The NY Times actually mentions Indian Slave pipe-fitters, Rick Berman, need for teaching about unions, IN: Laborers get 1st raise after 3 years, more

We start with a story that Omaha Steve pointed out in the Labor section at Democratic Underground, it seems that Rick Berman's firm has launched a new nationwide ad campaign against unions and the Employee Free Choice Act.

• Labor Officials Denounce Union Attack Ads -WCSH6/Maine (6/6/08):

The ads depict workers talking about how unions take away their rights and bully people into joining unions.

"What the ads play on is a sense that, 'I'm not gonna win, I should keep my head down and I can't make a difference, because somebody out there is going to beat me down,'" McKay said. "That's exactly the problem unions see."

The next story is by Donald P. Russo, a labor attorney from Bethlehem, PA

• Young people need new lessons about labor unions- The Morning Call.com (6/7/08):

Big business and the Republican Party have done a remarkable job of convincing young people that unions are bad. The propaganda campaign has been a remarkable success. Young people working at low-wage, part-time jobs, with no health insurance, paid sick leave, paid vacation or pension benefits actually think that they are doing well and that it would be a bad thing to bring in a union. As an employment attorney, I am seeing situations that are slowly bringing me to the realization that ''union busting'' is now a full-time pursuit in the workplace. What is most disconcerting, however, is the split I am observing among liberal Democrats.

Tula Connell over at the AFL-CIO WebBlog brings us some distressing news on the latest unemployment figures

• Busted: Unemployment Rise Worst in 20 Years (6/6/08):

The corporate media mouthpiece Bloomberg may say the nation’s economy is “stalling” in the wake of today’s announcement that the jump in the U.S. unemployment rate is the worst in more than two decades, but working Americans know the real word for it: Disaster.

Jobs fell by 49,000 after a 28,000 drop in April, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. The unemployment rate increased to 5.5 percent, the fifth straight month in a row that jobs decreased.


Source: Department of Labor. Prepared by the Staff of the Committee on Ways and Means, 5 June 2008.

Holy crap, Julia Preston at The New York Times is actually reporting on the Indian slave pipefitter hunger strike

• Workers on Hunger Strike Say They Were Misled on Visas - NY Times (6/7/08)

Brendan Hoffman for The New York Times
Reji Davis, center, and other workers from India on a hunger strike on Embassy Row in Washington. They say they were promised permanent residency.

“I sold my home to raise that money,” said Mr. Pazhambalakode, 43, who is one of the protesters and has a wife and child. “I can’t go home empty-handed because of that great debt.”

Meanwhile, on the Gulf Coast, Signal was seeking skilled workers, overwhelmed with orders for repairs on oil rigs battered by Katrina.

“We were on our knees,” Mr. Marler said, “and we wanted to contribute to turning the Coast around. We were approached by these labor providers, and we jumped at the chance.”

Maybe a phone call to The United Association would have been a better idea, Mr. Marler. Fpr more info on this topic and a few other related articles here at Joe's Union Review, check out the links below, maybe the Times has a spot for me.

• Modern day Slavery hunger strikers going on day 20, Get E-Active!
• Indian Ambassador refuses to visit with "slave" hunger strikers
• Slavery in the news: Indian 'guest workers' to hold hunger strike in DC
• More H1B Visa abuse news
• Slavery: Alive and well in USA Pt.2, Indian pipefitters abused in H2B Visa scam, main stream media picks up story full year after facts are released
• Offshoring and H1B Visa abuse, the 1-2 punch to knockout US tech workers
• NY Times blows the lid off of Made In India manhole covers in New York

Richard at Union Review points an article at Forbes, which shows how the corp's are in fear of a rise in union membership.

• Forbes: Fears Of A Union Renaissance- UnionReview (6/6/08):

Forbes is running a piece today called "Fears Of A Union Renaissance." In the article they menion that the US Chamber of Commerce is fearful of a potential union resurgence in the United States.

The article says, "Now the group, which represents business interests, is opposing a laundry list of bills fluttering about Capitol Hill, which the chamber says would make it easier to organize a union, expand worker benefits at the expense of employers and lift the caps on punitive damages sought by employees in lawsuits."

They are referring to the Employee Free Choice Act.

You can see more about their tactics in the first link I posted above, and heres another tactic, illegally firing organizers and union sympathizers...

