News for today's 2018

McKesson CEO makes 943 times average workers' pay, wants Social Security cut

1:13 PM Tukiyooo 0

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhExORV0ktOQEzzcIDryx2MLi2iJedIvpapryVQUiZN9VMJPd5seDXzUF2_EOd_aHD6PphRwXzv2wED6hD7s7483U8fwoE7YfqvvghvwbAFYCyhbHeOQ4UtRHiYKFb6PfTS5e1sG3wUd0ah/s1600/Hammergren.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhExORV0ktOQEzzcIDryx2MLi2iJedIvpapryVQUiZN9VMJPd5seDXzUF2_EOd_aHD6PphRwXzv2wED6hD7s7483U8fwoE7YfqvvghvwbAFYCyhbHeOQ4UtRHiYKFb6PfTS5e1sG3wUd0ah/s320/Hammergren.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yay! I make 943 times what the average <br />worker makes at McKesson!</td></tr></tbody></table><a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/09/McKesson-CEO-jaw-dropping-pay.html" rel="nofollow">McKesson</a>, the pharmaceutical distribution giant, pays its CEO John Hammergren 943 times what the average McKesson worker makes.<br /><br />That puts <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McKesson_Corporation" rel="nofollow">McKesson</a> right behind <a href="https://www.facebook.com/OURWMT?fref=ts" rel="nofollow">Walmar</a>t when it comes to CEO plundering of a company and abuse of employees.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/15/walmart-retirement-pension_n_4283341.html" rel="nofollow">Walmart CEO Mike Duke makes 6,132 times</a> what the average Walmart worker earns, according to the Huffington Post. Walmart claims it cares for its workers, but it has a funny way of showing it: A <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/11/walmart-holding-food-drive-for-its-own-employees.html" rel="nofollow">Walmart store in Ohio is running a Thanksgiving food drive for its own employees </a>who are so underpaid they need charitable donations to have a holiday dinner. Yum, canned peas!<br /><br />Hammergren empathizes with his employees the same way Duke does. In <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/07/teamsters-protest-mckesson-retaliation.html" rel="nofollow">McKesson's Lakeland, Fla., warehouse, workers don't earn enough to afford health insurance</a>. The workers voted to join the <a href="http://teamster.org/" rel="nofollow">Teamsters</a>, and now the company is threatening and harassing them in a by-the-book union-busting effort. <br /><br />Hammergren's signal achievement at <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/08/McKesson-shareholders-reject-CEO-pay.html" rel="nofollow">McKesson was racking up nearly $1 billion in fines for price-fixing and Medicaid fraud</a>. Now he claims he's concerned about government debt (he's not) and wants to lower it. Presumably he wasn't too worried about contributing to the government debt while he was looting the Treasury.<br /><br />Hammergren belongs to that uniquely loathsome group, <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/01/fix-debt-is-full-of-crap.html" rel="nofollow">Fix the Debt</a>, which wants to cut your Social Security. <a href="http://www.ips-dc.org/reports/platinum_plated_pensions" rel="nofollow">The Institute for Policy Studies</a> found three of the Fix the Debt CEOs who want to impoverish millions of retirees have pensions of more than $100 million each. Hammergren  has the largest retirement fortune of the three: $144.3 million.<br /><br />Another group aiming to throw millions into poverty, the Business Roundtable, is made up of CEOs whose retirement savings are 1,200 times bigger than the average worker's.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.thenation.com/blog/177251/ceos-massive-retirement-fortunes-push-social-security-cuts#" rel="nofollow">The Nation</a> recently exposed the shocking cruelty of Fix the Debt and the Business Roundtable. Reports The Nation:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">These CEOs aren’t just trying to short the average American retiree; they’re throwing their own under the bus. While raising alarm about the federal debt, Business Roundtable CEOs have run up massive deficits in their employees’ pension funds. According to the report, ten companies led by members of Business Roundtable have shortfalls in their employee pension funds of between $4.9 and $22.6 billion. The largest of those belongs to General Electric, run by Business Roundtable and Fix the Debt member Jeffrey Immelt, the prospective beneficiary of a $59.3 million retirement fund. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">GE stopped offering traditional pension plans for new employees in 2011, forcing workers to switch to 401(k) plans. Many other companies have shifted the burden of retirement savings to their employees in this way in recent years, and that’s been a significant driver of the retirement crisis. Just 18 percent of workers can expect traditional pensions today, compared with 38 percent in 1985. Instead of getting a fixed check, retirees are at the mercy of the market—making the assurance of Social Security benefits even more essential.</blockquote>How did we ever let this happen?<br /><br /><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"> </blockquote><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />

CEO Pay Hammergren low-wage workers McKesson walmart McKesson CEO makes 943 times average workers' pay, wants Social Security cut

Yay! I make 943 times what the average worker makes at McKesson! McKesson , the pharmaceutical distribution giant, pays its CEO John Hammerg...

Colbert takes on employee food drive at Walmart (video)

8:58 AM Tukiyooo 0

low-wage workers strike walmart Colbert takes on employee food drive at Walmart (video)

Teamster Nation told you Monday about the Walmart in Ohio that's running a Thanksgiving food drive over the holidays -- for its own emp...

McDonald's tells workers who can't afford food to 'break food into smaller pieces'

11:54 AM Tukiyooo 0

low-wage workers mcdonald's McDonald's tells workers who can't afford food to 'break food into smaller pieces'

A McDonald's website to help its low-paid workers tells them the way to deal with the high cost of groceries is to break food into smal...

