18::08::2010--Life sciences need cultivation--by Sam Lathem--"The life sciences industry could help provide the steady, rewarding work--particularly the high-skilled union jobs--that so many folks in Delaware need.

Read the article from the August 9, 2010 Delaware News Journal (pdf) (see jpg)

18:06:2010--The promise of science: Pennsylvania must support the biosciences to create cures and jobs--For the past 20 years, I headed the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO, retiring at the end of May. And I've been a union member for 50 years, so I've witnessed the incredible hardship that accompanied the decline of our state's most cherished industries, particularly steel.

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17:11:2009--Pharmaceutical Companies Among the Leaders Keeping Construction Industry Humming: America’s pharmaceutical companies are doing their share to keep the construction industry working as the U.S. emerges from recession. According to Engineering News Record, a McGraw-Hill publication that tracks construction spending, eight pharmaceutical companies have more than $11.3 billion worth of construction projects in the works. That includes:

By comparison, Johnson & Johnson will spend more than three times the entire top 10 health services firms for construction in progress. Likewise, the top eight pharmaceutical companies in terms of construction are spending almost 40 percent more than the top 10 electronic firms; and 46 percent more than the top 10 communications firms.

What Working Families Need to Know About Counterfeit Medicines: In today’s global environment, it doesn’t matter where you live—U.S., Canada, Kenya or India—everyone is at risk from unsafe drugs. Everyday, millions of unsuspecting patients across the globe are exposed to counterfeit drugs manufactured by criminals that deny them of medical treatment they need.

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AFL-CIO Executive Council Adopts Resolution
Opposing Senate Patent Reform Measure: The 66-member Executive Council of the AFL-CIO has adopted a policy resolution opposing pending Senate legislation on Patent Reform at it’s meeting in San Diego in early March.
Citing “many” continuing concerns over the contents of the bill, the Council called it “ironic” that Congress would consider changes that would “undermine the effectiveness of our patent protections” at a time “when our nation is pressing China to upgrade its protection of intellectual property and to expand the rule of law.”

The statement notes labor’s concerns in three key areas of the bill: damages, post-grant review and publication, asserting that the AFL-CIO will “work actively to protect the interests of U.S. workers whose jobs and income rely on a strong patent system.”

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Patent Reform Legislation Would Usher Out U.S. Jobs: OP-ED from the Columbus Dispatch written by William Burga, past president Ohio AFL-CIO

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SCHIP Extension Signed: On December 29, 2007, President Bush signed legislation that will provide funding for SCHIP through March 2009. The extension is expected to provide enough funds to cover children currently enrolled in the program.

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Patent Reform Update: Fourteen labor organizations expressed concern that pending “Patent Reform” legislation could undermine U.S. competitiveness and put union jobs at risk. “Some three million manufacturing jobs have disappeared, wages have been stagnant or falling, income inequality has grown and scores of communities across this country have been devastated. We need to enact reforms to reverse this decline, not contribute to it,” the February 6th letter asserts.

Read the text of the letter.

Patent Reform: Statements from pharmaceutical competitors in India and China hailing the pending Patent Reform legislation are taken as a strong indicator of just how dangerous the measure would be for the domestic industry. Patent Reform threatens jobs and the future growth of America’s Pharmaceutical Industry. This bill should not be enacted.

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Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Jobs Nationwide: Number of Manufacturing Jobs Nationwide Sorted By State

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