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In the News
Newsom celebrates boosting California’s minimum wage to highest rate in the country
August 3, 2026 // Claire Carter for Washington Examiner
California's push for higher wages has also faced opposition from business groups that warn increased labor costs can translate into higher prices, reduced hiring, or fewer hours for workers. The debate has been particularly pronounced around the state's fast-food wage law. Newsom, meanwhile, has increasingly contrasted California's economic policies with those of the president and congressional Republicans as he raises his national political profile.
UnityPoint nurses’ union vote faces objections from health care provider
August 3, 2026
The Teamsters Local 90 announced that UnityPoint Des Moines nurses voted to unionize, but UnityPoint Health disputes the election results, citing serious objections that require further review.
Pritzker says he won’t support new state taxes for CPS
August 3, 2026 // Sean Reed for The Center Square
The final version included an amendment from board members aligned with the Chicago Teachers Union, which agreed the state should provide the district with an additional $150 million to assist in covering the district’s deficit. Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch told members of CTU a day before the board’s vote that he’s committed to putting forward legislation to give CPS more state funds, but didn’t mention how much he thought the state could provide. “I will lead that effort in the veto session. We got two weeks in November that we can get it done and you got my support 100%,” Welch said.
Opinion: Sneaky new teachers’ union plan to indoctrinate our kids: classroom AI
August 3, 2026 // Betsy McCaughey for New York Post
Their objective is to indoctrinate, not educate. That misguided mission is largely to blame for the past decade of drastic learning loss in K-12 schools: Too much indoctrination, too little emphasis on the basics of math and reading. It’s a bad omen for our country.
Over 100 women’s college basketball players team up in unionization effort
August 3, 2026 // author for Associated Press
NCAA leaders have long opposed the idea of players becoming employees of their schools, though the idea isn't universally opposed by college leaders. Tennessee athletic director Danny White has been among those who have said collective bargaining is the only real solution to the problems that confront schools that are now paying millions to their players. Attempts to create unions for college athletes at Dartmouth and Southern California stalled in 2024 due to the changing landscape in college sports and the then-incoming Trump administration's new National Labor Relations Board, which wasn't expected to approve the moves.
Ghirardelli chocolate workers in San Francisco walk off job for 3-day strike
August 3, 2026 // Amber Lee for KTVU Staff
Workers at San Francisco's Original Ghirardelli Chocolate and Ice Cream Shop walked off the job on Thursday for a three-day strike. Union members and their representatives say the company isn't being transparent about how much it earns from a health coverage fee it charges customers. The workers want to stay on their current healthcare plan. Two other stores in Ghirardelli Square that are staffed with non-union workers, remain open.
UAW ignores federal monitor’s guidance to create budget, track finances
August 3, 2026 // Luke Ramseth for The Detroit News
The monitor has also reported on a previous investment blunder that cost the union potentially millions of dollars in unrealized stock gains. Barofsky did not find evidence of misconduct by Mock in that case, but did highlight broad governance and communication failures, including in her office, that contributed to the investment mistakes. The last UAW election, in 2022, was expected to be a reset for the union as it sought to move past a recent history of corruption. But some candidates — including during a vice president debate earlier this week — argue more leadership change is needed. Some raised concerns that Barofsky may seek to extend his oversight of the union beyond the current expiration of early 2027 — oversight that has also been a financial drag on the union, costing tens of millions of dollars.
Court of Appeals Sides with WILL in Act 10 Case
August 2, 2026 // author for Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty
The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL) secured a significant victory at the Wisconsin Court of Appeals after they upheld Act 10 in Abbotsford Education Association v. WERC. WILL represented a teacher who supported and benefited from the law signed by Governor Scott Walker in 2011. The Quote: Lucas Vebber, WILL Deputy Counsel, stated, “WILL has fought to protect Act 10 since its enactment because of the substantial benefits provided to taxpayers and local governments. For 15 years, various legal challenges have been unsuccessful, because ultimately this is a law signed by the Governor and passed by a duly elected legislature which meets all constitutional requirements. As this case likely heads to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, we stand ready to make the case once again.”
Clark County Education Association Refuses Teacher’ Certified Opt Out Requests Again
August 2, 2026 // Matthew Hayward for Freedom Foundation
For the second year in a row, the Clark County Education Association has refused certified mail containing membership cancellation requests from the very teachers it claims to represent. CCEA already restricts resignations to a narrow annual window during the middle of summer break, from July 1 through July 15. That barrier makes leaving the union unnecessarily difficult. But CCEA has gone further. During its own designated window, the union has refused to accept properly delivered correspondence from teachers who want out.
She never worked in a steel mill. Now she leads the United Steelworkers.
July 31, 2026 // Bob Tita for Wall Street Journal
“She’s going to have to get the trust of the steelworkers,” said Richard Tikey, a union local vice president at the coking coal plant for U.S. Steel’s Mon Valley Works south of Pittsburgh. He said the union should have pushed for additional benefits or a new contract during the sale process. “The union had more leverage then,” Tikey said. U.S. Steel’s initial proposal included an 18.2% pay increase over five years and a $4,000 contract bonus, but would implement employee copays for health insurance. Union negotiators said this was insufficient. They will counter in August.
