Today's AFL-CIO press clips
BUDGET RECONCILIATION
Senate Republicans seek to vote on Trump’s massive tax bill Monday
The Washington Post
By Jacob Bogage and Theodoric Meyer
June 29, 2025
Senate Republicans spent Sunday marshaling support for the centerpiece of President Donald Trump’s second-term agenda, a sprawling tax and immigration package, working to prevent defections after a near-revolt over the weekend. The GOP is racing to push the mammoth budget proposal across Trump’s desk by a self-imposed July 4 deadline, but fissures remain within the party over the cuts to social benefit and anti-poverty programs and the bill’s growing price tag.
All provisions targeting federal worker benefits, unions stricken from Senate reconciliation package
Government Executive
By Erich Wagner
June 29, 2025
The Senate voted late Saturday to open debate on Republicans’ budget reconciliation package, which aims to cut federal spending in order to partially pay for extended tax cuts for the wealthy and increased immigration enforcement, though the measure’s burden on federal employees is now lighter. That’s because, according to bill text released by the Senate Budget Committee Saturday, the legislation no longer targets federal workers’ retirement benefits, civil service protections or their labor unions.
G.O.P. Bill Has $1.1 Trillion in Health Cuts and 11.8 Million Losing Care, C.B.O. Says
The New York Times
By Margot Sanger-Katz
June 29, 2025
Republicans’ marquee domestic policy bill that is making its way through the Senate would result in deeper cuts and more Americans losing health insurance coverage than the original measure that passed the House last month, according to new estimates from the Congressional Budget Office. According to a report published late Saturday night, the legislation would mean 11.8 million more Americans would become uninsured by 2034. Federal spending on Medicaid, Medicare and Obamacare would be reduced by more than $1.1 trillion over that period — with more than $1 trillion of those cuts coming from Medicaid alone.
Senate GOP tax bill includes largest cut to U.S. safety net in decades
The Washington Post
By Jeff Stein
June 29, 2025
The Senate Republican tax bill speeding to passage includes the biggest reduction of funding for the federal safety net since at least the 1990s, targeting more than $1 trillion in social spending. Although the legislation is still estimated to cost more than $3 trillion over the next decade, the Senate GOP tax bill partially pays for its large price tag by slashing spending on Medicaid and food stamps, which congressional Republicans maintain are rife with fraud. The tax bill centers on making permanent large tax cuts for individual taxpayers, extending the cuts that Republicans first enacted under President Donald Trump’s first term. The bill includes an increase to the standard deduction claimed by most taxpayers, rate reductions for most U.S. households, and a partial version of Trump’s plan to end taxes on tipped wages, among many other provisions.
Debate is underway in the Senate on Trump’s big bill. It may go all night
AP
By Lisa Mascaro, Kevin Freking and Joey Cappelletti
June 29, 2025
Debate is underway in the Senate for an all-night session Sunday, with Republicans wrestling President Donald Trump’s big bill of tax breaks and spending cuts over mounting Democratic opposition — and even some brake-pumping over the budget slashing by the president himself. The outcome from the weekend of work in the Senate remains uncertain and highly volatile. GOP leaders are rushing to meet Trump’s Fourth of July deadline to pass the package, but they barely secured enough support to muscle it past a procedural hurdle in a tense scene the day before.
US Senate Republicans push ahead on Trump's sweeping tax-cut, spending bill
Reuters
By Richard Cowan, David Morgan and Nicole Johnson
June 28, 2025
U.S. Senate Republicans said they were set to vote Saturday on President Donald Trump's sweeping tax-cut and spending bill after agreeing on changes to address concerns about funding for rural hospitals and the deductibility of state taxes. Several Republican senators who had previously expressed hesitancy about voting for the bill told reporters that their concerns had been assuaged and that they were ready to vote to clear a first procedural hurdle in the coming hours.
Senate Republicans remove pension overhaul provisions from megabill text
Politico
By Lawrence Ukenye
June 28, 2025
Senate Republicans stripped provisions aimed at overhauling the federal government’s pension program from their policy megabill, according to new text released Friday night. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee’s proposals to raise federal employees’ required retirement contributions and charge unions for time spent engaging in organizing activities were among those removed. The new text comes after Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough determined that several of the GOP’s civil service provisions violated the chamber’s reconciliation rules.
