Vol. 1, Issue 122
New Poll Reveals Majority Support
Health Care Public Option
A new poll released this week from
the Washington Post found that 57 percent of Americans support a
public insurance option as part of the health care reform
package, up for 52 percent in mid-August. Additionally, when
offered the choice between a health care plan that has
“bipartisan support” or one that includes a public
option, a majority indicated they would choose a public
option.
The public option, which would
finally provide all Americans with access to affordable, quality
health care, was included in four out of five bills passed by
Congressional committees in the House and Senate this year.
However, a small but vocal handful of Senators continue to
attempt to derail the public option in a blatant effort to
appease the insurance companies. Please take a moment to call
your Congress members today at (877) 264-4226 and urge them to
support the public option.
Learn more at
http://tinyurl.com/yjm3kmy
Nurses to Strike for Flu
Safety
This
week, 16,000 registered nurses, members of the California Nurses
Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee (CNA/NNOC),
announced they intend to strike on October 30th to protest the
insufficient measures taken by area hospitals to prevent the
spread of H1N1 flu. The nurses are demanding proper equipment
and procedures to treat patients with H1N1
symptoms and make sure that nurses and other patients
don’t get sick. One nurse in Sacramento has already died
from H1N1 exposure.
In response to the strike
announcement, California officials have finally released
millions of safety masks it had been holding, removing one more
excuse for hospitals in meeting the highest public safety
protections, as put forth by Cal/OSHA and the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention.
Visit
http://calnurses.org/ to learn more.
Labor-Business-Environmental Coalition
Seeks Federal Funding for High-Speed
Rail
The California Labor Federation is
partnering with the Sierra Club and the California Chamber of
Commerce to support California’s 
application for billions in federal funding
to build an 800-mile statewide high-speed rail system that
voters approved last November.
The high-speed rail would
create 130,000 construction and 450,000 long-term sustainable
green jobs, spurring economic growth and protecting our
environment and the long-term sustainability of our state. By
easing traffic congestion and facilitating the movement of goods
and workers, high-speed rail will eliminate 12 billion pounds of
environmentally damaging emissions each year—the
equivalent of removing 1 million cars from our
roads.
Learn more at http://tinyurl.com/yf583f9
Poizner Announces Widespread Budget Cuts if
Elected Governor
On Monday, Republican
gubernatorial candidate Steve Poizner announced that if elected,
his approach to the state budget crisis will be to follow in
Schwarzenegger’s ineffectual footsteps, by giving tax
breaks to the 
wealthy and slashing the state budget by
another 10 percent over two years. The plan would gut essential
state programs like Medi-Cal, welfare and prison health care.
Poizner’s fellow Republican gubernatorial
candidates have also announced similar Schwarzenegger-esque
budget tactics. Meg Whitman, the former CEO of online
auction firm eBay, plans to layoff 40,000 state workers and make
at least $15 billion in permanent cuts, Former Silicon Valley
congressman Tom Campbell, the third Republican gubernatorial
candidate, also intends to cut spending by $12.65 billion and
generate $2.7 billion in revenue by asking state employees to
give back part of their salaries.
Read the
news story at http://tinyurl.com/yzcr3ah
Judge Blocks Cuts to In-Home
Supportive Services
This week, a federal judge
temporarily stopped the state from making deep cuts in the In
Home Supportive Services (IHSS) homecare program that would have
affected some 130,000 low income elderly, blind and disabled
Californians. In her ruling, U.S. District Court Judge Claudia
Wilken declared that the state cannot go forward on November 1st
with its planned cuts because they would result in substantial
harm, damage and injury and likely violate federal
law.
In her ruling, the judge stated that
the state's Functional Index rankings--which it would use to
determine who to cut from the program-- were clearly not based
on need, essential services could be withdrawn arbitrarily, and
“people could lose something irreplaceable – the
ability to remain safely in their homes.”
Learn more at
http://www.udwa.org/
L.A.’s New Hospitality
Training Boot Camp Promotes Increased Diversity in
Hotels
Last week marked the completion of
L.A.’s first-ever “Hospitality Boot Camp”
-- a five-day, intensive workforce-training program designed to
give African-American jobseekers the skills and information they
need to obtain well-paying, union jobs in the hospitality
industry. The boot camp is sponsored by the Diversity Task
Force, a coalition made up of UNITE HERE Local 11, hotels,
community groups and local clergy.
At the graduation ceremony, Mayor
Antonio Villaraigosa praised the boot camp and announced a
$650,000 grant from the City to sponsor future Hospitality
trainings. "Hospitality is the largest and fastest-growing
industry in the City of Los Angeles,” the Mayor said.
“We must make sure that these [hospitality] jobs are
available to everyone, because all Angelenos - regardless of
race or ethnicity - deserve an opportunity to earn a living wage
and quality benefits."
Progressive Freedom Festival in Kern
County This Weekend
This weekend, join progressive
activists in Kern County for the 4th annual Progressive Freedom
Festival in Kernville. The two-day event will feature an
exciting line-up of progressive speakers, along with inspiring
music, food, art, green energy exhibits, demonstrations,
activities for kids and more.
On Sunday, the festival will host a
variety of presentations and panel discussions, including a
lively debate on health care reform featuring local doctors and
health care reform expert RJ Eskow from the Huffington
Post.
For a complete schedule
of events, visit http://kvfreedomfestival.com/
