NevadaLabor.com: Breaking News & Bulletins 24

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But before you do so, please read this note. —AB

Eee-yo-leven!
Barbwire wins 11th Nevada Press Association award
6 of 11 gold
Tribune editorial page voted 2020 best

Dennis Myers 2nd Barbwire nominee elected to NPA Hall of Fame

Support Don Dondero and Jake Highton and David Toll
and Foster Church and Norman Cardoza next
Send endorsements

The Dean's List

The Dean of Reno Bloggers could very well be Andrew Barbano, self-described "fighter of public demons," who started putting his "Barbwire" columns online in 1996 and now runs 10 sites.

RENO NEWS & REVIEW, 11-9-2006

Site map
SITE NAVIGATION TIPS: When all else fails, read the instructions (A favorite John Hanks aphorism I've been using for decades)

Je Suis Charlie
"Our republic and its press will rise or fall together." — Joseph Pulitzer

Updated 4-24-2024 GMT

Breaking News & Bulletins—>

Raw bits, base hits, old bits and obits
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 4-24-2024

USPS announces move of Reno mail-processing operations to California despite opposition
By Mark Robison / RGJ.com 4-23-2024

Thank you, Defendant T-Rump. Your postmaster general Rasputin DeJoyless is doing one helluva job. So what's next, moving up the assassination date to kill voting by mail this November? Whassamatta with Biden's new appointees to the Postal Service Board of Governors? Fire the sumbitch, already.

Revenge of T-Rump's postmaster general:
Proposed northern Nevada/eastern California mail shunt to Sacramento slows down mail, endangers voting
Washoe voter registrar warns of destruction of voting by mail
By Mark Robison / Reno Gazette-Journal 2-25-2024

The Confederacy is finally crumbling—>United Auto Workers score landslide win at Tennessee Volkswagen plant

A majority of eligible workers cast ballots in favor of the union, with the final tally on Friday at 2,628 to 985, or 73% for joining the UAW.
The landslide win will make the Chattanooga factory the first auto plant in the South to unionize via election since the 1940s and the first foreign-owned auto plant in the South to do so.
By Nora Eckert / Reuters 4-20-2024

Watering the money trees
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 4-17-2024

Ain't we a pair?
Dennis Myers & Andrew Barbano inducted into César Chávez Nevada Labor Hall of Fame
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 4-10-2024

At last

Barbwire and Nevada Press Association Hall of Famer Dennis Myers
will be installed in the César Chávez NevadaLabor.com Hall of Fame on April 5, 2024.

A Reno High and UNR classmate, former Reno City Attorney and Justice Court Judge Patricia Lynch,
will accept the award on Dennis' behalf.

VIEW OR LISTEN TO THE EVENT LIVE ON ZOOM.

For Immediate Release

April 4, 2024

César Chávez Celebration returns to Reno for the first time since 2019, hosted by the Northern Nevada Central Labor Council

WHEN: April 5, 2024, 5:30 p.m.— 8:00 p.m./ WHERE: Circus Circus Casino Ballroom, Reno, Nevada

With Special Master of Ceremonies Nevada Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar

Hosted by the Northern Nevada Central Labor Council

All Proceeds Go To Support the 501c3 Northern Nevada Member Assistance Program (NNVMAP).

The Northern Nevada Central Labor Council is proud to take over Brother Andrew Barbano's long-running César Chávez Celebration, with his blessing, beginning this year. The event happens on Friday, April 5, 2024, at Circus Circus-Reno. Doors open at 5:30. It has been on hiatus since 2019 as a result of the pandemic.

The event's Master of Ceremonies will be Nevada's Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar. Reserved seats represent over 300 of Nevada union, business, civic, educational, community, and political leaders.

The event will feature a performance by local dance troupe Ballet Folklorico Flor de Castilla and Mariachi Sol de Reno.

There will also be a panel on Latino Leadership in Nevada's Labor Movement, featuring Nevada AFL-CIO Executive Secretary Treasurer Susie Martinez, NV AFL-CIO President and Northern Nevada Central Labor Council Vice President Liz Sorenson, and Laborers Local 169 Business Manager Eloy Jara.

