By forcing workers to make hard decisions on matters of life or death, financial ruin or stability, Maryland Governor Hogan’s veto of Paid Sick Leave legislation is "channeling the spirit of President Trump right here in Maryland,” said SEIU 32BJ's Jaime Contreras last week.
“People will go broke, get sicker and maybe even die on Governor Hogan’s watch,” added Paul Brown, a security officer in downtown Baltimore and a member of SEIU 32BJ. “I am lucky to be alive after having a heart attack that could’ve been prevented if I had paid sick leave," said Brown. "Both my brother and sisters died of cancer and I couldn’t afford time off to care for them."
Brown called on the Maryland Legislature to override the Governor’s veto as soon as they come back in January.

On today's labor calendar, this year's DC LaborFest wraps up tonight with a screening of Hidden Figures at 7 pm at the AFI Silver. The film -- nominated for three Academy Awards, including Best Picture -- tells the story of the brilliant African-American women working at NASA, who battled racism and sexism. Hidden Figures provides a window into the growth of the federal workforce during and after World War II after President Franklin Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802, which banned "discrimination in the employment of workers in defense industries or government because of race, creed, color, or national origin."
Complete details, as always, at dclabor.org, click on Calendar.

​Here’s today's labor history:
On this date in 1889, more than 2,200 people died in the Johnstown Flood when a dam holding back a lake at a private resort burst upstream of Johnstown, Pennsylvania.  The resort was owned by wealthy industrialists including Andrew Carnegie and Henry Clay Frick.  Neither they nor any other members of the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club were found guilty of fault, despite the fact the group had created the lake out of an abandoned reservoir.
In 1997, Rose Will Monroe, popularly known as Rosie the Riveter, died in Clarksville, Indiana.  During World War Two she helped bring women into the labor force.

Today’s labor quote is by Lyn Childs, a wartime shipyard worker featured in the documentary film "Rosie the Riveter." Lyn Childs, who said
"We'd never had any opportunity to do that kind of work. Do you think that if you did domestic work all of your life where you cleaned somebody's toilets and did all the cooking for some lazy characters who were sitting on top, and you finally got a chance where you can get a dignified job, you wouldn't fly through the door?"

Union City Radio is supported by UnionPlus, which is committed to improving the quality of life for all working families; find out more at unionplus.org.

Busboys & Poets 14th Street; 2021 14th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 

SPONSORED BY THE MUSIC PERFORMANCE TRUST FUND
and the Washington DC Federation of Musicians, AFM 161-710

​The DC LaborFest wraps up with a full night of jazz starting with a live simulcast concert from 5-6p on WPFW 89.3FM with local jazz musicians from the Washington Musicians Union, including Bob Boguslaw on piano, Antonio Parker on saxophone, PercySmith on drums and Paul Scimonelli on bass.
​
photo by Chris Garlock

One of the labor movement’s most celebrated leaders, A. Philip Randolph, an organizer of the 1963 March on Washington, knew the connection between the labor movement and the civil rights movement was key to a truly inclusive democracy. Randolph stood for access at the ballot box as well as to economic security—ideally through a good job with decent benefits and a union.
Today, we find ourselves back in a place where our civil, economic, political and social rights are under constant attack. The violence we see against black youth—the heart-wrenching killing of Trayvon Martin, the homicide of Jordan Davis--the passage of “right to work” laws in states like Michigan, Missouri and Iowa that have deeply racist and divisive roots, and the constant attack on immigrant communities by the current administration affirm we still have work to do.
This summer, one of the oldest and largest civil and human rights organizations, the NAACP, will come to the city of Baltimore for its annual convention and organized labor will be there in force as well. Our struggles are one; our hopes are one; our dreams are one. The past is not dead, it's not even past.
To find out more about the 2017 NAACP Labor Luncheon, go to dclabor.org and click on Calendar.

Here’s today's labor history:
On this date in 1929, the Ford Motor Company signed a "Technical Assistance" contract to produce cars in the Soviet Union, and Ford workers were sent to the Soviet Union to train the labor force in the use of its parts. Many American workers who made the trip, including Walter Reuther, a tool and die maker who later was to become the UAW's president, returned home with a different view of the duties and privileges of the industrial laborer.
In 1937, in what became known as the Memorial Day Massacre, police opened fire on striking steelworkers at Republic Steel in South Chicago, killing ten and wounding more than 160 - 1937
And in 2002, the Ground Zero cleanup at the site of the World Trade Center was completed three months ahead of schedule due to the heroic efforts of more than 3,000 building tradesmen and women who had worked 12 hours a day, seven days a week for the previous eight months.

