JOINING TOGETHER
Shakespeare Theatre Company Stagehands Are Unionizing
DCist
By Elliot C. .Williams
June 3, 2022
The production staff at Shakespeare Theatre Company has filed for union recognition, citing labor issues including low wages compared to other regional theaters and unfair treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Shakespeare’s production employees were in talks with with IATSE Local 22, the union that represents the D.C. region’s stagehands, before the pandemic. Organizers want the bargaining unit to represent about 50 full-time and part-time production staffers, per Arancibia, though he says Shakespeare is arguing that the part-time staff would not qualify. (“We believe that all STC employees who share in our long-term commitment to theater in the District should and will have access to the vote,” Proudfoot-Ginder says.) A hearing with the National Labor Review Board to determine who qualifies for the bargaining unit is scheduled for June 10 and a vote will follow shortly after that. The crew members’ main goal is to create a collective bargaining unit and negotiate a contract that protects the backstage workers as much as the actors and increases pay raises across the staff, according to assistant stage operations supervisor Rob Garner.
Tourism Workers Come Out of Pandemic Swinging
Voice of San Diego
By Jesse Marx
June 2, 2022
The industry was decimated when COVID hit, causing conventions and leisure travel to disappear overnight. But the hotel workers and stagehands who make concerts and other major events possible have come out of the pandemic swinging with complaints about pay, hours and conditions in a very public way. They’re capitalizing on a tight labor market to make new demands and drawing energy from a younger, more diverse base, as well as their allies in elected office. The goal is two-fold. The unions want to improve the conditions of people who are the backbone of tourism. They also see this moment of rising inflation and high labor demand as an opportunity to create a more visible and influential workforce, which San Diego has always lacked.
IN THE STATES
Erie native tabbed to lead state AFL-CIO after president-elect retires amid investigation
Go Erie
By David Bruce
June 3, 2022
Erie native Angela Ferritto was elected in March to be the new secretary/treasurer of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO, but instead she is the state labor organization's first female president. Ferritto, 43, replaced president-elect Frank Snyder, who retired in late May, just days before he was scheduled to assume office. Snyder had been the subject of a misconduct investigation. "The labor movement is never about the person behind the podium, but the people in the movement and I am honored to be backed by the minds, voices, and vision of the 700,000 union members under the PA AFL-CIO,” Ferritto said in a news release. “The labor movement was formed to protect the dignity and safety of workers and those ideals will serve as my north star as I take up the mantle during this consequential time.”
LABOR AND COMMUNITY
Firefighters in Yakima save puppy from ducting
NBC Right Now
By Karlee Van de Venter
June 2, 2022
The Yakima Firefighters IAFF Local 469's Engine 95 responded to a call from a humane society on June 1 that reported a puppy was stuck in the ducting. The humane society had been fostering puppies when one fell into a floor vent, getting stuck in the building ducts. Engine 95 responded and removed the basement ducting to free the puppy.
Kids free fishing day returns
WXOW
By Roger Staffaroni
June 4, 2022
Gray sky and a little drizzle did not dampen the excitement of the annual Kids Free Fishing Day held at Chad Erickson Memorial Park. Kids and adults were already arriving and finding a good spot around the great pond by 9 a.m. "It's a bonding experience," said Mike Davis, President of the Western Wisconsin AFL-CIO, a sponsor of the event. "Everybody's fishing, fathers, sons, daughters, mothers, it's just something that everyone can share."
AMAZON
Amazon Labor Union president Chris Smalls visits Fargo, endorses unionizing metro Amazon facilities
Inforum
By Thomas Evanella
June 2, 2022
Chris Smalls, president of the Amazon Labor Union, led an energetic roundtable discussion regarding union organizing Thursday night, June 2, at the Fargo Theatre. Joining Smalls on the panel were Marshall Steele and Lola Rubens, employees at a unionized Twin Cities Starbucks location, and David Gutsche, an employee at a unionized Half Price Books store. Minnesota AFL-CIO president Bernie Burnham moderated the panel discussion.