C

SeWing Shop Liability Passes..The bill making garment manu-

facturers jointly responsible for la-bor law violations by their sewingcontractors was passed by the StateSenate yesterday after a floor debatethat aired issues basic to the labormovement.

Assembly Bill 3046 by HildaSolis,. D-El Monte, won on a 21-14vote that was essentially party-line.The Assembly is expected toquickly concur in Senate amend-

ments and send the measuire to Gov.Pete Wilson's desk.The action came -as legislators

prepared- to work into the weekendin preparation for the close of thesession next Wednesday

Sen. David'Roberti, D-VanNuys, took the lead. in the floor de-bate, pointing out that there is un-disputed evidence of widespreadabuse in the garment industryHe cited findings* from a survey

conducted jointly by the US. -I)e-patetofLabor and the. State De-

partment of Industrial Relations of69 clothing fcoisrnol elected from a pool. of more than4,000 drawvn from tax records of thestate Employment DevelopmentDepartment.II

"The survey -showed that all buttwo of these'firms were,in violationof federal or state law or both,," Ro-berti said..

*"Thbere wereiminimnumnwage VIo-lations in 50 percent of the. shops,overtime pay violations in 68 per-cent of the shops, cash pay viola-tions, indicating that taxes due thestate were not being paid, in 30percent.*"There were Cal-OSHA viola-tions in 9.2.8 percent of the shops,~Roberti continued. Fifteen percentof the shops were using child laborin worke& homes.

""Seven of the 69 shops were or-dered closed because they had abso-lutely no workers' compensation*coverage for their employees."

Roberti argued that AB 3046 willcreate incentive for the garment in-dustry to police itself.'*"Manufacturers who alreadyhave their agents visiting thesesmall. sewing contractor shops, tocheck on quality 'and delivery time

(Continued on Page 4)

Health

Vol. 37-No. 3358 August 26, 1994

Ready for Labor's Own DayLabor Day celebrations from San

Diego to Del Norte County willfocus this year on crucial politicalissues as well as traditional end-of-summer good*times, a surveyshowed this week.

Kathleen Brown, labor's en-dorsed'candidat for governor, willbethe featured speakerattwo of thelargest events, those being held bythe Alamneda County Central LaborCouncil and the Los AngelesCounty Federation. Scores of candi-dates and political -.leaders willspeak at other events as well.

.At Stockton, an emotion-filled-rally will mark the third anniversaryof the strike at Diamond Walnutthat has become a -national symbolof the injustice of federal laws thatenable union-busting managementsto permanently replace workers ex-ercising their right to withhold laborin collective bargaining disputes.And at Fresno, the United Farm

Workes of America will meet LaborDay weekend for its first conventionsince the death of Cesar Chavez.(Story, Page 2.)The list of California obser-

vances on Labor Day, Sept.. 5, thefirst Monday of Septemberincludes:

* The Los Angeles CountyFederation of Labor Centennial, 8a.m. to 2:30 p.m., at Los Angeles,Trade Technical College, 400 WestWashington Blvd*.The L.A. centennial celebration

replaces two long-time labor Dayevents: the traditional breakfast andthe Valley Political Education Coinmittee picnic.

This year's event opens with apancake breakfast from 8 to 9:30a.m. at Trade Tech with politicalcandidates serving the food. Thecandidates! turn will come during a

program at 10a.m. at which Brown,will deliver what is expected to be amajor address in her campaign toreplace Pete Wilson as governor ofCalifornia. Also scheduled to speakis John Sweeney, president of theService Employees InternationalUnion.The centennial festival will in-

clude exhibits of labor mem-orabilia, historic photos and arti-facts, arts and crafts vendor booths,music, door prizes and raffles, spe-cial surprises, and games for partic-ipants of all ages.* The Almd County Cen-

tral Labor Ouncil's 37th annualLabor Day Picnic is scheduled toget under way at 10 a.m. at theCounty Fairgrounds in Pleasanton.

Kathleen Brown will head a gal-axy of COPE-endorsed candidates

*We Do The Work read!*Two new programs frc

who will be introduced during aprogram scheduled to start at ornear 2:30 p.m., depending uponwhen the main speaker's plane ar-rives fromi Southern California.

This is the 37th annual Alamedapicnic, making it the longest-mun-ning Labor Day event in the state. Itis the main observance-for the entireS.F Bay Area.

Booths will serve hot dogs, cornon the cob and otherftreats, while.scores of individual and group pic-,nic and barbecue facilities are avail-able to those who choose to bringtheir food.The Mike Tilles Dixieland Jazz

ies Labor Day. special.)m LIPA for holiday.

Page 2

B3and will performi for the 25th con-secutive year, and there will be theusual array- of booths, entertain-*ments and gamnes for all ages, in-cluding the ever-popular dunk tankfeaturing union business representa-tives as targets.

0 The annual Labor Day pa-rade of the Los Angeles-LongBeach Harbor Labor Coalitionwill startat10a.m. from Broad andE streets in Wilmington.

Marchers will head'up AvalonBoulevard to Banning Park where

(Continued on Page 2)*

'NctonNewestPl1an

The AFL-CIO has launched agrass-roots lobbying counter attack-against the neWest health care re-form proposal to emerge in the U.S.Senate, warning that it would leaveworkers'worse off than they arenow and jeopardize- the very- exis-tence of the current employer-basedsystem.

"Mainstream" is what the newproposal is called by the bi-partisangroup of Senators pushing it. Thatdesignation was protested by Exec-utive Secretary-Treasurer Jack Hen-ning of the California LaborFederation.

