The entry deadline for the 2002 IAM
Newsletter and Website Contest is July 31, 2002.
If your lodge hasn't entered yet, act
soon. For entry forms and information, contact the IAM Communications
Department at 301-967-4520. |
Corporate profits are
down, layoffs are way up—and CEOs still get huge paychecks,
bonuses and retirement perks. To see how you'd fare compared to these
CEOs, play GREED!
GREED is the AFL-CIO's
Executive PayWatch
Board Game that takes the PayWatch visitor through a story of what life
is like for a millionaire CEO and a worker struggling to make ends meet.
Union Plus uses the collective strength of
union members to provide a wide range of services at discount prices,
from credit cards to home mortgages.
This month, Union Plus spotlights its
discount legal services program. For more information,
click here. |
Get Your Convention Gear
Check out gear for the
2004
IAM Convention
The IAM
Executive Council
International President
R.
Thomas Buffenbarger
Secretary Treasurer
Donald
E. Wharton
GVP Western
Territory
Lee
Pearson
GVP Canada
Dave
Ritchie
GVP Midwest
Territory
Alex
M. Bay
GVP Headquarters
Robert
V. Thayer
GVP Southern
Territory
George
Hooper
GVP Eastern
Territory
Warren
L. Mart
GVP Transportation
Robert
Roach, Jr.
|
Friday,
July 26, 2002
Rally Set to Block
Stanley Exit
Union
members, shareholders and civic leaders will gather at the gates of the
Stanley Works in New Britain, CT, on Monday, July 29 to demand an about
face in company plans to move its headquarters to a post office box in
Bermuda.
By recasting itself
as a foreign corporation, Stanley hopes to skip on nearly $30 million in
U.S. taxes each year. The move also threatens to cost Stanley retirees
and shareholders millions in capital gains taxes when their U.S. shares
are converted to the new foreign shares.
The high noon rally
will feature comments by IP Tom Buffenbarger, AFL-CIO President John
Sweeney and Connecticut Congressman John Maloney, who recently
introduced a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives to block
Stanley’s move.
In related news, the Treasurer of the State of California said his
office, which controls $45 billion in state and local funds, would no
longer consider investing in 22 companies, including Stanley Works, that
are headquartered overseas, but effectively based in the U.S.
“Corporations hiding behind a mailbox in Bermuda are shirking their duty
as Americans, and undermining confidence in the financial markets,” said
State Treasurer Phil Angelides. "We will use our clout as investors to
let companies know we will not tolerate this type of irresponsible
conduct."
Urgent Fast Track Alert: Call Today!
In a bid to ram Fast Track through Congress before the August recess,
House leaders emerged Friday morning from an all-night, closed door
conference ready to vote on a trade deal that is a giant step backwards
for workers and workers rights
Every IAM member should immediately call their representative in
Washington, D.C. and urge them to vote
against
the conference report for H.R. 3009.
Call the Capitol
Hill Switchboard toll free at 877-611-0063 or 202-224-3121.
It is very important to make your call today, Friday July 26,
before the House votes on the conference report.
To send an action alert e-mail message to
your member of Congress, go to the
"Stop Fast Track
Vote H.R. 3009" at www.goiam.org.
Among the most cynical arguments for the trade bill is the claim by
administration officials that Fast Track trade authority is necessary to
restore confidence in markets rocked by wave after wave of corporate
scandals.
“We cannot afford to
let this corporate kickback become the law of the land,” said IP
Buffenbarger. “I urge every member to get to a phone today and tell
their representatives to stand up for workers rights in this country. We
have the obligation and the opportunity to make a real difference today.
It’s our jobs, our health and our safety at stake.”
Hope and Prayers for
Trapped Miners
The
nation is holding its collective breath over the fate of nine coal
miners trapped 240 feet below the surface in Somerset, Pennsylvania.
Incorrect maps apparently led the miners to pierce a wall that released
millions of gallons of water and cut off the shaft where the miners were
working.
Tapping sounds were
heard by rescue crews after the accident and families cling to the hope
the miners are safe in an air pocket above the freezing water. Another
group of miners escaped the rising waters by wading to safety after
being warned away by the trapped workers.
“The IAM joins the
rest of the country in hope and prayer for these men to be returned
safely to their families,” said IP Tom Buffenbarger.
Coal mining is among
the country’s most dangerous occupations with the highest fatality rate
of any industry. According to the Department of Labor, 72 miners died in
accidents during 2001. There are currently about 75,000 miners working
in the U.S.
Anti-Union Homeland
Security Bill
President Bush threatened to veto the Homeland Security Bill if it does
not contain language giving him the right to revoke union rights and
civil service protection for the nearly 170,000 employees who will make
up the new federal agency.
The White House
complained existing labor laws and collective bargaining rights would
prevent efficient operation of the new national security agency.
“This is an insult
to every union member in this country,” said IP Buffenbarger. “For this
administration to paint federal workers as potential security risks due
to their collective bargaining rights is outrageous. The suggestion that
our nation’s security depends on government’s ability to hire and fire
at will calls into serious question whether this administration
understands what working America is all about.”
Corporate Fraud Bill: Too Little, Too Late
Politicians and business groups are busy congratulating themselves over
House and Senate approval of a measure to increase prison sentences for
corporate crooks and to expand oversight of the accounting industry. But
for millions of defrauded investors, laid off workers and disgusted
citizens, the bill does nothing to correct the damage done by years of
deregulated business practices.
The recent corporate
crime wave drove legislators to pass the so-called reform bill with
unusual speed. Threats by accounting industry lobbyists and House
Republicans to hold up the legislation never materialized after scandals
continued to rock the financial markets, draining billions from stock
portfolios and retirement accounts.
Meanwhile, the
financial fallout for former WorldCom workers continues with news the
bankrupt company will not pay severance to employees fired after the
collapse of the energy giant.
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