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Today’s Teamster News For July 20, 2016

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TEAMSTERS

Security and Fire Safety Officer Understaffing Could Lead to Labor Dispute at Navy Pier  Local 727  …Unfair labor practices coupled with concerns over understaffing and job security for 160 fire safety and security officers could lead to a labor dispute at Navy Pier. The officers are employed by SMG and represented by Teamsters Local 727. Additionally, Navy Pier Inc. said it plans to terminate its contract with SMG later this year and replace the officers with non-union minimum wage security guards…

Local 710 Continues Ferguson Warehouse Contract Negotiations  Local 710  …he Teamsters Local 710 Bargaining Committee met Monday to continue negotiations for the warehouse employees at Ferguson. Both the Union and Employer went through all outstanding non-economic issues and reached a tentative agreement on nearly all those items. The template for the warehouse employees will be the existing Local 710 Ferguson drivers’ contract with exceptions being bargained in a separate Memorandum of Understanding…

With CVS Negotiations Set to Resume July 20, Local 727 Participates in Informational Picket  Local 727  …Teamsters Local 727 continued its efforts to inform the public of the safety risks associated with CVS management’s mistreatment of overworked and understaffed pharmacists as union representatives participated in an informational picket outside Chicago-area pharmacies on July 15. The Teamsters Local 727 Bargaining Committee and CVS management are scheduled to resume negotiations July 20 and July 21…

Local 362 Teamsters Truck Celebrates the Stampede  Local 362  …The greatest outdoor show on earth is underway again in Calgary and that means so are Stampede pancake breakfasts. The Teamsters 362 Truck, which stops at 25 charity events a year, stopped by a very special breakfast on July 12 during the Calgary Stampede. The Military Family Resource Centre celebrated their 25th year by celebrating in Stampede style and Teamsters 362 was proud to be a part of it…

 

GLOBAL LABOR & TRADE

TPP likely to hurt Canada’s auto sector, study says  Globe and Mail  …The Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal will have negative consequences for the auto sector in Canada, an analysis of the automotive measures in the agreement says. The agreement, which Parliament has yet to ratify, contains changes in tariffs, rules of origin and content requirements that would open the North American vehicle and parts markets to increased competition…

No endgame in sight on TTIP negotiations  Independent  …EU and US negotiators gathered in Brussels last week for a 14th round of talks on a transatlantic trade and investment partnership (TTIP). The aim is to finish talks by the end of the year, but given the lingering impasse over access to public procurement and agri-food markets, protections for workers and the environment, and the trade in services, it seems highly unlikely…

Kerry Pushes TTIP, Says It Would Offset Brexit’s Impact  TeleSUR  …The United States and the European Union have been negotiating the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) for three years, with both seeking to conclude talks in 2016. But growing opposition to the deal in France and Germany have raised doubts that this will happen by the end of the year. “This remains a high priority for President Obama and for our administration and there’s a reason for that,” Kerry told a news conference after meeting EU foreign ministers in Brussels…

Rage against the TPP  CS Indy  …Politics and music frequently cross paths, and one such example is the Rock Against the TPP tour kick-off at Denver’s Summit Musical Hall on Saturday, July 23. The concert and rally series are designed to raise awareness about the nebulous, highly controversial, multinational Trans-Pacific Partnership, which could be voted upon by Congress as soon as this autumn. The concert portion is led by the ever politically conscious Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello…

The UK government cannot reconcile austerity measures with human rights – UN report  Open Democracy  …A UN Committee of independent experts recently issued a harshly worded report on the extent to which public authorities have been complying with international law on socio-economic rights. The Committee doubts that the National Living Wage is enough to ensure a decent standard of living, and condemns the recently adopted Trade Union Act for its negative effects on workers’ rights. The UN is particularly worried about the discriminatory effects of poverty…

