The voice of Saint Paul's working families since 1897
“This is too good to be true,” Laurene Gruett said as Gerald Keating and Brett Sergot, members of St. Paul Plumbers Local 34, repaired the basement shower and kitchen sink in her North St. Paul home March 21. “What a blessing.” Keating and Sergot were among 57 volunteers from Local 34 who participated in the […]
A bill that would require two-person crews aboard Amtrak and most freight trains operating in Minnesota passed out of two Senate committees last week. The safety measure is a top legislative priority of the United Transportation Union, which represents about 70,000 workers in North America. Sen. Ann Rest (DFL-New Hope) introduced the legislation in the […]
After an organizing drive fueled by young activists and backed by the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, workers at the Varsity Theater in Dinkytown have a union. It’s the first successful organizing campaign for IATSE Local 13 in “many years,” according to Michael Abramson, co-chair of the Twin Cities-based union’s Young Worker Committee. The […]
St. Paul Fire Fighters Local 21 and German Fest have teamed up on a new calendar that features firefighters posed in lederhosen with traditional German props. Calendar sales will support Operation Warm, a charity that provides coats to low-income kids in St. Paul Models include both men and women from Local 21, posing in front […]
The Minneapolis-based regional director of the National Labor Relations Board will discuss rule changes set to take effect next month that will modernize and streamline union organizing elections. Regional Director Marlin Osthus will appear at an informal discussion on how the new rules will impact workers, unions and employers April 7 at 10 a.m. at […]
Women considering a career in the construction industry can learn what it takes – and why it pays – to become a successful tradeswoman at two Women Building Minnesota information sessions next month. Sponsored by the St. Paul and Minneapolis Building Trades councils, Women Building Minnesota is a registered apprenticeship program that offers women an […]
For the second consecutive year, the Minnesota Construction Crew will host the Trades Hiring Expo, an opportunity for work-ready individuals looking to begin a career in the industry to meet with 25 contractors hiring for the 2015 construction season. Organizers particularly encourage veterans, women and people of color to attend. The expo will run from […]
A forum in Mahtomedi next month will size up the proposed Sandpiper Pipeline, and all sides of the debate will be represented, including organized labor. River Valley Action will sponsor the forum, entitled “Mixing Oil and Water? Perspectives on the Sandpiper Oil Pipeline,” from 7 to 8:30 p.m. April 13 at White Bear Unitarian Universalist […]
Workers shouldn’t have to choose between earning a paycheck and getting medical care, or caring for a newborn child. That’s the essence of labor’s support for legislation that would expand access to earned sick time and paid family leave among Minnesota workers. But officials with the Minnesota Department of Health today offered another reason […]
Maplewood Police Chief Paul Schnell warned senators on the Health, Human Services and Housing Committee that the video footage he would show in their hearing yesterday, taken during a patient’s attack on nurses at St. John’s Hospital last year, was disturbing and violent. The footage showed a typical hospital workstation that, in an instant and […]
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