Latest City News

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This Labor Day, Our Struggle Continues

This Labor Day Local 3090 members, along with working people in general, are facing serious challenges. Not only are we fighting back against layoffs and furloughs, recently City Administrative Officer Miguel Santana tried to circumvent the process and force health care cost increases on us. For many years, the Joint Labor-Management Benefits Committee has been the body through which the unions and management have worked cooperatively to construct the health care plans and keep premiums affordable. This method has been beneficial to the workers and also to the City.

Latest City News

Southern California economy is beginning to gain strength, forecast says

(LA Times, 7/21/10)

Southern California's economy is beginning to gain strength, although local residents may not feel the benefits for many months, according to a forecast to be released Wednesday... the three strongest parts of the recovery will come in tourism and travel; motion picture and television production; and international trade.

L.A.'s city libraries eliminate Sunday and Monday hours

LAT, 7/20/10

Los Angeles Public Library supporters gathered on Monday at the Central Library in downtown Los Angeles to protest a two-day-a-week closure caused by budget cuts. The five-day-a-week schedule is the third reduction in hours since December and results from of a $22-million budget cut. Those laid off included 20 full-time librarians. Library officials said the city's ongoing financial crisis has forced their department to absorb a 28% reduction in its workforce.

LA City Council moves to make DWP more accountable

(KPCC, 7/20/10)

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power's top brass today disputed claims they tried to extort the City Council for an electricity rate hike last spring, but several council members remained skeptical and vowed to ask voters to make drastic changes in the way the utility is managed.

Ask a Working Woman

(AFSCME Greenline blog, 7/20/10)

It's simple: Working women are the experts on the challenges working women face at work, at home and getting by in a tough economy. And if you want to know something, the best thing to do is ask an expert. That's what Working America and the AFL-CIO are doing with the 2010 Ask a Working Woman survey, and they could use your help.

Protesters sound off over L.A. library cuts

(KABC LA, 7/19/10)

They are ones who typically tell you to be quiet in the library. But on Monday, Los Angeles library staffers were on the streets with a loud message for City Hall. "We know it takes a village to raise a child, right? And part of that village are libraries," said author and activist Noel Alumit.

LA Residents Face Difficult Job Search, Study Says

(City News Service, 7/15/10)

The Los Angeles area remains one of the most difficult places in the nation to land a job, according to a survey by the Internet search engine Juju.com.

Los Angeles ranked No. 6 on the “10 Toughest Cities to Find a Job” survey, with one available position for every 7.54 unemployed people.

L.A. City Council Unanimously Votes to Support L.A. County Strategic Plan for Economic Development

(PR Web, 7/15/10)

The Los Angeles City Council has taken a significant step to create more jobs and grow the City’s economy by unanimously voting to support the LA County Strategic Plan for Economic Development… developed through a public, year-long, consensus process that brought together over 1,000 stakeholders from business, government, labor, education, environmental and other community-based organizations.

L.A. Council to broach outsourcing of collections for emergency medical

(LA Times, 7/14/10)

Los Angeles officials face opposition from organized labor and some City Council members over a proposal to contract out billing and collections for the fire department's emergency medical services. The proposed outsourcing is bundled with a popular initiative to move to electronic collection of medical data by the emergency medical services unit.

L.A. council drops plan to put library tax measure on fall ballot

(LA Times, 7/13/10)

Two weeks after laying off 98 library employees, the LA City Council abandoned a plan Tuesday for putting a tax on the Nov. 2 ballot to raise money for city libraries, but left the door open for a similar proposal to go on the municipal ballot in March.

Unpaid debts: If L.A. focused on collecting money it's owed, cuts wouldn't be as deep

(LA Daily News, 7/7/10)

Talk about adding insult to injury. On the very day last week that some 230 public employees were laid off because the city of Los Angeles is broke, Controller Wendy Greuel announced the city had failed to collect $260 million in bills. If even half of those bills had been paid, city workers would still be on the job and taxpayers would still be receiving important city services - from libraries to tree trimming to parks maintenance.

Mayor Villaraigosa gets a boost in battle for furloughs

(LA Daily News, 7/4/10)

The Coalition of City Unions said it plans to continue to fight the furloughs. "We maintain our position that the city cannot unilaterally implement furloughs," spokeswoman Barbara Maynard said. "Further, the city negotiated a contract with the coalition that expressly prohibits unilaterally implemented furloughs in reduction of hours."

Ex-mayor Dick Riordan tries to gain union concessions

(LA Daily News, 7/4/10)

Say you're an ex-mayor of Los Angeles and you're convinced the city is going to hell in a handbasket. What do you do? Well, if you're Dick Riordan - a self-described professional problem solver - you take it on yourself to begin negotiating with city unions to try to win concessions that neither Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa nor the City Council seem able to achieve.

