 2010 Maryland Public Library Employees Fight For Choice For A Voice Library workers from across Maryland went to Annapolis yesterday to protest the hiring of "union avoidance" and lobby firm of Alexander & Cleaver by several Maryland counties to oppose legislation granting collective bargaining rights to county library systems. The librarians, represented... more...
- Mar 10, 2010 Mike Murphy '09 Community Services Awardee Mike Murphy, Business Manager for IUOE Local 99 is the 2009 Thomas M. Bradley Community Services Award winner. “A long-time board member of the Community Services Agency, Mike is always there for us,” says CSA Executive Director Kathleen McKirchy. “He and his local support all our... more...
- Mar 10, 2010 Feaster Funeral Arrangements Set Funeral service arrangements for Phil Feaster have been finalized: viewing hours are set for this Thursday, March 11, 6-8p at the George P. Kalas Funeral Home, 6160 Oxon Hill Road, Oxon Hill, MD and Friday, March 12, 8:30-10a (prior to funeral service). The funeral service will be held... more...
- Mar 10, 2010 CLUW's First Annual Working Women's Award Celebration Set In honor of Women's History Month, the Coalition of Labor Union Women will present CLUW's First Annual Working Women's Award Celebration on Thursday, March 18th, from 5-7:30p. “Join us in honoring eleven extraordinary women leaders, whose achievements have inspired us all to strive... more...
- Mar 9, 2010 AFGE TSO Organizing Campaign Seeks Blitz Volunteers This Week AFGE is looking for volunteers for a blitz at area airports this week in support of the organizing campaign by Transportation Security Officers ( "Union Time" For Transportation Security Officers , 2/24/2010 Union City) : Tuesday, March 9th - National Airport, 10a-2p &... more...
- Mar 9, 2010 '09 DC & MD COPE Award Winners Johnnie Walker and Bill Grooms are this year’s COPE Award winners, and will be recognized at the 33rd annual Evening With Labor this Saturday. Email kmckirch@dclaborarchives.org to reserve tickets. A longtime outspoken union leader and activist, AFGE 383’s Johnnie Walker was... more...
- Mar 9, 2010 Stopping Health Insurance "Crime" Labor, community, health care and religious activists will surround the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in downtown DC with bright yellow tape at noon today, declaring the area a crime scene as big insurance’s lobbying arm (AHIP) comes to town for an anti-health reform conference. Two labor feeder... more...
- Mar 9, 2010 Labor Passages: Teamster's 639's Phil Feaster Dies Phil Feaster, former President of Teamsters Local 639, died Sunday at 70. After retirement, and despite a series of health problems in recent years, Feaster had continued to be an active member of the local labor community. Last year he spoke out about how the “donut hole” coverage gap... more...
- Mar 8, 2010 Healthcare Demo Gains Momentum "When the heads of the nation's insurance companies come to Washington, D.C., this week to plot strategies for killing real health care reform, they'll be greeted by thousands of union members, community, health care and religious activists with one message: Stop," reports James Parks on the... more...
- Mar 8, 2010 '09 Organizing & Golden Picket Winners The local labor community will gather this Saturday to honor area labor leaders, activists and friends at the 33rd annual Evening With Labor . Tickets are still available: email kmckirch@dclaborarchives.org This week Union City will highlight this year's award winners. Today, we... more...
- Mar 8, 2010 Labor Passages: Magda Lynn Seymour Passes Union communications professional Magda Lynn Seymour (r) passed away Tuesday, February 23. Formerly the Communications Director at AFGE and the Field Communications Director at SEIU, she also worked in the AFL-CIO Information Department. Seymour was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis several... more...
- Mar 8, 2010 Union Voice: Readers Write: Bowling Photos? "What became of the bowling for gold photos?" Myron wonders. "Did I miss the email?" See our February 2 story Online Photo Archive Updated or click here for our online photo archive which features photos of all this year’s bowling teams as well as previous years, golf tourney... more...
- Mar 8, 2010 Reuters Reporters "Betrayed & Disrespected" Facing massive cutbacks and "unconscionable" slashes in compensation, Reuters reporters took to the streets at noon in downtown DC Friday determined to win their fight for a fair contract. "We are facing very tense negotiations right now, which have been ongoing for over a year and a half"... more...
- Mar 5, 2010 Reuters Reporters Win Skirmish, Take Battle Back To Streets Reuters reporters will be back out in the street today at noon after winning a key ruling Tuesday in their fight for a new contract ( Reuters Reporters Make News , 3/1/2010 Union City). A federal judge ruled on March 2 that Thomson Reuters, which had unilaterally declared an... more...
- Mar 5, 2010 Immigrant Rights Highlight Indie Film Festival The struggles and day-to-day barriers faced by immigrants is a focus of this year's DC Independent Film Festival . Featured films include Saturday's screening of "Immigrant Nation!: The Battle for the Dream" and "The Mills." Immigrant Nation tells the story of the modern immigrant rights... more...
- Mar 5, 2010 Charm City Labor Chorus' Debut Concert Saturday The Charm City Labor Chorus' (r) debut concert -- "Step by Step: Songs for Peace, Jobs, and Justice" - is this Saturday in Baltimore with singer Joe Jencks. Formed last year, the Labor Chorus focuses on songs that come out of union organizing campaigns and victories, as well as... more...
- Mar 5, 2010 JUFJ's "Thinking Jewishly": We Were Strangers, Too Jews United for Justice is proud to support the immigrant rights march on Sunday, March 21 at 2pm at the Lincoln Memorial. We invite our friends to the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS) Bagel Brunch to make posters and learn about the "We Were Strangers, Too" Jewish Campaign for Immigration... more...
- Mar 5, 2010 March Calendar Download Click here to download the free March calendar from Ricardo Levins Morales Art Studio. "The image speaks in the voice of the ancestors, urging the youth to carry on their struggle," says Morales. more...
- Mar 4, 2010 Nurses Prepared For Battle At Washington Hospital Center Washington Hospital Center is at it again. On Tuesday, the hospital fired three more nurses for missing work during last month’s record-breaking snowstorms, bringing the total number of fired workers to 14. “I think this is an attempt to weaken or destroy the union,” says Stephen Frum,... more...
- Mar 4, 2010 Clark Construction Turns Away Wings Delegation After agreeing to meet with striking workers at Wings Enterprises Inc., Clark Construction Group – the general contractor who hired Wings employees to work on a major project in Foggy Bottom – has done a backflip and reneged on their promise. “Despite repeated requests from Wings... more...
- Mar 4, 2010 Major Demo Targets Health Insurance Lobby Several thousand activists are expected to turn out for next Tuesday's noontime health care demo at the annual meeting of the healthcare insurance lobby (AHIP). Two large labor marches -- including one led by AFL-CIO President Rich Trumka -- will join a big contingent of health care activists... more...
- Mar 4, 2010 Looking For Young Area Labor Leaders & Activists Area union leaders, activists, or staff -- organizers, reps, etc -- ages 35 and under are invited to join AFL-CIO Secretary Treasurer Liz Shuler at a Futures Forum on Thursday, March 11th. The local Forum is being held in preparation for a larger national summit being organized for early... more...
- Mar 4, 2010 UDC Students Learning To Organize “What better place than Washington to have a formal structure for learning about community organizing?” says Sylvia Benotti, a professor who’s teaching a class on organizing at the University of the District of Columbia (UDC) this semester. Principles & Practices of Organizing in... more...
- Mar 3, 2010 No Guantanamo In DC "We don't want a Guantanamo in the Nation's Capital" said Johnny Barnes (r), Executive Director of the American Civil Liberties Union of the National Capital Area, before a packed audience during yesterday's community dialogue at the University of the District of Columbia on the Secure... more...
- Mar 3, 2010 Honoring Local "Working Class Heroes" Tickets to this year's Evening With Labor are going fast! Email kmckirch@dclaborarchives.org to get yours. The 33rd annual labor dinner - Saturday, March 13, 6:30P at the Omni -- honors area labor leaders and activists. This year's honorees include: Organizing Award- IUOE Local 99;... more...
- Mar 3, 2010 AFSCME 2910 Chief Steward To Receive Workplace Safety Award "Every union local has someone who dedicates themselves to the health and safety of their coworkers," says AFSCME Local 2910 President Saul Schniderman. "Nan Thompson Ernst's work exemplifies this." Ernst (r), Local 2910's chief steward, is to be honored today with the "Advocate of Workplace... more...
- Mar 3, 2010 Federal Prevailing Wages For Highway Construction Workers Updated In Maryland U.S. Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.) and Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley last week announced "a significant victory for fair pay and fair wages" for highway construction workers in Maryland. The U. S. Department of Labor (DoL) has agreed to use the findings of a survey commissioned by... more...
- Mar 3, 2010 No Guantanamo In DC "We don't want a Guantanamo in the Nation's Capital" said Johnny Barnes (r), Executive Director of the American Civil Liberties Union of the National Capital Area, before a packed audience during yesterday's community dialogue at the University of the District of Columbia on the Secure... more...
- Mar 2, 2010 Metro Council Endorses Thomas & Mendelson "I am honored that I have earned the continued respect and support of the working men and women of the District of Columbia,” said Ward 5 DC Council member Harry Thomas (above, center) upon hearing that the Metro Washington Council had made an early endorsement of him and Phil... more...
- Mar 2, 2010 Labor Cranks Up The Heat In March With over a dozen actions and events planned (and counting!), March is shaping up to be a busy month jam-packed with activism. Highlights include DC Jobs With Justice's "This Is America: Films On Immigration" Fundraiser and the Charm City Labor Chorus Debut Concert , both on... more...
- Mar 1, 2010 AFGE Law-Enforcement Members, Fed Up, Take Evidence Of Bad Conditions Public Fed up with inaction from the Democratic Obama administration about bad working conditions inside the nation’s federal prisons and in other federal law enforcement occupations, AFGE members are going public. “We have 210,000 inmates in the federal prison system and we don’t have the... more...
- Mar 1, 2010 Obama Names Seven Union Leaders To Labor-Management Council President Barack Obama named seven union leaders to the National Council on Federal Labor-Management Relations, an advisory committee that investigates and makes recommendations to the feds about issues affecting the government’s 2.2 million workers. Named February 25 were AFGE President... more...
- Mar 1, 2010 Labor On The Move: Boland Succeeds Flynn As Bricklayers President; AFSCME’S Lucy To Retire Boland Succeeds Flynn As Bricklayers President: By voice vote, the Bricklayers board agreed on February 22 to immediately elevate union Secretary-Treasurer James Boland (r) to the presidency, succeeding John J. Flynn, who retired that day. Boland, a Bricklayer since 1977, has been... more...
- Mar 1, 2010 Latest Council Directory Updates Where can you get the new address for the Association of Supervisory and Administrative School Personnel and AFSCME Local 2797's correct email address? The Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO's online Affiliate Directory! Containing the latest contact information for unions in... more...
- Mar 1, 2010 Union Voice: Readers Write: Both Local And Universal, UC Helps Find Dream Job “Greetings from Boise, Idaho,” writes Karen Newman, President and B.A. for ATU Local 398. “I subscribed to Union City last summer at the Great Labor Arts Exchange and I read it every day. At first,” Newman says, “I didn't think that the CLC news from DC would have an impact on... more...
- Feb 26, 2010 Fed Up Sheraton Crystal City Hotel Workers Ready To Boycott Own Hotel After a year of struggle, hotel workers at the HEI Sheraton Crystal City have had enough. They’ll call for a boycott of their own hotel if their boss doesn’t accept their demand for a fair democratic process to decide whether to form a union by this Saturday, when they’ll rally in... more...
- Feb 26, 2010 JUFJ’s "Thinking Jewishly": 2010 Seder Set Each year, Jews United For Justice’s Labor Seder highlights a current workers’ rights struggle and brings together the Jewish and labor communities in a shared commitment to social and economic justice. This year's seder – set for Sunday, April 11 -- will focus on our region’s social... more...
- Feb 26, 2010 February Minutes Now Online Draft minutes from the February Metro Washington Council Executive Board and Delegate meetings are now available for download on the Metro Council's website . Mark your calendars for next month's meeting on Monday, March 15 at 6:30P; watch Union City for further details. more...
- Feb 26, 2010 Union-To-Union Relief Effort Supports Haitian Workers Haitian workers “still lack basic shelter, food, water, and medicine,” reports Cathy Feingold, the Solidarity Center’s country program director for the Dominican Republic and Haiti. “The majority of union leaders and members are sleeping outside their homes because many completely... more...
- Feb 25, 2010 Healthcare Activists Hold Sidewalk Summit While President Obama and Congressional leaders gather at Blair House for their invitation-only healthcare meeting today, labor and healthcare activists from across the country will hold a sidewalk summit at 9A at H St and Vermont St NW . A single-payer, improved Medicare for all... more...
- Feb 25, 2010 UFCW 400 Strongly Endorses MD Legislation To Stop Corporate Tax Evasion, Help Solve State Budget Crisis Calling it an essential tool to stop corporate tax evasion, restore tax fairness and solve the Maryland budget crisis, UFCW Local 400 endorsed the Combined Reporting Act (SB 354/HB 584) on Tuesday. The legislation would end the growing practice of corporations transferring profits to... more...
- Feb 25, 2010 NoVA Hotel Workers Link Struggles This Saturday, hotel workers in Northern Virginia will march from the Hilton Crystal City, the first hotel to win the union in Northern Virginia to the Sheraton Crystal City Hotel, where workers are struggling for a fair and democratic process to decide on unionization without intimidation.... more...
- Feb 25, 2010 2010 DC Labor FilmFest Search Underway Seen – or heard about -- a great labor film lately? Tell the DC Labor FilmFest! Planning is underway for the 10th annual FilmFest this Fall and submissions are welcome. The popular weeklong festival screens films about work and workers from around the world. Send your suggestions --... more...
- Feb 24, 2010 "Union Time" For Transportation Security Officers "The threat that air travelers face is from terrorists, not labor unions," said Representative Nita Lowey (D, NY) at yesterday's rally supporting efforts by Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) to form a union. "The time for change is now and we're going to win!" added Kimberly Kraynak,... more...
- Feb 24, 2010 International Solidarity Highlights Council Meeting International solidarity was a major theme of Monday night's Metro Council Delegate meeting. Nigerian trade unionists Siekegba Paul Kpokporo and Tamunokworo Fubara Dappu, members of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) spoke movingly about their... more...
- Feb 24, 2010 Bricklayers Local 1 Joins Council "The more we're involved with the Metro Washington Council -- and the more we act -- the more we can accomplish," says Francis Jacobberger (r, being sworn in Monday as a delegate to the Metro Council), Director of Marketing and Development for the Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers... more...
- Feb 23, 2010 Demanding Rights For Our Defenders Hundreds from across the labor movement will rally downtown today to demand a voice at work for the men and women who guard our skies. The 11:30a rally is at the AFL-CIO. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) on Monday filed a petition with the Federal Labor Relations... more...
- Feb 23, 2010 UFCW 400 Averts Cookie Crisis UFCW 400 averted a cookie crisis in Richmond last week when they welcomed Girl Scouts to sell cookies at Kroger supermarkets after Netherland-based grocery giant Ahold/Martin’s banned the Scouts from Ukrop’s. "The Girl Scouts are a great American institution and buying Girl Scout cookies... more...
