If you have something to say...
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If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
Some in the press have said the unions are the problem; that many of us are unrealistic and unwilling to compromise. That's not true. Yes, we fight for our members and the fair rights of workers, but we understand the need to come to a common understanding.
On a range of issues, our state faces tough problems that can only be solved by stakeholders and elected officials working together. The new pension reform legislation, Senate Bill 2404, shows the way.
They know that even under the best circumstances, justice is hard to come by. Now, the Senate is making it virtually impossible for workers to gain the justice they deserve. And what does that say about our democracy?
President Obama has nominated five people to the National Labor Relations Board. Two are Republicans. All are waiting for confirmation by the Senate. These nominees should be confirmed so the NLRB can get back to work.
The need for home care workers is dramatically increasing with each passing year. Yet, low wages, long hours and no benefits will continue to drive more workers out of these important jobs. The tragic result will be more Americans with disabilities denied the services they need.
The bond-rating agency Moody's made itself famous for giving subprime mortgage backed securities triple-A ratings at the peak of the housing bubble. Well, Moody's is back. They announced plans to change the way they treat pension obligations in assessing state and local government debt.
A simple fact of business: You have to spend money to make money. And those who want to privatize education are willing to spend lots of money and effort to push their agenda. One of the main ways they are doing this is through ALEC.
Behind these two disasters is a common thread of greed -- and a common need for unionized resistance. Without unions we'll remain locked in a global race toward the bottom on wages, benefits, and even the sanctity of our own lives.
We can rehabilitate a Social Contract that connects us. With a restored self-image, we can reverse Citizens United, rebalance our political process, and find trade policies that serve society as a whole.
Is this just rationalization for not advancing people (or shipping jobs overseas), a justification to avoid feeling guilty about not passing the reigns to a generation champing at the bit for their turn to be in charge, or something more?
Newsies on Broadway is an absolute joy to see. The music and choreography help make it a modern classic, but what stands out most is the immaculate set that caters to and escorts in a New York unseen since the turn of the 20th century.
It's doubtful those faux-admirers of German labor unions will remain consistent and approve of the Lufthansa strike. That's because they despise anything that disrupts commerce.
I have yet to see a perfect piece of legislation, and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), often referred to as Obamacare, has real flaws. But even at this early stage, its accomplishments are important.
The household is a deeply traditional and extraordinarily modern, intensely global and local, workplace. Linking work and family, public and private, domestic workers are schooling the labor movement in new concepts of respect, self-determination and social equity.
Parents need the flexibility to take a child who suddenly develops a high fever to the doctor or to attend a meeting with their child's teacher. The comp time bill House Republican introduced last Thursday does not address these needs at all.
What change in Colombia could possibly have led a Democratic president to implement a trade agreement over the objections of Democrats in Congress with the country infamous around the world for its violence against unionists?
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