"It has been -clearly establishedthat -a majority of Americans wantreallealth care reform with a man-

ning.said. "'That's what-any main-stirm plan would have to provide,

AFL-CIO. President Lane Kirk-land declared Wednesday that, thenational federation was ."dismayed"Iat the so-called mainstream coali-tion plan and ""deeply distressed""that a historic opportunity to reformthe nation's health care systemseemed to be slipping away

Yesterday, during a nationwideconference call with labor leadersincluding Henning,. Kirkland out-:aned the plan to increase the pies-sure for real.health- care reformwhile members of Congress are athome during the Labor Day recess..Kirkland declared, "To our great

dismay, the so-called. mainstreamcoalition plan has emerged as a pos-sible alternative to genuine healthcare reform.

"Until recently, congressional de-bate of health 'care has focused onways to expand coverage to allAmericans while taking measuresto contain spiraling costs.

"Under this new proposal, how-

Atacks on Eastin Spur Suppr0~~

E. sC.

I,~ I

N\CY

/

A fund-raising reception to bene-fit Delaine Vastin7s campaign forstate superintendent. of public in-struction is scheduled -for 5 to 7p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 14, at Oper-ating Engineers Local 3 headquar-ters in Alameda by the State Build-ing and Construction TradesCouncil of California. The addressis 1620 South Loop Rd.Bob Balgenorth, council presi-

dent, pointed out that there areplenty of reasons for supportingEastin over and above the record ofsupport for schools that she hascompiled as chair of the* AssemblyCommittee on Education.

Eastin has been exceptionallysupportive of labor and the buildingtrades as Assembly member from

the 20th District, which includesFremont, Balgenorth noted..

"Her *opponent advocates elim-iaigprevailing wages for school

construction," Balgenorth said. "Assuperintendent of public instruc-tion, she will-be entitled to an ap-pointment to the Apprenticeship*Council. Her appointee will1 be fromorganized labor rather than from theanti-union Associated Builders andContractors, as would he the case ifher opponent were elected."

Eastin carries the endorsement otthe' state AFL-CIO's Committee onPolitical Education (COPE) becauseof her commitment to public educa-tion as well as;*her record of votingin the interests of wage earnersthroughout her eight years in the

Legislature.Her opponent,. Maureen'Di-

Marco, running with the blessingand support of *Republican Gov.Pete Wilson, has been urging votersto reject Eastin simply because Eas-tin is.supported -by labot.A recent opposition mailing

stated:'After the re-election of Pete.

Wilson, no other election is as im-portant to the future of. our state asthat of Maureen DiMarco as super-intendent of Public instruction."

In contrast to Eastin's commit-ment to strong public schools, Di-Marco is backed by those whowould divert education dollars to

private -schools. through the4"voucher"_ system.-

Di-Marco's camp claims Eastinkilled.,"education 'reforms,,," but theonly grounds for this accusation isEastin7s insistence upon safegu*ardsfor quality_of teaching in so-calledcharter schools operated. with publicfunds.

The Sept. 14 fund-raiser recep-tion is important because Eastin'swell-heeled opposition is poised topour large sums into television adsand other campaign devices in thefinal days before the Nov. 8 elec-tion,.Balgenorth said this week."Your financial support is

needed now," the state buildingtrades leader declared.

U

U

mmmm l

Labor.Day TV.Hails Heroes.We Do The Work, the nationally

acclaimed television. series aboutworkers and workplace. issues, cele-brates Labor Day 1994 with a one-hour,special program that will beaired by seven public TV stations inCalifornia and-more than 70 nation-wide during the upcoming. holidayweekend.

"Heroes 2" is the title of the pro-gram. Like the original "Heroes,"which was We Do The Worl's 1993Labor Day special, the new produc-tion celebrates the spirit of workingmen and women by featuring sew-eral whose lives are an inspirationto their families, their co-workersand their communities.

The special kicks 6ff the1994-1995 season and We Do TheWork's leap forward from monthlyto weekly episodes. CaliforniaWorking,* the Oakland-based, inde-pendent, non-profit productioncompany, has scheduled 26 epi-sodes for the new season, more thantwice the number issued in any ofthe four years since the program ac-quired national status.

A segment entitled "Not in OurTown" discovers* an entire commu-'nity of heroes in Billings, Montana,where residents recently joined to-gether to fight racism and anti-Semitism.

After a brick was thrown througha window where a five-year-old boy*had displayed a menorali in prepara-tion for, Hanukkah, the -local news-paper published a full-page pictureof a menorah and some 10,000 me-norahs or pictures were hung inwindows of homes and places ofbusiness.

Will Durst, a frequent WVDTWcommentator, interviews membersof the Painters Union who *volun-teered to be on call to immediatelypaint*% out anyanti-Semit Ic-hat

who stood. guard outside A syna-gogue while Jewish residents at-tended services, Catholics whohung a"Happy Hanukkah" on their.church, and merchants who usedtheir advertisement' marquees todisplay such words as. "Not in* Our-Town,," "No Hate, No Violence,"and "Peace on Earth."

In a segment entitled "Stayingand Playing," the special tells howRon Carter, a teacher at Lincoln'-High School in East St. -Louis, Ill.,one of. the poorest districts in thecountry, kept kids in class and offthe streets by forming a jazz bandthat has gained internationalacclaim.

'"Healer" examines the struggleof Esther Bia, a pediatric nurse,against infant mortality among theNavajos at Chinke, Arizona, usingboth modem medicine and the tra-ditional ways of medicine menamong whom. she grew up.

