In These Times Magazine’s staff get their union cards.

This was the big news on Tuesday. It felt like everyone was talking about on Twitter, but Dave Jamieson had a piece up at Huffington Post. In These Times Magazine joined the Communications Workers of America; their local is Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild, which also represents the Washington Post, the Baltimore Sun, and Bloomberg BNA. Not surprisingly the decision to unionize was unanimous about staff and was unopposed by the magazine’s management. Staffers hope that representation through CWA will give them a greater voice if they face another financial squeeze. 

UFCW is considering rejoining the AFL-CIO next month

I know. I read that and went what? But it looks like it is true. Mike Elk had the exclusive for In These Times. I know what you’re thinking, wait they are separate to begin with? Just kidding, I make my own fun.

The UFCW (United Food and Commercial Workers) broke off from the AFL-CIO (American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations) back in 2005, but UFCW frequently cooperates with the AFL-CIO because that’s kind of how things have to be done to get anywhere. However, Elk’s sources within the AFL-CIO say the UFCW are in talks to rejoin the AFL-CIO bringing its 1.3 million members with it. The UFCW are expected to vote at the annual convention in Chicago this August, and it is expected to pass because of the support from leadership.

So back in 2005, several large unions split from the AFL-CIO including the UFCW, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the Brotherhood of Carpenters, the Laborers’ Union, Unite Here, and the United Farm Workers of America to form Change to Win, a rival federation. There is some controversy over the split including allegations an underlying motivation was to cut down on dues; Change to Win charges about half the dues per member as the AFL-CIO does.

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka has pushed for the reunification of the labor movement (and its 14 million members) since his election in 2009 so this would be a pretty big victory for him. Change to Win has lost some of its membership including Unite Here, who voted to rejoin the AFL-CIO. However, the UFCW would be the largest to come back. Elk rightly points out this begs the question: will any of the other members, the SEUI, the Teamsters, or the United Farmworkers, enter talks to rejoin the AFL-CIO? Elk’s requests for comment went unanswered.

Trumka has courted the UFCWs for a while; memorably back in March when he joined the UFCW in criticizing the Obama administration public relations event emphasizing jobs for returning veterans with Wal-Mart. UFCW launched Our Wal-Mart.

The details of the potential union aren’t known yet. Elk expects the AFL-CIO to offer some kind of deal like discounted dues, as motivation. Other discussions to be had are about leadership, where UFCW officers will fit in and if the AFL-CIO will take on issues the UFCW cares about.

The Wal-Mart question is where this all gets the most interesting. The AFL-CIO have vast resources, which could be used to really take on Wal-Mart, but at this point we don’t know how much of their resources will be devoted to that. All that said, Wal-Mart isn’t going down without a fight, and it will probably be bad. As we've seen with before and most recently with their threats to the DC Council.

I go back on forth on labor unification. Part of me thinks labor (like everyone) is more powerful when acting as one. Of course, this can happen through coalition building. There is also a history of a power struggle within organized labor with special populations not getting much attention, recognition, or power. Of course, at this point everyone recognizes that low-wage women and people of color are the future of organized labor. But that means, old labor is going to have to be more inclusive, and while they are running to embrace the low-wage retail and service industry, I haven't seen them do quite as much in other highly gendered and raced fields such as home health aids and domestic care work. The later of which has been scoring some pretty huge victories in recent years with the Domestic Workers' Bill of Rights (New York, Hawaii, and Oregon have passed it with California still trying, I think). I’m looking forward to what is going to happen.

Fashion Police writers are on strike

Once, I lived with a woman who loved pop culture. I too love to read Perez Hilton’s site because often it is a hot mess, and that just makes everyone feel a little better. However, M was a pretty big fan of entertainment TV, which is the only reason I find Joan Rivers relevant at all. Rivers is famous for a variety of things from The Tonight Show to Fashion Police. I’ve never watched the latter because I don’t care. However, Kelly Osbourne, Giuliana Rancic, George Kotsiopoulos, and Melissa Rivers are all affiliated with the show, and the show is in the news.

According to Sarah Jaffe’s piece at In These Times, the writers for the E! Network show claim their bosses ignore California wage-and-hour laws have underpaid them by $1.5 million. The writers say their strike will continue until Fashion Police signs a Writers Guild of America contract, which would provide them with union protections and industry-standard wages and benefits. So working for TV sucks, I guess many people think that working on TV is awesome, but these are people I’ve never understood. In reality, writers, particularly, work long hours and are often pressured not to share information about their working conditions with the added pressure of having to be funny and talented all the time.

