Yesterday we launched our first Union City Labor Coronavirus Watch, which you’ll find at dclabor.org. That’s where we’re posting the latest virus-related news affecting working people.
We’re tracking news on how our brave frontline workers are dealing with the pandemic as well as how workers are fighting for their rights as the economy shuts down and folks are being hit with furloughs and layoffs.
This is also where you can take action on the various legislative efforts to help workers on both the local and national level. Yesterday, for example, we urged folks to call on the Senate to pass the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which includes critical paid sick days and emergency paid family and medical leave provisions.

And as always, for the current status of local labor events, go to dclabor.org, and click on Calendar, though frankly, pretty much everything is canceled at this point.

In 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 asked the station not to play their music as long as the station was run by strikebreakers.

Today’s labor quote is by Kyle Lewis, a researcher at Autonomy, a research centre aimed at rethinking work. Kyle Lewis, who said:
"This crisis is going to reveal what *essential* work actually consists of. We must make sure that these occupations become the cornerstone of our economy rather than the afterthought they have been reduced to under neoliberalism."
Find out more at autonomy.work

Union City Radio is supported by our friends at Union Plus, which stands up for union members and their families. At unionplus.org you’ll useful links to coronavirus resources from the AFL-CIO, staying informed through the CDC, as well as lots of discounts for union members. Check it out at unionplus.org

The COVID-19 pandemic highlights the vast inequalities in the United States between those who can more easily follow the Center for Disease Control’s recommendation to stay home and seek medical attention when needed
and those who cannot.
In a post on the Economic Policy Institute’s website, Elise Gould reports that high-wage earners are more likely to be able to stay home and have health insurance to seek medical care than low-wage earners.
And, those in certain sectors— information and financial activities, for example — are more likely to have paid sick days or can work from home than those in other sectors, such as leisure and hospitality. COVID-19 also sheds light on another difference in economic security and access to medical care among workers: the benefits to being in a union. Union workers are more likely to have access to paid sick days and health insurance on the job than nonunion workers. Only two-thirds of nonunion workers have health insurance from work compared to 94% of union workers.
Having health insurance means workers are more able to seek and afford the care they need. We know in that the United States, millions of people delay getting medical treatment because of the costs. Without health insurance, many do not have a regular source of care and simply won’t go to the doctor to get the attention and information they need to not only get better but reduce the spreading of disease.
Read the whole report at epi.org

For the current status of local labor events, go to dclabor.org, and click on Calendar.

In today’s labor history, on this date in 1960, the United Federation of Teachers was formed, to represent New York City public school teachers and, later, other education workers in the city.

Today’s labor quote is by American suffragist, feminist, and women's rights activist Alice Paul, one of the main leaders and strategists of the campaign for the Nineteenth Amendment, guaranteeing women the right to vote, ratified by Congress in 1920.
Alice Paul, who said:
“When you put your hand to the plow, you can't put it down until you get to the end of the row.”

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National Nurses United held a national day of action Wednesday to protest the CDC’s suggested containment measures for the coronavirus.
The nurses accused the CDC of weakening containment protocols like rolling back protective equipment standards from N95 masks to regular surgical masks, not requiring virus patients to be quarantined and loosening protections for nurses taking respiratory samples from patients.
“If nurses and health care workers aren’t protected, that means patients and the public are not protected,” said NNU executive director Bonnie Castillo. “This is a major public health crisis of unknown proportions.”

As you might expect, the local labor calendar is highly fluid at the moment, with many cancellations; for the latest updates, go to dclabor.org, and click on Calendar.

In today’s labor history, on this date in 1946, a four-month UAW strike at General Motors ended with a new contract. The strikers were trying to make up for the lack of wage hikes during World War Two.

Today’s labor quote is by Damon Silvers, Policy Director at the AFL-CIO, who said, in response to this week’s stock market collapse and spreading Coronavirus epidemic:
“What we don’t need is the standard right-wing response to any and all problems—tax cuts for the rich. We need leadership and coordination among federal, state and local governments, between the U.S. government and the Fed and governments and central banks around the world, and with multinational bodies such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Health Organization. We need that leadership now, because once fear becomes contagious, it may be the hardest thing to stop.”

Union City Radio is supported by our friends at Union Plus. Save up to 25% off base rates when you book a vacation car rental with Hertz. Hertz supports the labor movement by employing union members and featuring American-made cars. And don’t forget to sign up for Hertz Gold Plus Rewards: you’ll get a smoother rental experience and earn rewards like discounts and free days. Visit unionplus.org/carrental to get started.

The American Federation of Government Employees, which represents 700,000 federal and D.C. government workers, yesterday outlined workers’ concerns with the government’s response to the coronavirus.
AFGE President Everett Kelley said that the union “has serious concerns regarding the health and safety of the federal workforce and with the administration’s efforts to prevent, detect, and treat the Coronavirus.”
Among AFGE’s chief concerns are worker safety, protective equipment, telework and hazardous duty pay. The union said that “agencies are not communicating with their workforces with enough information or to a degree that will allow them to protect themselves or the public in a timely manner to contain the spread of this virus.”
AFGE also urged Congress to insist that all federal government agencies formally give permission to employees who can perform their duties via telework to begin doing so immediately.
We’ll continue to post updates on this developing story on our website at dclabor.org

On today’s labor calendar, tune in at 1 o’clock this afternoon right here on WPFW for this week’s edition of Your Rights At Work; complete details on all the latest labor events are at dclabor.org, click on Calendar.

In today’s labor history, on this date in 1912, the "Bread and Roses" textile strike in Lawrence, Massachusetts ended when the American Woolen Company agreed to most of the strikers’ demands; other textile companies quickly followed suit.

Today’s labor quote is by Lane Kirkland, president of the AFL-CIO from 1979 to 1995, born on this date in 1922 in Camden, South Carolina. Lane Kirkland, who said:
“If hard work were such a wonderful thing, surely the rich would have kept it all to themselves.”

​Union City Radio is supported by our friends at Union Plus. Save up to 25% off base rates when you book a vacation car rental with Hertz. Hertz supports the labor movement by employing union members and featuring American-made cars. And don’t forget to sign up for Hertz Gold Plus Rewards: you’ll get a smoother rental experience and earn rewards like discounts and free days. Visit unionplus.org/carrental to get started.