Yesterday I met with Joel Williamson from The Spokane Alliance. The Spokane Alliance is a consortium of churches, labor unions and other community entities. Joel wanted me to get the information out to Local 29 members about SustainableWorks. If you're thinking about any repair or retrofitting to your home or rental units this summer or spring, you may want to give them a call.
In a nutshell, you can get a home energy audit from them for $95 (fully refundable if they don't recommend any improvements) and this includes installation of CFL light bulbs, shower heads and faucet aerators to start saving wasted energy $$$ immediately. This audit is a $650 value. If you decide to get some improvements made, they will act as the general contractor, and will put union workers to the task of doing the retrofitting you want done. The people doing the work are journey level workers who are receiving training and supervision while they make a living. SustainableWorks will even line up the financing and take care of all the paperwork for you. So what is the expected outcome of the project?
120 direct full-time jobs
25 apprentice positions and direct employment pathways
3,000 ton reduction of carbon emissions
$12 million in retrofit work.
To date, 200 journey level workers have received special energy systems training and 50 have been trained in energy auditing,
Throughout Washington, SustainableWorks has audited over 500 homes and completed over 200 retrofits. 85 of these retrofits have occurred in two neighborhoods in Spokane.
On the east side of the state, your home must be in the city of Spokane to qualify. Yes, if you own a rental, it can qualify too.
Also, they do furnace safety checks for people and have eliminated some CO calls that we probably would have been called out to.
SustainableWorks is increasing good-paying union jobs, increasing Spokane's tax base, decreasing energy consumption, helping with residential safety, bringing different unions together and building up our community of Spokane from the grassroots. How cool is that?
If you want more information, you can click on the link or give them a call at 532-1688.
Saturday, March 05, 2011
Tuesday, March 01, 2011
WORKERS COMP UNDER ATTACK IN OLYMPIA!
URGENT Please call and/or e-mail Senator Brown NOW. As early as tomorrow she may accept a deal for Workers Comp that would include compromise and release and may also agree to take away any pension benefits for injured workers. Talking points and contact info is listed below.
Beth Thew
Spokane Regional Labor Council, AFL-CIO
509-939-0688
Phone:(360) 786-7604
Email: Brown.Lisa@leg.WA.gov
Our Worker Comp system continues to come under attack from the business community! We need you to call – TODAY – to tell your legislators not to cut worker comp benefits!
We urge our legislators to reject attacks on our safety net which simply slash benefits rather than responsibly addressing our long-term disability problem by getting people back to work.
We have proven methods to help injured workers and reduce costs by providing quality medical care from the beginning of a claim (HB1869 and SB 5801).
We also support getting people back to work faster by providing a wage subsidy so small employers can bring injured workers back to light duty/transitional positions (HB 2002).
Do not put injured workers at risk. We urge you to oppose cutting people off long term disability at retirement age and to oppose turning our safety net into a lottery system weighted against injured workers by bringing any form of compromise and release to WA. (SB 5566)
Beth Thew
Spokane Regional Labor Council, AFL-CIO
509-939-0688
Phone:(360) 786-7604
Email: Brown.Lisa@leg.WA.gov
Our Worker Comp system continues to come under attack from the business community! We need you to call – TODAY – to tell your legislators not to cut worker comp benefits!
We urge our legislators to reject attacks on our safety net which simply slash benefits rather than responsibly addressing our long-term disability problem by getting people back to work.
We have proven methods to help injured workers and reduce costs by providing quality medical care from the beginning of a claim (HB1869 and SB 5801).
We also support getting people back to work faster by providing a wage subsidy so small employers can bring injured workers back to light duty/transitional positions (HB 2002).
Do not put injured workers at risk. We urge you to oppose cutting people off long term disability at retirement age and to oppose turning our safety net into a lottery system weighted against injured workers by bringing any form of compromise and release to WA. (SB 5566)
WORKERS COMP UNDER ATTACK IN OLYMPIA!
URGENT Please call and/or e-mail Senator Brown NOW. As early as tomorrow she may accept a deal for Workers Comp that would include compromise and release and may also agree to take away any pension benefits for injured workers. Talking points and contact info is listed below.
Beth Thew
Spokane Regional Labor Council, AFL-CIO
509-939-0688
Phone:(360) 786-7604
Email: Brown.Lisa@leg.WA.gov
Our Worker Comp system continues to come under attack from the business community! We need you to call – TODAY – to tell your legislators not to cut worker comp benefits!
We urge our legislators to reject attacks on our safety net which simply slash benefits rather than responsibly addressing our long-term disability problem by getting people back to work.
We have proven methods to help injured workers and reduce costs by providing quality medical care from the beginning of a claim (HB1869 and SB 5801).
We also support getting people back to work faster by providing a wage subsidy so small employers can bring injured workers back to light duty/transitional positions (HB 2002).
