ILLINOIS FEDERATION HELPS AVERT PENSION CUTS

The Illinois Federation of Teachers/AFT has won an important battle, successfully fending off sweeping changes to the state’s defined-benefit pension systems for public employees; but the war is far from over.

In June, Gov. Rod Blagojevich signed legislation that “brings both relief and concern,” according to AFT vice president James Dougherty, president of the AFT’s Illinois federation, which represents 90,000 workers in the state.

Union leaders are relieved that the governor backed down from his proposal to, among other things, institute a defined-contribution system, raise retirement eligibility requirements and lower cost-of-living adjustments—all geared toward shearing $100 billion in pension benefits over the next 40 years. They remain concerned, however, because the measure does nothing to correct the bottom line: a cumulative $43 billion unfunded pension liability among the state’s five retirement plans.

“The fear is that the pension system has been underfunded for 30-plus years and now they are borrowing money,” said William J. Dick, president of the Illinois Federation of Public Employees, which is one of the IFT’s seven locals representing state workers. “What is going to happen in two years?”

The IFT launched aggressive membership education and lobbying initiatives during the legislative session. In addition to lobbying lawmakers, the state federation sponsored a lobby day that drew a broad cross section of its members to the state capitol. The IFT and other unions that represent public pensioners jointly sponsored eight legislative forums in communities throughout the state.

UNION EFFORTS HELPING TSUNAMI VICTIMS RECOVER

Eight months after the Dec. 26, 2004, tsunami that devastated South Asia, reconstruction work and other assistance and support from the international trade union community is well under way. With contributions from AFT members, affiliates and others to its tsunami disaster relief fund, the AFT has sent $100,000 to Education International (EI) for relief efforts, and additional contributions of $40,000 each are being sent to Public Services International (PSI) and the AFL-CIO Solidarity Center.

Education International, a federation of more than 345 organizations representing teachers and education personnel around the world, is focusing its efforts on Sri Lanka and the Aceh province of Indonesia, the two regions hit hardest by the tsunami. While there is still much to be done, EI reports, the reconstruction  of school buildings has begun. In addition, EI has been working with unions in both countries to offer training in trauma counseling. EI is also assisting in training and recruitment programs to help build the region’s shattered education work force.

Public Services International, the global federation of public employee unions, has also provided emergency relief and long-term assistance, working with such unions as the electric power company workers’ union in Indonesia and the nurses’ union in Sri Lanka, as well as public sector unions in Thailand and India.

The AFL-CIO Solidarity Center also has provided support and funds to scores of unions in the region for specific projects in India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand. These range from the funding of relief and rehabilitation experts in the field to continuing and expanding free health clinics.

For more information on tsunami relief efforts, go to EI’s Web site at www.ei-ie.org/tsunami, PSI’s Web site at www.world-psi.org/tsunami or the Solidarity Center’s Asia Web site at www.solidaritycenter.org/where_we_work/asia/.

JOIN THE 'SEND WAL-MART BACK TO SCHOOL' CAMPAIGN

AFT members shopping for back-to-school supplies are invited to sign a pledge that they will not purchase supplies at Wal-Mart in support of a nationwide union campaign to convince the retail giant to become a responsible employer and corporate citizen.

In the past year alone, Wal-Mart has repeatedly violated child labor laws, abused sweatshop labor in Third World countries and exploited immigrant labor. Wal-Mart also has a record of discrimination against 2 million female workers and has failed to provide healthcare coverage to more than 600,000 employees.

AFL-CIO convention delegates meeting in Chicago in July adopted a resolution in support of Wal-Mart workers and endorsing campaigns to change Wal-Mart’s corporate behavior. In 2004, the AFT convention adopted a “Shop Union, Not Wal-Mart” resolution pledging similar support to Wal-Mart workers.

Part of this effort will be the “Send Wal-Mart Back to School this Summer” campaign asking school staff and parents to sign a pledge to buy their back-to-school supplies somewhere other than Wal-Mart. (To sign the pledge, go to www.unionvoice.org/campaign/walmart_petition.) On Aug. 10, local AFL-CIO central labor councils and locals of the United Food and Commercial Workers kicked off the campaign with a series of news conferences. Information about the campaign is also posted at www.aft.org.