MUST LISTEN
Is a new labor movement brewing?
MarketPlace
By Kai Ryssdal and Richard Cunningham
October 1, 2021
Liz Shuler, president of the AFL-CIO, argues that we are in the beginning stages of a modern labor movement. In an op-ed in the Chicago Sun-Times, she wrote that “a modern labor movement begins by putting good jobs and working people at the center of our national conversation — back where it used to be, when work was respected culturally and rewarded economically.” “Marketplace” host Kai Ryssdal spoke to Shuler about labor policy and the makings of a modern labor movement. The following is an edited transcript of their conversation.
MUST READ
AFL-CIO president to speak on $3.5 trillion spending bill, right to organize, Oct. 13
The National Press Club
By Jamie Horwitz
September 27, 2021
AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler, the first woman to lead the labor federation in its 135-year history, will speak at a National Press Club Headliners event on Wednesday, Oct. 13, at 10 a.m. Shuler is expected to address the pandemic's impact on the economy, the wave of collective action and strike activity, and legislative efforts that affect labor and the workplace. The AFL-CIO has thrown its support behind the Democrats' $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation package at the center of President Biden's domestic agenda. The 10-year spending plan would expand child care, invest in clean energy, and enhance enforcement of labor laws. The federation of 57 unions also pushed for the inclusion of the Protecting the Right to Organize Act (the PRO Act) that would penalize employers that interfere with attempts by workers to form unions. "To build back better, we must be bold. And that means unparalleled investment in America's working families," Shuler said in a statement.
JOINING TOGETHER
Georgia film crews to vote on possible strike over working conditions
FOX5 Atlanta
By FOX 5 Atlanta Digital Team
October 1, 2021
Georgia's film industry could be put on hold if a vote Friday passes for crew members to go on strike. The International Alliance of Theater and Stage Employees is demanding changes to working conditions. There are more than 17,000 workers in Georgia's 16 chapters of IATSE from hair and make-up to set builders and prop masters. "Atlanta and Georgia have in general has definitely gotten a lot busier, we're def a production hub" set decoration buyer Sara Riney said. AS the industry has grown in the Peach Strate it's also grown in demand, especially with the rise of streaming services. Ray Brown, the local president of the IATSE, says crews are overworked.
'Too little, too late': Union workers at Mercy Hospital go on strike as talks fail to yield deal
Buffalo News
By Jon Harris
October 1, 2021
About 2,000 nurses, technical and clerical employees at Mercy Hospital in South Buffalo went on strike this morning after Catholic Health System and the workers’ union failed to reach an agreement overnight. Hundreds of workers, members of the Communications Workers of America Local 1133, gathered outside the hospital this morning, carrying picket signs, as the strike began at 6 a.m.
Kaiser health care workers to vote on strike following failed contract negotiations
Hawaii News Now
By HNN Staff
October 2, 2021
After months of failed contract negotiations, nearly 2,000 health care workers at Kaiser Permanente are set to vote on whether to authorize a strike. The workers, who are members of the Unite Here Local 5 union, said the pandemic has pushed them to a point of exhaustion. The union said they are frustrated and disappointed with Kaiser’s proposal of a two-tier wage system that offers 1% wage increases to current employees and much lower pay for new hires. A contract between Kaiser and the union expired on Thursday.
About 60,000 Hollywood Union Workers Are Voting on Whether to Authorize a Strike
NBC New York
By Wilson Wong and Saba Hamedy
October 2, 2021
Officially, it’s just a vote to authorize a strike, not a vote to go on strike. However, if it passes, it could lead to the biggest industry strike among Hollywood production workers since World War II. The results are expected to be released Monday, according to IATSE. The union’s contract with AMPTP, which went into place in 2018, ended July 31 and was extended until Sept. 10. The union is calling for a new, three-year basic agreement that would provide behind-the-scenes workers higher pay, larger contributions to health and pension plans, meal breaks, improved rest periods and a bigger cut of the profits from streaming productions. In a Sept. 21 statement announcing its intent to hold a strike authorization vote, IATSE said members “risked our health and safety all year, working through the Pandemic to ensure that our business emerged intact. Now, we cannot and will not accept a deal that leaves us with an unsustainable outcome.”
IN THE STATES
Union scorecards show progress on labor bills, but hurdles remain after Mills’ vetoes
Maine Beacon
By Evan Popp
October 1, 2021
Recently released scorecards from unions in Maine tell the story of a legislative session in which significant progress on expanding labor protections was coupled with setbacks on a number of workers’ rights reforms nixed by Gov. Janet Mills. The 2021 legislative scorecard from the Maine AFL-CIO, which represents over 40,000 working and retired Mainers, featured ratings for each state legislator based on how they voted on the priority bills, with many Democrats in the House and Senate receiving high scores. Republicans generally fared poorly in the scorecard.
Letter: South Dakota needs infrastructure improvements
Mitchell Republic
By Kooper Caraway
October 2, 2021
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will provide much needed funds for South Dakota to address a wide range of infrastructure issues. Over five years we’ll get $1.9 billion for highway renovations, $225 million for bridge repair, $370 million to improve public transportation, $29 million to expand the number of electric vehicle charging stations, and $100 million to expand broadband. These funds couldn’t come at a more dire time for South Dakota. Covid has left our state reeling, and it’s the working folks who have been hardest hit. And it’s not just job loss, it’s also the loss of our job force. New graduates across South Dakota are taking their diplomas and leaving.
WORKPLACE SAFETY AND HEALTH
N.W.S.L., Reeling in Scandal, Cancels a Weekend of Games
The New York Times
By Kevin Draper
October 1, 2021
By the time hundreds of professional women’s soccer players gathered on a videoconference Thursday night, they had all had enough. One head coach in their league had been fired that morning, accused of coercing a player on his team into sex. His dismissal came two days after the coach of another team was fired for what one player described as threats and personal insults, and several months after the National Women’s Soccer League’s commissioner had appeared to reject, via email, a player’s effort to raise concerns about a coach’s behavior. Many of the women on the call, arranged by the union for athletes in the N.W.S.L., had their own painful stories to share.