08/20/2024 - 4:30pm
Life Is Better In A Union: 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 (formerly Twitter).
Alabama AFL-CIO:
Alaska AFL-CIO:
Arizona AFL-CIO:
08/20/2024 - 4:30pm
Service & Solidarity Spotlight: Richmond Hotel Workers Secure 30% Wage Increase, End Strike
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.
Workers at the Sheraton Vancouver Airport, members of UNITE HERE Local 40, ratified a new contract after striking for 14 months. The new three-year contract gives all workers a 30.5% wage increase, a return-to-work bonuses, an increase in banquet workers’ gratuities, transparency and other tip protections, and new health benefits. More than 85% of the union members voted in favor of the new contract.
“This new agreement sets the union on a new path with Larco Hospitality, and we look forward to forging ahead in a productive and positive working relationship with them,” said Zailda Chan, president of UNITE HERE Local 40.
Kenneth Quinnell
Tue, 08/20/2024 - 08:08
08/19/2024 - 4:00pm
Hitting the Picket Lines: 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.
Stark Comparison: Union Leaders Praise Tim Walz as J.D. Vance Tries To Rebrand GOP As Pro-Labor: “As a former high school teacher, Walz was once a union member himself. Long before Walz joined the national ticket, he helped make Minnesota one of the most worker-friendly states in the country. ‘He's done great work here with labor, and we appreciate his willingness to always be at the table with us,’ said Bernie Burnham, the president of Minnesota AFL-CIO, the president of Minnesota American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO). ‘When you see Tim Walz, you can see he's as comfortable getting down the floor and talking to a toddler as he is listening to senior citizens and hearing about what their needs are,’ Burnham said.”
Striking SAG-AFTRA Video Game Actors To Hit Picket Lines for Second Day: “Striking SAG-AFTRA video game performers plan to picket outside Disney Character Voices Thursday—the union's second picketing event since it walked off the job on July 23 to highlight a dispute it says focuses on an unwillingness by top gaming companies to protect voice actors from the emergence of artificial intelligence.”
UAW Suit Against Trump and Musk Breaks New Ground: “Trump’s praise of Musk’s illegal firings didn’t surprise the AFL-CIO. ‘Scab recognizes scab,’ it tweeted. ‘Greedy bosses aren’t just laughing at workers in smoke-filled backrooms anymore,’ federation President Liz Shuler elaborated in a statement. ‘They’re broadcasting it for the world to hear. It’s no surprise coming from Trump and Elon Musk—two notorious union-busters who boast a combined record of crossing picket lines, underpaying workers, flouting health and safety laws, and retaliating against workers for demanding the rights and fair pay we deserve.’”
Trump Gutted Federal Employee Unions. They Believe He'd Do It Again: “Labor unions are among Kamala Harris’ most fervent backers in her run for president, and federal employee unions especially so. Not only do they love her unabashed support for labor, they also fear what her opponent Donald Trump might do if he’s elected president again. It’s not hyperbole to say that since becoming vice president, Harris has played a key role in bringing federal employee unions back from the brink.”
Walz Gives Remarks at Labor Union Convention in Los Angeles: “Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz addressed members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) union at their convention in Los Angeles Tuesday afternoon. The visit by the Democratic vice presidential candidate comes as the Harris-Walz ticket looks to solidify its base, including with organized labor. AFSCME is one of several major labor organizations, including other constituent unions within the AFL-CIO, that have given strong support to the Democratic Party ticket.”
The Animation Guild Starts Negotiating with Studios: “Following a weekend of solidarity events, The Animation Guild (IATSE 839) officially began its contract negotiations yesterday with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. TAG members and supporters turned out in droves at a rally in Burbank on Saturday (August 10), with support also pouring in online through the #StandWithAnimation hashtag. Industry veterans like Genndy Tartakovsky (Samurai Jack), James Baxter (The Lion King), Peter Ramsey (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) and Rebecca Sugar (Steven Universe) were among an estimated 2000-plus attendees—more than double the crowd that showed up for a previous rally in March 2022. ‘To look out at this sea of people the weekend before we actually go in for negotiations was really inspiring,’ says storyboard artist Kaitrin Snodgrass (My Little Pony: A New Generation).”
Recent Contracts Give Amtrak Workers Big Raises: “Two recently ratified contracts, one with the Transport Workers and the other with the Electrical Workers, have given on-board Amtrak workers and the passenger train system’s electricians historically large raises, the unions stated. Both contracts feature 34.1% compounded raises over seven years, retroactive to July 2022 and run through the end of 2028. The contract with Transport Workers Local 1460 covers 360 Amtrak on-board service workers, including train attendants and cafe car workers. Amtrak’s pact with IBEW’s of Railroad System Council 7 covers 1,200 electrical workers. ‘Amtrak on-board workers are a critical part of our nation’s transportation system and this contract includes essential quality-of-life wins,’ TWU President John Samuelsen said in a statement.”
Woodland Park Zoo Workers Reach Tentative Agreement On New Contract: “The Joint Crafts Council (JCC) Coalition of Unions, representing approximately 200 Woodland Park Zoo employees, has reached a tentative agreement with zoo management on a new contract, according to a statement released by the union on Monday. The agreement, which is fully recommended by the union’s negotiations committee, is now subject to ratification by the union members. The proposed contract follows months of negotiations centered on key issues, including affordable healthcare, equitable wages, and the long-term well-being of the animals. The JCC Coalition of Unions represents 34 different classifications of zoo workers, including animal keepers, veterinary technicians, carpenters, and laborers.”
S&P 500 CEOs Made 268 Times What the Typical Worker Made Last Year, Report Says: CEO Payflation Strikes Again: “‘Today, the very CEOs who benefited most from Trump’s tax gift to the wealthy are making 268 times what their workers are making. And while corporate profits and stock prices surge, working people’s wages aren’t keeping up,’ Fred Redmond, secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO, said in a statement.”
I Helped Organize An Architect's Union: “Unionization in design industries is approaching a tipping point. In July, three different sectors achieved major victories for the labor movement. At Blizzard, a video game developer where other members have already unionized, more than 500 employees formed a ‘wall-to-wall’ union. Workers at the Apple Store in Towson, Maryland—the first such store to unionize at the world’s most famous design company—ratified their first contract. And finally, my colleagues and I at Bernheimer Architecture (BA) ratified the first collectively bargained contract at a private-sector architecture office.”
Kenneth Quinnell
Fri, 08/16/2024 - 10:25
08/19/2024 - 4:00pm
Service & Solidarity Spotlight: Torrance Nurses Ratify New Contract by Overwhelming Majority
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.
Registered nurses (RNs) at Providence Little Company of Mary Medical Center in Torrance, California, voted late last week with 89% supporting the ratification of a new three-year contract.
The RNs are represented by the California Nurses Association, an affiliate of National Nurses United (NNU), and have been bargaining for this agreement since April of this year. Thanks to the bargaining unit’s unfaltering unity—including during an informational picket in June—members are celebrating a powerful new contract that secures critical provisions members need to continue delivering quality care to patients. Highlights of the deal include strengthened health and safety measures, the establishment of an equity and inclusion committee focused on diversity, language to ensure nurses can take their breaks with safe staffing levels and a 14.5% across-the-board wage increase over the three-year term.
“We’re very proud of what we were able to achieve,” said Maria Chavez, an RN in the telemetry oncology unit. “We now have an agreement that we think will improve our recruitment and retention rates of RNs, including our vastly expanded educational program that offers RNs tuition assistance and more.”
Kenneth Quinnell
Mon, 08/19/2024 - 10:04
08/16/2024 - 9:00pm
Service & Solidarity Spotlight: Crooked Media Union Members Unanimously Ratify Contract with Wage Increases, AI Protection
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 the Crooked Media union, an affiliate of the Writers Guild of America East (WGAE), unanimously ratified their first contract, with gains including minimum starting salaries of $80,000, protections against artificial intelligence (AI) and a minimum of 49 days of paid time off. The $80,000 minimum salary rises to $84,000 in 2027 and the three-year agreement includes an immediate 15% increase to base salaries; 30 days’ notice from the company if AI is to be used; increased health insurance coverage; and a minimum of 13 weeks severance. The 61-member unit of Crooked Media produces podcasts, including "Pod Save America" and "Lovett or Leave It."
