Dear Joseph,
Monsanto wants you to get less information from your food label—and bureaucrats at a big New York state agency (the Department of Agriculture and Markets) might help them do it.
Don’t let them get away with it!
Some dairy farmers use an artificial growth hormone, produced and sold by Monsanto, to make cows produce more milk. But many retailers, as well as all organic dairies, sell milk products from cows that are not injected with this synthetic growth hormone. You can buy that milk by reading the label.
If Monsanto has its way, this distinction may become a secret kept from most shoppers. Monsanto has tried to eliminate rbGH labels all over the country. Don’t let them succeed in New York.
Tell the New York Commissioner of Agriculture and Markets to stop this foolishness.
The federal government has already said these labels are not misleading. There is no reason for New York to make shopping more difficult for you and your family.
Take action today, and when you are done please forward this message on to your friends and family in New York so they can join their voices with yours.
Thank you,
Jean Halloran
NotInMyFood.org
A project of Consumers Union
Saturday, July 26, 2008
NY: They don't want you to know that harmful bovine growth hormones are in your milk, tell NY commissioner of Agriculture "this is not acceptable"
Friday, July 4, 2008
AL: Retired firefighter, turns into a true American hero
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):
Continue over at CNN to read the rest, to all the heroes out there on this Independence Day, thank you.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.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Doctors come forward to Congress explaining how they are coerced to mistreat and under treat injured workers
A group representing 5,000 doctors, some who treat workers referred by employers and others working directly for companies, has come forward to speak out. According to Dr. Robert McLellan, president of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine "Our members feel they are being methodically pressured ... to under-treat and mistreat," and adds "...This is a grave ethical concern for our members. It's a grave medical concern.".
I couldn't agree more, when I worked in a warehouse, the "company' got a new doctor for workplace injuries, the first red flag was that he had a Doberman pinscher in his office, the second was when he sent a fella back to work with a broken leg. It's about time.
From The Charlotte Observer (4/19/08) :
Doctors feel push to downplay injuriesThe Charlotte Observer also adds at the bottom of the story a piece in which they speak about the poultry industry, in which they had an in depth investigation and report on about 2 months back, you can see more news on that in the related links below.
by Ames Alexander aalexander@charlotteobserver.com
Group tells OSHA of pressure by companies
NEW YORK -A leading group of occupational doctors is taking the unusual step of speaking out publicly against pressure from companies to downplay workplace injuries.
To outline their concerns, the physicians have sent a letter to federal workplace safety regulators and held a conference session in New York City on Monday. They're also planning to testify before Congress.
If successful, their campaign could affect the treatment of injured workers and might help change how the government assesses workplace safety.
"Our members feel they are being methodically pressured ... to under-treat and mistreat," said Dr. Robert McLellan, president of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. "...This is a grave ethical concern for our members. It's a grave medical concern."
His group represents 5,000 doctors; some treat workers referred to them by employers, while others work directly for companies.
Employers are supposed to record all injuries requiring time off work or medical treatment beyond first aid. It's an honor system, and the injury logs are used by regulators and others to gauge plant safety. Low injury rates allow companies to avoid scrutiny from workplace safety regulators and may help managers earn four-figure bonuses.
In a hotel meeting room in New York, doctors said this helps explain why some employers urge them not to treat injuries in a way that would make them reportable. A cut, for instance, must be recorded if the worker gets stitches, one doctor told the room of more than 60 colleagues. But if the doctor simply covers the cut with a bandage, it doesn't have to be reported.
Workplace injury and illness rates -- a key factor in determining whether regulators inspect a company -- have been declining nationwide in recent years. But some experts suspect that's partly because employers aren't reporting all on-the-job injuries.
McLellan, an associate professor at Dartmouth Medical School in New Hampshire, says he thinks employers are "vastly underreporting" the extent of workplace injuries.
"Players in the system may willfully produce records that don't reflect reality," he said in an interview.
He said he grew more concerned about corporate pressures on doctors in September, during a conference in the Carolinas. Since then, he said, he has heard from dozens of doctors.
That led him to contact the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and he expects to discuss his concerns with top agency officials next month. His group will likely propose that OSHA more vigorously investigate the accuracy of company injury logs. It may also ask regulators to rely on a broader array of workplace safety measures -- and to rewrite rules so that companies have fewer incentives to underreport.
McLellan also wants occupational doctors to testify before congressional committees examining workplace safety.
Ethical physicians sometimes lose business to those who bend to the wishes of employers, some doctors and workers' compensation lawyers say.
In the Carolinas and some other states, injured workers generally must visit doctors approved by their employers if they want workers' compensation to pay for the treatment. Companies incur higher costs for compensating workers for medical care and lost wages when they're injured on the job.
Employers tend to send workers to doctors who can help them keep costs low and productivity high, according to attorneys who represent injured workers. Doctors become popular with companies if they rarely order time off work for injured employees, or if they seldom recommend costly treatments or conclude injuries are work-related, those lawyers say.
"If you get past the infirmary and sent to a doctor, you're getting sent to a doctor that lives on the plant," said lawyer David Davila, who until recently worked in Columbia, S.C.
Atlanta lawyer Bruce Carraway has represented more than 400 injured poultry workers and says that in more than half of those cases, independent physicians gave different assessments than the company doctors.
Dr. Josephus Bloem, an orthopedic surgeon from Rocky Mount, said he used to get referrals from Perdue Farms. But in the 1990s, the company became unhappy that he usually recommended surgery for workers with carpal tunnel syndrome.
"Their top doctor once visited me and complained that I was too expensive, which I took as pressure to review my approach," Bloem said. Not long afterward, the referrals stopped.
