Somerville, Mass. – The proposed citywide ban on plastic shopping bags took a step forward on Nov. 20 at the meeting of the Board of Aldermen’s Environment and Energy Special Committee.
SOMERVILLE, Mass. – Somerville residents and activists joined over 300,000 people in New York City on September 21 at the People’s Climate March. The event – being called the largest climate march in history – was aimed at world leaders gathered at the United Nations to discuss climate change.
SOMERVILLE, Mass. – Despite a unanimous resolution from the Board of Aldermen calling for institutions to divest from fossil fuel companies, the Somerville Retirement Board won’t be moving forward on the issue just yet.
Tufts Educational Daycare Center – Medford
Domestic Workers – State House
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick signed into law the bill dubbed the "domestic workers’ bill of rights" on Wednesday. His assent to the bill follows a state senate endorsement of the bill last month, and will guarantee basic labor rights and government benefits for a wide range of home services workers. Massachusetts is the fourth state with similar legislation, along with New York, California, and Hawaii, and the act will impact around 60,000 domestic workers.
Gas Leaks – State House
Somerville, Mass. – Somerville may join the growing list of Commonwealth cities and towns that ban or restrict the use of plastic bags, and neither city officials nor most of those questioned in the streets recently oppose the idea.
Somerville, Mass. – A citywide ban on expanded polystyrene or “Styrofoam” that went into effect last month is largely not being respected or enforced.
Minimum Wage – Statehouse
Gov. Deval Patrick signed into law on Thursday an act that will gradually increase the state’s minimum wage to $11 an hour by 2017. The current state minimum wage is $8 an hour and the first increase will take place on January 1, 2015, when the minimum wage will rise to $9 an hour.
SEIU 888 – Malden
Industrial Workers of the World/Student Labor Action Movement – Harvard
BOSTON - Calling for the labelling of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) used in food, over 1000 organic food advocates hit out at chemical companies at the March Against Monsanto on Saturday - one of over 400 similar actions around the world.
