Women’s Equality Day – Are we there yet?
Ninety-one years ago today, the 19th Amendment was ratified, culminating almost two centuries of women struggling for the right to vote in the United States. Women now have the right to vote and have made advances in the workforce, education and many other fields. The observance of Women’s Equality Day is a day to reflect not only on the milestones and shattered ceilings of the past, but raise the question of whether equality has been reached.
http://social.dol.gov/blog/women%E2%80%99s-equality-day-are-we-there-yet/
NLRB alleges Target violated labor laws
Target illegally threatened on a number of occasions to close its store in Valley Stream, L.I., if workers successfully organized a union, according to the National Labor Relations Board.
http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20110826/FREE/110829928
Labor board to reproach restaurant in park
The strike at the Boathouse restaurant in Central Park has lasted more than two weeks, with 60 waiters, cooks and dishwashers picketing, chanting and drumming outside day after day. But now the strikers are getting some long-awaited outside support. The National Labor Relations Board is expected to issue a complaint accusing the restaurant of firing some workers for supporting the union. The National Labor Relations Board, the federal agency that oversees union matters, plans to issue a far-reaching legal complaint against the restaurant, federal officials and union leaders say.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/26/nyregion/boathouse-strikers-get-national-labor-relations-board-assist.html?_r=3
No charges for judge accused of chokehold
Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice David Prosser will not face criminal charges over an accusation that he choked a liberal colleague, a prosecutor said Thursday. Justice Ann Walsh Bradley accused Justice Prosser of choking her in June as the justices deliberated on a legal challenge to the Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s contentious collective bargaining law, which strips most public workers of nearly all their union rights. Justice Prosser has denied the accusation.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/26/us/26wisconsin.html
U.S. workplace deaths exceed 4,500 in 2010, report says
After falling to record lows in each of the two previous years, workplace deaths held relatively steady in the U.S. in 2010, a preliminary tally shows. And when the final report is released next spring, the total is likely to be up somewhat from the 2009 level.
http://www.fairwarning.org/2011/08/u-s-workplace-deaths-exceed-4500-in-2010-report-says/
Analysis shows construction deaths slowing in U.S.
Construction fatalities declined by nearly 10 percent between 2009 and 2010 and by almost 40 percent during the past five years, according to an analysis of new federal data released Thursday by the Associated General Contractors of America.
http://www.lvrj.com/business/analysis-shows-construction-deaths-slowing-in-u-s-128451228.html
NJ company cited by OSHA for chemical exposure gaffes
OSHA has cited Safas Corp. for 20 safety and health violations at its Clifton facility. The agency inspected the polymer and chemical maker as a result of a referral from the state Department of Environmental Protection, which alleged strong solvent odors. The total in proposed penalties is $135,000.
http://safety.blr.com/workplace-safety-news/safety-administration/OSHA-and-state-safety-compliance-enforcement/NJ-Company-Cited-By-OSHA-for-Chemical-Exposure-Gaf/
Remembering Steve Jobs’ record on workers’ rights
While Steve Jobs’ designs for computers may have put humans at their center, working conditions for Apple’s workers put profits at their center. Jobs did indeed revolutionize the computer industry, but in a way that was negative for American workers, who for decades have seen manufacturing job prospects dwindle as jobs go to workers overseas, who in turn often labor in brutal sweatshop conditions.
http://www.inthesetimes.com/working/entry/11863/remembering_steve_jobs_record_on_workers_rights/
H&M investigates mass faintings at factory
H&M has said that it has not found any plausible causes for a series of mass faintings that have taken place in a Cambodian factory making its clothes.
http://www.just-style.com/news/hm-investigates-mass-faintings-at-factory_id112017.aspx