Dr. Roger Merrill, Perdue's chief medical officer, said the company had discovered that many workers who got less invasive treatment -- such as splinting, exercise and ibuprofen -- fared better than those who got surgery. "We had a better way to treat folks," he said.
But Bloem wondered whether health concerns were the only factor. "In the end," he said, "the money wins."
In their quest to keep injuries off logs, company officials without medical training sometimes provide inappropriate treatment, doctors at the New York conference said.
Dr. Peggy Geimer, corporate medical director for a chemical company in Connecticut, spoke of the "tremendous amount of pressure" on company staff to provide treatment beyond their level of expertise.
She recalled how one supervisor dealt with an injured worker who spilled an acidic chemical on his arm: He applied potash, which is sometimes used to clean up chemical spills -- unaware that it would only make the burn worse.
McLellan said he doesn't recall his group ever before taking such a strong stance on the issue. As one doctor at Monday's conference put it: "We need to treat the patient. Not the log." -- Staff Writers Karen Garloch and Franco Ordonez contributed.
Many injuries unreported in poultry industry
In a recent investigation of working conditions in the poultry industry, the Observer found that many on-the-job injuries aren't being reported.
One N.C. poultry company, House of Raeford Farms, has repeatedly failed to record injuries on government safety logs. The newspaper also found that some company first-aid attendants have prevented poultry workers from receiving care that would cost the company money.
House of Raeford says it follows the law, provides good care and strives to protect workers.
A record-keeping expert for the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration told the Observer that his agency is allowing employers nationwide to vastly underreport the number of workplace injuries. The true rate for some industries, including poultry processors, is likely two to three times higher than government numbers suggest, Bob Whitmore said.
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Ca: State to review cases where people got dropped from health insurance after getting sick and submitting bills
From The LA Times (4/18/08):
Hope for patients who lost insurance policiesFound via
A state review will give many whose insurance was canceled during treatment a chance to get it back.
By Lisa Girion and Marc Lifsher, Los Angeles Times Staff Writers
Thousands of people whose policies were canceled by California health insurers will have a chance to win back their coverage and be reimbursed for outstanding medical bills, the Schwarzenegger administration announced Thursday.
The state's action is the boldest yet in dealing with the industry's increasingly controversial practice of canceling individual coverage -- known as rescission -- after patients have taken ill and submitted medical bills.
Cindy Ehnes, the director of the Department of Managed Health Care, said she would reopen policies dropped over the last four years by the state's five major insurers and submit them for reconsideration to an independent arbiter.
Those determined to have been wrongly canceled would be reinstated, and the insurers would be responsible for medical bills incurred while patients were without coverage, she said.
"Rescission is a harsh practice," Ehnes said. "It strips people of coverage and causes them to be uninsurable at the very time they need it most. For the first time, we are giving people a second chance to get that health coverage. We are putting our full regulatory and enforcement action to work on this. We are opening the door to health coverage for those thousands of Californians who have been impacted over the last four years."
Ehnes' department, Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner, Los Angeles City Atty. Rocky Delgadillo, lawmakers and the courts are all scrutinizing the practice.
Those efforts gained steam in February when the first judgment in a rescission case awarded $9 million to a breast cancer patient whose coverage was canceled during chemotherapy. Health Net Inc., the insurer in that case, and Kaiser Permanente have voluntarily stopped canceling patients while awaiting guidance from authorities.
An industry spokesman said insurers have been making changes in an effort to restore confidence in the affected individual market, where consumers without access to employer-based or other group coverage can buy their own policies.
Christopher Ohman, president of the California Assn. of Health Plans, said, "On their own, health plans have been implementing new policies to strengthen and make more transparent the process for rescinding policies."
Read Full Story
The Man Common News
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Caving in to the publicity, Wal-Mart drops suit against disabled former worker Deborah Shank
This is a follow up to "Wal-Mart wins "Worst person in the world"" posted on 3/31/08, which detailed the case and was originally posted on the Change to Win WebBlog by Jason Lefkowitz on 3/27/08
From USA Today (4/01/08):
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is dropping a controversial effort to collect over $400,000 in health care reimbursement from a former employee who is confined to a southeast Missouri nursing home since she suffered brain damage in a traffic accident.Businessweek continues (4/1/08) :
The world's largest retailer said Tuesday in a letter to the family of Deborah Shank it will not seek to collect money the Shanks won in an injury lawsuit against a trucking company for the accident.
Wal-Mart's top executive for human resources, Pat Curran, wrote that Shank's extraordinary situation had made the company re-examine its stance.
Deborah's husband Jim Shank welcomed the news. Family lawyer Maurice Graham of St. Louis said Wal-Mart deserves credit for doing the right thing.
"It's a good day for the Shank family," Jim Shank said in a statement.
Pat Curran, executive vice president for human resources at Wal-Mart Stores U.S., wrote that Shank's extraordinary situation had made the company re-examine its stance.Capitol Hill should be paying attention.
Deborah's husband Jim Shank welcomed the news. Family lawyer Maurice Graham of St. Louis said Wal-Mart deserves credit for doing the right thing.
"It's a good day for the Shank family," Jim Shank said in a statement.
Wal-Mart has been roundly criticized in newspaper editorials, on cable news shows and by its union foes for its claim to the funds, which it made in a lawsuit upheld by a federal appeals court.
Insurance experts say it is increasingly common for health plans to seek reimbursement for the medical expenses they paid for someone's treatment if the person also collects damages in an injury suit.
The practice, called "subrogation," has increased since a 2006 Supreme Court ruling that eased it.
Wal-Mart's Curran said the retailer was required by the rules of its plan to seek reimbursement from the Shank's settlement. But she said the case has made Wal-Mart revise those rules to allow for flexibility in individual cases.
