This is what I call "solidarity." Richard Trumka, President of the AFL-CIO, Andy Stern, President of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), and Leo Gerard, President of the Steelworkers Union, both signed a letter with economists, labor leaders, and bloggers blasting Rep. Mel Watt's amendment to gut the audit of the Federal Reserve.

This is the first day of Firedoglake's new blog about work, jobs, unions, and the politics involved. In the midst of a floundering economy, it's the issues that face people who work for a living that deserve the most attention. We’ll look at the goings-on of unions, labor legislation, and organizing drives, and discuss their impact on working people.

Activists from Firedoglake, CREDO, and Democracy for America have placed hundreds of calls to progressive Members of Congress to organize opposition to a final health care bill that has triggers to delay a public option, or that allows states to opt their citizens out of choosing the public health insurance option. Reps. Raul Grijalva and Michael Capuano both committed to opposing such a bill last week. Can you call progressive Members of Congress and find out where they stand on triggers and opt-outs? Click here to get their numbers and report your calls.

The news here isn't that the US Chamber wants to buy off economists to sabotage legislation. It's that they got caught this time.

According to CEPR's new report, The Changing Face of Labor, the overall decline of labor has actually led to a reversal of the traditional image of labor as "male, pale, and stale." Indeed, just 38% of union members are white men, Latinos are the fastest growing demographic in labor, and by 2020 the majority of union members will be women.

Since Monday, activists from Firedoglake, CREDO, and Democracy for America helped put in hundreds of calls to progressive Members of Congress to find out where they stand on triggers and opt-outs in the final health care bill. Can you call progressive Members of Congress and find out where they stand on triggers and opt-outs? Click here to get their numbers and report your calls.

We need to find out where progressive Members of Congress stand on a bill with triggers or opt-outs. Can you call now? Click here to get the numbers of progressive Reps. and let us know what they say.

Yes, Blanche isn't even sure she'll let health care be debated on the floor of the Senate, let alone allowing to go to a vote. Evidently her office hasn't got the memo that the public option is more popular than Blanche Lincoln in Arkansas. We need $30,000 to put organizers on the ground in Arkansas to start finding support for a primary challenge to Blanche Lincoln. Already 522 people have donated more than $18,000 to meet this goal. Now that Blanche Lincoln is holding health care hostage from even being debated, it's clear she needs to hear our message as soon as possible.

Yesterday Jane followed up on her televised dare to Blanche Lincoln to filibuster the public option, when she warned that if Blanche filibustered, "she'd draw a primary challenger so fast it'd make your head spin." Jane wrote here:

But there are other things that can make a race attractive to a primary challenger — or, conversely, make Lincoln think twice about joining a Republican filibuster. Like hiring organizers in Arkansas to start knocking on doors and set up phone banks into Arkansas, and compiling the names of voters in the state who would support a primary challenge against her.

We need $30,000 to put this into action. It may well be the most effective $30,000 we spend on health care this year. Or EFCA, for that matter.

We're already halfway there - in just 24 hours, the FDL community has raised more than $15,000 from more than 400 people. Can you help push us over the top? Click here to donate now to fund organizers in Arkansas.

I need your help to name this new blog. I have a couple ideas that I'll share, but I'm interested in hearing what you think FDL's labor blog should be named.