ALF V1

China's workers are increasingly voicing their discontent on labor conditions and pay, threatening to erode the nation's competitiveness as a low-cost factory hub.

Recent weeks have seen a series of strikes at factories across China, pointing to rising worker expectations as China's top leaders warn of economic challenges in the year ahead.

China's economy is showing signs of strain due to mounting piles of local government debt, a sharp drop in external demand for exports and nagging inflation. A pronounced slowdown that could see millions of migrant factory workers laid off would be a major concern for Beijing's stability-obsessed leaders.

Following are recent developments:

PANGANG GROUP CHENGDU STEEL & VANADIUM CO LTD

New York-based China Labor Watch said more than 2,000 workers at Pangang Group Chengdu Steel & Vanadium Co Ltd in southwest China's Chengdu municipality went on strike on January 4 to protest against low wages and large pay gaps between staff and managers.

Strikers and management entered negotiations after an hours-long confrontation with police who used pepper spray to disperse crowds, the group said. Local police and staff at the factory contacted by Reuters said they were unaware of a strike, but photos posted to China's Twitter-like microblog Sina Weibo, showed police lines and hundreds of people gathered, some holding signs calling for higher wages. The authenticity of the photos could not be confirmed.

LG DISPLAY

Workers complaining of small bonuses at an LG Display factory in the eastern city of Nanjing went on strike in late December, halting some production, the company said. Employees returned to the plant by December 28, two days after a labour rights group said the strike began, after LG Display posted notices saying year-end bonuses would be equal to "200 percent", apparently equivalent two months' salary.

SHENZHEN HAILIANG STORAGE PRODUCTS CO LTD

Nearly 1,000 workers at Japanese-owned Shenzhen Hailiang Storage Products Co Ltd in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen protested on December 5, demanding compensation matching their length of service following a change in the facility's ownership.

Workers at the Hitachi Ltd subsidiary complained their official years on the job had been cut to zero after the company bought a remaining stake and took full control of operations.

HI-P INTERNATIONAL

More than 200 workers at an electronics plant in Shanghai's Pudong district owned by Singapore's Hi-P International staged a strike on November 30 and into early December to protest what they said was a plan for mass layoffs.

Strikers told Reuters they had refused to sign agreements stipulating that their jobs would be terminated by the end of 2011 without compensation, adding that the company planned to relocate the plant within the city and hire new staff. The company said in a statement that it was in talks with workers and expected the matter to be "resolved shortly".

Asahi Shimbun, Thurs Jan 5 2012

VANCOUVER — Chinese energy companies, at one time eager to see the Northern Gateway pipeline completed quickly so they could access the Alberta oilsands, are now taking a longer and more patient view, according to a China expert.

The big three — PetroChina, Sinopec and China National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC) — have shown interest in Northern Gateway, but also frustration with the slow pace of project approval, said Wenran Jiang, a professor with the University of Alberta's China Institute.

First introduced in 2003, the project is in the midst of a regulatory review slated to end in 2013.

"In the beginning, the (Chinese companies) asked a lot of questions of Gateway. When is it going to be built? How fast will it be (built)? However, over the years, how (China) defines energy security has relaxed a little bit," said Jiang.

While the Chinese state-controlled companies initially wanted access to the oil, now the companies are content to invest in the Alberta oilsands, as they do in other areas of the globe, in an effort to increase global supply, said Jiang.

"Then they will buy oil wherever it is convenient and is most economical in terms of shipping and price," he said.

Chinese oil companies have invested about $10 billion recently in the oilsands, but it's just one part of China's global oil investment strategy, noted Jiang.

Chinese state companies also have invested tens of billions of dollars in South America, Africa, Russia, Australia and the Middle East.

Jiang said the question is less about Chinese desire or demand for access to Alberta oil, but whether Canada wants to diversify its market for oil, which is almost solely dependent on the U.S.

The Northern Gateway project represents that prize.

For Canadian companies, it means new markets for the largest reserve of oil in the world outside of Saudi Arabia.

It also means a predicted higher price for Canadian oil. Market diversification would bring an estimated $28-billion increase in net incremental revenue to the Canadian industry in the first 10 years, said a report filed by Enbridge with the National Energy Board.

However, some in Alberta are questioning the wisdom of pumping oil, and jobs, out of the country.

The Alberta Federation of Labour wants oilsands bitumen to be refined in Alberta.

"It would be irresponsible for us to build more pipelines that send high-quality jobs out of the country to places like the United States and China," said Gil McGowan, the federation's president.

The federation — representing 29 unions and 145,000 workers — also opposes TransCanada's Keystone XL project to the United States.

McGowan estimates upgrading and refining the Northern Gateway oil in Alberta would create 50,000 direct and spinoff jobs.

The oil companies that have signed up as interveners in Enbridge's $5.5-billion Northern Gateway is a who's-who of the North American industry.

ExxonMobil, Imperial Oil, BP, ConocoPhillips, Natural Resources Canada and Husky Energy are among the two dozen oil companies that have the right to address the regulatory hearings that begin Tuesday in Kitimat, B.C.