'"Asbestos Exposure"' visits Bill*Ravanesi, a documentary photogra-pher whose pictures expose the dew-astating effects of asbestos and

Wil Durst interviews ichael ScMid,E n of the Bilig,Mntn,uin anesWho volunteered tobrush out racist graffiti

other hazards in the environment.Another segment, entitled "The

Real Norma Rae," focuses on Crys-tal Lee Sutton, the former cottonmill worker whose activism helpedbring union protections to workersat IHR Stevens Co. and was por-trayed in the -movie '"Norma Rae,.A number of corporate sponsors

have contributed to the cost of theLabor* Day special. Among themare Kaiser Permanente of NorthernCalifornia, Lifeguard Health Plan,The Claremont Companies, -GroupHealth Cooperative of Puget Sound,Health Insurance Plan of GreaterNew York, and Health Net, the ma-jor sponsor.

LIPA Produces Two. SpecilIs.The AFL-CIO has announced.

two new half-hour television- pro-grams for Labor-Day showing bypublic television affiliates: "Chang-ing the Way We Work" and "Dyingfor a J4!j-Wrkers'* Stories'AboutSafety"

"sChanging the..Way We Work"examines what -it takes to producetrue labor-management partnership.,using as examples an AT&T repairfacility in Atlanta, -Georgia, andTransit Tech High. School..inBrooldYn, New York, where givingunion members a greater voice -inoperations has led to dramaticimprovements.

At Atlanta, the last AT&T repair

facility in the US. had been sched-uled'for extinction until a.new spiritofmutual trust and cooperation pro-duced a spectacular turn-ar-ound.

At- Brooklyn, -a different set ofchallenges for labor and manage-ment was -met through an effectiveworking- relatioikship betweenschool officials, teachers, the citytransportation agency and unions.

"Dying for a Job" takes viewerstoatownmeetingheld atAFL-CIOheadquarters in Washington, D.C.,to let Secretary* of Labor RbrReich hear firthand from workerswho survived jobsite accidents andsurvivors- of, other- workers. who'

were killed on the job. The prOgramaims at increasing public awarenessof the need for better workplace.saety'and OSHA reform.

Both programs were produced bythe AFL,-CIO"s Labor Institute ofPublic Affairs' (LIPA) and distrib-uted to PBS: stations by the CentralEducational* Network, a PBS re-gional progrartmig service.

L&PA- is urging AFL-CIO AMll-,ates to contact* PBS stations andencourage them to include bothprogrms in* their schedules. Infor-.mation -about the shows can be ob-tained by calling LIPA at (800) 242-UNION.

Labo.r Day Clebrations...(Continuedfrom Page .1)

hamburgers and hot dogs -will beserved.

Spleakers will highlight labor is-sues, including jobs with justice,workplace fairness, education, na-tional health care reform, and defeatof Proposition 187, the so-called"66save our state" initiative that tar-gets immigrant workers.

*The ninth annual Labor DayPicnic at Anderson River Parkstarts at 11 a.m. under sponsorshipof Redding organized labor unions,the Northeastern California Build-ing and Construction Trades Coun-cil, and the Five Counties CentralLabor Council covering Shasta,

Tehama, Siskiyou, Modoc andTrinity counties.

Food is included in the price ofadmission,. along with* horseshoes,'softball, children's games, volley-ball, a fishing derby and water-melon eating* contest. There alsowill be bingo, beverages and raffles..Tickets are $2.50 for adults, $1.50for those: under 12, -and free forthose under five.

0 The M5t Annual Santa CruzCounty Central. Labor Councilpicnic will be held frontfoon to 5p.m. at Delaveaga Park in the Cityof Santa Cruz.Theprga this year includes,.

in addition to office holders andcandidates, remarks'by leaders.oflocal unions.on victories, crises andplAns. for the future.

There -will be. music, bingo andchildren's games. Tickets at $5 foradults and $2 for children coverchicken., chile beans, salad and gar-lic bread, and' hot dogs for the,youngsters. Beer, wine and sodaalso will be, available.

*1The San Bernardino & Riv-erside Counties Central LaborCouncil holds its 10th annual LaborDay Brunch: from 9 a.m. to noon atthe San Bernardino Hilton.The event is a fund-raiser for the

UFW Co-nvention Set at FresnoThe United Farm Workers of

America meets Sept. 3 and 4 at theFresno Convention Center for its12th constitutional convention andthe first it has held without CesarChavez.

Delegates will review the 16-month, record of President ArturoRodriguez, who was appointed bythe Executive Board followingChavez' death in April of last yearand who. has led the-union on anaggressive new organizing. cam-Paig.

Rodriguez, who will stand forelection during the convention, willdeliver his report at 9:30 a.m. onSaturday, September 3,. shortly afterthe call to order.

U.S. Secretary of Housing andPage 2

Urban Development Henry Cis-neros is to address the convention at11:30 a.m. that day as the.-officialrepresentative of the Clinton-Administration.

Eleanor Smeal,. president of theFeminist Majority, is scheduled tospeak at 1:30 -p.m..At 7:3& delegates will assemble

in the Saroyan Theater for A specialpormin memory of Chavez and

others who' have helped the farmworker movemrent. Luis Valdez will..be master of ceremonies. The pro-gram, produced by Teatro Cam-Meino, includes- a UFW-producedvideo on Chavez as well as musicand entertainment.

Sunday's convention session willopen with a mass at 8 a.m. for thelate Rev. Victor Salandini, famed as

the "tortilla priest," and long-timeUFW supporter.

Richard Trumnka, president of theUnited Mine Workers, -will addressthe convention at 10:30 a.m.Sunday.