- Feb 23, 2010 Transit Worker Protection Bill Advances In V.A. A bill strongly supported by ATU Local 689 that would increase penalties for assaulting transit workers passed the Virginia State Senate February 15 by a margin of 31-9. SB 588, sponsored by newly-elected state senator Dave Marsden, would create a new law prohibiting conduct that “obstructs,... more...
- Feb 22, 2010 MontCo Union Declares Impasse, Invokes Mediation UFCW/MCGEO Local 1994, which represents 8,000 Montgomery County workers, has declared an impasse and invoked mediation in their efforts to bargain a new contract with the county. "Given the continued recession, this round of negotiations quickly centered on protecting our jobs," declared Gino... more...
- Feb 22, 2010 February Council Meeting Tonight Don’t miss Monday’s Metropolitan Washington Council delegate meeting, jam-packed with the latest updates on the local labor movement. Reports on the Community Services Agency, Union City, Evening with Labor, COPE updates and Tuesday’s rally for Transportation Security Administration... more...
- Feb 22, 2010 Rhee Recognizes "Heroic Work" Of DC School Custodians DC school custodian – and Teamsters Local 639 member -- Mark Cullar was featured in Chancellor Michelle Rhee’s February 17 newsletter. Cullar, maintenance foreman at Luke C. Moore Academy, “was snowed in at the school on Feb. 10 and spent the night there,” Rhee reported. “The next... more...
- Feb 22, 2010 NLRB Chair Liebman: 'Political Paralysis' Sours Hopes For Labor Law Reform “Political paralysis” in Washington, exemplified by the Senate filibuster that killed an Obama administration nomination to the National Labor Relations Board “makes it hard to be hopeful” about the prospects for overall labor law reform, NLRB Chair Wilma Liebman (r) says.... more...
- Feb 19, 2010 In Praise Of Labor's Snow Heroes "If you're looking for heroes, those men and women are the heroes of that blizzard," said Geo T. Johnson, Executive Director of AFSCME Council 20, referring to the hundreds of union workers who fought their way to work during the storm. "They were relentless in their efforts to bring some... more...
- Feb 19, 2010 Metro Council Meeting Monday Don’t miss Monday’s Metropolitan Washington Council delegate meeting , jam-packed with the latest updates on the local labor movement. Reports on the Community Services Agency, Union City, Evening with Labor, COPE updates and Tuesday’s rally for Transportation Security Administration... more...
- Feb 19, 2010 TSO Rally For Recognition Relocated Next Tuesday’s rally supporting Transportation Security Administration officers (TSO) - who are fighting to win union recognition - has been relocated to the AFL-CIO headquarters, 815 16th Street NW. Click here for an event flyer, or contact Courtney Pecquex at pecquc@afge.org or... more...
- Feb 19, 2010 Singing & Dancing Against Job Cuts At Fiat/Chrysler The auto industry has long used music and dance to sell cars but on January 30, auto fans at the glitzy Washington Auto Show got a different kind of performance when consumers and union members performed a flash mob dance to protest Fiat/Chrysler's broken promises. This week’s UCS Labor... more...
- Feb 19, 2010 NLRB Chair Liebman: 'Political Paralysis' Sours Hopes For Labor Law Reform By Mark Gruenberg, PAI Staff Writer “Political paralysis” in Washington, exemplified by the Senate filibuster that killed an Obama administration nomination to the National Labor Relations Board “makes it hard to be... more...
- Feb 18, 2010 "Stand With Us And Fight" Say Fired Ironworkers Chants for justice rang out in both Spanish and English on the George Washington University campus last night, rising above the sounds of rush hour traffic crawling home through snow-clogged DC streets. Protesters gathered at the Square 54 residential/commercial jobsite to call on Wings... more...
- Feb 18, 2010 Workers' Rights Board Hearing Tonight On Wage Theft Issue The common issue of wage theft will bring together day laborers and security officers, restaurant workers and ironworkers, economists and organizers at tonight's Workers' Rights Board hearing . The illegal underpayment or non-payment of workers' wages, wage theft includes violations of... more...
- Feb 18, 2010 At IBEW 26 Training Center, Obama Pushes High-Skill Jobs President Barack Obama toured IBEW Local 26’s training facility in Lanham, MD Tuesday, where he announced $8.33 billion in federal loan guarantees to build two new nuclear power reactors in Georgia to help create and sustain high-skill jobs. Obama called Local 26’s training center “an... more...
- Feb 18, 2010 Labor Urges Obama To Appoint Becker & Pearce To NLRB The AFL-CIO is leading a full-court press to get President Obama to appoint two highly respected labor lawyers to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Republicans are blocking Obama’s nominees and the AFL-CIO is urging supporters to call the White House at 800-705-7083 to tell Obama to... more...
- Feb 17, 2010 As GW Administration Turns A "Blind Eye" To Abuse, Students, Community Fight Back George Washington University markets itself as a place of opportunity and integrity. But ironworkers building the state-of-the-art retail, residential and office project at Square 54 say the university has instead become a site of abuse and intimidation, and the Justice at Wings campaign has... more...
- Feb 17, 2010 Local Plumbers Urge Support For CT Explosion Victims DC area United Association of Plumbers and Pipefitters locals are rallying behind fellow union members killed in a February 7 explosion in Connecticut. Ronald J. Crabb, Raymond Dobratz, and Peter Chepulis of Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 777 were killed in an explosion at the Kleen... more...
- Feb 17, 2010 Evening With Labor Tickets Going Fast Tickets are still available for the Metropolitan Washington Council's Evening With Labor Awards Dinner-Dance - now in its 33rd year - which is set for Saturday, March 13 at the Omni Shoreham Hotel. "People are still welcome to place ads in the program book," says Community Services... more...
- Feb 16, 2010 Labor College Weathers Storm To Stay Open Despite last week's record-breaking blizzard, staff and students at the National Labor College (NLC) in Silver Spring kept the ball rolling thanks to efforts by union workers, who worked diligently to ensure the campus remained open and accessible all week. "We had union workers in the... more...
- Feb 16, 2010 JUFJ's "Thinking Jewishly": Understanding The Purple Line On Wednesday, Jews United for Justice (JUFJ) is organizing a unique opportunity to help community members understand the sometimes-complicated issues surrounding the Purple Line and associated redevelopment in Langley Park - once a predominantly Jewish area. "Have you heard about the Purple... more...
- Feb 16, 2010 In Praise Of Public Workers It is a commonplace attitude among what is called "the chattering class" -- not to mention many politicians, especially Republicans. They hate public workers, especially if they're unionized. "Incompetent," the politicians and pundits say. "Overpaid." ... more...
- Feb 12, 2010 Workers' Rights Board To Examine "Wage Theft" For some bosses, low wages and long hours are not profitable enough. So they simply steal from their workers. With the growth of wage theft as a national and local phenomenon, the DC Workers' Rights Board is turning the spotlight on the issue next week. On February 18th, The Board will hold a... more...
- Feb 12, 2010 Labor Video Contest Deadline Extended The deadline for LabourStart's first-ever Labour Video of the Year competition has been extended. Over 100 videos have already been submitted in the contest, developed by the online global labor news website in collaboration with the DC Labor FilmFest. The contest is open to... more...
- Feb 12, 2010 Cure For The Uncommon Cold With the AFL-CIO open for the first time this snowy week -- and another storm coming Monday -- it's a good time to stop by The Union Shop and bundle up with cozy, union-made fleece and more. Now available: Special limited edition AFL-CIO shiver-proof varsity jacket with wool body and leather... more...
- Feb 12, 2010 Washington Window: In praise of public workers By Mark Gruenberg It is a commonplace attitude among what is called "the chattering class" -- not to mention many politicians, especially Republicans. They hate public workers, especially if they're unionized. "Incompetent," the politicians and pundits say. ... more...
- Feb 11, 2010 Even In Snowstorms, Mail Carriers Manage To Deliver “Postal carriers continued their daily slog Tuesday through the deepening slush and mountainous piles of dirty snow, keeping one eye on the darkening sky and handling some problems rarely encountered in the Washington area,” reported Tom Jackman in Wednesday’s Washington Post .... more...
- Feb 11, 2010 Engineers Win Contract At Geological Survey After nearly a year of struggle, workers at the United States Geological Survey (USGS) have finally won a union contract. The workers, who are represented by the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 99 , are employed by USGS subcontractor Complete Building Services (CBS),... more...
- Feb 11, 2010 Zinn Celebrations Set For Monday Amy Goodman, Bernice Johnson Reagon and Ralph Nader are among those confirmed for Monday’s Busboys & Poets celebration of “people’s” labor historian Howard Zinn (r), who died in late January. B&P is hosting Zinn celebrations at both DC locations on February 15, screening... more...
- Feb 11, 2010 2010 Council Directory Available For Download The recently-published 2010 Metropolitan Washington Council Directory of Affiliates is now available as a downloadable PDF . Updated with the latest information on the Council's affiliated locals, councils, constituency groups and allies, the Directory is also accessible via an easy-to-use... more...
- Feb 10, 2010 NoVA Tasting Postponed Thursday’s NoVA Labor food tasting has been postponed due to weather conditions. A new date for the tasting, by AFSCME members and caterer Food 4 The Soul, “will be announced for a new warmer date soon,” says NoVA Labor Federation President Dan Duncan. more...
- Feb 10, 2010 Many Workers Find A Way To Get To The Job, Even In A Blizzard “Being snowbound was not an option for the army of service workers who staff the area's restaurants and hotels, guard its offices and government buildings, restock grocery shelves and clean houses. Many went to extraordinary lengths to get to work during and after the storm, driven by... more...
- Feb 9, 2010 Union Workers Lead In Storm Recovery With metro Washington paralyzed over the last few days by the record-breaking snowstorm, union workers once again led the way. The partial honor roll call includes city and county workers who worked to keep roads passable, emergency service workers in the city, counties and federal government,... more...
- Feb 9, 2010 Library Workers Support Area Needy The community service drive sponsored by AFSCME locals 2910 and 2477 during December “inspired many people to donate and was a remarkable success,” reports Library of Congress Professional Guild Executive Board Member Jacqueline Coleburn. By the end of January, members and staff of... more...
- Feb 9, 2010 Ellsberg Film Up For Oscar The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers – which screened at last year’s DC Labor FilmFest has been nominated for an Academy Award. The film, which was introduced by Ellsberg at the FilmFest screening, was part of the FilmFest’s Whistleblower... more...
- Feb 8, 2010 AFGE Launches Online Petition Supporting Security Officers AFGE is petitioning DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano to grant collective bargaining rights to Transportation Security Officers (TSOs). TSO’s “have worked diligently to keep the more than 600 million people who fly each year -- and hundreds of millions of other Americans – safe,” says... more...
- Feb 8, 2010 JUFJ’s “Thinking Jewishly”: Labor Seder Each year, JUFJ's Labor Seder highlights a current workers’ rights struggle and brings together the Jewish and labor communities in a shared commitment to social and economic justice. This year's seder will take place in mid-March, before Passover. Join the planning team... more...
- Feb 8, 2010 Labor Passages: Beth Shulman “America’s workers, particularly those who labor at wages too low to support their families, lost a great champion with Friday’s untimely death of noted author and labor attorney Beth Shulman (r),” reports the National Employment Law Project. “Over a career spanning more than 30... more...
- Feb 8, 2010 Following DCLabor Don’t be the last to hear about area labor job postings and events! Join almost 300 activists who get the very latest local labor updates by following dclabor on Twitter. Got labor news? Tweet us! Click here to sign up free today! To get the tweets as text messages, make sure... more...
- Feb 8, 2010 First Labour Video Contest Launched LabourStart – the online global labor news website – has launched their first-ever Labour Video of the Year competition. Developed in collaboration with the DC Labor FilmFest, the contest is open to trade unionists and film-makers from around the world. Anyone can nominate videos,... more...
- Feb 5, 2010 DC Nurses See Power In New National Union The recent formation of the largest nurses’ union in the country has local nurses enthusiastic about the potential for big changes here and across the nation. The California Nurses Association, the United American Nurses, and the Massachusetts Nurses Association merged in December to form... more...
- Feb 5, 2010 Labor Film, Festival Databases In The Spotlight The DC Labor FilmFest’s Online Labor Film Database is this week’s Labor Website of the Week at Union Communications Services, which says “This is an incredibly comprehensive listing of labor films. If you're into movies that depict the lives of working people,... more...
- Feb 5, 2010 New Union Radio Program Launched Solidarity News - a weekly labor news program presenting a half hour audiocast of international union news - was launched this week on RadioLabour's website . The new program will post up-to-date news every Monday and include "reports on workers' issues and events from around the world, with... more...
- Feb 4, 2010 Healthcare Workers Oppose Free Speech Limits SEIU1199 DC - this year's Golden Picket award-winners - will testify at the DC City Council today against proposed legislation that would ban residential picketing. Members of the union picketed the northwest DC home of boss Solanges Vivens several times last year. "Workers at two of her... more...
- Feb 4, 2010 Online Photo Archive Updated Team photos from the 2010 CSA Bowling for Gold Tournament are now available for viewing and download on the Metropolitan Washington Council's online photo archive! Click on the photo gallery link under the "DC Labor News Archives" tab to view slideshows and download photos from previous... more...
- Feb 4, 2010 DC Employment Stimulus Bill Introduced "We're tryin' to get a project labor agreement for everything being built with DC money to try to get some of the DC residents to work," Elevator Constructors (IUEC) Local 10 Business Manager Jim Lowery told Workers Independent News (WIN). "There's large unemployment in Washington,"... more...
- Feb 3, 2010 Everyone Counts The District’s 2010 U.S. Census Campaign kicks off this morning at an 11a rally and press conference. “Everyone counts,” says Metro Council President Jos Williams. With $300 billion in federal funds to local, state and tribal governments at stake, labor, political, community and... more...
- Feb 3, 2010 MD Legislative Strategy Sessions Kick-Off The Metro Council's Maryland legislative strategy meetings kicked off last Monday. The weekly meetings in Annapolis are aimed at coordinating labor's efforts to pass pro-worker legislation in the Maryland State Assembly. At Monday's meeting, participants got a sense of their local's proposed... more...
- Feb 3, 2010 Free Calendars Return Ricardo Levins Morales' colorful union-themed posters from the now-defunct Northland Poster Collective are back! Click here to subscribe to Levins Morales' new art newsletter, RLM Arts, and receive a free monthly printable calendar featuring his work and dates important to labor and social... more...
- Feb 3, 2010 CSA's "News You Can Use": Free Tax Prep For Low-Income Residents The DC Earned Income Tax Credit Campaign is offering free tax preparation services to low-income District residents. “Last year, our volunteer tax preparers filed more than 6,000 returns, helping low-income residents claim over $9 million in credits and refunds,” says Adam Perry at... more...
- Feb 3, 2010 "People's Historian" Howard Zinn Dies At 87 Historian Howard Zinn – who championed the central role of the people in shaping American history -- died late last week at 87. “Dr. Zinn’s best-known book, ‘A People’s History of the United States’ (1980), had for its heroes not the Founding Fathers…but rather the farmers of... more...
