It goes without saying that West Virginia families have taken it on the chin with the recent flooding that has affected many parts of our great state. Some of our union brothers and sisters have lost everything, including homes, property and sentimental memorabilia that can’t be replaced. About 50 union homes have been severely damaged or destroyed -- at least one member has died in the flooding. Our thoughts and prayers are with them!
As the affected families begin the process of trying to put their lives back together, we want to do everything we can to help them. Although there are many ways to help and many organizations stepping up to the plate, we feel it is our duty to set up a dedicated fund for our brothers and sisters and their families in the labor movement. That is why we are asking for monetary contributions to a newly established, tax deductible fund, set up under the umbrella of the WV AFL-CIO, designed to provide assistance for those in our union family, as well as to the monumental effort by IBEW local 466 electricians to help restore power to homes in the Clendenin area.
Members of the West Virginia Coalition of Retired Public Employees (CORPE) will gather at the state Capitol Thursday, February 11, to remind legislators of the benefits owed to the thousands of retired public employees who are struggling to get by.
“It has been years since our retirees have been provided with a cost-of-living increase on their pensions, yet the state taxes the Social Security benefits and pensions of our retired teachers and public employees,” noted CORPE spokesman Ernest “Spud” Terry. “On top of that, retirees face the possibility of skyrocketing state insurance premiums that they simply cannot afford.”
Polling conducted in the last several days by nationally recognized firm Public Policy Polling clearly shows that most West Virginians hold unions in very high regard and do not want lawmakers to pass legislation that would weaken them.
“Time and again, we’ve provided the facts that show ‘Right to Work’ lowers wages, leads to more workplace deaths, does nothing to attract quality jobs and inserts government in private employer/employee negotiation -- and the underlying reason for those outcomes is ‘Right to Work’ weakens unions,” West Virginia AFL-CIO President Kenny Perdue said. “That’s the sole purpose behind the legislation. And that’s why these big companies, the Chamber of Commerce, and these wealthy out-of-state interests want it.”
As West Virginia continues to recover from the far-reaching effects of Winter Storm Jonas, the West Virginia AFL-CIO sends out heartfelt thanks to the thousands of state Department of Highways and local government employees, first responders and utility workers who have dedicated so much time and energy to assisting state residents.
“Thousands of dedicated people -- working for the Department of Highways; state, county and local law enforcement; city and county governments; and utility companies -- have truly been put to the test,” West Virginia AFL-CIO President Kenny Perdue said. “They’ve put in long shifts under very difficult circumstances, and we are extremely grateful for a job well done.”
The ancient Chinese sage known to us as Confucius was once asked what he would do if he ever came to a position of influence in a kingdom. His answer was a little surprising. He said he would begin with “the rectification of names.”
Then as now, a great deal of damage can be caused by misleading language. As he put it, “If names be not correct, language is not in accordance with the truth of things. If language be not in accordance with the truth of things, affairs cannot be carried on to success.”
The 20th century writer and thinker George Orwell made pretty much the same point in his essay “Politics and the English Language,” where he wrote “In our time, political speech and writing are largely the defense of the indefensible. … The great enemy of clear language is insincerity.”
NITRO, West Virginia (October 3, 2015) — Members of the United Steelworkers (USW) Union, Local 14614-F8, voted again on Friday, Oct. 3, 2015 to authorize a strike against Mardi Gras Casino and Resort, after rejecting the Company’s modified Last, Best,and Final offer during an insurance re-opener. The members had rejected the Company’s previous proposal twice before.
The parties have been engaged in insurance negotiations since the first week of August. The Company’s previous offer included language that would eliminate the Union’s ability to bargain over future insurance changes and costs to the employees. After last week’s vote to reject the proposal and authorize a strike, the parties agreed to meet to continue negotiations. At that time, The Company modified their Last, Best, and Final offer. The company’s modified proposal addressed the Union’s concerns over the language, however, the Company did not change their proposed premium cost sharing amounts. The company’s proposal will increase the premium cost sharing from a 90/10% split to a 75/25% split. This will amount to an increase of over $1,100/year from what the employees currently pay.
