EWS CLIPS April 5, 2013

Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters

EWS CLIPS

April 5, 2013

Randall Brassell, Director of Communications Telephone: 615-521-4097 (Fax) 615-824-2164 Email: [email protected]

4/1/2013 9:30:00 AM

Obama's newly minted 'Rebuild America Partnership' plan would provide $4 billion for TIGER, TIFIA programs

President Barack Obama on Friday unveiled a "Rebuild America Partnership" plan, which aims to bolster the nation's transportation infrastructure by encouraging private investments and providing $14 billion for transportation projects.

Since he took office four years ago, more than 350,000 miles of U.S. roads, 6,000 miles of rail and 20,000 bridges have been repaired or replaced, "but there's more to do and taxpayers shouldn't have to shoulder the entire burden themselves," Obama said in a press release.

The plan calls for partnering with the private sector to fund projects. To do so, Obama is calling on Congress to enact a National Infrastructure Bank capitalized with $10 billion to leverage private and public capital, and to invest in a broad range of infrastructure projects "without earmarks or political influence."

"In addition, the Administration is proposing changes to the Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act aimed at enhancing the attractiveness of investment in U.S. infrastructure and real estate to a broader universe of private investors," said Obama.

The plan also would provide state and local governments access to a new America Fast Forward Bonds program that would build upon the successful example of the Build America Bonds program and broaden its use to include the types of projects that can be financed with qualified private activity bonds, he said.

Moreover, the plan would provide $4 billion in new competitive funding for the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) and Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) programs in 2014 in addition to a recent eightfold increase in TIFIA funding to $1 billion via the MAP21 surface transportation reauthorization bill.

"Over the past 13 years, TIFIA has entered into 27 loan agreements worth $10.4 billion, resulting in more than $41 billion in total project investment," said Obama. "The additional [TIGER] investment would make new grant and loan funding available for states and localities across the country, giving them both a new source of financing and the flexibility to design projects and financing packages to meet their needs."

Building America's Future officials hailed the plan, including the $14 billion proposed for a National Infrastructure Bank and the TIGER/TIFIA programs.

"[We] support creating a National Infrastructure Bank to better leverage investments, as well as encourage publicprivate partnerships," said Ed Rendell, the former Pennsylvania governor who cochairs Building America's Future, in a prepared statement. "I applaud his plan, but we all know our national infrastructure is in such poor shape that we will need even further investment for decades to come."

4/1/2013 10:00:00 AM

Amtrak seeks more federal capital funds for infrastructure, but less operating support for FY2014

In its fiscalyear 2014 funding request to Congress, Amtrak is emphasizing the need for federal funds to improve and expand intercity passengerrail service, but requesting less federal operating support.

Amtrak is seeking $373 million in federal operating support for FY2014, or about 17 percent less than it requested a year ago. The lower dollar figure was made possible by an improved financial position last fiscal year during which Amtrak covered 88 percent of its operating costs with ticket sales and other nonfederal revenue sources, up from 85 percent in the prior year, Amtrak officials said in a prepared statement.

In addition, if current service levels are maintained, Amtrak's state revenue in FY2014 should increase by $85 million, as the railroad and states implement a congressional requirement on cost allocation for short distance routes.

Amtrak also is requesting $2 billion in federal capital funding to maintain the Northeast Corridor and other Amtrakowned or maintained infrastructure and equipment; advance the Gateway program to expand track, tunnel and station capacity between Newark, N.J., and New York Penn Station; acquire new equipment; and improve accessibility for passengers and disabilities. Furthermore, Amtrak requested $212 million for debt service.

"If we truly want to realize our vision of what rail can offer America, in terms of real mobility improvements and rational modal choices, policy decisions must be made and funding provided to match them," said Amtrak President and Chief Executive Officer Joseph Boardman. "These are big decisions, and will require bold thinking, but they will deliver value for the money."

He noted that Amtrak ridership, revenue, ontime performance and other leading indicators are reaching record levels or registering improvements.

4/1/2013 10:30:00 AM

AAR: Weekly U.S. carloads, intermodal loads climbed again

For a secondstraight week, U.S. railroads boosted both carloads and intermodal loads. For the week ending March 23, they originated 278,738 carloads, up 0.2 percent, and 235,641 containers and trailers, up 1.4 percent compared with volume from the same week last year, according to the Association of American Railroads .

Total U.S. traffic for the week inched up 0.7 percent to 514,379 units. Only four of 10 carload commodity groups posted gains, led by petroleum products at 57 percent. Grain loads declined 17.3 percent and agricultural products carloads dropped 8 percent.

Railroads are expecting continued weakness in ag products volume through the year's first half given last year's drought, said Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc. analysts in their weekly "Rail Flash" report.

"According to the USDA Prospective Plantings report, farmers intend to plant 97.3 million acres of corn in 2013, up 6 percent from 2012 levels and the highest planted acreage since 1936," they said, adding that corn accounts for about half of grain carloads.

