Reading, Writing, and Union-Building

Reading, Writing, and Union-Building by Steve Early at Znet.

Steve Early has an interesting essay on labor writers and pubslishing. He reports,"as Labor Studies Journal editor Bruce Nissen observes, "Any labor book selling over 5,000 copies is a ‘best seller.'"
Early's essay includes a summary of recent books focusing on labor and general observations about the state of publishing on labor topics. I plan to recommend Early's essay to my classes on library services for adults.

(Steve Early has written about labor for The Nation, The Progressive, In These Times, Tikkun, Social Policy, The American Prospect, New Politics, New Labor Forum, WorkingUSA, Against The Current, and many other publications. As a national staff member of the Communications Workers of America, he was involved in union organizing, bargaining, and strike activity for 27 years. This article is adapted from the introduction and afterward to Embedded With Organized Labor: Journalistic Reflections On The Class War At Home (Monthly Review Press, 2009). Copies can be ordered now at: http://www.monthlyreview.org/embeddedwithorganizedlabor.php

Robert M. Schwartz's book, *The FMLA Handbook

Robert M. Schwartz's book, *The FMLA Handbook*, is the definitive guide to the 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act -- and the 4th edition, published in early 2009, is now available. It explains how unions can protect workers who are absent from work for justifiable medical or family-care reasons; block compulsory "light-duty" work programs; force employers to allow part-time schedules; obtain attendance bonuses for workers absent for medical reasons; and much more.

Librarians' Committee of the Council of New Jersey State College Locals

Librarians' Committee of the the Council of New Jersey State College Locals






Rowan - Faye Robinson (Chair)
RSC - David Lechner
Kean - Marquan Mutazz
Ramapo -Susan Kurzmann
Rowan - Phylliss Meredith
MSU - Mei Ling Chow
TCNJ - Terry Epperson
WPU - Bob Wolk

Why Unions Still Matter

"Why Unions Still Matter" by Michael D. Yates. Monthly Review , 2009.

Other things being equal (that is taking two groups of workers alike with respect to experience, education, region of country, industry, occupation, and marital status), union workers in 2007 earned $1.50 an hour more than nonunion workers, a wage premium of 14.1 percent.

--submitted via USPS by Sanford Berman.

Chicago-area Schools lay off Librarians

Not even the promise of $3 billion in federal stimulus aid could avert hundreds of teacher layoffs announced this month in schools across the Chicago area.

School districts from Grayslake to Romeoville and West Aurora have authorized pink slips for educators, social workers, librarians and support staff—cuts the recovery package was specifically intended to avoid.

Librarians Among Those Considered for LayOff in Elgin, IL

March 17, 2009.
Hundreds of Elgin Area School District U-46 employees turned out Monday night to implore the board to see the human side of the layoffs it was considering.

Less than a week after the announcement that the equivalent of 348 full time jobs would be cut in order to help trim $17 million from next year's budget, social workers, certified nurses, special education teachers, librarians and secretaries spoke out against the move.

New York Union Presidents' Response to the NY Post

Your February 24 editorial, 'Fat in the Libraries,' is truly a wonder of innuendo and misleading information. How very strange that your editorial makes no distinction between the high pensions paid to management, and the much lower pensions paid to the average library worker.

Carol Thomas, President, Local 1930, DC37 AFSCME - The New York Library Guild
Eileen Muller, President, Local 1482, DC 37 AFSCME - The Brooklyn Library Guild
Margalit Susser, President, Local 1321, DC 37 AFSCME - The Queens Library Guild

Washington-Centerville [ OH] Public Library Approve Bargaining Unite

Officials of the Washington-Centerville Public Library announced today, March 6, that a bargaining union of professional and non-professional staff at the library approved forming a staff association to collectively bargain wages, benefits and working conditions.

A separate bargaining unit of shelving staff rejected unionization.

The election was conducted by the Ohio State Employment Relations Board.

Toronto Librarians Split from CUPE Local 416 to form own unit.

After a nasty battle, the city's 2,400 librarians have voted overwhelmingly to leave the city's powerful outdoor workers' union.

With about 50 per cent voter turnout, more than three times as many librarians voted to split away from Local 416 of the Canadian Union of Public Employees - which also represents garbage collectors and parks workers - as voted to stay. The final tally was 1,017 in favour of leaving to 287 who were opposed, CUPE Ontario's Brian Atkinson said, calling it "pretty overwhelming."

The library workers have been represented by Local 416 since the union was created after amalgamation in 1997.

Library unit chair Rob Rolfe said "the time had come" for his members to form their own unit. "We're very pleased," he said.

Working Alone: The Erosion of Solidarity in Today’s Workplace

from-- New Labor Forum, Vol. 17 #3.Fall 2008 issue.

