Tag Archives: civil rights

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Washington State … Fewer firms offering medical coverage to workers – April 5, 2010



OLYMPIA – Finding a job right now can be tough, and finding one that comes with medical benefits is even tougher.

Washington employers offering medical insurance fell 1.6 percentage points in 2009, from 56.5 percent to 54.9 percent, according to an annual employee-benefits report released today by the Employment Security Department. That’s following a nearly 10 percentage point drop in 2008 and smaller declines in the previous three years.

“Companies are continuing to cut back where they can, while still trying to keep their employees,” said Employment Security Commissioner Karen Lee. “Unfortunately, employee benefits are a victim of the economy and rising costs.”

The study also showed that average medical-insurance premiums for employees increased from $358 per month to $366 per month. Employers covered 83 percent of that cost in 2009, down from 86.4 percent in 2008.

The number of firms offering some type of retirement plan jumped from 37.7 percent in 2008 to 44.6 percent in 2009 – closer to the 2007 level of 44 percent.

Employers also were more generous with paid days off in 2009. Firms offering paid vacation increased from 63 percent to 65 percent. An estimated 63 percent of employers offered paid holidays and 21 percent offered paid sick days, compared to 60 percent and 19 percent, respectively, in 2008.

Employment Security has produced the benefits report annually since 2003.  Approximately 10,000 Washington businesses responded to the survey.

10-017

Media contact: Jamie Swift, Communications manager, 360-902-0904

Audio: /newsandinformation/releases/audio/index.php

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Hey Bankers: Stop Fighting Reform

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Mark Your Calendar for
Noon EDT , Tuesday, April 13
FACT: Wall Street bankers paid themselves more than $145 BILLION in 2009. That’s a lot of money. But guess what else they are spending big on?

Join AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka Tuesday at noon for a live online video discussion of the 2010 AFL-CIO Executive PayWatch report and learn more about Wall Street bankers, their outrageous pay and massive lobbying efforts.

RSVP TODAY.

With health care reform enacted, Congress and the president have set their sights on reforming the Wall Street casino.

We couldn’t agree more, because we can’t afford another financial mess like the one we’re still cleaning up. Millions are out of work, while bankers are taking home billions. It’s not fair and it’s not right.

Take a moment today and tell your senators to fight for real financial reform NOW.

After tanking our economy, helping put us in an 11-million-jobs hole and taking hundreds of billions in taxpayer bailout dollars, the Big Banks on Wall Street already are back to business as usual: fighting to keep their profits and pay high at the expense of working families.

Instead of lending in their communities, they are choking off much-needed credit. And instead of working with Congress to develop good, commonsense regulations to prevent another financial meltdown, they are spending millions lobbying to protect their own narrow interests.

We can’t let it happen again. Properly regulating our financial markets is central to securing the economic future of America’s working families.

Hard-working Americans are angry, frustrated and fed up. Big Wall Street banks helped create our financial crisis and must pay to create the jobs they destroyed, and accept commonsense regulations to ensure it never happens again.

The Senate is working on a financial reform bill right now. Take action today and tell your senators we’re counting on them to fight for real reform that:

  • Creates an independent agency to protect consumers from predatory lenders;
  • Sheds light on the shadow financial system; and
  • Puts mandatory limits on bank size and risky behavior.

Thank you for your support and we hope you can join us Tuesday at noon for the special live webcast with President Trumka launching the 2010 AFL-CIO Executive PayWatch. Learn more about Wall Street bankers, their outrageous pay, massive lobbying expenditures and how we can help make real financial reform a reality.

In solidarity,

Marc Laitin
AFL-CIO Online Mobilization Coordinator

P.S. Take a moment and tell your senators to fight for real financial reform today.

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Thursday news and more … cspan.org


On a day of historic proportions, the last couple have dampened the many great things that have happened this last couple of weeks. But first …a little spring snow for all you folks in Seattle …

Today, our President signed off on a new treaty with Russia to reduce nuclear weapons from 2500 to 1500 and for those who think this is bad; get informed and find out just exactly what it all means because it is a move that most Presidents have tried and have failed. The last treaty was signed in 1991.   This is yet another BFD.  Yay

The latest news and behavior by people voted into Public Service is very upsetting, just wrong as well as offensive and the idea that anyone in their right mind would suggest celebrating confederacy and or what it meant; let along have a Governor and a … actually put forth a proclamation is beyond my idea of crazy behavior.  The fact that Bob McDonnell did so was offensive but the words that came out of his mouth to support it to create it then act on it is worthy of an impeachment process.  This man clearly knew his history of the war why it happened and what issues were more significant than others yet refused to acknowledge it until pushed to do so yesterday after some weeks or months.  It was reported by Keith O on msnbc in an interview with Julian Bond that this is yet the forth Governor to talk and create the proclamation; former Governor Douglass Wilder and first African-American to hold the office did recognize both sides and what happened during the war. The difference between  and what is truly offensive is McDonnell’s outright need to lie about leaving out slavery and why. The civil war and what was significant about it was slavery; no one should be fooled into believing anything different.

