COMPLIMENTARY
APRIL – MAY 2020
Common Ground RHODE ISLAND
INSIDE ▶ Advice to follow when economy crashes ▶ Health care workers risk all to save patients ▶ AFL-CIO leader blasts head of National Labor Relations Board ▶ Congress makes it easier for seniors to file income taxes ▶ States to avoid if you don’t want Social Security benefits taxed
Teamsters and Bradford Soap Works help Family Service mitigate COVID-19 spread PROVIDENCE – The Teamsters have put the pedal to the metal to assist efforts aimed at flattening the coronavirus pandemic curve. Personnel from the union and Bradford Soap Works in West Warwick recently delivered 5,000 bars of soap to Family Service of Rhode Island for the agency’s Be Safe Kits. The kits for Rhode Island families in need include antibacterial soap, disinfecting wipes, alcohol-based hand sanitizers and other items in a reusable bag to help them stay safe and healthy during the COVID-19 outbreak, according to the agency. Gov. Gina Raimondo played a major role procuring the soap, a spokesman for the agency said. While addressing Family Service’s board of directors at its monthly meeting in March, the governor learned the
agency was kicking off its fundraising campaign for the kits. “The governor immediately stepped up and offered help,” Margaret Holland McDuff, the chief executive officer of Family Service, stated in a release from the agency. Raimondo contacted Bradford, which immediately joined her in supporting Be Safe. “We are so thankful for this help,” McDuff added. Family Service is a statewide nonprofit, and it is still raising money for the Be Safe Kits for low-income children, families and seniors, according to agency spokesperson Wil Tregaskis. “We work in schools and communities across Rhode Island, and ... so many families have asked how they See Bradford Soap Works, page 2
Transit workers keep society rolling during pandemic By Common Ground staff “It’s like being sent into a war with a stick instead of gun.” That’s how Thomas G. Cute Jr., president and business agent of Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 618 in Providence, described what “worried and scared” bus drivers in his unit faced before receiving N95 masks to help protect them against COVID-19. The masks were distributed on April 6 to the 405 Rhode Island Public Transit Authority (RIPTA) fixed bus route drivers and office personnel, Cute said, adding that he is grateful to the Rhode Island State Firefighters Association and George Nee, president of the Rhode Island AFL-CIO, for helping to obtain the masks. There is a procedure drivers can use to clean the masks, Cute said, and RIPTA is trying to obtain more N95s. According to Cute, the authority received $104 million See Transit Workers, page 8
Participating in the distribution of N95 masks to members of Amalgamated Transit Union Locals 618 and 618A, are, from left, Thomas G. Cute Jr., president and business agent; James Bianchi, Elmwood Executive Board member; and Joseph Cole; vice president.Common Ground photo – John J. Tassoni Jr.
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Bradford Soap Works, from page 1
can get help to buy the products recommended to prevent the spread of the coronavirus,” McDuff stated. “So many of our neighbors are already struggling to make ends meet, and they raised (concerns) that these extra costs for recommended products are out of reach for them. “In addition, we’re working in countless homes across Rhode Island with babies, seniors and others who are high risk and have very limited incomes. We want to make sure they have the right products to be safe,” she stated. According to the agency, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has directed that two fundamental steps can make an important difference in fighting off COVID-19. They are frequent hand washing for at least 20 seconds with soap and water; and cleaning frequently touched surfaces daily. If soap and water are unavailable, people should use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer to clean their hands; and the surfaces that should be sanitized include tabletops, doorknobs, bathroom fixtures, toilets, phones, keyboards, tablets and bedside tables.
Jennifer Rainone, senior grant writer for the agency, is all smiles while looking over donations from Bradford Soap Works and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island.
To help with the current campaign, text BESAFE to 44321 or visit https://www.familyserviceri.org/post/be-safe. Family Service is hoping to raise at least $5,000, which would pay for $25 worth of items per family for 200 families. All products will comply with CDC and state Department of Health specifications. For more information, call Maggie Slane, vice president of advancement, at (401) 331-1350, extension 3840, or email slanema@familyserviceri.org.
