Skip to main content

Today's AFL-CIO press clips

Berry Craig
Social share icons

POLITICS

House Democrats reintroduce bill to empower public sector unions

The Hill

By Karl Evers-Hillstrom

October 26, 2021

House Democrats on Tuesday reintroduced a bill to expand the right of government workers to unionize, a key priority for President Biden and prominent labor groups. The Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act, led by Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-Pa.), would prohibit states and localities from preventing government workers from organizing. It would also reverse a landmark 2018 Supreme Court ruling that blocked public sector unions from collecting dues from non-members, who unions are required to represent. “Like all working people in this country, public service workers deserve the right to stand together with their coworkers in a union, to bargain together for safer and fairer working conditions,” AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said Tuesday.

WORKPLACE SAFETY AND HEALTH

'Rust' assistant director who handled Alec Baldwin's gun had been fired from a film set in 2019

The Hill

By Joseph Choi

October 25, 2021

AFL–CIO President Liz Shuler tweeted one day after the accident, "Yesterday's set incident was a tragedy and a heartbreaking example of why production companies MUST take the safety & protection of our filmmakers more seriously."

 

JOINING  TOGETHER

Kellogg Co. offers to restart talks with striking workers

WXYZ

October 26, 2021

Dan Osborn, president of the union's local chapter in Omaha, Nebraska, said he believes the union is ready to return to the bargaining table if Kellogg's is serious about being willing to negotiate on that two-tiered wage system, but the company didn't immediately respond to questions the union sent Monday in response to the company's offer. “I'm hoping we can get back to the table and get a contract,” Osborn said. “People just want to go back to work.”

Judge denies John Deere’s request to limit picketers

KCCI

October 26, 2021

A district court judge has denied an injunction filed by John Deere. Attorneys for John Deere asked the judge to limit the number of picketers at its plant in Ankeny and warehouse on South East Delaware. Attorneys for John Deere said picketers were blocking and slowing down traffic as well as intimidating third-party vendors and employees trying to drive into the local facilities. Lawyers for the striking union workers disputed that claim, saying they have a lawful right to picket, and there has not been one violent incident on the picket line.

Kellogg Co., union to get 'back to the table' after third week of strike

Battle Creek Enquirer

By Nick Buckley

October 26, 2021

“The Michigan AFL-CIO has planned a rally in support of the striking workers for 1 p.m. Wednesday at Festival Market Square in downtown Battle Creek, across the street from the company's world headquarters.”

Workers became more willing to go on strike during the pandemic, citing burnout, being underpaid

Boston Globe

By Katie Johnston 

October 23, 2021

A year and a half into the pandemic, workers are burnt out and fed up, and, emboldened by the labor shortage, many of them, particularly those in unions, are increasingly willing to take a stand. Strikes surged nationally in October, with at least 40 actions ongoing (including 26 that have started so far this month) and 187 since the start of the year, according to Cornell University’s new Labor Action Tracker.

Harvard Student Workers Are Prepared to Strike

Jacobin

By Piper Winkler

October 26, 2021

Harvard Management Company recently announced that the university’s endowment returned 33.6 percent on its investments, growing to $53.2 billion, in the past fiscal year. During the same year, as COVID-19 emptied Harvard’s campus and moved teaching online, many of Harvard’s student workers struggled to make ends meet. Without basic health care provisions, raises to match the rising cost of living in Cambridge, and access to impartial investigation of harassment cases, Harvard Graduate Student Union (HGSU) members will go on strike this Wednesday if their demands are not met.

AFL-CIO Joining Picket Line At Omaha Kellogg’s Plant

KLIN

By Karla James

October 26, 2021

The Nebraska State AFL-CIO is proud to announce that National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler will be at the Omaha Kellogg’s plant (9601 F Street) on, Thursday October 28th from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. walking in solidarity with members of BCTGM Local 50G. President Shuler: “So many companies have profited off the backs of workers during this pandemic. It’s time for working people to get our fair share. Striking workers are fighting for all of us, and with the solidarity of the labor movement behind them, they will win.”  

NWSLPA's Meghann Burke, Kealia Watt want player safety prioritized as NWSL grapples with 'systemic failures'

CBS Sports

By Sandra Herrera

October 26, 2021

The National Women's Soccer League Players Association executive director Meghann Burke and Chicago Red Stars forward Kealia Watt, a union rep, want to rethink the future of NWSL, with an emphasis on putting player safety at the forefront in wake of recent scandals. Collective bargaining agreement negotiations between the players and the league have been ongoing all season, but recent reports of toxic environments and sexual misconduct have made those discussions all the more important. The players are calling for a change as the league grapples with numerous issues in the midst of a reckoning. "The AFL-CIO affiliation was really important to us because we're inspired by what workers are doing right now to speak out for basic living wages, and health insurance, and paid family leave, and medical, even retirement benefits. All those are things that we are fighting for, it's the same fight," said Burke.

San Antonio musicians union will hold public rally Friday in support of striking Symphony performers 

San Antonio Current

By Kelly Merka Nelson

October 26, 2021

Organized by the Musicians Society of San Antonio — the local chapter of the American Federation of Musicians (AFM) — the rally will feature an ensemble of Symphony brass musicians as well as speakers including San Antonio City Council members, AFM President Ray Hair, Texas AFL-CIO President Rick Levy and Musicians of the San Antonio Symphony Chair Mary Ellen Goree. The Symphony's musicians have been on strike since late September, which has led to the postponement of the first two concerts of the orchestra's planned 2021-2022 season.