|
05/2010 Labor's Edge Blog Articles
5/11/10
For Air and Rail Workers, New NMB Rule Means ‘Democracy’
by Mike Hall
A new rule issued yesterday by the National Mediation Board (NMB) means airline and rail workers will now be able to choose whether to join a union under rules that are more fair and more in line with democratic principles.
For decades, the deck has been stacked against workers covered under the Rail Labor Act (RLA) because every worker who did not cast a vote in a representation election was automatically counted as a “No” vote. The new NMB rule says that an election’s outcome will be decided by the majority of votes cast, just like every other election, from city council to the presidency.
5/10/10
Mercury Insurance’s Prop 17 Would Hit California Workers Hard
by Naomi Seligman
When was the last time an insurance company spent millions to save you money? The answer? Never.
Mercury Insurance, the sole sponsor of Proposition 17, on the June ballot, has already spent over $7 million in its effort to give insurance companies the power to raise rates on millions of responsible Californians.
This deceptively written initiative allows insurance companies to surcharge people who have not been previously insured – even if they are perfect drivers but weren't insured because they weren't driving or didn’t own a car. Prop 17 also penalizes anyone who had to drop coverage for more than 90 days over the last five years, or missed a single insurance payment.
5/7/10
Rants & Raves for the Week of May 3rd
* Bill to hold telecommunications companies accountable dies in committee * Payday lending industry directs borrowers to oppose reform that would help them * Public Utilities Commission votes to send green construction jobs out of state *
* New bill would close commercial property tax loophole * Senator Boxer champions amendment to ban bank bailouts * Study disproves myth about public employee income *
5/7/10
Union Members Ramp Up Worksite Informational Blitz to Expose Whitman’s Wall Street Agenda
by Steve Smith
In an increasingly impersonal political campaign environment saturated with slick TV ads and radio spots, many working families have difficulty 
discerning the truth from campaign spin... unless they’re union members.
Yesterday in Sacramento, union members with the Communications Workers of America Local 9421 passed out flyers and engaged their fellow workers at AT&T in discussion about this year’s elections during lunchtime as workers filed in and out of the busy AT&T building.
5/6/10
Elections Should Be Won, Not Bought
by Trent Lange
Are you outraged by the amount of money in politics and the recent Supreme Court ruling allowing corporations to spend unlimited amounts on campaigns? Since 2000, over $1 billion dollars has been raised by California politicians. And corporations outspend unions by up to a 26-1 margin.
We need to get politicians out of the fundraising game and focused on our priorities. Proposition 15, the California Fair Elections Act, changes the way we finance election campaigns, starting with a voluntary pilot project to provide limited public financing for Secretary of State candidates in 2014 and 2018.