Posts tagged collective bargaining
Court gives go-ahead to Trump’s plan to halt union bargaining for many federal workers
May 19, 2025 // Trump relied on a national security exemption to exempt agencies that he said "have as a primary function intelligence, counterintelligence, investigative, or national security work." "Preserving the President's autonomy under a statute that expressly recognizes his national-security expertise is within the public interest," the appeal's court majority wrote.
A ‘War’ on the Civil Service or Controlling a Powerful Union Political Machine?
May 17, 2025 // Fed unions remain unable to strike — enforced by President Reagan’s firing striking air-traffic controllers — so unions became powerful in more subtle ways. A study by the Institute for the American Worker documents how Federal government unionization works today. “Generally, federal employees are not permitted to strike, and their unions are limited in what conditions of employment they may bargain over.” Management rights and other matters “specifically provided” for by federal statute are still not bargainable. “This includes pay, health insurance, retirement, and certain workplace insurance (e.g., workers’ compensation, unemployment insurance), among other benefits.” The study continues,
Gov. Jared Polis’ coming labor bill veto will strain Democrat’s labor ties — and set stage for ballot fight
May 15, 2025 // Polis has said that Colorado’s 81-year-old labor law has worked well and that he wants maximum employee input in negotiating union dues. He added Thursday that he wanted a deal that would bring stability to business-labor relations in the state, referring to fears that a change to the status quo would usher in a tug-of-war over competing ballot measures and legislation. Asked about Polis’ skeptical views of SB-5, Dougherty said those were concerns “that were not relayed to us when he was running for governor.”
North Texas union truck drivers threaten strike over fair wages and autonomous semi concerns
May 15, 2025 // "When you take the driver out of it, and you take the professional out of it, and you just leave it in the hands of a computer or something we're not fans of that, and I honestly don't feel that anyone who drives a vehicle or has a family shouldn't want that," he said. "That is a big concern for the community, but I don't know about y'all, but I don't want my family, my wife, and my kids, and my grandkids, on the same road as a truck, an 80,000-pound vehicle, without a driver involved."
Jennifer Abruzzo Wants Workers to Fight Back
May 14, 2025 // On May 5, Workday Magazine interviewed Abruzzo, who has since returned to the Communications Workers of America, as a senior advisor to the president. We talked about how protected concerted activity can include Gaza protests, why it’s a shame that domestic workers and farm workers are excluded from the National Labor Relations Act, and what workers can do to fight back in the Trump era. “It’s up to the people to actually use their power and flex their muscles in order to get the changes that they deem are appropriate,” she says, “so that they can live the lives that they deserve with dignity and respect.
SEIU Illinois spends just 3% of members’ money representing workers
May 13, 2025 // The Illinois state affiliate of the Service Employees International Union collected over $3 million in dues from members in 2024. It spent just $57,000 of that representing them. Politics and overhead were the union’s priorities.
UTAH: Law banning public employee unions from collective bargaining blocked by Lt. Gov.
May 8, 2025 // Lt. Governor Deidre Henderson has issued an order staying a law from going into effect that bans public employee unions from collective bargaining. The order, issued Tuesday, blocks House Bill 267 pending validation of signatures for a citizen referendum that seeks to overturn the law. It is believed that supporters of the referendum have enough signatures to get the referendum on the ballot. They submitted more than 320,000 signatures — much more than the 140,000 required. If that is the case, the Lt. Governor's Office said, the law would be on hold until November 2026 when the referendum would go before voters. The law was originally scheduled to go into effect on July 1 because of a budget item attached to the bill.
Exclusive-US cancels FDA bargaining session over layoffs, union says
May 7, 2025 // Senior U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman on April 25 issued an injunction to block the executive order from being implemented, pending the outcome of a lawsuit by the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), which represents about 160,000 federal employees including as many as 9,000 FDA staff. The Trump administration has appealed that injunction. A five-hour, virtual meeting between the union and the Department of Health and Human Services to discuss mass layoffs at the FDA was axed the evening before it was set to take place. No reason was given for the cancellation and no attempt was made to reschedule it, according to NTEU chapter president Anthony Lee.
Salt Lake City librarians officially unionize, but likely referendum to determine next steps
May 5, 2025 // Ninety-two percent of Salt Lake City librarians voted to unionize, joining AFSCME Local 1004. A new state law, HB267, bans public sector collective bargaining agreements. A likely referendum on the bill will determine the future of public union negotiations in 2026.
Opinion: Unions’ victories shake Utah politics
April 25, 2025 // Legislators will not go quietly into the night, allowing an activist judge to dismantle Utah’s school choice program. Expect legislation to shore up the program, and judges to once again be recipients of legislative ire. Pignanelli: Unless resolved soon, the role of public employee associations will be a feature in political party conventions and swing legislative districts. The Supreme Court’s ultimate ruling on the scholarship program could foster another constitutional ballot proposition.