Philadelphia, PA NF Walk and 5K Run

On behalf of the Children’s Tumor Foundation, members of Steamfitters Local #420 encourage you, your friends and family to take part in the Philadelphia NF Walk and 5K Run on June 22, 2013 to benefit the Children’s Tumor Foundation.

The Philadelphia NF Walk and 5K Run is a great way to connect and form lasting friendships with others affected by neurofibromatosis (NF), while also raising awareness and funds for NF research.

In addition to the walk and run, there will be music, children’s activities and a picnic lunch. Registration includes a T-shirt and food/beverages for the day.

NF is a genetic disorder that causes tumors to grow on nerves throughout the body. Currently, there is no cure for NF, nor are there effective treatments. With your support we can change this. Please step up and support this important cause today!

Event Information:

What: PHILADELPHIA, PA NF WALK AND 5K RUN 2013

When: Saturday, June 22, 2013

Where: Doylestown Central Park, 452 Wells Road, Doylestown, PA, 18901

For more information, go to: http://www.ctf.org/NF-Walk/ OR Contact Gwendolyn Coverdale at TeamShaelyn@comcast.net or at 267-884-6328.

Thank you for supporting the Children’s Tumor Foundation’s mission to end NF! To learn more about CTF visit www.ctf.org.

Submitted by Douglas Creighton, Steamfitters local 420

As part of our “Letters from The Rank and File” series, an editorial series which publishes the ideas and opinions from area union members, below is a letter written by rank and file union member Douglas Creighton of Steamfitters Local 420 in Philadelphia stating his views on how unions can best partner with communities through charitable endeavors to both make a difference in our communities and improve our public image as unions. Kudos to Douglas, whose ideas mirror those of PhillyLabor.com on these very important issues!

THE SITUATION

My name is Douglas Creighton, I am 34 years old and am a proud union member of the UA, Local 420 Steamfitters Union, based out of Philadelphia in good standing for 10 years. Having come from generations of family union members I believe deeply in the core values that unions abide. I understand the importance of unions and the role they played and continue to play in shaping this great country. It is antagonizing for me to watch all the hard work and sacrifice our founding fathers and fellow brothers have endured over the years, only to be undone slowly by conservative/republican ideology and corporate greed manipulating our countries public opinion.

My rationale for this letter is to address the demonization of unions in America from both the private and public sectors and offer a possible new directional step. My goal is to change the way unions are perpetually viewed by the country as a whole.

Since this nation’s economy has tanked, public sector unions are now even being targeted because of the fiscal irresponsibility of elected government officials. Unions across this nation have watched their market share along with membership decline for a number of reasons. The days of strong arm tactics, although maybe once necessary for the times, are long gone and have tarnished labor unions public image. Our political clout has diminished to the point of near extinction. Labor board decisions and rulings have single handedly destroyed the power of the picket line initiating the double gate system, which, stemmed from the infamous J. Leon Altemose case, years back for which many reference as a starting point for the demonization of unions throughout the Philadelphia region

MY VISION

With that being said, my ideology between unions and community charities has been born. Typically unions today only receive publicity when backing a political candidate, rallying in numbers to show strength, blowing up rats to resemble the non-union competition, setting up picket lines to object in- justices, or striking to apply pressure on collectively bargaining.

My vision or directional step is for unions in the future to make a commitment to increase participation and better promote the various charitable and community based endeavors that we support which will, in turn, yield positive effects, high visibility along with a strong community presence. It’s my opinion that we need to evolve into a necessity for communities. I believe if we don’t change the way people in this country view public and private sector unions, we will cease to exist. I understand the need to vote politicians in office that push legislation that supports our cause but I also feel that as we continually lose our market share to cheap labor, paired with negative public opinion, we may also become obsolete to candidates looking for votes. Unions have been under attack for decades now with republicans and corporations slowly stripping us of our rights and demonizing the united way that we stand. If the public starts to embrace our humanitarian presence community by community, I am sure we will start undoing the negative reputation that seems to have picked up momentum for the last 10 years.

