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July 7, 2010 |
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Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Senators
ask: Will illegal subsidies affect Airbus tanker bid?
U.S. Sen. Patty Murray leads a group of bipartisan senators in sending a letter to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates asking how the Pentagon intends to account for the unfair advantages that illegal subsidies provide in the competition to replace the U.S. military’s next generation of aerial refueling tankers. This letter follows the World Trade Organization’s release of their final ruling that European governments have been providing Airbus with illegal subsidies that have undercut U.S. workers for the last 40 years. Read more.
► At HeraldNet.com -- Machinists: Boeing insincere about peace with union -- IAM District 751 President Tom Wroblewski pointed to recent negotiations between Machinists and other aerospace companies as evidence that the union can negotiate (amicably and successfully) with aerospace companies..., but he says that Boeing's “game plan is obvious. It is systematically eliminating employee pensions . …They follow a regular pattern, so I've no doubt that Boeing will come after our new hires' pensions in 2012.”
Sebelius-Trumka health care webinar TODAY
Join AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius TODAY from 1 to 2 p.m. (Pacific) at www.hhs.gov/live for a webinar on "Implementation of the Affordable Care Act: Three Months After Enactment." Questions about key health reform issues for union members will be taken online before and during the webinar at healthreform@hhs.gov -- just make the subject line "Question for AFL-CIO Webchat."
Election news:
► At Publicola -- Democrats' latest worry: Democrats -- PubliCola has reported extensively on Lillian Kaufer’s lefty challenge against incumbent Democrat Sen. Steve Hobbs (D-44). But in the 38th district (Everett, Marysville, Tulalip) incumbent Democratic Sen. Jean Berkey faces a challenger with even more street cred (and money) than Kaufer: Nick Harper. He’s definitely coming at Berkey from the left. Harper has pulled down the endorsement from the progressives at the Washington Bus. And last week, the Washington State Labor Council endorsed him.
► At SeattlePI.com -- Labor
PAC raises almost $900K; should Dems be worried? -- The
Washington State Labor Council launched the Don't Invest in More Excuses
political action committee in 2009. The PAC, created with the express aim of
taking on some Democratic incumbents unions are upset with, has raised
nearly $900,000. That funding will make it a major player in the coming
election season.
► At Publicola -- Conservative Democratic PAC lags behind in money race -- The Roadkill Caucus PAC raised about $8,000, most of it at a fundraiser hosted by corporate lobbyists from Eli Lilly, Costco, Amgen, Anheuser-Busch, and Pacificorp. Their biggest contributions came from Puget Sound Energy, The Regence Group, and the Aerospace Futures Alliance (which is Linda Lanham).
Jobs, jobs, jobs:
► At Huffington Post -- Jobs
should come first
(by Richard Trumka) -- The lives of half of Americans
have been stricken by our jobs crisis. We're teetering on the brink of a
historic national and global depression. Members of Congress who flat-out
refuse to vote to create jobs, stop layoffs and help the jobless should be
ashamed of themselves. They are pushing us closer and closer to the edge.
► From McClatchy -- Safety net slipping away for jobless -- In just one week and in just one state -- last week in Missouri -- more than 8,300 people fell through the UI safety net. Congress has been unable to pass an extension of the 53-week emergency unemployment compensation program because Republicans and Democrats disagree over the program’s cost.
Local news:
► In today's News Tribune -- Puyallup council could cut jobs, wages -- Barring adjustments to the city’s budget this year, Finance Director Cliff Craig said Puyallup would be forced to lay off 94 employees at the start of 2011, which represents about one-third of the city’s workforce.
► In today's (Everett) Herald -- Everett School Board votes to cut bus service -- Bus service for between 1,200 and 1,400 students was cut after the district's board approved a new budget.
► In today's Seattle Times -- King County's Brightwater sewage plant costs mount -- It'll cost more than its $1.8 billion budget, but exactly how much more remains unknown, a consultant says.
► In today's Seattle Times -- King County must revise cost-of-living pay policy (editorial) -- Two council members propose to end the long-standing and anachronistic automatic cost-of-living pay increases. The council would be wise to adopt either or a combination of both plans.
(Apparently, the idea of having the value of compensation remain constant -- not increase, but stay the same based on rising costs of living -- is an "anachronism" to the Times. Why, then, aren't we reevaluating anachronisms like newspaper industry tax breaks as we all hold hands and "reset" our expectations in this new economy? Because sacrifice is for the working class.)
Government news:
► In today's Olympian --
Agencies
take day off -- State worker
furloughs got under way Tuesday at two Olympia-area agencies, and the
governor's office releases a list of other agencies
that will follow suit with shutdowns next Monday.
► In today's -- Some state offices closed Monday -- About a third of the state workforce -- nearly 35,000 employees -- from 50 agencies will be idled without pay in the first of 10 furlough days.
► In today's Spokesman-Review -- Closing state offices to save money is a poor idea (editorial) -- Shutting offices for a day -- as opposed to staying open with a reduced staff -- does not soften the blow. It is likely, instead, to provoke anger, confusion and inconvenience for the citizens and taxpayers who rely on state services -- and who, ultimately, pay for them.
► In today's Tri-City Herald -- Budget reform possible if state doesn't blow it (editorial) -- it may take even tougher times to force the spirit of compromise and shared sacrifice needed to produce meaningful change. We're hoping to be proved wrong. (Once again, how about if the state's unanimously conservative anti-labor newspapers participated in the shared sacrifice by giving up the special tax break their lobbyists won even as the state was cutting jobs and services?)