“Today, members of the Crooked Media Workers Union ratified its first contract with a unanimous yes and 100% participation. It’s one thing to talk about the power of unions; it’s another to actually do the work. We’re pleased to have secured a fair, progressive contract, and for those wins to set a new standard for the industry at large. If we inspire workers at one other company to stand up together, fight for each other, and insist on what they deserve, this has all been worth it,” representatives from the Crooked Media Workers Union said.
Kenneth Quinnell
Fri, 08/16/2024 - 10:12
08/16/2024 - 2:30pm
Fed Up and Fired Up: 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.
Actors' Equity:
AFGE:
AFSCME:
Alliance for Retired Americans:
Amalgamated Transit Union:
American Federation of Teachers:
American Postal Workers Union:
Association of Flight Attendants-CWA:
Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers:
08/15/2024 - 8:00pm
Service & Solidarity Spotlight: Do Good Multnomah Workers Seeking Voluntary Union Recognition
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.
Late last week, shelter, housing, case management and behavioral health workers at nonprofit Do Good Multnomah demanded voluntary recognition after a majority of staff signed authorization cards to join AFSCME.
Founded in 2015, Do Good Multnomah was initially created as a shelter for homeless veterans and has since expanded its services to other populations in the Portland-metro area of Oregon and Vancouver, Washington. Staff at the shelter—which operates through contracts with the county government—work tirelessly to assist community members in crisis access transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, mental health services and other forms of support. Workers are organizing with Oregon AFSCME Council 75 to get the safety protocols, guaranteed leave time, fair wages and good labor practices they need to continue their critical work.
“Burnout and turnover are synonymous with our field,” said case manager Davis Nafshun in an Oregon AFSCME press release. “While the work of getting individuals housing can be so rewarding, it’s also extremely demanding, and it is not made easier by extensive short staffing problems and a lack of resources. At our location, we have no air conditioning. The day-to-day life of both the people we help and Do Good staff would largely improve from having a voice at the table in the decisions made at our job.”
Kenneth Quinnell
Thu, 08/15/2024 - 09:38
08/14/2024 - 7:00pm
Nothing Is Over Until It's Over: 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 (formerly Twitter).
Alaska AFL-CIO:
Arizona AFL-CIO:
08/14/2024 - 7:00pm
Service & Solidarity Spotlight: Maryland Cannabis Workers Join UFCW
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.
Workers at the Apothecarium Dispensary in Cumberland, Maryland, voted 25-0 to organize with United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 27. The workers are seeking to address longstanding issues, including poor wages, unaffordable benefits, safety concerns and a lack of support from the parent company, TerrAscend Corp.
“The workers had been increasingly agitated about their pay and working conditions since TerrAscend Corp. bought Allegany Medical Marijuana Dispensary,” the workers said in a statement. “Working conditions at the dispensary have been abysmal since the corporate acquisition. Workers have had to endure leaking ceilings, bathrooms in disrepair, exposed electrical wires in the workplace and air conditioning that doesn’t properly circulate throughout the building.”
Kenneth Quinnell
Wed, 08/14/2024 - 09:09
08/12/2024 - 6:30pm
Fighting Every Day to Improve the Lives of Workers: 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.
Project 2025 Exposed: Child Labor and Decimated Unions Promised with Trump’s Election: “Donald Trump took a private flight with the head of Project 2025, Kevin Roberts, The Washington Post reports. Jody Calemine, director of advocacy for the AFL-CIO, joins Joy Reid to discuss the potential, destructive impact of Project 2025 on labor unions and the American worker.” (Learn more about how Project 2025 affects you.)
What Is Tim Walz's Record on the Economy? Look at Minnesota: “The AFL-CIO, the nation's largest labor organization, praised the selection of Walz as vice presidential nominee. ‘We know that Gov. Walz will be a strong partner in the Harris White House, fighting every day to improve the lives of workers in communities across America,’ AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said in a statement on Tuesday.”