In documents filed with the National Energy Board on Wednesday, several corporate backers of the pipeline were revealed for the first time. They are Cenovus Energy Inc., MEG Energy Corp., Nexen Inc., Suncor Energy Marketing Inc., and Total E&P Canada.

Imperial Oil spokesman Pius Rolheiser said the company supports the Northern Gateway project, but also Keystone XL to the U.S. "Access to export markets in North America and beyond remains a critical factor for the projected growth in non-conventional resources like the oilsands," said Rolheiser.

The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), also an intervener in the pipeline regulatory review, emphasizes that Canada needs access to markets other than the U.S.

"There is significant growth in Asia — China, Japan, Korea and even interest from India. We are really positioned in Canada as being one of the closest suppliers to them, even compared to the Middle East and Australia where China is currently sourcing energy supply," said Greg Stringham, CAPP's vice-president, markets and oilsands.

The Paris-based International Energy Agency forecasts China and India will account for 45 per cent of the increase in global primary energy demand to 2030, with both countries more than doubling their energy use over that period.

Three Asian companies have signed on as interveners: SinoCanada Petroleum Corp. (a subsidiary of China's Sinopec), Korea's Daewoo International Corp. and Japan Canada Oil Sands Ltd.

SinoCanada officials could not be reached for comment, but Sinopec has confirmed it is one of the supporters that provided a portion of the $100 million to develop the Northern Gateway project.

Ottawa Citizen, Wed Jan 4 2012
Byline: Gordon Hoekstra

Caving into intense public pressure, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels (R) this morning rescinded an order that would have barred thousands of Hoosiers from the statehouse as the legislature considers a so-called right to work bill. As I write, we hear that three doors are open and workers are streaming in, with lines of people wrapped around the block.

On Dec. 30, the Daniels administration announced it would limit the number of people allowed in the statehouse to 3,000, including the 1,700 employees. The ban did not include lobbyists who would continue to have unfettered access. But it would have closed the doors on thousands of workers who are planning to be in Indianapolis for the battle over the "right to work" for less legislation.

Daniels admitted the outcry over closing the doors was the major factor in his decision to rescind the restrictions. When they were announced, Indiana State AFL-CIO President Nancy Guyott said:

Under this policy neither lobbyist nor donor will be turned away—yet everyday taxpaying citizens will be. This arrogant move is clearly aimed at working people who in 2011 went to the Statehouse to protest the anti-worker agenda being advanced there—and it is wrong. Our Constitution guarantees us the right to petition our government, and this limits that fundamental right.

afl-cionewsblog, Wed Jan 4 2012

EDMONTON - Oil producers could lose $72 billion over a nine-year-period if a pipeline to carry Alberta bitumen to the West Coast isn't built, a new report for the Alberta government says as community hearings for the proposed Enbridge Northern Gateway project are about to begin this month in British Columbia.

In a 44-page report submitted before Christmas to the federal government panel reviewing the pipeline project, consultants for Alberta Energy peg potential losses for oil producers in the project at $8-billion every year between 2017 and 2025.

The forecast, drawn up by Houston-based consultant Harold York for the firm Wood Mackenzie, is largely based on the expectation that Alberta oil sells at a higher price on an international market than it does in North America.

"If we can get it offshore, there are a lot more markets available to us which are willing to pay a higher price," Alberta Energy spokesman Tim Markle said.

The outlook does not deal with the oilsands production boost anticipated as a result of pipeline construction. It also does not deal explicitly with the effects that offshore bitumen sales would have on oil royalties collected by the Alberta government.

Currently, Alberta's main oil customer is the United States, which recently held off on approving the massive Keystone XL pipeline extension to the Gulf of Mexico.

The Dec. 21 Wood Mackenzie report flags Alberta Energy as the provincial government's lead representative going into 18 months of hearings that start next week. But critics charge the report positions the province to offer just "half of the balance sheet" to the federal panel by not raising environmental issues as well.

"In order to make an informed decision, you need to consider both the benefits and the costs of the pipeline ..." said Pembina Institute oilsands analyst Nathan Lemphers. "Is it up to environmental groups and concerned individuals, First Nations, to be raising this? Or should it be our governments or proponents doing this?"

Other departments, like Alberta Environment and Water or Sustainable Resource Development, will take a back seat during the hearings, offering Alberta Energy supporting information as necessary.

A spokeswoman for Alberta Environment said the department has no plans to provide its own report on the impacts of the pipeline to the review panel.

"We're not officially participating in the hearings, but we are supporting Energy," said Jessica Potter.

Noting that Alberta already has pipeline infrastructure in place east of the B.C.-Alberta border, Potter called the Enbridge review "a B.C. hearing, not an Alberta hearing."

The provincial government's role, she said, is "to ensure Alberta's energy future. To say, 'Yes, we have the energy required to make this pipeline worthwhile to us.' But we already have our regulatory process in place, our frameworks and stuff that legislate how pipelines are put in, how energy is developed in the process. From our perspective we have that and we're confident in our frameworks."

