"union rights" Posts
While Unions in TN decline, SEIU Grows
This Sunday's cover story in
The Tennessean examines how labor unions are faring in a down economy in a right-to-work (for less) state. Local 205 president
Doug Collier is interviewed in the article and reveals that while the rest of the labor movement is in decline, SEIU in Tennessee has grown by 40% over the last three years.
Give it a read!
Posted By: Mark Naccarato on 8/22/2010 10:01:00 AM
Local 205
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union rights
McWherter's Plan Supports Job Creation and Organized Labor
Mike McWherter, Tennessee’s Democratic candidate for governor, talked about his plan to help Tennessee’s working families before a group of about three dozen labor leaders at the Chattanooga Building & Construction Trades Council meeting on Thursday.
The crowd was made up of police, firefighters, electricians, construction workers, and a host of other skilled trade workers and public employees – all of whom wanted to know about McWherter’s plan for job creation, better paying jobs, and his commitment to organized labor and collective bargaining.
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Posted By: Mark Naccarato on 8/20/2010 12:57:00 AM
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Bill Haslam
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collective bargaining
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elections
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Mike McWherter
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union rights
TN Right-Wingers Distort the Truth About Union Elections
Tom Humphrey of the Knoxville News Sentinel reported yesterday that "a bill declaring that voting on union representation must be conducted via secret ballot failed on a 3-3 tie vote today in a state House subcommittee. All three Republicans on the Employee Affairs Subcommittee voted for the bill by Republican Rep. Susan Lynn of Mount Juliet. All three Democrats voted against it."
The GOP bill is a response to national legislation called
The Employee Free Choice Act, which would close loopholes in our labor relations policy and make it easier for workers to form unions without fear of threat, intimidation, and termination from employers. But as expected, the Tennessee Republican Party put out a misleading press release about the issue and claims that the legislation would "preserve workers' right to a secret ballot union election in the workplace".
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Posted By: Mark Naccarato on 2/4/2010 10:16:00 AM
EFCA
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State Politics
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union rights
SEIU Supports Metro Nondiscrimination Ordinance
This letter was sent from the Local to Metro Councilmembers on July 31 via email:
Dear Councilmember,
I wanted to let you know that SEIU Local 205 supports the Nondiscrimination Ordinance that is presently before the Metro Council.
We want to make clear that the Union considers this to be a workplace issue that affects all Metro employees, directly or indirectly. As you know, similar protections exist for employees in the Metro Nashville Public Schools as well as in dozens of other city and county governments across the country. We expect to see those same protections extended to all employees of Metro Government.
Discrimination of any kind in the workplace is morally wrong. The Nondiscrimination Ordinance will close the current loophole that allows our city’s gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender employees to be legally discriminated against in the workplace. We believe that as an elected official, you have a responsibility to see that everyone’s rights are protected - especially those of Metro employees.
We hope you will stand in support of all Metro employees by voting to support the Nondiscrimination Ordinance.
Yours in solidarity,
Doug Collier
President, SEIU Local 205
Posted By: Mark Naccarato on 8/1/2009 4:05:00 PM
union rights
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Metro Council
The “Secret Ballot” Myth and the Employee Free Choice Act
It seems appropriate for my first story on "Blog/205" to discuss one of the most important pieces of labor legislation to come through Washington in decades, the
Employee Free Choice Act. This law, which some refer to as “EFCA”, would ensure that workers have a free choice to form a union and bargain with their employers for higher wages, benefits, and better working conditions. It would crack down on employers who routinely intimidate, bribe, and often fire pro-union workers as they try to form a union by addressing weaknesses in current U.S. labor law.
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Posted By: Mark Naccarato on 2/12/2009 12:23:00 PM
EFCA
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Employee Free Choice Act
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union rights