August, 2012

For the second year in a row, UFCW Canada has made a generous donation to Camp Jumoke, which is dedicated to enriching the lives of children with Sickle Cell Disease.  The camp was founded in 1994, by The Association for the Advancement of Blacks in Health Sciences (AABHS).  About two years ago, UFCW Canada and Faces Of Our Children adopted Camp Jumoke.

With the help of UFCW Canada’s donations this year, Camp Jumoke was able to add a 7-week day camp to its list of programs and services. The new day camp featured fundamental programs and workshops that promoted development that included educational electives and tutoring sessions throughout the summer.

For approximately five years, UFCW Canada and the Minority Coalition have worked together to raise the awareness of sickle cell through educational programs, projects and events.  

UFCW Canada’s Summer Splash Fundraiser for Sickle Cell Research

In addition to Sickle Cell Disease, both UFCW Canada and UFCW International have done a great deal of other charity work, most noticeably with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, in Canada and the United States. Through creative fundraising efforts, the UFCW’s total contributions to leukemia research have exceeded $28 million. The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society recognized the UFCW with its first-ever Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004 for the union members’ more than 23 years of commitment and contributions.

President Obama and presidential candidate Mitt Romney could not differ more on their policies regarding women’s health. Although as Governor of Massachusetts, Romney implemented some provisions like those in the Affordable Care Act, he has since changed his tune to better conform to right-wing policies.

• He endorsed the budget proposed by House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI) and supported by the leadership of the House of Representatives—a budget that would not only dismantle the advancements made for women’s health through the Affordable Care Act but would lead to dramatic reductions in the services available to women through Medicaid and other key safety net women’s health programs. 
• He vowed to repeal the entire Affordable Care Act, including the expansion of Medicaid, which would prevent 17 million people from gaining coverage over 10 years, including the 59.2 percent of women who are currently on Medicaid
• The 1.1 million young women who have been able to stay on their parents’ insurance plans after they graduate would be at risk of losing their coverage under his plan.
• Romney would eliminate the requirement that insurance plans cover maternity care, through which 8.7 million women are set to gain such coverage under the ACA.
• Romney has said that he would eliminate Title X, our nation’s family planning program, which provides important things like contraception-  because it is not “essential” and because it benefits organizations such as Planned Parenthood, which provides abortion care with nonfederal funds. Moreover, when asked how he would cut the federal budget deficit, Gov. Romney’s response included that he would “get rid of” Planned Parenthood.

credit: Center for American Progress

America needs to pay close attention to the specific plans Romney has in mind for our country if he were to win the 2012 election. With Romney’s recent pick of Paul Ryan as his running mate, it’s clearer than ever that Romney plans to deny women the right to essential medical coverage.

To see the health needs of women in your state on an interactive map, go here.

Workers at Hyatt are banding together to speak out against the hotel chain.  Why, you ask? Because they are fed up with unsafe working conditions, and unfair labor practices.  That’s why UNITE HERE has created an online campaign to vote Hyatt the Worst Hotel Company.

One of the main focuses of this campaign is spotlighting Hyatt’s leading role in the abuse of  housekeepers, as well as other hotel workers.

The long list of abuses includes:

• replacing longtime employees with minimum wage temporary workers
• imposing dangerous workloads 
• in Indianapolis, firing the subcontractor of workers who filed a lawsuit for not getting paid for all of the hours they worked
• urging housekeepers to clean up to 30 rooms in an hour, leaving only 15 minutes to clean each room- which requires rushing that can lead to serious injury and even permanent disability
• In a first for the hotel industry, Hyatt provides a working environment that warranted a warning letter from OSHA about the hazards its housekeepers face on the job, as well as 18 health and safety citations and 3 against one of Hyatt’s Housekeeping subcontractors, with over $100,000
• having the highest housekeeper injury rate of all housekeepers studied in a study by American Journal of Industrial Medicine
• taking a lead role in lobbying against legislation in California that would make housekeeping work safer

Hyatt workers are responding to this deplorable treatment by taking a stand. They are speaking publicly about abuses, going on strike, and now, launching a global boycott of the hotel chain, until they win fair treatment and safer working conditions.

Workers sticking together for their rights

To see more about the campaign, and how you can help, go here, or to www.hyatthurts.org.