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A fresh warning issued to the city comes from the head of Alberta's most powerful labour group, who says any move against the Occupy Calgary protesters could ruin Calgary's reputation.

According to The Calgary Sun, the president of the Alberta Federation of Labour wrote a letter to the mayor saying the city shouldn't evict tenters.

Gil McGowan says they can't deny the right to peaceful protest if they really believe in democracy.

The AFL represents 140,000 union workers in the province.

660news.com, Thurs Nov 10 2011

The City of Calgary risks staining its good name if it tries to evict peaceful protestors from the Occupy Calgary site at Olympic Plaza, says the province's largest labour organization.

"You cannot say you believe in democracy and then attempt to deny people the right to protest peacefully," says Gil McGowan, president of the Alberta Federation of Labour (AFL), which represents 145,000 workers.

The AFL today (Wednesday) issued a statement of solidarity with the continuing Occupy Calgary protest, calling on the City to refrain from eviction proceedings and has sent that statement to Mayor Naheed Nenshi and all members of City Council.

"It's an act of participatory democracy for Calgarians to brave the cold until they truly feel they've been heard. They have the right to protest an economic system that robs the public purse of revenues for our vital social services. They have a right to protest billions of dollars given to profitable multinational corporations while our schools and our children suffer from education cuts and unreliable funding," says McGowan. "Despite claims to the contrary, the protestors have legitimate concerns and have come up with specific solutions, such as the Robin Hood Tax on transactions by financial institutions to combat poverty.

Even Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney – newly appointed by the G20 as the man to overhaul international banking industry – has acknowledged that the Occupy demonstrations are a "democratic expression of views" and are "entirely constructive."

The AFL's statement says: "The powers that be have often sought to confront and quash peaceful protests, like those by supporters of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi. Years later, with the benefit of hindsight, those same societies looked back at the protesters and applauded their courage and conviction – and with horror of the attempts by authorities to silence them. We must learn from those lessons. We urge the City of Calgary to take the long view of this issue. Any attempt to confront peaceful Occupiers and force them to leave risks staining the good name of the City of Calgary."

Three labour unions affiliated with the federation, and representing workers in Calgary, have come out in explicit support. "Our affiliate members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 37 (representing the City of Calgary outside workers), Amalgamated Transit Union Local 583 (representing Calgary Transit and various City of Calgary employees), and members of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1374 (representing Greyhound, Brewster and Red Deer Transit Employees) stand in solidarity with Occupy Calgary," says the statement.

"We support their rights as citizens of Calgary to gather in a public space and to push for change. Any attempt to evict them would be an attempt to sweep them and their legitimate public concerns under the carpet."

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MEDIA CONTACT:

Gil McGowan, AFL president, 780-218-9888 (cell)

In the wake of a significant electoral victory in Ohio Tuesday, unions and their supporters are energized and eager to flex their newly honed political muscles. But the path to greater electoral clout in 2012 could lie in a partnership with young voters and followers of the Occupy movement.

It may seem like an odd pairing: Grizzled and battle-scarred union members, many of whom have voted Republican in the past and are more socially conservative, and free-spirited Millennials more comfortable texting than organizing.

But the two groups have a lot in common, chiefly concerns about their own economic futures and income inequality in this country, which are also the central themes of the Occupy movement.

"The basic message that Occupy Wall Street has -- that people are fed up with the top one percent getting everything -- it resonates with union members and young people," says AFL-CIO Political Director, Mike Podhorzer, in an interview from Ohio on election night.

Both groups have been victims of globalization, outsourcing, downsizing and the recession and are reeling from the nation's tough economic conditions, as are millions of other Americans.

Young people between the ages of 18-24 have unemployment rates above 17 percent -- among the highest levels of unemployment of any demographic group in the country.

And unions have seen their already thinned ranks shrink even more recently. In 2010, union membership was down to just under 12 percent of all workers in the U.S., its lowest level in 70 years. In the mid-1950's, the unionization rate was 35 percent of all workers.

But what if labor unions and young people joined together on issues beyond repealing Senate Bill 5, the law to restrict union rights in Ohio? Such an alliance has the potential to create a powerful political force. Unions have the experience, organization, money and political know how. Young people have the numbers and the passion.

"The primary goal of unions is to create good paying jobs and that's something that young people can't find these days," says Podhorzer.

Polls have shown a majority of Americans are sympathetic to the central message of the Occupy protests -- that Wall Street brokers and big banks don't do what is best for the rest of America. But they are also somewhat skeptical of the protestors, who seem a bit scruffy and unfocused.