US Senate pushes ahead on Trump tax cuts as nonpartisan analysis raises price tag
Reuters
By Bo Erickson and Phil Stewart
June 29, 2025
Senate Republicans pushed forward President Donald Trump's sweeping tax cut and spending bill on Sunday in a marathon weekend session even as a nonpartisan forecaster said it would add an estimated $3.3 trillion to the nation's debt over a decade. The estimate by the Congressional Budget Office of the bill's hit to the $36.2 trillion federal debt is about $800 billion more than the version passed last month in the House of Representatives.
GOP senators reach deal on AI regulation ban
The Hill
By Julia Shapero
June 29, 2025
Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) said Sunday that she reached a deal with Senate Commerce Chair Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on new text for a provision in President Trump’s sweeping tax package that seeks to bar states from regulating artificial intelligence (AI). The updated text would enact a “temporary pause,” banning states from regulating AI for five years if they want access to $500 million in AI infrastructure and deployment funding included in the bill. The original provision, which Blackburn opposed, sought to limit state legislation for a 10-year period.
Blackburn, Cruz find potential truce on state AI moratorium, child online safety
Politico
By Mohar Chatterjee
June 29, 2025
Commerce Chair Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) are planning to pitch significant changes to a state AI moratorium in the Republican megabill that has split the conference and alarmed GOP governors. The pair, who have publicly championed opposing views on the potential ban, have reached a deal that would cut the proposed 10-year moratorium in half and make accommodations for internet protections, according to a draft amendment obtained by POLITICO.
Surprise Tax in G.O.P. Bill Could Cripple Wind and Solar Power
The New York Times
By Brad Plumer
June 29, 2025
Senate Republicans have quietly inserted provisions in President Trump’s domestic policy bill that would not only end federal support for wind and solar energy but would impose an entirely new tax on future projects, a move that industry groups say could devastate the renewable power industry. The tax provision, tucked inside the 940-page bill that the Senate made public just after midnight on Friday, stunned observers.
GOP tax bill draws flak on energy provisions from some onetime allies
The Washington Post
By Nicolás Rivero
June 29, 2025
Meanwhile, North America’s Building Trades Unions estimates the bill will eliminate up to 1.75 million construction jobs. “If enacted, this stands to be the biggest job-killing bill in the history of this country,” the group warned Saturday. “Simply put, it is the equivalent of terminating more than 1,000 Keystone XL pipeline projects.”
The Senate Version of Trump’s Massive Tax Bill Is Even More Costly Than The House’s
HuffPost
By Li Zhou
June 29, 2025
Senate Republicans’ version of President Donald Trump’s expansive tax bill is poised to add even more to the debt than the one proposed by their House counterparts, according to an estimate from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. The Senate bill, which could still change, would add approximately $3.3 trillion to the debt over the next ten years, the CBO announced in an analysis released on Sunday. That surpasses the $2.4 trillion the House version was estimated to add to the debt in the same timeframe.
Trump urges Senate GOP to overrule parliamentarian
The Hill
By Sylvan Lane and Sarah Fortinsky
June 29, 2025
President Trump urged Senate Republicans on Sunday to overrule the chamber’s parliamentarian in order to pass key parts of his sweeping domestic policy bill. In a Sunday post on Truth Social, the president backed a call from Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.) and other GOP hard-liners to ignore rulings from Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough.
With Accounting Gimmick, Republicans Upend Senate Norms
The New York Times
By Andrew Duehren
June 29, 2025
Senate Republicans moved on Sunday to upend how the costs of tax cuts are counted, a change they are seeking as part of a broader attempt to expand what lawmakers can pass without a filibuster-proof majority. The gambit concerns how long Republicans’ tax cuts can last. Typically, lawmakers cannot pass costly long-term policies through the Senate without bipartisan support. But Republicans want to lock in lower taxes permanently, and they are preparing to smash precedent to do so.
G.O.P. Toils to Find Votes for Policy Bill as Senate Begins Debate
The New York Times
By Carl Hulse
June 29, 2025
The Senate on Sunday opened debate on the embattled Republican tax cuts and domestic policy bill, as G.O.P. leaders toiled to build enough support in their own ranks to push it through before a Fourth of July deadline set by President Trump. The bitter floor fight began in earnest after Senate clerks devoted almost 16 consecutive hours to reading aloud the 940-page bill because Democrats, who are unified against the measure, insisted on the reading as a protest and to delay the final showdown, pushing decisive votes to Monday.