• Starbucks Fires Outspoken Michigan Barista for Union Activity- Starbucks Union(6/6/08):

Starbucks' pretext for the illegal anti-union firing was that Dorsey was guilty of some months-old attendance infractions.

"Today I joined the growing number of baristas that Starbucks has fired in its relentless union-busting campaign," said Cole Dorsey. "Starbucks' disrespect for the right to join a union is appalling and absolutely will not stop our efforts to have a voice at work."

Starbucks, I like the coffee and the way they have legal workers in their stores and the fact that their is organizing drives and some union workers, I'm hoping they will have all union stores one day, heres some more Starbucks info at this site, speaking of this site, I got a nice plug from a fellow labor blogger

• New Link - Far Left Field (6/7/08):

If you haven’t checked out the site please do so. The blog is proudly pro-union, despite the strange site address, and covers everything from organizing drives to music to an unbelievable list of labor links that I was shocked to find myself on!

He's talking about us here at Joe's Union Review, I'm very proud to have been noticed, I urge my readers to check out the stories there as most are labor related, with social and political issues and some music thrown in. No shock needed, Far Left Field's 3rd article, well over a year and a half ago was about the Employee Free Choice Act, and continues to this day bringing forth labor news and views such as last Fridays "Investing In Workers". Hers some more news

Laborers Local 274 in Indiana, gets new deal after 3 years without pay raise and strike

• Labor strike settled against contractors in Indiana- WISHTV8 (6/5/08):

The laborers asked contractors for more money and better benefits. Union leaders said they just reached an agreement for a new contract and will not be picketing on Friday.

Thursday morning, picketers were outside Wilhelm Construction in Indianapolis, one of Central Indiana's largest contractors. Laborers also picketed in Lafayette, Terre Haute, and Bloomington too.

Seems they didn't feel like writing much, so heres a bit more from some previous stories

• Construction workers strike local projects - 18WLFI (6/4/08)

Other building trades are showing support by stopping work on the job sites. Local 274 President Jim Terry said several union contractors who are not part of the Indiana Construction Association have signed an interim agreement with the union.

That temporary agreement will allow work to continue on some construction projects.

Union members said they have not had a new contract in three years and hope an agreement will be reached soon. "In the three years, we haven't had a cost of living increase," Steve Foltz said. "And we're just trying to catch up with the other trades. We're trying to get this settled, hopefully before the end ofthe week. It's just a security thing, a few extra cents to the hour."

even when they report about it, they seem to get it wrong, they have had a contract, which expired on May 31st., they have not had a raise in 3 years

• Several construction projects stop -News10 (6/4-5/08)

Indiana State University's new recreation center is supposed to open in 2009, but a dispute between the Laborers International Union of North America Local No. 204, and Hannig Construction could change that if the two don't come to an agreement on a new contract, which ended May 31.

"You would think that the contractors would have enough respect for the people who work on their projects, when they know that they have not had a pay increase in over three years," said Charlie Toth, Business Manager for Local 204.

Theres some more news out there, check out the headlines over at these blogs and sites

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I'm sick

So I'm gonna take a few days off, thanks for the rest people. Heres a few quick updates.

New GI Bill passes Senate

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Consumers Union Collects $8,500 in first 24 hours

We raised $8,500 in just the first 24 hours. Help us reach our goal of $15,000 by tomorrow! Donate right now! Dear Joseph, This is the last chance to help keep dangerous toys and other hazardous goods out of our homes by passing strong product safety reform. The CU Action Fund needs just $15,000 to pump up our efforts and make sure the new law really protects our loved ones. It’s crunch time. President Bush wants a watered down compromise; we are fighting for the strongest reforms possible. Now is our best chance to stop the endless stream of dangerous imports that put all of us at risk.

