10/14/2025 - 2:00pm
Get to Know AFL-CIO's Affiliates: Seafarers
This is the next post in our series that will take a deeper look at each of our affiliates. The series will run weekly until we've covered all 63 of our affiliates. Next up is the Seafarers International Union (SIU).
This is the next post in our series that will take a deeper look at each of our affiliates. The series will run weekly until we’ve covered all 63 of our affiliates. Next up is the Seafarers International Union (SIU).
Name of Union: Seafarers International Union
Mission: To represent the best-trained, most efficient crews in the world as a dynamic, politically active organization dedicated to protecting the membership’s job security in the face of the ever-changing needs of the industry.
Current Leadership of Union: David W. Heindel has served as the president of the Seafarers International Union since February 2023. Prior to that, he had served as the secretary-treasurer of the SIU, Atlantic, Gulf, Lakes and Inland Waters starting in February 1997. Augustin “Augie” Tellez has been the executive vice president of SIU since 2005. Tom Orzechowski is the secretary-treasurer of the SIU.
SIU also has eight vice presidents: George Tricker (Contracts), Dean Corgey (Gulf Coast), Joseph T. Soresi (Atlantic Coast), Bryan Powell (Lakes and Inland Waters), Joe Vincenzo (West Coast), Sam Spain (Government Services), Hazel Galbiso and Pat Vandegrift.
Number of Members: 80,000
Members Work As: Professional merchant mariners sailing aboard U.S.-flag vessels in the deep sea, Great Lakes and inland trades.
Industries Represented: Members work on a wide variety of vessels, including commercial container ships and tankers, military support ships, tugboats and barges, passenger ships, gaming vessels and many more.
History: Before the Seafarers International Union was formed in 1938, there were several other unions that organized maritime workers, including the International Seamen's Union (ISU), which formed in 1892 and was chartered by the American Federation of Labor (AFL). Pressures from the Great Depression and internal division led to the downfall of the ISU, despite some successes, including securing the passage of the Jones Act in 1920.
The SIU was formally given a charter in 1938 with nearly 7,000 members. World War II had a major impact on the maritime trades. SIU members were a huge part of the war effort, providing military support to the Allies and serving as the underpinning of the Allied supply lines. The casualty rate for merchant seamen was higher than any other branch of the armed services. The union managed to secure increases in hazard pay for those sailing into war zones. After the war, the SIU made tremendous gains with organizing drives, a general maritime strike and the creation of the AFL's Maritime Trades Department.
Paul Hall was a charter member of the SIU and, by the late 1940s, he was in charge of daily operations of the union, and he took the union in a more militant direction. Hall stressed civic engagement and negotiation and took SIU to the streets in solidarity with other AFL unions. Reform and expansion were key among Hall’s achievements, including securing the first hospital and death benefits for members, creating the Seafarers Vacation Plan and strengthening seniority provisions in hiring.
In the 1950s, the SIU continued to expand by merging with other smaller maritime unions. The union also opened up several training facilities to help Seafarers hone their professional skills. The union was successful in the 1960s in calls to modernize the U.S.-flag-bearing fleet. The 1970s would see the union successfully fight for the passage of the Merchant Marine Act, which lifted up the maritime industry, including boosting jobs.
The rapid changes in technology, trade and world politics in the 1980s and 1990s provided both opportunities and challenges for the SIU. The expansion of global trade and the growth in military conflict around the world directly affected SIU’s membership. SIU members were among the first responders after the terrorist attacks of 9/11, transporting evacuees from affected areas and serving as crew on the USNS Comfort, a ship that was the center for medical care for first responders and survivors. SIU members also would be key in stories in more recent years, such as the “Miracle on the Hudson” aircraft incident in 2009 and when the Maersk Alabama ship was hijacked by Somali pirates.
Whether it be in times of war, times of peace or in reaction to a tragedy, Seafarers are part of the solution; and they continue to do what they always do: "turning to and delivering the goods."
Current Campaigns/Community Efforts: The Seafarers provide training and apprenticeships through the Paul Hall Center for Maritime Training and Education and the Harry Lundeberg School of Seamanship. The Seafarers Disaster Aid Fund helps members and retirees who are hurt by hurricanes and other disasters. The Seafarers also assist members with pensions. SIU shares news and information through the Seafarer’s Log, CIVMAR News and the Mobile News Network.
