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9/04/03
E
Messenger
The
Electronic Newsletter of the
Florida
AFL-CIO
New
Members according to the AFL-CIO Work in Progress
This week's WIP: 5,298
Year to date: 107,793
Labor
Day Clips and News
The
AFL-CIO, State Federations and local unions did an incredible job
spreading the working family message this Labor Day.
There were Editorials, OP-Eds and news
stories in almost every single major newspapers
and many of the smaller papers. Consequently,
there is a huge volume of online clips.
In order to keep the E Messenger at a manageable size we are
placing those clips on our website. Check
out www.flaflcio.org
and you can browse through the clips at your leisure.
FIGHTING
FOR A VOICE@WORK ON LABOR DAY--Working
families celebrated Labor Day with picnics, parades, worship services and
a renewed commitment to helping nonunion workers win a voice on the job.
Members of the clergy, workers and activists spoke at more than 950
religious congregations in more than 100 cities as part of "Labor in
the Pulpits," sponsored by the AFL-CIO and the National Interfaith
Committee for Worker Justice to spotlight the shared goals of the faith
community and the union movement. Thousands of activists rallied in
Cincinnati
to support
workers' efforts to gain a union voice at Cintas,
the nation's largest laundry and uniform supply company. In a move to give
voice to nonunion working people who want to join the union movement's
efforts to affect social change through local, state and federal
legislation, AFL-CIO President John Sweeney announced the formation of a
new directly affiliated union, Working America. The federation hopes to
recruit members to lobby Congress and to become activists on issues such
as preventing privatization of Social Security, beating back attempts to
end overtime pay protections and pushing for laws to support workers'
right to form a union.
The
Legislature
Gainesville
Sun: One more
time?
The Legislature can put off having another special session unless it is
planning on fixing the public education crisis.
http://www.gainesvillesun.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20030902/EDITORIALS/30902008
Senate
Election 2004
Palm Beach
Post: Foley
drops bid for Senate seat
Palm Beach
Post Political Editor
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/localnews/content/news/0905foley.html?urac=n&urvf=10627598823830.9066376084719201
Education
St.
Pete Times: Bleeding our schools
It looks like the Legislature's enrollment projections for this year were
substantially off the mark, leaving schools to educate even more students
with less money.
A Times Editorial
published
September
5, 2003
http://www.sptimes.com/2003/09/05/Opinion/Bleeding_our_schools.shtml
St.
Pete Times: Bush claims victory in diversity
Gov. Jeb Bush credits his One Florida program for raising enrollment among
minority students in
Florida
colleges.
© St. Petersburg Times
published
September 3, 2003
http://www.sptimes.com/2003/09/03/State/Bush_claims_victory_i.shtml
FCAT
Nation
Rising Demands for Testing Push Limits of Its Accuracy
Testing is the new education buzzword, but experts are
worried
about the industry's ability to provide fair and accurate tests.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/02/education/02EXAM.html?th
DCF
Still
any doubt about who runs
Florida
?
Election
2004
With
a Pile of Money, Dean Ups the Ante
Los Angeles
Times
9/2/03
Democrats
urge organized labor to help defeat President Bush
San
Diego Union-Tribun
9/2/03
St. Pete Times: Hey, Iowa, meet the Grahams
© St. Petersburg Times
published
August 11, 2003
http://www.sptimes.com/2003/08/11/Worldandnation/Hey__Iowa__meet_the_G.shtml
Hoffa:
Endorsing Bush Hard to Imagine
The
New York
Times
9/4/03
Not
too late to stop attack on overtime, 40-hour week!
Harkin Sees Vote to Stop OT Rules
Reuters
9/3/03
Democrats,
AFL-CIO target proposal to end overtime pay for some workers
The
Baltimore
Sun 9/3/03
The Senate debate on President Bush's overtime pay
cuts will
begin this week with a vote expected any
day. This
is the most important chance we've had to
block the
overtime pay cuts before they go into effect.
We know you may have acted before, but PLEASE ACT AGAIN
TODAY by clicking on the link below and sending a message
to your
U.S.
senators asking
them to support the Harkin Amendment that would block the Bush overtime
pay cuts. It will only take a minute and will make a big difference.
http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/septovertime/xiua45wjb
The
overtime pay cuts proposed by the Bush administration could take away
overtime pay from at least 8 million workers. Overtime pay protections are
the heart of the 40-hour workweek--and even the weekend. Without them,
employers would have no reason to treat workers fairly--they could require
longer and longer days without paying workers extra for their overtime
hours. Click below to take action, or keep reading.
http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/septovertime/xiua45wjb
The
Bush overtime pay take-away would save employers billions--right from
workers' paychecks. They would allow employers to do almost anything they
want by blurring the rules for overtime eligibility. One congressional
study of the Bush overtime changes said they would allow employers to do
almost anything. The Bush administration changes could make large numbers
of workers who have job-related training ineligible
for
overtime, for example. Health care, technical, computer, law enforcement,
firefighting and skilled trades training could cost workers their right to
overtime pay. This is completely outrageous and we need to stop it.
Send your fax: http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/septovertime/xiua45wjb
Tell
your friends, family and co-workers:
http://www.unionvoice.org/campaign/septovertime/forward/xiua45wjb
The
overtime pay takeaway won't just hit workers in the pocket. According to
the Economic Policy Institute, "The millions of employees who will
see their pay reduced will, in all likelihood, see their hours of work
increase at the same time. Once employers are not required to
pay for
overtime work, they will schedule more of it."
Tens of millions of working families depend on overtime
pay.
Please act today.
Thanks for all you do.
ALREADY
ACTED? PLEASE ACT AGAIN AND THEN SPREAD THE
WORD.