- Feb 3, 2010 AFSCME 26 Stewards Energized Forty stewards from eight AFSCME Council 26 locals met at AFSCME for a Basic Stewards Training last Saturday. “Their length of time as stewards ranged from as short as several weeks to as long as 30 years,” reports Council 26. “By the end of the two days they had learned their roles... more...
- Feb 2, 2010 Trades Urge Support For DC Employment Act Supporters of pro local-worker legislation are urging trades workers and their supporters to turn out for this morning's introduction of the bill in the DC City Council. The bill would require that a substantial percentage of workers on District government-assisted projects be District... more...
- Feb 2, 2010 MD Library Workers Speak Out For Voice At Work Legislation that would provide organizing and collective bargaining rights to Maryland's library workers has been introduced at the Maryland General Assembly. Led by UFCW 1994 MCGEO, the bill would allow library workers to fight for better pay and working conditions. "Collective bargaining... more...
- Feb 2, 2010 Printcraft "Strike Force" Wins Bowling Tourney The Printcraft locals almost made a clean sweep of the prizes at Sunday's CSA bowling tournament, with the "Strike Force" team (r) claiming top team honors at 3,172 points and the "Printcrafts" winning second place at 3,109 points. Tony Buemi of the "Printcrafts" took first place in the... more...
- Feb 2, 2010 Union Voice: Readers Write: We Make The Changes "Today's history article ( Sitting Down To Stand Up: Remembering Greensboro 1960 , 2/1 UC) is great!" writes Korey Hartwich. "It reminds each of us how much things have changed, and how each of us can make the changes our society still needs." Stories That Inspire: "I love reading... more...
- Feb 1, 2010 Bowling Tourney Heats Up Chilly Sunday Everyone was a winner at yesterday’s 18th annual CSA Bowling for Gold bowling tournament, but Phil Feaster (above, at right) and Tony Buemi (below) were particularly happy. Feaster, retired President of Teamsters Local 639, was the winner of the 50/50 raffle, collecting a cool $1,000, while... more...
- Feb 1, 2010 Reuters Reporters Make News At a noontime demonstration outside the DC Thomson Reuters H Street offices Friday, journalists were making the news instead of covering it. "Impasse, my ass!" some three dozen Reuters reporters and their supporters chanted as they circled the sidewalk, their breaths visible in the... more...
- Feb 1, 2010 January Minutes Now Online Draft minutes from the January Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO Executive Board and Delegate meetings are now available for download on the Metro Council's updated and easy-to-use website . To view minutes dating back to January 2006, scroll over the drop-down box under the Official... more...
- Feb 1, 2010 MD Assembly Labor Strategy Sessions Begin Today The weekly Maryland General Assembly labor strategy sessions begin today in Annapolis, reports Metro Washington Council Political/Legislative Coordinator Rick Powell. "Every Monday during this session we'll meet to brief each other on our bills and any assistance you may need," says Powell. "We... more...
- Feb 1, 2010 Sitting Down To Stand Up: Remembering Greensboro 1960 February 1, 1960, began as a crisp winter’s day half a century ago. But by the end of the day, U.S. race relations would be changed forever. On that day, four neatly-dressed African-Americans students quietly took their seats at a Woolworth’s lunch counter and asked to be served. Such an... more...
- Jan 29, 2010 Focus on: Design & Construction Focus on: Design & Construction D.C. officials hope locals will get St. Elizabeths construction jobs by Jonathan O'Connell, Staff Reporter, Washington Business Journal D.C. will need more people like Bernard Johnson if the District is to take full advantage of the jobs being... more...
- Jan 29, 2010 Building Futures Program Rolling Along Laborers' Apprenticeship Program Director Lou De Graff hosted the Community Services Agency's "Building Futures" program yesterday, where 28 students spent the day at the training school learning how to build scaffolding, identify basic tools and follow safety standards as part of their 6-week... more...
- Jan 29, 2010 Evening With Labor Awardees Announced The 2009 Evening With Labor award-winners have been announced. “These are our very best and brightest, the cream of the year’s crop” said Metro Council President Jos Williams. “Each individual and organization demonstrated their deep commitment to our local labor community by their... more...
- Jan 29, 2010 JUFJ's "Thinking Jewishly": New Year for Trees On the Jewish calendar, the 15th of the month of Shevat - tomorrow, January 30 on the Gregorian calendar this year -- is a holiday called Tu Bishvat. Tu Bishvat is considered to be a "New Year" for trees, just like we celebrate January 1 as a New Year for people. Because of its connection to... more...
- Jan 29, 2010 Labour Films Down Under On a recent trip to Australia, DC Labor FilmFest Director Chris Garlock (at right) met with John Ryan (at left), Community Campaign Coordinator for the Australian Council of Trade Unions to discuss a possible Australian Labour FilmFest. “Australia’s strong and active labor... more...
- Jan 29, 2010 Union Voice: Readers Write: Clarifying The Demands at the Sheraton Crystal City “Thank you very much for your coverage of our January 18th picket line at the Sheraton Crystal City and for bringing attention to the important struggle of hotel workers for the right to organize without fear of intimidation or retaliation from their employers,” writes UNITE HERE organizer... more...
- Jan 28, 2010 Auto Workers Try To Slam The Brakes On Toyota Plant Closures Charging that Toyota is "betraying American auto workers" by attempting to close plants across America, members of the United Auto Workers union leafleted outside the Washington Convention Center at noon yesterday to garner community support and pressure the company into reversing the... more...
- Jan 28, 2010 Last Call For Bowling Registrations With the Community Services Agency’s 18th Annual Bowling for Gold Tournament set for this Sunday, January 31, “there is little time left to register your team” says CSA Executive Director Kathleen McKirchy. Team registration forms should be completed no later than 3P this... more...
- Jan 28, 2010 Register For Catholic Labor Network Gathering If you’re interested in hearing Paul Booth of AFSCME and John Carr of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops discuss labor organizing and Catholic hospitals, or Fr. Tom Reese, SJ, of Georgetown University explain the significance of Pope Benedict XVI's Social Encyclical "Caritas in Veritate"... more...
- Jan 28, 2010 Guild Rallies Against Reuters Friday News service Reuters is the target of a demonstration by the Newspaper Guild Friday at noon . Members and staff of the New York Newspaper Guild – supported by their colleagues in the Washington-Baltimore Guild -- are calling on local labor and community activists for support as they rally... more...
- Jan 28, 2010 Labor On The Move: Peinovich Appointed Interim President At Labor College The National Labor College yesterday announced the appointment of Dr. Paula Peinovich (r) as the College’s Interim President following the retirement of President William Scheuerman (l). “Bill Scheuerman did an outstanding job as NLC’s president helping to streamline existing... more...
- Jan 27, 2010 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East Donates $1 Million To Haitian Relief 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East - the largest healthcare workers union in the country and a Metro Council affiliate - yesterday announced that it is donating $1 million to the U.S. Fund for UNICEF for earthquake relief and recovery efforts in Haiti. “It is in times like these that... more...
- Jan 27, 2010 Council Meeting Highlights Tyrone Thomas, Iron Workers 5, was sworn in as a new delegate; Montgomery County Councilmember Mark Elrich discussed a plan to ease traffic congestion by significantly expanding bus service in the county; Washington Teachers Union Local 6 President George Parker (r) reported on Chancellor... more...
- Jan 27, 2010 Protesting Inaction On Immigration Reform Demanding "Obama Keep Your Promise" and "Enough is Enough," hundreds rallied outside the Department of Homeland Security Tuesday afternoon to call on DHS to halt raids and deportations and on President Obama to move forward on comprehensive immigration reform legislation. "We are here to... more...
- Jan 27, 2010 Labor In The News: Many Workers Unaware Of D.C. Sick Leave Law More than a year after the District became the second city in the nation to require most employers to provide paid sick leave, proponents of the law say many workers are unaware of their rights and businesses are unclear about their responsibilities…. "The law is ineffective if workers are... more...
- Jan 27, 2010 Labor Photo: Health Care Reform Activists Rally Against US Chamber Of Commerce more...
- Jan 26, 2010 Hitting The Street For Healthcare, Immigrant Rights & Haitian Relief Two rallies, a training session and a fundraiser: just another day in the life of a DC activist. Today’s line-up kicks off with two noontime rallies, one on healthcare and one on immigration reform . At the “ If the Corporate Lobbyists Win, We Lose! ” healthcare rally and march... more...
- Jan 26, 2010 Labor In The News: Fed Union Workers Up Slightly in ’09; National Labor College Curriculum Changes With the Economy Fed Union Workers Up Slightly in ’09: The percentage of union members in the federal workforce essentially stayed flat in 2009 compared with the previous year, although the number of union members on the federal payroll grew slightly, according to figures released Friday by the Bureau of... more...
- Jan 25, 2010 January Council Meeting Tonight Don't miss tonight’s Metropolitan Washington Council delegate meeting - January 25, 6:30p at the AFL-CIO, 815 16th Street NW - jam-packed with the latest updates on the local labor movement. Reports on the Community Services Agency, Evening With Labor, Union City, and COPE updates... more...
- Jan 25, 2010 Building Futures Getting Results Graduates of the GSA Building Futures Project are starting to see the fruits of their labor. The Washington Post has hired Antonio Payton (r), a graduate of the first GSA Building Futures Class, to work part time in their warehouse. Payton is also interested in pursuing an apprenticeship and... more...
- Jan 25, 2010 Union Aid Continues To Build For Haiti As the extent of the devastation in Haiti in the aftermath of the recent earthquake continues to unfold, labor is ramping up efforts to help. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) on Friday donated $25, 000 to the Solidarity Center's Earthquake Relief for... more...
- Jan 22, 2010 Strikes (& Spares) For Families In Crisis "Spaces are still available for this year's union bowling tournament," reports Community Services Agency Executive Director Kathleen McKirchy, "but the lanes are filling up quickly!" The annual Bowling for Gold event - now in its 18th year - benefits the Community Services... more...
- Jan 22, 2010 Concert Benefits Struggling Artists A relief benefit concert this Sunday organized by The American Guild of Musical Artists will help local artists who are struggling during the current economic crisis, including those affected by the closure of the Baltimore Opera Company. “With the closing of the Baltimore... more...
- Jan 22, 2010 AFSCME Council Rewards Student Achievers When students at Martin Luther King Elementary School in southeast D.C. successfully passed a difficult math and reading test last fall, AFSCME Council 20 recognized their achievement with a $25 gift card from Target. “We want these high achievers to know the community supports their... more...
- Jan 21, 2010 Union Support Pouring In For Haiti The support by union members continues to pour in to help the survivors of last week's massive earthquake in Haiti. You can take action now to help the Haitian survivors by clicking on the AFL-CIO Haitian Disaster Relief site here . As of Tuesday, nearly $13,000 had been donated to the... more...
- Jan 21, 2010 CSA's "News You Can Use": Protecting Against BPA There's new concern about the possible ill health effects of Bisphenol A, more commonly known as BPA. HHS has a website with info about safeguarding yourself and infants using baby bottles. Bisphenol A, a chemical added to plastics to harden them, has been used for more than 40... more...
- Jan 20, 2010 DC Jobs Picture Bleaker For Workers Of Color "Across the country unemployment is around 10 percent, but for communities of color that number goes up to 15.6 percent," reports Karen Miller in a recent Workers Independent News (WIN) broadcast . Exploring how African Americans living in DC are doing during this recession - and if President... more...
- Jan 20, 2010 DC Labor Delegation Calls For End To Cuba Embargo Eight local trade unionists returned from a fact-finding visit to Cuba Sunday and called for an end to the U.S. embargo of that country. "Economically, culturally and spiritually we have a lot to share and a lot we could offer each other," the group said, noting that "Cuban volunteers, trained... more...
- Jan 18, 2010 CSA Holiday Basket Project Raises Over $20K For Area Families Over 60 Washington-area needy union and working families were assisted over the holidays by the Community Services Agency's Holiday Basket project. "This project highlights the immense generosity of the labor movement, over $20,000 in cash and cash value of donated items," says CSA Executive... more...
- Jan 18, 2010 Helping Haiti Many DC workers have family connections to Haiti, which is still struggling to recover from Tuesday's devastating earthquake. The Community Services Agency "recommends financial donations to help the huge number of victims," says CSA Executive Director Kathleen McKirchy. "Donations of... more...
- Jan 18, 2010 "No Contract, No Peace" Say Sheraton Workers Chanting “No contract, no peace,” hundreds of workers and community activists thumped drums and blew whistles as they rallied outside the Sheraton Crystal City on Saturday night for the right to form a union. For over a year, workers at the hotel have been fighting HEI Hotels and Resorts... more...
- Jan 14, 2010 Williams To Ask "What Would Martin Do?" Metro Washington Council President Jos Williams will join a panel of distinguished guests on Capitol Hill this Friday to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.’s (r) life and contributions to civil and worker rights. “Please join us in honoring Dr. King as we discuss how Dr. King... more...
- Jan 14, 2010 Bakery Workers Fight Wendy's Cutbacks Workers at the Wendy’s New Bakery plant in Zanesville, Ohio are “under vicious attack by their new owners Arby’s,” Al Haight, Business Manager for the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union (BCTGM) Local 118, told Union City. The workers – who... more...
- Jan 14, 2010 Labor Passages: John Quackenbush “John Quackenbush, 70, an elevator-safety expert and union leader for building trades workers in the Washington area” passed away on December 21, reports the Washington Post . A former Business Manager for the International Union of Elevator Constructors Local 10, Quackenbush (r) was... more...
- Jan 12, 2010 NoVA Hotel Workers Rally Saturday Hotel workers at the Sheraton Crystal City are rallying in Northern Virginia this Saturday to demand a “free and fair process for unionizing,” reports UNITE HERE Organizer Mike Hachey. The workers – who say they have been mistreated and punished for their union activity ( NoVa... more...
- Jan 12, 2010 Online Communication Survey Websites, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, email, texting…So many ways to communicate, which one is right for your local? The Metro DC Labor Council and ILCA (the International Labor Communications Association) are teaming up again in 2010 to offer a free web skills training series for local... more...
- Jan 12, 2010 Inside The Activists' Studio Join Jewish, labor and community activists for the 2nd annual Inside the Activists' Studio event – beginning at 2:30P this Sunday at the Sixth & I Synagogue - featuring “an impressive panel of local Jewish activists, networking opportunities, and skills-share workshops,” say event... more...
- Jan 12, 2010 Take The Pledge Against Cervical Cancer Cervical cancer, which killed over 4,000 women last year, can be prevented with the right steps. January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, and the Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW) has partnered in the Pearl of Wisdom Campaign to Eliminate Cervical Cancer, urging women this month to... more...
- Jan 7, 2010 DC JwJ's "Talkin' Justice": Congress Weighs In On Wings Strike As striking ironworkers at Wings Enterprises entered their third month on strike earlier this week ( Striking Ironworkers Galvanize Community Support , Union City 12/11/09 ), Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D – DC) weighed in on the strike and expressed serious concerns about... more...
