WSLC Reports Today -- February 18-22, 2002

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Reports for February 19-22, 2002

Previous weeks' news: Feb. 11-15 -- Feb. 4-8 -- Jan. 28- Feb. 1

FRIDAY, February 22 -- Collective bargaining, ergo hot topics at legislative conference
— In today's Seattle Times -- Gas-tax bill unveiled as Democrats count heads
...plus -- Boost worker retraining program -- Op-ed by South Seattle Comm. College President
— In today's News-Tribune -- House Dems' transportation plan scorched by critics
...plus -- House Dems' plan is a political breakthrough on state highways
...plus -- Lawmakers pressure Boeing to keep 500 jobs in Spokane area
— In today's Everett Herald -- Puget Sound-area Boeing layoffs reach halfway mark
— In today's Washington Post -- GOP Senator may block campaign finance reform filibuster
...plus -- FAA, air traffic controllers at odds of security
...plus -- The jobless still wait -- Editorial: In every recession since the 1960s, the federal government has stepped in to extend benefits. Everybody says the same thing should be done this time, but weeks tick by and nothing happens.

THURSDAY, February 21
— In today's News-Tribune -- Gas-tax election June 20 in the works
...plus -- Still not enough seats at black history celebration -- Actor Ossie Davis received a standing ovation for a rousing speech that stressed the connection of black history and labor union history. "In essence, the two are really one," he said.
...plus -- Taxes, pay raise cuts must be on the table (editorial)
— In today's Olympian -- State faces cash flow woes, Locke considers pay freeze
— In today's Eastside Journal -- Locke says that teacher salaries are safe
...plus -- After school levy bill fails by 1 vote, Rep. Cairnes accused of "taking a walk"
— In today's Everett Herald -- Larsen gets an earful from health care workers
...plus -- Now, more than ever, transportation fix is critical (editorial)
— In today's Yakima Herald -- Rep. Hastings will run for 5th term
— In today's Seattle Times -- Sims tells county employees to brace for tough cuts
...plus -- Washington is NOT the 5th-highest-taxed state -- A must-read Joni Balter column.
— In today's Bellingham Herald -- Senators again call for audit of Kaiser spending
— In today's Oregonian -- Qwest's 401(k) plan stirs anxiety among union members
— Recently from AP -- AFL-CIO weighs mandatory assessment for 2002 campaign
— In a recent Newsday -- Supreme Court to consider immigrants' right to organize
— In today's N.Y. Times * -- Cleveland school vouchers weighed by Supreme Court
...plus -- On to the Senate for campaign finance reform -- Editorial: President Bush has signaled his intention to accept the bill. Americans overwhelmingly want the legislation to be approved. When the Senate reassembles next week it should move quickly and decisively to approve the reform bill and send it to the White House for Mr. Bush to sign into law.
— In today's Roll Call -- Alaska Sen. Stevens balks at reform; McCain "payback" alleged

WEDNESDAY, February 20 -- Legislative Update: SHAME ON SHEAHAN!
...plus -- Wal-Mart deal with L&I raises troubling questions
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Locke puts a freeze on state hiring as budget gap grows
— In today's Olympian -- Tax increases, pay freezes, spending cuts all on the table
...plus -- Sen. Tim Sheldon, Republicans' partisan maneuvering clogs Senate thanks
— In today's Bellingham Herald -- Bickering House passes B&O tax bill
— In today's Everett Herald -- Locke pitches gas-tax plan, still urging legislators to "act now"
— In today's Spokesman-Review * -- Tax increases will delay the recovery (editorial)
— In today's Olympian -- Qwest's job cuts concerns Oregon regulators
— In today's L.A. Times -- It's like getting fleeced -- Virginia cotton mill workers will soon be joining the thousands of U.S. textile workers left behind in a landscape of plants closed by globalization.
— Today at AFLCIO.org -- Sweeney: Proposed corporate accounting reforms don't go far enough

