Thursday, June 16, 2005
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Labor issues you care about in streaming video
.

Candle
(streaming | download)
"Candle" pierces the darkness surrounding the SEIU's reason for splitting the labor movement.

A Job-loss Recovery
(streaming | download |)
Long-term joblessness continues to grow even though unemployment rates are falling.

U.S. Debt Means More Than $7.7 Trillion
(streaming | download )
The national debt is growing, but little has been mentioned of the $7.7. trillion U.S. debt.

A Job-loss Recovery
(streaming | download )
Long-term joblessness continues to grow even though unemployment rates are falling.

Bush Continues Privatization Crusade
(streaming | download)
President Bush is back on the road again, attempting to sell his private account scheme. Send a message to your congressional leader.

Bush Fails to Get Tough On China
(streaming | download)
The Bush Administration has declined to accuse China of currency manipulation, but then added it was likely to do so if China does not change its policy.

Video: Act Now and Join the Pension Fight
(streaming | download)
Join the pension fight, contact Congress and urge their support of H.R. 2327.


Mind Games
(streaming | download)
Playing with the American Labor Movement like it was a chess game, dissident union leaders are playing a dangerous game.

Bombs Bursting In Air
(streaming | download)
Last week, Senator Hillary Clinton forced the Pentagon to admit that North Korea could place a nuclear warhead on a missile. On May 1, 2005, North Korea test fired a short missile into the Sea of Japan. This Bombs Bursting In Air video was created in May 2001 to educate IAM members about the proposed National Missile Defense System.

In Remembrance of Our Fallen Brothers and Sisters
(streaming | download)
Family and friends gathered on April 28th at the William W. Winpisinger Center to remember those who lost their lives in the workplace.






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Transportation Day of Action in NYC

IAM members were out in force at the 2005 Transportation Day of Action in New York, NY. (Photo by Bill Burke, Page One Photography)

Nearly 1,000 IAM members opened the 2005 Day of Action with a solemn prayer service at the World Trade Center site and then marched to New York City’s Battery Park to protest the destruction of jobs and pensions in the transportation industry.

“Airlines are using the bankruptcy courts to terminate pensions, wipe out healthcare benefits and destroy a way of life that was once as real as the American Dream,” said IP Tom Buffenbarger. “Railroads are dragging out negotiations for years while workers receive below-market wages and benefits, all with the approval of the Bush Administration. This harassment of America’s transportation workers must stop.”

Speakers at the 2005 Day of Action rally included Eliot Spitzer, New York State Attorney General; Rich Trumka, Secretary-Treasurer, AFL-CIO; Denis Hughes, President, NY State AFL-CIO; and Captain Peter Gorman, President, Uniformed Fire Officers Association.

“Hundreds of thousands of transportation workers must be added to the casualty list of the 9-11 attacks,” said Transportation GVP Robert Roach, Jr. “Today, we vow to continue our fight to defend the power, respect and dignity of transportation workers from greedy corporations who used the 9-11 tragedy as a springboard for a frontal assault on their employees.”

Support Drops for President’s
Social Security Plan

President Bush’s Social Security propaganda machine is hitting a few bumps in the road. Despite his claims that his privatization plan will improve Social Security’s long-term stability and not reduce current benefits, most Americans are seeing through the deception.

More than 6 of 10 respondents, 63 percent, believe that Bush’s plan would not help Social Security’s long-term stability, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News survey. And 56 percent believe the president’s private accounts scheme will reduce overall income for seniors.

Public support for private accounts invested in the stock market is dropping, with fewer than half of Americans supporting the proposal. Since January, the number of respondents who said they don’t like the President’s handling of Social Security climbed seven percentage points to 62 percent.

Report Slams FAA on Safety Oversight

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is failing to keep up with safety risks posed by rampant cost cutting in the airline industry and the growth of low-cost carriers, according to an eye-opening audit by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Inspector General.

The Inspector General’s report cites one unnamed low-fare carrier that expanded its fleet by 56 percent, tripled its number of destinations and increased operations by 59 percent from 2000 to 2003 while it reduced it’s mechanic workforce by 14 percent. Airlines and the FAA disputed the report, claiming aircraft safety and oversight is adequate, despite reduced staffing, increased volumes and intense competition industry-wide to reduce costs.

The FAA admitted its work would be constrained by budget cuts that will result in 300 fewer inspectors this year. According to the Washington Post, the agency asked for money to hire 100 more inspectors for its current inspector workforce of 3,400.

The report recommended increased oversight of carriers that are in or close to bankruptcy and called for increased monitoring of maintenance outsourcing. U.S. airlines closed 42 maintenance facilities between 2001 and 2003 and sent the work to repair facilities around the world.

May Job Numbers Show Slower Growth

Job growth slowed dramatically in May as employers added only 78,000 workers to their payrolls, the smallest increase in almost two years and about 100,000 fewer jobs than economists had predicted. The numbers, released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, were well below April’s job gains of 274,000.

