Labor

Do you remember "Repeal and Replace," "Repeal and Run" and "Skinny Repeal"? Those were all plans pushed by the Senate Republican leaders at the end of July in a frantic, failed attempt to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and make massive cuts in our health care. Millions of working people stood up and spoke out to stop those cuts. Now, however, Republican leaders are back, just as desperate but hopeful they can sneak something through.

The media are calling the new Senate Republican proposal the Graham-Cassidy plan because two of its lead authors are Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.). A more accurate way to think of it is as "Repeal, Replace and Run."

This plan wipes out major parts of the ACA. There are no more federal tax credits to help the middle class pay health insurance premiums. No more Medicaid expansion for low-income working people. No airtight ban on discriminatory premiums for people with pre-existing medical conditions. Insurance companies can impose an age tax by charging older Americans up to five times what they charge young adults. Employers are let off the hook completely: No employer would be required to contribute toward any worker’s health care; but the 40% tax on middle-class worker health benefits would be made permanent.

In place of much of this, the federal government would give out time-limited block grants to states to do with what they please. This money would run out in 10 years, unless Congress votes to extend it. Graham and Cassidy designed these block grants to shift costs to states, providing much less money, on average, than people in a state would get under the ACA. On top of that, they end the federal funding guarantee for Medicaid, the program that covers the more than 70 million people who are struggling the most to make ends meet. They convert federal support for Medicaid to capped amounts per person, which they designed to shrink over time compared to the cost of the medical care that it needed.

Republican leaders are pushing hard to pass something before the end of September. That is when time officially expires on their attempt to repeal the ACA and cut health care using a special rule. This allows them to pass a highly partisan bill with just 50 votes.

Republican leaders are in such a rush that they plan to vote on the bill before they even know fully what the bill will do. Congress' independent budget experts say they will not be ready with an analysis of what the bill does to the federal budget or health care coverage until sometime in October. Congressional Republicans are prepared to do this despite warnings from other experts that this bill could take health care away from as many as 32 million people. This is like buying a used car before you get the Carfax report you ordered. When that report finally comes pointing out all the defects, however, there is no "lemon law" to let the American people return this clunker of a bill.

If you've had enough, call your senators at 888-865-8089 and tell them not to take health care away from millions of Americans.

Finally, after nearly a quarter of a century, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is being renegotiated. This is a good thing. NAFTA is called a "trade deal," but it’s mostly a collection of rules that give corporations more power over the three economies of North America. It gives companies tools to undermine laws and rules that protect America’s working families. It increased threats by U.S. employers to close workplaces and move to Mexico. And once the companies got there, NAFTA provided strict rules for them, but only vague guidelines to protect working people’s rights and freedoms.

NAFTA negotiations have not progressed very far, and it is too early to say whether the effort will bring a New Economic Deal to working people or simply more crony capitalism. But there was some fantastic, surprising, excellent news recently.

The Canadian negotiating team did something big: They told the U.S. negotiators that U.S. laws that interfere with people’s freedom to negotiate on the job are dragging down standards for Canada and need to be abolished. Guess what? Canada is right.

These laws, known as "right to work," are another example of the wealthiest 1% rigging the rules to weaken the freedom of people joining together in union and negotiating with employers for better pay, benefits and conditions at work. Not surprisingly, states with these freedom-crushing laws are less safe and have lower wages, dragging down workplace standards for those in other states, and apparently in Canada, too.

Canada gets the obvious: These laws take away working people’s freedom to join together and raise their wages. Canada is pushing the United States to be fairer to working people, just as the U.S. is pushing Mexico to be fairer to its working people. Will the U.S. negotiators see the light and agree to this proposal in NAFTA? We certainly hope so. It will tell us a lot about who the president stands with: Corporate CEOs or working families?

Learn more about laws that take away working people’s freedom.

MaryBe McMillan becomes the first woman to lead the North Carolina labor movement after being unanimously elected president of the North Carolina State AFL-CIO during the 60th annual convention that wrapped up today.

McMillan has served as secretary-treasurer of the state federation since 2005. She has spearheaded the cause of getting national and international unions to invest in and organize the South. Before beginning her career in the labor movement, she worked with housekeepers trying to organize at North Carolina State University and, after receiving her Ph.D in sociology, did public policy research for several progressive nonprofits. In 2004, she took a job at the AFL-CIO's Union Community Fund, where she met North Carolina State AFL-CIO President James Andrews—beginning a 12-year partnership fighting for working families in North Carolina.

