CONN-OSHA

 Breakfast Roundtable Discussion Group Meeting

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

   The safety and health of any company can sometimes be an overlooked priority. The Labor Department’s CONN-OSHA division has taken steps to help your business keep up to date on the latest information and resources. On the third Tuesday of every month, CONN-OSHA offers Breakfast Roundtable Meetings that cover subjects ranging from evacuation plans and fire extinguishers to air quality and ergonomics. The intent of these free 90-minute workshops is to discuss safety and health issues in a supportive and informal environment. The roundtable meetings are held from 8:15 am to 9:45 on the third Tuesday of the month at the Connecticut Department of Labor:

 CT Dept. of Labor - 200 Folly Brook Boulevard - Wethersfield, CT 06109 - Phone (860) 263-6900

 Directions

Ø       Route I-91 (North or South) to Exit 28 (Route 5/15 South)

Ø       Take first exit, Exit 85 (Route 99 South, Silas Deane Highway)

Ø       At first traffic light, take Right onto Jordan Lane

Ø       At Stop sign, go straight

Ø       At traffic light, turn left onto Folly Brook Boulevard, Labor Department is on your left

Ø       Enter front door, sign in with Security Guard, proceed to second floor conference room A

Pre-registration is required. Those interested in attending should reply to this e-mail or send an email to able.john@dol.gov

The focus subject for the March 16, 2010 meeting is:

“Show to Promote the Business Value of Safety”

David L. Galt

Legal Editor

Business & Legal Resources, Inc. (BLR)

141 Mill Rock Road East

Old Saybrook, CT 06475

860-510-0100

dgalt@blr.com

To survive this economy, we must transform safety into a business value. This presentation identifies the barriers to safety as a business value, looks at business investments and benefits of safety functions, links safety to the drivers of business value, demonstrates tools to improve performance, and methods to effectively communicate with business executives.

Dave Galt is a Legal Editor at Business and Legal Resources, or BLR. BLR is a compliance information publishing company. The company publishes environmental, health, and safety compliance assistance and employee training materials, helping organizations comply with federal and state rules related to employment and compensation, workplace safety, and environmental compliance.

Dave prepares federal and state regulatory summaries of environmental, safety and health topics for Environmental Compliance [In Your State], What to Do About Personnel Problems, and Safety.BLR.com. He develops compliance and educational materials for safety and environmental training programs, and writes feature articles and white papers about business and workplace safety. Dave also serves on the national Certified Environmental, Safety and Health Trainer Board of Certification. Dave earned his master’s degree in environmental management from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies in 1997.

Kleen Energy Fundraiser

Saturday, March 13, 2010 – 7:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.

The Italian Society of Middletown, 72 Court Street

The recent tragic event at the Kleen Energy Power Plant has shaken the city of Middletown and surrounding areas. With this unfortunate event taking place, this is a crucial time that we all need to come together to provide our support. That being said, the Italian Society of Middletown (72 Court St, Middletown) has been generous enough to give us their banquet hall on Saturday, March 13th, 2010. To this end, we will be holding a benefit dinner with a buffet/raffle/DJ/cash bar. All proceeds from this event will benefit the victim's families that were affected by the explosion.

Tickets will be $20 per person and will go on sale Monday, March 1st, 2010. They may be purchased by seeing Judy Liseo or Kristen Faraci at Webster Bank, located at 363 Main Street, in Middletown. The Italian Society of Middletown will also be selling tickets prior to the event. Tickets will also be on sale at the door, but we encourage you to purchase them ahead of time.

A gracious thank you to all of our sponsors, your generosity will be recognized that evening.

Nominate Candidates for IAFF Local Leadership Award 

March 1, 2010 – The IAFF is accepting nominations for the Local Leadership Award, which recognizes and honors active and active-retired local leaders who have dedicated more than 15 years to their local.

The award was created by Convention resolution at the 49th Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada, to champion the standard of leadership set by Dennis J. Murray - one of the longest-serving local presidents in IAFF history and the first recipient of the award.

Candidates must be nominated by their local and chosen by the IAFF Executive Board. Recipients will be awarded at the IAFF 50th Convention in San Diego, California.

Click here to download the nomination guidelines and entry form.

For more information, email pr@iaff.org or call (202) 824-1588.

SAVE THE DATE............ Sunday, October 17, 2010, 12:00 Noon - 8th Annual Ct. Firefighters Memorial Serivce - View Flyer 

Pratt Continues War Against Connecticut:

Announces Layoffs & Court Appeal

“They should work with us to save jobs.”

