The New York Times reports that the postmaster general blamed Congress and the postal union for the Postal Service’s current financial problems, in a speech on Tuesday. According to the Times, as USPS revenues have declined in recent years, the Postal Service has enacted cuts that consolidated 305 mail-processing plants and eliminated over 200,000 jobs. The postal union released a statement strongly disagreeing with the postmaster general’s characterization of the problem. The Washington Post has a more in-depth report on postal workers’ and the postal union’s reaction to a new human resources plan for the postal service.
The Wall Street Journal reports that AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka announced that the union would make a major push to raise wages in states and nationally in the next year. The AFL-CIO hosted its first-ever national summit on raising wages this past Wednesday. Senator Elizabeth Warren and Labor Secretary Tom Perez spoke as well.
Wet Seal, a clothing retailer, abruptly announced on Wednesday that it was closing 338 stores and laying off 3,700 employees, according to the New York Times. Last month the company warned it may need to file for bankruptcy protection, but according to Businessweek, it didn’t alert its employees until this week. Several employees posted signs in stores and expressed frustration on twitter over the late notice, according to the Washington Post.
In international news, Germany’s unemployment rates continued to fall in December, according to the Wall Street Journal. The positive numbers suggest that consumer confidence is rising in Germany, which is Europe’s economy.
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July 15
The Department of Labor announces new guidance around Occupational Safety and Health Administration penalty and debt collection procedures; a Cornell University graduate student challenges graduate student employee-status under the National Labor Relations Act; the Supreme Court clears the way for the Trump administration to move forward with a significant staff reduction at the Department of Education.
July 14
More circuits weigh in on two-step certification; Uber challengers Seattle deactivation ordinance.
July 13
APWU and USPS ratify a new contract, ICE barred from racial profiling in Los Angeles, and the fight continues over the dismantling of NIOSH
July 11
Regional director orders election without Board quorum; 9th Circuit pauses injunction on Executive Order; Driverless car legislation in Massachusetts
July 10
Wisconsin Supreme Court holds UW Health nurses are not covered by Wisconsin’s Labor Peace Act; a district judge denies the request to stay an injunction pending appeal; the NFLPA appeals an arbitration decision.
July 9
the Supreme Court allows Trump to proceed with mass firings; Secretary of Agriculture suggests Medicaid recipients replace deported migrant farmworkers; DHS ends TPS for Nicaragua and Honduras