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Updated: 1 hour 32 min ago

Attacking Immigrants and Refugees Hurts All Working People

Wed, 02/01/2017 - 11:42

President Donald Trump has announced three executive orders addressing immigration that are an affront to core union and American values. Building a wall on our border, scapegoating immigrants and refugees, and shutting out people of Muslim faith will do nothing to uplift working people in our country. To the contrary, these orders sow fear of raids among workers, promote racial profiling and erode core constitutional protections. As such, they are a clear attack on our members, and elevated fear is a direct obstacle to workers’ rights to organize and bargain collectively. We call on President Trump to revoke these orders.

What Working People Want from a Supreme Court Nominee

Tue, 01/31/2017 - 11:24

It is expected that Donald Trump will announce his nomination for the Supreme Court seat previously occupied by Antonin Scalia. As always, working families take a keen interest in judicial appointments, as the courts have a significant impact on so many aspects of our lives, including our work lives.  The Supreme Court rules on whether we are paid properly for the time we work; we have jobs to return to after caring for a sick family member; we are safe from  harmful substances on-the-job; and we are protected from illegal firings when we choose to form unions.

Union-Made Super Bowl Party Shopping List

Tue, 01/31/2017 - 10:07

On Super Bowl Sunday next week, some of our larger and faster union brothers—members of the NFL Players Association (NFLPA)—will be battling it out in Houston at Super Bowl 51. While the Super Bowl carries a union label, from players to broadcast crews to stadium workers—your Super Bowl party spread can, too, with union-made in America food and drinks.

6 Truths You Need to Know About a Federal Hiring Freeze

Mon, 01/30/2017 - 07:32

This week, President Donald Trump instituted a hiring freeze that has no visible end in sight. Beyond this, he directed the Office of Management and Budget to develop a long-term plan to reduce the federal workforce through attrition. Here are six truths you need to know about the hiring freeze.

The Working People Weekly List

Sun, 01/29/2017 - 06:00

Every week, we bring you a roundup of the top news and commentary about issues and events important to working families. Here’s this week’s Working People Weekly List.

There Is Still Time to Sign Up for the Affordable Care Act (Deadline Jan. 31)

Fri, 01/27/2017 - 15:42

Let your friends and family, who may need coverage because they don’t get health care benefits through their jobs or Medicare, know that there's still time to enroll at Healthcare.gov or their state marketplace. The deadline is Jan. 31.

Working America can also help them learn more about their health care coverage options.  

What Betsy DeVos Can Learn from Jack

Fri, 01/27/2017 - 12:18

Meet my Jack. Our Jack. America’s Jack. Jack is a spunky, determined, charismatic six-year-old. He plays baseball, basketball and soccer. He swims and reads and dances. Man, can Jack dance! Jack has Down syndrome, but that doesn’t define him. It’s one of the things that makes Jack awesome. And Jack is one of the things that makes his school awesome. Jack knows that. His peers know. His teachers know. We all know. 

Know Your Rights When Interacting with Immigration Agents

Fri, 01/27/2017 - 11:32

The 2016 election featured a heavy focus, in races at all levels of government, on immigration. President Donald Trump's post-election actions have signaled that this will continue. Here are some key things that working people need to know about their rights that will make sure that we have the resources to defend ourselves and the immigrant members of their families and their communities in the event of workplace or community raids.

Download Your ‘Safe Workplace’ Poster Here (in English and Spanish!)

Fri, 01/27/2017 - 10:47

If you work in a safe workplace and want everyone to know, we have the sign(s) for you! Anxiety and fear are on the rise, and one way to combat them is to let people know that the workplace they are in is a place that doesn't tolerate hate and harassment. The sign makes it clear that your workplace will not tolerate racism, sexism, xenophobia, Islamophobia or transphobia.  

Case Closed on Fiji, but the Struggle Is Not Over

Fri, 01/27/2017 - 09:03

The U.S. Trade Representative has announced the closure of a petition defending workers' rights in Fiji. This case represents gains for workers in our struggle for freedom and justice, but obstacles remain.