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George
Bush’s America
BUSH
PICKS WORKERS' POCKETS--President
Bush--who has presided over the worst job loss since the Great Depression,
slashed taxes for millionaires,
stripped civil service and collective bargaining rights from nearly
200,000 federal workers and proposes to privatize more than 800,000
federal jobs--last week cut a congressionally approved pay raise for
federal workers. He cited executive authority that allows the president to
limit raises in times of "national emergency or serious economic
conditions." Bush cut a 2.7 percent raise to a maximum of between 1.5
percent and 2 percent, depending on locality. Yet two years ago, Bush
restored cash bonus payments for 2,100 political appointees, eight years
after the bonuses were eliminated because of abuses.
Census
Shows Ranks of Poor Rose in 2002 by 1.3 Million
By LYNETTE CLEMETSON
The number of Americans living below the poverty line
increased
even though the economy technically edged out of recession during the same
period.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/03/national/03CENS.html?th
Job
Czar for the Jobless
With more than eight million Americans out of work, the creation of a new
undersecretary post is at best a feeble effort.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/03/opinion/03WED2.html?th
Bush
Defends Tax Cuts and Announces Jobs Post
In a Labor Day speech, the president defended his economic policy and
announced the creation of an assistant secretary of commerce for
manufacturing.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/02/politics/02BUSH.html?th
Bush
Policy On Jobs Is a Shift
The
Washington
Post
9/3/03
Do
they really care about the blackout?
Backward on Energy
The energy plan being debated in Congress does nothing to address the
problems of global warming or dependence on foreign oil.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/02/opinion/02TUE1.html?th
Another
Friday Outrage
In another demonstration of how electricity deregulation
has gone
wrong, the energy companies accused of
manipulating
California
's markets were
let off the hook.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/02/opinion/02KRUG.html?th
California
Coup – A Connection to the Bush’s and
Florida
?
Both
Jeb and George have said many times that they have no involvement with or
connection to the
California
recall but are they
telling the truth? Check out
the below article about
Arnold
getting hit with a raw
egg. The campaign
spokesperson is Todd Harris, Jeb’s spokesman from the 2002 elections.
Harris was the person who attended all of McBride’s press
conferences and then asked McBride questions designed to make him look
bad. Around
Tallahassee
people started calling
him “The Spy.” He also
was awarded a very lucrative state contract a few months ago to do
communications work and is advising Johnnie Byrd.
Schwarzenegger
egged at CSU
Sacramento
Bee
9/4/03
California
Hopefuls Debate, but Schwarzenegger Sits Out
With Arnold Schwarzenegger absent, five other top
candidates
vying to replace Gov. Gray Davis squared off in
the first
debate of the recall campaign.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/04/national/04RECA.html?th
Working
families win – Estrada out!
Stymied
by Democrats in Senate,
Bush
Court
Pick Finally
Gives Up
Miguel Estrada, whose nomination to a federal appeals court post was
blocked by a filibuster mounted by Senate Democrats, gave up his two-year
struggle.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/05/politics/05JUDG.html?th
Miguel
Estrada Bows Out
Trying to confirm Miguel Estrada without disclosing his
record
showed contempt for the Senate's role in appointing judges and the
public's right to know.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/05/opinion/05FRI2.html?th
More
on the AFL-CIO’s new organization for workers
AFL-CIO
plans new union for unrepresented workers
Arizona
Republic
9/3/03
New
union welcomes all -- working or not
Detroit
Free Press
9/3/03
Working
America union to put priority on jobs
Detroit
News
9/4/03
TOM
WALSH: Labor leader John Sweeney's take on the
economy
Detroit
Free Press
9/4/03
AFL-CIO
head announces formation of new national union
Miami
Herald
9/4/03
Prescription
drug debate
Industry Fights to Put Imprint on Drug Bill
A lobbying campaign is paying off for the pharmaceutical industry as
Congress reconciles differences in two versions of a Medicare drug
benefit.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/05/business/05MEDI.html?th
Some
seniors don't see the benefit of Rx-drug bills
USA
Today
9/3/03
Unions: wrong Rx for health care
Denver
Post
9/3/03
Some
Successful Models Ignored as Congress Works on Drug Bill
The
New York
Times
9/4/03
Verizon
struggle nears close
Verizon
Wireless and Workers Reach Agreement on a Contract
The
New York
Times
9/3/03
Verizon,
Unions Working Out Details
The
Washington
Post
9/4/03
Verizon
and Unions Agree on Tentative 5-Year Contract
Verizon
and its unions reached agreement on a tentative contract that includes a
wage freeze and job security protections.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/05/business/05BELL.html?th
Bush,
Delay seem ready to win a big one in Texas
In
Texas
Fight, One Democrat Finally Blinks
With the defection of a leading lawmaker, the band of state senators holed
up in
New Mexico
has lost its
ability to deny a disputed Republican redistricting plan.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/04/national/04TEXA.html?th
Americans
win one for Democracy
U.S.
Court Blocks Plan to Ease Rule on Media Owners
The order blocks new F.C.C. rules that would make it easier
for
conglomerates to add new markets and areas of business.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/04/business/media/04FCC.html?th
Senate
Panel Acts to Block TV Ownership Rule
A Senate committee approved a provision that would block a
new rule
that allows the nation's largest television
networks
to grow bigger by buying more stations.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/05/business/media/05FCC.html?th
Other
labor news
Schumer
Acts to Help Workers Form Unions
The
New York
Times
9/4/03
THE
E MESSENGER WIL NOT BE SENT NEXT TEUSDAY BUT WILL RESUME ON FRIDAY ---
HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!
If you have
suggestions on how we may improve this online publication or have
information you would like to see posted please contact our communications
director at (850) 224 – 6926 or at rtemplin@flaflcio.org.
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Rich
Templin
Communications Director
Florida
AFL-CIO
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