Learn More: Website, Facebook, YouTube, X, Instagram
Kenneth Quinnell
Tue, 10/14/2025 - 13:43
10/09/2025 - 5:30pm
It's Time for Change: What Working People Are Doing This Week
Welcome to our regular feature, a look at what the various AFL-CIO unions and other working family organizations are doing across the country and beyond. The labor movement is big and active—here's a look at the broad range of activities we're engaged in this week.
AFGE:
AFSCME:
Alliance for Retired Americans:
10/09/2025 - 5:30pm
Returning Power to the Workers: In the States Roundup
It's time once again to take a look at the ways working people are making progress in the states. Click on any of the links to follow the state federations on X.
Alaska AFL-CIO:
California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO:
10/09/2025 - 5:30pm
Service & Solidarity Spotlight: RWDSU Helps Fights Addiction in Appalachia with Resources and Working-Class Solidarity
Working people across the United States regularly step up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our Service & Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
Members of Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union-UFCW (RWDSU-UFCW) Local 21 participated in the Healing Appalachia music festival to connect attendees with information about the union and organizing resources.
The annual event brings community members together to enjoy music and provides those affected by opioid addiction with much-needed resources. The union partnered with the festival because it recognizes that the stability of a good union job with quality benefits can be especially life-changing for workers in addiction recovery. Local 21 even hosts regular Narcotics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous meetings at its union hall, embodying the true spirit of solidarity.
Alex Ware, president of RWDSU-UFCW Local 21, said, “Addiction has touched so many families in our communities, including our union family. At Local 21, we believe in new beginnings and in the power of good union jobs to change lives. Many of our members have overcome struggles with addiction and found stability, community, and dignity through union work and in the connections made through our union. That’s why we’re proud to support Healing Appalachia and to be here helping people see that recovery can lead to real opportunity.”
Kenneth Quinnell
Wed, 10/08/2025 - 09:51
10/09/2025 - 5:30pm
Take Action: It’s Time to Stop Hurting Working People
As the shutdown enters its ninth day, the rent, mortgage and bills keep coming for America’s workers.
The bills keep coming for the workers who provide health care for veterans, help Americans with their Social Security benefits, inspect our food and medicines, and keep our airports safe.
The bills keep coming for contract workers—including custodians and cafeteria workers—who don’t have the assurance of back pay. Instead of chatting with their kids about Halloween costumes, parents will be forced to explain why the lights aren’t on. People who need medication like insulin may choose to ration it so they can afford to keep the water running.
And all of this pain is happening because the Trump administration is threatening to double or triple people’s health care premiums by refusing to extend the Affordable Care Act’s tax credits.
Congress needs to hear from working people right now: Fund the government. Fix the health care crisis. Put working people first. Make a call right now.
If you’ve already made a call, click here to send an email too.
This week, the Trump administration decided that because of the shutdown, they were going to pause billions of dollars’ worth of infrastructure and energy projects across the country. These projects employ hundreds of thousands of workers in construction, manufacturing and operations, and are supposed to help lower electricity prices.
It’s clear what the administration is doing: squeezing working people any way they can until they cry uncle and abandon demands to fix the administration’s Affordable Care Act crisis.
We can all agree on this basic principle: These workers, and all workers in America, just want to be able to do their job and get paid a decent paycheck for their work. The last thing that working families and our economy need is another hit when these paychecks don’t arrive on time and workers start having to make impossible decisions.
Working people should not be used as pawns or bargaining chips, whether it is threatening one set of workers after another, canceling construction projects, or jacking up electricity prices on top of higher health insurance premiums.
Will you make a call to House Speaker Mike Johnson, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, and your senators and representative to tell them to get to work and fund the government, fix the health care crisis and put working people first? Make a call now: 844-896-5059 or click here to call.
Kenneth Quinnell
Thu, 10/09/2025 - 12:32
10/09/2025 - 5:30pm
Worker Wins: Solidarity, Resolve, and Resourcefulness
Our latest roundup of worker wins includes numerous examples of working people organizing, bargaining and mobilizing for a better life.