Common Ground News, Inc. does not assume any financial responsibility for typographical errors in advertisements, but will reprint that portion of an advertisement in which the typographical error occurs.
Contributing to Common Ground Common Ground is a monthly magazine covering the labor movement and issues affecting working families in Rhode Island. Complimentary copies are distributed throughout the state, particularly at union halls and the State House. If you are a union or an organization focused on working people in Rhode Island, we want to help you get the word out about your events, cover your news and tell your stories. Email Paul at sdpublisher@gmail.com, or call John Tassoni at 401-451-1305
Teamsters Local 251 used its tractor trailer to deliver soap to Family Service of Rhode Island in Providence for its Be Safe Kits. Photos submitted by Family Service of Rhode Island.
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Union leaders, members demonstrate mettle during nation’s health-related disaster By Joann Muller The coronavirus pandemic has had a big impact on working people, who are increasingly banding together to put pressure on employers and raise public awareness about health and safety issues they’re facing on the job. That matters because after years of declining union membership, a new labor movement is rising, amplified by the power of social media and fueled by concerns that workers deemed essential during the crisis are putting their lives at risk to ensure the well-being of others. Some Whole Foods employees used an online petition to organize a so-called sick out, demanding double hazard pay, after workers at Amazon and Instacart staged other actions. Unionized nurses, flight attendants and auto workers have all leveraged their collective voices in recent weeks to try to influence policy and corporate decision-making during the crisis. For example: The United Auto Workers union, which recently had at least nine of its members succumb to the disease, pressured Detroit car makers to close their factories on March 18 until social distancing protocols could be established. Nurses in New York, Georgia, Illinois and California staged protests calling for more
personal protective equipment (PPE) such as masks, gloves and gowns. The Association of Flight Attendants union successfully made its case to Congress to assist aviation employees in the $2 trillion stimulus bill. Even with drastically decreased air traffic, the workers will still get paid. “Hundreds of thousands of people sent letters and made calls. Together, we achieved something unheard of in American history: relief crafted for workers, by workers,” union President Sara Nelson told Yahoo Finance. Social media is proving to be a new avenue for workers to organize. “I think we could be on the cusp of a whole new wave of worker actions, and organizing, though not necessarily through traditional unions,” MIT Professor Thomas Kochan told Axios. “Yesterday’s break room is today’s Slack chat,” agreed AFL-CIO spokesman Tim Schlittner. “It’s an incredible tool in bringing people together and can serve a really important role in growing the labor movement.” However, noisy protests don’t necessarily result in lasting change, according to Kochan. “The upside of these actions is they get the attention of the public. The downside is they don’t build sustainable, ongoing organizations like unions,” he said.
The increased activism comes just as the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is taking steps to limit union organizing, according to the AFL-CIO. “In two weeks’ time, in the middle of a pandemic, President Trump’s NLRB suspended representation elections and then made it harder for employers to voluntarily recognize unions,” said AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka. “The board is effectively sealing off any viable path to unionization at a time when workers need a voice on the job more than ever.” (See the letter on page 15 that Trumka sent to John Ring, chairman of the NLRB.) Workers for the most part have been left out of the government and business response to the coronavirus, Kochan wrote in a recent blog post. However, in Europe, workers councils are represented on corporate boards so they have a say in how companies respond in a crisis. In Germany, for example, unions and companies agreed to shorten work schedules to avoid mass layoffs. In Sweden, Italy and Spain, unions, employers and governments have reached joint agreements dealing with worker safety, work hours and layoff benefits in light of the crisis. However, President Trump has invited a parade of corporate executives to join the government’s efforts to fight the pandemic, but labor leaders say he has not sought their input. At the beginning of World War II, President Franklin D. Roosevelt brought together business and labor leaders to help convert the economy to wartime production. As part of that effort, he created a National War Labor Board to oversee workers’ relations with management and ensure everything went smoothly. Decisions made by the War Labor Board led to many of today’s modern labor practices, notes Kochan. After urging Detroit automakers to shut down, UAW members have volunteered to produce medical supplies as General Motors, Ford and Fiat Chrysler respond to Trump’s demand for their help. “In spite of the lack of engagement from politicians, you still see labor stepping up to help the country,” says UAW President Rory Gamble. (Editor’s note: Joann Muller writes for the Axios news website. This story ran in a recent edition of the AFL-CIO ENews.)