TUESDAY, February 19 -- Laid-off workers held hostage by tax cuts for the wealthy
PRESIDENTS' DAY RALLY COVERAGE:
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Thousands rally against cuts in human services
— In today's Olympian --- Rally: Make business pay
...plus -- Union workers carry protest to bridge construction site
— In today's Spokesman-Review -- Protesters plead case in Olympia
— In today's Bellingham Herald -- State workers lobby Olympia
...and don't forget -- "Celebration of Black History & Labor" tomorrow in Tacoma
— In today's News-Tribune -- Attacks move pair to repeat black history event
...plus -- Actor Ossie Davis puts his mark on black history
IN OTHER NEWS:
— In today's Seattle P-I -- State budget woes worsen
...plus -- Senate passes bill to curb rising cost of prescription drugs
— In today's Olympian -- "Infighting" stalls decisions on transportation package
— In today's Seattle Times -- Deepening budget hole may swallow highways bill
...plus -- State work force grew after Locke urged frugality
...and yesterday, this anti-collective bargaining editorial -- A bad bill about power in Washington
— Ditto in today's Yakima Herald -- Senate needs to squish collective bargaining idea
— In today's Everett Herald -- Tax break may help Goodrich -- Sunset provision will force company to demonstrate tax break's effectiveness in saving jobs, or the company will lose it.
— In today's Tri-City Herald -- Benton County may join FFTF partnership
— In today's Washington Post -- No quick relief for sick nuclear workers
— In today's N.Y. Times * -- Rethinking rail travel -- Editorial: The nation's highway system does not make a profit. Nor does the commercial aviation system. Nor does passenger rail. However, only one of these three vital links in America's transportation network, the railroad, is being asked to break even.
— In the latest Roll Call -- Campaign reform battle awaits Senate
— Today at IAMAW.org -- Machinists reach tentative deal with United Airlines

Previous weeks' news: Feb. 11-15 -- Feb. 4-8 -- Jan. 28- Feb. 1

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22
Collective bargaining, ergo hot topics at legislative conference

"Collective bargaining and ergo! Collective bargaining and ergo!" That's what the approximately 250 union members, leaders and activists chanted Friday morning as Governor Gary Locke was escorted to the podium to address the Washington State Labor Council's 2002 Legislative Conference in Olympia.

"Thanks for the reminder," answered Locke before beginning his address. The reminder was to thank the governor for the leadership he has already demonstrated and encourage his continued support for the state ergonomics rules and the expansion of collective bargaining rights for state employees, 4-year college faculty, and University of Washington teaching and research assistants. Later in the conference, House Speaker Frank Chopp and Senate Majority Leader Sid Snyder also heard the chant.

"I know that (ergonomics) is a critical issue for organized labor because we're talking about the health and safety of our fellow workers," Locke said. Everyone in attendance signed a petition urging the governor to continue to defend and protect the rule in the face of fierce opposition from the business community to delay or stop its implementation.

At the business community's request, the governor last year assembled a Blue Ribbon Panel on Ergonomics to study whether the rule was ready for implementation by the Department of Labor and Industries. After a year of investigation and hearings, that panel will issue its recommendations later this month. Locke said he is "very much looking forward to the recommendations of the Blue Ribbon Panel."

"Labor has made it clear that we will abide by (the panel's) findings," said WSLC Safety and Education Director Randy Loomans. "We expect the governor and the legislature to do the same."

WSLC President Rick Bender opened the conference with an overview of working families legislation and its status, and focused considerable time on the issue of collective bargaining.

"What a difference a year makes," Bender said. "For the first time, really since 1994, we are succeeding in moving important working families legislation like collective bargaining. But we still have a long way to go."

The House has already approved the three collective bargaining bills, but in the Senate where Democrats hold a precarious one-vote majority, it will take Republican votes to pass the measures because Sen. Tim Sheldon (D-35th) consistently votes against union and bargaining rights. Twice in the past three years, three GOP senators joined Democrats is voting to pass the Civil Service Reform Act granting full collective bargaining rights for state employees.

Transportation was also a hot topic at Friday's conference, and U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) once again urged the legislature to pass a funding package immediately, saying, "It's a fight we cannot afford to lose." She said that if the state doesn't enact a package by March 31, we will lose the ability in 2002 to get federal matching funds for the road projects and have to wait another year to get access to those critically needed dollars.

Murray also took time to congratulate the Washington State Labor Council, President Bender, WSLC Secretary-Treasurer Al Link and the organizations that comprise the WSLC for their leadership on working families issues.

"With critical issues like the minimum wage and ergonomics, you are setting national standards on progressive labor policy," she said. Murray also presented Bender with a framed copy of the Congressional Record statement she made recently in the U.S. Senate honoring the WSLC on the 100th anniversary of its original formation as the Washington Federation of Labor in 1902.

Governor Locke also praised the WSLC leaders during his remarks, saying about President Bender, "I don't think we've had a more effective labor leader in our state since the days of Dave Beck as half century ago."

