Jobs with Justice Blog

Join us at the U.S. Social Forum this June

jwjnational — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 18:36:16 +0000

June 22 – June 26 in Detroit, MI Another World is Possible!

This June, 20,000+ grassroots activists from hundreds of community-based social justice and social action organizations will gather in Detroit to come up with the peoples’ solutions to the economic and ecological crisis. The 2010 U.S. Social Forum (USSF) will gather social & economic justice organizers, environmentalists, peace & justice activists, community-based organizations, Indigenous nations, unions, and students to address the key issues of our time.

The U.S. Social Forum grew out of a worldwide movement - the World Social Forum – that was in part inspired by the 1999 demonstrations against the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Seattle. In 2007, more than 10,000 activists (including 350+ JwJ activists) gathered in Atlanta for the first U.S. Social Forum.

The USSF is more than just a conference or event. It’s a way to build opposition to the corporate agenda, and create an alternative vision and direction for our country. Through workshops, presentations, marches, information tents, music and cultural events, people can tell their stories and hear about other struggles. One of

Continue reading Join us at the U.S. Social Forum this June

Student Labor Week of Action! March 28-April 4

Maria Escobar — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 18:19:46 +0000

STUDENTS & WORKERS UNITE!

From March 28 to April 4, students and workers across the country are uniting on campuses and communities across the country to fight for ACCESS TO HIGHER EDUCATION & GOOD, SUSTAINABLE JOBS.

Visit www.studentlabor.org to learn more. You can sign up, find an action near you, or download an organizing kit.

Want to participate, but not sure what to plan?

Justice at American Red Cross Day of Action – March 31st, 2010

Donor safety at risk

Red Cross is the largest supplier of blood and blood products in the United States, controlling more than 40 percent of the U.S. blood supply.

Campus blood drives are big business for Red Cross. In 2009, it had $2.2 billion in revenues from its blood operations.

While giving blood addresses a critical medical need, Red Cross has a horrendous track record of protecting the safety of the U.S. blood supply. Since 2003, Red Cross has been fined $21 million for repeated safety failures. Decisions on additional fines are currently under consideration at the FDA.

Working conditions at Blood Donation drives

Red Cross frequently understaffs blood
Continue reading Student Labor Week of Action! March 28-April 4

Students and Workers Organizing for Justice

Maria Escobar — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 01:18:32 +0000

From Florida to California, March 4th marked an exceptional moment for the student and worker movement in recent U.S. history. People took to the streets to demonstrate their frustration with the government’s failure to pass legislation that would benefit young people such as Student Aid Reform and the DREAM Act. The mainstream media seemed taken by surprise of all these coordinated actions across the country – How could students and workers come together on one specific day? Was this an organized effort? Were people demanding change from the government and legislators?

I got the opportunity to march along with students, staff, and faculty at U-Mass Amherst. Being there reminded me about the power of organizing and strategic escalation. Students at this school provided a deadline for their administrators to accept their demands around fees, budget cuts, treating staff & faculty fairly, and improving the school’s climate. We will be watching their administrations’ response and actions to come. Check out video from the great actions at the University of Central Florida and the University of California system. You can also go to www.defendeducation.org
Continue reading Students and Workers Organizing for Justice

Growing Demand for Jobs. Get Involved!

jwjnational — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 16:43:01 +0000

Jobs with Justice coalitions and our partners are continuing to build grassroots pressure for bold federal action in this economic crisis. We need to immediately save and create millions of good jobs as a first step towards Full and Fair Employment and a New Economy that Works for Everyone.

Last week you helped Jobs with Justice, in coordination with the Jobs for America Now Coalition, hold actions in cities nationwide and make phone calls that pushed Congress to extend emergency federal Unemployment and COBRA benefits — but only for one month. Obviously, officials in Washington still don’t get it. They need a wake-up call that unemployment is at emergency levels.This campaign is just beginning. And you can help build the momentum!

1) Take the pledge to continue the fight for jobs with justice. Ask your friends and co-workers to take the Pledge.

2) Get involved in some of the actions coming up:

March 15-26, the AFL-CIO is calling for local actions at the “bailout bandits” that broke the economy. JwJ is supporting the AFL-CIO in the call to “Make Wall Street Pay”. Find local events.

March 27 – April 4 is the National Student Continue reading Growing Demand for Jobs. Get Involved!

Central Florida JwJ is Building the Movement to Keep and Create Good Jobs

Denise Diaz — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:12:46 +0000

The fight for keeping and creating jobs grew stronger in Florida this past week. Central Florida Jobs with Justice mobilized for a rally, organized by the Space Coast AFL-CIO and Florida state AFL-CIO, that brought over 2,000 people from across the state to say “Save Our Space”! Workers and their families traveled to the space coast from Miami, Pensacola, Jacksonville and all points in between to join business and community leaders to rally in support of continued federal funding of this vital economic driver for Florida’s future. The rally featured National AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and other leaders from the American labor movement who used this dire situation as a backdrop to launch a national jobs campaign that would create 10 million American jobs.

Recent budget proposals working their way through Congress all but eliminate funding for NASA’s human spaceflight operations in Florida. Space operations have long been one of Florida’s most important economic sectors, supporting tens of thousands of good jobs and providing the economic cornerstone for many communities across the state. The loss of funding would eliminate tens of thousands of jobs, decimate many communities, and send shock waves across the state this at a time when Florida is
Continue reading Central Florida JwJ is Building the Movement to Keep and Create Good Jobs

Today: Take Action to Defend Education

Maria Escobar — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 15:55:51 +0000

Today, March 4th, students and workers wake up to prepare for rallies, walkouts, call in days and many more activities during the National Day to Defend Education and the Jobs with Justice national week of action to save and create jobs .

