Distribution workers at Levi Strauss & Co. facilities in the U.S. and Canada voted overwhelmingly in favor of a three-year, North America-wide contract providing wage increases, defined benefit pensions and health insurance. More than 1,250 workers will be covered by the new contract.

Levi's aren't the only jeans made by union members. The GAP's 1969 "Real Straight" jeans sporting the "Made in Canada" label are made by Workers United/SEIU members. In the 1990's, consumer outrage forced the GAP to address sweatshop conditions at their factories overseas. Ten years later, the GAP's turnaround includes improved environmental practices, a vender compliance program that monitors overseas factories, and a commitment to manufacturing, in part, at union shops in North America.

At $69, the "Real Straight" low rise jeans are a recessionista alternative to high fashion (and high price) designer jeans. But the GAP didn't skimp on style or quality to bring you their jeans at this reasonable price--the "Real Straight" low rise jeans are slim and forgiving. (I should know, I own a pair of my own!) They're a great union-quality product that's well worth the price--perfect to catwalk your next picket line or protest in.

RIght now, SPT-SEIU members and leaders are holding a sit-in in Pedro Pierluisi's office, the Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico. Pierluisi is the sole representative in Congress of the 4 million American citizens who reside in Puerto Rico.

Members of SPT-SEIU took charge of the Resident Commissioner's office in San Juan earlier this morning, demanding that Pierluisi, as a Democrat, reject the Republican policies of Governor Luis Fortuño. "Pierluisi misrepresents himself in Washington as member of the Democratic Party, while advocating in Puerto Rico for every Republican, anti-worker measure ever taken on the Island," said Israel Marrero, vice president of SPT-SEIU and an active leader of Obama's campaign.

The Fortuño administration is gambling right now. They're betting that the ARRA funds will make up for any economic losses the 25,000+ lay-offs of public employees may cause. But that's not what the $2.9 BILLION in funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act were intended to do. These funds were intended to help the Island create jobs--not make up for the economic fallout that could result from laying off over 10% of the Island's workforce. Yet according to federal reporting, Puerto Rico has created only 126 jobs.

SPT-SEIU is holding today's sit-in to demand that the Resident Commissioner sign a letter publicly repudiating his support for Article 3 of Law 7, the legislation which made viable the dismissal of over 25,000 public employees.

According to a new study by the Center for Economic and Policy Research, women will be the majority of unionized workers by 2020.

How's an abundance of estrogen changing things? "Because of women, we don't just talk about raising wages, but about creating family friendly workplaces with sick leave, child care, and family and medical leave," said Change to Win Chair and SEIU Secretary-Treasurer Anna Burger. "We don't just talk about out-of-control insurance costs, but about the fact that women pay more than men strictly because of their gender."

Some of the report's other findings:

Education:

• Nearly 40 percent percent of all union workers have college degrees. Almost half (49.4 percent) of union women had at least a four-year college degree.
  
• More educated workers were more likely to be unionized than less-educated workers, a reversal from 25 years ago.

Public Sector & Growth

• Just under half of all union members come from the public sector, up from just over one-third in 1983.
  
• Union ranks have increased slightly over the past two years, and members now represent 12.4 percent of the nation's work force.

Diversity:

• Latinos are the fastest growing ethnic group in the labor movement.
  
• About one-in-eight (12.6 percent) of union workers is an immigrant, up from one-in-twelve in 1994
  
• In 1983, the majority (51.7 percent) of all union workers was white men; by 2008, white men were only 38.1 percent of the unionized workforce.
  
• The typical union worker was 45 years old, or about 7 years older than in 1983. The most heavily unionized age group was in the age range of 55-64.

"The view that the typical union worker is a white male manufacturing worker may have been correct a quarter of a century ago, but it's not an accurate description of those in today's labor movement," said John Schmitt, a CEPR Senior Economist and an author of the report. Read the study.