Give a kid a cookie, end up fired

9:33 AM Tukiyooo 0

<div class="MsoNormal">Carlos Hernandez was fired after he led a walkout of Subway workers in Seattle over the summer.<br /><br />The owner of  the Subway franchise, Hasan Zeer, claims he fired Carlos Hernandez for giving a kid a 66-cent cookie.<br /><br />Legally, most workers can be fired on an employer's whim, but they can't -- at least legally -- be fired for trying to join a union. Hence the cookie excuse.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.workingwa.org/">Working Washington</a>organizers say that Hernandez was fired in retaliation for speaking to press and organizing his coworkers during last month’s fast food strike.<br /><br />Federal charges have been filed against the fast-food restaurant, but in the meantime, Seattle citizens are letting the owners know how wrong their actions are through Yelp, a popular user-review-based website for businesses.<br /><br />Dozens of locals have stood up for Carlos and the other workers <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz/subway-seattle-47">by writing reviews on the Subway franchise’s Yelp page</a>.<br /><br />Amy H. from Seattle says:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">My sandwiches would taste a lot better if they weren't salted with the tears of mistreated employees. One of the hardest working employees in this franchise was illegally fired for going on strike under the pretense of giving away a $0.66 cookie to a 3 year old. Other employees at this location have also suffered unsafe working conditions, wage theft, and have been denied breaks. Doesn't taste so fresh to me.</blockquote>Alex M. yelped that:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">I used to work at Subway.  The worst part of the job was wringing the extra blood out of the roast beef before serving it.  Now this subway is trying to wring the blood and some extra dough from its workers.</blockquote>If you think workers should not be fired for speaking out, <a href="http://action.workingwa.org/page/s/fastfoodsupport">sign the Working Washington petition</a> or <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz/subway-seattle-47">submit a review to their Yelp</a>.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></div>

low-wage workers strike Give a kid a cookie, end up fired

Carlos Hernandez was fired after he led a walkout of Subway workers in Seattle over the summer. The owner of the Subway franchise, Hasan Ze...

Federal contract workers strike in DC for 5th time

2:03 PM Tukiyooo 0

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVv8Ey7Q4aDi4h1ZzFgQd1IY4Oez0vcCuMWiWlQ_0E39KexcV9JCJ7lTEQ1d044afW2_0TWZs7fnnMEDYYshheTjhRAT-mVF6fWBKR2tILyLJ3dEUEtJFqrBPWkpgOggn1EQSEOg0zX4Tk/s1600/march+good+jobs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVv8Ey7Q4aDi4h1ZzFgQd1IY4Oez0vcCuMWiWlQ_0E39KexcV9JCJ7lTEQ1d044afW2_0TWZs7fnnMEDYYshheTjhRAT-mVF6fWBKR2tILyLJ3dEUEtJFqrBPWkpgOggn1EQSEOg0zX4Tk/s400/march+good+jobs.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Marching down Pennsylvania Ave. today.</td></tr></tbody></table>Cleaning and concession workers went on strike today in Washington, D.C., demanding an end to wage theft and retaliation for trying to form a union. Organizers said it was the biggest one-day strike yet.<br /><br />The striking workers serve food or clean Union Station, Smithsonian Museums and the Ronald Reagan Building and Old Post Office -- all owned by the federal government. This is the fifth one-day walkout since May by employees of federal government contractors.  Their actions already spurred a Department of Labor investigation into their allegations of wage theft, and outspoken support from 17 progressive members of Congress.<br /><br />Today they rallied at Freedom Plaza, then marched to the White House where six workers delivered petitions signed by 250,000 people. The <a href="http://www.aflcio.org/Blog/Political-Action-Legislation/Low-Wage-Federal-Contract-Workers-to-Strike-Today">petitions</a> asked for an executive order requiring federal contractors be given preference for providing decent pay and benefits.<br /><br />Paying workers more money wouldn't cost taxpayers a dime more, according to a <a href="http://www.demos.org/news/time-roll-back-760k-contractor-salary-cap" rel="nofollow">Demos</a> report released today. The think tank figures that capping contractor executive salaries at $230,700 a year -- Vice President Joe Biden's salary -- that would <a href="http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/09/25/2677071/federal-contracts-send-billions-of-dollars-to-ceos-but-pay-workers-a-poverty-wage/" rel="nofollow">save as much as $7.65 billion annually</a>.<br /><br />In the past month, <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/08/LA-port-drivers-strike-electrifies-workers.html" rel="nofollow">port truck drivers</a> hoping to join the <a href="http://teamster.org/" rel="nofollow">Teamsters</a> walked off the job; so did<a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/08/29/fast-food-workers-strike-for-higher-pay-in-nearly-60-cities/2726815/" rel="nofollow"> fast-food workers in 60 cities</a>, and 68 people were arrested across the country in nonviolent protests of <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/05/walmart-protesters-arrested_n_3873791.html" rel="nofollow">Walmart's retaliation against workers</a>. Josh Eidelson at <a href="http://www.salon.com/2013/09/24/federal_workers_to_strike_march_on_white_house_wednesday/singleton/" rel="nofollow">Salon</a> reports on the growing support for one-day strikes.<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Their effort exemplifies twin trends in the modern, embattled labor movement. First, <a href="http://www.salon.com/2013/08/29/largest_fast_food_strike_ever_today_50_cities_will_be_affected/">the rise</a> of one-day, non-union strikes by minorities of the workforce, designed to embarrass bosses and engage co-workers and the public. And second, new campaigns that sidestep workers’ legal employer — whether a fast food franchisee, a warehouse company hired by Wal-Mart, or a federal contractor — and instead attempt to squeeze the “<a href="http://www.salon.com/2013/07/22/guest_workers_may_foretell_grim_future_of_american_labor_partner/">real boss</a>”: the fast food corporation, the retail giant or the president of the United States...</blockquote>President Obama has signed an executive order that bans federal contractors from billing the government for union busters.<br /><br />Find out more at the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/GoodJobsNation?ref=br_tf" rel="nofollow">Good Jobs Nation Facebook page</a>. <br /><br />

federal contractor employees low-wage workers strike Federal contract workers strike in DC for 5th time

Marching down Pennsylvania Ave. today. Cleaning and concession workers went on strike today in Washington, D.C., demanding an end to wage th...

