Jan. 27 -
Maine
workers oppose LD 1725 taking away jobless benefits
Maine's
Working Families Coalition, representing thousands of Mainers,
is urging legislators to take a family- focused approach to
a wide range of issues. Speakers
on Jan. 27 spoke out against LD 1725, which would roll back
jobless benefits.
Zack
Keegan, at podium above, a recent college graduate who lost
his temporary employment six months ago, described how he finally
decided to apply for jobless benefits after half a year of a
fruitless job search.
When
I heard that there was a proposal that would weaken the unemployment
insurance program, I was stunned," said Keegan. "The focus should
be on creating jobs."
The
coalition also opposes L.D. 309 discouraging working Mainers
from engaging in collective bargaining; L.D. 1680 and L.D. 1693
making it more difficult for Mainers to find tax relief through
the Circuit-breaker Program; and other attempts to weaken worker
and consumer protections and rights, including L.D. 1207 (the
DeCoster bill) and L.D. 1786 removing Maine's annual livable
wage calculation.
Jan. 26 -
Maine's middle class under attack by corporate-funded, ultraconservative
group
In
its latest attack against Mainers trying to earn a livable wage,
the heavily corporate-funded Maine Heritage Policy Center on
Jan. 25 recommended unions be outlawed across America. The center
further urged citizens be prohibited from joining these organizations
and blacklisted.
"This
is a clear and blatant attack on the First Amendment rights
of all citizens in our nation," said Scott Austin, Vice President
of the Maine State Employees Association, Local 1989 of the
Service Employees International Union, which represents over
10,000 Maine workers. "Under the Maine Heritage Policy Center's
dark vision for America, the government would prohibit membership
in certain organizations. Freedom of association is the hallmark
of our democracy."
Austin
also noted that in Maine, public sector workers are already
paid hourly wages substantially lower than their private sector
counterparts for comparable work, even with benefits factored
in. A recent labor market survey commissioned by the State Department
of Administrative and Financial Services bears that out. The
survey shows, for example, that State of Maine highway maintenance
workers earn 21.6 percent less than their private sector counterparts.
The
survey, conducted by Crescendo Consulting of Portland, Maine,
is available by clicking here.
"Maine's
working families are still digging out from this Great Recession,"
added Austin. "If anything, they need a stronger, not weaker,
voice in their wages, benefits, and working conditions. Mainers
continue to descend on the state CareerCenters and community
colleges in record numbers to strengthen their job skills or
retrain for new careers. Our members are proud to provide them
with the services they need."
Rank-and-file
workers at the Maine Turnpike Authority (MTA) picketed
MTA headquarters and held a sit-in during the MTA board meeting
Jan. 19 to draw attention to their hard work and
lack of a contract. The workers urged the MTA Board to recognize
that rank-and-file workers aren't responsible for the mismanagement
that resulted in the former executive director of the MTA pleading
guilty to criminal charges last week. The workers carried signs
saying "Don't punish MTA workers," "Respect Maine workers" and
"Snow doesn't fall in shifts."
Jan. 23 -
Workers rally, stand up for quality services!
MSEA-SEIU
members rallied Jan. 23 outside the state offices on Anthony
Avenue, Augusta, in support of quality public services for everyone
in Maine and fair contracts for those who provide those services.
Many passersby waved and honked their horns and in support of
the workers.
MSEA-SEIU Retirees standing up for all Maine workers!
Members
of the MSEA-SEIU Retirees Steering Committee gathered in Augusta
on January 17 to advocate for health and retirement security
for all Maine workers.
MSEA-SEIU member Melanie Collins, a member
of our Kids First Chapter, testifies Dec. 16 against Gov.
LePage's MaineCare proposal, which would eliminate childcare
for scores of working families. "As a childcare provider,
I say fully fund childcare subsidies so we can have parents
working," she said.
Stand
up for the 65,000 Mainers whose healthcare is under attack
by the Governor!
Sixty-five thousand Mainers stand to lose their healthcare under
Gov. LePage's proposed "fix" decimating Maine's safety net. Because
they would still end up in emergency rooms for treatment if the
Governor gets his way, the costs of their healthcare would merely
be shifted onto everyone else with insurance. The result? Premiums
would go up. People with healthcare would end up paying more.
Healthcare costs would go up, not down.
In addition to taking away healthcare from 65,000 Mainers, the
Governor's proposed "fix" would cut $5 million in personnel costs
from Maine DHHS by eliminating vacant positions and cut $500,000
in child care funding. The
Governor has also proposed terminating Maine's Consumer-Directed
Personal Assistance Services Program, which provides Maine people
with direct-care services that help them live independently in
their own homes. As such, the Governor's
proposal would decimate the CD-PAS workforce at both Alpha One
and Home Care for Maine.