Do not put injured workers at risk. We urge you to oppose cutting people off long term disability at retirement age and to oppose turning our safety net into a lottery system weighted against injured workers by bringing any form of compromise and release to WA. (SB 5566)
Beth Thew
Spokane Regional Labor Council, AFL-CIO
509-939-0688
Phone:(360) 786-7604
Email: Brown.Lisa@leg.WA.gov
Our Worker Comp system continues to come under attack from the business community! We need you to call – TODAY – to tell your legislators not to cut worker comp benefits!
We urge our legislators to reject attacks on our safety net which simply slash benefits rather than responsibly addressing our long-term disability problem by getting people back to work.
We have proven methods to help injured workers and reduce costs by providing quality medical care from the beginning of a claim (HB1869 and SB 5801).
We also support getting people back to work faster by providing a wage subsidy so small employers can bring injured workers back to light duty/transitional positions (HB 2002).
Do not put injured workers at risk. We urge you to oppose cutting people off long term disability at retirement age and to oppose turning our safety net into a lottery system weighted against injured workers by bringing any form of compromise and release to WA. (SB 5566)
BOYCOTT WISCONSIN GOVERNOR'S BOSSES!
This is circulating in the great state of Wisconsin.
Let's vote with our money.
These are Koch Brothers products and proceeds are being used against the workers of Wisconsin. Very important to distribute. This is what non-vocal people love to do. Boycott !!!!!!!!
Please send this on to everyone you know. Let the Koch brothers know that we understand what they're trying to do to Wisconsin!
“Boycott Koch Industry products:
(Georgia-Pacific products)
Angel Soft toilet paper
Brawny paper towels
Dixie plates, bowls, napkins and cups
Mardi Gras napkins and towels
Quilted Northern toilet paper
Soft 'n Gentle toilet paper
Sparkle napkins
Vanity fair napkins
Zee napkins
Georgia-Pa cific paper products and envelopes INVISTA Products Lycra Sta
http://www.boycottkochbrothers.com/
Let's vote with our money.
These are Koch Brothers products and proceeds are being used against the workers of Wisconsin. Very important to distribute. This is what non-vocal people love to do. Boycott !!!!!!!!
Please send this on to everyone you know. Let the Koch brothers know that we understand what they're trying to do to Wisconsin!
“Boycott Koch Industry products:
(Georgia-Pacific products)
Angel Soft toilet paper
Brawny paper towels
Dixie plates, bowls, napkins and cups
Mardi Gras napkins and towels
Quilted Northern toilet paper
Soft 'n Gentle toilet paper
Sparkle napkins
Vanity fair napkins
Zee napkins
Georgia-Pa cific paper products and envelopes INVISTA Products Lycra Sta
http://www.boycottkochbrothers.com/
Monday, February 28, 2011
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Labor Rally Last Friday
It was cold!
Two-hundred or so union members and their supporters showed up to wave signs at the triangle where Ruby, Division and North River Drive come together. I couldn't believe how many drivers honked horns and waved back. It was great!
It's easy to forget that Spokane has the labor movement entrenched in its founding and growth. No surprise that as union membership dwindled in Spokane, so did the general prosperity of the city. Mining, timber, the railroads, and of course, aluminum built a Spokane with a thriving middle class.
You can look it up for yourself. The overall prosperity of the individual in this country reached its peak coincidentally with the peak of union participation. Although, there weren't as many billionaires, failed banks, investment scams, unemployed, and medical bankruptcies either. Hmmmm.
The Wobbly Free Speech Movement put Spokane on the map for showing how much the authorities despised unions and how willing they were to persecute them. Look at some of the old newspapers from the time. The Spokesman-Review led the pack, calling for violence and worse against union members. The governor in Wisconsin is resurrecting this spirit, in a way that I don't think even the most fascist-leaning, turn-of-the-century Spokanite would have bought into.
Let's see Governor Walker, you give tax breaks to your benefactors to put the state budget into the hole. This deficit allows you to conveniently blame union employees and their meager pensions for the problem and go after their money, their rights and their political clout. Sad that so many who have been chewed up and spit out by these same forces continue to cheer on those who destroyed them and gleefully anticipate destruction for those who have fought on their behalf. Unbelievable that there are voters in Wisconsin who look to failing (education, health, employment, finances, standard of living) states in the south as their new model because it fits their Koch-brother-sponsored talk-radio, FOX News ideology.
Here in Spokane, the first gathering of firefighters to organize a union resulted in an instantaneous firing of those members, almost a hundred years ago. In fact, Local 29 - The Spokane Fire Fighters' Union celebrates its 93 year year birthday tomorrow. It was one of the original founding locals of the International Association of Firefighters, hence the low number of "29." They are now up to Local 4780.
There was a small article in the Spokesman-Review yesterday about the rally. Thank you SR!
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