True stories from Walmart hell

8:53 AM Tukiyooo 0

<a href="http://www.motherjones.com/environment/2012/03/walmart-sales-energy-use-statistics" rel="nofollow">Walmart</a> abuses its employees, let there be no doubt. The world's largest retailer keeps wages at poverty level by fighting hard against union organizing. As a result, many <a href="http://money.cnn.com/2013/06/04/news/companies/walmart-medicaid/index.html">Walmart employees rely on public assistance to survive</a>. Call it corporate welfare.<br /><br />Meanwhile, the <a href="http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2012/07/walmart-heirs-waltons-wealth-income-inequality" rel="nofollow">six Walmart heirs</a> -- Sam Walton's widow, Christy, Jim Walton, Alice Walton, S. Robson Walton, Ann Walton Kroenke, Nancy Walton Laurie -- <a href="http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2012/jul/31/bernie-s/sanders-says-walmart-heirs-own-more-wealth-bottom-/" rel="nofollow">own more wealth than 42 percent of the American people</a>.<br /><br />If all that doesn't make you sick to your stomach, Hamilton Nolan's true stories from Walmart hell will. He posts them periodically to the online publication <a href="http://gawker.com/" rel="nofollow">Gawker</a>. Here are a few samples: <br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Wal-Mart no longer pays a dollar above minimum wage; they start cart pushers and people greeters at minimum wage and everyone else based on what job they have. As a cashier, I am "level 3," so I started at $7.65 when minimum wage was $7.25. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">The worst part is the benefits. We have to work all holidays except Christmas, and we don't get paid any extra. ... They refuse to make anyone full-time, but I never work less than 32 hours, and frequently work 39. I don't complain because I need the money.</blockquote>Or this:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">...overtime was never and will never be approved, ever. If you should work any hours over 40 in one week, even if called in or requested or threatened by management that you must work, you will not get overtime pay. They will just cut your hours or say "take a 4 hour break today." which, for a 5 hour shift, was stupid and a waste of my own time at that point.</blockquote>Treatment of injured workers is about what you'd expect:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">I was loading boxes into a cupboard under a cash register at the front of the store one day when I caught my hand on an exposed nail or screw or something. I yanked out my hand in surprise and suddenly there was a huge pool of blood on the floor. The floor manager rushed over and immediately ushered me into a nearby washroom. "Get him away from the customers!" was the unspoken but obvious goal. We haphazardly swaddled my profusely-bleeding hand in paper towels and then the HR manager drove me to the hospital in her car, but not before they made me sign...something. Presumably promising that I wouldn't sue them. </blockquote>Sam's Club is just as bad:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Cashiers at Sam's club have it worse than cashiers at Wal-Mart as they are forced to make people upgrade their memberships. Sam's cashiers go through meetings called One on One's where the supervisor tells you how shitty you are doing. Those who fail to reach appropriate number of upgrades, renewals, etc. are usually yelled at. The worse part — you don't get any commission for convincing Wendy Whorebag to upgrade her membership. Sometimes management favors you with a reward — a McDouble from McDonald's, something that you can afford yourself....oh, that's right you can't afford a McDouble from McDonalds because you work at Sam's Club.</blockquote>It's comforting to know there are journalists like Nolan standing up for workers. Here's something he wrote last year, titled "<a href="http://gawker.com/5916267/why-we-need-unions" rel="nofollow">Why We Need Unions</a>."<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Companies know that unions represent a sort of power for their workers that their workers will otherwise never have. That power translates to better working conditions and higher wages. That, in turn, eats into a company's profits, as all expenses do. A union does not throw off the balance of power in the workplace—lack of a union does. The most basic sense of decency and respect for human rights dictates that there must be some mechanism by which the workers—the humans—can assert their interests. Otherwise, they will be crushed by the machine. It's all very plain to see. To despise unions is to despise workers. To despise workers is to despise people.</blockquote>If only all journalists believed that ...

low-wage workers unions walmart True stories from Walmart hell

Walmart abuses its employees, let there be no doubt. The world's largest retailer keeps wages at poverty level by fighting hard against...

Today's Teamster News 09.08.13

5:02 AM Tukiyooo 0

<a href="http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2013-09-06/story/first-coast-gears-pontiac-muscle-comes-strong-teamsters-show" rel="nofollow">First Coast Gears: Pontiac muscle comes on strong at Teamsters show</a>  Florida Times Union ...Harris and Boito brought their Pontiacs to the annual Labor Day weekend car show at Teamsters Local 512 on Lane Avenue last Saturday...<br /><a href="http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/a-920971.html" rel="nofollow">Privacy Scandal: NSA Can Spy on Smart Phone Data</a>  Der Spiegel   ...The United States' National Security Agency intelligence-gathering operation is capable of accessing user data from smart phones from all leading manufacturers...<br /><a href="http://taxjustice.blogspot.com/2013/09/naked-tax-protest-in-front-of-german.html" rel="nofollow">Naked tax protest in front of German Chancellor's office</a>  Tax Justice Network   ...a naked tax protest by Attac-Germany, with calls for unitary taxation and country by country reporting...<br /><a href="http://billmoyers.com/2013/09/04/low-wage-employers-have-fought-hard-to-keep-their-workers-poor-now-workers-are-fighting-back/" rel="nofollow">Low-Wage Employers Have Fought Hard to Keep Their Workers Poor — Now Workers are Fighting Back</a>  Moyers & Co.   ...After decades of seeing their incomes shrink, those at the bottom of the economic ladder are starting to band together and fight back — and it’s one of the most important economic stories of our time...<br /><a href="http://www.economicpopulist.org/content/free-markets-are-fraudulent-markets-5360" rel="nofollow">Free Markets are Fraudulent Markets</a> (opinion)  Economic Populist   ...Historically, competitive market economies are a relatively new economic system, and while very productive, they are not self-sustaining, are unstable and require significant state support and regulation to function properly...<br /><a href="http://truth-out.org/opinion/item/18675-the-political-calculations-behind-growing-inequality" rel="nofollow">The Political Calculations behind Growing Inequality</a>  truthout   ...In the 1980s, campaign contributions from the top 0.01 percent roughly equaled the campaign contributions from all of organized labor. In 2012, America’s top 0.01 percent all by themselves outspent labor by more than four-to-one...<br /><a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/09/want-to-move-kids-out-of-poverty-then-protect-the-middle-class/279387/" rel="nofollow">Want to Move Kids Out of Poverty? Then Protect the Middle Class</a>  The Atlantic   ...in parts of the country that are more heavily middle class, there also tends to be more upward mobility for the poor...<br /><a href="http://economyincrisis.org/content/an-american-bridge-made-of-chinese-steel-demonstrates-the-need-for-a-rational-trade-policy" rel="nofollow">An American Bridge Made of Chinese Steel Demonstrates the Need for a Rational Trade Policy</a>  Economy In Crisis   ...The <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324049504578545431938331880.html">prices for Chinese-made steel are about 25% lower than for domestic steel</a>, but this does not represent a victory won on an open and level playing field...<br /><a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/labor/318801-detroit-labor-day-and-a-hard-days-night#ixzz2dDhGpssI" rel="nofollow">Detroit, Labor Day and a Hard Day’s Night</a> (opinion)  The Hill   ...A competitive nation needs a strong safety net for its citizens, one that neither depends on fickle global employers nor burdens workers’ democratic institutions with a redistributive role best played by the government.    In addition, the U.S. should take a cue from the European Union and allocate more funds to help hard hit areas transition their economies...<br /><a href="http://bangordailynews.com/slideshow/burlesque-performers-occupiers-protest-possible-sale-of-portland-park/" rel="nofollow">Burlesque performers, occupiers protest possible sale of Portland park</a>  Bangor Daily News   ...Tension over whether a large section of Portland’s Congress Square Park should be sold to private developers escalated late Friday night, as burlesque performers and members of the occupy movement demonstrated at the site, attracting police warnings...<br /><a href="http://www.thenews.coop/blog/occupy-sandy-builds-worker-power-far-rockaway" rel="nofollow">Occupy Sandy builds worker power in Far Rockaway</a>  Co-operative News   ...One of those bigger projects is a worker-run cooperative initiative, organized by Occupy Sandy and supported by the Working World, an organization that specializes in incubating collectively owned businesses...

