The Weekly Download

“In this blogcast, Burnes Center for Social Change Senior Fellow Seth Harris is joined by Paul Cole, the founder and executive director of the American Labor Studies Center, and Carole Turbin, the author of “Working Women of Collar City,” to celebrate Women’s History Month, talk about women’s role in labor history, and spotlight labor activist Kate Mullany. Watch now to learn more about Kate Mullany, the co-founder of the Collar Laundry Union, one of the first all-women trade unions in the U.S.”

“What would it take to reverse the decades-long decline in union density? In the labor world, much of the discussion of this question concerns tactical approaches to winning National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) representation elections, the standard process in the United States through which workers unionize. While discussions around worker power tend to focus on how to run better and more successful union organizing campaigns, we also need to recognize the reality that the NLRB election process is fundamentally flawed.”

“It’s dark days for the U.S. labor movement. Within weeks of taking office, President Trump fired National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) member Gwynne Wilcox without cause or due process—an unprecedented move that directly violates the statute establishing the Board as an independent agency. Although the District Court for the District of Columbia recently ordered Wilcox’s reinstatement, Trump’s attack on the NLRB signals a broader erosion of federal labor protections in the years ahead. Worker cooperatives offer a light in the darkness. Unlike traditional corporations, which rely on government enforcement of federal labor laws to safeguard workers’ rights, cooperatives give workers direct control over their workplaces. And while they are no panacea, worker cooperatives can address root causes of economic inequality and provide a sustainable path toward worker empowerment and economic justice.”

“In fall 2023, United Auto Workers (UAW) President Shawn Fain called for unions around America to align their contracts with a May 1, 2028 expiration date, in order to align with the UAW’s next round of bargaining with the Big Three: Ford, General Motors (GM), and Chrysler (now Stellantis). This was, in part, a call for class solidarity: to bring workers together across unions, labor and social movements, and geography. It was also an acknowledgment that some of the biggest demands that UAW members have–strong pensions and healthcare–cannot be won alone. Workers will need to build broad alliances that can leverage greater pressure on employers and the state. Over the last year, Fain’s call has spread. Unions, base-building organizations, and political organizations are talking about how they can use May 1, 2028 as a compression point: bringing together a broad coalition of groups with bold demands, to share collaborative corporate campaigns and electoral work. Long-time labor organizer, strategist, and In These Times executive director Alex Han coined the term ‘Plan 2028,’ which highlights the need to plan for such a coordinated action. There is a need to build power, grow our impact, and increase our capacity: through elections, issue and/or policy campaigns, and street heat in the buildup to May 2028. But we can’t wait until 2028 to take action! ‘Plan 2028’ can begin with May Day 2025.”

“Over the next three days, 2,400 cashiers, deli clerks, meat cutters, bakery workers, pastry decorators, florists and other grocery store staffers will decide whether Tony’s Fresh Market, the grocery chain founded by Italian immigrants in Logan Square and sold to private equity three years ago, will become a union shop. Tony’s workers from Joliet to Waukegan will cast their votes Tuesday through Thursday in an election held by the National Labor Relations Board. The union that hopes to represent the workers is the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 881, which already represents thousands of grocery workers at Mariano’s and Jewel-Osco grocery stores throughout the Chicago area. A majority of workers at Tony’s 21 supermarkets must vote ‘yes’ to secure a win for the union. The union election will be among the largest held in the American private sector so far this year. If the Tony’s workers vote to unionize, their fledgling bargaining unit could be the largest certified by the labor board this year, according to agency records. Tony’s workers who support the union have said they hope it could help them secure higher pay and better benefits.”

“Employees at the Natural History Museum and La Brea Tar Pits are forming a union through AFSCME District Council 36 as the Natural History Museum & Tar Pits Workers Union (NHMTPWU). The new union would represent approximately 300 workers and include performers, engineers, educators, guest relations associates, and more.”

“The electric vehicle industry in the Southeast is growing rapidly, with increased sales, charging stations and manufacturing. Buoyed by notable victories in the last couple of years, the United Auto Workers union is revving up efforts to organize the EV and battery sector in the South.  One target is a sprawling campus in rural Kentucky that, once completed, will be one of the largest EV battery plants in the world. A supermajority of workers at BlueOval SK has asked the National Labor Relations Board for a vote on joining the United Auto Workers. The nearly $6 billion electric vehicle battery campus in Glendale, Kentucky, is part of a joint venture between Ford and South Korea’s SK On. It’s not up and running yet, but early hires say they’re exposed to hazards on the job, including formation production operator Alisha Miller.”

