An Injury to One is an Injury to All!VOL. 124

NO. 3JULY 12, 2017WEDNESDAY

(ISSN 0023-6667)

See Dems pledge...page 2

On Feb. 3, 2015 a Depot press conference kicked off a statewide campaign for earned sickand safe time for workers. Duluth was chosen because of this area’s poor access to the ben-efit, leaving out about half the workers here. Almost two and half years later Duluth is stillstruggling with the issue while other areas have passed ordinances. (Labor World file photo)

Pelosi, Schumer pledge toTeamsters to block RTW

WASHINGTON (PAI)—The Democrats’ top two congres-sional leaders have told the Teamsters that they will do every-thing possible to block a proposed so-called “national right towork” (RTW) bill from passing the GOP-run Congress.

But while House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.,made that pledge, she can do little to halt the legislation,authored by right-wing anti-worker and anti-Hispanic Rep. PeterKing, R-Iowa.

The story is different with Senate Minority Leader ChuckSchumer, D-N.Y. Backed by his 46-member DemocraticCaucus, plus two independents – Maine’s Angus King andVermont’s Bernie Sanders – who usually support Demo-craticpositions, Schumer controls enough votes to sustain a filibuster.They can thus talk RTW to death.

Right-to-work, which workers and their allies call “right towork for less,” has been a key business and right wing cause formore than 70 years, but now it’s only allowed state-by-state,under the 1947 Taft-Hartley Act, which emasculated U.S. laborlaw.

King wants to nationalize RTW. Other national Republicansagree. They would let non-union members covered by unioncontracts use union services – bargaining and grievances –

See Boycott...page 5

Minneapolis workers win historic $15 wage

Earned sick and safe time taskforce schedules even more listening sessions

The minimum wage willincrease to $15 an hour alongtwo schedules. For businessesemploying more than 100workers, the wages will be setto increase over five years,with the largest raises in thefirst year. For businesses withfewer than 100 employees, thewage will be implemented overseven years. All workers willget to a $15 minimum wage by2024.

According to an economicimpact study released by thecity last year, the raise will lift71,000 workers above thepoverty line, including 54 per-cent of Latino workers, 42 per-cent of black workers and 29percent of single mothers.

Minneapolis Mayor BetsyHodges, who participated inthe council meeting, said, “For71,000 workers, this is a newday and a new opportunity.”

Council members vowed towork with small businesses tomake the policy a success.Mary Breen, co-owner ofPerennial Cycle, a small bikeshop in Uptown, said it doesnot have to have an adverseeffect.

“We’ve been in business for25 years and understand howdifficult it is to remain viable,”she said at the news conferencefollowing the vote. “We’ve hadto make adjustments andchanges to how we run ourbusiness, but employee wageshave to be a top priority. That’swhy we support the $15 mini-mum wage. Every person whoputs in a day’s work deserves aliving wage.”

A related minimum wagestudy story is on page 7

protests and organizing by awide coalition of low-wageworkers, unions and communi-ty groups.

“This is movement work,”Council Vice PresidentElizabeth Glidden said. “Andwe [the City Council] are onetiny piece of it.”

Workers celebrated in thecouncil chambers and at a newsconference after the meeting.

“They called us crazy,” saidGuillermo Perez, a fast foodemployee and member of theMinneapolis-based workercenter CTUL. “They told us wewere dreaming. Look at usnow.”

Perez was among the fastfood workers who conductedthe first strike in Minneapolisin their industry in 2014. Heand other low-wage workershave been a driving forcebehind the council’s action toimplement the $15 wage and toadopt a citywide ordinance forearned sick and safe time thattook effect July 1.

Minneapolis is the first cityin the Midwest to win the $15minimum wage. The national#FightFor15 movement,sparked by striking fast foodworkers in New York City in2012, led to municipal mini-mum wage measures in Seattle,San Francisco, Los Angeles,New York City and Washing-ton, D.C., and statewideincreases in Washington,California and New York state.

The City Council vote was11-1 in support, with onlyCouncil Member Blong Yangin opposition, citing concernabout the effect “on small busi-ness owners and the workingpoor.”

By Barb Kucera Workday MinnesotaMinneapolis firmly estab-

lished itself as a leader in sup-porting working families andcombatting poverty and racismwith the City Council’s actionFriday, June 30 to approve acitywide minimum wage of$15 an hour.

The ordinance was theproduct of years of strikes,

The long struggle to estab-lish earned sick and safe timefor workers in Duluth will gointo more public listening ses-sions. The taskforce commis-sioned by the city council madea presentation to that body atthe end of June with someoptions. Among those optionswas having no ordinance in thecity.

The taskforce will holdthree more listening sessions toprovide citizens of Duluth theopportunity to provide feed-back on various options such aswhat workplaces could be cov-ered, which employees couldbe covered, how much timecould employees accrue, whenany such paid leave could beused, enforcement options, etc.

Workers are encouraged toprovide feedback on options(first was this morning):

Wednesday, July 19, 4:30-6:00 pm, City CouncilChambers, 3rd Floor of DuluthCity Hall; and,

Thursday, July 27, 4:30-

6:00 pm, Community ActionDuluth, 2424 West 5th St.

There will have been adozen public feedback sessionswhen theses three are over.

Workers can also providefeedback at surveymonkey.com/r/MBPW97R

After these listening ses-sions are over, the task Forcewill use that public feedback tocraft a final recommendation tothe city council.

Details about the taskforceare available at http://www.d u l u t h m n . g o v / c i t y -council/earned-sick-and-safe-time-task-force/

A statewide effort for ESSTwas kicked off at a press con-ference of dozens of peopleand organizations in Duluth

Feb. 3, 2015. The “MinnesotaBenefits” campaign choseDuluth for its start because 46percent, or about 19,500 work-ers, in the Duluth/Herman-town/Proctor area lack the ben-efit. St. Louis County as awhole is even worse with over50 percent without it.