Today’s labor quote is by A. Philip Randolph, who said
“At the banquet table of nature, there are no reserved seats. You get what you can take, and you keep what you can hold. If you can't take anything, you won't get anything, and if you can't hold anything, you won't keep anything. And you can't take anything without organization.”

Union City Radio is supported by UnionPlus, which is committed to improving the quality of life for all working families; find out more at unionplus.org.

Today is Memorial Day, when we remember and honor those who have died while serving in the nation’s armed forces.
It’s also welcome day off work for many Americans. You can support the American labor movement by making sure your barbecue is stocked with union-made in America products.
From beer to coolers, flags, grills, hot dogs, ice cream and more, we’ve got lists of union-made products on our website at dclabor.org.
Solidarity works; enjoy the holiday!

Here’s today's labor history:
On this date in 1941, animators working for Walt Disney began what was to become a successful five-week strike for recognition of their union, the Screen Cartoonists' Guild. The animated feature "Dumbo" was being created at the time and, according to Wikipedia, a number of strikers are caricatured in the feature as clowns who go to "hit the big boss for a raise."
In 1946, a contract between the United Mine Workers and the U.S. government established one of the nation's first union medical and pension plans.
And in 1996, after a 17-year-long boycott, the United Farm Workers reached agreement with Bruce Church on a contract for 450 lettuce harvesters.
The pact raised wages, provided company-paid health benefits to workers and their families, created a seniority system to deal with seasonal layoffs and recalls, and established a pesticide monitoring system.

Today’s labor quote is by Cesar Chavez
“Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. You cannot un-educate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the person who feels pride. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore.”

Union City Radio is supported by UnionPlus, which is committed to improving the quality of life for all working families; find out more at unionplus.org.

Aleta Johnsons was operating a bagging machine on the line at the Tyson Foods Processing Plant in Glen Allen, Virginia when she heard a co-worker yelling “Stop, stop, stop! Please help — stop the line!”
Running to the conveyor belt, Johnsons – a shop steward for UFCW Local 400 -- saw five-pound bags of chicken piling up and falling on the floor; she immediately pulled a switch and stopped the line.
Just 10 days earlier, this would not have been possible; only managers had the power to stop the line. But thanks to a recently instituted reform worked out between Local 400 members and Tyson management, any worker now has the power to halt the entire production line if he or she witnesses a safety hazard. “There are (still) things we need to work on,” Johnsons says, “like better-staffed lines and an end to 10-hour work days—but it’s coming along. And our union has been so helpful in all of this.”

On today's labor calendar,
Consumers love their smartphones, tablets and laptops. By 2020, four billion people will have a personal computer. Five billion will own a mobile phone. But this revolution has a dark side of deadly environmental and health costs, explored in today's LaborFest film, a free screening of "Death by Design: The Dirty Secret of Our Digital Addiction" today at noon at the AFL-CIO; complete details, as always, at dclabor.org, click on Calendar.

Here’s today's labor history:
On this date in 1824, men and women weavers in Pawtucket, Rhode Island staged the nation's first "co-ed" strike. 
In 1937, Ford Motor Company security guards attacked union organizers and supporters attempting to distribute literature outside the plant in Dearborn, Michigan, in an event that was to become known as the “Battle of the Overpass.” The guards tried to destroy any photos showing the attack, but some survived—and inspired the Pulitzer committee to establish a prize for photography.

Today’s labor quote is by George M. Cohan, the legendary Broadway producer who said that “I will drive an elevator for a living before I will do business with any actors’ union” after the Actors’ Equity Association was founded at a meeting in New York City’s Pabst Grand Circle Hotel on this date in 1913. 
A sign later appeared in Times Square reading: “Elevator operator wanted.  George M. Cohan need not apply."

Union City Radio is supported by UnionPlus, which is committed to improving the quality of life for all working families; find out more at unionplus.org.

Please support WPFW and Union City Radio by pledging today; listener support has kept alternative voices on the DC airwaves for more than 40 years and those voices are needed now more than ever! Call 202-588-9739 or 1-800-222-9739 or pledge online at wpfwfm.org. Tell ‘em Union City Radio sent you!

