The following was sent to 39 parties (see the “CC” list at bottom). We can only keep our fingers crossed that speaking up ultimately does some good. Ronald A. Williams Chairman and Chief Executive, Aetna Inc. Hartford, CT 06156 July 23, 2010 Dear Mr. Williams, We the undersigned are faculty members and administrators at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York. The Pratt administration has chosen to subscribe to Aetna for health coverage, a situation over which we have minimal

Dear Pratt colleagues, The UFCT would like to submit the following letter, inclusive of all faculty and administrators covered by AETNA, to AETNA expressing our displeasure at their failed negotiations with Continuum. If you would like to have your name added to the letter, please reply with your full name and title to Suzanne Verderber, UFCT 1460 Vice President, at sverderb@pratt.edu, by July 14, 2010. Sincerely, The UFCT 1460 Executive Committee and Grievance Team. Ronald

He says he will get tougher on unions, giving lower wage increases and asking for changes in health benefits and pensions. June 3, 2010 UPDATE: Bloomberg says he will freeze raises to save 4,400 jobs, but unions say he does not have the right to make this move unilaterally; Bloomberg says he does because both teachers’ and principals’ unions are working under expired contracts. Here is the NY Times article. #Bloomberg #layoffs #publiceducation #recession

Criminal probe opened to find whether mine inspectors received bribes in West Virginia. Criminal probe opened to find whether Goldman Sachs committed fraud in shorting the mortgage market while encouraging their clients to buy long. New offshore drilling projects halted after massive disaster in the Gulf. UPDATE: If pipe collapses, there will be no way of containing it; it is a gusher, not a “spill”: likely to enter the Gulf Stream and head up the East Coast. UPDATE: Hallibut

Here’s the link, for a rally sponsored by the NYC Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO.

I thought this was a useful article from the WSJ about Hr departments and their inherent non-neutrality within companies….Here is the link. #HumanResources

Employers are asking for a 4-5 year “recession” contract while doormen are claiming we are moving out of the recession and want to look ahead. The New York Times has a piece on it. #doormen #recession #strike

These interviews about the recent tragic disaster at the Massey coal mine in West Virginia point out the importance of the right of the workers’ to file grievances to their own safety. The workers at this non-union mine did not have that right. Here is the story on Democracy Now. #grievanceprocess #Minedisaster

Andy Stern, president of the SEIU, plans to step down soon. Here is the Times story, and that from the Wall Street Journal.

Since dues are extracted after taxes, they are completely tax deductible. #Taxes #uniondues