Pew Research Center polls show most Americans agree with the statement that "this is a country in which the rich get richer and the poor get poorer." And a growing number of people have begun to see the U.S. as a nation divided into two groups: the "haves" and the "have nots."

Our financial system and tax code serve those at the top but penalize the middle class and have increased the income gap between rich and middle-class wage earners to the largest disparity in 40 years. Last year, CEO pay at Fortune 500 companies was up an astronomical 24 percent and corporate profits were up 81 percent. But most Americans -- the 99 percent -- aren't feeling the benefits of this economic success.

That lack of fairness is at the heart of the Occupy movement and may also have been the driving factor in the repeal of the anti-union law in Ohio, through no votes on Issue 2 Tuesday. It's clear by the overwhelming 61-39 percent vote that many voters felt what was being done to the unions wasn't fair.

There was also a sense that the Ohio law, which would have severely restricted collective bargaining rights for the state's 360,000 public employees, went too far. Unions raised more than $30 million to repeal SB 5, passed by the Republican legislature earlier this year without a single Democratic vote.

State Senator Bill Seitz, who was one of six Senate Republicans to vote against SB 5, likened the fight to "The Battle of Little Big Horn" and the passion of the union opponents to the Native American tribes who annihilated General George Custer and his U.S. Cavalry troops in 1876 while attempting to defend their way of life.

Gov. John Kasich and the Ohio Republicans said SB 5 was needed so local and state governments facing huge deficits could renegotiate public employee contracts and make the cuts necessary to balance their budgets. But the law went much further in an obvious attempt to weaken unions by making it harder for them to collect dues and organize.

Columbus police sergeant Jerry Cupp is a former Republican who voted for Kasich last fall. "Now we're all kicking ourselves in the ass because of what these guys have done to us..." he says. "To try to put the debt of the state of Ohio on the backs of the police and firefighters and teachers...It's not about the budget at all, and we know that. It's about payback time."

Because Republicans see both unions and young people as important Democratic constituencies, they have tried to weaken their influence since activists and union members took over statehouses around the country last fall. Another thing that unites the two groups: this pushback.

The National Conference of State Legislatures reports that more than 700 bills targeting unions were introduced in 2011. Ohio, Wisconsin, Florida, New Jersey and other states controlled by Republicans have sought to curb the power of unions with legislation. But those efforts have drawn a backlash. In Wisconsin, recall efforts succeeded in removing two state senators who voted for the anti-union legislation and a recall effort has been launched against Gov. Scott Walker.

Heather Smith, the president of Rock the Vote, which helps register and organize young voters, says she believes the massive protests in Wisconsin earlier this year gave birth to the Occupy movement.

"Occupy supporters have talked about Wisconsin as an inspiration. This has been building for a while. This coalition of young people and labor is an organically developing movement," she says.

In attempt to limit young voter and minority participation, more than 40 pieces of legislation are pending in state legislatures according to Smith.

Seven states have passed photo ID laws for voting and at least a dozen others have introduced bills to limit voter registration and reduce early voting opportunities.

However, Maine voters on Tuesday rejected an effort by the Republican legislature and governor to do away with same day voter registration which the state has had for decades. The most egregious example of trying to infringe on voting rights was in New Hampshire where Republicans attempted to prevent college students from voting in the state. The Supreme Court has already decided this issue and ruled that college students are entitled to the same presumption of residency as any other citizen. But the GOP bill would have required them to vote in their home states by absentee ballot, even if they lived in New Hampshire twelve months a year. The legislation would also have eliminated the state's same-day voter registration. House Speaker William O'Brien said college students were guilty of, gasp, "voting liberal." But the legislation was voted down by the New Hampshire legislature.

Thanks to a new Texas law, you can only vote in that state if you have a Texas issued driver's license, a concealed gun permit or a passport -- no student IDs even from state schools count.

The question now is whether unions will employ the same level of ferocity to campaign for Barack Obama and other Democrats in 2012 as they used against SB 5 and if young people and Occupy supporters will join them.

Generations X and Y turned out in force to vote for Barack Obama in 2008 but have become disillusioned with his inability to bring about the fundamental change he promised and have faded back into the woodwork, not voting in large numbers in 2010.

"There's increased cynicism about politics -- it's dirty, it's frustrating... They see their voices being trumped by corporate interests. Young people are not feeling like they're being heard or valued in the political process," says Smith.

Ken Weber is a senior at the University of Colorado in Boulder who supported Barack Obama in 2008. He does not think his friends are as engaged or interested as they were in 2008, something that is supported by Pew Center findings.