February 22, 2010    Kensington, CT – Representatives of the Machinists Union were notified this afternoon that Pratt & Whitney intends to lay off 119 workers in Cheshire and 44 in East Hartford.  Pratt President David Hess then announced that the company would be appealing the court decision on their failure to make any effort to preserve Connecticut jobs. 

Before layoffs begin, the company will survey for volunteers, as outlined in the collective bargaining agreement.  But union representatives were given no opportunity to suggest alternatives to layoffs, even though workers are being brought in on over-time in the same areas the company claims there is a “lack of work.” 

During the trial on the company’s plot to circumvent the contract and move work out of state, evidence was presented that the company planned to claim a downturn in aerospace as an excuse for cutting Connecticut jobs.  Today’s layoff announcement, with no discussion of alternatives, seems to defy the court’s ruling, and indicates company executives have not learned anything from the lessons of the trial.

Everett Corey, IAM District 26’s Directing Business Representative, said:  “The top brass of Pratt & UTC were caught in lie after lie during the court trial.  They should have owned up to their mistakes and sat down with us.  Instead, they think they can save face by punishing workers.  It’s outrageous.  If they want a fight, they will get one.”

James Parent, IAM District 26 Assistant Directing Business Representative and chief IAM negotiator for UTC issues, stated: “My message to Pratt is simple: ‘work with us to save jobs.’  The same people who orchestrated the plant-closing fiasco for Pratt are pushing these layoffs.  If they want to start cutting jobs, that’s the people they should start with.”

2010 - Hank Kershner Scholarship - View Information

February 8, 2010

Dear Brothers and Sisters:

The tragic accident at the Middletown power plant has claimed the lives of five workers.  Others are injured and some remain in the hospital. 

Our hearts go out to our union brothers and the families of those who lost loved ones and we mourn their loss.  We pray for the workers who suffered injuries and hope that they will have a speedy and full recovery.  We stand in solidarity with all the workers on the site who have endured the trauma of this workplace accident. 

I have reached out to the unions that represent workers on the construction site and offered our support. 

As soon as these unions determine how we can best be of assistance, I will write to all of you.  Thank you for your concern and for keeping all of the families and workers in your thoughts.

Fraternally,

John Olsen, President, Ct. AFL-CIO

For Immediate Release: February 6, 2010

Congressman Larson: Statement on Pratt & Whitney Lawsuit Decision

“An Overwhelming Victory for Pratt Workers and the State of Connecticut” 

Hartford, CT- U.S Congressman John B. Larson (CT-01) issued the following statement in response to the U.S. District Court injunction against Pratt &Whitney to uphold their current Collective Bargaining Agreement with the International Association of Machinists (IAM) District 26. The decision, offered late last night, prevents Pratt &Whitney from closing both the Cheshire and East Hartford CARO operations. The subsequent work was going to be relocated to the state of Georgia and out of the country.

“This announcement is an overwhelming victory for Pratt workers and the State of Connecticut.  I congratulate the Machinists Union and its members on successfully challenging the actions of Pratt &Whitney and ensuring more than 1,000 highly skilled jobs remain where it belongs, in Connecticut.

“I and the Connecticut Congressional Delegation have worked hard to secure the essential military projects for Pratt & Whitney to help grow our economy and create jobs in our state.

“The company’s plans to close both the Cheshire and East Hartford CARO operations without taking every legitimate action to prevent it, is both disheartening and upsetting.

“I strongly urge Pratt & Whitney not to appeal this decision, but to work with the Union, the Congressional Delegation, and the State to help keep these jobs in Connecticut for the long term. By working together, both Pratt & Whitney and the Union can and will prosper.”

###

March 22, 2010: Connecticut AFL-CIO Legislative Conference - View Details

President's Budget Provides Funding for Fire Service Programs

February 1, 2010 – The White House today unveiled the president's proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2011. The proposal includes $305 million for the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant program, $305 million for Assistance to Firefighters (FIRE Act) grants, $28 million for Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) and more than $2 billion to state governments and urban areas to improve their emergency response capabilities.

In proposing $305 million for SAFER, President Obama noted that Congress is likely to add an additional $500 million for SAFER as part of an emergency jobs package. The House of Representatives included the $500 million for SAFER in a jobs bill that it approved in December, and the Senate is expected to include SAFER funding in its version of this emergency bill. The total proposed for SAFER funding would therefore rise to $805 million between the emergency spending and the regular Fiscal Year 2011 appropriation process.

