News, Notes & A Bunch Of Observations Made While Covering The Western New York Labor Community Over The Past Week:

WNYLaborToday.com would like to pass along "Thank You’s" to our newest subscribers: CWA’s Bill Nowak; AFSCME’s Dave Granville, Jamestown AFL-CIO Central Labor Council’s Gary Sorenson, CWA’s Ann Converso, Labor Activist Susan Woods, Buffalo Librarians’ Union Member Beth Lewitzky, CWA’s Darby Covert, CSEA’s Scott Lopez, CWA’s Ann Marie R. Cannizarro, CWA’s Steven Brossard, Gerald Stefanacci and IUPAT’s John Doherty of Randolph, Massachusetts and CWA’s Steve Lawton of Staten Island, New York.  Little by little, more and more Union Leaders, Representatives and Members of Organized Labor from across Western New York, New York State and the Nation are becoming subscribers of Organized Labor's On-Line Labor Newspaper!  In addition, WNYLaborToday.com’s gotten subscribers from as far away as Los Angeles, New York City and Atlanta.  Why, would you ask, would someone from as far away as LA, Atlanta and NYC become subscribers of a Western New York-based, On-Line Labor Newspaper?  It’s because of the State/National Labor News that WNYLaborToday.com offers.  Yes, you could get that same amount of information if you took the time to visit as many as 30 Labor-oriented web sites a week, but who has the time these days?  We’re all busy with work, our families and trying to make ends meet.  But WNYLaborToday.com is finding the average stay by a Viewer/Reader on Your Regional, On-Line Labor Newspaper is about three minutes and thirty seconds.  But we’re also finding that our Viewers/Readers are coming back several times a week to keep up the 13 to 20 print Labor News Stories WNYLaborToday.com publishes on a weekly basis.  On that note, if you’re a Union Leader, Representative or Member and know someone in the Labor Movement who should be plugging into WNYLaborToday, let them know about us.  For just a paltry, one-year subscription fee of $5, our subscribers get unlimited access to a multitude of Labor News that you’re just not going to get anywhere else in the mainstream media.  And, what the heck is $5.  I just read a story in The Buffalo News about a new beer establishment close to First Niagara Arena in Downtown Buffalo that offers a beer for $4.75!  Let me tell you that Buffalo-headquartered Sheet Metal Workers Local 71 Business Manager John Helak thought it was so important that his fellow Sheet Metal Workers Local Business Managers across New York State knew about WNYLaborToday.com that he reached out to his State Council, which took 120 individual subscriptions and divvied them out to each and every Sheet Metal Workers Local across New York.  Why?  Because Helak thought it important enough for his fellow Local Business Managers to see that the Western New York Labor Community not only had its own On-Line Labor Newspaper, but to plug them in to the array of State & National Labor News that WNYLaborToday.com offers its thousands of Viewers/Readers.  Because the mainstream media chooses, for the most part, not to cover Organized Labor – unless it’s a picket, strike or worse yet, an indictment – Labor needs its own media vehicles to get its message out and get it out – unimpeded.  That’s why more and more Labor Unions and their Executive Boards are making the decision to underwrite a year’s subscription for their individual Memberships.  And WNYLaborToday.com appreciates that, especially due to the fact that we’re aiming to increase our Labor News Coverage and begin to offer a Labor News TV Program that would be aired right off our Front Page in the coming months.  But WNYLaborToday.com can only accomplish that goal with the support of Organized Labor - here in Western New York, across New York State and the Nation.  So help WNYLaborToday.com spread Organized Labor’s positive word.  Get your fellow Brother and Sisters to subscribe.  If you’re a Union Leader, consider underwriting the subscription cost to cover your entire Membership.  This is an extremely important year for Organized Labor in terms of the 2012 Presidential Election and the continuing battle against those who want to take away your Collective Bargaining Rights and Workers’ Rights, for that matter.  As such, there’s an extremely important need to educate and inform not only Union Members, but all Workers – and WNYLaborToday.com is the media vehicle that will assist the Labor Movement in doing so.  If you have any questions, please call WNYLaborToday.com Editor/Publisher Tom Campbell at 716-681-2300 or via e-mail at campbell@localnet.com.  Thanks in advance for your time, interest and support.

On a related note, if you’re on the Social Network Facebook, how about liking WNYLaborToday.com at http://www.facebook.com/wnylt?  It’s another great way to keep up on what’s going on in the Labor Movement.  If you’re also interested in getting our periodic e-news/e-mails blasts, sign up here: http://www.wnylabortoday.com/forms/connect-with-wnylabortoday.com/.  We’ve gotten a lot of compliments about this effort, especially since it’s a nice reminder to what you may have missed if you haven’t visited Your Regional, On-Line Labor Newspaper during the past several days.  And by the way, if you’re already on Linkin, take the time to connect with WNYLaborToday.com Editor/Publisher Tom Campbell.