After months of hearings, hundreds of town halls, and more than 60 years of debate, we're closer than ever before in our nation's history of making health care reform a reality. With a historic victory in the U.S. House at our backs, we head into the Senate--where we could face an uphill battle against insurance industry interests.

In a Washington Post op-ed today, SEIU President Andy Stern speaks on how far our Senate leaders should go to achieve their top health care priorities, and finding a balance between pragmatic compromise vs. selling out.

Just as when unions negotiate their contracts, there comes a time when members must make a choice and vote. It's game time, our Senators can no longer hide, threaten, or negotiate their own individual bill. No one gets a free pass for denying the American public a fair up-or-down vote on this bill. The American people have long memories, and come next November, no one will forget who attempted to derail reform. Our elected leaders will be held accountable for the choices that they make.

We stand at this historic moment because of decades of hard work. Unfortunately for the millions in this country suffering under an insurance system that costs too much and covers too few, politics and grandstanding are at risk of taking over. The American people elected a team of 60 Senators to push for bold solutions. They will be judged for what they deliver. If at the end of the day Americans can't afford health care or if the standard of care declines, every single Democratic Senator will pay the price.

Read the entire op-ed at the Washington Post. And while you're here...we'd love to know your thoughts on the subject. If it comes down to the wire, how much compromise do you think our Senate leaders should be willing to make to change the status quo and get health reform passed?

In a wide-ranging interview, SEIU President Andy Stern sat down with CNBC's Maria Bartiromo this weekend on the Wall Street Journal Report. Topics included in their discussion include the current state of the economy, H1N1, healthcare reform, the White House visitors list, the state of the Employee Free Choice Act, and the role of unions in an increasingly globalized economy.

Watch now:

Alternet's Alexander Zaitchik noted this week that during Glenn Beck's recent hospital stay for appendicitis, Beck tweeted in praise of his "AMAZING drs/nurses:"

Little did Beck know that the top-notch care he was receiving came at the hands of those "radical Marxists" represented by 1199SEIU. Zaitchik reminds us that research has shown that patients treated in unionized hospitals have better survival rates that those treated at non-union hospitals. She also reminds us why Beck's smears of SEIU and unions in general should be taken with a grain of salt (or none at all!):

Compared to Beck--who probably knows more about the 80s TV show ALF than he does about the history of the AFL--Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity are Pulitzer-winning labor historians. He clearly has little to no understanding of what unions do, their central role in creating the American middle-class, or why the labor movement has long served a legitimate and important role in national politics.

And in fact, Beck confirmed his total and utter lack of experience with labor last year when he said this: "I've never had to deal with unions before." But admitting he knows nothing about unions still didn't stop Beck from following up that statement with this baseless opinion: "I hate them. I hate them." The irony here is that Fox News broadcasters all belong to a union--so does this mean Beck hates all his coworkers too? Nice.

Beck says he'll be back to work on Tuesday following his emergency surgery for appendicitis last Wednesday. We can't help but wonder whether or not Beck will pick up right where he left off, increasing the pitch of his attacks on SEIU and its leaders. What do you think? (will the SEIU nurses who likely cared for him get an on-air "thank you"?)

MYTH: The Employee Free Choice Act played a role in Tuesday's elections.

Corporate lobbyist-backed groups like the Workforce Fairness Institute and other conservatives made the fact-free claim that Tuesday's elections were a referendum on the Employee Free Choice Act. Wrote WFI in an email to supporters:

National issues played heavily in The Old Dominion and no issue played more of a role in the debate than the Employee 'Forced' Choice Act or EFCA.

The Truth? Exit polls showed 71% of voters named health care or the economy as their number one issue Tuesday. And despite the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and others' millions in spending to make Employee Free Choice an issue in last November's elections, they failed to have an impact there as well: a majority of voters stated that they supported the legislation, and that it was not a significant factor in their vote.

FACT: Workers who want to form a union routinely face harassment from their employers.

