In This Issue

President's Message

APALA in Action

Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) Relief Efforts

New Appointees for APALA Young Leaders Council

Senate Passes ENDA

Nov. 5th Elections & Results

We stand with the Philippines

"Every 3 hours receive reports on what's happening on the ground. People are devastated and they are desperate. There is little clean water, no food and hardly any shelter. We have to act in Typhoon Haiyan relief efforts. This our calling as brothers and sisters in solidarity"- Gloria Caoile, APALA Political Director and Feed the Hungry, Inc. board member

Union Made Thanksgiving

As you prepare or the Thanksgiving holidays, be sure to purchase the best union made Thanksgiving eats and tools from the Bakery, Confectionery, United Steelworkers (USW), United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) and more. (Click Here)

And when you travel, use the APALA's Travel & Living compilation guide!

APALA in Action

APALA National President, Johanna Puno Hester, was honored by Filipino American Legal, Defense, and Education Fund (FALDEF) for being a trailblazer in our communities!

APALA Los Angeles supported over 50 protesters in the largest civil disobedience against Walmart in Chinatown. Earlier this year, the chapter and other community groups sued the city to block Walmart from opening in Chinatown.

APALA Texas Chapter President, Shwe Aung, and members joined AFL-CIO to get out the vote in Houston.

APALA DC Vice President of Membership Development, Alvina Yeh, and other members rallied with UFCW Local 400 at Giant and Safeway stores across the district as they fight for a fair deal in their new contract.

APALA Chapters

Become a member today!
Click here

Alameda

Hawaii

Los Angeles

Maryland

Michigan

New Jersey

New York

Nevada

Orange County

Oregon

San Diego

San Francisco

San Jose/Santa Clara/San Mateo

Seattle

Texas

Washington D.C.

Western Massachusetts

President's Message

Sisters and brothers,

It is with a heavy heart that I send my condolences to victims of typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) in the Philippines - the biggest typhoon to land ground in history. The destruction has claimed more than 4,000 lives and displaced hundreds of thousands without shelter, food or clean water. Tacloban city and neighboring impacted areas are far from repair as relief efforts are underway. APALA will play role in calamity assistance and uplift organizations that are effectively reaching the people who need it most - especially those in remote regions.

Our very own APALA leaders are directly involved with driving donations and resources to the people of the Philippines. A founding APALA member and my sister in the movement, Gloria Caoile, has been working tirelessly with Feed the Hungry, Inc to secure aid to victims with an army of volunteers. I ask that you stand with me and survivors of Typhoon Haiyan by donating and supporting the organizations listed below. No amount is too little or too much. Every dollar counts - $5 can feed a family of four.

Last week, the National Executive Board convened in San Diego for our fall meeting. Building on the success of APALA's convention in August, we will look ahead to 2014 to organize communities and engage our members. Please join me and our board as we bring in the new year by renewing your membership.

I thank our members and partners for working with APALA to ensure that labor and workers rights continue to be a core component of our work.

In solidarity,

Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) Relief Efforts

The following are endorsed organizations providing calamity assistance and long-term rehabilitation efforts. We encourage you to donate and support their work and the survivors of Typhoon Haiyan.

Feed the Hungry, Inc.

Feed the Hungry aims to uplift the spirit and well-being of the poorest of the poor, the abused and the desolate through feeding, community and economic development, gift giving, educational scholarships and classroom building, and calamity relief and emergency medical assistance programs.

National Alliance for Filipino Concerns (NAFCON)

NAFCON is a national multi-issue alliance of Filipino organizations and individuals in the United States serving to protect the rights and welfare of Filipinos by fighting for social, economic, and racial justice and equality. At present, NAFCON members encompass over 23 cities in the United States.

UNICEF

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) works in more than 190 countries and territories to save and improve children's lives by providing health care and immunizations, clean water and sanitation, nutrition, education, emergency relief and more. The U.S. Fund for UNICEF supports UNICEF's work through fundraising, advocacy, and education in the United States.

For more information, visit http://apalanet.org/apala-blog/yolanda/

APALA Young Leader Council

Welcome newly appointed Young Leader Council officers Ryan Mariategue of Alameda as Chair, Emmelle Israel of Las Vegas as Vice Chair and Monica Thammarath of Washington DC as Secretary/Treasurer!

YLC leadership from left to right Emmelle Israel (Vice Chair), Ryan Mariategue (Chair), and Monica Thammarath (Secretary/Treasurer)

"I am honored serve as part of the YLC leadership team alongside Emmelle and Monica to continue strengthening the impact of APALA's young leaders.There's a lot of opportunity to build our work from the foundation that the previous YLC Co-Chairs Katrina Dizon & Lucia Lin have developed. I look forward to engaging with the YLC appointees, chapter leaders and the national executive board" - Ryan Mariategue, APALA YLC Chair & National Executive Board Member.

Employment Non Discrimination Act (ENDA)

On Nov. 7th, the Senate passed ENDA with a 64-32 vote. It will now move to the house where it is up to Speaker Boehner to allow ENDA to be debated and voted on. The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) is legislation proposed in the United States Congress that would prohibit discrimination in hiring and employment on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity by civilian, nonreligious employers with at least 15 employees.

ENDA has been introduced in every Congress since 1994 but has not been voted on in 20 years. However, the current version of ENDA includes broad religious exemptions that will leave many LGBT workers vulnerable to discrimination. These also include private religion focused institutions.

November 5th Election Results

November 5th served up key victories for working families across the country. Union backed candidates won key races including:

Terry McAuliffe edged a victory in Virginia gubernatorial race
Bill de Blasio elected mayor of New York
Long time labor leader Marty Walsh wins Boston mayoral election

Critical minimum wage measures passed in New Jersey & Sea/Tac in WA - setting up more momentum in national debate. New Jersey voters overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment to raise minimum wage by $1, to $8.25 an hour, and add automatic cost-of-living increases each year. SeaTac voters approved $15 minimum wage for many workers in and around Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.