Temple University Resident Assistants, Peer Mentors Vote to Join OPEIU: Temple University’s resident assistants (RAs) and peer mentors (PMs) voted unanimously on Tuesday to form a union with Office and Professional Employees (OPEIU) Local 153. Members of Temple Union of Resident Assistants (TURA) have made history as the first group of undergraduate workers to organize at a public university in Pennsylvania. “Too often, the efforts we make as student workers in ResLife go unnoticed by the university,” said Erin, an RA, in a press release. “We shoulder significant responsibilities in our residence halls, caring for residents while managing our own full-time studies. This balancing act can take a mental toll, especially when our work is neither recognized nor fairly compensated. As we prepare to bargain, we will advocate for higher compensation for our Resident Assistants and Peer Mentors and improved working conditions. The value of our work far exceeds the compensation we currently receive.”
Polly’s Country Market Workers Secure New Contract: United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 951 members who work at Polly’s Country Market locations voted this week to ratify a new two-year contract. The 150-person bargaining unit at the grocery chain locations in Jackson, Michigan, won a deal that includes higher wages and improvements to paid time off. “Family-owned grocery chains are rare and unique in this day and age,” said John Cakmakci, president of Local 951, in a press release. “These Polly’s stores were unionized decades ago, and I’ve personally known members who have worked there for nearly 40 years. We have a great group of members at Polly’s with people who really care about serving their community as store employees and as union members. We last ratified the Polly’s contract four years ago and a lot has changed with the economy since then. With this new contract, we wanted wages reflecting those changes and ultimately succeeded by putting more money into the pockets of Polly’s workers.”
SEIU Members at Las Vegas Hospital Celebrate First Contract: Members of Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1107 who work at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center in Las Vegas have successfully secured their first union contract. Professional staff in the bargaining unit work in laboratory technology, social work, occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech-language pathology, and other essential departments. Highlights of the agreement include wage increases of more than 12% over the lifetime of the deal, establishment of a committee on safe staffing, health care wins and more. “In order to provide the best care and meet all of our community’s complex needs, we must have the very best professionals working here,” said Cristina Hooper, a medical social worker at Sunrise. “Our first union contract is the foundation that will empower us to attract and keep professionals, and give us a seat at the table to represent our patients and ourselves.”
TV Commercial Production Department Workers Secure First CBA: In a first-of-its-kind victory, the Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) announced the ratification of a new contract with the Association of Independent Commercial Producers Inc. (AICP) on Wednesday. The historic agreement covers television commercial production workers—including roles like production assistants, production supervisors, bidding producers and more—for the first time across hundreds of companies. Members of the Production Workers Guild (PWG), IATSE Local 111, won stronger workplace protections, better health care access, improved reimbursement procedures and other provisions that ensure parity with fellow crew members. “This ratified agreement is the culmination of four years of activism and organizing born out of the grassroots ‘Stand With Production’ movement which saw commercial production workers first stand up in the face of deteriorating conditions, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said IATSE International President Matthew D. Loeb. “It is a testament to the solidarity, resolve, and resourcefulness of production department workers. This first agreement sets a foundation that we will look to build upon for the future, with talks for a successor agreement just three years away.”
Maine Workers Grow Union Ranks at Statewide News Network: Nearly 50 workers at the Maine Trust for Local News won their election this week to join News Guild of Maine, The NewsGuild-Communications Workers of America (TNG-CWA) Local 31128. The statewide nonprofit was created in 2023 when the National Trust for Local News purchased the largest network of daily and weekly newspapers in Maine. While some newsroom staff were already members of the NewsGuild of Maine—like those at the Portland Press Herald—other workers still lacked the basic workplace protections and fair pay that a union contract provides. Newly minted members include reporters, photographers, copy editors, advertising representatives and other staff at the Sun Journal, the Times Record and weekly newspapers and newsletters in southern and western Maine. “Those of us who are not represented have little influence over the environment in which we work. That changes today,” said Kendra Caruso, a staff writer at the Sun Journal. “Today we demand equal pay, equal respect and the same job securities that our represented colleagues have. As one company, one union and under one contract, we will hold the company accountable to its stated mission.”
Primary tabs
Sunrise Hospital Workers in Las Vegas Secure First Contract, 12% Raises: Medical professionals at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center in Las Vegas, members of Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1107, are celebrating their first contract. The new contract will improve staff recruitment and retention and provides average raises of more than 12% over three years. The contract covers nearly 300 employees working in laboratory technology, social work, occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech-language pathology, among other fields. The contract also provides union representation and a neutral arbitrator available for workplace problems, a Patient Care Committee and other committees to improve staffing, and protected benefits like 100% employer-paid health care premiums. “In order to provide the best care and meet all of our community’s complex needs, we must have the very best professionals working here,” said Cristina Hooper, a medical social worker at Sunrise. “Our first union contract is the foundation that will empower us to attract and keep professionals, and give us a seat at the table to represent our patients and ourselves.”
