skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, November 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Despite shopping habits, value of American-made gifts has public backing; Mark Zuckerberg dines with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago; Alabama leaders unite to address gun violence, reimagine community safety; World AIDS Day: Looking back at public-health and moral crisis; CT, US take steps to mitigate methane emissions.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The Democratic Party is regrouping, but critiques continue. The incoming Trump administration looks at barring mainstream media from White House briefings, and AIDS advocates say the pick of Robert F. Kennedy Junior for DHHS is worrying.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Residents in Colorado's rural communities face challenges to recycling, climate change and Oregon's megadrought are worrying firefighters, and a farm advocacy group says corporate greed is behind high food prices in Montana.

Uvalde Tragedy Spurs Calls for Collective Action on Safe Workplaces

play audio
Play

Thursday, June 2, 2022   

The recent mass shootings in Texas and New York intersect with the organized labor movement among younger workers. Some in Minnesota say a safer workplace ties in with their demands for fair pay and better treatment.

Last week's school shooting in Uvalde has renewed debate about gun-control laws and whether schools should beef up security.

But Ma-Riah Roberson-Moody, an education support professional and a union member in Minneapolis, said she would like to see conversation regarding safe and stable campus environments.

In a recent AFL-CIO forum, she suggested that starts with adding the kinds of professionals who can effectively engage with students.

"We have to be able to provide adequate supports like social workers," said Roberson-Moody, "like nurses, like support staff."

She said these themes were a central part of the recent Minneapolis teacher's strike, while adding that support staff are the ones routinely roaming the halls in schools where there isn't a lot of security.

Roberson-Moody said these workers should be given the proper support as they meet the mental-health needs of students. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says "school connectedness" can play a role in enhancing safety.

Anders Bloomquist, an employee of Fair State Brewery, recently helped lead efforts to establish the nation's first unionized microbrewery. He said it followed the start of the pandemic and the global protests over George Floyd's murder.

Bloomquist said while it might not feel right as the nation mourns the victims, this spring's tragedies can inspire similar collective action.

"Do not hesitate to use those moments," said Bloomquist, "when people are asking really tough questions about the world and their place in it."

The call for action comes as larger chains such as Amazon and Dollar General face growing scrutiny over workplace safety.

For those working in fast-food and retail settings, some have cited threats of violence through armed robberies as part of their accountability demands in protecting employees.



Disclosure: Minnesota AFL-CIO contributes to our fund for reporting on Budget Policy & Priorities, Civil Rights, Livable Wages/Working Families, Social Justice. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
The U.S. Supreme Court hears on average 80 cases per session, out of the thousands of requests it receives. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

The U.S. Supreme Court is deciding whether to review a Wisconsin case over the issue of gender identity at school. The case Parents Protecting Our …


Social Issues

play sound

A new survey of Native American teens and young adults highlights a growing preference for the term "Indigenous" rather than being referred to as "Ame…

Environment

play sound

Advocates said a lack of animal welfare laws is leading to pain and suffering on American factory farms. Close to 99% of livestock is now raised in …


According to the Great Plains Tribal Epidemiology Center, one in 40 Native American and Alaska Native babies born in the Great Plains region in 2022 had a syphilis infection. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

By Jazmin Orozco Rodriguez for KFF Health News.Broadcast version by Kathleen Shannon for Greater Dakota News Service reporting for the KFF Health News…

Social Issues

play sound

A North Dakota initiative that invites hunters to donate some of their deer meat to hunger relief sites has been in place for two decades now…

In a recent AARP survey of "solo agers," only 38% said they knew someone who could help manage ongoing care needs. (Freepik)

Social Issues

play sound

By Judith Graham for KFF Health News.Broadcast version by Mike Moen for Minnesota News Connection reporting for the KFF Health News-Public News Servic…

Social Issues

play sound

President Joe Biden has entered a "lame-duck" period, prompting a Michigan political science expert to analyze his potential actions before President-…

Social Issues

play sound

Tens of thousands of children in Pennsylvania are still missing out on essential health care coverage, according to a new report. The "State of …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021