"James has mentored and inspired countless labor leaders and activists in North Carolina and beyond," said McMillan. "For over 40 years, he has fought tirelessly to make our state a better place for working people. Our labor movement is much stronger because of James’ leadership, and so many of us are better leaders because of his example. I know that I am."

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper awarded Andrews the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, the state’s highest honor, for his more than four decades of service to the labor movement.

McMillan knows challenges lie ahead, but she is ready to lead with the support of the most diverse board in history that includes two members from the Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC) and the first LGBTQ member.

"I look forward to working with our affiliates to build the movement we all want—one that is constantly growing, that is both big enough and bold enough to set the agenda and drive our politics, that is unafraid to hold our politicians and our own leaders accountable—a movement with the power to change this state and this nation."

The 60th annual convention featured workshops on storytelling, internal and community organizing, and strategic planning for the future of North Carolina’s labor movement. It also highlighted the debut of a North Carolina labor history exhibit from the Knights of Labor in the 19th century to the Duke Faculty union in 2016.

"I am proud to call the new president of the North Carolina State AFL-CIO my friend," said AFL-CIO Executive Vice President Tefere Gebre. "MaryBe is a champion of working people in North Carolina, and we will stand with her in the fight to ensure we all have the freedom to join together and negotiate. We will march with her to end discrimination at the polls in North Carolina and across America. And we will organize and mobilize across the state and the South."

For highlights from the convention, including photos and video, check out the hashtag #ncafl60.

Every week, we bring you a roundup of the top news and commentary about issues and events important to working families. Here’s this week’s Working People Weekly List.

Support for Labor Unions Is at Decade High, Poll Finds: "Union approval is at its highest level among Americans in a decade—but still not as high as it once was. A Gallup Poll released for Labor Day found 61% of adults in the U.S. approve of labor unions—the highest percentage since 2003, when approval was at 65%. The 2017 approval rate is up 5 percentage points from last year and 13 points above the all-time low of 48% in 2009."

Canada Is Using NAFTA to Demand Protection for U.S. Unions: "As unions and Big Business prepare to square off in the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement, there will be heated debate over the continental trade pact’s impact."

President Trump Has Reached a Compromise with Top Democrats on DACA: "The top House and Senate Democrats said Wednesday they had reached agreement with President Donald Trump to protect thousands of younger immigrants from deportation and fund some border security enhancements—not including Trump’s long-sought border wall."

Poll: Majority Wants Congress to Establish Path to Citizenship for DACA Recipients: "A majority of voters want Congress to pass legislation that allows undocumented immigrants brought to the U.S. as children to become citizens if they meet certain requirements, according to a new Politico/Morning Consult poll conducted following the Trump administration’s decision to wind down the program protecting these so-called Dreamers from deportation."

Labor Unions Are Stepping Up to Fight Deportations: "Yahaira Burgos was fearing the worst when her husband, Juan Vivares, reported to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in lower Manhattan in March. Vivares, who fled Colombia and entered the U.S. illegally in 2011, had recently been given a deportation order. Rather than hide, he showed up at the ICE office with Burgos and his lawyer to continue to press his case for asylum."

Unions Aren't Obsolete, They're Being Crushed by Right-Wing Politics: "Growing up in heavily Republican Missouri years ago, Dawn Burnfin was sure that workers in the modern world didn't need the labor movement. 'I was taught that unions were just a bad deal all the way around,' she said. 'I don't know if anybody specifically took me aside and said, "Hey, unions are bad." It was just the implied attitude of everyone there.'"

OSHA's Claims About Hiding Information on Worker Deaths Fall Flat: "Since January, government agencies under the Donald Trump administration have taken steps to hide information from the public—information that was previously posted and information that the public has a right to know."

AFT Survey Shows Strong Parental Support for Public Schools: "Too often, the voices of the parents of public school children are left out of our national discussions about education. The AFT sought to change this and commissioned a survey that interviewed 1,200 public school parents to learn how they feel about the issues that directly affect their children."

Responding to Harvey and Irma: What Working People Are Doing This Week: "Welcome to our regular feature, a look at what the various AFL-CIO unions and other working family organizations are doing across the country and beyond. The labor movement is big and active—here's a look at the broad range of activities we're engaged in this week."

Working Families Remember 9/11: "On the 16th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, America's working people commemorate those who lost their lives and those who worked tirelessly to help us recover and rebuild. Here are their words...."

RN Response Network to Deploy Additional Nurse Volunteers to Houston Post-Hurricane Harvey: "National Nurses United’s (NNU’s) Registered Nurse Response Network (RNRN), a national network of volunteer nurses, will deploy its second delegation of RN volunteers to Houston, beginning Monday, Sept. 11, to provide medical assistance in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, NNU announced today."

