Today's AFL-CIO press clips
MUST READ
NLRB decides captive audience meetings are unlawful in potential boost for unions
Alabama Political Reporter
By Chance Phillips
Nov. 14, 2024
On Wednesday, the National Labor Relations Board issued a decision finding that captive audience meetings violate section 8(a)(1) of the National Labor Relations Act. A perennial tool of companies seeking to stop insurgent unionization campaigns, captive audience meetings are mandatory assemblies where managers try to convince their employees not to join a union. National AFL-CIO president Liz Shuler called the decision a “huge win for workers.”
POLITICS
How Democrats Could Limit Trump's Damage To Unions
HuffPost
By Dave Jamieson
Nov. 14, 2024
Donald Trump’s next presidency could usher in a dark time for labor unions, but there’s one way Democrats might limit his damage to the labor movement this time around. Senate Democrats have an opportunity to reconfirm Lauren McFerran, the chair of the National Labor Relations Board, to another term at the agency, ensuring a Democratic majority into the second half of 2026. They only have about five weeks to do it since Republicans will take control of the Senate and its confirmation agenda on Jan. 3.
ENVIRONMENT, ENERGY AND CLIMATE
EPA employees are ‘freaking out’ over Trump’s return
Government Executive
By Eric Katz
Nov. 14, 2024
In the days following the election, some employees at the Environmental Protection Agency began texting each other to vent about what President-elect Trump’s victory could mean for their workplace. “It’s a new dystopian hellscape,” one employee said. Another employee who received that message said it summed up the tone around EPA pretty accurately. “People are majorly freaking out,” she said.
NLRB
AFL-CIO cheers as Labor Board majority outlaws captive audience meetings
People’s World
By Mark Gruenberg
Nov. 14, 2024
“The NLRB again demonstrated its commitment to working people with the decision to ban captive audience meetings, a coercive tool bosses regularly use to gain an unfair advantage before union elections,” AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said. “As part of well-funded and aggressive anti-union campaigns—regularly involving threats of discipline, site closure, wage and job cuts, and threatening immigrant workers with deportation—employers force employees to listen to anti-union speeches, often multiple times, preventing employees from asking questions or even politely leaving the meeting. “These coercive meetings are well-known union-busting tools, and the practice has no place in America’s workplaces or in our democracy. Thanks to the NLRB, that ends today.
NLRB bans anti-union captive-audience meetings
TAG24
By Kaitlyn Kennedy
Nov. 14, 2024
AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler stated: "Today’s NLRB decision is a huge win for workers. Captive audience meetings have no place in a fair workplace. This ruling restores the freedom workers deserve to make their own choices about union representation without fear or intimidation."
ORGANIZING
Harvard Graduate School of Design Fabrication Lab Workers Overwhelmingly Vote to Unionize
The Harvard Crimson
By Aran Sonnad-Joshi
Nov. 14, 2024
Student workers at the Harvard Graduate School of Design’s Fabrication Lab voted 69-4 on Tuesday to unionize. The win for Fabrication Workers United-United Auto Workers comes just over one month after the Fab Lab’s 87 technical assistants filed for unionization in early October. “I feel really excited,” said technical assistant Livia K. Miller, a graduate student at the GSD and a lead organizer for FWU-UAW. “I feel really proud of all the hard work that we’ve all collectively done, but I also feel like it’s just the beginning of another long process where now we move into negotiation with Harvard.”
Dozens of Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden employees push to unionize
WRIC
By Sahara Sriraman
Nov. 14, 2024
Employees at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Henrico County are taking a stand for better pay, improved safety and fairer working conditions by pushing to form a union. Dozens of workers who have raised concerns about wages and safety for months are now joining forces with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) to negotiate directly with management. According to Clara Aus, who has worked at the garden for nearly three years in various roles, despite repeatedly raising concerns with management, she and her colleagues felt their voices were not being heard.
UNION NEGOTIATIONS
Members of Philadelphia's blue-collar workers' union vote overwhelmingly to authorize a strike
Audacy
By Mike DeNardo
Nov. 14, 2024
By almost a 7-1 margin, members of AFSCME District Council 33, the city’s blue collar workers union, have overwhelmingly voted to authorize a strike. About 87% of the 3,400 members who cast ballots over the last week voted to authorize a strike. Union members took an unofficial voice vote outside of City Hall two weeks ago. District Council 33, which represents over 9,000 water, sanitation and prisons department workers, among others, has been working without a new contract since the previous deal expired at the end of June. The union has been seeking a four-year contract but says the city has offered only a short-term deal.
NYC Barnes & Noble union rallies in Union Square to bargain for first contract
AMNY
By Barbara Russo-Lennon
Nov. 14, 2024
Barnes & Noble workers and labor groups rallied in Union Square on Thursday to demand the book retailer reach an inaugural contract for its unionized employees before the end of 2024. The workers joined members of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU) at the Barnes & Noble flagship at 33 East 17 St. to urge the company to agree to a labor agreement just as the 2024 holiday shopping season gets underway.
Philadelphia’s largest city workers union votes to authorize strike; no walkout at this time
WHYY
By 6abc digital staff
Nov. 14, 2024
Philadelphia’s largest city workers union has voted to authorize a strike. The results announced Thursday showed 87% of workers voted in favor of the strike authorization. This does not mean workers are hitting the picket line, however.
