English for Activists

Workers Independent News Labor Radio
Internet Radio Program 06/04/10
Producers: Doug Cunningham & Jesse Russell

Labor Radio Rundown:

1) WIN Newscast

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Economic Report:

Payroll giant ADP says private sector jobs increased by 55,000 last month. That makes it four months in a row for gains in the private sector, but it continues to be a slow pace. The average job increase has been 39,000 new jobs compared to 103,000 new jobs being added after the recession of 2003.

By Doug Cunningham

Labor leaders are rallying behind Boston firefighters, demanding that the city honor an arbitrator’s decision to give the firefighters raises. The union says the raise totals 16.5 percent over a four year contract. It includes a two and a half percent increase in return for firefighters undergoing drug and alcohol testing. Hundreds rallied to support the firefighters in Boston Thursday. Unions supporting them include the Greater Boston Labor Council, the Boston Teachers Union, United Steel Workers, a Boston police union and Boston’s Newspaper Printing Pressmen union.

By Doug Cunningham

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It's been a long time comin'. But thousands of Tyson workers are finally getting overtime wages they're owed. Jesse Russell reports.

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By Doug Cunningham

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg says he will rescind more than 4,000 teacher layoffs by taking away teacher raises for the next two years. Michael Mulgrew. President of New York’s United Federation of Teachers, says Bloomberg does not have the power to unilaterally decide on the teacher’s contract. Mulgrew says the union has reached no agreement on the freezing of teacher pay. The UFT did agree to join Bloomberg in lobbying both federally and at the state level for more education funding.

By Doug Cunningham

The next time you’re shopping for environmentally friendly light bulbs the United Steel Workers would like you to take a look at Sylvania Super Saver halogen bulbs. Union workers make them in the USA at a Pennsylvania plant. They’re available at Lowe’s, Menard’s, online through Sylvania and at many BJ Wholesale Club stores in the Midwest. The USW’s Barry Mortimer says these bulbs very important to the USW and are a mercury-free alternative to compact fleuorescent bulbs made in China.

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By Doug Cunningham

AFSCME is running a seven-state radio ad campaign as part of the union’s effort to persuade the U.S. House to restore state fiscal relief and subsidized health benefits for the jobless in the American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act. AFSCME says helping the states is critical
to keeping our economy going in the right direction. Unless these provisions are restored, AFSCME says, this jobs bill will end up causing more jobs loss.

Even before Friday’s job creation news workers were reporting that they were starting to feel confident about the state of the job market. According to job information site glassdoor.com there was more optimism regarding the job market then there has been since December of 2008. While only one in five workers are worried about losing their jobs in the next six months – 76 percent said they would be willing to take a pay cut instead of letting their jobs be cut. Half of those workers would be willing to have their pay slashed by 10 percent.

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By Doug Cunningham

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Lede: President Barack Obama spoke to factory workers in Charlottesville, North Carolina on Friday on the heels of news that the economy had added 162,000 nonfarm jobs in March.

[Obama]:

The President made the comments at a plant that received stimulus money and, according to Obama, has been able to add jobs because of it. A number of the jobs created were due to the government hiring nearly 48,000 workers to assist in conducting the once-a-decade census. Still, the U.S. economy has finally begun to create jobs again, but for workers we have a long way to go. Doug Cunningham has more.

Workers Independent News Labor Radio
Internet Radio Program 04/05/10
Producers: Doug Cunningham & Jesse Russell

Labor Radio Rundown:

1) WIN Newscast

2) WIN's Doug Cunningham reports on the start of a Global Week Of Action in support of striking United Steel Workers mines in Sudbury, Ontario. Vale Inco is using aggressive tactics to try to intimidate the workers, but the strikers are standing strong and attracting worldwide support.

3) A global labor news update from Canadian-based RadioLabour

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Workers Independent News Labor Radio
Internet Radio Program 04/02/10
Producers: Doug Cunningham & Jesse Russell

Labor Radio Rundown:

1) WIN Newscast

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Economic Report:

An article in the Wall Street Journal on Thursday looked at how union workers have become some of the biggest targets of municipalities trying to make budget cuts. According to the article ,17 states have cut benefits or increased the required contribution. Kentucky, Texas, and Vermont did both. The Department of Labor says that 7.9 million unionized workers are in the public sector – or 15 percent of U.S. workers.

Transit unions and political leaders continued their journey across the country on Wednesday as they stopped in front of New York’s Penn Station for a rally to bring attention to what they see as a transit crisis in the United States. Jesse Russell reports.

Transit unions have teamed up to form the Keep America Moving Coalition and they intend to fight against cuts being made to mass transportation in communities. John Samuelsen is President of transport Workers Union Local 100:

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By Doug Cunningham

[Chant: “Hey hey, ho ho, Temple’s gag rule’s got to go!”

Fifteen hundred RN’s and other healthcare workers are in the second day of their strike at Temple University Hospital in Pennsylvania. The nurses have gone five months without a new contract. Bill Zoda is a shop steward with the Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals.

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