Call Your Senator Today

The Senate will take up the Bring Jobs Home Act tomorrow. This bill—S. 2884—would stop allowing corporations to deduct their moving expenses when they offshore good American jobs to other countries.

Call your senators now at 888-659-9401 and tell them to vote YES on the Bring Jobs Home Act tomorrow. Even if you already have called, your senators need to hear from you again.

The vote on this measure comes as news continues to trickle out about Mitt Romney’s tenure at Bain Capital, when companies it managed outsourced good jobs abroad.^[1]

And this week, a new report showed Romney’s tax plan would create even more incentives for corporations to ship jobs overseas.^[2]

Romney is not the only politician, though, who has been on the wrong side of job creation for working families. Politicians continue to support measures that reward corporate CEOs and leave the rest of us to take the hit.

Now they have a chance to move toward a comprehensive plan to stop outsourcing and create family-sustaining jobs in the United States. This not only must include passing the Bring Jobs Home Act but should also:

• Tax U.S. corporations’ overseas income the same way domestic income is taxed, so they do not shift income and jobs overseas just to lower their tax bill;
• Make sure trade agreements like the Trans-Pacific Partnership are fair and benefit working families—not just multinational corporations;
• Stop currency manipulation by our trading partners; and
• Bar companies that send call center jobs overseas from receiving federal grants and tax breaks.

Please call your senators today at 888-659-9401 and ask for their support for the Bring Jobs Home Act.

^[1] www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2012/07/
14/evidence_mounts_of_mitt_romneys_continuing_ties_to_bain_after_1999
^[2] www.americanprogressaction.org/issues/2012/07/hanlon_outsourcing.html

Source: AFL-CIO

Romney Working To Eliminate The US Postal Service

Mitt Romney and his economic advisors like Kevin Hassett have a clear message in how a Romney administration would address the US Postal Service. It’s fairly simple they would eliminate it.

See Full Story  (New Hampshire Labor News)

Wisconsin Labor Jams Capitol To Resist Governor’s Attacks

Howard Ryan |  February 16, 2011

Wisconsin’s new Republican governor inadvertently issued a wake-up call to the state’s labor movement by announcing legislation February 11 that would crush public employee unions.

Scott Walker made the proposals just two days after similar measures were unveiled in Ohio.

Wisconsin’s labor movement and allies mobilized three days of emergency rallies in Madison, the state capital, ahead of an expected vote in the legislature February 17. Thirty thousand drumming, chanting protesters descended on the Capitol February 16. Some made plans to camp out there that night.

Building trades members planned to set up a grilling operation to feed bratwurst to workers and students there.

Madison schools had closed that day when about half the teachers called in sick. About 800 Madison high school students walked out of class and marched to join protests. University of Wisconsin students, who had planned an action around university funding, turned instead to workers’ rights and brought an estimated 1,000 protesters to the Capitol.

A thousand teachers and supporters stopped traffic as they walked from Wisconsin AFL-CIO headquarters to Walker’s house near Milwaukee. Two hundred protesters turned out when the governor spoke in Eau Claire.

A massive phonebanking and door-knocking campaign urged voters to contact the more moderate Republicans in the state senate. In the face of such massive resistance, Republican legislators signaled a willingness to back off late Wednesday.

A PART OF HISTORY

Jim Cavanaugh, president of Madison’s 90,000-member South Central Federation of Labor, described an outpouring of solidarity. An AFL-CIO news conference brought private sector union leaders to declare their support for embattled public employee unions.

In an email, Dave Poklinkoski, president of a utility workers local, said, “The breadth and depth of the solidarity at these rallies is beyond anything witnessed in Madison in living memory.” He invited friends to come “be a part of history.”

Walker would eliminate collective bargaining for public employees on all matters except wages. Any wage increase surpassing the consumer price index would have to be approved by voters. His plan calls for state employees to contribute much more to their pensions and health insurance costs—the equivalent of an 8 percent pay cut.

