Many in this country have forgotten their working class roots. Read this important piece from Daily Kos on ways we as working people can help to reverse this trend and come together under one banner:

As we move further into the twenty-first century, I have come to the realization that many of us have forgotten where we came from. I would wager many who are doctors, lawyers, elected officials and captains of industry came from humble means. Working class families, such as construction workers, maintenance people and factory workers, just to name a few. And many (oh so many) have turned on the same sort of people that bore and raised them, clothed and fed them, put them through college and called them son or daughter. How do we end this cycle?

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This weekend has many of us scrambling to figure out how to honor Mom.

Should we give her flowers? Take her to brunch?

For too many New York mothers straining to make ends meet, the best gift they could receive is an increase in the minimum wage.

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NEW YORK — The 2,000 workers at Bloomingdale’s 59th Street flagship voted in favor of a new five-year union contract with the store that opens the way for a general wage increase, more health care options and more flexibility when it comes to scheduling hours.

Workers at the store will get a $3.05 an hour pay hike over the life of the contract, which was ratified by Local 3 United Storeworkers of the Retail, Wholesale & Department Store Union.

According to the union, the new deal lets senior employees choose their preferred hours first. All workers will get to choose one weekend a month to take off and which late nights they want to work. Managers must honor the choices made by workers. A spokesman for the union said this aspect of the contract sets a new standard for retail.

The scheduling provisions in the contract exceed what parent Macy’s Inc. agreed to when the contract for the company’s 34th Street Macy’s store was negotiated.

“This particular victory will have industry-wide implications because it comes as many retail workers struggle with underemployment and find it difficult to get the hours they want and deserve,” the union said. “A recent study of the retail industry in New York City revealed that only 17 percent of workers have a regular schedule.”

The union said it is still hammering out some details with the store regarding a medical fund that’s overseen by the union.

A spokeswoman for Bloomingdale’s said, “Last night’s positive vote covered a significant portion of our new contract, but we still have some work to do towards full ratification.”

The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union announced the ratification of a new five-year contract with Bloomingdale’s covering 2,000 workers at the flagship store on East 59th Street.

Paternity leave is among the benefits that the East 59th Street department store’s workers will receive.

For the first time, new dads at Bloomingdale’s will be able to take time off to spend with their newborns. As part of a new union contract, workers at the retailer’s East 59th Street flagship location will receive paternity leave.

The majority of the contract, negotiated with Local 3 United Storeworkers division of the Retail Wholesale and Department Store union, was ratified Tuesday evening. The new contract will affect the flagship’s 2,000 employees. A spokesman for Macy’s Inc., which owns Bloomingdale’s, noted that though a significant portion of the new contract was approved, there is still some work to do toward full ratification.

“We continue to have discussions with the union in good faith,” he said, but declined to disclose specifics.

The new contract, expected to go into effect this week according to a union spokesman, also added lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender nondiscrimination language for the first time. A general wage increase over five years, increased health-care options and seniority protection were also included, according to the union.

Michael Weber, a partner at Littler Mendelson, a law firm which specializes in employment law, said some of the contract provisions appear innovative.

“These kinds of terms and conditions are new in the collective bargaining setting—paternity leave in particular,” he said. “Bloomingdale’s might be on the cutting edge—my guess is they agreed to these terms because it would be an improved working condition for employees.”

Representatives from the union were pleased with the contract.

“It will improve the lives of our members for many years to come,” said Cassandra Berrocal, president of Local 3. In April, the union and workers rallied in front of Bloomingdale’s flagship, and visited the store with labor leaders including New York State AFL-CIO President Mario Cilento and New York City Central Labor Council President Vincent Alvarez to build support for a new contract.

Bloomingdale’s and the workers in its flagship 59th Street store have reached an agreement on a new contract for the store’s 2,000 unionized workers.

The contract will increase the wage for hourly employees by $3.05 over five years and give scheduling priority to workers with seniority among other things.

“Given the economy and the overall picture, it’s an excellent package,” said Allen Mayne, a deputy director of field operations at the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union.

A top item on the list of employee demands was alterations to the store’s commission policy.

“Bloomingdale’s has an excellent return policy for the public, but unfortunately it’s very hard for the commission sales force,” said Mayne, who negotiated the terms of the deal on behalf of store workers, members of the Local 3 United Storeworkers Union. Under the new contract, the period of time that shoppers’ returns can be deducted from workers’ commissions will gradually be shortened to 120 days.

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New York, NY - Hundreds of Bloomingdale’s workers in New York City have taken to the streets to demand a better contract with the company.

Mark Spellman was among the workers rallying outside Bloomingdale’s flagship store on Third Avenue today.

Union officials representing some 2,000 Bloomingdale’s employees say they are in negotiations with the company on a new four-year contract, but a large bridge divides the two sides when it comes to wages and health care.

Many employees say they are barely making ends meet as it is, and having to pay more for their health care would be disastrous for them. Union officials say Bloomingdale’s sales have been particularly strong according to numbers released by parent company Macy’s Inc., and they’d like to see some of that profit trickle down to the workers.

Cars, taxis, trucks and buses honked their horns as they passed Bloomingdale’s flagship store on 3rd Avenue on Wednesday, April 18 to show their support to the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union Local 3 members who rallied outside the store to demand a new contract from the company.

About 2,000 members, who work as sales clerks, shelf stockers and clerical workers at the 100-year old store, have been working without a contract since March 1. Both the union and company agreed to a 60-day extension so that negotiations could continue, but that window is slowing closing.

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