Labor scholars and activists from across the country are convening in DC June 8 and 9 at the 2017 Labor Research and Action Network national conference to share new ideas and lessons learned, and to connect around research and campaign work.
Plenaries will focus on "Building Worker Power Under a Trump Administration" and "Messaging to Win."
The conference will be held at Howard University; details on our website at dclabor.org

On today's labor calendar,
Hear the shocking story of "A millionaire, a hotel maid and an arrest for sex abuse" when our guest on today’s edition of “Your Rights at Work” is John Boardman of the DC hotel workers union, Unite Here Local 25; 1p here on WPFW.
Then tonight at 8, catch a screening of “Revolution: New Art For A New World” at the Old Greenbelt Theatre in Greenbelt, Maryland. This bold and exciting feature documentary encapsulates a momentous period in the history of Russia and the Russian Avant-Garde.
Details on our website at dclabor.org, click on LaborFest

Here’s today's labor history:
On this date in 1805, striking shoemakers in Philadelphia were arrested and charged with criminal conspiracy for violating an English common law that barred workers from organizing to increase their wages.
In 1932, thousands of unemployed World War I veterans arrived in Washington to demand early payment of a bonus they desperately needed to survive the Great Depression. They built a shantytown near the U.S. Capitol but were burned out by U.S. troops after two months.
In 1936, the notorious 11-month Remington Rand strike began. The strike spawned the "Mohawk Valley formula," described by investigators as a corporate plan to discredit union leaders, frighten the public with the threat of violence, and employ thugs to beat up strikers. The National Labor Relations Board called it "a battle plan for industrial war."
And on this date in 1962, the AFL-CIO began what was to become an unsuccessful campaign for a 35-hour workweek, with the goal of reducing unemployment. Earlier tries by organized labor for 32- or 35-hour weeks also failed.

Today’s labor quote is by writer James Baldwin
“Fires can’t be made with dead embers, nor can enthusiasm be stirred by spiritless men. Enthusiasm in our daily work lightens effort and turns even labor into pleasant tasks.”

Union City Radio is supported by UnionPlus, which is committed to improving the quality of life for all working families; find out more at unionplus.org.

Please support WPFW and Union City Radio by pledging today; listener support has kept alternative voices on the DC airwaves for more than 40 years and those voices are need now more than ever! Call 202-588-9739 or 1-800-222-9739 or pledge online at wpfwfm.org. Tell ‘em Union City Radio sent you!

Hosts:  Chris Garlock and Ed Smith; JOIN US AT 202-588-0893

Also, if you miss our live show – or want to hear a past show – Your Rights At Work is now available as a podcast! Just search for Union City Radio on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts; subscribe and you’ll get our shows right on your phone!

This week’s guest: John Boardman, Executive Secretary-Treasurer, Unite Here Local 25, on A millionaire, a hotel maid and an arrest after the inauguration for sex abuse (The Washington Post)
More than 30 hotels in the Washington area have introduced panic buttons in the past year under an agreement with Unite Here Local 25, because of incidents like the one at the Mayflower Hotel reported in The Washington Post on Sunday. Millionaire John Joseph Boswell pleaded guilty last month to misdemeanor sexual abuse in D.C. Superior Court after being arrested for assaulting a maid at the Mayflower last January. "Such incidents are all too common in an industry where about half of employees say they have been sexually assaulted or harassed by a guest, union surveys have shown," the Post reported. "Many go unreported because the housekeepers, often immigrants or women of color, fear losing their jobs."
 
Labor Song: Donna Summer: She Works Hard For The Money

CREDITS: Produced by Peter Pocock, engineered by Mike Nasella; Union City Radio is supported by UnionPlus. UnionPlus is committed to improving the quality of life of working families. Find out more at unionplus.org. And we’re supported by you, our listeners: call 202-588-9739 or 1-800-222-9739 or pledge online at wpfwfm.org.

More than 30 hotels in the Washington area have introduced panic buttons in the last year under an agreement with Unite Here Local 25, because of incidents like the one at the Mayflower Hotel reported in The Washington Post on Sunday.
Millionaire John Joseph Boswell pleaded guilty last month to misdemeanor sexual abuse in D.C. Superior Court after being arrested for assaulting a maid at the Mayflower last January.
"Such incidents are all too common in an industry where about half of employees say they have been sexually assaulted or harassed by a guest, union surveys have shown," the Post reported.
"Many go unreported because the housekeepers, often immigrants or women of color, fear losing their jobs."
Read the whole shocking story on our website at dclabor.org

On today's labor calendar,
Find out how the horses on the Teamster logo got their names and lots of other fascinating Teamster labor history at today's guided tour of the Teamsters headquarters, starting at 12 noon.
At 2 this afternoon, explore the $1.3-trillion student debt problem at Deeper in Debt: Women and Student Loans, hosted by the American Association of University Women.
And at 7:15 tonight at AFI, the DC LaborFest screens the excellent French film "The Measure of a Man," in which an unemployed everyman must submit to a series of quietly humiliating ordeals in his search for work.
Complete details and links to RSVP or buy tickets, are on our website at dclabor.org

Here’s today's labor history:
On this date in 1883, after 14 years of construction and the deaths of 27 workers, the Brooklyn Bridge over New York’s East River opened. Newspapers called it “the eighth wonder of the world”
In 1995, some 2,300 members of the United Rubber Workers, on strike for 10 months against five Bridgestone-Firestone plants, agreed to return to work without a contract. They had been fighting demands for 12-hour shifts and wage increases tied to productivity gains.

