It has been about two months since our local's election and your local leadership (Executive Board Members, Stewards & Appointed Representatives) have been moving forward with a progressive joint effort. All of the newly elected Union Stewards meet regularly in the morning to discuss potential problems and current situations. There are weekly Appointed Representative meetings to keep a constant flow of communication from all aspects of joint programs. Also, our Local Standing Committees were just approved by our membership and we have a newly elected Bargaining Committee to lead us to a deserved local contract. Please stay tuned to your local Union boards for updates and Union events.
On behalf of UAW Local 1284, I would like to congratulate the following members on their recent appointment to Region 1A councils. Vice-President Greg Stoey is appointed to the Region 1A Organizing Council. Veterans Committee Chair Tony Keezer is appointed to the Region 1A National Veterans Advisory Council. Our Local benefits greatly when our members reach out to advance the UAW agenda. We all should be very proud of these members. Congratulations!!!
This everyday guide to being a smart shopper is hot off the press and chock-full of helpful tips about preventing identity theft, understanding credit, filing a consumer complaint, and much more. In the 2010 edition, you'll find updated information about filing for bankruptcy, finding a lawyer, and planning a funeral, along with many other useful topics.
The Consumer Affairs Committee has several copies of this handy guide available for members of UAW Local 1284.See Mike Micklea on 2nd shift to get your copy!
The AFL-CIO created Union Privilege in 1986 to provide union members and their families with valuable consumer benefits.With Union Plus benefits, your union membership “pays” at work and at home.
By using the collective buying power of unions, Union Plus is able to offer valuable, discounted products and services exclusively to working families.
The Union Plus Brand
Union Plus benefits, offered by Union Privilege, serve the interests of today’s working families.The Union Plus brand promises the value, quality service and cost-savings that union members deserve.
At Union Privilege, they are committed to improving the quality of life of working families through their unique products and services.They achieve their mission through:
Strength of Unions:Using the purchasing power of more than 13 million union members, they can negotiate good programs at competitive prices.
Quality of Union Plus Offerings:Superior programs and services promote better lifestyles for working families – including scholarships, travel discounts, auto insurance, financial services, legal service, everyday savings, hardship assistance and much more.
Support for Consumers:Union Plus staff advocate your rights and the best services with Union Plus program providers.Plus their consumer tips and resources help union members make informed decisions for themselves and their families.
Did You Know? AT&T is the onlyUNIONIZED Wireless service company!
Employees of AT&T are proud workers of the Communication Workers of America. (CWA)The CWA represents workers in telecommunications, printing and news media, public service, health care, and other industries.Union members can receive discounts on wireless services through AT&T.Please visit this link for more information.
- UAW Local 1284 Union Label Committee (Bryan Hackworth, Deb Herrell, Mike Micklea)
$10 or less for a 90-day supply of more than 400 generics1
Through your mail-order prescription drug benefit, you have access to more than 400 generic drugs, at the low cost of $10 or less for up to a 90-day supply.2 Plus you’ll get:
Access to pharmacists who are specially trained in medications used to treat a specific condition, such as high blood pressure, high choleserol, depression, and diabetes
Safety checks that help protect you hom potential drug interactions
Convenient delivery right to you, with free standard shipping
Today, many brand-name drugs have generic versions, so it’s becoming more common for patients to ask their doctors to prescribe generic drugs to treat their conditions. FDA-approved generic equivalents have the same active ingredients and must meet the same FDA standards for safety, quality, and effectiveness as their brand-name counterparts.
For more information or to find out whether a 90-day supply of your generic drug is available for $10 or less, visit www.medco.com/lowcostgenerics or call us toll-free at 1-877-RXSAVE-NOW (1-877-797-2836).
lf you don’t fmd your medication, check back from time to time, as this list may change. To End the lowest-cost alternatives for all your prescription drugs, visit www.medco.com/choices
1 The $10 price applies to a 90-day supply of each generic drug in the commonly prescribed dosages shown on the program drug list. If your prescription is written for a different days’ supply or quantity, your cost may vary. The medications and pricing on the program drug list are subject to change without notice, so visit www.medeo.com/lowcostgenerics for the latest information.
2 If your mail-order co-payment or coinsurance for generics is less than $10, you’ll pay the lower amount. The coverage and pricing of certain medications are also subject to the specific terms of your plan. In certain states, sales tax may be added to the cost of your prescriptions.
During the civil rights struggles in the 19505 and 1960s, many of those who wanted to deny voting and other basic rights to African-Americans in the South claimed they were not so much racists as they were for "states' rights."