Lowe's employee breakroom signs against Employee Free Choice

After Lowe's Home Improvement settled last month (for nearly $30 million) a class action suit for requiring workers to work "off the clock," workers were greeted with the sign to the right in their workplace breakroom--a not-so-subtle reminder of the company's position on giving workers a voice on the job.

Employer intimidation continues to be a problem, and it's nothing new: according to a study by Cornell labor expert Kate Bronfenbrenner, 34 percent of the time workers try to form a union, their employers fire union supporters. Sixty three percent of the time companies interrogate workers, 54 percent of the time they threaten union supporters, and 47 percent of the time they threaten to cut workers' wages and benefits.

Many consumers assume that if a car is "American-made," it must have been built by union-represented workers. Not true. The UAW has prepared a guide to provide information for consumers who want to purchase vehicles produced by workers who enjoy the benefits and protections of a union contract. The 2010 list includes cars, trucks, pickups, vans, SUVs and crossovers from U.S., European and Asian-based carmakers. Check out the 2010 car buying guide here.

Buying Union-made: It's still difficult to find sweatshop-free and fairly traded merchandise in the U.S., but there are viable options if you care about fair trade products. For example, Union Made in USA merchandise is widely considered the platinum standard for consumers in the U.S. And while shopping can feel more like a forbidden past time or guilty pleasure in this economy, buying the Union label is something you can feel good about. Because you're not just getting a high-quality product--you're also supporting local economies, helping maintain middle class manufacturing jobs, and propping up responsible companies that employ workers at fair wages.

The union label is a badge of quality, workplace justice, and living wage--check out a selection of tees over at Ethix Merch here. Additionally, the SweatFree Communities and International Labor Rights Forum has a great 2009 Shop with a Conscience Consumer Guide on their website to key resource to help you become a socially conscious shopper.

The guide profiles clothing companies whose products are created in a "sweat-free" environment and clothing made in shops where workers are organized into unions (or worker-owned cooperatives) and have a voice on the job in determining their wages and working conditions (like Justice Clothing and No Sweat Apparel). My personal favorite from the guide is Autonomie Project, a store that offers some really creative, stylish t-shirts and accessories that are eco-friendly along with being sweatshop-free. Their new line of babies/children's apparel--especially the logo tees, like the one to the right--really stand out from the crowd.

For a guide to both union Made and fair Trade products, don't forget to visit the 2009 Shop With a Conscience Consumer Guide here. UAW's car-buying guide can be found here.

Bank workers across the world have been hit from all angles as a result of the financial crisis. That's why a recent victory for workers in one of SEIU's partner unions is such good news.

Following a ten-day strike, Brazilian bank workers have won an increase in wage and improvements in their working conditions, as a result of a wage accord between union leaders and banks October 9. The workers are members of Confederaçao Nacional dos Trabalhadores no Ramo Financeiro (CONTRAF).

In the settlement, workers accepted a 6 percent wage hike offered by the banks. The banks also will extend maternity leave for workers to 180 days, increase profit-sharing payments, and will offer other benefits. The workers asked for a 10 percent wage hike, while banks originally offered only 4.5 percent.

The Brazilian bank workers were confronted daily with anti-union practices imposed by the financial institutions operating in the country, suppressing the legitimate actions of workers in their national wage campaign. During the strike, one of CONTRAF's union leaders was violently taken to the district police in an attempt by lawyers to forcefully open a bank branch.

The strike left many consumers, especially in big cities, without key banking services. However, the strike had little effect on financial markets, which rely heavily on electronic systems.

Bank workers--in Brazil and worldwide--have been pressured by their employers to "sell, sell, sell," rather than to advise their customers. Then they are hit by massive job cuts and put out of work. Bank workers can sometimes be harassed by customers, who may blame them for the mess that big banks have made of their finances.

A delegation from SEIU, including Rocio Saenz, president of SEIU Local 615 in Boston, will be visiting Brazil the week of November 5 to visit with bank workers, celebrate their victory and learn about the country's ongoing banks campaign.

