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  • Govt. workers feel no economic pain
    Mar 12, 2010 — The Washington Times
    Edwards said. The cost of today's benefits for government employees ($13.49 per hour) assumes that these retirement benefits are fully funded. Booth of AFSCME acknowledges that total government payrolls are higher today than they were at the beginning of the recession. Private-sector workers earned $1.86 per hour worked for paid leave, or nearly 40 percent less.
  • Graham: Immigration Reform In Peril
    Mar 12, 2010 — Politico
    Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said in a statement issued just after he and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) met with Obama.“For more than a year, health care has sucked most of the energy out of the room. Most had expected the Schumer-Graham measure to be formally introduced in January.
  • NFL official tells court lawyer broke confidentiality of drug program
    Mar 12, 2010 — USA Today
    John Lombardo, that Lombardo was improperly interpreting policy by issuing exemptions for inadvertent use of the diuretic bumetanide. The Williamses have alleged the leak of the initial report came from the NFL, which Birch denied. Larson encouraged efficiency and expediency, at one point telling NFL attorney Dan Nash to hurry up.
  • Obama Links Immigration Overhaul in 2010 to G.O.P. Backing
    Mar 12, 2010 — New York Times
    Obama’s immigration policies for the first time. Graham are shaping would tighten enforcement against hiring illegal immigrant workers by creating a national biometric identification card for all workers, including American citizens and legal immigrants. Unions oppose any expanded program to allow in temporary immigrant guest workers, arguing that those programs leave immigrants vulnerable to abuse and undercut American workers.
  • Senators give Obama a bipartisan plan on immigration
    Mar 12, 2010 — Los Angeles Times
    Schumer and Graham and was pleased to learn of their progress in forging a proposal to fix our broken immigration system. They said they told Obama that families were being severed by widespread deportations. Schumer has been trying to line up additional Republican co-sponsors in hopes of broadening the bill's bipartisan support.
  • In Kabul, hopelessness weighs on job hunters
    Mar 11, 2010 — Los Angeles Times
    Who would feed my family?" Amil Zamuny, a driver in a black leather jacket and polished shoes, said he had applied for 20 jobs. As is customary for many Afghans, he gave only a single name, Omara. Traffic clogged the circle, police whistles blew, buses skidded.
  • Jobless Filings Fall, but Not as Much as Expected
    Mar 11, 2010 — New York Times
    The number of American workers filing new applications for unemployment insurance fell slightly less than expected last week, a government report showed on Thursday, hinting at a slow labor market recovery. The insured unemployment rate, which measures the percentage of the insured labor force that is jobless, was unchanged at 3.5 percent in the week ended Feb. 27. The number of people on extended unemployment benefits fell in the week ended Feb. 20.
  • L.A. City Hall fears ripple effect of layoffs
    Mar 11, 2010 — Los Angeles Times
    Even if city and labor leaders are able to strike a deal to avoid the full 4,000 job eliminations, city personnel managers say the bumping process could affect every department. For every position eliminated, as many as six people may have to change jobs, depending on how senior the position is, personnel officials said. But even if the voters agreed to changes, Jacoby, the UCLA management professor, cautioned that "layoffs are never done cleanly.
  • Unions taking on Dems who do not toe labor line
    Mar 11, 2010 — The Hill
    McEntee, as head of the AFL-CIO’s political committee, has been leading that cause.But some union officials grumble it’s a waste of time and resources. For example, SEIU Colorado has gotten behind Sen. He is coming back strong,” George said.SEIU is expected to weigh in even earlier, according to Eileen Connelly, executive director of the union’s Pennsylvania State Council.
  • Young undocumented immigrants speak out about reform
    Mar 11, 2010 — Chicago Tribune
    They urged people to phone or send texts to Sen.
  • As Fed Eases Loan Aid, Policy Challenges Arise
    Mar 10, 2010 — New York Times
    Sack said the Fed faced a tremendous challenge. The asset purchases helped hold down long-term interest rates, and Mr. Sack said the Fed might drain reserves on a trial run before increasing the interest rate on excess reserves.
  • Bump in unemployment rates seen as sign that jobseekers are back on market
    Mar 10, 2010 — Washington Post
    Maryland's rate climbed to 7.5 percent from 7.4 percent, while in Virginia, the jobless rate rose to 6.9 percent from 6.8 percent. Only 3 percent said they plan to cut staff in the second quarter, compared with 9 percent in the first quarter. The number of unemployed people rose by 5,100, but the number of people who lost their jobs totaled 3,700.
  • Chicago Tribune Mary Schmich column
    Mar 10, 2010 — Chicago Tribune
    They stayed for the reason millions of other immigrants have: work. Tania learned early to keep quiet about her status. They are Chicago, and the immigration laws are squandering their energy and possibilities. In other words, squandering our possibilities. And her full name, which she finally says is OK to use, is Tania Unzueta.
  • E-Verify: 'E' is for error
    Mar 10, 2010 — Los Angeles Times
    We thought the reason to distrust the program was its tendency to get things wrong, ensnaring legal, permanent residents and citizens in red tape, halting their legitimate employment. The online program checks a worker's information against Homeland Security and Social Security databases. E-Verify is a cornerstone not just of the Obama administration's immigration policy but of any hoped-for comprehensive reform legislation.
