The unemployment rate held steady at 10 percent for the month of December – but only because more people dropped out of the workforce. The U.S. Department of Labor reports the economy shed 85,000 jobs last month. But, had 661,000 people – discouraged by the downward economy – not given up looking for work, the
Read moreThree of the four students who faced extraordinary abuse and harassment in 1960 when they sat down at a whites-only lunch counter in Greensboro, NC, will return to the city as guests of honor when the AFL-CIO holds its annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday Observance. The January 14-18 event, which draws labor and civil
Read moreThe IAM Collective Bargaining Department will hold its “Metal Trades Training Program” May 2-7, 2010 at the William W. Winpisinger Education & Technology Center in Southern Maryland. This Program is being offered to all IAM Locals and Districts affiliated with Metal and Atomic Trades Councils. All potential participants must have prior approval from their District
Read moreCBS Evening News this week featured the efforts by IAM and its members to preserve more than 1,000 jobs at a pair of Pratt & Whitney facilities in Connecticut which the aerospace company says are not profitable enough to remain open. The news segment, Fighting Closure in Connecticut, is part of a larger look at
Read moreAn extension of the 65 percent COBRA subsidy was signed into law by President Obama on December 19, 2009. This extension extends the eligibility window for the subsidy until February 28, 2010, and also increases the subsidy period for laid-off workers to 15 months of coverage, up from the current nine months. Under the new
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