In spite of a two and halfyear campaign, the Duluthbusiness community is nowcrying “foul” and saying theyare being rushed into a benefitthat will kill their bottom line.That hasn’t happened else-where where ESST ordinanceshave passed, or to Duluth busi-nesses that now offer ESST.

(Page 3 has a story about150,000 Metro workers gettingESST effective July 1.)

www.fightforamericanjobs.org

Duluth School Board screenings August 10The Duluth Central Labor

Body will screen and considerendorsements for the ISD #709Duluth Public School’s Boardof Directors on Thursday,August 10. The screenings willbegin at 6:00 p.m. in WellstoneHall of the Duluth LaborTemple, 2002 London Road(enter via South St. entrance).

All affiliated local unions’members are invited to COPE(Committee On Political Edu-cation) candidate screenings.COPE recommendations forendorsements will be consid-ered by Central Body delegatesonly at the monthly meetingimmediately following thescreenings.

If there are any questions asto who your local union’s dele-gates are, submit a new list onlocal union stationery signedby the presiding officer to theCentral Body office, Room110, 2002 London Road,Duluth, MN 55812 or fax to218-724-1413. New delegateswith credentials will be sworn-in before the meeting.

It takes a two-thirds vote ofdelegates present to gain an

Ford Co. has history in Duluth,on Iron Range lunch will show

The St. Louis County Historical Society’s “Lunch with theHistory People” will hear from Brian McMahon, author of “TheFord Century in Minnesota,” which was published by theUniversity of Minnesota Press, in 2016.

McMahon will discuss “Ford Motor Company’s Involvementin Duluth and the Iron Range” Thursday, July 20 from noon – 1PM in the Ruth Maney Room on the first floor of the St. LouisCounty Heritage & Arts Center (the Depot), at 506 WestMichigan Street, Duluth, Minnesota.

Ford Motor Company invested in an Eveleth taconite plant in1963 and later in a mine/production facility in Nashwauk. Fordleased coal docks in Duluth, and transported iron ore fromDuluth to Detroit factories.

The popular, free, monthly lunches are limited theater-styleseating (no tables), but feel free to bring your own bag lunch.Seating is first-come, first-served. ARCO coffee is provided.

Dems pledge RTW stop...from page 1without paying one red cent for them. That robs unions of

needed money to defend all workers.Schumer and Pelosi both told the Teamsters’ legislative and

political coordinators, meeting in D.C. in June, that it was “a toppriority of theirs to make sure so-called RTW doesn’t progress inCongress,” the union reported.

“I have union in my blood. We all know the middle class isdeclining,” Schumer said. “As long as I’m a leader in the Senate,they will not pass a national right-to-work law.”

Pelosi added that “The labor movement our country must notonly survive, it must grow. We have to not only resist, but pushback.”

The coordinators spent their time lobbying lawmakers onseveral issues. Besides opposing RTW, they advocated restrict-ing unsafe and polluting Mexican trucks and ill-trained and ill-rested Mexican drivers to within 20 miles of the U.S.-Mexicoborder under any “new NAFTA,” reform of multi-employer pen-sion funding, collective bargaining rights and fair trade.

Those issues, particularly pensions and NAFTA, particularlyresonated with lawmakers, the union said. Rep. Peter DeFazio,D-Ore., told the coordinators that without the Mexican truckrestrictions, any “new NAFTA” would fail because the GOPTrump administration would need some Democratic votes topass it – and wouldn’t get them.

And Teamsters Joint Council 32 Political Director EdwardReynoso told the union his group stressed that message in meet-ings with Minnesota lawmakers, notably Rep. Rick Nolan, DFL-Minn., a former Teamster. “When it comes to the issues, they(legislators) need to hear from the local people,” Reynoso said.

MN Political ContributionRefund program on againOn July 1 there were a lot of new laws that took effect in

Minnesota. One of them is actually an old law that has been yo-yoed with the vagaries of leadership in the legislature.

In the past the Political Contribution Refund program waspushed when the Democratic Farmer Labor Party was in themajority. When Republicans took the majority they would endthe program. Well, they’re in power in the legislature and theydecided PCR is a money-maker for them so it is now availableto registered voters and a few other U.S. residents over 18 liv-ing here for 20 days.

Effective July 1, 2017 until Dec. 31, 2017 you can make adonation of $50 as an individual, $100 for married couples, andget the money refunded by the state. Contributions can be madeto a state candidate (governor, secretary of state, attorney gen-eral, auditor, state senator, state house representative) or statepolitical party units.

Candidates you contribute to must have signed an agreementto abide by state campaign spending limits with MinnesotaCampaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board to be part ofthe PCR program.

The person or party you contribute to will give you FormEP-3 which you submit to the Minnesota Department ofRevenue requesting reimbursement. Information is on theforms. In the past refunds have come quickly.

You may file only one PCR form per year.Form PCR and instructions are available on the Minnesota

Department of Revenue website, www.revenue.state.mn.ustype in PCR in their search engine and look for 2017 info.

endorsement.Among school board terms

up for election this year are twoat-large seats. Annie Harala,who has a Labor Endorsement,says she will not seek re-elec-tion. Harry Welty has filed forre-election. At-large positionsare voted on in precincts 1-30,32-34 and the townships ofGnesen, Lakewood, Norman-na, North Star, andUnorganized #2 and #23, andthe City of Rice Lake.

The District 1 seat currentlyheld by Rosie Loeffler-Kemp,who has a Labor Endorsementand has said she will run again,is also up. Voters in precincts,1-2, 4-7, the townships, unor-ganized areas and Rice Lakewill vote in District 1.

The District 4 seat is up thisyear. It is held by Art Johnston,who has filed to run again. Thedistrict represents voters inwestern Duluth precincts 21,26-30, 32-34. Retired DuluthFederation of Teachers mem-ber Jill Lofald says she will runagainst Johnston.