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INDIAN GUEST WORKERS RALLY AT CAPITOL:

Six more workers joined the week-old hunger strike by Indian guest workers Wednesday at a rally outside the Capitol to pressure Congress to support their struggle against exploitation. At the action, workers reported that hunger striker Christopher Glory was admitted to George Washington University Hospital Wednesday for dangerously low blood pressure. The workers' families and dozens of DC area activists also participated in a day-long solidarity fast Wednesday to support the campaign. Following the rally, workers and their supporters met with Congressional representatives and pressured them to hold hearings on abuses of workers under the guest worker program and ask the Department of Justice to protect the workers during an ongoing criminal anti-trafficking investigation against their former employer Signal International. A community meeting with representatives of the campaign will be held today at 7P. If the workers demands are not met, they will continue their strike outside the Capitol through Sunday, May 25 then move to Dupont Circle. Click here for ways you can support the campaign.
- report/photo by Andy Richards

More at the AFL-CIO Web Blog
Hunger Striker Hospitalized, Others Rally on Capitol Hill

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Take The CWA Speed Test

Dear Joseph, Millions of Americans—especially in rural and low-income urban areas—don’t have high-speed Internet access. Millions more who have, what we in America call, “high-speed” Internet pay much more for slower speeds than people in Europe or Japan. How fast is your Internet access? How does your speed compare nationwide and around the globe? Are you getting what your Internet provider says you’re paying for? Take the Communications Workers of America Speed Matters test to find out: www.speedmatters.org/wfn2008

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Colombia Free Trade Agreement off the fast track

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) says the time limit should be lifted because Congress and the president should be focusing their energy on the needs of America’s working families as the economy staggers toward a recession, not on the flawed trade deal.

It is chilling to think how this measure by the House to fast track the Colombia FTA was defeated by only 29 votes, 195 mostly Republican Reps voted to make this thing happen on the Bush fast track. That means 195 people who we elected don't think that this is worth investigation. You can see who's-who here

*Click here for more Videos and info

Here's Mike Halls' AFL-CIO WebBlog Post from (4/10/08) :

House Takes Colombia Trade Deal Out of Fast Track

The U.S. House of Representatives, this afternoon, told President Bush there will be no Fast Track for his flawed U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA). By a 224–195 vote, the House removed Fast Track’s 90-day deadline for an up or down vote on the deal.

The vote will delay consideration of the deal indefinitely, probably until Bush leaves office in January.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) says the time limit should be lifted because Congress and the president should be focusing their energy on the needs of America’s working families as the economy staggers toward a recession, not on the flawed trade deal.

AFL-CIO President John Sweeney has called Bush’s push for the Colombia trade deal “an outrageous disregard for basic human and workers’ rights” that, if passed, would “reward murder.”

The violence against trade union members in Colombia has claimed more than 2,500 lives since 1986, including 39 murdered in 2007, and another 17 killed so far in 2008—a rate of more than one a week. Yet the Colombian government has obtained convictions in less than 3 percent of the cases and has done little to stop the bloodshed or guarantee worker and human rights in the country.

Said AFL-CIO President John Sweeney:

The AFL-CIO position on the Colombia FTA remains unchanged: The violence, murders, impunity, and violations of workers’ rights in Colombia must end. Until and unless the Colombian government achieves sustained results on the ground to that effect, the AFL-CIO will muster all its resources in opposition to this agreement.

Because the Colombia deal was negotiated under the now-expired Trade Promotion Authority or Fast Track, it normally would have had to be voted within 90 legislative days, but Pelosi said the House has the right to set its own rules.

Sphere: Related Content

Act Now to stop the Colombia Free Trade Agreement and the Clinton involvement

UPDATED-> Colombia Free Trade Agreement off the fast track (4/11/08)

In Colombia it's outright dangerous to be a unionist, while some claim that only 39 union leaders were killed last year is a good thing, we here at Joe's union Review tend to think differently. It' s Now Or Never People, I called the desk of Hillary Clinton and had to leave a message, there are 3 E-Action campaign's, get involved before it's too late.

The Scoop From AFL-CIO

House Set to Vote on Removing Fast Track Timetable from Colombia Trade Deal

by Mike Hall, Apr 9, 2008

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) announced that tomorrow the House will vote to lift the 90-day Fast Track time limit for the House to vote on the Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) that President Bush sent to Congress yesterday.

Pelosi said Congress and the president should be focusing their energy on the needs of America’s working families during these precarious economic times, not on the flawed trade deal. She told reporters she told Bush on Monday that:

we really had to continue our conversation about addressing the economic concerns of America’s working families.

Says AFL-CIO President John Sweeney:

We agree with Speaker Pelosi that Congress must keep a hard focus on the economic crisis facing America’s working families—and certainly before consideration of another flawed trade deal. We applaud her for taking decisive action to reassert congressional authority over trade.