china currency manipulation free markets inequality low-wage workers occupy outsourcing safety net spying tax evasion Today's Teamster News 09.08.13

First Coast Gears: Pontiac muscle comes on strong at Teamsters show Florida Times Union ...Harris and Boito brought their Pontiacs to the ...

Dozens of Walmart workers, supporters arrested in mass protests (UPDATE)

11:52 AM Tukiyooo 0

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj772CKzlcFQ9HB4lx_yBWLi9vbF9-s3PXMz8mcKAC9FOYTpmV3Ri5PdCS9qtmQW0yx-YzOCR0U2mvw2m0UJ1N6tvzRSazXWXIeiVtyWy69HG_XV-YipETEv2NqFPMXgJqxTAN62cDEUrSu/s1600/walmart+protest.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj772CKzlcFQ9HB4lx_yBWLi9vbF9-s3PXMz8mcKAC9FOYTpmV3Ri5PdCS9qtmQW0yx-YzOCR0U2mvw2m0UJ1N6tvzRSazXWXIeiVtyWy69HG_XV-YipETEv2NqFPMXgJqxTAN62cDEUrSu/s200/walmart+protest.png" width="197" /></a></div>UPDATES with four new grafs 1-5 with news of arrests.<br /><br />At least a dozen Walmart strikers and supporters were <a href="http://changewalmart.tumblr.com/" rel="nofollow">arrested today for acts of civil disobedience</a>. They were protesting Walmart management for retaliating against workers and for paying them poverty wages.<br /><br />Police have<a href="http://makingchangeatwalmart.org/" rel="nofollow"> began to arrest about 20 Walmart strikers </a>and supporters after 700 people rallied outside of the company's Los Angeles headquarters, demanding Walmart pay workers enough to support their families.<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"></blockquote>In front of a Walmart store near Seattle, at least a half-dozen people were arrested by police in SWAT gear. Our brother and sister <a href="http://qik.com/video/59690745" rel="nofollow">Teamsters came to show their support</a>.<br /><br />In New York City, three protesters were arrested for trying to meet with a Walmart board member.<br /><br />Protests and acts of civil disobedience by Walmart workers are spreading across the country into this evening. Strikers and supporters are demanding that Walmart pay its workers at least $25,000 a year and reinstate 20 workers who were fired for standing up for their rights.<br /><br />Activists arrested last month while protesting Walmart's retaliation against workers set a Labor Day deadline for the company to meet the demands. They promised intensified action if Walmart didn't follow through.<br /><br />Today the workers are making good on that promise in what they say is the biggest day of action since last year's <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2012/11/wal-mart-strikes-in-100-cities-46-states.html">Black Friday strikes</a>.<br /><br />Our brothers and sisters at<a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/our-walmart-labor-forum-in-north-carolina" rel="nofollow"> Teamsters Local 391 in North Carolina</a> are holding a forum at their hall in Raleigh, and an action -- we don't know what yet -- will take place at a Walmart store nearby.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.alignny.org/" rel="nofollow">ALIGN NY</a> reports that three Walmart protesters were led away by New York City police officers for trying to meet with a Walmart board member.<br /><br />According to the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/05/walmart-protesters-arrested_n_3873791.html?utm_hp_ref=tw" rel="nofollow"><em>Huffington Post</em></a>,<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The protesters planned to deliver a petition to company board member Christopher Williams at the time of their arrests, Making Change At Walmart spokesperson Evan Yeats said...<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: left; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU01RssXVZWTAc4woohsAJHaatNpiWpVBtGI5KwigUDrdrTmK3pXB_tlbaLYDIRjh1FpomPYctAViAKuNLPDRicE22642V2GIErWrqp_2lSaDJumQ_dpYZiT8EtB8fXiHGolTkGl5Z_SXF/s1600/walmart+raleigh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU01RssXVZWTAc4woohsAJHaatNpiWpVBtGI5KwigUDrdrTmK3pXB_tlbaLYDIRjh1FpomPYctAViAKuNLPDRicE22642V2GIErWrqp_2lSaDJumQ_dpYZiT8EtB8fXiHGolTkGl5Z_SXF/s200/walmart+raleigh.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Forum at the Teamsters hall.</td></tr></tbody></table>Barbara Gertz, a current Walmart employee in Denver, Colorado, was among those arrested, Yeats said. Lucas Handy, a former Walmart associate from Iowa who was fired for speaking out against the company, and Susan Gulick, a former Walmart associate from South Carolina, were also arrested, according to Yeats.</blockquote>Actions are beginning in <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/enough-is-enough-stand-with-the-walmart-60-thursday-september-5th-national-day-of-action-in-maryland" rel="nofollow">Hyattsville, Md.</a>, near the nation's capital; in <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/stand-up-with-walmart-workers-in-dallas" rel="nofollow">Dallas</a>, <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/respect-us-or-expect-us" rel="nofollow">Orlando</a>, <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/rally-for-respect-at-the-capitol" rel="nofollow">Baton Rouge</a>, <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/stand-with-the-walmart-60-in-sacramento-march-to-the-capitol" rel="nofollow">Sacramento</a>,<a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/stand-with-the-walmart-60-in-the-bay-area-rally-in-support" rel="nofollow"> San Francisco</a>, <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/stand-with-the-walmart-60-in-chicago-rally-for-respect" rel="nofollow">Chicago</a>, <a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/stand-with-the-walmart-60-in-denver-rally-for-respect" rel="nofollow">Denver</a>, and<a href="http://corporateactionnetwork.org/campaigns/stand-with-the-walmart-60/events/stand-with-the-walmart-60-in-boston-rally-for-respect" rel="nofollow"> Boston</a>.<br /><br />The photo below shows protesters getting ready for the demonstration outside of a Renton, Wash., Walmart (near Seattle).<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5ZWBVOv2q6hzJwTqP3Kb8xq9MOhOinpcomypvwWwQQ5goftsYTbG6IfNuS-DFmob7lPXOr36Av10ooYB3_X5urOv8YAIl5J-kwyh1IobGf-MS4v9Q4lwHgxTPF-wLBZi4lUEJ-Gj8hJGO/s1600/renton+walmart.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5ZWBVOv2q6hzJwTqP3Kb8xq9MOhOinpcomypvwWwQQ5goftsYTbG6IfNuS-DFmob7lPXOr36Av10ooYB3_X5urOv8YAIl5J-kwyh1IobGf-MS4v9Q4lwHgxTPF-wLBZi4lUEJ-Gj8hJGO/s320/renton+walmart.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peacekeepers prepare for Walmart protest in Washington.</td></tr></tbody></table>Actions reported so far this afternoon have popped up in several cities, including New York, Boston, Raleigh, N.C., Los Angeles and Seattle.<br /><br />Today's actions follow strikes against Walmart back in June. <a href="http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/09/05/muted-labor-protests-amid-fears-of-walmart-retaliation/">MSNBC reports</a>:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">In late May and early June, <a href="http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/05/28/walmart-employees-escalate-low-wage-workers-campaign-with-longest-strike-yet/">roughly 100 Walmart employees</a> affiliated with OUR Walmart engaged in what they said was an unfair labor practice (ULP) strike against the company. Strikers are <a href="http://www.nlrb.gov/strikes">protected from termination</a> by the National Labor Relations Act</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">Dominic Ware, an OUR Walmart member and former Walmart employee based in the Bay Area, said he was fired in early July and that management told him specifically it was because of his participation in the May-June strike.</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">In addition to the 20 workers which OUR Walmart claims have been wrongfully fired, they say another 50 or so have been disciplined for organizing.</blockquote>Today's protests represent another step forward in the movement to empower and raise standards for low-wage workers like those at Walmart. Hundreds of workers are turning up the heat on today and showing that they will not be bullied by the company.<br /><br />Show your support by signing this petition <a href="http://action.changewalmart.org/page/s/ARealWage?source=Twitter" rel="nofollow">here</a>. View photos of the action as it develops <a href="http://changewalmart.tumblr.com/" rel="nofollow">here</a>.