AFL-CIO Warns of CEO Payflation Crisis Fueled by Stock Buybacks, Trump Tax Cuts: “The largest federation of labor unions in the U.S. published a report Thursday warning that the country is facing a crisis of ‘CEO payflation’ as executive compensation at leading companies surges, a trend fueled by former President Donald Trump's regressive tax cuts and record stock buybacks. The AFL-CIO's annual report on executive pay shows that the CEO-to-median-worker-pay ratio at S&P 500 companies was 268 to 1 last year, meaning that ‘it would take more than five career lifetimes for workers to earn what CEOs receive in just one year.’ ‘This level of inequality is not sustainable,’ Fred Redmond, the AFL-CIO's secretary-treasurer, said during a press call on Thursday. ‘Working people are sick and tired of politicians like Donald Trump pushing massive tax breaks for CEOs.’”
Harris and Walz Are Showing Their Support for Organized Labor with Appearance at Detroit Union Hall: “Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, are set to play up their support for organized labor during an appearance at a Detroit-area union hall as the new Democratic ticket lavishes attention on a crucial base of support. Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, and Walz, who joined the ticket on Tuesday, plan to speak on Thursday to several dozen United Auto Workers members. After President Joe Biden ended his reelection campaign last month and endorsed his vice president, organized labor quickly rallied around Harris. The AFL-CIO endorsed her after having first backed Biden. The UAW formally backed her last week.”
Apple Store Workers Get First U.S. Contract: “Workers at the first unionized Apple Store in the country ratified a labor contract with the tech giant on Tuesday, after a year and a half in which bargaining appeared to stall for long stretches and union campaigns at other stores fell short. After the union announced the outcome, Apple said it did not dispute the result and was pleased to have an agreement. The contract, covering about 85 workers at a Towson, Md., store who voted to join the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers in June 2022, will provide a typical worker with a raise of roughly 10% over the next three years.”
Storm King Workers Approve First Union Contracts: “Unionized workers at Storm King Art Center, in New York’s Hudson Valley, have approved their first labor union contract, ending months of negotiations over benefits and better wages. Approximately 75 workers at the beloved sculpture park, home to large-scale works by artists such as Richard Serra and Alexander Calder, voted in June 2023 to join two units of Civil Service Employees Association (CSEA) Local 1000, an affiliate of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME).”
Iron Workers, Operating Engineers Locals Celebrate Topping Out of Eastbound Span of I-270 Chain of Rocks Bridge: “Talented union members from Iron Workers Locals 396 and 392 and Operating Engineers Locals 513 and 520 recently ‘topped out’ on the Interstate 270 Chain of Rocks Bridge project. The July 21 ceremony, marking the setting of the eastbound brdge, took place on a barge in the middle of the Mississippi River between St. Louis and Madison County, Ill. The new structure is being built directly south of the existing Chain of Rocks Bridge, and is the first of the project’s twin bridges to be built. Work on the westbound span is expected to begin in 2025.”
UAW Local 282 Members End Strike at Lear with Tentative Agreement: “After a three day strike, UAW Local 282 members at Lear are back to work with a tentative four-year agreement that includes a 30% wage increase for production workers and a 35% increase for maintenance employees. The 460 employees, who make seats for GM vehicles, went on strike early July 22 for better health and safety protections on the job, higher wages and improved health and retirement benefits. The action halted production at the nearby GM Wentzville Assembly plant, which ran out of Lear-made seats.”
UAW Leader Says Trump Would Send the Labor Movement into Reverse If He's Elected Again: “Putting Vice President Kamala Harris at the top of the Democratic ticket increases the Democrats’ chance of winning Michigan and keeping the White House in November, the head of the United Auto Workers union says. In an interview Friday with The Associated Press, Shawn Fain said former President Donald Trump is beholden to billionaires, knows nothing about the auto industry and would send the labor movement into reverse if he's elected again.”
Workers at 4 Café Ceres Locations Vote to Unionize: “Baristas at Café Ceres have voted to unionize with Unite Here 17. The union, which represents service industry workers in Minnesota, announced the results of the election on Saturday, Aug. 3. Workers at four Café Ceres locations, as well as Colita, informed Chef Daniel Del Prado's DDP Restaurant Group of their intention to unionize in June. The company did not voluntarily recognize either union, forcing a vote overseen by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).”
Kenneth Quinnell
Mon, 08/12/2024 - 10:55