Election of officers is scheduledfor 12:30 p.m.UFW actions that thedegas

will review include victories+ in sixstraight+ state-supervised electionssince last May covering 1,300 farmworker jobs. The union has negoti-ated two union contracts affecting510 workers and has renegotiated 10existing contracts covering ntearly1,200 mmeThe union currently is negotat-

ing with 27 growers who employ9,00 'armworkers.

local Committee on Political Educa-tion (COPE), and tickets are. $20.Candidates running NOv. 8 withcouncil endorsement will be' amongthe speakers.* The San* Diego-Imperial,

Counties Cenitral L-abor Council;Seventh Annual Labor Day* Break-fast is set for, 10 -a.m. at. the HyattIslandia- Hotelon NMission- Bay.

Five local union activists will berecognized during the. event fortheir. contributions to organized la-

Times Set

.Aff0iiates"Heroes'2" will be.the center-

piece of a day of We Do The Workproramingover KQED, Channel

9, the San Francisco public broad-casting affiliate, on Labor Day,Monday, Sept. 5.

"Heroes 2" will have the 9 p.m.prime time spot. KQED will showWe Do The Work reruns starting atnoon. on Labor Day, interrupt themfor. one. hour *td show the specialfrom9to 10p.m. andthenreturn toWDTW productions from previousseasons for- another hour.KCET Channel 28 in Los An-

geles, will. show the special at 5p.m. Sunday, Sept. 4.KCSM, Channel 60 in San Ma-

teo, has slotted the special at9'p.m.on Labor Day,,the same time asKQED.KTEH, Channel 54-in San Jose,

will air* the- special .at 10 p.m. onLabor Day.

Viewers within. range of KEET,Channel 13 in Eureka, will see -it at.7 p.m. on Labor Day.---

Sacramento Cable 7 has sched-uled "Heroes 2" for 8 p.m.Wednesday, Sept. 7,.and I a.m.Thursday, Sept. 8.KVCR, Channel 24 in in San

Bernardino.'was yet to announce itsschedule for -airing "'Heroes 2."Times for it and other showings canbe obtained by phoning local PBSstations or We Do The Work at(415) 547-8484.

DatebookLabor CUnci for LaStiln AmeicnAd-

ra-ncnetState Coumianmexvship meeting: Sept. 10, Los An-geles Airport Hyat Hotel.

bor. 'Iickets are $20 tor aouirs vaPbleed Ntc$12 or hilden.The 'California, AFL-CIO-

*1Th Napa-Solano and Conttra News (SSN: coos-own) is pub-Costa building trades councils lished weekcly- except during theand the NpaM-Lano and Contra weeks of Thanksgiving,Costa central labor councils are Chrtm and 'New Yea'shoi-holding their picnic at-Marine days by the California LaborWorld Afica USA,- in Vallejo. Federation, AFL-CIO, 417The event is scheduled for 9:30 to. Montgomery St., Suite 300,

6:30 p.m.- Trade urnionists and their' San Ftancisco., CA 94104. See-familiesand guests will have exclu- ond class, postage paid atsive use-of the park's lksiepicnc San Framdsco, CaKi-hndividualarea until 4.p.m. for sociallizing, subscrip--surprise visits by.animals., games tion, $10 a year; corporateand entertanment. Ajl-yo-a-a rate, $20. USPS Publicationchickeni barbecue will b evdmber tiv-e0seJoheFtary.-afrominoon to 2 p.m., and -all of the ning, executvserayte-park's attractions will be available sue;Fod.ikr dtr

thouhot heday. '' POSTMASTER: Send addr* Thee10hKranualfornia AFL-CIO News, 417

United/Labor Unitd Labor Day Mont-Barbecue Cel*ebratio is set for~ gomery St., Suite, 300, Sannoon to 4 p.m. at Freedom Park Francisco,..CA 94104. Phone,

nearCamailloAirprt.(415) 986-3585. FAX, (415).Bob Balgenorth, president o the 3924505.

State Building and Construction'Trades Council of California, is u s i

(Continued on Page 3) So-August 26, 1994

Stamp:.'Honor'A -postage stamp honoring' -George

Meanys, lifetime of service to wresand ~the country andmakn the 100th annivr ;.....sary of the labor leader's birth wasisue last..week. during ceremonies 'at AFL-CIO. head-*quarter in Washington, DC.The 29-cent stamp, which is on sale: at post

offices across the -country, was unviLedwbJoe Mahon, vice presidentW of the U.S. PstalService for labor relations.......Lane Kirkland, Mean/s scesrars

idnt of the AFL-CIO, declared, "'(in hono-ing the lie's work of one mn u nationpays- tribute to the movemnent that he servedand inspired for so m1anyyer.Meany'was president of the American:!7-

Federation of Labor f1rom 1952 to-.1955 when,under his leadership, the ARL-and.Cnrsof idustrial -Organizations merged. to form-the AR-CI. He was the first president ofthe AFL-CIO, serving until his retirement in1977.Meay, born in New York City, became a

plumber apprentice at age 16 and, a journey-man at 22. He began his career as a union Lab r tLadleader as a business agent for Plumbers Local

463 in 1922. A year la,ter he was elected sec-

Teamstrs.Sy HTruckWiverImperilsPbiThe Teamsters charged this week 'ways' with- only 24 h(Jurs off duty.

that the. head of the California Hours. worked.by drivers-haulingHighway Patrol has jeopardizd- perishable. crops from fields. and or-highway safety and risked lo4ss* to chards are not atsu.Sc rvr

thestaeo milios o dolar in are covered by separate regulations.federal funds by ordering his offi- exempting them from hours-of-ser-cers to ignore- limits on the number vice sfety"iiain nteitrsof hours truck drivers can work* Of pesrvn te,tae'*aresswithout rest while hauling noni-per- X1Wh-, a-th-TemstrLr poet

Hannigan's exemption allowsdrivers who have hauled noni-per-ishables for the agri-businesi indus-try for as many as .15 hours a day foreight consecutive days to climbback'behind the wheel and taketheir rigs back out onto the high-.