Report: Working without Pay—Wage Theft in Zimbabwe  Solidarity Center  …An astounding 80,000 Zimbabwe workers in formal employment—out of some 350,000 workers—did not receive wages and benefits on time in 2014, according to a new Solidarity Center report, “Working Without Pay: Wage Theft in Zimbabwe,” released today in Harare. As a result of this widespread wage theft, many workers say they are forced to eat only one or two meals a day; move repeatedly to access affordable housing; and rent two rooms or fewer for their entire family to make ends meet…

Turkey sacks 15,000 education workers in purge after failed coup  The Guardian  …Turkey has escalated its purge of government officials in the aftermath of the failed coup, with about 35,000 public servants affected by the end of the day despite a government spokesman insisting that the crackdown was being carried out in accordance with the rule of law. The government fired more than 15,000 employees at the education ministry, sacked 257 officials at the prime minister’s office and 492 clerics at the directorate for religious affairs…

 

STATE & LIVING WAGE BATTLES

Federal Judge Strikes A Critical Blow Against Wisconsin’s Voter Suppression Law  Think Progress  …On Tuesday, a federal judge in Wisconsin handed down a decision that will drastically weaken that state’s voter ID law, an increasingly common method of voter suppression that is often favored by conservatives because it effectively shifts the electorate rightward. Although the decision leaves the law in place, it permits voters who are unable to obtain an ID to sign an affidavit at the polls testifying to that inability and to receive a ballot…

GOP Platform Urges National Right-to-Work Law  Bloomberg  …The Republican National Committee July 18 adopted a “pro-growth” platform that calls for national right-to-work legislation and the easing of regulatory and tax burdens on employers. It urges the passage of a national right-to-work law, which would ban “union security” clauses in collective bargaining agreements, and argues that minimum wage laws should be left to the states…

Court Under Deadline for Texas Voter ID Ruling  Courthouse News Service  …With Election Day around the corner, the en banc Fifth Circuit is expected to rule Wednesday whether Texas discriminates against minorities and the poor by making voters bring photo identification to the polls. July 20 is the deadline that the U.S. Supreme Court set for the ruling with Nov. 8 presidential elections in mind…

GOP platform calls for tough voter ID laws  The Hill  …The Republican Party’s platform formally endorses laws requiring voters to show identification when they cast ballots. The new provision inserts the national party into a contentious debate over voter access at a time when several states are tightening identification requirements…

Changes to proposed minimum wage hike in Baltimore  CBS  …The push back on raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour in Baltimore finds the bill’s architect, Councilwoman Mary Pat Clarke prepared to compromise. In a work session of the council’s labor committee, Clarke held firm on the goal of $15 per hour, but she’s backed off on getting there by the year 2020…

Showdown over Seattle’s Uber union law: City asks court to toss U.S. Chamber’s lawsuit  Geek Wire  …The city of Seattle will ask a federal judge this week to throw out a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce over legislation that would allow Uber, Lyft and other “for hire” drivers to unionize. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce filed the lawsuit in March against the city of Seattle, arguing the legislation violates several federal laws and would “burden innovation, increase prices, and reduce quality and services for consumers”…  

 

U.S. LABOR

Philly Airport Service Workers Are on Strike  Philly Mag  …Hundreds of demonstrators assembled outside Philadelphia International Airport on Tuesday afternoon to demand higher wages and benefits for airport workers. Last week, more than 400 workers voted to walk off the job during the Democratic National Convention, which will take place from July 25th through 28th. Tuesday’s protest is a preview of what’s to come during the DNC, said Julie Blust, a spokeswoman for the mid-Atlantic arm of SEIU 32BJ…

AT&T, IBEW Reach Two Tentative Agreements Covering Former DIRECTV Employees  PR Newswire  …AT&T has reached two tentative agreements with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) in negotiations covering IBEW-represented former DIRECTV employees in 14 states. One agreement covers more than 1,600 employees in the company’s field services group, located in 14 states…

