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Reports for March 7-11, 2005

Previous weeks' news: Feb. 21-23 -- Feb. 14-18 -- Feb. 7-11

FRIDAY, March 11 -- It's time to fix the state's unemployment system -- Rick Bender column: Now that we can see the economic impact of the legislature’s panicked frenzy to “reform” the unemployment system -- and the harm done to both workers and businesses -- let's make it right.
...plus -- Big issues in play as deadline looms (today's edition of the WSLC Legislative Update)
— In today's Tri-City Herald -- Unemployment bills need careful approach -- Editorial: Workers are taking a real hit (because of the 2003 UI changes). The Legislature has the difficult task of striking a balance that protects workers and encourages business. Both sides must shift toward a middle ground.
...plus -- Senate OKs bill to clarify I-297 -- Three GOP senators change votes to reach 2/3rd majority.
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Budget troubles may foil campus growth and Expand campaign limits (editorial)
Other local news: — In today's News Tribune -- Tacoma longshore union adds workers
— In today's Seattle Times -- Feds fine Hanford contractor $316,250 for exposing workers to radiation 
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Wal-Mart off the school-supply list -- Citing "exploitative labor practices," WEA charity will no longer reimburse teachers for Wal-Mart purchases. Inexplicably but predictably, the Evergreen Freedom Foundation (which receives funding from Wal-Mart) is invited to comment.
— In today's Seattle Times -- Not another chowderless summer aboard ferries -- Editorial: Since WSF's new CEO put his foot down, the IBU and the food service vendor have been meeting long hours -- 14 on Monday. Both were optimistic a deal was close. Their last session begins this morning.
— In today's Seattle Times -- 8 candidates have joined race for 3 Port of Seattle positions -- Among them: Peter Coates, Executive Secretary of the Seattle-King Co. Building & Construction Trades Council.
— In today's King County Journal -- Store clerks face jail for selling minors booze -- Kent police say they'll arrest, book, fingerprint and photograph clerks before handing them a citation and releasing them.
Boeing news: — In today's KCJ -- Boeing adds another 393 jobs; employment in state now at 56,534
— Today at Bloomberg -- Boeing's Airbus strategy may favor Mulally as new CEO 
— In today's Everett Herald (and in most other local papers yesterday) -- Boeing says it may halt 767 line
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Affair will cost Stonecipher up to $37.7 million -- Begging the question: Why was the CEO of this ethically challenged Chicago-based concern due such an exorbitant bonus?
Social Security news: — In today's Washington Post -- Senate may Social Security block vote -- Bush's bid to add individual accounts to Social Security faces such formidable opposition in the Senate that its supporters may be unable to bring it to a vote, according to a Post survey of senators.
— In today's NY Times -- Slanting Social Security -- Krugman column: This year's trustees report on Social Security will have to be read with an eye to the ways it will try to mislead. Why? First, this administration has politicized analysis across the board, from the EPA to the FDA. Second, the White House has been using taxpayers' money to sell its privatization plans in ways that would have been considered out of bounds for any previous administration.
— In today's Seattle Times -- Weakening Social Security for the 21st Century -- Dickie column: Mediocre Republican congressional leaders are squirming because, this time, voters are paying attention.
Other national news: — From Reuters -- Trade gap widens on larger-than-expected surge in imports
— A related story in today's LA Times -- China dons an even bigger export hat -- Apparel and textile shipments surge in January as quotas expire, raising alarms in Europe and the U.S.
— In today's Seattle P-I -- House OKs $284 billion transportation bill -- It has $14 million for the Alaskan Way seawall in Seattle and $21 million to unclog a choke point at Bremerton's new ferry terminal.
— In today's NY Times -- Oregon regulators reject sale of utility (PGE) to Texas buyout firm -- The deal has been considered an important national test of whether private equity firms, which by their nature do not publicly disclose their finances, could win regulatory approval to buy utilities.
— In every newspaper in the U.S. today -- Bill Gates is still extremely rich (our nation's annual Forbes circle jerk)
...plus this EveryPaper™ newsflash -- Michael Jackson is nutty, and maybe, a child molester

