Aug
2012 28
2012 28
Nat’l Fed. of the Blind Protests Goodwill’s Use of “Special Minimum Wage” to Underpay Disabled
On Saturday, the National Federation of the Blind’s nationwide protest against Goodwill Industries made it to Kansas where local advocacy groups protested in front of the company’s Wichita location. Leonard Silkey Jr., an NFB member and former Goodwill employee, was there because he experienced firsthand the injustice of people with...
Aug
2012 27
2012 27
REPORT: Between ’01 and ’11, Trade Deficit With China Eliminated or Displaced 2.7 Million U.S. Jobs
A new report from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) reveals the effect that China’s admittance to the World Trade Organization (WTO) has had on U.S. workers and the domestic economy. According to Robert E. Scott, researcher of The China Toll, “between 2001 and 2011, the trade deficit with China eliminated or displaced more than 2.7 ...
Aug
2012 27
2012 27
ESPN Writer Calls Out Union Members and the Middle Class for Not Showing Solidarity With NFL Refs
Sports writers are often unfairly judged as “less than” journalists. In the age of shock jock sports radio hosts and their loud, sometimes asinine opinions, we rarely give credit to those who do the profession proud. But there is a labor situation in sports that we, as a collective sports nation, are all currently ignoring. ...
Aug
2012 27
2012 27
In PA, Gene Stilp Refused Donations Over $2,500, Turned to Social Media to Win the 11th District Primary
In the Citizens United States of America, there is growing fear that no man or woman will ever again be elected without shelling out big money to corporate and political interests. But in Pennsylvania’s newly redrawn 11th Congressional district, Gene Stilp, a lifelong political activist with an impressive resume, is running on the promise of...
Aug
2012 24
2012 24
YOUR OWN WORST ENEMY: Romney’s Economic Plan Hurts Red States, Helps Wealthy Dem Areas
An interesting report made some noise online this week by showing that most Republicans planning to vote for Mitt Romney are doing so against their own interests. The report and corresponding map — “Romney Economic Plan Hurts Red States, Helps Wealthy Urbanites, While Obama Boosts Rural Areas” — allows readers to see...
Aug
2012 24
2012 24
From ’07 to ’10, Corporate Executive Tax Deductions Cost the U.S. $30,000,000,000
In recent years, the labor community has rightfully hammered corporate executives for their rising compensation and tax dodging while employees are asked to make larger and larger concessions (see Caterpillar, Verizon, Boeing, etc.). Now, the Economic Policy Institute has issued a new report showing the effect executive tax deductions have had on...
Aug
2012 24
2012 24
GRAPHIC: As OSHA’s Budget Drops, Workplace Fatalities Rise (and Other Obvious, Important Conclusions)
Newly compiled data in the form of a stunning infographic from Compliance and Safety analyzes the latest information on workplace fatalities. While workplace fatalities have been dropping, there remains a clear correlation between the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) budget and the number of victims at work. Small steps...
Aug
2012 23
2012 23
Minnesota Landscaper Ordered to Pay $500,000 to Misclassified Employees
The Department of Labor’s (DOL) initiative to crack down on the practice of employee misclassification has arrived in Minnesota where a landscaping service was found to have misclassified 57 employees as independent contractors. As part of its consent agreement with the DOL, Hawkins Tree and Landscaping Service, based in Shakopee, has been...
Aug
2012 23
2012 23
MAHER: “Election time used to mean get out the vote, now it means ‘you want to vote? Get out!’”
The frequently controversial, frequently brilliant Bill Maher recently dug into the motivations behind the GOP’s national voter suppression agenda. In the wake of a Pennsylvania Judge declaring that state’s voter ID law constitutional, the topic continues to inch toward the forefront of political discussion. Maher’s response to...
Aug
2012 22
2012 22
TRUTH FAIRY: L.A. Mayor, L.A. Times Attempt to Expose the Horrors of Prop 32
On the surface, California’s Prop 32 looks like a mild reform intended to combat “special interest” money in politics. Upon further review, it is disturbingly anti-union and wildly ideological as it creates loopholes for political action by corporate raiders while preventing unions from using member dues for the same purposes....
Aug
2012 22
2012 22
Ryan-Sponsored U.S.-Bahrain Free Trade Agreement Being Maligned by Both Parties
Political rumblings in Bahrain are having an unlikely effect on the GOP Presidential ticket because the Paul Ryan-sponsored U.S.-Bahrain Free Trade Agreement is being viewed as a failure. Signed in 2005 with large support from Congress, the agreement was seen as a way to spur democratic improvements in the Middle East. In exchange for access ...
Aug
2012 22
2012 22
THE ONION: Panama Canal “Went Over Budget by 10,000 Dead Laborers”
In the world of The Onion, nothing is sacred, not even early century death tolls caused by hard labor. In this hilarious and depressing look back in time, the Internet’s most “no he didn’t” website tackles the opening of the 1914 Panama Canal, lamenting that it “went over budget by 10,000 dead laborers.”...
