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Review: Bakunin: The Creative Passion
by Anarcho
Anarkismo

A review of Mark Leier's excellent new biography of Bakunin.

Bakunin: The Creative Passion
Mark Leier
Thomas Dunne Books

At last! A biography of Bakunin by someone who knows what they are writing about. I have long despaired at the utter ignorance and lack of common-sense when academics and others have approached anarchism, particularly Bakunin. Whether the product of ignorance or maliciousness, they seem intend on misrepresenting Bakunin’s ideas and life. Leier refutes such accounts and sets the record straight. He does this with flair and knowledge, making his book highly recommended.

Informal, yet informed, Leier presents an excellent introduction to the life and ideas of Bakunin. Even the biggest Bakunin fan (and I admit to being one!) will find something new or of interest in Leier’s work. His account of Bakunin’s life and ideas is rich in detail and in understanding of both anarchism and the social and political times and circles Bakunin lived in. Leier presents a picture of Bakunin’s early years based on the latest research and which shows his intellectual development within Russian radical circles, showing his important role in these as well as his early commitment to women’s equality. He outlines Bakunin’s activities in the 1848 revolution, plus his period of imprisonment by numerous monarchies across Europe because the Tsar got his hands on him and placed him in solitary confinement. Bakunin’s escape from exile and subsequent return to revolutionary politics takes the reader to the First International and the conflict with Marx.

Continued...

UAW Sucks Ass

Please note that P-CRAC is not interested in discussing the farce that has gone on between the UAW and GM. Gettlefinger's such a giant pussy he should drive a GM Dildomobile.

Imbeciles down Under

Govt considers inquiry into TWU claims
The West Australian

The federal government will consider holding an inquiry into claims the powerful Transport Workers Union (TWU) diverted cash into a slush fund to assist the Labor election campaign.

Workplace Relations Minister Joe Hockey said Tuesday's cabinet meeting in Sydney would decide whether there should be a full investigation of these allegations.

Labor has undertaken to back any such inquiry.

"We are considering an inquiry that would have a look at the very serious allegations that have been raised involving the Transport Workers Union," Mr Hockey told ABC radio.

"The most concerning allegation is that the TWU traded off higher salaries for workers in exchange for the funds going into a secret account that is funding the ALP's campaign at the next federal election."

That follows a report on this week's Nine Network Sunday program which has forced the TWU to conduct an independent audit of its Industrial Rights Training and Education Fund.

Mr Hockey said there appeared to be a substantial amount of evidence, including testimony from individuals involved in the TWU as well as what appeared to be a large number of emails and written documents.

He said that information proved that the account existed and was being used for inappropriate purposes.

Mr Hockey said it was a good thing that Labor had promised to support any government inquiry.

Continued...

Ummmm... Industrial Strategy Anyone?

SEIU Canada: Casino Workers in Halifax Win Overwhelming Victory in Union Vote
MarketWire

HALIFAX, NOVA SCOTIA--(Marketwire - Sept. 8, 2007) - At the conclusion of long-awaited Labour Relations Board proceedings conducted this past week, ballot boxes for workers at Casino Nova Scotia in Halifax were opened after a four-month delay since their May 3rd/4th 2007 union certification vote. Workers at the Casino and representatives of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) are now celebrating an overwhelming victory for gaming sector employees in Halifax.

The results of the Labour Board hearings and vote-counting proceedings, which concluded just prior to 11 pm on Friday night, determined that 231 Casino employees voted in favour of making improvements in their workplace through joining the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 902, while 85 employees voted against.

This overwhelming victory of over 73% of the votes counted confirms what has been termed an historic victory for the labour movement in Nova Scotia and the largest successful private-sector union organizing victory in well over twenty-five years in this province.

"This is a great achievement," says Sharleen Stewart, SEIU Canadian International Vice-President. "Halifax Casino workers now have a strong voice in their workplace."

Continued...

Anarchists Buy Support: Brilliant New Strategy Unfolds

NZ strangers stun residents with gifts
AAP

Strange happenings are afoot in the New Zealand city of Tauranga.

Residents have been stunned by the generosity of strangers who are walking the streets handing out envelopes stuffed with cash.

Recipients have described a very happy looking couple, urging them to accept their gifts.

"Take it, take it," the couple simply said as they thrust an envelope of money towards Steph Morgan and Rose Bakker as they headed out for lunch.

The words "Anarchy is love of freedom" written on a purple card accompanied the money.

Continued...

Socialists Hate Andy! Boo-fn-hoo...