"Occasionally others help us step back and look at a situation in a different way. This is one of those times," Curran wrote in the letter.
Shank, 52, lost much of her memory and ability to communicate or walk in a crash between her minivan and a tractor trailer in May 2000. Her family sued the trucking company and won $700,000. Court records show that after attorney's fees and costs, the remaining $417,477 from the settlement went into a trust to care for Shank.
The fund now has about $270,000, the family said.
Shanks' health insurance was through Wal-Mart, where she worked nights stocking shelves. After the Shanks won their lawsuit, Wal-Mart sued the Shank family to recover medical costs totaling about $470,000.
Wal-Mart won its case and subsequent appeals by the Shanks that went as far as the Supreme Court, which closed legal avenues this month by declining to hear the case.
During the case, the Shanks also lost one of their three sons when Jeremy, 18, was killed in Iraq last year while serving in the Army.
The case put a spotlight on the growing use of reimbursement claims by health plans, experts say.
Roger Baron, professor of law at the University of South Dakota and a specialist in health-plan law, said health plans have become "very aggressive" about subrogation since the 2006 Supreme Court decision.
"It's free money. They want the free money," Baron said.
Lynn Dudley, vice president for policy at the American Benefits Council in Washington D.C., said the negative publicity around the case was beginning to draw the attention of lawmakers who might want legislation to stop or limit subrogation.
"Capitol Hill is paying attention," Dudley said.
Baron said Wal-Mart's size -- it is the nation's largest nongovernment employer, with over 1.3 million workers -- means that its willingness to compromise in an individual case may have a wider impact on reimbursement practices by other health plans.
"I'm so pleased to see an element of reason because so much of this subrogation has been about just blindly going after the money," Baron said.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Wal-Mart wins "Worst person in the world"
So saith Keith Olbermann on his nightly news broadcast on MSNBC, Countdown:
The St. Louis Post Dispatch has more:
The family of a Missouri woman must reimburse Wal-Mart for nearly a half-million dollars in medical expenses now that the U.S. Supreme Court has refused to review her case.
The court on Monday let stand a ruling by the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis requiring Debbie Shank of Cape Girardeau County to pay nearly $470,000 to Wal-Mart.
The appeal was the last legal recourse for the family of the 52-year-old Shank, a mother of three who was critically injured in a car accident eight years ago. She suffered a brain injury that took her memory and left her with very little ability to move or communicate. She has lived in a nursing home since she was released from the hospital...
Her family later settled a lawsuit with the trucking company whose driver was involved in the accident. After attorneys' fees and expenses, $417,477 was put in a trust for Shank's care. That settlement money, plus $51,739 that Shank will have to pay out of pocket, must be paid to Wal-Mart.
Note to corporations: when even the raving socialists at the Wall Street Journal ask if you're overreaching, you're doing something wrong.
Note to everybody else: If you want to help the Shank family, you can make a donation via Wal-Mart Watch to help cover Deborah's medical expenses.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
From Consumers Union, your words matter
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New York’s Bottle Bill, passed in 1982, requires a 5-cent refundable deposit on beer and soda containers--but doesn't include water and sports drink bottles. Billions of these containers end up in our landfills. Tell your lawmaker to support a bigger, better bottle bill in this year's budget.
Get the bill to the President next week!
Both the House and the Senate passed strong bills to fix our broken product safety system. It was a huge victory for you and your family. And yet the final bill hasn't gone to the President for signature yet. No more delays! Tell your lawmakers to send a strong bill to the President next week.
Share your credit card story!
Has a credit card company recently raised your rate, slapped you with penalty fees, increased your credit limit then claimed you were a higher risk? Have you tried to get a handle on your rights and no one will give you a straight answer? We want to hear about your experience!
Tired of all those drug ads?
One of you suggested that TV drug ads should have a 1-800 number to report side effects. A great idea, and we jumped on it. Sign on to this petition to the FDA and we will deliver all the signatures to the agency next week. Help make your great ideas happen!
Does my doctor know what's best?
Doctors don't have good information about the drugs and treatments that really work best. Drug companies fund many studies--and they don't compare their product with alternatives that might work better. Congress can fund unbiased research, with your support. Help fund unbiased studies!
New GAO report calls for change.
Want to know if those greener cleaners are really green? See our free overview.
Medicine from pig intestines? Really? What you didn't know about Heparin.
Sunday, March 23, 2008
CA: 4,000 nurses strike over health care, pension benefits and hospital closures in poor areas
Associated Press (3/21/08)
Huge Walkout by 4,000 Sutter RNs
A Dramatic Stand for Improved Patient Care 10-Day Strike Underway Across Bay AreaSome 4,000 registered nurses began a 10-day walkout Friday at 10 Bay Area hospitals operated by the Sutter Health chain in a dramatic protest over patient care conditions. More than 95 percent of the RNs struck the hospitals. Guaranteeing safe RN staffing at all times -- especially ensuring that Sutter RNs are able to take rest breaks and meals -- is one of several key patient safety issues that is at the center of the dispute.
About 4,000 nurses at eight Sutter Health hospitals in the San Francisco Bay area started striking Friday over a dispute about health care and pension benefits and the closing of hospitals in poor areas. The strike is expected to last 10 days. It affects hospitals in Antioch, Berkeley, Burlingame, Castro Valley, Oakland, San Francisco, San Mateo and Vallejo.From CBS5 in CA (3/23/08):
Hospital officials said they have brought in replacement nurses and that patient care won't be disrupted. All hospitals remain open. The California Nurses Association says the walkout was triggered by ongoing contract negotiations and Sutter practices that it says puts patients at risk.
