Outdated labor laws have hampered our fundamental right to join together and negotiate for better wages, benefits and working conditions. The Protecting the Right to Organize Act will empower America’s workers and make our economy work for working people.
I'm thinking about my interview with United Mine Workers of America President Cecil Roberts a half-dozen Labor Days ago.
In Paducah for the city's 2013 Labor Day parade and picnic, he said it was time for unions to take back two big issues the labor-haters had hijacked from our movement: “The Bible and patriotism.”
I am grateful for the impact unions have had on American life.
America was changed because of unions. We have the forty-hour week, overtime, pensions, safety laws, vacations and workers' compensation due to their efforts. It was mainly through their efforts that we got such a large middle class.
I know union membership is one-third of what it was in the 50's (roughly 11 million down from the 33 million high).
The longest economic recovery on record and a state unemployment rate of 4.3% sounds like a strong foundation for Kentuckians’ prosperity. But a close look at the numbers this Labor Day shows an economy where many Kentucky communities still lack jobs, especially the quality jobs families need to thrive.
Attendance at a campaign rally for Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin that featured Donald Trump Jr. was so poor on Thursday afternoon that the few people there were asked to leave their seats and crowd around the stage.
Andy Beshear is taking to social media to weigh in on today's court ruling, which allows Matt Bevin to intervene to try and stop the Attorney General's ongoing fight to hold big drug companies accountable for the opioid crisis and rising drug prices:
United Mine Workers of America Official: “Governor Bevin and his administration made things worse by failing to enforce this vital protection for workers.”
The UMWA is weighing in on the major news report from the Lexington Herald-Leader that: "Not a single coal company formed in Kentucky within the past five years has posted a bond required by state law to protect miner’s wages if their employer suddenly shuts down... In addition, officials in Gov. Matt Bevin’s administration urged lawmakers last year to pass a bill that would have eliminated the requirement."