Meanwhile, Canadian railroads reported weekly carloads totaling 79,130, up 1.9 percent, and intermodal volume totaling 50,589 units, down 2.2 percent year over year. Mexican railroads' weekly carloads climbed 12.7 percent to 15,990 units but their intermodal volume fell 15.5 percent to 7,585 units.

Through 2013's first 12 weeks, 13 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads handled 4,395,372 carloads, down 1.5 percent, and 3,575,271 containers and trailers, up 6 percent compared with the same 2012 period.

TEAMSTERS AT REPUBLIC SERVICES EXTEND PICKET LINES TO ELYRIA, OHIO Sanitation Landfill Workers On Unfair Labor Practice Strike Extend Picket Line; Teamsters In Elyria Refuse To Cross (Elyria, Ohio) – Sanitation workers employed at Republic Services/Allied Waste’s [NYSE: RSG] Carbon Limestone landfill traveled from Youngstown, Ohio to raise a picket line extension at Republic’s Elyria, Ohio facility early this morning. Republic’s workers in Elyria – almost 200 sanitation drivers and mechanics – are refusing to cross the picket line.

The striking landfill workers are members of Teamsters Local Union 377, and have been on strike since March 27. They are exercising their rights under federal law to strike in protest of Republic’s violations of federal labor law that protects workers’ rights. Republic illegally changed working conditions without bargaining and continues to refuse to provide pertinent information related to contract negotiations.

The sanitation drivers and mechanics in Elyria who are honoring the picket lines of their striking colleagues are members of Teamsters Local Union 20 in Toledo. These workers have the right under federal labor law to refuse to cross picket lines or to refuse to work in support of striking workers at other Republic/Allied Waste locations.

During the past year, Republic/Allied Waste has forced multiple lockouts and strikes, disrupting trash collection for hundreds of thousands of people across the United States and putting communities at risk in an effort to maximize profits for shareholders such as Bill Gates.

“Republic has been bullying its workers by locking them out of their jobs without pay, withholding paychecks, and demanding contract concessions – even though the company makes hundreds of millions in profits each year,” said Ken Hall, Teamsters General Secretary Treasurer.

“Sanitation workers put their lives on the line every day to protect the public health,” Hall said. “They deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.” “Sanitation work is the fourth most dangerous job in the country,” said Robert Morales, Director of the Teamsters Solid Waste, Recycling and Related Industries Division. “These workers are more likely to get killed on the job than police or firefighters. Yet for more than a year now, Republic has been trying to squeeze every last cent out of its workers by cheating them out of pay, ignoring health and safety protections, raising their health care costs, and cutting their retirement benefits.”

“Communities should also be aware of what Republic is doing to put their residents’ health at risk,” Morales said. “And it’s not just trash service disruptions and accidents caused by replacement workers. Republic’s record of endangering the public is getting worse – just ask Missouri and Ohio.”

In Youngstown, a planned natural gas fracking project on the site of Republic’s landfill has residents concerned about pollution that will be generated from the industrial process of oil and gas production. In Stark County, Ohio, odors and other environmental violations stemming from nine years of underground fires at Republic’s Countywide landfill led to a $10 million fine from the EPA and an 800plaintiff lawsuit against Republic that was just settled in March 2013.

Republic/Allied Waste’s total revenues were more than $8.1 billion in 2012, with profits of more than $572 million. Bill Gates is the primary shareholder of Republic stock. Gates owns approximately $2.4 billion worth of stock, or 25 percent of the total worth of the company. Michael Larsen, Gates’ investment manager, sits on Republic’s board of directors.

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.4 million hardworking men and women throughout the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Visit www.teamster.org for more information. Follow us at www.PickUpTheGarbage.com , on Twitter @RepubTeamsters and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/RepublicServicesTeamsters .

Big Labor Scores a Win Immigration compromise includes union-friendly ‘prevailing wage’ provisions

BY: Bill McMorris April 3, 2013 11:03 am

Organized labor succeeded in attaining special provisions in the illegal immigration compromise that will boost union contract prospects. The AFL-CIO and U.S. Chamber of Commerce endorsed a package of immigration reforms on Friday after months of negotiations. Under the deal, 200,000 work visas would be issued each year, up from 66,000. Companies would be forced to pay those workers “ prevailing wages ” dictated by the Department of Labor’s regional standards.

Prevailing wages, which were first adopted nationally with the Davis-Bacon Act, require employers to pay workers at industry standards that are often determined by union pay, according to Steve Allen of the Capital Research Center.

“[Prevailing wage is] usually interpreted to be union wages, which gives unions advantages in bidding for contracts,” Allen said. “It raises prices for whoever’s paying for the project and by requiring union wage regardless, you might as well hire the union guy.”

For example, in Prince George’s County Maryland, prevailing wage laws require any employer to pay electricians about $50 per hour in wages and “fringe” benefits for working on highway construction projects, according to the Department of Labor .