Sutter Health said it has met the levels of staffing, health care and retirement benefits the union has demanded from other hospitals. It said the union's "real goal is more members and more dues money." Shum Preston, spokesman for the California Nurses Association, said that claim "is not what nurses are about. It's not why nurses are out here."
The California Nurses Association and its national arm, the National Nurses Organizing Committee, have a total of about 80,000 members in 50 states.
Nurses To Protest Hospital Closure In SF
SAN FRANCISCO (BCN) ― Striking nurses will be marching through the streets of San Francisco Monday to protest Sutter Health's possible closure of St. Luke's Hospital.
Some 4,000 registered nurses from the California Nurses Association began striking at 7 a.m. Friday to prove to Sutter Health they are serious about negotiating a new contract. This strike is the third the association has called since October, as well as being the longest walkout of the three.
A Blue Ribbon Panel has been convened to discuss the future of St. Luke's Hospital. The panel hopes to produce a viable plan for acute care and outpatient services at the hospital, California Pacific Medical Center spokesman Kevin McCormack said.
McCormack also said that there are no plans to close the hospital and officials are merely reviewing their options on what services to offer at the facility. St. Luke's Hospital falls under the umbrella of California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco.
Nurses at California Pacific marked the second day of their 10-day strike with a rally at noon Saturday. CNA spokesman Chuck Idelson said the rally went very well thanks to the "spirited group" of people who attended.
"We had quite a few nurses that were here, as well as representatives from community organizations," Idelson said.
Registered nurse Jonica Brooks said nurses are hoping the 10-day strike will push hospital officials back to the bargaining table. "We are ready to go back to the table unconditionally and at any time," she said.
Hospitals affected by the strike include St. Luke's Hospital and California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, San Leandro Hospital, Alta Bates-Summit Medical Center in Berkeley and Oakland, Mills-Peninsula Health Services in Burlingame and San Mateo, Eden Medical Center in Castro Valley, Sutter Delta in Antioch and Sutter Solano in Vallejo.
Representatives for the nurses have said they are striking to protest what they consider serious patient care issues including safe staffing even during rest and meal breaks, medical benefits and pension improvements. The nurses association is also protesting Sutter's alleged attempt to close three community hospitals in the Bay Area that serve a patient population that is poorer and composed of more people of color than other Sutter hospitals. Read Full Story
CA: Starbucks gets stuck with $100 Million bill for subsidizing its low level managers with employee tip money and more related information
Heres the story from Forbes (3/21/08):Sometimes it pays to start a fight with the big guys. For some former Starbucks baristas that pay is going to total over $100 million.After reading a few comments by Starbucks employees I just couldn't hold back my anger of the stupidity of these workers who consider themselves Team Members and Partners, Jesus, I can call you sister and brother it doesn't mean we're related. This type of shit goes on in Toys' R Us and Wal-Mart to name a few. Where the corporations swindle the employees into thinking they are associates, a team or partners.
Judge Patricia Y. Cowett of the Superior Court of the State of California ruled in a class action suit Thursday that the Starbucks Corp. (nasdaq: SBUX - news - people ) must pay 120,000 of its current and former baristas the sum of $86.7 million, plus awards interest of 7%, for tip pool money that the coffee retailer used to compensate shift supervisors.
Under California state labor laws, it is legal for employers to implement tip pools where employees are required to share tips, but recipients of the pool share may not be owners, managers or supervisors.
In the case of Chau vs. Starbucks the court ruled that Starbucks illegally distributed tips from the tip pool to compensate shift supervisors as well as baristas, expert espresso makers, and the plaintiffs are entitled to an injunction that Seattle, Wash.-based Starbucks no longer force employees to share their tips with shift supervisors.
Jou Chau, Starbucks barista from 2003 through 2004, filed the lawsuit in October 2004, complaining that he didn’t think it was fair to have to share tips with shift supervisors. “Tips really help those receiving the lowest wages. I think Starbucks should pay shift supervisors higher wages instead of making money from the tip pool.”
Wake up Starbucks workers, make your partners your fellow employees and form a damn union and force this giant multi-national piece of crap to reinvest in their partners, by giving you all a set schedule, a honest days pay and access to affordable medical for all their employees. Maybe even find a way for them to reinvent themselves to attract new customers, instead of just the overpriced coffee house that makes one feel obligated to tip.
My comment at Forbes:
I'm sorry, but I worked in Deli's and Bagel Stores when I was younger and there was no tip glass. The theory was that if there was a tip glass that the customers would think you didn't get paid enough.You can learn more about Starbuck's infractions against worker by checking out the IWW, Industrial Workers of The World website and the Starbucks Union site.
It was a good theory. Starbucks should not use the customer to subsidize their employee pay. They should give their workers an honest days pay. You are not Baristas, team members or associates, you are just employees/workers and numbers tothe Starbucks corporation who has a lawful duty to make a profit in each quarter to satisfy the demand of the investors.
Got it, you work for Starbucks, they should pay you accordingly. I personally hate the way Starbucks makes customers feel obligated to tip someone who makes a cup of coffee, hell the way the brainwashed employees speak as if they are partners, make me wonder why the hell would I tip a multi-national chain store owner.
Think of it PARTNERS. Tell Starbucks to give you all full time hours, access to medical, the right of association and to freely form a union if so desired. Then maybe you can start calling them partners.
Heres one recent story of note from IWW (1/29/08) :
E-Mail Action: Fortune Magazine, Stop Lying About Starbucks Being a 'Best Company to Work For'
by intexile
Andrew Serwer
Managing Editor
Fortune Magazine
1 Time Warner Center
New York, NY 10019January 28, 2008
Dear Mr. Serwer,
I take serious issue with the erroneous information regarding Starbucks in Fortune Magazine's 2008 '100 Best Companies to Work For'. I am especially concerned about the reliability of Fortune given that the IWW Starbucks Workers Union wrote you an open letter before the 2007 '100 Best Companies to Work For' feature that pointed out the very same misinformation which you proceeded to include once again in the 2008 list.
