MUST READ
Medieval Times Workers Will Vote On Forming The Company’s First Union
Huff Post
By Dave Jamieson
June 28, 2022
Safety concerns are a big reason Thompson and other Medieval Times employees in Lyndhurst are trying to form the chain’s first union, workers told HuffPost. They have been organizing their location with the American Guild of Variety Artists, an AFL-CIO union that represents performers at theaters, theme parks and touring shows, including the Radio City Rockettes and entertainers at Disneyland. The knights, squires, show cast and stablehands of Lyndhurst will vote July 15 on whether or not to unionize under an election overseen by the National Labor Relations Board. Around 40 workers would be included in the union.
JOINING TOGETHER
Union members in Southwest Virginia reach tentative contract agreement with AT&T
ABC13
By WCYB
June 28, 2022
Communication Workers of America members in multiple parts of the country, including Southwest Virginia, have reached a tentative contract agreement with AT&T following a lengthy period of negotiations. CWA Local 2204 represents the Lebanon call center and the retail store in Bristol. Representatives of the union said previously that they have not had a contract since February, but it had been extended while negotiations were ongoing. CWA Local 2204 President Chuck Simpson told News 5 that the final bargaining report with all the highlights was released to the members Monday. Simpson added that the union is waiting on directions for processing the ratification vote with their membership which should be received Tuesday.
Workers at Bally’s in Lincoln voting to strike today
Uprise RI
By Steve Ahlquist
June 28, 2022
Bally’s Twin River Casino employees in Lincoln who are members of UNITE HERE Local 26 are holding a strike vote today. Voting will be open for 12 hours at a Strike Campaign Headquarters less than a mile from Bally’s, where workers have signed up to cast their ballots during designated time slots. Since the end of the most recent wave of Covid, business at Bally’s has returned to pre-pandemic levels, say workers. But Bally’s has only called back around 40% staff. This means that those who are back at work are working twice as hard.
Racine UAW strike nears two-month mark
Spectrum News
By Dan Molloy
June 28, 2022
More than 400 workers at a Case IH tractor manufacturing plant remain on the picket line as they demand fair benefits and wages. UAW Local 180 walked off the job May 2 in protest of the labor contract offered by CNH Industrial. As the strike approaches its third month, workers outside the plant’s fences say their struggle is part of a broader labor movement in America, in which workers are standing up for commensurate pay and benefits for the modern economy.
Unionized employees ratify first contract with Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Boston Globe
By Mark Shanahan
June 28, 2022
More than 200 employees of the Museum of Fine Arts, newly represented by the United Auto Workers Local 2110, have ratified their inaugural collective bargaining agreement with the MFA. The contract, the first since the employees voted to unionize in November 2020, includes increases in compensation and benefits.
Wichita firefighters rally for higher pay during contract negotiations
KMUW
By Kylie Cameron
June 28, 2022
Wichita firefighters, retirees and supporters lined up along the streets outside of City Hall on Tuesday morning while union representatives were inside for contract negotiations with the city. Like previous years, the union – IAFF Local 135 – is asking for higher wages, which it said have fallen far behind comparable cities in the Midwest. “It’s time,” union president Ted Bush said. “These professionals miss Christmases, and birthdays, and ball games to get there at the fire station. “I think we have come to a critical point as far as the Wichita Fire Department’s concerned.” Starting pay for a Wichita firefighter currently sits at $15.74 an hour – a cut from the $19.36 an hour they receive as a recruit.
WORKPLACE SAFETY AND HEALTH
Gov. Hochul signs law extending protections for more transit workers against assaults
Mass Transit
By Mischa Wanek-Libman
June 28, 2022
More of New York state’s transit workers are protected against assaults following Gov. Kathy Hochul signing S.9468/A.10491 into law on June 27. The law extends protections to include station customer assistants, ticket or revenue collectors, maintenance workers and supervisors employed by transit agencies or authorities who work with and among the public. Union representatives from the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU), SMART Union, DC37 Local 372, Transport Workers Union Local 106 and Local 100, as well as representatives from the Association of Commuter Rail Employees and Subway Surface Supervisors Association all offered their support of the law. TWU Local 100 President Tony Utano said, "Transit workers come to work to do a job, not wind up in the emergency room. We deserve respect from riders and from the law. Thank you, Governor Hochul and members of the State Legislature for recognizing that assaults against transit workers are an ongoing problem that need to be addressed. This is a step in the right direction. Prosecutors and judges must now do their job and hold people accountable for their actions."