For good measure, Walker added that he had briefed the National Guard, so it would be ready to address any potential disruption of services caused by union protests. A veterans group slammed the governor, asking if he understood the military is not a “personal intimidation force to be mobilized to quash political dissent.” A spokesman later said soldiers would only replace prison guards.

Police and firefighter unions would be exempt from the new law. Both of Milwaukee’s uniformed unions endorsed Walker’s gubernatorial bid last year, leaving other unionists in the state muttering about backroom deals. But firefighters, to great applause, joined the throngs descending on the Capitol.

‘BUDGET REPAIR’

Walker is selling his anti-bargaining proposal as part of a “Budget Repair Bill” aimed at addressing the state’s immediate $136 million deficit as well as a larger deficit of $3.6 billion projected for the next two-year budget cycle. He says his proposals on health and pension contributions would save $30 million and help avert wide layoffs of state employees.

But AFSCME Council 24 points out that state employees have already sacrificed for years, taking unpaid furlough days and heavier workloads. Late last year, they offered a contract containing $100 million in concessions—an offer legislators rejected and the governor ignores.

The Economic Policy Institute think-tank said Wisconsin public employees actually earn 5 percent less in wages and benefits than private-sector counterparts, when workers with similar experience and education levels are compared.

Much of the governor’s proposal does not concern the state budget at all, but serves to cripple public employee unions. It would prohibit collecting member dues through payroll deductions and end any requirement that employees pay union dues at all. It would require union bargaining units to hold an annual certification vote in order to maintain representation.

Cavanaugh believes Walker may have overreached politically and that, assuming the immediate threat can be turned back, the labor movement can reap benefits.

“We’re getting a lot of people off their butts, seeing what these right-wing fanatics are capable of,” he said. “We’re achieving more union solidarity than we’ve seen in a long time.”

SOURCE: LABORnotes

Message from Labor Cartoonist Mike Konopacki

"For the last week, working people in Wisconsin have staged a rebellion against a brutal attack on the rights of workers by a governor and legislature dominated by sociopathic Republicans. These plutocrats want to destroy collective bargaining for all public employees and turn Wisconsin into a right to work state for private employees.

Gary Huck and I both grew up in Wisconsin. Gary was raised in Racine and I grew up in Manitowoc. Both towns are on the shores of Lake Michigan and both towns were manufacturing centers. Racine and Manitowoc were devastated by the Reagan recession of the 1980s and are still part of the Rust Belt. 

I've lived in Madison since 1971 when I came here to finish college. Wisconsin was the birthplace of Fightin’ Bob LaFollette, the founder of the Wisconsin progressive movement. Progressivism merged into the New Deal and Wisconsin was influential in the creation of laws and culture that respected working people. This is from the Wisconsin Historical Society : “Wisconsin's workers and reformers made significant contributions to the history of labor in the United States, helping to enact legislation such as workers' compensation and unemployment insurance that served as models for similar laws in other states. The study of labor history itself also began in Wisconsin when University of Wisconsin economist John R. Commons set out to document the history of work and labor in America at the turn of the twentieth century. Commons and his associates also joined labor leaders, the business community, and politicians to bring about some of Wisconsin's groundbreaking social policies.”

Wisconsin was also the birthplace of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, formed in 1932. They created what would later become Wisconsin State Employees Union/Council 24. We are proud to say that Council 24 is one of our subscribers. The progressive pro-labor culture dominated the state until the dismal 1950s when Joe McCarthy was elected and launched the McCarthy era of brutal repression of working people.

We are now experiencing another period of repression. The workers of Wisconsin know their history and know what is at stake. Again, robber barons are trying to destroy our traditions and the history that our forbearers fought and died for. We are determined to preserve our proud history and fight against the forces of decay.

In the election of 2008 we thought that change was coming. But change never comes from the top down. It comes from the bottom up. Allow me to use a football metaphor. The Green Bay Packers won this year’s Super Bowl. The Packers, the smallest market city in the NFL, are named after a meat packing plant in Green Bay. They are not owned by a plutocrat, they are a non-profit owned by the community. To Wisconsin, Packer football is as much a part of our tradition as the labor movement.

