"We have a long road ahead of us," warned Teamsters Local 639 president Tommy Ratliff Saturday night as he accepted the 2014 Award for Outstanding Trades Unionist of the Year. "Everyone here knows what's going on around us; we see what's happening. We have a big fight on our hands. But," Ratliff pledged, "we'll all be in it together." Go to dclabor.org to see photos from the event.
In today’s labor calendar, catch a free screening of "Food Chains" with DC Fair Food at 4 pm at Georgetown University; Go to dclabor.org and click on calendar for details.
Here's today's labor history:
On this date in 1968, staffers at San Francisco progressive rock station KMPX-FM struck, citing corporate control over what music was played and harassment over hair and clothing styles, among other things. The Rolling Stones, Joan Baez, the Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead and other musicians requested that the station not play their music as long as the station was run by strikebreakers.
In 2000, Boeing and the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace came to terms on a new contract, settling the largest white-collar walkout in U.S. history.
Today's labor quote is by Joan Baez:
“I think music has the power to transform people, and in doing so, it has the power to transform situations - some large and some small.” Joan Baez, who said, “Someone had to change the world. And obviously I was the one for the job.”