Mark Gruenberg at People’s World reports the Presidents of three of the Nation’s largest Unions - Becky Pringle of the National Education Association (NEA), Randi Weingarten of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and April Verrett of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) - all blasted the legislation that ended the longest Government shutdown in history, though none of them blamed the Democratic senators who defected to allow its passage. All three predicted voters will remember next November - and Unions will remind them of who, the Republican Party, inflicted the pain on the Nation. Meanwhile, the progressive Democrats who opposed the measure, especially the members of the House, said a vigorous fight against the Republicans must continue to save health care for the millions who, under the Republican law, will lose it. Many within the Labor Movement are saying their Party needs new leadership to wage a more serious and stronger campaign against the Trump agenda than Democrats have waged thus far. Not all Federal services will immediately start up again, Unions warn, since 670,000 Workers were furloughed and another 730,000 worked without pay for more than a month. All will get back pay, but even that may not be immediate, Union Officials said. Some very essential Workers, notably Air Traffic Controllers, burned out now, will be slow to return, if they come back at all. Four Controllers, who have one of the toughest jobs in the country, voluntarily retired daily in the days before the shutdown, the Trump Transportation Department says. Now, 15 to 20 retire daily - from an already understaffed and overworked labor force. 

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: Major unions condemn sellout passed by Congress – People's World