Prevailing wages are higher than many wages the nonunion private sector would pay in a competitive bidding environment, said National Black Chamber of Commerce President Harry Alford.

“Prevailing wages are synonymous with union wages … it means you’re going to use union only,” he said.

The immigration deal would advance prevailing wage laws from federal contractors and the construction industry to any employer that applies for a work visa.

Allen said the provisions are a major reason many labor unions have embraced immigration reform, despite historical opposition to bringing in foreign workers to domestic labor markets.

“Without prevailing wages in place you would flood the economy with more workers which could depress wages and take jobs that would otherwise go to union workers,” he said. “They’re setting an artificial [wage] floor to protect themselves from the economic consequence of brining in new workers.”

Neither the Chamber of Commerce nor the AFL-CIO returned requests for comment.

AFL-CIO head Richard Trumka has been an outspoken advocate for reforming immigration laws on behalf of the nation’s 11 million illegal immigrants and has stepped up efforts to rally the union faithful.

“With your mobilization and hard work, we can win comprehensive immigration reform with a real, workable road map to citizenship for 11 million people who are American in every way except on paper,” he recently told a West Coast gathering of members . “It’s time to win real immigration reform. It will make all of us stronger.”

Allen said the reform championed by Trumka would enhance union prestige by raising wages for members and would strengthen the political influence of unions “They’re thinking that those new workers will benefit you by voting for people to carry out your policy goals—what helps the Democratic coalition helps labor,” he said.

The Department of Labor would be in charge of enforcing the prevailing wage standards. Thomas Perez, President Barack Obama’s nominee to head the department, has championed prevailing wage laws throughout his career and was instrumental to making Maryland the nation’s first “living wage” state.

The compromise package will now move on from the negotiating table of the two interest groups to the eight lawmakers who are trying to pass immigration reform, according to Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.).

“I think we’ve got a deal,” Graham said to CNN’s Candy Crowley on Sunday . “We’ve got to write the legislation, but 2013, I hope, will be the year that we pass bipartisan immigration reform, signed into law with three goals.”

What Immigration Reform Could Mean for American Workers and Why the AFL-CIO is Embracing It

By Robert Reich

Their agreement on is very preliminary and hasn’t yet even been blessed by the so-called Gang of Eight Senators working on immigration reform, but the mere fact that AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and Chamber of Commerce President Thomas J. Donohue agreed on anything is remarkable.

The question is whether it’s a good deal for American workers. It is, and I’ll explain why in a moment.

Under the agreement (arrived at last weekend) a limited number of temporary visas would be issued to foreign workers in low-skilled occupations, who could thereafter petition to become American citizens.

The agreement is an important step toward a comprehensive immigration reform package to be introduced in the Senate later this month. Disagreement over allowing in low-skilled workers helped derail immigration reform in 2007.

The unions don’t want foreign workers to take jobs away from Americans or depress American wages, while business groups obviously want the lowest-priced workers they can get their hands on.

So they’ve compromised on a maximum (no more than 20,000 visas in the first year, gradually increasing to no more than 200,000 in the fifth and subsequent years), with the actual number in any year depending on labor market conditions, as determined by the government. Priority would be given to occupations where American workers were in short supply.

The foreign workers would have to receive wages at least as high as the typical (“prevailing”) American wage in that occupation, or as high as the prospective employer pays his American workers with similar experience — whichever is higher. The unions hope these safeguards will prevent American workers from losing ground to foreign guest- workers.

But employers hope the guest-worker program will also prevent low-wage Americans from getting a raise. As soon as any increase in demand might begin to push their wages higher, employers can claim a “labor shortage” — allowing in more guest workers, who will cause wages to drop back down again.

So why would the AFL-CIO agree to any new visas at all?

Presumably because some 11 million undocumented workers are already here, doing much of this work. The only way these undocumented workers can ever become organized – and not undercut attempts to unionize legal workers — is if the undocumented workers also become legal.

Remember, we’re talking about low-wage work that U.S. employers can’t do abroad – fast-food cooks and servers, waiters, hotel cleaners, hospital orderlies, gardeners, custodians, cashiers, and the like. (Construction jobs were exempted from the agreement because the building trades are already well- organized and saw more risk than gain from guest-workers.)

They’re the fastest-growing job categories in America, and also the lowest-paying. According to new data out last Friday from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, seven of the ten largest occupations in America now pay less than $30,000 a year.

A full-time food prep worker — the third most-common job in the U.S. – earned $18,720 last year. Cashiers and waiters pocketed less than $21,000.

The trend is in the wrong direction – toward even more of these jobs, and lower pay. And that’s not because of undocumented workers. It’s because of structural changes in the economy that have shipped high-wage manufacturing jobs abroad and replaced other semi-skilled work with computers and robots. If you don’t have the right education and connections, you’re on a downward escalator.

The real median wage of Americans is already 8 percent below what it was in 2000. The median pay of jobs created during this recovery is less than the median of the jobs lost in the downturn.