Filings opened July 5 andwill be open until Tuesday, July

18. Candidates for the SchoolBoard must file with the Clerkof the School Board, Room215, Historic Old Central HighSchool, 215 N. 1st Ave. E.,from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.The filing fee is $2.00 or a peti-tion in lieu of the filing feemust be furnished at the time offiling.

The date for the PrimaryElection is Tuesday, September12, 2017, and the date for theGeneral Election is Tuesday,November 7, 2017.

The Duluth Central LaborBody has conducted screeningsand endorsements in DuluthCity Council races on the ballotthis fall. Incumbent, LaborEndorsed candidates BarbRuss and Zack Filipovich, aswell as Renee Van Nett inDistrict 4 have been endorsed.

Labor Day weekvolunteers sought

The Duluth Central LaborBody’s 125th Labor Day Picnicat Bayfront Park is in need of alot of volunteers. Many of thefolks who have carried the loadfor years have bowed out thisyear. If you can help, contactRachel Loeffler-Kemp at 726-4775 or rloeffler-kemp@hlunitedway.org.

Katie Humphrey will organ-ize volunteers to march in thePride Parade on Sunday, Sept.3 in Superior behind the DuluthCentral Body’s banner. Contacther at 370-0187 to join in.

Mike Parrott is leading the98th Carlton County LaborDay effort this year for the firsttime and that effort needs helptoo. Contact him at 218-606-0007 if you can lend a hand.

Get connected to resources in Minnesota and WisconsinFor services provided by the Community Services Program

sponsored by the Duluth AFL-CIO Central Labor Body andthe Head of the Lakes United Way...Call 218-726-4775

Rachel Loeffler-Kemp, Director424 West Superior St.

Suite 402 Duluth, MN 55802

Donʼt know where to turn? Dial 2-1-1 or 1-800-543-7709 or visit

www.211unitedway.org

AFL-CIOCommunity Services

PAGE 2 LABOR WORLD NEWS, WEDNESDAY, JULY 12, 2017

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Members & TheirGuests Welcome!

Ironworker RetireesMonthly BreakfastThursday, July 20

9:00 a.m.Bridgeman’s (Mall)Mt. Shadow Drive

Sheet Metal Workers’ Local 10Retirees’ Luncheon

Tuesday, August 1, 1:00 p.m.Lucky 13’s (Miller Mall)

“The Minnesota Blue BookLegislative Manual 2017-2018” isn’t a title that will nec-essarily inspire the masses.The Blue Book (BB) has beenpublished by the Office of theSecretary of State (SOS) since1874. It is much more thaneverything a political wonkwould want to know aboutstate, local, and tribal govern-ment, offices, elected officials,2016 election results, boards/commissions and just abouteverything else state govern-ment. You wonks probably geta BB every two years. For therest of us it is also full of histo-ry, culture, institutions, andfacts MNsotans are proud of.

FACT: In 1895 the stateheld a competition to see whowould design the State Capitol.Forty architects applied and a35-year old local guy, CassGilbert, won.

A groundbreaking was heldin May 1896, a month afterLabor World founder SabrieAkin published our first issue.The Capitol was opened in

1905 and is valued at some-where around $400 million (shhh,

don’t let Donald Trump know). There is a loton the Capitol at mnhs.org/capitol and UM Labor Edu-cation Services’s whobuiltourcapitol.org, and cassgilbertsociety.org.

SOS Steve Simon has dedi-cated this BB edition to themen and women who recentlyworked on the 3-year, $310million restoration of the build-ing. Those were a lot of unionjobs and BB has many photosof their work. In fact, photos inBB date back to 1896.

FACT: Many of the photoscome from an old album foundby Lloyd Jackson in the 1950sin the garbage at the St. PaulPig’s Eye Landfill (now Park).They sat in his attic fordecades.

http://www.sos.state.mn.us/about-minnesota/get-a-blue-book/ will link you to PDFs ofBB pages on your devices.

FACT: Minnesota actuallyhas 11,842 lakes over 10 acres(think about 9 football fieldswithout the end zones).

BB is a big book at 600pages and you might still beable to get one. Option #1 is toask your favorite state legisla-tor for one and see if you getlucky.

FACT: International Fallshas a growing season of 110days, Duluth 128 days, Metrohas 165 (1981–2010 medianfreezes).

Option #2 is to order a copyof BB by sending a self-addressed, postage-paid enve-lope to:

Office of MinnesotaSecretary of State

Legislative Manual Request

60 Empire Dr., Suite 100St. Paul, MN 55103One book per individual,

per address. Better hurry!Your order must contain an

envelope no smaller than a 9.5”x 13.5” padded (or Tyvek) with$3.65 in postage affixed to theenvelope. Cash, check or cred-it cards are not accepted.

FACTS: Minnesota is the12th largest state at 348 mileswide, 406 miles long––by pop-ulation 70% urban, 30% rural.

There’s info on birth anddeath stats (including by dis-ease), education, employment,wages, energy, transportation,agriculture, state parks, and thestate fish being a walleye,largest caught being 17 pounds,8 ounces.

This is a reference book.Unless you’re Cliff Clavin youwon’t remember the answers toa lot of this stuff that oftencreeps into your head. BB isgood for years. Books are goodand this one even comes in apocket sized version.

FACTS: If you want to be atthe lowest point in the state goto Park Point and put a toe inLake Superior and at 602 feetabove sea level you’ll be there.High point is Eagle Mt., CookCounty at 2,301 ft. above.

Some folks might say BB isproof our state government istoo big. I say it shows whyMinnesota is such a great state.