low-wage workers strikes walmart Dozens of Walmart workers, supporters arrested in mass protests (UPDATE)

UPDATES with four new grafs 1-5 with news of arrests. At least a dozen Walmart strikers and supporters were arrested today for acts of civil...

Australia’s minimum wage is $16

12:30 PM Tukiyooo 0

<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Say the U.S. businesses can't pay a living wage? </span><a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/08/the-magical-world-where-mcdonalds-pays-15-an-hour-its-australia/278313/" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">One just needs to look at Australia</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">, which already pays workers at least $15 an hour and fast-food employees above $16 an hour, to see that it can be done.<o:p></o:p></span><br /><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What is the result of paying workers a fair wage? High unemployment? Slow economic growth? Neither. Instead the Land Down Under was the only nation that avoided a catastrophic recession five years ago. All while receiving health care, vacation days and sick days as required by the Australian government.<o:p></o:p></span></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Salvatore Babones, a senior lecturer at the University of Sydney, notes the </span><a href="http://truth-out.org/video/item/18106-australia-has-16-minimum-wage-and-is-the-only-rich-country-to-dodge-the-global-recession?tmpl=component&print=1" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">conditions for working people are just plan better</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> in his country:</span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I think it's long past the time when Americans should wake up and see, you know, how far along the rest of the world has come. If a $15 minimum wage seems unrealistic, it's only because we're stuck in the 1950s or 1960s idea of how you should live as a worker in America. Ordinary workers, people who do, you know, grocery store checkout or fast food, simply do much better in the rest of the developed world than they do in the United States.<o:p></o:p></span></blockquote></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> While buddies of big business have long insisted that an increase in wages would only hurt workers, that just hasn’t proven true. Jared Bernstein, a senior fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, said </span><a href="http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/09/the-economics-of-a-higher-wage-floor/?smid=tw-share" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">economists no longer hold such a point of view</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">:</span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Why don’t they lose their jobs? In part, because some of the cost of the higher wages comes out of profits, which, as noted, explains the “who and why” of the people fighting the hardest against this idea.<o:p></o:p></span></blockquote></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> Others agree. Too many companies are simply </span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/companies-need-to-pay-people-more-2013-8" rel="nofollow"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">holding onto cash in an effort to maximize their bottom line</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span class="MsoHyperlink"><u><span style="color: blue;">s</span></u></span>. In the end, they are hurting themselves:</span><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">If average Americans don't get paid living wages, they can't spend much money buying products and services. And when average Americans can't buy products and services, the companies that sell products and services to average Americans can't grow. So the profit obsession of America's big companies is, ironically, hurting their ability to accelerate revenue growth.<o:p></o:p></span></blockquote></div><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> It is time for corporate America to move beyond the old tired lines it has used for decades. It can afford to pay higher wages without shuttering. Let’s create a system that pays fair wages and allows businesses to profit, too.</span>

Australia living wage low-wage workers Australia’s minimum wage is $16

Say the U.S. businesses can't pay a living wage? One just needs to look at Australia , which already pays workers at least $15 an hour a...