THURSDAY, March 10 -- National Day of Action to protect Social Security is March 31
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Social Security "crisis" talk decried -- U.S. comptroller general says program faces no "immediate crisis" and Bush's privatization would "exacerbate" future financial problems.
— In today's Washington Post -- Seniors' fear slows push for Social Security plan -- Bush tries to assure seniors they won't be affected, assuming they (like all neocons) are motivated purely by self-interest.
Olympia news: — In today's Seattle P-I -- Mental health parity "a great leap forward" -- Gregoire signs parity bill. Sought for more than a decade, It finally passed the House 67-25 and the Senate 40-9. (Footnote: As a legislator, Dino Rossi voted against it in 2001, but it passed anyway 37-12.)
— In yesterday's Walla Walla U-B -- Bill to slow state's minimum wage hikes dies in committee
— In today's King County Journal -- Rep. Larry Springer bill adds $100 million for school construction
— In today's Olympian -- Teachers seek to restore cost-of-living raises; deliver colas for COLAs
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Gas-tax increase pushed -- Several levels of gas-tax increases, ranging from 1 to 10 cents per gallon, are being discussed and studied in both the House and Senate.
...plus -- House seeks contribution limits in judicial races -- After pumping more than $140,000 into Jim Johnson's campaign for Supreme Court, the Building Industry Association of Washington took credit for his win, bragging that BIAW now "has a 5-4 majority on the Washington Supreme Court."
— In today's Tri-City Herald -- IsoRay abandons bill; now working with Gregoire to solve I-297 questions
Boeing news: — Today from Bloomberg -- 767 line unlikely to avoid shutdown, says interim CEO
— In today's Washington Post -- Cupid strikes, and Boeing goes into a tailspin -- Column: The public and sporting ignominy of Stonecipher is an appalling saga. Without shame, Boeing admits rooting through his e-mail and expense accounts. I know the e-mail belongs to the company, but why not also tap his phone and open his mail? After all, urgent steps must be taken. Someone somewhere may be having sex, and discussing it on company time. Better -- much better -- to stick to computer solitaire.
— Oh, yeah, and this AP story is buried in some papers today -- Boeing to lay off thousands in Midwest sale
— In today's LA Times -- Unionized janitorial crew stages walkout at Boeing's Long Beach facility
Local news: — In today's Yakima H-R -- Monitoring program evaluated for curbing pesticide exposure
— In today's KCJ -- Work starts on Group Health expansion ...and... Swedish's new ER dealt setback
— In today's Seattle Times -- King Council Councilman David Irons likely to challenge Ron Sims
National news: — In today's NY Times -- For labor, a Wal-Mart closing in Canada is a call to arms
...plus -- Part-time pay for full-time service -- Editorial: Although hundreds of private and public employers of reservists and National Guard members pay the difference between the activated soldiers' military pay and the salaries they drew in civilian life, that list doesn't include the largest employer of reservists, the federal government. (Also see an excellent letter in today's Seattle P-I describing how Republicans in Congress this week rejected a Democratic amendment to the new bankruptcy bill that would have exempted service members and veterans from the harsher penalties of the bill: "First Bush takes National Guard and reservists away from their civilian jobs for months and years, at great economic cost to their families. Then, when their loss of civilian income drives them into bankruptcy, Bush's party refuses to recognize their special circumstances and give them relief.")

