Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Today's Teamster News 05.08.13

Ex-South Carolina governor Sanford beats Colbert Busch in special House election  Washington Post   ...The conservative electorate of South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District voted Tuesday to resurrect the political career of disgraced former governor Mark Sanford (R) by returning him to his former House seat...
Texas tragedy may cost fertilizer plant only $1 million  RT Network   ...Fifteen people died and more than 200 others were injured following an explosion at a West, Texas fertilizer plant last month, and lawyers for the facility now admit that the plant’s owners aren’t prepared to pay for the damages totaling more than $100 million in destruction. But the attorneys say the factory had only $1 million in liability coverage...
Death toll of Bangladesh building collapse tops 700   Associated Press   ...Hundreds of survivors of last month’s collapse of a building housing garment factories in Bangladesh protested for compensation Tuesday, as the death toll from the country’s worst-ever industrial disaster passed 700...
Churn, baby, churn: The labor market won’t be healthy until people feel like they can quit their jobs Washington Post   ...America needs more quitters. Or the job market does, anyway. That’s the lesson to draw from the latest Labor Department report, which shows the soft underbelly of the U.S. jobs picture. The unemployment rate may be falling and the number of jobs rising. But there isn’t enough “churn” going on, a hallmark of a healthy job market, in which people freely move between positions...
Overtime pay vs. time off: GOP wants a choice, but Democrats say plan would hurt workers  Associated Press   ...It seems like a simple proposition: give employees who work more than 40 hours a week the option of taking paid time off instead of overtime pay...
Online Sales Tax Bill Passes Senate  Huffington Post   ...The Senate sided with traditional retailers and financially strapped state and local governments Monday by passing a bill that would widely subject online shopping – for many a largely tax-free frontier – to state sales taxes...
FAA reviewing lost pay for furloughed employees  The Washington Post   ...The Federal Aviation Administration says it is reviewing how and whether to make whole thousands of employees who were forced to take unpaid days off in April before Congress intervened, suspending the furloughs...
Exposing ALEC's Agenda to Defund and Dismantle Public Education (opinion)  Huffington Post   ...Iron Man 3 just opened this past weekend, followed soon by more would-be blockbusters. I'm sure a lot of these movies will be entertaining, but none will be more important or relevant than a half-hour documentary I recently watched: The United States of ALEC...
Hertz relocating corporate headquarters to Florida following Dollar Thrifty acquisition  Associated Press   ...Hertz will move its headquarters from New Jersey to Florida, putting the company in the heart of a key travel market and trimming corporate expenses after its $2.3 billion buyout of one-time rival, Dollar Thrifty...
South Jersey firms facing OSHA fines from Sandy repair jobs  Press of Atlantic City   ...Federal inspectors have assessed at least 26 companies with a total of $110,000 in fines for unsafe workplaces in New Jersey shore towns while cleaning up and repairing damage from Hurricane Sandy, an analysis of U.S. Department of Labor records shows...
Missouri lawmakers must finalize budget this week  News-Press   ...Missouri lawmakers have until Friday to finalize the state's roughly $25 billion operating budget...
Illinois Senate to vote on union-endorsed pension reform bill  Reuters ...A union-backed plan to reform the worst-funded state pension system in the United States will be introduced in the Illinois Senate this week, competing with a plan passed by the House last week...
More arrested as NC legislature protests continue  Associated Press   ...More than two dozen members of the NAACP and other activists were arrested Monday as part of continuing protests of Republican policies in the state capital, bringing to nearly 50 the number of nonviolent demonstrators facing charges...
Michigan launches $5 million veterans' homeowners assistance program  Michigan Live   ...Michigan veterans who have lost their homes or are struggling to keep them could benefit from a new $5 million housing assistance program...
Teamsters Urge Congress To Stop Dangerous Increases In Truck Weight And Size  IBT   ...Yesterday, the Teamsters, the Truck Safety Coalition, U.S. Rep. James McGovern (D-MA) and representatives of several families who have suffered death and injury as a result of truck crashes, held a news conference marking the re-introduction of legislation that would prevent an increase in size and weight allowances for trucks...
UPS Local Leaders Unanimously Endorse UPS Tentative Agreement  IBT   ...Leaders of Teamster Local Unions that represent UPS workers across the United States voted unanimously today to endorse the tentative UPS national agreement, paving the way for ballots to be prepared and sent to members...
UPS Freight Local Union Leaders Unanimously Recommend Tentative Agreement For Ratification  IBT   ...Teamster Local Union leaders representing UPS Freight workers across the country unanimously endorsed the tentative national agreement today, clearing the way for ballots to be prepared and sent to members...
US Air Mechanics File for Election to Become Teamsters  IBT   ...US Airways mechanics and related workers filed for an election today with the National Mediation Board (NMB) as part of their campaign to become Teamsters...
Osco Pharmacists Negotiations Enter Federal Mediation   IBT   ...After seven bargaining sessions over several weeks, contract negotiations for 500 Osco pharmacists have entered federal mediation...
Buy Union, Buy American: Support Teamsters Week  Labor 411   ...Consumer awareness and education are key to the success of the labor movement. We have no doubt that most Americans would choose union-made, American-made goods if only they knew which they were – and if they realized that buying those goods helps to support good middle class American jobs...
Bay City mid-management contract approval rescheduled to later this month  Michigan Live   ...The Bay City Commission has rescheduled the review of new deal with Teamsters Local 214, which represents mid-management positions including the chief accountant, information systems administrator and planning manager...