Posts tagged Black Lives Matter

    Sparked by Pandemic Stresses, Unionizing Workers Seek Respect and a Place at the Table

    August 18, 2022 // Throughout the pandemic, we were called ‘essential workers,’ yet we weren’t given the wages, benefits or respect that being ‘essential’ would denote.” Nick Kalm, John Logan, Labor and Employment Studies Department at San Francisco State University

    A Legislative Staff Unionization Wave is Hitting Blue State Capitols

    August 8, 2022 // Frustrated by low pay and long hours, state house staffers in Massachusetts, California, New York and Washington state are seeking to organize. They hope to join their counterparts in Oregon, who became the first in the nation to unionize in 2021. The organizing effort in state capitols mirrors a similar push in Congress. In May, the Democratically-controlled U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution giving congressional staffers the legal right to negotiate over salaries, schedules, pay disparities, promotion policies and other workplace issues without the threat of retaliation. Since then, aides to eight progressive lawmakers have unionized. Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Ruth Milkman, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 2222, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Rep. Ayanna Pressley, Senate President Karen Spilka,

    Resignations from state employees’ union board highlight divide between leadership and progressives

    June 8, 2022 // Board members of Vermont’s state employees union said they have long battled to support racial justice and denounce alleged abuse in the Department of Corrections — but have faced opposition from board leadership and top staff. The divide has prompted multiple board members of the Vermont State Employees’ Association to resign, including Brett Pierce, who stepped down last month. Department of Public Safety, Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility, Woodside Juvenile Rehabilitation Center, Steve Howard, Aimee Towne, Jacklyn Hickerson, Department of taxes, auditor, treasurer, women's prison, Josh Cox, VSEA,

    Amazon Fresh union in Seattle delivers demands, threatens strike

    March 4, 2022 // Workers at the local Amazon Fresh are demanding longer paid breaks, more flexible schedules, and wages starting at $25 an hour. They want chairs for cashiers, the right to wear Black Lives Matter pins, and the right to take home expired food.