Workday Magazine (https://workdaymagazine.org/category/policy/page/19/)
Facing the worst employment outlook in decades, representatives of state construction unions gathered in their annual convention Thursday to put the focus on jobs. They heard from numerous speakers, including legislators, with Governor Mark Dayton scheduled to address delegates Friday.
Economic development and labor-management cooperation are booming in the cities of Duluth, Minn., and Superior, Wis., representing an oasis in the region’s sluggish economy, according to labor, business and elected officials who spoke Thursday at the state Building Trades convention.
A visibly tired but elated Governor Mark Dayton got an emotional boost – and several standing ovations – when he addressed the annual convention of the Minnesota State Building & Construction Trades Council Friday.
It’s said the sign of a good compromise is that it leaves no one happy. So who was celebrating at the Minnesota Capitol one day after Republican legislators and DFL Gov. Mark Dayton finalized a budget compromise to end the longest government shutdown in state history?
As Minnesota lawmakers met late Tuesday in special session, they were slated to vote whether to invest $531 million in infrastructure projects and create thousands of jobs. Earlier in the day, both houses passed legislation to fund economic development and spur job growth.
About 200 delegates from dozens of construction unions are slated to participate in the 65th Annual Convention of the Minnesota State Building & Construction Trades Council Thursday and Friday in Duluth.
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and other panelists convened by the labor federation offered ideas Monday on how to get the U.S. out of its persistent jobs crisis, but the two politicians on the panel – both Democrats – admitted that aid from Washington is unlikely.
Labor and environmental leaders are warning that gridlock at the state Capitol poses a grave threat to Minnesota’s economic competitiveness, particularly when it comes to the emerging green-energy economy.
When it came time for President Barack Obama to “twitter,” the AFL-CIO had a question ready in advance: “How about jobs?
The National Education Association’s highest governing body has voted to approve the recommendation of President Barack Obama for re-election in 2012.