News
Welcome to the NYC Central Labor Council's News Room
Apr 19, 2013 | News Story
A commonsense immigration reform bill was unveiled this week which offers a pathway to citizenship for millions of immigrants currently living in the United States. The bill would also ensure that immigrants are covered by US labor law, including minimum wage and workplace safety requirements.
A statement from Vincent Alvarez, President of the New York City Central Labor Council:
"New York City...
Apr 16, 2013 | News Story
Last year, 112 workers died when a garment factory in Bangladesh that supplies Walmart, GAP and others burned to the ground. Conditions at the factory were so lethal that it didn’t have a single emergency exit, and supervisors prevented workers from leaving their sowing machines even when the fire alarm went off. Sumi Abedin, one of the garment workers trapped inside, survived the tragedy by...
Apr 4, 2013 | News Story
On Thursday, April 4, 2013, hundreds of fast food restaurant workers in New York City staged a one-day strike to call attention to the mistreatment they face on the job and the low wages they receive. Workers in the fast food industry make much less than they need to survive and many must rely on public assistance in order to provide basic necessities for themselves and their families. For more...
Apr 4, 2013 | News Story
Forget the silly fluff pieces mainstream media are reporting about sequestration's effect on White House tours—there is real pain happening all over the United States.
Sam Stein and Amanda Terkel of The Huffington Post cover 99 stories of the job losses and pain felt in states across the country in Sequestration Effects: Cuts Sting Communities Nationwide.
Here are the first 10 stories:
Mar 22, 2013 | News Story
As President of the New York City Central Labor Council (AFL-CIO), I represent over 1.3 million workers across many industries and professions in the private sector, public sector and building and construction trades. Many of these workers have the benefit of collective bargaining agreements that stipulate for time off with pay during illness. However, there remain far too many workers in the...
Mar 21, 2013 | News Story
At the March 21, 2013 NYC CLC Executive Board meeting in March, a resolution was adopted in support of commonsense immigration reform. The labor movement in New York City stands firmly in support of a pathway to citizenship in order to improve wages and labor standards for all workers. The aspirations of young immigrants to have access to quality education and reunify their families is shared...
Nov 6, 2012 | News Story
Congratulations to all the union members who put their time and energy into volunteering on election campaigns here in NYC with the Central Labor Council and in the general election. We join with them and hardworking families across the country in celebrating the re-election of President Barack Obama and Vice-President Joe Biden. The union presence locally and nationally was strong this year –...
Jul 6, 2012 | Press Release
Read newspaper coverage of Labor's prevailing wage win quoting Vinny Alvarez.
NY POST: Mike loses labor fight in court
By DAVID SEIFMAN and DAREH GREGORIAN
A state judge yesterday smacked down an executive order by Mayor Bloomberg that could have saved the city millions of dollars a year in wages paid to city workers.
The City Hall edict had yanked control over salaries for 10,000 unionized city...
Jun 30, 2012 | News Story
“It is a myth that somehow we can’t have safe communities without it,” he said, added that the problem is that the NYPD overwhelmingly targets black and Latino young men. “We need to find a better way, a fair way, to protect our communities while protecting the rights of all.”
“The tens of thousands of high school students who are stopped—what are we teaching them?” asked Michael Mulgrew,...
Jun 28, 2012 | Press Release
For decades the Labor movement in NYC and across the country has fought for guaranteed high-quality health care for everyone, and today we applaud the Supreme Court ruling that upholds the Affordable Care Act. As we move forward, the Labor movement will continue to work collaboratively with elected leaders and others to find additional ways to control costs and provide affordable health care for...