The share of Millennials who say that they personally care a good deal about who wins the 2012 presidential election is down more than 10 points from four years ago, according Pew.

Millennials, who are 18 to 30, have voted more Democratic than older voters in the last four national elections. But they are also more disillusioned than older voters. Shortly after the 2008 election, 81 percent of Millennials said Obama made them feel hopeful, while 80 percent felt proud. Today, only about half of Millennials say Obama makes them feel hopeful or proud, according to Pew.

Four years ago, when Weber was a freshman, he says, "We were talking every day about the election and Obama. There was a lot of excitement and passion... He came in with such high expectations -- and he hasn't lived up to all of those."

Weber says he often hears from his friends that "they don't vote because the political system is corrupt and they think it's a waste of time."

As a result of this feeling of disappointment, Smith has a big concern that youth turnout next year will not match 2008 levels. "I do believe it's a harder environment but for that reason it feels even more important."

Union members have a good record of voting, but in recent years it has often been for Republicans. In 2010, Democrats suffered huge losses among white blue-collar voters who voted Republican by an almost two to one margin.

Jon Harvey, a firefighter in Middletown in southwestern Ohio, estimates that 70 percent of the firefighters he knows voted Republican in 2010 but he thinks there's been a sea change thanks to Republican anti-union efforts. "What I'm hearing now is I'll never do it again," he says.

Scott Clinger, a Columbus policed officer, told me the day after the Ohio election, "I bet Obama is just laughing at John Kasich saying 'You did the best thing you could ever do for me.'"

Clinger predicts the coalition that defeated SB 5 will hold. "It's going to be a force in the future...It's not going to just die off. I never saw all of these groups band together like they did here."

The AFL-CIO's Podhorzer called the Ohio vote "the first test for whether or not there can be a coalition of young people, workers and people of color for 2012."

This marriage could provide the answer to the question -- what is the future of Occupy Wall Street?

The Atlantic, Wed Nov 9 2011

The City of Calgary risks staining its good name if it tries to evict peaceful protestors from the Occupy Calgary site at Olympic Plaza, says the province's largest labour organization.

"You cannot say you believe in democracy and then attempt to deny people the right to protest peacefully," says Gil McGowan, president of the Alberta Federation of Labour (AFL), which represents 145,000 workers.

The AFL today (Wednesday) issued a statement of solidarity with the continuing Occupy Calgary protest, calling on the City to refrain from eviction proceedings and has sent that statement to Mayor Naheed Nenshi and all members of City Council.

"It's an act of participatory democracy for Calgarians to brave the cold until they truly feel they've been heard. They have the right to protest an economic system that robs the public purse of revenues for our vital social services. They have a right to protest billions of dollars given to profitable multinational corporations while our schools and our children suffer from education cuts and unreliable funding," says McGowan. "Despite claims to the contrary, the protestors have legitimate concerns and have come up with specific solutions, such as the Robin Hood Tax on transactions by financial institutions to combat poverty.

Even Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney – newly appointed by the G20 as the man to overhaul international banking industry – has acknowledged that the Occupy demonstrations are a "democratic expression of views" and are "entirely constructive."

The AFL's statement says: "The powers that be have often sought to confront and quash peaceful protests, like those by supporters of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi. Years later, with the benefit of hindsight, those same societies looked back at the protesters and applauded their courage and conviction – and with horror of the attempts by authorities to silence them. We must learn from those lessons. We urge the City of Calgary to take the long view of this issue. Any attempt to confront peaceful Occupiers and force them to leave risks staining the good name of the City of Calgary."

Three labour unions affiliated with the federation, and representing workers in Calgary, have come out in explicit support. "Our affiliate members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 37 (representing the City of Calgary outside workers), Amalgamated Transit Union Local 583 (representing Calgary Transit and various City of Calgary employees), and members of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1374 (representing Greyhound, Brewster and Red Deer Transit Employees) stand in solidarity with Occupy Calgary," says the statement.

"We support their rights as citizens of Calgary to gather in a public space and to push for change. Any attempt to evict them would be an attempt to sweep them and their legitimate public concerns under the carpet."

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MEDIA CONTACT:

Gil McGowan, AFL president, 780-218-9888 (cell)

McGowan will be available for in-person interviews in Calgary until noon.

Adding evening and weekend safety inspections is a step in the right direction to improve safety at residential construction sites, but what Alberta workers really need is the ability to join unions to organize in order to protect themselves, says the province's largest labour group.

