Friday Morning One Liners:

“We’re tired of being taken for granted,” said Alan Hughes, president of the Arkansas AFL-CIO. “It’s like, ‘We want your help to get elected, we want your money, we want the ground workers,’ but when it comes time to [act on the union’s priorities] … they’re not listening.”
-Alan Hughes, President Arkansas AFL-CIO in The Hill: "Unions taking on Dems who don't toe the Labor Line

Long Island Press: Whole Foods to open it's third Long Island store
The new location will open its doors in Lake Grove on March 17, but for the extra anxious the store will open for a public preview on March 15–just in time to pick up some organic ale for St. Patrick’s Day.
The new, 48,000-square-foot-store, located at 120 New Moriches Road, just outside of Smith Haven Mall and Trader Joe’s, will open just in time to serve area shoppers during the Easter and Passover season...


Whole Foods has sold another Wild Oats store, this one in Portland, Maine, to Trader Joe's.

Tops Markets announced today that they will be closing their Ogdensburg location, the former P&C store on April 10th, 2010.

Crain's: Groundbreaking at Atlantic Yards comes years late.

NY1 looks at the new Best Yet in Harlem. "They don't got supermarkets like this in this neighborhood around here. Maybe like 20 blocks away or 10 blocks away, but not in this immediate neighborhood," said shopper Angel Cortes.

Approximately 3,500 Costco Teamsters in New Jersey, New York, Maryland and Virginia have ratified a new three-year agreement that includes wage increases and annual guaranteed bonuses that the labor union said will maintain the members’ distinction as the highest-paid retail workers in the country.

Shaw's
Sign a petition to support Shaw's workers:
Shaw's warehouse workers and Local 791 members in Massachusetts need your support! These Shaw's employees work hard to make their company successful, and they deserve a fair contract.

The Eagle Tribune: Shaw's workers vow to continue strike.


Nation & Politics

The Hill: Unions taking on Dems who don't toe the Labor Line

Frustrated at seeing their legislative agenda stymied, unions are becoming increasingly active in competitive Democratic Senate primaries.  Across the country, labor groups are using their organizational muscle early against candidates whom they see as having walked away from their agenda.
By doing so, they’re exposing schisms between centrist and liberal Democratic lawmakers who have struggled to come through on the campaign promises made to union members. The Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), healthcare reform and even a nominee to the little-known National Labor Relations Board have stalled in a Congress controlled by the largest majorities Democrats have enjoyed in a generation...
 
Retailers spend $850,000 lobbying in 4Q
The Retail Industry Leaders Association spent $850,000 in the fourth quarter to lobby on a variety of issues from health care reform to consumer product safety, according to a recent disclosure report. The Arlington, Va.-based trade group — whose members include Wal-Mart Stores Inc., The Home Depot Inc. and Target Corp. — also lobbied the federal government on legislation involving credit card reform, tarriffs on clothings, organized crime, and food safety, according to a form filed Jan. 20.

NY Times: Democrats Struggle to Finish Health Bill