Solidarity

I've been struggling with what to say about the incestuous bias in the media against the UAW through the media's repetition of Right Wing lies, distortions and avarice. Problem is that I didn't really know how to sum it up. To boil it down to what I really wanted to say or maybe it was how I wanted to say it.

Until today.

I was over at Dailykos and noticed a comment in a diary on the Bridge loan to automakers:

The lazy, overpaid autoworker stereotype is outdated and tiresome. Just like any other industry, we have our share of slackers, but the overwhelming majority of our workforce "bring it" every day.

You say the UAW needs to accept concessions to help solve this crisis. Apparently you haven't been paying attention for the last 20 years or so. The companies have been asking for and receiving concessions for the last several contracts. The most recent contract allows for a nearly 50% lower wage for the next generation of workers, while also removing health care costs from the company books.

Apparently that's not enough. You want to see us all out of work.

The bottom line is that while the UAW and management have played a part in the past mistakes, both have been working to ensure a solid future for the industry for years.

Over that same time the government has done nothing to help regarding affordable health care, balanced trade and tax incentives that reward companies for keeping jobs here instead of outsourcing. The middle class (led by the unions) tried to sound the alarm years ago. Unfortunately, nobody listened because of their anti-union prejudices.

The comment comes from a 29 year veteran of an assembly line, a UAW member, in the Detroit Free Press.

There is so much anti-union blather out there in the ether that it’s hard to cut threw it and make sense of anything sometimes. Here, on Uniongal, we try to do that. We try to find a way to remind each reader that there is something bigger than the ether, than the anti-union comments you read or the blatant anti-worker bias in the media. There’s something so much bigger out there, it’s solidarity.

This weekend, I read a similar thread on .UnionReview and commented:

We do fight back. Everyday you remember that there are brothers and sisters in your union, you beat folks like National Review. Everytime you talk to some random person about what it means to be in a union, what it means to have brothers and sisters in the stuggle are always victories against these jack asses.
Solidarity means that we come together and everytime we do, they are afraid and when they are afraid, they will take a brush and with broad strokes, they will paint us with the actions they themselves take.
So, when you read their comments and they make their statements, say what you have to, clearly, loudly and with the strength and honesty of those who have come before all of us. From the women at the Triangle Shirt Factory to Wesley Everest and to the current struggles for representation so many are fired for trying to obtain.
And when you do speak, know that you're not alone. We're all with you.
In Solidarity
Uniongal

It was something small. Nothing I haven’t felt or meant to say in the past. It’s just that I don’t think I’ve really thought about it. About what it really means to fight for workers, I just do it. It’s a part of who I am.

Fighting for my brothers and sisters in labor is just something I do, naturally. I have never stopped to think about it and I’m sure many of you haven’t either. I don’t care about the infighting, the dirty laundry, the poaching from one union to another union; it just doesn’t matter as long as workers can bargain, collectively.

Then I met someone who made me actually stop and think about it. I’ve thought about the why and this came about not through the Big 3 or through the constant anti-union sentiments about the UAW or IAM (from the Boeing strike) or how Andrea Mitchell and Tom Brokaw shill for the anti Employee Free Choice Act every chance they get. I started to think about it on Saturday.

You see, I went out with a new friend on Saturday. He's really an absolutely amazing person, just being near him makes me feel this unbelievable electrical jolt, you know, that feeling, when you remember why you do what you do? That jolt from the passion that is taking on the system, or fighting the good fight?

He’d shared some stuff on being a firefighter and me, well, I’ve never been much of a fan of IAFF. On a scale from one to 10 and 10 being my love for my former union (you all know I was a Teamster, right?) and 1 being my feelings toward Right Wingers, IAFF was about a 3, okay, maybe a 4.

But this guy out of the blue had me thinking about stuff. I’m not a retrospective girl. I like things to be clear, kind of orderly and since I’d made up my mind on IAFF, I really just didn’t think of them in the same way that I did IBEW, UFCW, UFW, UNITE-HERE and many others, I just didn’t.