"The evidence is clear from Alberta and across the country that the presence of unions at construction sites reduces the number of injuries and fatalities," says Gil McGowan, president of the Alberta Federation of Labour (AFL), which represents 145,000 workers.

"In Alberta, the highest rates of injuries and fatalities are at residential construction sites, where membership in unions is almost non-existent, because changes to the Labour Code in 1988 made it almost impossible for those workers to organize. The lack of safety in this sector is a direct result of those changes to the Labour Code. The province is reaping what it has sown - and the dead and injured workers and their families are paying the price," says McGowan.

"The recent inspection blitz paints a shocking picture of what it's like to work in that sector in Alberta, with nearly 400 orders issued after 600 inspections of 387 employers. We must remember that employers were warned about this inspection blitz in advance and given a chance to clean up their act. Can you imagine how many workplace health and safety violations would have been found if these had been surprise inspections?"

In Alberta, the injury and fatality rates are lower in commercial construction than in residential construction, corresponding to rates of unionization in those sectors. In parts of Canada where more residential construction workers belong to unions, such as Quebec, the rate of fatalities are lower than in the same sector in Alberta.

The Association of Workers' Compensation Boards of Canada reports that Alberta had 46 deaths in the construction industry in 2007, the latest year of statistics available, whereas 27 construction workers died in Quebec the same year. Some 36 per cent of workers in Quebec are protected by union membership, whereas only 23 per cent of Alberta workers enjoy the same representation. For more information, see the AFL's backgrounder on unions and workplace safety.

"It's a simple formula: The higher the rate of unionization, the lower the rate of accidents. Unions, quite simply, are part of the solution," says McGowan.

"It is clear that employers are unwilling to take safety seriously and that inspections alone aren't enough to convince them. Workers need the protection of a union so they can refuse to do unsafe work, so they can demand safety equipment and insist on safety processes being followed without fear of being punished or fired by their employer," he says.

The AFL has released a 10-point plan to improve safety with recommendations including more inspectors with more powers, more prosecutions of problem employers, protection for workers who blow the whistle on unsafe practices, and mandatory joint health-and-safety committees for workers and employers. To view the AFL's 10-point plan to improve workplace safety, click here.

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MEDIA CONTACT: Gil McGowan, AFL president 780-218-9888

McGowan is available to the media for in-person interviews in Calgary today

Organized labor's early flirtation with Occupy Wall Street is starting to get serious.

Last month, Verizon workers marched past Zuccotti Park in solidarity with Occupy protesters.

Union leaders, who were initially cautious in embracing the Occupy movement, have in recent weeks showered the protesters with help — tents, air mattresses, propane heaters and tons of food. The protesters, for their part, have joined in union marches and picket lines across the nation. About 100 protesters from Occupy Wall Street are expected to join a Teamsters picket line at the Sotheby's auction house in Manhattan on Wednesday night to back the union in a bitter contract fight.

Labor unions, marveling at how the protesters have fired up the public on traditional labor issues like income inequality, are also starting to embrace some of the bold tactics and social media skills of the Occupy movement.

Last Wednesday, a union transit worker and a retired Teamster were arrested for civil disobedience inside Sotheby's after sneaking through the entrance to harangue those attending an auction — echoing the lunchtime ruckus that Occupy Wall Street protesters caused weeks earlier at two well-known Manhattan restaurants owned by Danny Meyer, a Sotheby's board member.

Organized labor's public relations staff is also using Twitter, Tumblr and other social media much more aggressively after seeing how the Occupy protesters have used those services to mobilize support by immediately transmitting photos and videos of marches, tear-gassing and arrests. The Teamsters, for example, have beefed up their daily blog and posted many more photos of their battles with BMW, US Foods and Sotheby's on Facebook and Twitter.

"The Occupy movement has changed unions," said Stuart Appelbaum, the president of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. "You're seeing a lot more unions wanting to be aggressive in their messaging and their activity. You'll see more unions on the street, wanting to tap into the energy of Occupy Wall Street."

Unions have long stuck to traditional tactics like picketing. But inspired by the Occupy protests, labor leaders are talking increasingly of mobilizing the rank and file and trying to flex their muscles through large, boisterous marches, including nationwide marches planned for Nov. 17.

Organized labor is also seizing on the simplicity of the Occupy movement's message, which criticizes the great wealth of the top 1 percent of Americans compared with the economic struggles of much of the bottom 99 percent.

A memo that the A.F.L.-C.I.O. sent out last week recommended that unions use the Occupy message about inequality and the 99 percent far more in their communications with members, employers and voters.