“A new comprehensive survey of nearly 1,800 Volkswagen’s Chattanooga workers paints a stark picture of a workforce burdened by inferior health care benefits and skyrocketing out-of-pocket expenses that not only lag industry standards, but have also contributed to widespread financial hardship, debt, and, in many cases, a decision to forgo necessary medical care altogether.”

“National Labor Relations Board investigators allege that outdoor equipment retailer REI illegally excluded unionized employees in Berkeley and elsewhere from pay increases and bonuses given to non-unionized workers, according to a new complaint. The complaint, issued Wednesday by the NLRB’s regional director in Oakland, means investigators have found enough evidence to support charges that REI withheld those benefits from hundreds of employees at nine stores to discourage union membership. For years, the company has regularly rewarded workers with annual merit raises and bonuses.”

“In April 2021, after most workers in Bessemer, Alabama, voted against joining the union, some workers told the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) that the company had created ‘an atmosphere of confusion, coercion, and/or fear or reprisals’ before the vote. Complaints changed nothing. Now, in a critical study titled ‘Weaponizing the Workplace: How Algorithmic Management Shaped Amazon's Antiunion Campaign in Bessemer, Alabama,’ Teke Wiggin, a researcher at Northwestern University, says that Amazon might have pressured workers to vote in a certain way. According to Wiggin, Amazon might have leveraged ‘the specific control technique of algorithmic management to repel (not just prevent) collective action by workers.’”

“President Donald Trump’s announcement to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education has sparked alarm among educators, with experts and union leaders raising concerns over the potential long-term effects on civil rights protections and vital student support services. The executive order, which Trump signed Thursday afternoon, directs Education Secretary Linda McMahon to begin dismantling the agency and shift control of education back to the states. The order comes after the Education Department announced earlier this month that about half of its workforce would be laid off. In an emailed statement, Sheria Smith, president of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 252, which represents more than 2,800 Education Department workers, expressed concern for the impacts the move will have on civil servants and students across the country.”

“The Elon Musk-run “department of government efficiency” (Doge) in effect shuttered a 79-year-old federal agency that mediates labor disputes on Wednesday – saving an estimated 0.0014% of the federal budget. The Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS), an independent federal agency that works to prevent and resolve work stoppages and disputes in the public and private sector, has shut down most of its services and placed employees on administrative leave with firings to follow. ‘The administration released an executive order a week and a half ago naming FMCS as one of the agencies to be shuttered, but other than our agency denying it and making a few adjustments, we didn’t hear anything further,”’ said Jefferson Dedrick, a commissioner at FMCS. ‘Earlier today our mid-level managers informed each of the commissioners that effective at close of business, we would be put on admin leave with a RIF [reduction in force] letter to follow.’ The agency provided mediation for several high-profile strikes, including the Boeing strike last fall.”

“Bernie Sanders says more pro-worker candidates should run for office as independents rather than as Democrats. He’s right. Apparently not slowing down at eighty-three years old, Sen. Bernie Sanders is barnstorming the country with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) on a ‘Fighting Oligarchy’ tour to rally opposition to Donald Trump. At one stop on the tour in North Las Vegas last Thursday, the New York Times spoke with retired sixty-five-year-old construction worker Kelly Press about why he was there. Press described his struggle to make ends meet as a retiree in the face of the cost-of-living crisis of recent years; he also described his frustration that hardly anyone seemed to be leading an opposition to Trump:”

“Republicans in Congress are looking to cut massive funds from the federal budgets to pay for President Trump’s tax cuts for the wealthy, and these cuts are widely expected to come out of Medicaid funding. The GOP’s budget legislation in the House, adopted in late February, says the House Energy and Commerce Committee must find $880 billion in cuts over the next 10 years. Elon Musk, the unelected head of the Department of Government Efficiency, claims that ‘entitlement programs,’ like Medicaid and Medicare, could be cut up to $600-700 billion, alleging fraud and improper payments. In 2023, Medicaid spending totaled around $890 billion from the federal government, and any reductions would be a huge blow to those who benefit, given that federal dollars account for nearly 70% of the programs’ funding, with the rest funded by states.”

“Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin announced this week he would veto H.B. 2764, legislation that would greatly expand collective bargaining rights for public employees across the commonwealth. The news comes after the Republican governor announced he had vetoed more than 150 pieces of legislation sent to him by the Virginia General Assembly during its session.”

