June 2009, Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton edition of The Union News

Lehigh Valley region unemployment rate increases to 8.3 percent

BY PAUL LEESON
THEUNIONNEWSABE@AOL.COM

LEHIGH VALLEY, May 5th- According to labor data provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry in Harrisburg Center for Workforce Information and Analysis, the Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased by two-tenths of a percentage point from the previous report to 8.3 percent, the highest rate for the region since May 1986 when the rate was also 8.3 percent. The MSA includes Lehigh, Northampton, and Carbon Counties of Pennsylvania and Warren County, New Jersey. Twelve months ago the unemployment rate for the region was 5.1 percent.

There are fourteen Metropolitan Statistical Area’s in Pennsylvania and the Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton Metropolitan Statistical Area has the fifth highest unemployment rate in the Commonwealth.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in Pennsylvania is 7.8 percent, increasing by three-tenths of a percentage point from the previous month. There are 499,000 Pennsylvania residents without jobs, increasing by 16,000 from the previous month. Pennsylvania has a seasonally adjusted workforce of 6,431,000 and 5,932,000 of them have employment. The national seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was reported to be 8.5 percent, increasing by four-tenths of a percentage point from the month before. There are 13,161,000 residents nationally unemployed with more than 12,600,000 receiving unemployment benefits.

The study shows the Williamsport MSA and the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre/Hazleton MSA are tied for the highest unemployment rate in the state at 8.7 percent. The Johnstown MSA has the second highest unemployment rate in the state at 8.6 percent, with the Reading MSA having the third highest unemployment rate at 8.5 percent.

The State College MSA continues to have the lowest unemployment rate in Pennsylvania at 5.6 percent, increasing by one-tenth of a percentage point form the previous month. The Lebanon MSA has the second lowest unemployment rate in the state at 6.7 percent, unchanged from the previous month. The Harrisburg/Carlisie MSA has the third lowest unemployment rate at 7.0 percent, increasing by two-tenths of a percentage point from the month before.

The Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton MSA has the third largest civilian labor force, workers between eighteen and sixty-five years old, in Pennsylvania at 423,800, increasing by 4,400 during the past twelve months.

The Philadelphia MSA has the largest civilian labor force in Pennsylvania at 2,996,600 with 238,100 residents not working. The Pittsburgh MSA has the second largest civilian labor force in Pennsylvania at 1,223,400, with 84,800 residents unemployed. The Harrisburg/Carlisle MSA is the fourth largest civilian labor force in Pennsylvania at 286,800, with 20,200 residents unemployed and the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre/Hazleton MSA has the fifth largest civilian labor force at 284,400 with 24,700 residents not working.

Carbon County has the highest unemployment rate in the MSA at 9.8 percent, increasing by four-tenths of a percentage point from the month before and increasing by three and five-tenths of a percentage point from twelve months ago. Carbon County has 3,100 civilians not working, increasing by 100 during the month and increasing by 1,100 from twelve months ago. Carbon County has a labor force of 31,700, the smallest civilian labor force within the Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Northampton County has the lowest unemployment rate in the MSA at 8.2 percent, increasing by three-tenths of a percentage point from the previous report and increasing by three and one-tenth percentage points from twelve months ago. Northampton County has 12,600 residents not working, increasing by 400 from the previous month and increasing by 4,900 during the past twelve months. Northampton County has a civilian labor force of 153,800, increasing by 1,400 during the past twelve months.

Lehigh County has a unemployment rate of 8.4 percent, increasing by two-tenths of a percentage point from the month before and increasing by three and two-tenths of a percentage points from twelve months ago. Lehigh County has 14,900 residents not working increasing by 200 from the previous month and increasing by 5,700 during the past twelve months. Lehigh County has the largest work force in the MSA at 178,400 residents, increasing by 1,600 from twelve months ago.

June 2009, Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton edition of The Union News

U.S. Chamber of Commerce spending millions to defeat EFCA

BY PAUL TUCKER
THEUNIONNEWSABE@AOL.COM

LEHIGH VALLEY, May 28th- The United States Chamber of Commerce in Washington, DC, has proudly announced the organization launched a $1 million TV ad blitz in five states to block the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCAct)/Card Check, legislation.

