In This Issue:
- Chicago Teachers Draw Parents’ Support, Win Strike
- Arts, Entertainment, Media Unions Go Global
- DPE Updates ‘Professionals in the Workplace’
- Microsoft Proposes Increasing H-1B Visas By 20,000
- DPE Gears Up For APHA: ‘Prevention and Wellness Across the Life Span‘
- National Endowment for the Arts Releases Research Agenda
- Nominate Your Library for the John Sessions Award
- Union Women Form Online Group for Health
- DC Labor Film Fest Starts Oct. 11
CHICAGO TEACHERS DRAW PARENTS’ SUPPORT, WIN STRIKE – On September 10, 2012, Chicago public school teachers struck. Their goal: a better education for their students. That fact accounted for parents’ support – a part of the struggle that rarely surfaced in media reports or editorials. One of the few exceptions: the Associated Press account, “Striking Chicago teachers get support from parents” by Don Babwin. When the Chicago Teachers Union, AFT Local 1 successfully settled its contract on September 18, it immediately thanked the parents. Their support, the union said, was one of the factors that “forced the Board of Education to agree to:
• Hire over 600 additional teachers in Art, Music, Phys Ed and other subjects • Maintain limits on class size, increase funding for smaller classes • Add a parent voice on class size committees • Make textbooks available on the first day of school • Increase racial diversity in hiring at CPS • Lessen the focus on standardized testing – keep the focus on teaching instead of tests • Provide more attention from school Social Workers and Nurses • Increase funding for Special Ed teachers, social workers, psychologists, classroom assistants and counselors in schools with high caseloads.”
AFT president Randi Weingarten commented, “This agreement guarantees that Chicago teachers, paraprofessionals and clinicians will return to the classroom knowing that their schools and community are strengthened because their voices and experience have been respected. And parents can send their kids to school knowing that their teachers fought for the resources children need to succeed, including having textbooks on time and investments in art, music, physical education and other subjects that expand and enrich children’s minds.” For the complete AFT statement, click here. back to top
ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT, MEDIA UNIONS GO GLOBAL – The audiovisual performances treaty. The Transpacific Partnership. Film production in China and India. The meeting of arts, entertainment, and media unions on September 13, 2012 – chaired by DPE President Paul E. Almeida – took up global developments affecting U.S. workers. Participating were representatives from AEA, AFM, DGA, IATSE, IBEW, NFLPA, SAG-AFTRA, and WGAE. Guests and presenters included AFL-CIO Trade & Globalization Policy Specialist Celeste Drake; Working America Organizing Director David Wehde; and Sarah Fox, AFL-CIO legal counsel and representative to the International Labor Organization. John McGuire, SAG-AFTRA Senior Advisor, reported on the audiovisual performances treaty. A World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) diplomatic conference in Beijing on June 20 to 26, 2012 brought together representatives from 156 countries. It concluded more than 12 years of negotiations under WIPO auspices. The treaty creates a global standard to protect moral and economic rights for performers in television, film, and online and digital media. The next step: seeking ratification by a minimum of 30 countries or intergovernmental organizations, so the treaty takes effect. For the text of the treaty, click here. For a SAG-AFTRA statement, go here. For the WIPO account, go here. McGuire also sketched the growing and complex relations among film production and investment in the U.S., China, and India. Challenges include offshoring of U.S. work, worker protections, technology transfers, and market access. Terrie Bjorklund, SAG-AFTRA National Director of Government Affairs & Public Policy, focused on the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership Free Trade Agreement (TPP). The TPP began as a proposed multilateral agreement among nine countries: Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam, and the United States. The TPP is, however, open to new entrants. Canada and Mexico are joining, and China and Japan want in. This scope and openness underscore U.S. workers’ concerns with worker rights and U.S. jobs – and for entertainment professionals, with the TPP intellectual property provisions. Celeste Drake provided a detailed overview of the TPP in the context of U.S. trade policy. She stressed that the United States Trade Representative wants to complete the negotiations this year. U.S. workers must speak up now for jobs and labor standards against corporate interests seeking only profits. The stakes are high: the future of jobs, wages, unions, labor rights, the environment, and democratic decision-making. For a blog piece by Drake about the TPP, go here. Also on the agenda: a proposal to confer about new technology and its implications for arts, entertainment, and media professionals; an account by Wehde of how Working America can assist union organizing and campaigns; and updates by the participating unions. back to top
DPE UPDATES ‘PROFESSIONALS IN THE WORKPLACE’ – The “Professionals in the Workplace” section of the DPE website has been updated. You can now find up to date information about various professionals and employment sectors, including:
