unions

Just When You Thought the Hostess Story Couldn’t Get Worse…

Money that was intended for employee pensions was used by Hostess Brands management to cover operating expenses and workers were never compensated for the lost payment, Yahoo News reports. An undetermined amount of money that Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Miller (BCTGM) members were supposed to receive as part of their contract with the …

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The Bangladeshi Triangle Shirtwaist Fire

When I first read about the horrendous fire in Bangladesh, I immediately thought of the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire in New York in 1911 — more than 100 years ago. In many ways, nothing has changed. In some ways, some things have changed. Today: A Bangladeshi garment factory that was producing clothes for Wal-Mart, Disney,  and …

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What You Need To Know About The Michigan GOP’s ‘Right-To-Work’ Assault On Workers

On Thursday, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R) backtrackedon his commitment to avoid so-called “right-to-work” legislation and by the end of the day, both the Michigan House of Representatives and the Michigan state Senate had introduced and passed separate bills aimed at the state’s union workforce. Michigan Republicans claim the state needs the measure to stay …

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3,000 Workers at 14 Industrial Laundry Sites Get Wage Gains, Keep Free Health Insurance

Industrial laundry workers, who wash linen for New York’s hotels, hospitals and restaurants, voted overwhelmingly to ratify a new master contract between 14 laundries in the New York Metro area and the Laundry, Distribution and Food Service Joint Board, Workers United/SEIU. The contract includes significant wage gains for laundry workers, a majority of which are …

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Striking SoCal Port Clerical Workers Win Outsourcing Controls in Tentative Pact

Some 450 office clerical workers—members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 63—are back on the job this morning in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, Calif., after the ILWU and port employers reached a tentative agreement Tuesday night that will prevent the outsourcing of jobs. ILWU International President Robert McEllrath …

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America Holding Walmart’s Feet to the Fire

Finally, someone is holding Walmart directly accountable for the abuse of workers in its contracted warehouses. “Recent discovery has established that Walmart bears ultimate responsibility for the violations of state and federal law committed against plaintiff warehouse workers,” said a court document filed in Los Angeles.   Walmart Targeted In Warehouse Worker Lawsuit – Huffington …

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Hostess Blames Union For Bankruptcy After Tripling CEO’s Pay

Today, Hostess Brands inc. — the company famed for its sickly sweet dessert snacks like Twinkies and Sno Balls — announced they’d be shuttering after more than eighty years of production. But while headlines have been quick to blame unions for the downfall of the company there’s actually more to the story: While the company …

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A Discussion on Granting Back Pay to Undocumented Workers under the NLRA and the IRCA

WASHINGTON, D.C. – At a Cornell ILR Alumni Reception on September 20, 2012, I asked NLRB Chairman Mark Pearce, the keynote speaker, about the nearly six-year deliberation and unusual concurrence in Mezonos Maven Bakery, where the NLRB ultimately reversed an Administrative Law Judge’s (ALJ) 2006 decision granting back pay to undocumented workers under the NLRA.  …

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Intellectual Imperialism

In order to think about ways to align labor rights and human rights and create the changes needed to eliminate the poverty and oppression caused by those ignoring the basic rights that all people should reasonably expect to enjoy; we must address the concept of Intellectual Imperialism. Intellectual Imperialism is the exploitation of intellectual capital …

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EEOC Can Use Teamsters-style Pattern-or-Practice Theory under Title VII § 706

Serrano sued in a class action claiming sex discrimination and the EEOC intervened. The trial court ruled for the employer on a number of issues; the 6th Circuit reversed. Serrano and EEOC v. Cintas Corp (6th Cir 11/09/2012). The main issue was whether EEOC could pursue a pattern-or-practice style claim pursuant to § 706 of …

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Madeline Messa

Madeline Messa is a 3L at Syracuse University College of Law. She graduated from Penn State with a degree in journalism. With her legal research and writing for Workplace Fairness, she strives to equip people with the information they need to be their own best advocate.