States' rights had a nice ring to it. It fostered an image of independence from a big, overbearing government.. The reality, of course, was that it was code for denying African-Americans their rights as citizens, many times through threats and intimidation, beatings and even murder.
Martin Luther King Jr. and many other civil rights leaders, including the late United Auto Workers President Walter P. Reuther, helped Americans see through this ruse. It's appropriate, especially during Black History Month and in the 75th anniversary year of the UAW's founding, to understand that King spent a great deal of time and effort educating and helping Americans see the truth-about the plight of working people, regardless of color. `
"Our needs are identical with labor‘s needs: decent wages, fair working conditions, livable housing, old-age security, health. and welfare measures, conditions in which families can grow, have education for their children and respect in the community," King said in a speech to the AFL-CIO in 1961. `
In the nearly half-century since, the overall economic picture for African-Americans has improved, in no small part because of the union movement.
While union membership means a voice on the job and far better wages and working conditions for ail, economic benefits are even more pronounced for African-Americans. According tothe U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, African-American fuil-time workers earned $168 per week, or 29 percent, more than nonunion workers in 2009.
Accordingg to a 2008 report from the Center for Economic and Policy Research, African-American union members were about 16 percent more likely to have health insurance and 19 percent more likely to have a pension than their nonunion counterparts.
King knew the right of workers to bargain collectively and, if necessary, to strike was critical in countering economic inequality. He was supporting striking Memphis sanitation workers when he was assassinated in 1968. King also saw through another dangerous ruse: so-called right-to-work laws.
Like states' rights, the right to work has a nice ring to it. Who would be against the right to work? Certainly not unions.
But right-to-work laws are pushed by pro-business interests that care little about the economic interests of workers. Such laws are single-minded in their purpose: They are designed to keep unions out of the workplace.
Pushed by such anti-worker groups as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, 22 states now have such laws. Right-to-work states are concentrated in the South and West, where union membership is historically lower.
Proponents of right-to-work laws say "compulsory" union membership is wrong, but federal law already says no one can be forced to join a union. All right-to-work laws accomplish is guaranteeing working people will have the right to work for less.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average hourly earnings in manufacturing were 12 percent higher in free bargaining states than they were in r'ht-to-work states in 2008. And workers in right-to-work states enjoy far less protection from being unjustly fired.
"Right to work for less" isn‘t catchy, but it‘s accurate for working people, especially for African-Americans, as King knew back in 1961.
"In our glorious ight for civil rights, we must. guard against being fooled by false slogans, as 'right-to-work? It provides no 'rights' and no ‘works,' King said. “Its purpose is to destroy labor unions and the freedom of collective bargaining. We demand this fraud be stopped."
Ron Gettelfinger is president of the United Auto Workers. E-mail comments to letters@detnews.com.
New Program to provide transportation for veterans to any VA medical center.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010 10:59 AM EST
SAGINAW -- The Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center in Saginaw is implementing a new transportation program this month that will provide round-trip veteran transportation from the Gaylord Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) located at 800 S. Otsego Ave., Gaylord, to the VA medical centers in Saginaw, Ann Arbor, Battle Creek and Detroit.
The Program is designed to enhance the already-existing Veterans Transportation Network that has been so generously supported by the Disabled American Veterans and volunteer drivers throughout Michigan and the United States.
Veterans who need transportation to a scheduled medical appointment at one of the VA medical centers in Lower Michigan may contact the Transportation Coordinator for Rural Health at 1-800-406-5143 ext. 13125, to schedule a ride.
Veterans should contact the coordinator at least 48 hours in advance of his/her appointment so appropriate arrangements can be made. Veterans who are offered this free transportation will be picked up at the Gaylord CBOC on a designated date and time to travel to the other medical centers. Lodging accommodations for veterans will be made on a case-by-case basis should the veteran need an overnight stay during travel between each medical center.
For more information on the Rural Health Transportation Initiative, contact Julie Zdrojkowski, chief, Administrative Support Section, at 1-800-406-5143, ext 13113.
Fact:If every Michigan household spent $10 each week on Michigan made food products, $37 million dollars would be put back into the local economy on a weekly basis.
Did you know that CountyFresh brand dairy products are made in Michigan by UAW workers?(Local 174, Region 1A)The next time your grocery shopping, purchase CountyFresh brand dairy products and support both the local economy and your UAW Brothers and Sisters.
Medco Mail-Order List.pdf