• Professional and Technical Employees • Women in the Professional Workforce • Social Service Professionals • Teachers and College Professors • Librarians and Library Paraprofessionals • Healthcare Professionals and Technicians • Professional Performers • Scientists and Engineers • Science and Engineering Technicians, Designers, and Surveyors
To view Professionals in the Workplace, click here. For more information, contact DPE Researcher and Representative Jennifer Dorning, (202) 638-0320 extension 114, jdorning@dpeaflcio.org. back to top
MICROSOFT PROPOSES INCREASING H-1B VISAS BY 20,000 – In a webcast hosted by the Brookings Institution, Microsoft put forward a report that proposed increasing the annual limit on the number of H-1B visas for foreign high-tech employees by 20,000. Microsoft proposed the increase because it alleges that it has difficulty filling high-tech positions. To remedy its imagined shortage of high-skilled workers, Microsoft proposed that each of the new visas require a $10,000 fee that would be used to support education and retraining for those seeking a career in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Microsoft relied solely on anecdotes in its claim of worker shortages. Company-specific worker shortages can result from many factors, such as pay below industry standards and working conditions that are unappealing to workers. Microsoft offered no evidence showing that the additional monies from fees would be effectively used for education and retraining. A recent report showed that fees from H-1B visas are not used effectively. Despite obvious flaws in this latest report, Microsoft continues to seek to saturate the STEM labor market and depress labor costs. For additional information, contact Jennifer Dorning, jdorning@dpeaflcio.org, 202-638-0320 extension 114. back to top
DPE GEARS UP FOR APHA: ‘PREVENTION AND WELLNESS ACROSS THE LIFE SPAN’ – The Annual Meeting of the American Public Health Association (APHA) is the premier forum for public health professionals to share and 
discuss public health issues. The 140th Annual Meeting, with a theme centered on “Prevention and Wellness Across the Life Span,” will take place from October 27 to 31, 2012 in San Francisco, CA. The APHA Labor Caucus, chaired by DPE Researcher and Representative Jennifer Dorning, has crafted a panel that examines the challenges and opportunities that face labor as the Affordable Care Act moves toward full implementation. The session will be held on Monday, October 29 from 2:30 to 4 pm at the Moscone Convention Center South in room 232. For additional information, contact Jennifer Dorning, jdorning@dpeaflcio.org, 202-638-0320 extension 114. back to top
NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS RELEASES RESEARCH AGENDA – On September 20, 2012, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) released its five-year research agenda. 
The NEA announced its report, How Art Works: The National Endowment for the Arts’ Five-Year Research Agenda, with a System Map and Measurement Model, at a public forum hosted by the Arts Management Program at American University (AU). On hand from NEA were its chairman, Rocco Landesman, and its director of research and analysis, Sunil Iyengar. Representing DPE was Executive Director David Cohen. The agenda included an overview of the 46-page report, which drew on a year of talking with people in the arts and reviewing the literature of arts research. Two panels commented first on the impact of the arts on individuals and second, on society and communities. The goals: to explain the NEA research agenda and tout the benefits of support for the arts. The NEA announcement of the event links to its agenda and the report. To read an AU account, click here. back to top
NOMINATE YOUR LIBRARY FOR THE JOHN SESSIONS AWARD – The American Library Association Reference and User Services Association is accepting nominations for the John Sessions Memorial Award. DPE sponsors the award. The award recognizes a library or library system that has made a significant effort to work with the labor community and brought recognition to the history and contribution of the labor movement to the development of the United States. Efforts may include outreach to local labor unions; establishment or significant expansion of special labor collections; initiation of programs of special labor interest; or other activities that serve the labor community. The deadline for nominations is December 15. For more information, contact Jennifer Dorning, jdorning@dpeaflcio.org, 202-638-0320 extension 114. back to top
UNION WOMEN FORM ONLINE GROUP FOR HEALTH – The HealthyWomen Community (HW) provides women with a forum to discuss everything from health to work and family life. Among its partners is the Coalition of Labor Union Women. Now HW hosts a group especially for labor union women: “Although many of our unions have negotiated health insurance that covers us and our families, we aren’t always aware of how to best use that insurance or what to ask our doctors. We are delighted to have this site to learn and ask questions.” back to top
DC LABOR FILM FEST STARTS OCT. 11 – The DC Labor Film Fest begins October 11, 2012 
and runs through October 18. The primary organizer, the AFL-CIO Washington DC Metro Council, says, “The 2012 line-up includes 11 great films at the AFI Silver Theater, 3 free screenings at Busboys & Poets and the AFL-CIO, and free lunchtime ‘Working Lunch’ film previews throughout the metro area.” back to top