The National Priorities Project has put together a chart titled “Competing Visions” that looks at the 2016 budget proposals from President Obama, the House Budget Committee, the Senate Budget Committee and the Congressional Progressive Caucus.
Guess which ones align with what Americans say are their priorities?
Lawrence Mishel and Rep. Jan Schakowsky also write about the issue on the Economic Policy Institute blog.
A GROUP OF TEACHERS and staffers at Olney Charter High School yesterday filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board requesting the federal
agency conduct an election that would allow employees to become
unionized.
The filing included signed union authorization cards from Olney
employees and stated that the new union would be part of the Alliance of
Charter School Employees, an affiliate of the American Federation of
Teachers, according to the petition.
More than 70 percent of the 150-person staff signed on to the
effort, which may face a challenge from Olney’s charter operator, ASPIRA
Inc. of Pennsylvania.
The federal filing came one day after ASPIRA officials met, for the
first time, with Olney teachers who began the organizing effort three
years ago, organizers and teachers said. The ASPIRA officials - CEO
Alfredo Calderon, COO Thomas Darden and newly-hired superintendent
Andrea Gonzalez-Kerwin - told the teachers that they would not
voluntarily recognize the union, but would respect the results of an
election, participants said.
Darden did not respond to an email seeking comment.
An election could be held as soon as 30 days if no challenges are made by ASPIRA.
Calderon “said he would respect the wishes of the majority and I
asked him to recognize the union and he said no, he would respect the
outcome of an election,” said Hanako Franz, a freshman history teacher
who has been at Olney for four years.
English as a Second Language teacher Hannah Myers, who has been at
Olney for four years, said she believes Calderon and the others want to
drag out the process.
“It’s very hard for me to believe that he’s willing to work with us,”
she said. “If he really wanted to allocate resources to support our
community, they would voluntarily recognize the union, which has been
the majority for three years.”
The petition requests that a future union include “all full-time and
regular part-time professional and non-professional instructional and
student service support employees, including teachers, co-teachers,
psychologists” and other employees, according to the filing.
As Seattle prepares for the April launch of the highest minimum wage law in America, conservatives are warning that businesses are already shuttering under the pressure of higher labor costs and pointing to a recent report of a rash of restaurant closures as evidence. The problem is, the actual owners of those restaurants say that they’re not closing because of wages, and the city seems to be enjoying robust growth in that industry.
Hoffman Construction , a major road building and mining company is abandoning Wisconsin because of the Right to Work legislation just passed. According to Duluth News Tribune “Hoffman said Monday …
“It’s no coincidence that the rise of the middle class in America coincided in large part with the rise of unions—workers who organized together for higher wages, better working conditions, and the benefits and protections that most workers take for granted today. So it’s inexcusable that, over the past several years, just when middle-class families and workers need that kind of security the most, there’s been a sustained, coordinated assault on unions, led by powerful interests and their allies in government. So I’m deeply disappointed that a new anti-worker law in Wisconsin will weaken, rather than strengthen workers in the new economy. Wisconsin is a state built by labor, with a proud pro-worker past. So even as its governor claims victory over working Americans, I’d encourage him to try and score a victory for working Americans—by taking meaningful action to raise their wages and offer them the security of paid leave. That’s how you give hardworking middle-class families a fair shot in the new economy—not by stripping their rights in the workplace, but by offering them all the tools they need to get ahead.”—President Obama on Gov. Scott Walker’s signing of right-to-work legislation in Wisconsin
As the Obama administration moves to overturn a judge’s ruling that blocked the president’s executive action on immigration, it’s worth hearing from someone whose story shows what immigration reform is all about.
This is AFT member Rosa Alvarez, a second-grade dual language teacher in Austin, Texas:
“My mother and I immigrated to Wisconsin in 1995, when I was just 9 years old. This August will mark 20 years since my arrival to the United States. It has been my dream to become a teacher since I was just 5 years old. My teachers have always been my heroes; they saw potential in me that I myself did not believe I had and encouraged me to set and achieve my goals. My desire to become an educator grew throughout my childhood, and I made the decision to study education in college.
"Because of my immigration status, however, my journey to college graduation was very difficult. In 2009, after a lot of hard work, I received a bachelor of science in education with minors in bilingual education and English as a second language. Unfortunately, because of my continued lack of immigration status, I had to wait over three years to use my degree and become a teacher. During those three years, I lost a lot of hope of ever becoming a teacher; I thought that relief would never come, and I even considered returning to Mexico.
"In 2012, relief finally arrived, and I became hopeful again. Thanks to President Obama’s executive action, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), I am finally a second-grade dual language teacher in the Austin Independent School District.
"DACA has restored the energy and passion I once had for education. It has re-instilled the notion in me that I can make a difference. Every day in my classroom, my students serve as a reminder of the impact my teachers made in my life. I often find that my students and their parents have very similar stories to mine. Because of this, I can relate to their experiences and serve as part of their support system. In this way, I believe I can make an impact in their lives, just like my teachers made an impact in mine. If it weren’t for DACA, I would not have this opportunity to serve and contribute to my community in this capacity.”
Read the AFT’s statement about the Texas judge’s temporary injunction delaying the executive action.
I am here today to ask that you defeat HB 402-FN: establishing the Franklin Partin right-to-work act. AFT-NH represents 4,000 employees in NH, mostly public employees who work in your cities, towns…