The Pembina Institute is an Alberta-based think-tank focused on energy solutions. It is not opposed to pipeline infrastructure in general, but has weighed in against the Northern Gateway project because of environmental questions members say have not yet been answered. Lemphers said the province should be discussing the potential costs of cleaning up pipeline or tanker spills and the potential environmental liabilities of additional oilsands development.

The Wood Mackenzie report deals with the outlook for Alberta's share in the international crude oil market, which is expected to grow significantly in the years ahead and demand "additional export capacity ... by 2017."

"When you're having a pipeline of this magnitude (being) brought forward, it's critical that the panel have balanced information in front of it in order to make an informed decision," Lemphers said. "While it's absolutely important that there be information about the economic benefits of the pipeline, that also needs to be balanced with some of the potential economic liabilities, some of the environmental risks that are associated with the project."

The report also does not explore increased refinery capacity not currently planned for in Alberta, a sticking point for labour groups who want to see more jobs in Alberta for refining bitumen.

"Here in Alberta, we should have had a debate about whether our province should take the high road or the low road when it comes to oilsands development. The high road being focused on moving up the value ladder into upgrading, refining (and) creating the thousands of jobs that would come with that. The low road being the rip-it and ship-it approach to shipping bitumen in its rawest form," said Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan. "Unfortunately, we never had that debate. The government and the oil industry decided for us."

Community hearings for the Northern Gateway project, expected to carry oilsands oil from Bruderheim, Alta. to Kitimat, B.C., begin in Kitimat on Jan. 10. More than 4,000 people have applied to give oral evidence. Edmonton hearings are scheduled to take place Jan. 24-31.

If the province chooses to appear before the hearing panel, it would not be until the fall of 2012, said Markle. The Alberta Energy spokesman said an elected member of government likely would not appear.

Officially, the provincial government is not necessarily supporting the proposed pipeline, but access to new markets.

"If there was another pipeline that came through and made an application, we'd look at it, make sure it met all the standards that Alberta sets out, and if we (found) that it was in the best interests of Albertans, then we might support that one as well," Markle said.

The federal joint review panel is an independent body mandated by the federal environment ministry and the National Energy Board. Its recommendation and environmental assessment of the project will inform Ottawa's final decision on the pipeline.

[email protected]

Key findings in the report, "A Netback Impact Analysis of West Coast Export Capacity," now available on the federal review panel's website:

•"Canadian producers not having sufficient access to premium heavy crude refining markets could lose about $8/bbl. for every Canadian heavy crude barrel, with a revenue impact averaging $8 billion (Cdn) per year for 2017 to 2025."

•"By 2025 Canadian heavy crude production volumes could reach nearly 3,000 kbd (thousand barrels per day), primarily dominated by unconventional grades."

•In the next 15 years, "Canada could be the third largest heavy crude oil producer after Saudi Arabia and Iraq."

•Today, Alberta's crude oil production is largely delivered to hubs in Edmonton and Hardisty feeding four major pipeline networks: Enbridge Mainline, Kinder Morgan Express, Kinder Morgan Trans-Mountain, and TransCanada Keystone.

Click here to read the Wood Mackenzie report and all documents provided to the joint review panel.

Edmonton Journal, Mon Jan 2 2012
Byline: Trish Audette

A monument to Alberta’s Broken Families began to take shape today, with workers breaking ground in Edmonton’s Grant Notley Park.

“Alberta is a dangerous place for workers. Last year, 166 Albertans died as a result of going to work. That means 166 Broken Families - families missing a mother or father, a son or daughter, a brother or sister,” says Brian Henderson, president of the Edmonton and District Labour Council (EDLC).

For nearly 100 years, the labour movement has been fighting to make workplaces safer in Alberta. To mark the centennial of this struggle, the EDLC commissioned the building of a memorial obelisk, designed by local artist Memi Von Gaza.

“Made of stainless steel, granite and concrete, this obelisk will stand 14 feet tall and be 10 feet wide at the base. On each of the four sides, a family will be seen, cast in bronze – but with one family member missing - one family member who went to work, but didn’t come home,” says Henderson. “At this time of year, when families come together for the holidays, it’s particularly important to remember that some family members are missing because of fatal accidents in the workplace.”

The monument will be unveiled on April 28, 2012, the National Day of Mourning recognizing those who have been injured or killed on the job.

“This monument will not only commemorate those who have died before, it aims to educate people so future deaths can be prevented,” says Henderson. “It is fitting that it will be in the park named after Grant Notley, the former MLA and leader of the NDP, a great public servant who lost his life in a 1984 plane crash while representing the people of this province.”

The family of Grant Notley gave their permission for the monument to be located in the park named after the former leader of the Alberta NDP. “I know what it’s like to lose a beloved family member,” says Rachel Notel, NDP MLA for Edmonton Strathcona. “My father died in a plane crash while working for the people of Alberta. Having this monument in the park that bears his name just feels right.”