Read Full Story

From the E-mail box

American Rights At Work

Dear Joseph, Urgent: First Vote Tomorrow Say NO to Fast-Tracking the Colombia "Free" Trade Agreement Write Your Reps. Now! There's little in life that's free. You’re savvy enough to look for the hidden costs, or the catch. Americans now know the catch in "free" trade agreements like NAFTA and CAFTA. The hidden costs of these pacts took a tremendous toll: 1 million jobs disappeared, countless communities collapsed, and workers' rights were exploited at home and abroad. 1 But now George W. Bush and Elaine Chao, the Secretary of Labor, want another "free" trade deal, this time with Colombia. To make matters worse, Bush wants to unilaterally "fast-track" this agreement in 90 days. The first vote takes place tomorrow in the House of Representatives. Tell your Members of Congress and Secretary Elaine Chao that you oppose the Colombia free trade agreement. We can stop this. http://action.americanrightsatwork.org/campaign/colombia_fta_chao/8kkg6bn207nw3jnw? Outside of the obvious negative consequences for the United States, the Colombian free trade agreement (FTA) fails to meaningfully address a severe Colombian crisis: union members there are regularly assassinated. Violent incidents against union members are pervasive in Colombia, and the country's president has done little to stop the attacks. Since 1991, at least 2,245 union members have been killed for supporting a union, including 18 deaths already in 2008. 2 Believe it or not, Elaine Chao doesn't seem to think that's a problem. She even had the gall to suggest that because fewer union members are being killed than in previous years, we should implement the trade agreement - without putting in place real protections to stop violence against union members. 3 Voice your opposition to the Colombia free trade agreement - write to your representatives and Elaine Chao now: http://action.americanrightsatwork.org/campaign/colombia_fta_chao/8kkg6bn207nw3jnw? You've heard from me before about the sorry state of labor law in the United States; most of America's workers never get a free and fair chance to join a union because of threats, intimidation, and misinformation from their employers. But as bad as America's workers have it, Colombia's aspiring union members literally put their lives on the line to have a voice at work. This is an unacceptable situation, and the United States should not engage in agreements with leaders who overlook serious issues like the assassination of union members. With Bush threatening to unilaterally pass this agreement in less than three months, your voice is needed to take away his power to do so. Please write to your representatives now. Thanks for all you do for workers everywhere. Sincerely, Liz Cattaneo American Rights at Work www.americanrightsatwork.org Sources: 1. Revisiting NAFTA, report by Economic Policy Institute, 9/06: http://www.epi.org/content.cfm/bp173 2. Labor Rights and Freedom of Association in Colombia, report by the Colombian Trade Union Federations, 10/07: http://www.aflcio.org/issues/jobseconomy/globaleconomy/upload/colombianlabor_english.pdf 3. Department of Commerce press release, 2/27/08: http://www.commerce.gov/NewsRoom/PressReleases_FactSheets/PROD01_005275

Visit the web address below to tell your friends about American Rights at Work. Tell-a-friend!

If you received this message from a friend, you can sign up for American Rights at Work.

From (4/8/08)

AFL-CIO Working Families E-Activist Network

Dear Joseph, President Bush is demanding a vote on the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) before he leaves office next year. The Colombia FTA is wrong for workers both in the United States and Colombia. Tell your senators and representative that you OPPOSE the Colombia Free Trade Agreement and that they should, too. Use our toll-free number to do so today: 1-866-338-5720 And please click here to let us know how your lawmakers plan to vote on the Colombia FTA. With the U.S. economy in near free fall, President Bush has sent the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to Capitol Hill—Bush wants to force a vote before he leaves office next January. The all-out, nationwide mobilization to let members of Congress know that working Americans oppose this deal begins today. As the fight gears up, we need to know whose side your members of Congress are on. Call your senators and representative today to ask if they will side with workers and oppose the Colombia FTA. The call is toll free: 1-866-338-5720 We need you to report back to us: Click here to let us know how your lawmakers will vote. The deal is wrong for workers in both countries. Bush has made passing this agreement a priority, even though it will do next to nothing for the failing U.S. economy. The Colombia FTA represents a continuation of the Bush administration’s failed trade policies, an agenda that has contributed to the loss of more than 3 million manufacturing jobs since 2000, skyrocketing trade deficits and shrinking paychecks. Colombia remains the most dangerous country in the world for union members—39 trade unionists were murdered in 2007 and another 17 to date in 2008. Of the more than 2,500 murders of trade unionists since 1986, only some 70 cases—about 3 percent—have resulted in convictions. Balanced trade agreements must guarantee the right to organize, lift the lives of workers in both countries and prevent exploitation. But this can’t happen in a country where workers who try to organize are killed. Colombia’s government has thwarted workers' right to organize and bargain collectively—by weakening labor protections, refusing to register legitimate unions and failing to enforce the law against anti-union discrimination. Remember to call your representative and senators today. Tell them to oppose the Colombia FTA: 1-866-338-5720. In solidarity, Working Families e-Activist Network, AFL-CIO P.S. Please tell your friends to call the U.S. House and Senate today at 1-866-338-5720. Together, we can stop the Colombia FTA.