Indeed, as part of its contract battle with Verizon, the communications workers' union has began asserting in its picket signs that Verizon and its highly paid chief executive are part of the 1 percent, while the Verizon workers who face demands for concessions are part of the 99 percent. A dozen Verizon workers plan to begin walking from Albany to Manhattan on Thursday in a "March for the 99 percent."

"We think the Occupy movement has given voice to something very basic about what's going on in our country right now," said Damon Silvers, the A.F.L.-C.I.O.'s policy director. "The fact that they've figured out certain concepts and language for doing that, we think is really important and positive."

Over the last month, unions have provided extensive support to Occupy protesters around the country, from rain ponchos to cash donations. National Nurses United is providing staff members for first-aid tables at many encampments, while the A.F.L.-C.I.O.'s headquarters two blocks from the White House is providing shower facilities for the protesters occupying McPherson Square, 300 yards to the east.

Unions have also intervened with politicians on behalf of the protesters. In Los Angeles, labor leaders have repeatedly lobbied Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa not to evict the protesters. When New York City officials were threatening to evict the Occupy Wall Street protesters from Zuccotti Park, hundreds of union members showed up before daybreak to discourage any eviction, and the city backed down.

Like any relationship, however, the one between the Occupy movement and labor is complicated.

Dozens of Occupy protesters have joined union members to picket the Hotel Bel-Air in Los Angeles and Verizon offices in Washington, Buffalo and Boston. (A Verizon spokesman said the Occupy protesters "do not have the benefit of any information about the Verizon issues except what they've been told by the union, which is obviously one-sided and most likely inaccurate.")

In New York, the Occupy protesters have joined the Teamsters in their attacks on Sotheby's. The art auction house locked out 43 Teamster art handlers on July 29, after the union balked at its demands for sizable concessions.

In addition to the lunchtime protest at the Danny Meyer restaurants, Occupy protesters also joined recent picketing against Sotheby's outside the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Diana Phillips, a Sotheby's spokeswoman, said the company had offered a fair contract and "is unwilling to accept demands that virtually double the cost of their contract."

Arthur Brown, a mental health worker who is one of the founders of Occupy Buffalo, where 50 people camp out each night, said the Occupy movement badly needed labor's backing if it is to change the nation's policies and politics.

"Young people started this movement, but they can't finish it," Mr. Brown said. "They don't have the capacity or the experience to finish it. We really need the working class and union folks, the older folks, the activists from the '60s. '70s and '80s, to help make this a full-fledged movement that will change the political landscape of America."

But some Occupy protesters worry that organized labor might seek to co-opt them.

Jake Lowry, a 21-year-old college student and an Occupy participant, said: "We're glad to have unions endorse us, but we can't formally endorse them. We're an autonomous group and it's important to keep our autonomy."

George Gresham, president of 1199 S.E.I.U., a union that represents more than 300,000 health care workers in the Northeast, said his union wanted to help the Occupy movement amplify its voice.

"This is a dream come true for us to have these young people speaking out about what's been happening to working people," Mr. Gresham said. His union has offered to provide 500 flu shots and a week's worth of meals for the Occupy Wall Street protesters.

María Elena Durazo, executive secretary-treasurer of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, said it remained to be seen whether the unions and the protesters could, by working together, achieve concrete change.

"Workers are with the Occupy movement on the broader issues; they're with them on the issue of inequality," she said. "The question is, can the labor movement or the Occupy movement move that message down to the workplace, where workers confront low wages, low benefits and little power? Can we use it to organize workers where it really matters, in the workplace, to help their everyday life?"

New York Times, Tues Nov 8 2011

Today the people of Ohio will decide, in a referendum vote, whether Gov. John Kasich's anti-worker bill will become law or get tossed out. So when an Ohio union staffer and registered Democrat got a robo-call this morning telling her to vote "tomorrow" — not today, Nov. 8 — she became immediately suspicious. The call was received by an SEIU staff member.

The group sponsoring the robocall is the American Future Fund, a Republican organization led by a member of the Iowa State Senate. Although the call instructed her to vote the Republican-sponsored position in support of Issue 2 — the ballot measure that could ratify of S.B. 5, the bill that would virtually end collective bargaining for public employees — the recipient is a registered Democrat.

Could it be that the American Future Fund was hoping to confuse Democrats about the date of the election, and in a manner that could make it all seem like an innocent mistake?

Anthony Caldwell, spokesperson for SEIU Local 1199, told the Huffington Post:

For a group [American Future Fund] that has coordinated a $1 million mail campaign, I find it highly unlikely they would make a simple clerical error and send out a robocall to non-supporters telling them to vote the day after Election Day.