LABOR WORLD NEWS, WEDNESDAY, JULY 12, 2017 PAGE 3

LABOR WORLD(ISSN#0023-6667) is published

semi-monthly except one issue inApril, June, December (21 issues).The known office of publication isLabor World, 2002 London Road,Room 110, Duluth, MN 55812. Periodicals postage is paid at

Duluth MN 55806. POSTMASTER:

Send address changes to: Labor World, 2002 London Rd.,Room 110, Duluth, MN 55812

(218) 728-4469 FAX: (218) 724-1413

laborworld@qwestoffice.netwww.laborworld.org

~ ESTABLISHED 1896 ~Owned by Unions affiliated with the

Duluth AFL-CIO Central Labor BodySubscriptions: $25 Annually

Larry Sillanpa, Editor/ManagerDeborah Skoglund, Bookkeeper

Board of DirectorsPres/Treas Al LaFrenier, WorkersUnited; VP Stacy Spexet, USW

9460; Sec Kathleen Adee, Education MN; Mikael Sundin,

Painters & Allied Trades 106;Dan O’Neill, Plumbers &

Steamfitters 11; Dan Leslie, IBEW 31;

Steve Risacher, Carpenters 361; Tom Cvar, UFCW 1189

S-70T W I N C I T I E S

D U L U T H

7

Rep. Nolan’s right on miningEditor:As a proud member of the United Steel Workers and a Marine

Corps Veteran I’m always trying to find ways to get results.That’s why I am so pleased we have Rick Nolan representing theIron Range. Rep. Nolan led a bipartisan tour of the Iron Rangewith key decision makers in Congress so that they could learnabout the Range, our mining economy, and the senseless miningmoratorium.

Congressman Nolan and I agree that where and if a mineoperates should always be based on science and facts. As out-doorsmen, we both know how important our environment is andwouldn’t support a project that couldn’t be done safely andresponsibly. It is time we got back to the facts when makingimportant decisions about mining and I am proud CongressmanNolan is finding ways to get the job done.

Rob Ecklund, State Representative

150,000 got paid sick time in Twin Cities July 1

By Barb Kucera, Workday MinnesotaST. PAUL~ Some 150,000 workers in Minneapolis and St.

Paul started accruing earned sick and safe time Saturday, July 1,thanks to ordinances approved by their city councils and pro-tected by a veto from Governor Mark Dayton.

Advocates say it is a victory for all of Minnesota and shouldlead to similar policies in other communities.

The ordinances – approved in 2016 – were the result of yearsof collective action by several organizations and individuals.

“Many families will be able to take off when ill or to care fora sick child,” said ISAIAH, a faith group whose members foughthard for the ordinances.

Starting July 1, workers will accrue one hour of paid sick timefor every 30 hours worked, up to 48 hours per year. They mayuse their paid time for illness or medical care for themselves ortheir families. They may use it for “safe time,” to seek counsel-ing, legal support or to relocate in the event of domestic or sex-ual violence or stalking.

The ordinances also cover parents needing to stay homebecause of the closure of childcare centers or schools.

The measures have enforcement provisions, including steepfines for employers who fail to provide earned sick and safetime.

In the final days of the 2017 legislative session, Daytonvetoed a preemption bill that would have prevented local gov-ernments from enacting ordinances on earned sick and safe time,minimum wage and other labor standards. As a result, advocatessay, Minneapolis and St. Paul have some of the strongest sicktime ordinances in the country.

(This article includes information from the ISAIAH website.)

Trump has 2 GOP for NLRB(PAI)—In a decision cheered by the radical right, President

Trump nominated Republican attorneys Marvin Kaplan andWilliam Emanuel to vacant seats on the National LaborRelations Board. If confirmed by the GOP-run U.S. Senate, theywould give Republicans a 3-2 board majority, pending expira-tion of other NLRB members’ terms, and would set the stage forthe reversal of pro-worker NLRB rulings of recent years.

Kaplan is particularly notable because of his prior congres-sional work against unions on many levels. He drafted labor andemployment legislation which would slow union recognitionelections and re-erect corporate obstacles to them. He alsohelped a House panel draft the controversial 2014 multi-employ-er pension law.

Emanuel, a management-side lawyer and law firm share-holder in Los Angeles has a less-extensive bio, but the FederalistSociety, an influential group of right-wing lawyers, says he rep-resents “trade associations, hospitals and other health care insti-tutions, school districts, transportation and logistics companiesand manufacturing companies.”

Unions had no immediate comment on the nominees, but theradical right National Right to Work Committee, was joyful.

Fair Use NoticeThe Labor World may contain

copyrighted material the use of whichhas not always been specificallyauthorized by the copyright owner.We make such material available inour efforts to advance understandingof labor, economic, political, humanrights, democracy, social justice, andenvironmental issues. We believe thisconstitutes a 'fair use' of any suchcopyrighted material as provided forin Section 107, US Copyright Law.

In accordance with Title 17U.S.C. Section 107, the material inthis paper and on the website is dis-tributed without profit to those whohave expressed an interest in receiv-ing the included information for edu-cational purposes.

~NOTICE~Labor World 2017 issues:

Aug. 2, 23 (Labor Day);Sept. 13, 27; Oct. 11, 25(General Election); Nov. 15,

29; Dec. 13 (Holiday).

The non-profit Labor World, Inc. is theofficial publication of the Duluth AFL-CIO Central Labor Body. It is an educa-tional, advocacy newspaper for workersand unions. The views and opinions sub-mitted and expressed in the Labor Worlddo not necessarily reflect the views of thepaper, its Board of Directors or staff, theDuluth AFL-CIO Central Labor Body, itsaffiliated unions, their officers, or staff.

Even up north workers need to protect themselves against the sun, heatSummer’s here and with it

the increased risk of overexpo-sure to the sun – overexposurewhich, over time, can causeskin cancer. Workers who toiloutdoors, such as constructionworkers, dock workers, portdrivers, farm laborers and lettercarriers, are especially vulnera-ble, just by the number of hoursthey work in the heat of day.

“Skin cancer due to occupa-

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tion is more common than isgenerally recognized, althoughit is difficult to obtain an accu-rate estimate of its prevalence,”occupational medicine special-ist Dr. G.K. Gawkrodger wrotein a National Institutes ofHealth journal.

