Dayton, Ellison celebrate Medicare’s 50th birthday with Minnesota Nurses

  Medicare turned 50 years old yesterday, and Minnesota nurses celebrated by throwing President Lyndon B. Johnson’s landmark legislation a barbecue birthday bash in St. Paul. More than 100 million people are enrolled in Medicare and Medicaid, which provides health care to low-income Americans and also turned 50 yesterday. Together, the programs ensure seniors maintain […]

City of St. Paul employees volunteer to help build Habitat house in Frogtown

City of St. Paul employees serve the public every day at work. But this summer, some are using their vacation time to give back to the community as well. In a coordinated effort among the city’s agencies and departments, city staffers are adopting six daylong volunteer shifts on a Habitat for Humanity construction site in […]

Unity Hospital workers go union after voting under new NLRB rules

About 350 workers at Unity Hospital in Fridley voted yesterday to join SEIU Healthcare Minnesota, the union announced today. The new bargaining unit includes nursing assistants, dietary aides, environmental services aides, patient care technicians and other positions. Over 59 percent of workers voted in favor of forming a union. It was the first major election […]

McCarthy to succeed Knutson as Minnesota AFL-CIO’s top officer

The Minnesota AFL-CIO General Board today elected Bill McCarthy to serve as the state labor federation’s next president. McCarthy, currently president of the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation, will take office Oct. 13. McCarthy will succeed current Minnesota AFL-CIO President Shar Knutson, the first woman to serve as president of the 300,000-member labor federation. Knutson, who […]

Workers to rally outside courthouse as AT&T sues to deny their sick pay

AT&T is challenging a new Minnesota law allowing workers to use paid sick time to care for family members. But as the Fortune 500 telecommunications company appears before a federal judge in Minneapolis on Friday, members of the Communications Workers of America will rally outside the courthouse with a simple message: AT&T is not above […]

Unions break ground on new Labor Center in St. Paul

Labor and civic leaders today broke ground on a new hub of operations for St. Paul’s unions. The ceremony took place a week after Catholic Charities assumed ownership of the old St. Paul Labor Centre, better known as “411 Main.” The new labor center will stand at 345 West 7th Street, about one block south […]

Marker honoring fallen Minneapolis Teamsters to be dedicated July 18

After a lengthy fundraising campaign, the Remember 1934 Committee will unveil a permanent plaque July 18 in the Warehouse District of downtown Minneapolis commemorating the historic Teamsters strikes that echoed across the U.S. – and made Minneapolis a union town. The committee will host an unveiling and celebration at 11 a.m. July 18 at the […]

Leading scholars to discuss past, present and future of labor movement

The East Side Freedom Library will host a conversation on labor history July 18 with two of the nation’s leading activist scholars in the field. The event is free and open to all. University of California at Santa Barbara professors Eileen Boris and Nelson Lichtenstein will lead the informal conversation. Boris and Lichtenstein “have produced […]

In contract talks, state workers beat back health care concessions, win raises

After reaching a tentative agreement with the state July 1, members of two public-employee unions are set to vote this month on a two-year contract that includes annual raises of 2.5 percent. Bargaining teams from both Council 5 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and the Minnesota Association of Professional Employees […]

Nurses plan BBQ Bash for Medicare

Wish Medicare a happy 50th birthday at a free barbecue and celebration hosted by the Minnesota Nurses Association from 5 to 9 p.m. July 30 at the Highland Park Shelter, 1200 Montreal Ave., St. Paul. Nurses are marking Medicare’s birthday with calls for lawmakers to protect, improve and expand the popular program, which provides high-quality […]