unions

Black-owned distillery embraces its workers’ union, this week in the war on workers

Leave a Comment / labor, unions, workplace safety / By max cyril

When workers at Du Nord Craft Spirits decided to form a union, joining UNITE HERE Local 17, the company voluntarily recognized them without any delay and in fact publicized the occasion itself. Du Nord bills itself as the first Black-owned distillery in the United States. “The production staff of Du Nord Craft Spirits chose to form a union …

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Amazon is intentionally burning through warehouse workers, but it may not be sustainable forever

Leave a Comment / NLRB, unions / By max cyril

Amazon defeated a union organizing drive in Alabama recently, but two major new articles on the company’s warehouses powerfully show why workers wanted to unionize—and why it’s going to be nearly impossible for such efforts to succeed. The New York Times led off with a damning look at JFK8, an Amazon fulfillment center in New York City. The …

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The Leadership Struggle In One of California’s Most Powerful Unions Just Keeps Getting Weirder

Leave a Comment / Labor Movement, unions / By max cyril

Accusations of cheating, chicanery and violent retaliation dog the SEIU Local 1000 election. The consequences for labor are very real. Even by the chaotic standards of the past year, the story of SEIU Local 1000 stands out for its bizarreness. One of the most politically powerful unions in California, representing nearly 100,000 state employees, announced last month that its …

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Striking ATI Steelworkers Hold the Line for Premium-Free Health Insurance

Leave a Comment / Labor Movement, manufacturing, unions / By max cyril

Across the country, steelworkers at nine plants of Allegheny Technologies, Inc. have been on strike for the last 11 weeks. They want raises; to stop contracting out; to secure full funding of their retirement benefits; and to beat back management’s efforts to introduce health insurance premiums and a second tier of coverage for younger workers. …

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Unemployment Benefits Protect Seasonal Workers

Leave a Comment / unemployment, unions / By max cyril

The Wisconsin state legislature wants to slash unemployment benefits. Seasonal workers rely on that money as job opportunities fluctuate throughout the year. This article is part of The Wisconsin Idea, an investigative reporting initiative focused on rural Wisconsin. Troy Brewer was pleased when the Milwaukee Bucks made the playoffs this year, and not just because he’s a big …

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Volvo Workers in Virginia Vote Down Bad Contract by 90 Percent—Again

Leave a Comment / Strike, unions / By max cyril

Auto workers at Volvo’s truck plant in southwest Virginia have just voted down a concessionary contract by 90 percent—for the second time. Now they’re back on strike. “The International union has been down here twice for town halls,” said Auto Workers (UAW) Local 2069 member Rhonda Sisk. “Each time we say ‘take it back, it’s …

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Los Deliveristas Speak: How Delivery Workers Are Organizing to Take On the Apps

Leave a Comment / Collective Bargaining, Uncategorized, unions / By max cyril

More than 2,000 food couriers snarled traffic in Times Square through pouring rain in protest April 21 demanding better working conditions and protection from violent assaults. The mass demonstration was organized by Los Deliveristas Unidos, a loose network of immigrant gig workers that was born in the strife of the pandemic last year through online chat …

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UBER’S NEW GIG WORKER BILL IS THE SAME OLD TRICK: DEREGULATION AND SPECIAL TREATMENT FOR EXPLOITIVE COMPANIES

Leave a Comment / discrimination, Independant Contractors, unions / By max cyril

In New York State, legislators are reportedly considering a bill, brokered by gig companies including Uber and Lyft, that would remove app-based drivers and food delivery workers from virtually all labor and discrimination protections. Though its supporters are selling this “Right to Bargain Act” as a novel form of bargaining in the app-based economy, there’s nothing …

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When These Workers Unionized, Their Cafe Was Put Up for Sale—So They Bought It

Leave a Comment / Pandemic, unions / By max cyril

PROVIDENCE, R.I.?—?Five former White Electric Coffee workers gather at the Dexter Training Grounds next to the Providence Armory, slightly stunned. Earlier that morning, April 14, they signed the purchase agreement to own the café. In just 10 months, this small group of baristas went from forming a union to creating a workers cooperative to buying the business for around half a million dollars. …

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How Many Strikes Are There in the U.S.?

Leave a Comment / labor, Labor Movement, Strike, unions / By max cyril

How many strikes are there in the United States? It’s a question with obvious importance to labor activists, yet there is no readily accessible answer. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) releases an annual work stoppage summary in February reporting the number of strikes and lockouts over the prior year—but only those that involved at least 1,000 …

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