While most occupationalskin cancers come from“industrial exposure of men tochemical carcinogens… those

with outdoor occupations arestill exposed to solar ultravioletirradiation without this beingwidely recognized as an indus-trial hazard. It will be neces-sary to focus on preventativemeasures, e.g. for outdoorworkers, the need to cover upin the sun and use sun protec-tive creams and a campaign forearlier recognition of skin can-cers, which are usually curableif treated in their early stages,”he said.

With that risk in mind,Letter Carriers Health BenefitsDirector Brian Hellman devot-ed his column in the latestPostal Record to the risks ofskin cancers – and how tolessen or prevent skin cancer.After all, he noted, the federalCenters for Disease Controland Prevention reports skincancer is the most commoncancer in the U.S. To reducethe risk “CDC recommendsthese easy options,” he adds:

• “Stay in the shade, espe-cially during midday hours.”Ultraviolet rays from the sun –the ones that cause cancer “arestrongest and most harmfulduring midday, so it’s best toplan indoor activities then. Ifthat’s not possible, seek shadeunder a tree, an umbrella or a

pop-up tent.” If you’re already sunburned,

you’re at risk, CDC adds.• “Wear clothing that covers

your arms and legs.” Long-sleeved shirts, long pants andskirts and the darker the better,CDC told Hellman. “A wet t-shirt offers much less UV pro-tection than a dry one,” he addslaconically.

• “Wear sunglasses thatblock both UVA and UVBrays.” The best ones are wrap-around glasses, which blockalmost all the rays of bothtypes. Prolonged eye exposureto the sun’s ultraviolet rays canlead to future cataracts. And,while CDC didn’t say so, don’tstare directly at the sun.

• “Use sunscreen with atleast a sun protection factor(SPF) of 15 and UVA and UVB

protection when you go out-side. And put it on generouslyhalf an hour before going out.Reapplying it during the timeoutside also helps.

• “Avoid indoor tanning.”Ultraviolet rays are ultravioletrays, whether from the sun orthe salon.

• “Do a skin check once amonth” and “schedule regularcheckups with your doctor ifyou find areas on your skin,such as moles appearing orchanging color, that seem dif-ferent than normal.”

OSHA’s message is simple:Water. Rest. Shade. Try todrink water every 15 minutes.OSHA urges employers toallow new workers to accli-mate and build up resistance tothe increased temperaturesespecially in their first week.

PAGE 4 LABOR WORLD NEWS, WEDNESDAY, JULY 12, 2017

Dry, hot skinMoist andclammy skin

HEAT EXHAUSTION HEAT STROKE

Pupils contractedPupils dilated

Very high bodytemperature

Normal or below normal temperature

Boycott Mexico-made Nabisco productsIt’s been well over a year

since the Bakery, Confection-ery, Tobacco Workers andGrain Millers InternationalUnion (BCTGM) launchedtheir Nabisco 600 Campaign tokeep jobs at U.S. Nabiscoplants instead of seeing themshipped to Mexico.

Thousands of BCTGMmembers work for Mondelez

BCTGM has PBS Nabiscodocumentary set for airingThe Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain

Millers International Union (BCTGM) has prepared a six-minute documentary, “Made in America,” detailing the plight oftheir members at the iconic Nabisco/Mondelēz bakery inChicago. The public television segment, produced by FrontPage, with James Earl Jones will air to over 50 million TVhomes across the country for one full year.

On March 23rd of this year, The Nabisco 600 marked thesolemn first anniversary of the first round of layoffs from theirChicago bakery with a Digital Day of Action. The entire labormovement, along with advocacy groups, college students, glob-al supporters and online activists, shattered BCTGM recordsthat day for a one-minute video promotion for this documentaryover 4 million times on social media.

David B. Durkee, BCTGM International President said “Bysaying NO to Nabisco products made in Mexico, consumers aresaying NO to sending good, middle-class jobs to Mexico; say-ing NO to business practices that devastate families and com-munities; saying NO to Nabisco/Mondelēz’ exploitation ofworkers across borders and oceans. The broad coalition of sup-port for the campaign continues to grow in size and strength.Each day, more American consumers are joining the boycott andchallenging Nabisco/Mondelēz’ destructive corporate businessmodel where it matters the most – at the cash register – by refus-ing to purchase Nabisco products made in Mexico.

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International, maker of Nabis-co snack products, but CEOIrene Rosenfeld, has refused tobring back good American jobsshe has shipped to Mexico inspite of an AFL-CIO boycottand a strong coalition support-ing the workers who lost theirjobs.

BCTGM jobs in Chicago,Fairlawn, NJ, Richmond, VA.,

Atlanta, GA., and Portland, ORwere lost to a Nabisco/Mondelez bakery in Salinas,Mexico, where workers earn$12 a day for the $30 billionmultinational corporation.

Supporters of the Americanworkers are asked to check thelabels on any Nabisco productsthey purchase to make surethey are Made in the U.S.A.and not Mexico. Ask the man-ager of the store where youshop to stock only U.S. madeNabisco products. And yes,that includes Oreo cookies. Tellmanagers you are not only try-ing to protect American jobsyou are trying to protect theAmerican economy, communi-ties, and the living standards ofmillions of U.S. workers.

David B. Durkee, BCTGMInternational President, praisedfaith communities and 17 U.S.Senators, including TammyBaldwin, for their support.

Learn more at BCTGM’sfightforamericanjobs.org

mnpower.com/safety swlp.com/safety

LABOR WORLD NEWS, WEDNESDAY, JULY 12, 2017 PAGE 5

Thanks, Hoops Brewing, for using Local,Union Labor in your new, huge remodel!The Twin Ports Construction Liaison Committee

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BCTGM Local 358 workers are trying to have a little funwith their boycott of Mexican-made Nabisco products.Read more on Greedy Irene on page 8’s CEO pay article.