CONTRAFS is a member of the CUT (Central Unica dos Trabalhadores), with whom SEIU has partnered since 2005.

A scuffle erupted between protesters and the police on Thursday, after several hundred union members and activists finished a rally against Governor Luis Fortuño outside El Conquistador hotel, where the Governor held a conference with business companies on public-private partnerships. The hotel resort is in Fajardo, a town east of San Juan to which the Governor arrived by helicopter to avoid the protest.

Check out photos from the protest:

Rally participants from coalition Todo Puerto Rico Por Puerto Rico and journalists were pushed by the police riot squad in Fajardo, with police officers claiming the protest was already finished and some "troublemakers" did not want to leave the premises. The protest was called to condemn the nearly 20,000 layoffs of public employees--which includes over 7,000 members of SEIU Local 1996SPT--by Gov. Fortuño's administration, and his initiatives for the private sector to take services and state project.

President of SPT-SEIU Robert Pagan said his union is in talks with the Obama administration to discuss federal economic stimulus funds given to Puerto Rico being used to lay-off public employees.

When those little ghosts and goblins (or, we're predicting, Michael Jacksons) come collecting on Halloween, make sure you have a full supply of union-made goodies to hand out. No, not our latest flyers on the economic crisis. We mean candies made by union workers.

That includes some of our favorites, such as Jelly Bellies (made in Fairfield), Red Vines, Sunkist Fruit Gel Slices, Sweethearts (those crunchy little hearts with sweet nothings stamped into them), and our guilty favorite -- candy corn! But there's way more than that.

UnionPlus has compiled a list of candy products made by members of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union (BCTGM); snack foods by members of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW); and fruits and nuts from members of the United Farm Workers of America (UFW). Please support our union brothers and sisters when you shop for Halloween treats this year.

Union-made Halloween Treats: unionplus.org/union-made/halloween-treats

Next week, the members of the American Bankers Association (ABA) are congregating at the Sheraton in downtown Chicago for their annual conference, with appearances by conservative Republican commentators Newt Gingrich and George Will. During the three-day conference, SEIU, Action Now, National People's Action, and dozens of other activist organizations will hold a series of events highlighting the growing discontent with big banks and their over-reliance on greed and profits at taxpayers' expense.

On the Huffington Post, SEIU's Anna Burger discusses why progressives won't be letting the banksters party in peace this Sunday, Monday and Tuesday in Chicago:

The financial section of the newspaper is starting to read like the script for a far-fetched crime movie. A group of villains hatch a plot to steal trillions of dollars from unsuspecting Americans. They drive the country into economic chaos, funnel money from families and small businesses into their own pockets, then leave all of us to clean up their mess. And not only do they get away with it, they pay themselves billion dollar bonuses and throw lavish parties to celebrate their conquest.

But this isn't a movie, it's really happening. Wall Street bankers have taken $17.8 trillion of our tax dollars through bailouts and turned them into massive pay and bonuses for themselves. Goldman Sachs alone is expected to pay more than $23 billion just in bonuses this year; that's more than $43,000 a minute, every minute.

So, my question to you is: if you could get all the architects of this scam together in one place, what would you say to them?

Hurry up and decide, because they're all getting together in Chicago this weekend -- and we're headed there to meet them.

The big bank execs are gathering in the Windy City for the American Bankers Association conference. It's a four day celebration of wealth and opulence; some of the items on the agenda include a roaring 1920s swing dancing party, a luxurious riverboat cruise, and celebrity appearances from Newt Gingrich and George Will. And it's all funded with our tax dollars.

Read the rest of Anna's piece on Huffington Post here.

Full report on ABA's actions to lobby against financial reform here. Check out the schedule of the three days of actions in Chicago here, as well as after the break.

