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Category Archives: Labor/Economics
Cinching Our Belts With No Economic Recovery
LOUD VOICES FROM the worlds of business and government have called for people to pay a larger share of the costs of their maintenance. These voices call for cutting back on payments to working people in wages, healthcare, retirement pensions, … Continue reading
Posted in Labor/Economics
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French Protesters Have It Right: No Need to Raise the Retirement Age
THE DEMONSTRATIONS THAT have rocked France this past week highlight some of its differences from the United States. The photo below, for example shows the difference between rioting in baseball- playing versus soccer-playing countries. In the US, we would pick … Continue reading
Posted in International, Labor/Economics
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The Battle of Mahomet
STUDENTS AND EDUCATORS in Mahomet were back in class on Monday, Aug. 23 after the Mahomet Seymour Education Association (MSEA) and the school board were able to settle on a new contract on Aug. 20. The settlement marked an end … Continue reading
Posted in Education, Labor/Economics
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2010 U. S. Social Forum, Detroit
If you want to connect to people involved in just about every social justice issue our nation faces, you would find your people at the US Social Forum. The first USSF was held in Atlanta in 2007. This year the … Continue reading
Posted in Labor/Economics, National
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The Aging of America: Is It an Economic Problem?
For decades, environmentalists concerned about overpopulation and social workers concerned about families have both advocated family planning, and by that they mostly mean having fewer children. And indeed, throughout the world, including both developed and underdeveloped countries in every continent, … Continue reading
Posted in Labor/Economics
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Ben Fletcher IWW
Born in Philadelphia in 1890, Ben Fletcher was the most important African American labor leader in the most influential union of the early 20th century, the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW). This was no small accomplishment considering that this … Continue reading
Posted in Labor/Economics, Uncategorized
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The Campus Faculty Association at U of I Fights Back: In Springfield and on Campus
In a political climate of incredible irresponsibility, ineptitude, and corruption, the Campus Faculty Association (CFA) at the U of I has been letting our state legislators know that we will not put up with the privation to which public education … Continue reading
Posted in Education, Labor/Economics
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Money is Not a Natural Resource
Can money be wasted in a global sense? No, not like fuel is wasted. Money is neither a natural resource nor a manufactured product. There are no resource limits, though there are social limits to its quantity, and there are … Continue reading
Posted in Labor/Economics
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Judi Bari, the IWW and Environmentalism
As we celebrate Earth Day and enjoy the flush of spring, it is important to reflect on those who have made invaluable contributions to the continuing efforts at protecting our environment and our rights. Judi Bari is one such individual … Continue reading
Posted in Environment, Labor/Economics
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Organizing the Unemployed
A disheveled man stands in a local post office asking for spare change. Another man hands him a dollar and strikes up a conversation, fishers-of-men style. The second man describes a local effort among unemployed and underemployed workers to get … Continue reading
Posted in Labor/Economics
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GEO Update
DESPITE HAVING WORKED for over two months under the terms of an expired contract, the Graduate Employees’ Organization (GEO) continues to seek a negotiated agreement over the terms of their new contract with the University of Illinois Board of Trustees. … Continue reading
Posted in Education, Labor/Economics
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GEO Struggles For A Living Wage And The Future
WHILE THE ONGOING ADMISSIONS SCANDAL at UIUC has brought mainstream attention to the administration’s misplaced priorities, labor activists have long been familiar with the contradictions. It doesn’t surprise Peter Campbell therefore, to know that the Chancellor approved using $300,000 of … Continue reading
Posted in Education, Labor/Economics
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A Memorial for Archie Green: A Union Man, Laborlore Scholar, Folklife Advocate and Legend
THIS PAST MARCH, ARCHIE GREEN passed away. He was 91. Archie collected and catalogued songs, poems, and stories produced by ordinary people that described their work experiences, and their lives as workers. He studied Library Science at the University of … Continue reading
Posted in Labor/Economics
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Mahomet Seymour Teacher Union Struggle
On June 11, the Mahomet Seymour Education Association (MSEA) held a press conference to gain public support for their opposition to Mahomet Seymour teaching staff being asked to perform medical and health services as a condition of their employment, instead … Continue reading
Posted in Education, Labor/Economics
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There is s War Going on for Your Mind: Labor Media in Central Illinois
UNTIL THE LATE 1970‘S, EVERY MAJOR newspaper in the United States had at least one labor reporter with regular stories about unions and working class issues. Labor related news stories were also heard regularly on radio stations, and begining in … Continue reading
Posted in Labor/Economics, Media
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GEO Fights for a Living Wage
BARGAINING IN AN ATMOSPHERE of fiscal crisis is difficult. There is a temptation to maneuver conservatively, hoping only to hold one‘s ground. However, for those of us who are graduate employees, the current and future stewards of higher education, the … Continue reading
Posted in Education, Labor/Economics
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The Working Class Strikes Back
On Friday Dec. 5th 2008, an event occured on the near-north side of Chicago that sent a chill up the spine of corporate America and inspired working people around the world. A small factory of 200 workers refused to go … Continue reading
Posted in Labor/Economics
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How the Economic Decline Affect Us Locally
The Champaign-Urbana economy reflects what is happening nationally. The decline in sales, jobs, and construction, and the rising mortgage foreclosure rates are less severe than surrounding communities such as Decatur and Danville because of the stabilizing influence from the University … Continue reading
Posted in Labor/Economics
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The Case of the Gap and the Oak Harbor Strike
In a recent strike, over 600 workers from Oak Harbor Freight Lines (O.H.) have taken the legal and moral principle of corporate social responsibility to a new level. They have taken their case to Oak Harbor’s major clients, demanding that … Continue reading
Posted in Labor/Economics
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The Economic Crisis, Greed, and a New Society
The current crisis in the credit markets and its impacts on the larger economy have got me thinking about whether it is simply greed that ultimately explains current events or whether there is a need for systemic change in the … Continue reading
Posted in Labor/Economics
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