Local Verizon strikers got a huge boost yesterday with two big rallies in downtown DC. “We’ve got your back” AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka told hundreds of picketers outside the F Street Verizon Wireless store at 1 pm. “You’re not just fighting for yourselves, you’re standing up for all American workers, Trumka said. CWA president Chris Shelton asked if the strikers and their supporters are ready to fight and win, and got back a resounding “yes!” A second rally and picketline was held later in the afternoon at the L Street Verizon Wireless store; both DC stores will be targeted with leafleting and pickets all week. Check the calendar on our website at dclabor.org for the latest details.
A full schedule of labor in the arts this weekend marks the launch of this year’s DC LaborFest, including screenings of “Trumbo” at the AFI Silver Theatre and a new labor-themed play called “The TEMPest” at the Silver Spring Black Box Theater this Friday. Go to dclabor.org and click on calendar for complete details and tickets. Here’s today’s labor history: On this date in 1911, James Oppenheim’s poem “Bread and Roses” was published in Industrial Solidarity, the IWW newspaper. Oppenheim was inspired by a speech given by labor union leader, socialist, and feminist Rose Schneiderman who said that "The worker must have bread, but she must have roses, too." A political slogan as well as the name of an associated poem and song, “Bread and Roses” has been translated into other languages and has been set to music by at least three composers. In 1953, President Dwight Eisenhower signed Executive Order 10450: Security Requirements for Government Employment. The order listed “sexual perversion” as a condition for firing a federal employee and for denying employment to potential applicants. And in 1978, a cooling tower for a power plant under construction in Willow Island, West Virginia collapsed, killing 51 construction workers in what is thought to be the largest construction accident in U.S. history. OSHA cited contractors for 20 violations, including failures to field test concrete. The cases were settled for $85,000—about $1,700 per worker killed. Today’s labor quote is by James Oppenheim As we come marching, marching, in the beauty of the day A million darkened kitchens, a thousand mill-lofts gray Are touched with all the radiance that a sudden sun discloses For the people hear us singing, "Bread and Roses, Bread and Roses
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Picketing and leafleting by striking Verizon workers continues throughout the metro Washington area this week. Several DC Verizon Wireless locations have been added. Dates and times vary; please check our website -- dclabor.org -- for latest details.
And mark your calendar now for the third Annual DC LaborFest, which kicks off later this week. The LaborFest -- anchored by the 16th annual DC Labor FilmFest -- launches its third edition with films, plays and more, starting this Friday. More than 60 events – films, music, poetry, art, theatre, history, soccer and radio – celebrate labor arts, culture and the struggles of working people. Go to dclabor.org for a complete calendar of events and you can also view or download a full-color PDF of the LaborFest program guide with full details on all events. Highlights of the monthlong labor arts festival include a tour of artist Ben Shahn’s stunning frescos at the VOA, a wreath-laying at the Mother Jones memorial in Silver Spring and an evening of live jazz by local union musicians, as well as a soccer labor night and a full slate of labor films at the AFI Silver Theatre in Silver Spring. Check out this week's local labor calendar at dclabor.org; click on Calendar. Here’s today’s labor history: On this date in 1924, the U.S. House of Representatives passed House Joint Resolution No. 184, a constitutional amendment to prohibit the labor of persons under 18 years of age. The Senate approved the measure a few weeks later, but it was never ratified by the states and is still technically pending. In 1944, on the orders of President Roosevelt, the U.S. Army seized the Chicago headquarters of the unionized Montgomery Ward & Compny after management defied the National Labor Relations Board. Today’s labor quote is by Michael Moore "You can't regulate child labor. You can't regulate slavery. Some things are just wrong." Michael Moore's latest film is "Where to Invade Next" With the strike by nearly 40,000 Verizon workers now in its second week, the financial impact on the strikers and their families is beginning to take a toll. “Money is getting tight and the need is great,” reports Community Services Agency Executive Director Kathleen McKirchy. CSA is collecting contributions to its Emergency Assistance Fund to support the strikers; donate online at dclabor.org -- click on Community Services. They’re also accepting and distributing donations of non-perishable food items.
Here’s today’s labor history: On this date in 1886, The New York Times declared the struggle for an eight-hour workday to be “un-American” and called public demonstrations for the shorter hours, quote, “labor disturbances brought about by foreigners,” unquote. Other publications declared that an eight-hour workday would bring about “loafing and gambling, rioting, debauchery and drunkenness.” In 1969, Reverend Ralph David Abernathy and 100 others were arrested while picketing a hospital in Charleston, South Carolina in a demand for union recognition. The governor of South Carolina declared a state of emergency in Charleston and ordered more than 100,000 state troopers and members of the National Guard to break a strike by predominantly African American Medical University Hospital workers seeking recognition for their union, Local 1199B of the Retail Drug and Hospital Employees. In the end, the employer promised to rehire the striking workers they had fired, abide by a newly established grievance process, and provide modest pay increases. And in 1978, the Supreme Court ruled that employers may not require female employees to make larger contributions to pension plans in order to obtain the same monthly benefits as men. Today’s labor quote is by Ralph David Abernathy, Sr. "Bring on your tear gas, bring on your grenades, your new supplies of Mace, your state troopers and even your national guards. But let the record show we ain't going to be turned around." Ralph David Abernathy, Sr. was a leader of the Civil Rights Movement, a minister, and Martin Luther King Jr.'s closest friend. A new report from the McKinsey Global Institute finds that greater gender parity in the workforce—in terms of pay, hours worked and access to full-time jobs—would also benefit the entire country’s economy. The report makes the case for both the government and businesses to take a more proactive role in bringing about gender equality. Read more about it in The Atlantic at dclabor.org
On today's local labor calendar, activists are turning out at noon at DeCarlos Restaurant in Northwest Washington to support Norma Escobar, who worked at DeCarlos Restaurant for nearly a year and was fired without notice and without cause. The protest, organized by MANY LANGUAGES ONE VOICE, will demand severance of two months' wages, not just for Norma Escobar, but for any worker who is fired without just cause. Details at dclabor.org; click on Calendar. Here’s today’s labor history: On this date in 2011, songwriter, musician and activist Hazel Dickens died at age 75. Among her songs: “They’ll Never Keep Us Down” and “Working Girl Blues.” Today’s labor quote is by cultural blogger John Pietaro, who wrote that "(Hazel) Dickens didn’t just sing the anthems of labor, she lived them. Her place on many a picket line, staring down gunfire and goon squads, embedded her into the cause." |
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