IATSE President Pens Letter To Atlantic Theater Board, Condemns Lack Of Progress In Bargaining
Broadway World
By A.A. Cristi
Nov. 12, 2024
The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees' International President Matthew D. Loeb has written a letter to the Atlantic Theater Company's Board of Directors stressing the need for urgent intervention by leadership to settle outstanding crew negotiations and federal labor charges.
Over 700 workers to strike at Virgin Hotel amid stalled wage talks
News3LV
By Andrew Nomura
Nov. 14, 2024
More than 700 hospitality workers are set to strike outside the Virgin Hotel on Friday morning, as negotiations between the hotel and the Culinary Union have reached an impasse. Both parties blame each other for the breakdown in the talks. Union leaders have accused Virgin Hotel of refusing to offer a livable wage, stating that the property is unwilling to raise wages for the first three years of a new contract. The union and the hotel have been in negotiations since the expiration of their previous contract just before last summer.
IAM workers, Westlake Vinyls reach agreement to end strike
WPSD Local 6
By Melanie Antonitis
Nov, 8, 2024
One-hundred seventy-five workers on strike have reached an agreement with Westlake Vinyls, the company announced Friday afternoon. The strike is set to end at midnight, and workers will return to work Saturday. According to the company, members of Local Lodge No. 2781 of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers at the Calvert City site have approved a "revised offer for a five-year collective bargaining agreement" to end the strike. A statement from the company read, in part, "Westlake respects the collective-bargaining process and the approximately 175 workers covered by this agreement. We are pleased that we were able to work with the IAM to end the strike." The strike originally began Nov. 1 after workers did not accept the company's collective bargaining agreement offer.
DC33 city workers agree to strike if they don’t get a contract
The Philadelphia Inquirer
By Ariana Perez-Castells
Nov. 14, 2024
Members of Philadelphia’s largest union for city workers have voted in favor of going on strike if they don’t get a new multiyear employment contract with the mayor. Thousands of members of AFSCME District Council 33 have agreed to walk off the job if union leadership calls for it. DC33 president Greg Boulware said the union will not strike immediately, but could do so if negotiators cannot reach an agreement with Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s office. “We’re hoping that does not need to happen, and that we can come to an amicable resolution that works for both parties. Right now, we’re not at that place,” Boulware said. “We’ll give every opportunity to the city to see reason and acknowledge the plight of our membership.”
What's at stake with the Culinary Union strike at Virgin Hotels?
News2LV
By Evan Schreiber
Nov. 14, 2024
The Culinary Union and Virgin Hotels Las Vegas plan to meet Thursday at the bargaining table, trying to avoid a strike set forth by union leadership and members. Hospitality workers at the off-strip hotel-casino prepare to strike before the Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix next week. The scheduled strike deadline is 5:00 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 15.
IN THE STATES
City Council is considering a bill to raise wages and boost benefits for stadium workers
The Philadelphia Inquirer
By Jake Blumgart and Ariana Perez-Castells
Nov. 14, 2024
City Council President Kenyatta Johnson introduced a bill Thursday to raise wages and boost health benefits for stadium workers, as the debate around the Philadelphia 76ers’ proposed arena brings fresh attention to the industry. The legislation establishes an hourly pay rate of $20.07 and requires an additional hourly wage supplement of $4.93 for health insurance or other benefits. Over 2,000 workers would be affected. The effort comes amid labor strife at the stadium district in South Philadelphia, where Unite Here Local 274 has been locked in contentious contract negotiations with Aramark, the company that staffs the stadiums concessions. The union’s contracts with Aramark expired in March. A four-day strike earlier this autumn at Citizen’s Bank Park sought to raise awareness around the Phillies playoff run.
LABOR AND COMMUNITY
Sacramento hospitality union raising concerns over Railyards stadium project
KCRA
By Andres Valle
Nov. 13, 2024
A labor union in Sacramento is raising concerns over the proposed stadium for Sacramento Republic FC. "We're concerned. We're concerned about not knowing the details. We're concerned about not having been included. And we're concerned about the potential consequences to hospitality workers in Sacramento," said Aamir Deen, the president of Unite Here Local 49, a hospitality union.
Firefighters launch annual Fill the Boot" campaign for Muscular Dystrophy Association
News 4 San Antonio
By SBG San Antonio Staff Reports
Nov. 13, 2024
The San Antonio Fire Department (SAFD announced the kickoff of its annual “Fill the Boot” campaign to raise funds for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA). The kickoff took place on Wednesday, November 13th, at 11:00 AM at Fire Station #1, located at 515 N. Cherry St. Fire Chief Valerie Frausto, SAPFFA President Joe Jones, MDA officials, and SAFD firefighters marked the start of this important fundraising initiative. For many years, the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) has partnered with MDA to support individuals and families affected by muscular dystrophy. The SAFD is proud to continue this tradition and contribute to the fight against this debilitating disease.
The LA Kings and Ironworkers Local 433 Team Up for Historic, First-Of-Its-Kind Partnership
Business Wire
By Staff
Nov. 14, 2024
In a historic first, two-time Stanley Cup Champions the LA Kings, and Ironworkers Local 433 (Local 433) have launched a strategic new partnership. The multiyear deal, brokered by AEG Global Partnerships, represents the NHL team’s first-ever collaboration with a union and the first official professional sports deal for Ironworkers Local 433 in the Los Angeles market. As part of the agreement, Ironworkers Local 433 will become an official partner of the LA Kings, forging a unique alliance that brings together two organizations rooted in sheer strength and a shared commitment to the local communities they serve.