WEDNESDAY, March 9
— In today's Seattle P-I -- New Boeing CEO shouldn't affect 2005 contract talks with IAM, SPEEA
— In today's Seattle Times -- Long flight ahead for new 777 -- The new 777-200LR successfully completes its first flight, taking off from the Everett plant and landing three hours later at Boeing Field.
...plus -- Come home, Boeing, we have your CEO (another editorial endorsement of Alan "We Suck" Mulally)
Felons for Rossi™ news: — In today's KCJ -- County goes after 99 felon voters -- Thief voted for Dino!
— In today's Seattle Times -- Voter list purge targets 99 -- Meth user: I'm a Dino Rossi voter!
— In today's Seattle P-I -- County names 99 felons who voted -- The only felon interviewed declines to say who he voted for, but he lives in... Bellevue (wink). Rossi's mouthpiece on the idea of having felons testify in court about who they voted for: "The notion of getting murderers and rapists and child molesters and thieves and arsonists and putting them up on the stand is absurd." (And bad PR.)
Olympia news: — In the Seattle Weekly -- Staving off message -- Gregoire faces a $2.2 billion deficit, but she's yet to propose either budget cuts or new revenue. She will propose her budget March 21.
— In today's Seattle P-I -- House speaker reverses course on SEIU-backed bill
...plus -- Love, war and politics (editorial re: BIAW's phony Rossi survey and the "perception" of SEIU favoritism)
— In today's Tri-City Herald -- Builders' association undercover hokum... -- Editorial: The Building Industry Association of Washington's attempts to play Law and Order on behalf of Rossi are pathetic.
...plus -- ...Weakens cause -- Second editorial: The BIAW's boneheaded subterfuge doesn't justify wrong-headed "retro reform" legislation aimed at curbing the group's political activities. BIAW's goofy misstep doesn't help its case, but the group ought to be free to act, however foolishly.
— In today's News Tribune -- Lawmakers: Make taxes work for the greater good (Burbank column)
...plus -- Good for politicians, good for judges -- Editorial: Democrats trying to cap campaign contributions in judicial races don’t need to make much of a case. Republicans are doing it for them.
— In Monday's Yakima H-R -- Bill fails that would restrict use of certain pesticides
Other local news: — In the PSBJ -- Yakima sawmill plans to close, 118 jobs to be cut April 30
— In today's Everett Herald -- Bush's profit-making BPA would cost Northwest plenty (Reardon-Inslee op-ed)
— In today's Peninsula Daily News -- Clallam County employees switching to 37.5-hour work week
— In today's Salem S-J -- Oregon's supreme court issues split decision on state's PERS reform
National news: — From Bloomburg -- Bush turns to Cheney to sell private Social Security accounts -- "What's my commission?" asks the charismatic former Halliburton CEO.
— In today's Washington Post -- Graham says GOP erred by focusing on private accounts -- After weeks of attempting to recruit Democratic support for Bush's Social Security plan, he says Republicans "made a strategic mistake" by focusing on the proposal to create individual investment accounts.
...plus -- Bush's misplayed hand -- Dionne column: Bush's Social Security troubles can't be explained by some alleged failure of the White House's usually impeccable communications operation. Conventional explanations fail because this is a battle over principle in which the facts matter.
— Today from Reuters -- Feds step up audits of local unions, labor officials say it's retaliation by Bush
— Today from AP -- High-tech leaders: U.S. risks losing competitive edge -- Rick White's (remember him?) lobbying group calls for significant new investments in education and other government efforts on their behalf. Oh, yeah, and more tax breaks and no limits on outsourcing jobs.
...plus -- Wal-Mart, other retailers urging 16-hour day for truckers
— In today's Washington Post -- Accord with tomato pickers ends boycott of Taco Bell
— In today's LA Times -- Kroger's recovery is in slow checkout line; loss widens -- Company writes down value of Ralph's as effects of last year's Southern California strike/lockout continue. Still, analysts say Kroger has been more effective at drawing customers back than either Albertsons or Safeway.
— Today in The Onion -- Bush announces Iraq exit strategy: "We'll go through Iran" -- "The plan also includes a minor stopover for refueling and provisional replenishment in Syria," Pentagon says.

TUESDAY, March 8 -- State's "retro" program needs repair (op-ed by Sen. Doumit, Rep. Fromhold)
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Speaker of the House reroutes union-backed bill -- Democratic political consultant Cathy Allen decries legislative move as related to SEIU-Sommers conflict, saying "it puts a chilling effect on the entire process." Apparently, the "process" to which Allen refers is a political one, and not a legislative one, which would explain her interest in the matter (but not the reporter's).
— In today's Seattle Times -- Political sleaze hiding as a survey (editorial) -- Keep in mind that the BIAW's sleazy "survey" on behalf of Dino Rossi was partly funded by a state workers' safety program.
At SPEEA.org -- SPEEA looks for change after resignation of CEO Stonecipher
— In today's King County Journal -- Burning questions at Boeing -- Puget Sound-area Boeing workers and union officials react with a mixture of shock and curiosity to news of CEO Stonecipher's ouster.
— In today's Seattle P-I -- Blunt Mr. Fix-It both admired, scorned while at Boeing's helm
...plus -- Sifting through the latest Boeing mess -- Virgin column: While much of the attention has been focused on What All This Means to top executives and Wall Street, here's an overlooked group on which the shake-up will have a big effect on -- unionized employees at Boeing's Seattle-area plants.
— In today's LA Times -- And waiting in the wings? (news analysis of potential CEO successors at Boeing)
— In today's Everett Herald -- Alan Mulally is right leader at right time for Boeing (editorial)
— Today from AP -- Airbus expects China will need 1,790 planes worth $230 billion
Other local news -- Scholarships available to union members and their families
— In today's Seattle Times -- New DSHS director on deck; announcement expected today -- Robin Arnold-Williams, the 48-year-old former director of Utah's Department of Human Services, was picked over several other out-of-state candidates to lead Washington state's largest agency.
...plus -- Deadline set in feud over food on ferries -- New ferry director gives the Inlandboatmen's Union and the food vendor until March 18 to reach an agreement or he'll declare a permanent impasse.
— Today from AP -- State agencies misuse tax dollars -- Washington's ferry system and other state agencies have chronic problems handling millions in taxpayer dollars, and some departments are miserable for auditors to work with, says State Auditor Brian Sonntag.
— In today's Olympian -- Election changes run into obstacle -- A Senate proposal to move the state's primary a month earlier to August hit an unexpected snag Monday. It came to light that a two-thirds majority vote of the Senate probably is needed to pass the bill.
— In today's News Tribune -- Bid adieu to competitive bidding? -- Puyallup is asking state lawmakers for the authority to streamline the competitive public bidding process. A bill made it out of a Senate committee, but its fate is uncertain as unions and contractors have thrown their weight against it.
National news: — In today's Washington Post -- Unions muffle Wall Street support of private accounts
...plus -- Social Security stance risky, Democrats told; Bush could outflank rigid opposition
— In today's NY Times -- Group opens $2 million drive for Bush Social Security plan -- Ad will compare system to the Titanic. Meanwhile, the AFL-CIO is pressing financial services companies to quit the business-heavy lobbying coalitions that back Bush's privatization plan.
...plus -- The debt-peonage society -- Krugman column: Warren Buffett recently said America is more likely to turn into a "sharecroppers' society" than an "ownership society." I think the right term is a "debt peonage" society -- after the system, prevalent in the post-Civil War South, in which debtors were forced to work for their creditors. The bankruptcy bill -- written by the credit-card industry and before the U.S. Senate today -- is a significant step in that direction. (And speaking of peonage....)
— Today from AP -- U.S. Senate defeats minimum wage increase -- Dueling plans fall well short of passage, signaling that prospects for raising the federal wage floor, unchanged since 1996, are dim.