Franken continues to press Trump administration on illegal trading partners

Minnesota ranked 6th best for jobseekers

WASHINGTON, D.C.[07/07/17]—U.S. Sen. AlFranken (D-Minn.) and abipartisan group of his col-leagues are pushing U.S.Customs and Border Protection(CBP) to use all the tools it hasto crack down on foreign com-petitors who seek to undermineour nation’s trade laws.

Congress passed theEnforce and Protect Act in2016 to improve CBP’s effortsto address the under-collectionof antidumping and counter-vailing duties levied againsttrading partners whose exportsto the United States break traderules. In a letter joined by 14 ofhis colleagues, Sen. Frankenexpressed concern that a CBPrule does not go as far as the

Nolan pushes Hours ofService Act for yardmasters,

other railroad employees[WASHINGTON D.C.] On June 29 Minnesota Congress-

man Rick Nolan (D-MN 8) introduced the Railroad YardmasterProtection Act of 2017 to ensure coverage for Yardmasters in therail industry under the Hours of Service Act.

Currently, Yardmasters are not protected under the Hours ofService Act, which in its current form ensures that railroad engi-neers and other operating employees, as well as train dispatchersand signal employees, have limitations on their hours workedand mandatory rest periods to prevent worker fatigue and over-load.

Currently, 16 hour shifts are common for Yardmasters – andshifts as long as 24 hour are on the rise.

“Yardmasters in the rail industry work demanding jobs – sim-ilar to those of train dispatchers and even air traffic controllers,”Nolan said. “All of our nation’s Yardmasters deserve these nec-essary and common sense protections to ensure their safety aswell as the safety of the traveling public and the efficient trans-port of freight and cargo.”

Historically, Yardmasters oversaw the operations in a singlerail yard; however, in recent years, railroads have assigned con-trol of multiple railyards to a single Yardmaster. That Yardmasteris responsible for the safe and efficient movement of freight andpassenger traffic, and the railroad employees that work in theiryards.

Nolan’s legislation is endorsed by the InternationalAssociation of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and TransportationWorkers (SMART-TD), the American Federation of Labor &Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) and theTransportation Trades Department (TTD).

Steve Moerke, Local Chairman of the Brotherhood ofLocomotive Engineers & Trainmen Division 188 said they fullyendorse Nolan’s bill. “As much of the movement of trains andengines within rail yards are under the direction of yardmastersit is important that they are as alert and attentive as possible,”said Moerke. “This legislation can only improve safety and is animportant step forward toward that end.”

Blankenship leaves prisonCHARLESTON, W. Va. (PAI)—No sooner did Don

Blankenship, former CEO of Massey Coal Company, leave fed-eral prison after serving a year for violating mine safety laws –violations that led to the fatal explosion at Massey’s Upper BigBranch mine seven years ago -- than he started blaming almosteveryone else. The sole exception: The 29 victims.

Needless to say, neither the Mine Workers, who at the requestof the victims’ families joined federal investigators in probingthe blast, nor top congressional Democrats on workers’ issueswere pleased with Blankenship’s assertions.

Blankenship was convicted in federal court in West Virginiaof willfully conspiring to violate federal mine safety laws, theheaviest count that could be lodged against him after the explo-sion, since the federal Mine Safety and Health Act lacks felonycriminal penalties for mine operators after such fatal blasts.

Blankenship was sentenced to the year in jail and fined$250,000. He stepped out of jail on May 10 and started a tour oftalk-radio programs to try to vindicate himself.

law directs to put a stop to dutyevasion, and that it does notensure workers and businessesin Minnesota and throughoutthe country get as much relieffrom trade remedies as possi-ble.

“CBP’s rule implementingthe Enforce and Protect Act isinconsistent with Congress’intent and falls short of what isneeded to make the duty eva-sion process more transparent,timely, and accessible to stake-holders,” the Senators wrote.“We urge you to issue a revisedrule that addresses the concernsoutlined above to ensure allU.S. workers and companieswho are affected by unfairtrade practices get the reliefthey deserve.”

Since joining the Senate,Sen. Franken has fought tocrack down on steel, sugar, alu-minum, and lumber dumping,as well as other unfair or illegalforeign trade practices that hurtU.S. industries and workers.Last year, he introduced bipar-tisan legislation with Sen. BenSasse (R-Neb.) proposing asimple, yet effective step tosupport fair trade practices.Sen. Franken has also support-ed legislation to reform thebiodiesel tax credit to makesure taxpayers aren't subsidiz-ing imported fuel.

You can read the letter ATfranken.senate .gov/f i les /letter/170706ENFORCERuleLetterFinal.pdf

With employers expectingto hire 5 percent more gradu-ates from the Class of 2017than in the previous year, thepersonal-finance websiteWalletHub conducted an in-depth analysis of 2017’s Best& Worst States for Jobs.

To ease the process of find-ing employment for job seek-ers, WalletHub’s analysts com-pared the 50 states across 24key indicators of job-marketstrength, opportunity and eco-

nomic vitality. The data setranges from employmentgrowth to median annualincome to average commutetime.

Minnesota came in as the6th best state for jobs with itsonly neighbor during betterbeing South Dakota at #4.Wisconsin is #17, Iowa #22and North Dakota was at #24

Best States for Jobs were: 1 Washington 2 Colorado

3 New Hampshire 4 South Dakota 5 New Jersey 6 Minnesota 7 Massachusetts 8 California 9 Tennessee 10 Florida Worst States for Jobs41 Wyoming42 North Carolina43 New Mexico44 Alaska45 Oklahoma46 Mississippi47 Alabama48 Kentucky49 Louisiana50 West VirginiaOther data comparing the

Best vs. Worst included:* Massachusetts has the

highest monthly average start-ing salary, $3,637, which is 1.8times higher than in Idaho, reg-istering the lowest at $2,068.

