Today (Tuesday, June 22nd) is the second day of Prime Day – which, for Prime members, means deals, deals, deals. But for Amazon’s Warehouse Workers, it usually means Mandatory Extra Time, or MET as the company abbreviates it. MET intensifies an already taxing work schedule: A typical warehouse shift consists of 10 hours of unrelenting physical more»

(GENEVA, SWITZERLAND) - Pope Francis has championed the right of all Workers to Unionize, as economic activity is poised to increase when the Coronavirus Pandemic threat eases. The Pontiff stressed the needs of the most vulnerable Workers, including migrants, in a video message to participants at a conference organized by the International Labor more»

Many politicians, pundits and business owners have said Coronavirus Pandemic-era enhanced Unemployment Benefits are keeping would-be Workers at home, but that's a much too simplistic explanation of today's employment situation. The Big Picture: Many hard-hit sectors are rebounding faster than anecdotal evidence would suggest and when jobs are hard to fill, more»

Across the country, United Steelworkers (USW)-represented Workers employed at nine plants operated by Allegheny Technologies, Incorporated have been on Strike for the last 11 weeks. The USW accuses ATI of Unfair Labor Practices (ULP), including bad faith bargaining and holding retiree benefits hostage for contract concessions. Here’s what the ATI more»

(TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA) - Alabama is a beautiful place filled with contradictions and complexities, but there are a few things that my time there has taught me that this state holds sacred: God, football, and barbecue top the list, of course, but for a group of Coal Miners in Tuscaloosa County, there’s another hallowed institution perched up on that more»

There is perhaps no clearer manifestation of how America is failing the Working Class than Amazon. In the blink of an eye, Amazon has become the largest and wealthiest logistics company the world has ever seen. Millions of Americans work in warehouse, shipping and package delivery jobs, where Amazon heavily dominates its competitors. The company will more»

(LONGMONT, COLORADO) - With CBD legal for purchase nationwide and cannabis becoming legal in more and more states, these industries are becoming a new industry for Labor Unions to organize Workers. This organizing is being led by the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), their sister Union - the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union (RWDSU), more»

(OXNARD, CALIFORNIA) - The Oxnard, California City Council will allocate $2.5 million of its American Rescue Plan funds for Essential-Worker COVID Premium Pay for Retail Grocery and Pharmacy Workers, becoming the first city in the Nation to use the government funds to support those Workers who have served their community on the frontlines of the pandemic more»

More Americans than ever are quitting their jobs, making it even harder for companies to fill a record number of job openings. Almost four million people quit their jobs in April, according to Federal Government figures - that’s nearly double the number of people who quit one year earlier. The percentage of people quitting their jobs, meanwhile, more»

(SALEM, OREGON) - Oregon's State Legislative Employees have made history by becoming the first in the Nation to Unionize and Labor experts are predicting it will have major ripple effects across the country. With a vote of 75-to31 on May 28th, Staffers for State Legislators - Employees who work at the state Capitol offices in Salem and other Public more»

(LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA) - The Coronavirus forced millions into unemployment, with many wondering what their next steps should - or even could - be. For two Members of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Hollywood, California Local 40, the answer came right from their Local Union. "We want to be able to provide help to these guys in more»

The Alphabet Workers Union has launched a campaign to push Google to allow Employees to use their chosen names on ID badges. The move comes after Phares Lee, a Transgender man who works at a Google Data Center in South Carolina and is employed by security subcontracting firm G4S, asked to have his dead name removed from his badge and was denied. more»

(CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE) - The House defeated a Right-To-Work (for less) Bill late last week by a vote of 175-to-199, disappointing supporters who thought a 2018 U.S. Supreme Court ruling on Mandatory Union Dues would persuade long-standing opponents to back it. House Members then defeated a motion to table the Bill, which would have meant it could have more»

Deliveroo was supposed to be the biggest IPO on the London Stock Exchange in a decade. The Amazon-backed, venture capital-fueled Food Delivery Company operates in 12 countries. Despite having never turned a profit, the company was praised by UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak as a “true British Tech success story” as it sought a valuation of $12 more»

The Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, a piece of Federal Legislation which has passed the House of Representatives and is gaining votes in the Senate, is the strongest effort in support of the Labor Movement in almost a century. One of the Bill’s heaviest hitting provisions would allow Workers currently misclassified as Independent more»

(DETROIT, MICHIGAN) - In a move United Auto Workers (UAW) President Rory L. Gamble said was long overdue, the UAW announced as part of Pride Month the formation of a UAW LGBTQ Caucus that will operate under the UAW Constitution’s Standing Committees on Civil and Human Rights. “The UAW has a unique and proud history of early advocacy of LGBTQ more»

(CHARLESTON, WEST VIRGINIA) - In yet another battle seeing Unions defending their Members and themselves against continued Right-Wing assaults from coast to coast, West Virginia Unions have sued the GOP-dominated State Government there for illegal retaliation against Unionized Workers by banning automatic dues collection from those Workers’ more»

If the last year has taught us anything, it's that none of us can make it on our own. That's the entire point of the Labor Movement - that we're stronger when we work together, whether that's at the bargaining table, on the job or going about our daily lives. It's why I've been so proud over the past year to see IBEW Members and Local Unions pitching in more»

The United Auto Workers (UAW) - once America’s most powerful Labor Union, a Union that led the way in building America’s Middle Class, has sunk into hard times, with a huge corruption scandal in which 12 Union Officials, including two former UAW Presidents, have been convicted of crimes. But now many Rank-and-Filers are hoping the Union will more»

(PORTLAND, OREGON) - When Donna Hammond was assigned a young Apprentice who made a racist comment, she could have joined the calls for him to be punished, but she didn't. Instead, she did what she's always done in these circumstances. She educated him and she changed his mind. "When I talked to him, I could tell that he ‘wasn't a Proud more»

(WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS) - For more than a month and a half, Saint Vincent Hospital’s administration and hundreds of Nurses in Worcester, Massachusetts have been locked in a tense Strike over staffing levels. The standoff comes at a crossroads time for Labor Unions, whose Membership has been on a steady decline for decades, and after a high-profile more»

(BROOKWOOD, ALABAMA) - More than 1,000 Coal Miners employed at Warrior Met Coal in Brookwood, Alabama have been on Strike since April 1st and their venture capital-backed employers seem determined to starve them out, so local supporters organized a benefit concert to boost the Miners’ Strike Fund and support their ongoing fight against corporate more»

In These Times Editor’s Note: Jennifer Dorning is President of the Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO, a coalition of 24 Unions representing more than four million Professional and Technical Union Members. A workplace’s culture is shaped by many factors. In my personal experience - as both a Labor Advocate and a more»

Randi Weingarten, the President of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), says the Biden Administration asked her Union for “language” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) could use in creating guidelines on school re-openings. Asked about The Post’s expose on how the powerful Teachers’ Union​ influenced the more»

LABORNOTES’ EDITOR’S NOTE: The 2,900 Members of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 2069 hit the bricks on April 17th, shutting down the largest Volvo truck manufacturing facility in the world. But 13 days later, many were dismayed when the UAW sent them back to work and said they would be told later what had been bargained. Over the weekend, more»

(TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA) - Although 2021 began with the most Pro-Union President in decades at the helm of the Federal Government, wealthy special interests and their front groups renewed their attacks against Workers and their Unions in statehouses across the country. From Florida to Indiana to New Hampshire, they launched the same old attacks that would more»

(SILVER SPRING, MARYLAND) - National Nurses United (NNU), the largest union of Registered Nurses (RNs) in the United States, is condemning new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance stating that fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks, avoid crowds or large gatherings, and no longer needed to isolate after exposure or get more»

(DETROIT, MICHIGAN) - McDonald’s is boosting the hourly wages for some of its Workers, joining a number of fast-food chains nationwide lifting pay as jobs go unfilled. But Employees in Detroit and other cities across the Nation say they’re still moving forward with a planned Strike on Wednesday (May 19th), pointing out that the pay raises will more»

Chipotle's Minimum Wage hike could spell profit doom for rivals that are forced to follow suit to retain Workers, while also lacking the compelling menus to justify price increases on diners. The Burrito and Salad Bowl Giant said earlier this week that it would lift the average hourly wage for its Restaurant Workers to $15. The company is also offering more»

(ROBBINSVILLE, NEW JERSEY) - Federal Law Enforcement Agents descended on a massive temple in New Jersey after Workers accused a prominent Hindu sect of luring them from India, confining them to the temple grounds and paying them the equivalent of about $1 an hour to perform grueling labor in near servitude, The New York Times reports. Lawyers for the more»

(ELIOT, MAINE) - Berndt Erikson worked as the Nightly Closer and Key-Holder at a Dollar General in the small town of Eliot, Maine. After every shift, he'd count up the money generated by the store and clean up before heading out, but when he closed up shop on May 3rd, he knew he wouldn't be going back. Erikson and his fellow Employees walked out of the more»

CEO pay has been ballooning in recent years as Worker pay has stayed stagnant, leading to an increasing wage gap between the bosses and Employees. Fed up with the high price of CEO pay, the Teamsters launched a Say-On-Pay Campaign to stop a proposed hike for Marathon Petroleum’s CEO. The vote, which was held at the company’s shareholder more»

Already battered by long shifts and high infection rates, Essential Workers struggling through the Coronavirus Pandemic face another hazard of hard times: employers who steal their wages. When a recession hits, U.S. companies are more likely to stiff their lowest-wage Workers. These businesses often pay less than the minimum wage, make Employees work off more»

The Protecting The Right To Organize (PRO) Act is about as important a piece of Labor Legislation as we’ve seen in some time. It holds the potential to open the door for Workers and Organizers to step up and reverse 40 years of losses for Organized Labor. The PRO Act aims to do just that - protect Workers from being harassed or fired if they try to more»

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - As the U.S. economy bounces back from the COVID-19 induced downturn, some employers say they’re having a hard time finding Workers and Republican Lawmakers like U.S. Representative David Rouzer of North Carolina are blaming the safety net. “This is what happens when you extend Unemployment Benefits too long and add a more»

Following the 2020 election, many Republican states decided that the way to ensure that they stay in power was to make changes to the voting system. Georgia received the most attention for this by passing a new law that limited early voting, increased requirements for getting a mail-in ballot and made it illegal to pass out water or food to people waiting more»

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - Hundreds of Registered Nurses (RNs) from across the U.S. will meet virtually with Federal Lawmakers - beginning today (May 4th) through May 10th, to urge them to step up measures to improve protections for hospital patients, Nurses and other health care workers across the country. The RNs, members of the National Nurses United (NNU) - more»

(LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA) - David White, National Executive Director of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG)-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), felt terrible when he had to cut a third of his Staff at the world’s biggest Entertainment Union in 2020. “Laying off (200) colleagues due to the (Coronavirus) Pandemic was one of the more»

StreetsBlog New York just reported on a community board meeting in a wealthy Manhattan neighborhood where members debated a non-binding proposal that would encourage restaurants to let App-based Delivery Workers use their bathrooms. While there isn’t anything like a definitive count, current estimates hold that there are between 50,000 and 80,000 of more»

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - Democratic President Joe Biden unveiled a long, strong progressive agenda in his Wednesday (April 28th) equivalent of the State of the Union address, urging lawmakers to pass the Protect the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, raise the Federal Minimum Wage to $15 an hour, pass strong Equal Pay Legislation, and declare - and fund - child care more»

(NAPERVILLE, ILLINOIS) - Just before Halloween last year, 23 Workers at the Midwest Warehouse and Distribution System Plant in the Chicago Suburb of Naperville got sick. Days before, in the midst of the Coronavirus Pandemic, they were close together in the company lunchroom. On October 26th, they started feeling symptoms and told supervisors. Midwest had more»

The Fall River Herald News Editor’s Note: Julie Hemingway is a resident of Carver, Massachusetts and a Member of Pipefitters Local 537. Headquartered in Dorchester, Massachusetts, Local 537 represents more than 3,000 Pipefitters, Welders and HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning) Refrigeration Technicians across New England. A year into more»

(PORTER, INDIANA) - By day, Nate Venturelli welds for Northern Indiana Public Service Company (NIPSCO) in Northwest Indiana. When he’s not welding, he’s writing, recording and performing country music inspired by his family’s Union Roots. Before the Coronavirus Pandemic, Venturelli spent his weekends performing in local venues, on the more»

(DUBLIN, VIRGINIA) – Union-represented Workers at the Mack and Volvo Truck of North America Manufacturing Plant in Dublin, Virginia - which makes regional and long distance hauling vehicles for the entire country - have been on Strike for more than a week now and show no signs of backing down. Workers at Volvo’s New River Valley Plant in more»

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - About 6-in-10 U.S. adults (62%) say they favor raising the Federal Minimum Wage to $15 an hour, including 40% who strongly back the idea. About 4-in-10 (38%) say they oppose the proposal, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted April 5-11. The Biden Administration and many Congressional Democrats favor increasing the more»

(BESSEMER, ALABAMA) - In the matchup between Amazon and the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU), round one went decisively to Amazon. Workers at BHM1, the company’s fulfillment center in Bessemer, Alabama, voted 1,798 to 738 against Unionizing, with 505 challenged ballots left uncounted. For months, the Union has accused Amazon of more»

(LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA) - Jaime Rodriguez wasn't expecting to find one of the world's most enduring symbols of hate when he showed up to work the morning of February 23rd. The Los Angeles International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 11 Inside Wireman Apprentice was working with signatory contractor Walton Electric on a five-story more»

(LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA) - The National Board of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) has approved a Diversity Action Plan that includes provisions for implicit bias training for its National and Local Board Members. The plan also establishes Diversity Committees serving the Middle Eastern and North more»

(AUSTIN, TEXAS) - Last month, Georgia enacted a law making it illegal to give people waiting on line to vote anything to drink. Now, the Texas State Senate has approved a Bill that would prohibit local governments from mandating water breaks for Construction Workers laboring in the broiling Lone Star State sun - as well as any other benefit not guaranteed more»

(HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA) - As part of a state crackdown on Prevailing Wage Theft and Worker Misclassification, Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro has charged Glenn O. Hawbaker Incorporated, a long-time state Department of Transportation contractor, with four counts of theft for allegedly diverting $20 million from Hourly Craft Worker Pensions from more»