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PW: bnaweb22 -----Original Message----- From: "BNA Highlights" <bhighlig@bna.com<@ENRON Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2001 11:16 PM To: BNA Highlights Subject: Nov. 16 -- BNA, Inc. Daily Labor Report ______________________________ DAILY LABOR REPORT Highlights & Table of Contents November 16, 2001 ______________________________ ISSN 1522-5968 __________ HIGHLIGHTS __________ HOUSE, SENATE CONFEREES AGREE ON AIRPORT SECURITY COMPROMISE House and Senate conferees agree on a compromise airport security bill that would require baggage screeners to be federal employees for two years. After two years, the agreement would allow individual airports to "opt out" of the federal system if they meet certain standards. The bill also allows a one-year transition period after enactment for airports to move to the federalized system. During the transition period, the federal government would oversee the contracting companies that employ current baggage screeners. Leaders in the Senate and the House have signed off on the deal, and both chambers are scheduled to vote on the conference report Nov. 16. Lawmakers from both parties expect the bill to pass. Senate Majority Leader Daschle (D-S.D.) calls the agreement "a big victory" and says he expects "broad bipartisan support" for the measure. House Speaker Hastert (R-Ill.) hails the agreement, noting that in addition to baggage screeners, it places airline mechanics and food servers under federal supervision, and it requires federal supervisors to be present at all boarding gates. . . . Page AA-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4e6k6_ SEVENTH CIRCUIT SAYS CHEMICAL FIRMS MUST ARBITRATE POST-SALE DISPUTE A chemical company that sold part of a facility to another chemical company must arbitrate a union's claim that a bargaining contract requires the two companies to continue using a unified seniority list and allow transfers between the two units, the Seventh Circuit rules ("CK Witco Corp. v. Paper, Allied-Industrial, and Chemical Employees Local 60-807, "7th Cir., No. 00-3413, 11/9/01). CK Witco Corp. and the Paper, Allied-Industrial, and Chemical Employees negotiated a contract covering a facility in Mapleton, Ill. The contract stated it would be binding upon any purchaser. Witco sold one of two plants at the facility to Goldschmidt Chemical Corp. during the term of the contract. The union objected when the two companies prepared separate seniority lists and prohibited employee transfers between the two plants. Reversing summary judgment for Witco and Goldschmidt, the appeals court decides the bargaining contract's arbitration provision covers the dispute. "[T]he employees in each [plant] possess a contractual entitlement against their respective current employer to maintenance of the 'full force and effect' of the [bargaining contract] in the event of a sale," Judge Williams writes. "The scope of that entitlement and the attendant duty on the employers is a matter for the arbitrator to resolve," she says. . . . Page A-1, Text E-3 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4b3g6_ http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3u5x6_ HOUSE APPROVES RETIREMENT ADVICE MEASURE The House votes 280-144 to approve legislation that would allow financial institutions that administer qualified employer-sponsored defined contribution retirement plans to provide investment advice to plan participants without employers being liable for specific advice. The Retirement Security Advice Act (H.R. 2269) would create a new exemption from the Employee Retirement Income Security Act's prohibited transaction rules. It would also require qualified investment advisers--registered financial institutions and their employees--to disclose to participants relevant fees and material affiliations with investment products. The House rejects by a 243-180 vote a substitute that sought to address lingering concerns among some Democrats. The substitute called for model forms for making disclosures, registration of all financial institution employees that provide advice, enhanced legal remedies for breach of fiduciary duty, and the provision of an alternate independent adviser if the designated adviser has a potential conflict of interest. . . . Page A-13 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4d3z5_ MICHIGAN ECONOMISTS EXPECT SHORT RECESSION The U.S. economy is in a recession that should be short and shallow, economists at the University of Michigan Economic Outlook Conference predict. They say they expect lower interest rates and higher federal spending to pull the economy out of decline. Recovery should be under way by next spring, says Saul H. Hymans, UM professor of economics. "I peg the length of the recession at two, maybe three quarters," he says. No one industry will lead the way out of the recession, as growth resumes during the second quarter of 2002, Hymans says. . . . Page A-13 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4d3z5_ SURVEY FINDS 63 PERCENT OF EMPLOYERS GRANTING THREE YEAR-END HOLIDAYS The calendar bodes well for workers this holiday season, as Christmas and New Year's Day fall on Tuesdays, giving employees an excellent shot at some "extra" time off, according to BNA's latest annual survey of year-end holiday plans. More than three out of five surveyed employers (63 percent) will grant at least three paid days off for the holiday season, up from 49 percent in 2000-2001, when Christmas and New Year's Day fell on Mondays. Workers stand a good chance of enjoying an extended holiday weekend, as a majority of responding organizations have a full paid day off slated for Christmas Eve (Monday, Dec. 24). Employers' holiday scheduling continues to be slightly more conservative than a decade ago, when, for example, in 1990-1991, a year when the national holidays also fell on Tuesday, seven out of 10 companies gave workers at least three days off. . . . Page