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Experts: Largest ever U.S, stimulus package might not be enough to prop up economy By Lawrence Delevingne and Howard Schneider, Reuters The Federal Reserve offered more than $3 trillion in loans and asset purchases in recent weeks to stop the U.S. financial system from seizing up, but it has not yet directly helped large swaths of the real economy – companies, municipalities and other borrowers with less than perfect credit. That is partly because America’s central bank is not allowed to take much credit risk itself, and loans to lower-rated borrowers have a higher chance of losses. The risk is exacerbated by efforts to stop the spread of coronavirus, which has brought economic activity to a screeching halt. To alleviate that constraint, the U.S. Treasury, which is charged with managing the government’s finances and helping the Fed keep the economy steady, has taken on some of the risk that Fed loans will not be paid back. It has contributed about $50 billion from a pool
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of money called the Exchange Stabilization Fund. That money will be used to absorb losses from Fed loans that go bad. Assuming only a fraction of loans default, the Treasury contribution has allowed the Fed to lend much more without taking on additional risk. The Treasury got about $450 billion more from Congress as part of a $2.2 trillion U.S. stimulus package, greatly increasing its ability to support the economy. Before the bill passed, the stabilization fund had about $93 billion in assets. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told Fox News he believed the additional funds could help the Fed and Treasury provide about $4 trillion in loans. But investors and economists said even that additional money may be insufficient, and Congress will likely need to pony up trillions of dollars more before the Fed and Treasury can make a significant dent in the real economy.
If it does not, many U.S. companies and local governments are at risk of defaulting on debt or even going under. That is because of the sheer size of the world’s largest economy, the unprecedented scale of economic disruption caused by attempts to contain the virus and higher credit losses if the government has to step in to support weaker borrowers, according to the experts. Scott Minerd, chief investment officer of Guggenheim Partners and member of an investor committee that advises the New York Federal Reserve on financial markets, told Reuters he believes the government needs to give the Treasury about $2 trillion to help prop up the economy. Using expected losses from companies in the lowest tier of investment grade, Minerd See Stimulus, page 6
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Stimulus, from page 5 estimates that the money approved might be only enough to absorb losses on loans of about $900 billion. That is just a fraction of the roughly $9.5 trillion in outstanding U.S. corporate debt, much of which is either in the lowest-tier investment grade rating or already rated as junk, with a higher risk of default. Other areas that need support, including the commercial paper market where borrowers go for short-term funding and the municipal market that local governments use to raise money for roads and schools, total trillions of dollars more. With the $2 trillion that he recommends, he said, “you’re on your way to have something of a big enough scale to get things propped up.” Bank of America analysts said the aid package was the “bare minimum.” They estimated the government will need a total of $3 trillion in fiscal stimulus and more if the recession deepens. The Fed declined to comment, and the Treasury did not respond to a request for comment. The Fed has so far kept its pledge to lend to companies with investment-grade ratings and to buy other high-quality assets such as Treasury securities. The aim of the Fed’s support is to encourage banks and investors to lend to weaker, and therefore more risky, companies and local governments, where they can earn higher returns, giving them access to the funding they need to continue operating and paying staff. In some of the Fed’s funding facilities, the Treasury put up $10 billion as loss-absorbing capital for every $100 billion of loans. Mnuchin’s comment that the Fed and Treasury can now lend $4 trillion suggests he expects the rate of losses on the new loans to be similar, less than 10 percent. Investors said losses would likely increase, however, if the government has to reach deeper into the economy. And they are betting the Fed will have to do so. Fed officials have signaled they are not ruling anything out in their efforts. (Editor’s note: The above article was in the April 5 E-Newsletter of the Rhode Island Alliance for Retired Americans.)
