WSLC Monthly Report -- April 2003

WSLC Reports is a monthly summary of labor news and a preview of coming events. It is not intended to be comprehensive. More detail is available on these (and other) items online. If you would like to receive this via fax or mail, Get on the List!
(See previous editions of this newsletter.)

MAY 17—"Young Workers: Organizing Our Future," sponsored by the Labor Center at The Evergreen State College, is a one-day conference at the school’s Tacoma campus. Open to all workers under age 30, participants will discuss and share their experiences as workers and union members. The cost is $40 per person and includes lunch. For a registration form or more info, call Lucilene Whitesell at (360) 867-6055. Learn more.

MAY 17—The United Farm Workers of America, AFL-CIO of Washington State holds its Second Cesar E. Chavez Solidarity Celebration. (See story below.)

MAY 27-30—"Planting Seeds for the Future," the Washington State Labor Council’s Labor Candidate School at the Laborers’ Training Facility in Kingston. Union members interested in running for local, state or federal office are encouraged to apply. The registration fee (which includes a dorm room, meals and training materials) will be $150. Space is limited, so if you are interested in attending or want more information, contact WSLC Political Director Diane McDaniel at dmcdaniel@wslc.org or (206) 281-8901.

JUNE 25-29—The 2003 Summer School for Union Women will be at The Evergreen State College’s Olympia campus, taking a critical look at labor and community alliances, the right to organize in the workplace, and how the economy looks to different groups of workers. Registration for this residential program is limited to 60. Also, the WSLC Women’s Committee is offering scholarships, but the deadline to apply is May 16. Call (206) 281-8901 for more information. Learn more.

It is probable that the State Legislature will reconvene for a special "overtime" session after the regular session ends Sunday, April 27. At press time, the state operating and transportation budgets, as well as a number of other major issues, are still being negotiated. For the latest developments, make sure you are on the list to receive the WSLC Legislative Update newsletter (sign up).

But on the subject of overtime, if President Bush and congressional Republican leaders have their way, you might not get paid for it much longer.

Bush has proposed changes in the Fair Labor Standards Act that raise the income ceiling for workers to automatically qualify for time-and-a-half overtime pay, claiming it will extend protection to low-income workers currently excluded. But most of these workers already are covered by overtime protections because of the nature of their jobs. In contrast, his proposed changes in job definitions allowing an employer to classify workers as "exempt," and thus ineligible for overtime pay, would affect many more hundreds of thousands of workers.

Meanwhile, the 40-hour work week is also under legislative assault in Congress. H.R. 1119, co-sponsored by our state’s own Reps. Jennifer Dunn (R-8th) and Doc Hastings (R-4th), would allow employers to defer compensation—either in pay or time off—for overtime hours until more than a year later. For employers, that’s the equivalent of a huge interest-free loan from their employees, a loan unlikely to be repaid if the company goes under. The bill, which passed a House committee vote April 9 is being marketed as an expansion of employee rights that grants work schedule "flexibility." Yeah, as in "bend over."

The Washington State Labor Council has distributed to its affiliated unions camera-ready fliers for distribution to union members explaining the nature of WSLC opposition to Initiative 807 to require legislative super-majorities to raise taxes and Initiative 841 to repeal the state ergonomics workplace safety rule.

With paid signature gatherers currently on the streets with petitions for both measures, these fliers urge union members to "Think Before You Ink." Get copies of the I-807 flier and/or I-841 flier at this site, or by calling (206) 281-8901 and requesting to have them mailed to you.

WSLC Research and Organizing Director Jeff Johnson will be among the honorees at this year’s United Farm Workers’ Cesar Chavez Solidarity Celebration at 6 p.m. on May 17 at the Machinists Hall, 9125 15th Place South in Seattle. Becki Smith, Tomas Villanueva and Consul Jorge Madrazo will also be recognized for their significant contributions to the farm worker movement for justice in Washington state.

Attending the festivities will be Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the UFW and recipient of numerous national awards for her lifelong dedication to farm workers. The event will feature Mexican food and live entertainment. Call (206) 789-1947 for ticket and other information.

