Bill Bumpus Somerville MA - An injury to one is an injury to all

THE HEAVENS—Following an incident in which the Lord fanned His tongue and yelled ‘Ow, ow, ow!’ after being a little too hasty to partake of the molten rock, heavenly sources reported Wednesday that God Almighty had burned His mouth upon taking a big swig of volcano. “Obviously, if I’d had a small sip of it first, I…

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Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month Profiles: James Ikehara

For Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month this year, the AFL-CIO is spotlighting various Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders who have worked and continue to work at the intersection of civil and labor rights in the United States. Today's profile is James Ikehara of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA.

James Ikehara has been an AFA-CWA flight attendant based in San Francisco since 2011, when he started his career with Virgin America. Having triple heritage from a Filipina/Chinese mother born in Manila and an Okinawan father born on the island of Molokai. Ikehara is proud of his Asian American Pacific Islander heritage and the diversity he brings as secretary of AFA-CWA Local 29011 in San Francisco. He currently lives on the Big Island of Hawaii and was one of many volunteers at a recent “Malama Mauna Kea” event to protect the resources of the sacred mountain.

Kenneth Quinnell Wed, 05/31/2023 - 11:29

NEW YORK—In a decision that shields the former owners of Purdue Pharma from personal liability for America’s opioid crisis, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Wednesday that members of the Sackler family could still go to heaven. “It is our determination that the Sacklers should receive immunity from…

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At the DHL Express superhub at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, 1,100 workers who load and unload freight on aircraft voted to join Teamsters Local 100 in April in one of the biggest private-sector union wins this year.

Package giant DHL, a competitor of UPS and FedEx, is one of the world’s largest and most profitable logistics companies, and the Cincinnati-area hub is the company’s largest.

At the DHL Express superhub at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, 1,100 workers who load and unload freight on aircraft voted to join Teamsters Local 100 in April in one of the biggest private-sector union wins this year.

Package giant DHL, a competitor of UPS and FedEx, is one of the world’s largest and most profitable logistics companies, and the Cincinnati-area hub is the company’s largest.

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Service & Solidarity Spotlight: AFGE Wins Union Election at EPA Facility in Michigan

Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service & Solidarity Spotlight series, we'll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.

Tricia Paff, president of AFGE Local 37, discovered that remote workers at a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) facility in Ann Arbor, Michigan, were about to lose their union protections. Paff was on the AFGE-EPA contract negotiations team when she learned that remote workers at multiple EPA facilities were going to be removed from the bargaining unit after their duty station was changed.

As Paff and the AFGE EPA Council were investigating the issue, the Ann Arbor human resource director confirmed that her facility was indeed one of the locations that would be affected. Paff was able to get the action postponed, and 19 remote workers were able to vote and retain their union protections. 

Kenneth Quinnell Wed, 05/31/2023 - 08:50

HIGH POINT, FL—A new report released Thursday by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau found that more hospitals were requiring patients to put a body part down as collateral before receiving services. “It can be anything from a pinky toe to a vital organ, but we need something to ensure that the patient’s…

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WASHINGTON—Calling the epithet a deeply painful way of talking about another human being, former President Barack Obama reportedly killed himself Wednesday after learning about the “President Obummer” nickname. “My Lord, have people really been calling me this the entire time?” said the former commander in chief, who…

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A Kentucky man is facing criminal charges after police say he shot his roommate for eating the last Hot Pocket. What do you think?

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MARIETTA, GA—Admitting that a grave miscalculation had been made about the suspect’s age, the Marietta Police Department confirmed it put an officer on leave Wednesday after he shot a 9-year-old boy who he thought was actually a 10-year-old boy. “At approximately 8 a.m., an officer opened fire on a young boy who he…

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The Onion asked several of the smartest, richest, and most powerful business leaders on planet Earth how they felt being accused of “greedflation,” and this is what they said.

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Six months ago, a woman trade union leader from Cambodia was on her way home from Melbourne, where she attended the world congress of the International Trade Union Confederation. Chhim Sithar, the leader of Labor Rights Supported Union (LRSU) of Khmer Employees of NagaWorld, was was arrested at Phnom Penh airport. She stood accused of violating her bail conditions by travelling overseas. (She and her lawyers deny this.)

Last week, she was sentenced to two years in jail while eight of her colleagues received lesser sentences. Sithar and her fellow union leaders were found guilty of “incitement to commit a felony or disturb social security” . She has been transferred to prison.

Sithar and her union have been embroiled in a bitter dispute with a casino company known as NagaWorld, going back several years. NagaWorld used the COVID crisis as an excuse to sack a large proportion its workforce. Among those sacked were pretty much all the union members, including the entire leadership. It was union-busting under the cover of a deadly pandemic.

The workers responded with non-violent protests, but they were attacked by police who, like the government itself are is acting in collusion with the employer.

A key element in the story is the role of international trade union solidarity. Sithar stands accused of travelling to Australia to meet not only with her colleagues in the global trade union movement, but also with local politicians in Canberra.

The International Union of Foodworkers (IUF) launched an online campaign on LabourStart at the beginning of 2022 demanding the release of the union leaders. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) Director General at the time, Guy Ryder, expressed deep concern over the arrests and called for the immediate release of those detained. The campaign attracted significant support — over 15,000 supporters signed up in more than 20 languages. The IUF followed up with a formal complaint to the ILO, which in turn called upon the Cambodian government “to ensure that NagaCorp respect labour and trade union rights”.

The 2022 campaign was seen as a limited success. As the IUF explained at the time, campaign supporters were thanked “for this fantastic expression of international solidarity. Without doubt, every single protest message sent through the Urgent Action on LabourStart added to the tremendous pressure brought to bear on the Cambodian authorities, resulting in the release of the union leaders and activists from prison.”

But a note of caution was also sounded. “While the charges have not yet been dropped and the struggle for reinstatement continues, it is clear that the urgent action played an important role in winning their freedom.”

Unfortunately, that freedom did not last and things have gotten considerably worse. Major human rights organisation have now issued public condemnations of the Cambodian government — including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. The Australian Council of Trade Unions have launched an online protest campaign. The International Trade Union Confederation has issued a strong statement. And the IUF has created a new campaigning website.

It is not clear that any of this will be enough. As we have seen in country after country, from Belarus to Myanmar, authoritarian regimes have gone on the offensive in their war on workers’ rights. It is of course a good thing that large and powerful unions and other organisations issue strong statements. But Chhim Sithar will only be released from jail if it can be shown that tens of thousands of trade unionists and human rights activists around the world are aware of this terrible injustice — and are prepared to fight.

This article appears in this week’s issue of Solidarity.

WASHINGTON—Recommending that U.S. citizens exercise extreme caution if they plan to make the trip, the State Department issued a travel warning Wednesday for every American visiting Chili’s. “The travel advisory for the family restaurant specializing in American and Tex-Mex-inspired cuisine has been raised to level 3…

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LabourStart headline - Source: NYTimes

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