By Kevin McCorry

– Criticize your boss publicly … and your job security may be at risk.

That’s the mantra many Philadelphia School District teachers follow in keeping their criticisms of the current funding crisis confined to anonymous message boards.

But a new website designed by a recently formed faction of the teachers union, The Caucus of Working Educators, is turning that philosophy on its head with “Philly Teachers Sound the Alarm.”

A student sets off a home-made “works bomb” outside of Feltonville School of Arts and Sciences.

Locked hallway bathrooms at Lincoln High School force students to constantly invade the nurse’s office.

The lack of access to a library at Science Leadership Academy pushes teachers to buy their own stockpiles of books.

These are just a few of the anecdotes related in the website’s first week.

“People don’t know how bad it really is,” said Larissa Pahomov, the English teacher at SLA who built the site. “We’ve been dealing with this sort of high intensity crisis for a year, and schools weren’t in the best shape financially before then either.”

Pahomov hopes more people recognize how much more difficult the job of educating students has become because of the district’s recent string of draconian budget cuts, “and hopefully when they see that they understand just how dire and how necessary it is that we take action, and that the finances of the district be righted by the state.”

Grievances, she stressed, aren’t being directed at individual school administrators, but the underfunded nature of the system as a whole.

The Caucus of Working Educators, now 100 members strong, formed last month.

In its official release upon conception, CWE said it was “fighting for fair working conditions because that translates into the best learning conditions for Philadelphia’s students.”

The district has been asking teachers to take a 5 to 13 percent pay cut, while at the same time asking them to lengthen their contractual work hours.

Contract negotiations have plodded along since the teachers union’s old pact expired in August.

In the meantime, Pahomov, a member of CWE’s steering committee, said teachers have been making the sacrifices necessary to keep the city’s students afloat.

“It’s become this absurd new normal where teachers are just expected to bend over backwards to make their classrooms work,” said Pahomov. “We do it because we’re good people … but we need the public to know that we’re doing it, because it’s become invisible to a large degree in Philadelphia.”

As for the site’s lack of anonymity: “This comes back to a classic union idea, which is that there is strength in solidarity,” she said. “There’s strength just in making those connections across the district.”

Source: http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/homepage-feature/item/66841-philly-teachers-create-website-to-document-the-districts-budget-crisis?linktype=hp_impact

By The PA. AFL-CIO

– On the final day of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO convention, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka energized the delegates with a characteristically fiery speech that focused heavily on raising wages for America’s workers. President Trumka said that raising wages cannot take a back seat to any political party or candidate, saying “Our issues come first now, and they come second.”

It was the beginning of a rousing final day of the 2014 convention. Resolutions were passed which support increasing the minimum wage, fighting income inequality, and fighting for paid sick leave legislation and comprehensive immigration reform. Following the organizing roundtable with President Trumka that began the day, a resolution was passed to recognize and support and UPMC workers organizing with SEIU and the “Make It Our UPMC” campaign.

Representative Gene DiGirolamo (R-Bucks) spoke to the convention, serving since 1995, he has a record of standing with workers and opposing privatization schemes and legislative attacks on workers’ rights. As the Republican Chairman of the House Human Services Committee, has has fought for expanding Medicaid, restoring cuts to county human services programs, and increasing the minimum wage. Following his speech, the delegation approved a motion to endorse the Representative in his reelection this year.

The final guest speaker of the day was House Minority Leader Frank Dermody. He added his voice to the chorus to raise the minimum wage in Pennsylvania, while acknowledging the difficulty in moving such legislation while Republicans control the Governor’s office and both chambers of the State Legislature. Speaking to the Tribune after the Convention, Dermody said “It’s going to be difficult, but what we have to do is get a groundswell of support outside of Harrisburg. The other side is saying that this will cost jobs, and the facts just don’t bear that out.”

The newly reelected officers of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO, President Rick Bloomingdale and Secretary-Treasurer Frank Snyder, would like to thank all of the delegates, guests, volunteers and staff who made this such a successful convention, and another thank you to the fantastic UNION staff at the Wyndham Grand Pittsburgh Downtown for all of their tireless efforts over the past week.

Source: http://www.paaflcio.org/?p=3897

By The PA. AFL-CIO

– Rick Bloomingdale and Frank Snyder were fortified by a full chorus of support Wednesday morning as both were re-elected by unanimous acclamation and will begin their second terms as Pennsylvania AFL-CIO President and Secretary Treasurer, respectively.

Bloomingdale was nominated by David R. Fillman, Director of AFSCME Council 13. Fillman said, “I am proud to put into nomination one of my AFSCME brothers,” adding, “we need Rick Bloomingdale to steer us through these troubled waters.” Fillman’s nomination was seconded by Don Siegel (IBEW), Michele Kessler (UFCW) and John Zanetti (USW).

