In response to attempts by Donald Trump and Republicans to pose as friends of working people, UAW President Sean Fain had some harsh warnings to workers about what a future Trump presidency would hold.
The warnings came after Trump, in his acceptance speech at the Republican convention last week, called upon UAW members to fire Fain, its popular president, who had won for them the best auto workers contract in decades. During the strike earlier this year that produced the contract and saw President Biden join workers on the picket line, Trump appeared at a non-union auto plant and denounced the strike.
Fain lost no time in responding. “America’s autoworkers aren’t the problem,” he declared. “Our union isn’t the problem. The working class isn’t the problem. Corporate greed and the billionaires’ hero, mascot, and lap dog Donald Trump, are the problem. Don’t get played by this scab billionaire.”
Others reminded people that anti-labor actions were part and parcel of the Republican agenda, no matter what they may be saying in public now. One example cited was the action of former Wisconsin Republican governor Scott Walker, who withdrew the right of public sector unions to collective bargaining and outlawed dues checkoff at unionized shops statewide. Another was the actions of Trump while president in stacking the Labor Department and the National Labor Relations Board with anti-union lawyers and backing a series of court cases to weaken collective bargaining.
https://www.spotlightonlabor.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/icon.png500500Paul Beckerhttps://www.spotlightonlabor.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/spotlight_logo_.pngPaul Becker2024-07-22 19:08:312024-07-22 19:09:59‘DON’T GET PLAYED BY THIS SCAB BILLIONAIRE’: UAW PREZ WARNING TO WORKERS
According to the AFL-CIO, the following facts emerge regarding America’s largest corporations and their top executives:
At least 55 of the largest corporations in America paid no federal corporate income taxes in 2021 despite enjoying substantial pretax profits in the United States. This continues a decades-long trend of corporate tax avoidance by the biggest U.S. corporations, and it appears to be the product of long-standing tax breaks preserved or expanded by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) as well as the CARES Act tax breaks enacted in the spring of 2020.
In 2022, CEOs of S&P 500 companies received, on average, $16.7 million in total compensation. This was the second-highest level of CEO pay in history for S&P 500 Index companies. It was 324 times more than then median pay of the average employee.
The AFL-CIO notes that the ratio of CEO-to-worker pay is important. A higher pay ratio could be a sign that companies suffer from a winner-take-all philosophy, where executives reap the lion’s share of compensation. A lower pay ratio could indicate the companies that are dedicated to creating high-wage jobs and investing in their employees for the company’s long-term health.
https://www.spotlightonlabor.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/icon.png500500Paul Beckerhttps://www.spotlightonlabor.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/spotlight_logo_.pngPaul Becker2024-07-19 18:44:012024-07-19 19:01:01SOME HARD FIGURES ON CORPORATE GREED
According to figures released by the AFL-CIO, in 2021 343 workers died on the job each day due to hazardous working conditions, a total for the year of 5,190. In addition, an estimated 120,000 workers died from diseases related to their work like exposure to hazardous materials, toxic chemicals and the like and violence at the workplace claimed the lives of 120,000.
‘DON’T GET PLAYED BY THIS SCAB BILLIONAIRE’: UAW PREZ WARNING TO WORKERS
Labor Briefs, miscIn response to attempts by Donald Trump and Republicans to pose as friends of working people, UAW President Sean Fain had some harsh warnings to workers about what a future Trump presidency would hold.
The warnings came after Trump, in his acceptance speech at the Republican convention last week, called upon UAW members to fire Fain, its popular president, who had won for them the best auto workers contract in decades. During the strike earlier this year that produced the contract and saw President Biden join workers on the picket line, Trump appeared at a non-union auto plant and denounced the strike.
Fain lost no time in responding. “America’s autoworkers aren’t the problem,” he declared. “Our union isn’t the problem. The working class isn’t the problem. Corporate greed and the billionaires’ hero, mascot, and lap dog Donald Trump, are the problem. Don’t get played by this scab billionaire.”
Others reminded people that anti-labor actions were part and parcel of the Republican agenda, no matter what they may be saying in public now. One example cited was the action of former Wisconsin Republican governor Scott Walker, who withdrew the right of public sector unions to collective bargaining and outlawed dues checkoff at unionized shops statewide. Another was the actions of Trump while president in stacking the Labor Department and the National Labor Relations Board with anti-union lawyers and backing a series of court cases to weaken collective bargaining.
Jonathan Weisman in NY Times, 7/19
SOME HARD FIGURES ON CORPORATE GREED
Labor BriefsAccording to the AFL-CIO, the following facts emerge regarding America’s largest corporations and their top executives:
The AFL-CIO notes that the ratio of CEO-to-worker pay is important. A higher pay ratio could be a sign that companies suffer from a winner-take-all philosophy, where executives reap the lion’s share of compensation. A lower pay ratio could indicate the companies that are dedicated to creating high-wage jobs and investing in their employees for the company’s long-term health.
For full details, see AFL-CIO website items: Corporate Greed and Executive Pay Watch
LATEST TOLL OF ON-THE-JOB DEATHS
Labor BriefsAccording to figures released by the AFL-CIO, in 2021 343 workers died on the job each day due to hazardous working conditions, a total for the year of 5,190. In addition, an estimated 120,000 workers died from diseases related to their work like exposure to hazardous materials, toxic chemicals and the like and violence at the workplace claimed the lives of 120,000.
AFL-CIO Website, 7/14,https://aflcio.org