More
health care news:
► In
Sunday's Wash. Post -- States to shape health
reform -- The debate over
whether to let states opt out of any government-run plan
overlooks a key facet of the health-care measures being
assembled in Congress: When Washington is done, the shape of any
new health-care system is likely to be finalized in Lansing and
Boise and Baton Rouge. And Olympia.
► In Sunday's
Milwaukee J-S -- Health care tax could hit home -- Missing from
the sweeping health reform bill unveiled last week by House
Democrats was the Senate Finance Committee's proposal to tax
high-cost insurance plans. It has been billed as a tax on
"Cadillac" health plans. But make no mistake: It would affect a
lot of people who drive Chevys.
► In
today's NY Times -- Obama's strategy appears to be paying off --
After months of work by five committees and weeks of back-room
bargaining by Democratic leaders, Obama’s arms-length
strategy appears to be paying dividends, with the House and the
Senate poised to take up legislation to insure nearly all
Americans.
► At
NYTimes.com -- Employer mandate becomes sticky issue for
reconciling bills -- Like the House bill, the Senate health
committee’s bill requires employers, except for many small
businesses, to offer coverage to their workers and pay a
substantial share of the cost of their premiums, or face a
financial penalty. But the Senate Finance Committee’s bill
has no requirement on employers, though it does impose a penalty
for those who do nothing.
►
In today's LA Times -- Business leaders' opposition to public option
takes chutzpah (David Lazarus column)
-- Eastman Kodak Co. has laid off 22,000
workers in the last five years. Verizon will have handed about
16,000 workers their hats by Dec. 31. Yet the chief executives
of both companies are denouncing a government health insurance
plan as being bad for America. Where do they expect all the
people they've laid off -- and their families -- to get
coverage?
► In
today's Wash. Post -- Hearts, minds and health care (E.J. Dionne column) -- Barring
astoundingly self-defeating behavior by Democrats, Obama and his
party will own the most sweeping reform of the American social
safety net since the passage of Medicare in the 1960s and,
arguably, Social Security in the 1930s. Both parties know this.
That's why much of the rhetoric you'll hear in the coming weeks
will not really be about whether to pass a bill. It will be
designed to shape how the voters who will decide the 2010
elections come to view the new system.
Boeing
news:
► In the Everett Herald
-- Its mind made up, Boeing
talks with Sen. Murray were for appearances -- Everett never had a chance. Sen. Patty
Murray heard firsthand on Feb. 9 about South Carolina's favored
status with Everett scrawled along the margin, its chances slim
if not none. Top executives suggested Murray not waste her
immense political capital trying to alter the course of events
set in motion by Boeing CEO Jim McNerney. Yet at Murray's
insistence, McNerney agreed to talks with the Machinists. Boeing
deliberately set the bar high, asking for a 10-year no-strike
agreement they didn't expect to get. After months of talks with
little progress, the union did something on Oct. 21 that Boeing
never expected. They offered a contract extension assuring no
strikes through 2020. Workers had a few things they wanted in
the way of wages, benefits and, probably most annoying to
Boeing, a commitment for future work at the plant. These were
negotiations on a long-term contract extension so a counteroffer
from the aerospace company seemed in order. It didn't come.
Boeing went silent. Days passed before Murray was back on the
phone with McNerney, stressing how success was in sight. She
felt confident the union would modify its stance if Boeing
responded. McNerney made no promises. The next night, the eve of
the decision, McNerney and Murray spoke again. This conversation
differed from all their others. He told her a stable work force
was not the only issue, though he didn't share what other issues
concerned him. The conversation ended and with it all pretense
of a second look at Everett. Says Murray's spokeswoman Alex
Glass" “I think Boeing was surprised they got as close as
they did and may not have wanted to get to the finish
line."
►
In Sunday's Seattle Times -- S.C. decision transforms Boeing's relationship
with Washington, labor unions -- The
state must accept a future where it competes for every new
Boeing airplane program, with low-wage South Carolina as a
certain rival. The Machinists must accept that if Boeing doesn't
like their demands, it can direct future work to its nonunion
Charleston plants. A defining moment could come about 2015, when
Boeing will choose where to build the successor plane to either
the Renton-built 737 or the Everett-built 777.
► In the
Everett Herald -- Signs were clear Boeing isn't tied to location
-- The focus of Boeing's executives is not on place but on the
bottom line. That reality is sinking in for local
lawmakers.
► In the
Everett Herald -- South Carolina fit Boeing's long-term plan to cut
costs (Mike Benbow column) -- Boeing, and for that matter most major corporations,
are looking for locations around the world that can make them a
low-cost producer -- if not the lowest-cost producer -- of their
product. Don't blame the Machinists or the politicians or even
Boeing itself. As a region, it's up for us to decide how
important our aerospace jobs are and what we're willing to do
today to keep them here. If it's not enough, Boeing will
continue on the plan and go elsewhere.
Local
news:
► In
today's Bellingham Herald -- Tentative power deal
with BPA looks good for Intalco -- A proposed new power deal between Alcoa and the
Bonneville Power Administration could keep the Alcoa Intalco
Works smelter operating for at least another year and a half,
preserving as many as 500 local jobs.
► At AFL-CIO Now --
Washington workers, supporters
rally to save people with disabilities -- WFSE Local 573 members, the City Council of
Medical Lake and community supporters are protesting the planned
closure of Lakeland Village, a residential facility for people
with developmental disabilities. They say the state did not
take into account the cost of relocating patients to state-run
group homes or privately supported living
facilities.
► In the
Olympian -- Olympia city council faces tough call on job
cuts -- City Manager Steve Hall will roll out his proposed
2010 budget today.
► In the
(Longview) Daily News -- Workers' comp reform? Don't forget the workers
(Dave Van Curen column) -- Contrary to the perception of some, a disabling injury
is not a ticket to a life of opulent pleasure. The Daily News
editorial (calling for unspecified reforms to lower employer
costs) expresses no concern for injured workers who may only be
receiving partial wage replacement in tough economic times. Its
stated concern is for the financial burden of employers. Please
recommend something that keeps rates down but doesn’t take
away from injured workers.
National news:
► At AFL-CIO Now --
Time to change the game
for airline, railroad workers -- The deck is stacked against airline and railroad
workers when it comes to union elections. That’s why
airline CEOs are working so hard to defend current election
procedures that count all workers who sit out elections as
“no” votes. Americans are accustomed to elections
where a simple majority of those voting decides the outcome. Not
so for airline and railroad workers -- who must first ensure
that turnout exceeds 50 percent. How can we justify imposing
higher turnout standards on airline and railroad union elections
than we do in elections for the highest office of our land? We
can’t.
► In
today's Wall St. Journal -- Union-vote rule change rankles transport-agency
head -- The chairwoman of the National Mediation Board has
sharply criticized the federal agency's proposal to change a
decades-old election rule that would make it easier for airline
and railway employees to unionize, exposing a sharp rift at the
agency's three-person board.
► In
today's NY Times -- Ford posts unexpected profit of $997 million
-- It's the automaker's first profitable quarter in North
America in more than four years. Meanwhile, the UAW is expected
to announce that its members soundly rejected a deal to help
Ford further cut its labor costs. The deal generally would have
matched concessions that Chrysler and GM workers
approved.