Kenneth Quinnell
Thu, 10/09/2025 - 16:01
Tags:
Organizing
10/07/2025 - 5:00pm
Service & Solidarity Spotlight: Sunrise Hospital Workers in Las Vegas Secure First Contract, 12% Raises
Working people across the United States regularly step up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our Service & Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
Medical professionals at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center in Las Vegas, members of Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1107, are celebrating their first contract. The new contract will improve staff recruitment and retention and provides average raises of more than 12% over three years.
The contract covers nearly 300 employees working in laboratory technology, social work, occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech-language pathology, among other fields. The contract also provides union representation and a neutral arbitrator available for workplace problems, a Patient Care Committee and other committees to improve staffing, and protected benefits like 100% employer-paid health care premiums.
“In order to provide the best care and meet all of our community’s complex needs, we must have the very best professionals working here,” said Cristina Hooper, a medical social worker at Sunrise. “Our first union contract is the foundation that will empower us to attract and keep professionals, and give us a seat at the table to represent our patients and ourselves.”
Kenneth Quinnell
Tue, 10/07/2025 - 10:09
10/06/2025 - 10:30pm
‘Put Working People First’: The Working People Weekly List
Every week, we bring you a roundup of the top news and commentary about issues and events important to working families. Here’s the latest edition of the Working People Weekly List.
What the Government Shutdown Means for Federal Workers—Hundreds of Thousands Are Required to Keep Working Without Pay: “The U.S. government shut down Wednesday, putting hundreds of thousands of federal workers at risk of losing pay. About 750,000 federal employees are expected to be furloughed each day, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Hundreds of thousands more are required to keep working without pay until funding resumes, based on federal agency estimates, including essential staff like air traffic controllers and border patrol agents.”
We Organized Our Nonprofit and Lost Our Jobs, but We’d Do It Again: “When we finally won our union election to affiliate with the Communications Workers of America (CWA), NEDA bosses responded with blatant, illegal union busting. They fired every single one of us and attempted to replace our lived experience with a dangerous AI chatbot named ‘Tessa.’ Despite having to pull the chatbot almost immediately, the organization still chose to shutter the Helpline, claiming it was a ‘long-anticipated change.’ But make no mistake: it was about silencing voices who dared to question them, and crushing worker power.”
‘Put Working People First,’ Says AFL-CIO Angered by Trump Agenda and Government Shutdown: “The largest federation of labor unions in the United States called out President Donald Trump’s administration on Wednesday after a government shutdown began at midnight following failed votes on competing congressional funding bills. ‘The federal government is shutting down right now because President Trump and his administration chose chaos and pain over responsible governing,’ declared American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) president Liz Shuler in a statement.”
Adler Planetarium Workers Announce New Union: “Employees of the Adler Planetarium announced this week that they have joined a union. The roughly 80 workers said Tuesday that they have formed the Adler Planetarium Workers United, or APWU, organized by the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees Council 31. In a letter to their coworkers, the employees said they are concerned about staffing shortages, management communication, and changes to procedures without employees sharing input. AFSCME Council 31 represents workers at several other major Chicago museums—including the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry, the Field Museum of Natural History, the Shedd Aquarium, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Chicago History Museum.”
Unions Sue to Protect Federal Workers from Mass Firings During Government Shutdown: “Just hours before an expected U.S. government shutdown, two major unions for federal workers filed a lawsuit on Tuesday in hopes of protecting them from the Trump administration’s threat of mass firings. ‘Announcing plans to fire potentially tens of thousands of federal employees simply because Congress and the administration are at odds on funding the government past the end of the fiscal year is not only illegal—it’s immoral and unconscionable,’ American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) national president Everett Kelley said in a statement.”
Tilly Norwood, Fully AI 'Actor,' Blasted by Actors Union SAG-AFTRA for 'Devaluing Human Artistry': “A major Hollywood actors' union condemned reports that talent agents are looking to sign AI ‘actor’ Tilly Norwood for representation. The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, or SAG-AFTRA, said in a statement Tuesday that Tilly Norwood ‘is not an actor, it’s a character generated by a computer program that was trained on the work of countless professional performers.’”
