Re: Working Wages

["Diane Brennan (Write Stuff)" <a-dianeb -at- MICROSOFT -dot- COM>]

        >>There's also WashTech, not a union
> but organizing on behalf of technical permatemps, including tech writers,
> in Wash. State, where many unpleasant conditions have been imposed by the
> power of Microsoft.<<
>
        My office mate is one of the organizers for WashTech, and if there
are any tech writers in the Seattle area who are interested in joining a
union created specifically for technical workers, I would STRONGLY suggest
you join this group.  They have meetings every other Monday night at 7 (next
one is July 13) in Seattle at the Labor Temple on 1st Ave in Belltown.
They've already had meetings with legislators in Washington, and they've
been contacted by union organizers in other states (I know Florida is one of
them).

        For those of you who are outside of Washington, this started because
last year, the Labor and Industries Department in Washington passed a ruling
(the overtime exemption rule) that companies did not have to pay overtime
for contract hourly workers who worked more than 40 hours a week, and made
over $27/hour.  There was a public hearing for this ruling, but IT WASN'T
ANNOUNCED IN THE NEWSPAPER.  After the public hearing (that had no public in
attendance) was over, there was a small article in the Seattle Times about
the ruling which solicited an avalanche (750 letters, faxes, and e-mails) to
the Labor and Industries office, hundreds of which came from local technical
writers and editors.

        To find out more about WashTech, see:

        http://www.washtech.org/

        They are VERY willing to talk to people in other states who want to
organize similar unions.

        Diane