- Catching Up With Old Friends (10/24/2006) - I've discovered how old men are born. We get time demanding jobs, go to professional school, are subsumed by the demands of life. Our backs ache, our paychecks go to pay off the mortgage. We stop going to three concerts a week and buying a couple of new records every Tuesday. When we do buy a new record or go to a concert, it's to catch up with an old friend, who's, arguably (and you'd… …
- 2006 Endorsements: Bring Back the Greens (10/21/2006) - Election time is around the corner, and I'm sure you're dying to read my endorsements. This election, in truth, offers a rare opportunity to alter the political landscape for a progressive change. No, I'm not talking about the increasing likelihood of a Democratic sweep in New York. That is a foregone conclusion since the Republican party has collapsed under the weight of Pataki's bland presidential ambitions and the national GOP's right-wing extremism. The Republicans have… …
- The Little League Thief Who Was Never a Leader (10/19/2006) - The recent charges against former president of the NYC Central Labor Council, Brian McLaughlin, are incredibly disappointing. While most of his alleged embezzlement is not connected to his role as head of the local labor federation, the shocking abuse of power as an elected Assemblyman and community leader is a real black eye for the movement. (I mean, we simply do not need to be represented by the cartoonish villainy of a man who would… …
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- Union Busting 102 at Pace University: Professors as Temps (10/4/2006) - I am continuing to guest blog at DMIblog, writing about unionization, academia and Kentucky River, and giving Pace University a black eye. This is my second post, which appears there. Please direct comments to that site. The National Labor Relations Board's terrible Kentucky River decisions, which this week greatly expanded the definition of "supervisors," has handed the bosses a powerful new union busting tool. The implications for these decisions go far beyond hospitals and nurses… …
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- Union Busting 101 at Pace University: Delay, Appeal and Refuse to Bargain (10/2/2006) - I am currently guest blogging at DMIblog, highlighting the difficulties of union organizing through the NLRB (pre-Kentucky River, even!), specifically at Pace University. This is my first post, which appears there. Please direct comments to that site. The business of union busting is booming, guided by law firms and consultants that are adept at manipulating the legal process to delay union recognition and stretch out their campaigns of harassment and intimidation to defeat workers' attempts… …
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- Rally at Pace University for Union Rights (10/1/2006) - Two years ago, the bus drivers and mechanics at Pace University, - an institution that just gave its President David Caputo a $100,000 raise while doling out stingy "merit" increases of less than 3% to the staff - organized a union to win better pay and benefits. The University has refused to recognize and bargain with the union ever since. On Friday, October 6th, 2006, Pace University will host an "employee recognition day" and a… …
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- Still More Turkeys (9/30/2006) - I just got yet another $400 check from Mayor Mike to thank me, the Finance Commissioner says, "for keeping New York City strong during difficult times." Well, gosh, I try. But I'm still not voting Republican. …
- Mall Strike! (9/12/2006) - For years I've wanted to picket a shopping mall. Low wages, tacky store names urban sprawl and poor design are the crimes that leap immediately to mind. Add union-busting to the mix. At the Simon mall chain, which owns the Walt Whitman, Smith Haven, Source and Roosevelt Field malls here on Long Island, the employees of the firms that are subcontracted to clean the malls are members of the janitors union, Local 32BJ - all… …
- Things Overheard on the First Day of College (9/7/2006) - 1. "Dude, our dorm is, like, the loudest dorm on campus. We were playing Blink 182 really loud all night long." 2. "Excuse me. Can you tell me where room L77 is?" 3. "So, my mom called me this morning at, like, a quarter to seven, and she's like, 'I just want to know how your first day of school was,' and I was like, 'Mom, give me some space.'" (Whining italicized.) 4. "Is room… …
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- Post-K (8/28/2006) - Tomorrow is the much-discussed anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, and politicians of all stripes are spinning the recovery to suit their agendas. I just got back from five days in New Orleans, helping United Teachers of New Orleans reorganize their union after craven politicians took the opportunity to try to smash it. The city is in a truly sorry shape, with hardly any meaningful rebuilding having taken place in the last year. A tourist would get… …