September 5, 2012
Robert Balgenorth, President of the California Building Trades Council, wrote the following op-ed published in the San Diego Union-Tribune outlining the importance of 12 years of data exclusivity in Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations for biopharmaceutical innovation and union jobs.
August 28, 2012
“The letter comes as the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation released a report Tuesday calling on U.S. trade negotiators to insists that the trade deal include ‘the highest levels of intellectual property rights protection, transparency in government procurement practices, removal of non-tariff barriers, comprehensive market access provisions, and stringent enforcement mechanisms.’”
Click here to read the full article on The Hill.
View the letter here:
Click here to view the ITIF report.
July 1, 2012
William Burga, Former President of the Ohio AFL-CIO, wrote the following op-ed published in the Cleveland Plain Dealer advising caution in the Affordable Care Act’s management of services for those who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid.
“When it comes to our state’s most vulnerable patients, savings should come from better case management and more closely integrated care — not from benefits cuts.”
Click here to read the full article.
July, 2012
Eric J. Martinson, a business manager at Local 66, wrote the following op-ed highlighting a facility tour of the Western Washington Sheet Metal Joint Apprenticeship Training Center in Everett, Washington. The event was attended by Rep. Derek Stanford whose district benefits from pharmaceutical activity.
June 29, 2012
Leaders from Washington’s biopharmaceutical industry, labor unions, and state legislature joined today at the Western Washington Sheet Metal Joint Apprenticeship Training Center in Everett to discuss ways to work together to advance the goals of job creation, worker training and medical innovation. The group toured the state-of-the-art training facility and saw first-hand the role that union apprenticeship and certification programs play in providing the state’s biopharmaceutical industry with a skilled workforce.
“Every year, building and construction trades unions spend over $800 million in training across the country – all of it from private funding,” Sheet Metal Workers International Association Local Union 66 Business Manager Eric Martinson said. “New discoveries and new cures create the need for new facilities here in Washington, and we want to make sure that our members are ready to go to work and meet the exacting standards of the biopharmaceutical industry.”
Before the tour, Washington State Representative Derek Stanford shared his commitment to keeping Washington’s biopharmaceutical industry competitive in the global market. “Washington’s biotech industry supports 77,000 jobs, while its goods and services contribute more than $11 billion to the state’s economy,” Stanford said. “I commend the unions and companies in this important industry for finding a way to work together, and I am committed to doing what I can to support this partnership in ways that will help create jobs, save lives and boost the economy here in Washington.”
Jeff Gombosky, Washington State PhRMA representative, spoke to the industry’s unsurpassed workforce. “No matter what role they play, the men and women who work in the biopharmaceutical sector are bound by their dedication to keeping this industry at the cutting edge of innovation,” Gombosky said. “Whether it’s the scientist who toils in the lab to discover the next cure or the trade unionist who builds, renovates and maintains our facilities, these workers make real contributions every day to advancing our state’s economy and our nation’s public health.”
The event was coordinated by the Pharmaceutical Industry Labor-Management Association (PILMA) and We Work for Health. PILMA is a coalition of companies and unions in the biopharmaceutical industry that promotes policies to create jobs, keep the industry competitive and advance medical innovation. We Work for Health is an organization that works at the state and national level to educate the public about the everyday contributions of employees in the biopharmaceutical industry.
June 29, 2012
This article, published in the Courier-Post, highlights the PILMA partnership following a New Jersey iron workers facility tour attended by Sen. Robert Menendez.
Click here to read the full article online or view in pdf.
June 28, 2012
Fred D. Mason, President of the Maryland and DC AFL-CIO wrote the following op-ed published in the Prince George’s County Sentinel stressing the importance of 12 years of data exclusivity requirements in the Trans-Pacific Partnership in order to keep America competitive.
May 24, 2012
The member companies and unions of the Pharmaceutical Industry Labor Management Association (PILMA) applaud the Senate’s 96 to 1 vote today in favor of passage of S. 3187, the Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act. Over the past 20 years, prescription drug user fees have been a key component in ensuring that the United States efficiently and safely brings new medicines to market, and extending the user-fees program will keep America at the forefront of new drug innovation and development well into the future. We congratulate Chairman Harkin and Ranking Member Enzi for their hard work in developing this measure and their effort in seeing it through the process in a way that protects the integrity of the underlying legislation. PILMA will to continue to support this legislation as it moves to the House, and we urge members on both sides of the aisle to support the integrity of this bill in order to ensure its swift consideration and final approval.
February 1, 2012
Gregory S. Babe, President and CEO of Bayer Corp. wrote the following op-ed published in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette emphasizing the need for higher education facilities to attract and retain women and minorities to pursue STEM degrees in order to keep America competitive.
Click here to view the full article or read in pdf.
February 2012
Partners in Progress Magazine published the following article highlighting the longstanding partnership between unions and the pharmaceutical industry and the mutual benefits the groups receive by working alongside one another.
