Pa. Local Rallies for Rebuilding the State’s Bridges
October 17, 2011 Northeast Pennsylvania’s rivers and railroad tracks are crossed by some of the nation’s most deteriorated bridges. The area’s AFL-CIO labor federation is rallying support to put unemployed building and construction workers back on the job building safe replacements.
The rallies were widely covered in local newspapers, TV and YouTube Local 81 Membership Development Coordinator Gino Arcurie says:
When the state electrical worker’s association reviewed a list of bridges in need of repair, Local 81 committed to joining others to call attention to the need for the state’s legislature to approve funds for rebuilding the state’s infrastructure. A story on the rally in the Times-Tribune quoted Richard Yost, business manager for the Laborer’s District Council of Pennsylvania, who said, “You know what happened in Minneapolis,” referring to a bridge that collapsed into the Mississippi River in 2007, taking the lives of 13 people. “And it wasn’t that old of a bridge,” said Yost. The Times-Tribune said:
Arcurie says the local’s advocacy for safe bridges and job creation helps bolster the union’s image in the community and will aid membership development efforts.
|