Like many TV writers and producers, Fashion Police writers can work 16-hour days, however according to the complaint they filed with California’s Division of Labor Standards Enforcement they aren’t paid overtime and often these hours go uncompensated. The writers are employed by both E! and Rivers’ production company (Rugby Productions). The Writers Guild of America (WGA) West President Chris Keyser released a statement, “Throughout our history, prominent members of the guild have stood up for their fellow writers to ensure they are treated fairly and compensated properly…Unfortunately, this has not been the case with Ms. Rivers.”

The WGA is backing the strikers and notified all its members that under its Working Rule 8, everyone is prohibited from writing for the show while the strike is underway. The new programming (reality TV and “nonfiction” TV) has meant a shift in the working conditions for the writers and producers. These shows appeal to execs because they are cheap and often non-union. Scripted dramas are usually scripted and well compensated. Writers and producers on these “nonfiction” programs call them “white-collar sweatshops.” However, getting on a high rated show is a step in moving up the ladder even if the conditions are shitty.

Because of this, some non-WGA writers might be tempted to replace the strikers, but striker Eliza Skinner posted on her blog:

“If you work the jobs when we’re on strike the company has no reason to fix the situation. If you are good enough to work the job now, you’ll be good enough in a month. By that time, the pay rate for the exact same job could be 6 times as much. If you don’t wait, it might never get there. In a competitive industry it can be hard to convince workers to stand together, and in relatively high-end positions that can seem like unattainable dream jobs, it can be difficult to convince workers to make demands of their employers. Reporting for AlterNet in 2011, I spoke to a freelance nonfiction TV producer who called her job “a labor of love” and explained that such love of the job can convince writers and producers to pus in extra hours—but those extra hours quickly become the norm.”

Of course in an economic climate where workers are told they should be grateful to have any employment, jobs in the entertainment industry can appear to be a luxury, but these shows are very profitable. The strike is an escalation in the tactics the guild is pushing to organize workers in this sector, as workers aim to improve their conditions. Jaffe asserts their organizing successes can be a lesson for those who aim to organized high-status, high-stress, high turnover white-collar jobs. Fingers crossed, that the strikers win their dispute, and improve their working conditions. . Eliza Skinner writes, “We’re fighting not just for our jobs, but for future writers too. That is you, future writer.”

Mike Elk: Labor God

Seriously, just read everything he has written for In These Times. 

His new article is an expose on the Koch brothers and how they manipulate their employees into voting and advocating on behalf of Republican candidates. Most of what Elk covers is conventional for Walmart like corporations, since Citizen's United, which paved the way for all of this. 

He naturally says it much better than me. Read, swoon. 

Below is one of the really interesting parts on corporate free speech:

In the new era ushered in by Citizens United, Koch Industries is not the only company seeking to control its employees’ political activities, including speech, lobbying efforts, donations and votes. 

This week, Gawker obtained an email from the CEO of Westgate Resorts, Florida billionaire David Siegel, informing his 7,000 employees that a vote for Obama would endanger their jobs. Like Dave Robertson of Koch Industries, he couched this as an economic analysis rather than a threat. 

Meanwhile, a new expose by Alec MacGillis of The New Republic reveals that the largest privately held coal company in the nation, Murray Energy, has routinely coerced its employees in to giving to GOP candidates. In the process, Murray Energy workers became the second largest block of donors to Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner’s 2009-2010 campaign. “We have been insulted by every salaried employee who does not support our efforts,” wrote company CEO Robert Murray in a March 2012 letter to employees obtained by The New Republic; attached was a list of employees who had not yet attended fundraisers. 

And last year, Talking Points Memo reported that Delta offered free rides, even bumping paying customers, for its flight attendants to fly to Washington, D.C. to lobby for an FAA bill that would make it more difficult for airline workers to organize a union. “A lot of flight attendants told me that their supervisors would encourage them to book a flight to Washington to go lobby,” says Association of Flight Attendants (AFA-CWA) spokesperson Corey Caldwell.

If you're able, check out Monday's Democracy Now, Elk was interviewed about this article and so much more.

Walmart in DC hold secret meetings with labor activists

Mike Elk wrote about this for In These Times: Walmart, Manpower (a temp work agency), Katie Ford Foundation (an anti-traffcking nonprofit), and labor friendly groups (including Farmworker Justice, the United Farm Workers and the Coalition of Immokalee Workers) meet behind closed doors. The meeting was about "ethical sources." Apparently, representatives from the DOL, DOS (the human trafficking division) and Congressional staffers were there as well.

"Reporters were banned and the attendees were sent a set of 'Chatham House Rules' barring them from discussing what was talked about in the meeting. 'Participants are free to use the information received, but neither the identity nor the affiliation of the speaker(s), not that of any other participant, may be revealed,' read the invitation. 'Press will not be present in the room and we do appreciate all participants respecting the above if asked about the meeting by media before or after the event."

This meeting comes after the PR nightmare where Walmart workers at its supplier, CJ's Seafood, went out on strike in June to protest 24 hour work days. So naturally now, Walmart is trying to kind an illusion of being concerned with ethical sourcing. I'm thinking no one is going to believe them, but hey, why not.