Proceeds will benefit a union-sponsored non-profit, the Northern Nevada Member Assistance Program. NNVMAP is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) community services organization providing a neighborhood food pantry and apprenticeship supportive services in and around the Washoe County area. NNVMAP also offers an apprenticeship assistance program, lowering barriers to entry for apprenticeship training. These scholarships are intended to cover one-time costs incurred while starting an apprenticeship program, like work boots, tools, and books. The program encourages the participation of women, veterans, minorities, and otherwise disadvantaged individuals.
—
Media Contact:
Wendy Colborne
(775) 247-4390
wendy@bctnn.org

CWA 9413/AFL-CIO

-30-

VIEW OR LISTEN TO THE EVENT LIVE ON ZOOM.

Andrew Barbano Editor/Publisher
Photo: Debra Reid, Sparks Tribune

Health care bandidos and flaming ammotextuals
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 4-3-2024

Longtime Culinary Union leader D. Taylor steps down

Earthquakes and 2x4's
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 3-27-2024

Rape means never having to say you're sorry
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 3-20-2024

Be careful what you wish for
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 3-13-2024

Reno Patagonia retail workers vote to form company’s first union in U.S.
By April Corbin Girnus / Nevada Current / 3-12-2024

Jinxed Jacobs Juice Job Joylessly Junked
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 3-6-2024

UPDATE —> JUICED JACOBS JIG JUNKED! CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OPPONENTS. On Feb. 27, the anti-church item was pulled from the Feb. 28 city council agenda. People power won a round. That's one in a row. It ain't over 'til it's over. Stay tuned.

BLACKLASH in Trumpsylvania West
Saving a church & saving the U.S. Mail
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 2-28-2024

Black History Month Blacklash
Reno City Council endangers historic Nevada black church for developer
Bethel A.M.E. Pastor marshals support at City Hall on Feb. 28

THE WAY IT WAS (March, 1961) — Reno-Sparks NAACP legends Bertha Woodard and Eddie Scott work a lonely Reno casino row picket line back in the old days of apartheid Mississippi West. Not so long ago.

The sign the little girl holds reads "We want to be first class citizens".

UPDATE 11-17-2014: Eddie Scott informs us that the little girl was named Mary Ann, a daughter of one of Bertha's next-door neighbors. Now, we just need her last name.

2-25-2024: The more things change, the more they stay the same. (And I'm still looking to i.d. the little girl. — AB)

Fight the destruction of more Nevada history for corporate welfare profit

Subject: Opposition to 2/28 Reno City Council item C-1/Forced Takeover — Oldest Black Church in All of Nevada

UPDATE —> JUICED JACOBS JIG JUNKED! CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL OPPONENTS. The anti-church item was pulled from the city council agenda on Feb. 27. People power won a round. It ain't over 'til it's over. Stay tuned.

Subject: Update on Jacobs Entertainment Petition Regarding Bell Street and Alleyways
Date: 2024-02-27 15:11
From: Debra Whitlock-Lax <pdebz@bethelamesparks.com>

Dear Bethel and Community Members:

Thank you for the show of support recording the Bell Street Abandonment petition. The item in question has been removed from tomorrow's City Council agenda. It is my hope that Jacobs Entertainment will meet with me and the Mayor to discuss viable solutions that meet the needs of our community and satisfy Jacobs Entertainment's economic development project.

I believe city hall would like to hear public comment regarding the issue. However, it will not be discussed tomorrow. I will update you as we progress forward.

Warm regards,

Rev. Dr. Debra A. Whitlock Lax, Pastor
Bethel AME Church

Date: 2024-02-25 05:49
From: barbano@frontpage.reno.nv.us
To: Debra Whitlock-Lax <pdebz@bethelamesparks.com>
Cc: Mayor and Council <publiccomment@reno.gov>

Dear Reverend Dr. Whitlock-Lax:

Thanks so much for this bulletin. Once again, Reno City Hall has demonstrated its endemic moral obtuseness — scheduling this hearing at the end of Black History Month.

Comedian Chris Rock got it right when he asked "has anyone noticed that they gave us the shortest month of the year?" Thursday's 2/29 leap day provides not even cold comfort.

I will help you all I can. I will move an item in my Wednesday Sparks Tribune column and post followups. As soon as it's on the press, I will send the column to the mayor, city councilmembers, city attorneys and city manager. The satire writes itself.

