The Washington State Labor Council has mounted a Decline to Sign campaign against Initiative 776, the latest attempt from Tim Eyman's organization to fix car-tab fees at $30, this time targeting for repeal local-option transportation taxes -- even those previously approved by voters.

Last month the WSLC distributed to its affiliated organizations a camera-ready flier to copy and distribute to rank-and-file union members. In the interest of distributing this flier as widely as possible, please download the Decline to Sign I-776 flier -- a 30KB file in PDF (Adobe Acrobat) format. Distribute and post it. If you would like the flier customized for your union -- with your logo and any additional language -- contact David Groves.

The text of the flier is as follows:

The following statement from WSLC Political Director Diane McDaniel was released Wednesday in response to press inquiries about an e-mail she sent to union activists suggesting that they call (509) 467-5467 or e-mail cheebee@msn.com and request Initiative 776 literature and petitions:

Statement from Diane McDaniel,
Political Director, Washington State Labor Council
Wednesday, April 3

The unions that comprise the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO have asked us to oppose Initiative 776, the latest threat to our state and local governments from what’s left of Tim Eyman’s organization. The e-mail I sent out was part of that effort.

Nothing in that e-mail violates any campaign laws or regulations. Although it is clearly intended to discourage the effort to put I-776 on the ballot, in no way does it prevent people from signing the initiative or collecting signatures for it. Further, there was nothing "secret" about it. I sent it to a group of about 100 labor activists and encouraged them to pass it on to others.

Our members, our transportation system, our cities, counties and state are under siege because these anti-tax zealots have distorted the truth or just plain lied about the impact of their previous initiatives. Now that our state can no longer afford to "backfill" the giant hole their initiatives have blown in city and county budgets, parks and libraries are closing, roads are crumbling, transit and ferry fares are skyrocketing – and working families are losing their jobs.

We will not sit idly by waiting for I-776 to buy the necessary signatures. Our members have asked us to oppose it, and we are opposing it now.

The state Workforce Training and Educations Coordinating Board (WTECB) is hosting two public forums this month for comment on proposed changes to its "High Skills, High Wage: Our Agenda for Action," the board's plan that defines the state's goals, strategies and measures of success in the area of workforce development.  The forums will be:

The WTECB works in partnership with business, labor, local workforce development councils and other state agencies to address the workforce development challenges facing the state's employers and workers. Governor Gary Locke asked the board to address three challenges for the state's workforce development system:

1.  Closing the gap between the need of employers for skilled workers and the supply of Washington residents prepared to meet that need.

2.  Enabling workers to make smooth transitions so that they may benefit fully from the new, changing economy.  The board shall develop a coherent strategy for dislocated and incumbent worker training.

3.  Assisting disadvantaged youth, persons with disabilities, new labor market entrants, recent immigrants and low-wage workers in moving up the job ladder during their lifetimes by developing a wage progression strategy for low-income workers.  Specific progress should be made in improving operating agencies and reducing the earnings gap facing people of color, people with disabilities and women.

The draft changes to the "High Skill, High Wages" report (55 pages) designed to address these challenges are available online in PDF format.  For more information about the draft or the public forums contact the WTECB's Barbara Mix at (360) 586-3322.

Following are some excerpts from the March 28 story, "Last-minute port deal raises union hackles," by reporter Annu Mangat which appeared in the Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce:

The late addition of an item on this week's agenda for the Seattle Port Commission drew the ire of former port crane-repair workers, who are battling the port's decision to privatize their jobs, and in a related move, are suing the port, alleging violations of the Open Public Meetings Act.

Introduced at the request of Port CEO Mic Dinsmore just hours before the commission meeting on Tuesday (March 26), the agenda item in question involved reimbursement of about $244,500 to Stevedoring Services of America (SSA) because the company could not use container cranes at various times last fall, the port says.

SSA, which is the operator of terminals 18 and 25, handles crane maintenance and repair there, jobs that until late December were held by port employees. ...

"The port made this decision to reimburse SSA, and this was outside the public process because they have no account as to what these costs are for," said Gwen Lee, business manager for IBEW Local 46. The union represents former port crane electricians, who have named not only the Port of Seattle but also port commissioners personally in their lawsuit.

The late introduction of the agenda item also perturbed Port Commissioner Lawrence Molloy who requested a delay on the vote to evaluate staff's justifications for the reimbursement. "This slipped in on us a little too quickly," he said at the meetings.

Molloy's motion to postpone a vote was defeated, and the port commission subsequently voted to authorize the reimbursement, with Molloy the sole opposing vote.

Before the vote, Molloy asked seaport staff for specific information regarding an aspect of the reimbursement.  The answer provided by Commissioner Paige Miller was, "You weren't here, Lawrence.  We were," an apparent reference to Molloy's lack of history with the crane-maintenance dispute. ...

Mark Knudsen, who heads the port's container business, characterized the $244,500 settlement as a "very fair agreement." Crane downtime during October, November and December last year had increased to unacceptably high levels, he said, without specifying the reason.  "It was our responsibility to provide those cranes to the customers."

Negotiations with SSA were wrapped up last week, he said.  Port commissioners were not briefed on the reimbursement before the vote, he said.

Molloy said he first learned of the issue in a closed-door session before Tuesday afternoon's commission meeting. ...

The IBEW lawsuit, filed March 13 in King County Superior Court, alleges that the port violated the Open Public Meetings Act in its decision to privatize crane maintenance. "The port had signed a contract with SSA before they had the open public meeting where they formally made the decision to have this work done," according to IBEW attorney Kristina Detwiler. ... The suit is seeking in part to overturn the port decision to outsource crane jobs.

The Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO will hold its COPE Endorsing Convention at the Machinists 751 Hall, 9125 15th Pl. S., Seattle on Saturday, June 1, starting at 9 a.m (with registration opening at 7:30 a.m.)  The convention call is being mailed to affiliated union organizations today notifying each affiliated union organization how many delegates to which they are entitled, plus registration and credentials forms.

It is at this convention that the unions that comprise the WSLC will decide which legislative and judicial candidates, and which ballot measures, to endorse in the 2002 elections. Redistricting and narrow political majorities in both Congress and the State Legislature will make this November's election especially important, as will the statewide gas-tax referendum and other initiatives affecting working families.

The preceding evening, the Statewide COPE Committee -- consisting of members of the Washington State Labor Council executive board, Central Labor Councils, WSLC COPE Director Diane McDaniel and a representative from AFSCME, IAM, IBEW, SEIU and UFCW -- will meet to consider recommendations in these races. A representative of any affiliated organization may observe the Statewide COPE proceedings; however, space is limited. The meeting is slated for Friday, May 31st at the WestCoast SeaTac Hotel, 18220 International Blvd. S., starting at 7 p.m.

As each legislative and judicial race is considered, if the Statewide COPE Committee has a recommendation, that motion for endorsement will be made to initiate debate. At the conclusion of debate, a two-thirds majority of the delegates present is necessary for an endorsement to occur.

Members of affiliated unions who are interested in serving as delegates representing their organization at the convention should contact their local or council to inquire about the delegate selection process.

A block of rooms has been set aside for out-of-town delegates at the WestCoast SeaTac Hotel; call (206) 246-5535 to make reservations. Please refer to booking #1500 in order to get a special rate. The block of rooms will be released by the hotel on May 1, so make your reservations now.

Affiliates are asked to return registration forms must be returned no later than May 1. Your cooperation in pre-registering your delegates makes the process go much smoother on convention day. Please contact the WSLC at (206) 281-8901 or 1-800-542-0904 if you have any questions.