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Quick Hit
by Ellyn Fortino
3:14pm
Wed Nov 4

'Illegally' Fired Riviera Theatre Stagehands Get Support From Worker Advocates, Pat Quinn (VIDEO)

Former stagehands at the Riviera Theatre in Chicago who were allegedly fired by JAM Productions for union activity want their jobs reinstated, back pay and a fair unionization process.

The fired stagehands rallied Wednesday morning with their allies, including former Democratic Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn, outside JAM Productions' offices at 207 W. Goethe St. 

About 40 stagehands at the Riviera were fired by the company in September after they signed authorization cards for a National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) union election. 

"A lot of guys signed cards in August or July and early September, before the date we were fired," said former JAM Productions stagehand Justin Huffman, 40. "I think it's pretty clear that it was a reaction."

Quick Hit
by Ellyn Fortino
12:48pm
Wed Nov 4

Report: Most Waitlists For Housing Choice Vouchers Closed In Illinois

As demand for federal housing vouchers intensifies in Illinois, residents in need of affordable rental housing are encountering mostly closed waitlists for the Housing Choice Voucher program across the state, a new report shows.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development operates the Housing Choice Voucher program, which provides rental assistance to low-income families and is administered locally by public housing authorities (PHAs).

Of the 71 PHAs with active Housing Choice Voucher programs in Illinois, 51, or 72 percent, have closed voucher waitlists, according to the report from Housing Action Illinois and the Social IMPACT Research Center.

"This means that people in need of affordable rental housing in most every part of Illinois do not have the opportunity to even get in line to secure a federally-funded subsidy that would alleviate their poverty and put their household in a better position to thrive," the report authors wrote.

PI Original
by Ellyn Fortino
4:22pm
Mon Nov 2

Dozens Arrested During Protest Over 'LaSalle Street Tax' At Chicago Board Of Trade (VIDEO)

State Budget

Forty-one protesters with Fair Economy Illinois were arrested Monday after they blocked the entrances of the Chicago Board of Trade building as part of their campaign for a "LaSalle Street tax," or a tax on financial transactions to generate state revenue. Progress Illinois provides highlights from the protest. 

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