Here's the script of the call, via the Huffington Post, which was received by the SEIU staffer at 9:37 this morning:

Hi, I am calling to remind you that tomorrow is Election Day. It is critically important that you go vote and protect the future of our country. Tomorrow, please go to the polls and vote YES on Issue 2, and vote YES on Issue 3. Paid for by American Future Fund and not authorized by any candidate or candidate committee. 866-559-5854.

Although polls show wide opposition to the S.B. 5 bill that a "Yes" vote on Issue 2 would ratify, the vote could be much closer than polls predict, as we reported earlier today, especially given the lengths to which anti-labor forces have gone to suppress voter turnout. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka traveled to the state today to urge union members to vote "No" on Issue 2.

AFL-CIO NOW BLOG, Tues Nov 8 2011

2011 November Submission to the Honourable Dave Hancock on the Labour Code Review

Advocates of a living wage hit downtown streets Tuesday to hand out $9.40 bills to raise awareness that Alberta's minimum wage, now the lowest in the country, is not enough.

"We're just trying to raise awareness on the fact that the new minimum wage is not a living wage, it's not enough for people to get by on," said Lorinda Peel, Lethbridge community mobilizer for Public Interest Alberta.

"The bills are basically just to get the word out. What we want people to do is hand them out as tips to servers or people in the serving industry that are making minimum wage, people who hopefully would speak up and speak out against it."

She said the idea is to circulate the bills around the city so more people are aware of who the minimum wage affects.

"It's not just teenagers, there's a lot of people - 17.8 per cent of people in Lethbridge are working for less than $12 an hour, and it's a huge range of people that fit into that category. You've got single mothers, people in their 40s, 50s, teenagers, students going to university and college, it affects a lot of people," Peel said, adding the ultimate goal is to get the minimum wage increased to a more livable wage of $12 an hour.

"Right now Alberta has the lowest minimum wage across Canada, so we'd like to see a review of that. Working for less than $12 an hour with the cost of living these days is just not feasible."

Shannon Phillips, policy analyst for the Alberta Federation of Labour and chair of the Womanspace Resource Centre, said having the lowest minimum wage in Canada reinforces the "growing gap between rich and poor."

"In Alberta, we are a very wealthy place, but we are not doing well in terms of the growing in equality and the growing gap between rich and poor. We've seen this play out on an international stage, we're seeing it also playing out right here at home," she said. "The fact is that we can do better here in Alberta."

She noted those working in restaurants and bars making a minimum $9.05 an hour, and expected to cover the difference with tips, are especially hit hard.

"This differential wage assumes that everyone who is working in the service industry is making some kind of wild amount of tips, which we know from the research it's not true . . . and those kinds of jobs do not come with benefits, they don't come with even EI because EI is based on your minimum wage, it's not based on tips, they don't come with any other of the job protection that higher wage earners get."

Phillips added Alberta does not have any laws regarding tips and gratuities.

"Here we have a minimum wage that is dependent on the existence of tips, but not one law around how employers deal with tips," she pointed out. "So we know from experience, and it's perfectly legal, for employers to take tips, to take tips for a tip out to other staff, or just to take them outright, and so if you have that situation then this law is just ripe for abuse."

More information on the $9.40 bills and living wage can be found at www.facebook.com/NotaLivingWage or www.pialberta.org

Lethbridge Herald, Wed Nov 2 2011
Byline: Jamie Woodford

With Ohio voters looking to overturn Governor John Kasich's union-busting Senate Bill 5 through a statewide referendum, national Republican donors, strategists and corporations are pumping money into the state to defend the Governor and his bill.

On November 8th, Ohio voters will go to the polls to vote whether to repeal Senate Bill (SB) 5, which limits collective bargaining rights for public employees. The bill was passed in the House and Senate and signed by Governor John Kasich, but cannot be implemented until after the referendum comes to a vote.

Ohio was one of several states that passed suspiciously similar union-busting legislation in 2011. Gov. Kasich, like Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, is an alumnus of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a group that brings state legislators and corporate leaders together to draft "model bills" that advance the right-wing corporate agenda. According to Common Cause, Kasich and other Ohio Republicans who supported SB 5 received at least $563,000 in campaign contributions from ALEC corporations in 2010 (not counting contributions from the Republican Governor's Association, to which some ALEC supporters also donated--notably including $1 million from David Koch (as examined by the Center for Media and Democracy in the article "Scott Walker Runs on Koch Money").