I will heavily wallpaper my targeted e-mail database about how Reno celebrates Black History Month. With a little luck, the irony will go viral and receive national attention. Been there. Done that. See BallotBoxing.US/ira.html/

I have searched the city council agenda and the accompanying 59-page staff report. There is nary a mention of the AME Church or its jeopardy.

The Tribune will post my column to its website later this week. I will immediately upload this advance to the front page of my flagship website, NevadaLabor.com and to my civil rights site, MississippiWestNV.org/ (With a blast from the past from two Reno-Sparks NAACP legends.)

Have you contacted individual council members? It's an election year.

I suggest that you include the council's group e-mail address in your future uploads: <publiccomment@reno.gov> Note in the subject line that the communication should be recorded as opposition to the Feb. 28 council agenda item No. C-1. (See above.)

The city's website states "Comments received after 4:00 p.m. the day before the scheduled Reno City Council meeting (in this case, Tuesday, Feb. 27) will be included in the record in closing public comment. You are encouraged to send in your comments early to allow for distribution to the Reno City Council for review."

Keep up the good work and the good fight.

Vaxx up, stay safe, pray for Ukraine and almost 100 other currently war-torn lands.

¡Sí se puede!

In Solidarity,

Andrew Quarantino Barbano
MississippiWestNV.org
CesarChavezNevada.com
NevadaLabor.com
SparksTrib.com
BallotBoxing.US

ec: Reno-Sparks NAACP officers and executive committee; targeted branch members
Barbwire Confidential subscriber list
Targeted media and legislators
The usual suspects

NOTE: The comments expressed above are strictly those of Mr. Barbano and not of any organization in which he holds membership.

CWA 9413/AFL-CIO

On 2024-02-24 22:03, Debra Whitlock-Lax wrote:

Dear Friend of Bethel:

I'm reaching out to you urgently about a critical matter that is threatening the very fabric of our community. Jeff Jacobs of Jacobs Entertainment is orchestrating maneuvers that imperil the historic Bethel AME Church Nationally Registered Historic Building. His efforts to persuade the City of Reno to designate certain streets as abandoned, thereby facilitating the expansion of his company's property line to encroach upon ours, are deeply concerning.

Let's be clear: our property is not abandoned. It is home to a longstanding church that has served our community faithfully for years. Yet, Jeff Jacobs' actions threaten to displace this sacred institution and erase an integral part of our cultural heritage and the African Methodist Church's historical presence of more than 119 Years.

We cannot stand idly by as Jacobs Entertainment seeks to undermine the integrity of our neighborhood and erode the rich tapestry of our history. That's why I implore you to join me and fellow Bethel members at City Hall on Wednesday, February 28, 2024, at 9:45 AM.

Your presence and voice are crucial in this fight to protect Nevada's oldest Black/African American church. We need passionate advocates like you to speak out against Jacobs Entertainment's unchecked expansionism and advocate for the preservation of our community's soul.

Please consider lending your voice for three minutes to underscore why we must resist Jacobs Entertainment's attempts to seize control of downtown. Together, we can safeguard our heritage and ensure that future generations continue to benefit from the invaluable contributions of Bethel AME Church.

Yes — just in case you are wondering whether Jeff Jacobs has moved other historically registered property....he has and wants to move our building, too. It is currently being rented to a church. We plan to make a Black Cultural Center in the future. Please — stand with me. Stand for justice.

Thank you for your unwavering support and commitment to our shared cause.

Warm regards,

Rev. Dr. Debra A. Whitlock-Lax, Pastor
Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church
2655 Rock Blvd.
Sparks, NV 89431
408.726.7200
<pdebz@bethelamesparks.com>

Revenge of Trump's postmaster general:
Proposed northern Nevada/eastern California mail shunt to Sacramento slows down mail, endangers voting
Washoe voter registrar warns of destruction of voting by mail
By Mark Robison / Reno Gazette-Journal 2-25-2024

Where's Ben Franklin when we need him?

I've had my say, now it's your turn. Deadline is Wednesday, Feb . 28. So do it!

POSTED AT https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/mpfr-reno-nv

1. Business/Organization (optional) : NevadaLabor.com/Sparks Tribune

2. Comments

Dear Proper Person:

This latest effort to move mail sorting to Sacramento from the northeastern California/northern & central Nevada regions raises serious constitutional voting rights questions.

