Despite the challenges of organizing during a deadly pandemic, working people across the country (and beyond) continue organizing, bargaining and mobilizing for a better life. This edition begins with several groups of organizers who won voluntary recognition of their new unions. Kentucky Democratic Party Staff Join IBEW: Staff at the Kentucky Democratic Party have joined …
As a strike wave sweeps the U.S. healthcare industry amid the Covid-19 pandemic, 700 frontline workers at 11 Chicago-area nursing homes have been on the picket lines since November 23. Primarily Black and Latina women, the striking workers are members of SEIU Healthcare Illinois & Indiana and include certified nursing assistants (CNAs), dietary aides, housekeepers and laundry workers. They are fighting for at least $15 an hour, …
It may have been the biggest mislabeled celebration in American history. By midday Saturday, November 7, when the election was finally called, hordes of ecstatic people poured into the streets across the country, honking and cheering and weeping with joy. This was widely referred to as a celebration of President-elect Joe Biden. But it really wasn’t about …
Amid widespread concerns that President Donald Trump will attempt to steal today’s election or refuse to leave office if he loses, the leaders of multiple Chicago-area unions issued a joint statement on Monday committing to take any nonviolent action necessary?—?up to and including a general strike?—?to defend democracy. “Every single vote has to be counted,” says Stacy Davis Gates, vice president of the …
Labor leaders are eyeing a Joe Biden victory in November as the start of a union revival, one with the potential to undo decades of policies that have diminished union influence, undermined the right to organize and exacerbated income inequality. And they’re planning on playing a central role. “It’s clear to me it’s going to …
Unions predict a Great Awakening during a Biden presidency Read More »
While U.S. union density hit an all-time low in 2019, the nonprofit sector appears to be one area where workers are unionizing. The Nonprofit Professional Employees Union (NPEU) brought seven new workplaces into their union during a 16-day period in April, including the environmental organization Friends of the Earth. And while there is no official data on …
How Unions Can Bridge the Gap Between Climate and Labor Movements Read More »
Detroit bus drivers, the first essential workers in the country to strike for safety during the pandemic, pulled a wildcat work stoppage again Friday, angry over escalating violence against drivers. Often the attacks are triggered, they said, by a driver’s request that a passenger wear a mask. Drivers returned to work this morning with a promise …
Our health care employer announced hundreds of unnecessary layoffs this spring. Outraged at its poorly disguised greed, we didn’t just rely on negotiations. Instead, the members of our union voted unanimously to take the fight to the streets and into the community. We spent the summer fighting back—including holding our local’s first-ever pickets. Essentia Health …
Hospital Workers Fight Job Cuts at Duluth’s Biggest Employer Read More »
If your stereotype of a union worker is a white guy in a hard hat, let’s take this Labor Day to change that in a big way. Here’s the reality: 46.2% of union workers are women, and 36.1% are people of color. Black workers are the most likely to be represented by a union. More than half of …
Let’s set the record straight on unions this Labor Day Read More »
We need millions of union jobs that are good for both workers and the climate. The renewable energy industry in the United States is booming. Prior to the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has put millions out of work, over 3 million people worked in clean energy?—?far more than those who worked in the fossil fuel industry. …
Why Every Job in the Renewable Energy Industry Must Be a Union Job Read More »
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.
