More than 125,000 households in Chicago – roughly 15 percent of the City’s population – include a member of the Chicago Teachers Union, Service Employees International Union (SEIU) or UNITE HERE. These union households are home to about 92,000 school aged children, an overwhelming number of who attend Chicago Public Schools.
From its ubiquitous hot dogs (hold the ketchup!) to five-star restaurants, Chicago is a culinary destination, and people travel from across the country to experience the gastronomic delights that the Windy City has to offer. Many of those individuals pass through O’Hare Airport — the second-largest airport in the country — on their way to one or many of the eateries that call Chicago home.
On February 5, a delegation of several casino employees from Northern Indiana asked state lawmakers in Indianapolis to ensure casinos keep their promise of stable jobs for Indiana communities. The Indiana General Assembly is currently considering a “bailout” (Senate Bill 528) for Indiana casinos that could see as much as $235 million in state tax revenue handed back to casino operators. Casinos were approved in Indiana based to generate revenue for state and local governments and to provide stable jobs for Indiana residents.
Data shows that Indiana casinos have reduced jobs in recent years. According to figures released by the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, during December 2012, Indiana’s “Gaming Industries” directly employed only 12,700 people – down 1,200 jobs from five years ago and down 3,300 jobs from 10 years ago, even as several new facilities have opened up.
The Majestic Star Casino in Gary, Indiana shows how Indiana casinos have broken their jobs promise. In November 2012, the Majestic Star laid-off 80 employees with no advance notice to the workers. Laid-off employees, some of whom were eventually returned to work, had worked at Majestic Star for as long as sixteen years.
The Majestic Star Casino is controlled by Wayzata Investment Partners, a Minnesota-based investment firm with around $7.5 billion in assets.
“These out-of-state owners who control billions are coming to Indiana and taking away our jobs,” Alisha Coleman, a laid-off Majestic Star worker, told the Post-Tribune in November.
The casino bill would be a “blank check” to casino owners, many of them out-of-state investment funds like Wayzata, which could easily just shift the money to billionaire out-of-state investors with no benefit to Indiana. Instead, Indiana casino employees believe any casino “bailout” bill should ensure money is invested in casino jobs in Indiana – where the investment will reduce unemployment and help drive the Indiana economy.
If you have a graduating high school senior in your union family, be sure to have them apply to the Chicago Federation of Labor 2013 William A. Lee Memorial Scholarship Awards.
The Chicago Federation of Labor will offer five (5) academic-based scholarships and five (5) random-drawing scholarships in the amount of $2,000 each to students graduating from an area high school. Students may apply in only one of the two categories. The period for submitting applications is January 1 through March 1. Please see the application for complete instructions.
Applications are available online at www.chicagolabor.org/
To be eligible, the student or one of his or her parents must be a member of a local union affiliated with the Chicago Federation of Labor. All applications must be signed by one of the top two officers of the local union to which the student or his or her parent belongs.
All additional requirements are listed on the application form, including criteria for judging the academic competition. Completed applications must be returned to the Chicago Federation of Labor, William A. Lee Memorial Scholarship Committee, 130 East Randolph Street, Suite 2600, Chicago, IL 60601. All applications must be postmarked by no later than March 1, 2013.
Welcome to the workers at two of Chicago’s top-rated hotels, who have become members of UNITE HERE Local 1! At the Waldorf-Astoria and the Palomar Hotel, nearly 300 workers have joined our Union, adding to our growing strength at Local 1.
At the Waldorf-Astoria, the victory caps a three month organizing effort in which over 80% of the workers signed Union Cards to become members due to the leadership of a strong committee representing every department.
After months of organizing, Palomar Hotel workers went public in March 2012. Over 75% of the workers signed Union Cards in five days! Workers stood strong in the face of an aggressive anti-union campaign by the company, in which the company refused to honor the card check neutrality agreement: workers were pulled into one-on-one meetings with general managers and were given enormous wage increases; workers reported intimidation and restaurant workers were told the hotel restaurant would close. Over six months, workers stuck together and fought hard: they wore t-shirts, published their pictures, and delegated management multiple times to win recognition. After months of hard work, Palomar Hotel workers won card check recognition.
Congratulations to our new brothers and sisters in Local 1!