Working Alone: The Erosion of Solidarity in Today’s Workplace

By Charley Richardson
Introduction
Solidarity forms the bedrock of the labor movement, but there is remarkably little discussion of it—what it really is, where it comes from, and how to build it. A successful labor movement depends on solidarity that is more than just an abstraction printed on plaques and in mission statements and extolled in songs at the end of meetings. Solidarity, in its practicality and concreteness, is at the core of unionism and collective power, and it is critical to any successful struggle for the improvement of working people’s lives.

Solidarity has always faced significant challenges in the form of racism, sexism, and other “isms” of division that penetrate into the workplace. Management initiatives such as two-tier wage and benefit systems, and productivity/safety/merit bonuses—particularly when combined with the ideologies of competition and individualism—serve to further undermine solidarity.

Today, solidarity faces new and largely unacknowledged challenges that are aimed at its very seedbeds—the workplace and the work process. Management is engaged in a concerted (and largely successful) effort to change work processes in ways that undermine the creation of connections and networks in the workplace, rendering those seedbeds incapable of nurturing the bumper crop of solidarity that is necessary to build a thriving movement.
--Read more.

British Construction Companies' Blacklist Seized

More than 40 major British companies face legal action for allegedly buying secret personal data about thousands of workers they wanted to vet before employing them.

The information commissioner, Richard Thomas, will today publish a list of the companies he believes may have broken data protection laws, after an investigation by his office that was sparked by fears that many workers were being unfairly "blacklisted".

Alan Ritchie, the general secretary of Ucatt, the construction union, said: “UCATT members know from bitter experience of being refused work that blacklisting exists in construction.

“However, the extent of the practice and the fact that most of the major companies are involved in the practice is truly shocking. It is outrageous that construction workers have been barred from jobs simply for being trade unionists.”



Press Release 6 March 2009
ICO seizes covert database of construction industry workers
An investigation by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has uncovered a database containing details on 3,213 construction workers which was used by over 40 construction companies1 to vet individuals for employment. The information includes sensitive personal information such as construction workers’ personal relationships, trade union activity, as well as people’s employment history.
The information has been seized by the ICO during a raid in Droitwich, West Midlands. Ian Kerr, the owner of a firm known as the Consulting Association, appears to have run the database for over fifteen years. The ICO has uncovered evidence at Kerr’s premises that named construction firms subscribed to Kerr’s system for a £3,000 annual fee. Companies could add information to the system and pay £2.20 for details held on individuals. Invoices to construction firms for up to £7,500 were seized during the raid.
The ICO has served an Enforcement Notice ordering Mr Kerr to stop using the system. Mr Kerr is to cease trading by the end of this week and he now faces prosecution by the ICO for breaching the Data Protection Act.
Deputy Information Commissioner, David Smith, said: “This is a serious breach of the Data Protection Act. Not only was personal information held on individuals without their knowledge or consent but the very existence of the database was repeatedly denied. The covert system enabled Mr Kerr to unlawfully trade personal information on workers for many years helping the construction industry to vet prospective employees. The Data Protection Act
1 List of companies available in notes to editors
clearly states that organisations must be open about how they process personal information, and in most cases those processing personal information must register with the ICO – Mr Kerr did not comply with the law on either count.
“On raiding Mr Kerr’s business premises we discovered an extensive operation involving household names in the construction industry. Kerr held information on thousands of construction workers and profited by checking names against his database.
“We will prosecute Mr Kerr and we are also considering what regulatory action to take against construction firms who have been using the system. I remind business leaders that they must take their obligations under the Data Protection Act seriously. Trading people’s personal details in this way is unlawful and we are determined to stamp out this type of activity.”
From 16 March the ICO will operate a dedicated enquiry system for people who believe personal information about them may be held on the database. Members of the public are advised not to contact the ICO until 16 March.
ENDS
If you need more information, please contact the ICO press office on 020 7025 7580 or visit the website at: www.ico.gov.uk
Notes to Editors
The table below lists the companies that subscribed to the Consulting Association. The use of brackets indicates where companies have undergone a change of name or where subsidiaries have been absorbed by parent companies. Ex members may no longer exist or no longer avail themselves of Kerr’s service.
Amec Building Ltd
Amec Construction Ltd
Amec Facilities Ltd
Amec Ind Div
Amec Process & Energy Ltd
Amey Construction – Ex Member
B Sunley & Sons – Ex Member
Balfour Beatty
Balfour Kilpatrick
Ballast (Wiltshire) PLc – Ex Member
Bam Construction (HBC Construction)
Bam Nuttall (Edmund Nutall Ltd)
C B & I
Cleveland Bridge UK Ltd
Costain UK Ltd
Crown House Technologies
(Carillion/Tarmac Const)
Diamond M & E Services
Dudley Bower & Co Ltd – Ex Member
Emcor (Drake & Scull) - ‘Ex Ref’
Emcor Rail
G Wimpey Ltd – Ex Member
Haden Young
Kier Ltd
John Mowlem Ltd -Ex Member
Laing O’Rourk (Laing Ltd)
Lovell Construction (UK) Ltd – Ex Member
Miller Construction Limited – Ex Member
Morgan Ashurst
Morgan Est
Morrison Construction Group –Ex Member
N G Bailey
Shepherd Engineering Services
Sias Building Services
Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd
Skanska (Kaverna/Trafalgar
House Plc)
SPIE (Matthew Hall) - Ex Member
Taylor Woodrow Construction Ltd – Ex Member
Turriff Construction Ltd –Ex Member
Tysons Contractors – Ex Member
Walter Llewellyn & Sons Ltd - Ex Member
Whessoe Oil & Gas
Willmott Dixon – Ex Member
Vinci PLC (Norwest Holst Group)
1. The raid on Mr Kerr’s business premises in Droitwich was conducted on 23 February 2009
2. We understand Mr Kerr has ceased trading and has vacated his business address.
3. This is the first case where the ICO has used issued an Enforcement Notice with a seven day compliance condition. Ian Kerr breached the Data Protection Act by
unfairly and unlawfully processing personal information. He failed to notify the ICO as a data controller.
4. The ICO’s action follows an article, entitled Enemy at the Gates, published by The Guardian newspaper on 28 June 2008.
5. The ICO promotes public access to official information and protects personal information. The ICO is an independent body with specific responsibilities set out in the Data Protection Act 1998, the Freedom of Information Act 2000, Environmental Information Regulations 2004 and Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003.
6. For more information about the Information Commissioner’s Office subscribe to our e-newsletter at www.ico.gov.uk

