Rally Dec. 16 at SeaTac Airport to support TSOs (WSLC Reports

December 4, 2009

Dec. 3: Trumka: "We need jobs now"

Dec. 2: PAC training Dec. 16 in Seattle

Dec. 1: Health reform rallies set for Dec. 12

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Friday, December 4, 2009

Rally Dec. 16 to support SeaTac security officers

The Washington State Labor Council and the M.L. King County Labor Council are demonstrating our local union movement’s support for the Transportation Security Officers and their effort to gain a voice at work with the American Federation of Government Employees. All union members are invited and urged to join us at a rally on Wednesday, Dec. 16 from noon to 1:30 p.m. in SeaTac Airport’s Summit Room to show your solidarity with the TSOs. Read more.

Health care reform news:

Rallies on Saturday, Dec. 12

Attend the "Health Care 4 the Holidays" rallies planned in cities across Washington. Learn more.

► From AP -- Health bill survives its first big test -- on Medicare -- Unflinching on a critical first test, Senate Democrats closed ranks Thursday behind $460 billion in politically risky Medicare cuts at the heart of the legislation, thwarting a Republican attempt to doom the sweeping legislative overhaul.

► Today from AP -- Dems seeking compromise on public option -- On the Senate floor, Democrats are debating Republicans on health care. Behind the scenes, they're debating each other in closed-door discussions to settle the government insurance plan issue that stands in the way of passage of the bill.

► From AP -- "Doughnut hole" unites seniors wary of health bill -- Lawmakers have wooed seniors skeptical of the health care overhaul by emphasizing the plan would close the "doughnut hole" -- a gap in Medicare drug coverage that can cost thousands of dollars a year.

► At the Plum Line -- Comcast CEO endorses health reform bill -- Comcast CEO Brian Roberts pens a letter to the President Barack Obama, endorsing his health care reform effort as “critical to putting this country on a path of sustained growth and prosperity.”

► In today's NY Times -- Good news on premiums (editorial) -- The CBO’s analysis shows that tens of millions of uninsured Americans can be covered without driving up costs for everyone else.

► In today's NY Times -- Reform or else (Paul Krugman column) -- Those concerned with fiscal responsibility should be worried about what will happen if the health legislation doesn’t pass.

Other news from Congress:

► In today's NY Times -- House votes to extend tax on estates of the wealthy -- The House voted Thursday to expand indefinitely a 45% inheritance tax on estates larger than $3.5 million, canceling a one-year repeal of the tax that is set to begin next month. (Rep. Brian Baird, who last month voted against the health care reform legislation citing concerns about costs, sided with Republican Reps. Reichert, Hastings and McMorris Rodgers in voting "no" on Thursday, which would repeal the tax entirely for one year. All other Democrats from Washington voted "yes.")

► At AFL-CIO Now -- Family and medical leave extended to flight crews -- Airline flight crews will soon have the same family and medical leave coverage other working Americans have enjoyed since 1993. Congress has approved a bill amending the Family and Medical Leave Act to allow flight attendants and pilots to qualify for leave. The bill now goes to President Barack Obama, who is expected to sign it.

State budget news:

► From AP -- Gregoire's budget plan to include tax increases -- Gov. Chris Gregoire is scheduled to release a new budget plan next week. By law, her budget must propose a way to solve the deficit within existing state revenue streams. But that won’t be the final word from Gregoire. She says she now plans to also request a revenue package from the Legislature.

► In today's Seattle Times -- Gregoire, Dems say tax package will be in budget fix -- Democratic legislative leaders support Gregoire's call for additional revenue. "I think most members of my caucus agree with her, that it is too large for cuts alone," says Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown. "That would severely damage our quality of life and the things that we value." House Majority Leader Lynn Kessler says House leadership is also on board, but she's not sure yet if the votes will be there. Republicans oppose more taxes. Sen. Joe Zarelli, the ranking Republican on the Senate Ways and Means Committee, says the budget can be balanced by finding more efficient ways to deliver services. He says he doesn't know if Republicans will come up with a detailed proposal to balance the budget without raising taxes. "I don't have the staff to write a budget," he said.

► In today's Columbian -- Sens. Pridemore, Zarelli split on tax proposal -- Gov. Gregoire’s plan to propose new taxes to help close a yawning $2.6 billion budget deficit drew quiet agreement and sharp criticism from two Clark County senators who sit on the budget-writing committee.

► In today's Olympian -- 17 state boards get axed -- Gov. Chris Gregoire killed 17 boards and commissions by executive order Thursday and called on lawmakers to nix 78 other boards.

► At SeattlePI.com -- Now even the GOP is protesting government cuts (Joel Connelly column) -- On Monday, local Republicans in Coupeville will turn "out in force" to protest a pending cut in government spending. Citing their community's security, they seek to spare the sheriff's office from across-the-board cuts proposed by cash-strapped Island County Commissioners. When Gov. Christine Gregoire said Thursday that she can't support another all-cuts budget, she was also talking about preserving our security every bit as much as the Coupeville Republicans.

► In today's Seattle Times -- Dire budget might threaten programs to help felons be successful (Kate Riley column) -- The tragic slayings of four Lakewood police officers should refocus our resolve to avoid additional budget cuts to supervising criminals released from prison. Despite the budget crisis, successful state reforms that help some felons stay out of jail should be preserved.

Local news:

► In today's Seattle Times -- Boeing aims for two 787s to fly by year's end -- The Boeing Co. has set a new target date of Friday, Dec. 18 for the 787's initial flight, and a second plane is set to take to the air just 10 days after the first, according to a person close to the much-delayed jet program.

