In the 1950’s one out-of-three American workers belonged to a union. Today, only 10.7 percent are union members – in the private sector, the number is down to a pitiful 6.4 percent. The decline in union membership has been a prime factor in the rise in inequality, the declining voter turnout among low-income workers and […]
AFT SUES ADMINISTRATION OVER VIRTUAL SHUTDOWN OF LABOR MEDIATION SERVICE The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and 10 other unions have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration in an effort to prevent the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS)’s dismantling. FMCS is a federal agency that mediates labor disputes in both public and private sectors and […]
In its latest union busting attempt the Trump administration is suing the American Federation of Government Employees to invalidate its collective bargaining contract. Using an obscure provision of the law, President Trump issued an executive order March 27 excluding government agencies from long-standing unionization rights if he determines that those agencies are primarily engaged in […]
UNION HITS SPEEDUP ON POULTRY PRODUCTION LINES Adding another item to the attack on workers the Trump administration is dishing out, the US Department .of Agriculture on March 18 issued waivers to rules that limit line speeds in pork and poultry production plants across the country. The faster line speedups cuts down the time workers […]
FAIR (Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting) online interview with Eric Blanc, assistant professor of labor studies at Rutgers University, author of Red State Revolt: The Teacher Strike Wave and Working-Class Politics; We Are the Union: How Worker-to-Worker Organizing Is Revitalizing Labor and Winning Big . This piece has been lightly edited for space and clarity. Eric Blanc: It’s […]
WORDS OF CAUTION OVER TRUMP LABOR SECRETARY PICK PROVE TRUE When Congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-OR) was first chosen by Donald Trump to be Secretary of Labor, some saw it as an act friendly to unions and a possible glimmer of hope. But many labor leaders, including AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler and National Education Association President […]
In an opening shot of the new round of Republican attacks on workers and their unions, the Utah governor has signed into law a measure banning the state from engaging in collective bargaining with unions representing the state’s public workers. The law, which goes into effect July 1, is a harbinger of the broader attack […]
Costco workers, represented by the Teamsters union voted Jan. 19 to authorize a strike beginning Feb 1 if they do not have a contract by then. The union represents over 18,000 Costco workers around the country. Eighty-five percent of the union membership at Costco stores nationwide voted for the strike, according to the union. “Our […]
Labor Notes, an organization dedicated to the growth of the labor movement is holding a special on line workshop Jan. 6 to discuss what unions can do to protect immigrant fellow workers and union members from the threatened attacks by the incoming Trump administration. The Labor Notes call to action, as posted on their website, […]
PITTSBURGH NEWSPAPER WORKERS BEGIN THIRD YEAR ON STRIKE Communication Workers of America strikers at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette began their third year of picketing the newspaper this past October. It is one of the longest strikes in America today. Members of the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh-CWA walked out two years ago after the paper unilaterally cut […]
