WNYLaborToday News - Labor News From Washington, D.C.

From The Economic Policy Institute: 'It's A Direct Result Of Union Power' - Unions 'Promote Secure Retirements & Healthier Communities'

Fri, 23 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

A secure and dignified retirement is out of reach for millions of Workers in the United States.

One in five adults over the age of 50 has no retirement savings and more than 60% worry they will not have enough to support them in retirement, according to AARP (American Association of Retired People) survey data.

One of the best ways to ensure Workers have access to a secure retirement is through a Union, which enables Workers to negotiate better pay, benefits and working conditions.

The numbers bear this out.

According to new Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data: Union Workers have greater access to employer retirement plans: 94% of Unionized Workers have access to employer-sponsored retirement plans compared with just 72% of Non-Union Workers; 85% of Unionized Workers participate in employer-sponsored retirement plans compared with 52% of Non-Unionized Workers; Union Workers are more likely to have pensions: 62% of Union Workers have access to pensions compared with only 10% of Non-Union Workers. Not only do Unions provide Workers with secure and dignified retirements - they also create healthier and safer workplaces and communities; Union Workers have greater access to health insurance: 93% of Unionized Workers have access to employer-sponsored health benefits compared with 71% of Non-Union Workers. Union employers also contribute more to their Employees’ health care benefits; Union Workers have greater access to paid sick leave: 93% of Unionized Workers have access to paid sick leave compared with 81% of Non-Union Workers; and Unions create safer workplaces. Unions empower Workers to bring up unsafe working conditions without fear of retaliation.

When Unions are strong, they help raise standards for all Workers.

States with higher Union density are more likely to have higher incomes, greater access to retirement and health insurance, and enacted Paid Sick Leave Legislation.

To Directly Access This Labor News Report, Go To: Unions Promote Secure Retirements And Healthier Communities | Economic Policy Institute

And Click Here To Read More On The Benefits Of Unions And The Roadmap To Rebuilding Union Power

Union Members 'Map A Fighting Strategy From Shop Floor To Ballot Box'

Thu, 22 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(DEARBORN, MICHIGAN) - Facing a MAGA Administration that attacks Workers at home and fuels wars abroad, Union Members from across the State of Michigan gathered at United Auto Workers (UW) Local 600 this past weekend to map out a Working-Class response ahead of the November Mid-Term Elections.

The Labor Town Hall became a rallying cry to leverage Union Power not just in the workplace -but at the ballot box and in the streets.

The event, co-organized by the Detroit Union Education League and Metro Detroit DSA and moderated by Em Barnes from People’s World, brought together a diverse panel of Labor Leaders and progressive voices: Michigan District 26 State Representative Dylan Wegela, a former Arizona Education Association Local President; Kayla Sharpe, a Building Representative for the Ferndale Education Association; Byron Osbern, Business Agent for International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 58; Michael Joseph, President of the Coalition of Black Trade Unions Detroit; and UAW Local 600 Recording Secretary A.J. Freer.

The discussion spanned the most urgent crises facing the Working Class - from the fights against Fascism and the accelerating threat of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and data centers to workplace safety and the fight for peace and international solidarity.

With the pivotal U.S. Senate race heating up in Michigan, the Town Hall made clear that electoral politics is a central front in the Democratic and Class struggles.

Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, who is running a fiery progressive campaign against Republican Mike Rogers, was highlighted as a crucial ally for Workers.

El-Sayed has secured endorsements from numerous Unions, including the UAW.

“Since being in office in Michigan for three and a half years, the issue we face is whether we have a Government that is Democratic and controlled by the Working Class,” Wegela said. “Under Democrats and Republicans, I’ve seen the State give ($6 billion) in corporate tax breaks and subsidies.”

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: Union members map a fighting strategy from shop floor to ballot box – People's World

Unions 'Castigate Trump For Raid On Congresswoman Ilhan Omar's Home'

Tue, 20 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - The Minnesota AFL-CIO and House Democratic Leaders are slamming one of the more-brazen pre-Election acts of the Republican President Donald Trump’s regime, a pre-dawn Homeland Security Department raid on the Washington, D.C. home of outspoken U.S. Congresswoman Ilhan Omar of Minnesota.

Agents banged on Omar’s door at 4 a.m. or 5 a.m. on October 12th, yelling: “Open the door! Open the door!”

Neighbors, awakened by the racket, later saw Agents cart away boxes of possessions from Omar’s home.

One Agent told a reporter they were carrying out a judicial warrant.

The New York Times later reported the warrant alleged irregularities in the Omar Family’s Immigration papers.

Omar, who represents Minneapolis and a few suburbs, is campaigning for a fifth, two-year U.S. House term in the Deep-Blue area.

She was defiant, outraged and called the accusations lies.

“I will not be silenced,” Omar tweeted on the Social Media Platform X. “I’m OK. Make no mistake: This is an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize Federal Law enforcement. For ten years, Trump has targeted me with baseless lies and smear campaigns. This is just the latest escalation in his campaign of political intimidation.”

Minnesota AFL-CIO President Bernie Burnham and House Democratic Leaders leaped to Omar’s defense.

They all blasted Trump’s political motives and Burnham termed the raid an attack on all Minnesotans as well.

“Minnesota’s Labor Movement stands with Congresswoman Omar,” Burnham said. “She is a former Union Member and we believe ‘an injury to one is an injury to all.’ If Donald Trump can do this to her, he can do it to any other American citizen. Disagreeing with a person’s political view is a sign of a healthy Democracy, but abusing our Federal Government’s resources to attack a political opponent goes against everything our Nation and Constitution stands for. It’s no coincidence this latest action, coupled with the President’s recent calls for violence against the Somali-American community (which the Minnesota State AFL-CIO denounced on October 9th) comes just three weeks before an election his party is expected to lose. This is a desperate attempt to sow division and hate - and Minnesotans won’t fall for it.”

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: Unions, lawmakers castigate Trump for raid on Rep. Ilhan Omar’s home – People's World

The VA 'Allows Union Contract To Expire For Most Employees'

Mon, 19 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - The Veterans Affairs (VA) Department has told Employees that it has let its Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs) with the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) expire, weeks after a Federal Appeals Court ruling stayed an order requiring management to honor the deal amid negotiations for a successor deal.

As part of its efforts to implement President Trump’s Executive Order banning collective bargaining for most Federal Workers on national security grounds, the VA had sought for months to terminate its Union contracts, including two instances where the cancellation was blocked in Court.

In July, the VA announced it would let the contract lapse upon its scheduled August 8th expiration date.

AFGE Officials argued that when the VA last Spring requested to begin negotiations on a successor agreement, it triggered a clause in the CBA that extends its provisions indefinitely until those negotiations are complete.

But VA management said the Union failed to come to the bargaining table within 30 days, negating that provision.

Union Officials, conversely, argue the ground rules negotiations they engaged in throughout that 30-day window meet the clause’s requirements.

U.S. District Judge Melissa DuBose agreed and again halted the contract’s termination, but a three-Judge panel found that decision improperly modified the scope of her original injunction, allowing the Department to proceed.

In a message to Employees, obtained by Government Executive, VA management pitched the removal of AFGE as an opportunity to improve communication within the Department.

“Employees and managers can more freely engage in open communications to improve the organization,” the message stated. “You may also see changes to some of the processes and procedures that were previously contained in the now-expired AFGE Collective Bargaining Agreement. Managers have been directed to exclusively follow VA policy for all matters, including, but not limited to, promotions, alternative work schedules, details, hours of work, telework and leave usage. You are encouraged to discuss all workplace matters directly with your supervisor.”

To Continue Reading This Labor News Story, Go To: VA allows union contract to expire for most employees - Government Executive

National AFL-CIO: "Sh*t's Too Expensive And Working People Are Fired Up To Get Out The Vote"

Fri, 16 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler has issued the following statement in response to the release of the Consumer Price Index Report, which showed prices rising - gas in particular, and inflation exceeding wages for the sixth straight month:

I’ve been traveling the country from Maine to Alaska and everywhere I go Workers are saying “sh*t’s too expensive.”

Working People are living on the edge, working longer and harder than ever for less money.

They’re angry every time they fill the tank.

They’re terrified of what their heating bills will look like this Winter.

As prices soar, their paychecks aren’t keeping up.

Today’s numbers make it clear this problem isn’t going away until we elect new leaders who will help Workers instead of billionaires.

In the final sprint to Election Day, we’re knocking on doors, making phone calls and talking to people at their worksites.

They’re telling us they are pissed off about how expensive gas, food and everything is.

But they’re also saying they are ready to fight back by voting for Pro-Worker candidates across the country, including a record number of Union Candidates.

Politicians who did nothing about rising prices, stalled wages or unchecked corporate power are about to be swept out by a rising wave of Union Voters.

To Directly Access This National AFL-CIO Statement, Go To: AFL-CIO: Sh*t’s Too Expensive and Working People Are Fired Up to Get Out the Vote | AFL-CIO

New American Civil Liberties Union/National AFL-CIO Report 'Shows Deportations Lower Wages & Raise Costs For Working People'

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - The National AFL-CIO and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) have released a new report - Citizenship and the Affordability Agenda: A Path to Better Jobs, Higher Wages, and Prosperity for All - detailing how the mass deportation agenda is worsening the affordability crisis, disrupting critical industries, eliminating jobs, weakening workplace protections and driving up costs for Working Families. National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said: “Working People are paying the price for an Immigration System that is destabilizing entire industries and communities and making it easier to exploit Workers. As this report demonstrates, a broad pathway to citizenship for all would raise wages, create more and better jobs and strengthen our economy in ways that help all of us. It’s past time to give millions of Working People and their families the stability they deserve - and we call on Congress to make citizenship a top priority. Working People know that it’s not an Immigrant that stands between them and a good job - it’s the billionaires - and it’s time our laws reflect that.” The report points to five major findings: Immigration enforcement enables workplace exploitation; Immigration raids stunt business activity and revenue creation; Mass deportation eliminates jobs held by U.S. Citizens; Stripping Workers of legal Immigration Status worsens the affordability crisis; and a Broad path to citizenship would create jobs and raise wages.

To Read The Full Report, Go Here: Citizenship and the Affordability Agenda: A Path to Better Jobs, Higher Wages, and Prosperity for All | American Civil Liberties Union

The AFGE 'Blasts Shameful Move By The Bureau Of Prisons To Terminate Worker Contract Despite Court Order Mandating Reinstatement' - Union Says The Trump Administration 'Tried To Silence' Law Enforcement Officers

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) has rejected the Bureau of Prisons’ attempt to - once again, terminate its Union contract protecting 30,000 Federal Correctional Officers and Staff despite a clear and controlling Court order requiring the contract’s reinstatement.

U.S. District Judge Vernon Oliver of the District of Connecticut granted the Union a preliminary injunction setting aside the Federal Bureau of Prisons’ September 2025 termination of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and ordered the Agency to immediately reinstate the Union’s contract.

The Judge’s order was in response to the lawsuit filed in November 2025 by AFGE’s National Council of Prison Locals (AFGE Council 33) and AFGE Local 1661, which represents Employees at the Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury, Connecticut.

After a week of foot-dragging by the Agency, the AFGE filed a motion asking the Court to find BOP Director William Marshall III in contempt of court for failing to reinstate the contract and to compel the agency to identify the steps it has taken to implement the order.

In violation of the Court’s preliminary injunction, Director Marshall issued a memorandum announcing he was again terminating the contract effective immediately.

“It’s absurd and shameful that this Administration would stoop so low as to flout the rule of law inside our own Federal Prisons just to silence the voices of the brave Correctional Officers who work every day in some of the most challenging environments in the country,” AFGE National President Everett Kelley said.

Terminating the contract compromises Officers’ safety and makes it harder for them to do their jobs, said AFGE Council 33 National President Brandy Moore White: “Our Collective Bargaining Agreement and local agreements provide essential protections for Employees who work every day in some of the most challenging and dangerous conditions in Federal service. The public should be outraged. These agreements are not simply pieces of paper. They provide stability, due process and a meaningful voice for the Men and Women who keep our institutions safe. Our Members deserve nothing less than full compliance with the Court’s decision. We will continue to stand together and fight to restore the rights and protections for our Members.”

The AFGE is the largest Federal Employee Union, representing 820,000 Workers in the Federal Government and the Government of the District of Columbia.

To Directly Access This Labor News Report, Go To: AFGE | AFGE Blasts Shameful Move by Bureau of Prisons to Terminate Worker Contract Despite Court Order Mandating Reinstatement

Federal Workers 'Notch Win Against Illegal' RIFs After 'Multiple' Labor Unions 'Sued The Trump Administration Last September Over Its Attempt To Fire Thousands Of Federal Workers During The Government Shutdown'

Sun, 11 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Whitney Curry Wimbish at The American Prospect reports from Washington, D.C. that Organized Labor has won a major victory in a settlement ordering the Trump Administration to announce that it has abandoned its attempt to illegally fire millions of Federal Workers during last year’s Government shutdown. Under the settlement between a coalition of Unions and the U.S. Department of Justice, the Federal Government must also tell Agencies to modify their shutdown plans “to remove any authorization” of Reductions In Force (RIFs) and to give 30 days’ notice if they intend to modify those plans and conduct RIFs during future Government shutdowns. However, the settlement does not completely end the case. It only holds it in abeyance and prevents shutdown RIFs until the end of the year - but it offers a measure of protection until then, attorneys said, as well as a pathway to fight back if the Trump Administration attempts shutdown RIFs in the future. “If they wanted to try this again they’d have to put in new guidance, a new contingency plan. It would be pretty clear they were doing something that was clearly unlawful,” said Rushab Sanghvi, who serves as General Counsel of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), one of the Unions that sued the Trump Administration, along with several others that together represent more than two million Federal Workers. If Democrats win in the Mid-Term Elections, “there are further protections they can put in,” Sanghvi said. “The fact we are here and the government is settling shows that the Unions have won here. Workers have fought back and they’ve won.”

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: Federal Workers Notch Win Against Illegal RIFs - The American Prospect

AFGE File Photo.

VOTE!: National AFL-CIO President Shuler Says "The Stakes Have Never Been Higher" & That "Working People Have A Real Opportunity To Elect A Pro-Worker Majority That Will Start To Level The Playing Field For Everyday Americans"

Fri, 09 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – With the Mid-Term Elections less than 30 days away, National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler has released the following statement:

We are less than 30 days from Election Day and Working People around the country are ready to deliver victories for candidates who will fight for us!

Our polling shows that 83% of surveyed Union Members are “extremely motivated” to vote in the 2026 Mid-Terms - up 10 points from the 2022 election.

And it’s no surprise why.

The last two years have been marked by attack after attack on our hard-won contracts, critical public programs such as Medicare and Social Security, our Immigrant neighbors and more.

Prices have outpaced our paychecks six months in a row and wage growth is at a five-year low based on the most recent numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Americans have paid $123 billion more for gas and diesel this year, with diesel prices at a record high - now above $6.50 per gallon.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

The stakes have never been higher than they are in this election.

In less than four weeks, we have a real opportunity to elect a Pro-Worker majority that will start to level the playing field for everyday Americans.

And it’s going to be the Labor Movement’s people-powered field operations, Worker-to-Worker conversations and election protection programming that will deliver the real change that Working Families need.

Unionized Soccer Players 'Score Major Victory' With New Contract

Thu, 08 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

After two years of negotiations, Members of the United Soccer League Players Association-Communications Workers of America (USLPA-CWA) Local 7211 have announced the ratification of a new contract.

USLPA-CWA currently represents 1,100 Players, with more than 500 Members in the Unit.

An upcoming League expansion could see the unit increase to over 800 Members.

Players cited the need for year-round contracts, livable wage minimums and guaranteed access to employer-paid health insurance as primary concerns going into negotiations.

Despite Anti-Union efforts by United Soccer League (USL) management, Members refused to back down from the fair contract they deserved.

This contract raises the bar for what it means to be a Professional Player in the United States, helping to create a more sustainable work environment.

Prior to the contract, Players were only paid for 10 months every year and often had to scramble for other employment during the off-season.

This contract will help reduce turnover and help Players avoid and recover from injury.

USLPA-CWA Local 7211 Executive Director Connor Tobin said: “Our Players showed what solidarity looks like. For eight weeks, they stood together during the first minute of every match to make clear that they have a voice and a say in their future. This contract is a foundation for the players who come next. It means future Players will have stronger protections and a stronger voice. We are proud of what our Players fought for and what they have built together.”

To Directly Access This Labor News Story, Go To: Goal! CWA Soccer Players Score Major Victory With New Contract | Communications Workers of America

Seven Unions 'Join Together To Call For A Ban on Stock Buybacks & Dividends By U.S. Defense Contractors'

Wed, 07 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – The United Auto Workers (UAW), along with six Unions representing Members employed by the largest U.S. Defense Contractors, are calling on Congress to support a provision of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would ban Defense Contractors from stock buybacks and dividends.

Since 2020, the big five prime Defense Contractors have spent twice as much on stock buybacks and dividends than capital expenditures, while Defense Workers fall further behind.

Those Labor Organizations who are calling on Congress are: The UAW; the United Steelworkers (USW); the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE); the Communications Workers of America (CWA); the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers (IBB); the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT); and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART).

UAW President Shawn Fain said: “The Working Class makes the Defense Industry run, but instead of investing in our national and economic security, companies like Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Woodward and dozens more spend taxpayer dollars on Wall Street payoffs to enrich the billionaires. It’s time we put an end to Defense Contractors paying off Wall Street while Defense Workers and taxpayers pay the price.”

In their letter to Members of Congress (read the full letter here), the Unions called on Legislators to “stand with America’s Defense Workers and seize this opportunity to enshrine” the provision called Section 815 into law, following on an Executive Order by the Trump Administration that was enacted in January.

Section 815 would implement legislation introduced by U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (Democrat-Massachusetts), Senator Josh Hawley (Republican-Missouri) and Senator Mike Lee (Republican-Utah) by imposing a blanket ban on Wall Street payouts to incentivize investment in the facilities and Workers that make the industry run, instead of short-term stock market paydays.

“With the industry’s center of gravity progressively shifting to investor returns, Workers too have paid an enormous price,” the letter reads, in part. “In contract negotiations and Organizing Campaigns with these employers, we hear time and again that there are not enough resources to provide Workers with job security and fair compensation. In just the past two years, this has led to labor disputes and work stoppages at major Defense Contractors such as Boeing, Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, Textron, GE Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney and more.”

To Directly Access This Labor News Report, Go To: UAW Leads 6 Unions in Call for Ban on Stock Buybacks and Dividends at US Defense Contractors

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Union-Busters 'Hit A Dead End' At The U.S. Supreme Court, 'Must Now Pay Back Millions To Impacted Journalists'

Tue, 06 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA) – The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s appeal of a ruling requiring the company to pay back its Workers - Members of the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh-Communications Workers of America (TNG-CWA) Local 38061 - for the cuts to pay, illegally implemented increases in health care costs and other unilateral changes to their working conditions.

Millions of dollars are owed to current and former Post-Gazette Employees and The Post-Gazette has no further venue for appeal.

NewsGuild-CWA President Jon Schleuss said: “I’ve actually lost count of the number of agencies, Judges, Courts and other authorities that have told the Blocks (the former owners of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) that the Workers were right and the multi-millionaires were wrong. Our Members were the first to tell them - more than nine years ago now. It’s staggering to think how much money and time the company wasted on losing when that could have been spent on dignified working conditions and improving the caliber of local Journalism. The Block Family’s efforts to delay accountability are finished. We look forward to seeing justice served so that our award-winning Journalists can continue to focus on holding power to account.”

Unionized Editorial Workers of The Post-Gazette went on Strike in October of 2022, demanding a restoration of the contract the company illegally tore up, including dignified health care.

In November of 2025, the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals enforced the ruling of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), ordering The Post-Gazette to do so.

With their Strike demands secured, Union Journalists returned to The Post-Gazette on November 24th, 2025.

The Post-Gazette, which was owned by the Block Family until May 4th, would go on to lose an appeal of a concurrent 3rd Circuit Court injunction restoring the Health Care Plan that was unlawfully canceled.

The Newspaper Guild, the National AFL-CIO and the U.S. Solicitor General filed briefs arguing against the company’s repeatedly defeated position.

Pulitzer Prize-winning Reporter Andrew Goldstein, who serves as President of the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh, said: “A lot of honest, determined people sacrificed more than most know to get this ruling enforced and finalized. The Blocks and their co-conspirators in company management and elsewhere knowingly and willfully broke Federal Law for years, bringing untold harm to not only their Workers but the News Industry more broadly. We’re looking forward to getting quite literal payback and hope this serves as a warning to similarly reckless owners. Shame on the Blocks.”

To Directly Access This Labor News Report, Go To: Post-Gazette union-busters hit dead end at Supreme Court, must pay back millions to journalists | The NewsGuild - TNG-CWA

New Trump Childcare Plan 'Would Strip Resources From Low-Income Working Families' - A 'Better Solution Is To Fully Fund The Childcare And Development Fund Instead Of Redirecting Resources Away From Working Families'

Mon, 05 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - The Federal Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) was created to provide childcare for low-income families while parents work or obtain education and training, but the program is so underfunded that it provides subsidies to just 16% of eligible children. Childcare is so costly that a full-time Minimum-Wage Worker in the State of Alabama would need to work 29 weeks, from January to July, and use every penny of their earnings to cover the cost of unsubsidized childcare for one infant. The Trump Administration is proposing a new plan to divert CCDF funds from current recipients and give the resources to married couples with a stay-at-home parent. This will result in low-income Working Families losing CCDF funds, leading to increased childcare costs for everyone and possibly resulting in the closure of some Childcare Providers.

The Consequences Of Moving Forward With The Trump Plan:

If married couple families are added to the list of eligible families without substantially increasing funding to provide subsidies to all eligible families, as is reportedly proposed, it will do significant harm to families of all types, whether they are married or not and whether they rely on subsidies or not.

With the new strain on available funds, families currently relying on CCDF could lose the subsidies that allow them to provide even a modest living for themselves and their children.

Without subsidized care provided by the CCDF, these families could work full-time for most of the year just to pay for childcare.

In Alabama, for example, a Minimum-Wage Worker working full-time would have to work 29 weeks - the equivalent of working from January to July - and use every cent of those wages to be able to cover unsubsidized childcare for one infant.

In North Carolina and Ohio, these Workers would need to work from January to October.

These are parents who want to work to support their families but cannot afford unsubsidized childcare.

They also cannot afford not to work.

Reducing the availability of childcare funding for Working Mothers and Fathers will not only hurt families who rely on childcare subsidies, it will hurt all families who rely on childcare.

Siphoning these funds away from Working Families - disproportionately Black single Mothers -will also deprive Childcare Providers of a key source of revenue, potentially leading them to charge other families more for care, be forced to shed Staff, or even close down.

With families in so many communities across the Nation already experiencing a childcare crisis, this would exacerbate the shortage issue.

To Read This Labor News Report In Its Entirety, Go To: New Trump child care plan would strip resources from low-income working families: A better solution is to fully fund the Child Care and Development Fund instead of redirecting resources away from working families | Economic Policy Institute

The AFGE Sues The Trump Administration 'To Restore Collective Bargaining Contract At The EPA' - Union 'Alleges The EPA Illegally Terminated Agreement With The Goal Of Repressing Political Dissent'

Sat, 03 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Michael Sainato at The Guardian reports the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), which represents more than 8,000 Workers employed at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has filed a lawsuit against the agency and administrator Lee Zeldin, alleging the EPA illegally terminated the Union’s Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). The lawsuit, filed by two AFGE Locals, claims the Agency failed to justify the contract’s termination and was motivated by a desire to repress political dissent, a violation of the Employees’ First Amendment Rights. “While the dedicated Civil Servants are working hard every day to advance the Agency’s mission to protect human health and the environment, the Agency has turned its back on them, unlawfully eliminating their Workplace Protections and stifling their Free Speech Rights,” the lawsuit said. The EPA terminated the CBA in August 2025, citing President Donald Trump’s Executive Order earlier that year that sought to eliminate CBAs for more than one million Federal Workers. The Union is asking the Court to restore the contract – which went into effect in June 2024 and was supposed to last through June 2028. It included a Scientific Integrity Provision aimed to protect Workers at the Agency from retaliation. AFGE Council 238 President Justin Chen said the Union’s Members work as Civil Servants because they believe in the Agency’s mission and in serving the public: “They believe in the kind of work that they do. When they’re gagged and have no rights, they’re unable to serve the American Public, they can’t do their jobs and they can’t serve the Agency’s mission.”

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: EPA union sues Trump administration to restore collective bargaining contract | US Environmental Protection Agency | The Guardian

NLRB General Counsel/Union-Buster Crystal Carey 'Plans A Mass Trashing Of Pro-Worker Rules'

Wed, 30 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - Crystal Carey, the Union-Buster whom President Donald Trump named as General Counsel for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), plans a mass trashing of Biden-era Pro-Worker Rules, starting with overturning the curbs on Captive Audience Meetings, plus restoring limits on Union insignias Workers can wear on their caps and uniforms.

And Carey’s plans carry weight.

As the NLRB’s General Counsel, she is its de facto Chief of Staff and, more importantly, its top Enforcement Officer.

Before taking the General Counsel post, Carey was a Senior Partner at Morgan, Lewis and Bockius - one of the Nation’s biggest Union-Busters.

Which means once Carey gets done, Worker protections instituted by the Biden-era NLRB and its General Counsel, Jennifer Abruzzo, will disappear.

One already has.

That’s the one where Abruzzo convinced the Biden-era NLRB to enlarge the definition of finally making whole a Worker whom the boss illegally fired for Union advocacy, organizing - or both.

For decades, until Abruzzo took over, the NLRB’s penalties for such illegal actions were small: Ordering the firm to post a “we broke the law and promise not to do it again” notice and to award the Worker net back pay.

That was the difference between what the fired Worker would have earned between the time he or she was canned and the time the NLRB ruled in her favor, minus whatever pay from other jobs he or she could line up to keep body, soul, and family alive.

Except in unusual cases, where the NLRB sought damages, too, the amounts were small.

And they didn’t deter companies from breaking Labor Laws.

With the Biden NLRB’s okay, Abruzzo changed that.

Net back pay became that sum plus reimbursing the Worker for any extra expenses he or she shouldered while waiting for the NLRB’s ruling, from loans to take care of missed mortgage payments or rent to paying for health insurance to running up credit card debt for all of that, and more.

The idea was to really make companies pay for harming their Workers.

One of Carey’s first acts on becoming General Counsel was to change that back.

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: NLRB plans mass trashing of pro-worker rules – People's World

The Trump Administration's Shutdown/Mass-Layoff Policy Is 'Rescinded As Part Of Settlement' With Unions

Tue, 29 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - The Trump Administration is withdrawing its authorization of widespread layoffs across the Federal Workforce during a Government shutdown as a result of Federal Employee Unions reaching a settlement with the Administration - which puts a pause on a lawsuit challenging widespread layoffs carried out during a 43-day Government shutdown last year.

The lawsuit will be held in abeyance until the end of the year, giving the Unions the ability to reopen the case if another shutdown occurs, and if the Administration uses the funding lapse to terminate more Employees.

American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) President Everett Kelley said the Trump Administration “tried to turn a shutdown into an excuse to fire the Public Servants who kept this country running without a paycheck on payday. We fought back, we held the line and they backed down.”

The Trump Administration threatened widespread layoffs as a bargaining chip to avoid a government shutdown last Fall and sent reduction in force notices to thousands of Federal Employees during the lapse in funding.

RIF notices that agencies issued during last year’s 43-day Government shutdown have been rescinded and Employees separated by RIFs (Reduction In Force) issued during that period have been reinstated to their positions.

Congress passed a continuing resolution keeping the Federal Government funded through December 11th, postponing the threat of a Government shutdown until after the Mid-Term Elections.

As part of the settlement, the Office of Personnel Management and the Office of Management and Budget will have 30 days to notify Agencies that earlier guidance making reductions in force a shutdown-exempt activity has been rescinded.

Agencies will also be instructed to remove RIF authorization from their own shutdown contingency plans.

To Continue Reading This Labor News Story, Go To: Shutdown mass-layoff policy rescinded as part of settlement with unions - Government Executive

AFGE File Photo.

Trump 'Proposes Zero Raises Next Year For Most' Federal Workers

Sun, 27 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - If you are an ICE Agent or a billionaire, the latest Trump budget is chock-full of money for you, but if you are a Federal Worker who keeps the country running, there is not even a single dime - the proposed wage increase for you next year is $0.00.

Immigration services, as late as 10 years ago, operated on a $9 billion annual budget.

Now, for 2027, Trump is pushing for $85 billion for ICE and nothing for raises for the vast majority of other Federal Workers.

An Agency that encourages and shields violent police activity against people exercising their Constitutional rights is funded at an extremely high level, while the people who keep the country running on a day-to-day basis are budgeted for nothing.

Trump says they will not even get the agreed-upon Cost-Of-Living (COLA) increase.

The zero-dollar hikes follow the meager 2% raise they got in 2025 and the 1% they got this year.

There are exceptions to Trump’s “thrift.”

Military Personnel would get increases from 5% to 7% and Federal Law Enforcement Officers - including Trump’s violent ICE agents - would get 3.8%.

The Law Enforcement Officers would also get COLAs to help offset inflation.

The combination of raises for the few but nothing for the many outraged Federal Union Presidents and a bipartisan group of 110 Congressional Allies - led by U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (Democrat-Maryland) and U.S. Representatives James Walkinshaw (Democrat-Virginia) and Steny Hoyer (Democrat-Maryland) - a former House Majority Leader.

But the Lawmakers signaled, in a September 24th letter to their own leaders, that they’d be happy with a 3.8% hike across the board for all the civilians.

The day before, Trump stated a “national emergency” justified skimpy or non-existent raises.

He didn’t say what the emergency was.

Since re-entering the Oval Office on January 20th, 2025, Trump has waged continual war on his own workforce.

Trump hired trillionaire Elon Musk, Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency, and Musk’s chainsaw to lop off the jobs, if not the heads, of some 300,000 Federal Workers.

Trump also trashed 37 Union contracts covering a million Workers.

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: Trump proposes zero raises next year for most federal workers – People's World

New National AFL-CIO & ACLU Report 'Shows Deportations Lower Wages & Raise Costs For Working People'

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said: “Working People are paying the price for an Immigration System that is destabilizing entire industries and communities and making it easier to exploit Workers. As this report demonstrates, a broad pathway to Citizenship for all would raise wages, create more and better jobs and strengthen our economy in ways that help all of us. It’s past time to give millions of Working People and their families the stability they deserve and we call on Congress to make citizenship a top priority. Working People know that it’s not an Immigrant that stands between them and a good job - it’s the billionaires - and it’s time our laws reflect that.”

The report points to five major findings: Immigration enforcement enables workplace exploitation; Immigration raids stunt business activity and revenue creation; Mass deportation eliminates jobs held by U.S. Citizens; Stripping Workers of legal Immigration Status worsens the affordability crisis; and a Broad path to Citizenship would create jobs and raise wages.

To Directly Access The Report, Go Here: Citizenship and the Affordability Agenda: A Path to Better Jobs, Higher Wages, and Prosperity for All | American Civil Liberties Union

Labor Unions 'Are Growing, But Where Depends On State Politics' - 'New Research Shows A Significant Spike In Union Membership Across The Country'

Thu, 24 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Kevin Hardy at Stateline reports Labor Union Membership continues to climb in the U.S., though the increase remains sharply divided by the politics of individual States. Last year, the Nation added more than 411,000 Union Members - the largest annual growth since 2008, according to a study published by the Illinois Economic Policy Institute and the Project for Middle Class Renewal at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. At the end of last year, more than 14.6 million American Workers belonged to a Union - about 10% of the workforce, the study said. While Union Membership grew across the country, the State of the Unions report found States that have sought to protect or strengthen Collective Bargaining Rights added three times as many Union Members as so-called Right-To-Work (for less) States, which prohibit mandatory Union Membership or dues as conditions of employment. “What seems to be the number one driver is the ‘state’ of the State,” said one of the Study Authors, Robert Bruno, who leads the Labor Education Program at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. “If the policy is ‘Anti-Union, it suppresses Worker will.’ ‘Where the law allows Worker will to flourish, as I would argue it should, then you see higher numbers.’ So you ‘can’t ignore’ politics. You ‘can’t ignore’ policy.” State Governments are nearly evenly divided on Labor policy, with 26 having Right-To-Work Laws. Union Membership Rates sit at about 14% in Collective Bargaining States and 5% in Right-To-Work States, the study found.

To Continue Reading This Labor News Story, Go To: Labor unions are growing, but where depends on state politics • Stateline

'Lifting Up Worker Voice On Technology' - UNITE HERE's National Technology Program

Wed, 23 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - Beginning in 2018, UNITE HERE - under the leadership of then-President D. Taylor, made a substantial commitment to facing the challenges that technology poses for the Hospitality Industry.

This commitment continues under Taylor’s successor, Gwen Mills.

The Union made that commitment because they understand technology - not as a neutral or positive force in the world, but as one that reflects the perspective and goals of its creators and implementors.

For technology to serve the needs of Front-Line Workers, those Workers need to be part of both the development and the implementation process.

The Labor Movement has long understood that the only power that ordinary people have is collective action - whether on the picket line or at the ballot box.

Harnessing Workers’ power with regard to technology means educating and mobilizing Working People to advocate for their own (and their Co-Workers’) interests.

Over the past eight years, UNITE HERE has used collective bargaining and Worker mobilization to create a process for mid-cycle bargaining when employers want to implement new technology.

The Union has also worked with Academic Researchers to understand Workers’ experience of existing technologies and to develop training initiatives to improve those experiences.

Finally, UNITE HERE has partnered with Tech Developers to help advance Worker-centered technologies.

These three strategies work in tandem to advance a vision of technology that supports and uplifts humans at work - rather than oppress and replace them.

The following paper details the theory and achievements of the program beginning with the decision to fight for novel contract language in the 2018 contract cycle.

Rather than bargaining over specific technologies, the contract language sets up a process to negotiate whenever the employer intends to implement new technology while the contract is in effect, a process we call: Mid-Cycle Bargaining.

Over the past seven years, the Union has used this form of bargaining to negotiate more than 100 times.

During the 2018 national Marriott strike in eight Cities, Workers won a process to bargain about new technology.

Reflecting on first few years of the program, Mills summarized: “We live in a time when the richest people in the world are looking to further consolidate their wealth and power and they are using tech to do it. If you listen to Silicon Valley, Tech is always perfect and inevitable, and those of us who raise concerns are ‘anti-progress.’ Almost a decade ago, President Taylor recognized that without Worker input, Tech innovation was just going to line the pockets of billionaires at the expense of normal Working People. We still have a long way to go to achieve technological innovations that uplift all humanity rather than benefit a few, but I believe that we have a model of how to get there. As our program evolves, and it must, because technology is evolving, we are holding on to that core vision - Workers must be part of the design and implementation of technology.”

To Read The Report, Go Here: unite-here-lifting-up-worker-voice-on-technology.pdf

National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler On Artificial Intelligence In the Workplace: "It Shouldn't Require Doomsday Warnings To Wake Up To The Very Real Threats That AI Inflicts On Us Every Day"

Tue, 22 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler has released the following statement on Artificial Intelligence (AI):

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been a hot topic in the news recently.

Here’s what I hear from Workers about AI - and what I see as the best path forward.

First, we need to broaden the conversation about what “AI safety” means.

Yes, it means thinking about the societal danger these technologies pose long-term if they go unchecked.

But for Workers: The threat is a lot more real, day to day, right in front of us.

AI surveilling us at work.

Automation taking our jobs.

The existential threat Workers feel is about what an AI future means to our jobs, paychecks, privacy and safety.

Our livelihoods.

The very things that we rely on to keep our households running every single day.

By talking about how we can empower Workers - strengthening Union Rights, passing legislation to protect children’s exposure to these platforms, forming partnerships with companies to upskill Workers - we’re protecting ourselves from the most existential threats that AI poses.

We need clear, principled leadership we can trust that doesn't have ulterior motives in regulating this sector.

That extends to politicians, too.

We cannot and will not count on those directly taking PAC money from Big Tech companies to pass laws regulating those same companies.

It shouldn’t require doomsday warnings to wake up to the very real threats that AI inflicts on us every day.

Unions have been on the front lines of this fight for years because it’s Workers who pay the price if we take the wrong path.

This is our future.

Our message to politicians at every level: Center Working People in everything you do.

That’s the ONLY way to get this right.

Democrats 'With Union Backgrounds Aim To Retake Congress'

Mon, 21 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Michael Sainato at The Guardian reports the U.S. Labor Movement is having a banner election year.

More than three dozen nominees for open House and Senate races across the country have backgrounds as Labor Union Representatives or Members.

Several nominees are running in heavily Blue Districts, making it almost certain they will win the seat in November’s Mid-Terms, while others are in highly contested races that are likely to determine control of the House - and possibly the Senate.

Most are Democrats, though some are running as Independents.

The early success of so many candidates with ties to Labor comes as Democrats work to rebuild their support among Working-Class Voters, centering their campaign messaging around affordability issues - but the messenger matters, too.

“In a political environment that’s been dominated by wealthy elites for decades, Union candidates provide a level of trust and credibility that’s simply unmatched,” Steve Smith, a spokesperson for the National AFL-CIO, told The Guardian. “These candidates are at long last returning the levers of power to the people.”

A 2024 study by Cal State and UCLA Researchers found Working-Class voters are 6.4 percentage points more likely to prefer a political candidate with a Working-Class occupation over one with an Upper-Class occupation.

Yet a 2026 report by the Center for Working-Class Politics found Working-Class candidates make up just 8%-to-14% of Democratic and 5%-to-8% of Republican Congressional candidates.

Union candidates invoked Pro-Worker themes 159% more than Non-Union candidates, the report found.

Running more Union Members as candidates, its authors argued, could increase the representation ordinary Americans have in Congress, by elevating people who can speak to and deliver on issues that affect the Working Class.

“Voters want Elected Leaders who understand the struggles Working People face in an economy rigged against us,” Smith said. “In every area of the country, at every level, Union Members are running for office and winning because they bring lived experience in leveling the playing field for Workers and creating a brighter future for our families.”

To Continue Reading This Labor News Story, Go To: Revenge of the labor movement: Democrats with union backgrounds aim to retake Congress | Democrats | The Guardian

CEO-To-Worker Pay 'Has Skyrocketed Over The Last Six Decades' - In 2025, CEOs 'Were Paid 325 Times As Much As A Typical Worker In Contrast To 1965, When They Were Paid 21 Times As Much As A Typical Worker'

Sun, 20 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - CEOs of major U.S. companies were paid 21 times as much as the typical Worker in 1965, using the realized measure of CEO compensation, which captures what CEOs took home in pay after any stock-based compensation were sold, according to the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).

This ratio grew to 31-to-1 in 1978 and 60-to-1 by 1989.

It surged in the 1990s, hitting 380-to-1 in 2000 at the end of the 1990s recovery and at the height of the stock market bubble.

The fall in the stock market after 2000 reduced CEO stock-related pay, such as realized stock options, and caused CEO compensation to tumble in 2002 before beginning to rise again in 2003.

Realized CEO compensation recovered to a level of 329 times Worker pay by 2007, still below its 2000 level.

The financial crisis of 2008 and accompanying stock market decline reduced CEO compensation between 2007 and 2009, and the CEO-to-Worker Compensation Ratio fell in tandem.

Over the 2009-to-2021 period, another surge in realized CEO compensation brought the ratio to 408-to-1, a historic high.

The ratio experienced significant declines between 2021 and 2023, as CEO pay fell.

In 2025, the CEO-to-Worker Compensation Ratio surged ahead to 325-to-1, far higher than it was in the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and the early 1990s.

The extraordinarily high level of the CEO-to-Worker Compensation Ratio over the long term reflects the strikingly different trajectory of CEO pay compared with typical worker pay over the last nearly five decades.

On the one hand, compensation of a typical Worker has grown slowly since the late 1970s: Just 28% over the 47 years from 1978 to 2025, despite a corresponding growth of net economy-wide productivity of 86% (EPI 2026).

By contrast, realized CEO compensation grew a staggering 1,316% from 1978 to 2025 (excluding 1979, since there are no data for that year), obviously far exceeding the growth in productivity (or really any other economic metric) over that period.

To Directly Access This Labor News Story, Go To: CEO Pay | Economic Policy Institute

Unions 'Lead Filing Of New Lawsuit To Stop USDA Reorganization' - 'Complaint & Renewed Preliminary Injunction Motion Filed After Court Ruled The Challenge To USDA's Reorganization Belongs In Its Own Case'

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Four Labor Unions representing U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Employees - joined by Non-Profit Organizations and Cities and Counties from across the country, have filed a new lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California to stop the Trump administration from implementing an unlawful reorganization of the USDA.

The complaint names the USDA and Secretary Brooke Rollins as defendants and an accompanying renewed motion for a preliminary injunction asks the Court to halt imminent forced relocations of Employees that are part of a reorganization, a reorganization the Agency has proceeded with despite Congress expressly prohibiting such action absent Congressional approval.

The USDA has already begun forcing Employees to choose between forced relocation or the loss of their jobs.

The Union plaintiffs are the; American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE); the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME); the National Federation of Federal Employees; and the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU).

Together, the four Unions speak for USDA Employees in nearly every corner of the Department this reorganization touches.

The full coalition also includes: the County of Santa Clara, California; the City and County of San Francisco, California; Prince George’s County, Maryland; the Alliance of Crop, Soil and Environmental Science Societies; the American Geophysical Union; the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks; NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council); and the Western Watersheds Project.

The coalition filed this separate lawsuit pursuant to an order Judge Susan Illston had issued in AFGE v. Trump, the coalition’s broader challenge to the Administration’s unlawful reshaping of the Federal Government.

The Coalition prepared and filed this lawsuit and renewed request for preliminary relief just days after Judge Illston held in AFGE v. Trump that these claims merited their own case.

The USDA’s unlawful plan would close or sharply cut capacity at offices and facilities across the Department - and it would gut the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, the Nation’s premier Agricultural Research Facility.

It moves the Forest Service Headquarters from Washington, D.C. to Salt Lake City, closes all nine Forest Service Regional Offices and shuts 23 research locations across 15 States.

The plan would also close five of seven Regional Offices of the Food and Nutrition Administration (FNA) and require Employees to relocate across the country, undermining the efficient administration of critical nutrition programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children.

It also ships Foreign Agricultural Service Employees - whose work focuses on international trade - to Kansas City and relocates Rural Development and Farm Production and Conservation national functions away from the national capital region.

AFGE National President Everett Kelley said: “On behalf of the tens of thousands of USDA Employees AFGE represents, I am urging the court to put an immediate halt to this illegal and disruptive reorganization. USDA Employees keep our food safe, stand behind our farmers, make sure our children are fed and keep thousands of American businesses running. Instead of investing in these Public Servants, this Administration wants to dismantle the USDA and gut the workforce that our country depends on.”

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: AFGE | Unions Lead Filing of New Lawsuit to Stop USDA Reorganization

Federal Court Judge 'Blocks Trump Administration's Job Application Loyalty Question After Unions File Suit'

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

A Federal Judge has blocked the Trump Administration from requiring Federal Agency job applicants to write an essay about their favorite Trump administration initiative, siding with the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), the American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and the National Association of Government Employees (NAGE) - an Affiliate of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), in their lawsuit. Unions filed a complaint after the Office of Personnel Management issued a “Merit Hiring Plan” in May 2025. The Court found this unlawful requirement violates the First Amendment, the Administrative Procedure Act and the Privacy Act. AFSCME President Patrick Moran said: “This is a major win for Public Service Workers and the communities we serve. These ‘loyalty questions’ are a blatantly illegal attempt to hire partisan cronies who would endanger our communities by putting politics before people, rather than dedicated, qualified Public Service Workers.” AFGE National President Everett Kelley said: “Requiring Federal job applicants to answer politically-motivated questions goes against the very nature of the non-partisan Civil Service and we are pleased the Judge has put an immediate stop to the administration’s loyalty questions. Federal employees should be hired based solely on their ability to perform the job - not their allegiance to any particular Administration.” NAGE National President David Holway added: “Today’s ruling makes clear that hiring in the Federal Workforce cannot be turned into a political loyalty question. Federal jobs are not political rewards and public service is not conditioned on allegiance to a President.”

For More On This Labor News Story, Go To: Judge halts ‘favorite EO’ question on federal job applications - Government Executive

AFGE Photo.

The National AFL-CIO Hosts A Press Event With Athletes, Lawmakers & Advocates 'Who Are Speaking Out Against The Protect College Sports Act'

Wed, 16 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

The National AFL-CIO hosted a press call earlier this week with College Athletes, Professional Athlete Unions, families and advocates - joined by U.S. Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut, who spoke out against the Protect College Sports Act as it heads to the Senate floor. National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) Players Association (NWSLPA) Executive Director Meghann Burke, Oluchi Okananwa - the University of Maryland Women’s Basketball Player and United College Athletes Association (UCAA) Interim President and Interim Executive Committee Member, and other speakers detailed how the Bill denies College Athletes protections and cuts off any path they have to advocate for themselves - which allows the NCAA, College Athletic Conferences and Schools to further consolidate money and power over Athletes’ lives. Okananwa said: “A CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) gives Athletes an actual seat at the table to negotiate compensation, health care, safety standards, academic protections and so much more. There is an important difference between being heard and having power. You can invite Athletes into a room, you can ask for our opinions, you can put athletes on committees, but if decisions can still be made for us without our agreement, that is not collective bargaining. We should not have to trade away our economic rights and legal leverage just to receive basic protections that Athletes deserve in the first place.” Senator Murphy said: “This Bill protects the billions of dollars that Coaches and Sports Industry Executives are making over the suppression of compensation for some of the most highly valued Athletes in the world. What we’re being asked to do is to basically allow Colleges and Conferences and the NCAA to illegally collude.”

To Read This Labor News Story In Its Entirety, Go To: Protect College Sports Act gets renewed push and fresh opposition | AP News

'Labor Votes: Discontent Will Accompany Blue Collar Voters To The Polls In The Mid-Terms'

Mon, 14 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Robert Forrant - a Professor of U.S. History and Labor Studies at UMass Lowell, penned this interesting Labor Opinion Piece that recently appeared in The Conversation:

When Union Workers and their families gathered this Labor Day, some may have pondered Ronald Reagan’s memorable refrain: “Are you better off now than you were four years ago?”

All Workers – Unionized or not – are dealing with higher prices for food and gasoline.

For America’s Unionized Workforce, the overall state of the economy is bleak.

Threats from AI (Artificial Intelligence) and robotics abound.

Pledges by U.S. and International Corporations to invest in new plants remain largely pledges.

The roughly 400,000 Federal job cuts during President Donald Trump’s second term have disrupted lives.

Many of these jobs were previously represented by Labor Unions.

As a Labor Studies Scholar, I believe weariness and wariness will accompany Blue-Collar Voters to the polls in November.

As such, the candidates who have practical ideas for turning the economy around and exhibit empathy for Americans worried about how to pay their bills could receive the bulk of the Union vote.

Over generations, the majority of Union Members have sided with Democratic candidates, even if that support has wavered since the 1970s.

The 2024 Presidential Campaign was no exception.

The majority of Union Members voted for Democratic candidates, but at a far lower rate than in the 1960s.

Why does this matter in 2026?

Union Voters play a bigger role in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Nevada - three swing States where the share of voters who belong to Unions is above the national average of 10%.

In closely contested House and Senate races, even a small shift in Union votes could influence the outcome.

To Continue Reading This Labor Opinion Piece Go To: Labor votes: Discontent will accompany blue‑collar voters to the polls in the midterms

The National AFL-CIO Commemorates The 25th Anniversary of 9/11, 'Calls for Health Care Coverage For Responders & Survivors'

Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler has issued the following statement to mark the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks:

On this solemn anniversary, the Labor Movement honors the memory of all those killed in the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001, including the more than 600 Members of our Union Family whom we continue to mourn today.

In the aftermath of the devastation, as the Nation mourned, Working People across the country answered the call.

We saw the very best in the Flight Crews of the hijacked planes who lost their lives on the job; Firefighters, Police Officers and other First Responders who took the ultimate risk to deliver emergency care to victims; and the Maintenance, Construction, Hospitality, Restaurant and other Union Members and Non-Union Workers who helped respond, repair and rebuild in New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

For the hundreds of thousands of Responders and other survivors who were exposed to toxic dust after they were told it was safe to resume their lives, the physical toll has endured long after the dust settled.

Twenty-five years later, we know that more Firefighters have died from 9/11-related cancers and other illnesses than those who died on the day itself - a painful lesson in the long-term consequences of occupational and environmental exposures.

But for too long, the Federal Government has taken the opposite approach.

It has denied repeated petitions from experts and Doctors of the World Health Trade Center Program to approve coverage for additional health conditions, like cardiac effects and autoimmune diseases, that are now emerging.

We should commemorate this day by meeting the needs of 9/11 Responders and survivors who rely on this program but are left without necessary medical care, and by committing to recognize and treat all 9/11-related diseases and conditions.

And we should take important steps to secure Aviation Workers’ safety on the job, including retrofitting existing passenger aircraft with secondary barriers.

Twenty-five years ago, countless Americans saw their communities in crisis and did what Working People do best: They jumped in to help their neighbors.

The Labor Movement will continue to stand in solidarity and honor their legacy.

To Directly Access This National AFL-CIO Statement, Go To: AFL-CIO Commemorates the 25th Anniversary of 9/11, Calls for Health Care Coverage for Responders and Survivors | AFL-CIO

'The Most Anti-Union President:' How Trump 'Has Turned His Back On Workers' - Labor Experts 'Stunned At How Anti-Worker Trump Has Been With Actions Since Last Labor Day That Have Hurt Unions'

Tue, 08 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – President Donald Trump has repeatedly vowed to champion U.S. Workers.

Shortly before Labor Day - last year, he said: “Every policy of the Trump Administration is designed to lift up the American Worker and “promote great-paying Blue-Collar jobs.”

But in the year since last Labor Day, Trump has taken many actions that have hurt U.S. Workers and Unions, with some Labor experts saying they have been stunned at how Anti-Worker Trump has been.

In the months after Trump returned to office, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cut workplace inspections by 20%, compared with Joe Biden’s last year in office.

Even though Trump campaigned as a champion of Coalminers, his Administration has repeatedly delayed implementation of a rule to limit silica dust, which has afflicted and killed many coalminers with black lung.

The United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) has urgently called for “immediate enforcement” of the stalled Silica Dust Rule.

With regard to wages, Workers haven’t been doing so well under Trump.

While the White House boasts wages have risen, the problem for Workers is that prices - pushed up by Trump’s tariffs and the Iran War - have risen faster than wages over the past year, helping fuel the affordability crisis.

In a move that will cut pay for many low-wage Workers, the Trump Administration has proposed eliminating Federal Minimum Wage and Overtime protections for three million often low-paid Homecare Workers who take care of seniors and the disabled.

Despite several court rulings to slow or stop this Anti-Union effort, Trump has pushed aggressively ahead with his unprecedented campaign to strip one million Federal Employees of their ability to bargain collectively - a move Liz Shuler, who serves as President of the National AFL-CIO, the Nation’s main Labor Federation, called “the largest single act of Union-Busting in our history”.

Trump has moved to end collective bargaining for hundreds of thousands of Workers at the Transportation Security Agency, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Agriculture, the Environmental Protection Agency and other Federal Agencies.

“Trump’s actions make him by far the most Anti-Union President in our modern history,” Sara Nelson, the President of the Association of Flight Attendants and a leading progressive voice in the Labor Movement, said in an interview. “His Administration has been massively Anti-Worker, Anti-Union and Anti-Working Class.”

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: ‘The most anti-union president’: how Trump turned his back on US workers | US unions | The Guardian

From The Economic Policy Institute: Wages 'Are Lower In Right-To-Work (For Less) States As They Have Lower Unionization Rates & More Anti-Worker Policies'

Fri, 04 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

In the United States, so-called Right-To-Work (for less) Laws are Anti-Union State policies promoted by Big Business interests to weaken Unions and limit Workers’ bargaining power.

Despite the name, Right-To-Work (RTW) Laws do not provide any sort of job protection or right to a job.

Rather, they deceptively named policy starves Unions of resources, making it harder for them to negotiate collectively for better wages, benefits and working conditions.

Key takeaways from a new Economic Policy Institute (EPI) report include:

RTW Laws undermine Workers’ ability to form Unions. Unionization rates are clearly lower in RTW States - and since Unions raise wages, that suppression lowers pay.

States with RTW Laws are also more likely to have other Anti-Worker Laws and generally weaker Labor Standards. This is likely because both RTW and other Anti-Worker policies stem from the same Anti-Worker political roots, and because RTW’s suppression of Unions deprives these States of strong potential political champions for other Pro-Worker policies.

Non-RTW States are more likely to have Pro-Worker policies like higher minimum wages and Prevailing Wage Laws, restrictions on non-compete agreements, pay transparency policies, and more protective Unemployment Insurance Benefits.

As a result, Workers in RTW States are paid 6.7% less on average than workers in non-RTW States - more than double the 3.2% wage penalty found in 2015.

That means the RTW wage penalty has increased in recent years and now translates to over $4,000 less per year for a median full-time Worker in a RTW state.

The RTW wage penalty is steeper for Women (7.3%) than for Men (6.3%), and for Black (9.7%) and Hispanic Workers (10.0%) than for White Workers (5.4%).

Lawmakers already have the policy tools they need to boost wages and improve other outcomes for Workers, including: At the State level, rolling back existing RTW Laws is the most powerful lever; At the Federal level, the Protecting the Right to Organize Act (which includes a ban on RTW) would be transformational for efforts to organize Workers and Policymakers could also make progress on numerous other fronts, such as making UI systems more protective and raising minimum wages.

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: Wages are lower in “right-to-work” states: These states have lower unionization rates and more anti-worker policies | Economic Policy Institute

National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler's Annual 'State Of The Unions' Address Ahead Of Labor Day & The Mid-Term Elections: 'Working People Are Hurting, (But We) Don't See Politicians Showing Up For Them'

Thu, 03 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - Ahead of Labor Day, National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler has issued a warning about Workers’ struggles with high costs and is detailing the Labor Movement’s plans for the 2026 November Mid-Term Elections.

In her fourth annual State of the Unions address, Shuler emphasized the pain Working People are feeling, the lack of trust Working-Class Voters have in politicians and that electing Pro-Worker candidates will rely on Working People talking to their neighbors.

In her address, Shuler said: “This Labor Day, shit’s too expensive. That’s what (94%) of Workers told us, in our new poll. Four out of five say: Paychecks aren’t keeping up with the cost of living - groceries, rent, childcare, gas. Workers are sick and tired of both parties: Republicans who enable a White House that has made our life worse and more expensive at every turn. Who have rubber-stamped Trump’s needless wars, chaotic tariffs and attacks on our communities. And at the same time, we have too many Democrats who pay lip service to Working People, say they understand us, and want our votes on Election Day - and then take office and cozy up to the same corporations we’re fighting on the picket lines. This year, it’s time to put the full weight of the Labor Movement behind candidates who will actually deliver for Working People.”

The 2026 State of the Unions also included new polling that surveyed thousands of Working People, including both Union Members and those not yet in a Union.

Key findings included: Trust in Unions exceeds trust in the Democratic Party by 20 points (52% to 32%) and Workers are twice as likely to trust Unions than to trust the Republican Party (52% to 26%); Young Workers ages 18-to-30 trust Labor Unions (61%) more than twice as much as they trust the Democratic Party (28%) or the Republican Party (22%). Among young men, the trust gap is 40 points between Unions and Democrats (63% to 23%) and 43 points between Unions and Republicans (63% to 20%); The only group Workers trust more than Unions is their own neighbors (75%); For five years running, seven in 10 Americans say they support Unions -the highest level of support in a generation; By a 2-to-1 margin, people say Unions are more needed today than in the past and say increasing Union Membership is the single best way Americans can get a raise; and More Workers than ever want a Union on the job. Among those ages 18-to-30, 57% who aren't in a Union say they'd join one at their most recent workplace, up 10 points since last year. Workers are more likely to say the path to higher wages is through more people belonging to Unions or electing candidates endorsed by Unions (22%) than through electing Democrats (20%) or Republicans (19%).

The address comes as Union Membership has hit a 16-year high, with nearly a half-million Workers across the country joining a union last year, 92% of them younger than 40.

This increased strength and Unions’ singular relationships with their Members that the Labor Movement will turn out two million more Union Voters than in 2024 and train 50,000 Election Protection Volunteers for November, the National AFL-CIO said.

To Directly Access This Labor News Story, Go To: AFL-CIO President: Working People Are Hurting, Don’t See Politicians Showing Up for Them | AFL-CIO

The Starbucks Workers Union 'Calls For Boycott Amid Contract Fight' - The Campaign 'Has Organized Hundreds Of Stores Since 2021 But Still Doesn't Have A Contract'

Tue, 01 Sep 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Starbucks Workers United (SBWU) is calling on supporters to boycott the Coffee Chain until they settle a fair contract, an escalation in the Workers’ ongoing effort to secure their first contract. The open-ended campaign has been added to the National AFL-CIO’s official boycott list. Roughly 12,000 Baristas have joined the Union since 2021, but the corporation has yet to settle a deal with fair pay, adequate hours, improved staffing and workplace protections. “At a time when Working-Class People across the country are struggling in a challenging economy, it is no longer possible to be both a Starbucks customer and in support of Workers,” the SBWU said. “Choosing to spend money at Starbucks is choosing a law-breaking corporation over the baristas who make your coffee every day exactly as you ask for it.”

For More On This Labor News Story, Go To: Starbucks Workers Call For Boycott Amid Contract Fight | HuffPost Impact

Dolly Parton 'Was A Proud Union Sister' - Organized Labor 'Celebrates The Life & Legacy Of An Artist Who Championed Working Women & Carried A Union Card For Almost 60 Years'

Mon, 31 Aug 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Dolly Parton, the brilliant Songwriter and beloved Country Singer who has died at age 80, wrote one of the great anthems of the American Working Class.

The title song from 9 to 5, the 1980 classic about battling gender inequity in the workplace that starred Parton, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, spoke so much truth that it became a hit on the pop and country charts, gained an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song, and collected two Grammys.

Workers everywhere knew what Parton meant when she sang about “barely gettin’ by, it’s all takin’ and no givin,’” and complained, “They just use your mind and they never give you credit. It’s enough to drive you crazy if you let it.”

That song appeared on a remarkable solo album by Parton, 9 to 5 and Odd Jobs, which also included songs such as “Working Girl” and “Poor Folks Town” by Parton, along with a poignant cover of “Deportee (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos),” Woody Guthrie’s reflection on the racist treatment of Migrant Farm Workers.

The album’s title track warned: “It’s a rich man’s game no matter what they call it. And you spend your life puttin’ money in his wallet.”

It also reminded Working Women: “There’s a better life and you think about it, don’t you?”

From the National AFL-CIO: “Dolly Parton knew what it was like to struggle as she fought for Working Families her whole career. From providing free books to kids to giving Working Women our ‘9 to 5’ anthem, she was an icon and an inspiration. Rest in power to our Union Sister. We will always love you.”

Parton was, indeed, a Union Sister for the better part of 60 years - carrying the card of multiple Labor Organizations that celebrated the talent and humanity that earned the Country Singer, Actress and Philanthropist universal admiration.

“Rest in peace, Dolly. Thank You for the music and the solidarity,” declared the American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada (AFM), the AFL-CIO-Affiliated Labor Union that represents 70,000 Professional Singers and Players, including Parton.

The AFM recalled Parton whose “influence went far beyond the boundaries of country music, but she never lost track of who she was and her values.”

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: Dolly Parton Was a Proud Union Sister - by Nation Magazine

Parton Photo Courtesy Of Her Facebook Page.

National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler Named To TIME's Fourth Annual List Of The TIME100 AI

Sat, 29 Aug 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - TIME has named National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler to the 2026 TIME100 AI, a list recognizing the 100 most influential people in Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Shuler has led the Labor Movement’s response to ensure Workers have a voice in how AI’s development and implementation affect their livelihoods.

Under her leadership, Labor Unions have won key protections in contracts related to the implementation of AI technology on the job and advanced Pro-Worker AI policy in Congress and in State Legislatures.

Said Shuler: “I am honored to be included in this year’s TIME100 AI list - a recognition that belongs to every Worker fighting for fair, safe and equitable jobs in the face of the AI revolution. We’re at the most important fork in the road our economy has faced in a hundred years. There is no Worker and no industry this does not touch and every job is now a technology job. But the Labor Movement has been here for every transformation of our economy and we will build a future that works for all of us. Thank you to the team at TIME for recognizing Labor’s essential role in the conversation about how we get there.”

Shuler founded the National AFL-CIO Technology Institute in 2021 to ensure Working People’s knowledge, expertise and interests are centered in the Innovation Economy and that technological change benefits Workers, not just the wealthy and corporations.

Under her leadership, the National AFL-CIO and its Tech Institute have convened experts in policy, Labor Law and organizing, and worked with Affiliated Unions to develop the “Workers First Initiative on AI,” the first comprehensive Labor Movement agenda establishing principles on AI technology.

They also convened the National AFL-CIO’s AI Task Force to fight for common-sense, strong AI guardrails at the State and local levels.

To assemble the list, TIME’s Editors and Reporters examined the key stories in AI over the past year and consulted with expert sources and industry leaders for recommendations - the result is a list of 100 leaders, innovators, shapers and thinkers who have a stake in the future of AI.

National AFL-CIO Editor’s Note: The TIME100 AI 2026 will appear in the September 7th issue of TIME, which were available on newsstands beginning Friday (August 28th). See the full list here: https://time.com/collection/time100-ai/2026/

To Directly Access This Labor News Story In Its Entirety, Go To: AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler Named to TIME’s Fourth Annual List of the TIME100 AI | AFL-CIO

Photo Courtesy Of TIME/The National AFL-CIO.

Unions 'Sound The Alarm On A Last-Minute Push For Robot Farm Equipment'

Thu, 27 Aug 2026 00:00:00 -0400

Chase DiFeliciantonio at POLITICO reports Labor Leaders are up in arms over a proposal Lawmakers are mulling in the final days of the Legislature’s season that would allow automated agricultural equipment to operate alongside Workers in California. In a letter obtained by POLITICO that was sent to Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas and Senate President Pro Tempore Monique Limón, several of the State’s leading Unions - including the United Farm Workers (UFW) warned that introducing the unpiloted machinery could have “real consequences for Worker safety and California jobs.” They also lashed out at the last-minute nature of the measure, which would allow it to avoid the scrutiny of the regular legislative process. “We don't believe anything that jeopardizes safety or jobs should be rushed this way,” Lorena Gonzalez, who serves as President of the California Federation of Labor Unions, which signed onto the letter, told POLITICO in an interview. “We think Farmworkers shouldn't be guinea pigs." While no Lawmaker has yet said publicly they plan to introduce a Bill pushing the idea, a draft of a Budget Trailer Bill obtained by POLITICO would authorize farm operators to use the machines in the same fields as Workers. The Draft Bill also calls for safety guidelines and outlines how displaced Workers should be treated. A source close to the negotiations who supports the idea, and granted anonymity to discuss the ongoing talks, argued the legislation would be an important step in modernizing California’s Agriculture Industry. The source reiterated a Bill would include safeguards to protect Workers and opportunities for them to retrain for other jobs.

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: Unions sound alarm on last-minute push for robot farm equipment

Unions 'Blast' Supreme Court's 'OK Of Trump Mail-In Ballots Ban'

Wed, 26 Aug 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - Union Leaders and Constitutional Scholars, including the three dissenting U.S. Supreme Court Justices, blasted the High Court majority’s go-ahead for President Donald Trump’s crusade to ban mail-in balloting this Fall.

Though the six-Justice GOP-named majority said the Trump Administration admits it probably cannot implement the ban in time for the November 3rd Mid-Term Elections, dissenting Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson vigorously disagreed.

Sotomayor and Kagan said just the prospect of criminal prosecution for violating Trump’s Executive Order ban on mail-in voting would cause some States which rely on it, and voters, to bow to Trump’s dictate.

Jackson said upholding Trump’s “unconstitutional” order would sow “chaos and confusion” because while the majority said the States challenging Trump acted too early, the majority didn’t say when the right time is to act - including after the damage is done.

She called the whole situation a “Kafkaesque nightmare.”

“The Government’s actual objective: To secure our imprimatur (ratification) for its effort to foment chaos ahead of the November Elections,” Jackson wrote.

The vehement Union disagreement came from American Postal Workers Union (APWU) President Jonathan Smith, National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler and American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) President Everett Kelley.

All spoke at the APWU Convention the week before the High Court ruling.

“This fight is for the millions of Americans that just can’t get to the Poll Stations to vote on a specific day at a specific time because life showed up, because they’re caring for elderly parents, because they can’t get a day off of work, because they can’t stand in line,” Smith told his Convention Delegates. “It’s physically painful and harmful (for those voters). They need us to show up for them. America depends on us. America depends on voting by mail and we will deliver it. As we say it, keep it protected and expanded.”

To Continue Reading This Labor News Story, Go To: Unions blast Supreme Court’s OK of Trump mail-in ballots ban – People's World

APWU Photo Via Facebook.

'Save Our Game Workers' - CWA Members Rally Across The U.S. & Canada Against XBOX Layoffs

Tue, 25 Aug 2026 00:00:00 -0400

More than 800 Communications Workers of America (CWA) Members, Video Game Workers, Community Organizations and local Labor Allies recently held coordinated Save Our Devs rallies in the U.S. and Canada to call out layoffs and corporate greed across the industry and to demand fair first contracts across Microsoft’s Gaming Studios.

The rallies were made possible by CWA Locals 1118, 2100, 2108, 6215, 7250, 9433 and 9510 in the U.S. and CWA-SCA Local 30111 in Canada.

Last month, Microsoft’s Gaming Division - now rebranded as XBOX - announced 3,200 planned job reductions across XBOX, with the first phase of layoffs scheduled to impact 1,600 XBOX Workers, including hundreds of Union Members, in early September.

CWA represents nearly 4,000 Video Game Workers at XBOX throughout the U.S. and Canada.

As a result, CWA Members and gamers alike have engaged in unprecedented resistance in response to Microsoft’s unilateral actions.

Last month, after a press conference where XBOX Workers demanded layoff protections, more than 500 Workers and their allies rallied at studio locations across the U.S. and Canada.

XBOX fans also posted on Microsoft’s official fan feedback website to call out the layoffs, garnering more than 4,000 upvotes and nearly 900 comments on the XBOX Player Voice forum.

In July, CWA filed Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) Charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), alleging several Labor Law violations that require the employer to engage in decisional bargaining over discretionary layoffs.

ZeniMax Senior User Research and CWA Local 6215 Member Elisabeth Whyte, who was impacted by July’s layoffs, said: “Like the people I read about in history books, I’m here to fight for fair contracts for all the Unionized Workers in the Video Game Industry. I’m here to fight for all the Game Workers across an industry that has decided to put profits ahead of the Workers ‘who are the heart and soul of games.’ My hope is the Gaming Industry will one day return to a model that respects Game Workers, provides fair compensation, and doesn’t treat a game launch as an opportunity to downsize or close studios.”

For More On This Labor News Story, Go To: Union Video Game Workers Fight for Rights Amidst Xbox Layoffs | Communications Workers of America

CWA-Provided Photo.

National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler On The AFT's 'Shop Smart, Not Target' Campaign: "As You Do Your Back-To-School Shopping, Remember To Thank The Union Members Who Make Our Education System Run"

Mon, 24 Aug 2026 10:00:00 -0400

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - National AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler has released the following statement on the American Federation of Teachers’ (AFT) Shop Smart, Support Working Families Campaign:

Around the country, millions of Working Families are preparing for another Back-to-School season.

While kids say goodbye to Summer break, countless Educators, Support Staff, Bus Operators and other dedicated Essential Workers who maintain facilities, serve food in cafeterias, provide first aid, handle important administrative duties, manage libraries, offer counseling services and more are also preparing for the new academic year.

Strong Collective Bargaining Agreements are the backbone of our Schools across every department.

Job security protections, contractual raises, quality health care coverage and fair grievance processes ensure that the people who educate and care for our kids are treated with the dignity and respect they are owed.

So, as you do your back-to-school shopping and prepare for another year of book reports and science experiments, remember to thank the Union Members who make our Education System run.

WNYLaborToday.com Editor’s Note: Visit ShopSmart.AFT.org For More Information.

AFSCME Members 'Elect Organizer & Proven Fighter' Patrick Moran' As The National Union's Next President

Sun, 23 Aug 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(CHICAGO, ILLINOIS) - American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Members elected Patrick Moran as AFSCME International President at the Union’s just-held 47th International Convention in Chicago.

Nicole Pollard was elected International Secretary-Treasurer.

AFSCME represents more than 1.3 million Members across the United States.

Moran previously served as an AFSCME International Vice President and President of Maryland Council 3.

He expanded collective bargaining for Maryland’s Public Service Workers (Council 3), strengthened safety standards and built power by expanding Membership.

“I am honored to accept this responsibility. Nicole and I are ready to meet this moment,” Moran said. “For ninety years, AFSCME Members have been shaping and making history. Every generation of our Union has faced its defining moment. Now it’s our turn. We will fight and build power like our future depends on it because it does. We will protect our neighbors and strengthen our communities. This is our fight, and together, we’ve got the power to make change.”

From the Cultural Sector to Higher Education to Health Care, AFSCME Members have led a wave of new organizing - securing a voice on the job for Workers despite non-stop attacks on funding for Public Services and the freedom of Workers to collectively bargain.

Moran and Pollard ran as a ticket, pledging to build on that momentum by investing in bold, direct Member engagement and mobilization.

Their platform focused on growing Worker Power, protecting and expanding Public Services and improving the lives of Working People by taking on the fights ahead.

Nicole Pollard, an AFSCME Member for 23 years, served as AFSCME International Executive Assistant to former President Lee Saunders.

To Continue Reading This Labor News Story, Go To: AFSCME members elect organizer and proven fighter Patrick Moran as next president - AFSCME

Leadership From AFSCME, The AFT & SEIU 'Recommit To A Strong Partnership'

Fri, 21 Aug 2026 00:00:00 -0400

(CHICAGO, ILLINOIS) - The power of Union partnership was on full display at the American Federation of State, County & Municipal Workers’ (AFSCME) Convention in Chicago this week as the Leaders of three of the largest Unions pledged to continue fighting together to protect Workers’ Rights, Public Services and Democracy itself.

“Because we are all Unions of Public Service Workers, we share the same values, not just fighting for better wages and working conditions, but also strengthening our communities, helping our neighbors and advancing the common good,” President Lee Saunders said during a panel discussion held at AFSCME’s 47th International Convention.

In addition to Saunders, the other two Union Leaders on stage were American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten and Service Employees International Union (SEIU) President April Verrett.

National Education Association (NEA) President Becky Pringle is also part of the partnership - but was unable to attend the event in Chicago.

Together, the four Unions represent nearly nine million Workers across the country.

The Union Leaders talked about protecting and expanding Collective Bargaining Rights, neutralizing the Anti-Worker agenda that seeks to diminish Public Services in favor of tax cuts for the wealthy, and preserving Democracy.

Weingarten, who was elected AFT President in 2008, said Unions can help make the connection between having a voice on the job and a voice in whether our Democracy serves the Working Class or the Billionaire Class: “When we do it in solidarity as Unions together, at a local level talking to people, and when people see who cares about gas prices and who cares about ballrooms, then all of a sudden the choice becomes clear.”

Verrett, who in 2024 became the first Black person elected President of SEIU, noted the same forces attacking Unions in the workplace are the same forces rigging the economy against Working People: “There is no vibrant healthy democracy on this planet where there is not a vibrant healthy Labor Movement.”

Saunders said the collaboration by the four Unions has been extensive, such as partnering on lawsuits to block harmful Trump Administration policies.

Staff from all four Unions also collaborate closely and strategize to resolve issues common to all Public Service Workers.

Said Saunders: “By joining forces and aligning our efforts, we were able to have greater influence at a very pivotal moment. Let me tell you: When the four of us walk into a room together, it is a show of power - and it matters. Elected Officials take notice. Our adversaries know we mean business.”

Saunders, Weingarten and Verrett all predicted the Unions’ partnership would endure in the future.

To Directly Access This Labor News Report, Go To: Three union leaders recommit to strong partnership - AFSCME Convention 2026