MUST READ
We're Not Slowing Down: The Labor Movement Must Keep Up The Fight For Voting Rights
Albert Shanker Institute
By Elizabeth "Liz" H. Shuler
Feb. 10, 2022
On behalf of the AFL-CIO’s 12.5 million union members who fight for the rights of all working people, including the 1.7 million educators, paraprofessionals and school personnel in the American Federation of Teachers, we are going to continue to stand for voting rights and speak out against racial discrimination and voter suppression. Because we simply cannot afford to ignore what is unfolding across this country at breakneck speed. On January 6, 2021, empowered by President Trump’s green light to overturn the will of the people, an extremist mob tried and failed to violently overturn a free and fair election. We witnessed one of the greatest assaults on our democracy since the Civil War. And even though the insurrectionists failed in that attempt, extremist efforts to subvert our election process did not end on Jan. 6.
LABOR AND COMMUNITY
Local sheet metal workers to distribute free face masks to Charleston-area schools
ABC News 4
By Bailey Wright
Feb. 10, 2022
Members of SMART Sheet Metal Local 399 plan to collaborate with other regional trade unions to distribute 1,700 face masks to elementary school students and 250 masks to teachers in the Charleston area who have been hit hardest by COVID-19. The group aims to provide some immediate protection to schools in need, while also spreading awareness for newly available N95 masks from the federal government, which should be found at local pharmacies and community centers.
Electrical unions donate van and equipment to Madison Park Technical Vocational High School
Boston Globe
By Madison Mercado
Feb. 11, 2022
Two labor unions representing electricians donated a brand new van filled with $10,000 worth of new electrical equipment to Madison Park Technical Vocational High School in Roxbury Wednesday, the union said. The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 103 in Boston donated the van, with a decorative wrap in the school’s colors and “Madison Park Electrical Dept.” written on the side, the union said in a statement. The Quincy-based New England Contractors Association of Greater Boston donated the equipment, including power tools, hard hats, PPE and branded merchandise that filled the van.
JOINING TOGETHER
Labor union movement grows nationwide & on Capitol Hill during pandemic
Fox13
By Kirstin Garriss
Feb. 10, 2022
Congressional staffers on Capitol Hill are the latest group of workers to push for unionizing since the pandemic started. This comes as after Starbucks employees nationwide, started forming labor unions. “We’re in a new era of work, and people are demanding more,” said Liz Shuler, President of AFL-CIO. As unions form across the country, one of the newest groups is the Congressional Workers Union on Capitol Hill, and it’s even getting support from the President. “He supports the right of any individual to seek to join a union, to collective bargain and, of course, capitol hill staffers are certain individuals who are pursuing that,” said Jen Psaki, White House Press Secretary. The AFL-CIO represents 12.5 million people nationally and internationally. Labor union president Liz Shuler believes the pandemic has caused a great awakening among workers, with more unions striking for better work conditions. “It takes a lot for workers to go on strike. Nobody wants to go on strike. But there was that line in the sand of, you know, we want to be treated with fairness and dignity and respect,” said Shuler.
Sherwin-Williams workers picket in Bedford Heights
Cleveland 19
By Julia Bingel and Vic Gideon
Feb. 10, 2022
Around eight people were picketing outside a Sherwin- Williams production facility in the 26000 block of Fargo Avenue early Thursday morning. 55 workers went on strike midnight last Friday over wages, pension, and fair labor practices. Union leaders from United Steelworkers Local 14919 said they’ve been working with an expired contract for the last three months. Union President Terrell Williams said they’ll go back to the bargaining table Thursday morning. Williams said the strike is a last resort after making no progress over five months of negotiations.
Google Fiber Workers to Vote Next Month on Unionization
Bloomberg
By Josh Eidelson
Feb. 10, 2022
Alphabet Inc. sub-contracted workers at a Google Fiber retail store in Missouri will vote next month on whether to unionize, the U.S. labor board announced Thursday. Ballots will be mailed March 4, the National Labor Relations Board said. The original petition last month from the Alphabet Workers Union asked the labor board to deem Alphabet a “joint employer” of the roughly dozen Google Fiber staff the union seeks to represent. If the union had prevailed the internet giant would have been legally required to collectively bargain over those workers’ conditions. But the union withdrew that petition to speed up the process and filed a new one seeking negotiations only with BDS Solutions Group, the vendor that officially employs them, Beth Allen, a spokesperson for the Communications Workers of America, said last month.
Over 4,000 Prince William County staff could form unions
Inside NOVA
By Nolan Stout
Feb. 10, 2022
Prince William County’s collective bargaining ordinance is coming into focus. The Board of Supervisors discussed the ordinance and its direction during its meeting Tuesday. The ordinance will govern how collective bargaining will work, which employees are eligible and the scope of bargaining. The board signed off on creating three bargaining units: one for the police department, one for fire and rescue and a third for all other general service employees. To present a certification for an election, 30% of employees in a bargaining unit must express interest in unionization. For unionization to be adopted, more than 50% of all employees in the unit must vote in favor.
EQUAL PAY
Senate passes equal pay for equal work bill
Daily Journal
By Taylor Vance
Feb. 9, 2022
The state Senate with wide bipartisan support on Wednesday passed legislation that would require most Mississippi employers to pay men and women the same wage for the performing same type of work. The bill passed with only two senators – Angela Turner Ford of West Point and Barbara Blackmon of Canton – opposing the measure. The legislation simply allows employees to file a lawsuit in state court against employers if they believe they’ve been wronged. Federal law already allows employees to sue in federal court, but that process can often be more lengthy and expensive than going through state courts.