Labor in Illinois

Week of Mar 5

Finley Hospital (Dubuque) Heads to Court in Illinois

The National Labor Relations Board says that the hospital used unfair labor practices during contract negotiations. They will meet, once again, in a Jo Daviess County, Illinois, courtroom. According to the Board, the hospital has refused to increase nurses’ wages since the expiration of their contract last June. The hospital also allegedly asked the union to throw out its labor grievances to reach a contract agreement, and denied nurses specific patient information. Finley has contended that the patient information violates privacy laws. As of latest notice, Finley nurses do not plan to strike again, and call last month’s bargaining sessions successful – KCRG.TV News (5 Mar 2007)

Blagojevich Proposes Privatization of Lottery to Fund Education, Pensions, Construction

Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich unveiled a plan calling for, among other things, a $10 billion lease of the Illinois Lottery and an estimated $16 billion in bond sales to fund state pensions. He proposes dedicating $1.5 billion to school construction, rehabilitation and other infrastructure projects, and vows that $6.5 billion of the cost of the projects will be matched with federal grants. He also proposes investing $750 million to develop renewable energy sources, $425 million for public transportation, and $600 million for capital investments in public universities. -- Quincy Herald Whig (8 Mar 2007)

Illinois Unemployment Falls

Since December, Illinois’ 19,900 new jobs mark the highest employment gain of any state. Employment in the state rose to 6.65 million in January, up from 6.48 million in December but down from 6.7 million in January 2006. – St. Louis Business Journal (8 Mar 2007)

Retiree Benefits Widen Between Government and Private Sector

According to the Congressional Research Service, the nation’s six million retired civil servants, including teachers, police, administrators and laborers, received a median benefit of $17,640 in 2005. Retired government employees are twice as likely to get a pension as their counterparts in the private sector. Several states, including Indiana, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, West Virginia and especially Illinois, currently maintain budgets that still owe their military and civil servants pensions as well as Social Security benefits. – USA Today (25 Feb 2007)

Dick Durbin Supports Amtrak Passenger Trains from Chicago to Surrounding Cities

Illinois Senator Dick Durbin, the Senate’s majority whip, has supported a movement to restore intercity passenger trains from Chicago to Rockford, Freeport, Galena, and Dubuque. Durbin vows that such non-stop passenger service is feasible and sustainable if communities along the line, as well as labor unions and the State, all support the project. Studies on the project’s feasibility cited the success of the Canadian National (CN, ex-Illinois Central) line. Durbin’s office showed that a train running on the CN line could get from Chicago to Dubuque in less than 4.5 hours, and from Chicago to Rockford in 45 minutes. The Rockford Register Star reports that the Illinois Department of Transportation and Amtrak have had difficulty in gaining cooperation from CN on recent, state-sponsored expansion of Amtrak service in two cases, but they remain hopeful. Last year, Illinois doubled Amtrak funding to $24 million, increasing service on three state-sponsored routes. The Rockford Register Star reports that communities along the line are excited about the transportation expansion possibilities. – Rockford Register Star (6 Mar 2007)

Illinois Congressman Ray LaHood Votes against Employee Free Choice Act

Representative Ray LaHood, serving Western and Central Illinois, voted against the Employee Free Choice Act, calling it “unbalanced.” He said the provision for secret ballots would “take away the opportunity for the worker to participate and have their voice heard through the ballot.” Last Friday, labor unions of the West Central Illinois Labor Council (WCILC) and workers from the Peoria area gathered before the Peoria Public Library, across from LaHood’s office, to protest. Mike Everett, president of the WCILC, said “It’s actually easier to form unions in other countries than it is here, in the land of the free.” – Pekin Daily Times (02 Mar 2007)

AFL-CIO Executive Board Considering Stance on Health Care

Labor leaders gathering in Las Vegas this week are considering the priorities of the labor movement, and especially the position of the unions on health care. Some union leaders support HR 646, an expansion of the Medicare system, as a priority in the next presidential election. – Capital Newspapers (Wisconsin) (6 Mar 2007)