Wisconsin State AFL-CIO Blog

Workers, Community Members Rally to Save America’s Postal Service

As part of a nationwide day of action, working families, community members, faith leaders, and seniors took to the streets of Wisconsin to join postal employees in every Congressional district to send a strong message to Congress: Save the United States Postal Service.

Workers and community members spoke up about the critical role the U.S. Postal Service plays in every community, rural and urban alike.  Hundreds rallied in Appleton, Brookfield, Eau Claire, Fond du Lac, Green Bay, Janesville, Kenosha, La Crosse, Madison, Milwaukee, Superior and Wausau.

“We just need a little help from Congress to end the pre-funded rule,” explained Dave Skowronek of Greenfield, who delivers mail in Hales Corners with the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 2. 

The fate of the U.S. Postal Service is of concern to every American, every community and every business.  Heated political rhetoric has often resulted in the public hearing misleading and incomplete information on this critical issue.

Contrary to popular belief the Postal Service isn’t broke and isn’t funded by taxpayers.   The Postal Service is facing a current shortfall due to a congressional mandate to pre-pay for costs that aren’t due for decades.  HR1351 is a fair and balanced approach to the needs of the Postal Service and the public. 

“We are out here in downtown Milwaukee to thank Rep. Gwen Moore for her support with HR 1351,” stated Ron Blazel, of NALC Branch 2.  “We hope she votes yes to protect the Postal Service and the public when the bill comes up for a vote.” 

Mike Ryan, a community member from West Allis, rallied to show his support for Postal Employees.  “I’m not a postal worker but I know that these cuts are not the way to help our economy.  I support working people.  To have a strong economy, people need good jobs.” 

One of our country’s great responsibilities is to ensure the safe, efficient delivery of our mail at a reasonable price.  The United States Postal Service (USPS) is a trusted American institution, delivering mail, medicine and packages to millions of Americans at a price families can afford.

Click here for photos of the rallies which took place around Wisconsin on Tuesday, September 27, 2011.

Wisconsinites Rally for Goods Jobs Outside Walker’s Secret Forum

Downtown Milwaukee was filled with chants of “Where are the Jobs?” and “Money for Jobs and Education, Not for Banks and Corporations,” this morning as workers, the unemployed and community members came together to rally for family-supporting jobs in Wisconsin.

The rally took place outside of Governor Walker’s secret, invitation only, jobs forum.  Inside the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce, Gov. Walker was meeting with select business leaders on how best to create jobs in Wisconsin.  We know that the past strategy of tax breaks for the super-rich and corporate allies has not worked for the working families in Wisconsin. 

Workers were refused entrance to the forum.  When unemployed constituents requested to meet with Walker to discuss jobs, the building owner refused entry. 

Patrick Fuhrman, an unemployed land surveyor from West Bend explained that “Walker’s policies deny hard-working people the right to work and to make a living.  Giving millions of taxpayer money to CEOs and corporations, taking away collective bargaining rights for employees – these policies hurt every working person in our state and do nothing to create jobs.”

Fuhrman would have been working on the Talgo high-speed rail project if Gov. Walker had not killed the project.  Fuhrman recently went back to school to be trained in the green job economy.  He expected to work on windmill projects throughout Wisconsin until Gov. Walker slammed the door on that opportunity by placing strict restrictions on the industry which make it virtually impossible to build windmills in Wisconsin. 

“Gov. Walker put a damper on my dreams,” said Jeremy Mitchell.  Mitchell has been unable to find a good job since he was laid off by a nonprofit organization serving developmentally disabled and mentally ill people due to Walker’s budget cuts.

“Walker’s cuts hurt the most vulnerable and do nothing to create jobs.   Where are the proposals to put poor and middle class people back to work?” asked Mitchell. 

Wisconsinites continue to hold their Governor accountable for good job creation and expect that their elected officials will put politics aside to create jobs for middle class families in Wisconsin. 

For photos of the event click here.

56,938 Wisconsin Jobs Lost to China

Bad trade practices with China have cost Americans 2.8 million jobs.  In the last decade, Wisconsin  has lost 56,938 jobs to China, according to a report released by the Alliance for American Manufacturing. 

The report comes as members of Congress consider trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama in the coming weeks.  Working people in Wisconsin and across the country are questioning the benefit of these agreements and calling on lawmakers to pass job-creating policies, not bad trade deals that have been proven to destroy jobs.

Across the country, 2.8 million jobs have been lost because of skewed trade policies with China.  And there is evidence more jobs will disappear if the trade deals currently before Congress are enacted.  According to the Economic Policy Institute, an economic think tank, the pending Korea trade deal will destroy 159,000 jobs. 

 “Working families in Wisconsin know the effects of bad trade deals first-hand:  job loss, destruction of our local economy and big profits for corporate CEOs who have jumped at the chance to outsource jobs in the U.S. when it helps their bottom line,” said Phil Neuenfeldt, President of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO.  “Lawmakers in Washington should be focused on real solutions to our jobs crisis, not passing more policies to enrich big corporations, take away Wisconsin jobs and hurt workers in other countries.”