LILFII8uotl pJuviueLoreu!mCeqIIIJpro-cessing of our states produce,"Mack said.."We do protest whenhours-of-service waivers are ex-ploited *simply to by-pass long-e-ognized and valuable safetyregulations."Hannigan issued the waiver at

Meankof heueweor State ofSw 'vic

inreary fthBuild-rk pUse -if-Walter Reuther hadn't wanted it.bOwOugT~dsucl e was ch1n36*t t- eqt-aldto the chAllenge..of merging to

tresurr fte AercanFedraionof a- two organizations a that of holding to-bo 99ad evdi ha oiinuntil gthra. fraile association of strong-willedhesuceddWlimGena eeain adfeunl ombative. people who -hadpresden in1952s-asideheof one another," Kirk-

Hewwichainenhe land continued.,"Tha' hr Georgewason and -s such* his decision ed- Mrany deserves the. lion's share of the credit.

voidofagonyiiw* second-ussn, Kirk- "Today, the AFL.-CIO is the largest andlad:elae:drng.tefis-dy motcohesive labor -federation in the world,

and for that weoe hnkst h cmoMeayws 4is1menor, leade&radcm sense, thefoearance and.-the dedication of

rade-tecrct F-I rsietsi. Geor e Meany."'A "Thse: of uswho wee close to- George Kirkland also cited Ma9 efrst x

Men-ok*nnciAgdeight'in hsbud'tn'trade.unonrights -to -all corers of theless curiosity,hi0s. interest in.. all things,--'Is* world", Which,h said, were based on his

setmnaiyadhsufiigkindness. to:. .6uhswervngbeief 'that the -aspirations ofothers."'' wres r etexpressed. by -workersMeany also-deserves to he. remembered for themisdlves.

his:.many accomplishments, including dhe ce- "His death came only,eight months priorS.:ii!.:7. menting of the merger of the ARL and-.G.O, to tedywnanlcrician -went over the-USA Kirkland observed. wall of a--shipyard in Gdans and began- a

P~Jfj~ "eanyhimslfJescribed-the megr as a rvoution that shook the world," Kirkland7i.: joint achievement and,*otar ocotm continued.

porryepotsandspeultion by. some, he CIol lws'eorge Meany ha lived- to...actually said..it coulddft 'have been '-accom- setaevnadthevents that floe.see thteetad holwd

'WorkerFredy N.o.ah'Gall1s.inUnion' utr

Na"sBagels, inc, a trendy new Em-.~ Mathiason.eryville. ouffit that lks to -says. its- "imissin '"Tey'lIiredi. the most aniwre aw frstatement" calls for'creating -".a:fun, cteative..they -could -find and. imniatelybegan acam-.

adfair work environment, has -hired uin pinof fear, harasetaditmdto,busters o peet-t 5epoes rmji- Aloise said.ing a union. 'A -book reetypUlshed b h opn

Amajoritf of the' company's 15- drivers brisabouit"opportunities fr personal. growthsigned cards -last month akn ersnationi'for'nmembers of the NoaWsBgesTr.by.. TeamtstLoal853. Shortly after .that.60 This9by a firmitthat pays lawyers- hundredsproduction workers said they also wanted to-be.- of dollars-an hour to whip into!.submission pro-

rersne ythegunion,- accrding to Rome ductiou~ workers who- are. getting. only $6.Aloise, secretary-ftreasurer ..of the.lca . . " ope hsulil,ierlcmany wl i

Th opn epne ybgn nhedown and talkwith"us"AbuttheConcerns of its,notorious 'U* retiesn alf,T3by& epoes" iesaid.

the request of Secm-,tary ofFoodl avi bo irtinters %tan4abut. weay drivers at the wheelsoAgriculture 'Henry Voss.,. Who'-said -the sAfetyofteiooin ulc"heavlk ae i is angninear-record: tomato, peach., 44 ihu'hxmto, rc ejadizi0ng millions of dollars' agrape and apple Cdrops ripening- riershalin..Qnpershbleyerin. federal payments 'to theearly in hot weather had cratdan iem Iwud b-etice 0state,- Mack -pointed out.emergency' hours'at thewheelnwhinHe said**this'is bcueteC

40.nyeih cormissioner's action violate aiMaccontred "ommssone':days.. This -meanst that a driver

Hannigan arbitrarily wiped awaywwOrking1-hufay utbe for.rsopinc iht eferaimportant safety protections with-.'pulledoff the road'for. a rest after'oormCta.ridesestasithcout any. legal justification- or public. About five ad.anda ays. fP ora t fproestsaewit

He fundsuforsatvarietyfofgprojectsdaimediput. Heovosly. cares- mpire' Besidsteanrpodby t enanighiwasfey

Picnics and 'More forLao'Dy.(Continued fromn Page 2)

scheduled to be the keynote speakerduring a program that.will be em--ceed by Charles Weis, Ventura,.County suiperintendent of schools.Bob Guillen, barbecue chef and

union activist, will belassisted byfamily members in prepringfoodthatwillbe servedfroml1to3 p.m.Service Employees Local 998 willstaff the beer booth, soft drinks willbe handled by Democats United,and the Ventura- County Chapter ofthe Labor Council for Latin Ameri-can Advancement will bez in charge-of drawings.