-30-

 MEDIA CONTACT: Brian Henderson, EDLC president, 780-940-6797 (cell)

UNI stands in solidarity with postal workers in Kenya fighting for labour rights as 600 dismissed for taking part in industrial action.

Postal Corporation of Kenya (PCK) management has dismissed 600 workers in an illegal attempt to influence a strike organised by the Communications Workers Union of Kenya (COWU). The industrial action follows the management's refusal to continue negotiations on workers' salaries. The negotiations have been going on for three years. PCK had proposed to postpone talks until 2012.

"The strike has continued uninterrupted for the last four days and is set to continue until the management of PCK agrees to meet us and together sign an agreeable solution," said Benson Okwaro, General Secretary of UNI affiliate COWU.

Referring to the dismissals Okwaro said, "This is against the law because strikes are provided for by our constitution. It is intimidation meant to scare our members from going ahead with the strike."

In the face of such anti-union action, UNI Global Union stands by its affiliate and strongly condemns the behaviour of the PCK management as a violation of the right to collective bargaining and freedom of association.

UNI has addressed a letter to the CEO of the Postal Corporation of Kenya, urging him to resume negotiations in the best interests of all social partners.

Affiliates are also asked to send messages to CEO and the Minster of Posts, a sample and contact details are attached

UNI (Global Union), Tues Dec 20 2011

For decades, labour unions in the US have been on the decline. While they are widely credited with boosting safety standards and worker pay, many have received blame for wanting too much in times of a struggling economy.

Unemployment is at nine per cent and people are clamouring for jobs, unionised or not. And their greatest political ally, the Democratic party, has taken its support for granted, weakening its pull on the strings of power in Washington, DC.

A new battle has emerged in 2011 as Republican governors have taken on public sector unions, in some cases stripping them of rights that have been in place for 50 years. It is part of a trend that is happening in key swing states and may weaken democratic voting strength in next year's presidential election.

But organised labour has fought back hard. In Wisconsin, unions occupied the state capitol as 100,000 protesters took to the streets. In Ohio, voters overturned a law that was intended to greatly reduce the right that unions have in that state to bargain collectively.

Now as Occupy Wall Street galvanises Americans to take action against financial institutions and big corporations, labour unions have a new ally. But can organised labour harness the anger that everyday Americans are emitting or will this opportunity pass it by? Do labour unions still have the strength to organise or has their power waned to the point that they will no longer be a major player in American politics?

alijazeera.com, Tues Dec 20 2011

This was a banner year in the right-wing media's campaign to belittle working Americans. In the early part of the year, media conservatives promoted anti-union laws in Wisconsin and Ohio, transitioned to attacking the National Labor Relations Board, and spent the entirety of the year demonizing union workers, low-income Americans, and the unemployed.

Right-Wing Media React To WI Protests Over Collective Bargaining: Insults, False Attacks, Misinformation

Media Conservatives Set Sights On National Labor Relations Board: "Just Get Rid Of The Thing"

Right-Wing Media Viciously Denigrate Union Workers, The Poor, And The Unemployed

Right-Wing Media React To WI Protests Over Collective Bargaining: Insults, False Attacks, Misinformation

Fox & Friends Falsely Claimed "Violent" WI Protesters "Attack[ed]" Grothman

Kilmeade: Protesters Got "Restless And, Dare I Say, Violent." On the March 3 edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends, co-host Brian Kilmeade introduced a segment on a Republican Wisconsin lawmaker, Sen. Glenn Grothman, being heckled by a chanting crowd of protesters by falsely claiming the protesters were "getting restless and, dare I say, violent." Co-host Steve Doocy claimed that, "If you put yourself in [Grothman's] shoes...it's absolutely scary." Doocy later claimed, "When you look at that and all the incivility there, you realize that to these people, elections have no consequence, mean nothing." During the segment, the on-screen graphics repeatedly referred to the "angry" protesters as "violent" or "attack[ing]" Grothman. From Fox & Friends:

Kilmeade: "A Mob Of Protesters Ambush A Republican State Senator In Wisconsin." Teasing an upcoming segment with Grothman, Kilmeade claimed "a mob of protesters ambush[ed]" Grothman "who wants to go to work." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 3/3/11, via Media Matters]

Kilmeade Again Claims Grothman Was "Ambushed By A Mob Of Protesters." Later in the show, Kilmeade again teased Grothman's segment by claiming he was "ambushed by a mob of protesters." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 3/3/11, via Media Matters]

Doocy, Grothman Continue To Portray Protesters As Violent. Later on Fox & Friends, Doocy introduced a segment with Grothman by claiming he was "chased by a mob of protesters outside the capitol building." Doocy first asked Grothman, "Where was your security?" and later, "Were you scared?" Later in the segment, Doocy claimed, "There is a double standard. If Republicans surrounded a democrat lawmaker and did stuff like this, do you think it would be a big story?" Doocy ended the interview by asking Grothman if he is "going to have security if [he] need[s] it" and telling Grothman to "stay safe." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 3/3/11, via Media Matters]