One way to reverse this trend is enable these workers to join together in unions, and demand better pay and working conditions. And one strategy for accomplishing this is for the unions to embrace immigration reform, and organize like mad.

This is the next frontier for organized labor. Immigration reform is part of its long-term strategy.

IOWA TEAMSTERS ENDORSE BRALEY FOR U.S. SENATE Rep. Bruce Braley a Proven Champion of Working Families (Cedar Rapids, IA) – Today, Teamsters Local Unions in Iowa unanimously endorsed Rep. Bruce Braley (DIA) for United States Senate. With more than 10,000 members across Iowa, the Teamsters Union is committed to helping Braley in his bid for Senate.

Since his election to Congress in 2006, Braley has an established record of fighting to create goodpaying jobs and putting the interests of middle class workers and their families first. He established the Populist Caucus in order to cut taxes for the middle class, level the playing field at the negotiating table, defend American competitiveness by fighting for fair trade principals and ensure all levels of education are available to anyone who desires it.

“Rep. Braley is someone who isn’t afraid of hard work,” said Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa. “He has spent his life standing up for workers and their right to have safety on the job, a pension to retire and dignity and respect in the workplace. He is exactly the kind of person we need in the Senate.”

“I have known Bruce for many years and he is a tireless fighter for our members and the working families of Iowa,” said Gary Dunham, SecretaryTreasurer of Teamsters Local Union 238 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. “Bruce was born and raised in a small town in Iowa and I can think of no one better to serve in the Senate. I am so proud that our union has endorsed him today.”

Judge: Mich. right-to-work challenge will move forward

Labor supporters had claimed law passed in violation of state's Open Meetings Act.

MASON, Mich. A judge on Wednesday rejected Attorney General Bill Schuette's request to dismiss a lawsuit by labor supporters who allege Michigan's new rightto work laws were passed in violation of the state's Open Meetings Act .

Judge William Collette said in Ingham County Circuit Court a coalition of labor unions presented enough evidence to warrant the legal challenge but he fell short of declaring whether any open meetings violation actually occurred when the Capitol was closed in December 2012 as lawmakers took up righttowork legislation for the first time.

STORY: Righttowork impact uncertain in Mich.

"I don't know if you have a good case," Collette told attorneys for the labor unions. "You have a real uphill battle but there are some haystacks on fire around the field."

Collette also criticized the state, questioning Assistant Attorney General Michelle Brya about whether Republican leadership ordered staff aides to take up seats in the House gallery Dec. 6 to prevent the public from observing initial action on righttowork legislation.

Brya called the allegation "inaccurate" but Collette said it was still "suspicious" and worth debating as part of the lawsuit. "Oftentimes, I have criminal trials and much of the cases are built on circumstantial evidence. Other things happen that lead to conclusions, and this seems to be one of those," he said.

The attorneys will appear in court April 11 to set a hearing schedule. Collette said he expects testimony from witnesses to take place this summer.

Labor supporters filed the original complaint in December 2012 amid protests over righttowork legislation that bans paying union dues as a condition of employment. An amended complaint was filed Jan. 31 by the coalition of labor unions, the American Civil Liberties Union and several Democratic state lawmakers.

The coalition wants the righttowork laws declared invalid and claims Republican lawmakers violated the open meetings law by closing the Capitol for nearly five hours the afternoon of Dec. 6, 2012, when the legislation was first debated and put to a vote.

Schuette, a Republican, rejects the unions' claims and wanted the lawsuit dismissed Wednesday. He contends that when the doors were closed, hundreds of protesters inside the Capitol were allowed to remain inside.

Schuette also contends the laws shouldn't be invalidated because the only vote cast while the Capitol was closed was by the House and it was over a third righttowork bill that never became law. Well after the Capitol doors were reopened that evening, the Senate approved the two other righttowork bills that were signed into law five days later.

The lawsuit stems from an original complaint filed Dec. 6, in which unions were granted a temporary restraining order that forced the State Police to reopen the Capitol to the hundreds of protesters locked outside.

Collette issued an initial ruling on Dec. 7 and declared that the State Police acted within its authority to lock down the Capitol because of public safety concerns. But he also urged the State Police to avoid doing so in the future and told them to outline procedures for similar events in the future.

Overtime Laws Could Be Loosened Under GOP Comp-Time Proposal

WASHINGTON -- House Republicans are planning to introduce legislation that could loosen the nation's 75-year-old law governing overtime in the workplace, allowing employers and workers to choose taking compensatory time off rather than the traditional time-and-a-half pay.

Cast by Republicans as a reform toward workplace flexibility, the proposal would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act, a bedrock labor law of the New Deal era, to ostensibly give workers more options in how to use their accrued overtime. Democrats and labor leaders, however, will likely oppose the measure on the grounds that it could weaken protections of the traditional 40- hour work week. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) first hinted at the measure in early February, when he delivered a speech at the American Enterprise Institute that was seen as part of the GOP's wider rebranding efforts toward a more caring party. Cantor noted that many public employees are already allowed to convert earned overtime into comp time, and he argued that extending that option to the private sector would be a boon to working people.

