I am a long-time blogger, campaign staffer and political activist. Before joining the AFL-CIO in 2012, I worked as labor reporter for the blog Crooks and Liars. Previous experience includes Communications Director for the Darcy Burner for Congress Campaign and New Media Director for the Kendrick Meek for Senate Campaign, founding and serving as the primary author for the influential state blog Florida Progressive Coalition and more than 10 years as a college instructor teaching political science and American History. My writings have also appeared on Daily Kos, Alternet, the Guardian Online, Media Matters for America, Think Progress, Campaign for America's Future and elsewhere. I am the proud father of three future progressive activists, an accomplished rapper and karaoke enthusiast.
On the heels of the AFL-CIO's national convention, United Steelworkers ( USW ) President Leo W. Gerard and up-and-coming USW leader Nick Gaitaud sat down with GRITtv's Laura Flanders to talk about the present and future of the labor movement.
Check out the video in this blog post.
The AFL-CIO quadrennial 2013 convention in Los Angeles was a flurry of exciting activity that promises to remake the labor movement in the United States and build a movement for all working people to deal with the new challenges and political landscape working families must navigate. While there were many important discussions and plans made at the convention that will be expanded on in the coming months and years, here are 10 important initiatives that came out of the resolutions passed by the convention delegates that you should know about.
Pension battles are heating up in cities across the nation as conservatives and Republicans are pushing to strip public workers of their retirement plans, often with little or nothing offered as a replacement. The primary argument, although a false one, is that these pensions are "too expensive" and that during times of fiscal woes, cities can't afford them. In reality, these plans are often little more than veiled attempts to abandon commitments to workers and shift spending to more conservative priorities.
The Economic Policy Institute ( EPI ) has released important research about the economy in the past few weeks. Here's a look at some of the key pieces it uncovered about the U.S. economy.
In the song, Kanye West refers to a problem that is becoming recognized as one of major importance to America's working families focused on fairness and civil rights—the growth of the private prison industry and the extreme lengths that the corporations that dominate the industry will go to pad their own profit margins, regardless of the effect that it has on families and communities across the nation.
Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) is quickly establishing himself as the most aggressive job piracy governor in the nation, and the evidence shows that he is also one of the most partisan. He has taken six consecutive trips to states with Democratic governors in an attempt to lure businesses from those states to his own. A new report from Good Jobs First raises some very troubling questions about the financing of those trips.
On Labor Day, the Congressional Black Caucus ( CBC ) used its hour of special order speeches to discuss the importance of the labor movement and how unions have been integral to improving the lives of African Americans. Communications Workers of America ( CWA ) compiled this video of the highlights of the speeches by various members of the caucus.
More than 1,000 New Yorkers will rally today , marching past the U.N. General Assembly meeting to call for a "Robin Hood" financial transaction tax on banks and financial institutions to fund the restoration and expansion of vital public services, to implement a real recovery, to fund international efforts for AIDS/HIV research and treatment and to address climate change.
In the first of a new series of videos profiling minimum and low-wage workers, Raise the Wage New Jersey profiles Tayzia, a security guard for Edison. She is a single mother who explains why her wages, which are slightly above minimum wage, aren't enough to help her survive and raise her daughter.
While many of the country's most active working family advocates were in Los Angeles for the AFL-CIO national convention, the rest of the country continued to operate, with legislation, elections and judicial decisions of significant importance continuing to move forward. Here are eight stories you might have missed while the media's attention was focused on the convention.
It’s been four years since low-wage workers got a raise. Sign the petition to tell Congress it’s time to raise the minimum wage.
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