Also on hand at Friday's conference were:

— House Speaker Frank Chopp, who received a rousing ovation and welcome for his inspiring leadership in quickly moving the collective bargaining bills through the House despite a very narrow majority;

— Lead budget negotiators Sen. Lisa Brown and Rep. Helen Sommers, who both warned of severe budget cuts because of the recession-generated $1.6 billion revenue shortfall but also vowed to look at tax loopholes and other sources of revenue to mitigate the damage;

— Rep. Eileen Cody, prime sponsor of HB 2431, the effort to enter some free-market competition into the prescription drug market by consolidating state prescription drug purchasing and save millions of dollars on the skyrocketing cost of medication;

— Sen. Karen Keiser, the WSLC's own Communications Director, who gave updates on some important legislation she has sponsored, including a measure allowing workers to use their earned sick leave to care for ill members in their families.

— Department of Labor and Industries Director Gary Moore and Department of Employment Security Director Paul Trause both gave overviews of what their agencies are working on and took questions from the audience on specific issues.

All in attendance were reminded that the short legislative session is at a critical stage and that a lot of hard work is yet to be done on passing important policy bills like collective bargaining, negotiating a fair budget, and passing the all-important transportation package.

Union members are encouraged to call their elected representatives on these issues on the toll-free Legislative Hotline at 1-800-562-6000, and to stay up-to-date on the status of working families legislation by signing up to receive the WSLC Legislative Update newsletter.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 20
Wal-Mart deal with L&I raises troubling questions

The Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO has serious concerns about the connection between the out-of-court settlement announced last Thursday between Wal-Mart Stores and the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries and the retailer's plan to build a new warehouse in Eastern Washington. (See also the L&I press release on the settlement.)

"We are very concerned about the idea that workplace safety enforcement may have been traded off in an effort to promote economic development," said WSLC President Rick Bender. "We think public understands the logic of providing targeted tax incentives to attract business investment—especially in our state's rural communities and in Eastern Washington—but when we hear backroom deals are being made regarding enforcement of our worker safety-and-health laws, we have serious problems with that."

After several audits revealed the Wal-Mart has repeatedly failed to properly handle legitimate claims by its injured workers over the past decade, the Department of L&I took the extraordinary step last year of seeking to revoke the company's ability to remain self-insured for workplace injuries.

Instead, an agreement between L&I and Wal-Mart was just announced that allows the company to remain self-insured but requires it to have its workers' compensation claims administered by an independent third party for eight years. According to news reports, Wal-Mart had sought to settle the issue with L&I before formalizing its decision to build a 870,000 square-foot regional food distribution center in either Grandview or Pasco the company says will employ about 700 people, with an annual payroll of $18 million.

In the Feb. 15 Yakima Herald, L&I spokesman Robert Nelson suggested the settlement was used as leverage to ensure the warehouse is built in Washington and not in another state, saying: "We wanted something that held their feet to the fire, and this building does. If they were to decide to not build here, parts of the agreement get ugly for them." Nelson reportedly suggested that, had the company chosen another state, the company may have not been able to handle its claims for 20 years, as opposed to eight.

The Washington State Labor Council supports many of the terms of the agreement with Wal-Mart and believes they will force the company to be more responsive in dealing fairly with workers injured on the job. In particular, the WSLC supports Wal-Mart's $175,000 donation to Kids’ Chance, a non-profit organization created by business and labor to provide scholarships to the children or survivors of workers catastrophically injured or killed on the job in Washington.

"Our problem isn't with the settlement itself, nor is it with the state's interest in attracting economic development. But it is disturbing to see the two linked," Bender said. "I'd like to think our state agencies aren't making special deals when it comes to workplace safety and other important standards. The workers who have been, or will be, injured at Wal-Mart shouldn't have their interests traded off by state agencies."

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 19
Laid-off workers held hostage by tax cuts for the wealthy

The following column by New York Times columnist Paul Krugman appears in today's edition. It is such an excellent summary of the political blackmail happening in Congress at the expense of unemployed workers, that it was accidentally copied and pasted it onto this site. Feel free to read it at the N.Y. Times site as well, but you need to register first (it's free).

WORKERS HELD HOSTAGE

Does life imitate art, or what? Last weekend's box office was dominated by a movie in which Denzel Washington takes an emergency room hostage to secure treatment for his dying son. Last week's major political event, though it went largely unnoticed by the general public, was also a hostage drama: House Republicans blocked vital aid to the nation's most vulnerable workers, and have refused to release it unless they secure passage of a dying stimulus plan. The plan, you won't be surprised to learn, consists almost entirely of tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy.

Here's how the blackmail scheme works. U.S. unemployment insurance, unlike benefits in many other advanced countries, has a sharp cutoff: 26 weeks and you're out. This cutoff can be rationalized as tough love; arguably the American system, by giving workers no choice other than to find new jobs, has helped prevent the emergence of a European-style class of permanent unemployed. But it's a very harsh rule to impose during recessions, when new jobs are simply not available.