Senate Bill Would Add at Least $3.3 Trillion to Debt, Budget Office Says
The New York Times
By Andrew Duehren
June 29, 2025
The sprawling tax and health care bill that Senate Republicans are trying to pass would add at least $3.3 trillion to the already-bulging national debt over a decade, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said on Sunday, putting a far higher price tag on the measure than some of the party’s fiscal hawks had indicated they could stomach.
POLITICS
Are the Trump administration’s cuts to federal mediators making labor strikes last longer?
Boston Globe
By Alexa Gagosz
June 29, 2025
A strike by nurses and front-line workers at Butler Hospital is dragging into its seventh week, not just because union leaders and hospital executives are far apart on issues. It’s also because of a little-known executive order signed by President Trump in March that gutted the agency that oversees federal mediators — people responsible for bringing companies and labor unions to the negotiating table. “The unnecessary cuts to [the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service] make absolutely no economic sense and will cost taxpayers, consumers, businesses, and workers,” AFL-CIO president Liz Shuler said earlier this year, when the AFL-CIO and its affiliated unions sued the Trump administration over its dismantling of the agency.
Lawmakers Tell Rubio to Refrain From Mass Layoffs at State Department
The New York Times
By Edward Wong and Michael Crowley
June 27, 2025
Sixty Democratic lawmakers told Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday to refrain from moving ahead with mass layoffs of State Department employees and to lift a hiring freeze at a time of widening global crises. In a letter to Mr. Rubio, the lawmakers said they were concerned about reported plans to fire about 700 career diplomats, known as Foreign Service officers, based mainly on the fact that those employees are currently posted in the United States rather than overseas.
DOGE loses control over government grants website, freeing up billions
The Washington Post
By Dan Diamond and Hannah Natanson
June 27, 2025
The U.S. DOGE Service has lost the power to control the government’s process for awarding billions of dollars in federal funds, the latest sign of the team’s declining influence following Elon Musk’s high-profile exit from Washington, according to two people familiar with the situation and emails obtained by The Washington Post.
DEI rollbacks hit campus support systems for students of color
AP
By Collin Binkley
April 22, 2025
Campus mentors. Move-in events. Scholarships. Diversity offices that made them feel welcome on predominantly white campuses. As U.S. colleges pull back on diversity, equity and inclusion practices, students of color say they are starting to lose all of these things and more. The full scope of campus DEI rollbacks is still emerging as colleges respond to the Trump administration’s orders against diversity practices. But students at some schools said early cuts are chipping away at the sense of community that helped open the door to higher education.
Judge won’t block DOGE access to sensitive government data
The Hill
By Miriam Waldvogel
June 27, 2025
The AFL-CIO and other unions filed a lawsuit seeking to prevent DOGE employees from accessing information such as medical files, financial histories, Social Security numbers and addresses.
Trump Administration Rescinds Voice of America Layoffs After Errors in Notices
The New York Times
By Minho Kim
June 27, 2025
The Trump administration on Friday rescinded the layoff notices it had sent to employees at Voice of America after employees discovered errors in documents detailing the terms that could later nullify or significantly delay President Trump’s attempts to gut the news organization. The email rescinding last week’s layoff notices was sent by Voice of America’s human resources office to employees based in Washington, where around 90 percent of its union-protected employees reside, according to the layoff plan the Trump administration sent to Congress earlier this month.
Embattled Voice of America employees face termination ‘whiplash’
Politico
By Ben Johansen
June 28, 2025
Several Voice of America employees based in Washington who received termination notices last week had those notices temporarily rescinded on Friday, the latest turn in the Trump administration’s chaotic dismantling of the U.S.-funded media outlet. It was not clear how many VOA journalists and employees received the email. Those who received it still expect to be laid off — the email noted that the U.S. Agency for Global Media, VOA’s parent agency, will be “running another RIF in the near future” — but the timeline for when their jobs will now be terminated is now unclear.
Trump says he will move aggressively to undo nationwide blocks on his agenda
The Washington Post
By Justin Jouvenal, Cat Zakrzewski and Jeremy Roebuck
June 28, 2025
An emboldened Trump administration plans to aggressively challenge blocks on the president’s top priorities, a White House official said, following a major Supreme Court ruling that limits the power of federal judges to issue nationwide injunctions. Government attorneys will press judges to pare back the dozens of sweeping rulings thwarting the president’s agenda “as soon as possible,” said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe internal deliberations.