C-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/A0A4Y4K6N6_ ______________ TODAY'S EVENTS ______________ CONSUMER PRICES: Consumer price figures for October released, 8:30 a.m., Labor Department. REAL EARNINGS: Real earnings figures for October released, 8:30 a.m., Labor Department. ________________ ALSO IN THE NEWS ________________ UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE: New unemployment insurance claims for the week ending Nov. 10 fell to 444,000, a decrease of 8,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 452,000, according to the Employment and Training Administration. . . . Page D-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3p3m7_ CIVIL RIGHTS COMMISSION: President Bush names Jennifer Cabranes Braceros to be a member of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. Braceros will replace Yvonne Lee, whose term expires in December. . . . Page A-2 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4a9e1_ TEAMSTERS: Incomplete results in the International Brotherhood of Teamsters' election of officers show current President James P. Hoffa with a solid lead over challenger Tom Leedham. The vote count is expected to be completed by Nov. 16. . . . Page A-10 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3u4a5_ LAYOFFS: The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the number of extended mass layoff events rose sharply in the third quarter compared with a year ago. . . . Page D-4 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4a2x9_ ____ TEXT ____ NLRB: NLRB's weekly summary, dated Nov. 16. . . . Page E-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3q6n1_ ARBITRATION: Seventh Circuit decision in "CK Witco Corp. v. Paper, Allied-Industrial, and Chemical Employees Local 60-807". . . . Page E-3 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3u5x6_ _________________ TABLE OF CONTENTS _________________ LEADING THE NEWS AIRLINES House and Senate conferees announce agreement on compromise airport security bill that would require baggage screeners to be federal employees for two years . . . Page AA-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4e6k6_ ____ NEWS ____ ARBITRATION Chemical company that sold part of facility to another company must arbitrate union's claim that bargaining contract requires two companies to use unified seniority list and allow transfers between two units, Seventh Circuit rules . . . Page A-1, Text E-3 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4b3g6_ http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3u5x6_ AUTOS Auto Workers at DaimlerChrysler AG's three-factory assembly complex in Toledo, Ohio, give union leaders authorization to call strike within next 60 days over what union says are safety and health concerns related to mandatory overtime . . . Page A-12 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4c6z9_ CIVIL RIGHTS COMMISSION President Bush names Jennifer Cabranes Braceros to be member of Civil Rights Commission . . . Page A-2 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4a9e1_ COMMUNICATIONS WORKERS CWA temporarily takes over administration of Portland local . . . Page A-16 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3t7k3_ CONSTRUCTION Handwritten notations on construction labor agreements between nonunion builder and union were ambiguous, and therefore did not put union benefit fund administrator on notice that agreements had been modified, Sixth Circuit rules . . . Page A-9 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4b1t7_ Two brothers who serve as principals of several Long Island, N.Y., construction companies plead guilty to charges that they conspired to pay off organized crime figures and union officers in return for guarantees of labor peace . . . Page A-14 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4e7f8_ DISCRIMINATION More than 300 current and former female custodial workers employed by Architect of the Capitol (AOC) obtain court approval of $2.5 million settlement resulting from pay equity lawsuit . . . Page A-8 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3z8m0_ EMPLOYEE BENEFITS Attachment to employment offer did not amend employer's severance plan, and thus former employee who accepted offer may not rely on attachment in claim for severance pay, federal district court rules . . . Page A-8 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3v8d3_ ERISA Chicago law firm did not interfere with attorney's right to increase in her gross salary as reimbursement for health insurance premiums deducted from her salary where "gross-up" plan was not governed by ERISA, Seventh Circuit rules . . . Page A-5 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y2p7a0_ IMMIGRATION House Judiciary Committee approves legislation (H.R. 3030) to extend for two years voluntary pilot program that allows employers to electronically verify work authorization documents . . . Page A-16 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3t7m1_ INTERNATIONAL LABOR Historic first collective bargaining agreement reached between Canadian Auto Workers and Intier Automotive Inc. opens door for further organizing . . . Page A-4 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y2x2t7_ ILO says global economic stimulus package is needed to revive sagging economies and provide boost to national employment in many countries . . . Page A-2 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3u1v7_ NLRB Regular mail service for NLRB's Manhattan office is restored . . . Page A-16 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4c2v8_ PENSIONS House approves by 280-144 vote legislation that would allow financial institutions that administer qualified employer-sponsored defined contribution retirement plans to provide investment advice to plan participants without employers being liable for specific advice . . . Page A-13 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4d3z5_ SAFETY & HEALTH Heirs of employee fatally injured while