As the U.S. moves away from fossil fuels and begins investing in green, renewable energy infrastructure, it will be important to invest in creating good-paying jobs in this industry as well.
Illinois is one of the state’s leading the way in creating jobs in these industries and allowing their economy to smoothly transition. Illinois AFL-CIO President Tim Drea discussed how his state is working towards a smooth transition, while protecting jobs and more. Continue reading
On Oct. 24th, Kevin Corrigan was featured on America’s Work Force to talk about asbestos related cancer. Kevin works for a law firm called Kelley & Ferraro and they deal with victims of asbestos related cancer, medical malpractice, workers compensation and wrongful deaths. Corrigan discussed how he and his partners travel with a mobile x-ray unit to union halls and do x-rays on workers who worked from 1979 and earlier for at least 5 years and find out if they have any asbestos related diseases and then are able to represent them if they would like if the tests come back positive. Corrigan has been doing these screenings since 2006 and his firm has been doing them since 2000! By having a mobile x-ray unit, they are able to travel to different union halls across the country and test their workers, which is incredibly convenient and timely.
Rich DeChant with Tri-C Veterans Initiative, was our second guest on the show. He works in the veterans programs that are meant to help veterans get access to affordable education and workforce training programs, which allows them to transition successfully from military to civilian life. He also talks to hiring managers and discusses the benefits of hiring veterans and also how to fill in the gaps in their training. DeChant mentioned a live show in Cleveland called Modern Warrior Live, which is meant to bridge the gap between veteran and civilian communities.
Show host Ed “Flash” Ferenc talked about the Janus decision, the Workplace Democracy Enhancement Act in New Jersey, problems with opting out of union contracts, and a boilermaker lockout while fighting against an anti-union contract proposal. Today’s show was fantastic with a lot of cool information and great stories!
Today’s show featured guests Tom Buffenbarger, former head of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers and currently our independent labor voice, and Fred Yoder, a farmer from Plain City, Ohio. Our first guest on the show is a frequent guest, Tom Buffenbarger, who talks about the farm bills in Ohio, the Kavanaugh controversy, tariffs on crops, CEO pay compared to their employees, steelworkers struggling to bargain for their contracts, President Trump and his tax cuts, and going out and exercising your right to vote. Our second guest is a fourth generation farmer from just outside of Columbus named Fred Yoder. Yoder came onto the show today to talk about the farm bills in Ohio that get updated every five years, farmers getting hurt by these tariffs, crop insurance and cover crops, and the Federal Crop insurance where farmers and the government split the costs 50/50. We also discuss an uprising of women organizing, the Coalition of Labor Union Women (CLUW), League of Women Voters, and McDonald’s and their sexual harassment reports going unheard so the workers staged walkouts.
Today on the show we had Jim Cullen and Mary Jane Trapp. Our first guest Jim Cullen talked a lot about politics, more specifically, the Trump administration claiming executive privilege, the fight against Brett Kavanaugh, progressive populists, the Supreme Court and their right wing majority and how Democrats should combat it, economists royalists remaining, and new deal reforms. Our second guest was Mary Jane Trapp, who is currently running for Court Appeals Judge, talks about Ponzi schemes and how investors are not able to sue the independent brokers that they purchased the securities through unless they can prove collusion between the broker and the place conducting the scheme. She also discuses self-directed IRAs, Ohio Securities Act, and how you can be charged with a crime for possessing a weapon with a disability if you have a juvenile record. We also discuss a strike for the steel workers, benefit cuts by U.S. steel worker company, contract bargaining, and deck stacking. A little bit of a change from the recent topics of discussion on today’s show!
Today on the show we had Zach Schiller, Research Director with Policy Matters Ohio, and Mike Foley, 1st Director of the Department of Sustainability for Cuyahoga County. Our first guest on the show, Zach Schiller, talked about a hot issue, the pay ratio of CEOs and median workers. Schiller discussed CEO pay and how it has changed dramatically over the years, how CEO pay is rapidly increasing while median employee pay is slowly increasing, retailers having the biggest pay differential, and big corporations and who is the biggest offender of the high CEO to median worker pay ratio. Our second guest, Mike Foley, talks about green energy, Brooklyn, Ohio and their landfill solar project and how they are allowed to put solar panels on top of landfills, powering county buildings, and how other energy distribution competitors are reacting to the success of this project. Also, we discuss certain wages being raised to be similar to union in hopes of driving unions out, labor launching a campaign to reject Brett Kavanaugh, and hotel workers in Chicago and joining Unite Here Local 1! We had some great discussion on the show today with all of these relevant topics!