In Fact, There Was No Evidence Of Violence On The Video

Twelve-Minute Long Video Shows No Violence Occurred. The video, which was shot by Wisconsin area photographer Phil Ejercito, show that Grothman was heckled by protesters, but no violence occurred. In fact, at one point during the video, a protester can be heard to shout "don't touch him" and at another, the protesters chanted "peace" and "peaceful." [YouTube, 03/01/11]

Grothman Himself Claimed "He Didn't Think He Was Ever In Any Real Danger." The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that, Grothman "told the [Cap Times] he didn't think he was ever in any real danger." From the Journal Sentinel:

Grothman downplayed the situation and told the paper he didn't think he was ever in any real danger.

"I really think if I had had to, I could have walked through the crowd and it would have been okay," he told the Cap Times. "They're loud, they'll give you the finger, and they yell at you, but I really think deep down inside they're just mostly college kids having fun, just like they're having fun sleeping with their girfriends on air mattresses. That's the guts of that crowd." [Journal Sentinel, 03/02/11]

Grothman Called Protesters "Good People" And Noted That He Was Not Scared. During his interview on Fox & Friends, Doocy asked Grothman if he was scared by the protesters. Grothman responded "Not really, because I think most people are basically good people. I mean, they've been running around the capitol for over a week now, chanting, blowing their horns, pounding their drums." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 03/03/11]

Photographer Slammed Fox's Coverage As "Establish[ing] A Fictional Narrative"

Photographer Phil Ejercito: I condemn the use of my work to distort the truth about the spirited but non-violent protests here in Madison. In a statement to Media Matters, Phil Ejercito, the local photographer who shot the footage of Sen. Grothman being heckled by the crowd, said he "condemn[ed] the use of my work to distort the truth about the spirited but non-violent protests here in Madison," calling it a "a genuinely dangerous narrative that Fox News is helping to create." From Ejercito's statement to Media Matters:

It sickens me to see the truth so willfully distorted. In deciding to release this video, I considered how it would be used, but I (perhaps naively) believed that the facts in the video would speak for itself - the people of Wisconsin are angry, Senator Grothman got a well-deserved ribbing, the Walker administration's lockdown of the Capitol is misguided, and Representative Hulsey acted honorably. It is simply astounding that the same faction of the right-wing that would claim that torture in Abu Ghraib was "fraternity hazing" would equate heckling as a "violent attack."

Let there be no ambiguity: I condemn the use of my work to distort the truth about the spirited but non-violent protests here in Madison. I believe that this is a genuinely dangerous narrative that Fox News is helping to create... I am deeply disturbed to consider that my work is being misused to establish a fictional narrative of violence by the working families of Wisconsin, and I encourage people to watch the entire clip on YouTube for themselves to understand the full context and decide for themselves what truthfully took place. [Media Matters, 03/04/11]

Fox Repeatedly Concealed Key Details About Guests Criticizing Wisconsin Protesters

Fox Bills GOP Senate Candidate, Local GOP Officeholder As Concerned Parents. Fox News hosted Dave Westlake and Amber Hahn, who were both identified as "Wisconsin parent[s]." Fox did not disclose that Westlake was a 2010 Republican Senate candidate and Han was the treasurer for the Columbia County, Wisconsin, Republican Party. [Media Matters, 3/1/11]

Fox Suggests CEO Of Multinational Company Represents "Small Businesses." Fox hosted Gary Reynolds, CEO of GMR Marketing to criticize protesters for "attacking small businesses who supported and support Governor Scott Walker," in the words of Fox co-host Brian Kilmeade. However, GMR Marketing says it has 24 offices in 12 countries and that it is "the world's largest engagement marketing agency." The company lists Sony, Microsoft, Bank of America and Visa among its clients. [Media Matters, 3/1/11]

Fox News Forced To Air "Fox Lies" Protests

Protesters Shout "Fox Lies" During Live Report From WI Capitol. On the February 18 edition of Your World, protesters chanted "Fox lies" during correspondent Jeff Flock's live report on the labor protests from the Wisconsin Capitol building. During the segment, guest host Chris Cotter stated, "Well, I'll tell you, Jeff, those folks protesting Fox -- I'm wondering if they would prefer a state-run television network providing all the coverage." [Fox News, Your World, 2/18/11]

Protesters Chant "Tell The Truth" During Live Segment From Madison, WI. On the February 21 edition of The Fox Report, labor protesters chanted "tell the truth" throughout correspondent Mike Tobin's live report on the protests from Madison, WI. [Fox News, The Fox Report, 2/21/11]

Protesters Interrupt Live Fox Interview With Chants Of "Tell The Truth." On the February 21 edition of Your World, labor protesters in Madison interrupted guest host Stuart Varney's live interview with Brett Healy of the conservative MacIver Institute. Varney later interviewed Healy via telephone while footage of a protester holding a sign saying, "Fox News will lie about this," aired:

Fox Falsely Claimed WI Gov. Walker Is "Actually Doing What He Campaigned On"

Gingrich: Walker Is "Actually Doing What He Campaigned On." During the February 24 edition of On the Record, Fox News contributor Newt Gingrich said:

VAN SUSTEREN: Is Wisconsin's Governor Scott Walker doing right thing or not? His budget plan is rattling unions and sent Democrats running across state lines to Illinois as protesters continue to swarm Madison and seize the state capitol building. Now, everyone is asking, Did the governor make the right move? Many states across America are broke. So should other states follow the Wisconsin governor's lead, or try something else?

