The voice of Saint Paul's working families since 1897
Labor, environmental and other fair-trade activists are getting their first look at the Tran-Pacific Partnership, released to the public overnight. Their initial reaction? It’s worse than expected. “It’s absolutely not a progressive trade deal,” Minnesota Fair Trade Coalition director Kaela Berg said after an early analysis of the text. “It’s clear that TPP will perpetuate […]
Whether you celebrate with a backyard barbecue, a trip to the cabin or by marching alongside fellow union members at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds, Labor Day is our opportunity to celebrate the everyday heroes who make our country great. American workers are the backbone of our economy, and hard work is deeply embedded into the […]
Volunteer fairgoers helped repurpose about 85 t-shirts into reusable tote bags for a Minneapolis food shelf yesterday during United Way Day at the Minnesota AFL-CIO Labor Pavilion. “Most food shelves have a lack of bags to send food out,” Greater Twin Cities United Way volunteer coordinator Mary Smith said. “They never seem to have enough […]
Chipotle claims its motto “food with integrity” applies throughout its supply chain. But workers who make burrito bowls at a plant outside Los Angeles say the company has turned a blind eye to their fight for respect and a voice on the job. The workers have been organizing with the United Steelworkers for over a […]
Backing the emergent campaign for a $15 minimum wage in St. Paul is the right thing to do, labor leaders said in a meeting with AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler last night. But as unions look to reverse the trend of declining density, joining the fight to raise wages is also about remaining relevant. “We […]
Union members joined the party at the Ashley Rukes GLBT Pride Parade in Minneapolis yesterday, cheering the Supreme Court’s historic decision making marriage equality the law of the land. “We’re always fighting; it feels good to be celebrating for a change,” Charli Haataja, a member of Local 7250 of the Communications Workers of America, […]
Apprenticeship has long been the backbone of the Building Trades unions. Their on-the-job training programs put workers on a path to family-sustaining careers while ensuring union contractors have access to the highly skilled labor pool they need to remain competitive. It’s a win-win model. Now, with a push from the federal government, unions and employers […]
The St. Paul City Council took up the fight to stop fast track Wednesday, when members unanimously approved a resolution “opposing the extension of bad trade policies.” “The people of the City of Saint Paul have the best chance to benefit from pending trade and investment agreements only if the process by which they are […]
More than a year after sending proponents of fast track back to the drawing board, Congress is poised to consider a modified version of the trade measure this spring. But unions and their allies in the fair-trade movement say the “new” fast track bill amounts to little more than lipstick on a pig. Like previous […]
Upping the ante in its campaign to stop trade agreements that give corporations more power over the global economy, the AFL-CIO announced today it would freeze all contributions to federal lawmakers’ Political Action Committees and focus, instead, on a ground battle against fast track for the Trans-Pacific Partnership. The nation’s largest labor federation announced the […]
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