by Vati | Apr 23, 2018 | Blog, DC Locals, Featured, Local 2186, Local 2187, President's Message, Retirees
Brothers and Sisters,
Negotiations between the City and District Council 47 are continuing.
On Tuesday of last week, DC 47 VP Ethelind Baylor and myself met with Mayor Jim Kenney.
We talked to him about the lack of movement to resolve the differences between DC 47’s position and that of the City. We expressed our concerns about the frustration brothers and sisters have expressed about this slow moving process. We told the Mayor that we believe he should get more involved in the negotiation process.
Mayor Kenney expressed to us the need for a hybrid pension plan agreement, like the one reached with District Council 33. We said to him like we have said to his negotiators that this is not acceptable.
We met with City negotiators last Thursday and there was some movement on the pension plan differences on both sides. We are working to keep this movement going. We are scheduled to meet with the City again this week.
by Vati | Apr 9, 2018 | Blog, DC Locals, Featured, Local 1739, PEOPLE Updates, President's Message, Retirees
The Philadelphia Coalition of Black Trade Unionists presented Trailblazer Awards to DC 47 Pres. Fred Wright and Councilwoman Cherelle Parker. CBTU Pres. Ryan Boyer (3rd from left) presented the awards. State Sen. Sharif Street (3rd from right) was also on hand. State Rep. Stephen Kinsey (standing next to Pres. Wright in photo below) congratulated Pres. Wright on receiving the award.
by Vati | Apr 4, 2018 | Blog, DC Locals, Featured, Local 2186, Local 2187, President's Message, Retirees
8:30 AM – 12:00 PM Hospitality Workers and Supporters Fast at Northeast Corner of City Hall. Hospitality Worker Speak out with words, song and prayer. Livestream from Memphis, Tennessee 50th anniversary commemoration. Playing of Martin Luther King Jr. Speeches. Hotel Bed making demonstration
12:00 PM – Bible study and prayer with Reverend Alyn Waller of Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church | Arch St. United Methodist Church (55 N Broad St, Philadelphia, PA 19107)
1:00 PM – 5:00 PM Hospitality Workers and Supporters Fast at Northeast Corner of City Hall. Hospitality Worker Speak out with words, song and prayer. Livestream from Memphis, Tennessee 50th anniversary commemoration. Playing of Martin Luther King Jr. Speeches. Hotel Bed making demonstration
5:00 PM – Mass prayer vigil with all faith, community, and labor supporters | NE corner of City Hall (1401 John F. Kennedy Blvd, Philadelphia, PA 19102)
6:01 PM – Moment of Silence and Playing of “To the Mountaintop” Speech
7:00 PM – Break the fast at Arch St. United Methodist Church (55 N Broad St, Philadelphia, PA 19107)
by Vati | Mar 28, 2018 | Blog, DC Locals, Featured, Retirees
DC 47 retiree Robert Alexander was volunteering on 3-27-2018 at the voter registration table in the Municipal Services Building.
The person registering to vote is Beatrice Williams, a first time voter.
by Vati | Mar 15, 2018 | Blog, DC Locals, Featured, Local 1723, Local 1739, Local 2186, Local 2187, Local 3397, Local 590, Local 752, Local 810, PEOPLE Updates, Retirees
Councilwoman Helen Gym and DC 47 VP Ethelind Baylor
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City Council members Gym, Squilla, Parker, Reynolds Brown, Henon and Green co-signed this resolution
RESOLUTION
Affirming the strong support of the City of Philadelphia for public sector workers whose rights and freedoms are threatened as the Supreme Court considers Janus v. AFSCME, and recognizing the important role unions play in raising standards for all workers.
WHEREAS, It is our belief that all families should have the means to thrive in safe and healthy communities; and
WHEREAS, The working people who make the City of Philadelphia run must have stable, well-paying jobs that can support families; and
WHEREAS, Over the last forty years, working people have become more productive than ever, yet wages have declined and CEOs continue to earn more than ever before: 347 times more than the average person; and
WHEREAS, Fifty years ago, Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, where he marched and rallied in support of city sanitation workers on strike to demand their dignity, their humanity, and their union be recognized; and
WHEREAS, Those Memphis sanitation workers, who Philadelphia City Council honored in Resolution No. 180088, carried signs proclaiming “I AM A MAN” and struggled for basic freedoms: the freedom from discrimination, the freedom from degrading work conditions, the freedom to come together in strong unions to improve their place of work. To do justice to their commitment and tenacity, we must continue to do justice to all public sector workers, and especially those who are people of color; and
WHEREAS, Today, as economic inequality has grown and the ability for workers to organize has come increasingly threatened, workers across the City of Philadelphia and the country struggle for those same basic freedoms and a high quality of life for their families; and
City of Philadelphia
WHEREAS, Being able to participate in unions gives all of us – particularly women and people of color – a powerful voice in speaking up for ourselves, our families, and our communities, and ensures that each worker in the City of Philadelphia is treated with dignity, respect, and appreciation; and
WHEREAS, Those who have harnessed the power of collective action have won major victories like the 40-hour work week, overtime pay, and health and safety standards, as well as advanced policies especially important to women like paid leave, earned sick time, and reducing the gender pay gap; and
WHEREAS, When people can negotiate together for strong contracts, higher wages, and safer, dignified working conditions, all of us benefit, our communities are stronger, and our entire economy is made more fair; and
WHEREAS, As the US Supreme Court considers the case Janus v. AFSCME, which may decide whether those who work for the good of the public – such as nurses, teachers and firefighters – would be denied the freedom to unify and fight for equity, the City of Philadelphia must uphold its protection of the workers that run our City; and
WHEREAS, An unfavorable decision in this case would undermine the freedom for millions of working people, especially women and communities of color, to fight for high wages and meaningful protections; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, THAT THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, Affirms the
commitment of the City of Philadelphia to supporting public sector workers whose rights and freedoms are threatened as the Supreme Court considers Janus v. AFSCME, and recognizes the important role unions play in raising standards for all workers.