No More “Partnership” — Labor Needs to Organize a Fightback
By Tony Wilsdon
Socialist Alternative

As Corporate American continues to attack workers’ wages, working conditions, and benefits, the need for a fighting labor movement is more vital than ever.

Given the failure of the AFL-CIO’s leadership to successfully resist this corporate offensive, many union members’ hopes were raised when Andy Stern, leader of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), pulled his union out of the AFL-CIO promising a new direction for labor.


Stern and SEIU went on to found an alternative federation, Change to Win (CtW), that includes the Teamsters, Laborers, Carpenters, Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), Farm Workers, and Hotel and Restaurant Workers (UNITE HERE) - about 6 million members in total. But two years after the creation of Change to Win, what has been achieved?


Stern focused his criticism of the AFL–CIO on the need to put more resources into hiring more organizers. SEIU has put more resources into organizing, and the UFCW and UNITE HERE have made splashy campaign efforts against Wal-Mart and the hotel chains. But no real progress has been made in unionizing new workers. The real issue is not more resources; it’s how to organize workers, and around what program.


Stern has been going out of his way to talk to Corporate America, including working with Wal-Mart. At a recent conference of corporate lawyers, he said: “SEIU’s goal for 2006 is to bring unions and employers together as partners, not enemies.”

Continued...

Anarchists Smash Corporate America

Bellevue, Wash.: Anarchists Sabotage 50 Bathrooms In Mall

On Monday, August 27th, members of Anarchist Sanitation Saboteurs (ASS) sabotaged over 50 bathrooms in and around the Bellevue Mall. This was done while Bush was in town and people were outside protesting him. This was done under the eyes of the Secret Service, the police and mall security.

The mall is a revolting symbol of capitalist ignorance and stupidity. ASS chose a day when one of the leaders of world capitalism was in town, to flood Starbucks bathrooms (with love directed towards the IWW), glue stall doors shut, remove sensitive items from toilets and leave our mark on wall after wall.

Our intention was not to inconvenience janitors. We acknowledge that janitors had to clean up after us and we are sorry. But that is their job and they receive money for their services. If you are a janitor and would like to lodge a complaint, get a marker and write to ASS on the wall of the affected bathroom.

The mainstream media did not report this action nor will they. We hope that they will prove us wrong. It takes 15 seconds to get a toilet on the road to overflow. Open the flush box. Cut the hose. Close the flush box. Walk away. Within ten minutes the bathroom will begin to flood. Spread this information widely. You are the only ones who can.

Flood the bathrooms of every corporate store!

- Anarchist Sanitation Saboteurs (ASS)

We're getting ready! RNC Welcoming Committee Trailer

Dedicated to the spirit of middle-class angst everywhere!!!11

Eastern Washington over-run by anarchist hordes

Spokane Anarchists

Organizer Trainer

Organizers, Activists and future Labor Leaders Wanted




Service Workers Rising! Hotel Workers Rising!

The rights of working people throughout the United States and Canada are disappearing. The labor movement is looking for committeed people to organizers workers and fight for a better future. Our program involves a comprehensive training in union, community organizing and a chance to be a part of a movement that is making real change in our world.

No Experience necesary, just a commitment to social justice.

Send resumes to Sheila Gainer at unitehere.sg@gmail.com before September 19th, 2007.

For more information about UNITE HERE, please check out the links below:
UNITE HERE!
Hotel Workers Rising
Service Workers Rising
Congress Hotel Strike

ChuckO Munson: Gorilla Extrordinaire

G-Men and Anarchist Bookstores Just Don't Mix
The Pitch
Nadia Pflaum

On the same day that a presidential visit snarled traffic around Bartle Hall (really, was building the convention center to straddle the highway such a great idea?), U.S. marshals paid a visit to our local anarchist bookstore – and it wasn’t to pick up some Kafka.

Volunteer Chuck Munson was manning the Crossroads Infoshop and Radical Bookstore at 3109 Troost around 3 in the afternoon last Wednesday when he found a “posse” of U.S. marshals outside the store. Munson writes on his blog that a “woman agent, who was wearing a vest and had weapons, (was) asking questions of two people inside our store.” “I challenged her to show a warrant and she responded that she didn’t need to show a warrant.”


Munson writes that he felt threatened by the female marshal after she told him that he “didn’t want to go there” with her.

Continued

NYC Taxi Drivers Alliance Promises to over GPS Plans

August 06, 2007 (Computerworld) -- New York taxi drivers have promised to go on strike next month unless the city halts plans to require that Global Positioning System technology be installed in the city’s 13,000 cabs by early next year.