The dramatic falloff in job growth from April to May follows an erratic pattern that the Economic Policy Institute indicates that a convincingly strong labor market recovery has not yet emerged.

With 7,000 jobs lost, May proved to be another hard month for the manufacturing industry. Despite positive movement at the outset of the year, manufacturing employment is now down 48,000 jobs in 2005. Other categories that saw jobs cuts in May included leisure and hospitality, and professional and business positions.

Economists pointed to high-energy prices, cool weather and continued caution among employers as reasons for May’s dismal job growth.

Four Wins For Oklahoma

A celebration at Four Winds Services, from left, Ben Moody, Mike Pearly, Gary Perry, Burt Detwiler, Sharie Vaughn, Edward “Pete” Greene, with Business Representative Tony Bennett. District Lodge 171 in Oklahoma pulled four back-to-back organizing wins.

They started off with Four Winds Services, a Service Contract Act company with 57 employees providing civil engineering at the FAA Monroney Center in Oklahoma City, OK. “Health Insurance costs were a huge factor for the employees,” said District 171 Business Representative Tony Bennett. “And I’d like to thank employee Ben Moody for his work in organizing his fellow workers.

Brother Bennett also led the effort at Raytheon Technical Services, also at the FAA Monroney Center. The 20 employees work in the PMEL (Precision Measuring Electronics Laboratory), calibrating gauges for aircraft. Bennett credited Ralph Ayotte for his hard work.

Two DynCorp, Inc., employees at the Max Westheimer Airport in Norman, OK voted yes for the IAM. These employees launch, recover, and maintain the Army C-12 aircraft.

Twelve people at CSC Computer Science Corp in Enid, OK voted 12-0 to join the IAM and will be included in the master agreement Local Lodge 898 already has with CSC and Trend Western. The previously AWD (Area Wage Determination) workers include Fire Department Fire Chiefs, telephone maintenance workers, buyers, and contract specialists. “They’ll be part of the IAM pension plan. It’s a great deal for them: Fair annual wage raises, better insurance. They are excited to be part of the IAM,” said District 171 DBR Jerry McCune.

“I’d like to welcome our newest IAM members from Oklahoma. Congratulations to both DBR McCune and BR Bennett for their hard work in growing District Lodge 171,” said Southern Territory General Vice President Bob Martinez. “It’s important for our Districts to always be working to bring the benefits of union membership to working families, which strengthens our communities.”

RSS Feeds Part of Website Relaunch

The new www.goiam.org which will be unveiled on July 1, 2005, will use the latest in technology Real Simple Syndication or RSS to deliver information.

”Our members won’t have to wait to get up-to-the minute news,” said Communications Director Rick Sloan. “RSS will let them subscribe to sections of the site and get the latest updates delivered automatically.”

RSS is used to provide short descriptions of web content together with a link to the full version of the content. This information is delivered as an XML file called an RSS feed.

A “ feed reader” or “ aggregator” checks RSS-enabled webpages on behalf of a user and displays any updated articles that it finds. Feed Readers are typically constructed as extensions to a web browsers or as stand-alone programs. Mozilla Firefox is a good web browser with RSS support.

Farmers Cautioned About CAFTA Promises

A new issue brief from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) warns U.S. farmers and agricultural companies, which lost 16,000 jobs under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), about the Bush Administration’s promises of rapidly growing demand for U.S. farm products under the proposed Dominican Republic-Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA).

The study, "Will CAFTA Be a Boon to Farmers and the Food Industry?" compares claims to farmers made by NAFTA supporters with the treaty's actual outcomes. The proposed CAFTA agreement shares many similarities with its predecessor, NAFTA, crafted in the early 1990s. Both have made promises to revitalize the U.S. economy, and the agricultural sector in particular.

However, the study by EPI shows that CAFTA is likely to repeat the legacy of worsening trade flows, declining incomes, and failed promises that have marked NAFTA since ts inception. To learn more about CAFTA, visit http://www.aflcio.org/cafta

Retired District 19 Officer Passes Away

The IAM suffered a great loss on the evening of June 7, 2005, when Norbert Muell, retired Assistant President and Directing General Chairman of IAM District Lodge 19, passed away.

“Norbert Muell was a dear friend to us and this organization, he will be sorely missed,” said District Lodge 19 President and Directing General Chairman Joe Duncan.

It was Norb’s personal request that all memorials be donated to The Guide Dogs of America, an organization for which he was a strong advocate and great contributor.

 


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IAM
Executive Council


Tom Buffenbarger
International President


Warren L. Mart
Secretary-Treasurer


Lee Pearson
GVP Western Territory


Dave Ritchie
GVP Canada


Robert Thayer
GVP Headquarters


Robert Roach,Jr.
GVP Transportation


Lynn Tucker
GVP Eastern Territory


Robert Martinez
GVP Southern Territory


James Brown
GVP Midwest Territory