"If you’re a working parent, you know there’s hardly ever enough time at home to be with the kids,” Cantor said. “Federal laws dating back to the 1930s make it harder for parents who hold hourly jobs to balance the demands of work and home. An hourly employee cannot convert previous overtime into future comp-time or flex-time."

On Tuesday, Rep. Martha Roby (R-Ala.) told USA Today that she plans to introduce such a bill next week, saying it could "provide some relief in this economy to working families." The language of the bill is not public yet. Such proposals aren't entirely new. The GOP pushed a similar, failed effort in 2003, called the Family Time Flexibility Act , which would have given private-sector workers the voluntary option of taking comp time rather than overtime pay, limited to 160 hours per year. That bill expressly forbid employers from pressuring workers into taking comp time rather than pay, but opponents of such measures warn that such coercion would still happen. Federal and state labor officials already have a hard time enforcing a rather clear-cut overtime law, and workers routinely claim in court that they've been denied the time-and-a-half pay that they've earned. Given the power dynamic between bosses and employees, the use of comp time could become something less than voluntary in practice in certain workplaces.

Union Pacific Launches Tie Replacement Project on Nebraska Rail Line Posted By Harry Butler On April 4, 2013 @ 10:51 am In More News | No Comments

Union Pacific Railroad is launching a nearly $7 million project to upgrade the rail line between North Bend and Grand Island, Neb.

The project begins today and is scheduled to be completed by the end of June. The railroad plans to replace 33,500 concrete railroad ties and one switch along the stretch.

“Union Pacific helps link businesses with consumers, suppliers and markets across the nation and around the world,” said Donna Kush, Union Pacific vice president – public affairs, Northern Region, in a written statement. “In addition to helping move customers’ goods more safely and efficiently, our investments support communities by reducing traffic congestion, facilitating industrial development and, promoting economic expansion.”

TEAMSTERS AT REPUBLIC SERVICES/ALLIED WASTE EXTEND PICKET LINES TO CALIFORNIA Ohio Sanitation Landfill Workers On Unfair Labor Practice Strike Extend Picket Line To California On Anniversary of MLK Assassination (FREMONT, Calif.) – Workers on strike at Republic Services/Allied Waste extended picket lines to five Northern California locations today, on the anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., who was killed in Memphis supporting striking waste workers.

“Fortyfive years later, this giant trash corporation Republic has been bullying its workers by locking them out of their jobs without pay, withholding paychecks, and demanding contract concessions even though it makes hundreds of millions in profits each year,” said Teamsters General SecretaryTreasurer Ken Hall.

Republic/Allied Waste’s [NYSE: RSG] workers in Daly City, Pacifica, Half Moon Bay, Fremont and Fairfield, Calif., refused to cross picket lines today in support of sanitation workers on strike at the company’s Carbon Limestone landfill in Youngstown, Ohio.

The striking landfill workers, members of Teamsters Local 377, began their strike on March 27. They are exercising their right to strike in protest of Republic’s violations of federal laws that protect workers’ rights, including the company unlawfully changing working conditions without bargaining.

“Like Dr. King said in Memphis, all labor has worth,” Hall said. “Sanitation workers put their lives on the line every day to protect the public health. They deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.”

The landfill workers in Half Moon Bay, the sanitation drivers in Daly City and the transfer station workers in Pacifica who are honoring the picket lines of their striking colleagues are members of Teamsters Local 350 in Daly City. The sanitation drivers in Fremont and Fairfield who are honoring the picket lines are members of Teamsters Local 70 and Local 315. The workers have the legal right to refuse to cross picket lines in support of striking workers from other Republic/Allied Waste locations.

During the past year, Republic/Allied Waste has forced multiple lockouts and strikes, disrupting trash collection for hundreds of thousands of people across the United States and putting communities at risk. Republic earned profits of more than $572 million in 2012, and its primary shareholder, Bill Gates, saw his net assets increase by $7 billion last year.

“Sanitation work is the fourth most dangerous job in the country,” said Robert Morales, Director of the Teamsters Solid Waste, Recycling and Related Industries Division. “These workers are twice as likely to be killed on the job than police officers, and seven times more likely to be killed on the job than firefighters. Yet for more than a year now, Republic has been trying to squeeze every last cent out of its workers by cheating them out of pay, ignoring health and safety protections, raising their health care costs, and cutting their retirement benefits.”

