The Weekly Download

“Over the last few years, workers in the United States have propelled a resurgent wave of union organizing. With the approval of organized labor at its highest among young people, it’s no surprise that colleges and universities have been a linchpin of the movement. Across the country—from resident advisers at Columbia University to dining workers at William & Mary to undergraduates at Dartmouth and beyond—workers in higher education are demanding better pay and conditions as tuition and fees continue to skyrocket. To understand what’s at stake, we asked a few young organizers and student journalists to give an update on a few of these ongoing campus campaigns.”

“Nine hundred DHL Express workers at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) just won a union election. They voted 505 to 288 in favor of unionizing with the Teamsters. The ramp agents spoke with us ahead of their union drive to expose the dangerous conditions they face every day. They told us they’ve suffered broken bones, sleep deprivation, and other serious injuries on the job. They’re organizing for safer conditions and better pay.”

“A hundred immigrant seafood processing workers in New Bedford, Massachusetts, lost their jobs March 31 when their employer abruptly terminated its contract with the temp agency that placed them. Workers say it was retaliation for organizing.”

“Unionizing at Sloss in 2023 wasn’t something past workers would have believed possible, because Sloss Furnaces' working conditions were frequently harsh. Long working hours, low pay and hazardous working conditions were imposed on workers, many of whom were immigrants and African Americans. They were often injured and ill from their work in the furnaces and blast furnaces, which were hot, noisy and frequently dangerous. In the past, to improve their wages and working conditions, employees at Sloss began organizing. The Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel, and Tin Workers orchestrated a lengthy strike at Sloss Furnaces in 1907. Yet the workers returned to their jobs with few concessions after the strike was finally ended by force. Eventually, Sloss Furnaces closed in 1970. And now they’ve turned that dark history around by voluntarily acknowledging the union.”

“In spring 2021, workers at The Walters Art Museum in Baltimore announced they were forming a union, Walters Workers United. Although a supermajority of workers expressed support for a union, museum leadership refused to voluntarily recognize or even meet with workers. Management insisted that workers go through a union election process that would exclude many workers from the bargaining unit. Today, workers are glad they held strong in their demand for a wall-to-wall union – one that would include all workers, not just some and exclude the rest – and fought for all departments, including security staff, to be able to vote to join their union. On March 27, members of Walters Workers United and management of Walters Art Museum finally reached an election agreement that would allow workers vote for their union through an election conducted by a neutral third party. That’s similar to the process used by Pratt Workers United and the Baltimore Museum of Art Union, who both won union representation through AFSCME.”

“Ben & Jerry’s, the ice cream brand owned by Unilever Plc, has agreed to terms for a unionization process proposed by workers at its flagship store in Burlington, Vermont. The union, Workers United, proposed principles that go well beyond what is currently required by US labor law, including commitments that the company would not disparage the union or hold mandatory anti-union meetings without giving the union equal time to respond. The principles also included eschewing 'implicit threats’ that would be ‘lawful but unethical.’...The principles do not guarantee unionization, but specify that the company will either recognize the union once a majority of workers are determined to have signed up, or cooperate with scheduling an election as quickly as possible.”

“A regional director for the National Labor Relations Board filed a complaint Tuesday accusing Medieval Times management of an illegal scheme to undermine union support at its castle in Buena Park, California. Last year, workers at the castle launched a union campaign to improve pay and working conditions, gathering signed union cards from members of the show cast, horseback-riding knights and stablehands. Later a petition was circulated in which some workers who had signed union cards asked to retract them.”

"Following a recent protest calling on Northeastern officials to allow graduate students to unionize, the university admonished organizers for failing to plan the demonstration around a campus ceremony for the victims of the 2013 Boston Marathon Bombing... But in an April 26 email statement to The News, the GENU-UAW Organizing Committee that staged the protest accused the university of  'weaponiz[ing] the tragedy of the Boston marathon bombing to undermine our labor rights as graduate workers.'"

“Kimberly Baker did everything right. She was at the top of her high school class and began working at the age of seventeen in a grocery store in Lincoln, Nebraska. She completed a degree in foreign languages while working full time in the insurance industry. But despite her skills and perseverance, the thirty-eight-year-old single mother earns only $13.26 an hour, too little to rent a modest apartment.”

“The Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers had been negotiating over pay, streaming residuals and other issues for a new contract to replace a three-year deal that expired May 1….Here’s everything leading up to and what you need to know about a writers strike.”

"The leaders of three faculty unions voted Sunday to approve contract language finalized Friday with Rutgers University, meaning a tentative agreement is ready for union members to vote on “in the coming days” to formally end a long standoff that led to an unprecedented walkout, according to a union announcement."

