Election night was a great night for Democrats across Minnesota, with the exception of three congressional races. Three Republican incumbents won re-election to the U.S. House, including Michele Bachmann in the 6th District. To say that Congresswoman Bachmann is a polarizing figure in American politics is an understatement. Bachmann is so extreme that the GOP leadership […]
St. Paul Regional Labor Federation: Election results are cause for celebration
November 29, 2012 by
[Bobby Kasper, president of the 50,000-member St. Paul Regional Labor Federation, AFL-CIO, wrote this Labor Voices column with Kera Peterson and Peter Polga-Hecimovich, political organizers for the Federation.] The St. Paul Regional Labor Federation has a lot to be proud of from the November elections. With our union brothers and sisters from across the state […]
Bobby Kasper: Obama, Democrats the right choice for union members
October 24, 2012 by
We are at a political crossroads. The economy is still struggling from the devastatingly deep hole that President Obama inherited from George W. Bush. The political action that we take today through November 6 will decide our future as union members. We have a responsibility to get out the vote, with our state and federation […]
Letter to the Editor: In this election, union members must keep their eyes on the prize
September 24, 2012 by
I’ve been retired for a few years now. Although I don’t always know (or care) what day of the week it is, I do try to stay informed, and I brush up on national, local and postal issues – especially those affecting seniors and retirees. That leads me to some thoughts on something I do […]
Bobby Kasper: Thanks for making Labor Day a success
September 20, 2012 by
Thank you to everyone who helped make our participation in the 2012 Labor Day parade at the Minnesota State Fair an enormous success. We had over 250 participants who marched in our unit this year, and it was the first year we had a float. The Minnesota State Fair capped our unit at 200 marchers, […]
Letters to the Editor: Sequestration cuts, Ramsey County Sheriff’s budget
September 12, 2012 by
Letter: There is room for cuts in Pentagon budget As some of us see Labor Day as a vacation and celebration of Minnesota’s workforce, others are struggling to recover from the Great Recession. We’ve seen efforts to reduce health care and retirement benefits for workers on the grounds that there’s no money, yet there’s always […]
Walter Frederickson: A tax for the people, not on the people
August 1, 2012 by
Earlier this spring, I stood on the steamy streets of Chicago and witnessed a revival that my union brothers and sisters in the Windy City said was a long time coming. I’d been swept into town a day earlier along with hundreds of nurses, union members and others to help National Nurses United (of which […]
UNITE HERE Local 17: Bottom line is Vikes stadium will create jobs
June 20, 2012 by
The Vikings Stadium deal is done, and the members of UNITE HERE Local 17 are happy about that. We are happy about the jobs that it will provide over the next few years while it’s being built and about the jobs it will provide over the next 30+ years for our members. Local 17 represents […]
Bobby Kasper: Let’s make sure the next Legislature stands with workers
May 16, 2012 by
I breathed a sigh of relief when the Minnesota Legislature finally adjourned the 2012 session. It meant an end to the seemingly endless string of Republican attacks on Minnesota’s working families – attacks on our union rights, attacks on our wages and pensions, attacks on our voting rights and more. I’m writing today to say […]
Together, we can make Minnesota a safer place to work
April 26, 2012 by
Editor’s note: Ken Peterson was appointed commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry by Gov. Mark Dayton in December 2010. Previously, he served in the same position from 1988 to 1990. Peterson wrote this guest column on Workers Memorial Day for the May 2012 Union Advocate. Each year Workers Memorial Day is celebrated […]
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