Landscape workers on strike at Arlington National Cemetery  WTOP  …About 30 contract landscape workers at Arlington National Cemetery have gone on strike, seeking better pay and benefits. Larry Doggette, business manager for Local 572 of Laborers’ International Union of North America, said the strike began Monday and will remain in place at least through Tuesday. The workers are employed by two different contractors, Greenleaf Services Inc. and The Davey Tree Expert Company…

USW wins historic first contract for Twin Ports doctors  Workday Minnesota  …In an historic organizing victory, medical professionals – including medical doctors – at the Lake Superior Community Health Center in Duluth, Minn., and Superior, Wis., have ratified their first contract and are now members of Steelworkers Local 9460. The 11-member unit at the center includes members who provide comprehensive primary care and dental services for low-income communities…

The workers who pick your summer berries are asking you not to buy them  PRI  …Beneath the sweetness of these berries, though, lies a bitter labor dispute that has been roiling for years at Driscoll’s, the world’s largest distributor of berries — the ones you find at Costco, Target, Whole Foods and host of other grocery stories. The conflict came to a head last week in Washington state, when farmworkers and their families marched alongside hundreds of supporters on a usually sleepy country road about an hour north of Seattle… 

5 Jobs That Will Be The Hardest To Fill In 2025  Fast Company  …With low labor-force participation, declining immigration levels, and the looming retirement of baby boomers on the horizon, the U.S. labor market is tightening and driving up wages. Over the next decade, the country will experience a labor shortage that will disproportionately affect some industries and professions, predicts an April 2016 report from The Conference Board…

Pence Seals Trump’s Anti-Worker Ticket  (opinion) American Prospect  …While presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump has tried to cast himself as the (white) workingman’s candidate, his vice presidential pick is anything but that. Indiana Governor Mike Pence is a prototypical Koch brothers Republican who has followed conservatives’ anti-worker, anti-union political playbook to a tee…

 

SOCIAL JUSTICE & OTHER NEWS

Senate Bill Would End Tax Breaks for Private Prison Companies  Truthout  …Senator Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) introduced legislation last week that would make it tougher for private prison companies to take advantage of federal rules that provide massive tax breaks for special real estate firms, a move that racial justice and prison divestment activists say is an important step toward confronting the corporations that control around 8 percent of the nation’s prisons and immigrant jails…

City That Ran Debtors’ Prison Will Have To Pay Millions To The Poor People It Jailed  Think Progress  …Jennings, Missouri, which borders the city of Ferguson, where Michael Brown was shot by police, has agreed to pay $4.75 million to nearly 2,000 people who were put in jail because they couldn’t afford to pay the court fines and fees that they owed. The death of Michael Brown shed a light on a region-wide moneymaking scheme to issue thousands of warrants for minor violations and traffic tickets, routinely throwing people in jail for not paying…

Judge Hands Down Another Acquittal for Officer in Freddie Gray Case  Common Dreams  …Baltimore Police Lt. Brian Rice, the highest ranking officer charged in the death of Freddie Gray, was on Monday acquitted on all counts. It marks the fourth time prosecutors have failed to secure a conviction in the case, the Baltimore Sun notes, and in turn “is likely to renew calls for Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby to drop the remaining charges[…] including from the union that represents the city’s rank-and-file officers”…

Think Black Lives Matter Is “divisive”? The Civil Rights Movement split the U.S. far more  Salon  …However, polling from the 1960s reveals that the Civil Rights Movement was overwhelmingly less popular than Black Lives Matter is today. As a benchmark, recent polling on Black Lives Matter by Pew found that “43% support the movement, including 18% who strongly support it. In sharp contrast, the record from the 1960s is consistently more negative…

A Border Wall Isn’t Very Popular Among The People Who Actually Live There  Think Progress  …About 72 percent of people living on the U.S. side of the border and 86 percent of people living on the Mexican side are opposed to building a wall, a poll funded by Cronkite News, Univision News, and Dallas Morning News found. Building out a border wall also isn’t on the top of their priority list…