Today's Teamster News 06.25.13

<a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/american-factory-boss-held-hostage-beijing-article-1.1380831">American factory exec says he's being held hostage by scores of angry workers in Beijing</a>  Associated Press   ...An American executive said Monday he has been held hostage for four days at his medical supply plant in Beijing by scores of workers demanding severance packages like those given to 30 co-workers in a phased-out department...<br /><a href="http://money.cnn.com/2013/06/24/pf/emergency-savings/">76% of Americans are living paycheck-to-paycheck</a>  CNN Money   ...Fewer than one in four Americans have enough money in their savings account to cover at least six months of expenses, enough to help cushion the blow of a job loss, medical emergency or some other unexpected event, according to the survey of 1,000 adults. Meanwhile, 50% of those surveyed have less than a three-month cushion and 27% had no savings at all...<br /><a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-06-23/u-s-surveillance-is-not-aimed-at-terrorists.html">U.S. Surveillance Is Not Aimed at Terrorists </a> Bloomberg   ...monitoring phone calls is hardly the way to catch terrorists. They’re generally not dumb enough to use Verizon...<br /><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/court-makes-harder-sue-businesses-154005838.html;_ylt=Ajf5c1C6qSsrYvtlnnED13QJVux_;_ylu=X3oDMTJhcTMyN2Z1BG1pdANBVFQgMyBTdG9yeSBKdW1ib3Ryb24gSG9tZSBDYWNoZWQEcG9zAzIxBHNlYwNNZWRpYUF0dFdpZGdldHJvbkFzc2VtYmx5;_ylg=X3oDMTFkcW51ZGliBGludGwDdXMEbGFuZwNlbi11cwRwc3RhaWQDBHBzdGNhdANob21lBHB0A3BtaA--;_ylv=3">Court makes it harder to sue businesses</a>  Associated Press   ...The court's conservatives, in two 5-4 decisions, ruled that a person must be able to hire and fire someone to be considered a supervisor in discrimination lawsuits, making it harder to blame a business for a co-worker's racism or sexism. The court then decided to limit how juries can decide retaliation lawsuits...<br /><a href="http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/7c9a4c29cd4446b38c9120acea23a502/US--Supreme-Court-Union-Organizing">Supreme Court to decide whether union-business agreement valid</a>  The Republic   ...The Supreme Court will decide whether a business and a union's agreement is valid after the business helped the union organize in return for help with a ballot initiative...<br /><a href="http://dailycaller.com/2013/06/23/lawmakers-want-to-stop-government-from-buying-usa-flags-from-china/">Lawmakers want to stop government from buying USA flags from China</a>   Daily Caller   ...Lawmakers in the House of Representatives are renewing a push to stop the federal government from buying and flying American flags made outside the country...<br /><a href="http://www.tradereform.org/2013/06/theyre-not-telling-us-all-of-it/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=theyre-not-telling-us-all-of-it">They’re not telling us all of it</a>  Trade Reform   ...I met with 22 Congressional offices last week.  None of them had seen the TPP language...<br /><a href="http://money.cnn.com/2013/06/25/news/economy/brazil-protests/">Rising middle class fuels Brazil's protests</a>  Forbes   ... in the protests that have gripped Brazil since last week, regional experts say economic growth is actually feeding discontent, as a rising middle class puts demands on social services such as education and transportation that the government has failed to meet...<br /><a href="http://www.livemint.com/Politics/tBSg4xEU652GL3yJjrzAJK/7Eleven-convenience-stores-raided-as-part-of-US-probe.html">7-Eleven convenience stores raided as part of US probe</a>  Associated Press ...Federal authorities say they’ve raided 7-Eleven convenience stores in two US states as part of a probe into human smuggling, identity theft and money laundering...<br /><a href="http://citizensvoice.com/news/mcdonald-s-pay-practice-scrutinized-by-federal-authorities-1.1509474">McDonald's pay practice scrutinized by federal authorities</a>  Citizens’ Voice   ...As a lawsuit against a local McDonald's franchise gains national attention, federal authorities are investigating the company's practice of forcing employees to be paid only by debit cards that come with an assortment of fees...<br /><a href="http://abcnews.go.com/US/twinkies-set-make-sweetest-comeback/story?id=19468409#.UclzDz7F36l">Twinkies Set to Make 'Sweetest Comeback' in July</a>  ABC News   ...Hostess is now owned by the private equity firms Apollo Global Management and Metropoulos & Co...