WEDNESDAY, MAY 31  ■  New study: Wal-Mart stores add to poverty, not prosperity
■  Saturday from AP -- Unions claim Wal-Mart secretly funding anti-union ads -- The "Center for Union Facts" refuses to identify who donated over $3 million for anti-union ads. Learn more.

Foster Parents' Organizing news:
■  In today's Olympian -- Foster parents: Union adds clout -- Foster parents, who are licensed and paid by the state, can now sign cards and authorize the WFSE to advocate on their behalf.
■  In yesterday's Olympian -- Caretakers flee mired foster system -- In the past year, the number of foster parents statewide -- already considered too low by the state -- dropped by 400 to about 6,300. The system's funding and administrative problems have some frustrated foster parents planning to join forces with a labor union (WFSE), making them the first in the nation to do so.
■  In yesterday's Olympian -- Union talks are a sign of urgency (editorial) -- If foster parents develop a collective voice, backed by a union, to air their grievances, program managers will have no choice but to engage them in meaningful negotiations.

Public Employee news:
■  In today's King Co. Journal -- Library union workers level most complaints against clustering plan
■  In Monday's Olympian -- Government audit may warrant a response -- State employees who pay WFSE "representation fees" need to sign up again; some may get a rebate.
■  In today's Bellingham Herald -- County's low salaries are a service to citizens (editorial) -- That the county is doing a good job of holding the line on its pay is something to be celebrated.
■  At the Olympian's state government blog -- SEIU loses attempt to organize Oregon lottery workers
■  In today's LA Times -- Supreme Court curbs speech of public employees -- Government workers who blow the whistle in the course of their official duties not protected by the First Amendment.
■  In today's NY Times -- Blow the whistle, loudly (editorial) -- The court made the law in this area messy, and even illogical. But the bigger problem is that the ruling rolls back government workers' rights to speak out against possibly illegal actions.

Immigration news:
■  Today from AP -- State GOP stance on immigration causes stir -- Some Republicans are trying to distance themselves from the state party's tough immigration stance to deny automatic citizenship to the U.S.-born children of illegal immigrants. But not Rep. Reichert. He supports it.
■  Last week in the Seattle Times -- Cordial welcome turns serious in Mexican leader's visit to state
■  In today's Yakima H-R -- Legislature needs to set guidelines on services for immigrants (editorial)

Local news:
■  In today's Kitsap Sun -- Meeting could be turning point for Kitsap NASCAR track -- The reaction the firm gets from key legislators to today's presentation could affect whether efforts continue.
■  In Friday's Seattle Times -- Regence faces union fallout -- SPEEA says it was taken by surprise on a Regence BlueShield decision to drop hundreds of doctors from a Boeing health plan.
■  In the News Tribune -- A low blow in fight over health care costs (editorial) -- Regence's letters said physicians were being dropped because they didn’t meet “quality and efficiency” standards. It was a pretty loaded statement... But the really outrageous thing is that it wasn’t exactly true.
■  In today's Everett Herald -- Troubled Snohomish workforce development agency gets new chief
■  In today's Yakima H-R -- State Rep. Janéa Holmquist suffers injuries in I-90 accident
■  In Sunday's Everett Herald -- Unsavory tactic should be dropped by union (editorial) -- SEIU's effort to block Providence Health & Services from issuing bonds is a dubious strategy that doesn't serve the union's members, and it surely threatens to hurt communities its members serve.
■  In Friday's Oregonian -- Secretary of State's role on union-backed panel is questioned -- Oregon Secretary of State Bill Bradbury riles executives of Providence Health System by chairing a union-backed commission that is looking into Providence's handling of a union drive.

Political news:
■  In today's Spokesman-Review -- Referendum 65 is weak (editorial) -- This campaign is designed to show how the "special rights" (that is, the rights everyone else has) conferred upon gays and lesbians are going to infringe on other people's rights. Before signing up, ask yourself how you've been harmed in the seven years since Spokane has had a human rights ordinance.
■  In the P.S. Business Journal -- Democratic legislators looked out for business (Kohl-Welles op-ed) -- To say that Democrats turned their backs on business ignores the facts. We proposed and passed an array of measures to boost businesses large and small, and keep our economy growing. Our bold actions will pay dividends for years to come. Washington is open for business.
■  In the Seattle Weekly -- Ed Murray's port job -- The state House transportation chair wanted to consult for the Port of Seattle, so the Port found work for him.
■  In today's Seattle P-I -- Bush to attend fundraiser for Reichert -- Look for The Decider to make a pitstop at Fort Lewis before heading to the mansion in Medina -- so taxpayers foot the trip's bill.

National news:
■  In yesterday's NY Times -- Teamsters hope to lure FedEx drivers -- The union hopes to deliver on its promise to unionize far more workers after quitting the AFL-CIO, while FedEx hopes to defend its claim that the drivers are independent contractors and have no right to unionize.
■  Today from AP -- Though latest effort fails, FBI says it isn't giving up search for Hoffa
■  In today's Washington Post -- A push in Congress to act on air traffic controllers impasse -- If Congress takes no action by June 5, the FAA can impose its contract proposal on the union.
■  In today's NY Times -- Survey: Workers should come first -- Americans say the way companies treat their employees is a better indicator of their social conscience than their philanthropy.