Freelancing Ain't Free: "When is the moment in time for a freelance writer that a late payment becomes wage theft, and what do you do about it?"

Attention, Kentucky: Closing a Pension Is Never a Good Idea: "Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it—and it’s prime time for Kentucky lawmakers to learn a history lesson."

Since January, government agencies under the Donald Trump administration have taken steps to hide information from the public--information that was previously posted and information that the public has a right to know. 

But a recent move is especially personal. Two weeks ago, the agency responsible for enforcing workplace safety and health—the Occupational Safety and Health Administration—removed the names of fallen workers from its home page and has stopped posting information about their deaths on its data page. In an attempt to justify this, the agency made two major claims discussed below. Like many efforts to decrease transparency by this administration, these claims are unfounded, and the agency whose mission is to protect workers from health and safety hazards is clearly in denial that it has a job to do. Here's how:

OSHA claim #1: Not all worker deaths listed on the agency website were work-related because OSHA hasn't issued or yet issued a citation for their deaths.

Fact: It is public knowledge that 1) OSHA doesn't have the jurisdiction to investigate about two-thirds of work-related deaths but does issue guidance on a wide variety of hazards to workers that extend beyond their enforcement reach, and 2) OSHA citations are not always issued for work-related deaths because of a variety of reasons, including limitations of existing OSHA standards and a settlement process that allows employers to remedy certain hazards in lieu of citation. (The laborious process for OSHA to develop standards deserves a completely separate post.) But neither of those points mean the agency cannot recognize where and when workers are dying on the job, and remember and honor those who sought a paycheck but, instead, did not return home to their families.

In fact, the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, also housed in the Department of Labor, counts and reports the number of work-related deaths each year. The agency reported that in 2015, 4,836 working people died of work-related traumatic injury—"the highest annual figure since 2008." So, another agency already has taken care of that for OSHA (whew!). But this is just a statistic. Luckily for OSHA, employers are required to report every fatality on the job to OSHA within eight hours, so the agency has more specific information that can be used for prevention, including the names of the workers and companies involved, similar to the information the public has about deaths that occur in any other setting (outside of work).

OSHA claim #2: Deceased workers' families do not want the names and circumstances surrounding their loved ones' death shared.

Fact: Removing the names of fallen workers on the job is an incredible insult to working families. The shock of hearing that your family member won't be coming home from work that day is devastating enough, but then to hear that their death was preventable, and often the hazards were simply ignored by their employer, is pure torture. The organization made up of family members who had a loved one die on the job has stated repeatedly that it wants the names of their loved ones and information surrounding their deaths shared. It does not want other families to suffer because of something that could have been prevented. The organization has made it very clear that it opposes OSHA's new "out of sight, out of mind" approach.

So why shield this information from the public? We know the Chamber of Commerce and other business groups have long opposed publication of this information. The Trump administration seems to live by very old—and very bad—advice from powerful, big business groups whose agenda it's pushing: If we don't count the impact of the problem or admit there is a problem, it must not exist.

Find out more.

Too often, the voices of the parents of public school children are left out of our national discussions about education. The AFT sought to change this and commissioned a survey that interviewed 1,200 public school parents to learn how they feel about the issues that directly affect their children.

AFT President Randi Weingarten spoke about the survey:

These results match what I hear from parents and communities across the country. There is zero ambiguity when it comes to what parents want for their children’s education: safe and welcoming, well-funded neighborhood public schools that help children develop their knowledge and skills and ensure equal opportunity for all kids. Parents deeply support the public schools their children attend and are happy with the job public schools are doing. And while we will never be satisfied until every public school is a place parents want to send their children, educators want to work, and kids are engaged and happy, these results confirm the sentiment we’ve seen in other recent polls that show support for public education continuing to rise.

It’s striking that the agenda being pushed by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos to defund public education and divert resources to vouchers and other privatization schemes—even when they are cloaked as ‘choice’—is completely at odds with parents’ educational priorities. This is true across every race, political persuasion and area of the country. These results should serve as a clarion call to policymakers to stop defunding our schools and instead deliver on the priorities parents want, to reclaim the promise of public education for all children.