In Bridgeton, Mo., an ongoing fire at Republic’s landfill has caused an explosion and months of noxious fumes. The fire is next to buried radioactive nuclear wastes. The Missouri Attorney General has just announced a lawsuit against Republic to force it to correct its environmental violations and to provide remedies to help local residents and businesses deal with the ongoing effects of the burning waste. The lawsuit also seeks to order Republic to pay for ongoing environmental testing for compounds such as dioxins, hydrogen cyanide and sulfur dioxide. In Youngstown, a planned natural gas fracking project on the site of Republic’s landfill has residents concerned about pollution that will be generated from the industrial process of oil and gas production. In Stark County, Ohio, odors and other environmental violations stemming from nine years of underground fires at Republic’s Countywide landfill led to a $10 million fine from the EPA and an 800plaintiff lawsuit against Republic that was just settled in March 2013.

Republic/Allied Waste’s total revenues were more than $8.1 billion in 2012. Bill Gates is the primary shareholder of Republic stock. Gates owns approximately $2.4 billion worth of stock, or 25 percent of the total worth of the company. Michael Larsen, Gates’ investment manager, sits on Republic’s board of directors.

Dim labor report shows US employers added just 88,000 jobs in March, fewest in 9 months

By Associated Press, Published: April 5

WASHINGTON — A streak of robust job growth came to a halt in March, signaling that U.S. employers may have grown cautious in a fragile economy.

The gain of 88,000 jobs was the smallest in nine months. Even a decline in unemployment to a four-year low of 7.6 percent was nothing to cheer: It fell only because more people stopped looking for work and were no longer counted as unemployed.

Friday’s weak jobs report from the Labor Department caught analysts by surprise and served as a reminder that the economic recovery is still slow, nearly four years after the Great Recession ended.

“This is not a good report through and through,” Dan Greenhaus, chief economic strategist at brokerage firm BTIG, said in a note to clients.

Economists had no single explanation for why hiring weakened so sharply and broadly — from retailers and manufacturers to electronics and building materials companies. Some said deep government spending cuts that began taking effect March 1 might have contributed to the slowdown, along with higher Social Security taxes. Others raised the possibility that last month was just a pause in an improving job market.

Whatever the reasons, slower job growth will extend the Federal Reserve’s policy of keeping borrowing costs at record lows.

March’s job gain was less than half the average of 196,000 jobs in the previous six months, raising the prospect that for the fourth straight spring, the economy and hiring could show strength early in the year, only to weaken later. Some economists say weak hiring may persist into summer before rebounding by fall. The percentage of working-age Americans with a job or looking for one fell to 63.3 percent in March, the lowest such figure in nearly 34 years.

Stocks plummeted after the report but narrowed their losses later in the day. The Dow Jones industrial average closed down about 41 points. Broader indexes also declined.

The Labor Department uses a survey of mostly large businesses and government agencies to determine how many jobs are added or lost each month. That’s the survey that produced the gain of 88,000 jobs for March.

The government uses a separate survey of households to calculate the unemployment rate. It counted 290,000 fewer people as unemployed — not because they found a job but because they stopped looking for one.

The percentage of working-age adults with a job or looking for one is a figure that economists call the participation rate. It’s the lowest since 1979. Normally during an economic recovery, an expanding economy lures job seekers back into the labor market. But this time, many have stayed on the sidelines, and more have joined them.

Longer-term trends have helped keep the participation rate down. The baby boomers have begun to retire. The share of men 20 and older in the labor force has dropped as manufacturing has shrunk.

After expanding from the early 1950s through the mid-1990s, the share of women working or looking for work has plateaued. Fewer teenagers are working. And some people who have left the job market are getting by on government aid, particularly Social Security’s program for the disabled.

Heidi Shierholz, an economist at the liberal Economic Policy Institute, said the labor force participation among those ages 25 to 54 — “prime age” workers — has dropped to 81.1 percent. It hasn’t been lower since 1984.

Gary Burtless, senior fellow in economic studies at the Brookings Institution, noted that some Americans have likely stopped looking for work because their unemployment benefits have run out. People must be looking for a job to qualify for unemployment benefits.

“If people aren’t collecting benefits, they have one less reason to be out pounding the pavement looking for a job,” Burtless said.

If the economy slows this spring, it would follow the pattern of recent years.

An intensifying European financial crisis depressed hiring in 2010. Japan’s earthquake and tsunami also disrupted U.S. manufacturing in 2011. Last year, an unusually warm winter caused employers to do more hiring early in the year, cutting into hiring that normally happens in spring.

This year’s steep government spending cuts could have the same effect. But some economists say they expect any weakening this spring to be milder. The economy has a stronger foundation now. Rising home prices and near-record-level stock prices are making consumers feel wealthier and spend more. “The recovery is on much better footing this year than in the last few springs, and the recovery in the housing market will do much to support growth,” said Sophia Koropeckyj, an economist at Moody’s Analytics.

Economists also cautioned against reading too much into a one-month slowdown in hiring.

Friday’s report also showed hiring was stronger in January and February than previously estimated. January job growth was revised up from 119,000 to 148,000. February was revised from 236,000 to 268,000.

Those revised totals suggest that some hiring might have again occurred earlier in the year than usual. Job gains have averaged 168,000 in the past three months, close to the trend of the past two years.