Despicable smear artist attacks fast-food strikers

8:32 AM Tukiyooo 0

<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBMfrGlXapycxRV2XEurFWYEVR-VIMGArtN6bY-PvUQXQqzQkVtxrQWsuJiFZIZaUTOYdBEPwY7cG7VxQKdgylHO5VUXn6dfma9iAp2ZhxDaX7dt9h-xg7z21koCdxFGybQ9dsQeAhMHF9/s1600/fast+food+strikers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBMfrGlXapycxRV2XEurFWYEVR-VIMGArtN6bY-PvUQXQqzQkVtxrQWsuJiFZIZaUTOYdBEPwY7cG7VxQKdgylHO5VUXn6dfma9iAp2ZhxDaX7dt9h-xg7z21koCdxFGybQ9dsQeAhMHF9/s400/fast+food+strikers.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>Our old enemy, the despicable smear artist <a href="http://bermanexposed.org/" rel="nofollow">Rick Berman</a>, is back, making up crap on Fox News to discredit fast-food strikers.<br /><br />Berman is a shill for the restaurant industry, which is clearly spooked by the thousands of<a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/08/low-wage-workers-in-Chicago-Milwaukee-Seattle-walk-off-jobs.html"> fast-food strikers</a> who've elicited broad public outrage over their poverty wages and abuse at work. The fast-food strikers want higher wages and an end to retaliation for trying to form a union.<br /><br />This week, fast-food workers walked off the job in a wave of one-day strikes, first in New York, then in St. Louis, Kansas City, Chicago, Detroit, Flint, Milwaukee and Seattle. Workers who hadn't planned on joining the fast-food strikers suddenly decided to join them. Scabs refused to cross picket lines, according to Bud Meyers at <a href="http://www.economicpopulist.org/content/low-pay-keeps-millennials-stuck-home5319" rel="nofollow">The Economic Populist</a>.<br /><br />Berman is an old corporate hit man whose own son has called him despicable. This is what <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16.890625px;"> </span><a href="http://ethanbeute.com/wordpress/like-son-dont-like-father-berman/" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16.890625px;">he has said about dear old dad</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16.890625px;">: </span><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16.890625px; margin: 1em 20px;">“My father is a despicable man.  My father is a sort of human molestor.  An exploiter.  A scoundrel.  A world historical motherf*cking son of a b*itch.  (sorry grandma)”<br /><br />“He props up fast food/soda/factory farming/childhood obesity and diabetes/drunk driving/secondhand smoke.</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16.890625px; margin: 1em 20px;">He attacks animal lovers, ecologists, civil action attorneys, scientists, dieticians, doctors, teachers.</blockquote>Meyers has more about Berman's recent appearance on Fox News:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Recently on July 29th, on the Fox News business channel, host Stuart Varney interviewed Richard Berman of the Employment Policies Institute to provide a "critical analysis" of the walk outs. Berman dismissed the idea of raising fast food employee wages, claiming that a hike in pay would result in lower employment: </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">"The business model just does not support those kind of wages. If people are feeling that they are not being paid adequately, then they have got to find a job someplace else." </blockquote><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpbMgZFVxYJhIPUzT2FSkVJ0DUom6uIZv3p8kaiE1r-GXs7M2Sw0mxvkD5j0ug5q0RPcLFeGJwsgyvX7PJZr6pg3eUrJltBgixALY_FSIhGmQKhdbUky9LnsHLO4hnq77Ourov_-U5f5SC/s1600/rick+berman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpbMgZFVxYJhIPUzT2FSkVJ0DUom6uIZv3p8kaiE1r-GXs7M2Sw0mxvkD5j0ug5q0RPcLFeGJwsgyvX7PJZr6pg3eUrJltBgixALY_FSIhGmQKhdbUky9LnsHLO4hnq77Ourov_-U5f5SC/s1600/rick+berman.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Berman</td></tr></tbody></table><blockquote class="tr_bq">Berman, a corporate lobbyist, did not disclose his organization's ties to the fast food industry. According to <a href="http://www.citizensforethics.org/" rel="nofollow">Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington</a>, the Employment Policies Institute is one of many front groups associated with Berman which provides political cover for clients in the restaurant, hospitality, alcohol, and tobacco industries. Berman specializes in a so-called "aggressive media outreach" approach intended to "change the debate" in favor of major clients. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">Berman, who says the fast-food industry can't support paying $15 an hour, is trying to convince the general public that this raises the incentive for fast-food businesses to replace workers with some automated method of preparing, serving and selling fast-food via an iPad. According to the Employment Policies Institute's 2011 990 form, Berman is paid $1.16 million to use scare tactics to convince others that they aren't worth $15 an hour.</blockquote>It's the same old story of powerful corporations trying to crush their workers using devious means. Let's hope the fast-food strikers can write a new chapter with a happier ending.<br /><br />

fast food strikes low-wage workers Despicable smear artist attacks fast-food strikers

Our old enemy, the despicable smear artist Rick Berman , is back, making up crap on Fox News to discredit fast-food strikers. Berman is a sh...