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UFCW and Stop & Shop announce 10 percent pay hike for grocery workers during coronavirus pandemic WASHINGTON, D.C. – The United Food and Commercial Workers union (UFCW), which represents 1.3 million workers in grocery, retail and other industries, applauded Stop & Shop for recently giving all union Stop & Shop and Peapod employees represented by the UFCW a 10 percent increase in pay during the coronavirus outbreak. Workers will also receive two additional weeks of paid leave if they become sick. UFCW International President Marc Perrone released the following statement: “After discussions between Stop & Shop and the UFCW, Stop & Shop is announcing a 10 percent raise and additional sick leave for grocery workers during the coronavirus pandemic. This essential pay and benefit increase will not only protect these hard-working men and women, it will help protect the food supply throughout our communities. “As we know, grocery workers like Stop & Shop employees have been on the front lines of this crisis, serving the needs of millions of families in the Northeast. Protecting them is absolutely essential to our communities and food supply now more than ever. “Every supermarket, grocery store and food retail employer – union and nonunion – in the Northeast and across America must follow the example that Stop & Shop has set and follow their lead.” UFCW International and UFCW locals have been negotiating with employers across the country to recognize how hard grocery workers are working to provide necessary food and
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supplies to their communities during the coronavirus pandemic.
has made aisles one way, and that it was getting KN95 masks for employees.
Following the agreement between Stop & Shop and the UFCW, several grocery store employees nationwide have died of COVID-19, including an employee at Market Basket in Salem, Mass., according to The Boston Globe.
According to The Globe, Trader Joe’s was distributing masks, and that in some stores where employees tested positive or were suspected of having coronavirus, the stores were closed for additional cleaning and workers were paid during the process. Also, in hard-hit areas, the company is shutting down stores and conducting deep cleaning even if there were no diagnosed or suspected COVID-19 cases.
The Globe reported that at least four other grocery store workers around the nation have died of coronavirus, and that employees with the Whole Foods, Stop & Shop, Shaw’s and Trader Joe’s chains protested outside the Whole Foods in Boston on April 7. Workers for those chains have tested positive for COVID-19. The majority of Stop & Shop cases have been in stores around New York City, according to The Globe. The protesters want employers to provide gloves and masks, additional paid sick leave and time-and-a-half hazard pay during the coronavirus pandemic, according to The Globe. On April 7, the UFCW and Albertsons Cos., which owns Shaw’s and Star Market, started a campaign across the country to have grocery store workers designated as extended first responders or emergency personnel, giving them priority for COVID-19 testing and access to masks and gloves, according to The Globe. The newspaper reported Shaw’s and Star Market were obtaining masks for workers, and that Whole Foods’ workers must undergo temperature screening, and that gloves and masks were being distributed at the beginning of each shift. Stop & Shop told the newspaper it
The UFCW and Safeway have announced that Safeway would provide a $2 per hour increase in pay for its grocery workers across the country during the outbreak. In California, UFCW locals applauded Stater Bros. Markets for implementing a $2 per hour pay raise to its workers. The raise was for all hourly employees over the course of four weeks that started March 23. In Missouri, UFCW Local 655 secured a deal for grocery workers at Schnucks, Dierbergs and Straubs to waive all co-payments for coronavirus testing, maintain pay for those who become sick and expand access to telemedicine with zero out-of-pocket costs. The UFCW is the largest private sector union in the United States, representing 1.3 million professionals and their families in health care, grocery stores, meatpacking, food processing, retail shops and other industries. (Editor’s note: Portions of the above article also appeared on the AFL-CIO ENews site.)
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Transit Workers, from page 2 in Federal Transit Administration funds to cope with the repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic, including purchasing personal protective equipment. Cute called his fellow union members, especially the fixed route drivers, courageous and patriotic for continuing to work during the health crisis. “We are in the first responder’s category,” he said. “These drivers are getting people to their jobs ... They’re getting people to the grocery store ... They’re transporting people so they can keep buildings open ... No one has refused to work.” That work includes driving buses and maintaining and sanitizing the vehicles and RIPTA buildings. Cute said two RIPTA workers have tested positive for COVID-19, but it is believed they contracted the virus while traveling not on the job. According to a story in The Nation posted in the AFL-CIO E-News, a bus driver in Snohomish County, Washington, 41-year-old Scott Ryan, was the first member of the ATU to die of Covid-19. He was a shop steward with ATU Local 1576 in the Everett, Wash., region, an area north of Seattle that is near one of the initial hot spots for the spread of the coronavirus.
