February Update from SOAR President Bill Pienta

It’s a New Year, and Something To Think About

I hope everyone enjoyed a healthy and happy holiday season and is well-rested and ready to begin another year of activism and involvement in your community and your union through SOAR.

During the extremely cold weather days we have been experiencing here recently in Western New York, I have spent a lot more time indoors thinking, and I would like to share some of those thoughts with you.

  • A recent report revealed how successful members of Congress were, for those of them who were willing to report it, regarding their success or failure in picking winning stocks. The report also reflected how fortunate they were in the timing of selling stocks before the stock took a significant drop. The report seems to reflect that many members of Congress were much more active in buying or selling stock successfully than they were concerned about passing legislation that would help working people.

  • Recently, an investment firm sold 264 houses in the Las Vegas area to another company in one day. This sale was part of a larger sale of 1,900 single-family homes in the Sun Belt area. Investment groups have been buying up homes nationwide for a few years now. A recent study showed this could lead to higher rental prices and fewer available homes.

  • Exxon Mobile has reported a decline in revenue for the last half of 2023 compared to the same period in 2022. Public records indicate this is true. For those last six months of 2023, Exxon only made around $98,000,000 per day! I wonder why gas prices have not come down.

  • General Motors took a strike from the UAW, claiming the demands were too much. Within days of reaching an agreement with the UAW, GM reported to its shareholders that the company would begin to buy back $10,000,000,000, a BILLION worth of stock and would increase its stock dividend by 33%.

SOAR will be involved in this year’s electoral process and will attempt to make sure only candidates who support our issues are supported by us.                   

I wish you all a happy and healthy New Year!

Sources:

Press Inquiries

Media Contacts

Communications Director:
Jess Kamm at 412-562-6961

USW@WORK (USW magazine)
Editor R.J. Hufnagel

For industry specific inquiries,
Call USW Communications at 412-562-2442

Mailing Address

United Steelworkers
Communications Department
60 Blvd. of the Allies
Pittsburgh, PA 15222