McDonald's to workers: Don't buy gas, heat your house or save for retirement

1:03 PM Tukiyooo 0

<div class="MsoNormal"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfB1E_eadI9F6TuD9DQ1Byfi8F0l28j8A48y5rVjoZzI7H5b3um5m_Yt9Gc19-6HB7HYgt0uG2F4D9M8J4S6BwEMuGIle702kNgyP1u5Q2_kbZXEGv1xxBEgOfakDo2C9EWN5mFV8D6Vej/s1600/mcdonalds.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfB1E_eadI9F6TuD9DQ1Byfi8F0l28j8A48y5rVjoZzI7H5b3um5m_Yt9Gc19-6HB7HYgt0uG2F4D9M8J4S6BwEMuGIle702kNgyP1u5Q2_kbZXEGv1xxBEgOfakDo2C9EWN5mFV8D6Vej/s1600/mcdonalds.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Onion couldn't have done a better job.</td></tr></tbody></table>McDonald's is "helping" its workers by advising them to forgo heat, health care and food. That way, they'll remain mired in poverty while working two jobs if they don't freeze or starve first.<br /><br />The fast-food giant, along with credit-card conglomerate Visa, recently unveiled a much-ridiculed website <a href="http://www.practicalmoneyskills.com/mcdonalds/budget/budget2.php">to educate workers about how to manage their money</a>.  With fast food workers across the country complaining about poverty jobs, McDonald's must have thought it was stepped in to save the day with budgeting advice. The company just stepped in it.<br /><br />The McDonald’s website says that jobs are “<a href="http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/careers/benefits.html">a great way to earn extra income for anyone, from students to moms and dads</a>.” The problem is not that minimum wage has decreased about a third in value in the past 60 years, or that half of all minimum wage workers are full-fledged adults struggling to <a href="http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes353021.htm">survive on an average wage of $8.68 per hour</a>. <br /><br />According to McDonald's, they need to budget more.<br /><br />The sample budget assumes workers have two part-time jobs that they work 52.7 hours a week, on an average fast food wage.  The budget includes savings, car payments and a $600 mortgage.<br /><br />What it doesn’t include is groceries.  Too bad -- one of the McDonalds-approved saving methods is <a href="http://www.practicalmoneyskills.com/mcdonalds/video.php">eating at </a><a href="http://www.practicalmoneyskills.com/mcdonalds/video.php">McDonald's</a>.<br /><br />Healthcare, included in the budget, is supposed to cost $20 a month, the amount the average McDonald's healthcare plan costs per <i>week</i>.  For the minimum wage workers at McDonald's, healthcare is so inaccessible that only 30,000 company and franchisee employees are enrolled in the company healthcare plan. That's less than half the number of new employees <a href="http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/careers.html">hired in a single day</a>last month.<o:p></o:p><br /><br />The budget is so out of whack that it doesn’t even account for paying your McDonald’s uniform (or any other clothes).  Or gasoline.  Or heating for your house.  Or non-essential purchases, a decent emergency fund, children, or being sick.<br /><br />But then, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-12-12/mcdonald-s-8-25-man-and-8-75-million-ceo-shows-pay-gap.html">McDonalds acknowledges that workers aren’t actually supposed to be surviving off of what they make</a>.  That would ruin their whole profit model.  In the meantime, for struggling workers, McDonald’s offers advice:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">“Everyone has a goal. (For our workers) it is spending less money than you make.”</blockquote></div>

fast food strike fast food workers low-wage workers McDonald's to workers: Don't buy gas, heat your house or save for retirement

The Onion couldn't have done a better job. McDonald's is "helping" its workers by advising them to forgo heat, health care...

Smithsonian workers strike over low wages

2:03 PM Tukiyooo 0

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRDChEPSgqClXg20VOunGoDVj4_oMJ2GAr4D0KrXCy9SJLOtetXEk7KflgtOjBzdcVmLjt_FwwGparH9gNFBtlHWotWwzOKt0D5ceyuX0JOVXwlbhB09icYterQAQCxBqwkeEu1l1uOErk/s1600/can't+survive.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRDChEPSgqClXg20VOunGoDVj4_oMJ2GAr4D0KrXCy9SJLOtetXEk7KflgtOjBzdcVmLjt_FwwGparH9gNFBtlHWotWwzOKt0D5ceyuX0JOVXwlbhB09icYterQAQCxBqwkeEu1l1uOErk/s320/can't+survive.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>The revolt against poverty wages surged ahead in Washington, D.C., today as more low-wage Smithsonian workers walked off the job for a third time.<br /><br />And last night, the DC city council defied Walmart and approved a bill that would require big-box retailers to <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-politics/dc-council-approves-living-wage-bill-over-wal-mart-ultimatum/2013/07/10/724aab6e-e96f-11e2-a301-ea5a8116d211_story.html">pay a living wage of $12.50 an hour</a>. Walmart threatened to scuttle its plans to build three stores in the city. (Don't let the door hit you on the way out.)<br /><br />Today's action continues a string of one-day strikes against poverty wages that began last fall and accelerated in the spring. Thousands of workers at fast-food restaurants and retail stores have walked off the job in cities around the country to demand better pay and the right to form a union. The government contract workers concentrated their protests in the nation's capital.<br /><br />The <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/federal-eye/wp/2013/07/11/low-wage-workers-to-strike-at-smithsonian-museums/">Washington Post</a> covered today's strike:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Low-wage workers connected with the nation’s marquee museum network held a strike on Thursday, continuing a string of recent demonstrations to promote better pay for employees at federal buildings. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/GoodJobsNation">Good Jobs Nation</a>, a group representing low-wage workers employed under federal concession agreements, organized protests throughout the morning in front of several Smithsonian museums. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">The events started with a press conference and a street-theater sketch near the Air and Space Museum, where actors playing Ronald McDonald and Uncle Sam climbed into bed together. That performance was meant to represent the relationship between private-sector CEOs and the federal government.</blockquote>In case you miseed it, the <a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/05/federal-govt-has-more-low-wage-workers.html">U.S. government creates more poverty</a> than Walmart and McDonald's combined. Amy Traub at <a href="http://www.demos.org/blog/concession-workers-strike-smithsonian">Demos</a>, the group that uncovered that disturbing fact, commented today:<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3OAhmSvRCoUpeiY70oEZKHM4fxtYkY9-BwMwy3FRgpMdA9apmbI08HhYZjjg0W2_l2-npsMw-Bx2MyjW39x5o-O6Q4FNOTp9OtMxQtsMyrgyaPAJVOWYFB9kt_vxhum3rjZvxuWE1QR3w/s1600/woody.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="161" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3OAhmSvRCoUpeiY70oEZKHM4fxtYkY9-BwMwy3FRgpMdA9apmbI08HhYZjjg0W2_l2-npsMw-Bx2MyjW39x5o-O6Q4FNOTp9OtMxQtsMyrgyaPAJVOWYFB9kt_vxhum3rjZvxuWE1QR3w/s200/woody.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><blockquote class="tr_bq">But while workers’ families are struggling, not everyone working for a federal contractor or concessionaire is poorly paid. Under current law, contractors can be reimbursed by taxpayers for as much as $763,029  in compensation for each top manager. This is one way our current model of federal outsourcing and contracting worsens the trends toward inequality already harming our economy. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">At the bottom of the Smithsonian’s website is an image honoring the centennial of Woody Guthrie. There’s little question where this balladeer of ordinary Americans and their strugglesincluding fights for better pay and union representation—would have stood in the current dispute between the Smithsonian and the workers who serve food to its patrons. Officials at the Smithsonian would do well to listen to any of Woody’s directly pro-worker and pro-union songs available for purchase from their own website.  But the most relevant message might come from the Dust Bowl classic, “Goin' Down The Road Feeling Bad.”<br /><blockquote>My children need three square meals a day,<br />Now, my children need three square meals a day,<br />My children need three square meals a day, Lord,<br />And I ain't a-gonna be treated this way.</blockquote></blockquote><br />