Meanwhile, members of Transport Workers Union of America (TWU) Local 100 in New York City mourned the deaths of conductor Peter Patrassi and bus operator Oliver Cyrus, the first of their union brothers and sisters to succumb to Covid-19, according to The Nation. Following those deaths, ATU President John Costa told The Nation: “Transit workers from coast to coast are continuing to get exposed and infected from Covid-19, and agencies and governments need to act now to protect them. You shouldn’t send troops into battle without protective armor, and you shouldn’t send nurses and bus operators to work without proper personal protective equipment.” Frustrated by the failure of too many cities and systems to protect workers, the TWU and ATU entered into a historic agreement to take “whatever aggressive action is necessary” to “put maximum pressure on transit agencies that are failing to take protective measures to safeguard transit workers, including the provision of masks and gloves.” In so doing, the unions are mounting a defense not just of their own members but also of passengers who have become increasingly reliant on public transportation in a time of crisis, according to The Nation.
unions noted that “hundreds of transit workers in more than 20 states have tested positive for the virus.” Costa said he is angry with the uneven response of transit agencies to the Covid-19 threat. He is quoted as saying, “We didn’t sign up to die on these jobs. My operators are tired, they are scared; some of them are sleeping in their cars because they don’t want to get their families sick.” In keeping with measures pushed by the ATU, Cute said Local 618 is ensuring that: transit workers are provided with gloves and masks; buses and facilities are regularly disinfected; all passengers except for those who are physically unable use rear doors to board buses to maintain a safe distance between riders and operators; and drivers can use sound judgment to determine the maximum number of passengers that can ride a bus at one time. Cute said that bus operators and other union first responders should be honored with “some special recognition” after the pandemic ends. “These are very special people,” he said.
In a joint statement, the
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Make calm, calculated decisions about finances during tumultuous times By Robert Dumais It’s crazy how the COVID-19 pandemic has changed daily life, for the entire world. Just a couple of months ago, life was normal and running along smoothly, most of us were happy to see winter coming to an end, and we were looking forward to spring and summer… and then it hit. Now, we’re just looking forward to life getting back to the way it was and asking ourselves, “Will things ever get back to normal? Moving forward, will it be a new and different ‘normal’ than the one we once knew?” At Legacy Benefit Advisors (LBA), we work with lots of folks who are looking for help with the transition into retirement. Many have dreamed of the moment they can walk into the office, flip over the desk, and say, “I’m outta here.” However, after meeting with hundreds of folks that are planning for retirement, we haven’t found that to be the best approach.
strategy. Most offices are closed because of the pandemic, but there are options such as phones, text messaging, email and video conferencing that can give you immediate access to a professional who can offer some sense of relief. Be well, be safe. Robert Dumais is a principle of Legacy Benefit Advisors in Warwick. Contact him at (401) 868-1400 or RDumais@LBARI.com.
