June 2008 Archives

June 30, 2008

Sign the Petition to Build America

It's no secret that America's infrastructure is crumbling. But, you may wonder, is anyone doing anything about it? And is there any way you can help? Someone is, and you can. The Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA)...

June 27, 2008

Who Is Charlie Black?

Code Name: Mr. Black Current Job: Chief Advisor to John McCain Previous Job: Lobbyist for corporate criminals and violent dictators There has been growing buzz about a guy named Charlie Black, a former top Washington Lobbyist at the helm...

June 25, 2008

Would You Buy a Used Car From This Man?

I told you this back in April, but now noted socialist rag BusinessWeek has noticed that McCain's tax plans would make the rich richer while Obama's would help the middle class: Senator McCain's tax cuts would primarily benefit those...

June 20, 2008

Whatever You Do, Don't Ask a Worker!

The Center for American Progress rolled out a new report today that asks an important question: when we hear about economic issues on the news, why don't we ever hear the opinions of regular working people? The answer, they...

June 18, 2008

Number Who Expect to Take Voluntary Pay Cuts Instead: 0

The Associated Press reports that one third of CEOs in a recent survey are expecting to lay people off in the near future -- even though only nine percent of them expect their own company's sales to go down:...

UFW Endorses Obama

News from our brothers and sisters at the United Farm Workers: they have endorsed the American Dream Candidate, Senator Barack Obama, for President of the United States: “Throughout his career, beginning as a community organizer to his present position as...

June 13, 2008

Merced Farm Labor Shut Down

On June 2, I told you about the tragic story of Maria Isabel Vasquez Jimenez -- a 17-year-old pregnant woman who died in the vineyards of Stockton, California on May 16, overcome by heat after the company she worked...

June 11, 2008

Laborers Endorse Obama

The Laborers’ International Union of North America has declared that Barack Obama is the best candidate to be the "Build America President" we need: The men and women of LIUNA, who go to work every day building and servicing...

June 10, 2008

Yes, Virginia, the American Dream is At Risk

If you didn't believe it when we told you, now USA Today has independently verified that a majority of Americans believe the American Dream is in grave danger: Work hard, play by the rules and tomorrow will be better...

June 6, 2008

Combustible Dust on 60 Minutes this Sunday

We've written a lot in this space on the danger posed to workers by combustible dust, so I wanted to pass this news along: Sunday night at 7:00 PM, legendary investigative news show 60 Minutes will be running a segment...

Unemployment Spikes -- So Let's Help the Unemployed

Reuters reports that the unemployment rate rose in May for the fifth straight month -- and this increase is the biggest one-month increase in 22 years: The U.S. unemployment rate jumped by the most in 22 years in May, reaching...

June 4, 2008

Introducing the TRADE Act

Today CtW leaders and progressive lawmakers from Capitol Hill came together to announce the introduction of the Trade Reform, Accountability, Development and Employment (TRADE) Act -- an important piece of legislation developed by Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Representative Mike...

The American Dream Candidate

The American Dream Candidate, Senator Barack Obama, made history last night by securing the Democratic nomination for the office of President of the United States -- making him the first African-American ever nominated for that office by a major...

June 3, 2008

And You Thought George Bush Hadn't Created Any Good Jobs

Turns out he has! Only they're all in Iraq. On May 22, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held a hearing on payments made by the Department of Defense to parties in Iraq without enough documentation to...

"Speak Up and Demand Justice"

Following up on yesterday's story about the tragic death of underage farmworker Maria Isabel Vasquez Jimenez, here is video from the farmworkers' march of Maria's fiancee, Florentino Bautista, telling the story of how corporate greed cost the life of the...

June 2, 2008

The Short Life and Preventable Death of Maria Isabel Vasquez Jimenez

Meet Maria Isabel Vasquez Jimenez. On May 13, seventeen-year-old Maria was a farmworker, working the grape vineyard of West Coast Grape Farming in Stockton, California alongside her fiancee, Florentino Bautista. Three days later, Maria was dead -- killed after...