Today, more Republicans have decided to challenge States rights regarding health care reform even after at least a year of debate, stalling and refusal to cooperate; hcr was voted on and is the new law of the land. While it is not lost on me that Republicans will do just about anything to set themselves apart from the President of the US; even as offensive as it is. The facts have been twisted turned and avoided by most Republicans and unfortunately some of my fellow Americans believe the noise coming from the right, quite frankly Republicans would rahter fight moving into the 21st Century while attempting to bring the President down than help others and our economy by bringing down the cost of health care/insurance.  The problem we have was not created by the current President, yet Republican Politicians seem to be trying to convince their supporters that big government equals the sitting President.  It is with great sadness that there is so many Americans who are drinking the kook-aid because big government was the house of Bush. The economy slipped into a ditch created by the spending that Bush did and if anyone is willing to listen…  he did not pay for it and left an incredible hole that needs to be fixed; it’s  true that the solution was to throw money at it and most economists believe it had to be done.  The idea that we keep the status quo is to say nothing needs to be changed; what better time is it that we improve upon a system that has long been broken. If not now when and what better group than Democrats to fix the problems… because Republicans are proving not only are they fiscally irresponsible they also practice exclusion; some might say the current words are laced with hate and or racism … that’s just my take

A thought for single mom’s everywhere; children are definitely a labor of love and those men(fathers) who decide to cheat while still being married leave and spend money going to exotic places with the latest girlfriend(s) need to remember the facts and go from there.


Other News …

**Race to top: She says involvement will help state get federal money | TUKWILA – Gov. Chris Gregoire believes Washington has a cha… Full Story

**Republicans are holding a 3day leadership conference opening up with liz cheney/newt and jc watts

**More and more Republicans in office seem to think they know more than a constitutional lawyer who is now President;and quite frankly it looks as if they would fight this and bring the President down than help others bring down the cost of health care/insurance

and cspan.org

Public Affairs Programming on C-SPAN

U.S. & Soviet Union sign treaty to reduce nuclear arms. Earlier today in Prague, President Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed a new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) that will limit long-range nuclear weapons. The U.S. and the Soviet Union signed the original treaty in 1991. Following the signing, the two leaders took questions from reporters.

Citigroup Execs. Pressed on mortgage debt Investments. The bipartisan Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission (FCIC) is hearing testimony from several former Citigroup executives including ex-CEO and Chairman Chuck Prince and Robert Rubin, the former Treasury Secretary who headed Citigroup’s executive committee. The 10-member FCIC panel is investigating banking executives’ involvement in risky mortgage debt investments that helped trigger the 2008 financial collapse.

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* Acting Quickly to Create a Better Health Care System for Americans


This afternoon, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius spoke at the National Press Club to discuss how health reform will increase health security. She explained that the Affordable Care Act will give Americans more control over their health care by reining in unfair insurance practices. The law includes the largest middle class tax cut for health care in American history and provides the biggest expansion in health care coverage since Medicare.

Secretary Sebelius explained that the new law “is not a magic pill that will cure all the problems in our health care system.” She described the reforms as “puzzle pieces,” with each reform being implemented after the next to strengthen the health insurance system without disrupting it.

She said that they have already began acting to enforce the law by working with states to create high risk pool programs that will help uninsured Americans with pre-existing conditions get coverage. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services has been restructured to prepare for the new responsibilities under health insurance reform, and later this week, HHS will open new Medicaid options to cover low-income adults.

Secretary Sebelius also pointed out that scam artists have been trying to capitalize on the new health care law by setting up 1-800 numbers and trying to sell fraudulent insurance policies. Today, Secretary Sebelius sent letters to State Commissioners and Attorney Generals to investigate and prosecute these scams.

Secretary Sebelius said that HHS will make sure that Americans can receive the full benefits of the new law by providing Americans with access to information, eliminating waste in order to make every dollar count, and noted that “we will never lose sight of why we pursued this legislation in the first place, fought so hard for it, and are celebrating it as such a historic accomplishment.” She explained that they are beginning to implement the reforms of the health care legislation effectively, stating that “Our work didn’t end when President Obama put down his pen. In some ways, it’s just begun.”

As always, find out what health reform means for you, and learn about the benefits kicking in this year in the Health Reform section of WhiteHouse.gov.

Learn more about Health Care
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GOP hate intensifies …


It’s been a little more than a week since Tea Party protesters hurled racial and homophobic slurs and spat at members of Congress. I don’t want to repeat the language they used. Their despicable statements were widely reported in the media, and be assured this was no isolated or fringe event.

What the Tea Party protesters said was beyond defensible. But that’s not even the worst of it. The Tea Party movement is inciting violent acts targeting Democrats who voted to support the health care reform bill.

Democrats and Republicans alike must immediately address this atmosphere of violence targeting our elected officials. You would think this would be uncontroversial in the wake of protesters shouting the “N word” in the halls of Congress. But shockingly the Republican National Committee has refused to endorse a bi-partisan “civility” statement that would send a message to the protesters.

Join me in demanding that Republican leaders stop turning a blind eye to violence and hate before it gets out of control and someone gets hurt. Click the link below to add your name.


http://act.credoaction.com/campaign/hate_gop/?r_by=8486-2591629-MlOKpGx&rc=confemail1

tea party protesters.



Tell the GOP: Don’t tolerate hatred.
Your message to GOP leaders:

We ask that the leaders of the Republican Party:

1. Unequivocally condemn bigotry and hate among your supporters, and make clear that those who embrace it have no place in your party and that you reject their support.

2. Make clear that you will not tolerate fear-mongering and coded appeals to racism from officials in the Republican Party, at any level