The Fed has said it plans to keep short-term interest rates at record lows at least until unemployment falls to 6.5 percent — and Chairman Ben Bernanke has said a 6.5 percent rate is a threshold, not a “trigger,” for any rate increase. The Fed wants to see sustained improvement in the job market.

Several industries cut back sharply on hiring. Retailers cut 24,000 jobs, manufacturers 3,000 jobs.

Some economists said retailers might have held back on hiring in part because March was colder than normal. That likely meant that Americans bought fewer spring clothes and less garden equipment.

Fred Whyte, president of Stihl Inc., which makes chainsaws, lawn trimmers and other equipment, said the Virginia Beach, Va.-based company has benefited from the housing recovery and is looking to fill about 130 jobs, including engineers, machinists and software programmers.

With home sales rising, more people are willing to spend money to spruce up their yards, Whyte said. Commercial developers are spending more on landscaping.

But Whyte said the company has heard complaints from retailers that cold weather in March was holding down sales.

The oil and gas industry has been adding jobs fast over the past several years but cut jobs in March for the first time in 2½ years. Oil drilling and exploration is booming, but low natural gas prices over the last year have made natural gas drilling in some areas unprofitable.

In March, average hourly pay rose a penny, the smallest gain in five months. Average pay is just 1.8 percent higher than a year earlier, trailing the pace of inflation, which rose 2 percent in the past 12 months.

Most analysts think the economy strengthened from January through March, helped by the pickup in hiring, a sustained housing recovery and steady consumer spending. Consumers stepped up purchases in January and February, even after Social Security taxes rose this year.

At the same time, some small businesses say they’ve grown more cautious about hiring. The government spending cuts could cut into sales at companies with federal contracts and at small retailers located near government facilities. And small business owners worry about increased health insurance costs next year, when the government’s health care overhaul is fully implemented. As federal agencies and contractors cut back in coming months, Nariman Behravesh, chief economist at IHS Global Insight, expects job growth to average 100,000 to 150,000 a month, down from an average 212,000 from December through February. He expects hiring to pick up after mid-year.

“The good news,” Behravesh said, “is that this is happening at a time when the private economy is gaining momentum.”

___AP Business Writers Jonathan Fahey and Joyce M. Rosenberg in New York contributed to this report.

4/5/2013 9:30:00 AM

AAR: Feeble final week capped off mixed U.S. traffic performance in March

The volume of U.S. carloads and intermodal loads declined in March's last week, a major reason traffic was mixed for the month, according to the Association of American Railroads (AAR) .

For the week ending March 30, U.S. railroads originated 281,367 carloads, down 1.9 percent, and 233,587 intermodal units, down 3.8 percent compared with volumes from the same week last year. Carloads originated in March dipped 0.5 percent to 1,117,427 units while intermodal volume in the month ratcheted up 0.5 percent to 933,208 units — the smallest yearoveryear monthly gain for intermodal since August 2011, AAR officials said in traffic summary.

Carloads excluding coal and grain rose 3.4 percent in March, and seven of 20 commodity categories posted gains. Petroleum and petroleum products volume jumped 54.3 percent, crushed stone, gravel and sand carloads climbed 11.9 percent, and motor vehicles and parts traffic rose 6.1 percent, while grain carloads tumbled 20.1 percent, metallic ores volume fell 13.2 percent and coal loads dipped 2 percent.

"U.S. rail traffic continues to mirror the overall economy: not great, not terrible, anticipating a better future," said AAR Senior Vice President John Gray. "Petroleum and petroleum products continues to lead traffic gains, while coal and grain have seen better days. Intermodal volume [registered] the highestvolume March in history and built on even stronger gains earlier in the quarter."

Coal traffic continues to slump because utilities' inventories remain elevated, according to Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc.'s latest "Rail Flash" report. Powder River Basin inventories are averaging 76 days, above the fiveyear average of 60 days, and northern Appalachia inventories are averaging 60 days, or about the fiveyear average, Baird analysts said.

Meanwhile, Canadian railroads for March's final week reported 80,227 carloads, up 0.5 percent, and 47,127 intermodal units, down 10.5 percent year over year. Mexican railroads' carloads fell 6.3 percent to 13,948 units and their intermodal volume tumbled 13.9 percent to 7,839 units.

Through 2013's first 13 weeks, 13 reporting U.S., Canadian and Mexican railroads handled 4,770,914 carloads, down 1.5 percent, and 3,863,824 containers and trailers, up 5 percent compared with the same 2012 period.

4/5/2013 10:00:00 AM

FRA studying 15 options for Northeast Corridor's future growth

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) is considering up to 15 "preliminary alternatives" to improve rail service along the Northeast Corridor, with options ranging from minor upgrades to providing 220mph service between Boston and Washington, D.C.

Also under review is a proposed new service from Long Island, N.Y., to New England.

The FRA outlined details of the 15 options in its new report, "NEC FUTURE: A Rail Investment Plan for the Northeast Corridor, Preliminary Alternatives." The report includes no cost estimates.

