The Right to Work Laws are YOUR Rights to Work for LESS MONEY & BAD WORKING CONDITIONS. It takes away your Voice.

Yuengling, America’s oldest brewery, is publicly pushing for right-to-work laws in Pennsylvania.The head of D.G. Yuengling and Son Inc. called for the passage of a “right to work” law in Pennsylvania that could dilute membership in Labor Unions.

Tell Dick and his Friend Gov. Corbett – Don’t turn the Clock Back.

Join the Rally and March for Working Families on November 9, 2013 at 11AM in Pottsville.
Line Up 10:30 AM at Third and Mahantonogo Street

For additional Info, Contact roxiep9@aol.com

Source: https://www.facebook.com/RTW4Less

By The PA. AFL-CIO

– The Harrisburg Patriot News ran an extensive Front-Page Article (http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2013/10/house_leadership_striving_towa.html) in their Sunday edition over the weekend, reporting on the current status of the transportation funding bill, and on Republican efforts to tie any new funding to changes in the Commonwealth’s Prevailing Wage Act.

It is extremely unlikely that changes to the prevailing wage law would result in any savings for taxpayers, and would instead simply shift money away from workers and into larger profits for the contractors. This begs the question: what is really motivating the legislators who are pushing for these changes to prevailing wage? And why do they want to reduce middle class wages?

“You wouldn’t support lowering the minimum wage to $5 an hour to try to bring back manufacturing jobs from China. It’s the same kind of thing here;” Pennsylvania AFL-CIO President Rick Bloomingdale was quoted as saying. “The question is, what kind of quality of life do we want?”

In the spring, the State Senate passed a $2.5 billion transportation funding bill, with no strings attached, by an overwhelming final vote of 45 to 5. Since then, the State House has attempted to tie a vote on the measure first to privatization of the State Wine & Spirits stores, and now to changes in the prevailing wage.

Go To: http://act.aflcio.org/c/236/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=7321 To E-Mail Your State Legislator, And Tell Them:

– Transportation funding is too important to be used as a political football
– The ideological attacks on Prevailing Wage are misguided and hypocritical
– You want them to oppose ANY changes to the Prevailing Wage law

Source: http://www.paaflcio.org/?p=2960

From UFCW PA.

– Below is Wendell W. Young, IV’s response to the Herald-Standard’s article published on October 16, 2013. The story examined Corbett’s continued efforts to sell-off the PA Wine and Spirits Stores despite how the stores are an asset worth improving, not dismantling:

“The Herald-Standard deserves credit for its thorough look at the on-going battle over dismantling the PA Liquor Control Board (Corbett not giving up on getting state out of booze business, Oct. 16, 2013).

“I would urge your readers to be wary of polling touted by the state’s leading cheerleaders for privatization. Independent polling shows clearly that Pennsylvanians support modernization over privatization.

“Voters support modernizing or leaving the current system alone by 20 points – 57 percent to 37 percent – compared to privatization, according to the Franklin & Marshall poll conducted this past spring.

“No matter how hard the Commonwealth Foundation and Keystone Politics try to spin their scheme, the fact is that they have an agenda driven by their donors.

“They can’t deny the PLCB generated more than $660 million in taxes and profits for the state and local treasuries last year, including more than $128 million in profits-a new record for the PLCB.

“As your article noted, lawmakers have an opportunity to strengthen this valuable asset by passing common sense modernization proposals to help generate another $75 to $100 million a year in additional revenues that could be used to fund our schools or other vital state needs.”

Wendell W. Young, IV
Chair, United Food and Commercial Workers of PA Wine and Spirits Council
President, UFCW Local 1776

Source: http://myemail.constantcontact.com/Save-the-PA-Wine—Spirits-Stores–The-fight-continues.html?soid=1112575112488&aid=PjKWzl6ipw4

By Bryce Covert

– Federal workers’ pay has been frozen for three years, but in President Obama’s budget proposal for next year, he included a 1 percent raise that would occur by default if Congress didn’t pass legislation mandating other numbers. The Senate deal that was passed to fund the government and re-open it on Wednesday evening doesn’t have any language about federal workers’ pay, so if it goes through as-is the modest raise would occur. The bill “would permit the President to implement his plan for a 1 percent pay raise in January, 2014,” according to a joint statement from Democratic Maryland Sens. Barbara Mikulski and Ben Cardin.

If nothing changes, a presidential order would be needed in December to finalize the increase. It would show up in the first full pay period in January. Congress did include a freeze on their own pay in the funding measure.

There are still a few things that could block the raise for federal workers. House Republicans, who have voted to maintain the pay freeze, could introduce separate legislation to halt it, although the Huffington Post reports that such a move looks unlikely. Some agencies may also not have enough money to give workers a raise depending on next year’s budget and whether the conference mandated by the recent deal ends sequestration.

Before and during the shutdown, federal workers told ThinkProgress that the pay freeze, coupled with furlough days brought about by sequestration, had eaten into their savings, making it harder to get by during the shutdown. Many of those workers now say they are living paycheck to paycheck.

Source: http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/10/18/2803241/federal-workers-raise/