I have addressed this issue with my own Steamfitter’s Local 420 who in return overwhelmingly agreed. The member’s donation of $5,000.00 to a Children’s Tumor Foundation sponsored event (NF Walk of Philadelphia which takes place in Doylestown, PA on June 22, 2013) spoke volumes of their commitment to helping their own community and in turn creating a positive presence in a predominately non-union work area. I believe that it’s doing these type things that will have communities buzzing with positive things to say ultimately putting people’s perspective on unions at a much needed higher ground. I can’t wait to see the day when unions dominate news channels with stories of heroic presences in communities rather than assembling/rallying/striking to only better our own. I am fully aware of the need for us to take such actions but believe that charities will overshadow the way we address and or accomplish our goals. We will be hard to defeat if the nation is standing behind us, not just a few politicians we helped get into office. As union membership continues to decline, I believe the need for political candidates to entertain our union’s best interests will follow. Donations made to specifically targeted community events, highly visible, will nullify all preconceived notion of what they “think” or are “told” unions represent. The tax write offs that they produce can be used to fund organized labor friendly candidates. It’s not just about writing a check but more about a hand’s on/personal approach that puts unions across the nation back on the radar while playing the heart strings of all…. not “the few”. It’s time to start a new chapter, perhaps a new trend. Obviously adopting this mentality won’t change things overnight, but it could be a step in the right direction to secure a promising future nationally for generations to come.

MY SON

My apologies for being long winded about my passionate vision of unions employing community charities as public relation building blocks that I believe shows unparalleled promise. Just over two years ago, my son Dimitri was diagnosed with NF1. NF1 (which is also known as neurofibromatosis) is basically a genetic disorder that can ravage children and adults alike. Though symptoms can widely vary, most victims’ quality of life are negatively impacted by the condition, some much worse than others. Patient’s lives can become riddled by tumors that develop throughout the nervous system, blindness, deformity, skeletal growth issues, learning disabilities, and in horrific cases death. Obviously this stunning news crushed my family to say the least. Dimitri has seen many tough days this past year and a half with his successful chemotherapy campaign, shrinking/stabilizing the optic nerve glioma (brain tumor) he was born with. Though I have been so fortunate to be able to report that, some are not as lucky to do so. It is my goal to raise awareness and funding for NF research through Children’s Tumor Foundation. Now that my family’s life isn’t consumed by hospital life and eternity like chemo trips, it is now my goal to aggressively make a difference and try to help those whom need it most.

I respectively address this governing body and humbly request your support to embrace what hopefully can become the start of a partnership or new beginning. I would be honored to have the United Association take a leading role in our NF Walk of Philadelphia charity in June. Last year this event shattered expectations and broke national records in its Pennsylvania debut. This is where I believe we, as unions, need to venture. Charities that yield high visibility, impact the lives of many, fiscally responsible, have great transparency, and ultimately strum the heart strings of communities. I foresee these having the greatest impact of all benefiting communities and unions as a whole.

I thank you for your time and consideration,

Douglas P. Creighton
Steamfitters Local 420
Philadelphia

UNITE HERE, whose Local 634 members work as noontime aides and cafeteria workers in the Philadelphia School District, launched a fast this morning at 11:00 AM to protest the “doomsday budget” passed on May 30th by the School Reform Commission.

The budget calls for the School District to lay off 3,783 employees, including 1,200 school safety staff who are members of UNITE HERE 634. Even Superintendent of Schools William Hite called the layoffs “nothing less than catastrophic for our schools and our students.”

The Fast for School Safety will take place at Broad and Walnut Streets, in front of the Hyatt at the Bellevue where Governor Corbett maintains his Philadelphia office. Those participating in the fast, including school parents and UNITE-HERE 634 members, will fast without food or juice until the Commonwealth and the City act to prioritize school safety.

They gathered today at 5:00pm at Broad and Walnut to stand in solidarity with Philadelphia’s students, School District employees, and our brothers and sisters who are fasting for school safety.

Go to: https://www.facebook.com/events/1388010151411811/

PhillyLabor.com would like to wish all the fathers of the labor movement, who work hard and dedicate your lives to standing up for what you believe in every day so that your children and future generations will have a better life, a Very Happy Father’s Day!

You are an inspiration to us all and we hope you have a great day!

– PA. AFL-CIO –

This administration in Harrisburg is pulling out all the stops right now. They are hoping that by attacking workers on several fronts that they can divide and conquer. They are cynically attempting to link unrelated pieces of legislation so as to create new rifts within the Labor Movement – by doing things like tying transportation funding to privatization of the Wine & Spirits Stores. Now more than ever we need to stand together as a united Labor Movement, and face all of these attacks head on.

