Unions Plot Major Push After Landmark Labor Ruling

Aug 28 (Reuters) - U.S. union leaders said on Friday that a landmark U.S. labor board ruling on companies' obligations toward contract and franchise workers would help them organize manufacturers and e-commerce companies as well as fast food chains.

On Thursday the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled the owner of a California recycling plant was a "joint employer" with the contractor that hired workers at the plant, essentially forcing both to bargain with the union together or risk violating U.S. labor law.

The Case for Universal Basic Income

Barcelona.

Support for a universal basic income (defined here) is growing. In Europe, for example, the City of Utrecht is about to introduce an experiment that aims “to challenge the notion that people who receive public money need to be patrolled and punished,” in the words of a project manager for the Utrecht city council. Nijmegen, Wageningen, Tilburg and Groningen are awaiting permission from The Hague in order to conduct similar programmes. In Switzerland, the necessary 100,000 signatures have been obtained for holding a referendum on whether Swiss citizens should receive an unconditional basic income of €2,500 per month, independently of whether they are employed or not. On 16 June, the centre-right government of Finland, where 79% of the population is in favour of a universal basic income, made good on its electoral promise and ratified the implementation of an “experimental basic income”. A recent survey in Catalonia (13 to 17 July) shows that 72.3% of the population (basically excepting the right-wing and wealthiest sectors) would support a basic income of €650 per month, and, contrary to a tiresomely hackneyed claim, 86.2% say they would continue working if the measure were introduced. More notably, 84.4% of the unemployed say they’d still want to work.

Why Immigration Reform Has to Go Hand-in-Hand With Stronger Labor Rights

This weekend, President Obama again pushed away the issue of immigration. Despite growing pressure to take executive action to curtail deportations, Obama again swept the lives of millions of immigrants off this fall’s agenda—enraging advocacy groups by heeding his party’s fears of angering right-wing voters before key mid-term elections.

But while politicians dismiss immigration as a third rail, they cruelly ignore the fact that another major election issue, the economic woes plaguing workers, is also an immigration issue.

Venezuela's new labour law: The best Mother's Day gift

Here is some news that the conservative critics of Venezuela's leftist government will not publicize. The Chavistas announced that a new labour law, part of which will grant recognition to non-salaried work traditionally done by women, will come into effect this week. Full-time mothers will now be able to collect a pension.

While there are a number of criticisms to be made of the Venezuelan government, the genius of the Bolivarian process is that it combines numerous forms of struggle against inequality. The most obvious lies in its commitment to economic redistribution, and measured by the Gini co-efficient, Venezuela has the lowest rate of inequality in Latin America. An equally significant form of struggle against inequality, however, lies in its pursuit of gender equity.

CAW-CEP Merger: As Membership Declines, Some Unions Decide To Fight In Unexpected Places

In a bid to reinvent themselves amid flagging influence and a less-than-friendly political atmosphere, unions are increasingly focusing their attention outside their ranks, advocating for workers who don’t have a collective bargaining agreement -- or pay membership dues.

Part outreach and part marketing, the strategy is being lauded by experts who say that to regain relevance, unions must look beyond their traditional base, which is increasingly under siege. But for unions accustomed to organizing large groups of workers under a single roof, it’s also an approach that will require considerable resources and adaptability, reflecting the fundamental nature of the transition that Big Labour is eyeing.

OCI wins injunction against former Marystown workers

Ocean Choice International has been granted a court injunction, ordering former workers at the Marystown fish-processing plant to allow company officials access to the facility.

The former workers have been protesting outside the plant around the clock since it was closed in early December. They have been on a public road leading to the plant since Dec. 22.

Judge Deborah Fry said the protesters can remain, but she ruled that they cannot stop OCI officials from accessing the company’s property. She also said the former workers can not trespass onto OCI’s property

Fry dismissed the union's argument that the company must be prevented from removing equipment from the Marystown plant.

In court last week, the workers’ lawyer said they believe the plant is less likely to ever reopen if equipment is removed from it.

Fry said the union did not give any reason why the company should not be able to enter its own plant.

Original Article
Source: CBC