MONDAY, March 7 -- AFL-CIO Council recommends strategic organizing, political plans
— In today's Washington Post -- Labor's divisions widen as membership declines -- AFL-CIO President John Sweeney won the latest round in a bitter internal clash over the future of the labor movement by insisting that more money go for future campaigns to unseat Republicans than for trying to shore up the federation's sagging membership.
Breaking news: — Today from AP -- Boeing ousts CEO for inappropriate relationship -- Board tosses married, 68-year-old Harry Stonecipher, saying his intimacy with a female employee made him unfit to lead. Chief Financial Officer James A. Bell, 56, is named interim president and CEO.
Olympia news: — In the Seattle Times -- Key Democrats back state raises -- Gov. Christine Gregoire, House Speaker Frank Chopp and Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown went before the Washington State Labor Council one by one and pledged their support for a collective-bargaining agreement.
— In today's Spokesman-Review -- Budget stakes higher with rising health costs -- As lawmakers weigh spending cuts and tax increases, many worry about their own bottom lines. (* paid subscription req'd)
— In Sunday's News Tribune -- Family-friendly leave bills deserve approval (editorial)
— In Sunday's NY Times -- As demands on workers grow, groups push for paid family, medical leave -- Take Back Your Time and its allies are seeking legislation in 21 states, including Washington, to give workers paid sick days or paid family leave to take care of infants or seriously ill family members.
— In today's Olympian -- Guaranteed mental health coverage a signature away
...plus -- Prison labor decision focus of Senate -- Washington lawmakers are moving to restore a major prison labor program that was scrapped by the state Supreme Court last year.
— In today's King County Journal -- Push priorities of government, not new taxes (editorial)
— In Sunday's Bremerton Sun -- Tim Sheldon's two hats and Sheldon straddles party line
— In Saturday's Seattle P-I -- Democrats say Rossi's list of "illegal" votes full of errors, smears innocents
Other local news: — In the Tri-City Herald -- Fluor Hanford plans layoffs
— In today's Olympian -- Web site targets union's (WPEA) closed shop policy
— Saturday from AP -- Backers of smoking ban seek ballot initiative
— In the PS Business Journal -- Fallen produce: State food processors succumb
— In the Oregonian -- Bush keeps pushing to raise BPA's electric rates
— In today's Everett Herald -- Pull the plug on bad idea (editorial re: Bush plan to double BPA rates)
— In the Walla Walla U-B -- Bush plan to boost NW power rates is a huge mistake (editorial)
Social Security news: — Today from AP -- Leading GOP senator proposes raising retirement age 
— In today's NY Times -- On Social Security, Lieberman the Centrist ruffles Democratic feathers
— In the King County Journal -- More time needed to fix Social Security (editorial)
Other national news: — In today's Wash. Post -- Homeland Security work rules may have ripple effect
...plus -- Private isn't always better at providing public services (Raspberry column)
— In Washington Monthly -- Is Grover over? Norquist's anti-tax jihad stumbles in the states -- Poor Grover. Everywhere he looks, a Republican governor or legislature is finding the seductions of tax hikes too powerful to resist in the face of reduced federal support and soaring education and health-care costs.
— In the LA Times -- Why Republicans should love unions -- Op-ed: If Republicans were true to their stated principles of smaller government, free-market economics and the "ownership society" touted by President Bush, they would do something quite alien to their traditional practice: They would support the spread of labor unions instead of trying every trick to foil workers' efforts to organize.