The Boeing Co. has made it clear that Washington will have to compete with states around the nation—and the world—for the work to assemble its upcoming 7E7 line of commercial jets. Although the company has yet to come up with a list of site-selection criteria for Washington officials, the International Association of Machinists District 751 isn’t waiting to urge action on the company’s legislative issues, including passage of a substantial transportation package and unemployment insurance reform. With the regular legislative session scheduled to end April 27, most observers believe a special extended session is in store providing extra time to address these issues. House Speaker Frank Chopp has also suggested that a special one-day session may be held later to address Boeing-specific issues.

"Every citizen of Washington state, whether or not they work at Boeing, must encourage legislators to do whatever it takes to keep Boeing jobs in this state because we all have a stake in this," said IAM District 751 President Mark Blondin. "These issues are about the future of this state and whether or not we will have family-wage jobs. The issues Boeing has identified will make Washington more competitive for other employers, which could translate into more jobs—all of which are critical to our economic recovery."

The Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace, IFPTE Local 2001 filed Unfair Labor Practice charges April 4 with the National Labor Relations Board against the Boeing Co. At issue is the company’s continued use of its "Employee Incentive Plan (EIP)" which, according to SPEEA’s charges, discriminates against union employees by limiting the EIP cash bonuses to nonunion workers. The latest EIP checks, issued in February, rewarded more than 80,000 nonunion employees with bonus checks equivalent to 10.5 days of pay for full-time workers.

"The EIP is a blatant and aggressive anti-union campaign," said SPEEA Executive Director Charles Bofferding. "It is a divisive tactic that is hurting employee morale and hurting the long-term success of the company employees have poured their hearts into for years."

An amendment sponsored by Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) to provide 26 weeks of unemployment assistance for thousands of struggling airline industry workers became law as part of the War Supplemental bill signed April 16 by President Bush. More than 110,000 airline industry workers, including 35,000 Boeing workers, have lost their jobs due to the events of September 11th, the War in Iraq, and the nationwide economic slowdown. The Bush Administration opposed inclusion of the worker assistance but Sen. Murray successfully fought for the amendment, working with several Republican colleagues.

"I am proud to deliver this good news for the thousands of Boeing workers and others who have lost their jobs," Sen. Murray said. "As Congress provides support to the airlines we will not forget about the industry’s most important asset — our workers."

Mark Pigott, CEO of the Bellevue-based truckmaker Paccar, made more than $4 million in 2001. Last year Paccar’s executive officers got $2.4 million in raises amidst one of its most profitable years in company history. But also last year, Paccar offered workers at its Peterbilt plant in Madison, Tenn., a mere 22-cent raise, pension cuts and a 300% increase in health care costs. When the workers said "no," they were locked out of their plant on Sept. 3, 2002. Seven months later, they are still locked out despite an unconditional offer to return to work. Sound fair?

It doesn’t to more than 100 demonstrators who swarmed the Paccar’s shareholder meeting April 22 in Bellevue. They leafletted outside and made their case inside the meeting that the company should end its lockout of the United Auto Workers members in Tennessee.

The WSLC has previously reported the Bush administration’s plans to impose cumbersome and expensive new disclosure requirements of labor unions. Labor Secretary Elaine Chao and other Bush officials have argued that new hurdles are necessary to prevent union corruption, while the AFL-CIO has argued they are a politically motivated attack to silence critics of the president.

New documents unearthed by a Freedom of Information Act request, show that the whole plan is a leftover idea from Newt Gingrich to do exactly what the AFL-CIO alleges: to silence administration critics. A 1992 letter from then-Republican Whip Gingrich to then Labor Secretary Lynn Martin and the former Bush’s domestic policy adviser urges them "to institute changes in the LM-2 union reporting and disclosure form"—exactly the form Chao is now altering—"to provide union members with essential information on dues expenditures." This change, Gingrich said, would "weaken our opponents and encourage our allies."

Bush’s anti-union proposal has been criticized as too extreme from within his own party. Earlier this month, a group of 28 moderate House Republicans wrote Chao a letter opposing the "an unprecedented level of detailed financial information and government forms... While we share your concern over the burden of government regulation of small businesses, we believe the same standard should apply to labor organizations as well."