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Pass the PRO Act: In the States Roundup
It's time once again to take a look at the ways working people are making progress in the states. Click on any of the links to follow the state federations on Twitter.
Alabama AFL-CIO:
Thanks! #1U https://t.co/1erW2lDfG1
— Alabama AFL-CIO (@AlabamaAFLCIO) February 2, 2021
Alaska State AFL-CIO:
Alaska is one of 22 states that saw increases in the percentage of workers covered by a union! This proves that Alaska truly is #UnionStrong! https://t.co/zuEPZ1BVqg
— Alaska AFL-CIO (@AKAFLCIO) February 3, 2021
California Labor Federation:
The pandemic has exposed the structural inequities in our society as BIPOC communities bear the brunt of this disease. We need to increase hazard pay for essential workers, flatten the curve & prioritize vaccines for working-class communities of color. This is devastating. https://t.co/xt6SasiY7r
— California...
The Power and Importance of Unions: What Working People Are Doing This Week
Welcome to our regular feature, a look at what the various AFL-CIO unions and other working family organizations are doing across the country and beyond. The labor movement is big and active—here's a look at the broad range of activities we're engaged in this week.
Actors' Equity:
An important and heartfelt message from our awesome members in Nashville.
With the help of our community, we can get through this difficult moment in time the same way we always do: Together. https://t.co/FSlE721L3Y
— Actors' Equity (@ActorsEquity) February 3, 2021
AFGE:
This is a win for federal workers nationwide. FSIP is a critical component in the federal negotiating process, and we look forward to President Biden's future picks issuing just decisions, unencumbered by political interference. #1u https://t.co/GGghz7GJOw
— AFGE (@AFGENational) February 3, 2021
AFSCME:
A bipartisan call is going...
Black History Month Profiles: Kendrick Roberson
This year, for Black History Month, we're taking a look at a group of leaders who are currently active making Black history across the labor movement. Check back daily for a new profile and meet some of the people working to improve not only the conditions for working people in their community, but also across the country. Today's profile is Kendrick Roberson.
Kendrick Roberson, a member of AFGE Local 2429, is an adjunct professor at the prestigious Pepperdine University in Malibu, California. He is the chair of AFGE's National YOUNG committee and is heavily involved in political and legislative issues, primarily the Black Lives Matter movement, through his advocacy and activism. In his private life, Roberson is a doctoral candidate at the University of Southern California. Roberson also previously spent time as a Department of Defense steward.
Kenneth Quinnell
Fri, 02/05/2021 - 10:01
Service + Solidarity Spotlight: WGAE Supports Investigation into Racism, Misogyny Allegations at CBS
Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
The Writers Guild of America, East, released a statement Wednesday regarding an on-going investigation into alleged misconduct at CBS Television Stations. Some current and former employees of CBS affiliate stations allege they have experienced widespread racism and misogyny in the workplace. “The Writers Guild of America, East has reached out to CBS regarding the investigation of [alleged] misconduct by executives at local CBS television newsrooms. The union made it clear to CBS that employees must be able to tell their truth to investigators without fear of retaliation from management. Further, we asked CBS to meet with us for a contract-obligated Diversity Committee meeting,” the union said.
Kenneth Quinnell
Fri, 02/05/2021 - 09:07
Black History Month Profiles: Irvena Prymus
This year, for Black History Month, we're taking a look at a group of leaders who are currently active making Black history across the labor movement. Check back daily for a new profile and meet some of the people working to improve not only the conditions in their community, but also the conditions for working people across the country. Today's profile is Irvena Prymus.
A nurse who committed her professional life to caring for others in the Miami area, Irvena Prymus helped integrate public schools in Florida. She was a Native American woman who committed her personal life to ensuring her children, whose father was Black, would not needlessly suffer under a Jim Crow regime designed to denigrate the humanity of Black Americans.
Prymus enrolled her daughters in the Orchard Villa School in Miami-Dade County in 1959. Once reporters showed up, the principal sent the pair home. Prymus persisted, taking the school district to court and winning. From there, she fought for equality for Black Floridians in public schools, movie theaters and public beaches. She passed away more than a decade ago and...
Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Local Union Halls Opening Up for Vaccinations
Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
Many community organizations, with the space to do so, are stepping up and providing areas, such as union halls, so more people can be vaccinated against COVID-19. The labor movement is positioned to offer that space in localities across the Central Region. In Toledo, Ohio, UAW locals 12 and 14 are already contributing the space for vaccinations, and it won't be just a one-time thing.
“It’ll be a good feeling, you know, because of COVID we canceled all our union meetings, our retirees meetings. Our neighbors are our friends, so it would be great to open up our doors,” UAW Local 14 President Tony Totty said.
Kenneth Quinnell
Thu, 02/04/2021 - 08:00
Tags:
Community Service, COVID-19
Black History Month Profiles: Vonda McDaniel
This year, for Black History Month, we're taking a look at a group of leaders who are currently active making Black history across the labor movement. Check back daily for a new profile and meet some of the people working to improve not only the conditions in their community, but also the conditions for working people across the country. Today's profile is Vonda McDaniel.
Fiercely loyal to the working people in her Nashville, Tennessee, community, Vonda McDaniel continues to be a powerful leader through her faith and commitment to all people. By bridging the struggles of race, class and gender with her visionary strategy for a better future for all of us, she has always placed the needs of the labor movement before her own. She is a graduate of Tennessee State University. She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., A. Philip Randolph Institute's Nashville chapter and the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists. She was recently appointed to the Tennessee State Workforce Investment Board and serves as vice chair of the board for the Music City Center.
Kenneth Quinnell
Wed, 02/03/...
Service + Solidarity Spotlight: BAC Sponsors National Ladder Safety Month
Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
The Bricklayers (BAC), led by President Timothy Driscoll, is a proud sponsor of the fifth annual National Ladder Safety Month, which runs from Feb. 22 to March 31. National Ladder Safety Month is designed to raise awareness of ladder safety and to decrease the number of ladder-related injuries and fatalities. “Safety is a top priority for our members, and fall prevention measures are key to ensuring a safe work site. Collaborative efforts like National Ladder Safety Month provide an opportunity to raise awareness and promote good fall prevention practices amongst workers and employers across the construction industry and other sectors,” Driscoll said. According to the American Ladder Institute, which created this special safety month, more than 100 people die every year due to ladder-related injuries.
Kenneth...
John J. Sweeney, 1934-2021
John Sweeney, who led an era of transformative change in America’s labor movement, passed away Feb. 1 at the age of 86. Sweeney was one of four children born to Irish immigrants in a working-class Bronx neighborhood shortly after the Great Depression. His parents, James and Agnes Sweeney, worked as a bus driver and a domestic worker, respectively. Sweeney always understood the struggles and the pride of working people.
Sweeney was interested in politics from childhood. His mother took him to see Franklin Delano Roosevelt's funeral train. He often spoke about his father’s loyalty to his union, the Transport Workers Union (TWU), and its colorful president, Mike Quill, with a sense of what it did for his family. Solid meals. A week of vacation. And political rallies with his father. Sweeney met his wife, Maureen Power, while working on a political campaign. He ran for and was elected Democratic district leader and volunteered for John Kennedy’s presidential campaign. But it was the labor movement where it all came together for him.
As a young man, Sweeney held jobs as a grave-digger and building porter while...
AFL-CIO President Emeritus John Sweeney Dies at 86
AFL-CIO President Emeritus John Sweeney died Monday at the age of 86. Sweeney (SEIU) served as president of the AFL-CIO from 1995–2009, and his importance to America's working people can't be overstated. Here is what people across the labor movement and beyond are saying about Sweeney.
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka (UMWA):
John Sweeney was a legend, plain and simple. He was guided into unionism by his Catholic faith, and not a single day passed by when he didn’t put the needs of working people first. John viewed his leadership as a spiritual calling, a divine act of solidarity in a world plagued by distance and division. The son of Irish immigrants, he used work as a way to directly apply his values, consistently exhibiting grit over flash and pursuing progress instead of posturing. He built SEIU into a powerhouse, doubling its membership, earning respect across the labor movement and in the halls of power. Throughout his storied life, John used the lessons he learned as a ground-level union leader to uphold dignity for all working people and expand human rights worldwide. I was...