Mass layoffs likely to remain blocked, for now, thanks to a Supreme Court footnote
Government Executive
By Eric Katz
June 27, 2025
The Supreme Court on Friday limited individual judges’ capacity to strike down government policy on a nationwide basis, a decision with potentially far-reaching impacts on how federal agencies carry out their work. The high court left in place some carve outs, however, including one that could—at least temporarily—protect a judge’s ruling that is currently blocking the Trump administration from carrying out widespread layoffs. While the Trump administration applauded the Supreme Court’s decision and lamented the influence that lower-level judges have exerted over the president’s control of the federal workforce, attorneys who helped bring the lawsuit forward suggested it did not apply to the order preventing large-scale reductions in force.
IMMIGRATION
Trump and Bondi Won’t Say How Birthright Citizenship Will Be Enforced
The New York Times
By Zolan Kanno-Youngs
June 27, 2025
President Trump on Friday said his administration would move ahead with plans to end birthright citizenship after the Supreme Court limited the ability of judges to pause the president’s executive orders. But even as he celebrated the ruling in a news conference, Mr. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi struggled to provide basic details about how they would carry out a policy that would reshape American citizenship.
What to know Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s pending release and risk of deportation
AP
By Ben Finley
June 27, 2025
Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whose mistaken deportation to El Salvador became a flashpoint in President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, is back in the U.S. and being held in jail as he awaits trial on federal human smuggling charges. His attorneys want him to be released from jail in Tennessee while he awaits his trial. And so does a federal magistrate judge, who said she will let Abrego Garcia out of jail with conditions.
Judge orders Abrego Garcia to remain in jail after his lawyers raise deportation concerns
NPR
By Juliana Kim
June 27, 2025
A federal judge in Tennessee has ordered a delay in the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia after his legal team raised concerns that the Salvadoran native could be deported upon release. Abrego Garcia was mistakenly deported to El Salvador for three months by the Trump administration, then returned to the U.S. where he now faces federal human smuggling charges. On Friday, Robert E. McGuire, acting U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee, said the delay will remain in place pending further court orders.
SUPREME COURT
High court ruling on injunctions could imperil many court orders blocking the Trump administration
AP
By Michael Kunzelman and Sudhin Thanawala
June 27, 2025
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision Friday limiting federal judges from issuing nationwide injunctions threatens to upend numerous lawsuits that have led to orders blocking Trump administration policies. Between the start of the new administration and mid-May, judges issued roughly 40 nationwide injunctions against the White House on topics including federal funding, elections rules and diversity and equity considerations. Attorneys involved in some of those cases are vowing to keep fighting, noting the high court left open other legal paths that could have broad nationwide effect.
Trump wins as Supreme Court curbs judges, but may yet lose on birthright citizenship
Reuters
By Andrew Chung
June 28, 2025
The U.S. Supreme Court's landmark ruling blunting a potent weapon that federal judges have used to block government policies nationwide during legal challenges was in many ways a victory for President Donald Trump, except perhaps on the very policy he is seeking to enforce.
An executive order that the Republican president signed on his first day back in office in January would restrict birthright citizenship - a far-reaching plan that three federal judges, questioning its constitutionality, quickly halted nationwide through so-called "universal" injunctions.
Supreme Court in birthright case limits judges' power to block presidential policies
Reuters
By Andrew Chung
June 27, 2025
The U.S. Supreme Court handed President Donald Trump a major victory on Friday in a case involving birthright citizenship by curbing the ability of judges to impede his policies nationwide, changing the power balance between the federal judiciary and presidents. The 6-3 ruling, authored by conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett, did not let Trump's directive restricting birthright citizenship go into effect immediately, directing lower courts that blocked it to reconsider the scope of their orders. The ruling also did not address the legality of the policy, part of Trump's hardline approach toward immigration.
Supreme Court limits nationwide orders that have blocked Trump’s birthright citizenship ban
The Washington Post
By Ann E. Marimow
June 27, 2025
The Supreme Court on Friday backed President Donald Trump’s request to scale back lower-court orders that have for months blocked the administration’s ban on automatic citizenship for the U.S.-born babies of undocumented immigrants and foreign visitors, ruling that those nationwide injunctions went too far. The 6-3 decision, with the liberal justices dissenting, largely strips federal judges of a powerful tool they have used to halt many of Trump’s policies nationwide, reshaping the judicial process when it comes to challenging executive action. The ruling did not address the constitutionality of the president’s ban on birthright citizenship, which is a signature part of his immigration crackdown.