Students and workers are tired of having the federal and state budgets balanced on their backs and are standing up to these atrocities. Today, we will stand up to demand full funding of higher education, a stop to the corporatization of education, proportionate representation on university decision -making bodies, and good union jobs in our schools. We will demonstrate that students and workers will not stand on the sidelines as education become a privilege available only to the few and while jobs are lost because of state budget cuts and the inaction in the federal government to pass student aid reform.

We are fighting these cuts now, but we also know that we need to look at the root problem and seek ways to fund the public sector through revenue reform and change
Continue reading Today: Take Action to Defend Education

Activists Demand Federal Action At Senate Soup Kitchen

jwjnational — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 15:45:04 +0000

Story by Adam Doster. Originally published on Progress Illinois.

As the U.S. Senate prepares to take up a comprehensive bill to extend the deadline for unemployment benefits through the end of the year, anti-hunger and labor advocates in Chicago want lawmakers to remember just how intensely people are struggling here in the Midwest.

After days of Republican obstruction, the U.S. Senate approved legislation late last night that will extend temporarily the deadline for unemployment benefits. While the end to the stalemate is welcome news, anti-hunger and labor advocates in Chicago aren’t entirely thrilled with the outcome. As the upper chamber prepares to take up a second bill to extend the deadline through the end of the year, these advocates want Senators to remember just how intensely people are struggling here in the Midwest.

This afternoon, Chicago Jobs With Justice (CJWJ) organized a “Senate Soup Kitchen” in Federal Plaza to dramatize the need for relief. Specifically, the group is demanding federal action to extend (and expand) eligibility for jobless benefits and fund a federal jobs program. “What’s going on in
Continue reading Activists Demand Federal Action At Senate Soup Kitchen

Troublemakers Go to School in Boston

rand wilson — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 15:30:20 +0000

(Originally published on Working In These Times blog at http://www.inthesetimes.com/working/entry/5639/troublemakers_go_to_school_in_boston)

BOSTON—More than 90 union members, students and community activists jammed the SEIU Local 888 union hall here on Saturday for a “Troublemakers School” sponsored by Massachusetts Jobs with Justice.

IBEW Local 2222 Business Manager Myles Calvey gave a rousing welcome to kick things off. “We’re not going to get labor’s problems solved in Washington or on Beacon Hill unless we take a page from the civil rights and gay rights movements,” said Calvey, a former New England telecom strike leader. “We’ve got to be a lot more aggressive so that politicians are forced to deal with our issues. We’ve got make our problems, their problems!”

Calvey was followed by a panel of local organizers from the United Food and Commercial Workers’ Angelica Laundry strike, Service Employees’ Local 1199’s Caritas hospital campaign and American Federation of Government Employee’s Transportation Safety Officers organizing drive. Their presentations were followed by a wide-ranging discussion about organizing strategies and reports from other workplace struggles. (To learn more about these campaigns, go to www.ufcwlocal1445.org/Open1445Intro2.htm; http://fairunionelections.org and
Continue reading Troublemakers Go to School in Boston

N. Texas JwJ Workers’ Rights Board Hears from Unemployed Workers

Gene Lantz — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 19:01:57 +0000

Jobs with Justice and North Texas Workers Rights Board activists held a public hearing on the jobs crisis February 26 at Judge Luis Sepulveda’s courtroom in Dallas.

Three unemployed folks: Jorge Ortega, Eddie Ortega, and Katharein Magdalena explained different aspects of the crisis and how they had been impacted. Even though none of them was downhearted, they evoked a compassionate response from the religious and community leaders listening.

Reverend Gerald Britt, Jr, of Central Dallas Ministries talked about the differences in job opportunities in different parts of the city. Almost none of Dallas’ economic activity targets the Southern half of town. Britt pointed out that poor workers have longer days because they have to travel north, where the work is, and return home late in the evenings.
How Can We Raise the Call for 10 Million Jobs?
The AFL-CIO is calling for ten million government-created jobs immediately. It is the only possible hope for economic recovery. They want March 12-26 to be weeks for public actions. As it happens, Spring Break for students begins March 12. With youth unemployment ranging over 50%,
Continue reading N. Texas JwJ Workers’ Rights Board Hears from Unemployed Workers

Fired Westin Workers in Providence, RI Win Their Jobs Back After NLRB Action

Camilo Viveiros — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 15:08:23 +0000

On November 7, 2009, the Westin Providence fired three housemen, Alfred Palumbo, Mike Crone, and Jose Minaya, in retaliation for their legally protected union protest. The Westin refused appeals from the Union and community leaders to reinstate them. The workers’ union, UNITE HERE Local 217, filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which investigated the case for four months.

On Wednesday, February 24, the NLRB Regional Director in Boston gave notice that the Federal Government has authorized a civil prosecution of the Westin Providence for the firings.

In order to avoid further prosecution, the Westin Providence suddenly offered all three workers reinstatement at the hotel to their previous jobs, pay and benefits. Once the NLRB authorizes a complaint, the Westin will be required to make all three workers whole for lost back pay and benefits, and post an official Federal notice throughout the Hotel in order to avoid a trial before a federal labor judge.

Mike Crone was a houseman at the Westin for 12 years before he was terminated by the hotel on November
Continue reading Fired Westin Workers in Providence, RI Win Their Jobs Back After NLRB Action