  • FedEx riled by pro-union bill language
    Mar 10, 2010 — The Hill
    Jim Oberstar (D-Minn.), the House Transportation Committee chairman, added the labor provision to the FAA bill.
  • Immigration provision has Hispanic Caucus threatening 'no' health vote
    Mar 10, 2010 — The Hill
    Illegal immigrants will, one way or another, need medical attention in the United States, and it would be cheaper and more humane to provide them coverage if they pay for it. As a House leader, it would be unlikely for Becerra to vote against the president’s signature domestic policy priority.
  • Opinion: Optimism from immigrants
    Mar 10, 2010 — CNN
    The Latino immigrant wave echoes those of bygone eras. Let's resume immigration reform and embrace undocumented immigrants as a source of competitive labor, productivity, increased tax revenue and, yes, optimism. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Rudy Ruiz.
  • Immigrant rights group slam Obama, Democrats for slow action with legalization bill
    Mar 9, 2010 — Washington Post
    No reelection," Emma Lozano, executive director of the Chicago-based Centro Sin Fronteras, told reporters.White House officials said the president will be meeting soon with Sens. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) to discuss the bipartisan immigration bill. But since then our president, our Congress members, have been in a deep sleep.
  • DHS corrects report that overstated ICE deportations under Obama
    Mar 8, 2010 — Washington Post
    S. Hsu and Nurith AizenmanBy Spencer S. Hsu and Nurith AizenmanMonths after reporting that the number of illegal immigrants deported by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement increased 47 percent during President Obama's first year in office, the Department of Homeland Security on Monday corrected the record, saying the actual increase in removals and "voluntary returns" was 5 percent.The 387,790 illegal immigrants removed by ICE in fiscal 2009 was still a...
  • Kirk gets pressure on trade deals
    Mar 8, 2010 — The Washington Times
    Baucus, Montana Democrat. "We must address the remaining obstacles to these agreements. Kirk. The two senators reminded Mr. Obama vigorously opposed all three free-trade agreements, which were negotiated by the Bush administration. Citing violence against labor leaders, he opposed the Colombian agreement, which was signed in November 2006.
  • Vikings vs. NFL Goes to Trial Monday
    Mar 7, 2010 — New York Times
    It just might change the circumstances in some cases.''Also to be decided is whether the NFL violated a state confidentiality law. They have been lumped with steroid users, people who have tried to mask steroid use,'' Ginsberg said.The Williamses' suspensions have remained on hold while the legal challenges are played out.
  • Britain's Labor, and its leader, slowly rebound in polls as economy picks up
    Mar 6, 2010 — Washington Post
    Anthony FaiolaLONDON -- Only a few months ago, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown seemed a figure living out a Shakespearean tragedy. And Brown, long seen as far more clumsy and ham-handed than his flashy predecessor, Tony Blair, has recently been garnering rare praise. Like many Republicans, Britain's Conservatives have argued that the time has come to rein in that spending.
  • For Older Workers, a Longer Job Search
    Mar 6, 2010 — New York Times
    By Catherine RampellOlder workers are much less likely to be unemployed than younger workers. For workers over age 55, it was just 7.1 percent.But not all jobless workers are created equal. In February, the average unemployed worker had been searching for a job unsuccessfully for 29.7 weeks.
  • Lessons at Indian Hospital for Births After C-Sections
    Mar 6, 2010 — New York Times
    Torivio had a vaginal birth, even though her previous child had been delivered by Caesarean section. In Tuba City last year, 32 percent of women with prior Caesareans had vaginal births. Something that has led many other hospitals to ban vaginal birth after Caesarean poses less of a problem at Tuba City.
  • OPINION
    Mar 6, 2010 — Los Angeles Times
    Nobody should minimize the sacrifice, but it would be a historic error for the city's unions -- and organized labor nationally -- to look away at this moment. Nationally, only 12% of American workers belong to unions. In California, 18% of the labor force is unionized, and in L.A., 17.5% of all working men and women carry a union card.
  • Check rules, bills to find medical expense tax deduction
    Mar 5, 2010 — USA Today
    Parking and tolls are also deductible.Dental expenses, as long as the treatment wasn't covered by dental insurance. The PBGC is a federal agency that insures private pension plans. To keep premiums affordable, many entrepreneurs have to accept a much higher deductible than they had when they were covered by an employer-provided group plan.
  • Federal pay ahead of private industry
    Mar 5, 2010 — USA Today
    In all, 180 jobs paid better average salaries in the federal government; 36 paid better in the private sector.Private. State government employees had an average salary of $47,231 in 2008, about 5% less than comparable jobs in the private sector. City and county workers earned an average of $43,589, about 2% more than private workers in similar jobs.
  • Obama looking to give new life to immigration reform
    Mar 5, 2010 — Los Angeles Times
    Citizenship would not be granted lightly, the White House said.
  • Workers fewer but more productive in '09
    Mar 5, 2010 — The Washington Times
    Unit labor costs, which essentially measure what it costs firms to pay workers to produce a single "unit" of whatever they make, declined 4.7 percent during all of 2009. Since 1980, labor productivity has increased 87 percent, while average hourly labor compensation has risen just 36 percent, Mr. McMillion said. Productivity normally rises near the end of a recession and during the early days of economic recovery.
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