“I urge you to act now to keep Providence Hospital open,” RN Elissa Curry told the DC City Council Wednesday morning.
“The health of our community should not be endangered because accountants see more lucrative ways to operate,” Curry added. Patients, nurses, caregivers and doctors packed the council meeting to testify about the need to save Providence Hospital in northeast DC. “You won’t shut us down!” they vowed. In his opening statement at the hearing, Ward 5 councilmember Kenyan McDuffie said that "It appears that Ascension has decided to prioritize its property over the provision of health to the residents of the District of Columbia." McDuffie announced that he and Ward 7 councilmember Vincent Gray are considering legislation to require hospitals to provide advance public notice if they want to close down. On today’s labor calendar, there’s a Labor Book Symposium on “Not Enough, Human Rights in an Unequal World,” at 1pm at the Georgetown University Law Center; The NoVA Coalition of Labor Union Women hosts a Happy Hour at 6:30 tonight in Annandale; and the film GHOST FLEET – which investigates the hidden population of modern-day slaves who underpin industrial fishing – screens at 8:30 tonight at the Naval Heritage Center; as always, for complete details, go to dclabor.org and click on Calendar. In today’s labor history, on this date in 1933, some 2,000 workers demanding union recognition closed down dress manufacturing in Los Angeles. Today’s labor quote is from a plaque on the Mother Jones monument in Mount Olive, Illinois, dedicated on this date in 1936, which reads: “We count it death to falter, not to die.”
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With the apparent decline of union power evidenced by the decreasing numbers of union members and strikes per year, as well as by the enactment of right-to-work laws in five states since 2012 and the Supreme Court ruling this year against required union fees for public employees in the Janus case, the labor movement appears to be struggling against current political climates, writes David Sessions in The New Republic.
A new book, A History of America in Ten Strikes, suggests that what unions need to do to revitalize what characterized the powerful labor movement during its heyday years after the New Deal is to re-emphasize to workers that the labor movement is about more than simply wage and benefit protections, but that involvement in labor movements gives workers a stronger say in societal conditions and the politics that may prevent respect and fairness. We have a link to Sessions report -- "America’s Missing Labor Party" -- on our website, dclabor.org For today’s labor calendar – which includes a number of labor to labor phone banks in the area, go to dclabor.org and click on Calendar. In today’s labor history, on this date in 1873, the Miners’ National Association was formed in Youngstown, Ohio, with the goal of uniting all miners, regardless of skill or ethnic background. Today’s labor quote is by Norman Thomas, six-time presidential candidate for the Socialist Party of America. Norman Thomas, who said: “I am not a champion of lost causes, but the champion of causes not yet won.” Hosted by Chris Garlock and Ed Smith
DC’s call-in show about worker rights: those you have, those you don’t, how to get them and how to use them. CALL US at 202-588-0893 with your questions about your rights at work! On today’s show: What do you do when your employer wants you to do something unsafe? Do you have a right to honor a picket line? And do you have to watch what you say and do at work? TODAY'S GUESTS: Sally Davies on how the mold crisis at the University of Maryland is affecting workers. Davies is a retired University of Maryland employee, and executive board member of AFSCME Local 1072 representing UMD and UMUC. Kelly Candaele, co-author of "Yankees Players Cross the Picket Line in Boston," says pro baseball players have made millions for themselves by unionizing and standing together, and should support striking hotel workers in their fight for better pay. A union organizer for 15 years, Candaele produced the documentary film “A League of Their Own” about his mother’s years in the All American Girls Professional Baseball League and his brother was a pro baseball player and MLBPA rep. Labor music: How Much for the Life of a Miner? by Emma's Revolution CREDITS: Produced by Chris Garlock; engineered by Mike “The Man” Nasella Dozens of volunteers turned out for the 20th annual Heat's On Water's Off service event last Saturday, hosted by Plumbers Local 5 in partnership with Steamfitters Local 602 and the Mechanical Contractors Association of Metropolitan Washington.
“Each year, our skilled members generously donate their time and expertise to provide free plumbing, heating and air conditioning inspections and repairs for low-income and disabled residents in Prince George's County,” says Local 5’s James "Lou" Spencer. “These life-saving services are an important way for Local 5 to help those less fortunate in our community.” Local 602 member Jason Barbee added that “The house that I went to was owned by a 90 year-old lady who was the nicest woman ever. She was appreciative and happy we were there.” You can see photos and video on the Plumbers 5 Facebook page; we’ve got a link at dclabor.org On today’s labor calendar, Farmworker Justice is hosting a Wine & Jazz Reception tonight at 6pm at the Beacon Hotel; tickets are $100 & up; for complete details, go to dclabor.org and click on Calendar. In today’s labor history, on this date in 1933, six days into a cotton field strike by 18,000 Mexican and Mexican-American workers in Pixley, California, four strikers were killed and six wounded; eight growers were indicted and charged with murder. Today’s labor quote is by Lupe Martinez, a former farmworker who organized and marched side-by-side with Cesar Chavez during the grape boycott of the 1970s. He’s now the CEO of United Migrant Opportunity Services and is being honored at tonight’s Farmworker Justice Wine & Jazz Reception. Lupe Martinez, who said: “As a former migrant farmworker myself, striving to improve the working and living conditions of migrant and seasonal farmworkers has been a lifelong mission. Yet, we still have a lot more work to do.” |
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