Labor Lines

This weekend on the Long Island Edition of Labor -Lines: Don Daley, Business Manager of IBEW 1049 and Sheldon Sackstein, Executive Director of Action Long Island and Chair of the Suffolk Legislatures LIPA Oversight Committee'express serious concerns over the Governor's LIP Reform Bill. Daley says services and emergency respons will be severely affected. Sackstein says ratepayes will pay through the nose. He says legislators never read the bill. (Assemblyman Al Graf did and said he wouldn't vote for it). Then we speak with Peter Vallone, member of the New York City Council and Chair of the Public Safety Committee. He too has grave concerns for public safety given the performance of the City's emergency call system.

NYC Municipal Union rally in front of City to demand fair contracts. For the first time in history they city does not have a contract with any union! Enough is enough. On this episode of Labor Lines we talk to NYC Central Labor Council President Vincent Alvarez and Barbara Bowen, President of the Professional Staff Congress of CUNY. They discuss the ramifications of this sorry state of affairs, and the frustrations shared by all city workers, in every job classification, that have led up to this rally. If you are a muncipal worker you'll want to support this cause!

On this episode of Labor Lines we cover a UAW legal services strike and discuss labors role in politics. The Legal Services Staff Association with UAW local 2320 has been pushed to strike after the corporate legal negotiating team attempted to cut too many of their benefits. To hear the full argument we are joined by Ian Davie, an attorney, and Isabel Rivera, a paralegal, two people who had hoped it would not come to a strike but now are taking to the picket lines. After this we talk to I. Daneek Miller who is running in the Democratic Primary for City Council District 27 and we discuss some of the labor battles he has fought on the front lines and what his political bid means for the labor movement.

While federal law has prohibited gender stereotyping or any kind of discrimination based on gender, in practice this has not turned out to much of a protection for many transsexual individuals. Transgender discrimination, particularly in employment, is real and pervasive, even where there are local laws to protect freedom of expression of gender identity. What steps can be taken to ensure equality in the workplace? Dr. Jillian Weiss, an attorney, business consultant and professor of Law and Public Policy at Ramapo State College in New Jersey. She writes for a blog (Bilerico) on the subject of Transgender Workplace Diversity and has published a number of articles on transgender issues in connection with research on companies’ and public agencies’ “gender identity policies”. We discuss these issues on our annual focus on Transgender Rights in the Workplace

We participated in an AFL-CIO roundtable on immigration with Richard Trumka AFL-CIO President and Maria Elena Durazo AFL-CIO Immmigration Campaign Coordinator earlier this month. The AFL-CIO unveiled a data driven immigration reform proposal based on actual employment needs of the US. Guess who the AFL-CIO is partnering with? The US Chamber of Commerce....ordinarily their nemesis! Next our reporter Christiaan Perez chats with Laura Alvarez of La Raza a national immigration rights orgranization, and catches up with Anita Halasz of LI Jobs with Justice on the New York State Dream Act

In this edition of Labor Lines we are going to discover the secrets of Ninjas and how those secrets can be used to help you land the ideal job. Scott Passeser, Author of “Ninja Secrets of Persuasion” explains how this ancient warrior class has methods that can actually be adapted to when you meeting a potential employer, not to kill but instead to persuade that you have the merits to work at the company.

In this edition of Labor Lines, Roger Clayman, Executive Director of the Long Island Federation of Labor, discusses the major labor battles of 2012 and gives a prognosis for 2013. Next, we interview Jessie Klein, a Sociology Professor from Adelphi University and author of a study that investigated solutions to gun violence that go beyond the banning of assault rifles. Many of the mass murders were committed by mentally ill individuals, alienated from society. She discusses encouraging greater societal cohesion and encouraging communal responses to those in need.

In this episode of labor lines we discuss some of the greater problems that plague the economy through a conversation with Professor Martin Melkonian from Hofstra University discusses the economy in the context of the Fiscal Cliff brinkmanship. After this we have a discussion with Beth Margolis regarding the fight that transportation unions in New York have had to deal with in their most recent contract dispute

In this Episode of Labor Lines Christiaan Perez will be hosting for Vic Fusco. The first interview is with Enrique Morones, founder of Border Angels an organization that provides humanitarian assistance to those risking their lives to immigrate to America. Next is an interview with Tracey Holloman from Purposeful Leadership Solutions, discussing methods of streamlining your work force in order to improve efficiency and productivity; Finally we hear from Gary Bagley, Executive Director from New York Cares, an organization that links up charities with volunteers.