Former speaker of the House Newt Gingrich joins us. He and his wife, Callista, are authors of the new book "Ronald Reagan: Rendezvous With Destiny."

Good evening, Mr. Speaker. And I know you've written an op-ed piece in support of Governor Walker. But I'm just curious. What should he be doing tonight? Because tomorrow's supposedly a drop-dead date on this bonding, and the Democrats say they're not coming home.

NEWT GINGRICH (R-GA), FMR. SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE, FOX CONTRIBUTOR: Well, I think he should do whatever he has to technically to pay for the bonding and blame the Democrats for the carnage that that's going to cause. They are forcing this crisis. You got to make sure they own the responsibility.

But you have to put Scott Walker in context. After having been elected three times as county executive of the largest government in the state, Milwaukee County, he campaigned for a year-and-a-half on a very clear program. Nothing he's doing is new. Everything he's doing was in his platform. It's what the people voted on.

The amazing thing is the Republicans gained seats in the senate, gained seats in the house. There are no new elected freshmen Democrats. The governor himself won decisively. And the Democrats, having lost the argument with the people -- this is not Republican-Democrat. The people of Wisconsin elected a 60 percent Republican majority in the house, a virtually 60 percent Republican majority in the senate and a Republican governor. And the governor's now executing -- this seems to be a shock to Democrats. He's actually doing what he campaigned on.

The contrast with President Obama breaking his word this week is startling. I mean, Scott Walker is doing what he said he would do. [Fox News, On the Record, 2/24/11, accessed via Nexis]

Doocy: "The Governor Ran On The Platform That He Was Going To Address Collective Bargaining." On Fox & Friends, Doocy claimed that "to [the Wisconsin protesters], elections have no consequence. Mean nothing. Keep in mind, in that state, the governor ran on the platform that he was going to address collective bargaining and all the other stuff and that's what he did. And yet, look at what's happening there right now." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 3/3/11, via Media Matters]

Doocy Again Falsely Claims Walker "Made It Very Clear" That Collective Bargaining Was "One Of the Things He Was Going To Address." Later on Fox & Friends, during an interview with Grothman, Doocy claimed that "all these people with the signs, the horns, the whistles, apparently they weren't paying attention to the fact that there was an election this past November and the message in the fact that Scott Walker became the governor, he had made it very clear, this is one of the things he was going to address. Collective bargaining. And the unions." [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 3/3/11, via Media Matters]

Asman: Walker "Did Announce When He Was Running For Governor This Is What He Was Going To Do." During the February 25 edition of America's Nightly Scoreboard, host David Asman said:

ASMAN: The bill strips most public sector unions of collective bargain or at least some of their collective bargaining privileges. Democrats and their supporters yelling "Shame" as you can hear after the vote as Republicans walked out. Now Democrats are investigating whether the vote was legal. The bill goes to the Senate where Democrats have gone AWOL. So how is all of this going to get resolved, Lee?

LEE HAWKINS, "WALL STREET JOURNAL": I don't know, but I think this is indicative of what we're going to see in the future. He's from that young new faction of the Republican base that's been dying to have this ideological debate with the unions probably since he was a teenager watching Ronald Reagan on television.

And he campaigned on the deficit issue. So basically he's actually following through on what he campaigned on, and what he is going to happen as we're going to see a fierce debate on this and many others.

ASMAN: I'm glad you brought that up because he did announce when he was running for governor this is what he was going to do. No surprises. And Mitch Daniels did the same thing in Indiana. [Fox Business, America's Nightly Scoreboard, 2/25/11, accessed via Nexis]

PolitiFact: Walker Did Not Campaign On Proposal To "Sharply Curb Collective Bargaining Rights"

PolitiFact: Walker Did Not "'Campaign On' His Union Bargaining Plan." On February 22, PolitiFact Wisconsin gave a "false" rating to the claim that Walker campaigned on the proposal to sharply curtail collective bargaining rights:

In the turbulent wake of his controversial plan to sharply curtail collective bargaining rights, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has faced criticism that he gave no warning of such a dramatic plan during the long 2010 governor's race.

Walker has forcefully challenged that contention, most bluntly at a Feb. 21, 2011 news conference. A reporter asked if the move to limit union power was payback for pro-union moves made by Democrats in the past.

