Working Life

There might be at least one ounce of retribution taken against so-called Democrats who voted for CAFTA. In a shocker, Bill “I Keep $90,000 In My Freezer” Jefferson was denied the endorsement by state party leaders in Louisiana. In an extraordinary vote against an incumbent congressman, Louisiana Democratic Party leaders on Saturday endorsed state Rep. […]

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The long arm of the law–or at least a jury–has caught up again with the law-breakers from Bentonville, also known as the Waltons. As reported by the Associated Press, “the world’s biggest retailer, must pay at least $78.5 million for violating Pennsylvania labor laws by forcing employees to work through rest breaks and off the […]

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For a long time, I have argued that our problem with China is not really the difference in currency nor, on its face, the trade deficit. At heart, the real issue is the truly abysmal working conditions faced by millions of Chinese workers–working conditions that are the reason corporations love China and love moving production […]

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We’ve discussed the impact of Wal-Mart many times here. There is a new book out that I highly recommend: “The Big Box Swindle.” It’s written by Stacy Mitchell who really did a ton of ground-breaking research and organizing around the issue of Wal-Mart long before it was hip and cool to oppose the Beast. I’m […]

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If you ever wondered what will happen if there is a change in political power in Washington D.C., there was no better reason to fear the future after watching last night’s “debate” on Larry King Live between Lou Dobbs, former Republican-turned-crusader for the middle class, and Robert Reich, former Labor Secretary in the Clinton Administration. […]

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I know that with North Korea exploding a nuke and four weeks out from an election I shouldn’t be digressing to such a minor topic as baseball but…Joe Torre should stick around as Yankees’ manager. I can hear the clicking of the mouse as many a reader goes off to another place and, bless you, […]

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Another update from the 26th Congressional district race between Democratic challenger Jack Davis and the Republican Tom Reynolds. The Buffalo News reports that: Democrat Jack Davis has opened a significant lead over Republican incumbent Thomas M. Reynolds in a congressional contest fueled by Reynolds’ association with the Mark Foley sex scandal. Davis leads Reynolds 48 […]

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Last year sometime (the old mind tends to forget when) we had a bit of a discussion about Working America and whether its strategy would work: sign up non-union workers to a kind of close relationship with the AFL-CIO, allowing labor to, then, turn those people out to vote. Steve Greenhouse has a story today […]

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The New York Times editorial page can make me laugh and scream at the same time. This morning, the page has what can only be described as a strong editorial about the attack on unions. Entitled “Kicked While Down,” the editorial comes down on the Bush National Labor Relations Board for its ruling in the […]

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It’s pretty clear to a majority of people that the president operates in a non-reality-based world when it comes to the Iraq war. So it is with the economy as well. Today, he’s visiting a facility of Federal Express in Washington, D.C. to talk about the new job numbers. Now, I understand why he would […]

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