So, he’s read my blog and he and I have had a couple of side conversations about the IAFF. He's told me about the The Secret List.
and how he's seen too many firefighters injured due to new construction issues. He’s talked about how industry standards are so low now, that during a fire, you can’t always head into a building because the materials used in new construction are so flimsy that you fall threw floors or ceilings collapse and roofs as well. Just yesterday, a Firefighter on Staten Island lost his life while battling a blaze when the roof collapsed.


But this weekend for me was different. It started out like any other weekend, busy and then, he sent me an e-mail about solidarity.

Solidarity.

IAFF is as much a brother in the struggle as the 29 year veteran of GM.

Today, I’m reminded of what it is I fight, for my brothers and sisters and there’s no rest on the horizon for any of us and yeah, I also mean you right wingers who idolize the likes of Rick Berman. Be prepared to fight, because I am.

I am now, more than ever, clear that what we need is just a little concept called solidarity.

To my brothers and sisters in Labor, Uniongal Salutes you. And yep, I mean you all in IAFF, too. You’re now a 10 in my book.

AL: Retired firefighter, turns into a true American hero

Caught this on CNN, what an amazing story, reminded me of Flip Wilson, the retired NYC fireman who works with Gene Jackson, a retired Steamfitter in NY to help our severely wounded returning veterans. It amazes me how people will do so much to help others, really go out and help, not just with money, but get their hands dirty to change the world for the better.

Russel Jackson is a guy who made me actually watch TV, with the severe need for health care in the United States, like my recent story "60 minutes follows charatible remote health care facility now needed here in the United States", whereby a medical service on wheels that was initially intended to be used in third world countries, now goes across the United States to help our own people. Well heres another hero, this guy actually started something

I wish I could get the videos embedded here, but what the heck, you'll have to click a link or two from this story.

From CNN "Helping kids get well one car ride at a time" (7/3/08):

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (CNN) -- If Russell Jackson has his way, any child who needs medical care but lacks the transportation to get there will have a safe and reliable alternative.

"We found that there were 80,000-plus children in Alabama living in a home with no car," Jackson says.

"And in the rural areas, there are no cabs, there are no buses, there are no trains. ... Millions of children in our country every day have no access to medical care when they need to reach it."

Jackson is so determined that in 1997 he gave up his career as an Alabama firefighter, moved in with friends and dug into his retirement account to start Kid One Transport, a nonprofit organization that provides rides for needy children in his home state.

In 11 years, Kid One's fleet of vans has ferried more than 16,000 kids to and from scheduled medical-related appointments all over Alabama.

Watch Jackson describe the need for medical transportation in rural Alabama »

Jackson never anticipated he would leave the fire department to head up a nonprofit organization. After all, firefighting was the culmination of a lifelong dream.

"What little boy doesn't want to be a firefighter?" Jackson says, laughing.

Continue over at CNN to read the rest, to all the heroes out there on this Independence Day, thank you.

Fireman, teachers, police, none are allowed into unions in North Carolina, stand in solidarity for public workers 6/11/08

North Carolina citizens and organizations are calling for the passage of House Bill 1583, which will grant North Carolina's public servants the collective bargaining rights they deserve.

North Carolina's anti-worker laws and failures of labor law enforcement have been reported on this site and at Union Review for a while now, from breaking the bylaws of NAFTA by outlawing collective bargaining and freedom of association for public employees, in which Mexico filed charges with the United Nations International Labor Organization, to the recent Charges filed by over 40 North American unions against the state to the blatant discrimination and disregard for safety standards in the states meat cutting industry . You can check out the stories below:

• Safety Workers Bill dropped for the moment, hard core anti-worker conservatives playing games
• Victory: Senate vote's overwhelmingly in favor of America's public safety workers
• More than 40 North American labor unions file charges against North Carolina's anti-union policies (4/26/08)
• Doctors come forward to Congress explaining how they are coerced to mistreat and under treat injured workers (4/21/08)
• U.S. Lawmakers worried about safety after Charlotte Observers expose on the poultry industry(3/08/08)
  
• North Carolina who was recently sued by Mexico for labor rights violations is at it again, coercing county employee out of Worker Compensation. (2/14/08)
• NC: The Human Cost of the poultry Industry by The Charlotte observer(2/10/08)
  
• North Carolina Violates NAFTA ?? - Right to Freely Associate/Organize/Bargain Collectively (11/07)
• Who's the Greediest Grinch of 2007? (12/07)

Tomorrow the H.O.P.E Coalition (Hear Our Public Employees) are gathering to help pass House Bill 1583, which will grant North Carolina's public servants the collective bargaining rights they deserve.