► In today's Everett Herald -- 2009 order tally so far: Airbus 194, Boeing 91 -- Airbus backlog got a boost in November when an unnamed customer ordered 52 of its single-aisle jets.

► In today's Olympian -- Olympia City Council approves no-layoffs budget -- The council adopts a budget that reflects the economic downturn but maintains current services and avoids layoffs.

► In today's Bellingham Herald -- NOAA doesn't expect to pull out of Newport -- The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration doesn't expect to have to alter its planned move to Newport, Ore., despite a ruling that appears to revive Bellingham's hope of bringing NOAA here.

► In today's Everett Herald -- Sen. Haugen’s husband sued by her former aide -- Courtney Jones, a 29-year-old woman who managed state Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen’s 2008 campaign, claims in a lawsuit to have been groped by Haugen's husband, Basil Badley, weeks after the election.

Unemployment news:

► In today's LA Times -- Unemployment rate eases in November -- The Labor department says employers shed a net 11,000 jobs last month, a statistically insignificant change and the best showing since December 2007. By contrast, the U.S. economy started this year with a loss of 741,000 jobs in January, but the pace of job declines has been moderating steadily.

► At AFL-CIO Now -- Jobless rate still bleak, with 15.4 million workers unemployed -- The nation’s unemployment rate moved from 10.2% to 10% in November, with 15.4 million American workers unemployed. But when both unemployed and underemployed workers are counted, there still are some 26 million people without jobs or full-time work. At the start of the recession in December 2007, there were 7.5 million jobless workers and the unemployment rate was 4.9%.

► In today's Olympian -- State UI call center will open an hour earlier (brief) -- The unemployment claims call center is now open an hour earlier, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Jobs Summit coverage:

► At AFL-CIO Now -- Job creation or deficit reduction? The public has decided! -- Stop by any corner grocery store and ask the people standing in line: What do you worry about most -- jobs or the nation’s budget deficit? If they don’t choke up laughing, chances are real high they’ll give the same response as did the public in two recent polls: Priority #1: Jobs. Priority #2: Jobs. Priority #3: Jobs.

► In today's NY Times -- Obama turns to job creation but warns of limited funds -- At a White House forum, the president sought new ideas from business executives, labor leaders, economists and others. Obama said he would entertain “every demonstrably good idea” for creating jobs, but he cautioned that “our resources are limited.”

► In today's Washington Post -- Solis: Focus on preparedness for high-skill jobs -- In a breakout session at the White House jobs summit, participants shared ideas for growing training programs to prepare a new generation of workers for the 21st-century economy. They stressed the importance of helping people learn new job skills while still earning an income.

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2009
Rally Dec. 16 to support SeaTac TSOs
Show solidarity with Transportation Security Officers organizing with AFGE

The American Federation of Government Employees is engaged in an historic campaign in support of tens of thousands of Transportation Security Officers organizing at some 450 airports across the nation. December 13-19 is TSO Solidarity Week to support their efforts!

The Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO and the M.L. King County Labor Council, AFL-CIO are demonstrating our local union movement’s support for the TSOs and their effort to gain a voice at work with AFGE. All union members are urged to attend a rally on Wednesday, Dec. 16 from noon to 1:30 p.m. in SeaTac Airport’s Summit Room in the public area of the Central Terminal, behind Ticketing and adjacent to Seattle’s Best Coffee. (Please download, post and distribute the event flier.)

BACKGROUND: Every year, more than 600 million people travel by air in the United states. Transportation Security Officers are the workers who staff security check points at our nation's airports and are responsible for screening all luggage and passengers. TSOs are the front-line defenders of our air safety in this country.

When the Transportation Security Administration was created in 2001, the Bush administration denied TSOs the right to bargain collectively. TSOs are not covered under the General Schedule System that regulates pay for other federal employees. Instead, they have an evaluation-based "pay-for-performance" system that many of the TSOs consider to be arbitrary, punitive and unfair, and that does not contribute to the improvement of TSO skills.

TSOs have virtually no whistleblower protections and are in constant fear of management retaliation. They are subject to unfair hiring practices, inconsistent agency regulations, and unjust leave restrictions and policies. Because of concerns about the low pay, discrimination and management harassment, TSOs suffer from low morale and the Transportation Security Administration has the worse attrition rates in the entire federal government.

But now, the Obama administration is committed to restoring TSOs’ right to organize and bargain collectively. And the one union that has been there, organizing TSOs from the beginning has been the American Federation of Government Employees. Today, more than 11,000 TSOs are already members of the AFGE, which has been fighting to improve their pay and working conditions despite their lack of bargaining rights.

As TSOs at SeaTac International Airport and other airports around our nation organize their union with AFGE, solidarity from other union members working at the airports and members using the airports will be crucial to their efforts!

TAKE ACTION! What can YOU do to support the TSOs' effort to gain a voice at work with AFGE?

Attend the Dec. 16 rally at SeaTac Airport! And bring a friend or co-worker with you.
Talk to the TSOs. If you are a union member who works at the airport or for an airline -- or if you are planning to travel -- during National TSO Solidarity Week, December 13-19, talk to the TSOs about the benefits of union membership. Encourage them to get involved in AFGE's campaign and find out how the union can improve their pay and working conditions.
Check out the AFGE TSA web site -- www.TSAUnion.net -- to stay informed about the campaign, the election process and future opportunities to show solidarity with the TSOs.