"It's not a tit for tat," Walker responded. "The simple matter is I campaigned on this all throughout the election. Anybody who says they are shocked on this has been asleep for the past two years."

[...]

Let's sum up our research.

Walker contends he clearly "campaigned on" his union bargaining plan.

But Walker, who offered many specific proposals during the campaign, did not go public with even the bare-bones of his multi-faceted plans to sharply curb collective bargaining rights. He could not point to any statements where he did. We could find none either.

While Walker often talked about employees paying more for pensions and health care, in his budget-repair bill he connected it to collective bargaining changes that were far different from his campaign rhetoric in terms of how far his plan goes and the way it would be accomplished.

We rate his statement False. [PolitiFact Wisconsin, 2/22/11]

Fox Apologized For Reversing Results Of Poll: "61 Percent" Of Americans Were NOT "In Favor Of Taking [Bargaining Rights] Away"

Kilmeade: According To USA Today/Gallup Poll, "61 Percent In Favor Of Taking [Bargaining Rights] Away." On the February 23 edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends, co-host Brian Kilmeade discussed the results of a recent USA Today/Gallup poll to falsely claim that "61 percent" of those polled are "in favor of taking [collective bargaining rights] away." From the broadcast:

KILMEADE: Wow. But is President Obama out of step with history? Joining us now to debate it, knock it around just a little bit, Democratic strategist Robert Zimmerman and Jim Glassman, Director of the Bush Center and author of the book Safety Net. First things first, Robert, do you think the president is taking a big risk here?

ROBERT ZIMMERMAN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Not at all. I think he's showing respect for history and respect for our history of supporting the rights and safety of workers, but more than that, he's speaking for the mainstream of our country and the main stream of Republican governors that are not siding with Governor Walker in his efforts to overturn right to work -- collective bargaining.

KILMEADE: I think Gallup, a relatively mainstream poll, has a differing view. And here is the question that was posed, should you take away--will you favor or are you in disfavor of taking away collective bargaining when it comes to salaries for government workers? Sixty-one percent in favor of taking it away. Thirty-three percent oppose. Six percent up in the air. [Fox News, Fox & Friends, 2/23/11]

A graphic claiming that "61 percent" responded "favor" to the question "Collective bargaining -- take it away: favor or oppose?" was aired on-screen during the segment:

Fox Issued An On-Air Correction For Reversing The Results Of The Poll. Kilmeade issued a correction during the final minute of Fox & Friends -- 44 minutes after the error -- saying: "I want to correct a poll that we did about 22 minutes ago from Gallup. Sixty-one percent oppose taking collective bargaining away from those people in Wisconsin; 33 percent in favor. I had it reversed. I apologize." In fact, the poll asked if people would oppose a similar law in their own states. This graphic accompanied the apology:

USA Today/Gallup Poll Found "61% Would Oppose A Law Similar To [The] Proposal In Wisconsin"

USA Today/Gallup: "61% Would Oppose A Law In Their State Similar To [The] Proposal In Wisconsin." In the poll conducted on February 21, USA Today and Gallup found that 61 percent of those polled would oppose a law similar to the one Gov. Walker is proposing in Wisconsin. From the article accompanying the poll results (emphasis added):

Americans strongly oppose laws taking away the collective bargaining power of public employee unions, according to a new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll. The poll found 61% would oppose a law in their state similar to such a proposal in Wisconsin, compared with 33% who would favor such a law.

Republican Gov. Scott Walker and Republican legislators in Wisconsin have proposed cutting union rights for most state government workers and making them pay more for benefits. Ohio, New Jersey, Indiana, Iowa and other states with Republican governors are considering similar laws. [USA Today, 2/22/11]

MediaMatters, Tues Dec 20 2011

On 2 December, representatives of the ICEM Canadian affiliate Communications, Energy and Paperworkers (CEP) Union participated in a discussion on trade union perspectives on the Canadian bituminous sands, or tar sands or oil sands.

Organized by the Cornell Global Labor Institute and the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) with the CEP, the session was part of the international trade union World of Work events held at the 17th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP-17) in Durban, South Africa.

Jim Britton, CEP Western Region Vice-President, introduced the CEP and its membership. The CEP is Canada's energy union.

Britton explained why the question of the tar sands cannot be separated from the question of the Keystone XL Pipeline, a new pipeline connecting the province of Alberta with US refineries. CEP has been opposed to the Keystone pipeline, and several previous pipeline proposals, for two reasons: the value-added processing of Canada's bitumen should take place in Canada; and the pipelines stand as a symptom of the lack of a sustainable energy policy in Canada, which is desperately needed.

Sadly, these concerns have not found traction with Canada's present Conservative government, nor with the regulatory bodies or courts in Canada.

An intelligent energy policy could ensure a rational continued development of the tar sands, with the creation of high-quality permanent jobs and a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Canadians, including those who mine and process bitumen, want adequate regulation that ensures job creation, environmental protection, respects First Nations' rights, a growing economy and reduced risks for business.

