Today's AFL-CIO Press Clips
MUST READ
AFL-CIO urges Congress to add paid sick leave to rail contract
The Hill
By Karl Evers-Hillstrom
Nov. 30, 2022
The AFL-CIO on Wednesday called on Congress to add paid sick leave to a contract between rail workers and railroads. “While the tentative agreement unions negotiated this year included many critical gains—significant wage increases, caps on health care premiums and prevention of crew reduction—it also fell short by not including provisions on paid sick leave or fair scheduling,” AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said in a statement. “It’s now up to Congress to do the right thing by passing paid sick days for rail workers.”
POLITICS
‘A huge opportunity for the labor movement’: Unions jump on newly won Democratic trifectas
Politico
By Liz Crampton and Eleanor Mueller
Nov. 30, 2022
“We’re busy preparing our legislative agenda, because we put everything we had into the ground game for this election,” AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said in an interview. “How can we go on offense to pass legislation to protect people’s voice and ability to exercise their rights?” Still, the AFL-CIO, the U.S.’ largest federation of unions, is driven to release “best practices” when it comes to shaping pro-union legislation over the next few months, Shuler said. She wants measures that protect Social Security and also cited a recently enacted Oregon law that banned so-called captive audience meetings — situations where employers gather workers to advise them against unionization — as potential examples.
JOINING TOGETHER
Picketers back at work after union forges deal with Nordson
The Chronicle
By The Chronicle-Telegram
Nov. 30, 2022
A two-week strike at Nordson Corporation has ended with a new contract that includes pay hikes for 133 union workers. Members of International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Local 1802 returned to work Wednesday. The prior day, they voted to ratify a deal that includes a 7 percent wage increase in the first year. Additional raises were not disclosed. “IAM Local 1802 members held the line and stood strong for a better life for themselves, their families, and the community,” said IAM District 54 President T. Dean Wright Jr. “They can be proud of the solidarity they have shown, which will result in key improvements and serve as a framework for even stronger contracts in the future.”
'Fort Worth Star-Telegram' Employees March on for Better Wages, Benefits
Fort Worth
By Stephen Montoya
Nov. 30, 2022
When Fort Worth Star-Telegram video producer, Cardi Bolden, first started working as a journalist in 2017, she never thought she would be part of a union strike. Flash-forward six years, and that is exactly where Bolden — along with several of her co-workers — found themselves in an attempt to receive better wages and benefits. The people Bolden are marching with are members of the Fort Worth NewsGuild, a union that has been in negotiations with Star Telegram’s parent, McClatchy, for two years. On the table: higher salaries, sick leave, and layoffs and severance packages. However, McClatchy, a publishing company that operates more than two dozen other daily newspapers across the U.S., hasn’t agreed to any of these asks, which didn’t sit well with 91% of NewsGuild’s voting members. Wednesday marked the third day of the strike, which took place in a two block radius around the Crockett Row of West 7th.
Ascension nurses in Michigan consider strike authorization vote
Becker’s Hospital Review
By Kelly Gooch
Nov. 30, 2022
Members of the Michigan Nurses Association at Ascension Borgess Hospital in Kalamazoo said they intend to hold a strike authorization vote unless a tentative agreement for a new contract is reached soon. The union, an affiliate of National Nurses United and the AFL-CIO, announced the plan in a Nov. 29 news release shared with Becker's. Union members have been in negotiations with hospital management, and their last contract expired Nov. 11. Both sides are scheduled to resume negotiations Dec. 1. Nurses plan to hold a strike authorization vote Dec. 5 and Dec. 6 if an agreement is not reached by the end of the week. "We are exhausted. We are fed up. We are done watching our rights be taken away by corporate executives," Lori Batzloff, RN, a nurse at Ascension and president of the local Michigan Nurses Association, said in the release. "It's time for this company to respect its employees and for patients to come before profits. While we are hopeful that negotiations will go well on [Dec. 1], it is important for us to let Ascension know that nurses are prepared to do what it takes."
Majority of TARC union votes 'yes' on new contract
WLKY
By Matthew Keck
Nov. 30, 2022
A months-long negotiation between TARC and the Amalgamated Transit Union is one step closer to be finalized. Majority of TARC union members voted "yes" to accept a tentative labor agreement that was presented earlier this month. 78% of the union members voted in favor of this new contract. “I want to be clear: we aren’t here because of the generosity of TARC,” Lillian Brents, ATU Local 1477 president said. “We got here because Local 1447 members mobilized again and again, in the sweltering heat and freezing cold, to push back against a pattern of abuse, disrespect, and greed by TARC leadership."
AFSCME Local 88 members ratify Multnomah County contract
Northwest Labor Press
By Colin Staub
Nov. 30, 2022
More than 3,000 Multnomah County workers have a new three-year union contract that brings wage increases and bonuses. Members of AFSCME Local 88 voted by 91% to approve the contract in early November, with voter turnout of 56%. The vote came after about seven months of bargaining and a handful of rallies AFSCME staged outside county facilities. It’s the first full contract negotiation for the Multnomah County bargaining unit in five years.
LABOR AND COMMUNITY
'An amazing collaboration': United Way highlights holiday volunteer opportunities
News-Press Now
By Riley Funk
Nov. 30, 2022
The United Way of Greater St. Joseph is making it easy for residents to find opportunities to give back and volunteer for the holidays with an online guide. The Holiday Volunteer and Giving Guide is a collection of the United Way’s many partner agencies’ volunteer opportunities. Jodi Flurry, director of community investment for United Way, said the organization’s volunteer center works hard to compile the list of volunteering options.
EDUCATION
Republican presidential wannabe Pompeo uses teachers, Weingarten as punching bag
People’s World
By Mark Gruenberg
Nov. 30, 2022
In her response statement, AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler got the point, too, while reminding readers that Pompeo’s “filth” characterization attacked all teachers—and put them and their families “at risk” by “dangerous remarks clearly meant to incite” right-wing legions. “Teachers and school staff deserve praise and gratitude from our nation’s leaders,” Shuler continued. “With Pompeo’s toxic, hurtful rhetoric aimed at educators and their advocates, it’s a stark reminder of just how far extremists will go to diminish and disrespect hard-working teachers just to score cheap political points. “Make no mistake: When Pompeo called AFT President Randi Weingarten, the union’s elected leader, ‘the most dangerous person in the world,’ he attacked all working people who work every day to build America’s future. “Dangerous rhetoric such as Pompeo’s attack on teachers has no place in our political discourse. The American labor movement stands in solidarity with AFT President Weingarten, all parents and every educator in this country who works day and night to provide every opportunity for children to learn and who inspires them to follow their dreams.”