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How ALEC Helped Undermine Public Unions

Alexander Hertel-Fernandez The Washington Post
Successful political movements, whether on the left or the right, require long-term investments in organizations that can develop and promote policy ideas over many decades. Such movements must continue to operate in between election cycles, and change the structure of government policy in durable ways that benefit a movement’s allies and disadvantage its opponents. One group that exemplifies such strategies is the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC.

Message from the Portside Labor Moderators

Portside
Last chance! This is your last chance to respond to Portside's 2014 fund appeal. We won't ask again this year, and we won't ask again for another year. During that time we'll be working hard to keep you informed and to empower you with the most insightful, entertaining and challenging news, analyses and debates that we can find. Please do help us to keep it coming.

Randi Weingarten Shares Personal Story of Sexual Assault

Micah Uetricht Working In These Times
If more union leaders follow Weingarten's lead speaking up about the epidemic of sexual assault around the country, and amongst the rank-and-file, it could greatly strengthen the movement against sexual assault while expanding the purview of the American labor movement.

Message from the Portside Labor Moderators

Portside
As you know the response to police violence is going mass. Portside has been faithfully keeping up with the fast-breaking events. If you meant to make a contribution but got caught up in the flurry of action - as we all have - here's a reminder about Portside's purpose and work. We need your help to keep going. We don't intend to stand still. In the next year, we will improve and expand Portside...

"Employers Feel Wildly Free To Pay People However They Want": An Interview with Kim Bobo

Political Research Associates Political Research Associates
Interfaith Worker Justice founder Kim Bobo explains why progressives should be doing more to woo evangelicals; how the Chamber of Commerce is abandoning small businesses by not fighting wage theft; and why some Catholic employers are lobbying for workers to get paid overtime. [This interview first appeared at Public Research Associates and will be in the Winter 2015 issue of The Public Eye Magazine.]

Report: US-China Trade Deficit Cost 3.2 Million American Jobs

Edward Arnold Opposing Views
The manufacturing industry has been hit hard since China's acceptance in the World Trade Organization. The industry includes imports of computer and electronic parts and accounted for 56 percent of the $240.1 billion increase in the US trade deficit with China. An estimated 1,249,100 jobs were eliminated in the electronic industry.

“This Victory Belongs to All of Us”: How Teacher Agustin Morales Got His Job Back

Sarah Jaffe Salon
Agustin Morales was fired from his job as a Massachusetts public school teacher after being elected president of his union and after he participated in collective protest against an element of education reform. Here is the story of how community groups, parents and other teacher union activists came together to support him and help him win his job back.

“This Victory Belongs to All of Us”: How Teacher Agustin Morales Got His Job Back

Sarah Jaffe Salon
Agustin Morales was fired from his job as a Massachusetts public school teacher after being elected president of his union and after he participated in collective protest against an element of education reform. Here is the story of how community groups, parents and other teacher union activists came together to support him and help him win his job back.

Is It Bad Enough Yet?

Mark Bittman The New York Times
Op-Ed by food journalist and columnist Mark Bittman: "What makes this an exciting time is that we are beginning to see links among issues that we have overlooked for far too long."

NLRB Makes a Good Decision, Supreme Court a Bad Decision

Tom Raum, Adam Liptak Associated Press, NY Times
In a turn-around decision, the National Labor Relations Board ruled that employees can use their workplace email to organize a union. The Supreme Court continued it's pro-business agenda by ruling that Amazon can detain workers at the end of their shift to search them, and they do not have to pay them for the time it takes.