POLITICS
Vice President Kamala Harris touts replacing lead pipes at Milwaukee visit
WISN
Jan. 24, 2022
"We are honored to welcome Vice President Harris to Milwaukee and to the Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership/ BIG STEP to meet with union workers and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan to discuss the Biden-Harris Lead Pipe and Paint Action Plan, a historic undertaking to improve water quality and deliver clean, safe drinking water to Wisconsin families," Wisconsin AFL-CIO President Stephanie Bloomingdale said in a statement.
JOINING TOGETHER
30+ workers at Middleton-based video game developer are unionizing
Wisconsin State Journal
By Emily Hamer
Jan. 23, 2022
AFL-CIO President Stephanie Bloomingdale said in a statement Friday that her union is standing “in solidarity” with the Raven Software workers. “Today marks a historic step in the movement to create positive change and build a better gaming industry for the workers who make video games,” Bloomingdale said. “Quality assurance workers at Raven are joining together for a seat at the table.”
King Soopers workers ratify new ‘industry-leading’ contract
KDVR
By Lanie Lee Cook
Jan. 24, 2022
King Soopers workers ratified what the union called an “industry-leading contract” with the grocer after months of contentious negotiations and a 10-day strike. The United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 called the three-year agreement “the most significant wage increase ever secured by a UFCW local for grocery workers.” The union said it ensures the essential workers are “respected and protected in the workplace and compensated with wages they deserve.”
Golden Gate Transit Bus Drivers Vote to Authorize Strike
KPIX
Jan. 24, 2022
Members of the Marin and Sonoma County bus operators union whose members work for the Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District voted to authorize a strike this weekend over unresolved contract negotiations related to wages and pensions. The union has not yet determined when or if a strike will take place, but hopes that voting to authorize one if necessary will spur negotiations. Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1575, which represents bus operators in both counties, say they have been in contract negotiations with the Golden Gate Transit for seven months and have been unable to reach an agreement, according to ATU President Shane Weinstein.
IN THE STATES
Exclusive: Adele Was Using Non-Union Musicians in Las Vegas Gig, Opposite of Pro-Union Lady Gaga
Showbiz 411
By Roger Friedman
Jan. 23, 2022
The difference between Adele and Lady Gaga, at least in Las Vegas. Gaga has been using union musicians since she started performing there a couple of years ago. Adele has not. Keith D. Nelson, secretary/treasurer of the Musicians Union in Las Vegas, Local 369, says that the band for Adele’s now cancelled 13 “Weekends” gig — 26 shows– had gone outside the normal system to bring in musicians. According to sources, the band — even though they weren’t part of the union — was rehearsing up to the moment Adele announced the “rescheduling” of the 13 weekends. When musicians are needed for a show anywhere they are usually brought in through a local “contractor.” But I’m told that Adele used a contractor no one ever heard of, out of Canada, to go around the Local. Nevada is one of 28 “right to work states” which allows employees to take work in unionized settings even if they’re not members of the union.
CORONAVIRUS
Hollywood Extends Covid Protocols To February 13
Deadline
By David Robb
Jan. 24, 2022
Hollywood’s Covid safety protocols have been extended to February 13. In the meantime, with the surge of the Omicron variant, the industry’s unions have asked the studios to increase testing and upgrade personal protection equipment, and most of the companies have been doing that until new guidelines can be adopted. The film and TV industry’s protocols were established in September 2020 by an agreement between the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers and Hollywood’s unions: the DGA, SAG-AFTRA, IATSE, the Teamsters and the Basic Crafts.
NLRB
Unions, Dems urge lower bar to unionize small groups of workers
Reuters
By Daniel Wiessner
Jan. 24, 2022
The AFL-CIO in its brief on Friday said that under the more recent ruling, many workplaces will only have a single unit that is appropriate under federal labor law. That goes against decades of board and U.S. Supreme Court precedent holding that any appropriate bargaining unit should be approved, the union said.
VOTING RIGHTS
Federal judges reject Alabama's congressional map
The Hill
By Sarah Polus
Jan. 24, 2022
A federal court on Monday shot down Alabama’s newly proposed Congressional district map over concerns it underrepresents minority voters, WBRC reports. The three-judge panel sided unanimously with plaintiffs in redistricting lawsuits by ruling that they're likely to prove "Black voters have less opportunity than other Alabamians to elect candidates of their choice to Congress." As it currently stands, the newly-drawn map likely violates a section of the Voting Rights Act, the court stated.