In the Super Bowl the team, devastated by injuries all season, lost two of their top players to injury in the first half. The game went back and forth, and in the fourth quarter the Packers found themselves in trouble. Kevin Greene, outside linebackers coach, pulled linebacker Clay Matthews aside and told him that the time had come to take control of the game. “It is time!” He said. Matthews helped cause a fumble that lead to victory.

For those of us who believe in dignity of workers, and believe in fighting for the least among us, IT IS TIME. Wisconsin workers are up to the challenge."

Wisconsinites organize to block Gov. Walker's unionbusting

Wisconsin is the state to keep an eye on this week, as Republican Gov. Scott Walker has declared open war on his state's public workers' unions.  Last week, Walker even went so far as to alert the National Guard to be ready in case of mass protests. Calling him the "cheesehead Pharaoh," writer Harold Meyerson compares Walker to autocrats like Hosni Mubarak, and wonders how far his repression of workers will go.

The response from the people of Wisconsin has been unequivocal: show teachers and state social workers and administrative staffers some respect and stop threatening them with budget cuts and the National Guard.  Students, teachers, firefighters, private sector union workers, and thousands more showed up Tuesday and Wednesday mornings at the state capitol building in Madison to stop Walker in his tracks.

There's a roundup of Wisconsin rally schedules and news reports over at We Party Patriots. At least two separate campaigns span across labor and progressive groups, and each has a Facebook and Twitter presence: StopScottWalker and NotMyWisconsin.  Check them out, and see if you think Walker will be able to stay true to his threat not to bargain with unions.

The scene yesterday inside the state capitol, Madison, WI. Photo by @millbot via Twitter.

Source: ILCA Insider Newsletter

Statement from Senator Hansen: Governor is misleading state. Issue is not benefits, but Governor’s assault on workers’ rights and middle class families

(Madison)—State Senator Dave Hansen (D-Green Bay) called on Governor Walker to stop misleading the public on the contents of his budget “adjustment” bill saying that the issue is not employee contributions for benefits, but the Governor’s assault on the rights of Wisconsin workers:

“The Governor’s actions are a lie by omission. He is trying to convince the people of this state that there is nothing extreme in his bill, but nothing could be further from the truth.

Governor Walker knows that public employees are willing to contribute to their benefits. He is trying to eliminate over 50 years of collective bargaining rights that allow workers and their employers to negotiate over issues involving workplace safety, patient wellbeing and educational opportunity for our children.

Wisconsin has a long, proud history of working together to resolve our problems. We face our challenges together. We don’t divide our citizens against each other and vilify working men and women, especially not for political gain as Governor Walker and Republican leaders are doing with this legislation.”

Statement by Wisconsin State AFL-CIO President Phil Neuenfeldt on President Obama’s State of the Union Address

We strongly support the vision laid out by President Obama on supporting infrastructure and American innovation to create good jobs right here in the United States.

The working families of Wisconsin are ready to work with the President and hold him to his promise. Labor, business and everyday Wisconsinites are united in our desire to strengthen our economy and communities -- by rebuilding schools, bridges, highways and investing in green jobs.

A spending freeze, however, will slow down job growth -- it's simply the wrong medicine at the wrong time. And it is essential to preserve our retirement security programs -- Social Security and Medicare.

We must move to put the 112, 082 unemployed Wisconsinites back to work and rebuild bargaining power and good jobs for our middle class.

Statement by Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis on Bureau of Labor Statistics report on union members in 2010

WASHINGTON – ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis issued the following statement regarding the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ annual “Union Members – 2010” report released on Friday, January 21.

“The Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that, in 2010, the unionization rate of employed wage and salary workers was 11.9 percent, down from 12.3 percent in 2009. Among private sector employees, the rate dropped to 6.9 percent from 7.2 percent in 2009.

