TUESDAY, AUGUST 22, 2006
Unified state labor movement ready to seize "opportunity"

Washington State Labor Council President Rick Bender opened the 2006 WSLC Convention in Wenatchee on Monday by proclaiming Washington's labor movement to be strong, vital and unified heading into this fall's important elections. 

A year ago, some unions -- including SEIU, Teamsters, UNITE HERE and UFCW -- left the AFL-CIO to form the Change to Win Coalition. But a subsequent Solidarity Charter agreement allowed CTW unions to rejoin AFL-CIO central labor councils and state federations, including the WSLC, if they so choose. Here in Washington state, the majority of CTW unions have done just that and the WSLC membership has now been restored to pre-split levels, Bender said.

"This is important to be able to communicate and work well together for a united labor movement," Bender told delegates. 

Bender said the convention theme of "Opportunity Knocks" referred to the opportunity in this fall's elections for a unified labor movement to help end the one-party control of our federal government that has led to corruption, scandal, waste and failed policies. He said that organized labor is non-partisan, but under Republican rule, working families have suffered numerous and repeated attacks. 

The opportunity to reverse that is presented by polls that show Americans are finally fed up with the policies of Congress and the Bush administration, and Democrats could seize control of the House of Representatives and achieve the "power of subpoena" to investigate congressional scandals and the administration's handling of the privatized war in Iraq, Bender said.

Bender also discussed this year's legislative session, which he said was characterized by compromise on many issues, but was "overall, very successful." Positive legislation that was approved included restoration of unemployment benefits, efforts promoting apprenticeship, protection of the Family Medical Leave Act here in Washington, collective bargaining for child care workers, and requiring safe-lifting programs at hospitals. The biggest disappointment was the failure of the Fair Share Health Care bill designed to discourage large corporations like Wal-Mart from shifting their employee health costs onto taxpayers.

Linda Chavez-Thompson, Executive Vice President of the AFL-CIO was Monday's keynote speaker. She congratulated the Washington State Labor Council and the state's labor movement for its success achieving progressive policies like the indexed minimum wage and collective bargaining rights for state employees, community college faculty, child care workers, home care workers and others.

"What you have done in Washington state is a model for the rest of the country," she said. "You are a precious resource the kind of resource we need a lot more of in America today."

She urged delegates to continue their efforts -- and redouble them for the coming elections -- in the face of the Bush administration's unprecedented attacks on working families.

Also Monday: 

• Immigrant workers and immigration reform was discussed during a panel session and workshop by Magdeleno Rose-Avila, Executive Director of the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project; Pramila Jayapal, founder and director of The Hate Free Zone Campaign of Washington; and Luis Moscoco, Washington Public Employees Association/UFCW 365 staffer and secretary of the Washington State Democrats. Learn more by downloading materials distributed to delegates: What is Comprehensive Immigration Reform? and Myths and Facts About Immigrants, Wages and the Economy (both Word documents). 
  

• Members of UNITE HERE described the Hotel Workers Rising campaign, a long-term strategy to improve the wages and working conditions of hotel workers in major cities throughout America. Lucille Velasco, a room cleaner at The Westin Hotel in Seattle, described a frantic work environment where employer demands have led to numerous injuries. For more information, visit: www.hotelworkersrising.org.