Posts tagged BLM
Backgrounder: Executive Order: Exclusions from Federal Labor-Management Relations Programs
March 31, 2025 // The practice of “official time” is when unionized federal employees perform union-related activities, rather than their actual public service duties, while being paid by taxpayers. The Federal Unions EO requires that agencies, upon termination of an applicable collective bargaining agreement, reassign any workers who performed “official time” to positions where they perform solely agency business. It also contains language regarding existing grievance proceedings and allows for the head of each agency to submit a report to the President within 30 days highlighting any agency subdivisions that were not covered but should have been covered under the Federal Unions EO.
Ban of BLM Apparel by Whole Foods Ruled Legal
December 29, 2023 // Administrative Law Judge Ariel Sotolongo ruled that BLM masks, T-shirts, and other apparel worn by Whole Foods employees during the 2020 riots was not protected activity under the National Labor Relations Act because it had little connection to the Whole Foods workers’ jobs. The NLRB General Counsel, who prosecutes unfair labor practice cases, had argued that workers wore the attire in 2020 to make black coworkers feel safe and supported amid a series of nationwide protests lead by BLM. The general counsel claimed banning the apparel violated workers’ rights to advocate for better working conditions. But Judge Sotolongo said that regardless of individual workers’ motivations, the general counsel failed to show that workers had a collective goal related to their employment.
State of the Unions: A New Normal
January 23, 2023 // Agencies and unions alike are likely to encounter more resistance to expanded telework and other workplace flexibilities from the newly divided Congress. House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., announced last week that he has introduced legislation that would require agencies to revert to pre-pandemic telework policies as well as a study about how telework impacted government services and productivity. In addition to rolling back Trump-era policies targeting union activity in the federal government, the White House has recommended a number of measures to make it easier for federal employee unions to communicate with workers they represent, as well as expand into agencies whose workforces have historically remained unorganized.
Heine Brothers workers building support for union despite ‘fear mongering’
June 7, 2022 // Both Lindsey and Bone are hopeful that unionizing will result in higher pay, better working conditions, and a more democratic workplace. But they’re also hoping to be part of a shift in society that is seeing service workers command more power in the workplace. Gardiner Lane Heine Brothers, Sabrina Lindsey, Aaron Bone, @HBWorkersUnion, respect, break room, democratic workplace, LGBT-friendly,