Supreme Court limits nationwide injunctions, but fate of Trump birthright citizenship order unclear
AP
By Mark Sherman
June 27, 2025
A united conservative majority of the Supreme Court ruled Friday that federal judges lack the authority to grant nationwide injunctions, but the decision left unclear whether President Donald Trump’s restrictions on birthright citizenship could soon take effect in parts of the country. The outcome represented a victory for Trump, who has complained about judges throwing up obstacles to his agenda. Nationwide, or universal, injunctions had emerged as an important check on the Republican president’s efforts to expand executive power and remake the government and a source of mounting frustration to him and his allies.
US Supreme Court preserves key element of Obamacare preventive care
Reuters
By John Kruzel
June 27, 2025
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday preserved a key element of the Obamacare law that helps guarantee that health insurers cover preventive care such as cancer screenings and HIV prevention medication at no cost to patients. The 6-3 decision written by conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh reversed a lower court's ruling that the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, which under the 2010 law formally called the Affordable Care Act has a major role in choosing what services will be covered, was not validly appointed.
Supreme Court Punts Decision on Louisiana Voting Map Until Next Term
The New York Times
By Abbie VanSickle and Emily Cochrane
June 27, 2025
The Supreme Court declined on Friday to weigh in on Louisiana’s contested congressional voting map, instead ordering that new arguments be scheduled during its next term. There was no explanation offered for why the justices did not make a decision or set a date for new arguments.
ORGANIZING
Ford, SK On battery park workers at BlueOval SK may soon be faced with a major decision
Courier Journal
By Olivia Evans and Connor Giffin
June 27, 2025
Nearly six months after employees at the BlueOval SK Battery Park filed a representation petition, calling for an election to unionize with the United Auto Workers, the National Labor Relations Board issued a "Decision and Direction of Election" ruling. This means the NLRB "concludes that the prerequisites to an election have been satisfied and directs that an election be conducted," according to its election ruling definitions, opening a pathway for workers at BlueOval SK Battery Park to finally vote on unionization.
UNION NEGOTIATIONS
Deadline
By Katie Campione
June 27, 2025
Workers at Vox Media represented by the Writers Guild of America East have officially ratified their first union contract, and details of the agreement have now been publicly shared. The 250-member unit voted unanimously to approve the three-year collective bargaining agreement, the union said Friday morning. The WGA East had been fighting to bring all Vox Media workers across various verticals under one union contract, which they said the company had been resisting, prompting the talks to grow contentious. The two sides narrowly avoided a strike by securing a tentative deal just over two weeks ago — and it looks like the union got what it wanted.
Vox Media Union Employees Ratify New 3-Year Contract
The Wrap
By Lucas Manfredi
June 27, 2025
Vox Media employees with The Writers Guild of America East have ratified a new three-year collective bargaining agreement, which includes wage increases and protections against artificial intelligence. The union’s deal, which was unanimously approved by the 250-member bargaining unit, covers employees at PopSugar, The Dodo, Thrillist, Vox.com, The Verge, Eater, Punch, SB Nation and Vox Media Podcast Network. In the first year of the contract, employees making salaries under $106,000 will receive a 5% increase, while those making over that amount will receive a 4% increase. In years two and three, those increases will be 3.25% for salaries under $106,000 and 2.75%
Denver 7
By Katie Parkins
June 27, 2025
The union representing Safeway workers is headed back to the bargaining table Friday, UFCW Local 7 president Kim Cordova said, as more stores join the strike. Two new Safeway stores — one in Lakewood and one in Littleton — were the latest to picket Friday morning, bringing the total number to 30 stores. It's the first Safeway strike in Colorado in nearly three decades.
Final day of negotiations as thousands of San Diego grocery workers threaten to go on strike
CBS 8
By CBS 8 Staff
June 27, 2025
Thousands of grocery workers across San Diego are waiting to see if their union and employers can come to an agreement, or if they will go on strike. Friday is the final day of negotiations with Kroger and Albertsons. Union leaders said they've been in talks with the companies for months over wages and working conditions.