Click the link below to tell your friends about this campaign. Tell-a-friend!

From (4/4/08)

LabourStart

It has been nearly a month since the murder of Leonidas Gomez Rozo, a leader of the National Union of Bank Workers of Colombia.

His murder in early March was one of several violent attacks against trade unionists in that country -- many of which have been highlighted on LabourStart's Colombia news page recently.

Today we've been asked by UNI Global Union -- a global union federation to which Rozo's union was affiliated -- to flood Colombian embassies around the world with messages of protest next week.

Please send off your message by clicking here. And spread the word.

Thanks.

Eric Lee

More News,

Working Life - "Killing In The Name Of So-Called "Free Trade" (UPDATED)" (4/7/08)

I keep thinking that there will be a limit on how far thinking people will go to turn a blind eye to the death and misery brought to us courtesy of so-called "free trade". But, lo and behold, every day brings new wonders at the capacity of our government, and its servants in the "free market", to ignore reality in the service of profits and "efficiency" and "low costs". Prepare yourself for another example coming down the pipeline this week when the Administration tries to ram another so-called "free trade" deal down the throats of the Congress—-and down the throats of the American people.

The uproar over Mark Penn’s work for the Colombian government, and his resignation from the Clinton campaign, has partly obscured the content of the issue (most of the traditional media and, frankly, progressive media and blogs, have been far more focused on Penn and the political/electoral insider story than the actual Colombia deal). This pact, which is in a whole lot of trouble, as it should be, is awful for a variety of reasons. But, the main one is this: union activists and leaders have a funny way of ending up dead in Colombia, courtesy of death squads that have been linked to the government.

Read Full Story

The Clinton Involvement

Change To Win "Mark Penn Thinks You Are Really Dumb" (4/9/08)

... dumb enough to believe that he has been fired from Hillary Clinton's campaign staff, when in fact he has just had his job title changed.

I posted about this yesterday, of course, but since that post went live the evidence of Penn's non-dismissal continues to mount.

Sam Stein at the Huffington Post reports "Mark Penn Speaks (In Private): Will Still Advise Clintons, Calms Nervous Aides":

Mark Penn, who resigned over the weekend as the Clinton campaign's chief strategist, went into full damage control mode on Monday, hosting a conference call with Burson Marsteller's managing directors to persuade them that the fallout from his resignation was both overblown and would soon pass.

Peppered with questions from colleagues -- one mentioned her "pretty panicked client," another asked bluntly, "Ultimately did you think that it was the best thing for the company [to work for Clinton's campaign]?" -- Penn insisted that "the situation has played itself out."

But he confirmed that while his title with the campaign had changed -- and his work load would undoubtedly decrease -- he still would play a direct advisory role for Clinton.

Karen Tumulty at Time Magazine reports "Mark Penn is Not Out":

Two sources confirm Marc Ambinder's scoop that Penn was on the campaign's message-of-the-day call this morning, and was involved in debate preparation this afternoon.

Tom DeFrank and Michael McAuliff at the New York Daily News report "Mark Penn still in Clinton loop: source":

Hillary Clinton's political guru may have been pushed from the top spot in her campaign, but he didn't land in the grave.

Despite embarrassing the White House hopeful by consulting for the Colombian government on a U.S. trade agreement she opposes, Mark Penn remains "very much in the loop," a Clinton source said...

"Reports of Mark's death are greatly exaggerated," said a Penn confidant.

"You don't break a circle like that easily and quickly," a senior Clinton adviser agreed.

So the message to insiders is: Penn's not going anywhere, just wait a few days for the public to stop paying attention and everything will be back to Business As Usual.

That's disappointing.