“The data also shows the median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary union members were $917 per week, compared to $717 for workers not represented by unions. For Latinos, the wage disparity is even greater with union members earning an average of $771 compared to $512 for workers not represented by unions, a difference of 33.6 percent.

“When coupled with existing data showing that union members have access to better health care, retirement and leave benefits, today’s numbers make it clear that union jobs are not only good jobs, they are central to restoring our middle class.

“As workers across the country continue to face lower wages and difficulty finding work due to the recent recession, these numbers demonstrate the pressing need to provide workers with a voice in the workplace and protect their right to organize and bargain collectively.”

(From the Secretary of Labor regarding the Bureau of Labor Statistics union member report for 2010)

Special Session Serves Corporate Special Interests, Not Job Creation

Statement from Wisconsin State AFL-CIO President Phil Neuenfeldt:

Governor Walker called a Special Legislative Session under the guise of job creation.  Yet there is scarcely a job associated with any of the four bills that passed this week.  These new laws will add millions of dollars to Wisconsin’s deficit, chip away at the safety net for our most vulnerable citizens, and amount to a handout for companies who have made no employment commitments in return.

Rather than pushing for measures that would alleviated the jobs crisis, Senate Bill 1 blatantly places the interests of negligent employers over the needs of workers injured or killed on the job.  It also strips the citizens of Wisconsin of important consumer protections.  This so-called reform doesn’t create a single job, and yet, it does immeasurable harm to ordinary people seeking justice.

Wisconsin State AFL-CIO launches Wisconsin Jobs Campaign

Labor unions and community allies hold Governor Walker accountable for the creation of family-supporting jobs

(Milwaukee, WI) -  Governor Walker made job creation a centerpiece of his campaign with a promise to create 250,000 jobs for Wisconsin within his first term.  The Wisconsin State AFL-CIO, along with community groups and concerned citizens, intend to hold Governor Walker accountable for the promised jobs and to ensure that any job created includes family supporting wages and benefits. 

“Wisconsin needs jobs and it needs jobs now.  Temporary, part-time work is different than a full-time job with benefits.  The goal of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO is to make certain that new jobs are stable jobs that can support a family.  The Wisconsin Jobs Campaign will be a way to track how many jobs are created or lost over the next four years.  I look forward to cheering Governor Walker on to our mutual goal of job creation,” said Phil Neuenfeldt, President of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO.

Unfortunately, Wisconsin starts with a substantially larger jobs deficit because of Governor Walker's rejection of federal funds for a high-speed passenger rail line that would have created thousands of jobs.  However, it is the hope of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO that our state can overcome the deficit and create 250,000+ good jobs. 

Wisconsin State AFL-CIO President Phil Neuenfeldt on the Departure of Talgo Jobs from Milwaukee

While it is extremely disappointing to learn that high speed train manufacturer Talgo plans to leave Milwaukee at the end of their lease in 2012, it’s not really surprising, nor can you blame the company. Governor-elect Scott Walker sent a clear message that high speed rail and the family supporting jobs that come with it aren’t welcome in our state.

Statement by Wisconsin State AFL-CIO President Phil Neuenfeldt on the Need to Pass the Unemployment Extension

“Don’t Leave the Jobless Out in the Cold”

At midnight last night, 800,000 unemployed workers lost their unemployment insurance benefits.  By the end of December, 2 million are projected to lose their unemployment insurance.  Shame on those in Congress who aren't supporting this emergency lifeline.

The domino effect of the unemployment insurance expiration will affect more than just the families of the unemployed.  When jobless families are unable to pay their mortgage, buy groceries or generate tax revenue, local communities, businesses and governments all suffer.  The expiration of unemployment insurance benefits slows our economy down when we need to speed it up.

The Wisconsin State AFL-CIO and working families are calling on Congress to approve a one year emergency extension of unemployment insurance.  Never before has Congress allowed unemployment insurance to expire when so many people are looking for work but unable to find jobs.  But instead of focusing on working families, the newly-elected GOP Congress is pushing to pass tax cuts for millionaires by extending the Bush tax cuts for those making over $250,000.