Negotiations stall between Philadelphia and city workers union, AFSCME District Council 33
CBS News
By Josh Sanders and Eva Andersen
June 28, 2025
Philadelphia's largest blue-collar union is set to go on strike next week, which could impact services, including trash pickup for people in the city. AFSCME District Council 33 represents some 9,000 workers in essential services. Both the union and the city were in negotiations inside the Sheraton hotel in Philadelphia on Friday, hoping to come to an agreement. Workers are demanding higher wages and health benefits for all members. If an agreement isn't reached, the strike would start at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday. Workers with the sanitation department, water department, police dispatch, street maintenance and airport operations are set to strike.
Unions representing thousands of Minnesota state workers reach tentative contract agreements
MPR News
By Staff
June 27, 2025
Two unions representing thousands of state of Minnesota employees say they reached tentative contract agreements with the state early Friday. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 5, and the Minnesota Association of Professional Employees, say the agreements came after marathon negotiations. They will need to be ratified by union members. AFSCME has not yet set a date for that ratification vote; MAPE members will vote on their agreement in August.
Minnesota public workers unions tout wins in tentative contract deals with state
Star Tribune
By Nathaniel Minor
June 27, 2025
The two largest public workers unions in Minnesota said Friday they have reached tentative agreements with the state that preserve wage increases and avoid higher health insurance costs for employees. The Minnesota Association of Professional Employees and AFSCME Council 5 together represent more than 35,000 state employees and have been jointly negotiating new two-year contracts with the state. In a news release, AFSCME Executive Director Bart Andersen said his union’s pending deal was reached after more than 200 hours of negotiating and the “direct result of the incredible strength, solidarity, and determination shown by our union members.”
Nurses union announces 10-day notice to strike
WDIO
By WDIO
June 27, 2025
Nurses are filing a 10-day notice to strike with Essentia Health, Aspirus-St. Luke’s, and six other clinic facilities. They say this gives the hospital systems until July 8 to stop committing what the Minnesota Nurses Association calls Unfair Labor Practices. The strike would begin July 8 at 7:00 a.m.
Chambersburg Hospital union plans strike vote as WellSpan contract talks stall
Chambersburg Public Opinion
By Amber South
June 27, 2025
More than 1,400 nurses and other healthcare professionals at Chambersburg Hospital are preparing for a possible strike after nearly two months of contract negotiations between their union and WellSpan Health leaders. The SEIU Healthcare PA Chambersburg Chapter said contract talks with WellSpan Health have stalled and union members are prepared to vote to authorize a strike on July 1 if no agreement is reached at bargaining sessions on June 27 and June 30, according to a statement from the union.
Fenway Park, MGM employees prepare for strike ‘at any time’
MassLive
By Tréa Lavery
June 27, 2025
Employees at Fenway Park and the next-door MGM Music Hall are signing up for strike benefits and picket duty as they prepare for a strike that could come “at any time,” according to the union representing them. The hundreds of Aramark workers at the two venues will begin preparation for the strike Friday, according to a news release by UNITE HERE Local 26, the union that represents the group of beer sellers, cashiers, cooks, servers, souvenir vendors, utility workers, warehouse runners and other employees.
Crouse Hospital workers' contract expires amid ongoing negotiations
CNY Centra
By CNY Central Staff
June 27, 2025
The contract between more than 2,000 union Crouse workers and the hospital is expiring. According to 1199SEUI United Healthcare Workers East, which represents the workers, the agreement is set to expire at midnight on June 27. the union says there have been multiple contract extensions, and a tentative agreement in May was rejected in may. The workers, represented by the union include registered nurses, nurse assistants, and various support staff.
San Diego grocery workers prepare for possible strike
KPBS
By John Carroll
June 27, 2025
All appeared normal inside the Ralphs store in Hillcrest Friday afternoon. But by Saturday, employees inside the store may be outside, walking a picket line. “It’s just very frustrating because it’s been since March… we’ve had 21 bargaining sessions and our members just want to get a deal done,” said Brent Beltran, communications director for United Food and Commercial Workers union Local 135.
TWU ratifies contract with Conrail
Trains.com
By Trains Staff
June 27, 2025
Members of the Transport Workers Union have ratified a new five-year contract with Conrail including a 17.5% wage increase, the union has announced. Journeyman carmen will make more than $100,000 a year by the end of the contract. TWU International President John Samuelsen called the deal “a big win for TWU railroad workers” in a press release, saying, ““This new contract locks in real wage increases and ensures that hardworking TWU members will be able to better provide for their families with increased pay and benefits.”