The business group on April 14th launched the TV ads in Colorado, Louisiana, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Virginia. The organization inaccurately states in a letter sent to the newspaper the EFCAct legislation would “eliminate workers’ private vote when deciding whether or not to form a union, allow the federal government to set wages and working conditions and impose one-sided penalties on employers.”

The Chamber of Commerce also began running radio ads during the week of April 14th in Alaska and South Dakota, opposing the legislation. “These ads send the message that Card Check is fundamentally hostile to Main Street values and jobs. Grassroots opposition reflected in these ads is changing minds on Capitol Hill, as evidence by increasing bipartisan resistance to the bill,” said Steven Law, the United States Chamber of Commerce chief legal officer.

The organization cited Democratic Arkansas Senator Blanche Lincoln’s decision to oppose advancing the EFCA as an example of the bipartisan resistance of the legislation.

The correspondence to the newspaper states the bill will need 60 votes to advance in the United States Senate and the announcements of opposition by Senator Lincoln and Pennsylvania Democratic Senator Arlen Specter “have left the bill’s future clouded.”

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing more than 3 million businesses and organizations.

The organization sent a letter to Congress in March outlining what they called “how provisions of the EFCAct contradict the principles of international labor law as defined by the International Labor Organization (ILO).

They repeated the false claim the legislation would eliminate secret ballot union election conducted by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Under EFCAct, if at least one-third of the employees sign authorization cards requesting for the National Labor Relations Board to conduct an secret ballot election the agency will do so.

June 2009, Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton edition of The Union News

United Steel Workers Union and three others want to represent Sands Casino workers

BY PAUL TUCKER
THEUNIONNEWSABE@AOL.COM

BETHLEHEM, May 25th- The United Steelworkers of America (USW) Union Local 2599, East Lehigh Street in Bethlehem, announced on May 18th, the union will attempt to organize workers of the Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem. The casino is located at the former site of Bethlehem Steel which began producing steel in Bethlehem in 1873 and closed down in 1998.

Sands Bethlehem is the eighth casino to open in Pennsylvania since the legalizing of slot machines in 2004.

Las Vegas Sands Corporation spent more than $743 million on the project which was built with unionized construction workers from the Lehigh Valley. Sands signed a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) with the Building and Construction Trades Council of the Lehigh Valley labor federation assuring union workers would be hired. The casino opened for business on May 22nd.

According to Jerry Green, President of Local 2599, which once represented workers employed at the steel mill, the union and the UNITE Union, Hamilton Street in Allentown, will jointly attempt to organize approximately 1,000 workers of Sands, which includes former Bethlehem Steel workers. Mr. Green stated the two unions are forming a coalition and will work together during the organizing effort.

SEN. CARPER COMMENTS ON CLOSING OF GM BOXWOOD ROAD PLANT

Tom Carper “Saddened and Dismayed” By Closing Of GM Plant in Newark

WASHINGTON (June 1, 2009) - Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) commented today on the closing of the last auto assembly plant on the East Coast, Delaware’s GM Boxwood Road plant.

Sen. Carper talks about the importance of getting assistance to GM workers, retraining efforts and ultimately finding new use for the GM facility.

Earlier in the day, Sen. Carper and the Delaware delegation released a statement in support of the GM workers, their families and the community. The delegation said:

“The men and women at the Boxwood Road plant have done everything that’s been asked of them. Even when the going was tough, they never gave up. Throughout the years, the workforce there has served as a role model when it comes to labor-management relations, as well as with their commitment to productivity and quality. Our principle job as elected officials in Delaware has been to tell that story to as many people in GM’s top management since 1992 in our ongoing effort to keep the plant open and operating.

“Going forward, we have requested assistance from the Administration to our community - and to communities like ours - which will be hit hard by closure of GM facilities. The three of us will continue to work hard to obtain the help that the workers will need to get through this challenging time in their lives, and to put their lives back together. We’ll also take up GM on its offer to explore what to do with the plant and the real estate surrounding it. We will continue to fight the good fight.”