The goal of NEC FUTURE is to develop a plan to prepare the 457mile corridor for growth in commuter and intercity rail ridership through the year 2040.

The 15 preliminary alternatives will be evaluated and narrowed down over the year to a smaller set of "reasonable alternatives" and, ultimately, developed into a preferred investment program as the plan advances, FRA officials said in the report's introduction.

Volkswagen's Chattanooga factory at center of labor fray By Mike Pare Friday, April 5, 2013 A national right to work group has joined the fray over whether Volkswagen's Chattanooga plant should set up a works council labor board and give the United Auto Workers a foothold. The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation has reached out to VW workers on Facebook, offering free legal aid if they're feeling pressured to join the UAW. "What we see in Chattanooga is a little bit concerning," said Mark Mix, the Springfield, Va.based group's president. The union declined to comment, citing UAW's President Bob King's earlier statement that the organization is "very interested in, and has great respect for, the German system of codetermination where the company has strong collaboration with management, unions and works councils." The foundation's action is the latest development over labor organizing activities concerning the plant since VW said last month it is talking with the UAW about the works council idea. VW's board member in charge of human resources said the automaker may release a plan for the Europeantype works council in May or June. Formal talks with the union could begin as soon as the second half of the year, the company said. If employees at the VW plant choose a works council labor board, it will break new ground in U.S. workermanagement relations, some labor and legal experts said. "You'd have to look at it as an experiment," said Lowell Turner, professor of international and comparative labor at Cornell University. "It would be something quite new and potentially promising." University of Texas law professor Julius Getman termed it "pathbreaking." "The UAW is used to a more traditional U.S. style dominated by the union," he said. "With a works council, you have this separate entity the dilutes the union power to some extent." Works councils would represent employees in discussions with the company about such issues as pay and employee working conditions. European model Turner said most European countries have works councils mandated by law and a dual system of representation. "One is a union negotiating with the company and the other is a works council elected inside the workforce," he said. Getman said that if VW as a company tried to set up a works council in the United States, that would violate a federal law prohibiting management from establishing a labor organization. Employees must set up the works council, he said, and "they'd need the union for this." A works council may represent everybody at the plant, even whitecollar employees, Turner said. "It's a separate body," apart from the union, he said. Turner said the union would need to win a majority vote of VW employees. That could be done through a National Labor Relations Boardcertified election, or just by a majority of workers choosing the arrangement, he said. But Mix said he's concerned that VW workers wouldn't be permitted a secretballot vote, but that the UAW will seek to have a majority of workers simply sign cards asking VW to accept the labor group. He said the UAW may ask VW for the names and addresses of all the employees and could go to their houses or call them seeking signatures. Also, Mix said, the UAW may ask for permission for the union to talk with employees at the plant, and that VW remain neutral as the union solicits workers. "In our minds, that's potentially not in the best interest of employees," he said. Mix said employees who feel pressured can request free legal aid from the foundation by calling or going to its website. Volkswagen employees Some Volkswagen plant employees said this week they need more information about a works council and the UAW. "I'd need to know more about how it works," said Alex Fernandez, who has worked at the plant for about three months. Still, he said, the pay and benefits at the plant are good "and I'm not sure [the union] is needed." The works council concept is seen as helping the UAW get a foothold at a socalled transplant automaker, or a plant run by a foreign carmaker in the South. "It has been a major goal [by the UAW] to organize the transplants," Getman said. "It would be a major victory for the union." At the same time, he said, the arrangement could dilute the UAW's power. "How much power they'd give up is not clear," Getman said. In Germany, where works councils are prevalent, unions largely control the labor boards even though they're independent of the unions, he said. The Chattanooga plant is the only major Volkswagen facility that does not have a works council, VW spokesman Guenther Scherelis said. Joe Atkins, who teaches journalism at the University of Mississippi and has written extensively on labor issues, said the UAW has carved out a game plan in which some top union people believe the union and VW can work in a nonhostile relationship. "This doesn't set up the hostility that seems to be present" in typical unionmanagement relationships at U.S. auto companies, he said. "How that would resonate in the rest of the South? We don't know." In the UAW's new principles for organizing, the union says that global competition in the automotive market has changed the way it operates and the union "no longer presumes an adversarial work environment with strict work rules" or narrow job classifications. "The UAW of the 21st century inhabits a global economy, therefore, the union must be fundamentally and radically different from the UAW of the 20th century," the union says in its "Principles for Fair Union Elections." "In order to promote the success of our employers, the UAW is committed to innovation, flexibility, lean manufacturing, world best quality and continuous cost improvement. Through teamwork and creative problem solving, we are building relationships with employers based upon a foundation of respect, shared goals and common mission." Atkins, who has closely followed UAW organizing efforts at Nissan's plant in Canton, Miss., said the union is gaining momentum there. But, he said, he doesn't think the UAW would want an election tomorrow.