POLITICS
PRO Act levels the playing field between boss and workers (Opinion)
The Gainesville Sun
By Lanny Mathis
June 14, 2021
States with “right to work” laws have lower average wages, lower benefits and decreased safety on the job. This is by design. On top of that, the National Labor Relations Act of 1935, the backbone of labor law in America, excludes domestic workers, farmworkers and independent contractors, leading to more precarity and artificially low wages in these fields. The PRO Act is seeking to undo decades of laws that have kept workers low-paid and at risk on the job.
LABOR AND ECONOMY
Biden’s nominations for the Fed can change the economy. But his first is stuck in limbo.
The Washington Post
By Rachel Siegel
June 14, 2021
In the coming months, the Biden White House will have major opportunities to influence the makeup of the Federal Reserve, including whether to renominate Jerome H. Powell to another term as chair. But after six months in office, White House hasn’t moved to fill an empty seat on the Fed’s seven-member board of governors, in the midst of the worst economic crisis in a decade. Of the Fed’s top officials, everyone except Gov. Lael Brainard are Republicans nominated by former president Trump. Biden’s first pick would come at a critical time for the economy, as rising inflation and worker shortages complicate the recovery.
AMAZON
Amazon's labor exploitation is a return to the 1920s — and unions are our best hope out
Salon
By Randy Korgan
June 14, 2021
Amazon claims to be innovative, but its strategies of market dominance and labor exploitation are as old as capitalism itself, and were perfected by predecessors like Standard Oil, General Motors, US Steel, AT&T, Walmart and Microsoft. My union, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, views this as history repeating itself. The Roaring '20s were great for those at the top, but meant massive exploitation of workers. As we embark further into the 2020s, the Teamsters will make sure that Amazon cannot repeat a history where workers suffered acutely to make ends meet and were frequently injured or even killed on the job while company executives stuffed their pockets with the profits.
JOINING TOGETHER
How Unite Here Turned the West’s Biggest Red State Blue
The Nation
By Sasha Abramsky
June 14, 2021
Unite Here local 11, which operates in Southern California and Arizona, has been at the forefront of progressive activism in Los Angeles for more than three decades. In 1989, an insurgent campaign for president by Maria Elena Durazo (now a California state senator) wrested control of the local from a more conservative leadership, setting the stage for it to swing leftward in the following decade. The majority of the Unite Here activists who subsequently took center stage were women, opposed to the anti-immigrant stance of the state’s then governor, Pete Wilson, and determined to make their mark on California politics.
Public transit workers in York County vote to join union
Portland Press-Herald
By Associated Press
June 14, 2021
Public transit workers in three southern Maine communities are joining a union to help them negotiate higher wages. Thirty-two drivers, mechanics and other workers in the Biddeford, Saco and Old Orchard Beach transit service voted to join the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 714 last week, officials said.
IN THE STATES
Insider NJ
June 14, 2021
“When labor and management bargain in good faith, management must honor the conditions of that contract and not undercut the basic importance of job protection,” New Jersey State AFL-CIO President Charles Wowkanech said. “This law will ensure collective bargaining agreements are not undermined due to the subcontracting of jobs while a contract is in effect, and it encourages further dialogue between both parties in the best interest of all parties involved,” Wowkanech concluded.
Danville Labor Day Parade is back
Yahoo! News
By Jennifer Bailey
June 14, 2021
Danville's Labor Day Parade is back this year. It was canceled last year due to COVID-19. On Monday, Sept. 6, the Vermilion County Federation of Labor AFL — CIO will again sponsor the "Largest Downstate Parade in Illinois" on Labor Day.