BOSTON Federal investigators have cited a Massachusetts roofing company for violating safety standards after a truck carrying a bucket lift toppled and crashed into a Boston building, killing one worker and seriously injuring another. The US Occupational Safety and Health Administration proposed $31,000 in fines against Reliable Roofing & Sheet Metal LLC yesterday, after citing the firm with five alleged safety violations. The firm has 15 days to decide whether it wants to contest the penalties related to the Feb. 7 accident in Downtown Crossing. (AP)

Perreira said the reasoning behind the concession vote was that the city, already suffering from limited police patrols, could not sustain another round of officer layoffs. read more

Just days after a federal administrative law judge (ALJ) [1] found Stella D’oro Biscuit Co. guilty of several labor law violations and ordered the company to reinstate more than 130 workers who have [2] been on strike since August, the cookie maker announced it was closing its Bronx, N.Y., plant. read more

But as a newly converted Catholic, how does he square his anti-union views with the reverence he shows for his church and this new Pope, whose visit to the U.S. inspired him to join the faith of his latest wife, Callista read more

Labor unions are poised for a return to prominence, according to the likely next leader of the largest U.S. labor federation who promises to employ an aggressive and innovative strategy to promote workers' agenda. read more

"I wish that Rite Aid were the exception, but it's really the rule with what's happening all over the U.S. when workers try to organize," said Kate Bronfenbrenner, a labor expert at Cornell University who wrote a recent study documenting employer threats and retaliation against union sympathizers. read more

"I just became a cosponsor of my first bill in the Senate, the Employee Free Choice Act," the Minnesota Democrat declared at a gathering at the AFL-CIO on Tuesday evening. read more

The debate in Congress is being framed largely by the insurance companies. This is problematic because of the large sums of money donated by the insurance lobby to the same senators who are crafting the reform. What is not being considered fairly is H.R. 676, a single-payer health-care system. read more

As part of the settlement agreement, Weston & Sampson and Bocchino will pay $92,500 in restitution to 25 mechanics, technicians and electricians who worked on public projects in 27 different municipalities throughout Massachusetts between January 2006 and June 2009. read more

"You would have to consider places such as Southeast Asia, where workers live in factories and are not allowed out. Of course, the conditions are very different, but in some ways, this is the equivalent in a developed country." The accommodation effectively prevents sections of the labor force from organizing, he adds, while the barge's residents, ferried to work each day in vans, remain unaware of the working conditions and pay of others. read more