The survey found that public school parents:

• Say that the public schools their children attend provide them with an excellent or good quality education.
• Are satisfied with their children's public schools when it comes to helping their child or children achieve their full potential.
• Favor good quality neighborhood public schools over school choice.
• Say their top priorities are: providing a safe and secure environment for children, making sure students graduate with the knowledge and academic skills to succeed in college, ensuring that all children have the opportunity to succeed, and developing students' critical-thinking and reasoning abilities.
• But they also have concerns about education issues such as: education budget cuts at both the local and federal levels, shifts in funding away from traditional public schools to vouchers and charter schools, increased class sizes, layoffs of teachers and staff, high teacher turnover rates, and cutbacks in art, music, libraries and physical education to focus more on reading and math.
• Say the central challenges facing public schools today are inadequate funding, too much standardized testing, large class sizes and lack of support for teachers.
• Overwhelmingly disapprove of the job Betsy DeVos is doing as education secretary.
• Express the greatest confidence in educators—both teachers and principals—and parent organizations to have the best ideas for public schools.
• When it comes to investments to strengthen public schools, they favor expanding access to career and technical education and other vocational programs that prepare students for jobs, reducing class sizes, providing extra resources and support to turn around struggling neighborhood schools, making sure school curriculums include art and music, providing health and nutrition services to low-income children through their public school, improving mentoring for new or struggling teachers, increasing the number of community schools, and providing high-quality preschool to all 3- and 4-year-olds.

Read more about the findings.

Welcome to our regular feature, a look at what the various AFL-CIO unions and other working family organizations are doing across the country and beyond. The labor movement is big and active—here's a look at the broad range of activities we're engaged in this week.

Actors' Equity:

We remember and honor those we lost, today and always. #NeverForget pic.twitter.com/OMCAgUIRPF

— Actors' Equity (@ActorsEquity) September 11, 2017

AFGE:

AFGE activists are among the thousands of union members supporting victims of #Harvey and #Irma. https://t.co/TfkpgqLMMH #1u #HarveyRelief

— AFGE (@AFGENational) September 12, 2017

AFSCME:

AFSCME members helped Floridians cope with #HurricaneIrma & are ready to assist communities recover from the storm. https://t.co/ABG6aFjkWo pic.twitter.com/ypccPqEyYy

— AFSCME (@AFSCME) September 11, 2017

AFT:

#Harvey and #Irma remind us of the long-lasting impact of disaster and trauma on kids. https://t.co/eVu79snbz2

— AFT (@AFTunion) September 12, 2017

Air Line Pilots Association:

Pilots, ALPA’s P4P fund provides members with emergency financial relief. Apply here for assistance: https://t.co/l3aLUcZYzs #hurricaneimra

— ALPA (@WeAreALPA) September 12, 2017

Alliance for Retired Americans:

Next #NAFTA talks set for Sep. 23-27 in Canada. We need an agreement that benefits Americans, not a #TPP look-alike. https://t.co/XMNAWTYzxV pic.twitter.com/1EwnATfsNS

— Alliance Retirees (@ActiveRetirees) September 11, 2017

Amalgamated Transit Union:

#Detroit Bus Drivers Expose Deplorable Working Conditions: Rodents, Bed Bugs, Spitting And Assaults https://t.co/D2MDmDxSNq #publictransit

— ATU, Transit Union (@ATUComm) September 12, 2017

American Federation of Musicians:

All of us deserve the freedom to join unions & right to work laws take away that freedom. Go Canada! https://t.co/yjyGzWkdL8 via @slate

— Amer. Fed. Musicians (@The_AFM) September 7, 2017

Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance:

Please donate to emergency funds for the undocumented community in the #DMV: https://t.co/vogdCPV6zk @APALADC

— APALA (@APALAnational) September 11, 2017

Association of Flight Attendants-CWA:

Our heroes on those 4 fateful flights acted as first responders. Today highlights the tremendous bravery of Flight Attendants. #NeverForget pic.twitter.com/momwoIbgSV

— AFA-CWA (@afa_cwa) September 11, 2017

Aviation Safety Specialists:

PASS members look out for one another. Thanks @Douglas_Lowe_13, ChapFL1. Fed employees on the job during #Irma2017 @PASSRegionII @FAANews https://t.co/FzC53LFt6W

— PASS (@PASSNational) September 9, 2017

Bricklayers:

BAC joined brothers and sisters from @LCLAA and @AFLCIO to #defendDACA. #HereToStay https://t.co/aBAE0y5J98

— Bricklayers Union (@IUBAC) September 7, 2017

North America's Building Trades Unions:

Preach, John. PRRREEEAAACH!!! https://t.co/2QOdTs6lyP

— The Building Trades (@BldgTrdsUnions) September 11, 2017

California School Employees Association:

Dreamers contribute to our economy, our diversity and our growth as a society. @CSEA_Now will protect all students: https://t.co/u770QFUX7K

— CSEA (@CSEA_Now) September 5, 2017

Communications Workers of America:

CWAers at @ATT are at the #AppleEvent to stand up for a fair contract & fight against layoffs & offshoring. #1u ✊ https://t.co/edtcMotqrA

— CWA (@CWAUnion) September 12, 2017

CWA Printing Sector:

The devastation of these storms will affect many. Here is one CWA members home in Houston. See below to find out... https://t.co/DEDoQGNLBJ

— CWA Printing Sector (@CWAPrintingSect) September 11, 2017

Department for Professional Employees:

Unions of professionals are standing with Houston and supporting the relief effort. #1u #HarveyRelief https://t.co/63hsuxQ6Nh

— DPE (@DPEaflcio) September 10, 2017

Electrical Workers:

#IBEW linemen race to restore power in #Irma ’s wake https://t.co/lUDTW9EJfu

— IBEW (@IBEW) September 12, 2017

Farm Labor Organizing Committee:

At #FLOC50 Farmworker convention in Toledo youth/young adult program "Homies" teaches human rights & skills for leadership!! @SupportFLOC pic.twitter.com/oVDWMwDbke

— Sharon Stanley-Rea (@StanleyRea) September 9, 2017

Fire Fighters:

#IAFF staff has established operations @CapeFireL2424 to help with #Irma Relief efforts in Florida #IAFFRelief pic.twitter.com/SSm8vb1xIj

— IAFF (@IAFFNewsDesk) September 12, 2017

Ironworkers:

Members of Iron Workers Local 46 (Springfield, IL) help build 9/11 memorial https://t.co/5Wy3wpWl9a #September11

— Ironworkers. (@TheIronworkers) September 11, 2017

Jobs with Justice:

Troubling news: the #wagegap continues to widen between black and white men. https://t.co/A3JBdzt7il #BlackWorkMatters pic.twitter.com/PL7qgv9Q7P

— Jobs With Justice (@jwjnational) September 12, 2017

Laborers:

#Infrastructure priorities in the wake of #HurricaneIrma #RebuildRenew https://t.co/oA2DWFdz9P

— LIUNA (@LIUNA) September 11, 2017

LCLAA:

"If there is someone that has the elements & tools to fight back, it is Labor & it is #LCLAA" - @Hesanche LCLAA Executive Director #LCLAA45

— LCLAA (@LCLAA) September 8, 2017

Machinists:

A look inside the events of #September11th from the eyes of @MachinistsUnion members. #1u

Our documentary: https://t.co/O2BsfCgmn9

— Machinists Union (@MachinistsUnion) September 11, 2017

Metal Trades Department:

Working People at Their Best as Hurricane Harvey Delivers Havoc in Major Portions of Texas; Here’s One Way to Help https://t.co/6GyHR5aEaH

— Metal Trades Dept. (@metaltradesafl) September 10, 2017

Musical Artists:

To those affected by #HurricaneHarvey & #HurricaneIrma the #AGMAReliefFund can help w/ emergency assistance https://t.co/QWhp2IuD6O pic.twitter.com/owl3aa3Ltm

— AGMA (@AGMusicalArtist) September 10, 2017

National Air Traffic Controllers Association:

Over the weekend #NATCA volunteers worked with @AARPcares to #EndSeniorHunger with a goal of 1.5M meals! Ready. Set. Pack! 📦❤️@NATCAevp pic.twitter.com/gAyXKuakpB

— NATCA (@NATCA) September 11, 2017

National Association of Letter Carriers:

Bring strength to life. Help @MDAnews reach its goal for #MuscleWalks across the US by registering for a fall event: https://t.co/v7tPnf0LPR pic.twitter.com/KMp1J0tsfn

— Letter Carriers (@NALC_National) September 6, 2017

National Domestic Workers Alliance:

Big hug and TY to everyone who has participated in @WomenBelong #MomsResist fast! https://t.co/nSpO7xrevP

— Domestic Workers (@domesticworkers) September 8, 2017

National Guestworker Alliance:

#DACA cancellation continues Trump's politics of hatred & white supremacy - and we will #resist https://t.co/te5r7tJwMo #heretostay pic.twitter.com/5DyGZL8rBM

— GuestworkerAlliance (@NGAdignity) September 5, 2017

National Nurses United:

Press Release: RN Response Network to Deploy Additional Nurse Volunteers to Houston Post-Hurricane #Harvey https://t.co/n1VRwH3w5a pic.twitter.com/XTIllti8PG