Today’s labor quote is by Senator Hubert H. Humphrey
"The first thing I want to say to you as individuals and as a movement-if you’re going to be something, if you’re going to do something, you have to be proud of yourself. And you have to be proud of your heritage as a Labor Movement just as you are proud of your family, or your religion, or whatever else it might be."

​Union City Radio is supported by UnionPlus, which is committed to improving the quality of life for all working families; find out more at unionplus.org.

The House of Representatives was expected to debate a bill this week that would undermine worker rights at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
However, it appears that the bill has been pulled from floor consideration because Republican leaders lack the votes needed for approval. 
House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer said that “This legislation unfairly targets federal employees in the Department of Veterans Affairs by significantly limiting their ability to be adequately represented by their unions, interfering with union leadership elections, and severely limiting the ability of union representatives to communicate with Members of Congress."

On today's labor calendar,
MAGPIE performs tonight at the DC LaborFest. Terry Leonino and Greg Artzner will be [email protected] from the Takoma Busboys and Poets and then will do another set from 6:30-8p; both performances are free and they’ll also be the official release of Magpie's new CD "When We Stand Together: Songs of Joe Hill, the IWW, and Fellow Workers."
Complete details, as always, at dclabor.org. click on Calendar.

Here’s today's labor history:
On this date in 1903, an estimated 100,000 textile workers, including more than 10,000 children, struck in the Philadelphia area. Among the issues: 60-hour workweeks, including night hours, for the children.
In 1934, the Battle of Toledo began today: a five-day running battle between roughly 6,000 strikers at the Electric Auto-Lite company of Toledo, Ohio, and 1,300 members of the Ohio National Guard. Two strikers died and more than 200 were injured. The battle began in the sixth week of what ultimately became a successful two-month fight for union recognition and higher pay.
On this date in 1946, a U.S. railroad strike started, but was later crushed when President Truman threatened to draft the strikers.

Today’s labor quote is by George Carlin
American stand-up comic, actor, author, and social critic George Carlin, who said:
“Some people see things that are and ask, Why? Some people dream of things that never were and ask, Why not? Some people have to go to work and don't have time for all that.”

Union City Radio is supported by UnionPlus, which is committed to improving the quality of life for all working families; find out more at unionplus.org.

Unless AT&T Mobility came to the bargaining table with a fair proposal last Friday, communications workers are on strike today. You can get details on which metro-area stores are being picketed on our website at dclabor.org
The Communication Workers of America was preparing a three-day strike to begin last Friday that will affect some 40,000 workers at AT&T, which made $13 billion in profits last year; CEO Randall Stephenson alone made $28 million. 
"The clock is ticking for AT&T to make good on its promise to preserve family-supporting jobs," said CWA District 1 Vice President Dennis Trainor late last week. 
"We have made every effort to bargain in good faith with AT&T but have been met with delays and excuses. Our message is clear: fair contract or strike. It's up to AT&T now." 

On today's labor calendar, 
Get the latest on the strike at AT&T at dclabor.org, click on Calendar.
And tonight’s DC LaborFest screening is “Native Land” at 7:15pm at the AFI Silver Theatre. Narrated by Paul Robeson, Native Land employs a cast of familiar character actors in a story of how certain enemies within the US have done their best to suppress their fellow citizens' rights to freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of assembly and freedom from want. This 1942 film directed by Leo Hurwitz and Paul Strand, echoes today's depictions of capitalism’s war on the common man.

Here’s today's labor history:
On this date in 1895, Eugene V. Debs was imprisoned in Woodstock, Illinois for role in the Pullman strike
And in 1920, the Civil Service Retirement Act of 1920 gave federal workers a pension.

Today’s labor quote is by Eugene V. Debs, who said
“The issue is Socialism versus Capitalism. I am for Socialism because I am for humanity. We have been cursed with the reign of gold long enough.”

Union City Radio is supported by UnionPlus, which is committed to improving the quality of life for all working families; find out more at unionplus.org.