Heres the scoop from PRNewswire - abridged (6/10/08):

The North Carolina H.O.P.E Coalition (Hear Our Public Employees)
will hold a Collective Bargaining Lobby Day and press conference
on Wednesday, June 11, at the NC Legislative Building in Raleigh
Scheduled speakers include Representative Dan Blue (D-Wake), public
employees and local Government officials

 WHY: A strong and growing coalition of North Carolina citizens and
organizations are calling for the passage of House Bill 1583, which will
grant North Carolina's public servants the collective bargaining rights
they deserve. Current NC law singles out public workers as second class
employees by denying them the same negotiation rights as employees working
in the private sector.

 The H.O.P.E. Coalition's core member organizations include NC State
AFL-CIO; American Federation of Teachers/NC; American Association of
University Professors/NC; International Union of Police Associations;
National Association of Social Workers - NC Chapter; NC Association of
Educators; Professional Firefighters and Paramedics of NC; Service
Employees International Union; State Employees Association of NC, SEIU
Local 2008; Teamsters Local 391; UE 150 - NC Public Service.

Firemen, teachers, police, none are allowed into unions in North Carolina, stand in solidarity for public workers 6/11/08

North Carolina citizens and organizations are calling for the passage of House Bill 1583, which will grant North Carolina's public servants the collective bargaining rights they deserve.

North Carolina's anti-worker laws and failures of labor law enforcement have been reported on this site and at Union Review for a while now, from breaking the bylaws of NAFTA by outlawing collective bargaining and freedom of association for public employees, in which Mexico filed charges with the United Nations International Labor Organization, to the recent Charges filed by over 40 North American unions against the state to the blatant discrimination and disregard for safety standards in the states meat cutting industry . You can check out the stories below:

• Safety Workers Bill dropped for the moment, hard core anti-worker conservatives playing games
• Victory: Senate vote's overwhelmingly in favor of America's public safety workers
• More than 40 North American labor unions file charges against North Carolina's anti-union policies (4/26/08)
• Doctors come forward to Congress explaining how they are coerced to mistreat and under treat injured workers (4/21/08)
• U.S. Lawmakers worried about safety after Charlotte Observers expose on the poultry industry(3/08/08)
  
• North Carolina who was recently sued by Mexico for labor rights violations is at it again, coercing county employee out of Worker Compensation. (2/14/08)
• NC: The Human Cost of the poultry Industry by The Charlotte observer(2/10/08)
  
• North Carolina Violates NAFTA ?? - Right to Freely Associate/Organize/Bargain Collectively (11/07)
• Who's the Greediest Grinch of 2007? (12/07)

Tomorrow the H.O.P.E Coalition (Hear Our Public Employees) are gathering to help pass House Bill 1583, which will grant North Carolina's public servants the collective bargaining rights they deserve.

Heres the scoop from PRNewswire - abridged (6/10/08):

The North Carolina H.O.P.E Coalition (Hear Our Public Employees)
will hold a Collective Bargaining Lobby Day and press conference
on Wednesday, June 11, at the NC Legislative Building in Raleigh
Scheduled speakers include Representative Dan Blue (D-Wake), public
employees and local Government officials

 WHY: A strong and growing coalition of North Carolina citizens and
organizations are calling for the passage of House Bill 1583, which will
grant North Carolina's public servants the collective bargaining rights
they deserve. Current NC law singles out public workers as second class
employees by denying them the same negotiation rights as employees working
in the private sector.