The 2008 'Best Companies to Work For' list claims that the most common hourly job at Starbucks is a mysterious position called "Coordinator III" which takes in $37,390 per year. Once again, the most common hourly job at Starbucks, by far, is a position called "Barista" which likely takes in approximately $12,000 per year on average. The precise average pay for baristas is not known since Starbucks refuses to make that information public.
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Security officer campaign escalates; 17 arrested in act of civil disobedience
Inside the lobby of U.S. Bancorp Center (above), a group of 17 linked arms and sat down in an act of non-violent civil disobedience. Javier Morillo-Alicea addressed the crowd outside the IDS Center: "We are here to protect and defend community standards..."
Minneapolis - Security officers and community allies filled the lobby of U.S. Bancorp Center in downtown Minneapolis late Thursday afternoon to support a fair contract and 17 were arrested in an act of civil disobedience. U.S. Bancorp was targeted by Service Employees International Union Local 26, which is seeking a new contract for 800 private security officers who work for five security contractors. Members voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to reject a contract offer because it failed to include affordable health insurance.
Katherine Blauvelt, Workers Interfaith Network (left) and Lisa Amman, ISAIAH, continued chanting after being handcuffed.
The employers' contract offer would have made health insurance even more expensive than the current contract.
"We are here today to protect and defend community standards and say people who protect multi-million dollar real estate ought to be able to provide for their families," said Javier Morillo-Alicea, addressing a crowd of about 100 union members and supporters outside the IDS Center at about 4:30 p.m.
The group marched across the street and rushed into the lobby of U.S. Bancorp Center, chanting, "What do we want? Health care. When do we want it? Now!"
A group of 17 sat down and linked arms. The crowd continued chanting. Police arrived within minutes. When the seated protestors refused to leave at the request of police, they were arrested. All arrested cooperated with police by presenting their wrists for handcuffing and by walking out of the building.
Outside, the crowd continued chanting while those arrested sat on the edge of a planter, awaiting police vehicles that soon would take them away.
"U.S. Bank, do the right thing!" the crowd chanted. Members of the group arrested also continued chanting.
The security officers' contract expired Jan. 1.
SEIU Local 26 staged a one-day strike Feb. 25 to put pressure on the employers to settle the contract.
"On that one-day strike, we said if it has to get bigger, it has to get bigger," Local 26 president Morillo-Alicea told the crowd Thursday.
The employers group termed the contract that was rejected as their "last, best final best offer."
"They're not prepared to move forward but we're prepared to do more," said Greg Nammacher, SEIU Local 26 program director, speaking to the crowd after police took the 17 people arrested away.
The 17 arrested included SEIU members and staff as well as community supporters from ISAIAH, Workers Interfaith Network, and TakeAction Minnesota.
Steve Share edits the Labor Review, the official publication of the Minneapolis Central Labor Union Council.
Photo by Steve Share, Minneapolis Labor Review
For more information
See the Workday special section on the Stand for Security campaign
Friday, March 14, 2008
Prescriptions, don't get mad take action!
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Tell the FDA what you think about drug ads.
Goal: 50,000 signatures!
Fed up with TV ads that sell you the “good news” about prescription drugs but gloss over the shortcomings? Do these drugs actually work? And how common are those side effects?
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will soon decide whether these TV ads should include a toll-free number and web address where you can report side effects or other problems. The drug companies don't like this idea. They don’t want their ads used to help identify potential problems with their products.
But if we have to watch these endless ads, we should at least be able to easily report to the FDA how these medicines really work! Add your name to the FDA petition below.
Take Action - Sign the PetitionPetition for Better Reporting of Drug Side Effects
I support requiring all drug ads to include a 1-800 number and website so citizens can report drug side effects (petition docket 2008P-0012/CP1).
All too often, drug advertisements fail to present the benefits and risks of using prescription drugs in an accurate and balanced way. It is often the newest drugs that are the most heavily advertised, and it is these drugs whose side effects we know the least about.
The current system for collecting information about side effects catches only a fraction of actual cases. The recent law passed to require print drug ads to provide a 1-800 number and website (FDAAA -- P.L. 110-85) is a step in the right direction, but should be extended to include TV ads which are viewed far more frequently and with a greater command of the viewing audience.
Increased reporting of adverse events will help in the earlier detection and better analysis of problems. All television ads should contain information on how patients can report side effects to the FDA.
Click the link below to get E-Active and sign the petition
Monday, March 10, 2008
LIUNA backs confined space standard
The Laborers' International Union of North America (LIUNA), a big labor union of construction workers, filed comments on Feb. 28 largely supporting OSHA's proposed standard governing confined space entries in construction. Many safety organizations, including ASSE, had done the opposite, saying the standard is unnecessarily complex, ignores important consensus standards, and would not improve safety in the construction sector.
LIUNA General President Terence M. O'Sullivan expressed his support in an article published in the union's LifeLines Online magazine. "In general, we think the proposed standard, though long overdue, is a good one," said O'Sullivan. He submitted comments after a review of the proposal by the Laborers' Health and Safety Fund of North America, a venerable safety organization. "We especially highlight one of its unique provisions: Not only workers who are directly involved with the confined space, but also anyone else who may be in the area (other workers, subcontractors, etc.) must receive confined space training. This is because about 60 percent of all confined space fatalities are 'would-be rescuers' -- heroic people, usually co-workers, who enter confined spaces in attempts to save those who have been overtaken by the hazards. In the process, they are overcome as well,' O'Sullivan said.