For more information on this report visit: http://americanmanufacturing.org/china-job-loss

National Day of Action to Save America's Postal Service

Join us this Tuesday, September 27, for a national day of action to protect the United State’s Postal Service. 

On Tuesday, September 27, America’s Postal Service Members of the four Postal Service employee unions – APWU, NALC, NPMHU and NRLCA –  and community allies will rally in every congressional district to let people know what’s at stake for our families and neighbors and urge lawmakers to save the Postal Service by supporting H.R. 1351.  Click here for a list of rallies in Wisconsin.

Read more about the national day of action here: http://www.saveamericaspostalservice.org/

 

One of our country’s great responsibilities is to ensure the safe, efficient delivery of our mail at a reasonable price.  The United States Postal Service (USPS) is a trusted American institution, delivering mail, medicine and packages to millions of Americans at a price families can afford.

Yet under the guise of a “budgetary crisis,” Congress is going after the U.S. Postal Service, proposing massive cuts.  Cuts proposed include laying off 120,000 workers, closing thousands of post offices, eliminating Saturday mail service and closing mail processing facilities. 
 
These cuts won’t just hurt Postal Workers – they will hurt every American, every community and every business.

Postal workers are fighting back and mobilizing for a massive day of action at post offices around the country on Tuesday, September 27.  Join them!  Click here for a list of rally locations and times in Wisconsin. 

Republicans in Congress are hoping if they downgrade the postal service, they can privatize some of the services out to their corporate friends and allies.  This will result in poorer service and increased prices as well as destroy a great American institution.   

If we don’t stop Congress from cutting Postal Service programs, it will embolden extreme lawmakers who are already committed to privatizing public services – political maneuvers that will cause the loss of good, middle class jobs.

Join the national day of action to save USPS.  Click here for a list of rally times and locations around Wisconsin. 

1 in 5 Jobs Touted by Governor Walker are Not Located in Wisconsin

The Associated Press is reporting that some 6,000, or 1 in 5, jobs that posted on Governor Walker’s official job website are jobs that are located in neighboring states. Some 18% of the jobs are in Michigan, Illinois, Minnesota and Iowa. 

This is good news for our neighbors, but what unemployed Wisconsinites need is access to local jobs. 

 “It’s great to hear that jobs are being created in nearby states, but what Wisconsin families really needs are good jobs being created right here in our local communities”   said Phil Neuenfeldt, President of the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO.  “I hope that instead of attacking worker rights and giving tax breaks to his corporate allies, Governor Walker will put forward positive proposals to get our state working again.” 

The website, Job Center of Wisconsin, was repeatedly referenced last week in Governor Walker’s radio address as the number one place for Wisconsin’s unemployed to find jobs and connect with employers.

From the Appleton Post Crescent:  6,000 jobs touted by Governor Scott Walker outside Wisconsin

From the Chicago Tribune report here:  1 in 5 jobs touted on Wisconsin state website are out of state

Corporations Backing New Trade Deals Outsourced 18,600 Jobs

This is a crosspost from the National AFL-CIO BlogNow by Tula Connell.

Congress will soon consider three so-called free trade agreements (FTAs) between the United States and Korea, Colombia and Panama. Yet because these agreements do not include sufficient protections for workers, passage of these pacts would be a job-killing move at a time when more than 26 million Americans are unemployed, underemployed or have stopped looking for work.

The proposed Korea trade deal would cost an estimated 159,000 U.S. jobs alone,  according to trade experts who have studied the deal, and its loopholes could open the doors for goods made in China or even sweatshops and North Korea, but labeled in South Korea.

Yet, while corporations are sitting on $2 trillion in cash and not creating jobs, they’re twisting the knife further into the corpse of the U.S. economy with a new ad campaign pushing for passage of these three deals. And guess what? Some of the 32 corporations backing the campaign have shipped a combined 18,600 U.S. jobs overseas since 2001.

A new searchable database at Public Citizen shows the dirty details. In one case, Whirlpool took advantage of a previous such trade deal, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and shipped more than 1,000 jobs from its Ft. Smith, Ark., facility to Mexico in 2008. Caterpillar, a major backer of the proposed trade pact with Colombia, laid off 338 workers at its Mapleton, Ill., facility when it shifted its work to Mexico.

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka says that these three FTAs are similar to NAFTA, which has cost nearly 700,000 jobs and created a $97 billion U.S. trade deficit with Mexico. Calling NAFTA “a miserable failure for working people,” Trumka says:

We need to be creating jobs—not passing agreements that will offshore more jobs and leave more communities behind.

Polls show the American public agrees.

• A September 2010 NBC News-Wall Street Journal poll found that the impact of trade and outsourcing is one of the only issues in which Americans of different classes, occupations and political persuasions agree. Eighty-six percent said outsourcing of jobs by U.S. companies to low-wage foreign nations is a top cause of our economic woes – by far the top concern, with deficits and health care costs well behind.
• Nearly 60 percent of Republicans at all educational levels believe offshoring plays a “major role” in current unemployment, according to May 2011 poll by the National Journal.