According to Elk,

"Labor advocates say that the Walmart event was designed to create the appearance of being pro-worker when the reality is anything but. This practice is known as 'worker washing,' a play on 'greenwashing.'"

There were two workers at the event, a warehouse worker who is currently on strike and one who was involved in the CJ strike. The workers claim Walmart VP for Ethical Sourcing, Rajan Kamalanathan, was concerned about their working conditions. I'm actually surprised this is a title at Walmart.

Walmart didn't respond to In These Times request for a comment on the press blackout, but a Walmart spokesperson, Lorenzo Lopez wrote:

"Walmart is committed to strong ethical sourcing standards for suppliers and we have worked diligently to help ensure the products we sell are produced in a way that provides dignity and respect for workers in our supply chain. As part of this commitment, we are looking to develop a program for suppliers that will include education, training and resources to help ensure compliance with our standards."

A representative of the National Guestworker Alliance places blame squarely with Walmart, safe bet:

"'We don't think CJs Seafood happened because of a racist seafood farmer in Louisiana,' says Soni. 'Mike Leblanc, who these workers came to work for, did mistreat these workers, but he is not the 1%. He is trapped in a set of supply chain incentives in a cage that he cannot get out of. The guy who owns the warehouse that Javier works at is not the 1%."

"These people are exploiting the subcontracted and supply chain workers," Soni continued, pointing to the room where the Walmart-sponsored conference was held. "What we have in that room, in the vice president of Walmart, is an extremely well-heeled, well-educated, well-read and well-staffed gentleman who is up to the task of fixing the problems of the supply chain."

Worker have long said Walmart doesn't listen to their complaints and that they need to take more actions like strikes.

Elk schools Kristof

Mike Elk, labor journalist extraordinary, for real, wrote an excellent piece for In These Times on Kristof’s op-ed raking CTU over the coals. Naturally, elk knew all kinds of things I wasn’t aware of including Kristof’s lack of an opinion on the New York Time’s freezing the pensions of non-U.S. citizen overseas employee pensions, but we’ll get there.

Kristof enjoyed similar protections when he started with the Times in 1980 as a member of the Newspaper Guild of New York. He ceased being a member of the union when he became a columnist. Union members have asserted that once Kristof’s star started to rise he gave them the cold shoulder when they asked him to help in restoring the pensions for the overseas non-U.S. citizen employees.

January 2012, the New York Times froze the pensions of all non-U.S. citizen overseas employees, many of these individuals work in dangerous locations as translators and fixers. This upset many of the reports because recently two foreign employees died in the line of duty (for lack of a better phrase). Reporter Sultan Manadi (a former Time translator) died training to protect a reporter in Afghanistan and Times translator Khalid W. Hassan near Baghdad in 2007.

More than 600 New York Times employees condemned the pension freeze in an open letter to New York Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger, Jr. last December reading:

“Our foreign citizen employees in overseas bureaus have just had their pensions frozen with only a week’s warning. Some of these people have risked their lives so that we can do our jobs. A couple have even lost them. Many have spent their entire careers at the Times—indeed, some have letters from your father explaining the pension system—and deserve better treatment.”

 Elk spoke to a union member who had tried to get Kristof to sign the letter, given Kristof has won two Pulitzers for his overseas reporting. Kristof did not respond to him. In fact none of the columnist responded to this member who assisted in writing the letter though all of them were asked except Krugman. Shockingly, Kristof didn’t respond to Elk’s inquires about his story either.

The New York Times is involved in a contract dispute with the Newspaper Guild of New York. The reports at the Times have worked without a contract for nearly a year and a half when their contract expired on March 31, 2011. Elk is an associate member of the Newspaper Guild (TNG-CWA).

Union leaders, including Bill O’Meara, are hoping star reporters and columnist speak up. O’Meara fears the New York Times will seek an impasse in bargaining with the National Labor Relations Board to impose a concessionary contract on unionized reporters.

Bill O’Meara, Newspaper Guild of New York President, claims the New York Times is trying to eliminate pensions for U.S. employees as well. A sticking point in negotiations includes the Times wants to increase employee healthcare costs, which are already high.

Elk asserts it is not uncommon for star reporters and columnists to stay out of the union struggles because they feel their jobs are protected by the power of their brands. Kristof doesn’t have to worry the Times views him as an asset, but other reporters are not so lucky. O’Meara thinks the struggle will come to a head next month. He also says no one is ruling out a strike.

Personally, I would love to hear Kristof explain how foreign Times employees don’t deserve their pensions, and how unions are destroying newspapers in the U.S. Or maybe just come out and say he is anti-labor. And that no, he wouldn’t be sympathy to the CTU needs any more than the needs of those in his own house.