For some people who may have “ridden the stock market ride a bit too long,” maybe because they liked the excitement or maybe because they didn’t know other safer options were available, what do they do now? Their “nest eggs” might be down as much as 30 percent. And if you’ve already gotten fed up with the daily grind and have“flipped the desk over,” does that mean they need to flip it back upright? If you’re a retired tradesman, does it mean you need to clean the rust off the tools and head back to work? We talk with lots of people every day at LBA, and our best immediate advice is to not panic and not make any rash decisions. Take a deep breath and know that with some guidance, you will figure this out. Remember, your parents survived world wars, several other pandemics and the Great Depression. “This too shall pass,” and we’ll be all right. Our best suggestion is to talk with a financial professional. Share your plans, goals and concerns, and map out a
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Residents in 13 states may lose portions of their Social Security benefits Sean Williams, For The Motley Fool (Editor’s note: The following article was in the Rhode Island Alliance for Retired Americans E-Newsletter.) Social Security is easily our country’s most successful social program. For more than 80 years, Social Security has made guaranteed monthly payouts to eligible retired workers, with over 64 million people today receiving a benefit. What’s more, the payouts are making a meaningful difference in the financial well-being of elderly Americans. Even though the average retired worker benefit is only about $1,505 a month, as of January, the payout is singlehandedly responsible for pulling more than 15 million retirees out of poverty. But there’s something else Americans get with Social Security that they may not expect: The possibility of being taxed. Back in 1983, the Reagan administration passed the last major overhaul of the Social Security program. The changes made came from both
sides of the aisle, with Democrats successfully pushing for increases to revenue generation, and Republicans netting long-term outlay reductions via a gradual increase to the full retirement age. But the biggest change of all was the introduction of the taxation of benefits, which officially took effect in 1984. The taxation of benefits, as introduced in the Social Security Amendments of 1983, allowed the Internal Revenue Service to apply federal ordinary income tax rates on up to half of an individual’s or couple’s Social Security benefit, depending on their income. If an individual’s or couple’s modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) plus one-half of benefits exceed $25,000 or $32,000, respectively, they would be subject to that tax. In 1993, under the Clinton administration, a second federal tier of taxation was added. If an individual or couple exceeds $34,000 or $44,000, respectively, using the same MAGI plus one-half benefits formula, then up to 85 percent of their Social Security benefits are subject to federal ordinary income tax.
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What’s been a particular bummer about the taxation of benefits is that the income thresholds passed in 1983 and 1993 have never been adjusted for inflation. Therefore, a greater number of seniors are being taxed on their Social Security payouts at the federal level over time. According to the Senior Citizens League, a nonpartisan senior advocacy group, nearly half of all seniors now pay tax on their benefits. However, the tax buck doesn’t stop with Uncle Sam. Believe it or not, 13 states also tax Social Security benefits to some varied degree. They are: Colorado, Connecticut, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont and West Virginia. If you don’t see your state on this list, be thankful you’re living in one of the 37 states that don’t place a tax on Social Security income. As recently as a couple of years ago, there were four states where treatment of Social Security See Social Security Benefits, page 12
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Social Security Benefits, from page 11 income mirrored the federal tax schedule – Minnesota, North Dakota, Vermont and West Virginia. At one time, that made those four states among the least friendly to retirees, at least in terms of falling victim to double taxation on Social Security payouts. But times have changed, and all four of those states have initiated new exemptions or thresholds that are designed to not sting as badly as those at the federal level. In fact, West Virginia will be a Social Security tax-free state by 2022. There are also a handful of states that require seniors to earn quite a lot of money before coming after a percentage of their Social Security income. For example, Missouri allows single filers to earn up to $85,000 in adjusted gross income (AGI), and $100,000 in AGI for couples filing jointly, before the taxation of benefits would kick in. Even then, the Show-Me State allows for partial exemptions for those persons and couples exceeding those income thresholds. It’s a similar story for Rhode Island, which is particularly generous to couples receiving a Social Security payout. Rhode Island adjusts its income thresholds for inflation every year, which placed its generous AGI thresholds at $81,900 for single taxpayers and $102,400 for married couples filing jointly in the 2018 tax year. In other words, you have to earn a lot of money in the Ocean State before being subject to a tax on your Social Security benefits. While there are, undoubtedly, multiple variables retirees should examine when calling a state home, make sure state-level income thresholds tied to the taxation of Social Security benefits are on the list.