On today’s show we had Dan Doron from the Ohio Consumer Counsel and Tony Liberatore from Laborers Local 860. Our first guest on the show, Dan Doron, spoke about First Energy Solutions and First Energy Corp., First Energy Solutions declaring bankruptcy and what to expect next, whether electricity prices will change when the new owner takes over, First Energy closing down their last coal-fired plant, elderly people getting scammed when searching for utility assistance, and AT&T withdrawing from the lifeline program to offer vital telephone services to elderly people. Our second guest on the show today was Tony Liberatore from Local 860. Tony talked about Local 860 showing up and protesting at a groundbreaking for Euclid’s lakefront trail, how he wants to meet with the mayor and discuss not exporting local jobs when they have the capability and man power to get such jobs done, encouraging people to unionize, and President Trump’s plan to pump up the infrastructure in our country. We also discuss the income gap, overtime pay, added jobs, and Spirit Airlines Customer Service finally organizing!
Today on the show we had Darryll Bell and Steve Campisi, stewards and political coordinators of AFGE Local 31 in the studio with us, and also Senator Sherrod Brown. While on the show, Darryll and Steve talked about the American Federation of Government Employees, working with the Cleveland VA Medical Center, the VA accountability act, being Air Force Veterans, veteran homelessness, the three executive orders that sought to undermine the representation of unions with their employees, and Federal employee wage raises. Senator Sherrod Brown discussed jobs in Ohio, American Jobs Act and keeping automotive production in the United States, NAFTA negotiations, labor enforcement, and the Firefighter Registry Cancer Act. We also discuss the op-ed article submitted to the New York Times by a member of the White House Administration about President Trump and how he demands that he either come forward or be turned over by the NYT! Hot topics of discussion from the last couple of weeks and more unique, insightful views to go along with them!
On today’s show, we had Tim Burga with the AFL-CIO, and Lori Wallach, Director of Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch and 25 year veteran of congressional trade battles. While our first guest, Tim Burga, was on the show, we talked a lot about politics with Trumka vs Trump, CoinGate scandal, tax payer money, Electronic Classrooms of Tomorrow (ECOT) scandal, Richard Cordray and Mike Dewine, Right-to-Work and prevailing wage, and the Senate race. Our second guest, the incredibly qualified Lori Wallach talks about the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) renegotiation, effects of trade, outsourced jobs due to NAFTA, raising wages in Mexico, try to remove the incentives in NAFTA to outsource, pro-trade model cons, whether Canada will join in on the agreements, and finding out at the end of September whether or not the new negotiations will actually make a difference. We also talk more about Trump vs Trumka, no raises for federal workers, midterm elections, and the 42,000 documents that were released looking into Brett Kavanaugh.
On today’s broadcast we have author of China RX, editor of JAMA Internal Medicine, and journalist with Journal of the American Medical Association Rosemary Gibson, and the Secretary-Treasurer at the Transportation Trades Department AFL-CIO, Greg Regan. Our first guest, Rosemary Gibson, talks about contaminated medicine from China, production of medicine in China, US losing jobs because of drug manufacturing in China, regulations and recalls, and proposed tariffs on chemical building blocks for medicines. Our second guest, Greg Regan, talks about extreme heat and cold on air crafts, workplace safety for flight attendants and flight crews, hurricane season and its impact people’s opinions of the Jones Act. Along with this, we talk about the largest, single day protest and Judge K. Brown Jackson striking down key provisions of a set of executive orders making it easier to fire employees and weaken their representation!
On the broadcast today we had Dan Doron, with the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel, and he talked about several topics including Consumer Payments to Subsidize Electric Utilities, Do Not Call List, Summer Crisis Program, and OCC Visits to Fairs! Also on the program was Terry O’Sullivan, General President of the Laborers International Union of North America(LIUNA), and he discussed the Missouri Victory on Prop A, the Infrastructure Proposal from Bill Shuster, the Pension Crisis, and Immigration Crack-down and it’s Effect on the Construction Industry!