Previous weeks' news: Feb. 21-23 -- Feb. 14-18 -- Feb. 7-11

THURSDAY, MARCH 10
National Day of Action to protect Social Security is March 31

TUESDAY, MARCH 8
Doumit and Fromhold: State's "retro" program needs repair

State's 'retro' program needs repair

MARK DOUMIT AND BILL FROMHOLD
STATE LEGISLATORS

How should public funds set aside to promote worker safety be spent? This fundamental question is at the heart of a heated debate over a little-known state program that some trade associations are using to fund political campaigns, initiative drives and other things that have nothing to do with worker safety.

We think money set aside in the public trust to promote worker safety should be spent on worker safety. To understand our concerns, you must first understand the state's retrospective rating program.

The program allows employers who provide similar services to pool their resources and create unified safety programs. These "retro groups" are managed by trade associations. In return for their commitment to safety, groups may receive rebates from the state's workers' compensation funds.

Here's how it works. Companies pay their workers' compensation premiums into the retro groups. The money is collected by trade associations and sent to the Department of Labor and Industries. The agency puts the money into the workers' compensation funds. At the end of the year, rebates are sent back to the associations with favorable safety records.

Most retro groups pass this savings on to their members but some organizations do not. Under current law, the associations that form retro groups may collect a fee to cover administrative costs. However, there is no limit to the size of fee they can charge.

To make matters worse, the size of the rebate an association receives is only partially based on its success at preventing injuries. It is largely based on the size of the group, so the largest groups get the biggest rebates even if they have mixed success preventing injuries.

A building industry association runs one of the largest retro groups. It is also one of the greatest beneficiaries under the current system. In one year, 96 cents of every dollar the group paid into workers' compensation was paid out to injured workers. But because the group is so large, it received 24 percent of its premiums back in the form of a rebate.

In other words, the association received a rebate of more than $25 million even though the difference between premiums paid in and losses paid out amounted to a little more than $3 million.

Then, the association turned around and charged its own members a 20 percent fee, generating millions of dollars more than the cost of administration. This money could have been used to promote worker safety or to reduce workers' compensation premiums. Instead, it was funneled into political campaigns.

Despite an unenviable safety record, the association was able to draw millions of dollars away from groups that had shown more commitment to safety simply because it runs one of the largest retro groups in the state. Calling the money the association received a "rebate" is misleading, since it never actually belonged to the association.

This is inherently unfair. Companies that uphold their commitment to worker safety should be rewarded. Money dedicated to worker safety should be spent on worker safety, not funneled away as a cash cow for organizations that have no right to it.

Overall, the state's retro program is a success. Participating employers provide safer workplaces and see fewer on-the-job injuries. But the fact remains that the current system unfairly rewards the largest groups and is prone to abuse.

We need to fix the inequities in the retro program and return the program to its original intent of helping small and medium-sized businesses control their workers' compensation rates and keep their workers safe.

Sen. Mark Doumit, D-Cathlamet, is vice chairman of the Senate Ways and Means Committee. Rep. Bill Fromhold, D-Vancouver, is vice chairman of the House Appropriations Committee.

TUESDAY, MARCH 8
Scholarships available to union members and their families

REBOUND -- This coalition of building trades unions announces its 2005 annual Academic Scholarship Awards. To be eligible, an entrant must be a high school junior or senior, or be a matriculated college student at the time of entry, and must be a member of the immediate family of an active member of one of the building and construction trades unions participating in REBOUND. (Click here for a list of those unions and more information.)  Applications must be received by April 30, 2005.  To request an application, call (206) 441-0455 or toll-free 1-800-244-9178, e-mail REBOUND@rebound.org , or write to REBOUND, 2700 First Avenue, Suite 104 Seattle, WA 98121 

The Jerry Beckendorf Scholarship -- A long-time community leader, Beckendorf retired from United Way of Pierce County after working 15 years as the United Way and Pierce County Labor Council's Labor Liaison. The Jerry Beckendorf Community Service Scholarship encourages future generations of union activists and volunteers by recognizing outstanding student volunteerism. Scholarship applications must be received by March 14, 2005 to be considered. Note: you must be a student in Pierce County, Washington and parent(s) must be member of a labor union to apply. For more info, contact Emma Faidley at (253) 597-6237 or emmaf@uwpc.org.

MONDAY, MARCH 7
AFL-CIO Council OKs strategic organizing, political plans