low-wage workers strike Smithsonian workers strike over low wages

The revolt against poverty wages surged ahead in Washington, D.C., today as more low-wage Smithsonian workers walked off the job for a third...

Low-wage govt. contract workers strike -- again

2:01 PM Tukiyooo 0

About 50 workers at the Reagan Building and the Old Post Office in Washington, D.C., walked off the job today to protest poverty wages and widespread wage theft by federal contractors. Earlier this morning, a group of workers visited the home of Dan Tangherlini, the head of the General Services Administration, which owns the buildings and contracts with the franchisees that do business from them.<br /><br />Josh Eidelson at <a href="http://www.blogger.com/Non-Union%20Federally%20Contracted%20Workers%20Will%20Stage%20Second%20Strike%20Today%20%7C%20The%20Nation%20http://www.thenation.com/blog/175062/non-union-federally-contracted-workers-will-stage-second-strike-today#ixzz2XvKsZQTP">The Nation</a> tells us:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">Tangherlini can be seen standing in his doorway, telling the group on his porch, “I’d like to look at the issues that are involved. Obviously we’re interested in trying to find a solution to these problems.” One striker tells Tangeherlini, “We don’t want to, like, steal, you know. We just want what we’re supposed to get.” Tangherlini responds, “I completely understand. All right, take care.”</blockquote>Watch the visit <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkCHerArtis">here</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/07/02/2245171/dc-workers-strike/">ThinkProgress</a> reminds us this is the second time this year the workers tried to pressure the government to demand its contractors treat workers better.<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The earlier strike led to 10 of the workers – who get organizing help from a union-backed group called Good Jobs Nation but do not have a union themselves – being fired, as The Nation’s Josh Eidelson reported at the time. The managers in question ultimately backed off, and the workers returned to their jobs at the Ronald Reagan Building. That building is the focus of a Department of Labor investigation prompted by worker complaints of wage and hour violations.</blockquote><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqVPcbUaG_HGq16mCmLh3jAPc__9xKKCB_u9LS5JwzpweU3W8BwiR-QkVID3h-A9qiYrJI6PldvhRFyFtdmFDBu89TSAyjSZTZ8gEpfn1mED8BEZmfjTo1N3tDAttjwZH0WM-jqzrIQCqO/s960/low-wage+worker+strike_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqVPcbUaG_HGq16mCmLh3jAPc__9xKKCB_u9LS5JwzpweU3W8BwiR-QkVID3h-A9qiYrJI6PldvhRFyFtdmFDBu89TSAyjSZTZ8gEpfn1mED8BEZmfjTo1N3tDAttjwZH0WM-jqzrIQCqO/s320/low-wage+worker+strike_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another worker revolt in DC</td></tr></tbody></table><a href="http://goodjobsnation.org/">Good Jobs Nation</a>, the group working to organize the workers, wants Labor Department to investigate the employers for wage theft and worker harassment. After one three-year employee walked off the job in May, he was held in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody for four days and fired by Quick Pita, according to Eidelson. The company claimed he was fired for not preparing a sauce quickly enough.<br /><br /><a href="http://tv.msnbc.com/2013/07/02/second-service-workers-strike-hits-ronald-reagan-building-in-washington/">Ned Resnikoff</a> at MSNBC tells us:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">...Good Jobs Nation has drafted a 16-page complaint addressed to the U.S. Department of Labor, which claims that private contractors within the Reagan Building have repeatedly violated the Fair Labor Standards Act through “payment of wage rates under the federal minimum wage, 60 to 70-hour workweeks without payment of overtime, and use of false or deceptive record-keeping to conceal these violations from employees and public authorities.” </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq">On Tuesday morning Good Jobs Nation group personally delivered that complaint to the home of Dan Tangherlini, acting head of the GSA. The GSA, which owns the Reagan Building, took the complaints to the Department of Labor and the Trade Center Management Associates (TMCA), the private company which manages the building, saying it looks forward to the results of the investigation.</blockquote>The federal government<a href="http://teamsternation.blogspot.com/2013/05/federal-govt-has-more-low-wage-workers.html"> employs more low-wage workers than Walmart and McDonald's combined</a>, according to a<a href="http://www.demos.org/publication/underwriting-bad-jobs-how-our-tax-dollars-are-funding-low-wage-work-and-fueling-inequali"> Demos</a> report released in May:<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16.890625px;">Hundreds of billions of dollars in federal contracts, grants, loans, concession agreements and property leases go to private companies that pay low wages, provide few benefits, and offer employees little opportunity to work their way into the middle class. At the same time, many of these companies are providing their executives with exorbitant compensation. </span></blockquote>Today's strike is the latest in a wave of job actions by low-wage worker across the country. Last month, Walmart workers went on strike for two weeks and traveled to the company's Bentonville, Ark., headquarters in bus caravans modeled after the freedom riders of the Civil Rights era. <br /><br /><br /></div>

low-wage workers strike Low-wage govt. contract workers strike -- again

About 50 workers at the Reagan Building and the Old Post Office in Washington, D.C., walked off the job today to protest poverty wages and w...

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