He did not offer unqualified support, however, urging OSHA to include fire and crush hazards along with engulfment among the physical hazards defined by the standard and agreeing with other critics that the standard diverged from the simpler classification scheme of the confined space standard for general industry. "I believe the proposed rule will be confusing and not feasible in the construction industry. The general industry standard, with two classifications, either permit-required or non-permit-required, is sufficient. Adding two additional classifications may cause more harm than good, leading contractors to ignore a rule they find to be too complex." And O'Sullivan asked OSHA to clarify who has the responsibility for summoning rescuers. "Rescue and emergency procedures should be part of a required written program. All workers should be trained in proper rescue and emergency procedures." He also said the standard should require contractors to designate competent persons.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
60 minutes follows charatible remote health care facility now needed here in the United States
If you need a description check out the 60 minutes site:
U.S. Health Care Gets Boost From Charity
Remote Area Medical Finds It's Needed In America To Plug Health Insurance Gap
Here is the episode - following commercial
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Recent Labor headlines you may have missed
Hundreds of Latino workers across the U.S. die annually in construction accidents, a toll that has mounted steadily. Two years ago 354 Latinos were killed in construction accidents, a 34 percent increase over 2003, the most recent government statistics show. More than one out of three Latinos killed on the job in 2006 lost their lives doing construction work, a far higher proportion than for white or black workers.Vermont - Push for paid sick days
With this year's flu epidemic in full swing, nearly half of all U.S. workers who fall ill or have sick kids must decide whether to stay home and lose wages or go to work sick and expose others, a choice many say no one should have to make.Utah - 40 years of community activism
"We thought she was a fantastic role model of a woman who is not just running for government per se but who is making change at a more grass-roots level," University of Utah spokeswoman Taunya Dressler said. The U. invited Huerta, 77, to be the keynote speaker during its 2008 Women's Week Celebration because she embodies passion for change that affects people's lives.Idaho - A new form of protest
"Under federal labor law, we have the right to tail him. Ambulatory picket is what it's called and we can follow him to find out where his job sites are," said The Pacific Northwest Regional Council of Carpenters Representative Ron Robbins. Robbins claims they have a labor dispute with CCI, even though the company is not part of the union. Robbins says wherever Packard goes, so do protesters and the labor dispute.Florida - Burger King is a lousy corporate neighbor
- Tomato Troubles 2-18-08
Are they really willing to pay an exorbitantly higher transportation cost to bring in tomatoes from overseas or Mexico and pass that on to their customers rather than pay a penny more per pound?Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine - Labor activists help fix Fairpoint/Verizon deal
- Final settlements in landline sale to FairPoint yield $362 million in new commitments from Verizon 2-27-08
"Those who united to raise their voices in opposition to the sale acted in the finest New England tradition of citizen participation," said Glenn Brackett, business manager of IBEW Local 2320 based in Manchester, NH. "We can take comfort in knowing that because of our involvement, FairPoint will be stronger financially than it would have been under the original deal. Verizon now has to put $362 million more into the deal and FairPoint has to cut its dividends by at least $200 million in order to reduce its debt."Ohio - NAFTA hurts
Nowhere is the damage caused by this disastrous trade deal more evident than in Ohio, the site of next week’s Democratic presidential primary. The Buckeye State has lost more than 200,000 manufacturing jobs over the past seven years. Click here to see where all the presidential candidates stand on trade and manufacturing.West Virginia - Worker 's one step closer to ability to walk away from anti-union meetings
Captive-audience meetings are just one of many tactics employers use to suppress workers’ freedom to form or join a union. Cornell University scholar Kate Bronfenbrenner studied hundreds of organizing campaigns and found that 92 percent of private-sector employers, when faced with employees who want to join together in a union, force employees to attend closed-door meetings to hear anti-union propaganda. She also found that 80 percent of employers require supervisors to attend training sessions on attacking unions and that 78 percent require supervisors to deliver anti-union messages to workers they oversee.Wisconsin and Maryland - Legislation to allow Academic workers collective bargaining
On Feb. 19, the Wisconsin State Senate voted 21 to 12 for legislation that would allow faculty and academic staff employed across the University of Wisconsin system to form unions... ...the companion legislation in the Wisconsin Assembly faces a tough battle from the Republican majority in that chamber.Washington DC - UFCW Vs. ICE Misconduct hearings begin
In Maryland, graduate employees from the University of Maryland system, joined by AFT and AFL-CIO allies, presented an impassioned case for why they should have the right to bargain.
New Jersey - 110 more unemployed, GAF materials roofing plant to close
''There isn't much out there, especially in the range of the wages we were earning,'' Snyder said. ''I see a lot of $10-an-hour jobs out there that won't pay my bills.''Ohio - 1500 hospital workers to get union election on March 12th
Counting nonunion workers, 110 people are eventually expected to be laid off at the plant, which is expected to run through mid-March with a skeleton crew of about 25.
...if a majority in any one of the 11 groups votes for unionization, that group will become a bargaining unit and negotiations between the unit and Community Mercy Health Partners will proceed. If negotiations fail to result in an agreement favored by most union members, those members can vote to strike, according to information provided by CMHP and the union.New York - Tell Lazard's CEO that Atria should respect workers rights
- Take Action Link - Fight back against Wall Street unionbusting
Workers at Atria Senior Living are being threatened and intimidated for trying to form a union. Caring for our nation's elderly is an important job, and workers at Atria deserve a living wage, affordable healthcare, and the training and support they need to do their jobs well. They also have the right to a free and fair process to decide on forming a union.