Don't be a Mark Penn -- help stop the Colombia "free" trade agreement! Fair trade supporters across America are writing to their Members of Congress today urging them to oppose this deeply flawed agreement. Use our easy online form to write your Members and help send the Mark Penns of the world packing.

Huffington Post "Bill Clinton's Ties To Colombia Trade Deal Stronger Than Even Penn's" (4/8/08)

On Sunday evening, Sen. Hillary Clinton's chief campaign strategist, Mark Penn, resigned from his post after it was revealed he was working (on the side) for the passage of a Colombia Free Trade Agreement that his candidate opposed.

But within the Clinton campaign, Penn is not the highest-ranking adviser with financial ties to groups and individuals supporting the passage of the measure.

Former President Bill Clinton has earned hundreds of thousands of dollars speaking on behalf of a Colombia-based group pushing the trade pact, and representatives of that organization tell The Huffington Post that the former president shared their sentiment.

In June 2005, Clinton was paid $800,000 by the Colombia-based Gold Service International to give four speeches throughout Latin America. The organization is, ostensibly, a development group tasked with bringing investment to the country and educating world leaders about the Colombia's business opportunities.

The group's chief operating officer, Andres Franco, said in an interview that the group supports the congressional ratification of the free trade agreement and that, when Clinton was on his speaking tour, he expressed similar opinions.

"He was supportive of the trade agreement at the time that he came, but that was several years ago. In the present context, I don't know what his position would be. It is not only about union trade rights. It is about what benefit or damage it can do to the US economy," said Franco. "Events with the Clinton campaign [concerning Mark Penn] are not good at all for the trade agreement... Right now it became a campaign issues and that is sad, because it needs to go through."

The comments were supported by a June 23, 2005 article from the news portal Terra (uncovered by Ben Smith at Politico) in which Clinton offered unambiguous support for the free trade agreement with Colombia.

Read Full Story

Act Now! Click Below!! Click the Links above!!

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Another trade union leader killed in Colombia, why does our administration insist on Colombian FTA?

"2,510 killings of trade union leaders in the last ten years in Colombia" -IMF article

From International Metalworkers' Federation - IMF (3/27/08) :

Colombian trade union leader assassinated

COLOMBIA: The National Union of Coal Mine Workers, SINTRACARBON, has reported the deplorable news of the assassination of Adolfo González Montes, the union's leader and a member of the Barrancas branch committee.

The union said its leader was tortured and killed at his home on March 22. It also expressed its concern that several other union leaders have received threatening telephone calls and been subjected to harassment, with unknown persons prowling round their homes.

SINTRACARBON is the union of workers at the Carbones del Cerrejón company, owned by the multinationals BHP Billiton (Australia), Anglo-American (London) and Glencore/Xstrata (Switzerland). The company mines coal in the Guajira region of Colombia. Read Full Story

From Public Services International (3/27/08)

On 6 March hundreds of thousands of people participated in events in 102 cities in Colombia and around the world in solidarity with the victims of the paramilitary and the crimes of the State. By means of a public communiqué, the Government pointed out that it did not support this demonstration, but offered guarantees for the programmed events to take place. Nevertheless, Mr. Gaviria made public declarations referring to the planned demonstration as a march “convened by the FARC”. Despite a request by the organisers of the 6 March Global Action Day, no Government spokesperson withdrew these assertions. This situation generated an increasingly tense atmosphere which was further exacerbated by the declaration of the paramilitary group, Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia, claiming that guerrillas were responsible for instigating the march. In the lead-up to 6 March, organisations promoting the day of action in Nariño were threatened and on 28 February, gunshots were fired at march organiser, Adriana González, in her apartment in Pereira.

Four trade unionists were assassinated during the week of the 6 March protests:

• Carmen Cecilia Carvajal, teacher. Killed 4 March, in Ocaña.
• Leonidas Gómez Rozo, member of the bankworkers union, Unión Nacional de Empleados Bancarios (Uneb), President of the CITY-BANK Employees Union. Killed on 5 March, in Bogotá.
• Gildardo Gómez Alzate, teacher and activist of the Asociación de Institutores de Antioquia (Adida). Killed 7 March, in Medellín.
• Carlos Burbano, vice-president of the National Hospital Workers’ Union who led the local 6 March demonstrations, disappeared on 9 March in San Vicente del Caguán. His body was found in the municipal rubbish dump, his face disfigured by acid.