“A U.S. appeals court on Friday refused to pause a judge's ruling requiring the administration of President Donald Trump to reinstate 25,000 workers at 18 federal agencies who lost their jobs as part of Trump's purge of the federal workforce. A panel of the Richmond, Virginia-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said there was no reason to pause the decision because the judge in Baltimore, Maryland is expected to decide next week whether to extend it further, in a lawsuit brought by 19 Democrat-led states and Washington, D.C. The Trump administration in court filings on March 17 said that the agencies were working to reinstate the fired employees, while temporarily placing them on paid leave. Friday's decision will be in place pending the outcome of the administration's appeal.”

“A federal court on Thursday ordered Elon Musk and his minions to lay off our Social Security records. AFSCME President Lee Saunders praised the ruling, calling it a “major win” for working people and retirees nationwide. The U.S. District Court in Maryland issued a temporary restraining order in a case filed by Democracy Forward on behalf of AFSCME, the Alliance for Retired Americans and the American Federation of Teachers.”

“Joe Biden was the first president to join a union picket line and support labor’s side in a number of major disputes. His appointments to the National Labor Relations Board, the principal administrative agency handling labor-management conflict, interpreted the 90-year old National Labor Relations Act so as to enhance the rights of workers to organize. The Biden board promoted workplace democracy more effectively than any of its predecessors. As the saying goes, no good deed goes unpunished. President Trump’s second term presages the most anti-labor labor board appointees ever (his first-term NLRB had that same distinction). And equally or more troublesome, Trump, through his arbitrary dismissal of Biden-appointed board member Gwynne Wilcox has joined a position advanced by management labor lawyers at Starbucks, Trader Joe’s and Elon Musk’s Space X, among others. Together they wish to take a wrecking ball to labor law, asserting that the 90-year-old National Labor Relations Act and the independent agency it established are unconstitutional.”

“The gig economy has emerged as a defining aspect of the modern workforce, transforming how people work, earn, and engage with employers. Unlike traditional full-time jobs, gig workers benefit from significant flexibility. Digital platforms, such as popular widely used ridesharing services and other platforms like TaskRabbit have played a key role in this shift, making gig work more accessible than ever. Despite this newfound freedom, many workers have found themselves with limited power to influence a platform’s policies, including those involving compensation, benefits, and other working conditions. As a result, an organized labor movement has been gaining momentum within the gig economy, advocating for unions and the use of collective action to negotiate with employers for better protections and fairer treatment for workers.”

“Two unions representing almost 60,000 University of California workers called upon their members on Friday to strike in response to ‘unfair labor practices’ of the UC system. The University Professional and Technical Employees-Communications Workers of America (UPTE-CWA) 9119 and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 3299 both announced that their members will be striking across all University of California campuses on April 1 to protest what the organizations say is the UC's unwillingness to negotiate with the unions in good faith.”

“Hours after its faculty union voted to authorize a strike, Illinois State University said Friday that it’s initiated ‘academic contingency planning activities’ to minimize disruption if a work stoppage occurs. The United Faculty of ISU said Friday that its members voted ‘overwhelmingly’ in favor of a strike authorization. Exact vote totals were not provided. The union said the two sides are “still so far apart” on the financial aspects of its first contract. Associate professor of history Keith Pluymers, a spokesperson for United Faculty of ISU, said members are angry and frustrated.”

“Charlotte postal workers are protesting a Trump administration plan to sell or restructure the United States Postal Service. Members of the American Postal Workers Union will gather March 20 in front of 150 postal facilities across the country to sound the alarm about a proposed plan to unlawfully take over the independent public United States Postal Service and transfer it to the U.S. Department of Commerce or possibly break it up or sell it off completely.”

“As part of a national day of action at nearly 20 airports, flight attendants for United Airlines picketed outside Orlando International Airport Wednesday to ramp up the pressure for United to hammer out a new contract with their union. Travelers waiting for their flights, United Airlines pilots (who are also union) and Transportation Security Administration agents (whose union the Trump administration is trying to eliminate) joined flight attendants on the picket line. Flight attendants for United aren’t on strike — not yet. And according to Randy Hatfield, president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA Council 22 representing nearly 800 flight attendants in Florida, they want to be able to avoid that outcome altogether.”

“The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the trade group that negotiates with Hollywood unions on behalf of the major studios, named attorney Greg Hessinger as its new president on Tuesday. Hessinger, who has previously served in roles representing employers and unions, will start as AMPTP’s chief negotiator on April 14. Hessinger is entering the role after Carol Lombardini announced her retirement last year. Lombardini, who has been AMPTP’s chief negotiator for 15 years, will transition to an advisory role…. AMPTP represents major studios and streamers, including Walt Disney Co., Warner Bros. Discovery and Netflix.”