— NationalNursesUnited (@NationalNurses) September 8, 2017

National Taxi Workers Alliance:

ACT for America’s anti-Muslim campaign is anti-American. #CounterACTHate with us here: https://t.co/nrbSC8ry8U

— NY Taxi Workers (@NYTWA) September 11, 2017

The NewsGuild-CWA:

Freelancers are interested in what a union can do for them. More and more places are using & abusing journalists who #freelance. #EIJ17 pic.twitter.com/ICsq8g0COG

— NewsGuild (@news_guild) September 8, 2017

NFL Players Association:

ICYMI: @JJWatt of @HoustonTexans won Week 0 #CommunityMVP for raising over $30 million for Hurricane Harvey victims https://t.co/jmmGxLlgSW pic.twitter.com/a0OvP6NpWC

— NFLPA (@NFLPA) September 11, 2017

Painters and Allied Trades:

Support & talking about mental health & raising awareness all help to end the mental health stigma @NAMICommunicate https://t.co/0kdtBU7mYT pic.twitter.com/X26yUt3tSB

— GoIUPAT (@GoIUPAT) September 8, 2017

RWDSU:

We're out campaigning for @NYCCouncil candidates across #nyc 4 the #nycprimary we'll be posting photos here all day! 1st up @DianaAyala2017 pic.twitter.com/xjN2go4iLD

— RWDSU (@RWDSU) September 12, 2017

SAG-AFTRA:

Click the link for information on the fund and how #sagaftramembers can receive assistance: https://t.co/VZxajDHg3d #HurricaneHarvey pic.twitter.com/ISoJzSYfQ9

— SAG-AFTRA (@sagaftra) September 11, 2017

School Administrators:

Chance the Rapper announced that his nonprofit organization has raised $2.2 million for #Chicago schools. https://t.co/muOzdUFpjl pic.twitter.com/I5egTEqnsF

— AFSA Leadership (@AFSAUnion) September 10, 2017

Seafarers:

Solidarity Center:

Cotton harvest begins in #Uzbekistan. Guess who's being forced into the fields this year! https://t.co/mOmrn5MKEa #rights @cottoncampaign

— Solidarity Center (@SolidarityCntr) September 12, 2017

Theatrical Stage Employees:

The #IATSE has donated another $10,000 for financial assistance to members affected by #HurricaneIrma: https://t.co/V8v5rdxf9P

— IATSE (@IATSE) September 11, 2017

Transport Workers:

#Irma has caused 12,500 flight cancellations, and there are more to come: https://t.co/rFfKVZ4N54 #1u

— TWU (@transportworker) September 11, 2017

Transportation Trades Department:

These @Uber & @Lyft drivers deserve their chance at fair pay and representation on the job. #1u https://t.co/wvfEXugKLj

— Transp. Trades Dept. (@TTDAFLCIO) September 12, 2017

UAW:

Check out this new blog post from https://t.co/Gt7c4AEmb0! Congressional Leaders to Hear Grad Worker Testimony on... https://t.co/Dhpep3hEvu

— UAW (@UAW) September 11, 2017

United Food and Commercial Workers:

It’s time for the broader Democratic Party to embrace this lesson. @thenation https://t.co/aESvFXdM8h

— UFCW (@UFCW) September 12, 2017

Union Label and Service Trades Department:

Union members in Texas helping those affected by Harvey. #solidarity #1u https://t.co/vUnXUEdGpe

— Union Label Dept. (@ULSTD_AFLCIO) September 11, 2017

Union Sportsmen's Alliance:

Union Veterans Council:

If you have put your life on the line for your country, you should not worry about being deported #DefendDACA Defend our DACA VETS pic.twitter.com/ofEx0go9gf

— UnionVeteransCouncil (@unionveterans) September 6, 2017

UNITE HERE:

#BREAKING: pro-pharma transparency bill #SB17 has passed out of the CA Assembly. #ONWARD to the Governor's desk! pic.twitter.com/x1aK7QWj7S

— UNITE HERE (@unitehere) September 12, 2017

United Steelworkers:

Pls chip in for members in the Caribbean & across the South are hurting from hurricanes: https://t.co/OUVW1bX9BR. https://t.co/WIq5PfZ5nD

— United Steelworkers (@steelworkers) September 12, 2017

United Students Against Sweatshops:

Why do our universities continue to preach Liberalism while refusing to allow democratic rights to workers? https://t.co/wJTpko04Gu

— USAS (@USAS) September 11, 2017

Working America:

The clock is ticking on DACA. Here’s how young immigrants and their advocates are fighting back. #DefendDACA https://t.co/S4JDFNKEuJ

— Working America (@WorkingAmerica) September 11, 2017

Writers Guild of America, East:

We stand with #IBEWLocal3's 1,700 @GetSpectrum workers from NY & NJ who are on strike because the company wants to cut their benefits #1u pic.twitter.com/zf6erULHpU

— Writers Guild East (@WGAEast) September 10, 2017

On the 16th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, America's working people commemorate those who lost their lives and those who worked tirelessly to help us recover and rebuild. Here are their words:

Union Veterans Council:

Today marks 16 years since four coordinated attacks on American soil shaped and changed our country as a whole. Two thousand nine hundred and ninety-six American lives were lost and more than 6,000 others were injured as a direct result of those attacks. America as a whole lost its sense of safety and security on September 11, 2001.

Since that day we have been at war, a war that has no end in sight. Millions of young men and women have volunteered and continue to volunteer to serve their country and defend the ideas we hold so dear. Many of those soldiers paid the ultimate sacrifice. Many came home with injuries, ones you can see and so many you cannot.

This war has created a new generation of American veterans who have faced new and difficult struggles. We must insure that these veterans have the support and resources to be able to transition into civilian life, so they can achieve the American Dream.

Today, we honor the ones that we have lost, both at home and abroad and pledge to NEVER FORGET.

Fire Fighters:

“We will always remember their service, their dedication and their courage in the face of one of the most horrific moments in our union’s history,” said General President Harold Schaitberger. “We will never forget the supreme sacrifice made by our New York fire fighters who risked their lives to save others on that fateful day.”

Other unions and organizations memorialized the day on Twitter:

We honor & remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice on 9/11 & in the days, weeks & years that have followed. We will #neverforget. pic.twitter.com/Jzr3E4W6xF

— NYC CLC (@CentralLaborNYC) September 11, 2017

U.S. & FDNY flags are carried across the Brooklyn Bridge by #FDNY members in remembrance of 9/11/01 #NeverForget pic.twitter.com/NyAuGAg430

— FDNY (@FDNY) September 11, 2017

Join us in our vow to #NeverForget September 11th and all those we've lost. pic.twitter.com/jf05LyNzan

— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) September 11, 2017

Today and every day, we remember our fallen. #NeverForget pic.twitter.com/OWChavZSvs

— IAFF Canada (@IAFFCanada) September 11, 2017

Never forget. pic.twitter.com/h3xUSrIjl7

— Laborers Local 79 (@local79nyc) September 11, 2017

Today and everyday we remember those who lost their lives on September 11th and honor the courage of our brave American heroes. #NeverForget pic.twitter.com/kk1FVdswAm

— Local 338 RWDSU/UFCW (@Local338) September 11, 2017

#FDNY members observe a moment of silence at #Engine205 #Ladder118 #NeverForget pic.twitter.com/p26EmtNDjA

— FDNY (@FDNY) September 11, 2017

On #September11, we remember all who lost their lives, esp our 43 sisters & brothers working at the top of the World Trade Center. #1u pic.twitter.com/JKGuHg7qOl

— UNITE HERE (@unitehere) September 11, 2017

We #NeverForget our CWA, @AFA_CWA & @NABETCWA members who lost their lives on #September11th. We honor the fallen & fight for the living 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/vF5TR9tTKW

— CWA (@CWAUnion) September 11, 2017

Today we remember those who perished in the horrific terrorist attacks on #September11th. #NeverForget https://t.co/ADJWAKxQ8I pic.twitter.com/elbdblTBf2

— AFGE (@AFGENational) September 11, 2017

Today we remember all our union brothers & sisters, & all the victims who lost their lives on September 11, 2001. We’ll #NeverForget. pic.twitter.com/1fXDYCNjFi

— United Steelworkers (@steelworkers) September 11, 2017

This morning, the AFA Honor Guard remembered our heroes at the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial. Watch: https://t.co/g0PBnBZuEn #NeverForget pic.twitter.com/LBgl5QLNWz

— AFA-CWA (@afa_cwa) September 10, 2017

.@TWULocal100 honors the MTA workers who went to Ground Zero on 9/11 https://t.co/ayO0JmtzmR pic.twitter.com/uTFAAZr3cb

— NYDN Transit (@NYDNTransit) September 11, 2017

No Day Shall Erase You From The Memory Of Time #NeverForget #September11th pic.twitter.com/C32BmkCuSK

— United Airlines ALPA (@UnitedPilots) September 11, 2017

National Nurses United’s (NNU’s) Registered Nurse Response Network (RNRN), a national network of volunteer nurses, will deploy its second delegation of RN volunteers to Houston, beginning Monday, Sept. 11, to provide medical assistance in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, NNU announced today.