And that's the current situation. Last week 80,000 workers reached the end of their benefits; the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities estimates that two million workers will have exhausted their insurance by June.

Fortunately, in practice the rule is relaxed in hard times. When recession strikes, Congress invariably acts to extend unemployment benefits. During last fall's stimulus debate, everyone favored a 13-week extension. True, both sides tried to tie that extension to other measures. But everyone expected that in the end Congress would extend benefits whatever the status of other stimulus proposals. Indeed, the Senate passed an extension by unanimous voice vote.

But the hard men of the House leadership refuse to allow a clean vote on unemployment benefits. Instead they continue to insist that it's their way or no way: they won't allow a vote on benefits extension except as part of a bill that mainly consists of tax cuts for corporations and families in upper tax brackets, pretty much identical to the failed stimulus bills of the fall. And they rammed that bill through last Thursday.

Let's leave aside, for a moment, the economic merits of those tax cuts. What's really striking about this tactic is its sheer bloody-mindedness: the House leadership is willing to impose pain on some of the most vulnerable people in the country, desperate families whose breadwinners have been unable to find jobs, in order to push a divisive, partisan agenda.

And for what it's worth, that agenda is also bad economics. Last month the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office reviewed a range of potential stimulus measures, including all the elements in the latest House bill. Sure enough, the bill consists largely of the very measures — accelerated tax cuts for upper brackets, reductions in the alternative minimum tax on corporations — that the C.B.O. concluded would be least effective.

What these proposed tax cuts have in common, of course, is that they deliver not a penny of relief to the great majority of American families.

But isn't the House leadership's behavior just politics as usual? No, it isn't. Politics as usual is trying to attach goodies for yourself to bills that provide goodies to other people. Everyone does that. But extending unemployment insurance in a recession is so standard — and refusing to do so is so cruel — that the House action takes the tax-cut crusade to a whole new level of fanaticism.

Put it this way: At first, ordinary workers were told that they would benefit directly from lower taxes — remember those "tax families"? Great effort was devoted to obscuring the simple truth that last year's tax cut offered crumbs for ordinary families, but huge breaks for the wealthy.

Then ordinary workers were told that they should support bills like the two House stimulus plans from the fall — bills that offered retroactive tax cuts to corporations, big tax breaks to families with high incomes, and nothing at all to two-thirds of the population — because those bills would create jobs. After all, tax cuts are part of the war on terrorism, or something.

But now tax-cut advocates have moved from promises to threats. Support tax cuts for the elite, the House leadership says, or we'll cut off your unemployment benefits.

So what's next? Support tax cuts or we'll break your legs?

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 19
"Celebration of Black History & Labor" tomorrow in Tacoma

Tacoma longshoremen Willie Adams and Mike Chambers have helped organize an impressive list of speakers for a "Celebration of Black History and Labor" from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 20 at the Tacoma Sheraton Hotel, 1320 Broadway Plaza. Admission is free. Speakers include:

— Paddy Crumlin , National Secretary, Maritime Union of Australia.
— Dr. Naomi Tutu, daughter of South African Archbishop and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Desmond Tutu. Dr. Tutu is Program Coordinator for the Race Relations Institute at Fisk University.
— Prince Cedza Dlamini, grandson of former South African President and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Nelson Mandela. Prince Cedza, born to the royal family of Swaziland, travels the world to carry on his grandfather's legacy.
— Jamal Joseph, film director, community activist and cofounder of Impact Reportory Theater. Prof. Joseph teaches at Columbia University, and directed Hughes Dream Harlem.
— Cicely Tyson, actress and humanitarian. Ms. Tyson is one of the most respected and honored talents in American theater and film, from her starring role on Broadway in the "Blacks" to her Emmy-nominated HBO film "A Lesson Before Dying." She has recently completed "The Rosa Parks Story," which will air on CBS on February 3, 2002.
— Ossie Davis, leading African American playwright, actor, director and star of television and movies. Mr. Davis made his film debut in "No Way Out" with Sidney Poitier in 1950. He was inducted into the theatre Hall of Fame in 1994. He is the author of three children's books. He and his wife Ruby Dee recently marked their 50th wedding anniversary with their joint autobiography, "Ossie and Ruby: In this Life Together."

In addition there will be entertainment provided by Darren Motamedy and his band (with special guest artist Corla Wygal), Agrippa the Poet, and singer/poet Veronica E. Williams.

For more information, contact Willie Adams at (253) 593-4366.

If you have news items regarding unions or workplace issues in Washington state that you would like to see posted here, please submit them via e-mail to David Groves or via fax to 206-285-5805.