SEE press release in pdf here

"Let’s Dance, " Biden Tells Labor

“If a union is what you want, a union you’re entitled to have.”

"Let’s Dance," Biden Tells Labor.

March 5, 2009. Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. gave organized labor an extremely warm embrace on Thursday at the A.F.L.-C.I.O.’s executive council meeting here...

In his speech, the vice president also quoted the introduction of the National Labor Relations Act, stating that it is national policy to encourage collective bargaining.

Wirtz Labor Library receives John Sessions Memorial Award

Wirtz Labor Library receives John Sessions Memorial Award

CHICAGO—The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wirtz Labor Library is the recipient of the 2009 John Sessions Memorial Award, an honor presented by the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) and named for John Sessions, former American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) co-chair of the AFL-CIO/ALA Joint Committee on Library Service to Labor Groups.

This annual award recognizes a library or library system that has made a significant effort to work with the labor community and has consequently brought recognition of the history and contribution of the labor movement to the development of the United States. Wirtz Labor Library was selected for its efforts in supporting the history and contribution of the labor movement in the United States. In addition to maintaining unique and historically significant collections, including rare international material, the library particularly impressed the committee with its recent efforts to make its collection more accessible to a broader audience through digitization and to increase visibility of the library through the Wirtz Labor Library Lecture Series.

A statement issued by the library expressed gratitude and appreciation for the distinction: “The U.S. Department of Labor’s library, established in 1917, is one of the oldest Cabinet-level libraries. As we plan for the library’s centennial, our recent efforts have been to strengthen and revitalize the library and its services – and to provide and promote the library’s resources to a wider universe of customers. As we build upon our rich history, it is our great pleasure to accept the 2009 John Sessions Memorial Award.”

Richard V. French, director of the library’s Center for Program Planning and Review, will receive the winner’s plaque on behalf of the library at the RUSA Awards Ceremony and Reception, scheduled for 3:30-5:30 p.m., Monday, July 13, as a part of ALA’s Annual Conference events. The exact location of this event will be announced on the RUSA website and at the RUSA Blog in late spring.

Franklin (MA) Library Union Considers Salary Freeze

Workers in Franklin, MA are considering what cuts they are willing to make for the greater good...President of the firefighters union, Capt. Steven J. Sims, Franklin Education Association President Chandler Creedon, library union president Janice Roddy, and Gerry Copeland, president of the police dispatchers' union, all said they are hopeful the stimulus bill will save jobs and prevent cuts.

The 21-member librarians' union is considering the possibility of freezing their salaries to save their coworkers' jobs, Roddy said.
"They're listening. They're not saying, 'No, no, no' right off the bat, but things need to be considered. The cost of living goes up," she said.
The library staff is already bare bones, she said, and meanwhile circulation is rising as the economy worsens, as more people want to find cheap or free activities, borrow DVDs, and use the public access computers.