Topic: SEIU

SEIU & ACORN: Guilt by Association

By Mark Naccarato | October 13, 2009 |

The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) has become a favorite target of the extreme right wing. As SEIU becomes a more significant force for change in this country, we are going to continue to be hit by the same extreme right-wing attack machine that is trying to block healthcare reform and regulatory reform – the change this country needs to help working families and to rebuild the middle class.

The radical right in this country wants nothing more than to make SEIU, grassroots community groups, and any individual who fights against the status quo their next casualty. They are seeking to silence the voices of those men and women who suffered the most under 8 years of extreme right-wing policies, and to smear anyone who stands up for those men and women. Right now, there are daily attacks from conservative radio and TV pundits on us for our work on healthcare, labor rights, immigration, and our working relationship with community and progressive organizations – most recently ACORN.

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Not Your Father’s Labor Movement

By Mark Naccarato | June 18, 2009 |

Another kind of change is happening in America since the Obama Administration took office – a change in how corporations and their shareholders conduct business.

On April 29, during one of the most contentious annual shareholder meetings in Bank of America’s history, shareholders called for new leadership and greater accountability as 50.3 percent voted in favor of a resolution forcing Chairman Ken Lewis to resign as Chairman of the Board.  “Today, we saw a vote of no confidence in Ken Lewis who has overseen record losses in stock value and whose short-sighted business plans have put personal gain ahead of shareholders and the long-term health of the company,” said SEIU Master Trust Chairman Andy Stern. «Read the rest of this article»

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Gone Country: Healthcare crisis out of control in rural Tennessee

By Mark Naccarato | June 9, 2009 |

While most of the healthcare activism in Tennessee seems to be happening in Nashville, Memphis, and the state’s other big and medium-sized cities, it’s important for us not to ignore the rural areas across the state. After all, it’s in Tennessee’s rural areas where the healthcare crisis is the worst.

According to a new report released by the Service Employees International Union called The Value of Reform in Tennessee, the reality of the healthcare crisis is grim in Tennessee’s rural towns. In the current recession, the rural economy is losing jobs at a faster rate than the rest of the nation, and loss of jobs can lead to loss of health coverage. These hard-working folks – unemployed through no fault of their own – are forced to either go without insurance or pay out of pocket to get it. And people who have to buy insurance on their own tend to pay more for premiums, have higher deductibles, and have fewer procedures covered. One out of five rural residents spends more than $1,000 per year out of their own pocket on health services. Overall, rural residents pay 40% out of pocket for medical needs—a significantly bigger hit than other Americans absorb. «Read the rest of this article»

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Some other people we should listen to on escalation in Iraq

By Bill Larson | January 29, 2007 |

We heard the President and his administration’s position during the state of the union.

We can hear the corporate media’s opinion any time we turn on the various news channels. After all, the media in this country is a wholly owned subsidiary of the military industrial corporate complex and they know who butters their bread.

So lets take a moment to hear from those who are and have been directly affected by this immoral and illegal war of aggression in Iraq.

VoteVets is joining organizations such as MoveOn, SEIU (Service Employees International Union), and the Center for America Progress as founding members of Americans Against Escalation in Iraq.

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