IN THIS EDITION:
- The Maine AFL-CIO Legislative Scorecard Is Online!
- UAW Announces Proposed Tentative Agreement with GM
- Senator Jackson Discusses Worker Organizing in the North Woods
- Tribute Performance to Pete Seeger — Oct. 27th
The Maine AFL-CIO Legislative Scorecard Is Online!
Is your local legislator a champion for working people or a lackey for the 1%? Find out in the 2019 Maine AFL-CIO Working Families Legislative Scorecard! Most union members should have received the new scorecard in the mail, but if you missed it or want to send it along to your friends and family, this site allows you to easily look up your local representative or senator to find out how they voted on key legislation such as collective bargaining rights, prevailing wages and paid time off bills. So check out your legislators' scores and thank them if they've stood up for workers or express your disappointment if they haven't!
UAW Announces Proposed Tentative Agreement with GM
After five weeks of intense negotiations and a 31-day strike of nearly 50,000 workers, United Auto Workers negotiators announced Wednesday that it had reached a proposed tentative agreement with General Motors. The Detroit Free Press reports that the union won many of its demands, including a no changes to health insurance, a path to permanent employment for temporary autoworkers, a faster route to top pay for workers hired after 2007 and a flattened pay structure for permanent employees, "who would reach $32.32 per hour by the end of the four-year deal."
The elected negotiators voted to recommend that the UAW GM National Council accept the agreements, but the strike will continue until the contract is approved. The nationwide strike has been the largest walk-out at GM since 1970 and has so far cost the company $1.5 billion. Union leader Billy Quigg, who for eight years tried to persuade his coworkers at the Chattanooga Volkswagen plant to join the UAW, says the solidarity of the GM workers and the effectiveness of their collective action has even inspired workers who had previously voted against unionizing.
"Seeing the UAW workers fight back against GM, it opens their eyes a little bit because they don't realize the power you have as a labor if you withhold labor,” he told the American Prospect. “One of the best things about it is to see all the anti-union points and all the points they've always made and seeing how you are able to show, point-blank, these are lies, they are all false, and they are all there to scare you.”
Senator Jackson Discusses Worker Organizing in the North Woods
Senate President Troy Jackson took time out of his busy schedule this week to speak to the national AFL-CIO’s State of the Union podcast about how his struggles against wealthy timber barons in the North Woods moved him to take the fight to Augusta. Earlier this year, union members turned out to support loggers and haulers as they courageously testified in support of legislation that gives them the right to collectively bargain through the recently formed New England Loggers Cooperative.
Troy says the loggers and haulers are beginning to understand the meaning of worker solidarity through their organizing and the support of other unions. Troy’s story is a poignant example of why we need more class conscious union members in elected office.
Performance Celebrating the Legacy of Pete Seeger — Oct. 27th
The late musician Pete Seeger was a staunch advocate for working people, playing classic labor anthems like “Solidarity Forever” and “Which Side Are You On?” at countless union rallies and marches during his long career. Canadian actor Mark Hellman (AFM, CAEA) will portray the legendary troubadour in “Pete Seeger’s The Imcompleat Folksinger” on Sunday October 27th at 3 p.m. at the Maine Irish Heritage Center in Portland.
The two-act "musical memoir" is entirely in Seeger’s own words from his collective writings and feature all or part of 29 of his favorite songs from 1935 to 1970. The audience is invited to join in the singing, turning the show into a “hootenanny of epic proportions.” The show is cosponsored by the Southern Maine Labor Council and the Hornswoggle Theatre.
Tickets for the show are $15 for the general public and $10 for seniors, students and Maine Irish Heritage Center members. Children under 14 are admitted free. Tickets can be purchased online at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/4325552 or by calling 1-800-838-3006. Tickets can also be purchased at the door. For more information contact Harlan Baker at hbaker2@maine.rr.com or 207-712-0228.