Thank you to Wisconsin Representatives Baldwin, Obey, Kagen, Kind and Moore for supporting the extension of benefits.  Representatives Petri, Ryan and Sensenbrenner voted against even a short-term extension.

Don’t leave Wisconsin’s economy in the cold this December.  Keep our communities and jobless families afloat; support a one year emergency extension of unemployment insurance.

Senator Collins’ remarks on USPS from yesterday’s Senate session

Senator Collins’ remarks on USPS from yesterday’s Senate session
Source: postalnews blog

Wisconsin State AFL-CIO Welcomes the Improved Clean Energy Jobs Act... Latest proposal makes bill better for working families

“We are excited about the proposed modifications to the Clean Energy Jobs Act. The working families that we represent appreciate the improvements made to increase and to speed up job creation,” says Phil Neuenfeldt, Secretary-Treasurer of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO. “The provisions added to allow job creating conservation and efficiency to count towards the Renewable Portfolio Standard and the clarification to the nuclear language are both positive changes.”

Wisconsin has no natural gas, no coal and no oil. We currently send $16 billion out of our state every year to meet our energy needs.

The Clean Energy Jobs Act will create clean energy that works for Wisconsin, and is made in Wisconsin. This is a huge opportunity to reduce our dependence on foreign fuel and make sure that Wisconsin doesn’t lose green jobs to countries like China.

“The jobs created by this legislation are good, family-wage jobs,” says Neuenfeldt. “This is the right choice for the environment and our economy.”

Trumka Warns ‘Forces of Hate’ Fanning Flames of Workers’ Economic Anger

An economy that seems to work for just a privileged few, 11 million vanished jobs and a bailout for banks and Wall Street—but not working families—is fueling justified anger in workers. Speaking last night at the Institute of Politics at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka told an audience about the “forces of hate” and “radio voices” that are frantically fanning the flames of that justified anger to divide working people.

There are forces in our country that are working hard to convert justifiable anger about an economy that only seems to work for a few of us into racist and homophobic hate and violence directed at our President and heroes like Congressman John Lewis. Most of all, those forces of hate seek to divide working people—to turn our anger against each other. [Full Story]

Source:  AFL-CIO Now Blog

Wisconsin State AFL-CIO Endorses Green to Gold Legislation Revolving loan fund needed to create good, sustainable jobs

(Madison, March 25) – Today Rep. Cory Mason and Sen. Julie Lassa introduced legislation to create the Green to Gold fund, initially proposed by Governor Doyle in his 2010 State of the State Address. The Wisconsin State AFL-CIO strongly supports this bill because it will create and retain high-quality jobs while ensuring that Wisconsin companies are competitive in the new economy.

“Working people will lose out if our state sits on the sidelines of green innovation,” says Phil Neuenfeldt, Wisconsin State AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer. “Many Wisconsin manufacturers want to invest in energy efficiency technologies, but they don’t have the means to get started. The Green to Gold fund will help launch a more sustainable economy.”

Green to Gold is a revolving loan fund which will align existing state resources and federal dollars to ensure that Wisconsin’s manufacturers have the capital they need to invest in energy efficiency, use renewable energy, and make products that support a green economy.

Reducing energy costs through efficiency makes manufacturers more competitive and profitable by lowering their production costs. Retooling old facilities to higher energy standards is essential for long-term economic recovery.

“Wisconsin’s workforce is a tremendous asset in the global economy. Productivity, skill and quality set us apart, and will continue to do so as long as we make the investments needed to stay ahead,” says Neuenfeldt. “The Green to Gold fund will make sure that both our natural and our human resources are employed wisely.”

Wisconsin State AFL-CIO announces a new Good Jobs Agenda

Wisconsin Sustainable Jobs Act and high-speed rail development are a great start

Madison - A better economic future is possible for Wisconsin. Many of the jobs that we have lost during the Great Recession are not coming back but they can, and they must, be replaced with jobs that are just as good or better. Wisconsin doesn’t have to become a second-class state with high unemployment and a deteriorating standard of living.