Now is the time for all of us to get involved, as many of you have been for a long time. Please Take Action! on the legislative battles highlighted below – and then forward this email to your co-workers, family members, friends, and neighbors. Invite them to become active like you, and take a stand in defending working families in Pennsylvania!

Take Action: House Passes Reckless State Budget On Party Line Vote

On Wednesday, June 13, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed a budget plan that fails to provide solutions that work for the challenges facing our state. The vote (108-92) was split down party lines, with all Republicans in favor and all Democrats opposed.

This budget lacks sufficient funding for our schools, which will force districts to cut more staff and programs, and to raise property taxes. This budget fails to take advantage of Federal funding for Medicaid expansion, which would inject $3 billion in economic activity into our State and support 35,000 good new jobs. This budget includes more giveaways for business on top of the hundreds of millions in cuts that the Governor has already delivered, and it does so on the backs of working Pennsylvanians. E-mail your legislators and tell them that Pennsylvania deserves better! READ MORE: Go To: http://www.paaflcio.org/?p=2070

Take Action: Senate To Vote On Wine & Spirits Privatization

Republicans in the Senate are currently working on a privatization bill that will probably be considered sometime within the next week. Governor Corbett is pressing the Senate to send him a liquor privatization bill as part of his administration’s right wing agenda. Liquor privatization would result in a loss of thousands of jobs and a large cut in revenue for the state. READ MORE AND E-MAIL YOUR LEGISLATORS, Go To: http://www.paaflcio.org/?p=2065

Take Action: Tell Your Legislators ‘No’ To 401(k)-Type Plans

On June 11th, Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi was on PCN TV, and he revealed the next step in advancing the Governor’s destructive pension ‘reform’ package.

According to Senator Pileggi, next week the Senate Finance Committee will be moving a bill from committee that would end pensions for newly hired public employees. This bill would be a DISASTER for Pennsylvania workers, and for Pennsylvania taxpayers.

On that same day, an actuarial study of a proposed switch to 401(k)-type plans for new hires was released by Buck Consultants, who were commissioned by PSERS to study the question.

The bottom line is that this plan will:

Add $7.2 Billion in additional benefit costs for new hires to be on a 401(k)-type plan
Add $30.7 Billion in additional costs to the current pension system by closing it off to new hires
Those extra costs are in addition to the obvious consequences of such a reckless scheme: jeopardizing the retirement security of future workers and destabilizing the pension fund that current employees and retirees rely upon. READ MORE: Go To: http://www.paaflcio.org/?p=2077

Union Building Trades Apprentices Hold Lobby Day At State Capitol

Hundreds of PA Building and Construction Trades union apprentices, coordinators and instructors representing twenty different building trades crafts from every area of Pennsylvania filled the State Capitol Rotunda in an impressive display of the strength and the value of union-run apprenticeship programs to Pennsylvania’s building and construction industry.

During a press conference held by the President of the PA Building and Construction Trades Council, Frank Sirianni noted that over 130,000 union building and construction trades members comprise over 33 percent of the industry workforce and that over 8,100 active union building trades apprentices are being educated for tomorrow’s work force in Pennsylvania. That is over 80 percent of all apprentices in the construction industry in Pennsylvania.
READ MORE: Go To: http://www.paaflcio.org/?p=2053

Protect Our retirement Security: Pension Event Monday In Harrisburg

Join your union brothers and sisters for an important discussion about 401Ks and how we can prevent Governor Corbett from destroying our retirement security.

Frontline recently aired a documentary, The Retirement Gamble, that provides compelling information about why 401Ks are not an effective retirement plan. Governor Corbett is pushing legislation that would move school and state employees from defined benefit pensions to a 401K-type program. The documentary will be followed by a brief panel of experts to answer questions and help navigate through this important subject.
READ MORE: Go To: http://www.paaflcio.org/?ai1ec_event=protect-our-retirement-security&instance_id=4802

SAVE THE DATES: Community Services Institute. July 17-20, 2013. Crowne Plaza-Pittsburgh South, Pittsburgh, PA. COPE Institute. August 23-25, 2013. Linden Hall, Dawson, PA. And let’s start dreaming about golf. COPE Golf, that is. Join us at our Annual COPE Golf Outing. September 19, 2013 at Club Madison, Yukon, PA.

Go To: http://www.paaflcio.org/