Conrail TWU Members Ratify New Contract
Railway Age
By Carolina Worrell
June 27, 2025
“This is a big win for TWU railroad workers,” said TWU International President John Samuelsen. “This new contract locks in real wage increases and ensures that hardworking TWU members will be able to better provide for their families with increased pay and benefits.”
Cummins and union reach agreement: workers set to return to work July 7
NBC26
By Claire Peterson
June 27, 2025
After more than three months on the picket line, workers at the Cummins plant Oshkosh have voted to end their strike and approve the latest contract on Friday, June 27. The workers will return to work on July 7. Local UAW 291 president, Ryan Compton, says the union voted to pass the contract 53 to 26. It's the third time the union has called a vote since beginning the strike.
CareFlight Union demands action on stalled negotiations for better working condition
Dayton 24
By Gwyneth Falloon
June 27, 2025
CareFlight team members pushed for better working conditions Friday, saying the healthcare network is dragging its feet and stalling on union negotiations, putting everyone at risk. “What do we want? Contract!" exclaimed the CareFlight Union. "When do we want it? Now!”
Multicare Emergency workers to walk off job at this Pierce County site
The News Tribune
By Debbie Cockrell
June 27, 2025
Workers at MultiCare Emergency-Parkland represented by IAM District 160 are planning a five-day Unfair Labor Practice strike starting at 12:01 a.m. on Monday, June 30 at 14815 Pacific Ave. S. The strike is set to conclude at 11:59 p.m. July 4. Ahead of the strike, the union said in a release this week, “MultiCare has committed at least 14 Unfair Labor Practices. These violations include withholding standard status quo raises given at other OCED (off-campus emergency department) facilities, denying union representatives workplace access, illegally interrogating workers, and bargaining in bad faith by refusing to negotiate multiple critical contract articles.”
Minnesota Nurses Association announce intent to strike
Fox 21
By Matt McConico
June 27, 2025
Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) has announced nurses and other union members will strike at Duluth-area hospitals. The union said hospital acute care nurses at Essentia Health’s St. Mary’s Duluth Hospital, Miller-Dwan Hospital and St. Mary’s- Superior Hospital, and Aspirus Health St. Luke’s Hospital will be beginning their strike on Tuesday, July 8, 2025 at 7:00 a.m.
Legal Aid Society, NYC’s largest public defender group, set to vote on possible strike
Gothamist
By Samantha Max
June 27, 2025
Attorneys at New York City’s largest public defender group are voting on whether to strike for the first time in more than 30 years — a move that could destabilize the day-to-day operations of an already overburdened legal system. Legal Aid Society lawyers, who represent low-income criminal defendants, immigrants, children and residents fighting for housing across the five boroughs, told Gothamist they have reached a standoff with management over pay, caseloads and remote work.
Unionized janitors, landscapers authorize strike at Nova Southeastern for higher wages
WLRN
By Sergio R. Bustos
June 28, 2025
Janitors, landscapers, and maintenance workers at Nova Southeastern University in Davie have voted to authorize a strike against Encompass, a cleaning contractor for the private university. Union officials, in a statement released Friday night, said negotiations with Encompass have failed to reach an agreement. They said the union offered a 50 cent per hour raise. The current contract expires Monday. “Fifty cents won’t even buy me a cortadito,” Brigitte Concepcion, an Encompass janitor, said in a statement from the union. “I have to rent half of our two-bedroom home to three strangers just to keep up with the bills,” said Concepcion. “We don’t want to strike, but we will do what it takes to secure a better future for our families.” The union, 32BJ SEIU, also wants Encompass to not seek out robots to replace workers, an issue the union says the company is exploring.
Milwaukee Symphony reaches a new contract agreement with orchestra musicians
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
By Jim Higgins
June 27, 2025
Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra musicians and administration have agreed to a new three-year contract that includes annual raises, the MSO announced in a statement. The new contract, which continues through the 2027-'28 season, extends a long history of harmonious labor relations at the symphony. For more than 30 years, MSO administration has shared its financial information with musicians, a move suggested back then by Michael J. Schmitz, who was serving as board chairman at the time. Musicians sit on the MSO board of directors and that board's finance committee.