Members of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, which represents about 8,400 drivers, are worried that their bosses will track their whereabouts even when they are off-duty, according to statements from six drivers and Executive Director Bhairavi Desai.

At a press conference late last month, driver Lea Acey said a GPS is “like an ankle bracelet they put on criminals.” The alliance plans to announce a strike date in mid-August.

Diebold must fix its optical scanner by Aug. 17.
The New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission last week said that it does not plan to change the schedule for implementing the Technology Enhancements Service Project, which would let passengers pay fares via credit cards, eliminate some paper rec­ords and let riders watch the taxi’s route in real time on a screen.

Under the plan, all taxicab owners must sign contracts with one of four approved technology vendors — Creative Mobile Technologies LLC, Digital Dispatch Systems Inc., Taxi Technology Corp. or VeriFone Transportation Systems Inc. — this month and have the systems installed between Oct. 1 and Jan. 31.

“It’s reasonable for an employer to deploy GPS,” said Craig Mathias, an analyst at Farpoint Group in Ashland, Mass., who has consulted on GPS projects.

“This is not 1984 or tracking citizens,” he said. “It is tracking people with objects, and it will improve efficiency.”

At the same time, Mathias said he understands the concerns. “People are rightly worried about Big Brother,” he said. “It should not be used unless consent is given.”

Pigs Pose as Blac Bloc at Montebello Summite; Try to Provoke Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada (CEP) Members

Pigs Attack Trade Unionist In His Own Home

JCPD BLACK & BLUE
He called cops - they beat, cuffed him
Thursday, August 23, 2007
By MICHAELANGELO CONTE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

A Jersey City man called cops Monday night when he saw what looked like
burglars on his roof and said he was then badly beaten by arriving
officers, who apparently thought he was a burglar as he ran to the front
door to let them in.

Mathias Bolton, 34, of Palisade Avenue near Bowers Street, suffered a
broken arm, black eye, possibly a broken foot, and many abrasions on his
arms, back and shoulders, as a result of the incident on Monday at 10:11
p.m., he said.

On top of that, Bolton was charged with aggravated assault on a police
officer and resisting arrest, but after he appeared in Central Judicial
Processing Court in Jersey City yesterday, the charges were downgraded to
simple assault and a lesser degree of resisting arrest. The case was
remanded to Municipal Court.

Police Chief Tom Comey said yesterday that there would be an investigation
of the incident.

"I would urge everyone not to rush to judgment," Comey said.

Bolton said he heard a noise on his roof and when he looked out a skylight
saw two men trying to break in, so he called police and was told a car
would be sent. After hanging up he ran downstairs to open the front door
because there is no bell, Bolton said.

"I opened the door and midway up the steps were two thug-looking guys in
jeans and T-shirts, and they looked pretty tough," said Bolton.

In fact, they were plainclothes Police Officers Victor Vargas and Kevin Hill.

Bolton said the two didn't identify themselves or display badges - a point
the officers disputed in the police report of the incident.

"These guys rushed me and I heard sirens in the distance and my first
thought was, these guys might be connected to the burglars," Bolton said.

He said the officers were grabbing him and screaming "Did you call
police?" which Bolton said made him think they were burglars and were
angry at him.

He said the pair were trying to push him back into the building.

Bolton said he braced himself to resist being pushed in and he was punched
in the face a number of times. He was still able to stop them pushing him
in and could hear the sirens getting closer, Bolton said.

When the cruisers arrived, Bolton said, he yelled: "Officer, officer, come
get these guys off me. I need help."

As the uniformed cops approached with night sticks out, he said he figured
those punching him would get beaten, but instead the arriving cops laid
into him, Bolton said.

He told police he was the one who called them but they put him in a police
car as confusion seemed to grow among the officers, Bolton said.

In a police report filed about the incident, the cops said Bolton ran to
the door, looked surprised and was out of breath. The officers said they
identified themselves and had their badges out, and that when they asked
Bolton if he called police and did he need help Bolton responded, "What?"

The police report says Bolton tried to close the door but an officer held
it open and then Bolton punched him in the chest and tried to push his way
through.

They grabbed him and told him they were investigating a burglary and
Bolton replied, "So get the hell off me," and then fell trying to run
away, kicking at Hill and Vargas while down, the reports said.

When the cruiser arrived, the report said, Bolton said: "Get the
(expletive) off me. Who are you guys?"

According to the police report, after the uniformed officers were on the
scene, Bolton said, "OK, I give up. I'm sorry" and was taken to the police
station and then to the hospital for treatment of what the report calls
"minor scrapes."

Bolton is director of research for a union in New York City and has a
master's degree from Rutgers University in industrial management labor
relations, said his Jersey City attorney, John Burke. Bolton said his
father is a retired Paterson police officer.

Police said the officers involved would not comment.

Bolton is to appear in municipal court on Sept. 5.


© 2007 The Jersey Journal
© 2007 NJ.com All Rights Reserved.

IDF Soldiers Hijack Taxi, Shoot Palestinian Workers in West Bank Factory

Six Israeli soldiers run amok in West Bank

AM - Tuesday, 21 August , 2007 08:12:00
Reporter: David Hardaker

PETER CAVE: Israel's Defence Forces, the IDF, are investigating six soldiers who commandeered a Palestinian taxi, tied up the driver and then shot at random at workers outside a factory in the West Bank.

The IDF denies the incident is part of a culture of abuse, but it's holding investigations into the moral and ethical conduct of its forces.

Middle East Correspondent David Hardaker reports.

DAVID HARDAKER: It's one of the darkest tales to emerge from Israel's occupation - the day half a dozen soldiers ran amok, shooting an innocent young Palestinian and then attempted a cover-up.

BENJAMIN RUTLAND: I think you can categorise this as being indecent and immoral.

DAVID HARDAKER: Captain Benjamin Rutland from the Israeli Defence Forces.

BENJAMIN RUTLAND: We're taking steps to make sure that this sort of event will never occur again in the future.

DAVID HARDAKER: It was morning in the town of Dahariya - a small, isolated place in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

An officer in the Israeli Defence forces, the IDF, had been ordered to go out on foot patrol. Instead, he and five other soldiers took off their uniforms and set off on their own black operation.

First they stopped a passing taxi at gunpoint. They ordered the passengers out, tied up the driver, blindfolded him and held him in the back of the taxi.

A young Palestinian, 18 years old - called Adham Samamara - walked outside the factory where he was working and noticed a car stopped on the road.

"Arab, I thought they were Arabs," he says. "The car had West Bank numberplates and they were wearing civilian clothes.

"It's not unusual for people to stop outside our factory, to get some water and wanting some help," he says.

So, wanting to help, Adham Samamara walked towards the car. Within a minute, and without any warning, he was hit by a bullet in the chest. He remembers the sound.

(Sound of Adham Samamara making sound of gunfire)

"And," he says, "there was lots of pain."

Here, at his home, surrounded by family, the 18-year-old lifts his shirt and reveals the scars where the bullet entered his chest and then came out through his left side.

"It was a criminal act, what happened to Adham," his uncle says. "You should've seen the atmosphere in this house, we thought he was dead, we were frantic."

(Sound of machinery operating)

Outside the tile factory where Adham Samamara works, you can still see his blood mixed in the sand.

(Sound of Adham Samamara talking)

Israeli soldiers also shot at another employee, but they missed him, and they took off from the scene, leaving Adham Samamara lying bleeding in the street. The soldiers involved at first lied about what they'd done that morning. They claimed that Adham Samamara had approached them in a threatening manner.

Captain Benjamin Rutland from the IDF.

BENJAMIN RUTLAND: The IDF takes this event very, very seriously, and as a consequence, the fact that he disobeyed orders, did not get approval and placed both his soldiers and civilian lives in danger is very, very serious for us.

DAVID HARDAKER: The junior officer who was the ringleader that morning has been charged with a number of offences and may end up in jail. The other five soldiers are being investigated.

As well, there's been an investigation into the soldiers' entire battalion.

BENJAMIN RUTLAND: We're trying to work out whether the whole battalion had some sort of ethical-moral problem.

DAVID HARDAKER: Benjamin Rutland.

BENJAMIN RUTLAND: Within any group you may have a bad apple here or there. We devote considerable attention to making sure the people are given ethical training and learn exactly where the lines are.

DAVID HARDAKER: Is it a bad apple here or there, or is there in fact a systemic problem in the IDF which critics would say has come from 40 years of occupation?

BENJAMIN RUTLAND: I don't believe that there is a systemic problem. As we denoted, this is a discussion related to one particular battalion, amongst many within the IDF.

DAVID HARDAKER: The head of Israel's Defence Forces has said the incident is now to be included in IDF training.

Adham Samamara says he's pleased Israel has admitted it was in the wrong.

His uncle, Moussa, is happy too that the soldiers' lies were found out, because, he says, normally any act in the West Bank is considered a terrorist act, but this time they were forced to tell the truth.

Dude Gets Arrested for Teh International @narkiiii!!11

American anarchist faces criminal charges in Spain
Associated Press

McLEAN, Virginia: Peter Gelderloos would admit he is not your typical American tourist. While other Americans in Barcelona might be hopping between tapas bars, he was hanging out at a squatters' rights protest, lending support to the protesters.

But police in Barcelona say he was more than an innocent bystander. They charged him with public disorder and illegal demonstration for what they characterize as an instigating role in the April protest that got out of control. He could face up to six years in prison if convicted, an unusually stiff penalty because of the protest's conclusion — the explosion of a massive firecracker.

Gelderloos, 25, of Vienna, Virginia, says the charges are ridiculous. He says he barely knew the protesters and could not have been involved in organizing or leading them. He believes that his political beliefs — he is an anarchist who sometimes dresses the part — caused police to treat him suspiciously.

"The cop was sure I was a terrorist because he was sure I was a squatter, and he was sure I was a squatter because he thought I looked like one (I was wearing a political t-shirt and had some slogans scribbled on my shoes)," Gelderloos wrote in an account of his arrest that has been posted on Web sites dedicated to radical political causes.

Continued...

Baltimore Stadium Workers Plan Hunger Strike for Living Wage

Baltimore Stadium Workers Plan Hunger Strike for Living Wage

by James Parks, Aug 13, 2007



The workers who clean up plastic cups, peanut shells, spilled beer and hot dogs left by nearly 49,000 fans after games at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore have been fighting for higher wages and better working conditions for three years.

The United Workers Association (UWA), a Baltimore worker center, which represents the nearly 800 mainly immigrant workers, says the subcontractors who employ them have reneged on promises to pay a living wage. The workers make about $7 an hour. The national median hourly salary of janitors and cleaners is $9.58, according to the U.S Department of Labor.

Harriet Tubman at Daily Kos says these workers are fed up with the broken promises. They plan to launch a hunger strike Sept. 3 and continue until they are paid a living wage.

One of the workers is Valerie, a 55-year-old single woman who says she doesn’t make enough to pay her bills and take care of herself. (See video.) She says working for $7 an hour makes me feel real bad. I work hard for my money, and to get paid $7 [means] I don’t even have extra money to treat myself to McDonald’s.

In May, Maryland passed a law requiring contractors to pay workers a living wage. The Maryland law—the first in the nation for a state—requires service contractors doing business with the state to pay employees $11.30 an hour in urban areas and $8.50 an hour in rural areas. The state’s minimum wage is $6.15 an hour.

Although the state owns the stadium, the cleaning crews are not covered by the law, which exempts part-time and temporary workers. As a state agency, the Maryland Stadium Authority, which owns Oriole Park, does not have to follow Baltimore’s living wage ordinance requiring city contractors to pay workers at least $9.62 an hour. The Baltimore ordinance was the first in the nation when enacted in 1994.

Through protests, rallies and concerts, the workers are calling on the Stadium Authority to push for a hourly wage of at least $9.62 when the cleaning contract comes up for renewal next year.

Some 150 day laborers are hired to clean during and after Baltimore Orioles home games. The cleanup takes six to eight hours. Temporary workers also clean M&T Bank Stadium (next door to Oriole Park) after Baltimore Ravens home football games.

The day laborers are hired by temp agencies in Baltimore. Michigan-based Knight Facilities Management, which won the contract to clean Oriole Park and M&T stadium for about $1.9 million a year, subcontracts with the temp agencies to find workers. The state contract expires in January 2008.

The workers also say some subcontractors charge employees a transportation fee, amounting to $6 per round trip. They also say they are not paid for the time they wait to be let into the stadium after the games. Workers say they are told by the subcontractors to be at the stadium up to two hours before their cleaning shift begins. But not all workers who wait are picked for the job, they say.

The bottom line is one of fairness, Kim Thompson told the Baltimore Sun. Thompson, 32, of Baltimore, began working at the stadium a month ago. She said the work can be exhausting, wiping down seats, picking up debris and hauling trash bags.

It’s sickening how much trash is left. We have to come in and clean it up for a little bit of money.

UFCW Statement: Bush Administration Immigration Program Would Legalize Racial Discrimination

Statement from the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union: Bush Administration Immigration Program Would Legalize Racial Discrimination

Planned Enforcement Actions Threaten to Disrupt Innocent Workers and Communities

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The following is a statement from the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union:

On a hot, quiet August morning in Washington, DC - when the President is on vacation and Congress at recess - the Bush Administration announced an immigration reform package that essentially mandates federal racial discrimination.

The Administration's guidelines would throw the doors open to racial
discrimination to whole classes of people by placing an undue burden
on workers who sound foreign, look foreign and particularly, on the
tens of millions of Hispanic and Asian-Americans who would face
greater scrutiny in the workplace. It is irresponsible to toss out
civil rights for the sake of political gamesmanship.

Considering the circumstances, today's announcement smacks of nothing more than a publicity stunt aimed at terrifying immigrant workers. Further, this program lacks the support and mandate of the American people who have been demanding humane, comprehensive immigration reform that addresses the root causes of illegal immigration. This program offers no solutions, only punishments to workers.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has proven by its past
behavior that it is not beyond their scope to traumatize innocent
workers, including U.S. citizens, under the guise of immigration
enforcement. During its raids at Swift meatpacking plants last
December, all workers, including citizens, legal residents, were held by ICE agents and subjected to unlawful search and seizure. Law
enforcement must uphold and defend the Constitution, not violate it.

Congress and the President promised the American people it would work toward solutions to these problems but both parties have failed. It is time for our elected leaders to get back to work - not with unauthorized, sweeping gestures like this Bush enforcement program.

Stupid Independent Union Tries Organize UPS

Posted on Wed, Aug. 08, 2007
KCK UPS Freight terminal workers vote against joining union
By RANDOLPH HEASTER
The Kansas City Star

Workers at the area UPS Freight Inc. terminal decisively rejected a labor group’s attempt to organize them.

According to a three-day election concluded Tuesday by the National Labor Relations Board, 203 employees voted against joining the Association of Parcel Workers of America, while 66 voted in favor of the group.

Dan Hubbel, assistant director of the NLRB’s regional office, said 339 hourly employees were eligible to vote.

It was a big setback for the North Carolina-based group that has tried to establish itself as an alternative to the Teamsters union. The UPS Freight terminal in Kansas City, Kan., was the first site that the parcel workers association tried to organize.

The Teamsters represent nearly 240,000 employees at UPS parcel and package operations, which is in the middle of negotiating a new national contract, although it does not represent UPS Freight workers here. UPS Freight, a less-than-truckload carrier, was known as Overnite Transportation Co. until UPS bought it in 2005.

The Teamsters represent 125 employees at UPS Freight’s Indianapolis facility, where the union and the company are also in contract talks. Other than that terminal, the company is a nonunion operation.

Van Skillman, the parcel workers association president and a UPS package driver in Greensboro, N.C., said a straw poll taken last week indicated the Kansas City, Kan., work force would vote to join the association.

“In a week’s time, things changed dramatically,” he said. “I don’t know what happened in Kansas City. I have my suspicions, but I won’t say anything more while I’ve got our people looking into it.”

The parcel workers association also has filed with the NLRB to hold union elections at UPS Freight sites in Gaffney, S.C., and Pittsburgh.

UPS Freight said its work force in Kansas City, Kan., had spoken.

“We’ve always maintained that it’s the employees’ choice as to whether they want a union,” said Ira Rosenfeld, a UPS Freight spokesman. “We should respect that, and the employees chose to remain union-free.”

The Teamsters said it is negotiating a contract with UPS Freight in Indianapolis that will be a model for other UPS terminals around the country.

“The APWA doesn’t even have records on file with Department of Labor,” said Harold McLaughlin, president of Teamsters Local 41 in Kansas City. “Freight workers at UPS Freight should get the best workplace representation that they can — and that’s with the Teamsters union.”

Safety Not Kosher at this Slaughterhouse

Food Safety Records Add to Woes of Nation’s Largest Kosher Slaughterhouse

Nathaniel Popper | Thu. Aug 09, 2007

The nation’s largest kosher slaughterhouse, already the subject of allegations about its treatment of workers and the animals it slaughters, has also been chastised by government regulators for its food safety record, according to newly released documents

The AgriProcessors slaughterhouse in Postville, Iowa, received 250 non-compliance records from the United States Department of Agriculture during 2006, five of them for inadequate safeguards against Mad Cow disease, and multiple others for fecal matter in the food production area. While the entire beef, poultry and egg industry had 34 recalls in 2006, AgriProcessors had two during the last eight months, both of them Class I, the highest risk level....