What the BLS Union Numbers Don't Tell You About People Organizing and Collective Action

Thu, 01/26/2017 - 08:45

As we examine the new Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Annual Union Membership Report, it is striking that corporations and their hired politicians have been at the throats of working people for years, attacking our rights to negotiate on the job. And that has left us weaker.

There are millions of working people who want and need a union but who are being prevented from forming one by their employer. And instead of penalizing bad actors, our outdated labor laws have made union avoidance nothing more than the cost of doing business. This must change.

"The truth is, collective action in America is stronger than ever," said AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka. "We’ve seen the source of our power in defeating the TPP, even when most people told us we couldn’t. We’ve seen it in successfully raising wages at the state and local levels against great political odds."

Young Women Leading the Fight for Social Justice Recognized by Berger-Marks Foundation

Thu, 01/26/2017 - 08:02

The Berger-Marks Foundation has announced the winners of its 2017 awards, recognizing the leadership of young women in the fight for labor organizing, immigration, racial justice, prison reform, and the right for decent health care and working conditions. Of the winners, the Berger-Marks Foundation said: "The winners of the Edna Award for Social Justice and the Kate Mullany Courageous Young Worker Award have each stood up for justice and workers’ rights in the face of enormous odds." The recipients will be given their awards at a reception on Feb. 9 in Washington, D.C.

Book Review: The High Cost of the Peculiar Institution

Wed, 01/25/2017 - 12:14

A 62-year-old man in the antebellum South told a traveler from the North that he’d "give any man $20 to $30 down, if he could get me free."

Trumka: Don't Roll Back Gains for Workers

Wed, 01/25/2017 - 11:13

In two op-eds this week, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka called upon Donald Trump to embrace policies that will help working people, not roll back the hard-fought gains that so many have sacrificed to achieve.

What President Trump’s Health Care Executive Order Does and Doesn’t Say

Wed, 01/25/2017 - 10:02

President Donald Trump did not say anything about health care in his inaugural address, but one of his first official actions as president was to issue an executive order focused on the Affordable Care Act. While the executive order does not tell working people a whole lot about what he plans to do, it’s worth looking at a few things he did and didn’t say in his first official action on health care.

Who Gets Hurt if DACA Is Repealed? We All Do

Wed, 01/25/2017 - 09:01

As the new administration begins, immigrant workers around the country are fearful that President Donald Trump will follow through with his campaign pledges to deport millions of members of our unions and our communities and that he also will strip away basic protections for immigrants who were brought to our country as children. The Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program has allowed hundreds of thousands of aspiring Americans and union members to live and work without fear in the United States. In light of Congress’ failure to create a pathway to citizenship for millions of hardworking immigrants, the labor movement strongly supports this deferred action program and has called for it to be expanded so that all working people will have the status to assert their rights on the job and stand up together to prevent abuse and exploitation.

We Can't Return to the Days of Workplace Immigration Raids

Wed, 01/25/2017 - 08:01

In a speech at Catholic University earlier this month, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka acknowledged the very real fear that immigrant workers in our country are feeling as President Donald Trump begins his term in office and pledged that the labor movement will stand strong and united in defense of all working people.

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Sues Student Loan Servicer Navient

Wed, 01/25/2017 - 07:49

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the attorneys general of Illinois and Washington directed the spotlight on the country’s largest student loan servicer, Navient, in a federal lawsuit filed last week. And the multibillion-dollar corporation is not happy about that.

Working Women Play Key Role In Nationwide Women's Marches

Mon, 01/23/2017 - 14:34

On Sunday, millions of women and men took to the streets across the country in support of women and in opposition to a growing tide of anti-women policies coming out of Washington, D.C., and state capitals. Working families, led by working women, played a major role in the marches and rallies. Here are some of the best Tweets from events around the country

Victory: More Than 1,400 BG

Mon, 01/23/2017 - 11:31

"This is a fantastic moment for our new brothers and sisters and one of the largest organizing election victories any union has seen in years," said International President Lonnie R. Stephenson. "This will transform not only their lives, but the lives of their families, and I think it will be an inspiration for working people across the U.S. and Canada."

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