- Jan 7, 2010 Fight To Save DC Public Property Continues Earlier this winter the DC City Council passed legislation that mandates community input prior to the "surplussing" and disposing of public property. While District residents and workers made massive gains in ensuring that the DC City Council institute better oversight in the way public land... more...
- Jan 7, 2010 U-Liners Concert To Raise Funds For Delegate Hucker Join local labor band Joe Uehlein and the U-Liners (r) for a fundraising concert this Sunday to support one of labor’s “best champions” in the Maryland General Assembly, Delegate Tom Hucker (l). Delegate Hucker is the founder and former Executive Director of... more...
- Jan 7, 2010 Labor In The News: Union Members And National Security Republican Senator Jim DeMint has taken an anti-union stance by holding up the confirmation of a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) chief and has been pushing “anti-worker disinformation” to obstruct efforts by TSA workers to form a union, reports political commentator Mark... more...
- Jan 7, 2010 Union Volunteers Aid GOTV Efforts In NoVA With the Fairfax County Special Election scheduled next Tuesday, January 12, union volunteers in Northern Virginia are ramping up get out the vote efforts this Saturday to help elect pro-labor candidate David Marsden (right) to the 37th State Senate district. “Weather... more...
- Jan 7, 2010 Hucker Appointed To Key Assembly Committee Longtime labor ally – and former Progressive Maryland Executive Director – Tom Hucker, Maryland Delegate (District 20) has just been appointed to the Economic Matters Committee, where he’ll be “in a much better position to help working men and women,” Hucker tells Union City. He’s... more...
- Jan 5, 2010 Lanes Filling Up Fast For Bowling Tourney Join the Live Wires and the Lightening Balls at the annual "Bowling for Gold" Union Bowling Tournament, set for January 31 at the Crofton Bowling Centre. Now in its 18th year, the annual event brings together union bowlers, friends and family members for “loads of fun and to raise much... more...
- Dec 18, 2009 December Council Meeting Monday Celebrate solidarity and the season at Monday’s meeting of the Metro Washington Council: 6:30P at the AFL-CIO (888 16th St NW). Get your hot-off-the-press 2010 Directory of Local Affiliates and all the latest local labor news, plus enjoy refreshments from CBTU’s Gwend Johnson! more...
- Dec 18, 2009 Working In A Winter Wonderland Federal employees may have more snow days or early dismissals this winter as the Washington region gears up for a season expected to be colder than normal, with a better chance of big storms, reports Federal Diary columnist Joe Davidson in The Washington Post. Government officials outlined the... more...
- Dec 17, 2009 Local Updates: Local Labor Leader Meets With Obama Sheet Metal Workers' Local 100 Business Manager John Shields, Jr (at left, with back to camera) met with President Obama Tuesday morning at the Alexandria Home Depot "to discuss the roll out of the weatherization program regarding residential housing," Shields told Union City . more...
- Dec 17, 2009 DC JwJ Seeks New Volunteers Since the fall of 2008 DC Jobs with Justice has been providing English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) classes for day laborers in DC. The innovative program brings 20-30 minute "mini-classes" right to the corners where day laborers wait for work and focuses on words and phrases that will help... more...
- Dec 17, 2009 Union-Made Season's Greetings Send a message of solidarity this holiday season with union-made holiday cards from the AFL-CIO’s Union Shop Online . Shoppers will find an assortment of Dove, Peace and Love, Reindeer and Chanukah greeting cards – all made from recycled stock and wrapped in biodegradable cellophane –... more...
- Dec 17, 2009 R U A Twitter? Don’t be the last to hear about area labor job postings and events! Join more than 250 activists who get the very latest local labor updates by following dclabor on Twitter . Got labor news? Tweet us! Click here to sign up free today! To get the tweets as text messages, make... more...
- Dec 16, 2009 Area Residents Trained For Construction Jobs Just days after President Obama announced plans to expand job training programs, the first class in a federally-funded pre-apprenticeship training and job placement program graduated on Monday. Twenty area residents completed a 6-week pre-apprenticeship class designed to train local workers... more...
- Dec 16, 2009 Union Plus Scholarships Available If your union's members are looking to get an education, make sure they hear about all the scholarship opportunities that are available, especially those through your union and Union Plus benefits. There’s no requirement to have participated in any Union Plus program in order to apply for... more...
- Dec 15, 2009 "Keep Up The Great Work" Say UC Readers Union City continues to score highly with readers in our latest bi-annual Readers Survey. Seventy-five percent “always” read UC, up 2% from our last survey in May, while 56% find the information “very useful,” down slightly (3%) with 43% saying it’s “somewhat useful.” Local labor... more...
- Dec 15, 2009 Contract Costing Manual Published Union-side contract bargainers have a handy new tool with the publication of Contract Costing for Union Negotiators. Veteran union negotiator and former National Labor College faculty member Donald Spatz explains both the fundamentals and the details of costing a collective agreement to... more...
- Dec 14, 2009 Ratings Products On Child Labor Want to know who’s been naughty and who’s been nice when it comes to child labor? The International Labor Rights Forum (ILRF) has launched a new website in partnership with the Not For Sale Campaign (NFSC) to help consumers learn more about how the companies making your favorite products... more...
- Dec 14, 2009 Online Communication Survey Websites, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, email, texting…So many ways to communicate, which one is right for your local? The Metro DC Labor Council and ILCA (the International Labor Communications Association) are teaming up again in 2010 to offer a free web skills training series for local... more...
- Dec 11, 2009 Striking Ironworkers Galvanize Community Support As bone-chilling winds ripped through Northwest DC yesterday, dozens of students, labor and community activists rallied to support striking ironworkers at George Washington University’s (GW) Square 54 project in Foggy Bottom. Charging that Wings Enterprises – the rebar subcontractor that... more...
- Dec 11, 2009 DC U.N. Recognizes McKirchy, Miller & Wilson Community Services Agency Executive Director Kathleen McKirchy, National Capital Area Union Retirees Club member Betty Miller and former UFCW legislative director Michael Wilson received Community Human Rights Awards yesterday from the United Nations Association of the National Capital Area.... more...
- Dec 11, 2009 JUFJ's Thinking Jewishly: 8 Ways To Have A "Kosher" Hanukkah Traditionally, Hanukkah commemorates the miracle of hope, renewal, and possibility in the face of adversity. The story of Hannukah tells us that oil found by the beleaguered Maccabees in the Second Temple lasted eight times longer than expected, and the oil then kept the eternal light... more...
- Dec 11, 2009 DC JwJ To Screen Film Shorts DC Jobs with Justice is holding its first Winter Film Shorts Holiday Party this Friday . The brand-new documentary film -- Igual Que Tu (Just Like You) -- is being featured. The film is a collection of portraits of life as an immigrant day laborer in Washington. JWJ partiers will also lounge... more...
- Dec 11, 2009 "The People Speak" Premieres Sunday Democracy is not a spectator sport. Using dramatic and musical performances of the letters, diaries and speeches of everyday Americans, The People Speak – premiering Sunday at 8P on the History Channel -- is an exciting new documentary that gives voice to those who spoke up for... more...
- Dec 11, 2009 Eola Trumka Passes Eola Trumka, mother of AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, passed away Tuesday evening surrounded by her family. The funeral will be held on Saturday in Carmichaels, PA. “Our sympathy and solidarity go out to President Trumka,” said Metro Council President Jos Williams, “Please keep... more...
- Dec 10, 2009 Vigil For Striking Ironworkers Today Striking iron workers will join GW students, faith and community leaders for a noon-time vigil at George Washington University's Square 54 project today at noon to demand that the DC-based rebar company sit down with striking workers and bring the strike to a resolution. The committed... more...
- Dec 10, 2009 Federal Workers Fight Senate Health Tax, Get Raise Saying that federal workers could face tens of thousands of dollars in taxes, AFGE, AFSCME, CWA and NALC yesterday co-sponsored an ad in Roll Call and other newspapers against a tax on federal employee health benefits. "There are better ways to pay for health reform than to tax the middle... more...
- Dec 10, 2009 SEIU 32BJ Helps Security Workers Win Back Pay At least 700 former employees of the now-defunct security company that used to protect the District's schools and government buildings could get money owed to them in an agreement arranged by the city government and the U.S. Department of Labor after the workers and SEIU Local 32BJ inundated... more...
- Dec 9, 2009 Local Labor Movement Digs Deep For Holidays The “season of giving” is off to a great start, reports Community Services Agency Executive Director Kathleen McKirchy. “Needy families have been adopted by AFGE, the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust, AFGE Women's and Fair Practices, Change to Win, the National Labor College, and the... more...
- Dec 9, 2009 DC JwJ's "Talkin' Justice": Tweeting For Justice DC Jobs with Justice is putting a new organizing tool to work as it joins the Twitter movement. Noting Twitter’s “short but extremely rich history of being one of the most effective means by which movements are able to communicate with and bring large groups of people together,” DC JWJ... more...
- Dec 9, 2009 "Up In The Air" Scores As Great Labor Film One of the year’s best films – and a strong Oscar contender – is also a terrific labor film. Up In The Air – which just hit local theaters last Friday -- boasts near-perfect acting from stars George Clooney, Vera Farmiga and Jason Bateman and sharp direction by Jason Reitman in a... more...
- Dec 8, 2009 Wings Laying Off Strike Sympathizers Wings Enterprises - which ironworkers have been striking for over a month now - has begun laying off workers who say they've been targeted because they talked with striking workers. The layoffs began Monday November 23rd on two projects, Penrose in Columbia Heights and Square 54 at George... more...
- Dec 8, 2009 Labor Photo: Shuler Supports TSO Organizing AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler yesterday lent her support to the ongoing organizing effort by transportation security officers (TSOs) looking to join AFGE. Shuler stopped by National Airport Monday afternoon to talk to TSOs about the issues that concern them. - photo (l-r): Alin... more...
- Dec 8, 2009 Vote Now For Scrooge Of The Year Who's the Scroogiest of all? Nominations for Jobs with Justice's 2009 Scrooge of the Year are in, and it's time to vote! This year's nominees: Bank of America, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Hyatt Hotels, Publix Supermarkets and Student Loan Companies Sallie Mae & Citibank. The tenth... more...
- Dec 7, 2009 Healthcare Doubleheader Healthcare activists are planning two Capitol Hill events this week, including a candlelight vigil on Tuesday and a major action on Thursday. “Your light and your voice are needed more than ever in this critical time,” say organizers at Faithful Reform in Health Care, a... more...
- Dec 7, 2009 Labor On The Move: Jeter Wins 2nd Term As ATU 689 Prez Jackie Jeter (r) and her team overwhelmingly won Thursday’s elections at ATU Local 689. Jeter, who won her second three-year term as President of Local 689 – which represents Metro workers -- noted that this was “the first complete team to serve this great membership for two terms... more...
- Dec 7, 2009 JUFJ's "Thinking Jewishly": Green & Just Giving Just in time for the gift-giving season, Jews United for Justice offers the Green and Just Celebrations Guide, a little booklet with a big mission: to work for the day when every dollar that socially conscious families in our area spend on celebrations will be spent in a way that reflects... more...
- Dec 4, 2009 Obama Urged To Move Quickly On Jobs Saying that “There is no bottom in sight for working families who are struggling to keep their jobs, health care and homes,” AFL-CIO President Rich Trumka yesterday pushed for immediate action to create and save jobs at President Obama’s forum on jobs and economic growth. “We’re... more...
- Dec 4, 2009 Labor Poll Shows Fenty Out Of Touch D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty (r) is in “serious political trouble,” according to the results of a new poll conducted for the Metro Washington Council. While just 36 percent of likely voters say the Mayor “deserves re-election,” 51 percent, a majority, say it’s time for someone new.... more...
- Dec 4, 2009 Labor Chorus' Annual Holiday Concert Saturday The D.C. Labor Chorus kicks off the holiday season Saturday with their annual Evening Of Sacred Songs performance, featuring favorites from many cultures and traditions, plus singalongs for the whole family. The free show starts at 7:30P at the National Labor College. – photo by... more...
- Dec 4, 2009 Reaching Out To Transportation Security Officers Both area labor councils joined the ongoing effort by transportation security officers (TSOs) to organize yesterday. NoVA Labor President Dan Duncan and Metro Council Union Cities Coordinator Chris Garlock – along with AFGE Political Director Bob Nicklas and AFGE National Organizer Claudia... more...
- Dec 3, 2009 GW Responds To Ironworker Campaign Yesterday’s online campaign supporting the month-long ironworker strike against Wings Enterprises has already yielded results. “George Washington University – which had initially refused to respond to the campaign – has now followed up with contractors in response to dozens of... more...
- Dec 3, 2009 Labor In The News: New Montco Council Prez Backs Off On Wage-Freeze NEW MONTCO COUNCIL PREZ BACKS OFF ON WAGE-FREEZE: Newly-elected Montgomery County Council President Nancy Floreen yesterday broke with former Council President Phil Andrews’ proposal to freeze wages next year for county employees. "Not at this point," Floreen told the Washington Post when... more...
- Dec 3, 2009 Last Chance For Directory Updates Noon today is the final deadline for updates for the Metro Washington Council's forthcoming print edition of the 2010 Directory of Affiliates, which is widely distributed throughout the local labor movement and to the media and political leaders. Click here to make sure your... more...
- Dec 2, 2009 Ironworker Strike Spreads Another worker has joined the month-long ironworker strike against Wings Enterprises. "I am joining my fellow striking workers because of several conditions that adversely affect the workers at Wings," said Jose David (whose real name is being withheld to protect him from reprisals by the... more...
- Dec 2, 2009 Labor In The News: FAA Asked To Do More To Fix Morale; NTSB, Union Plan Probe Of Latest Metro Crash; Union Wins Reinstatement For Fired MetroAccess Drivers FAA ASKED TO DO MORE TO FIX MORALE: A lot of the Federal Aviation Administration’s morale problems center on money, AFSCME Council 26 execu tive director told the Washington Post yesterday. A report released Monday by the Government Accountability Office said that the Federal Aviation... more...
- Dec 2, 2009 Steward's Corner: The Steward as Psychologist Realize that some people are difficult because they feel no one has ever completely heard them out. Give the worker a chance to vent, but feel free to set a time limit. For example, “LaShawna, I’ve heard you say some negative things about the union. Let’s sit together... more...
- Dec 1, 2009 "Honor The Contract" Say Transit Workers ATU Local 689 has launched an online campaign to force Metro to honor the recent arbitration award. After waiting 16 months for a “final and binding” arbitration decision that would determine their pay and benefits, Metro workers were stunned when Washington Metropolitan Area... more...
- Dec 1, 2009 Labor Chorus' Holiday Concert Set For Saturday The D.C. Labor Chorus kicks off the holiday season this Saturday with their annual Evening Of Sacred Songs performance, featuring favorites from many cultures and traditions, plus singalongs for the whole family. The show starts at 7:30P at the National Labor College. - photo: Chorus... more...
- Dec 1, 2009 November Minutes Now Online Draft minutes from the November Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO Executive Board and Delegate meetings are now available for download on the Metro Council website. Mark your calendars for next month's meeting on Monday, December 21 at 6:30P at the AFL-CIO. more...
