Philadelphia Fire Fighters Union Local 22 President Joseph
D. Schulle is leading the charge Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers and Fire Dept.
Human Resources Mgr. Karen Hyers have committed perjury before Judge Leon
Tucker in a court hearing when they testified as to their reasons and roles in
demoting 14 firefighters shortly after they had been promoted.
In a rally outside City Hall, he provided court testimony
backing up his charge and called for the District Attorney to launch an
investigation into the matter. As of press time, the DA has yet to comment.
The District Attorney is currently reviewing notes of
testimony to determine whether an investigation is warranted.
Eiding Encourages Walmart Workers
As thousands of Philadelphia-area Walmart workers prepare
for a busy Black Friday shopping season, the Philadelphia Council AFL-CIO
applauded Walmart workers and their families across the country who have been
demonstrating for a fair wage and fair treatment from the world’s largest
retailer.
”Walmart needs to do the right thing,” said Pat Eiding,
president of the Philadelphia Council AFL-CIO. “We know they can afford to pay
their employees a decent wage. The Philadelphia AFL-CIO supports all the
Walmart employees who will be standing up for better wages and working
conditions on Black Friday. We’ll be there with them.”
Walmart has made $17 billion in profits this year, but the
company continues to drive the race-to-the-bottom economy by paying its employees
poverty wages: 825,000 of their employees nationwide make less than $25,000 a
year, trapping them and their families in a state of economic insecurity.
Wendell W. Young, IV, president of the 24,000-member United
Food & Commercial Workers Local 1776, said it is “long past time for
Walmart to join the ranks of responsible companies by paying its workers a
living wage and making affordable health care insurance available to them.”
In a boost for Walmart employees, the National Labor
Relations Board announced on Monday that they would take Walmart to trial over
more than a hundred alleged labor-law violations. The Board has found evidence that Walmart
illegally fired or disciplined workers who protested or went on strike
demanding better pay and fair working conditions.
Raising wages would increase Walmart employees’ purchasing
power, create more jobs, supplement local tax bases, and improve the economy.
Instead, Walmart keeps wages so low that its workers across the country are
forced to rely on billions in annual government assistance to survive.
Young continued, “As long as more than half of its working
men and women can’t afford the benefits that Wal-Mart brags about in its
television commercials, this company will continue to lead our nation in a race
to the bottom. All of us as taxpayers end up paying the bill. Walmart’s
employees can’t afford the company’s insurance. They wait until they get sicker
than they have to be, and they end up in expensive hospital emergency rooms for
their medical care. Those costs show up in everyone’s medical bills, while
Walmart’s profits soar. It’s a big part of our broken health-care system, and
it won’t get fixed until Walmart assumes its fair share of responsibility.”
The wealth of the six Walmart heirs is greater than the
combined wealth of 42% of American families. It’s not good for our regional
economy that the Walton family and Walmart’s well-paid corporate executives are
padding their pockets while thousands of Walmart workers in our area are
struggling to support their families, Young asserted.
With the Unions
Senators Hear From Labor Leaders
Philadelphia labor leaders and affected workers told a State
Senate panel last week current unemployment-compensation laws are not doing
enough to protect vulnerable Pennsylvanians who are temporarily out of work.
At the request of State Sen. Mike Stack (D-Northeast), one
of the committee members, the State Senate Democratic Policy Committee hosted
the roundtable to discuss recent changes made to the unemployment-compensation
system with the implementation of Act 60 and Pennsylvania’s workforce in
general.
“It’s our job to make sure workers – men and women who have
lost their jobs through no fault of their own – avoid the social and economic
disasters that can come from unemployment,” Stack said. “We can’t help these
Pennsylvanians get back on their feet by tightening eligibility requirements
and reducing benefits.”
State Sen. Lisa Boscola (D-Northampton), who chairs the
policy committee, said the purpose of the discussion was to hear from workers,
unemployment specialists and community members to better understand how changes
in unemployment compensation affect vulnerable Pennsylvanians.
“How can we protect individuals and families who are facing
hard times without burdening taxpayers?” Boscola asked. “It’s a delicate
balance that we must achieve.”
Boscola said the unemployment trust fund is a vital safety
net for people who lose their jobs, and it’s essential to have a fair,
equitable system in place to assist the state’s workers during difficult times.
“This was a chance for Philadelphia leaders, workers and
legislators to have a serious discussion on how to ensure reasonable
unemployment benefits get to those who need it,” Boscola said.
Anthony Gallagher, business manager at the Steamfitters
Union Local No. 420, said these highly skilled workers should not be punished
for the seasonal natural of their careers.
“These are not people who want to be out of work,” Gallagher
said. “This is their career …t his is a situation that is beyond their
control.”
State Sen. Tina Tartaglione (D-Kensington) said since the
implementation of Act 60, the system for applying for unemployment benefits has
become incredibly difficult.
“We understood the changes to Act 60 were going to adversely
affect laborers and employers, but we were unable to stop it from passing
then,” Tartaglione said. “We need to reverse this now, because to me, this is
unacceptable.”
also testing were Andrew Clauson, member, Steamfitters Union
Local No. 420; Louis S. Agre, business agent, International Union of Operation
Engineers Local 542; Sharon Dietrich, managing attorney, employment and public
benefits, Community Legal Services; John Dodds, director, Philadelphia
Unemployment Project; John Clark, business manager/secretary-treasurer,
Boilermakers Local Lodge 13; Gerry Gontz, business agent, Sheet Metal Workers
Local No. 19; and Mike Guinan, business agent, Sheet Metal Workers Local No.
19.
Source: Philadelphia
Public Record
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