Voting in Nevada is mostly done by mail today. See the position of the Washoe County Registrar of voters in the Reno Gazette-Journal (rgj.com) on Feb. 23 and Feb. 25, 2024. [ABOVE]

Why subject the USPS budget to endless expensive litigation? USPS budgets are already strained due to the longtime straitjacket placed on the system by privatizing pirates and their congressional minions. This debacle has been proposed before and turned down before.

This proposal will do nothing save provide manufactured "evidence" that the system should be privatized. And people like me who rely on prompt prescriptions by mail will suffer for the greed.

Thank you.

Andrew Barbano, 55-year Nevadan
CesarChavezNevada.com
ConsumerCoalitionv.org
ProtectOurWashoe.org
Barbwire.TV
<barbano@frontpage.reno.nv.us>
(775) 882-TALK [8255]

FROM A LONGTIME NEVADA LETTER CARRIER

Subject: Reno processing plant to Sacramento

Please complete this survey regarding moving Reno mail processing to West Sacramento by Wednesday Feb 28. It doesn’t take long. And share.

Thanks.
======

GO TO
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/mpfr-reno-nv

The business case is flawed. Moving Reno mail processing operations to West Sacramento will not provide on time delivery of the mail.

One of my main concerns is the delay in election mail and ballots when I-80 is closed because of frequent snow storms, fires and accidents. (Last year it was closed 15 instances for multiple days).

Trucks are also delayed frequently due to weather conditions and accidents.

The Washoe County registrar of voters is recommending voters don’t use the mail to return ballots in the event processing is moved.

This move will not save any money and will drive away mailers that use the USPS.

I also believe the Reno processing plant currently is a revenue generator for the district.

Longtime Nevada Letter Carrier

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/mpfr-reno-nv

MORE —> MAILSTROM, PART DEUX from the 2-28-2024 Sparks Tribune

Northern Nevada Central Labor Council/AFL-CIO opposes postal service cutback

Just win, baby
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 2-21-2024

Reno Starbucks workers join 13 other states in mass filing for union elections
KRNV TV-4 / KRXI TV-11 / 2-20-2024

25-year Nevada Starbux unionization archive

Barbwire by Barbano from the 2-14-2024 Sparks Tribune

News broke earlier this week about the sudden closure of the Career College of Northern Nevada. The bankrupt business school was established in the 1960s and has gone thru multiple ownership and name changes.

Some students were just days from graduation. I shudder to think how many will have gone into substantial long term debt with little to show for it.

I feel heartbroken for those who showed up to find only insult added to their injury: Signs posted on locked doors which gave notice of closure with "indefinitely" mis-spelled. In three places. In just a single word.

Bankrupt, indeed.

BUILDING TRADES UNIONS TO THE RESCUE

READ ALL ABOUT IT

NORTHERN NEVADA UNION APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS HOST JOB FAIR FOR
STUDENTS AFFECTED BY CCNN'S UNEXPECTED CLOSURE

Building trades apprenticeships reach out to offer placement to students

RENO, NEVADA — In the wake of the sudden and unexpected closure of the Career College of Northern Nevada, the Northern Nevada

Apprenticeship Coordinators' Association is hosting an emergency apprenticeship job fair for careers in the skilled building and construction trades.

These apprenticeships are tuition-free, debt-free and offer immediate benefits through job placement with signatory union contractors.

"These kids are in a real bind," said NNACA President Tom Blotzke.

"We want them to know that our programs are right here for anyone looking for a career in the trades."

What: Emergency Apprenticeship Job Fair
Who: Northern Nevada Apprenticeship Coordinators Association (NNACA),
including representatives from a variety of Northern Nevada's registered apprenticeships
When: Friday, February 16, 2024 from 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM
Where: UA Local 350 Union Hall, 1110 Greg St, Sparks, NV 89431 (Plumbers & Pipefitters Union)

Contact Communications Director Wendy Colborne at wendy@bctnn.org or (775) 247-4390 for more information.

FYI

The Northern Nevada Apprenticeship Coordinators Association (NNACA) is your gateway to paid apprenticeship training in the in-demand, high-paying fields of advanced construction, engineering and high-tech trades.