* New Hampshire andSouth Dakota share the lowestunemployment rate, 2.8 per-cent, which is 2.4 times lowerthan in New Mexico, register-ing the highest at 6.7 percent.

* Maryland has the fewestpart-time employees for every100 full-time employees,48.47, which is 1.6 times fewerthan in Oregon, registering themost at 77.34.

* New Hampshire has thelowest share of workers livingin poverty, 3.99 percent, whichis 2.7 times lower than in NewMexico, registering the highestat 10.93 percent.

The full report is at https://wallethub.com/edu/best-states-for-jobs/35641/

PAGE 6 LABOR WORLD NEWS, WEDNESDAY, JULY 12, 2017

Study of minimum wage hikes since 1938 says opponents use poor logicBy Nick HanauerContributor, National Employment Law ProjectFrom the fear-mongering

headlines marking passage of$15 statutes in New York andCalifornia, you would thinknobody ever dared raise theminimum wage before.

"Raising minimum wagerisky," the Lexington(Kentucky) Herald-Leadertersely warned.

"Raising minimum wagehurts low-skill workers," theDetroit News bluntly declared.

"Even left-leaning econo-mists say it's a gamble," Voxsolemnly cautioned.

Nonsense. We have beenraising the minimum wage for78 years, and as a new studyclearly reveals, 78 years ofminimum-wage hikes haveproduced zero evidence of the"job-killing" consequencesthese headline writers want usto fear.

In a first-of-its-kind report,researchers at the NationalEmployment Law Project poreover employment data fromevery federal increase since theminimum wage was first estab-lished, making "simple before-and-after comparisons of job-growth trends 12 months aftereach minimum-wageincrease."

What did the researchersfind? The paper's title says it

Seattle wage study flawedA new Economic Policy Institute report by economists Ben

Zipperer and John Schmitt finds that a recent study of Seattle’sminimum wage increase by University of Washington (UW)researchers has notable flaws that cast significant doubt on itsfindings. The authors describe the shortcomings in the UWanalysis and suggest ways the researchers can correct for theseproblems in future iterations of their long-term study of theSeattle minimum wage.

A team of researchers at the University of Washington hasreleased an analysis of the economic impacts of the 2015 and2016 increases in the Seattle minimum wage. The study, Jardimet al. (2017), looks at the first two stages of a phased-in set ofincreases that will eventually take the minimum wage in the cityto $15.00 per hour. The authors of the study argue that they findlarge job losses associated with these first two rounds of increas-es, in which the minimum wage for most workers rose from$9.47 per hour to $11.00 per hour in April 2015 and then to$13.00 per hour in January 2016.

EPI’s Zipperer and Schmitt say the UW authors’ analysis,however, “suffers from a number of data and methodologicalproblems that bias the study in the direction of finding job loss,even where there may have been no job loss at all. One initialindicator of these problems is that the estimated employmentlosses in the Seattle study lie far outside even those generallysuggested by mainstream critics of the minimum wage (see, forexample, Neumark and Wascher [2008])—as the authors them-selves acknowledge.

all: "Raise Wages, Kill Jobs?Seven Decades of HistoricalData Find No CorrelationBetween Minimum WageIncreases and EmploymentLevels."

The results were clear. Ofthe nearly two dozen federalminimum-wage hikes since1938, total year-over-yearemployment actually increased68% of the time.

In those industries mostaffected by the minimumwage, employment increaseswere even more common: 73%of the time in the retail sector,82% in low-wage leisure andhospitality.

"These basic economic indi-cators show no correlationbetween federal minimum-wage increases and loweremployment levels," theauthors write.

In fact, if anything, the datasuggest that increases in thefederal minimum appeared toencourage job growth and hir-ing.

Perhaps even more striking,of the only eight times that totalor industry-specific employ-ment declined after a mini-mum-wage increase, the USeconomy was already in reces-sion (five times), technicallyjust emerging from recession(twice), or about to head intorecession (once).

Clearly, this handful ofemployment downturns would

be better explained by the nor-mal business cycle than by theminimum wage.

"As those results mirror thefindings of decades of moresophisticated academicresearch," the authors con-clude, "they provide simpleconfirmation that opponents'perennial predictions of joblosses are rooted in ideology,not evidence."

But while there is no evi-dence that raising the minimumwage is the "risky, gamble" thatdoomsayers describe, the dev-astating economic costs ofkeeping wages too low are verywell documented.

After decades of stagnantwages, 73 million Americans— nearly one quarter of ourpopulation — now live inhouseholds eligible for theEarned Income Tax Credit, abenefit exclusively available tothe working poor.

And according to a 2014report from the Organizationfor Economic Cooperation andDevelopment, rising incomeinequality (and the reducedconsumer demand that comeswith it) knocked 6% to 9% offUS economic growth over theprevious two decades.

Wow. If the US economywere 9% bigger than it is today,it would have created about 11million additional jobs.Imagine how great that wouldbe for both American workersand businesses.

To be clear, I am not sug-gesting that there's no limit tohow high we can raise the min-imum wage. But minimum-wage opponents are not hag-gling over a number. They arenot making a nuanced argu-ment that the minimum wagemight be bad for some peopleif it's too high or phased in toofast or if the economy is tooweak to absorb the change.

No, their core claim is thatthe minimum wage alwayshurts the whole economy —that it will always reducegrowth— that it is always asure-fire "job-killer."

For decades, our minimum-wage debate has been dominat-ed by ideology — the zero-sumclaim that if wages go up,employment must inevitablygo down — leading even manyprogressives to believe that theminimum wage is at best a nec-essary trade-off between fair-ness and growth.

But 78 years of evidencedemonstrates that this old trick-le-down model just isn't true.On the contrary: When workershave more money, businesseshave more customers and hiremore workers. That is the virtu-ous cycle that has alwaysdescribed the way market

economies actually work.So if you are genuinely wor-

ried about killing jobs, our cur-rent $7.25-an-hour minimumwage is arguably far riskierthan $15.

