Portside

Despite the odds, competing measures, and conventional wisdom that says voters will not approve tax hikes, unions and community groups built a successful campaign to pass a tax hike for California's richest residents.

Legislators are set to vote on a historic $20.6 billion budget this week that would have the state take a giant step toward further privatization of education, end teacher tenure, and compensate victims of the government eugenics program.

The bankruptcy will enable an appointed judge to impose further cuts to city expenses and to void union contracts. A prime target for cost-cutting is the pensions owed to 21,000 city retirees and 9,000 active workers.

As the AFL-CIO prepares for its upcoming national convention, the issue of non-traditional workers' organizations looms heavy on the agenda. As so-called alternative labor organizations - a.k.a. "alt-labor" - have multiplied, the question of funding organizations and activities without a traditional negotiated dues check-off system is being debated.

Walmart Stores Inc., the nation's largest private employer, is fuming about a ''living wage'' bill approved by the D.C. Council that has an unusual twist: It would apply only to certain large retailers, forcing them to pay at least $12.50 an hour, nearly 50 percent higher than city's minimum wage of $8.25.