Tell the Wall Street execs at Atria and Lazard to stop unionbusting and play fair. Write your message now!
The Air Line Pilots Association has asked its United members to approve a dues increase to help pay for a potential dispute over seniority in the event of a merger, Crain's Chicago Business reported.
Seniority is said to be the major issue of contention in talks on a merger between Delta Air Lines Inc. and Northwest Airlines Corp., the newspaper said. Negotiations stalled last week as pilots, who had given preliminary approval to a merger, dug in their heels over seniority issues.
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Drug Trade Group Spent $22M Lobbying
- © 2008 The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The pharmaceutical industry's main trade group spent more than $22 million lobbying the federal government in 2007, a 25 percent boost from the year before that paid off on some key issues.
Proposals aimed at lowering drug prices and restricting industry advertising fell by the wayside in Congress. But lobbying experts say the road ahead for the industry looks increasingly bumpy.
"This seems to be a case where the increase in lobbying activity is defensive, not offensive," said Massie Ritsch of the Center for Responsive Politics, a government watchdog.... (continuing).
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The industry trade group advocated against:
_ a proposal by House Democrats that would have allowed the government _ not private health insurers _ to negotiate drug prices for seniors in Medicare. The measure, aimed at wringing lower prices from drug makers, stalled in the House after President Bush threatened to veto it.
_ legislation that would allow the U.S. to import cheaper prescription drugs from Canada and other foreign countries, citing safety concerns. Import proponents said foreign competition would help drive down U.S. drug prices. The issue failed to gain traction in Congress, despite several high-profile hearings.
_ patent-reform legislation that it argued could weaken legal protections on drug patents. High-tech companies supported the bill that passed the House last year aimed at improving the U.S. patent system, but PhRMA argued it could weaken patent protections by reducing infringement penalties. The bill is still pending in the Senate.
_ a bill overhauling the Food and Drug Administration's drug-safety system. The legislation, which became law last September, gave FDA new powers to update drug safety labeling and monitor side effects after drugs are approved.
But the final bill did not include restrictions on direct-to-consumer advertising opposed by the drug industry.
Former Louisiana Rep. Billy Tauzin is the pharmaceutical industry trade group's president and chief executive.
PhRMA's other registered lobbyists include: Mimi Kneuer, who was Tauzin's former chief of staff, Amy Efantis, former legislative director for Rep. Artur Davis, D-Ala., Valerie Jewett, former legislative director for Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen, R-N.J., and Matt Sulkala, who was senior legislative assistant to Rep. Allen Boyd, D-Fla.
Isn't it nice to see a bipartisan group of lobbyist for the drug industry, you can see how much they all really care about the American public.
Health Net ordered to pay $9 million after canceling cancer patient's policy
From The LA Times
The punitive damage award is the first of its kind and has prompted the giant medical insurer to scrap practices that have recently come under fire.Patsy Bates, a breast cancer patient whose medical coverage was canceled by her insurer, was awarded more than $9 million today in a case against Health Net Inc., one of the state's largest for-profit insurers.
By Lisa Girion, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer - February 23, 2008
One of California's largest for-profit insurers stopped a controversial practice of canceling sick policyholders Friday after a judge ordered Health Net Inc. to pay more than $9 million to a breast cancer patient it dropped in the middle of chemotherapy.
The ruling by a private arbitration judge was the first of its kind and the most powerful rebuke to the state's major insurers whose cancellation practices are under fire from the courts, state regulators and elected officials. Full Story
Monday, February 11, 2008
Tell the Senate Banking Committee to block Wal-Mart for good! With a dash of Toxic product, health care, UAW, USW and Chinese product news included
FROM: Wal-Mart Watch
The Senate Banking Committee is currently considering legislation to permanently block commercial retailers like Wal-Mart from receiving industrial loan charters. Please send a note to the Senate Banking Committee and ask them to stop the Bank of Wal-Mart.
Toxic products, the newest issue of Wal-Mart Watch shows the utter lack of the corporation taking responsibility. *Clicking the link orpicture will open a PDF file.
Danger for Sale: How Wal-Mart's Unethical Practices Endanger ConsumersIn this issue, “Danger for Sale,” we expose Wal-Mart’s woeful record on consumer product safety issues. Whether it is E. Coli in the meat, melamine in the dog food, or lead paint on the children’s toys – far too many dangerous products have turned up on Wal-Mart’s shelves, and far too little effort has been given by Wal-Mart to ensure the safety and well-being of its customers.
As the largest retailer in the world, Wal-Mart could use its clout to push manufacturers into raising the safety standards of their products. Instead, Wal-Mart continues to demand low prices at any cost and any standard from manufacturers, putting consumers at risk.
Click here to download Issue 4 of Wal-Mart Watch In Depth: Danger for Sale >>
In other news Trader Joe's is eliminating 1 ingredient products from China from it's shelves. More info on that and background can be found below
(1-16-08) "I wouldn't buy it," McPherson says. She likes to buy American, because she thinks "made in the USA" makes a product better and safer, and also because she wants to support the U.S. economy.
It seems that Trader Joe's is hearing directly from consumers who feel the same way. Customer concern about Trader Joe's selling fresh garlic from China prompted the chain to announce that it would phase out "single ingredient" foods from China early this year. Processed foods that contain ingredients from China would still be sold, presumably.
(2-11-08) By April 1, Trader Joe's will phase out single-ingredient Chinese imports such as garlic, frozen organic spinach, ginger and edamame, a green soybean, says spokeswoman Alison Mochizuki. The ban doesn't include products with ingredients from China, a leading source of vitamins and minerals used in many processed foods.