 The H.O.P.E. Coalition's core member organizations include NC State
AFL-CIO; American Federation of Teachers/NC; American Association of
University Professors/NC; International Union of Police Associations;
National Association of Social Workers - NC Chapter; NC Association of
Educators; Professional Firefighters and Paramedics of NC; Service
Employees International Union; State Employees Association of NC, SEIU
Local 2008; Teamsters Local 391; UE 150 - NC Public Service.

Safety Workers Bill dropped for the moment, hard core anti-worker conservatives playing games

UPDATE To: Victory: Senate vote's overwhelmingly in favor of America's public safety workers (5/13/08)

According to the Associated Press this Bill has been dropped for the time being, from The NY Times (5/15/08):

Democrats drop first - responder bill
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate Democrats on Thursday dropped a bill allowing all police, firefighters and other first responders to unionize after Republicans complained they didn't get enough time to offer amendments.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he did not have enough votes to force final consideration of the bill.

The two top senators on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee, Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., and Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., will try to work out an agreement before the bill comes back for consideration, Reid said.

The bill would guarantee public safety officers the right to join unions and bargain over wages, hours and conditions of employment. It also would ban them from going on strike.

Two states, Virginia and North Carolina, prohibit public safety officers from collective bargaining. At least 20 other states don't fully protect collective bargaining rights for firefighters, police officers, corrections officers and emergency medical service workers, supporters said.

States could exempt towns with fewer than 5,000 people or fewer than 25 full-time employees.

''I know there are diverse views on this issue,'' Kennedy said. ''We'll try to work out an orderly process and proceed.''

Sources say, that while there is strong bipartisan support, 11 Republicans are co-sponsors of the Bill, there is also fierce opposition, particularly from Enzi, DeMint and Vitter who have essentially been filibustering by amendment. The Bill will be brought up again right before or after Senate recess.

MA: Firefighters call for unity rally prior to Memorial ceremony and lobby day

At last year's Lobby Day President McCarthy read the names of our members who died during 2006 of occupationally related illness and injury.

With recent concerns of the under-staffing and the recent attack on their profession in the media, the Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts is calling on all non-working members in the area to attend their 3rd annual "PFFM Lobby Day, Unity Rally & Workers Memorial April 29th". Heres the story from the PFFM web site:

April 29th at 10AM will be the PFFM's 3rd Annual Lobby Day, Unity Rally and Worker's Memorial at the State House on Beacon Hill.

To: PFFM Locals and membership

From: Bob McCarthy, President & The PFFM Executive Board

Subj: Unity rally prior to Workers Memorial and PFFM Lobby Day. 04/29/08

All off duty firefighters are requested to attend a "UNITY RALLY' on Tuesday morning April 29, 2008 on the Boston Common in front of the State House. Formation at the corner of Charles St. and Beacon St. at 10:00am. Uniform of the day is Red Shirt and fire helmet. The Clinton Fire Local 3189 clothing van will be at the Unity Rally at 9:00AM at Charles and Beacon Streets meeting place. They will have the Red Shirts on hand available to purchase. Call 508-380-9606 and ask for Paul if anyone wants to pre-order some Red Shirts so that they can have their size on hand at the Rally.

This rally will be a display of solidarity. The print and news media have attacked our profession unmercifully over the past six months and it has become quite clear that they are attacking our benefits. This unity rally will demonstrate that we will not sit still for their vilification and the malice towards us, our profession and our benefits.

We will respond as proud union members who will fight as "ONE" against any and all attacks on our profession. We will stand proud in support of our local union officers our statewide union officers and our International union officers.

Let us pass the word and make this the best attended rally in our 63
year history.

After the rally we will join our Union Brothers and Sisters at a memorial for all the departed union members who have passed away from an on duty accident, injury or occupational disease at a "Workers Memorial Day Ceremony". We will then visit our respective State Senators and State Representatives to lobby for our legislative agenda.

click here for a copy of the PFFM Do's & Don'ts of Lobbying

I hope some of our firefighter friends in the area will get us some pictures, good luck