working for independent contractor cannot recover damages from owner of premises where injury occurred, Sixth Circuit rules . . . Page A-6 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4b0n7_ OSHA releases manual describing best practices for working around metalworking fluids . . . Page A-11 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4c5b8_ Risks posed by pesticide chlorpyrifos are acceptable to EPA if some changes are made in how products are used to mitigate risks to workers and environment . . . Page A-7 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3q8q1_ SHIPBUILDING Members of Marine Draftsmen's Association vote to ratify new 54-month labor contract with Electric Boat . . . Page A-7 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4a9k7_ TEAMSTERS With ballot count incomplete, incumbent Teamsters President Hoffa appears to have established solid lead over challenger Leedham . . . Page A-10 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3u4a5_ TRANSPORTATION Sen. Gramm (R-Texas) says he opposes new bipartisan proposal to restrict Mexican trucks from traveling throughout United States because it treats Mexico and Canada differently and violates NAFTA . . . Page A-13 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4c7b6_ UNEMPLOYMENT After Democrat-supported economic stimulus is pulled from Senate floor, Republicans and Democrats hurl accusations at each other over inability to begin bipartisan negotiations . . . Page A-15 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4f6r1_ Washington, D.C., government and organized labor announce opening of one-stop unemployment center at AFL-CIO headquarters . . . Page A-10 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4c4j6_ WRONGFUL DISCHARGE Wal-Mart photo processing employee who was terminated for informing police of questionable customer photos fails to gain new trial on claim that discharge violated Nebraska law . . . Page A-3 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3f3z2_ _________________ CONFERENCE REPORT _________________ CONSUMER CONFIDENCE Consumer confidence has fallen in 2001 but is not as low as some reports indicate, University of Michigan economist says . . . Page B-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4a8y0_ ECONOMIC OUTLOOK U.S. economy is in recession that should be short and shallow, according to economists at University of Michigan Economic Outlook Conference . . . Page B-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4a5g7_ ______ TRENDS ______ EMPLOYMENT POLICIES Calendar bodes well for workers this holiday season, as Christmas and New Year's Day fall on Tuesdays, giving employees an excellent chance of "extra" time off, according to BNA's annual survey of employers' year-end holiday plans . . . Page C-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/A0A4Y4K6N6_ _____________ ECONOMIC NEWS _____________ LAYOFFS Drawing from figures that provide closer look at job losses related to September terrorist attacks, Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that number of extended mass layoff events rose sharply in third quarter compared with year ago . . . Page D-4 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4a2x9_ UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE New claims for unemployment insurance in week ending Nov. 10 fell to 444,000, decrease of 8,000 from previous week's revised figure of 452,000, Labor Department's Employment and Training Administration says . . . Page D-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3p3m7_ ____ TEXT ____ ARBITRATION Seventh Circuit decision in "CK Witco Corp. v. Paper, Allied-Industrial, and Chemical Employees Local 60-807" . . . Page E-3 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3u5x6_ NLRB NLRB's weekly summary of cases, dated Nov. 16, 2001 . . . Page E-1 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3q6n1_ ______________ TABLE OF CASES ______________ Abramowicz v. Rohm and Haas Co. (E.D. Pa.) . . . Page A-8 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3v8d3_ Bilow v. Much Shelist Freed Denenberg Ament & Rubenstein (7th Cir.) . . . Page A-5 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y2p7a0_ CK Witco Corp. v. Paper, Allied-Industrial, and Chemical Employees Local 60-807 (7th Cir.) . . . Page A-1, Text E-3 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4b3g6_ http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3u5x6_ Gasper v. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (8th Cir.) . . . Page A-3 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3f3z2_ Harris v. Architect of the Capitol (D.D.C.) . . . Page A-8 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y3z8m0_ Hoskins v. A.O. Smith Corp. (6th Cir.) . . . Page A-6 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4b0n7_ Northwestern Ohio Adm'rs v. Walcher & Fox (6th Cir.) . . . Page A-9 http://pubs.bna.com/ip/BNA/dlr.nsf/id/a0a4y4b1t7_ ___________________________________________________________ Daily Labor Report (ISSN 1522-5968) Highlights are published daily by The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc., 1231 25th St., NW, Washington, DC 20037. Registered Web subscribers can access the full text of these articles by using the URL link supplied. To register for a FREE Web trial, go to http://web.bna.com. For subscription information and other inquiries, call BNA Customer Relations at 1-800-372-1033, Mon. - Fri. 8:30 am - 7:00 pm (ET), excluding most federal holidays. To request retransmission or to order a copy of the summarized article, contact 1-800-452-7773 or e-mail bnaplus@bna.com. For copyright guidelines, go to http://www.bna.com/corp/copyright. Copyright © 2001 by The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc. Washington, D.C. 20037. Use of this service is subject to the terms and conditions of the license agreement with BNA. Unauthorized access or distribution is prohibited.
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