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via Ron Nixon, The New York Times Faced with billions of dollars in losses, the Postal Service announced on Wednesday that it would seek to stop Saturday delivery of letters, a sweeping change in mail delivery that immediately drew criticism from postal unions, some businesses and lawmakers. The post office said a five-day mail delivery … Continue reading
via Ryan J. Foley, Chicago Sun-Times A dentist acted legally when he fired an assistant that he found attractive simply because he and his wife viewed the woman as a threat to their marriage, the all-male Iowa Supreme Court ruled Friday. The court ruled 7-0 that bosses can fire employees they see as an “irresistible … Continue reading
via Matthew Dolan and Kris Maher, The Wall Street Journal The Republican-led Michigan legislature approved a pair of right-to-work bills, sending them on for the governor’s expected signature, as thousands of union activists continued protesting outside the state capitol. Two votes in the state House approved bills to allow workers in unionized workplaces in the … Continue reading
via Doug Staglin, USA Today Scattered strikes and protests by Walmart workers and their supporters in at least nine states may have scored symbolic points Friday by taking on the retail giant head-on, but apparently they did little to keep shoppers away as the company quickly claimed its best Black Friday ever. The company said … Continue reading
via Jennifer Booton, Fox Business Typically one of the busiest shopping days of the year for retailers, Wal-Mart may need to brace itself this Black Friday as its workers plan a massive walk-out in protest of low wages and high health-care costs. The world’s largest retailer, though, says it is prepared. Workers that are part of … Continue reading
via Harry Bradford, Alice Hines, and Christina Wilkie, The Huffington Post Employees at 28 Walmarts in 12 different cities walked out of work Tuesday, but things may get a whole lot worse for the U.S.’s biggest retailer come Black Friday. United Food and Commercial Workers’ Making Change At Walmart, the group behind the strikes protesting … Continue reading
via Alice Hines, The Huffington Post The first retail worker strike against Walmart has spread from Los Angeles, where it began last week, to stores in a dozen cities, a union official said Tuesday. Walmart workers walked off the job in Dallas, Seattle, the San Francisco Bay area, Miami, the Washington, D.C., area, Los Angeles, … Continue reading
via Amy B. Dean, The Huffington Post “We are striking to improve the conditions in the schools. Right now the children are getting a raw deal.” That statement came from a striking member of the Chicago Teachers’ Union… in 1969. It still resonates in September 2012, when the CTU’s members have again walked a picket … Continue reading
via Noreen S. Ahmed-Ullah, Diane Rado, and Bill Ruthhart, Chicago Tribune Delegates for the Chicago Teachers Union voted Tuesday to call off their seven-day strike, sending some 350,000 public schools students back to class Wednesday morning and ending the daily scene of teachers dressed in red picketing their schools. The overwhelming vote by the union’s … Continue reading
via Scott Bauer, The Huffington Post A Wisconsin judge on Friday struck down nearly all of the state law championed by Gov. Scott Walker that effectively ended collective bargaining rights for most public workers. Walker’s administration immediately vowed to appeal, while unions, which have vigorously fought the law, declared victory. But what the ruling meant … Continue reading
via NBC News Dozens of churches and community organizations also were opening their doors to students for at least part of the day. John Harvey and Sarah Vanderstow were dropping off their 7-year-old son, Aiden, at the Disney Magnet School, but they were nervous because it was unfamiliar to the second-grader, the Tribune reported. Vanderstow … Continue reading
via Noreen Ahmed-Ullah and Joel Hood, Chicago Tribune The Chicago Teachers Union says nearly 90 percent of its members have voted to authorize a strike, far more than the required 75 percent. At a news conference announcing results of the vote, CTU President Karen Lewis said they show how the relationship between the Chicago Board … Continue reading
via E.J. Dionne, Jr., The Washington Post The left will make a big mistake if it ignores the lessons of the failed recall in Wisconsin of Gov. Scott Walker (R). The right will make an even bigger error if it allows the Wisconsin results to feed its inclination toward winner-take-all politics. The danger on the … Continue reading
via Douglas Belkin and Caroline Porter, The Wall Street Journal Wisconsin voters headed to the polls Tuesday to decide whether to recall Republican Gov. Scott Walker in a bitter dispute over his efforts to curb unions that could affect the presidential race and influence policy toward organized labor nationwide. More than $60 million has flooded … Continue reading
via Jennifer Bendery, The Huffington Post President Barack Obama on Monday dropped in on a White House press call to urge the Senate to pass legislation that ensures women are paid the same amount as their male counterparts. “Tomorrow, Congress is going to have a chance to vote on the Paycheck Fairness Act,” Obama said … Continue reading
via William Pesek, Bloomberg The iPhone has become a symbol of something Steve Jobs never envisioned: Chinese sweatshops. Were the late Apple Inc. co-founder still with us, he would surely dispute that. But facts are facts, and any of us (full disclosure: this includes me) who use one of Apple’s smartphones, iPads or iPods is, … Continue reading
via Zach Carter, The Huffington Post A group of 68 House Democrats and one Republican sent a letter to President Barack Obama on Thursday urging him to reconsider an element of the controversial free trade agreement currently being negotiated by the administration. If approved in its current form, the pact would effectively ban “Buy American” … Continue reading
via Amanda Terkel, The Huffington Post Three female Democratic leaders in Wisconsin are demanding an explanation from Gov. Scott Walker (R) of why he repealed a law that made it easier for victims of wage discrimination to have their day in court. “We are writing today to request a written answer to a simple question … Continue reading
via Amanda Terkel, The Huffington Post A Wisconsin law that made it easier for victims of wage discrimination to have their day in court was repealed on Thursday, after Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) quietly signed the bill. The 2009 Equal Pay Enforcement Act was meant to deter employers from discriminating against certain groups by … Continue reading
via The Huffington Post A recall election was officially ordered Friday against embattled first-term Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker after more than 900,000 signatures were collected on petitions to force a vote. The Government Accountability Board voted 5-0 to order the recall, a move that has been expected for weeks given the high number of signatures … Continue reading
via Amanda Terkel, The Huffington Post Activists pushing to recall Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) announced on Monday evening that they have collected more than 300,000 signatures for the effort in just 12 days. To trigger a recall election, Walker’s opponents — coordinated by the group United Wisconsin — need to collect 540,208 valid signatures … Continue reading
via Dinesh Ramde, AP, USA TODAY The resounding rejection of an anti-union law by Ohio voters provides a huge boost for Democrats and union officials preparing for their next major battle — the attempted recall of Wisconsin Republican Gov. Scott Walker — but their prospects could be clouded by the differences between the two Midwestern … Continue reading
via Sabrina Tavernise and Steven Greenhouse, The New York Times The landslide vote to repeal an Ohio law that limits collective bargaining has sounded a strong note of caution for Republican governors and lawmakers across the country, raising questions about some of their legislative efforts, especially those that would weaken labor unions. But the victory, … Continue reading
The Brandt Standard 