Posts tagged Bernie Sanders

    Sanders introduces bill to make workweek 32 hours

    September 14, 2026 // Congressman Mark Takano, D-Calif., and Senator Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., reintroduced the Thirty-Two Hour Workweek Act this week to make the workweek 32 hours.

    Alleging illegal retaliation, union wins temporary halt to closure of St. Albans dairy plant

    August 19, 2026 // A federal judge granted an order to stop Dairy Farmers of America from closing the plant, which had been set to shut down on Monday. The dispute goes to court Thursday.

    Union boss at center of warring socialist factions in battle for control

    August 12, 2026 // The WSWS has acknowledged Fain's links to socialism, reporting that Fain's former chief of staff, Chris Brooks, and a current union official Jonah Furman, are both Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) members. Furman also previously served as the former communications director for the UAW and was brought on board as Fain's top assistant after Fain ascended to the union's presidency, according to Sage Journals. Furman previously worked for the 2020presidential campaign of socialist Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders as well as the congressional campaign of Democratic New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez,according to Sage Journals. Brooks left UAW leadership in 2023 after a federal monitor reported him to be involved in improperly attempting to have the duties of the UAW's secretary-treasurer removed, Reuters reported. He is now a columnist at Jacobin, a socialist magazine.

    Bipartisan Bill to Accelerate Labor Contracts Roils Employers

    August 6, 2026 // “The notion that I’m going to bargain a fresh contract and think of all the terms and conditions of employment that get woven into a contract, a contract that on the light side might be 10 or 15 pages single space and on the long side 50 pages, that’s just ridiculous,” he said. “People that have never bargained wrote this law.” The bill could also exacerbate timelines instead of accelerating them, as arbitrators and mediators become increasingly overwhelmed with an influx of contract disputes. That could be especially aggravated by ongoing staffing challenges at the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, said Steven M. Bernstein, regional managing partner and Labor Relations Group co-chair at Fisher & Phillips LLC.

    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.

    Senate committee advances Sonderling’s labor nomination

    July 31, 2026 // 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.

    Nurses and teachers unions bankroll leftist candidates and causes

    July 21, 2026 // Additionally, the AFT donated $150,000 to Gov. Tina Kotek’s (D-OR) reelection campaign on the eve of the May primary. Kotek then decided in June to opt Oregon out of the Trump administration’s school choice program, which would subsidize scholarships for K-12 students to cover the cost of private school tuition and homeschooling expenses. AFT has been lobbying Democratic governors to reject the education tax credits offered by the program, calling it a “private school voucher scheme.” Meanwhile, the Oregon Education Association declined to endorse Kotek, despite doing so in the past, out of frustration with the state’s school funding levels.

    Don’t Panic: A Skeptic’s Guide to the AI Jobs Doomsday

    July 16, 2026 // Overall, US unemployment was 5.9 percent in mid-1979 and 5.3 percent by mid-1989.[25] During this same period the working-age population swelled by 21.5 million, or about 13 percent.[26] So, while some manufacturing jobs were lost, overall unemployment actually declined slightly over that period despite an increase in job seekers. New jobs in new fields were created by automation. Somebody had to operate the machines, build and maintain them, and transport them to foreign countries. This is the nature of automation: It focuses on eliminating the more tedious tasks, freeing up time, labor, and resources for other pursuits.

    Op-ed: To High Praise and Hallelujahs, Trump Nominates Keith Sonderling for Secretary of Labor

    June 30, 2026 // As Acting Secretary, Sonderling has strongly advocated for Trump's pro-business and pro-worker agenda, touting the manufacturing jobs that have been returned to the U.S., and has worked tirelessly to beef up and expand apprenticeships through the U.S. Department of Labor for small businesses and private-sector concerns. Under Biden's DOL, apprenticeships were issued through the major labor unions like the AFL-CIO and SEIU, effectively cutting out any private sector opportunities. Sonderling has also long been a champion for defined benefit pension plan sponsors to be able to use group annuities to protect pension benefits through pension risk transfers, and to allow employers to incorporate retirement plan options like cryptocurrency assets and private credit funds. But most pivotal, Sonderling is working hand-in-hand with the Fraud Task Force to eradicate the rampant unemployment insurance fraud.

    Republican Sen. Josh Hawley rips AI “cheerleaders,” backs Teamsters union agenda

    June 18, 2026 // Hawley told the Teamsters that "mega corporations" have "lost their moral compass" and that he supports the labor movement because unionized workers deserve fair wages and "decent working conditions," according to a copy of his speech obtained by Axios. Hawley: Argued that the Faster Labor Contracts Act is needed to "speed up first contracts for new unions" and said his Christian faith backs up his belief in unions. Endorsed the Teamsters' position that Congress should pass legislation barring self-driving trucks from replacing commercial drivers. Ripped Amazon as "the biggest monopolist in the country," saying it's treating workers as "indentured servants." Slammed "AI cheerleaders" as corporate goons who "want to replace every job they can with an algorithm" and said "we need to give workers rights over AI in the workplace."