Taxpayers From 20 Cities Headed to American Bankers Association Chicago Conference October 25-27

Banks Using Taxpayer Money to Spend Millions Fighting Reforms that Would Help Prevent Next Financial Crisis

Chicago, IL--In the largest taxpayer mobilization since the economic crisis began, thousands of Americans from 20 cities will converge on the American Bankers Association (ABA) conference in Chicago from October 25 to 27 to demand banks stop spending millions in taxpayer dollars to lobby against reforms that would protect Americans from the next economic crisis.

After taking $17.8 trillion in taxpayer bailouts and backstops, the ABA and the six largest banks have spent more than $35 million fighting Congressional action on financial reform. Meanwhile, ordinary Americans continue to face rising foreclosures, record unemployment, skyrocketing bank and credit card fees, and vanishing pensions and 401(k)s.

From Spokane to Syracuse, ordinary Americans who have lost their jobs, their homes, and their life savings will be boarding buses and planes to demand banks end their over-reliance on greed and profits and commit to using their taxpayer bailouts and backstops to help America's economy recover.

Read a full report on ABA's actions to lobby against financial reform here.

National Taxpayer Mobilization to Break Bank Greed

WHAT: Taxpayers converge on Goldman Sachs CEO's NYC home to demand the bank use billions in bonuses to help alleviate foreclosures and job loss before heading to Chicago.

WHO: Hundreds of working families and community groups

WHEN & WHERE: 11:15 am EDT
15 Central Park West, New York, NY

WHAT: Taxpayers put big banks and Wall Street on trial for breaking their commitments to the American taxpayers.

WHO: Hundreds of taxpayers from across the country who've lost their jobs, homes, and retirement security because of the economic crisis, workers, community leaders and allies, and academics.

WHEN & WHERE: 4:30 pm CDT
Hyatt Regency Chicago
151 East Wacker Drive

WHAT: Demonstrations at Goldman Sachs and outside American Bankers Association.

WHO: More than 1,000 retirees, family farmers, clergy, workers, students, homeowners, and community allies.

WHEN & WHERE: 10:30 am CDT - Goldman Sachs Chicago Headquarters
71 S. Wacker, Chicago

Taxpayers will ask Goldman Sachs to donate its entire projected $23 billion dollar bonus pool to prevent every foreclosure in America in 2010 AND lift one million families out of the poverty and joblessness.

12:00 pm CDT - Demonstration outside American Bankers Association convention, 301 East North Water Street

WHAT: Taxpayer march on American Bankers Association conference to demand banks stop lobbying against needed financial reform.

WHO: More than 5,000 workers, clergy, and community allies and leaders from 20 cities.

WHEN & WHERE: 10:00 am CDT - Prayer vigil at Intersection of Wacker and Stetson.

10:30 am CDT - March begins at Intersection of Wacker and Stetson.

11:00 am CDT- Rally outside the Sheraton Hotel, 301 E. North Water St. Crowd will assemble on Park Dr.

* Live photos and videos from the events will be posted to www.seiu.org/bigbanks , www.StopBankGreed.org , or www.ShowdownInChicago.org for more details as the events unfold.

Groups participating in the three days of mobilizations include: A New Way Forward, AFL-CIO, Action Now, Albany Park Neighborhood Council, Alliance to Develop Power (ADP), Americans for Fairness in Lending, Americans for Financial Reform, ARISE Chicago, Brighten Park Neighborhood Council, Central Illinois Organizing Project (CIOP), Center for Community Change (CCC), Change in Terms, Change to Win, Citizen Action, Chicago Coalition of the Homeless, Communities United for Action (CUFA), Community Voices Heard (CVH), Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), Grassroots Collaborative, Green Party of Nevada, Fuerza Laboral/Power of Workers, Illinois Hunger Coalition, Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, Jobs with Justice, Gender Just Metanoia Centers, Inc., Michigan People's Action (MPA), MoveOn, National People's Action, Northside Action for Justice, Northside POWER, Northwest Bronx Community & Clergy Coalition, People Organized for West Side Renewal (POWER), PUSH Buffalo, Right to the City Alliance, Rights for All People (RAP), Roomdad Productions, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), SEIU Illinois State Council, SOUL, South Austin Coalition Community Council (SACCC), Sunflower Community Action, Syracuse United Neighbors (SUN), Teach Our Children (TOC), The Grassroots Collaborate, UE, UCLA Undergraduate Students Association, Workers United, and Working In Neighborhoods (WIN)

