Colombian unionists visited Washington, D.C., to meet with U.S. government officials and ask for their support in ensuring the Colombia Labor Action Plan. The delegation included Miguel Conde, general secretary of the Puerto Wilches local of Sintrainagro, an agricultural worker union representing workers on palm oil plantations; Jhonsson Torres, a founding member and vice president of the cane cutters union; Sinalcorteros; and Jose Luciano Sanin, executive director of the Escuela Nacional Sindical (ENS, National Union School). Getting assurance of continued support for implementation made the trip worthwhile for the Colombians, who are in the midst of a long-term struggle for an economy that provides workers with dignity, fair pay and benefits and respect for the exercise of free association and other fundamental rights. 

OMG, look up! Is that a flying pig? That was my thought when I read the latest bulletin from the Republican-controlled House Education and Workforce Committee announcing a hearing that would be “Examining Proposals to Strengthen the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).”

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.

Dear Abby’s got nothing on Dear David when it comes to navigating the workplace.

Dear David, Working America’s advice columnist, knows you deserve to be treated fairly on the job. And he’s available to answer any question you may have, whether it's co-workers making off-handed comments that you should retire or you feel like your job’s long hours are causing stress.

This is a cross-post from the AFL-CIO Solidarity Center.

During her tour of Southeast Asia, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton urged the greater protection of worker rights, improvement of labor standards and the empowerment of women following a private meeting in Cambodia with union leaders and labor activists. Clinton met privately in Siem Rep, Cambodia, with 12 women union leaders—independent union representatives from every major industry in Cambodia, labor lawyers and activists—as well as the Solidarity Center country program director, David Welsh.

The U.S. government’s decision to ease restrictions on U.S. investments in Burma is “premature and poorly thought through,” says AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka. Lifting investment sanctions on a nation where forced labor and other human rights violations continue may, says Trumka:

undermine progress toward political reforms in Burma, rather than encourage movement toward democracy.

Even if workers are not in a union, they have the right to act together to improve their working conditions and for other mutual aid and protection. A new website by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) explains those rights and tells workers how to contact the nearest NLRB office if they have questions or believe their rights have been violated.

Today, the United States Trade Representative announced that Mexico will be invited to join the negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership Free Trade Agreement (TPP).  Although the U.S. already has extensive trade relations with Mexico through the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka says. Mexico’s inclusion in the TPP could have significant impacts on workers in both countries.

Although corporations are now investing in Burma, opportunities for economic growth must be balanced with protections for working people, Burmese political opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi said last week. Speaking at the International Labor Organization (ILO) Conference in Geneva, Suu Kyi was joined by U Maung Maung, general secretary of the General Trade Unions of Burma (FTUB), who spoke about the long struggle for freedom of association and the freedom to organize in Burma.

Do workers with a union contract behave more ethically on the job by being more likely to report wrongdoing? That’s one conclusion from a new report by the Ethics Resource Center (ERC)—"Inside the Mind of a Whistleblower." Union employees, who are often provided certain contractual protections, had much higher rates of reporting specific misconduct than nonunion employees (65 percent vs. 47 percent).