Ohio is one of 24 states, not including Wisconsin, in which a referendum can be placed on the ballot for any piece of legislation. On June 29th, 2011, supporters of an effort to repeal SB 5 submitted 915,456 certified signatures in a campaign led by the anti-SB 5, union-backed group "We Are Ohio." The referendum's Issue 2 will decide the fate of SB 5 -- a majority of "yes" votes will keep the union-busting bill in place, a "no" vote will strike it down.

Right-wing groups from outside the state, many of which keep their donor lists and expenditures secret, are spending undisclosed amounts on spin advertisements in an effort to save the bill and confuse voters. The ads focus on the questionable claim that public sector employees make more than private sector employees. The ads also deny that the bill is about union busting.

Here are a few of the special interest groups trying to convince Ohio voters that union-busting is good for them.

Alliance for America's Future

The Alexandria, Virginia-based Alliance for America's Future (AFAF) has spent over seven figures in an effort to flood millions of Ohio voters' mailboxes with fliers encouraging a "yes" vote on Issue 2 to uphold the bill. Heading the AFAF is Mary Cheney, the daughter of former vice president' Dick Cheney, and Barry Bennert, former chief of staff to Ohio Congresswoman Jen Schmidt (R-2nd District). The Alliance does not disclose its corporate donors.

Ohio is just one of 30 states, including Wisconsin, in which the AFAF has become involved. Their official website offers no information on staff or current projects, but instead offers a single webpage stating the AFAF is "dedicated to educating and advocating sound economic and security policies that will foster growth, prosperity, and peace for America's future."

The group's fliers include lines such as "OBAMA wants us to do things HIS WAY? Yes on Issue 2 is our chance to do things OUR WAY," and "Yes on Issue 2 will get POLITICIANS to do the right thing on spending."

Building a Better Ohio

The Columbus, Ohio-based Building a Better Ohio has developed a series of television ads in support of Issue 2.

Comprised of at least three former Kasich aides, the group is established as a nonprofit 501(c)(4) organization and does not reveal its donors. Some have speculated that contributors include Karl Rove and his group Crossroads GPS.

Building a Better Ohio writes that they are "dedicated to promoting the reasonable reforms of State Issue 2." Their list of "reasonable reforms" includes government employees paying at least 15% of the cost of their health insurance premium, and "keeping union bosses from protecting bad teachers."

According to The Columbus Dispatch, Building a Better Ohio has paid for $23,225 worth of air time on WSYX-TV, $17,500 on WTTE-TV and $54,400 in ad time with WBNS-TV (Channel 10). The group is expected to spend $20 million on this autumn's campaign.

Building a Better Ohio received an endorsement by perennial GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich in July 2011. In an internet video, Gingrich encourages the public to "strengthen what Governor Kasich is doing and to make sure that everyone in Ohio has a better future with more jobs." Building a Better Ohio has not disclosed its corporate donor list, although representatives report there are plans to reveal one before Nov. 8th. If released, the list will include only donor names, but no contribution amount.

The group's "Life or Death" ad generated controversy when police and firefighters denounced it on October 13th. The video features Marlene Quinn, a Cincinnati great-grandmother, who opposes Issue 2.

The advertisement breaks apart an interview with Quinn to create the misleading impression that she favors Issue 2. The ad says, "Without Issue 2, communities will need to lay off hardworking firefighters to pay for the excessive benefits of other government employees." The video aired without Quinn's permission.

Building a Better Ohio is standing by their decision to use the interview without permission. A spokesperson for Building a Better Ohio said the group believes "it is on firm legal footing in running the ad."

Quinn condemned the ad, and responded to the video spin by releasing her own ad called "Marlene Quinn Speaks Out," through the pro-union and anti SB 5 group, We Are Ohio. In the video, Quinn states clearly that she support's union rights and is voting "No" on Issue 2.

In another Building Better Ohio ad, "Had Enough," a narrator says, "Without Issue 2, hardworking Ohio families will face higher taxes to pay for the excessive wages and benefits of government employees who already make 43% more than the rest of us."

This incorrect statistic came out of a report issued by the Ohio Business Roundtable entitled "Public vs. Private Sector Compensation in Ohio."

The Ohio Business Roundtable is a self-proclaimed independent, nonpartisan group whose board is comprised almost entirely of former corporate CEOs.

According to a study by the Economic Policy Institute, the truth is that public employees make less than private-sector employees. The study concluded that full-time Ohio state and local public employees earn 3.3 percent less in wages and salaries than similar private sector workers, and 3.5 percent less in total compensation. The study found that Ohio public workers are, on average, more highly educated than private sector workers. Governments pay college-educated employees 25 percent less in annual total compensation, on average, than private employers. A similar study at Rutgers University found Ohio public employees earn 6 percent less on a yearly basis, and 3.5 percent less on an hourly basis than those in the private sector.

