Today's AFL-CIO Press Clips
ORGANIZING
The South has few unionized auto plants. Workers say this one could be next.
The Washington Post
By Jeanne Whalen
April 15, 2024
Growing up in eastern Tennessee, Jeremy Collins didn’t know many people with unionized jobs. But he remembers reading good things about unions fighting for the eight-hour work day and against child labor. That’s why Collins plans to vote yes when employees at his Volkswagen factory decide this week whether to join the United Auto Workers. And he thinks many of his co-workers will do the same — possibly making their factory one of the few auto plants in the South to unionize.
Another group of St. Louis Public Radio employees file to organize despite U of M resistance
Labor Tribune
By Staff
April 15, 2024
Another group of St. Louis Public Radio employees has filed to organize, following the newsroom’s historic unionization last year. The St. Louis Public Radio Guild announced it has filed for a second election to add the radio station’s non-supervisory fundraising, events and support staff to its ranks. The St. Louis Public Radio Guild organized the 37 newsroom workers who bring local, national and international news and programs to the airwaves and online, including journalists, producers, on-air talent and marketing professionals. Last year, they made history by becoming the first public media union to file for and win union recognition in the state of Missouri.
America's newest doctors fuel efforts to unionize
Axios
By Tina Reed
April 15, 2024
A new generation of doctors struggling with ever-increasing workloads and crushing student debt is helping drive unionization efforts in a profession that historically hasn't organized. Why it matters: Physicians in training, like their peers in other industries, increasingly see unions as a way to boost their pay and protect themselves against grueling working conditions as they launch their careers. It also comes amid a wave of unionization and labor actions by nurses and other caregivers across a health care system that's still dealing with high levels of burnout.
JOINING TOGETHER
Sault Saint Marie nurses strike for fair pay amid negotiation standoff
WWMT
By Alli Baxter
April 15, 2024
Nurses in Sault Saint Marie are now on strike. This follows negotiations between the Michigan Nurse's Association and MyMichigan Health that ended in a deadlock.
About 120 nurses work at MyMichigan Health, and they could be striking outside the hospital for five days if an agreement is not reached.
Union workers go on strike at Gradall Industries plant in New Philadelphia
Times Reporter
By Jon Baker
April 15, 2024
Members of International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Local 1285 went on strike Monday against Gradall Industries, Inc. The 230 members of the union voted to reject the company's final contract offer before taking to the picket lines. Picketers lined the highway at the entrance of the company's plant at 406 Mill Ave. in New Philadelphia. Some passing motorists honked their horns in support of them. “IAM Local 1285 members at Gradall deserve a contract that treats them with the respect and dignity they’ve earned,” said IAM District 54 President and Directing Business Representative T. Dean Wright Jr. “IAM District 54 and the entire IAM will continue to provide every resource necessary to obtain a strong contract for our members at Gradall.”
Workers at California cannabis-delivery service threaten ‘unprecedented’ strike
The Guardian
By Michael Sainato
April 15, 2024
Delivery drivers and other workers at the US’s largest cannabis-delivery company are threatening to strike in what would probably be the biggest work stoppage to hit the cannabis industry. Nearly 600 workers at 11 depot locations owned by Eaze, a cannabis-delivery company in southern and northern California, are threatening to strike over pay and conditions.
Deadline
By Katie Campione
April 15, 2024
IATSE is looking to wrap up local-specific negotiations with the studios this week before the guild turns its attention to general contract talks. There are just three locals left to strike tentative deals with the Alliance of Motion Picture Television Producers on craft issues. Locals 44 and 705 are slated to begin talks Monday, and Local 884 will be the last to start bargaining, likely later in the week.
City workers to get pay bumps in latest contract deal, despite budget deficit
The San Francisco Standard
By Gabe Greschler
April 15, 2024
After months of negotiations, San Francisco’s public employee unions are closing in on new contract agreements that include wage increases even as the city grapples with a budget deficit in the hundreds of millions of dollars. By Monday, the city had struck tentative deals with unions representing over 20,000 workers, including the Service Employees International Union Local 1021, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers Local 21, Laborers Union Local 261, the Deputy Sheriffs' Association and Transport Workers Union Local 200, according to the Mayor’s Office.
HM Brandt, LLC picketers leave Lake Street, continue protests in Milwaukee
The Badger Herald
By Jones Millstone-Rivo
April 15, 2024
In early February, HM Brandt, LLC demolition workers picketed outside the parking garage they were set to demolish at 415 N. Lake Street as part of their contract with Stevens Construction Corp. Picketers at the site of the $36 million project for the City of Madison, which will include a Bus Rapid Transit terminal, student housing and a new public parking structure, said HM Brandt, LLC was not paying workers fair wages, according to previous reporting from The Badger Herald. Picketers placed a giant inflatable rat outside the work site in similar fashion to other union campaigns across the country, International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 139, Organizing Director Mike Ervin said.
STATE LEGISLATION
Missouri House passes deceptive version of bill to end majority rule voting
Labor Tribune
By Sheri Gassaway
April 15, 2024
The Republican-controlled Missouri House of Representatives has approved a bill making it harder to amend the state constitution through the initiative petition process, ending majority rule in Missouri. Currently, ballot referendums generated by citizen-led initiative petitions need only a simple majority to pass. HJR 86 would require the approval of a majority of voters and a majority of voters in each congressional district to pass an initiative petition. The bill now heads to the Senate. “I think this bill sets the Senate up for implosion, and it’s not going to end well,” said Jake Hummel, Missouri AFL-CIO president. “I hope cooler heads in the Senate will prevail.”
LABOR AND COMMUNITY
Madison County Federation of Labor Awards honor union members, friends of Labor
Labor Tribune
By Elizabeth Donald
April 15, 2024
Union activists and friends of Labor were honored at the annual Labor Awards banquet hosted by the Greater Madison County Federation of Labor on March 28. The program, now in its 35th year, honored dignitaries and leaders who have stood by unions and their concerns throughout the past year. Federation President Dean Webb introduced the evening’s honorary speaker, U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski (D-Ill.), as “probably the most union-friendly congressman we’ve had since Jerry Costello.”
In support of RA unionization at Georgetown
The Georgetown Voice
By The Editorial Board
April 14, 2024
The editorial board supports and affirms Georgetown Resident Assistant Coalition’s (GRAC) ongoing efforts to unionize. We recognize unionization as a way for resident assistants (RAs) to demand improved working conditions from the university. Because official university channels have failed to respond to RAs’ grievances in a timely and satisfactory manner, unionization has become necessary to ensure just and equitable treatment for all RAs. On March 22, GRAC announced its intention to unionize with Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 135 in an open letter to President DeGioia. In the letter, GRAC requested the university’s voluntary recognition as a collective bargaining unit. On March 27, the university announced that it would not voluntarily recognize GRAC, sending the question of unionization to a secret ballot election slated for April 16. If a simple majority of RAs vote in favor of unionization, GRAC will be officially recognized as a collective bargaining unit by Georgetown.