<br /><a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/story/2013/06/19/pol-mask-bill-royal-assent.html">Wearing a mask at a riot is now a crime </a> CBC News   ...A bill that bans the wearing of masks during a riot or unlawful assembly and carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence with a conviction of the offence became law today (in Canada)...<br /><a href="http://www.memphisdailynews.com/news/2013/jun/24/tennessee-ends-40-million-in-child-allowances-for-unemployed/">Tennessee Ends $40 Million in Child Allowances for Unemployed</a>   Associated Press   ...The state is notifying Tennesseans drawing unemployment benefits that they will soon lose a weekly $15-per-child allowance as part of a new law signed by Republican Gov. Bill Haslam...<br /><a href="http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2013/06/21/State-to-privatize-prison-food.html">State of Ohio skips union, picks private food service</a>  Columbus Dispatch   ...A Philadelphia mega-company that provides food and beverage service at ballparks, national parks, hospitals and schools nationwide has been picked to provide private food service for Ohio prisons...<br /><a href="http://www.adn.com/2013/06/24/2951473/minimum-wage-hike-plan-gets-go.html">Alaska minimum wage hike plan gets go-ahead</a>   Associated Press ...The organizers of a ballot initiative to raise the minimum wage in Alaska have been given the go-ahead to begin collecting signature, Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell said Monday....<br /><a href="http://billingsgazette.com/news/opinion/guest/guest-opinion-montana-will-prosper-with-equal-pay-for-equal/article_723200c9-dff8-5e13-be47-d1c8b6f9e51d.html">Montana will prosper with equal pay for equal work</a>  (opinion)  Billings Gazette   ...Fifty years after President Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act, American women earn, on average, 77 percent of what their male counterparts do. In Montana, women are earning only 67 percent for doing the same work, putting Montana in 39th place for pay equity...<br /><a href="http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-06-23/news/ct-met-bp-mercury-20130623_1_bp-refinery-whiting-refinery-oil-company-bp">Indiana gives BP a pass on mercury</a>  Chicago Tribune   ...Under the terms of an earlier decision by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, the BP refinery can legally discharge an annual average of 23.1 parts per trillion of mercury — nearly 20 times the federal water quality standard...<br /><a href="http://www.bradenton.com/2013/06/24/4581817/officials-1-dead-in-explosion.html">Indiana grain elevator blast kills 1 worker</a>  Associated Press   ...An explosion Monday inside a grain elevator killed a worker at a sprawling northwestern Indiana farm co-op, authorities said...<br /><a href="http://www.teamster.org/sites/teamster.org/files/2013UPSforweb8.pdf">Teamster UPS Vote</a>  IBT   ...National Master Contract 34037 (Y) 29576 (N)...<br /><a href="http://www.teamster.org/sites/teamster.org/files/UPSFCount_06242013.pdf">Teamster UPS Freight Returns</a>  IBT   ...1897 (Y) 4244 (N)...<br /><a href="http://woub.org/2013/06/24/pepsi-plant-employees-reject-contract-offer">Pepsi Plant Employees Reject Contract Offer</a>  Associated Press   ...Employees at the Pepsi Beverage plant in Huntington, who are members of Teamsters Local 175, have unanimously rejected a contract offer they claim would erode their current benefits...<br /><a href="http://www.nj.com/business/index.ssf/2013/06/carteret_truckers_teamsters_vo.html">Carteret firm's truckers to vote Friday on joining Teamsters union</a>  NJ.com   ...Friday’s vote, which follows a contentious unionization campaign, involves 112 short and long-haul drivers and support workers for Toll Global Forwarding...<br /><a href="http://www.teamster.org/ricksmithtour">Listen To The Rick Smith Show’s Broadcasts From His People’s Tour Of America</a>  IBT   ...The Teamsters are supporting Brother Rick Smith as he takes his labor radio show from his home in Harrisburg, Pa. on a cross-country tour from June 11 to July 5. On the way, he is meeting with union leaders and workers about the state of the American labor movement and the challenges facing the middle class. Come back to this page daily to hear the latest from his road travels...

Today's Teamster News 06.25.13

American factory exec says he's being held hostage by scores of angry workers in Beijing  Associated Press   ...An American executive s...

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