University of San Diego Faculty Approve First Union Contract: “After more than a year of negotiating, faculty members at the University of San Diego (USD) have approved their first union contract. Members ratified the contract Friday with 99% voting yes. The contract applies to about 200 non-tenure-track faculty in the university’s College of Arts and Sciences. It includes wage increases, back pay and job security based on seniority, according to Service Employees International Union Local 721.”
UFCW Local 324 President Andrea Zinder Dies ‘Unexpectedly’: “Buena Park labor leader Andrea Zinder, a 42-year veteran of the United Food and Commercial Workers union in Los Angeles and Orange counties and who led tough negotiations with major supermarket chains in Southern California for decades, died unexpectedly last week. Zinder was 67. UFCW said in a statement that her death Saturday, Sept. 27 was ‘unexpected’ and did not provide a cause of death. Kathy Finn, the president of UFCW Local 770, worked with Zinder on just about every major labor campaign for the past quarter-century.”
Unions Rally Around New Plan to Boost Clean Energy Jobs: “Estimating that the federal government’s turn away from clean energy projects has eliminated at least 20,000 jobs here, organized labor groups on Thursday renewed their push to create more work by requiring energy assessments in public schools and universities across Massachusetts. Massachusetts AFL-CIO, the Climate Jobs Massachusetts Action coalition and a handful of individual locals were among those who voiced support for a bill (H 3476 / S 2275) that would require energy and air quality audits for public schools, universities and colleges.”
New Jersey State AFL-CIO Proposed Rules Receive Final Approval from PERC: “At yesterday’s Public Employee Relations Commission (PERC) meeting, the commission gave final approval to two new rules initiated by the New Jersey State AFL-CIO. Working in conjunction with our public employee affiliated unions, this process took over a year to achieve. We thank the PERC Commissioners that voted in favor of these rules.”
Kenneth Quinnell
Mon, 10/06/2025 - 12:15
10/06/2025 - 4:00pm
Hispanic Heritage Month Profiles: Oscar Solla
Throughout Hispanic Heritage Month, the AFL-CIO will be profiling leaders and activists to spotlight the diverse contributions Hispanics and Latinos have made to the labor movement. Today's profile features Oscar Solla of the Professional Aviation Safety Specialists (PASS).
Oscar Solla joined PASS immediately after being hired by the Federal Aviation Administration. He now serves as a union rep at his facility in Puerto Rico. "With the critical safety work that we perform, it is necessary to stay focused on the work, not our working conditions,” Solla says. "We run the safest airspace in the world, and PASS plays a big role in that by representing us in a professional, effective way.”
Kenneth Quinnell
Mon, 10/06/2025 - 09:44
Tags:
Hispanic Heritage Month
10/06/2025 - 4:00pm
Worker Wins: All Workers Should Have A Say In Their Working Conditions
Our latest roundup of worker wins includes numerous examples of working people organizing, bargaining and mobilizing for a better life.
AFSCME Members Win Back Union Representation After Decertification by Florida: Two years after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis rammed through anti-union legislation that attacked the representation of hardworking public sector workers, members of AFSCME Local 1279 in Jacksonville fought hard to bring their union back from decertification and won. Senate Bill 256 banned automatic paycheck dues deduction and required 60% membership payment rates for unions to remain active. While this effort was clearly meant to undermine and break up worker power in the state, AFSCME members worked to overcome these new legal burdens by re-signing hundreds of members on new membership cards, implementing a new dues payment system, holding dozens of workplace meetings and filling union show-of-interest cards twice. Workers successfully got their union back and negotiated a new contract that includes a 10% wage increase, increased time off and more. “This was a massively disruptive piece of legislation that changed so much but, in our case, we had basically no time to prepare for it,” said Arthur Finley, a Jacksonville Public Library employee and president of Local 1279. “We lost our union at the start but, working with the council and other AFSCME locals in the area, we were able to get on track to win it back almost right away.” “We have talked to every single worker in the bargaining unit at some point during this process,” said Galen Gingery, a security officer and vice president of Local 1279. “Overall, people have been supportive and understanding of the time it was going to take to get us back. By the time we sat down at the bargaining table we knew our co-workers were with us because we were doing those worksite visits, the townhalls and the one-on-one conversations just to get us to that point.”