Dick Armey's FreedomWorks

FreedomWorks, the D.C.-based group affiliated with the Tea Party and led by Dick Armey, has distributed tens of thousands of door hangers and yard signs in Ohio that read "Yes on Issue 2 & 3."

FreedomWorks, which is led by people who previously worked for David Koch's "Citizens for a Sound Economy," FreedomWorks' predecessor group, does not disclose its corporate donors, and its leaders are drawn heavily from the leadership of the Republican Party and right-wing operatives. FreedomWorks asserts that it is not affiliated with any Issue 2 or 3 Campaign or Committee.

The FreedomWorks website encourages visitors to download and print available door hangers (pdf) with a promise that "tens of thousands more [are] on the way."

The group also created the website YesForJobs.com, which allows Ohioans to download absentee ballots and provides information on where to send them.

Ohio Liberty Council

The Ohio Liberty Council (OLC), a Tea Party group headed by 12 council board members, has released two television ads in support of Issue 2. The OLC claims group leaders and "private citizens" fund it. President, Tom Zawistowski and Vice President, Jason Mihalick lead the OLC, which does not disclose its donors.

In one OLC ad, the narrator states that Issue 2 is not one of "pro-union" or "anti-union" but rather about "taxpayers rights."

A second television ad, "The Story of a Broke Ohio," states that we will be in a deficit because "96 percent of schools tax revenue will go toward staff compensation," and what they call "Gold-plated pensions and benefits."

This statistic was pulled from a study by The Buckeye Institute, a conservative 501 (c)(3) "research organization" that has been used in a number of campaigns and as an "expert" on SB5. The Buckeye Institute "study" highlights the projected deficits of nineteen Central Ohio School Districts, and concludes that Central Ohio School Districts will have a budget deficit of nearly $1 billion by 2015 unless compensation packages are realigned or taxes are raised.

The "study" was released as an ad that appeared in twenty-two suburban news weeklies across central Ohio. The ad on its own does not mention SB 5, but it is used in a number of pro SB 5 campaigns.

The "study" places the burden of responsibility for the deficit on government employees, and ignores the fact that Ohio union officials agreed to pay more for insurance and accept wage cuts and freezes.

Americans for Prosperity

The Americans for Prosperity Ohio branch is organizing support for SB 5. AFP Ohio has scheduled more than a dozen town hall meetings across Ohio, organized phone banks and is currently urging supporters of the bill to defend Building a Better Ohio's "Life or Death" ad featuring great-grandmother Marlene Quinn.

Americans for Prosperity is chaired by oil billionaire David Koch and funded by Koch money and other undisclosed sources. The group includes both a 501(c)(3) that received over $10 million in 2009, and a 501(c)(4) that received over $16 million that year. Neither the national AFP nor its state arms disclose their donors.

Americans for Prosperity's Ohio branch received a web endorsement from Gov. Kasich in June. In a web-only video, Gov. Kasich praises AFP-Ohio. He refers to the group as "fighters for freedom" and thanks them for their "support to the effort to get Ohio back on track."

Make Ohio Great

Make Ohio Great is spending thousands to aid Gov. Kasich in his defense of SB 5. Make Ohio Great is a group founded and funded by the Republican Governors Association (RGA), which spent over $9 million to elect Gov. Kasich in 2010. The RGA is funded by billionaires like David Koch and Rupert Murdoch, as well as numerous large corporations. The RGA spent tens of millions on advertisements in the 2010 election year. In August 2010 Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation donated $1 million to the RGA, along with David Koch and others. Make Ohio Great disputes claims that they are a group set up for secret cash to flow in defense of SB 5.

Make Ohio Great reportedly bought $48,100 in airtime with WBNS-TV.

In the ad, titled "Kasich Getting the Jobs Done," Kasich asks Ohioans to "take a new path," and boasts that he has balanced the budget without raising taxes.

Kasich may be speaking too soon, as his economic plan for Ohio depends in part on SB 5 becoming law. The cost-savings come from requiring employees pay more for health insurance, and limiting their vacation and sick time, some of which unions had agreed to voluntarily. Ending collective bargaining, though, saved the state no money -- despite messaging to the contrary by out-of-state right-wing organizations, balanced budgets need not come at the expense of collective bargaining.

prwatch.org, Fri Oct 28 2011