Read Full Story

From Afl-Cio Webblog story entitled "Act Now to Stop Colombia Free Trade Deal" (3/24/08)

A Colombian worker in Bogata protests the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement.

With the U.S. economy in near free fall, President Bush has said he will send the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to Capitol Hill and demand a vote before he leaves office next January. Bush has made passing this agreement, which will do next to nothing for the failing U.S. economy, a priority.

Despite objections by the Democratic congressional leadership, the administration may formally send the agreement to Congress as early as next week when Congress returns from its Easter recess on March 31. Under Fast Track trade authority rules, the House of Representatives would likely face an up-or-down vote on the Colombia deal before the end of July.

AFL-CIO President John Sweeney is calling for an all-out nationwide mobilization to let members of Congress know that working Americans oppose this deal because it is wrong for workers in both countries. (Click here to tell your representative to oppose a trade deal with Colombia until their government makes real progress in protecting the lives and rights of union members.)

Says Sweeney:

The Colombia FTA represents a continuation of the Bush administration’s failed trade policies, an agenda that has contributed to the loss of over 3 million manufacturing jobs since 2000, skyrocketing trade deficits and paychecks that are shrinking at an accelerating rate.

Meanwhile, Colombia remains the most dangerous country in the world in which to be a union member—39 trade unionists were murdered in 2007, and another 11 to date in 2008. Of the more than 2,500 murders of trade unionists since 1986, only about 70 cases—around 3 percent—have resulted in convictions. Read Full Story

Act Now! Click Below!!

Read more on what is happening in Colombia at Labourstart

Just the fact that the "independent" lobbyist for Big Business, the US Chamber Of Commerce, has posted a comment on this site which links to their "facts" about Labor Violence in Colombia can help you visualize exactly who stands to gain. Chamber Post even goes as far to state "We believe that free trade IS fair trade and it is time to level the playing field for American workers."

Edward Schumacher-Matos, CEO and editorial director of Meximerica Media, in a Op-Ed piece in the NY Times states in reference to Human Rights Watchs' position on the Colombia FTA, "they are harming Colombian workers in the process. The trade agreement would stimulate economic growth and help all Colombians.". I couldn't help but think of Bill Clinton selling us NAFTA under the "this will bring up the conditions of all workers in Mexico to the standards of the United States" idea.

It was bullshit then, history shows its bullshit now.

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Part 1: Labor in the year 2008, support immigrant farmworkers.

Labor in the year 2008 is a concept that has been on my mind for some time now, I am trying to get to the bottom of the manner in which we as Americans have driven wedges between ourselves, with the help of the main stream media, encouragement of the government and most importantly our own damn selfish and ignorant mannerisms. We stand as a country divided into small separate pieces of what was once a united force of working class families. Here is the first part of a new collection of thoughts on what has changed in the world around us. How we have helped the war against the American worker and what we can do to change the tide before it is too late.

How did we get here?

The year is 2008 and in my life experiences I have seen some changes, but lets go back to what we came from before I was conceived.

I come from an Italian, Irish, Scottish and German background. My grandparents on both side were either union members or in the case of my fathers mother, married to one.

All had a fair slew of children, and while times were hard, with the help of being union members and being part of tight knit communities, they were able to provide for their families.

I can go on about that much more, but heres the main point, one year after Martin Luther King received the Nobel Peace Prize, and 2 after the greatest speech ever told, with a little help from WikiPedia

In 1965, Filipino American farm workers initiated the Delano grape strike on September 8, 1965, to protest in favor of higher wages. Six months later, Chávez and the NFWA led a strike of California grape pickers on the historic farmworkers march from Delano to the California state capitol in Sacramento for similar goals. In addition to the strike, the UFW encouraged all Americans to boycott table grapes as a show of support. The strike lasted five years and attracted national attention.

I was brought up into a family that forever told the story of how absolutely no one would buy California grapes. Not your friends, not your butcher and not your landlord.

We were Americans, be it from Ireland, Italy or the Philippines, we had community and although there were great racial tensions, ignorance and fear. Working people stuck together. Communities of working class people stuck together.

America was healing from the racial divide, labor was on the rise and the American family could eek it bye on one salary.

What happened?

