The State Worker

2 senators' question to DOC employees: 'What's wrong'?
Two state senators have circulated an email to about 8,100 Department of Corrections employees, asking front-line staffers what is working and what needs fixing in the agency. (The Olympian)

Charges will be sought in pool death aftermath
Two state workers may soon face criminal child-endangerment charges for allowing a Fall River swimming pool to become so polluted that it concealed the dead body of a woman for two days, said Bristol District Attorney Samuel Sutter. (Boston Herald)

Op-ed: Democracy being stolen from nation
Despite being largely dismissed by mainstream media and harassed if not brutalized by New York police, the persistent protesters of Occupy Wall Street are sending a wake-up call to the rest of the nation: Americans, your democracy is being stolen from you, and it's time to take it back. (The Morning Call)

Occupy Wall Street Protest: What the Movement and Labor Can Do for Each Other
New York City labor's support of the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations has been seen as a boon for protesters, as politically-seasoned and highly-organized local unions represent thousands of members who can be mobilized for their cause. (International Business Times)

PEF: "Informal negotiations" begin with Cuomo
Following a week that saw a New York public employees union reject a contract, triggering 3,496 layoff notices to its members, the union says it is in "informal negotiations" over how to tweak the agreement to get its members' support. (Politics on the Nudson)

Greek state workers protest job cuts
Crowds of state workers in Athens gathered at the entrances to ministry compounds preparing for a 24-hour strike scheduled for October 5th. (Voice of Russia)

State workers face more belt-tightening; governor asks for up to 6 percent spending trims
RICHMOND - Gov. Bob McDonnell has asked state government agencies to plan for budget reductions of as much as 6 percent as his administration prepares a new two-year spending plan, a step designed to give the governor some flexibility to respond to economic uncertainties and potential federal funding cuts. (Roanoke Times)

State Workers' Union Wants Double Pay For Some Members
The Vermont state employees union says at least 100 state workers displaced by the recent floods are entitled to double wages. (Vermont Public Radio)

Op-ed: Washington Take Note... Workers Are Fighting Back
For months, many labor leaders including myself have supported worker actions in Wisconsin and Ohio and more recently the CWA strike here in New York, and contemplated what the future may hold for America's workers. The recent walkout by Longshoremen in Washington and the ongoing "Occupy Wall Street" movement that is attracting a broad-base of supporters, including many labor organizations, demonstrates, worker dissatisfaction -- both here and abroad is reaching a critical juncture. (Huffington Post)

Greeks worry about ambitious privatisation plans
Go into any of Greece's 5,000 OPAP lottery shops and there is one thing you definitely cannot bet on. It is that the array of Greek state assets lined up for sale will fail to raise an agreed 50bn euros by 2015 to lighten the country's crushing international debts. (BBC)