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Here is your weekly news from the Texas Labor Movement. 

Workers First Caravans Set For Texas - Wed., June 3rd - Join Us!

On Wednesday, June 3, ​working people from Texas will join thousands of people from across the country in a Workers First Caravan, an all-out action of national solidarity calling for implementation of America’s Five Economic Essentials and passage of the HEROES Act.

We need your passion, your creativity, and your car.

Also, here are some car decorating ideas/messages! Have fun.

AFL-CIO Endorses Biden for President

The General Board of the 12.5 million-member, 55 union AFL-CIO voted today to endorse Joe Biden for president of the United States. Over the past year, working people have engaged in a comprehensive process to ensure our voices are heard and we play a prominent role in shaping the change in direction our country needs.
 
"Joe Biden is a lifelong supporter of workers and has fought his entire career for living wages, health care, retirement security and civil rights," said Trumka. "Our members know Joe has done everything he could to create a fairer process for forming and joining a union, and he is ready to fight with us to restore faith in America and improve the lives of all working people."
 
Over the next five months, the labor movement will draw a clear contrast between Biden and President Donald Trump. Trump's record of slashing rules designed to protect us on the job, cutting workplace health and safety inspectors to their lowest level in history, and taking away overtime pay from millions of workers are just a few ways working people have been hurt by the current administration. Worse yet, America's working families and communities are suffering because of Trump's delinquent, delayed, disorganized and deadly response to the coronavirus.

Texas Supreme Court: Lack of immunity to Coronavirus Alone Isn’t Enough for Mail-in Ballot

The Texas Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that a lack of immunity to the new coronavirus does not qualify a voter to apply for a mail-in ballot.

In the latest twist in the legal fight over voting by mail during the coronavirus pandemic, the court agreed with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton that the risk of contracting the virus alone does not meet the state’s qualifications for voting by mail.

“We agree with the State that a voter’s lack of immunity to COVID-19, without more, is not a ‘disability’ as defined by the Election Code,” the court wrote.

Texas voters can qualify for mail-in ballots only if they are 65 years or older, have a disability or illness, will be out of the county during the election period, or are confined in jail. The Texas election code defines disability as a “sickness or physical condition” that prevents a voter from appearing in person without the risk of “injuring the voter’s health.”

Join the 2020 Texas Democratic Convention " Labor Caucus" via Zoom

Join the Labor Caucus ZOOM at the Texas Democratic Convention! Learn about TX Labor's Agenda and Political Program for the 2020 Campaign. Hear from speakers like International President Marc Perrone with the United Food & Commercial Food Workers.

June 4th, 6-7pm.

This Map Shows the Staggering Number of Reported OSHA Complaints

A new interactive web tool that maps all COVID-19-related health and safety complaints filed in the United States allows users to get a staggering sense of the worksites where workers feel that employers have jeopardized their health and safety. The tool uses data from complaints filed with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the federal agency tasked with ensuring safe and healthy working conditions for workers. Each complaint is geotagged onto the location of the worksite, and includes the name of the employer, descriptions of the offenses, and a breakdown of these complaints by industry.

So far, workers have filed more than 4,000 coronavirus-related complaints. This is undoubtedly just the tip of the iceberg, given the amount of time and fortitude it takes to file a federal complaint against one’s employer.

Indeed, filing a complaint with OSHA doesn’t guarantee that an inspector will investigate, nor that an employer will be hit with a violation. Workers first must submit a written complaint, then patiently wait for OSHA to determine whether it warrants an inspection. Top priorities for inspection are worksites with imminent dangers to workers and previous fatalities or catastrophic injuries.

Sign Up for Online Training to Become a Volunteer Deputy Voter Registrar

The state Democratic party informs us of the availability of virtual training to become a Volunteer Deputy Registrar.

Such registrars sign up new voters on a nonpartisan basis, and you can do it, too, provided you attend a training session. During the pandemic, a major training session is going to take place online next week, the Democratic Party reports.

Though this event being held in association with their convention, they are hosting it in partnership with Travis County and it will therefore be non-partisan.
 

As many of you will know, many counties have stopped doing VDR trainings during COVID-19, so this training is a great opportunity to get folks who are interested trained as VDRs! The training will deputize someone in Travis County. They will then be able to use their certificate from Travis County to get deputized in their own county through reciprocity.
 

Given it's one of the first virtual VDR trainings in the state and is open to folks anywhere, we thought you might want to put out the word about this event to your networks!

FREE Shareable/Downloadable Poster via Amplifier Art

Song of the Week - "Stay Home" - Shiny Ribs

Stay Safe And Healthy. We Can Do This.