Why We're Headed to Chicago Next Week: Read more about the largest taxpayer mobilization in Chicago next week where thousands of Americans from 20 cities will converge on the American Bankers Association (ABA) conference to demand banks stop spending millions in taxpayer dollars to lobby against reforms that would protect Americans from the next economic crisis. Want to join us?

Krugman Reminds Us Why We're Fighting Those Guys in the First Place...While giant financial institutions are paying out record bonuses and salaries, they aren't lending to small businesses or helping families that are struggling with their mortgages. Read Paul Krugman's NY Times piece, which gives a sobering report on the state of banks.

Blog about it if you must....In a study by the Sunlight Foundation's Micah Sifry, SEIU.org was counted as the most referenced site in blog posts about healthcare policy. Read the score here.

Then on techPresident, Nancy Scola highlights SEIU's new online tool + Twitter + Ads campaign ("Take a ticket for healthcare equality") to help get the word out to would-be tweeters that's time to deliver on healthcare reform that ends discrimination against women by health insurers. The campaign has generated over 5,000 tweets since yesterday.

Senators Urge Extension of Unemployment Benefits: 7,000 people every day see their are seeing their jobless benefits expiring--and it's largely due to the petty obstructionism of two Senators who are blocking the needed extension of jobless benefits. Yesterday afternoon, 14 senators from across the country joined together to urge swift passage of a UI extension.

Former SEIU Member Crowned a Ugandan King: For years, Charles Wesley Mumbere worked as a CNA in Maryland and Pennsylvania and was a member of SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania. Yesterday, Mumbere returned to his native Uganda and assumed the royal crown as king of his people, the 300,000-strong Rwenzururu Kingdom. Read more about his life from teenage leader of a rebel force to impoverished student, a CNA working in the U.S. and, finally, to king of his people. Photos of his crowning here.

"The Greatest Public Demonstration in Puerto Rican History:" Photos and recap from the Puerto Rican General Strike on October 15 on SEIU's Blog here. Stand up for the civil rights of Puerto Rico's citizens by contacting your member of Congress and asking him to hold hearings on Gov. Fortuño's anti-American actions.

SEIU's Rocio Saenz Joins International Unions to Urge Reform of Mexico's Broken Labor Laws: Joining a group of international labor leaders, SEIU Vice President and President of Local 615 Rocio Saenz spoke at a press conference in Mexico City on October 14 about the urgent need to reform broken Mexican labor laws that allow multinationals to exploit Mexican workers without recourse. "We cannot address the deeper causes of global poverty and forced economic migration unless we reach across international borders and ensure that all working people have the right to decent work and a job that will support their families," said Saenz.

For an inadvertent visitor, there were plenty of street festivals going on in Puerto Rico on Thursday. Very loud music played on enormous loudspeakers, people were chanting and dancing in the streets and a very joyful ambiance was felt everywhere.

It wasn't a carnival happening in Puerto Rico though--it was the General Strike that mobilized over 150,000 workers and citizens to protest Republican Governor Luis Fortuño's massive layoffs. "It was tremendous. I've been in the labor movement for 44 years and this was the most impressive event I've ever seen. It was up there with the immigrant mobilizations of 2006," said Executive VP Eliseo Medina of the assembly of Puerto Rican workers. "It was one of the most diverse events that I've ever seen in a society. Lawyers, workers, students, psychologists, priests and minsters and nuns and everyday people. It was truly an amazing sight. It was pretty clear, our rejection of Governor Fortuño's policies."