“Pilots for American Airlines have voted to approve a strike, if the negotiations currently taking place are not fruitful. Members of the Allied Pilots Association union employed by American were offered a raise to match the market rate set by Delta Air Lines earlier this year that raised pay by more than 30%. But American Airlines pilots are pushing the airline to change its scheduling methods and rules, arguing that it’s necessary for pilots’ well-being and to avoid flight cancellations and delays.”

“After 65 days on the picket line, workers at Metal-Matic in Bedford Park, Illinois have ratified their first union contract, winning equal pay for equal work, and an end to major pay disparities. The 140 workers who make steel tubing for major automakers and suppliers joined UAW Local 588 in June of 2021, and have been fighting for a first contract for nearly two years. ‘These UAW members held a 24/7 picket line for two months through torrential rain, hurricane-force winds, and bitter cold,’ said UAW Region 4 Director Brandon Campbell. ‘They showed us all the power of solidarity.’”

“Union President Anthony Burke said he and his members are looking for what he called a “fair and equitable” salary increase. He did not detail the specific requests besides saying the ideal pay bump would be similar to what the town has agreed to with the teachers and police unions over the past several months…The fire department is staffed with 42 firefighters, a number Burke said is not enough to appropriately handle an increasing call volume in the growing town. Studies on staffing levels in the past have recommended 11 firefighters for each of the department’s four crews, but that number is at nine currently, he said…The fire union in December filed for assistance with the state Joint Labor-Management Committee, which helps resolve collective bargaining disputes involving municipalities and police and fire departments.”

“When the union representing Hollywood writers laid out its list of objectives for contract negotiations with studios this spring, it included familiar language on compensation, which the writers say has either stagnated or dropped amid an explosion of new shows. But far down, the document added a distinctly 2023 twist. Under a section titled ‘Professional Standards and Protection in the Employment of Writers,’ the union wrote that it aimed to ‘regulate use of material produced using artificial intelligence or similar technologies.’”

“Delta Air Lines' (DAL.N) industry-changing pilot contract that offers $7 billion in higher pay and benefits is putting pressure on rival carriers to hand out similar deals ahead of a busy summer travel season. Any proposal that falls short of Delta's deal will likely have no takers among the unions, but airline executives say even matching that contract could balloon operating costs at a time when a worsening economy has clouded travel outlook.”

“US freight rail companies nearly spurred a nationwide railroad strike last fall by refusing to grant paid sick days, but in a surprise move welcomed by workers, those railroads have recently granted paid sick days to almost half their workforce. After being roundly criticized for not offering paid sick days, the leading rail companies – BNSF, CSX, Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific – have granted many of their 93,000 workers four paid sick days a year through labor negotiations, with an option of taking three more paid sick days from personal days.”

“...winning a union election is only the first step. To realize their goals for pay, benefits, job security, scheduling, safety, and other working terms and conditions, newly formed unions need to successfully negotiate a first contract. All the available data, however, show that reaching a first contract generally takes a long time—often a year or more after union recognition. And, in some cases, no contract is ever signed.”

“In order to guarantee that California has an economy that works for everybody, impacted workers must be at the center of planning for the ongoing transition to clean energy, and they must have access to union jobs that guarantee financial security, strong protections, and good benefits.”

“In this report, we assess how the federal government’s $931 billion fiscal response points the way to a permanent tool to boost worker power: a federal guaranteed income, or a direct public cash investment without attached obligations, arriving on a predictable monthly basis. We explore the potential of guaranteed income to boost worker power, by analyzing findings from U.S. guaranteed income pilots, from federal pandemic cash policies, and from other available research. We also listen to what workers themselves say about how cash affects their agency over their work lives and their ability to exercise their power in the economy, and weave their stories throughout the report.”

“In their latest effort to invest resources, raise awareness and build a safe space for the wellness of the professional athlete community, the NFL Players Association (NFLPA), National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), NHL Players’ Association (NHLPA), MLB Players Association (MLBPA), MLS Players Association (MLSPA) and Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) announced a collaborative campaign on Monday for May’s Mental Health Awareness Month.”

"Watch the Burnes Center for Social Change's Seth Harris in conversation with Tony Clark, Executive Director of the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA), as they discuss the minor league organizing success, baseball players as workers, the importance of unions in baseball, and more."

"Listen to the Burnes Center for Social Change's Seth Harris in conversation with Tony Clark, Executive Director of the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA), as they discuss the minor league organizing success, baseball players as workers, the importance of unions in baseball, and more."