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Today's AFL-CIO Press Clips

Berry Craig
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POLITICS

Businesses want Congress to support safe, quality jobs — so do nearly all Americans (Opinion)

The Hill

By David Levine

September 6, 2021

There’s nothing new about lawmakers in Washington using the business community as a shield for taking unpopular positions. As business leaders, we’ve gotten used to politicians putting words in our mouths on everything from tax policy to health care and beyond. Now, some members of Congress are once again pointing to businesses to justify their opposition to the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act — legislation which would promote safe, quality, well-paying jobs for workers across the economy. When asked about the PRO Act earlier this year, Sen. Krysten Sinema (D-Ariz.) explained: “The way I make decisions on behalf of Arizona and for our constituents is by listening to the business leaders.”

JOINING TOGETHER

Restaged in front of the AFL-CIO’s national headquarters, ‘Working’ the musical labors to be a vehicle for activism

The Washington Post

By Peter Marks

September 7, 2021

“Working” is a just-kind-of-okay musical that has found its just-kind-of-ideal stage: on Black Lives Matter Plaza — in front of the national headquarters of the AFL-CIO. Holding its opening-night performance on Labor Day made for a sweet bit of resonance, too. Performed by nine polished actors in the late-summer Washington air, the 1977 show, based on Studs Terkel’s 1974 book of verbatim interviews with working people of all classes and colors, is a cabaret of everyday exertion. No opera house phantom or hip-hop Founding Father populates this piece; the characters are all ordinary folks — nannies, firefighters, receptionists, truckers — singing about their daily routines and sacrifices.

 

IN THE STATES

AFSCME New Jersey holds unfair-labor-practice strike at SERV

Insider NJ

September 7, 2021

AFSCME New Jersey Council 63 brothers and sisters, joined by labor leaders and rank-and-file members from the New Jersey State AFL-CIO and affiliated unions, plus New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy and other top state elected officials, held a one-day unfair labor practice strike on Labor Day 2021 at the SERV Mercer County office. “It’s unthinkable that an organization like SERV that receives millions of dollars from the state of New Jersey will not treat its employees equitably with a good first contract,” New Jersey State AFL-CIO President Charles Wowkanech said. “These essential workers are caring for people who are going through difficult periods in their lives, and they deserve to be compensated fairly.”

The workers that got us here: A Labor Day reflection (Opinion)

Alabama Political Reporter

By Bren Riley

September 6, 2021

Ever since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Alabama’s workers and union members have gone above and beyond to get mail delivered, food to the table, and to keep our economy going. Labor Day is about our working people. We owe everything–everything–to them. If you don’t have any Labor Day plans, and you haven’t been vaccinated yet, guess what? You now have plans, because the single best way to protect Alabama’s working people is by getting the vaccine.

Progressive group estimates up to 95K Mainers impacted by end of federal unemployment aid

WMTW

By Terry Stackhouse

September 7, 2021

Andy O'Brien, the communications director for the Maine AFL-CIO, says many aging workers are struggling to find work similar to previous employment. “These people have been applying for hundreds of jobs, many of the people we talk to, and they’re not getting a call back,” O'Brien said. Another likely impacted group, he says, is young mothers unable to return to work due to lack of child care options.

RAISING WAGES

$15 an hour isn’t enough: U.S. workers need a living wage

Fortune

By Amy Glasmeier and Alison Omens

September 6, 2021

A living wage is the amount of money needed for a given worker and their family to cover the cost of their minimum needs where they live, including food, childcare, health insurance, housing, transportation, and other necessities like clothing and personal care items. Companies are making headlines by announcing they are raising entry wages to attract workers and keep up with their peers. In light of the proposed federal minimum wage increase, some have made $15 an hour their starting offer. While these wage hikes are necessary and a step in the right direction, $15 an hour is not a living wage for most Americans.  

LABOR AND COMMUNITY

Labor council donates truck load of items to Food Bank of Sweetwater County

Rocket Miner

September 7, 2021

Labor Day Picnic attendees donated a truck load of food to the Food Bank of Sweetwater County and $350 in cash donations for the diaper bank. Southwestern Wyoming Central Labor Council members collected the donations and delivered them to the food bank in Rock Springs. Labor Council president Monte Morlock stated in a press release, “I want to thank all the people who came to the picnic and made donations. It was nice to meet and visit with everyone again. I also want to thank all the volunteers who helped make the picnic a success and Commerce Bank for the use of their grill.”