- Nov 25, 2009 "No On Beasley" Campaign Yields Quick Win DC consumers won a temporary victory yesterday when a Council committee vote on the nomination of Vicky Beasley for the Office of People's Counsel was canceled. With a majority of the Committee on Public Services and Consumer Affairs committed to vote against Beasley – the inexperienced... more...
- Nov 25, 2009 Online Posties Get Union The Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild welcomed the staff of WashingtonPost.Newsweek Interactive (WPNI) at a party last week. Over 100 WPNI workers – who work for the Post’s online division -- will be able to join the Guild as they’re being integrated into the Post’s downtown DC... more...
- Nov 25, 2009 DC Homecare Workers Win Contract Victory After 18 months of negotiating, demonstrating and bargaining, the 225 workers at Nursing Enterprises, Inc. (NEI) homecare agency in Washington, DC, finally have a contract, ratified on November 10. 1199SEIU bargaining committee member and homecare worker Eula Sheffey says watching agency owner... more...
- Nov 25, 2009 Just News From The EJC: Council Acts to Help DC Workers The D.C. Council on Monday took an additional step forward to help struggling District workers and families, reports the DC Employment Justice Center . “The Committee on Housing and Workforce Development held a public hearing on two bills that will support the record number of District... more...
- Nov 24, 2009 Time To Help Out When financial crisis hits home for local union members –as it has for some many this year -- the Community Services Agency (CSA) of the Metro Washington Council AFL-CIO is there to help. CSA assists with evictions, utility shut-offs, empty cupboards and more. But without your support,... more...
- Nov 24, 2009 Don't Mourn, Read! From Union Strategies for Hard Times to biographies of Eugene V. Debs and Woody Guthrie, the new Union Communication Services (UCS) Labor Books Catalog is a great place to find tools for your local or holiday gifts for your favorite labor activist. Scores of classic and new titles on topics... more...
- Nov 24, 2009 Canada Launches DC-Inspired Labor FilmFest "Culture is critical to our future," said Toronto Labour Council President John Cartwright at Sunday night's kickoff of the inaugural Canadian Labor International Film Festival (CLIFF). "And this labor film festival is crucial to raising the issues that affect workers across the country.... more...
- Nov 23, 2009 Safe Food Starts On The Job "Food safety is inextricably linked to worker safety," UFCW's Jackie Nowell said at Friday's symposium on "Empowering Employees to Protect Food Integrity." Brutal line speeds at processing plants and employer under-reporting of worker injuries -- as detailed in this week's GAO report --... more...
- Nov 23, 2009 Public Property Bill Advances In a win for community activists, a key DC City Council committee approved legislation that supporters say would provide greater accountability and transparency in the way the city disposes of public land. "There's a lot of work to do to insure that the bill's key provisions remain intact,"... more...
- Nov 23, 2009 Labor On The Move: Mary Mahoney Named OPEIU Secretary-Treasurer; Nancy Wohlforth Retiring After 31 Years of Service to OPEIU Mary Mahoney Named OPEIU Secretary-Treasurer: The Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Executive Board has named Mary Mahoney to serve as Secretary-Treasurer, effective January 1, 2010, following the retirement of Nancy Wohlforth. A member of OPEIU Local 6 for more... more...
- Nov 23, 2009 State Fed Legislative Conference Set For Dec 9 The Maryland State and District of Columbia AFL-CIO has just announced that the 2010 Maryland General Assembly Legislative Conference will be held on Wednesday, December 9 from 9:30a to 4p at the National Labor College in Silver Spring, Maryland. “All local unions are encouraged to... more...
- Nov 23, 2009 Steward's Corner: Unfair Labor Practices Workers have the right to engage in a wide range of activities to improve their wages and working conditions. There’s legal protection against any employer interference or retaliation when workers do things like join their union, file grievances, wear buttons or T-shirts with union... more...
- Nov 20, 2009 "Invest In Me" Say District Children, Child Care Workers Carrying tombstones that read “R.I.P. Child Development Centers,” busloads of children, parents and child care providers rallied outside the DC City Council yesterday morning to protest the Fenty administration’s recent attacks on child care services in the city. “We’re here to... more...
- Nov 20, 2009 JUFJ's "Thinking Jewishly": Building Capacity Jews United For Justice (JUFJ) has just received a $25,000 capacity-building grant from the Partnership for Equity , a fund of the Community Foundation for the National Capital Region . The grant will enable JUFJ to deepen relationships with organizations working directly with... more...
- Nov 19, 2009 Teachers Shine Light For Justice DC educators are still trying to get justice for two hundred sixty-six teachers that were laid off in October. At a candlelight vigil on U Street Tuesday night, they pledged to keep fighting. “We want to shine a light to the need to put the public back in public education in the District of... more...
- Nov 19, 2009 Putting The "Public" Back In Public Property A major skirmish in the battle over the fate of public property will be waged this afternoon at DC's City Hall. "For years public property has been handed over to private developers with little regard for community planning, transparency and input," says Parisa Norouzi (r), founder of the... more...
- Nov 19, 2009 Labor On The Move: Rees Returns to OI AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka this week announced the appointment of Brandon Rees (r) as the Deputy Director of the AFL-CIO’s Office of Investment. "The financial and housing crisis of the past year dramatically revealed the great importance of the Office of Investment’s efforts to... more...
- Nov 19, 2009 Friday Deadline For Directory Updates This Friday is the deadline for updates for the Metro Washington Council's forthcoming print edition of the 2010 Directory of Affiliates, which is widely distributed throughout the local labor movement and to the media and political leaders. Click here to make sure your organization's... more...
- Nov 19, 2009 Unions "Male, Pale & Stale" No More, Study Finds "The view that the typical union worker is a white male manufacturing worker may have been correct a quarter of a century ago, but it’s not an accurate description of those in today’s labor movement," says John Schmitt, a CEPR Senior Economist and an author of a new report from the Center... more...
- Nov 18, 2009 DC City Council Weighs In On Ironworker Strike Eight DC City Council members yesterday sent a letter to Wings Enterprises – where ironworkers have been on strike ( DC JwJ's "Talkin' Justice": GW Students Join The Justice At Wings Campaign , UC 11/17/2009 ) for nearly a month – expressing serious concerns about working... more...
- Nov 18, 2009 Part-Time Faculty Settles Historic First Contract With Montgomery College Late last week, part-time faculty leaders settled a historic first contract with Montgomery College. "We're pleased with the agreement," said Victoria Baldassano, part-time professor of English at Montgomery College and member of the SEIU Local 500 bargaining committee. "We were... more...
- Nov 18, 2009 Trumka Proposes Jobs Strategy AFL-CIO President Rich Trumka laid out a national jobs strategy Tuesday in Washington. Trumka presented the five-point plan during an Economic Policy Institute jobs panel that included leading national civil rights organizations. "First we have to extend unemployment benefits, food assistance... more...
- Nov 18, 2009 How To Save Child Care, Public Land And Stop A Rate Hike In One Day Activists have a full dance-card tomorrow, with rallies and hearings scheduled throughout the day. Here’s the line-up: 11a: Rally to Save Child Care in DC (Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Ave, NW), support community-based child care providers and keep quality, affordable... more...
- Nov 18, 2009 Helping Workers Protect Our Food The role of workers as the first line of defense against food adulteration is the focus of this Friday’s Empowering Employees to Protect Food Integrity symposium . The daylong conference – sponsored by the Government Accountability Project in conjunction with the American University... more...
- Nov 18, 2009 Worker Struggles Highlight Council Meeting “My goodness, Metro Council meetings have gotten bigger, stronger and more interesting!” said Maryland Delegate Veronica Turner (D, MD 26 - center) at Monday night’s delegate meeting. “Our legislators should really come here to hear about what you’re going through,” added Turner,... more...
- Nov 18, 2009 Labor Photo: Baris Wins Community Partnership Award more...
- Nov 17, 2009 Taking Public Outrage All The Way To The Bank Calling investment bank Goldman Sachs “pure evil”, hundreds of taxpayers and local labor activists converged on the Wall Street financial firm’s Washington, DC office at noon yesterday to demand an end to multi-billion dollar bonuses at banks which received money from the federal... more...
- Nov 17, 2009 DC JwJ's "Talkin' Justice": GW Students Join The Justice At Wings Campaign Taking time from cramming for mid-terms, students from the George Washington (GW) University and members of DC Jobs with Justice’s Student Labor Action Project joined striking Wings workers last Friday on a delegation to the university to demand that the institution take action to ensure a... more...
- Nov 17, 2009 Keep It Short And Linked, Say Readers “Keep the articles brief, providing links for more info,” writes a Union City reader. “It is best when it is short, giving me the entryways to find out more info when I'm interested and have the time.” Tell us what you think of UNION CITY and you could be a winner! Everyone who... more...
- Nov 17, 2009 PEPCO Increase "A Blatant Stick-Up" Calling PEPCO’s request for a $51.7 million increase in its electricity rates “unjustified and unconscionable,” Metro Council President Jos Williams called on the DC City Council to oppose the increase Thursday. “It’s nothing more than a blatant stick-up in broad daylight,”... more...
- Nov 16, 2009 Delegate Meeting Tonight Don’t miss tonight’s Metropolitan Washington Council delegate meeting , jam-packed with the latest updates on the local labor movement. Reports on the Community Services Agency, Union City, DC Labor FilmFest, COPE updates and a special presentation from the MD/DC Alliance for Retired... more...
- Nov 16, 2009 Saving Homes, Not Banker Bonuses Taxpayers and labor activists will rally outside the DC offices of bailout recipient Goldman Sachs today at noon to demand that the Wall Street firm give its $23 billion in bonuses to foreclosure prevention programs instead. "Firms like Goldman Sachs and big banks like JP Morgan Chase... more...
- Nov 16, 2009 G'town Campus Safety Prompts Push For Competitive Wages Friday’s rain did not deter more than 40 students and staff who rallied at Georgetown University to support campus police officers. Representatives from a variety of student organizations, as well as Georgetown staff, gathered Friday afternoon to show their support for the Georgetown... more...
- Nov 16, 2009 DC Activists Launch Single-Payer Campaign While the national debate over healthcare reform continues to rage on the Hill, local activists recently launched a petition campaign to demand that the DC City Council pass a proposed resolution in support of national single-payer, Medicare-for-all legislation. “The passage of... more...
- Nov 13, 2009 Too Big, Too Greedy Investment banker – and federal bailout recipient -- Goldman Sachs is the target of a noon rally Monday as taxpayers and labor allies demand that the Wall Street firm give its $23 billion in bonuses to foreclosure prevention programs instead. Click here for details. more...
- Nov 13, 2009 JUFJ's "Thinking Jewishly": Spending Mindfully With Black Friday, the Friday after Thanksgiving and the biggest shopping day of the year around the corner, protect your wallet - and your principle - with the "wallet tallis." Imprinted with questions like "Is this something I need?", "Was it made with fair labor practices?" and "Will this... more...
- Nov 13, 2009 Labor History You Can Eat The “po-boy” sandwich’s union strike origins made the New York Times in a fascinating article in Wednesday’s Dining section. During a 1929 streetcar worker strike in New Orleans, restaurateurs – and onetime streetcar workers -- Bennie and Clovis Martin, “at the height of the... more...
- Nov 13, 2009 Readers Want More The responses to our Reader Survey are still coming in but already it’s clear that you like Union City and you want more: “More talk about local struggles,” “More profiles,” “Actively solicit stories from locals,” “A weekend recap edition,” “More advance warning... more...
- Nov 12, 2009 Saving Public Property DC residents may finally win a voice on how public property is used in the District of Columbia. After years of hearings, actions and press conferences the Public Land Surplus Standards Amendment Act of 2009 will go before the DC City Council for a vote this afternoon. "This bill creates... more...
- Nov 12, 2009 Labor On The Move: Uehlein Launches Labor Network for Sustainability Joe Uehlein, the former Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO's Industrial Union Department and former director of the AFL-CIO Center for Strategic Campaigns, joined with other labor activists “who are concerned about a more just and sustainable world” to launch The Labor Network for... more...
- Nov 11, 2009 Transit Workers Sue Metro To Enforce Award ATU Local 689 filed suit against Metro on Monday to force the transit authority to abide by the arbitration award issued last week. “It’s unfortunate that the union has to go to court to enforce an award that by law is ‘final and binding,’” said Local 689 President Jackie... more...
- Nov 11, 2009 Free Union City! “Thanks for running the piece on Buck Hill recently,” writes Musicians Local 161-710 President John Cusick. “A slightly edited version is now posted on the news page of our recently updated website , with credit to Union City.” All Union City content is always available for... more...
- Nov 10, 2009 Organizers, Advocates Gather To Strategize About Wage Theft Wage theft - one of the most urgent issues affecting low-wage workers in the District of Columbia - was the hot topic at last weekend's National Employment Law Project conference at the University of the District of Columbia's David A. Clarke School of Law. Attended by over 200 labor... more...
- Nov 10, 2009 "Solidarity Divided" Now Out In Paperback Solidarity Divided , Bill Fletcher, Jr. and Fernando Gapasin’s book on “The Crisis in Organized Labor and a New Path toward Social Justice” is now out in paperback . “Candid, incisive, and accessible, Solidarity Divided is a critical examination of labor's current crisis and a plan... more...
- Nov 9, 2009 DC JwJ's "Talkin' Justice": Rodmen's Strike Takes Wing Late last month, a small but committed band of rodmen - construction workers who place the reinforcing steel in the concrete structure of buildings, bridges, power plants, etc -- walked off the job at Wings Enterprises. While many of the striker's demands are familiar -- a living wage,... more...
- Nov 9, 2009 R U A Twitter? Don’t be the last to hear about area labor job postings and events! Now you can get the very latest local labor updates by following dclabor on Twitter . Got labor news? Tweet us! Click here to sign up free today! To get the tweets as text messages, make sure you set "device... more...
- Nov 9, 2009 Labor Photo: Faces of Courage, Faces of Challenge, Faces of Triumph more...
- Nov 9, 2009 Healthcare Reform Rocks Out With the passage of healthcare reform in the House Saturday, the debate now moves to the Senate and a final bill is not expected before the end of the year, making the battle for universal healthcare far from over. Paul Hipp’s rollicking rock video We're Number 37... more...
- Nov 6, 2009 AFL-CIO Launches National Week Of Action On Healthcare The AFL-CIO yesterday launched a National Week of Action for Health Care. With health care reform votes imminent in Congress the labor federation is asking a million workers to participate in rallies, phone banks and other events to persuade Congress to pass health care reform. Click here... more...
- Nov 6, 2009 Unbowed NoVA Labor Looks To Future "Thanks to all the union members, the locals and Northern Virginia on-site coordinators Roxy Mejia (IUPAT DC 51) and Darrell Capwell (AFT) who worked very hard to get out the vote on Tuesday," says NoVA Labor President Dan Duncan. "Labor has no reason to hang its head. We will monitor and... more...
- Nov 6, 2009 Farm Labor Organizing Committee President: Mexico Not Doing Enough To Solve Organizer's Murder The unsolved murder of Santiago Rafael Cruz, an AFL-CIO Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC) organizer, was brought before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in Washington on Wednesday. FLOC tries to protect workers in the U.S. H2-A visa program who often are victims of bribery... more...