Op-Ed: The Teamsters betrayed their own workers — and Republicans fell for it again
July 31, 2026 // Gene Hamilton for Washington Examiner
Brown is a Democrat running in a state that President Donald Trump has won three times. With this endorsement, the Ohio Conference of Teamsters did not weigh which candidate could best deliver for their members in a closely divided Senate. They chose the Democrat. That choice should be considered against the image the broader Teamsters organization has carefully cultivated to appeal to Republicans.
The Faster Labor Contracts Act: What You Need to Know
July 31, 2026 // Emmet Bowling for American Action Forum
While the FLCA may accelerate the negotiation process for both the employer and the union to reach an initial contract, faster does not always mean better, and the binding arbitration provision sidelines the interests of both parties and leaves the decisions about worker pay, benefits, and working conditions in the hands of arbitrators acting under the auspices of the federal government. The arbitrary timelines under the FLCA, while making the negotiation process move faster, may not give sufficient time for both parties to reach an initial contract that best represents the interests of both sides, given all the facts and circumstances of the working arrangement.
Senate committee advances Sonderling’s labor nomination
July 31, 2026 // Andrew Rice for The Center Square
U.S. senators voted on Thursday to advance the nomination of Keith Sonderling, President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the U.S. Department of Labor. Lawmakers on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee, in a 12-11 vote, advanced Sonderling’s nomination to lead the Labor Department. The former secretary, Lori Chavez-deRemer, stepped down due to accusations of an improper relationship with a subordinate.
Top union ‘cleared’ by law firm over explosive corruption allegation previously gave millions to that firm
July 31, 2026 // Robert Schmad , Andrew Mark Miller for Fox News
A law firm that says it found no evidence to support corruption allegations against two New York City unions has long-running financial and familial ties to those labor organizations, public records show. The Hotel Trades Council (HTC) and UNITE HERE Local 6 (UH6) hired Pitta LLP to investigate a whistleblower letter alleging a culture of quid pro quo corruption and improper gift-giving at the two unions. The firm’s review was completed in March 2026. While Pitta LLP ultimately found no evidence that the two labor organizations had broken the law, the firm had previously received millions from the unions. The firm's leaders also share family ties with former union leaders.
Appeals court overturns ruling declaring Act 10 unconstitutional
July 30, 2026 // Henry Redman
The Wisconsin Supreme Court is weeks away from the investiture of Appeals Court Judge Chris Taylor as its newest member. Taylor joining the Court gives liberals a 5-2 majority on the panel. However, Justice Brian Hagedorn has already recused himself from previous procedural decisions involving this case because he served as Walker’s legal counsel and played a major role in writing Act 10. If the Supreme Court were to take up the case, it’s likely a final decision wouldn’t be reached until after November’s elections and the inauguration of a new governor and start of a new legislative session in January. With Democrats hopeful they’ll be able to win trifecta control of state government, the actions of the other two branches of government could render the lawsuit moot.
Columbia student workers’ union drops Israel divestment demand amid contract negotiations
July 30, 2026 // Spencer Davis, Emily Pickering for Columbia Spectator
Student Workers of Columbia-United Auto Workers made pro-Palestinian activism a central tenet of its presence on campus since the start of the war in Gaza.
Arbitrator Rules for Union on Probationary Employee Firings
July 30, 2026 // author for Fedweek
An arbitrator has ruled in favor of the NTEU union in a grievance over firings of some 3,500 probationary employees at HHS last year, agreeing that they were a “reduction in force masquerading as probationary terminations” and not meeting the employee protections and other requirements of a RIF.
SAG-AFTRA Comes Out Against Paramount-Warner Bros. Merger
July 30, 2026 // Katie Kilkenny for Hollywood Reporter
SAG-AFTRA is the third major entertainment union to go public with its resistance to the deal, with the Writers Guild of America long being vociferously opposed and on July 14 filing a lawsuit to block the merger. Earlier this year, the Teamsters also slammed the deal, urging the Department of Justice to block the transaction (which the department of course did not, ultimately, do) unless worker protections were put in place.
Cleveland Public Library workers set strike date amid ongoing contract talks
July 30, 2026 // Justin McMullen for WKYC
Eight months into contract negotiations, union Cleveland Public Library workers have set a strike date of Aug. 24 — but the union says the door remains open for a deal to be reached before then. Service Employees International Union District 1199 said union members officially delivered a strike notice to library management on Monday. Workers voted to authorize a strike earlier this month after more than 30 bargaining sessions over an eight-month span. The union has met an additional four times since the strike authorization vote.
Commentary: California’s War on Goats Could Worsen the Wildfire Crisis
July 30, 2026 // Jarrett Dieterle, Shawn Regan for Reason
State lawmakers intervened by passing legislation to allow goat herders to be paid the same alternative minimum as sheep herders until July 1, 2026. Now that the exemption has expired, goat herders must be paid according to traditional overtime rules. Given the 24/7 availability required for herding, this means that Golden State goat herders are now set to be paid $20,000 per month, which works out to $240,000 annually. (For comparison, California Gov. Gavin Newsom's salary currently sits at $245,000). An effort to extend the goat herding exemption beyond 2026 stalled in the state legislature due to opposition from labor unions. Goat-herding businesses have been left scrambling. Western Grazers, a company that deploys roughly 5,000 goats across Northern California, says the new rules push the annual cost of employing each herder above $250,000 once room and board, food, and other expenses are included.