It was shame to learn last week that Jamestown-headquartered Crawford Furniture has not only closed, but decided to close it manufacturing plant in that Southern Tier City even earlier than planned.  In a story that recently appeared in The Jamestown Post Journal: Crawford Furniture has shut down earlier than once planned, laying off 84 employees.  According to the State Labor Department, Crawford Furniture amended its worker adjustment and re-training notification January 3rd and closed the Jamestown manufacturing plant December 31st.  In November, the company had filed its original notification with the State that the plant would be closing in February for two weeks as part of the company's bankruptcy restructuring plan.  Brett Cappa, Crawford Furniture management team official, said in November through a news release that the plant would close February 9th and a decision would be made during that time whether shutting down the business would be temporary or permanent.  The reason given for the plant closing is the economy.  Crawford officials filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection August 25th for both its manufacturing corporation and its retail outlets.  Chapter 11 reorganization is the most complex of all bankruptcy cases.  A bankrupt company uses Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code to reorganize its business and try to become profitable again.  Management continues to run the day-to-day business operations, but all significant decisions must be approved by a bankruptcy court.  In October, company officials announced Crawford Retail Outlets would be closing all five of its retail stores, but the manufacturing plant would try to continue operating to produce furniture that would be sold to retailers throughout the country.  The company's retail locations are located in Hamburg, Lockport, Williamsville, Amherst and Lakewood.  Crawford of Jamestown was founded in 1883 as a family-owned manufacturer of solid-wood furniture.  Back in August 2010, WNYLaborToday.com traveled down to Jamestown and subsequently published a story (http://www.wnylabortoday.com/index.php?src=news&refno=1264&category=Southern) on Crawford Furniture that was headlined: Crawford Of Jamestown Furniture: American-Made, Locally-Made And Yes, Union-Made, Right Here In Western New York… IUE-CWA-Represented Workers In Jamestown Create A Variety Of Quality, Union-Made Hardwood Furniture Products That Are Sold Throughout The Region, Which All Union Members Can Now Purchase At A 20% Discount, and its Union-Represented Workforce.  IUE-CWA Local 81045 President Howard Lyon took Your Regional, On-Line Labor Newspaper on a tour of the Crawford Furniture plant, where an array of high-quality furniture products were constructed by the company’s Union-Represented Workforce.  Crawford offered a wide selection of hardwood furniture, including Living Room, Dining Room, Bedroom, Children’s and Occasional, as well as mattresses and upholstery, at its five Western New York retail locations, where Union Members could get a 20% discount by showing their Union Membership Card.  As I said, it’s a shame Crawford closed.  Its products were well-constructed, American-made and withstood the test of time.  In fact, you knew what you were getting for your hard-earned dollars when you purchased Crawford Furniture.  But, I believe, operating more than one retail store here in the Buffalo area was more than the company could eventually afford while battling an onslaught of cheap foreign furniture-makers.  Over the course of time, I had several discussions with Brett Cappa about advertising on WNYLaborToday.com in order to make our Union Viewers/Readers acutely aware of the fact Crawford’s products were Union-Made, American-Made and Locally-Made - as well as the amazing discount Crawford offered to Union Members, but he never moved forward on several of our offers.  On that note, WNYLaborToday.com hopes the more than 80 IUE-CWA-Represented Workers at Crawford find employment in the Jamestown area with other companies.  They’re good Workers who made a fantastic product, and through no fault of their own, are suffering the negative impact of the mistakes made by management and competition from cheap, foreign goods.  Now Crawford has become yet another example of why this Nation needs to make a conscious effort to rebuild its manufacturing base, and as President Obama has recently embarked on, convince companies to in-source by bringing back their foreign manufacturing operations to American soil.

WNYLaborToday.com would like to offer up a reminder to our Viewers/Readers not to forget the Niagara-Orleans AFL-CIO Central Labor Council’s 2012 Annual Dinner Meeting, which will be held this Wednesday (January 18th) at Lewiston Fire Company #2, which is located at 1705 Saunders Settlement Road in Niagara Falls.  Doors open at 5:30 p.m. and a buffet-style dinner will be served at 6 p.m.  The event, which will also serve as the Niagara-Orleans Central Labor Council’s first monthly meeting of the year, will honor several area Union Leaders and Union Members with the Council’s Union Champions at Work Awards.  “It’s a way of saying ‘thanks’ for all their hard work and dedication to their Union Local, to the Labor Movement and to the Niagara-Orleans Community,” Niagara-Orleans AFL/CIO Community Services Liaison Bill Jakobi says.  In addition, interim Western New York AFL-CIO Area Labor Federation President Richard Lipsitz and newly-appointed United Steelworkers District 4 Director John Shinn will serve as guest speakers.  Those set to receive Champion at Work Awards are: International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 463 Business Manager Paul McCollum; Christ Sposito, who has a deep history with the American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees (AFSCME), and Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 1117; Teamsters Local 264’s Kenneth Bojanek; and United Steelworkers Local 9434 President James Anthony.  In addition, United Auto Workers Local 686’s Ronald Bassham will receive the Earl Frampton Community Services Award.  To RSVP, contact Bill Jakobi by January 11th at 716-285-8461 or via e-mail at bill@uwgn.org.