- Nov 6, 2009 Teamsters Protest Chrysler-Fiat's "Attack On American Carhaul Jobs" Calling auto manufacturer Chrysler-Fiat a “bailout bandit”, hundreds of workers and staff from the Teamsters rallied outside the Italian Embassy in Northwest DC yesterday morning to protest the company’s “attack on American carhaul jobs.” “Fiat-Chrysler took our money; damaged... more...
- Nov 6, 2009 East African Journalists Fight For Democracy At Work Journalists active in the struggle for democracy and labor rights in East African nations met with Metro Council President Jos Williams (center) Wednesday as part of a tour coordinated by the AFL-CIO’s Solidarity Center. The leaders – who are members of the Eastern African Journalists... more...
- Nov 6, 2009 Labor Leader Portrait Show Opens Tonight A new exhibition featuring union leaders’ portraits opens tonight at the Takoma Park Community Center in Maryland. Labor artist and retired illustrator Sherrell Medbery’s "Faces of Courage, Faces of Challenge, Faces of Triumph” includes portraits sketched from life of labor... more...
- Nov 6, 2009 Part-Time Academics Study Organizing Area part-time faculty tired of not knowing if their courses will be renewed, fed up with being paid a fraction of what their full-time peers earn and frustrated by having to watch what they say for fear of retaliation, will gather at a forum on Saturday at Busboys and Poets. The SEIU Local 500... more...
- Nov 5, 2009 AFI Workers Win Union As a result of talks between IATSE and executives at the American Film Institute, the AFI management at its Silver Theater and Cultural Center in Silver Spring, Maryland - which hosts the annual DC Labor FilmFest -- negotiated an agreement with the union to represent the theater's "front of... more...
- Nov 5, 2009 Farmworker/Teamster Doubleheader This Morning In two separate events this morning, Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC) President Baldemar Velasquez (r) and Mexican human rights lawyer Leonel Rivero Rodriguez discuss FLOC's campaign to defend the labor rights of tobacco farm workers at a 9a briefing this morning, followed by a... more...
- Nov 5, 2009 Homecare Workers Make Housecall On Boss Bosses can run, but they can’t hide. When nursing home operator Solanges Vivens returned to her $1.3 million home in Northwest DC last week to find a crowd of more than 70 1199SEIU healthcare workers and supporters gearing up for another demonstration in front of her home, Vivens quickly... more...
- Nov 5, 2009 Vote Set For Use Of Public Property DC residents may finally win a voice on how public property is used in the District of Columbia. After years of hearings, actions and press conferences the Public Land Surplus Standards Amendment Act of 2009 will finally go before the DC City Council for a vote next week. "This bill creates... more...
- Nov 5, 2009 Labor On The Move: More New Staff Appointments at AFL-CIO New staff appointments for the AFL-CIO Office of the Secretary-Treasurer include: KIRK BRUNGARD, Executive Assistant to the Secretary-Treasurer: Brungard (r) has served since 2006 as the director of construction organizing at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW).... more...
- Nov 4, 2009 Defending Farmworker Organizers On the morning of April 9, 2007, the body of twenty-nine year old Santiago Rafael Cruz (r), a union organizer for the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC), AFL-CIO, was found dead in FLOC’s Monterrey, Mexico office. He had been brutally tortured and murdered, and his body was tied and left... more...
- Nov 4, 2009 Teamsters Rally Against Chrysler-Fiat Cutbacks The Teamsters will rally tomorrow at 11a at the Italian Embassy to protest cutbacks by Chrysler-Fiat. The auto giant, a recipient of taxpayer bailout funding, "is now demanding drastic cost reductions from the auto transport companies who deliver cars and trucks to dealerships,” says... more...
- Nov 3, 2009 Labor Looks To Provide Edge In VA Vote Today Union volunteers will start knocking on Virginia voters’ doors at 8a this morning and will work the phones all day in a final effort to get out the vote for pro-labor candidates in a governor's race that's attracting national attention. "We're looking to build on last year's big win in... more...
- Nov 3, 2009 DC JwJ's "Talkin' Justice": Back Pay Campaign Expands Confronted last week by a delegation of workers and their supporters demanding back pay, the owner of a local restaurant ran away. Leaders of DC Jobs with Justice, the Interfaith Worker Justice of Greater Washington and the Union de Trabajadores de Washington DC, DC's day laborer organization,... more...
- Nov 2, 2009 Transit Coalition Says Metro Safer Than Area Roads Lost in Metro's rough year with accidents, maintenance needs, and reports of impending budget shortfalls is the good news that you’re far safer riding Metro than you are driving on the Washington region's roads and highways. The DC-based Coalition For Smarter Growth recently released a... more...
- Nov 2, 2009 Labor Photo: Washington In The '60s The Metro Washington Council – then known as the Greater Washington Labor Council – makes a brief appearance in tonight’s WETA special, “ Washington In The ‘60s ” when one of our picket signs supporting makes an appearance at a D.C. Home Rule rally. The show airs tonight at... more...
- Nov 2, 2009 DC JwJ's "Talkin' Justice": Cruz Honored for Work with Day Laborers Former DC Jobs with Justice day laborer organizer Pedro Cruz (at right) was recently honored for his contributions to DC's Latino community and the city's day laborers by the Mayor's Office on Latino Affairs. "Pedro is an unstoppable organizer and leader," said Ramon Hernandez, member and... more...
- Oct 30, 2009 Engineers Garner Rock-Solid Support At Geological Survey "Union rights are human rights," yelled demonstrators as the sun rose over the United States Geological Survey (USGS) in Reston, Virginia, yesterday morning. Workers and staff of the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 99 - who have represented Engineers and Maintenance Mechanics... more...
- Oct 30, 2009 How The Banks Gambled Away Our Homes Writers Andrew and Leslie Cockburn turned to film to tell the story of the subprime lending scandal because “no other medium can convey as much emotion and understanding,” Alexander Cockburn tells Union City . Their new movie, American Casino , starts a 1-week run at the AFI Silver... more...
- Oct 30, 2009 Youth Jobs Summit Saturday Six union apprenticeship programs will exhibit and conduct workshops at Saturday’s Youth Technology Summit at the College of Southern Maryland in La Plata, MD, the largest such gathering on the East Coast. “Youngsters and their parents will learn about job opportunities as well as... more...
- Oct 30, 2009 Human Resources Changes Include Sick Leave Credit For FERS Employees And Abolishing NSPS “The Defense authorization bill contains provisions on various human resources issues that will impact much of the federal workforce,” reported Ralph Smith on FedSmith.com last week. Changes include abolishing NSPS, sick leave credit for FERS employees, and suspending the use of... more...
- Oct 30, 2009 Voting For The 2009 Labor Photo Of The Year The images are gripping. A striker, arms outstretched, protests vehemently in downtown Cairo. A Bangladeshi boy grimaces behind redhot flames in a shipbuilding factory. The familiar Johnny Walker red label is splashed across picket signs filling a Kilmarnock street. Australian kids with... more...
- Oct 30, 2009 Highlights Of The Week Ahead November is coming in with a bang, with labor activities nearly every day over the next week. Labor walks and phone banks in Northern Virginia to help elect pro-labor candidates continue over the weekend and right through Election Day next Tuesday, November 3. The Maryland State and... more...
- Oct 29, 2009 Ellsberg: Still Dangerous After All These Years At 78, Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg (r) is still going strong, reports filmmaker Judith Ehrlich, who directed The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers , which screens free tonight to wrap up the first annual DC Labor FilmFest... more...
- Oct 29, 2009 'American Casino' Sold Out But We Have Tickets! Friday’s DC premiere of American Casino is sold out, but the DC Labor FilmFest has a limited number of free tickets still available. Email streetheat@dclaborarchives.org for the first come, first served tickets. Leslie and Andrew Cockburn’s powerful new documentary tells how and why... more...
- Oct 29, 2009 Guerilla Musical Disrupts Insurance Lobbyist Gathering While hundreds of labor activists chanted and marched outside last Thursday’s gathering of health insurer lobbyists ( Insurance Lobbyists Targeted In Mass Rally 10/23 UC ), all was quiet and business as usual inside the AHIP conference at the Capital Hilton. That is, until... more...
- Oct 28, 2009 MD-DC ARA Convention Immediately following the State Fed Convention, the Maryland/District of Columbia Alliance for Retired Americans is holding its 2009 Convention on Saturday, October 31; all members, affiliates, and guests are invited to attend. Delegates attending this Convention will be briefed on a... more...
- Oct 28, 2009 Union Voice: Readers Write: The Mailman Delivered “Buck Hill, the ‘ Wailin' Mailman ’ used to deliver mail to Council 26 when our offices were on 15th and K NW, writes AFSCME Council 26 Executive Director Carl Goldman. “Besides being a great letter carrier, he always had time to exchange a few words about music or unions.” more...
- Oct 28, 2009 Engineers "Big Man" Needs A Little Help The Operating Engineers inflatable "Big Man" is hitting the streets again tomorrow morning for a demonstration outside the United States Geological Survey (USGS) in Reston, Virginia. The workers are protesting USGS's subcontractor, Complete Building Services' "union-busting tactics"... more...
- Oct 28, 2009 Free Tix For 'American Casino' Thanks to the generous support of American Income Life and the AFL-CIO Office of Investment , the DC Labor FilmFest has a limited number of free tickets available to Friday’s opening night screening of American Casino, the powerful new documentary about how and why over $12... more...
- Oct 27, 2009 Getting Out The Labor Vote In VA Key To Showing Clout Labor is ramping up Get Out The Vote (GOTV) efforts with all eyes on next week's Virginia elections as an early referendum on both President Obama's policies and labor's political clout. "Wins for labor candidates next Tuesday will solidify the power of our movement," says NoVa Labor President... more...
- Oct 27, 2009 MD-DC State Fed Convention Set The Maryland State and District of Columbia AFL-CIO’s 27th Biennial Convention is set for this Thursday-Saturday, October 29-31. “Delegates will be electing Officers and Executive Board members, as well as making critical decisions about the direction of our State Fed for the next four... more...
- Oct 27, 2009 October Minutes Now Online Minutes from the October Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO Executive Board and Delegate meetings are now available for download on the Metro Council website. Mark you calendars for next month’s meeting on Monday, November 16 at 6:30P at the AFL-CIO. more...
- Oct 27, 2009 More Labor Films This Week The second annual IMPACT Film Festival – which runs October 27-29 – includes several films with a work/labor angle, including the Festival closer, The Most Dangerous Man In America: Daniel Ellsberg and The Pentagon Papers , which also concludes the DC Labor FilmFest’s new... more...
- Oct 26, 2009 CSA Golf Tourney Nets $17K For Needy "CSA's 14th Annual Golf Tournament netted a much-needed $17,000 for the Emergency Assistance Fund," reports Alex Thompson, Tournament Committee Chairman. "Not only did golfers have a great time on a gorgeous day, but they raised funds to help needy working families in our area." Added... more...
- Oct 26, 2009 Mark Coles Named "Labor Advocate Of The Year" By MD NAACP Mark Coles is this year’s NAACP Maryland State Conference Labor Advocate of the Year. Coles, Business and Legislative Representative for the Washington Building and Construction Trades Council, “has become a strong leader and advocate on behalf of the members throughout the Building Trades... more...
- Oct 26, 2009 The Wailin' Mailman Letter carrier by day, musician at night, living legend Roger “Buck” Hill (r) will be honored for his outstanding contributions to jazz and to Washington’s musical life tonight at JAZZAlive, a showcase of the UDC Jazz Studies Program. Hill began playing professionally in 1943... more...
- Oct 26, 2009 Taking Direct Action When does direct action work? A DC JWJ training Tuesday night explores how to select a strategic direct action, maximize the impact and come up with creative ideas. Direct action has played an important role in social justice movements throughout the history of the United States, as well as... more...
- Oct 26, 2009 Labor Photo: Getting Out The Vote In NoVa Local union members turned out in force at a rally Saturday morning to help get out the vote in Northern Virginia for labor-endorsed candidates Creigh Deeds for Governor, Jody Wagner for Lt. Governor and Steve Shannon for Attorney General. Labor walks and phone banks continue this week; click... more...
- Oct 26, 2009 Sweet Solidarity When those little ghosts and goblins come collecting on Halloween, make sure you have a full supply of union-made goodies to hand out. That includes some of our favorites, such as Jelly Bellies, Red Vines, Sunkist Fruit Gel Slices, Abbazabbz, and Sweethearts, those crunchy little hearts with... more...
- Oct 23, 2009 Insurance Lobbyists Targeted In Mass Rally Hundreds of labor activists flooded the street yesterday outside a meeting of AHIP, the insurance industry's lobbying arm. "They can't beat our grassroots power!" AFL-CIO President Rich Trumka told the placard-waving crowd. "We can't let the insurance companies be happy unless the American... more...
- Oct 23, 2009 VA Labor Rallies Saturday As Races Enter Final 10 Days Labor-endorsed Attorney General candidate Steve Shannon, US Senator Jim Webb (D., VA), Congressman Gerry Connolly (D., VA 11), ALPA President Captain John Prater and CWA Executive Vice President Annie Hill will headline the Northern Virginia Labor Federation's annual Get Out The Vote (GOTV)... more...
- Oct 23, 2009 Salsa For Justice DC Jobs with Justice and the Union de Trabajadores is holding a fundraiser Saturday for two local construction workers and their families. Carlos Lopez died when he was struck by a car at the Home Depot parking lot while looking for work earlier this month. Just days later, construction... more...
- Oct 23, 2009 Labor Passages: Furlong Mass Saturday There will be a funeral Mass in remembrance of Jim Furlong (r) this Saturday, October 24. “Jim Furlong was always an activist,” recalls AFL-CIO colleague Reggie Cole. After working for the US Information Agency and many progressive politicians' campaigns early in his career, Furlong... more...
- Oct 23, 2009 Obama's Expansion Of Bush's "Failed Experiment" Condemned Blasting bullhorns, local workers and immigration reform activists shouted "Immigrant rights Yes; Sheriff Joe Arpaio No!" as they protested outside the US Department of Homeland Security headquarters in the District's Southwest yesterday morning. Charging that the Obama administration has... more...
- Oct 22, 2009 Protest Of "Racist" Immigration Program Set DC Jobs with Justice and the National Day Laborer Organizing Network will rally this morning to protest expansion of a Bush administration program that has led to the harassment and deportation of hundreds of thousands of immigrants. Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Phoenix, Arizona has controversially... more...
- Oct 22, 2009 Whistleblower Film Series Screens "The Insider" & Ellsberg Film The two final films in this year’s DC Labor FilmFest are The Insider and The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers . The Insider -- the true story of Jeffrey Wigand (Russell Crowe) a former tobacco executive who comes under personal and... more...
- Oct 22, 2009 Labor On The Move: CLUW Taps DC For Leadership A number of DC-area activists were tapped for leadership positions this past weekend at CLUW'S 15th Biennial Convention in Los Angeles. Karen See (APWU) was elected national CLUW President; Judy Beard (APWU) was re-elected as National Treasurer, Diane Babineaux (IAM), Brenda... more...
