 |
|
|
|
 |
|
||
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
||
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
June 28, 2010
BCTGM International President Frank Hurt submits a letter to the Food and Drug Administration’s Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee Center for Tobacco Products concerning the proposed ban on menthol cigarettes.
Because a very significant portion of the cigarette market is menthol, such a ban would result in severe job loss for our tobacco industry members. These are good, hardworking men and women who earn strong wages and excellent benefits. They are an economic linchpin of the communities in which they live...
July 16, 2010
Piracy Is a Danger to Entertainment Professionals
Piracy costs the U.S. entertainment industry billions of dollars in revenue each year. That loss of revenue hits directly at bottom-line profits. When profits are diminished, the incentive to invest in new films, television programs, sound recordings and other entertainment drops. With less investment in future works comes less industry activity that directly benefits workers: fewer jobs, less compensation for entertainment professionals and a reduction in health and pension benefits...
June 14, 2010
Jobs Bill: Action Needed Now
 |
 |
 |
|
As the U.S. Senate considers a much-needed jobs bill with no certain date for a vote, the AFL-CIO union movement continues to push lawmakers to put the needs of workers and the economy before concerns over the nation’s budget deficit. Of the nation’s 15 million jobless workers, 6.8 million have been out of work for more than 26 weeks. If Congress fails to act on the jobs bill and allows federal unemployment insurance (UI) to expire, 8.2 million workers will exhaust their benefits by the end of 2010.
May 18, 2010
Act Now: Tell House to Pass Badly Needed Jobs Bill
The U.S. House is poised to vote this week on a multibillion-dollar package of aid to states that would help America’s workers, promote U.S. jobs and provide a much-needed additional lift to our economy. Plus: The bill would make Wall Street pay for it.
The Promoting American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act of 2010 (H.R. 4213) would extend unemployment insurance (UI) and reduce COBRA payments for those out of work and fund summer jobs for young workers.
Survey: Small Business Owners Say Unions Good for Business
Despite U.S. Chamber of Commerce propaganda, the nation’s small business owners recognize the value of employees forming a union, according to a new survey by Americans Rights at Work (ARAW). The survey was released yesterday, the same day the Chamber opened its annual small business summit.
Some 80 percent of the small business owners and self-employed individuals surveyed agreed that “strong unions make the free market system stronger.” A significant majority—54 percent—strongly agreed.
April 27, 2010
Dangerous Worksites Lack Proper Enforcement, Reports AFL-CIO Death on the Job Study
The nation’s workplace safety laws and penalties are too weak to effectively protect workers, according to the new AFL-CIO annual report released today: Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect. As the country reels from the loss of the 29 miners at the Massey Upper Big Branch coal mine in West Virginia, the report shows that there were a total of 5,214 fatal workplace injuries in 2008. Because underreporting of workplace-related injuries and illness remains a persistent problem, the true toll is estimated to be as many as three times the 4.6 million reported incidents...
April 13, 2010
2010 PayWatch Exposes Corporate Lobbying on Financial Reform
The nation’s biggest banks helped create the current financial crisis that required a $700 billion taxpayer bailout. In return, the banks cut back on lending to consumers and small businesses but paid out a record $145 billion in total compensation in 2009...
April 6, 2010
W.Va. Coal Mine Blast Kills 25, 4 Miners Missing
The death toll in the explosion at the Massey Energy Co. Upper Big Branch mine in Raleigh County, W.Va., now stands at 25 miners. Four other coal miners are unaccounted for. High levels of methane gas and carbon monoxide forced rescue teams to leave the mine early this morning. It is unclear when rescue and recovery efforts will resume. Holes must be drilled from 1,200 feet above to help ventilate the mine...
April 5, 2010
New Labor Dept. Drive Sets to Stop Wage Theft
In a 180-degreee turn from a Labor Department under the Bush administration that tried to gut overtime rules for millions of workers, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis has unveiled a new campaign to inform workers about their pay rights and to put a stop to wage theft.