Sponsor are the Ventura County.Building and Construction Trades'Council, Tri Counties Central La-bor Council, Ventura CountyLCLAA and Democrats United, in-cluding clubs from Ventura, Ox-nard, Thousand. Oaks ..and .Ojai.A number of events are being-

held earlier in the Labor-Day week-end this year. These include:

0The Diamond Walnut -Soli--darity Rally 'is scheduled for noonto.2 p.m. onFiday, Sept. 2, at themain gate of the boycotted plant at1050 Diamond St. *in Stockton.

It. is described as a major eventby Lucio Reyes, secretary-treasurerOf Tbamnsters Local 601, which rep-resents some 500 Diamond workersAugust26,99M4

who. struck on Sept. 4, 1991,* and-quickly became living. examples ofthe need for legislation *to preventpermanent. replacement of workerswho* withhold labor in. collectivebargaining disputes.Diamond workers had accepted

deep cuts in wages and benefits in*two rounds of bargaining tbecausemanagement' insisted the grower-owned cooperative was in danger ofbankruptcy.- Then, with Diamondnewly placed on the Fortune 500list of most profitablecoprtnsthe* workers asked.'restoration ofpart. of what te had given up. ear-lier. Diamond responded. with. de-mands for.,further.. rollbacks: and.scabbed, the plant.with.."permanent,replacements" when the workersvoted to strike.

e0 The Humbld and Del Norte.Counies Central Labor Councilpicichas been moved from LabOr,Day* -to' the preceeding SaturdySept 3.

ThIe site still is Rohner ParkinFortuna, and the tradfitionalb&and turkey pit, barbecue. will beserved as in years past along with.hot, dogs, and* soft drinks.

Rep.- Dan Hamhburg,* AssemblyMember Dan Hmaue and State Sen-ator Mke Thomnpson are on the

program. There also will be laborsongs, roller skating,'softbAll,:horseshoes and. -Volfleyball alongwith- a collection. ofeanned food forthe food bank.

S*The Fremno-Mawd&a'Central*Labor.CounDcil- and Building..dles-Coundilbarbecue.is. sched- v

Uledfornoonto 6panm. on Sunday,Sept. -4,'at:.Coombs: Riverbend*

The pormincludes, games,music1,a rafl and. the taiinltri-tip barbecue. dinner at $7.50with children-under- 12fre

Unity Picnic' is.-*setfor noon to,*.5P.M. Sunday, Sept. 4, at Glenn Park-in S.E

chre'sll be musi.c, softball,,cide%.games,-beverages, pot..luck,-barbecue-and renowned.worl4-d aschili Y Bl

Boldenweck.The event -takes on peilSignif-

icance this: year. because -all .10'.unions in the cofrec are gidng-for a possible strike .against -the Sani

and. the,newsllpApere, jointly oWned'NewsaeAec which havimel--ported tt nfamous-King andBal-,-low la'W imof -union-bustmrfrom thissNwiyearisaseres-ofraffles.

fobr te.ben6fit'fthdneAnesrit~fmefu& T'Imsinclude

dinbners' and an array'.of'

'tdnIhmads Conilast schedUledAits- LaborDay softbAltunmnfor Saudy adSt;aw.epioA 4,'at Hagerman.-Fieldin-santtaMaria'"

Gary -K.Hart.*andAssml Man

Justce or JantorsBokIAvial"La Gran ULipeza/The'. Big in.pprbc

Sweep"thepoonvlain. Span-,'Itcanberdedfr$ish ~ )Odannls bu h utc o ihg.-included,-.from

Janitors.ca pn-ha wspub- Books,lPQBoL 297.56,lied. .ioprto with Servicq; geles,CA *90029. The FA

Empoyes Lcal399, is availabl is (23 5-1930..

R995, sip-

9Los An-xnmber

ber.'Jack..*O Connell.0 The.SacrMe noCeintral La-

bor,CouncO has Made a nfAjOr ink-;novation_,in*.its 1994 Labor Dayschedule.**ThbeBuM lgTadesmililsponsor*

RiurnaMe6ton*Studay, Sept. 3, atDavisi Golf Course., and the -.coun-ciW"Labor Day-Vekcmld SoftballRbumunut will be.held on Sunday,Sep.4 at..Wiliam Land',Prk

ButjiStead: of'ljxbldjng teid a-'nua l bm enn picnicpon Labor-Day, Sacrmkento trade uioitsWi -be feeding ,the. homeless at'Lovs..anid. 'Fishes..L..abor.,volunems will..take.over

supply,IPar Atoand-serving Offood. The scope of the operation isreflected in the-aoutaof -foodunion -volunteOers are planning to-'serve IclWed are1,*200.quartw-pound .hamburgers..with buns, 600

pouns iofmicrnisalad; t2;0.Icecream bus,13'gallons-o emn-ade,and a. truckod.-of-'aemeos

Volunteers. Willariea Loaves

a..t'start-.- -.1.the.-food.Oteswill-come-onx during hmornng t coo andserve, ankdstill

otherswill satthe tmassive cleaupin the afterINoo.

Fage.3

Leg9islation...(Continued from Page 1) It would raise the maxim

can use these same agents to check benefit from $336 to $406 1on whether everyone has a time the newly increased workeicard and whether workers are benefit.punching out and continuing to Republicans lined upwork without overtime pay," he against the measure even

said.SDbeeisaepien"It can be done. In fact, several SDIrenteisearespaidoentmanufacturers have instituted vol- orkersx themsnelvetuuntary compliance programs to ad- rleaxtatissnt exphefctdress many labor law violations by creasueand espitedth ectheir contractors," Roberti con- asurinentisvexpectnjuedtoWcluded. "I ask for your 'aye' vote." cayincomentiefrinjuwenMaurice Johannessen, R-Red- claiml cop enItsweding, argued that independent con- eliibeoratDImtractors should in no way be subject one emo rate-Tomedto supervision by the garment man- o eo rv-oeufacturers who hire them. Republicans in oppositio

Newton R. Russell, R-Glendale,, bill. Democrats Areias,argued that enforcement of labor Speier and Umberg werelaws was a "police problem." He as not voting, as were Reldenounced the bill as interference Allen, Frazee, Horcher, J(with the free enterprise system. Quackenbush.

