Wednesday, December 7, 2016

LOCAL

► In today’s News Tribune — $5 million settlement over break relief for nurses at St. Joseph — Nurses at St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma will receive $5 million in back pay after CHI Franciscan Health agreed to a settlement regarding meal and rest breaks, according to an announcement Tuesday from the Washington State Nurses Association. The hospital will create a “block break relief” system, which ensures nurses have uninterrupted breaks, and add 26 nurses to care for patients while other nurses take their breaks, according to a news release from the association.

ALSO at The Stand — WSNA nurses at St. Joe’s score major victory

► From The Stranger — As Seattle Uber drivers try to unionize, the company doubles down on a scare campaign — During a recent Seahawks game, an Uber television ad aired; it featured a driver who says he struggled to find work and would have likely ended up homeless if it hadn’t been for Uber. The driver, identified only as Maurice, states: “My security is in my flexibility to run my business the way I choose to run it.” Then he warns: “With the Teamsters union, I’d no longer be able to do that.”… The company says its efforts are in the interest of educating drivers about the new law (allowing them to form a union), but the messaging shows a clear attempt to sow fear about what being in a union would mean for drivers.

THIS WASHINGTON

► In today’s Seattle Times — Inslee’s plan for state-worker raises sets up a fight –Gov. Jay Inslee will likely include pay raises for state workers, worth 6 percent over the next two years, in his proposed budget. The raises already have Republican lawmakers dubious. It’s the first skirmish in a coming budget battle. “(Inslee) needs to be making difficult choices here; it’s not just a giveaway,” said Sen. John Braun, the lead Senate Republican budget writer.

► In today’s Seattle Times — Baloney in politics works nowadays (by Danny Westneat) — It was about a year ago that state Rep. Jay Rodne (R-Snoqualmie) took to the web to denounce Muslims as “barbarians” and generally freak out about what he claimed were plans by President Obama to “import 1.5 million Muslims into the U.S.” The stated source for Rodne’s fearful claims was an article in Breitbart News. Yes, that Breitbart, the one led by Donald Trump’s campaign manager, Stephen Bannon. And if you drill a little deeper, the primary source for that Breitbart article was Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama… Check out who won and who lost in the end. The original misleader (Sessions) will be the new attorney general. The megaphone (Bannon, Breitbart) is the new White House senior adviser. And the regurgitator (Rodne) just won re-election in the Eastside’s 5th Legislative District.

► From PubliCola — Musical chairs at City Hall and in the State Legislature — Orlando Cano is on his way back to Speaker Frank Chopp’s office to be Chopp’s chief of staff… The two Democratic state representatives in the 48th, Patty Kuderer and Joan McBride, are vying for Cyrus Habib’s Senate seat, which means, in turn, there’s also going to be an open house seat there. There’s a third candidate, however, who’s above the fray and netting some serious endorsements, Bellevue City Council member Vandana Slatter.

► In today’s News Tribune — From buses to ferries and on to retirement for former Pierce Transit chief — Lynne Griffith, who ran Pierce Transit for eight years before taking the helm of Washington State Ferries two years ago, will retire from her state government post in January.

AEROSPACE

► From The Hill — Trump denies Boeing comments were retribution — President-elect Donald Trump says his attack on Boeing over the cost of the new Air Force One had nothing to do with Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg’s criticisms of his trade policies.

► From Politico — Trump says he spoke with Boeing CEO: ‘We’re going to work it out’ — Trump spoke Tuesday with Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg, a conversation that followed his earlier accusation that the airplane manufacturer is fleecing American taxpayers on a contract to create the next generation of presidential aircraft. The president-elect called Muilenburg “a very good man” but nonetheless said that Boeing’s project to build two new planes for the presidential fleet is too expensive. He pledged to bring down the cost of the planes, which are designated “Air Force One” when the president is aboard, or else scrap the project entirely.

EDITOR’S NOTE — Life is very short and there’s no time for fussing and fighting, my friend.

► In today’s Washington Post — Trump’s unpredictable style unnerves corporate America — That style, including his opaque personal financial dealings and his sudden shots at certain companies, has helped unnerve a corporate America that traditionally craves stability. Some business leaders and economists have worried whether executives can speak their minds about the president-elect or his policies without fear of facing Trump’s rage.

THAT WASHINGTON

► In today’s NY Times — Health insurers list demands if Affordable Care Act is killed — The insurers say they need a clear commitment from the Trump administration and congressional leaders that the government will continue offsetting some costs for low-income people. They also want to keep in place rules that encourage young and healthy people to sign up… The demands are a sort of warning shot to Republicans. While the party is eager to repeal the law as quickly as possible, and many have promised a replacement, its members are sharply divided over what shape any new plan should take. If they do not come up with an alternative, more than 22 million people would be left uninsured, including the more than 10 million who have bought individual plans on state marketplaces.

NATIONAL

► From The Hill — Carrier union leader: Trump ‘lied his ass off’ about deal — President-elect Donald Trump “lied his ass off” about the terms of the deal to keep Carrier manufacturing jobs in the United States, said USW 1999 President Chuck Jones.

► In the NY Post — MMA fighters form union: We’re tired of getting screwed — Several prominent fighters, including former champions Georges St-Pierre, Cain Velasquez and T.J. Dillashaw, have united together in the Mixed Martial Arts Athletes Association in hopes of making drastic changes at the UFC.

► In the PSBJ — Bank of America to raise wages for lower-paid employees to $15 an hour — Brian Moynihan, CEO and chairman of the Charlotte-based bank, mentioned the wage increase during a presentation at the Goldman Sachs Financial Services Conference.

EDITOR’S NOTE — Last year, Moynihan made $16 million, or $1,826.50 per hour 24/7. That’s more than $15 every 30 seconds.

TODAY’S MUST-READ

► From The Hill — GOP plans new assault on unions — Republicans in crucial states across the country are planning a renewed assault on the political power of labor unions after GOP victories in November’s elections handed the party control of states where Democrats have long defended union rights… Republican leaders in New Hampshire, Missouri and Kentucky are planning in the coming months to take up and pass so-called right-to-work measures, allowing workers to opt out of joining a union and out of paying union dues. Republicans in Iowa are considering stripping unions of the right to bargain over employee health insurance. In Texas, legislators may consider a bill requiring parental consent before a minor joins a union.

The Stand posts links to Washington state and national news of interest every weekday morning by 10 a.m.