It was the sixth day of the London Olympic Games and Jim and Cecilia Adrian still hadn’t seen their son Nathan for whom they traveled 4,800 miles to watch swim for the United States. Nathan, 23, was competing in his second Olympics. Nathan and his mom were exchanging text messages, but the two hadn’t spoken in-person in days. While waiting to watch the 100-meter freestyle race on Aug. 1, the Adrians chatted with some Australian spectators who were on their way to see a water polo match in the Olympic Park.

“They wished Nathan good luck,” says Jim. “But not enough to come in first…at that point, everyone was predicting [James] Magnussen would win.”

In a dramatic, heart-racing sprint, Nathan, of Bremerton, Wash., took home his first individual gold medal in the 100-meter freestyle swim, beating Magnussen by one-hundredth of a second. 

If you couldn't attend the Workers Stand for America rally today in Philadelphia, you can follow the action live streaming here starting from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. EDT: www.WorkersStandForAmerica.com. If you're tuning in later, see the resources below where you can catch up on videos, photos and posts from the day's action. Click here to sign the Second Bill of Rights.

Here are other ways you can get involved from home:

This Saturday, Aug. 11, join thousands of working families who are coming together in Philadelphia in the first major action of the Workers Stand for America campaign, the centerpiece of which is America’s Second Bill of Rights:

• Full employment and a living wage.
• Full participation in the political process.
• A voice at work.
• A quality education for all.
• A secure and healthy future.

Union members in the Marietta, Ohio, area are joining with several charitable organizations to raise funds to build a “smart home” for Army Private First Class Kyle Hockenberry who lost both legs in an improvised explosive device attack in Afghanistan last year.

The Parkersburg-Marietta Building and Construction Trades Council has volunteered the labor to build the house. The group is also working with the Gary Sinise Foundation and the Tunnels to Towers Foundation’sBuilding for America’s Bravest initiative in promoting an Aug. 16 fundraising concert in Marietta featuring Sinise’s Lt. Dan Band. Sinise portrayed double amputee Lt. Dan in the movie “Forrest Gump.” 

On Aug. 11, thousands of American workers will come together in Philadelphia in the first major action of the Workers Stand for America campaign, the centerpiece of which is America’s Second Bill of Rights:

• Full employment and a living wage.
• Full participation in the political process.
• A voice at work.
• A quality education for all.
• A secure and healthy future.

This is a cross-post from the Transport Workers (TWU) blog. 

The rain couldn’t stop TWU Local 525 members as they kicked off informational picketing last week about their fight for a fair contract with G4S GS at the Kennedy Space Center in Brevard County, Fla.

The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 11 has a successful mentoring program designed to help underserved communities prepare for careers in the electrical trades. 

USA

Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve highlighted American products, jobs and stories for our Made in America series, and we asked for your thoughts. Earlier in June, we rounded up what you told us are your favorite USA-made goods, here. This time around, there have been lots of great comments supporting Buy American, and a few questions.

The second season of the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance’s (USA's) “Brotherhood Outdoors,” a unique hunting and fishing series that showcases the talents and passions of union members, kicks off at 8 p.m. EDT on Thursdays, starting June 28, exclusively on the Sportsman Channel.

In the season premier, Scott Callaghan, an Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 26 member from Annapolis, Md., who served two tours of duty with the Marine Corps in the Middle East, joins host Tom Ackerman in the mountains of south central Montana to fulfill his dream of hunting America’s iconic bull elk east. 

Today, at more than 300 events around the country, activists from the Communications Workers of America (CWA), other AFL-CIO unions, Jobs with Justice (JwJ), 99% Power coalition and other allies are mobilized for a National Day of Action for a fair contract for 45,000 Verizon workers who are members of CWA and the Electrical Workers (IBEW).    

Verizon is a $100 billion company that has made tens of billions in profits, yet is demanding $10,000 a year from each worker in compensation cuts. At the same time, Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam got a 200 percent raise from $7.2 million to $23.1 million, courtesy of the communication giant’s board of directors.