- Oct 21, 2009 Protest Of "Racist" Immigration Program Set DC Jobs with Justice and the National Day Laborer Organizing Network will rally tomorrow morning to protest expansion of a Bush administration program that has led to the harassment and deportation of hundreds of thousands of immigrants. - Ruth Castel-Branco, DC Jobs with Justice;... more...
- Oct 21, 2009 DCPS Testimony, September Minutes Posted Online Metro Council President Jos Williams’ testimony on the school firings at the DC City Council meeting has now been posted online . Also posted are the minutes from the September Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO Executive Board and Delegate meetings which are now available for download... more...
- Oct 21, 2009 Union Plus Grants Available To help union members in these tough economic times, Union Plus has the following grants available: Credit counseling services , budgeting advice and no-fee debt management and bankruptcy counseling benefits; Hospital care grants of $1,000 to help union members who have been hit with... more...
- Oct 21, 2009 Post Your Union Jobs Here Union City’s Hiring Hall is the best way to quickly fill your union staff job. Read by over 15,000 area union activists, leaders and members, we reach the metro-area labor movement daily and the union jobs posting are one of our most popular features. Posting are free and are also placed on... more...
- Oct 20, 2009 Steve Early On "The Class War At Home" Labor journalist, lawyer and former CWA organizer Steve Early (r) will speak about his new book, Embedded with Organized Labor: Journalistic Reflections on the Class War at Home, tonight at Busboys and Poets. “Steve Early has long been a voice of distinctive clarity, honesty and... more...
- Oct 20, 2009 Labor On The Move: Trumka Announces Staff Picks AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka (r) made his first public announcement of new top staff appointments yesterday. “My new appointees reflect the commitments I have made to strengthen and broaden the AFL-CIO at this pivotal time for working women and men,” said Trumka, in announcing the... more...
- Oct 20, 2009 Putting Labor Films To Work DC Labor FilmFest Director Chris Garlock and his dad, Rochester Labor Film Series organizer Jon Garlock, provide tips on how to organize a local labor film festival in this month’s Labor Notes . “As longtime labor film organizers in Washington, D.C., and Rochester, New York, we’ve... more...
- Oct 19, 2009 School Firings Challenged In Marathon Council Hearing In a history-making 18-hour D.C. City Council marathon public hearing that stretched into the wee hours of the morning about 150 witnesses - parents, teachers, community activists and the unions representing employees in the school system (including AFSCME Council 20, the Washington Teachers... more...
- Oct 19, 2009 Local Labor Updates & More At Delegate Meeting Tonight Get the latest local labor news at tonight’s meeting of the Metro Washington Council! Don’t miss updates on the ongoing struggles with DC Mayor Adrian Fenty and schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, plus affiliate reports, the Community Services Agency, Street Heat, COPE and the DC Labor... more...
- Oct 19, 2009 Woody Lives! Catch a special 1-hour all-Woody Guthrie concert tonight at 9:15p at McGinty's Public House . Joe Uehlein and the U-Liners will roll out “a great collection of Woody Guthrie classics for you!” Uehlein promises, “Come on down prepared to sing!” Hosted by the DC Labor FilmFest,... more...
- Oct 19, 2009 When Crisis Strikes When financial crisis hits home for local union members, the Community Services Agency (CSA) of the Metro Washington Council AFL-CIO is there to help. CSA assists with evictions, utility shut-offs, empty cupboards and more. But without your support, CSA’s cupboard will run bare! Make sure CSA... more...
- Oct 19, 2009 Sign Of The Times Sign recently posted in a vacant store in Takoma Park, MD. Downloadable versions of the sign are available from Michael Moore’s website along with photos of the sign in front of boarded-up houses and business across the country. Click here for more on Moore’s new film,... more...
- Oct 19, 2009 DC JwJ's "Talkin Justice": A People's Victory The campaign to keep the DC's daycare centers open continues! Thanks to emails from hundreds of activists, the DC City Council amended the Budget Support Act to restore funding to the daycare program, and are currently exploring the possibility of initiating a lawsuit against the Executive for... more...
- Oct 16, 2009 NoVa Labor Walks Continue Tomorrow Labor-to-Labor precinct walks continue Saturday morning from the Northern Virginia Labor Fed office with labor-endorsed gubernatorial candidate Creigh Deeds, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler, IBEW President Ed Hill and ARA President Barbara Easterling rallying the troops. "We are less... more...
- Oct 16, 2009 October Delegate Meeting Monday Get the latest local labor news at Monday night’s meeting of the Metro Washington Council! Don’t miss updates on the ongoing struggles with DC Mayor Adrian Fenty and schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, plus affiliate reports, the Community Services Agency, Street Heat, COPE and the DC Labor... more...
- Oct 16, 2009 Governor Signs Historic Child Care Contract Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley signed the first-ever contract for Maryland’s family child care providers at a ceremony in Annapolis Thursday. ““We are excited and proud,” said Madie Green, a District Heights family child care provider and who was among the provider-leaders who... more...
- Oct 16, 2009 "Milton" Says Office Space Shows "Underbelly Of America" "There's a Milton wherever you go," Stephen Root (r) says. "He's a completely universal character." Milton, of course, is Milton Waddams, well-known to legions of Office Space fans as the long-suffering Initech employee who's pushed around, loses his beloved red Swingline stapler and... more...
- Oct 15, 2009 Free Sneak Peek At FilmFest Tonight A special free sneak preview of a new HBO film will be screened tonight at the DC Labor FilmFest . Also at the FilmFest today: four free noontime screenings (The Philosopher Kings , The Fight In The Fields and Working Lunch ) and five tonight, including Silkwood, The Grapes of Wrath,... more...
- Oct 15, 2009 Uzbek Child Labor Protested Dumping a box full of cotton and thousands of petitions on the steps of the Uzbekistan Embassy yesterday, a lively contingent of District workers and human rights activists protested the use of forced child labor in Uzbek cotton fields. "Child labor breaks the rules, Uzbek kids belong in... more...
- Oct 15, 2009 Labor On The Move: Pollack Into Africa The indefatigable Bernie Pollack is taking a busman’s leave of absence from the AFL-CIO to travel through Africa, beginning October 20th. “My girlfriend Dani and I will be looking at best practices in sustainable agriculture, clean water, and workers' rights as part of a foundation... more...
- Oct 15, 2009 Twitterers In The Know Be the first to hear about area labor job postings and events! Now you can get the very latest local labor updates sent right to your phone by following dclabor on Twitter . more...
- Oct 15, 2009 Vote Now For "Best Area Film Festival" The DC Labor FilmFest has been selected as a finalist in the “Best Of” contest by the readers of the Express newspaper. From now through this Friday, October 16, you can vote for the DC Labor FilmFest - the only area film festival showcasing films about work and workers - as... more...
- Oct 15, 2009 Labor FilmFest This Weekend The 9th annual DC Labor FilmFest continues this weekend with screenings of the Irish romantic comedy Situations Vacant, Paul Schrader’s classic Blue Collar with Richard Pryor and Harvey Keitel, David Carradine playing Woody Guthrie in Bound for Glory, Paul Newman in the hilarious Slap Shot,... more...
- Oct 14, 2009 Violence In Prisons & Uzbekistan Child Labor Hit In Noon Rallies AFGE correctional officers carrying body bags will march to the Capitol steps at noon today to conduct a short vigil to protest the rising tide of violence against AFGE correctional officers who work in federal prisons. Under-funding and understaffing within the federal prison system have... more...
- Oct 14, 2009 Working Class Heroes: Film Posters And Stills With a free noontime DC Labor FilmFest screening at the AFL-CIO today – the FilmFest continues today with three free noontime screenings (at CWA and IBEW, in addition to the AFL-CIO), as well as a 7:30p screening of At Home In Utopia at the DC JCC and screenings at AFI tonight of Wild... more...
- Oct 14, 2009 PG Hospital Worker Protest Yields Immediate Results Shortly after Prince George's hospital system health care workers rallied at PG County Executive Jack Johnson's office on October 8 to demand that he release $3 million in committed funding to keep the hospitals open, the county executive's spokesperson said that the county would release $2... more...
- Oct 14, 2009 AFI Workers Organizing “Front of the house” employees at the American Film Institute’s (AFI) Silver Theatre – which hosts the annual DC Labor FilmFest -- are in the midst of an organizing campaign to be represented by IATSE, reports IATSE’s Walter Cahill. “These are the folks who work at the box office... more...
- Oct 14, 2009 Labor Passages: Charles "Woody" McNemar "Dedicated, committed and colorful trade union brother Charles 'Woody' McNemar" (r) passed away on October 10, reports Fred D. Mason, Jr., President of the MD State and DC AFL-CIO. A member of IBEW Local 24 who "and served our movement with great distinction" on the State Fed... more...
- Oct 13, 2009 DC Labor FilmFest Opens Tonight The 9th annual DC Labor FilmFest opens tonight with a screening of Manufactured Landscapes , Jennifer Baichwal’s mesmerizing documentary on the work of artist Edward Burtynsky, internationally acclaimed for his large-scale photographs of workplaces like quarries, recycling yards, factories,... more...
- Oct 13, 2009 Labor Activists Rally For Immigrant Rights, Against Child Labor In Uzbekistan Activists will hit the streets this week for immigrant rights in the United States and to call for an end to the use of forced child labor in Uzbekistan. District workers and immigrant rights activists are rallying this afternoon starting at 3P to stop immigration raids, end the... more...
- Oct 13, 2009 Union Voice: Tools for Health & Safety “I love your publication,” writes Sean EJ Daniel of the Barbados Workers' Union, “it always has motivating material for the reader. In a past publication there was a link to information about negotiating safety & health provisions, I can't seem to locate it anymore, could you send... more...
- Oct 9, 2009 NoVa Labor Increases GOTV Efforts As the Virginia state election fast approaches, local activists and labor allies are ramping up Get-Out-The-Vote efforts to support pro-labor candidates. The Northern Virginia Area Labor Federation has scheduled a barrage of phone-banks and canvassing walks leading up to the... more...
- Oct 9, 2009 DC Green Festival This Weekend Honors Union Workers Union members get 30% off admission at the Green Festival this weekend at the DC Convention Center. Festival participants will check out more than 125 renowned speakers – including Dr Cornel West, Naomi Davis and Ed Begley, Jr -- 350 green businesses, how-to workshops, green films,... more...
- Oct 9, 2009 Another Free Sneak Peek Added To FilmFest Another special free sneak preview has just been added to next week’s DC Labor FilmFest . A cautionary story of labor and greed, Schmatta: Rags to Riches to Rags – an Official Selection at the 2009 Toronto Film Festival -- brings to life the vibrant, unexpected history of the... more...
- Oct 9, 2009 Labor On The Move: Lichter Moves to MD DOL After two and a half years as the Political Director at SEIU Local 500, Jackie Lichter is leaving to join the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation (DLLR) as their Legislative Director. “I take with me memorable experiences with dedicated colleagues and inspirational... more...
- Oct 9, 2009 Union Voice: Readers Write: Locked Out, Not on Strike “Washington Ballet Dancers did not strike in 2005 ( Musicians Shut Out At Nutcracker , 10/7/09 UC ),” writes American Guild of Musical Artists National Director of Organizing and Training Eleni Kallas, “We were locked out.” Quite right, of course; we apologize for the error! more...
- Oct 9, 2009 "We Need Our Teachers!" "We lost two teachers," 9-year-old Langdon student Bernard Myers III (r) told Union City at last night's Rally for Respect, "We need our teachers and we want them back! Not last week or yesterday but right now!" One of the largest local labor rallies in recent memory overflowed Freedom Plaza... more...
- Oct 8, 2009 Trumka, Weingarten Head Up Rally To Put The "Public" Back In Public Education New AFL-CIO President Rich Trumka and AFT President Randi Weingarten are heading up this afternoon’s 4:30p “ Rally for Respect ” in front of the DC District Building. Teachers, city workers, students, parents, community and labor activists are planning to rally beginning at 4:30p... more...
- Oct 8, 2009 Prince George's Hospital Workers To March On Jack Johnson's Office To Demand Promised Payment For County Hospitals More than 100 Prince George’s hospital system health care workers will march on Prince George’s County Executive Jack Johnson’s office today to demand that the county executive release $3 million in committed funding for the hospitals. Along with the 11a demonstration to protest... more...
- Oct 8, 2009 "Whistleblower" Film Screens Free Tonight Tonight’s Whistleblower Series free screening will be “The Whistleblower” – a portrait of Charles Hamel (r), the management consultant who blew the whistle on big oil in Alaska and found himself the target of a major undercover sting that threatened the lives of Hamel's whistleblowers... more...
- Oct 8, 2009 Day Laborers Recover $10,000 In Stolen Wages DC day laborers scored another big victory on October 2nd when they recovered over $10,000 in stolen wages for eight workers. Several members of the Union de Trabajadores de Washington, DC, a day laborer association, had been doing work on a DC public school building over the summer, and were... more...
- Oct 7, 2009 Council Rebuffs Fenty, Votes Down Rec Director In a rebuff to the Fenty Administration, the DC City Council yesterday voted down his appointee to the DC Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR). Community and labor activists had pushed hard to reject Ximena Hartsock, appointed Interim Director by Fenty, after Fenty and Hartsock closed... more...
- Oct 7, 2009 Student Movement Against Teacher Layoffs Continues To Build More students took to the streets of DC yesterday to protest teacher firings. Two hundred students from Spingarn High School marched to the DC District Building during the Council's legislative session to demand the reinstatement of teachers fired last Friday. Students joined Washington... more...
- Oct 7, 2009 Musicians Shut Out At Nutcracker The Washington Ballet's popular annual production of The Nutcracker may be in jeopardy again this year. The Ballet recently notified AFM Local 161-710 that no union musicians will be hired for this year's production of The Nutcracker at the Warner Theatre. Washington Ballet dancers struck in... more...
- Oct 7, 2009 Baltimore City Council Supports Union Elections For Hospital Workers Baltimore’s City Council unanimously approved a resolution Monday night endorsing “free and fair union elections for all hospital and nursing home workers in every facility throughout the city,” reports SEIU 1199 Communications Director Stacey Mink. The resolution said that unionized... more...
- Oct 7, 2009 Richards Speaks On "Union-Free America" Acclaimed labor historian Lawrence Richards will speak and sign copies of his new book, Union-Free America: Workers and Antiunion Culture, tonight at the National Labor College in the Lane Kirkland Center. Richards confronts “one of the most vexing questions with which labor activists... more...
- Oct 7, 2009 Vote Now For "Best Area Film Festival" The DC Labor FilmFest has been selected as a finalist in the "Best Of" contest by the readers of the Express newspaper. From now through Friday, October 16, you can vote for the DC Labor FilmFest - the only area film festival showcasing films about work and workers - as the "best... more...
- Oct 6, 2009 Students March, Sit-In For Fired DC School Workers More than 200 District high school students walked out of classes Monday to protest the layoff of 388 school employees last week. Chanting "No counselors, no college!" students met at McKinley Technology High School and marched to Chancellor Michelle Rhee's office and then to the District... more...