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New form makes filing taxes easier of seniors By John A. Pernorio The president’s proposed cut to Social Security is of special concern to the 9.9 million people who received an SSDI benefit check “Form 1040-SR is a good option for those ages last month. Of those 9.9 65 and over,” says Mark Steber, chief tax officer million people, almost at Jackson Hewitt Tax Service, headquartered in 8.4 million are disabled workers, many of whom Jersey City, N.J. are reliant on the $1,258 a month that the proAs you prepare for taxes this year, start by lining up your age with the available options. If gram pays on average. you were born before Jan. 2, 1955, you can fill That proposal also out form 1040-SR. The form is designed to be comes after President easier to fill out than form 1040, which is what Trump promised not to seniors in the past frequently had to use. touch any entitlement programs, which inRetirees should consider filing a 1040-SR cludes Social Security, because: while campaigning in 2015 and 2016. • It’s easier to report retirement income from Social Security, pensions and retirement Social Security and Medicare are not entitleaccount withdrawals. ments. They are earned benefits through the Federal Insurance Contribution Act (FICA) that • The form points out the increased standard was enacted in 1935 deduction available to taxpayers age 65 as a tax provision of and older. the Social Security Act. • The short, two-page form has senior-friend- It is run by the Internal Revenue Service and ly features, including a larger font and appears in the Internal bigger text boxes. Revenue Code. The deduction goes to Social • Seniors who are still working can report Security and is your wages, salaries and tips. way of helping us secure your today and tomorIf you turned 65 on or before Jan. 1, 2019, you row. It’s our job to keep can use the new tax form if you are retired or the safety net of Social working. In addition, if you are married, only Security strong through one spouse needs to have a qualifying age. your incremental contri“Married people filing a joint return can use butions. Form 1040-SR regardless of whether one or both spouses are age 65 or older or retired,” says Paul Miller, founder of Miller & Company, The Self-Ema New York City-based certified public account- ployed Contributions Act (SECA) tax is a ing firm. With the 1040-SR, there is no cap on overall income. You also don’t have to be under levy from the government on those who a limit on interest, dividends or capital gains to work for themselves. It file the form. requires self-employed In an unrelated matter, President Trump’s fiscal workers to contribute tax to pay both the 2021 budget calls for a $24 billion reduction in employer and employee outlays from the Social Security program over the next decade. More than half of those savings portions of the Federal Insurance Contributions would be derived from changes made to Social Act (FICA). Security’s disability insurance (SSDI) benefit. The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 introduced a new tax form for seniors effective for filing taxes for 2019. Known as 1040-SR, the form is designed to make filing taxes easier for older Americans.
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Social Security benefits do not, I repeat, do not contribute to the federal government deficit. John A. Pernorio is president of the Rhode Alliance for Retired Americans. Contact him at riarajap@hotmail.com.
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Frontline health care workers feel like ‘lambs to the slaughterhouse’ By Robert Kuznia, Nelli Black, Bob Ortega and Drew Griffin, For CNN (Editor’s note: This story was written in March and was posted in an edition of the AFL-CIO ENews.) An anesthesiologist in Arizona turned to eBay for N95 masks. A nurse in Ohio said she and her colleagues were forbidden from wearing any masks for fear that it would spread anxiety. A nursing home employee in Arkansas who developed a fever said she couldn’t get tested. Across the country, health care workers on the frontlines of the escalating fight against COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, describe a grim scene of rationed personal protective equipment – widely known as PPE – and lack of testing. The scarcity of equipment is at a critical stage, where medical workers are being asked to do something that weeks ago would have brought reprimand or even termination – reuse supplies. “We just had a survey by the joint commission that oversees the hospital ... One of the sticking points in the survey was that you need to change your mask between every case.” So dire are the shortages that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has suggested that health care workers bring scarves, bandanas or makeshift masks from home as a “last resort.” Although many hospitals and clinics are scrambling to refill dwindling supplies, the stories from health workers reflect a shaken American health care system that was caught flat-footed by the fast-spreading global pandemic. Health care workers who spoke to CNN said they are not only scared for themselves, their patients and their families – they are also angry. Scores of them reached out to CNN to share their stories and frustrations. “It’s unacceptable that we’re sending medical professionals like lambs to the slaughterhouse without giving anything to protect them,” said Dr. Marianne Hamra, who works in New Jersey. “Bandanas and scarves? C’mon CDC – that’s completely ridiculous.”