With 285 stores in 23 states, Trader Joe's is known for good prices on a wide selection of exotic items, from Australian licorice to Indian pilaf. Trader Joe's says the products it bought from China were safe. But "our customers have voiced their concerns about products from this region, and we have listened," Mochizuki said.
Federal regulators last year warned about contaminated Chinese pet food ingredients, fish containing antibiotics not allowed in human food, and toothpaste laced with a chemical used in antifreeze.
And let's not forget, I got the Health Care survey, which the AFL-CIO has been asking people to take, reminded to me again via the NYC Central Labor Council's E-Mail. So heres a reminder:
Take the AFL-CIO Health Care for America Survey
Make your voice heard on health care
Take the 2008 Health Care for America Survey today.
In solidarity,
Working Families e-Activist Network, AFL-CIO
More Info:
Tell Us Your Health Care Story at AFL-CIO WebBlog
This is also some noteworthy news.
- [Guardian.co.uk] British union plans merger with American steelworkers
(2-11-08) Two of the largest British and American unions are hoping to announce an agreement this summer to create a transatlantic super-union capable of defending workers' rights in the globalised marketplace.
Unite, which has about two million members, and the United Steelworkers union (USW), which represents about a million members in the US, Canada and the Caribbean, see the creation of an international union presence as the key to meeting the challenges posed by the onward march of globalisation.
Unite's joint general secretary, Derek Simpson, said: "Unions which are organised nationally are not in a position to successfully challenge multinational companies over employment terms. There are some things over which you have no control or influence at all and many where you have so little it amounts to nothing." Simpson argues that, by contrast, multinational companies can use the threat of relocating to other countries to make their influence felt.
(2-11-08) The cuts would be in addition to the 33,600 union workers who left through buyouts and early retirements in 2006 and 2007, when Ford lost a combined $15.3 billion. Further reductions may help Ford restore profit by speeding the hiring of new workers who would be paid about half as much as current employees.Can't say I didn't see that one coming, I tried to warn you guys, now your stuck with a POS contract and the entire US auto industry, which by the way isn't securely staying on American soil (no wording in the contract), is a $19 an hour job.
- [UnionReview by me] UAW: Some Reasons for GM Workers to Vote NO!
(9-29-07) They said (UAW) the strike was for job security , that management (GM) wouldn't meet them at all in negotiations, what they came back with doesn't address job security, only an empty promise that the company (GM) would try to invest in US manufacturing, This contract from an outsiders point of view is a disgrace , it takes away wage increases under the terms of "bonuses" instead of raises, it gives a union that seems more focused to organize outside of its natural boundaries , writers , student workers, etc. complete control of all welfare monies of its GM membership. And lastly it divides the entire group of GM workers into two separate tiers, who obviously will not be able to ever fight as a unified body ever again.Nobody listens anymore.
Friday, January 18, 2008
Take the AFL-CIO Health Care for America Survey
Make your voice heard on health care
In solidarity,
Working Families e-Activist Network, AFL-CIO
More Info: Tell Us Your Health Care Story at AFL-CIO WebBlogFriday, November 16, 2007
NYC: Four Points by Sheraton Paying Poverty Wages / Using Taxpayers For Workers Healthcare
The Four Points By Sheraton on W.25 street which was built with oppressed undocumented workers and gained notoriety when fighting in the streets broke out during the construction stage , is back in the news again . the director of Chelsea Grand Hung Luk and John Lam (chairman Chelsea Grand and notorious nonunion developer) are out to screw the taxpayers again , by not giving their workers health insurance .
The workers at the Sheraton Four Points Chelsea are out with the rat , protesting managment's violations of the law which include threats , harassment , intimidation , surveillance and termination of union supporters .
__________________________________________
John Lam is getting great attention lately in his bringing to the streets of New York an oppression of workers rights seen in most third world countries . While his developments continue to use unsafe contractors , undocumented , uninsured and unskilled workers , taxpayer monies , undermining labor laws and creating safety hazzards for their workers and the public a new schemes for profiting on taxpayers and the workers has come to my attention .
While the Sheraton Four Points Chelsea charges an average of $409 a night , they pay their workers poverty wages . Many of the workers who clean the rooms depend on Medicaid and Healthy Families First for themselves and their families .
Most NYC hotels provide free healthcare to their workers and families . The workers are out in the streets protesting management's violations of the law which include threats , harassment , intimidation , surveillance and termination of union supporters .
You too can show your support for the workers by calling Hung Luk , Executive Director of Chelsea Grand at 917-653-6688 and John Lam , Chairman of Chelsea Grand at 212-627-1888 and tell them to stop shifting their healthcare costs onto the taxpayers and to stop breaking the law .
Workers protesting outside of Four Points
Workers Handout
Alternative places to stay in the Downtown and Westside NYC area
(from back of handout)
Hotel Pennsylvania 7th. and w.32rd. st
Radisson Martinique 5th. and 32nd. st
Red Roof Inn 6 W 32nd. st
Comfort Inn 42 W 35th. st
Wolcot 4 W 31st. st
The New Yorker 8th. Ave and W 34th. st
Hotel Stanford 43 W 32nd. st
La Quints Manhattan 17 W 32nd. st
Affina Manhattan 7th. and W 30th. st
The Herrald Square Hotel 19 W 31st. st
Wingate Inn 233 W 35th. st
Bridgestreet Herald Towers - 50 W 34th. st - 1-800-696-8284 (no web page)
The Hotel Chelsea - W 23rd Street and 7th Ave
Holiday Inn Soho - 138 Lafayette St. and Canal St.
Washington Square Hotel 6th. ave and Macdougal St.
Info from previous stories and leaflet handed out by The New York Hotel And Motel trades Council , AFL-CIO - 707 8th. Ave., New York , NY 10036 - (212) 245-8100
