Hispanic Heritage Month Profiles: Mayra Muñoz
Throughout Hispanic Heritage Month, the AFL-CIO will be profiling leaders and activists to spotlight the diverse contributions Hispanics and Latinos have made to the labor movement. Today's profile features Mayra Muñoz.
Mayra Muñoz has been the president of UAW Local 1850 (Asociación Empleados del ELA), which represents nearly 350 members who work at Puerto Rico's largest credit union. Muñoz has served as the local union's president since 2009. Muñoz fought tirelessly to protect UAW members and win better wages and benefits despite the economic challenges on the island. Muñoz is currently the president of CAP Puerto Rico.
Kenneth Quinnell Fri, 09/16/2022 - 10:30Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Rocker Tom Morello Holds the Line with UMWA Members on Strike at Warrior Met Coal
Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we'll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
Hundreds of members of the Mine Workers (UMWA) have been on strike against Warrior Met Coal in Alabama for nearly a year and a half. These union members are standing strong, demanding a fair contract that repays them for the sacrifices they made several years ago to bring Warrior Met Coal’s predecessor out of bankruptcy. The UMWA strikers have received support from the entire labor movement throughout their courageous fight against management greed.
Rock star Tom Morello (AFM) rallied with UMWA members on strike Wednesday to give them his support and solidarity. Morello performed his labor rock anthem, “Hold the Line,” about brave union members across the country who are standing up for dignity and justice at work.
Kenneth Quinnell Fri, 09/16/2022 - 10:03Workers Need Stronger Labor Laws Now More Than Ever
Nearly 20 years after the publication of Kate Bronfenbrenner’s groundbreaking report on the state of organizing, she testified this week before Congress to preview new data showing that working people continue to face significant barriers in their efforts to form a union. Her testimony was given during a hearing before the House Education and Labor Committee on corporate union-busting and removing barriers to organizing. Bronfenbrenner’s testimony highlighted that while election win-rates have increased, the level of opposition workers face has intensified. Her analysis is further evidence for why we must pass the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act.
“Strengthening our labor laws has never been more urgent,” AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said in response to the new data. “The working people who keep our economy going each day deserve the freedom to join or form a union without intimidation and fear. All workers deserve dignity and respect on the job.”
Approval of unions has reached 71%—the highest rate in nearly 60 years—and a significant portion of workers report that they would join a union if they could. Despite this unprecedented period of organizing, with millions of workers standing up nationwide to demand fairness on the job, the conditions that workers face have not changed much over the past two decades. Bronfenbrenner’s findings show that a majority of companies still hire union-busting firms to deploy aggressive anti-union campaigns to thwart worker organizing.
Rates of retaliation, coercion, threats and intimidation remain inexcusably high:
- Eighty-five percent of employers used captive audience meetings while 71% used one-on-one meetings to harass workers.
- Forty-four percent interrogated workers about union activity.
- Forty-five percent threatened workers with plant closings, outsourcing or contracting out of their work.
The evolution of technology has allowed employers to introduce newer and so-called softer tactics to prevent organizing. Bronfenbrenner found that surveillance of workers has doubled and this includes monitoring through phones, computers key cards, social media and more. Email communication has jumped from 3% to 43%, and employers now use text messages 18% of the time to contact workers with anti-union messages. While this data primarily shows employer opposition only after workers have filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), it does not reflect what workers know from lived experience—about how increased surveillance and other tactics are used by employers to mount anti-union campaigns even before a petition is filed.
These tactics continue to have a chilling effect on working people’s desire to organize and improve their workplaces. Workers have had to be more cautious in filing petitions for elections with the NLRB because employer misconduct so often precludes a fair election. And even when workers are successful in organizing by going through the NLRB election process, only 36% of elections result in a first contract within the first year while 44% still do not have a union contract within three years.
Without strong labor laws, workers will remain vulnerable to corporate abuse and overreach. Building a more equitable economy requires that employers be held accountable for violating workers’ rights.
Read Bronfenbrenner’s full testimony here.
Kenneth Quinnell Thu, 09/15/2022 - 14:30Hispanic Heritage Month Profiles: Aldo Gomez
Throughout Hispanic Heritage Month, the AFL-CIO will be profiling leaders and activists to spotlight the diverse contributions Hispanics and Latinos have made to the labor movement. Today's profile features Aldo Gomez.
Aldo Gomez is a first-generation American, and his family is originally from Guatemala. He recently led a Pipeline and Pawprints fundraiser, where he raised nearly $10,000 to save dogs and cats from euthanasia. He coordinated the donations with his company, which matched member donations dollar for dollar. In his job, Gomez plans and oversees distribution projects to help ensure safe operations.
Kenneth Quinnell Thu, 09/15/2022 - 11:52Tags: Hispanic Heritage Month
Freight Railroad Worker Stories: Dennis Sabina of TWU
At a recent virtual U.S. Freight Railroad Worker Town Hall, Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO, President Greg Regan introduced a group of workers who explained the challenges they’ve faced in their three-year fight for a new contract with U.S. freight railroad companies:
Since 2015, seven major railroad companies made $146 billion in net profits off the backs of these workers. That’s the most money they’ve ever made in the history of railroading—even more than the Gilded Era railroad robber barons. During this same time period, the companies eliminated 45,000 jobs from the industry. Instead of recognizing the value of these workers, the companies have enacted massive job cuts and offered the remaining workers a net pay cut and worse health care benefits than they have now. This is unacceptable.
In the coming days, the AFL-CIO will share the stories of these workers. Check back here every day for more.
Today’s story comes from Dennis Sabina of the Transport Workers Union (TWU). Dennis works as a carman at Norfolk Southern in Conway, Pennsylvania.
Sabina said: “I’ve been a railroader for 17 years. When I started, there were around 100 people and now we're down to about 50, so we've lost half of our workforce. We’ve also lost a lot of equipment that we used to have, like cranes, that we would use in our daily job function. Yet they expect us to keep everything moving the same as it was five or 10 years ago.
“In my department, they aren't hiring. So I still have six students that are laid off, and the railroad isn't bringing them back even though they clearly need more workers. It's all about the bottom dollar for them.
“All the layoffs and everything obviously have put us all into a position to work more. Obviously, that's going to take a toll on our bodies.
“Meanwhile, the workforce has gotten older. Our median age is about 50 years old, I would say. There’s a lot of wear and tear. We're walking on uneven surfaces, and it's just easier when you're 25. Your knees and back and shoulders are wearing out and you slow down over the years.
“I just had a knee replacement because of the walking conditions. Instead of paying to have smooth walking surfaces, the railroad lets us pay the price. We worked through the pandemic; while the management people stayed at home, we had to come and produce for them and keep the trains moving."
Service + Solidarity Spotlight: AFGE Organized 4,436 Government Workers in August
Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we'll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
AFGE welcomed 4,436 new members to its union family in August, representing the fifth consecutive month of growth. The union saw a net gain of 655 members—the highest in five months—as other members retired, switched jobs or left the union.
“We are not just growing our membership, but growing our union, our power and our ability to command new rights at the bargaining table, pay raises and job security on the Hill, a demand for fair treatment for every single federal and D.C. government employee,” said AFGE Membership and Organization Director Dave Cann.
Kenneth Quinnell Thu, 09/15/2022 - 09:42The Deeper Impact of Student Loan Forgiveness
President Biden recently announced that his administration will forgive $10,000 of student loan debt for low- and middle-class borrowers. Borrowers who received Pell Grants will be eligible for forgiveness of up to $20,000. Forgiveness will be limited to borrowers who earn less than $125,000 a year, and nearly 90% of the relief goes to borrowers who make less than $75,000 a year.
The announcement means that up to 43 million borrowers will benefit from forgiveness, with 20 million borrowers having their full remaining balance canceled. This will cut monthly payments in half for undergraduate loans.
Among the many Americans who will benefit from this move are union members. We talked to several union members who will benefit directly from Biden's plan. Here are their stories:
Laura Morand, AFSCME Local 2627: Morand is an IT professional for the New York City Fire Department. Morand took loans out to get herself through college and to ensure her kids had an opportunity to pursue an education. At one point, she had $305,000 in debt and saw no light at the end of the tunnel.
Through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, Morand saw nearly $200,000 in student loan debt wiped away. “Ten years ago, it was very difficult,” Morand said. “When I was raising my kids, I didn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. Now, we’re able to have more freedom and be comfortable. All those years of suffering seem to be paying off. I feel almost 200,000 pounds lighter.”
Aaron Crane, AFSCME Local 2773: Crane works for the Parks and Recreation Department with the city of Avon, Ohio. He had nearly $40,000 in student loans, a financial burden that limited many opportunities for his family. He had his entire balance wiped away through the PSLF. “Having my loans forgiven means that such a huge burden has been lifted from my family,” Crane said. “It’s like this elephant in the room when we used to do our finances, but now it's like we have so many more opportunities and ways to care and support our family.”
Mistie Ryan, American Federation of Teachers (AFT) Local 1465: Ryan shared that when she “woke up to this...it was like winning the lotto. Such a relief. I've been turning in the exact same documents yearly, the only difference is the settlement. I'm so thankful to Randi and our union for fighting for this.”
Kelly Crone, United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 27: Crone, who currently works as a call center representative at a local credit union in western Maryland, has been a UFCW member for 17 years. She currently serves as a shop steward and participated in UFCW’s free college program. Her family took out about $25,000 in student loans when her son attended West Virginia University, where he graduated in 2018. “We only had a short period of paying on them before they got deferred because of COVID, but even having a relatively small amount—it was still $260 a month,” Crone said. “That’s a car payment, that’s half of some people’s rent, that’s a lot of money to have to budget out. I have another daughter, so I’ve always been stressed about—are we going to have these paid off in time for her to go to school to be able to get her a college education? Now that they’re doing the debt forgiveness, that’s going to help us out greatly. It won’t pay them off, but we’ll have a small balance once we find how much we qualify for. And that’s going to be so beneficial for my son. He’s now at the point where’s he ready to settle down and buy a house, and this student debt forgiveness will help him continue on with his life.”
Kenneth Quinnell Wed, 09/14/2022 - 11:53Service + Solidarity Spotlight: NFL Is Back, and So Are NFLPA’s Community MVPs
Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we'll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
The new NFL season started last week, and that means the NFL Players Association (NFLPA) is also starting this season’s highlights of its members who are going above and beyond to serve their communities off the field. Myles Garrett, who plays as a defensive end with the Cleveland Browns, is this year’s Week 1 NFLPA Community MVP.
His Back-to-School Kickoff saw hundreds of students from the Boys and Girls Clubs of Northeast Ohio receive free haircuts and hair styling before their first day of school, as well as essential back-to-school supplies. “From a very young age, my family taught me that helping other people is not just the nice thing to do; it’s the right thing to do,” said the six-year NFL player. “I’m passionate about uplifting the next generation, and I plan to positively impact as many lives as possible for as long as I can.”
Kenneth Quinnell Wed, 09/14/2022 - 10:05Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Pro Baseball Players Lock Arms with AFL-CIO
Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we'll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
On Wednesday, the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) officially announced that it is joining the wider labor movement as the 58th affiliate of the AFL-CIO. “We have an opportunity to advance player rights and worker rights in a way that we have not seen in generations,” said MLBPA Executive Director Tony Clark. “So, if not now—if not us—then when?”
Watch a short video of the announcement.
Kenneth Quinnell Fri, 09/09/2022 - 10:53Working People Welcome Major League Baseball Players to AFL-CIO
Yesterday, the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) became the 58th affiliate of AFL-CIO. President Liz Shuler welcomed the MLBPA to the federation: “The MLBPA and every single one of its 1,200 players have a home in our movement because this union understands and lives the meaning of the word solidarity by leveraging the power of sports and helping others. Together, with our 12.5 million members, we will bring our strength to their fights, including working to organize 5,400 minor league players.”
“The MLBPA has a proud, 56-year history of success rooted in unity and a highly engaged membership,” Executive Director Tony Clark said. “We look forward to bringing that history and experience to bear as a more formal part of the movement.”
Here is what AFL-CIO's other affiliates said in welcoming the baseball players:
AFSCME:
Summer days, double plays, and the union way.
Welcome to the @AFLCIO Family, @MLBPA! #1u
👏⚾️✊ https://t.co/b7W6mmv0U4
American Federation of Teachers:
Excited to welcome @MLBPA to the @AFLCIO union family! #1u ✊⚾️ https://t.co/bjTdfnAsyy
— AFT (@AFTunion) September 7, 2022Boilermakers:
Great news for baseball fans! #Boilermakers send our congratulations to the @MLBPA ⚾ for officially affiliating with the @AFLCIO! #1u#BoilermakersUnion #UnionStrong #UnionProud
— Boilermakers Union (@boilermakernews) September 7, 2022International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers:
IFPTE Applauds and Welcomes MLBPA to the House of Labor #1u https://t.co/Dcq2AMlzgR
— IFPTE (@IFPTE) September 7, 2022Italian American Actors:
great to see! https://t.co/qCR3gMSGWw
— GIAA (@GIAA_Union) September 8, 2022Jobs With Justice:
What a week for the @MLBPA! More than half of the minor league players signed union cards and now the affiliation announcement.
Solidarity, y'all! https://t.co/ThZMu1OGrr
Labor Council for Latin American Advancement:
Welcome to the fold @MLBPA! We are thrilled to have new faces striving for the #uniondifference https://t.co/D8sYzkIJg2
— LCLAA (@LCLAA) September 7, 2022Machinists:
Congratulations to @MLBPA on their affiliation approval to join the @AFLCIO! 💪⚾️✊ They will join the AFL-CIO's Sports Council with @NFLPA, @nwsl_players, @USLPlayers, & @USWNTPlayers. #UnionStrong #1u https://t.co/bUOmbMGJCm
— Machinists Union (@MachinistsUnion) September 7, 2022National Association of Letter Carriers:
Welcome, @MLBPA! We're stronger together.💪#1u #UnionStrong https://t.co/xrMp6Pzql4
— Letter Carriers (@NALC_National) September 7, 2022National Nurses United:
Welcome to the AFL-CIO team @MLBPA.
We can't wait to watch your home runs organizing Minor League players and winning at the bargaining table!⚾️✊ https://t.co/q5OqeNSFLD
NWSL Players Association:
Welcome, @MLBPA! 👏 https://t.co/jKH9R4TDhL
— NWSLPA (@nwsl_players) September 7, 2022NFL Players Association:
Excited to have the @MLBPA as the newest member of the @AFLCIO Sports Council 👏 #PowertothePlayers https://t.co/sWzYqzEeSE
— NFLPA (@NFLPA) September 7, 2022Office and Professional Employees:
We are proud to call the members of the @MLBPA the newest members of our @AFLCIO family — and look forward to supporting the campaign to #UnionizeTheMinors. ⚾️ ✊ #1u https://t.co/q82srb27OJ
— OPEIU (@OPEIU) September 7, 2022Pride At Work:
@PrideatWork is excited to welcome the @MLBPA to the @AFLCIO. The labor movement is stronger when we stand together.
Who's on 1st? Unions.#PlayBall #UnionYes #1u pic.twitter.com/dy7DKpoeGY
Professional Aviation Safety Specialists:
PASS joins our union brothers & sisters @AFLCIO welcoming @MLBPA! We support efforts to organize minor league players so they have rights & protections all workers deserve. Our members at FAA are proud to do their part in ensuring that @MLB teams (esp @Natsbaseballmlb!) fly safe! pic.twitter.com/H8cWooJSO7
— PASS (@PASSNational) September 7, 2022Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union:
Welcome, @MLBPA! We're proud to be in this fight alongside you 💪 #1u https://t.co/nxDBvwXqMR
— RWDSU (@RWDSU) September 7, 2022Roofers and Waterproofers:
Welcome to the @AFLCIO, @MLBPA. We are stronger together! #UnionYes #Solidarity https://t.co/Lsqg0T0CiU
— Roofers Union (@roofersunion) September 7, 2022SAG-AFTRA:
Congratulations to the @MLBPA for receiving @AFLCIO affiliation! 👏 Welcome to the family! pic.twitter.com/Af3QLgLvoq
— SAG-AFTRA (@sagaftra) September 7, 2022Theatrical Stage Employees:
The kin of the IATSE welcome you to the AFL-CIO family, @MLBPA! https://t.co/SdweVZWSCN
— IATSE // #IASolidarity (@IATSE) September 7, 2022Transport Workers Union:
Like all those employed, professional baseball players deserve a union and the strength that comes with worker solidarity. @transportworker congratulates @MLBPA on joining the @AFLCIO. Let's go Mets!
— John Samuelsen (@TwuSamuelsen) September 7, 2022UNITE HERE:
Our @MLBPA siblings have stood with us on many occasions and we welcome them to the federation! Together we are a more powerful movement that no billionaire's money can take on. https://t.co/Bcls0aJki6
— UNITE HERE (@unitehere) September 8, 2022United Steelworkers:
We make 'em. You swing 'em. Welcome to the team, @MLBPA! #1u #EverybodysUnion #MLB pic.twitter.com/5dFrjonobH
— United Steelworkers #EverybodysUnion (@steelworkers) September 7, 2022 Kenneth Quinnell Thu, 09/08/2022 - 12:51Tags: MLB Players Association
Once 'Essential,' Then Expendable, American Workers are Transforming the Economy
In just one second, Amazon’s executive chairman Jeff Bezos makes nearly $2500. That’s four times the weekly pay of an Amazon delivery or warehouse worker toiling in the sweltering summer heat.
Last year alone $6.5 trillion flowed from the bottom 90% of wage earners to the top 1%. That means the janitor who cleans our child’s school, the nurse who cares for our sick father and the grocery clerk who always greets us with a smile are struggling, while the wealthiest among us literally skyrocket into space with bottomless bank accounts.
Upward mobility seems out of reach for most Americans. Young people are backsliding with low wages, out-of-control housing prices and crushing health care costs.
But our story—the American worker’s story—will not be written by billionaires. This Labor Day, working people are writing a new chapter infused with hope for a brighter future. We’re no longer tolerating being called “essential” one minute and treated as expendable the next. Whether on a manufacturing shop floor, in a high-rise office, in a corner cafe or Amazon warehouse, workers are transforming our economy.
Recent data shows that workers won 639 union elections already this year, the highest win total in nearly 20 years. What’s notable is that those victories occurred in many different industries. The heroic organizing efforts at Starbucks and Amazon have captured our imagination.
And there have been worker victories big and small across the economy this year. Like the 19,000 graduate researchers in California who won a union for more equitable treatment at universities and nurses in Maine and North Carolina who wore trash bags as makeshift protections against COVID before organizing unions to win safety protections every worker deserves.
All across America, workers’ power is growing by the day as more demand the rights and democracy on the job that the laws of the United States promise us all.
But too many corporations haven’t moved with the times. At every turn, working people meet resistance from our employers when we try to form a union. Public approval of unions is the highest in my lifetime, a 57-year peak according to a 2022 Gallup survey released this week. Nearly 60 million workers would vote to join a union tomorrow. But far too few get that chance.
As president of the AFL-CIO, the umbrella organization of America’s unions, I am elected by everyone from soccer players to construction workers to educators to help all working people make our voices heard. My favorite part of this job is being on the frontlines of these fights with the workers who are leading them.
I see a lightbulb go off when people realize we don’t have to accept abysmal working conditions. Instead of quitting jobs in frustration, we can stand together as part of a union, and have the power to demand change.
Some corporate executives are evolving, like Microsoft President Brad Smith, who is respecting workers’ freedom to join a union. Microsoft worked with the Communications Workers of America to enter into a labor neutrality agreement at Microsoft and Activision Blizzard, because the company knows allowing workers to join a union is the best way for employers to count their employees as true partners.
But Microsoft is the exception, not the rule. Most CEOs still revert to a decades’ old playbook of stifling worker voice, often breaking the law to do so. When employers use retaliation, harassment and illegal firings to try to stop organizing, they reject the best path forward for an equitable economy and basic fairness on the job.
No worker should have to stand alone in the face of the power and ruthlessness of billionaire CEOs. That’s why the AFL-CIO is launching an effort this year to resource helping workers unionize at an unprecedented level, making organizing the center of everything we do as a movement. Our new Center for Transformational Organizing aims to level the playing field by uniting our unions in strategic support of workers who are simply fighting for the American Dream of a better, more secure life.
Standing together, working people are raising wages that lift up entire communities. We’re solving climate change while creating good jobs with clean energy. We’re investing in the infrastructure that builds our nation’s future. We’re developing technologies like semiconductors to keep America globally competitive. We’re fighting for social and racial justice so economic gains are broadly shared. And we’re making workplaces safer, healthier and free from discrimination.
A more democratic workplace is coming. If you are one of the majority of America’s workers who are thinking about joining a union, now is the time. This Labor Day marks the dawn of a new era of worker power. And we’re never going back.
This post originally appeared in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Kenneth Quinnell Thu, 09/08/2022 - 10:30Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Union Members Rally and Canvass for Pro-Labor Candidates in Lansing
Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we'll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
More than two dozen union members from the Greater Lansing Labor Council recently gathered in Michigan’s state capital to kick off their Labor 2022 campaign. They came together from a range of different affiliates, including the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU), National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA), Operating Engineers (IUOE), the UAW and the United Association of Union Plumbers and Pipefitters (UA), to rally and canvass for candidates endorsed by the labor movement. The event was held in front of the Michigan State AFL-CIO’s office in Lansing, and Rep. Elissa Slotkin was there to thank union members for coming out and showing support.
Kenneth Quinnell Thu, 09/08/2022 - 09:57A.B. 257 Is a Big Step Forward for California Fast-Food Workers
On Labor Day, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed A.B. 257 into law, delivering to workers one of the most significant labor law victories in recent years. It has taken a decade of perseverance and tireless organizing from fast-food workers, SEIU and other union members, pro-worker elected leaders and community partners to achieve this landmark win.
The new law guarantees that fast-food workers get a seat at the table on the Fast Food Council, ensuring they have a voice in determining their working conditions and pay. More than half a million fast-food workers from across California will have the power to raise standards in terms of wages, freedom from discrimination and harassment, and other issues.
There are many different ways that workers increase our wages—traditional collective bargaining, civil service processes, prevailing wage and wage boards. We are excited to see this model emerge in California. A.B. 257 is one more example of addressing the tremendous need to repair our broken labor law system, which creates absurd barriers to millions of working people who would join a union immediately if the process were not so stacked against us.
The AFL-CIO wants every fast-food worker in the United States to be able to join a union. The passage of A.B. 257 gives workers the power of a much-needed voice and brings us closer to that goal. Raising wages for fast-food workers will help vulnerable communities, particularly the Black, Brown and immigrant women who make up the vast majority of fast-food workers in California. This is part of the national wave of worker activism and organizing. Employers need to listen to their workers who are demanding unions and a voice on the job and work with them. Starbucks, McDonald’s, Amazon, Delta—all need to stop fighting their own workers who clearly desire engaging in collective action and having a seat at the bargaining table.
“Governor Newsom’s signature on AB 257 makes this Labor Day a historic one and shows what’s possible when working people unite and raise our voices,” said Anneisha Williams, a Los Angeles fast-food worker and leader in the Fight for $15 and a Union. “We’ve gone on strike, marched in the streets and rallied across the state to make sure our demand for a voice on the job was heard even as powerful corporations pulled out all the stops to silence us. We look forward to having a say in creating safe and healthy workplaces across the fast-food industry and to AB 257 serving as a model for workers across the country who desperately need a seat at the table.”
Kenneth Quinnell Wed, 09/07/2022 - 12:30Service + Solidarity Spotlight: North Carolina State AFL-CIO Shares History of the State’s Labor Movement
Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we'll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
Over Labor Day weekend, the North Carolina State AFL-CIO released its limited, four-episode podcast about the history of the state’s labor movement. Episode 1: Roots answers the question, how did we get here? The roots of worker resistance trace back to the first union in North Carolina, The Knights of Labor. Learn how demands for respect on the job were waged by working people like Ella May Wiggins and heroes of the Marion Massacre, inspiring textile organizing across the country.
Learn more at bit.ly/nclaborhistory.
Kenneth Quinnell Wed, 09/07/2022 - 09:55I Celebrated Labor Day Because...
Yesterday was Labor Day. This year, it was truly a day for workers to celebrate. And we have a lot to be excited about.
We celebrate our union movement that is delivering results, with workers coming together and organizing to make our jobs better, across the country. We celebrate the progress working people have made through decades of advocacy to create better lives for ourselves and our families, ensure safer workplaces and build a stronger economy.
It’s no wonder that unions are more popular today than at any time in more than 50 years! A record 71% of Americans now say we approve of unions.
We are celebrating the Biden–Harris administration that puts working families front and center in everything it does. Look at the victories we’ve had just this year, from the bipartisan infrastructure law to the CHIPS Act to the Inflation Reduction Act to student loan forgiveness. These laws are investments that will change working families’ lives, by creating new jobs, making prescriptions more affordable and lifting the burden of debt.
These are victories we achieved thanks to your activism, organizing and advocacy. Working people are recognizing the power we have when we join together to form unions. We are seeing every day the strength of workers coming together—from sheet metal workers in Alaska to REI workers in the Bay Area, from workers at the Milwaukee Art Museum to nurses in Coral Gables, Florida—and it is truly inspiring.
But we can’t stop here. Our job now is to take that momentum and use it to go all in on this election, so that we can protect our pro-worker majority and keep building on these victories.
Because so much of the progress we’ve fought for—and so many of our most fundamental freedoms—is at risk. And so we’re going to keep fighting.
We’re going to fight to protect the freedom to organize—to fight back against unfair pay and unsafe workplaces. We’re going to fight to protect the freedom to access health care. And we’re going to fight to protect the freedom to vote.
The stakes are high, but we can do it. Workers know better than anyone how powerful we are when we join together to make our voices heard.
On Labor Day, we recognized all of our hard work. And we’ll keep organizing, keep fighting and keep winning, because that’s what America’s workers do.
I took a moment out of my Labor Day to record this video celebrating the working people who are getting the job done. But I also have a special message for the corporations who have been so focused on keeping their employees from trying to exercise their rights—like Amazon and Starbucks:
Kenneth Quinnell Tue, 09/06/2022 - 12:18Tags: Labor Day
Don't Call It a Comeback: The Working People Weekly List
Every week, we bring you a roundup of the top news and commentary about issues and events important to working families. Here’s the latest edition of the Working People Weekly List.
Union Rebound? AFL-CIO’s Shuler Sees Promise, Long Road Ahead: “A newly released poll heading into Labor Day weekend shows a near-record 71% of Americans approve of labor unions, up from 64% just before the pandemic. Yet that Gallup poll stands in contrast to some raw math: Just 1 in 10 workers on U.S. payrolls are union members, half the level seen four decades ago. Liz Shuler, president of the AFL-CIO labor federation, wants to bridge that gap—starting by adding a million new people to union ranks over the next 10 years. As she spoke at a Monitor Breakfast for reporters on Thursday, it was clear that for her, it is personal. It’s about her own story, and the life stories of people she has met, some of whom leave memories that make her voice quake with emotion. ‘We would say that unions are a pillar of a healthy democracy, and we see it around the world that unions have always been sort of bedrock to the foundation of a healthy economy and a healthy society,’ Shuler told reporters.”
Fill-the-Boot Drive Returns in Labor Day Tradition: “This Labor Day weekend, some first responders will be looking for some help as they seek to ‘fill the boot’ to raise money for local families affected by a number of neuromuscular diseases. According to a release, members of the Loudoun County Combined Fire and Rescue System (LC-CFRS) and the Loudoun Career Fire Fighters Association (LCFFA) Local 3756 will be on the streets at a number of locations throughout the county between Sept. 3 and 5, collecting money in association with the Muscular Dystrophy Association. The Fill-the-Boot Drive grew out of a partnership between the International Association of Fire Fighters and the MDA, the release said, with member organizations of the IAFF having participated in the drive for over 60 years.”
Philadelphia Museum Workers Vote for Strike as Union Talks Stall: “The Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA) Union voted last night, August 30, in favor of a strike authorization by a 99% margin during the most well-attended meeting in its history. The vote came just days after the union filed an unfair labor practice complaint against the museum. The strike authorization raises the stakes of ongoing negotiations between the union and management, which have been underway since October 2020. In August 2020, the PMA unionized with the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees District Council 47 union (AFSCME DC 47), becoming the first wall-to-wall union at a major American museum.”
Inside the Drive to Bring ‘Cultural Workers’ into the Labor Movement: “It’s mid-June, and Lee Saunders, president of the AFSCME union, is speaking so loud into the microphone that it’s slightly distorted, and someone has to go over and tweak the dials on the PA system so his booming voice comes out clearer. Sitting down for an interview the following day, Saunders noted that the union support those workers felt at that event was ‘what the labor movement was all about—coming together, all of us supporting one another who have the desire to organize.’ [Philadelphia Museum of Art] is just one example of a surge in cultural institutions that have been unionizing with increasing fervor in the last few years, part of a campaign by AFSCME to offer support for these sectors to join their ranks.”
Labor Unions See Their Highest Approval Rating In Nearly Six Decades: “Americans have taken an increasingly positive view of labor unions over the past decade, with 71% now saying they approve of them in a new Gallup poll. That’s the highest favorability rating Gallup has seen for organized labor since 1965. Liz Shuler, president of the AFL-CIO labor federation, which includes 5[8] unions, cheered the new findings. ‘After a year of victorious strikes, record union election filings, and relentless efforts from corporate billionaires to silence workers, today comes as no surprise,’ Shuler wrote.”
MLBPA Sends Out Union Authorization Cards in First Step Toward Unionizing Minor Leaguers: “The Major League Baseball Players Association took an initial step toward unionizing the minor leagues Sunday night, sending out authorization cards that will allow minor league players to vote for an election that could make them MLBPA members. ‘Minor leaguers represent our game's future and deserve wages and working conditions that befit elite athletes who entertain millions of baseball fans nationwide,’ players' association executive director Tony Clark said Monday in a statement. ‘They're an important part of our fraternity and we want to help them achieve their goals both on and off the field.’”
BUD Program Graduates 25th Class of Pre-Apprentices: “The future is bright for eight pre-apprentices who recently graduated from the Building Union Diversity (BUD) program, opening doors to good-paying union construction careers in the St. Louis area. Taking part in the June 3 ceremony held at Iron Workers Local 396 Hall in St. Louis were Missouri Works Initiative director Greta Bax, BUD Program Coordinator Aurora Bihler, BUD graduates Kyle Benson, Carl Meriwether, TeAndre Hope-Shotwell, David Conley, Victoria Chapman, Stephanie McClure, Demonte Moorehead and Christopher Martin. The six-week program was created eight years ago as a recruitment tool to encourage more minorities and women to get into the union-building trades. Today, the program is run by the Missouri AFL-CIO’s Missouri Works Initiative.”
REI Employees Vote to Unionize, Becoming Chain's Second Union Store: “REI employees in Berkeley [California] made history Thursday as a majority voted in favor of unionizing, becoming the second store in REI's nationwide chain to organize. ‘When we got the results, I was jumping for joy in my kitchen, and then I ran out the door cause I had to be at work,’ said Freddi Farias, an REI employee at the Berkeley store and one of the co-organizers who helped launched the organizing effort. The workers will join the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 5. Union staff say they think other stores could follow. The UFCW staff say they saw a big increase in interest unionizing during the pandemic.”
Kenneth Quinnell Tue, 09/06/2022 - 10:25Service + Solidarity Spotlight: ALPA Pilots Stand in Solidarity at Nationwide Informational Picket
Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we'll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
As the United States heads into the Labor Day holiday weekend, members of the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) held informational pickets at 13 airports across the country on Thursday, sending a strong message to airline management that it’s time to address their operational problems and support passengers, pilots and other front-line workers who made extraordinary sacrifices during the pandemic.
“ALPA pilots delivered during the pandemic, and now it’s time for airlines to deliver for us,” declared ALPA President Capt. Joe DePete. “Unfortunately, some airlines squandered the opportunity to adequately plan for post-pandemic flying, and the result has been unprecedented flight delays and cancellations. It’s time for management to prioritize passengers and pilots—and invest in the people who keep our country moving.”
Kenneth Quinnell Tue, 09/06/2022 - 10:07Economy Gains 315,000 Jobs in August; Unemployment Inches Up to 3.7%
The U.S. economy gained 315,000 jobs in August, and the unemployment rate edged up to 3.7%, according to figures released Friday morning by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Continuing strong job creation numbers are a clear sign that the worker-friendly policies implemented by President Biden are having a positive impact on working people.
In response to the August job numbers, AFL-CIO Chief Economist William Spriggs tweeted the following:
#JobsDay @BLS_gov reports unemployment rate edged up from 3.5 to 3.7%, though payrolls grew by 315,000 in August (the adjusted household survey was more robust with an increase of 599,000 jobs). Year over year pay was up 5.2% but much lower over the last three months @AFLCIO
— William E. Spriggs (@WSpriggs) September 2, 2022Black workers are the canary-in-the coal mine. Falling job openings in the JOLTS is showing in lowering Black labor force participation (slower hiring rates), and that has translated into rising unemployment and falling employment-to-population for Black men over three months. https://t.co/kukIG1MUOX
— William E. Spriggs (@WSpriggs) September 2, 2022This is a warning sign to the @federalreserve that the labor market is showing slack with Black workers, who are the first to show it. The Fed does not control the current source of inflation, nor does it control the pace at which the labor market deteriorates. pic.twitter.com/7SQGI2hqIm
— William E. Spriggs (@WSpriggs) September 2, 2022Last month’s biggest job gains were in professional and business services (+68,000), health care (+48,000), retail trade (+44,000), leisure and hospitality (+31,000), manufacturing (+22,000), financial activities (+17,000), wholesale trade (+15,000) and mining (+6,000). Employment showed little change in other major industries, including construction, transportation and warehousing, information, other services and government.
Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rates for rose for Hispanics (4.5%) and adult men (3.5%) in August. The jobless rates for teenagers (10.4%), Black Americans (6.4%), adult women (3.3%), White Americans (3.2%) and Asian Americans (2.8%) showed little change over the month.
The number of long-term unemployed workers (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) was little changed in August and accounted for 18.8% of the total unemployed.
Kenneth Quinnell Fri, 09/02/2022 - 15:00Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Labor Movement Responds to Mississippi Water Crisis
Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we'll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.
A water crisis has left residents in Jackson, Mississippi, reeling after flooding overwhelmed the city’s water treatment infrastructure. Mississippi’s lack of funding in water infrastructure has been an ongoing problem for decades, and it’s a clear case of systemic disinvestment in the majority-Black city. When our communities are in crisis, the labor movement is always there to step up and help those in need.
Earlier this week, the AFL-CIO responded to the Mississippi labor movement’s request for help by delivering a full truck with more than 2,000 cases of water. The water will be distributed on Labor Day to union members and their families who are struggling. “We have been extremely busy coordinating efforts to take care of our citizens who have been affected by unsafe water, lack of or no water pressure and the flooding crisis,” said Chris Gray, a labor leader who is helping to coordinate disaster response in Jackson.
Kenneth Quinnell Fri, 09/02/2022 - 10:04Member-Driven Involvement: The Working People Weekly List
Every week, we bring you a roundup of the top news and commentary about issues and events important to working families. Here’s the latest edition of the Working People Weekly List.
AFL-CIO Kicks Off Labor Day with Detailed Political Plan: “The AFL-CIO kicked off the Labor Day weekend, in advance, with a detailed political plan for the fall elections and beyond, released August 24 in a nationwide zoom call. The plan features massive from-the-ground-up member-driven involvement, including a feedback loop where workers’ recommendations will adjust the federation’s issue priorities between now and Election Day, and afterwards, President Liz Shuler said. ‘What we need to be thinking about is how we’re taking these (issues) out into the field, listening to our members, talking about what matters to them and what matters locally,’ and changing accordingly, Shuler explained. ‘We start with worksite communications, then to local unions, then connecting back to state federations and local labor councils’ and finally the national headquarters. Then the issues members decide on locally would be applied to campaigns ‘from school boards to the U.S. Senate,’ she elaborated.”
Student Debt Relief: “‘About half the 27.5 million U.S. households with student debt are people who did not finish college,’ said AFL-CIO chief economist Bill Spriggs. ‘Of those 13.9 million households, roughly 4.6 million will now be debt free. This isn't about helping the privileged.’”
Minnesota Nurses’ Strike Vote Puts Safety and Conditions in Spotlight: “Throughout the COVID pandemic, nurses around the U.S. have faced deteriorating working conditions and challenges, from safety concerns to increasing workloads that have stemmed from understaffing as nurses have quit their jobs or retired early. Those nurses who are still on the job at many hospitals say they have been expected to do more with fewer resources, an issue that nurses say is causing retention crises and jeopardizing patient safety and care. Now nurses at 15 hospitals in the Twin Cities area (Minneapolis-St Paul) and Duluth, Minnesota, that are negotiating new union contracts with their respective hospitals have overwhelmingly voted to authorize a strike. A date for the work stoppage has not been set yet by the union, the Minnesota Nurses Association, which represents about 15,000 nurses who voted on the strike authorization, but a 10-day notice must be given ahead of any strike. If a strike is carried out, it would be one of the largest nurses’ strikes in U.S. history.”
Nation’s Top Union Leaders Back Gay Activists at Pride At Work Convention: “Union leaders Fred Redmond, Randi Weingarten and Sara Nelson hit different themes—electoral activism, right-wing hate and corporate greed, respectively–at the Pride@Work convention in Minneapolis in mid-August. And the meeting, of the AFL-CIO’s constituency group for LGBTQ+ people also featured—what else?—a protest, which delegates eagerly joined in. In this case, though, the protesters were members of UNITE HERE Local 17, who are campaigning for a contract with the Millennium Hotel, site of the convention. Bosses, as usual, are stonewalling—having reneged on a tentative agreement two months after the hotel booked the convention, So Pride@Work delegates joined the Unite Here members in occupying the hotel lobby for half an hour. Redmond and [News Guild President Jon] Schleuss, who attended the whole convention, received Solidarity awards. The convention theme was ‘Out for Democracy.’ Redmond challenged the LGBTQ community not just to get involved in politics, but to seek public office. ‘Everybody in. Nobody is left out. I dare you, members of Pride@Work, get involved, run for office and follow the examples of (Bayard) Rustin, (A. Phillip) Randolph and others,’ Redmond declared. ‘Push for the change you want to see in our unions, our communities and our country.”
A Coal Miner’s Political Transformation: “For more than 500 days, coal miners in rural Alabama have been on strike. Around 900 workers walked off the job in April 2021, and they haven’t been back since.”
Hormel Workers at Corn Nuts Plant Go on Strike: “Forty employees at a Hormel Foods plant in Fresno, California, that makes Corn Nuts have gone on strike, according to the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union Local 85 that represents the workers. The strike, which started on Aug. 16, occurred because Hormel changed the workers’ medical plan without notifying the employees or bargaining with the union, BCTGM said. The strike is the latest to hit the food industry as workers look for changes or concessions from companies at a time of labor shortages, increased product demand and supply chain disruptions.”
Trader Joe's Suddenly Closed Its Bustling Wine Store in the Heart of New York City. Employees There Say They Were Unionizing and Are Calling on the Store to Reopen: “‘Trader Joe's openly brags about being a good employer but there is nothing ‘inclusive and respectful’ about abruptly shutting its tremendously popular wine store just days before workers were set to go public with their union organizing efforts,’ AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said in a statement to Insider. ‘It's a cruel form of union-busting. The AFL-CIO stands in solidarity with UFCW and the dozens of workers who are now out of a job because they had the courage to come together and stand up for better working conditions.’”
New White House Labor Adviser Isn’t Looking for a Fight: Q&A: “Celeste Drake is drawing on her experience at the nation’s largest federation of unions to bring the White House’s labor agenda to fruition. Drake is wearing ‘two hats,’ as she put it, working both as the National Economic Council’s labor expert and as ‘Made in America” director for the White House Office of Management and Budget. In an interview with Bloomberg Law—her first since taking the job as Biden’s top labor adviser in July—she said she plans to use her experience at the AFL-CIO, where she was a trade and globalization policy specialist, to deliver on the president’s goal to be the most pro-labor administration in modern history.”
Kenneth Quinnell Wed, 08/31/2022 - 10:25