This is an area where everyone could win. Instead, Canada is sacrificing energy security and sustainability for short-term and short-sighted profits. It cannot be jobs "or" the environment, it must be both. CEP members expect it and the CEP will fight for it.

Roland Lefort

Roland Lefort, President of CEP Local 707, representing thousands of oil sands workers, explained that his position was based on CEP policies on energy, the environment, and Just Transition that have been developed over many years and affirmed at successive CEP Conventions. Together, these call on Canada to develop a plan for the sustainable development of the oil sands.

This plan would ensure, among other things: energy security for Canadians; carbon capture and storage for all new tar sands projects; the promotion of energy conservation; a well-funded Just Transition plan for energy workers and energy-dependent regions of the country; a fulfilment of Canada's commitments to stabilize and then cut greenhouse gas emissions.

Oil sands workers in Canada believe in the science of climate change, the rights of aboriginal peoples, and the protection of Canada's resources. Their position is one of sustainable development. It disagrees with the proposition that there are only two positions on the issue of oil sands development – all or nothing.

The present Canadian government and industry want to extract the oil sands without impediments or controls, while the environmental lobby, which is getting stronger by the day, wants to shut down the oil sands. The CEP believes that there is a position in between, a position of balance, a position for sustainability.

To that effect, the CEP has been working to bring together government, labour, First Nations, and environmentalists to the table to develop the plan on energy as stated in our policies.

Lefort's strong presentation in Durban, backed by his personal credibility as a miner and President of Canada's largest group of unionized oil sands workers, made a huge impact on the audience.

Another panelist was Roger Toussaint of New York City and the Transport Workers' Union (TWU). He stated that the issues involved in the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline affected everyone and his union decided it could not be silent on the issue. Instead of uncontrolled development, there is a potential to move towards a lower-carbon and just economy, with the creation of millions of good jobs in renewable energy, mass transportation, energy-efficient buildings, and the like. Toussaint believes that the global labour movement can lead this change and pointed out the forward-looking policies of the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) as an example.

Asking a question from the floor, Anthony Jacobs, Director of National Construction Agreements for the ICEM-affiliated and US-based International Brotherhood of Boilermakers (IBB) stated that he understood Lefort's position, but passionately defended his union's support for the Keystone XL pipeline and the potential construction jobs it represented. Lefort said that he accepted and understood the IBB position but hoped that he understood CEP's.

Other considerations in the debate on the Keystone XL pipeline include the US's dependency on foreign oil and the potential mutual economic benefit to Canada and the US.

The event illustrated the value of unions' direct participation in international events such as COP-17. The value of an opportunity to hear directly from those affected is impossible to overstate.

icem.org, Mon Dec 19 2011

The Occupy Calgary Movement has been legally evicted by the city. Whether the justification of the verdict is the invalidity of the protesters' cause, the cleanliness and accessibility of Olympic Plaza, or the safety and health of the protesters, the majority of Calgarians are pleased with this outcome.

Perhaps that is the wrong perspective to take.

It is important to note that protests are not intended to win friends; they are intended to be inconvenient. People forget that out of everyone inconvenienced, it is the protesters that suffer this the most. This small group of people stood up for what they believed in, and they continued to stand in spite of public ridicule, police pressure, legal repercussions, and winter weather. How many people reading this have ever displayed that strength of will?

We forget - and many of us never knew - that these protesters were standing for something that is much bigger than Calgary. Due to the high standard of living and low unemployment rate, locally the Occupy Calgary cause was lost before it even started.

But this never had anything to do with Calgary.

The Occupy Movement is first and foremost a global movement, and every Canadian must recognize that we are damn lucky that we are not living elsewhere. If you've ever spent a substantial amount of time in South America, Eastern Europe, Asia, or Africa - basically the majority of the world - you know exactly what I'm referring to.

Most importantly, the occupiers of Olympic Plaza were protesting the corruption and inequality that currently plagues this world. Each day that the protest was set up was a day that Calgarians were forced to think about events happening outside of their borders. With how quickly the world forgot about Haiti, I would say reminders are important. It's easy to forget when we live in such a prosperous city, but this is a human issue that should be on everyone's radar.

I find it remarkable that Canadian Occupations popped up by choice, not by necessity. Those protesters were not starving. They had access to clean drinking water. They had access to shelter. Most had jobs. They were educated. So why protest? Considering the following facts - one in seven humans do not have enough food, one in four people live without electricity, one in two children live in poverty - and the choice between "that's just the way it is" and "that is unacceptable, this can't continue" is all too easy for many of us. It may not mean much to Calgarians, but having Occupy Movements sustained in Canada, regardless of size and local popularity, is inspirational to those people protesting in parts of the world where the cause is not lost, such as New York and Cairo.

Calgary has shut down a small but persistent thorn in its side. It didn't like that tiny, prickly reminder of the discord occurring in the global community. Now Calgary can return to its bubble, insulated by the oil and gas industry, and there is at least one Calgarian who is saddened by this.

Cale Klesko