Bloomingdale thanked the delegation for standing with him in the fight, paid an emotional tribute to his wife Karen, and thanked his predecessor Billy George for helping pave the road forward. “We have to fight every day to rebuild the middle class,” Bloomingdale said. “But we can’t lead if the people aren’t with us. This is not something Frank and I can do alone. Thank you for building the labor movement and for fighting with us.”

United Steelworkers International President Leo Gerard stood to nominate Snyder, calling him a third-generation steelworker who worked his way up through the rank and file and isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty. Gerard’s nomination was seconded by Ken Washington (LIUNA), Marge Krueger (CWA) and Fillman.

“I’m proud of what Rick and I have been able to accomplish over the last four years, I think we make a great team,” Snyder said. “But, we have a lot of work to do and I’m excited about all the opportunities ahead of us. Your fight is our fight.”

Source: http://www.paaflcio.org/?p=3883

By Randy LoBasso

– Yesterday, we were all delighted to read a Bureau of Labor Statistics report which showed that Philadelphia’s unemployment rate had dropped to its lowest point since December 2008, prompting City Hall to issue a press release patting itself on the back.

“Today’s news is yet more evidence that Philadelphia is recovering from the effects of the Great Recession, that companies are investing, confidence in our city is strong, and that Philadelphians are getting back to work,” said Mayor Nutter in the release.

More good news: The number of employed Philadelphians is at its highest point “for a February” since 2009. The number of unemployed Philadelphians is at its lowest point since December 2008. And, to top things off, “the drop in the unemployment rate can be attributed to employment gains and not a drop in the labor force, since both the number of employed and the actual labor force grew between January 2014 and February 2014.”

What they’re saying is true. Philadelphia’s unemployment rate is going down, and over the last two months, the labor force has gone up. This is nothing at which to shake a fist! But it’s far from the whole story. Philly’s labor force and number of employed people is up now, but has been on the downturn in general for a while now.

Unemployment numbers, in their most media-quoted form, exist as a rate. The rate of unemployment is the number of people employed compared to the number of people who consider themselves part of the labor market — as in, people actively looking for work, or working.

Part of the happiness surrounding this report is regarding the fact that both the number of employed people and the number of people in the labor market jumped from the previous month. That said, while we went from 646,200 in January to 646,940 in February, that force is still smaller than it has been through much of the recovery.

February’s labor force of 646,940 is smaller than every other month going back to February 2012—with one exception: February 2013, which was 646,725.

One highlight that’s pretty weird is how the city is excited about the number of employed Philadelphians is at its highest point “for a February” since 2009.

For a February we’re doing well, but there were more Philadelphians employed in, say, June and July 2013 than there are today. The labor force was also a lot bigger.

While the number of Philadelphians living in the city has steadily increased over the last ten years (we’ve gained 63,718 people since 2004), the labor force has only grown by about half that—33,613 people.

And while Philly’s rate of 8.3 percent is low-ish, that rate is still lagging behind three of the four other largest cities in the U.S.

Source: http://blogs.philadelphiaweekly.com/phillynow/2014/04/10/philly-recession-is-complicated/

By The PA. AFL-CIO

– President Rick Bloomingdale and Secretary-Treasurer Frank Snyder welcomed attendees to the 41st Constitutional Convention of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO Stating – We hope that you have an enjoyable and productive convention as we set the course for our State Federation for the next two years.

The theme of our convention is “Strength In Unity.” There is no greater force in this state, nor on this planet, than us standing together in strength and in unity for the common good.

Over the past two years we have stood together and have stopped some of the worst attacks on our unions and on working families that we have ever faced. Good jobs, decent pensions, educational opportunities for our children, our right to vote, and our collective bargaining rights have all been under attack by anti-worker groups and their political supporters.

We have learned that by standing together we can meet the challenges and turn these attacks into opportunities to build more strength for workers. It is our responsibility to continue leading the charge towards good jobs, decent wages, and prosperity for all workers.

This convention provides us with the opportunity to establish an agenda that puts Pennsylvania back to work, restores the middle class, and fulfills America’s promise of greatness for all citizens.

This can be a historic election year for all of us. By joining together we can end the attacks on workers, end the distractive and divisive politics, and begin focusing on the real issues that need to be addressed: investing in workers, investing in our communities and in our schools – rebuilding the strength of our economy and our state. By joining together we can put our state back on solid ground toward sustained economic recovery and growth for all, and not just the wealthy. This is an opportunity of a lifetime we can’t afford to miss and it begins today!

This will be a very busy convention for all of us, but it won’t be all work. We are holding several activities and events for the enjoyment of our delegates and guests. The proceeds from the Work and Family Breakfast and the Silent Auction will help support the Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank. The COPE Entertainment Night and the COPE Honorees Dinner will help support our COPE activities and programs.

Source: http://www.paaflcio.org/?p=3843