We now have a new slave class. New immigrants who are encouraged by their own governments to enter the country illegally. Why not? The US dollars wind up into the originating countries economy. From the meatpacking industry, construction, farming to service work, illegal immigration is a highly lucrative business. It lets companies get away with having the tax-paying citizens subsidize their own tax burden. It has also thrown back the labor standards into that of a third world country. It is the force that could potentially break the back of organized labor here in the US.

Slavery and/or slave like conditions are getting more widespread in the USA, more than 100 years after it was abolished.

While most of my readers have read about sweatshop construction practices, most recently the 400 or so pipefitters from India who came here for the price of $20,000 a head, were lied to and told that the investment would provide them an eventual Green Card, when all they actually got was an 11 month H2B Visa. The conditions in which they work were deplorable to say the least. Never mind the fact that the Visa's which were issued are for workers when there isn't a qualified American to do the job. I for one know matter of factly that there are quite a few Americans ready, willing and able to do that work. It's a blatant display of outright fucking of the American worker, and the by-product of which is that these Indian workers got screwed in the process.

What have we become?

Why are corporations so monstrous in their methods of totally screwing working people?

When is the beating of the working man and woman in the United States going to end?

Is it going to end?

Well heres a campaign which brings us to the original topic at hand, todays new immigrants on the farms are no longer from the Philippines, but the conditions have not gotten better. In fact according to the AFL-CIO's WebBlog, the tomato fields in South Florida are among the most deplorable slave like working conditions here in the US:

More than 100 years after our nation ended slavery, the mostly immigrant workers who today pick tomatoes for the fast-food industry still are being treated like slaves. They are among the most exploited workers in the country, sometimes held against their will, beaten and forced to work for little or no pay. Thousands more are trying to survive on poverty wages with no sick leave and no freedom to join unions for a better life.

They are fighting back, demanding to be treated fairly, and they need your help. The workers are reaching out to 1 million people to sign a petition demanding that Burger King and food industry leaders work with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) to improve the wages and conditions for the workers who pick tomatoes.

You can act now to urge Burger King to do the right thing and treat these workers with common human decency and respect. Click here to sign the petition to eliminate modern-day servitude in America’s produce fields and join an industry wide effort to eliminate slavery and human rights abuses from Florida’s fields.

We can make a difference, Get E-Active, sign the petition, we owe it to our forefathers who 40 years ago would have boycotted, signing a petition is the least we can do. Here in America we have workers who are enduring...

• poverty wages, rooted in an antiquated piece-rate pay system that hasn’t changed significantly in nearly 30 years;

• long hours without overtime pay when work is available, unemployment and transience when it is not;

• physical abuse and wage fraud by crewleaders, supervisors, and growers;

• damage to body and soul from back-breaking labor, with no employment benefits such as sick days, paid leave, health insurance, or pensions;

• retaliation against workers who protest or organize to alleviate these inhuman conditions;

• and, most shamefully, modern-day slavery, with six successful federal prosecutions of farm labor operations for servitude in Florida over the past decade, and a seventh just initiated, involving well over 1,000 workers and more than a dozen farm employers;

The so-called greatest country in the world, we supposedly go after evil doers. Maybe we should look in the mirror. Our forefathers would have fought for a way for these workers to enter our country legally, would have fought for them to earn an honest living and held them to learn English as the standard language. It suits the big corps well that the division of the working class is widening.

They encourage it with their bipartisan donations and lobbying efforts.

Sphere: Related Content

Urgent E-Action needed, tell your Rep. to stop Colombia FTA! 11 unionists have been killed in Columbia already this year

The Colombia FTA represents a continuation of the Bush administration’s failed trade policies, an agenda that has contributed to the loss of over 3 million manufacturing jobs since 2000- John Sweeney, AFL-CIO President

URGENT E-ACTION NEEDED BY ALL

from Afl-Cio Webblog story entitled "Act Now to Stop Colombia Free Trade Deal" (3/24/08)

A Colombian worker in Bogata protests the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement.

With the U.S. economy in near free fall, President Bush has said he will send the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to Capitol Hill and demand a vote before he leaves office next January. Bush has made passing this agreement, which will do next to nothing for the failing U.S. economy, a priority.

Despite objections by the Democratic congressional leadership, the administration may formally send the agreement to Congress as early as next week when Congress returns from its Easter recess on March 31. Under Fast Track trade authority rules, the House of Representatives would likely face an up-or-down vote on the Colombia deal before the end of July.

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