- Oct 6, 2009 Walkin', Talkin' And Phonebankin' NoVa Fifty-five volunteers turned out for last Saturday’s Labor Walk in Virginia. “ Lt. Governor candidate Jody Wagner gave a rousing kick-off speech to warm us up and get us out and knocking labor member and retiree doors,” reports CWA’s Carrie Biggs-Adams. The Labor Walks continue... more...
- Oct 6, 2009 Acclaimed Photog Burtynsky To Open Labor FilmFest Manufactured Landscapes, director Jennifer Baichwal’s mesmerizing documentary on the work of artist Edward Burtynsky, has deservedly gained a passionate following since its 2006 release, and opens the 2009 DC Labor FilmFest next Tuesday night in time to coincide with the Corcoran... more...
- Oct 5, 2009 Teachers & Postal Workers Lead Charge A full week of local labor and community action is highlighted by two major rallies, including one by the teachers Thursday and by the postal workers Saturday. The teacher’s rally comes on the heels of layoffs of nearly 400 DCPS workers last Friday, and Thursday afternoon’s rally... more...
- Oct 5, 2009 When Whistleblowing Saves Lives “I congratulate you on all that you’re doing,” to expose government waste and fraud, said retired Colonel James Burton (r) at last Thursday night’s inaugural screening of the DC Labor FilmFest’s new Whistleblower Series . “It needs to be done.” It was the first time that... more...
- Oct 5, 2009 DC JwJ's "Talkin' Justice": Privatization Nightmare for Injured Workers Geraldine Hobby had been a teacher for 31 years when she was injured in a work-related incident in the 1990's. She was awarded workers' comp and disability but in 1997, the Department of Disability Compensation terminated her workers comp without warning. Why the sudden change? The Department... more...
- Oct 2, 2009 Free FilmFest Screenings Launched Union Privilege and AFGE Local 12 have hosted the first in a series of free DC Labor FilmFest noontime workplace screenings. UP showed “Working Lunch” last Friday, a collection of six shorts films about work put together by the FilmFest, and Local 12 screened “Fighting For Our Lives.”... more...
- Oct 2, 2009 Deeds Campaign Bus Kickoff Monday It's full steam ahead for Virginia labor on the campaign trail in Northern Virginia next week. In addition to the Northern Virginia Labor Federation's Labor Walks - scheduled every Saturday through October - the Painters, Insulators & Cement Masons are launching their campaign bus... more...
- Oct 2, 2009 How Your Local Can Make The Difference In their time of need, members of Council affiliates can turn to the Community Services Agency (CSA) to help with financial crises. This year, with times tougher than ever, the need is greater than ever. Your local can help by getting the word out to your members to support CSA in this... more...
- Oct 2, 2009 Labor On The Move: Karen Fennell Gets Credit Where It's Due; Alison Omen Moves To Working America LABOR ON THE MOVE: KAREN FENNELL GETS CREDIT WHERE IT’S DUE: Karen Fennell (r) – retired SEIU member and current Secretary of the Metro Washington Council’s Tri-County COPE Committee – got some well-deserved recognition this week when the AP covered her effective work for birth... more...
- Oct 1, 2009 Wagner Joins Saturday Labor Walk With the Virginia elections just five weeks away, Lt. Governor candidate Jody Wagner (r) will be joining this Saturday’s Labor Walk. The Labor Walks – which continue every Saturday through the election -- are based out of the NoVa Labor office. “Come on out, increase our crowd,... more...
- Oct 1, 2009 Whistleblower Film Series Kicks Off Tonight The DC Labor FilmFest’s brand new sub-festival, The Whistleblower Film Series kicks off tonight at the Capitol Visitor’s Center . Part of a landmark legislative effort to restore whistleblower rights for government employees, the Whistleblower Film Series showcases free screenings... more...
- Sep 30, 2009 Golf Tourney Winners Announced American Federation of State, City and Municipal Employees Local 2953 members Bill Chouinard (r) and James Eisenmann (l) won first place - with a score of ten under par - at Monday's 14th Annual Community Services Agency (CSA) Golf Tournament. United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) member... more...
- Sep 30, 2009 Moore Congrats & Credits "Congratulations -- and heartfelt thanks -- for Michael Moore's film and personal appearance last night," wrote Pamela. "It was fantastic and totally inspiring." "One of the best movies in years," added Richard Renner of the National Whistleblower's Center ( click here for his review).... more...
- Sep 30, 2009 DC JwJ's "Talkin' Justice": Labor-Community Oppose Hartsock Confirmation, Call For Mayor To Follow The Law Labor and community allies opposed to the confirmation of interim director of DC Department of Parks and Recreation Ximena Hartsock (l) will pack DC City Council this Friday for the confirmation hearing. "Hartsock is responsible for closing the DPR childcare programs, acting on behalf of Mayor... more...
- Sep 29, 2009 Michael Moore Gets "People's Oscar" Calling it “The People’s Oscar,” Michael Moore (center) enthusiastically accepted the 2009 DC Labor FilmFest Tony Mazzocchi Labor Arts Award at last night’s DC preview of his new film Capitalism: A Love Story. “I knew Tony and he was a remarkable man,” an obviously touched Moore... more...
- Sep 29, 2009 14th Annual CSA Golf Tourney Held Gorgeous fall weather marked the Community Services Golf Tournament Monday as 100 golfers turned out to raise money for the CSA’s Emergency Assistance Fund and have a fun day on the links. The 14th annual event was held at the Enterprise Golf Course in Mitchellville, MD. Watch the website... more...
- Sep 28, 2009 Michael Moore To Preview New Film In DC Tonight Filmmaker Michael Moore is bringing his highly anticipated new film, "Capitalism: A Love Story" to the nation's capitol tonight with a free screening hosted by the DC Labor FilmFest . Moore will speak at the 8P screening at the American Film Institute -- the FilmFest's main venue -- in... more...
- Sep 28, 2009 DC JwJ's "Talkin' Justice": City Moves to Scrap Public Health Services, Privatize Department The doors to DC's Addiction, Prevention and Recovery Administration (APRA) are set to close on September 30, putting hundreds of patients at risk. A private contractor has yet to be selected to take over substance abuse treatments, and more than 100 city workers, including addiction and detox... more...
- Sep 28, 2009 Whistleblower Film Series Kicks Off Thursday The DC Labor FilmFest is kicking off a brand new sub-festival, The Whistleblower Film Series , this Thursday night at the Capitol Visitor’s Center. Part of a landmark, nine-year legislative effort to restore credible whistleblower rights for government employees, the Whistleblower Film... more...
- Sep 28, 2009 Union Wheels According to a recent Consumer Reports survey, four out of five new car buyers are likely to consider an American brand when purchasing a vehicle. The United Auto Workers have just released a list of 2010 union-made wheels , made by UAW and CAW members in the US and Canada. Union autoworkers... more...
- Sep 25, 2009 Giving Solidarity Every day, the calls for help come in to the Community Services Agency. Evictions, utility shut-offs, empty cupboards. Local working people forced into crisis through no fault of their own. Hundreds of area working families turn to the Community Services Agency (CSA) of the Metro Washington... more...
- Sep 25, 2009 Financiers Charged With "Crimes Against Working Families" Found guilty of "crimes against working families," proxies for the financial industry were placed under citizens arrest yesterday by workers and community activists. Charging that the Financial Services Roundtable – a group of 90 companies in the finance and insurance industry meeting at the... more...
- Sep 24, 2009 Teeing Off To Help Families In Need Join area union members at the Community Services Agency (CSA) and Metro Council’s 14th annual Golf Tournament, scheduled for Monday, September 28 at the Enterprise Golf Course in Maryland. The family event benefits the CSA Emergency Assistance Fund, which helps area families in crisis.... more...
- Sep 24, 2009 Democracy Through Chocolate The International Women’s Democracy Center and the Women’s Research & Education Institute invite their friends in Labor to Night O’Chocolate, "an evening of total chocolate decadence!" The event will be held Thursday, October 1st from 4:30p -8p at the AFL-CIO in the... more...
- Sep 24, 2009 Union Voice: Readers Write: "Thanks For The Nats Tickets!" “Thank you so much from the kids at Malcolm X,” writes AFL-CIO staffer Joe Gilchrist, who picked up some of the free tickets that were donated to the Community Services Agency by the Washington Nationals. “These are kids from the hood who otherwise would never get to attend a game. You... more...
- Sep 23, 2009 DC Families And Workers Stand Up, Fight Back “What this Mayor is doing to working families is absolutely deplorable,” said AFGE District 14 National Vice President Dwight Bowman at yesterday’s early-morning rally outside the DC District Building. “We need to stand together and raise the public’s awareness of how this man is... more...
- Sep 23, 2009 DC JwJ's "Talkin' Justice": Rally To Protest Bailout-Bandits One year after the government bailed out Wall Street, activists plan to protest a meeting of the Financial Services Roundtable Thursday in Washington. DC Jobs with Justice, unions and consumer protection groups are organizing a demonstration tomorrow at noon outside the meeting of the... more...
- Sep 23, 2009 More Favorite Things About The DC Labor FilmFest “I attended the film fest in 2007,” says Karl. “My absolute favorite thing was that the festival organizers weren't afraid to show the hard-hitting, class-conscious films. The Ken Loach collection was simply brilliant!” Adds Jevera, “I like getting a bigger picture of work and... more...
- Sep 23, 2009 Labor Passages: Jennifer Jones Jennifer Jones, wife of ACE-AFSCME Local 2250 President and Metro Washington Council Executive Board Member Faith Jones, passed away on Sunday. “Our deepest sympathy goes out from the labor community to one of our own on his loss,” said Metro Washington Council President Jos Williams.... more...
- Sep 22, 2009 Activists Rally Today To Hold "Rogue Mayor" Accountable Calling Adrian Fenty a “rogue Mayor,” District workers, labor activists and community allies are rallying outside the DC City Council today, demanding an end to Fenty’s anti-worker and anti-family behavior. As DC Councilmembers gather for their morning breakfast, hundreds of District... more...
- Sep 22, 2009 Adopt-A-Platoon Deadline Thursday Help show our troops that they are not forgotten. The US Army Platoon adopted by the Northern Virginia Labor Federation is shipping more cards, letters and care packages to the troops to better their quality of life. “They are surrounded by concrete walls and sand, living 50 soldiers to a... more...
- Sep 22, 2009 Free Nats Tickets Free Nats tickets are available from the Community Services Agency. The Washington Nationals are giving away free tickets to their remaining games, scheduled for Tuesday, September 22, Friday, September 25 and Sunday, September 27. The tickets are courtesy of the Community Affairs Office of... more...
- Sep 21, 2009 DC Legal Services Workers Vote To Join IFPTE Professional non-managerial oversight staff of the Legal Services Corporation (LSC), a federally funded corporation charged with providing legal services to the poor, voted by an overwhelming margin Tuesday to join the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers ... more...
- Sep 21, 2009 Delegate Meeting Tonight Don’t miss tonight’s Metropolitan Washington Council delegate meeting, jam-packed with the latest updates on the local labor movement. Reports on the DC Labor FilmFest, the Community Services Agency’s annual Golf Tourney and COPE updates highlight tonight’s meeting. All are welcome: see... more...
- Sep 21, 2009 Holding The DC Office Of Wage And Hour Accountable The Association of Day Laborers will be holding a meeting with officials from the DC Office of Wage and Hour Tuesday night to hold them accountable to promises that were made following Jews United for Justice’s spring campaign/letter-writing action. “There are reports that some of... more...
- Sep 18, 2009 EPA Local Rejoins Council AFGE Local 3331, which represents nearly 400 workers at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is the latest Metro Council affiliate. "We're tremendously pleased to welcome Local 3331 back to the 'House of Labor'," said Council President Jos Williams. "This is a local that's growing and... more...
- Sep 18, 2009 "Best" Labor FilmFest Vote the DC Labor FilmFest the best area film festival! The Express newspaper is running a “Best of 2009” contest that includes a film festival category: click here and click on the Arts & Entertainment category to nominate the DC Labor FilmFest, the only area film festival... more...
- Sep 18, 2009 Convention Highlights Selected stories about the just-concluded AFL-CIO Convention in Pittsburgh, PA UNITE HERE Rejoins AFL-CIO : Yesterday, the last day of the AFL-CIO Convention opened with a big bang as newly elected AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka stood on stage with UNITE HERE President John... more...
- Sep 17, 2009 DC JwJ's "Talkin' Justice": Council Urged To Control "Rogue Mayor" Calling Adrian Fenty a “rogue mayor,” community organizations urged DC City Council members to act swiftly to save childcare services in the District. Fenty has ignored the Council’s emergency legislation requiring him to provide analysis of the impact of daycare closings and... more...
- Sep 17, 2009 Building Futures Grads Ready To Roll Last Friday, seventeen newly-minted construction tradesworkers graduated from the Community Services Agency's Multi-Trade Pre-Apprenticeship Training Program at a ceremony held at the Covenant House in Washington. After four full weeks of intensive workforce development training -- using a... more...
- Sep 17, 2009 Free FilmFest Passes! Free passes to the upcoming DC Labor FilmFest have just been mailed out to this year's FilmFest sponsors. Get yours by taking out an ad in the FilmFest program guide, but you must act now! Email cgarlock@dclaborarchives.org for details. Click here for info on the October 13-19... more...
- Sep 17, 2009 Convention Highlights Selected stories about the ongoing AFL-CIO Convention in Pittsburgh, PA from the AFL-CIO Now blog Obama: We Need Strong Unions for a Strong Economy : President Barack Obama had a strong, inspiring message for delegates to the 2009 AFL-CIO Convention: We're going to make this... more...
- Sep 16, 2009 So Easy, Why Can't GEICO Do It? GEICO's ubiquitous caveman ads apparently are not all that's Neanderthal about the auto insurance giant. The company last week replaced their union janitors with non-union cleaners when they ended their contract with Cleaners of America (COA), an SEIU 32BJ signatory and replaced them with... more...
- Sep 16, 2009 Obama Healthcare Rally Excitement Builds Labor turnout is expected to be huge for Thursday’s healthcare rally with President Obama in College Park, as word spread like wildfire across the labor community Tuesday and delegates at the AFL-CIO voted unanimously at its national convention in Pittsburgh to endorse the enactment of... more...
- Sep 16, 2009 Labor Photo: Message From The Heart The Colombian government has installed 40 heart sculptures around the District as part of a million-dollar PR campaign to whitewash labor and environmental abuses in the country’s flower industry. In addition to local demos last week ( Labor, Rights Activists Stage Picket Against Colombia... more...
- Sep 16, 2009 Convention Highlights Selected stories about the ongoing AFL-CIO Convention in Pittsburgh, PA from the AFL-CIO Now blog Developing the Next Generation of Union Members : One of the breakout panels at the AFL-CIO Convention Monday afternoon focused on the critical issue of leadership development among the... more...
- Sep 16, 2009 Labor Passages: Teamster 96's Phil Alter; Crystal Lee Sutton, The Real-Life 'Norma Rae,' Is Dead At 68 Teamster 96’s Phil Alter: Last Friday, Phil Alter (at left), an officer of Teamsters Local 96 at Washington Gas, passed away after a short illness. He was only in his 50’s. “The Community Services Agency and the local labor community has lost a good friend,” said CSA Executive... more...
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