Health Care Benefits

Labor Day: Too Many Americans Do Not Realize How Much Labor Unions Have Done!

We are living in a time of labor union decline, and attacks on organized labor itself, beginning with the Presidency of Ronald Reagan!

Too many people have no idea or regard for the importance of labor unions in American history, and the struggle for decent working conditions in our nation!

Without the labor struggles of the past, we would not have:

Minimum Wage and Maximum Hours
Eight Hour Work Day
Five Day Work Week
End of Child Labor
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration
Sick Leave
Vacation Pay
Paid Holidays
Right of Labor to Organize and Bargain Collectively
Progress toward Equal Pay for Women
Retirement Pensions and Health Care Coverage

There has been backtracking and attacks on organized labor by Republicans on the national and state level, and particularly in the South, labor continues to be under strong attack, as it has always been.

But to imagine an America where workers have no rights is, sadly, much of what American workers see today, including a new revelation—wage theft becoming a problem for millions of workers being exploited by their employers.

So those who fight for labor rights, led by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, need the support of all of us, even if we are not members of organized labor unions. Too much is at stake to remain silent!

Massive Crime Against Public Workers And The Elderly In Detroit Will Be Repeated Elsewhere!

The decision to allow Detroit, Michigan, to declare bankruptcy is a warning sign for the long term future.

It means that public workers, including police officers, fire fighter, teachers, and other municipal workers who devoted their lives to service of their fellow citizens, often at lower wages, will now have their pensions and health care benefits, guaranteed to them by contract and the state constitution of Michigan, cut by at least 40-50 percent, making their old age one of poverty and deprivation!

This is a massive crime against humanity, against the elderly, the poor, and the sick, while the wealthy keep on gaining all of the benefits of their good fortune, because of refusal to accept public responsibility to preserve the pensions of workers.

This is immoral and unethical beyond belief, and the gall of the state to be ready to privatize everything possible in Detroit, including museums and other cultural institutions, will destroy the city of Detroit and any chance for its revival.

We are witnessing the death of Detroit, once the fifth largest city in America, and this abuse of power by the elite wealthy class will soon visit other cities and states, and its effect will be to impoverish America, but benefit the wealthy yet again!