THIS TIME ON CODE WACK!
What happens when millions are stripped of Medicaid coverage? Who shoulders the costs when hospitals are forced to care for more uninsured patients? And how will unions and the workers they represent bear the brunt of skyrocketing premiums, job losses, and a growing healthcare crisis?
Today we’re joined by Cindy Young, a veteran labor negotiator and health policy advisor, and now vice president of the California Alliance for Retired Americans and of Healthy California Now. Cindy has spent decades fighting for healthcare justice and protecting workers’ rights. She breaks down Trump’s so-called One Big, Beautiful Bill, explains why unions are sounding the alarm and reveals what’s really at stake for working families, seniors, and communities across America. This is the second episode in a two-part series in honor of Labor Day.
Check out the Transcript and Show Notes for more!
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SHOW NOTES
WE DISCUSS
Trump has pushed to reclassify thousands of federal employees. What would this mean for job security, union power and workplace protections?
“Well, this is huge.
“So the administration has created a classification by an executive order that targets career civil servants in policymaking, policy advocacy or confidential roles.
“Employees in these roles will lose many of the civil service protections that shield them from arbitrary and capricious dismissal and political interference, effectively becoming at-will employees and much easier to fire. ,,,
“It’s horrible what’s being done and those folks will lose their jobs. ” – Cindy Young
Trump has also tried to weaken OSHA and NIOSH – agencies that set and enforce safety standards. What would this mean for workers’ health and safety, especially in high risk jobs?
“… weakening OSHA and NIOSH … would likely lead to increased workplace injuries, illnesses, and fatalities, particularly in high risk jobs. This is because these agencies play a crucial role in setting safety standards, conducting research on workplace hazards and enforcing regulations to protect workers.
“Reducing that enforcement and research capacity could result in less effective safety protocols for, you know, all kinds of industries, more exposure to hazardous conditions, and ultimately more preventable deaths and injuries….
For example, my husband taught safety training and OSHA training to employers and workers, you know, for the last part of his career. Those standards are really important around protecting workers and also protecting the employers and reducing those standards means that employers don’t have to abide by them so they can make more money.
“ … their workers will be injured and probably most likely not have any recourse, right, to be able to regain the economic loss that they’ll incur by not having those safety standards on the job.
“Again, these [policies] are by design and it creates wealth for the wealthiest … the 1%.” – Cindy Young
How is the labor movement responding? Are unions and allied groups building coalitions strong enough to push back?
“… unions are forming partnerships with community groups, advocacy organizations, social justice movements to amplify their voices and influence. And we just saw this last weekend with these Family First rallies all over the state, and that was actually organized by unions, community groups, religious organizations, and.
“Speakers represented all of those communities, people of faith, you know, organized labor, community organizations that help, you know, support the same goals and objectives that we have. And those partnerships are really important.
“… I also think that we have got to take back the House at the midterm. We have to hold the people that did this accountable for their actions. [Legislators] that voted for that [so-called One Big, Beautiful] bill need to be held accountable.” – Cindy Young
Helpful Links
OSHA vs NIOSH: What’s the Difference?, 360 Training
Trump cuts demolish agency focused on toxic chemicals and workplace hazards, NPR
West Virginia coal miners lose black lung screenings after Trump slashes worker safety agency NIOSH, CBS News
Trump’s crusade against health and safety regulations endangers workers, hobbles the environmental justice movement, and sets the stage for our next public health crisis, Economic Policy Institute
Recap: Families First Actions From Coast to Coast, MoveOn
Unions fight back as Trump terminates federal workers’ union rights, NPR
Episode Transcript
Read the full episode transcript.
Biography: Cindy Young
Cindy Young started her career at H.E.R.E., Local 2 in San Francisco as the Director of Research in 1981. She negotiated pension and healthcare benefits for 25,000 hotel and restaurant workers in San Francisco.
She worked over 20 years as the Senior Health Policy Advisor for California School Employees Association, and served as the Regulatory Policy Specialist to the California Nurses Association (CNA) for three years.
Currently, Cindy serves as a Vice President of the California Alliance for Retired Americans (CARA) and Vice President of Healthy California Now!
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