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Today’s Teamster News For February 29, 2016

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TEAMSTERS

Teamster Mechanics Escalate Picketing, Notify United Airlines Passengers of Possible Strikes  Teamster.org  …Hundreds of United Airlines mechanics picketed at the San Francisco, Los Angeles (LAX), Newark, LaGuardia, Washington Dulles, Cleveland, Boston Logan and Orlando airports, to educate passengers about upcoming strikes. A similar picket is planned at Houston’s IAH airport tomorrow. Last week, mechanics voted down United’s contract proposal by 93 percent…

Hoffa Applauds Sen. Boxer Call to Remove Measure from FAA Bill That Would Threaten Trucker Safety  Teamster.org  …Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa in response to a provision included in new Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization legislation that would curb states’ ability to provide higher wages and basic meal and rest breaks for truck drivers: “Yesterday, Sen. Barbara Boxer took a stand for trucker safety by denouncing a rider that was attached to the House FAA bill”…

Bitter battle erupts on Capitol Hill over bathroom breaks for truck drivers  Washington Post  …State provisions allowing truck drivers more rest have been unsuccessfully challenged in court by the trucking industry. The International Brotherhood of Teamsters opposes the congressional effort to override state rest regulations. Teamsters President James P. Hoffa said in a statement: “These elected officials are doing the bidding of the American Trucking Associations, which wants drivers on the clock as much as possible”…

Labriola Bakery Drivers in Chicago Ratify First Teamster Contract  JC25  …After more than four years of unity, patience and perseverance, delivery drivers at Labriola Baking Company unanimously ratified their first Teamster contract on Feb. 19. The 10 drivers originally voted to join Teamsters Local 734 in September 2011 before being forced to bear years of delay tactics and decertification attempts by company management. But the Teamster members’ refusal to give up on their rights paid off this month with a strong collective bargaining agreement…

Local 710 Reaches Unprecedented Tentative Agreement at Jewel Negotiations  Local710  …After another marathon negotiation session that went into early Saturday morning, the Teamsters Local 710 Jewel Bargaining Committee has reached a strong tentative agreement for both the driver and warehouse contracts. Counsel for the union is drafting the final contract language. Pending the review and approval of the Company and IBT, a finalized tentative agreement will be presented for the membership to review… 

Union Wins Reinstatement for Dr. Pepper Snapple Workers  Local 727  …In the past month alone, three Dr. Pepper Snapple members have been reinstated after the company wrongfully denied the members union representation. In each instance, the member invoked their Weingarten rights. In each instance, the company refused to allow representation at the meeting and instead terminated the member. The members immediately contacted their Teamsters Local 727 representative…

 

GLOBAL LABOR & TRADE

Thailand: Cannery Row Strike Wins Pay Promise for Workers  Khaosod  … A strike of more than 1,100 workers at a canned food factory southwest of Bangkok in Samut Sakhon province ended today with company executives agreeing to pay overtime and wages allegedly withheld from workers. The strike, which began Thursday and mostly involved workers from Myanmar, was a rare victory in a country where migrant workers routinely suffer discrimination and harsh working conditions with little or no leverage… 

Nigeria Nuclear Agency Workers Begin Strike Over Conditions of Service  AllAfrica  …Workers of the Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Authority (NNRA) on Monday commenced a three-day warning strike over alleged poor conditions of service, maladministration, impunity and abuse of office by its management. The action came at the expiration of a 14-day ultimatum by the NNRA Branch of the Petroleum & Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) to the management to resolve urgent industrial matters bordering on their working conditions…

Labor seeks revenge on free-trade Dems  Politico  …Labor’s fight against the White House’ free-trade agenda is moving into the trenches in tight Democratic races, with many of the 28 moderates who supported “fast-track” trade promotion legislation now targeted for that and their likely support for the Trans-Pacific Partnership. California Rep. Scott Peters estimates his reelection campaign is likely to see a $200,000 to $300,000 drop in labor donations… 

TTIP: EU and US vow to speed up talks on trade deal  The Guardian  …Senior European and US officials have vowed to accelerate talks on a controversial trade deal that critics say would weaken environmental and consumer standards, while giving too much power to companies to sue governments. Negotiators from the EU and the United States confirmed they were hoping to secure agreement on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership by the end of the year…

Ireland Voters Oust Ruling Coalition In Rejection Of Austerity  Huffington Post  …Ireland’s ruling coalition was ousted by voters angry at the country’s uneven recovery, results indicated on Saturday, leaving Prime Minister Enda Kenny facing the unpalatable prospect of trying to secure a deal with his biggest rival. His government appeared to be the latest victim of European voters’ growing antipathy to mainstream politics, hit by a backlash against years of austerity…

 

STATE & LIVING WAGE BATTLES

Iowa Poll: Most want increase in state’s minimum wage  Des Moines Register  …Roughly seven in 10 Iowans favor an increase in the state’s minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, according to results of the new Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll. But the 69 percent of poll respondents who want the Iowa Legislature to bump up the minimum wage are mixed on just how high it should go…

More than half a million registered Texans don’t have the right ID to vote on Super Tuesday  Washington Post  …As voters go to the polls on Super Tuesday, many will be casting ballots in states that have passed strict election laws that didn’t exist during the last presidential race. Out of the 13 states holding primaries or caucuses, there are five where voters will face new rules: Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. The laws range from asking voters to present photo IDs at the polls to requiring proof of citizenship when registering to vote…