L.A.'s library cuts don't add up

(LA Times, 7/3/10)

David Meyer is an accountant, not an activist… But there he was on Wednesday at Los Angeles City Hall, protesting city budget cuts and trying to convince council members that millions in uncounted revenue had slipped by budget gurus — enough to pay the salaries of pink-slipped employees at the city's libraries.

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LABOR DAY 2010

Events:

Labor Day Breakfast with Jerry Brown, 7 am, Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels
Labor Day Mass, 10 am, Cathedra of Our Lady of the Angels
Labor Solidarity March & Picnic in Wilmington - Parade starts at 10 am at Broad & E St., Picnic in Banning Park at 12 noon - come show your Labor Spirit!

Message from AFL-CIO President Richard Trumpka this Labor Day

thumb_Richard-Trumka

"I WOULD JOIN A UNION"

By Richard Trumka
More than 70 years ago, President Franklin Roosevelt said, "If I were a worker in a
factory, the first thing I would do would be to join a union."

Are You Registered to Vote?

This November, so much is at stake for working families – particularly city, county & state employees. Be sure you have a voice! Register to Vote!
Register online: http://www.sos.ca.gov/nvrc/fedform/

UCLA Community Scholars Program 2011: Green City Games

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UCLA's Community Scholars Program will be running a 20-week program from Jan. 5 - June 1, 2011 for community and labor leaders, organizers, and artists who are interested in participating in an educational project that will help make LA more green, more fair and more fun: Green City Games.

Breaking News

Check Your Next Paycheck – 3% Raise Went into Effect July 1

As a result of moving ahead with the furloughs, the city was required to institute 3% pay raises for remaining City Coalition members effective July 1. You will notice a slightly higher paycheck on your July 28th paystub, but remember, you will also have hours reduced as a result of the furlough days. On Jan. 1, 2011, the city will be required to institute an additional 2.75% step increase. We will keep you posted.

Get the Help You Need: Employee Assistance Program

eap_flyer

Click here to find out more.

Passed Probation Yet

HAVE YOU PASSED
PROBATION YET?
IF SO, WELCOME TO
AFSCME LOCAL 3090!
(AMERICAN FEDERATED STATE,
COUNTY AND MUNICIPAL EMPLOYEES)

CALL LOCAL 3090
(213) 487-9887 EXT. 340
TO REQUEST YOUR MEMBERSHIP PACKET

Members Menu

Save the Date

Membership Meetings:

No meetings in July or December

Oct. 2010
The Oct. membership meeting will be: Wednesday, Oct. 6 – 6:30 pm at the Local 3090 office
Nov. 2010
The Nov. membership meeting will be: Saturday, Nov. 6 – 10 am at the Local 3090 office

Furlough Waiver Form

FurloughWaiverForm

Download Here

Sign the form to help us protect your rights against the city's illegal furlough plan.

Latest Labor News

New Job Means Lower Wages for Many

(NY Times, 8/31/10)
With the country focused on job growth and with unemployment continuing to hover above 9 percent, comparatively little attention has been paid to the quality of the jobs being created and what that might say about the opportunities available to workers when the recession finally settles.
read more...

Lawmakers approve bills on pension spiking, slavery, sick prisoners

(LA Times, 8/30/10)
The state Senate approved a bill aimed at preventing the spiking of public pensions in California and prohibiting state employees and other government workers from retiring one day and going to work for another state agency the next.
read more...

Demonizing the public sector harms the middle class

(The Hill, 8/26/10)
The nation's middle class is under attack. The recession hit private businesses and public budgets hard, but Americans' ability to attain or hold onto a middle-class standard of living may be the ultimate victim.
read more...

Time to Be Proud of What We Stand for

(Huffington Post, 8/25/10)
Economic development agencies such as the CRA are charged with doing their part to realize the great American vision of a society built on good jobs, thriving communities and a healthy environment. But too often, public officials subsidize developments without considering these goals... I don't work for a union, but I've looked at the facts. Union jobs almost always offer better pay, better benefits and better conditions than non-union jobs, Moreover, unions are good for the overall economy.
read more...

EFCA’s Dead, but Fear of It Still Driving Anti-Worker Measures

(In These Times, 8/24/10)
Across the country, the right wingers are going on the attack against all workers. Arizona and eight other states have measures on their respective ballots that would block any changes to labor law made by federal passage of the proposed Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA).
read more...

State defers schools, welfare program payments

(SF Chronicle, 8/24/10)
State leaders on Monday used a recently passed law to delay payment of nearly $3 billion in funds to K-12 public education and a welfare program, a decision that officials acknowledged will exacerbate difficulties for school districts and counties that already have had to lay off workers.
read more...

LA County raises property tax rate to help pay for ER, trauma care

(LB Press-Telegram, 8/24/10)
Property owners will pay a few more dollars in taxes this year to help offset the rising cost of emergency and trauma care in Los Angeles County. The tax hike will bring in an additional $17 million, the bulk of which will go toward offsetting the LA County Department of Health Services' soaring budget deficit.
read more...

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