Wednesday, October 18, 2023

LOCAL

► From the Oregonian — PeaceHealth says threatens striking hospital workers could lose health insurance — More than 1,300 employees at Vancouver’s largest hospital, PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center, will lose their health insurance as of Nov. 1 if they go through with a threatened strike next week, hospital administrators warned Tuesday. Union advocates consider the insurance threat the latest in a series of hard-nosed actions by PeaceHealth to break the will of workers, who voted 95% in favor of going on strike last week. “PeaceHealth has definitely taken the low road, with their threats and intimidation,” said Shawna Ross, a sonographer at PeaceHealth Southwest Washington.

The Stand (Oct. 11) — 1,300 PeaceHealth SW workers vote to strike

► From the (Centralia) Chronicle — Interference with a firefighter or first responder now a gross misdemeanor in Lewis County — Attempting to physically interfere with a firefighter or intentionally hindering a first responder by disobeying a direct order in Lewis County can now result in up to 364 days in jail and a $5,000 fine.

AEROSPACE

► From the Seattle Times — Boeing pumps cash into Spirit AeroSystems to shore up troubled supplier — Boeing has reached a sweeping financial agreement with Spirit AeroSystems of Wichita, Kansas, pumping in millions of dollars to support the financially hobbled supplier. The goal of the agreement is to stabilize Spirit’s production system, by both stemming the flow of quality defects that have afflicted the 737 MAX and the 787 Dreamliner jet programs this year and positioning Spirit to ramp up to Boeing’s planned rate increases.

► From Reuters — Spirit Aero, Boeing enter agreement to boost deliveries — Aerospace supplier Spirit AeroSystems said on Wednesday it had entered into a preliminary agreement with its largest customer Boeing to achieve production stability at its factories and support higher deliveries.

► From NPR — Rolls-Royce is cutting up to 2,500 jobs in an overhaul of the U.K. jet engine maker — Rolls-Royce, based in Derby, central England, didn’t disclose where jobs will be cut, but around half of its 42,000-person workforce is based in the UK.

THAT WASHINGTON

► From the AP — GOP’s Jim Jordan will try again to become House speaker, but his detractors are considering options — Having lost the first vote to become House speaker, Rep. Jim Jordan will try again on a decisive second ballot that will test whether the hard-edged ally of Donald Trump can win over the holdouts or if his bid for the gavel is collapsing, denied by detractors.

EDITOR’S NOTE — Washington Republican Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Dan Newhouse voted in favor of Jordan in his first failed vote.

► From the AP — Biden’s choice to lead the FAA wins endorsement from a key Senate panel — Michael Whitaker, Biden’s second pick to lead the FAA, was endorsed Wednesday by a Senate committee with no Republican opposition, signaling a clear path to final approval by the full Senate.

NATIONAL

► From the LA Times — Poll: Three months into the actors’ strike, Americans still side with guild members — As the Hollywood writers’ strike has come to a close and the actors’ walkout rages on, the American public continues to favor unions over studios, networks and streamers, a new poll for the Los Angeles Times finds. Support for the studios has stayed low and steady at 7%.

► From Patch — Hollywood unions call for immediate resumption of SAG-AFTRA talks — SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher slammed the major studios for suspending contract talks with striking actors and, in a joint statement with other Hollywood union leaders, demanded negotiations resume in good faith to address performers’ specific needs.

EDITOR’S NOTE — You can support striking SAG-AFTRA members by donating to the SAG-AFTRA Foundation, an emergency assistance program available to SAG-AFTRA members in urgent financial need due to the strike. Also, consider making a contribution to the Entertainment Community Fund, which supports all workers in the entertainment industries and gives living expense grants to those in need.

One week ago, 8,700 UAW members at Ford’s Kentucky Truck Plant walked off the job to join the Stand Up Strike. Hear their stories.

“It’ll be 30 years from now, I’ll probably tell my grandkids… We were the ones that made history in 2023.”#StandUpUAW pic.twitter.com/z7HMLbiVeg

— UAW (@UAW) October 18, 2023

► From NPR — Autoworkers used to have lifelong health care and pension income. They want it back. — Health care coverage for life. Guaranteed monthly income until you die. These are benefits very few Americans enjoy today, but autoworkers had them for decades, and now they want them back. With 34,000 autoworkers on strike, retirement security remains a sticking point in the ongoing talks between the Big 3 automakers and the United Auto Workers union.

EDITOR’S NOTE — The historic UAW Stand Up Strike began on Sept. 14. You can help support these striking workers and their families to stay out “one day longer” by contributing to the UAW Strike Support & Hardship Fund.

► From NPR — UAW membership is down and half of the members aren’t in the auto business — The United Auto Workers union once had 1.5 million members. Today, the UAW is down to 380,000 members, and they are in a wide range of industries. More than a quarter work in higher education.

► From the Michigan Advance — Thousands of Detroit casino workers strike over pay, benefits — Casino workers (UNITE HERE Local 24) took to picket lines on Tuesday outside each of Detroit’s three casinos after going on strike following months of failed negotiations for a new union contract.

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