Although no layoffs at Maine DHHS are proposed, the Governor's
proposed "fix" threatens countless private, nonprofit jobs in
Maine. Instead of eliminating jobs in Maine, the Governor should
be working to protect and create jobs.
At the Maine State House on Dec. 14, hundreds
of Mainers rallied told legislators that Gov. LePage's extreme
proposals would hurt thousands of working families,
the elderly, people with disabilities, the poor and children alike
while also killing more than 4,400 jobs."
The proposals presented by Gov. LePage would hurt every community
in Maine," said Ben Dudley of the Maine
Can Do Better Coalition. "The impacts of
this proposal would hurt Maine's economic recovery, and touch
every family in the state, including those with private health
insurance. Tens of thousands of people would lose health insurance,
access to medicine and some could even lose their homes."
The Governor wants to cut over $220 million in state funding for
MaineCare, the Fund for Healthy Maine, Head Start and other health
programs. FMI go to the Maine
Can Do Better Coalition website.
Related links:
Instead
of respecting workers' rights, Gov. LePage is still trying to
take them away. His irresponsible legislation known as
LD
309 is coming back before state legislators
in January. Call your State Senator and State Representative
now through Dec. 18. Urge
them to oppose LD 309. Click here for their contact information.
With LD
309,
Gov. LePage is trying to force Maine workers who belong to unions
to pay the entire cost of the representational and collective
bargaining services that nonunion members are entitled to under
federal and state law. Everyone who has union representation
benefits from the contracts and the representational services
that unions are required to provide, so it's only fair that
everyone in a bargaining unit pays their share of those expenses.
Call your State Senator and State Representative right away.
Urge
them to oppose LD 309. Click here for their contact information.
Together, we can defend the rights of all Maine workers. Call
your State Senator and State Representative right away. Urge
them to oppose LD 309. Click here for their contact information.
Maine workers join in 'The People's Camp' on National Mall
On Wednesday, Dec. 7, MSEA-SEIU members sporting
our "Building a Secure Future for Maine" banner marched
with thousands of others in our nation's capital. The message: Congress
needs to start representing the 99 pecent, not just the 1 percent.
Several MSEA-SEIU members joined Dec. 5-9 with thousands of
Americans who took our Capitol by storm. They sent a message
that Congress needs to represent the 99 percent, not just the
1 percent.
The situation for the 99 percent is dire. Nearly 14 million
workers in the United States are without jobs and income inequality
is at its worst since the 1920s. Unless Congress acts swiftly,
federal unemployment insurance programs will expire Dec. 31
-- cutting off benefits to nearly 2 million jobless Americans
in January alone, with more than 6 million cut off during the
coming year. And while the middle class and working people are
suffering, taxes for the 1 percent are at an all-time low.
From Dec. 5-9, unemployed and underemployed people, students,
community activists, union members, healthcare advocates and
occupiers ran The People's Camp on the National Mall. They told
Congress that we will not stand for having our American Dream
deferred, derailed or traded away any longer. From coast to
coast, they gathered to "Take Back the Capitol."
By day, they showed up at Congressional hearings and the offices
of K Street lobbyists. By night, they crashed in church auditoriums,
union halls and in tents around the Capitol.
Print
and post this sign: "We are the 99%"
Rally
and Public Hearing on LD 309
attended by hundreds of workers opposing it!
The
rally and public hearing on LD 309
brought forth hundreds of workers from both the public and private
sectors opposing this harmful legislation. Organized workers
from all levels recognized the dangers of and the damage that
this legislation would do to workers and the collective bargaining
process.Public testimony on the bill before
the Labor, Commerce, Research and Economic Development Committee
lasted well into Thursday evening with 45 testifying against
the bill and 10 in support of it. At a work session on June
6, the Committee voted to carry over LD 309 to January 2012.
Governor LePage's Counsel Dan Billings responds
to question about New York City attorney Lou DiLorenzo's direct
involvement with LD 309.
|
From
the Desk of President Ginette Rivard
|
Click
here for President Rivard's column:
"This time, bring
a friend to the Legislature"
|
Photo
slideshow: Maine workers and retired
workers talk to state legislators in support of a responsible state
budget that is fair to everyone, and against legislation that would
weaken the voice of all Maine workers
"The
right to freeload is not the Maine way," The
Times Record editorial
"Ending
collective bargaining rights paves way for labor strife,"
Bangor Daily News editorial
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