16 States Face New Voting Restrictions in First Election in 50 Years Without Full Voting Rights Act  Democracy Now  …As 12 states head to the polls on Super Tuesday, we look at how voting rights could become a pivotal issue in the 2016 race. On August 6, 1965, President Lyndon Johnson signed into law the Voting Rights Act, which has been under attack ever since. In 2013, the Supreme Court struck down crucial components of the act…

Teacher pay bill opposed by unions faces uncertain fate  Indy Star  …A proposal that would give school districts authority to negotiate higher pay with individual teachers faces an uncertain fate in the Indiana Legislature after the Republican Senate leader pronounced it dead Thursday amid widespread opposition from teachers’ unions and school administrators. We “decided that we will not proceed with (the bill) or any similar legislation this year,” Republican Senate leader David Long said…

Ala. city raises minimum wage, legislature strips it  CBS  …Alabama’s governor and legislature Thursday blocked Birmingham’s attempts to raise its minimum wage as they swiftly approved legislation to strip cities of their ability to set hourly pay requirements. The Alabama Senate passed the legislation on a 23-11 vote that largely broke along party lines…

Business Lobby Fuels Alabama’s Minimum Wage Fight  American Prospect  …Well-funded business groups in Alabama are spending millions to help kill a minimum wage hike enacted by the city of Birmingham, prompting outrage from labor organizers who plan a massive rally in the state capitol of Montgomery on Tuesday. The city-state clash over the minimum wage in Alabama mirrors similar fights around the country…

 

U.S. LABOR

AT&T, Communications Workers of America Reach Tentative Agreement In Mobility Southwest Contract Negotiations  PR Newswire  …AT&T today announced that it has reached a tentative agreement with the Communications Workers of America in Mobility contract negotiations in CWA District 6. The agreement, which will be submitted to the union’s membership for a ratification vote in coming days, was reached prior to expiration of the extended contract at 11:59 p.m. Central Time Feb. 28. It covers more than 9,400 Mobility employees in Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas…

National Nurses United complaint to be heard Monday  Daily Telegraph  …In a trial scheduled to begin Monday in Cleveland, the National Labor Relations Board will weigh the evidence connected to a consolidated complaint based on dozens of charges filed by National Nurses United against the nation’s largest for-profit hospital chain and several of the hospitals it owns. Two of the hospitals owned by Community Health Systems that are involved in the trial are located in southern West Virginia…

Transit Workers “On the Street” at DC Streetcar Launch  DCLabor …Dozens of transit workers and their allies joined the DC Streetcar launch festivities Saturday, marching down H Street chanting “ATU is in the house and on the street!” to demonstrate their support for streetcar workers who will vote this week on joining ATU Local 689. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled last year that McDonald Transit, the private DDOT contractor charged with operating the streetcar engaged in illegal anti-union activity…

11 people cited for trespassing at SEIU janitors’ protest  Star Tribune  …Eleven people were issued citations for trespassing as janitors with SEIU Local 26, who last week went on a 24-hour strike, protested Thursday afternoon at the U.S. Bank headquarters in downtown Minneapolis. The protesters chanted and continued their call for a $15 hourly wage floor for all janitors. SEIU and the subcontractors who hire the janitors have been in negotiations since November… 

Stop & Shop workers union OKs strike as employees rail against wage, pension proposals  MassLive  …A union representing 10,000 Stop & Shop Supermarket Co. workers has authorized a strike as employees call for higher wages and better benefits. The strike would happen if the union can’t reach a contract agreement with the Quincy-based company…

 

SOCIAL JUSTICE & OTHER NEWS

Oscars Host Chris Rock Condemns Hollywood’s Lack of Diversity  Demcoracy Now  …Comedian Chris Rock opened Sunday night’s Oscars ceremony in Los Angeles by welcoming the audience to the “White People’s Choice Awards” as the sharp-tongued host brought attention to the lack of diversity and color at the Academy Awards. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, organizer of the Oscar awards, pledged to double its membership of women and minorities by 2020…

Los Angeles Is Seizing And Destroying Tiny Houses Donated To Homeless People  Think Progress  …Less than a year after an online funding campaign began donating tiny houses to homeless encampments in and around Los Angeles, the city is confiscating and destroying the donated miniature dwellings. The crowdfunded effort has built and donated at least 37 of the portable units around the L.A. area since last spring… 

“Making America Great for White Males”: Activist Responds as Trump Refuses to Disavow KKK Support  Democracy Now  …Over the weekend, Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump refused to condemn endorsements from David Duke, a prominent white supremacist and former KKK leader. Duke has told his radio audience that voting against Trump would be “treason to your heritage.” Speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union” with Jake Tapper, Trump refused four times to disavow Duke’s support or the support of other white supremacists…

Ex-TEPCO Bosses Indicted in ‘Major Step’ for Justice in Fukushima  Common Dreams  …In what environmental advocates called a “major step” toward justice against corporate crime, three former executives with the Tokyo Electronic Power Company (TEPCO) on Monday were indicted on negligence charges over their roles in the 2011 nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant…