Union Members Mourn Union Brother Alex Pretti, Pro-Worker Win in State Senate

Here's what you need to know this week:
 

Union Members Mourn AFGE Brother Alex Pretti, and Call on Rep. Anna Paulina Luna to Read the Room

On Saturday, ICE Agents shot and killed Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. Pretti was an ICU nurse at a VA hospital and a member of the American Federation of Government Employees (You can read a statement from AFGE here.) Rather than condemning ICE action and calling for peace, Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna made the following post Monday:

While Rep. Luna was back in district during recess, we gathered outside her Seminole office to call on her to tone down the rhetoric, read the room, and start working for her constituents. You can watch a livestream here. Keep an eye on 10 Tampa Bay and Tampa Bay 28 for their reports.

Carol White, Healthcare Technician, AFGE 547

Karena Jimenez, Registered Nurse, National Nurses Organizing Committee/ NNU

 

Community allies in St. Petersburg and Tampa have organized vigils for Alex Pretti Friday, January 30 at 6pm near VA hospitals. You can view flyers below.

Bill to Protect Temporary Workers Sails Through Committee

Yesterday, a bizarre thing happened in the Florida Legislature. The Senate's Commerce and Tourism committee took up Senate Bill 1112, a bill that seeks to reduce barriers to secure long-term employment for temporary workers, or labor pool employees. Many labor pool workers are formerly incarcerated, and thus have difficulty finding employment. Under current law, the labor pool agencies can force employers to pay a "placement fee" if the employer wishes to hire the temp long-term. These fees costs thousands of dollars in some cases, effectively forcing labor pool workers to continue working short-term assignments with no opportunities for growth.

SB 1112 would prohibit placement fees. It would also require labor pools to register annually with the Department of Commerce.

The Florida legislature we are used to would never hear such a common sense bill that is good for working people! In a rare exception, the senators patiently listened to testimony from members of Beyond the Bars, an advocacy group of individuals affected by incarceration, many of whom have worked in labor pools personally. You can view it here. Discussion of SB 1112 starts at the 13:00 mark.

Jean Tuffet with Beyond the Bars
 

Once they finished, several senators took a moment to thank the speakers for what they were doing and how proud they were to be able to vote yes on the bill. It passed committee 9-0. Its next stop is in the Appropriations Committee Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development, where it is yet to be added to an agenda. SB 1112's House companion, HB 1287, has three committee assignments and is yet to be agenda'd.

Here's What's Coming Up:
 

Thurs. 2/5 at 5:30pm: Brian Nathan for State Senate Dist. 14 Phone Bank

Join us to call into State Senate District 14 as well call unregistered union members. We will notify them of their registration status and educate them about their union brother Brian Nathan's run for the vacant Senate District 14 seat. It will be a remote phone bank, so you may join from anywhere!
 

1/30: Area Vigils for Alex Pretti/ Victims of ICE

That's all for this week! Check out our website at wcflc.org or follow us on Facebook and Twitter for more updates. If you'd like to receive this weekly via email, please subscribe here: bit.ly/WCFLC