We can rebuild Wisconsin with jobs that we can be proud of, but it will take a commitment from all of us to:
1. Create a Green Economy for working people.
2. Support and expand our manufacturing sector.
3. Strengthen the public services that make Wisconsin a great place to live.

As part of our Good Jobs Agenda, the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO strongly supports the Wisconsin Sustainable Jobs Act proposed by State Rep. Cory Mason. This legislation will help create a demand for skilled workers, and develop career pathways for potentially thousands of Wisconsin residents to move into family-supporting weatherization jobs.

“The Wisconsin Sustainable Jobs Act creates high-quality employment for individuals, as well as greater ecological and economic stability for our state. It will even contribute to energy independence for our nation. This is a win across the board,” says Phil Neuenfeldt, Wisconsin State AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer.

The legislation includes prevailing wage requirements; ensures that a percentage of all of the weatherization work is done by local, unemployed or low-income workers; and requires contractors to participate in apprenticeship programs.

“Rep. Mason should be commended for his attention to the needs of unemployed Wisconsin residents,” says Neuenfeldt. “It is critical that we hire within the state, train people properly, and make sure that they can support their families as they work towards a greener future for all of us.”

The unveiling of Wisconsin Sustainable Jobs Act comes on the heels of another important green jobs break through. Last week, Governor Jim Doyle and U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan announced Wisconsin is receiving $823 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to build high-speed passenger rail service, creating an estimated 13,000 high-quality jobs.

Wisconsin is receiving $810 million to build high-speed passenger rail service between Milwaukee and Madison, including construction of track, passenger stations, signaling and other infrastructure improvements. Our state is also receiving $12 million to install crossovers between Chicago and Milwaukee. In addition to Wisconsin’s funding, the Minnesota Department of Transportation has received $1 million to make final determinations on a route between Wisconsin and the Twin Cities.

"These family-wage construction jobs are going to put a lot of our neighbors back on their feet," said Neuenfeldt. "Not only that, but thanks to the Obama and Doyle administrations, Wisconsin is poised to be the nation’s leader in high-speed rail manufacturing."

In July, Governor Doyle signed an agreement with the Spanish train manufacturer Talgo to establish new assembly and maintenance facilities in the state.

Wisconsin State AFL-CIO Good Jobs Agenda

1. Create a Green Economy for working people.
Governor Doyle’s Global Warming Task Force recommendations provide a needed platform from which to discuss the development of new jobs in the green economy. However, the green economy does not automatically translate into green dollars in the pockets of Wisconsin workers.
When Wisconsin taxpayers invest in the Green Economy, the jobs should stay in Wisconsin.

It is essential that workers in newly created green jobs be able to bargain for the wages, benefits and working conditions necessary to stabilize and rebuild our communities. The American middle class was created through the higher wages and benefits negotiated by millions of workers through their unions. In other words, green jobs should be union jobs.

2. Support and expand our manufacturing sector.
Wisconsin’s workforce is competitive in the global economy. Productivity, skill and quality set us apart, and will continue to do so as long as we make the investments needed to stay ahead.

Workforce training continues to be a priority, but retraining is pointless unless there are new jobs.

The manufacturing sector needs support through strategic and responsible public investment to help businesses replace outdated equipment and procedures with the technologies that will make new jobs possible.

3. Strengthen the public services that make Wisconsin a great place to live.
When public sector budgets are slashed it is a double blow. Not only do we lose family-sustaining jobs, but citizens who rely on our schools, courts, hospitals, public safety systems and other institutions are at risk of not receiving the quality services that they deserve.

There are currently over 3,000 vacant positions in state government alone, the result of employees who retired without being replaced, due to budget cuts.

Tight budgets are often used as an excuse to dismantle quality public services through outsourcing or privatizing public sector jobs. This often results in inferior service at a higher cost to taxpayers. Accurate cost-benefit analysis and strict accountability are needed any time that privatization is considered to protect the interest of taxpayers.