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Dr. Patrice Harris, president of the American Medical Association, says what she heard from her physicians is just unprecedented. In New Jersey, 35 physicians and nurses were off the job at Holy Name Medical Center because they are either had or were suspected of having COVID-19. Holy Name Medical Center’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Adam Jarrett said supplies and staffing were holding up and that he didn’t have to compromise care – but he wasn’t sure for how long. “I’m very concerned that if things don’t slow down, if the supply chains do not open up, if we don’t figure out a way to get the nurses in here from the federal government (and) from the military,” he said. “I feel in a week or so from now I may not be able to feel the same way.” “My problem is, you don’t know who’s coming in or out,” said the nurse, who asked not to be identified for fear of retaliation. “We know there are people who are asymptomatic ... But we’re not allowed to wear PPE; we were told it would give patients anxiety.” But she said the lack of a mask has filled her with anxiety. “I don’t want to bring anything home to my kids,” she said. “I’m a single mom. I signed up to be a frontline worker, but I don’t have the equipment to do it.” So fed up was another Ohio nurse that she tendered her resignation.
Equipment in COVID-19 Pandemic.” The petition calls on the government to tap into a national stockpile of supplies of N95 masks as well as to leverage the public and private sector to that end. In less than a week, the petition had more than 1.2 million signatures. Nisha Mehta, a doctor in North Carolina, runs two closed Facebook groups. The groups have a combined 65,000 members, and physicians are worried about the ethical implications of institutions saying it’s okay to perform procedures without protective gear. “Are we doing more harm than good by going in there with no equipment and potentially spreading this to so many other people?” she said. “Are we taking out the front lines to our defense when we’re so early on in the equivalent of a health care war right now?”
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“I took this job never knowing that if something like this happened, people were not prepared to protect frontline workers,” said the nurse, who declined to share her name because she is hoping to have a conversation with a manager and didn’t want to taint the discussion.“It’s like they don’t care.” Milla Kviatkovsky, a hospitalist physician in San Diego, helped launch a petition on Change.org called “US Physicians/Healthcare Workers For Personal Protective
Contact John Tassoni at 401.451.1305 or john@jtsentinelgroup.com to learn more. CGRI.NEWS
Trumka blasts NLRB Chairman for hindering organizing during crisis The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) recently took action that the AFL-CIO considers a blatant attempt to hinder union organizing. In response, Richard L. Trumka, AFL-CIO president, wrote the following letter to NLRB Chairman John Ring. (See related story on page 3) Dear Chairman Ring: I write to express my utter outrage, indeed, incredulity that the National Labor Relations Board, while itself delaying all elections and hearings nationwide, chose a moment of national emergency to divert its resources in order to make it more difficult for employees to obtain representation during this public health and economic crisis, both through an election and through voluntary recognition, by issuing a final rule in RIN 3142-AA16. While America’s workers are risking our lives to keep you safe and fed, you and your colleagues have chosen this moment to change the rules under which we can gain the representation we need to protect ourselves. This was unthinking at best and surely the product of an ideological zeal that has marked your tenure as chairman and that, at present, makes you oblivious to the reality that exists in the workplace as I write this letter. How is it possible that, while delaying all elections and hearings nationwide and without any publicly announced plan to resume those critical operations, you have issued a rule addressing what you have characterized as the “unnecessary” delay of elections caused by blocking charges, even though the number of such charges is already falling and they impact only a very small number of cases? With even more callous disregard to the purposes of the National Labor Relations Act, while you yourself have suspended all elections, you have now chosen to divert precious agency resources to make voluntary recognition – the only route to union representation other than an election – more difficult. Among other things, your rule requires that in order to obtain the protection bargaining relationships need to be successful employers must “post in conspicuous places” a notice. Are you aware that most of America’s workers cannot now enter our workplaces to see any such notices? I call on Congress and all fair-minded people to condemn your actions. I demand that the board immediately suspend the effective date of the rule until no earlier than September 1, 2020. Copies of the letter were sent to President Donald J. Trump, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).
APRIL/MAY 2020
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