The $805 million proposed for hiring fire fighters is on top of the $420 million that Congress approved for Fiscal Year 2010 and the $210 awarded for Fiscal Year 2009.

"Congress and the new administration have designated more than $1 billion for fire fighter jobs over the past three years. This stands in sharp contrast to the previous administration, which proposed zero funding for SAFER and attempted to kill the program each year," says IAFF General President Harold Schaitberger.

The president's budget proposal now goes to Capitol Hill, where Congress is likely to change funding levels for many of the programs. Historically, Congress has approved more for the FIRE Act and SAFER than the president proposed, and the IAFF will be working with its allies in the House and Senate Appropriations Committee to grow the funding levels for these programs.

"We treat the president's proposal as a baseline," explains Schaitberger. "Our job is now to make the case to congressional appropriators why we need even more money than the White House recommends."

Excise Tax Update

Brothers and Sisters,

With a health care reform deal announced loudly in the media between "labor," the administration and Congress on changes to the excise tax provision, I want to provide you a new update today that outlines some of the key elements of that deal and what we know about the potential impact they will have on each and every one of you.

From Day One, we forcefully argued that the excise tax was bad policy and bad politics and that it had no place in any health care reform bill. Not once did we waver from that argument.

Our message was heard and we believe had a significant impact on what ultimately came out of the negotiations between representatives of the labor movement, the administration and Congress.

We believe we can say with confidence that our constant and consistent message resulted in significant changes to the excise tax provision of the reform bill that the House and Senate now must finish debate on and send to the president.

I don't want to overstate this, but suffice it to say that our hard opposition to the excise tax convinced negotiators to agree to new provisions that, while they fall short of our goal of eliminating the excise tax, these changes do effectively eliminate the burden of additional taxes that would have fallen on our members had the tax remained unaltered.

Based on the initial information we have received from the AFL-CIO on the changes to the excise tax provision, we know that:

• Every health plan covering our members is exempt from the tax until 2018, based on new provisions that collectively bargained health benefits will be exempt from the tax until 2018, as would the benefits of all state and local municipal worker plans even if not collectively bargained;
• The threshold for the tax to kick in on family plans has been raised from $23,000 to $24,000 for all workers, and from $26,000 to $27,000 for our members;
• The cost of dental and vision coverage will be excluded from the cost of the plans when determining if they rise above the threshold beginning in 2015;
• Each year after 2013, the $27,000 threshold for our members will increase by the CPI + 1 percent and will rise even more in high cost states;
• Further, if health care costs rise faster than expected prior to 2013, the initial thresholds will also be increased, as well.

While there's significantly more to the deal than just these initial bullets, and we are going to do a full and complete analysis over the coming days, we have not been able to identify a single IAFF member's health care plan that would or will be subject to the excise tax based on these new provisions scheduled to take effect in 2018.

We know there's a lot more to go in the political process before this bill is finally approved by both houses of Congress and signed by the President, but we are pleased that our efforts to protect our members from a severe economic penalty appear to have made a significant impact on what we are told will be in the final legislation.

We will update all of you as more details of the bill emerge.

Fraternally,

Harold A. Schaitberger
General President

Fairfield County Labor Council School - The UPFFA is sponsoring this in conjunction with the University of Connecticut, Center of Continuing Studies and the Fairfield Labor Council an opportunity to learn more about your labor movement and what you can do to make it more successful – March 31, 2010 – May 5, 2010.

View flyer for additional information.  

June 11, 2009 – The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the global outbreak of the novel H1N1 influenza virus to be in Phase 6 -- a full-scale pandemic.

The announcement warns the World Health Organization's 194 member nations to expect the arrival of the new flu strain, which is likely to infect up to one-third of the population in the first wave and return in later waves over the next several years. Simultaneously, the World Health Organization is advising the world's makers of influenza vaccine to quickly prepare commercial-scale pandemic vaccine of this H1N1 virus.

The move to Phase 6, the highest level in the World Health Organization's graduated scale of pandemic alerts, has been expected for weeks and in the opinion of many experts is overdue. By definition, it means that the virus is showing "community-level transmission," which means it is being passed from person to person without an easily traceable chain of infection, in two or more regions of the world.

The IAFF has developed an online resource with guidance on the H1N1 virus to remind members to take the necessary precautions for responding safely and effectively during this outbreak.