General news

Similar to a couple of my recent posts on unions, the Internet and democracy, our sibling site, Union Review, is having an extended discussion on the same themes.

Check it out at http://unionreview.com/help-brother-out%2C-will-ya. and feel free to jump right in ...

The following article, by veteran building trades activist and AUD Research Director James McNamara, appears in the May-June issue of Union Democracy Review. See also Richard Dorrough's previous comments on this. -- Matt Noyes

Trade unionists from around the globe will be descending on Union Island today to celebrate the May Day. If you want to attend, don't bother leaving your house, the gathering is coming to you via Second Life, software that lets you navigate a three dimensional, virtual world using a digital representation of yourself. Read on to learn more.

California's hospital executives have a lot to chortle over these days. First, the United Healthcare Workers West launched a site to take on the SEIU with their site, SEIU Voice, and now we have the SEIU going after the California Nurses Association.

Super web site in terms of content,
has videos too.
Example read this chapter from the book:
http://marcbousquet.net/Bousquet_4.pdf

I found that this "earn to learn" UPS
job program existed at our local university. Don't you want to check yours?

This guy really is in the loop about
things going on. Another gem I found
on his web site:
http://howtheuniversityworks.com/wordpress/archives/24

I haven't even begun to look at all the things there. His site has the mark of the truly great information source, it's not a cheerleader club for true believers eg those who support their union leadership on
anything and everything they do or say no matter what. This guy is IMHO pro-union but he does now and then let unions have it. I say more power to him. (But of course I welcome any union that got singed on their actions to write a response on their side.)

Notice of upcoming Labornotes Conference. April 11 - 13 2008
Dearborn, Michigan (very near Detroit).

http://labornotes.org/conference/

People who have gone to this before tell me it is great, really.

The NAACP yesterday validated what we've been saying all along about New Era Cap company; that it finds New Era in gross violation of workers' basic Civil Rights.

Four AFSCME locals at the University of Minnesota (Locals 3800, 3801, 3937 and 3260 - clerical, technical and health care workers) are engaged in a tough contract fight and are organizing to possibly go on strike on September 4th, the first day of classes at the University.

In this year's contract campaign, the unions are using video for the first time to help spread our message to members and supporters.

Click here to see samples of the videos we have made.

Our strike vote is tomorrow (Thursday, Aug 23) so a member has put together some 'testimonial' videos, where individual members tell their story and why they are planning to vote to reject the University's contract offer and strike.

As the University administration has started to send confusing emails to our members in order to try to discredit the union and our message, we responded with our own statements refuting the administration, but also created a video response to the administration's biggest propaganda piece.

Earlier in the campaign, we were organizing lunch hour informational meetings for union members around the University. But since the campus is so large and spread out, and members are all over the state, not everyone is able to come to a noon informational meeting. So we made a very condensed video version of the presentation we were giving and put it online.

Also, a Community and Labor strike support committee has been formed, which has its own website set up at uworkers.org.

Both the Local 3800 website and the Uworkers.org website use drupal content management system.

I just thought folks might be interested in how unions at the University of Minnesota are using the web and video in this year's contract campaign and possible strike. Any thoughts or input are appreciated...and if we end up striking, support is appreciated too!

I just noticed this story of a university blocking union email.
There needs to be a way to test this. Maybe email blocking is
widespread and we don't know it. (Eg a site where a university
employee can click on something and get an email sent to him/her
from the appropriate union domain.)
http://www.realcities.com/mld/miamiherald/news/columnists/fred_grimm/172...
*****

"But the video put together by the Programmers Guild is providing explosive material for H-1B critics."
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&...

Oops I should've mentioned this sooner but there still may
be time to go:
https://www.ussf2007.org/

In Labourstart newsletter an interesting item:
****
ONLINE CAMPAIGNS WORK: CHIQUITA BACKS DOWN

Check this out:
http://www.apple.com/education/hed/

You might something pertinent. One thing that really
comes to my mind is that unions need to get their
foot in there. Make unions visible, promote union ideas
such as collective bargaining, due process, seniority,
job security, pensions...

upbeat article about the potential political power of
the web:
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0529/p01s01-uspo.html?page=1

Union One of Indianapolis has posted a number of pro-union videos on YouTube. As of this morning, 19 videos have been posted on such subjects as "Do Yourself a Favor, Join a Union", "How to Survive Wage Cuts" and "Union Busting 101", most between one and five minutes in length.