AFSCME AFSCME FYI - Wednesday, January 21, 2015 National/Politics Statement of AFSCME Pres. Lee Saunders on President Obama’s State of the Union Address AFSCME news release ∙ JANUARY 20, 2015 AFSCME Pres. Lee Saunders issued the following statement in response to President Obama’s State of the Union Address: “Tonight President Obama put forth a comprehensive plan filled with common sense solutions to strengthen the middle class and give Americans access to greater opportunity. We applaud his assertion that ‘To give working families a fair shot… we still need laws that strengthen rather than weaken unions and give American workers a voice. Investing in community colleges, and expanding broadband access and paid sick leave are fundamental changes that will make our nation stronger as a whole. “2014 brought the strongest job growth since the 1990s, however, that is only one piece of the puzzle. Stagnant middle class wages continue to drag families down. Workers need to be empowered to bargain for fair pay and secure benefits. Sadly, the nationwide attacks on collective bargaining persist, as deep-pocketed, anti-worker forces systematically target unions. Their efforts to undo collective bargaining weaken all workers. “We hope that Congress will work with the President to take other steps to address the growing wage stagnation that hampers meaningful economic recovery in our country, and to send a clear message to the nation, that you can’t build a strong country by attacking workers.” Obama Pushes The Right Thing For Workers: Paid Leave, Minimum Wage, Pay Equity Dave Jamieson ∙ huffingtonpost ∙ : 01/20/2015 10:12 pm With the U.S. job market on more solid footing, President Barack Obama used his State of the Union address Tuesday night to advance a philosophy he’s increasingly embraced over the past year -- that the federal government can and should raise baseline standards inside the American workplace. Whether it was paid leave, the minimum wage or gender pay equity, the president made his case to a skeptical, Republican-controlled Congress that Washington needs to establish rules governing how the economy works for everyday people, particularly when wages are stagnating despite broader job gains. President Obama Calls For Stronger Unions Daily Caller ∙ 10:13 PM 01/20/2015 President Obama used his State of the Union address to promote laws that would strengthen labor unions on Tuesday. ... “We still need laws that strengthen rather than weaken unions, and give American workers a voice,” the president declared. Obama makes trade case to both parties Vicki Needham ∙ The Hill ∙ 01/20/15 09:24 PM President Obama urged both political parties on Tuesday night to give him the powers he needs to negotiate global trade deals. ..... AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said that his group’s “opposition to fast-tracked trade deals that are giant giveaways to big corporations must be resolute. “We can’t face the competitive challenge of China with a trade deal that fails to adequately address currency manipulation, climate change or that gives corporations rights that people don’t have,” he said. Related Politico: Liberals: Great speech, Obama … except on trade Fiduciary Push Expected after SOTU Arthur D. Postal ∙ InsuranceNewsNet ∙ January 20, 2015 A revised proposal to change the standard that agents must use in selling investment products in 401(k)s is expected to be released over after the State of the Union address. .... The economic justification document, obtained by InsuranceNewsNet, purports to show that consumer protections for investment advice to the retail and small plan markets are inadequate and that the current regulatory environment “creates perverse incentives that ultimately cost savers billions of dollars a year.”..... A consumer group coalition established a website last week to educate workers and retirees about the “retirement advice loophole” and mobilize support to close it, said a statement from the coalition. Its members include AARP, the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME); Davos: unions call for businesses to share fruits of growth with employees Larry Elliott and Jill Treanor ∙ Guardian ∙ 21 January 2015 Trade union leaders have called for a new Magna Carta to tackle inequality and unemployment as they marked the start of the World Economic Forum with an urgent call for businesses to prevent social unrest by sharing the fruits of growth with employees. On the first full day of the WEF’s annual meeting in Davos, leading labour voices said the 800th anniversary of King John’s concessions in 1215 should be marked by a new charter of rights for workers. .... Trade unions have played an increasingly influential role at Davos in recent years, as concerns have grown over stagnating living standards and the growing divide between rich and poor. Killer ‘Cadillac’ tax: Even Democrats are angry Betsy McCaughey ∙ NY Post ∙ January 20, 2015 | 7:36pm There’s one part of ObamaCare that even many Democrats hate — the so-called Cadillac tax on generous health plans. ...... As far back as 2009, the president said he wanted to penalize “fancy plans that end up driving up costs.” The Affordable Care Act slapped a 40 percent tax on these plans, starting in 2018. Yet it’s not just fancy people who have these plans. Over the years, countless blue-collar and union workers have opted for these generous benefits instead of wage hikes. That’s why AFSCME leader Gerald McEntee blasted Obama’s idea as “bulls - - - -.” ..... With