Nick Hanauer is the coau-thor of two best-selling booksin politics, "The True Patriot"and "The Gardens ofDemocracy." His opinionpieces have been featured inThe New York Times,Bloomberg Businessweek, TheAtlantic, Democracy Journal,and other publications. He is acofounder and partner in theSeattle-based venture-capitalfirm Second Avenue Partners.In 2015 he founded CivicVentures, a small group ofpolitical troublemakers devot-ed to ideas, policies, andactions that catalyze signifi-cant social change.

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Be — and be seen

CEOs make 347 times the average U.S. worker and keep getting raises(PAI)~ Meet Sundar Pichai,

the $100 million man. Chiefexecutive officer of Google,Pichai led the AFL-CIO’sannual Executive Paywatch(https://aflcio.org/paywatch)listings in total compensationlast year: $100,632,102 in pay,stock options and bonuses. It’shis third straight year of nine-figure pay and perks, mostly instock, other sources show.

The second-place finisher,Thomas Rutledge of CharterCommunications, was just over$2 million behind.

The outsize salaries to cor-porate CEOs such as Pichaiand Rutledge show the chasmbetween the rich and the rest ofus, says AFL-CIO PresidentRichard Trumka.

The average CEO last yearearned $13.1 million in pay andperks, compared to a medianwage of $37,600 for U.S.workers, the Paywatch sitenotes. And when adjusted forinflation, the average worker’swage has remained stagnant for50 years.

That means the CEO earns347 times the worker earns, oralmost as much in a day as theworker does in a year. Lastyear, S&P 500 CEOs got a5.9% raise while working peo-ple struggled to make endsmeet.

“This year’s report providesfurther proof the greed of cor-porate CEOs is drivingAmerica’s income inequalitycrisis,” said Trumka. “Big cor-porations continually find waysto rig the economy in theirfavor and line their CEOs’

pockets at the expense of theworkers who make their busi-nesses run.

“Too often, corporations seeworkers as costs to be cut,rather than assets to be investedin. It’s shameful that CEOs canmake tens of millions of dollarsand still destroy the livelihoodsof the hard-working peoplewho make their companiesprofitable,” he continued.

The Paywatch report notonly discloses executives’ highcompensation, but notes thatmany well-paid CEOs exportU.S. jobs overseas. Many keepprofits offshore, too. That letstheir firms evade U.S. taxes --$767 billion last year alonefrom 322 firms within theFortune 500 -- though they useU.S. services. Those firms col-lectively stashed $2.6 trillionoffshore. The worst of the taxavoiders, 18 Fortune 500 com-panies, paid $0, yup, nothing,in federal taxes between 2008and 2015.

As for exporting jobs, that’swhat Irene Rosenfeld, CEO ofMondelez International, didlast year to almost 600 unionworkers – members of theBakery, Confectionery andTobacco Workers and GrainMillers – at the Nabisco Oreoplant on Chicago’s South Side.

Not satisfied with making$16.7 million, Rosenfelddemanded the Chicago work-ers cut their pay to Mexicanlevels of several dollars anhour, and eliminate their healthcare, or Nabisco would moveits Oreo production line toMexico. They didn’t and she

did. “Greedy CEOs are continu-

ing to get rich off the backs ofworking people,” said MichaelSmith, who lost his job lastMarch. “I loved working atNabisco, and I took pride in thework I did to make a qualityproduct. It’s not as if the com-pany isn’t profitable. The Oreoalone brings in $2 billion”annually “and the CEO makesmore in a day than most of usmade in a year. I just don’tunderstand the disrespectfulattitude toward working peo-ple,” he told the AFL-CIO.

(BCTGM has called for aboycott of Mexican-madeOreos, see page 5. For U.Sunion-made Oreos, check thebarcode, see page 1. The uniondeciphered it to let consumersknow which cookies arewhich.)

Other examples from the

Paywatch report, gleaned fromfederal filings, include:

• Apple led all companies inavoiding taxes, keeping $230billion in profits overseas. Italso paid CEO Tim Cook $8.75million.

• General Electric, whoseformer CEO, Jack Welch, onceboasted about wanting to putfactories on barges to evadeU.S. taxes, unions, environ-mental standards and laborlaws, stashed $82 billion over-seas. It was fourth in that tactic,behind Apple, Pfizer andMicrosoft. CEO Jeff Immelt,Welch’s successor, took home$21.32 million in pay andperks.

GE was also one of 18Fortune 500 companies to payno U.S. income taxes at allfrom 2008-2015, the Paywatchreport says.

• The Dodd-Frank financial

reform law, passed after WallStreet greed caused the GreatRecession, ordered publicallytraded companies to start publi-cally reporting the ratiosbetween their CEOs’ pay andperks and their median work-ers’ pay and perks.

What the report does not sayis that corporations challengedthat rule in court and lobbiedthe responsible agency – theSecurities and ExchangeCommission – to delay writingregulations to force such dis-closure. The SEC is still work-ing on the rules.

Not satisfied with that solu-tion, corporate lobbyists easilyconvinced House FinancialServices Committee ChairmanJeb Hensarling, R-Texas, torepeal that ratio disclosure inhis overall Dodd-Frank repealbill, now pending.

PAGE 8 LABOR WORLD NEWS, WEDNESDAY, JULY 12, 2017

State Representative Paul Thissen (DFL-MPLS) was thelatest candidate for governor in 2018 to come to Duluth totalk to labor folks and their friends. He attended the Judge’sLunch at Sneakers last Friday, and then took a tour throughthe Duluth Labor Temple with his colleague, Rep. MikeSundin (DFL-Esko). Thissen, like Rep. Erin Murphy (DFL-St. Paul) who was here recently, said he would abide by theDFL endorsement, which could come early next June.