Roberti argued again that the Meanwhile, the Assemtsame agents who check on quality and Means Committee seiand delivery for manufacturers Assembly floor the agri-could easily check on labor law industry bill legalizing "rcompliance was well. Roberti con- ployer welfare aitended also that the ".independent ments"(MEWAs) that F(contractor"" status, of many of the health plans but evade t

shops is purely fiction contrived to guards against rip-offs ofenable the manufacturers to shield that state law requires of rthemsleves from the consequences ance companies.of labor law violations. The California Labor F

Lucy Killea, independent of San continues to oppose Se-Diego,, called for passage of the bill, 1430 by Patrick Johnston,citing widely publicized abuses in ton. The measure clearedthe garment industry. mittee last week with v(

While Killea voted with the eight Democrats but wasDemocratic majority in favor of the there until yesterday on a-

bill, Quentin Kopp of San Fran- reconsider by John Burtccisco., the Senate's other indepen- Francisco.dent., voted against it, adding hisvoice to those of 13 Republicans. No.,Moflol

Not voting were Democrats GaryHart,, Santa Barbara, and Robert A proposal by a RepubPresle,-vRivrie,-andRpuicarnssaoeohoo mly

sembly amendments. funded medical coverage

aum SDIto match,rs' comp

solidlyithoughtirely by.Y-h a pay-el to in-tthat theAiminatetorkers tothey are

Connollywith the)n to theBurton,recordedpublicans[nes and

bly Ways,nt to thebusinessrnulti-em-rrange-ook likethe safe-fworkerseal insur-

Federationnate BillD-Stock-the com-otes fromsretainedmotion to)n, D-San

HenningTells- Roberti:z'We Wil/ Never Forget'

Here is the letter that Executive Secretary-Treasurer Jack Henning ofthe California LaborFederation wrote to State Senator David Ro-berti two weeks ago on the occasion ofa testi-monial dinner for Roberti:

Dear Dave:I regret that my obligations in Washington

this week in the AFL-CIO drive for nationalhealth insurance will prevent my attending thedinner honoring you in Sacramento.Your departure from public life should not

become a lasting thing. California needs youin a yet higher capacity.,

Your intelligence, integrity and sense of or-der enlarged our faith in the often malignedprocesses of democracy

In your campaigns for Assembly, Senate and

Freed from the Ways and MeansCommittee suspense file after con-sideration of its impact on the bud-get was SB 1464 by Milton Marks,D-SF, the measure sponsored by thestate AFL-CIO federation to preventemployers from continuing to ex-pose workers and communities tohazardous machines or processesduring the lengthy Cal-OSHA ap-peal process.

The state AFL-CI6's key unem-ployment insurance benefit increasewas fireed from the Senate Appro-priations Committee suspense file.AB 2867 by Juanita McDonald,

statewide office, you were unstained. Low andrevokting forms of advocacy never found har-bor in your mind or heart. You leave with a

soul at ease.

We will never forget your enduring commit-ment to the working people of California., Wewill never forget your devotion to the poor, thedisenfr-anchised, the scorned and abandoned ofour social order.

Please remember the loyalty that labor was

honored to offer you.

In the name of our workers' movement, Iwish you years of continued -satisfaction in thedoing of good.

Sincerely yours,John F Henning

D-Carson, which would raise themaximum weekly UT benefit from$230 to $245, goes now to the Sen-ate floor.

Also freed from the Appropria-tions Committee suspense file wasAB 1605 by Barbara Friedman,D-L.A., the AFL-CIO nv,asuremandating surveillance equipmentin some supermarkets, drug storesand convenience marts to protectworkers and customers against in-creasingly frequent violent armedrobberies. The measure also callsfor a Cal-OSHA safety standardcovering such workplace violence.

Still stuck in Appropriations sus-

rs for Employee Leasing Firms)lican leg-xe leasingkin Octo-d in the

h incredu-r that As-lution 147', R-Mon-rthe very-gone intoise of ille-ite under-schemes

for workers' compensation.Mountjoy proposed to have the

governor proclaim Oct. 9 through16 "Professional Employer Organi-zation Week" in honor of the "inno-vative approach"" by employee leas-ing firms "to the problems faced bycompanies in providing adequatebenefits for their employees... ."

Executive Secretary-TreasurerJack Henning of the California La-bor Federation pointed out in theAssembly Rules Committee thatcertain of such innovative ap-proaches have been determined by

the courts to be illegal attempts toevade the state's workers' compensa-tion law.

One such employee leasing firm,Stafcor, fought-through appealscourts before the state shut it down,Henning noted.

Mountjoy's own commitment toemployee benefits has been ques-tioned by opponents who pointedout that his Mountjoy ConstructionCo. of Monrovia was found guilty ofviolating federal law by withholdingovertime pay from five employees.

Dismay Over Health Plan...(Continued from Page 1)

provide little, if any expansion ofhealth care coverage in this country.Nor does it contain any effectivecost containment mechanism.