Voices of Ascension & AGMA Come to Terms on Three-Year Deal
Opera Wire
By David Salazar
June 27, 2025
Voices of Ascension and AGMA have agreed to a three-year deal. The new deal, effective July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2028, establishes, for the first time, a seasonal roster of 32 artists which each guaranteed at least two offers per season. Other stipulations in the agreement include a 15 percent increase in wages over three years; a 15 percent increase in recording and media fees; more advanced notice of offers; protections related to AI and data privacy; the strengthening of anti-discrimination language; growth-oriented rates for large-scale projects; and competitive subcontracting rates. Also part of the agreement is a new advisory committee comprised of artists who will get a chance to participate in Board meetings and the decision-making process for leadership transitions.
WA grocery store union ratifies contract, avoiding strike
KIRO
By KIRO 7 News Staff
June 28, 2025
The United Food & Commercial Workers Local 3000 (UFCW) voted to ratify a new contract on Friday night, avoiding a strike, according to the union. UFCW 3000 represents about 30,000 grocery store workers at OFC, Fred Meyer, Safeway, and Albertsons in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. Earlier this month, 97% of union members voted to authorize a strike in a fight for better wages, more staffing, and improved healthcare.
Over 38 Colorado Safeway stores join strike as union says negotiations at standstill
Denver 7
By Adria Iraheta
June 29, 2025
More Safeway stores along Colorado’s Front Range have joined the UFCW Local 7 strike, including locations in Fort Collins and Thornton, bringing the total to more than 38 stores. Workers at the Safeway store on Thornton Parkway walked out Sunday morning—a result, the union says, of a total standstill in negotiations with the company.
JOINING TOGETHER
Unionized workers with Eyewitness News gather support during rally in Henderson, Kentucky
Courier & Press
By MaCabe Brown
June 28, 2025
NABET-CWA president Stephen Griswold speaks as people rally in support of workers with WEHT/WTVW Eyewitness News as their employer Nexstar Media Group refuses to recognize their union and bargain a contract in Henderson, Ky.
STATE LEGISLATION
Wisconsin AFL-CIO, gig drivers, protest portable benefits bill
The Center Square
By Jon Styf
June 27, 2025
“Uber and Lyft drivers in Milwaukee are standing together to raise concerns about workplace conditions, fair pay, and protections on the job,” Wisconsin AFL-CIO President Stephanie Bloomingdale said in a statement. “... In the wake of recent state legislative action that would strip app-based transportation and delivery drivers of employee status and reclassify drivers as independent contractors, workers are sounding the alarm on how this change would negatively impact workplace protections like minimum wage, unemployment insurance, and worker’s compensation.”
Labor rights groups seek to put $20-per-hour minimum wage on Olympia’s fall ballot
The Olympian
By Ty Vinson
June 29, 2025
UFCW 367 president Michael Hines said the labor group is proud to stand with the community and push for policies that benefit as many workers as they can. “Working families are long overdue for a raise and the security of predictable schedules and safe workplaces,” he said.
APPRENTICESHIPS & TRAINING
Heavy Metal Summer Experience at H.T. Lyons preps teens for union jobs in the trades
Lehigh Valley Public Media
By Jenny Roberts
June 28, 2025
Sira Powell enjoys working with tools to bring a concept to life. That could be the walkway she’s building with her father in their backyard, or the copper-and-sheet-metal lamp she’s been assembling at the Heavy Metal Summer Experience over the past two weeks. “Me doing it myself, that’s just really cool,” said Sira, a 16-year-old rising junior at Freedom High School and a building trades student at Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School. The Heavy Metal Summer Experience is a camp offered at partner sites throughout the country to expose high schoolers and recent graduates to union trade jobs.
LABOR AND COMMUNITY
LiUNA Local 773 Hosts Take Kids Fishing Day to Connect with Community
WSIU
By Ravi Teja
June 29, 2025
Nearly 100 young anglers joined LiUNA Local 773 and the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance for Take Kids Fishing Day on June 21 at Herrin Park. Volunteers helped children fish, grilled hot dogs, and handed out free rods and reels to each participant. The event, part of the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance’s Work Boots on the Ground program, helps introduce kids to the outdoors while highlighting the role unions play in local communities. “This event makes a lasting impression,” said Local 773 Business Manager Jerry Womick. “It shows what unions can do beyond the jobsite.”n