June 16, 2004

California Labor Federation Biennial Convention
Please join the California Labor Federation on July 13 & 14, 2004 for our 25th Biennial Convention. The Convention will launch the campaign to fight for the Health Insurance Act and to take back the White House this November. Convention business will also take up Resolutions and Policy Statements, Officer Elections, and Endorsements of candidates and propositions for the statewide election.

To help kick off the November Campaign, there will be Campaign Strategy Sessions geared for union members and staff in the areas of: 
 * Communications and Media Strategy;
 * Political Program for Local Unions;
 * Worksite Organizing;
 * Campaign Finance Rules and Political Reporting; and
 * Union Leadership.

Invited guests include:
 * Senator John Kerry
 * Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger

Registration: A list of authorized delegates for your union should be completed and returned to Federation Executive Secretary-Treasurer Art Pulaski no later than June 25.
Hotel Reservations: June 19, 2004 is the deadline for room registrations at the guaranteed rate of $110.00 per night for single or double occupancy. For room reservations please call the hotel at 800-877-8920 or 619-232-3861 and ask for Labor Federation rate.

Honoring Tom Rankin
   After 21 years at the California Labor Federation, President Tom Rankin is retiring. Please join the Federation and affiliates in honoring his legislative leadership and dedication to the labor movement at our Biennial Convention dinner on July 13th.   
  The dinner will be held on Tuesday, July 13th, 7:30 pm, in the Pacific Ballroom, Holiday Inn by the Bay, San Diego. Affiliates were sent a dinner registration form with the Convention Call. Individual tickets are $150 and tables for 10 are $1,250. If your union did not receive a dinner form, please call (510) 663 - 4022 or visit: www.calaborfed.org/events. Please join us at this special event!

Job Protection, Drug Reform and Minimum Wage Bills All Pass Assembly - Thanks for your help!       
Thanks to all of the calls, faxes and visits legislators received, all of the Federation-sponsored bills passed their first legislative house this month. Included was legislation preventing the offshoring of jobs, raising the minimum wage, supporting the right to organize, and prescription drug reform.

Offshoring Protections Move Forward
Nearly three million jobs in the United States have been lost over the last three years, with at least 15 percent of those jobs reappearing overseas. Union members have led a concerted effort to pass three important Federation-sponsored bills to save our jobs. AFSCME, CWA, SEIU are co-sponsors of the bills. This month all three bills passed their first legislative house.
No taxpayer money for offhsoring. AB 1829 (Liu, D-La Canada) would guarantee that work performed on state service contracts would be done solely by workers in the United States.  Already, we know that our state Food Stamps hotline and a state criminal fingerprint database are both maintained by workers in other countries. AB 1829 passed the Assembly on a partisan 46-32 vote. We are disappointed to report that Assemblymembers Rebecca Cohn (D-Santa Clara) and Joe Nation (D-San Rafael) abstained from voting.
Reporting Requirements on Jobs. AB 3021 (Assembly Labor Committee) would begin to collect job creation and protection data. By requiring California employers to report to the Employment Development Department (EDD) annually the number of jobs they have in California, in other states, and in other countries, we can begin to track jobs data. AB 3021 passed the Assembly on a partisan 47-32 vote.  We are disappointed to report that Assemblymember Ron Calderon (D-Montebello) abstained from voting.
Protecting Our Privacy. It has recently been revealed that inspection of port containers have been done offshore and that California's Longshore workers no longer inspect containers moved in and out of our ports.  SB 1492 (Dunn, D-Orange County) protects the security and privacy of California's residents. The bill, as amended, would require all work related to homeland security to be done in the United States.
  SB 1492 would also require health care businesses to obtain patient consent before their confidential medical records can be sent offshore. SB 1492 passed the Senate on a partisan 22-13 vote, with Senators Debra Bowen (D-Marina del Rey), Mike Machado (D-Linden), and Byron Sher (D-Palo Alto) abstaining.

Minimum Wage Bill on the Rise
Low wage workers in California got a step closer to a wage increase this month. With a push from Organized Labor and community allies, legislation that would increase the state minimum wage from $6.75 to $7.75 made a big step forward in the Legislature. After many calls and visits to legislators, Federation-sponsored AB 2832 passed the Assembly Floor this month with a 46-30 vote and a lengthy debate.
Unions and community groups that helped lobby the minimum wage bill include ACORN, Jericho, SEIU, AFSCME, HERE, Teamsters, Alliance of Retired Americans, Western Center on Law and Poverty, and the Sacramento, L.A., Yolo, and North Bay Central Labor Councils. Assemblymember Barbara Matthews (D-Tracy) was the only Democrat voting NO. 

Assembly Says Yes to Drug Reform
The state Assembly has passed a package of prescription drug bills to protect Californians against rising prescription drug costs. The Federation sponsored two of these bills:
Fair Marketing and Pricing. AB 1960 (Pavley) will help Taft-Hartley trust funds negotiate more fairly for prescription drug benefits. AB 1960 requires Pharmacy Benefit Managers to disclose information about the financial kickbacks they receive from drug manufacturers. The bill also protects consumers against losing access to drugs on their prescription drug plans. AB 1960 passed the Assembly 50 - 26, with Republican members Abel Maldonado (R-Santa Maria) and Keith Richman (R-Northridge) supporting.
Rx Report Card. The second Federation-sponsored bill - AB 2326 (Corbett) - will create a "prescription drug report card in California. The "report card" will provide consumers with unbiased comparisons of the cost, effectiveness and safety of the most commonly prescribed medications. AB 2326 passed the Assembly 50 - 25, with Republican members Abel Maldonado (R-Santa Maria) and Bonnie Garcia (R-Cathedral City) supporting.

Defend the Freedom to Join a Union
  Working families and their allies are mobilizing to help workers regain the basic human right to form unions and bargain collectively. Between June 28 and July 4, union members will celebrate Independence Day with a Voice@Work National Week of Action.
  For information about regional Voice@Work events, contact your local Central Labor Council. Please call your legislators and encourage them to support the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), federal legislation that would help guarantee workers the right to form unions. Senator Diane Feinstein is not yet a co-sponsor, please call and ask her to join inS. 1925 and H.R. 3619, sponsored by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.).
  State senators can show their support for EFCA by supporting the California Employee Free Choice Resolution, AJR 87 (Goldberg). AJR 87 passed the full Assembly earlier this month and is now set to be heard by the state Senate. There are over 40 co-authors on the resolution.

Golden Gate Bridge Walk for Health Care
On Saturday, June 19th, tens of thousands of people -- those who have health insurance and those who don't, those who fear losing coverage and those who have too little -- will join together across the country to bridge the gap in health care. From the Golden Gate Bridge to the Brooklyn Bridge, take part in a national action to call for quality, affordable health care for all! In California, union members and community activists will march across the Golden Gate in San Francisco to "bridge the gap in health care."
Saturday, June 19, 7:00a.m.- 1p.m. Arrive at Crissy Field 7am – 9am to march across the Bridge. Take public transportation to the Embarcadero BART. Shuttles will run 7-8:30 am from Embarcaderp BART to Crissy Field. Events at Crissy Field from 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. For information on how your union or organization can participate call 510-663-4010 or visit www.bridgingthegapforhealthcare.org.