"Rather, this plan seeks to ad-dress the health care crisis by re-placing a substantial portion of thecurrent employer-based system withan entirely new approach that wouldlikely leave most Americans secur-ing coverage on their own. Thisradical, untested idea will most cer-tainly create disorder and confusionwhile providing precious little op-portunity to solve the problems thatnow plague the health care system."~

This is not what trade unionmembers and their families have inmind when -they envision healthcare reform, Kirkland said.

"They have struggled for toolong to build a high standard ofcomprehensive, employer-providedhealth benefits to now see that stan-dard undermined by some kind ofstrange market experiment," headded.

The so-called mainstream coali-tion proposal endangers the existingsystem of employer-based health in-surance in several ways, the AFL-CIO leader said.

"First, new tax deductions andcommunity-rate purchasing poolsopen to individuals who purchasetheir own health insurance and a taxcap on employer deductibilitywould create an even stronger disin-centive for any employer to providePage 4

health insurance to his or herworkers," Kirkland pointed out.

"Under this plan, employers andemployees would be better off ifthey dropped group health benefitsand employees purchased healthcoverage on their own-in an en-tirely new and unorganized healthcare insurance market.

"While this may be an attractiveidea to insurance providers, itwould create enormous confusionfor consumers and would likely re-duce overall coverage.

"Second," Kirkland said,.be-cause the proposal would leave somany millions of Americans with-out health insurance coverage,those who do purchase coverage-whether they are employers or indi-viduals-would continue to be sad-dled with substantial cost-shiftingas they foot the bill for theuninsured."The problem of rising costs can-

not be solved without mandatingthat everyone have some kind ofcoverage, Kirkland pointed out.

"Third, the plan includes a new,massive cost-shift from the federalgovernment to private purchasers.

("Fourth, the limit on employerdeductibility and the taxation ofcost-sharing supplemental plansamount to a huge new tax on mid-dle-income Americans," Kirklandargued.

'"Recent studies have shown thatsuch taxes will mean that individ-uals either pay more out-of-pocketto maintain their existing coverageor to see their coverage reduced inorder to avoid taxation. Either way,workers bear the burden of newtaxes."

There are a host of additionalproblems with the proposal, Kirk-land said, including failure to pro-vide relief for senior citizens fromhigh prescription drug costs, and a"draconian" fail safe mechanism toguarantee subsidy reductions andincreases in health benefit taxeswhen cost targets are exceeded.He cited also,.the "*(startling fact

that all of the new taxes raisedwould appear to be dedicated to def-icit reduction rather than health carereform."T

The AFL-CIO has said all alongthat the single-most deficit-inflatingthing Congress could do would beto do nothing to provide universalhealth coverage in this country.And the new proposal does pre-

cisely that- nothing -Kirklandsaid. No universal coverage, no costcontainment., no employer mandate.It is a situation., he said;1 that i's nei-ther fiscally responsible nor healthcare reform.

""Just about every poll on this is-sue indicates that the vast majorityof Americans think that everyoneshould have health coverage andthat all employers should share inthe responsibility of paying for it,"Kirkland concluded.

"That is where the mainstreamis. And these are the basic goalsthat Congress should pursue in thiscritical debate."

Forum Eyes Living Wage JobsA "Forum for Jobs at a Living

Wage" is scheduled for Saturday,Sept.- 10, at the Gardena headquar-ters of Local 250 of the United As-sociation under sponsorship of theunion and community and Demo-cratic Party organizations."We plan to devise a framework

for working together in the future to

ensure that our economy providesjobs at a living wage for all our citi-zens.,'" said Larry A. Jones, Local250 business manager.

The event is open to all at II a.m.at the Local 250 facilities at 18355South Figueroa St. in Gardena.State, local and congressional candi-dates are to participate.

There will be a family-style bar-becue with refirshments.

Details can be obtained from JimJones, Local 250 business represen-tative, (213) 321-1330; Dan H.Foley, C'oncerned Citizens for LocalJobs, (213) 321-0202; and FrankieHaIler, Midway Democratic Club,(310) 866-4088.

pense file are two additional billssponsored by the state federation:AB 3109 by Burt Margolis,D-L.A., mandating interest pay-ments. on unemployment benefitswrongfully withheld and later or-dered paid on appeal, and AB 3230by Barbara Friedman, requiringemployers to add violence preven-tion to their workplace illness andinjury prevention programs.

Another labor-sponsored mea-sure survived a Republican techni-cal challenge on the floor of theSenate.AB 990 by Curtis Tucker, Jr.,

D-Inglewood, would require em-ployers to pay the same penalties forovertime violations that are assessedfor minimum wage violations. Asmatters stand, an employer canshortchange workers on overtimepay confident that he or she willnever have to pay more than theworker was originally owed.

Several GOP senators tried to killthe bill by arguing that Tucker hadimproperly amended its contentsinto a measure that was substan-tially different.

Tucker appealed to the SenateRules Committee, which supportedhim on a 5-0, bi-partisan vote andsent the measure back to the Senate

floor.

Nurses SayProp 186Backers Lie

Opponents of Proposition 186,the single-payer initiative on theNov. 8 general election ballot, weredenounced this week for attemptingto deceive voters with ads falselyimplying that nurses are on theirside.

nursing homes, and all the organi-zations that represent them, enthusi-astically endorse Proposition 186,"9said Kurt Lauman, RN, presidentof CNA.

"The hospital and insurance in-dustries have chosen a tiny, unrep-resentative group of nurse execu-tives as their mouthpiece. Theyhope to delude the public into be-lieving nurses oppose reform,"Laumann declared.

"The nurse executives group ispart of the hospital association,"Laumann continued. "Its membersare directors and managers of hos-pitals ,"V

August 26, 1994