MUST READ
AFL-CIO, Nurses Unions Demand Permanent OSHA Covid-19 Safety Standard
Common Dreams
By Jessica Corbett
Jan. 5, 2022
With rising coronavirus infections and hospitalizations, the AFL-CIO and major nurses unions on Wednesday petitioned a federal court to order the Biden administration to issue an official and permanent OSHA standard requiring employers to protect healthcare workers from Covid-19. "We are still in the midst of a deadly pandemic, and healthcare workers are facing dangerous exposures to Covid-19 and need the strongest possible protections in their workplaces. We must treat the surge in new cases as the crisis that it is," said AFL-CIO president Liz Shuler in a statement. The other petitioners are the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), American Federation of Teachers, National Nurses United (NNU), New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA), and Pennsylvania Association of Staff Nurses and Allied Professionals.
WORKPLACE SAFETY AND HEALTH
Coalition sues OSHA in effort to force permanent standard on COVID-19 for health care workers
Safety + Health Magazine
Jan. 5, 2022
The AFL-CIO and National Nurses United are part a coalition of labor unions and organizations that has filed a lawsuit against the Department of Labor and OSHA, petitioning a federal court to direct the agency to issue a permanent standard on COVID-19 focused on health care workers. The coalition, which filed a petition Jan. 5 in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, is calling on OSHA to issue – within 30 days of a court order – a permanent standard “aimed at protecting the life and health of millions of nurses and other frontline health care workers.” In addition, the petition calls on the agency to retain and enforce its emergency temporary standard focused health care workers, published in June 21 Federal Register. “We must treat the surge in new cases as the crisis that it is,” AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said in an NNU press release. “In the face of the omicron variant, it is not time to roll back protections, but to fully enforce and make them permanent.” Adds NNU Executive Director Bonnie Castillo: “Going to work should not mean putting your life and the lives of your loved ones in danger.”
JOINING TOGETHER
Labor leaders rally for Coffee Tree unionization; call for fired worker to be rehired
Pittsburgh City Paper
By Ryan Deto
Jan. 5, 2022
Union organizers emphasized that they are not calling for a boycott of Coffee Tree Roasters. Instead, they want people to continue to support the chain, but continue to pressure management to allow unionization and to reinstate Tinker. Representatives from UFCW Local 1776, the Allegheny-Fayette Labor Council, the AFL-CIO, and several other unions were at the rally in support of the workers.
Tim Ryan’s Senate campaign reaches deal on union contract
Tribune Chronicle
By David Skolnick
Jan. 5, 2022
U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan’s Senate campaign reached a union contract agreement with five staff members that includes a minimum hourly salary of $25 for full-time workers, unlimited personal time off and 100 percent employer-covered medical, vision and dental insurance. Ryan is the first U.S. Senate candidate in Ohio history to have his staff unionized. The staff members agreed in September to join the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1466. That union is based in Columbus and primarily represents American Electric Power workers throughout the state. The contract with Ryan’s campaign was ratified last week.
Possible strike Sunday as negotiations continue between King Soopers and union workers
KRDO
By Kerjan Donovan
Jan. 5, 2022
Negotiations between King Soopers and the United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 7 continue Wednesday. The UFCW Union Local 7 has filed a lawsuit against King Soopers, citing unfair labor practices. In Southern Colorado, 95% of Colorado Springs retail workers, and 97% of meat workers voted to strike. King Soopers workers will work through their current agreement, which ends Saturday, January 8th at 11:59 p.m. Kevin Schneider, a UFCW Local 7 representative says, "Based on their actions yesterday, failing to respond to our proposals, if that conduct continues today and they commit unfair labor practices, it’s highly likely there would be a picket line next week."
Baristas accuse Coffee Tree Roasters of doubling down in fight against unionization
WESA
By An-Li Herring
Jan. 5, 2022
Statewide labor leaders and state and local officeholders were quick to rally behind the baristas when the controversy erupted last week. On Wednesday, about a dozen officials, including Democratic Lt. Gov. John Fetterman and Pennsylvania AFL-CIO President Rick Bloomingdale, joined the workers for a news conference outside the company’s Squirrel Hill storefront. “Something's happening all throughout America, not just in Pennsylvania, folks. Something's happening where workers are standing up for themselves. You've seen it. You've read about it. You've seen it on TV,” Pennsylvania AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Frank Snyder said, referring in part to a wave of work stoppages last fall — a phenomenon dubbed “Striketober.”
Portland City Workers Prepared to Strike Over Low Wages
Portland Mercury
By Alex Zielinski
Jan. 5, 2022
More than one thousand workers employed by the city of Portland could go on strike by mid-January if the two sides are unable to reach a compromise on an open labor contract. The District Council of Trade Unions (DCTU) is a conglomeration of several unions representing city staff, including AFSCME Local 189, IBEW Local 48, Plumbers Local 290, Painters and Allied Trades District Council 5, Machinists District Lodge 24, Auto Mechanics District Lodge 24, and Operating Engineers Local 701. DCTU's 1,200 members work in nearly all city departments, and are employed as administrative staff, building inspectors, water filtration experts, electricians, police record keepers, and accountants—to name a few. The majority of union members work for Portland Water Bureau, Portland Bureau of Transportation, Development Services, and Portland Police Bureau (as non-sworn staff).
LABOR AND ECONOMY
Business Insider
By Jason Lalljee
Jan. 5, 2022
The unemployment rate for Black men remains high: 7.3% in November, compared to 3.4% among white men looking for work, according to Labor Department data. Roughly 697,000 Black men need employment, even as the country recorded 10.6 million vacant jobs in November. It's the "the self-evident discrimination in the labor market revealing itself," Dr. William Spriggs, an economics professor at Howard University and the chief economist for the AFL-CIO told Insider in September. He added: "The numbers this time are just startling."