National news:
► In today's NY Times --
American
Dream elusive for new generation -- For young
adults, the prospects in the workplace, even for the college-educated, have
rarely been so bleak. Apart from the 14% who are unemployed and seeking
work, 23% are not even seeking a job, according to data from the Bureau of
Labor Statistics. The total, 37%, is the highest in more than three decades
and a rate reminiscent of the 1930s. Starved for jobs at adequate pay, the
millennials tend to seek refuge in college and in the military and to put
off marriage and child-bearing. Those who are working often stay with the
jobs they have rather than jump to better paying but less secure ones, as
young people seeking advancement normally do. And they are increasingly
willing to forgo raises, or to settle for small ones.
► In today's NY Times -- Justice Dept. sues Arizona over immigration law -- The Justice Department argues the law would divert federal and local law enforcement officers by making them focus on people who may not have committed crimes, and by causing the “detention and harassment of authorized visitors, immigrants and citizens.”
► At AFL-CIO Now -- Trumka: Arizona suit a good first step, but not enough -- The AFL-CIO president says the administration can -- and should -- revoke the federal authority delegated to Arizona under agreements in which Homeland Security trains members of eight state and local law enforcement agencies in Arizona, which allows the officers to enforce immigration laws.
► In today's NY Times --
Wal-Mart
fighting $7,000 fine in trampling case -- Wal-Mart has spent a year and
more than a million dollars in legal fees battling a $7,000 fine that
federal safety officials assessed after shoppers trampled a Wal-Mart
employee to death at a store on Long Island on the day after Thanksgiving in
2008. In fighting the federal fine, Wal-Mart is arguing that the government
is improperly trying to define “crowd trampling” as an occupational
hazard that retailers must take action to prevent.
► At DailyFinance.com -- How many workers can you hire for the price of one CEO? -- We looked at more than a dozen companies to find out. For example, CVS CEO Thomas M. Ryan made $30.4 million in 2009. Starting cashiers there earned $8 an hour or $20,8000 a year. One CEO = 1,461 entry-level employees.
WEDNESDAY,
JULY
7,
2010
Will
illegal
subsidies
affect Airbus tanker bid?
Sen. Patty Murray, bipartisan group of Senators ask Defense Secretary
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Rally Friday in Everett for Boeing tanker jobs The Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO urges all of its affiliated unions and everyone who supports creating and maintaining family-wage aerospace jobs in Washington state to participate in a rally with Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) at 10:15 a.m. on Friday, July 9 in Everett at the Machinists 751 Hall, 8729 Airport Road. The Boeing Co. is expected to formally submit its contract bid to the Pentagon that day for a 767-based refueling tanker. The order for 179 planes worth $35 billion would extend the life of the company's Everett-based 767 line and would likely lead to more orders for the air-refueling plane. The Pentagon plans to award the contract in August. Friday's
rally is intended to show community support for Boeing's bid and
for the positive economic impact it would have in our state and
country. Read more. |
WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 6, 2010) -- Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) led a group of bipartisan Senators in sending a letter to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates asking how the Pentagon intends to account for the unfair advantages that illegal subsidies provide in the competition to replace the U.S. military’s next generation of aerial refueling tankers. This letter follows the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) release of their final ruling that European governments have been providing Airbus with illegal subsidies that have undercut American workers for the last 40 years.
"The WTO ruling on illegal subsidies to Airbus is a landmark decision. How the United States reacts to the WTO ruling will determine if this country will continue to have a robust and vibrant aerospace industrial base in the future. We look forward to hearing from you on how you will take this final ruling into consideration during the KC-X tanker competition. Our workers are the best in the world, and forcing them to compete against European treasuries is unfair. We want to hear from you on how you intend take the WTO final ruling into consideration and bring fairness into this competition," the Senators wrote.
Senator Murray was joined by Senators Sam Brownback (R-KS), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Pat Roberts (R-KS), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Kit Bond (R-MO), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Roland Burris (D-IL).
The full text of the letter appears below:
The Honorable Robert Gates
Secretary of Defense
1000 Defense Pentagon
Washington, DC 20301-1000Dear Secretary Gates:
On June 30, The World Trade Organization (WTO) issued its final ruling on the U.S. trade case against illegal European government subsidies to Airbus. The WTO has confirmed the claims of both President Bush and President Obama and found that Airbus has for decades been the beneficiary of billions of dollars in illegal subsidies and that these subsidies have caused serious damage to America’s aerospace industry, workers, and economy. The cumulative market value of the subsidies provided to Airbus over the last 40 years approaches $200 billion in today’s dollars. This is unacceptable and clearly provides a competitive advantage to Airbus in the competition for the KC-X Aerial Refueling Tanker competition.
The WTO found Launch Aid for every Airbus program illegal and damaging. Findings included five billion dollars in Launch Aid provided for development of the A330/340 airframe. As you know, the A330 is the selected platform for Airbus’ aerial refueling tanker. Without these subsidies, Airbus could never have developed and built the A330 and would not have a platform to use in the KC-X competition. The WTO also found the government funding of Airbus infrastructure and research and development programs to be illegal.
Having relied on these illegal subsidies to increase market share in the global commercial aerospace market, Airbus now appears intent to use subsidized aircraft and the treasuries of European countries to significantly increase its presence in the U.S. defense market. While we urge you to move forward on the KC-X tanker competition without delay, the Department of Defense must provide a level playing field for all competitors and factor these subsidies into the airplane cost.
The WTO ruling on illegal subsidies to Airbus is a landmark decision. How the United States reacts to the WTO ruling will determine if this country will continue to have a robust and vibrant aerospace industrial base in the future. We look forward to hearing from you on how you will take this final ruling into consideration during the KC-X tanker competition. Our workers are the best in the world, and forcing them to compete against European treasuries is unfair. We want to hear from you on how you intend take the WTO final ruling into consideration and bring fairness into this competition.
Sincerely,
Copyright © 2010 -- Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO