Posts tagged Georgia
U.S. labor secretary says UAW win at Tennessee Volkswagen plant shows southern workers back unions
April 25, 2024 // Biden is backing unions in other ways. Su noted the administration in January finalized a rule mandating unionized labor on all federal construction projects costing more than $35 million, despite complaints from nonunion contractors that the rule reduces competition and increases costs. “That’s one way that we ensure that you've got good union workers on jobs," Su said, saying union labor agreements are rising sharply on construction projects. Southern states are also pushing laws that would claw back economic incentive dollars if companies recognize unions without requiring a secret ballot election. Every major southern auto plant has received state economic development assistance.
Unions are getting bolder in targeting Big Business
April 19, 2024 // The UAW on Thursday secured a federally sanctioned unionization vote for workers at the 6,100-person Mercedes-Benz factory in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama. Pharmacists at multiple CVS stores are moving to join a new union as part of a growing backlash to what they say are unsafe work conditions, Axios' Maya Goldman reports. The Actors' Equity Association is seeking a vote to organize the 1,700 live performers at Disneyland after more than two-thirds signed union authorization cards.
Commentary: The Teachers’ Unions Are More Political than Ever
April 18, 2024 // Americans for Fair Treatment, a national nonprofit organization that educates public employees about their rights in a unionized workplace, recently released a report detailing the National Education Association’s (NEA) financial filings from Sept. 1, 2022, through Aug. 31, 2023. The NEA declared that its political spending totaled $50.1 million during the fiscal year, though the true number is much higher. During the most recent reporting period, the union disclosed that it spent “$126.3 million on ‘contributions, gifts, and grants,’ which is where most unions detail their charitable giving.” However, a closer look at the union’s “contributions, gifts, and grants” shows that the NEA is directing more money towards political causes than it reports.
Op-ed: In Pursuit Of Southern Foothold, UAW Faces Resistance
April 17, 2024 // “We the Governors of Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas are highly concerned about the unionization campaign driven by misinformation and scare tactics that the UAW has brought into our states,” the joint statement noted, adding that the reality in 2024 “is companies have choices when it comes to where to invest and bring jobs and opportunity. We have worked tirelessly on behalf of our constituents to bring good-paying jobs to our states. These jobs have become part of the fabric of the automotive manufacturing industry. Unionization would certainly put our states’ jobs in jeopardy – in fact, in this year already, all of the UAW automakers have announced layoffs. In America, we respect our workforce and we do not need to pay a third party to tell us who can pick up a box or flip a switch. No one wants to hear this, but it’s the ugly reality. We’ve seen it play out this way every single time a foreign automaker plant has been unionized; not one of those plants remains in operation.”
Alabama bill cutting economic incentives to keep unions from ‘strong arming employees’ advances
April 5, 2024 // An Alabama Senate committee Wednesday approved a bill that would withhold economic incentives from companies that voluntarily recognize unions or do not hold secret ballots in union elections. . SB231, sponsored by Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, passed the Senate Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development Committee on an 11-3 vote, down party lines.
Voters Rights for Workers in Tennessee and Georgia—and More?
April 3, 2024 // Recent introduced, SB 231 also ties state subsidies with businesses committing to conducting unionization votes via secret ballot and to obtaining employees’ written permission before sharing their contact information with unions. As the bill’s sponsor, Senator Arthur Orr explains, “It’s good policy to have the private vote matter [and] to make sure that the employees… can keep their votes to themselves and not be coerced or bullied one way or the other.” Like Tennessee and potentially Georgia’s and Alabama’s reforms, ALEC’s Taxpayers Protect Worker Act strives to protect workers’ personal information and their right to a secret ballot. Approved at the 2023 ALEC Annual Meeting, the model policy affirms that “whenever State funds or benefits are sought by a private business… such benefits [should] be conditioned on the private business agreeing not to waive its employees’ right to a secret ballot election when recognizing a labor organization.” It likewise states that employees and subcontractors have the right to decide if their personal contact information is shared with unions.
Workers for Opportunity Applauds Georgia Legislature for Passing Landmark Worker Freedom Legislation
March 20, 2024 // Senate Bill 362, a priority for Governor Brian Kemp, limits eligibility for receiving taxpayer incentive dollars to those companies that protect their employees’ right to a private ballot vote on unionization.
Opinion: Labor union spending $200M to help Biden win reelection
March 15, 2024 // The announcement stated the union aims to reach 6 million voters of color in the swing states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Nevada, Arizona, Georgia, and North Carolina. It is hoping to engage with voters who are less likely to vote or who have never voted at all by using field programs and partnering with community groups, among other efforts.
Georgia’s Secret Ballots and Union Hypocrisy
March 14, 2024 // Unions are fine with conditions on taxpayer funding if it gives them an unfair advantage. They can’t credibly claim it’s wrong when states go the other direction and level the playing field for workers. Instead of believing the union fearmongering, more states should do what Georgia has done, and put workers’ rights ahead of union demands.
DTNA union okays work stoppage as labor negotiations continue
March 13, 2024 // More than 7,000 United Auto Workers (UAW) union workers at Daimler Truck North America (DTNA) manufacturing sites in three states have voted to authorize a strike if necessary if-or-when their current labor deal expires April 26.