Thursday's one-day national strike and rally was a first for many Puerto Ricans who had never taken the streets to protest before. As 'firsts' go, this one was quite impressive! On the morning of the 15th, seven marches from various locations across the Island converged at the main rally site in Hato Ray: Plazas las Americas, the largest shopping mall in the Caribbean. The shopping center was transformed into an enormous rainbow of flags and colorful banners, calling for a revoke of the law that authorized the firing of over thirty thousand public servants. According to reports, all mass public transportation was stopped, except for the trains. The port, docks and ferries in San Juan came to a halt, as did practically all public services across the Island. The public school system closed after only 2 percent of all students showed up for class, and all public universities were also closed.

SEIU Executive VP Eliseo Medina addressed demonstrators on their way to Plaza Las Americas during Puerto Rico's national strike on October 15, 2009

SEIU Healthcare chair Dennis Rivera, Local 1966SPT President Robert Pagan and Eliseo Medina joined the historic protest alongside hundreds of thousands of Puerto Rican workers, SEIU members, faith leaders, students and citizens in what's being called 'the greatest public demonstration in Puerto Rico's history.' SEIU leaders have been in San Juan since Wednesday helping out the striking workers, as many of the laid-off workers are SEIU members. "It is critical. 7,500 members of SEIU are going to lose their jobs," SEIU Healthcare chair Dennis Rivera told The Hill. "If SEIU cannot help their members in their time of need, what good would this organization be?"

Even in the wake of largest demonstration in Puerto Rican history as the country's unemployment rate tops 17 percent, Governor Fortuño continues to parrot his plan to lay off 17,000 state employees made viable under Law 7 will not be repealed. While Governor Fortuño has made it clear that he's not going to listen to the citizens of Puerto Rico or the widespread opposition to his administration's policies, this fight is far from over. "The people have spoken, and they are not going to allow this administration to devastate the lives of working families, ruin the economy, and dismantle Puerto Rico's safety net," said Dennis Rivera. Members of SEIU Local 1996SPT, Local 1199 UGT and other unions and coalitions in Puerto Rico have pledged to continue protests against the job cuts in and outside of the Island.

As the impending date the massive layoffs go into effect creeps closer, thousands of civil servants are living in moments of despair and distress, wondering how they will pay their bills and feed their children after November 6th. Fortuño's draconian budget cuts and cancellation of workers' collective bargaining rights in response to the fiscal crisis is not an acceptable solution by the Government to the Island's already under-served citizens. It's up to us to turn up the heat on Congress and demand they hold hearings on Fortuño's anti-American actions: http://action.seiu.org/page/s/PRcivilrights

More on the strike and recent events in Puerto Rico on SEIU's Blog here. More photos from the October 15th strike here.

Enjoy the slideshow from today's strike by workers to protest Gov. Fortuño's layoffs--the largest demonstration in Puerto Rico's history. We'll keep the site and photostream updated as we get more from the ground in Puerto Rico.

Updates on all things Puerto Rico on SEIU's Blog here. You can also follow SEIU on Twitter for updates.

Watch today's general strike unfolding live in Puerto Rico right now, being streamed by Claridad:

Live Broadcast by Ustream.TV

Here are the facts about recent events in Puerto Rico leading up the October 15 strike:

• On September 25, the Fortuno administration announced it was cutting the jobs of 17,000 schoolteachers, social workers, healthcare workers and other public employees, effective this November 6.
• These lay offs are in addition to the 7,800 workers who were laid off by Governor Fortuno's administration last spring, bringing the total number to nearly 25,000 state government employees.
• In recent days, thousands of university students, workers, faith leaders and citizens have demonstrated, marched and held vigils in support of the working women and men who provide critical public services. Men and women have been threatened, physically attacked, and falsely arrested in some cases.
• On Friday, October 9, students at a high school in Canovanas, Puerto Rico protested the Governor's visit to a nearby public housing project. The protest ended in violence when police invaded the school, arresting teachers and students. Reports from El Nuevo Dia and other outlets show students being physically attacked and arrested on the spot. At least two students were seriously injured and nine were reportedly arrested.
• On Saturday, October 10, the Puerto Rican Civil Rights Commission announced it would investigate police in Canovanas for their actions.
• Later the same day, the Governor threatened to charge Puerto Rican citizens with "terrorism" if they take part in the national march planned for Thursday, October 15.