Milwaukee County Transit System Workers Ratify New Contract: After months of negotiations, members of Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 998 who work for the Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) have ratified a new three-year agreement. The contract covers the bus drivers, mechanics and maintenance workers who keep Wisconsin’s largest transit system moving. Highlights of the deal include annual wage increases and important new safety provisions. “These guys, for the most part, are ex-police officers, ex-military people with security backgrounds,” said Bruce Freeman, president of Local 998. “We just wanted to make sure that the company is addressing the problems that we feel are problems of, you know, the unruly passengers, the disruptive passengers, assaults on bus drivers.”
Workers Celebrate Historic Disneyland Wage Theft Settlement: A California judge has approved a $233 million settlement in a class-action lawsuit against Disneyland for failing to pay a living wage to union members at the resort and theme park. In 2018, Anaheim voters passed Measure L, which required companies in the city’s resort area that receive tax rebates to pay their staff a $15 minimum wage. UNITE HERE Local 11, United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 324, Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers (BCTGM) Local 83, SEIU-United Service Workers West were among the unions who fought to ensure that corporations benefiting from subsidies shared their profits with workers. Disneyland resisted the new law for years, but workers eventually won what is now the largest class action wage theft case in California history. “There’s a couple of people who are getting $100,000,” said Nathan Delgadillo, a server and member of UNITE HERE Local 11. “For all the workers, this will have a profoundly positive impact. And as a union, this is our whole program—it’s like having a vision and seeing that vision come true.” “I love what I do, turning kids into princesses and knights, but I have to be able to afford to live while doing it,” said Michi Cordell, a member of UFCW Local 324 and a Disneyland staff member of 17 years. “This settlement will be a major help to my family thanks to the union and the Anaheim voters who supported Measure L. We stood up for what we deserved, from passing Measure L to reaching this agreement, and won.”
UAW Members at AM General Ratify New Agreement: UAW Local 5 members who work at AM General ratified a powerful new agreement on Thursday that the union is calling the “strongest contract in decades.” Workers at the Mishawaka, Indiana, facility manufacture essential tactical vehicles for the U.S. military. This deal reverses a previous track record of benefit concessions, securing a large pension increase and making serious progress fixing a tiered pay system. Members also won a 12% wage increase over three years. “Our members got back to our fighting roots, as the oldest local in the UAW with a long history of negotiating world class contracts,” said Dave Green, director of UAW Region 2B. “We won a contract that not only makes no concessions to the company, but delivers incredibly strong wage and pension increases for the membership.”
Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Musicians Secure Three-Year Contract: The Atlanta Federation of Musicians, American Federation of Musicians (AFM) Local 148-462, and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO) have reached a new three-year collective bargaining agreement (CBA). ASO musicians secured pay increases of 15% over the lifetime of the agreement and ensured the preservation of the health benefits packages members currently enjoy. Other victories include the addition of two more positions in the orchestra, better working conditions, and a comprehensive overhaul of audition and tenure review procedures so they will be consistent with industry standards. “The musicians are united in our unwavering commitment to our audiences and to our art—and in our clear vision for the future of the world-class Atlanta Symphony Orchestra,” said Jessica Oudin, president of the ASO Players' Association. “We are thankful to have ratified a progressive and multifaceted contract that speaks to all aspects of our work—and in so doing, honors the legacy and protects the future of the ASO.” Bruce Kenney, president of Local 148-462, said: “Our union’s history of collaboration with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra dates back to 1946….Now, we have a new agreement that honors and builds upon decades of effort and ensures the status of the ASO and the city of Atlanta as a destination for music lovers and musicians alike.”
University of San Diego Faculty Secure First Contract: Nontenure track (NTT) faculty at the University of San Diego (USD)—who are represented by Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 721—ratified their first union contract on Friday in a landslide vote. The agreement comes after more than a year of bargaining, which included a two-day strike earlier this year, and covers around 200 staff in the College of Arts and Sciences. Adjuncts teach more than half of undergraduate courses in the program, but despite this, nearly 1 in 4 NTT faculty rely on public assistance to get by. “My dream is for all the workers at USD to become unionized and have a say in their working conditions,” said theatre lecturer Soroya Rowley. “I think when everyone else sees what we won in our collective bargaining agreement, they're going to feel ready to take the next step to organizing their own units.”
Kenneth Quinnell
Thu, 10/02/2025 - 10:47
Tags:
Organizing
