LABOR AND ECONOMY
Food Prices Soar, and So Do Companies’ Profits
The New York Times
By Isabella Simonetti and Julie Creswell
Nov. 1, 2022
For years, food companies and restaurants generally raised prices in small, incremental steps, worried that big increases would frighten consumers and send them looking for cheaper options. But over the last year, as wages increased and the cost of the raw ingredients used to make treats like cookies, chips, sodas and the materials to package them soared, food companies and restaurants started passing along those expenses to customers. But amid growing concerns that the economy could be headed for a recession, some food companies and restaurants are continuing to raise prices even if their own inflation-driven costs have been covered. Critics say the moves are all about increasing profits, not covering expenses.
JOINING TOGETHER
Workers at Fitchburg game company Noble Knight announce union
The Cap Times
By Natalie Yahr
Oct. 31, 2022
Workers at Fitchburg game company Noble Knight Games announced Monday that they’ve formed a union, the latest development in a surge of labor organizing playing out locally and across the country. At least 70% of eligible workers have signed union cards with Communications Workers of America, according to a press release. Workers are seeking higher pay, “affordable benefits … healthy work-life balance, fair and transparent policies and procedures,” the release said. They also want to maintain “appropriate, viable workplace conditions and expectations.”
Negotiations resume between union workers, Ingredion
KCRG
By KCRG Staff
Nov. 1, 2022
Ingredion and union workers are set to meet Tuesday to resume contract negotiations. This would be the first time in more than a month. Union workers went on strike back in August due to labor contract disputes. Last month, an in-person meeting ended when workers accused Ingredion of trying to intimidate them. That’s because senior management showed up with armed security guards. Senior management said they would not bring armed security to this current meeting.
Yale agrees to first graduate union election in three decades
Yale Daily News
By Megan Vaz & Miranda Wollen
Nov. 1, 2022
Yale will recognize a union election for graduate workers for the first time in history, marking another significant step forward in Local 33’s three decades of organizing efforts. The move, announced on Oct. 28 by University Provost Scott Strobel, came days after Local 33 leaders submitted an election petition to the National Labor Relations Board in Hartford. The petition was backed by authorization cards signed by over 75 percent of the graduate and professional school workers with full time or part-time jobs. In accordance with federal labor law, Yale was granted two weeks to respond to the petition and begin negotiating election parameters with Local 33 and the NLRB.
CATA reaches an agreement with union employees after three years of negotiations
WKAR
By Michelle Jokisch Polo
Nov. 1, 2022
The Capital Area Transportation Authority has reached an agreement with the Amalgamated Transit Union Local No. 1039, the union representing its bus operators, mechanics and utility employees. The agreement between union representatives and Lansing’s bus system was finalized Monday, Oct. 31, after three years of negotiations between parties. Steve Soliz, president of the union, said in a press release from CATA that the employees are happy to have an agreement in place. “We anticipate moving forward with our mission of providing the best transportation services possible to everyone in the CATA service area,” Soliz said. “The men and women of ATU Local No. 1039 are eager to work with the CATA administration to make this lofty goal happen.”
LABOR AND COMMUNITY
IBEW announces funding for a new training center near Johnstown
WTAJ
By Rebecca Parsons
Nov. 1, 2022
The IBEW Local 126 announced that it has been awarded $3 million in Redevelopment Capital Assistance Grant Dollars from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to enhance electrical training capabilities in the suburban Johnstown region. The grant will provide a sizable portion of the amount needed to build a new Calvin R. Peterson Training School near Rt. 22 in Jackson Township. The new facility will vastly increase training offerings to aspiring and incumbent electrical
workers.
Beaumont Professional Firefighters Local 399 Union kick off 'Fill The Boot' donation campaign
12 News Now
By Lupita Villarreal
Nov. 1, 2022
8The Beaumont Professional Firefighters Local 399 Union kicked off its annual 'Fill The Boot' campaign on Tuesday. The Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) is in partnership with the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) to raise lifesaving funds. The funds raised go towards MDA's mission for scientific and clinical research and care for families living with muscular dystrophy, ALS and related neuromuscular diseases.