(For updates on Puerto Rico, stay tuned to SEIU's Blog here.)

On the morning of day one of the General Strike in Puerto Rico, organizers are already declaring the protest a great success.

Yesterday late in the afternoon, the owners of Plaza las Americas, the largest shopping mall in the Caribbean, announced that it would remain closed on October 15 "due to security reasons." Coincidentally, Plaza las Americas owners also happen to be some of the biggest contributors to the Republican Party and their henchman, Governor Luis Fortuño. So it's very appropriate that the main gathering location of the strike is in front of this very shopping center, to serve as a symbol of the greedy upper class that supports the draconian measures taken by the current Puerto Rican administration.

Two successful events that have already taken place today in the strike include the closing of Plaza Las Americas and more significantly, the defeat of fear. Hundreds of thousands of workers are now marching for justice, overcoming the campaign of media terror launched by the Puerto Rican Government during the last days. Protesters are marching from seven different locations of the Banks Zone in San Juan today, heading towards the southern side of Plaza Las Americas--which is expected to largest public gathering in Puerto Rican history.

Today's national protest is being led by the Todo Puerto Rico Por Puerto Rico, a coalition that is composed of unions, civic, professional, religious, community and other civil society organizations, and includes SEIU Locals 1996SPT and 1199UGT.

Baltimore's City Council unanimously approved a resolution Monday endorsing "free and fair union elections for all hospital and nursing home workers in every facility throughout the city." In a city where only nine percent of health care workers are currently unionized (but one in five Baltimore jobs are in health care), this is big news!

The resolution states that unionized healthcare workers are best able to protect quality patient care and work with employers toward shared goals, such as expanding training and education opportunities. "In the past, local health care employers have hired high-priced anti-worker consultants and diverted patient care dollars into fear campaigns to silence caregivers," says SEIU 1199 Communications Director Stacey Mink. "These anti-worker campaigns not only waste health care resources, they ultimately take the focus off patient care."

More on why free and fair elections are so important for caregivers seeking to form unions here.

We already knew that nearly 50 percent of workers who get sick are forced to choose between their health and their paycheck. For low-income workers, 76 percent find themselves without something many of us take for granted:--the right to a "sick day."

For millions of workers, losing a day's wages if they stay home sick is not even the worst-case scenario. Because as New York Times columnist Jim Dyer reminds us, many workers are actually forced to choose between their health and their job. Factory worker Alda Valdez, a mother of four, was fired for catching a cold:

"I asked the boss for permission to go to the hospital. She said, 'It's fine, go - but you don't have a job anymore.' "

If passed, the Paid Sick Days bill introduced August 20 by Councilwoman Gale Brewer (D-Manhattan) would vastly improve the lives of 1.2 million workers in New York by requiring all businesses in New York City to provide their employees between five and nine paid sick days (depending on the size of the business). With support from healthcare oranizations and unions including1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East and SEIU 32BJ, Intro 1059 faces opposition from business groups such business groups like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, who argue that added costs might force some businesses to cut back on hiring.

The vast majority of Americans may not agree on much, but the importance of this healthcare issue is one issue Americans come together on. A nationwide poll conducted last year by the University of Chicago's National Opinion Research Center showed that a whopping 86 percent of Americans believe that employers should be required by law to provide paid sick days to workers.

Put things even more in perspective by reading the Jim Dwyer column in the NY Times: Health Care? Not if You Can't Leave Work to Get It.