"What we know from RNRN’s work in previous disaster-stricken areas, including Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, as well as post-earthquake Haiti and super typhoon Haiyan, is that after an initial surge of volunteers, many people have to return to work. That is true in this case, as well as some volunteers being pulled to Florida, to address the impending Hurricane Irma," said RNRN Director Bonnie Castillo.

"Yet, the disaster didn’t end for Texans still in the recovery process. So our next round of volunteer nurses will be deploying to help continue ensuring enough medical aid exists on the ground for those impacted by Hurricane Harvey."

The current team of RNRN volunteer nurses will be providing medical assistance at Houston’s NRG Center. They are being deployed on the heels of an initial advance team of RNRN volunteers, who provided care at the George R. Brown Convention Center and the NRG Center in Houston and traveled to the nearby, hard-hit community of Beaumont, where they helped to set up a clinic and also provided care to residents of an assisted living community who were in need of medical aid. The advance team was able to work with local officials to help identify the need for another team of RN volunteers.

"The reason why I became a nurse is that I have always felt compelled to help those in need in the worst moments of their lives," said Cleveland, Ohio, RN Lisa Nguyen, who will deploy with the Sept. 11 delegation. "Disaster relief and humanitarian work is something I’ve always wanted to use my skills for, and when the opportunity arose to go to Texas and help with Hurricane Harvey came about, I knew I had to go. This fulfills the calling of why I became a nurse."

"I hope to provide some healing to residents of Houston," said volunteer RN Dotty Nygard, of Tracy, California, who will also deploy Sept. 11. "That’s what we do, as nurses; we go where we’re needed, and we help. I’m proud to be a member of RNRN because we can use our expertise at a crucial time when people are hurting and suffering."

RNRN also will monitor carefully the dangerous path of Hurricane Irma, to assess whether RNRN volunteers are needed in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma.

When is the moment in time for a freelance writer that a late payment becomes wage theft, and what do you do about it?

For A.J. Springer, who recently moved to the District of Columbia, the line was April 27, 2017, when he went public in a Chicago Tribune news story about the $1,755 owed him at the time for pieces he wrote for the magazines Ebony and Jet.

It’s hard to step forward as a freelance writer, and publicly demand payment. "A lot of people were uneasy or afraid to speak out. There are no protections for freelancers, and a lot of people are afraid of losing future work," Springer said.

The Establishment first broke the nonpayment story, which spurred Larry Goldbetter, president of the National Writers Union (NWU)/UAW Local 1981, to start emailing and calling writers to say his union could help.

The NWU has a long history of fighting for freelance writers, filing suit against media companies in the 1990s to win back pay for those whose works had been sold and resold to databases. (Some writers actually received checks in the mail, out of the blue. As a freelance writer at the time in Boulder, Colorado, I was one of them.)

When Goldbetter reached Springer, he immediately joined the NWU, and so did other unpaid Ebony and Jet freelance writers.

Goldbetter says the list has been growing week by week since the campaign to get Ebony and Jet to pay hit the mainstream.

Six writers had come forward in early May. After Labor Day, the NWU filed a lawsuit against Ebony Media Operations and its parent company, Clear View Group, for allegedly violating the contracts of 37 freelance writers, editors and others who are collectively owed more than $70,000. The case was filed in Cook County, Illinois.

"Oftentimes, freelancers are at the mercy of the publications they write for," Goldbetter said. "They often lack union protections other workers have and many are afraid of being blackballed for speaking up about nonpayment."

Earlier in August, the National Association of Black Journalists presented Ebony with its Thumbs Down award, and unpaid Ebony writers attended the conference for free.

The decision to go public has paid off, at least in part, for Springer. He received about $1,100. He's one of the writers suing the magazines.

Early in his journalism career, when Springer was still a high school student in Las Vegas, he learned of the power of the press. He interviewed the new school superintendent, who used a racial epithet. When the story broke, the superintendent was fired.

Now, with a master’s degree and more than a decade of paid writing and radio work behind him, Springer is thoughtful about a different kind of power—the kind you build together, through communication.

"When this issue came up, I was in a position to speak loudly and boldly," he said. And so he did. "I knew if I lost any potential work, I’d be OK. It was important to organize and to speak out."