Good wages and full benefits begin on day 1 of our apprenticeship programs, which include:

Boilermakers
Carpenters
Construction Craft Laborers
Electricians
Heat & Frost Insulators
Ironworkers
NV Energy
Operating Engineers
Painters and Allied Trades
Plasterers and Cement Masons
Plumbers and Pipefitters
Sheet Metal Workers

Learn more at BuildingTradeJobs.org.

Taylor triumphs, T-Rump teed off
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 2-14-2024

Celebrate the life & legacy of César Chávez
César XVIII April 5, 2024 / 5 Abril 2024

CésarChávezNevada.com

¡Sí se puede!

¡Union diga si!

Siren princesses traumatize trolls
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 2-7-2024

Super Bowling: Culinary Union hosts heavyweight organizing to start Super Bowl Week

Press conference AFL-CIO, NFL Players Association and non-union workers from Allegiant/Raiders Corporate Welfare Stadium. Workers demand the right to organize to win a better future for themselves and their families. The Oakland A's, whose corporate welfare stadium begins construction this year, early on signed a deal to make their stadium workers union members.

WHO'S WHO:
*D. Taylor, President of UNITE HERE
*Lloyd Howell, Executive Director of the NFL Players Association
*JC Tretter, NFLPA President, NFL player representative - Number: 73 (Green Bay Packers / Center, Guard), 64 (Cleveland Browns / Center)
*Ted Pappageorge, Secretary-Treasurer for Culinary Union
*Diana Valles, President of the Culinary Union
*Non-union workers at Allegiant Stadium
*Culinary Union members

Tuesday, February 6, 2024 at 10:00am PST
Culinary Union HQ - Enter off of Door C (1630 South Commerce Street / Las Vegas, Nevada 89102)

MEDIA CONTACT:
Bethany Khan: bkhan@culinaryunion226.org (702) 387-7088 / @Culinary 226

Livestream via www.Facebook.com/Culinary226

Commissar T-Rump Serves Czar RasPutin
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 1-31-2024

After Teamsters meeting, Trump says of possible union endorsement, "Stranger things have happened"
By Jill Kolvin & Tom Krisher / Associated Press / 1-31-2024

Ben Franklin's bleary bifocals
Guest-starring Peter Sellers & The Muppets
And a true story: Song from the streets of San Francisco
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 1-24-2024

Breaking News—>CANCELLED/ON HOLD / STAY TUNED.
Teamsters picket US Foods in Golden Valley, north of downtown Reno
2:00p.m. PST Jan. 24 thru 11:00a.m Saturday Jan. 27
US Foods, 850 N. Hill Rd., Reno NV 89506
In Solidarity with Teamsters Local 705 Chicago
Read all about it.

To Die For
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 1-17-2024

Nevada Association of Letter Carriers President Glenn Norton Dies.
1-16-2024

Portents from the Terminator
MASK UP: COVID, RSV and Influenza are swamping emergency rooms
BUYER BEWARE: Cancer-causing chemicals in makeup and everything plastic
(Consumer Reports)
SIGN AND VOTE: Initiative petition filed to regulate payday loan predators
APPLY TODAY: Now hiring union organizers
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 1-10-2024

Culinary Union sets Las Vegas hotel strike deadline 1 week before Super Bowl

Control freaks and crackerjacks
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 1-3-2024

Local Union Leaders Seek to Build Momentum off Strong 2023
By Andrew Zuker / OurTownReno.com 1-2-2024

Hope you and yours enjoyed Happy High Holly Days
Christmas/Kwanzaa/Solstice/Festivus/Chanukah/Thanksgibleting
Feliz Navidad, próspero año y felicidad
HAPPY NEW YEAR / Feliz Año Nuevo / Felice Anno Nuovo
Frohe Weihnachten und beste Wuensche fuer 2024
Vaxx up, stay safe, pray for Ukraine and almost 100 other currently war-torn lands.

Betty J. Barbano
2-7-1941 / 12-27-2005
Remember her laughter

Larry Barbano, Frater Mei
1947-2023

Breaking News & then some—>

T-Rump raps America
The Orange Crusher goes hip hop
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 12-27-2023

The greatest movie never made
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 12-20-2023

I Love Lucy: Open the Golden Door
All those thousands of unkempt travelers on our southern border are not our problem, they are our solution. Screen them. House them. Feed them. Educate their children.
They will make us prosperous and proud.
Barbwire by Andrew Quarantino Barbáno / Expanded from the Sparks Tribune 12-13-2023