Note to lawmakers: Opposition to outsourcing is one place where’s there’s bipartisan agreement.

Statewide Film Screening: “Broadcast Blues”

(Watch the trailer for Broadcast Blues, a film which takes a look at our nation's media)

 

Free and open to the public, The Wisconsin Media Reform Tour, is traveling the state through September 27 with free screenings of the award-winning documentary “Broadcast Blues.” 

Broadcast Blues explores how the consolidation of the media into corporate hands is jeopardizing our news, information and even public safety.  Broadcast Blues reminds us that the airwaves belong the people, and that we can take and must take our media back. 

"This is a great opportunity to remind the people of Wisconsin that they actually own the Radio and TV airwaves," says filmmaker Sue Wilson.  "Local TV and radio stations receive licenses for the privilege to broadcast, but there's a catch:  in exchange for their licenses, the law requires them to 'serve the public interest.' […] The question is, are the broadcasters serving the public interest of Wisconsinites?"

Sue Wilson, the film’s director, will be on hand to survey the audience on how well they believe their local media is serving local needs.  If people feel that the local media is not serving the public interest, Wilson will explain how to reach out to broadcasters with the goal of improving the quality of local broadcasting.

The 2011 Wisconsin Media Reform Tour kicked off September 17 in Madison with continuous screenings at the FightingBobFest. The tour continues in Appleton on Sept. 19, Mequon Sept. 21, Milwaukee Sept. 22, Hartland Sept. 23, Racine Sept. 24, Wausau Sept. 26, ending in Eau Claire Sept. 27.  Click here for a flyer with local dates and locations. 

The Wisconsin tour developed when Delafield resident Barbara Begale went to see a documentary film about media reform in Florida.  After seeing the award winning Broadcast Blues Begale decided to organize a film tour.  She contacted the film’s director and the rest is history.   

"Suddenly I understood why the United States is so divisive," explained Begale.  "The film explains why the news is filled with lies and why there is so much hate speech.  If people know the truth, people will make the right decisions, but they're not getting the truth.  Everyone in this country needs to see this movie."

Wisconsin Loses 2,300 Jobs in August

The August jobs report continues to show that Gov. Walker’s “open for business” policies are not working. 

The Department of Workforce Development released bleak numbers today.  In August, Wisconsin lost 2,300 jobs, including 800 in the private sector, as the unemployment rate rose one-tenth of a percentage point to 7.9 percent.

Scott Walker continues to head in the wrong direction for the 250,000 new jobs he promised to create for Wisconsin.   Instead of wasting precious time on voter suppression laws, redistricting maps, union-busting legislation and political payback for his campaign allies, Scott Walker should focus on jobs. 

We have heard lots of talk, but little action from the Governor on jobs.  The time is now.  We need to get America back to work.  The number of Americans living in poverty is growing and the median income of households is falling.

Instead of attacking unions, the Governor should be working with labor to create family-sustaining jobs.  Report after report continue to show that a strong union movement goes hand-in-hand with a strong economy. 

Poverty Level Up, Median Income Down

This week, the Census Bureau released bleak numbers showing that the American Dream is further away from more and more Americans.  Despite the fact that many U.S. companies are reporting profits and CEO pay is sky high, the U.S. poverty rate continues to rise. 

The report, which can be read here, reveals sobering figures:

• The poverty level in the United States is 15.1%, a 20 year high 

• Over 46 million, or 1 in 6 Americans is currently living in poverty

• Incomes continue to drop, with the median household American income plunging 2.3% from 2009 to $49,445

• A middle income family earns only 11 percent more then they did in 1980, while consumer prices have grown by about 155 percent.

• Americans without health coverage rose from 16.1 percent to 16.3 percent — or 49.9 million people

For last year, the official poverty level was an annual income of $22,314 for a family of four.

This report highlights the fact that millions of Americans are unemployed or underemployed and income inequality is on the rise.  As our economy struggles and more and more of us can’t find work, our elected officials need to put politics aside and focus on creating family-supporting jobs with good benefits. 

 

Check out the AFL-CIO's Six Point Plan to get our country working again and be sure to follow the Wisconsin State AFL-CIO on Face Book and Twitter for updates on how you can get involved in the fight for good jobs in Wisconsin. 

The Workers

From the New York Times, interactive testimony from the 3,200 workers rebuilding the World Trade Center site in New York City. 

The World Trade Center site employs more than 3,200 workers. At present, it is the largest construction project in the United States.  These portraits and audio narratives are a testament to the myriad skills and talents of the workers. From the ironworker who provides for her family to the contractor who lost his brother on Sept. 11, each of these workers has a unique story to tell, but they all share a common goal: rebuilding a piece of New York that was once lost.  View their testimony here: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/09/08/us/sept-11-reckoning/wtc-workers.html

 
Nearly all of the construction workers at the World Trade Center site are union members.  Often showing their union pride on their hardhats, these members of the building trades understand that their work is extremely meaningful.