unions feeling the pressure on their health benefits, Republicans in Congress should draft legislation to repeal the Cadillac tax, and attach it to any ObamaCare “fix” they’re serious about actually enacting. The Next Big Health-Care Shift Is Coming By Christopher Flavelle ∙ Bloomberg ∙ JAN 19, 2015 11:00 AM The next big shift is coming in U.S. health care, and Republicans are doing their best to speed it up. Whats not clear is how carefully theyve thought through the consequences. .... But judging by the trend of the past few years, Americans with job-based coverage could soon become a minority. The chart below shows the percentage of Americans younger than 65 with health insurance provided by their employer. (Almost everyone 65 and older is covered by Medicare.) There has been a gradual but steady decline, from 59.2 percent in 2009 to 57.1 percent in 2013. .... The Congressional Budget Office estimates that in 2018, 8 million fewer people will have employer-based coverage than would have without the law. War Over Obamacare Heats Up In States NPR ∙ JANUARY 21, 2015 ..... A Center for Public Integrity review found that more than 700 Obamacare-related bills were filed in the states during 2014 or carried over from 2013 in states where legislatures allow that. (You can read an in-depth look at the centers findings here.) Some states saw 50 or more health bills each, according to data from the National Conference of State Legislatures, or NCSL. Its not yet clear how many will be reconsidered in 2015 — many states are just kicking off their legislative sessions — but few expect any substantial retreat from the battlefront. .... One high-profile group fighting Obamacare in statehouses is the American Legislative Exchange Council, or ALEC. The free-market group says it works to advance limited government. Health-Care Providers Challenge Medicaid Rates at High Court David McLaughlin ∙ Bloomberg ∙ Jan 20, 2015 5:28 PM U.S. Supreme Court justices weighed whether hospitals and other health-care providers have the right to challenge Medicaid reimbursement rates set by states. A group of health-care providers argued in an Idaho case Tuesday that the U.S. Constitution allows them to contest their reimbursements under the Medicaid health-insurance program for the poor. The position is backed by hospitals, which say that the low rates aren’t covering their costs. Poor Oversight, Work Marred Health Site’s Launch, Report Says Inspector General Says LOUISE RADNOFSKY ∙ Wall Street Journal ∙ Jan. 20, 2015 2:27 p.m. The federal government skipped key contracting requirements when awarding hundreds of millions of dollars to build the troubled HealthCare.gov site, according to an inspector general’s report. The investigation published Tuesday by the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Health & Human Services found the federal government failed to probe fully the past performance of CGI Federal Inc., a subsidiary of a Canadian information technology firm, before awarding it a contract to construct basic parts of the insurance enrollment site. Cities Hoping to Cut Collection Costs Continue to Explore Privatization Options Cheryl McMullen ∙ Waste 360 ∙ Jan 20, 2015 .... Detroit and Toronto are two municipalities that recently turned to privatized solid waste collection...... In 2011, Toledo, Ohio, under former Mayor Mike Bell, contracted out its solid waste services for more than 180,000 households. Bell suggested the switch would save the city $2.8 million. But current Toledo Mayor D. Michael Collins, who opposed privatization as a councilman in 2011, has considered retaking control of the citys solid waste. However, Collins recently said it is not possible to bring services back in house despite questioning whether the savings and improved service have materialized. Collins says he will instead look at better contracts that favor the city over the hauler. The city of Memphis also considered privatization but instead chose buyouts to cut the number of sanitation workers and reduce the costs associated with those employees. A new effort to help black workers find higher-paying jobs CHRIS KIRKHAM ∙ Los Angeles Times ∙ Jan 21, 2015 .... Through the help of community organizations pushing for greater inclusion of African American workers, Epps has earned a good paycheck for more than six months helping to build the Crenshaw/LAX light-rail line. Epps improving fortunes stem from an approach experts say could alleviate persistently high unemployment in the black community. An agreement involving government, organized labor and community organizations has required contractors to provide more opportunities for disadvantaged workers to get jobs on the rail project Goldman Sachs Invests in Government and Expects to Be Paid Back FAWN JOHNSON ∙ Bloomberg ∙ January 20, 2015 Goldman Sachs officials are proud, very proud, that their firm made the first investment ever in a public-private pay for success program. In 2012, the financial giant entered an agreement with the city of New York to loan $10 million of start-up cash to establish a cognitive-behavioral-therapy program for juveniles incarcerated on Rikers Island. At the time, half of the adolescents who left New York Citys Department of Correction returned within one year. .... Goldman Sachs entrance into this kind of financing—most often known as social-impact bonds—could change the way both Wall Street and governments do business.
Posted on: Mon, 26 Jan 2015 22:08:32 +0000
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