Posts tagged Illinois
More than 300 Illinois State University workers end monthlong strike after ratifying new contract
May 8, 2026 // As part of the contract, AFSCME also has agreed to drop a lawsuit accusing the university of illegally hiring non-union workers to do their jobs during the strike, and to withdraw other claims of unfair labor practices the union had filed against the university.
University of Chicago Press Staffers Move to Unionize
May 6, 2026 // The UCP Workers Guild would be the first union in the nonprofit publisher's 130-year history. If not recognized voluntarily, workers will seek a mail election monitored by the National Labor Relations Board. A supermajority of the 139 eligible staffers across the nonprofit publisher's divisions has already signed union cards, according to the Guild.
Building trades unions emerge as a key ally of tech giants in push for AI data centers
May 4, 2026 // Unions have aggressively answered complaints about data centers in ways that executives at tech giants and the development firms rarely do, unafraid to bluntly confront concerns about energy and water shortages, rising electric and water bills, or noise and quality-of-life objections. “When people say, you know, ‘data centers are the root of all evil,’ we’re just saying, ‘look, they do create a hell of a lot of construction jobs, which we live and work in your communities,'” said Rob Bair, president of the Pennsylvania Building and Construction Trades Council.
600 groups with $2B in revenue mobilize 3,000 May Day protests in a ‘red-blue’ alliance, probe finds
May 1, 2026 // The California Democratic Party is using the pro-Democratic tech platform, Mobilize.us, to promote "Workers over Billionaires May Day rally" protests, like at the corner of Monroe Street and Highway 11 in Indio, Calif. In its publicity material, the California Democratic Party notes it's "the largest state party in the nation with more than 10 million members." The Ohio Democratic Party Progressive Caucus, North Carolina’s Young Democrats of Moore County, Young Democrats of Wisconsin and the Yuba County Democratic Central Committee are on the official list of organizers for a coalition, "May Day Strong," promoted online.
Congressional progressives introduce $25 federal minimum wage plan
April 28, 2026 // Noah Finley, National Federation of Independent Business Illinois state director, has argued both the previous increase and new proposal would be harmful to businesses across the state. “Our members here in Illinois, they've been really struggling with the $15 an hour minimum wage in the state. That has been a huge burden for them,” Finley said. “They've had to cut back on employees. They've had to raise their prices. So, this is bad for workers, it's bad for consumers and it's bad for small businesses.”
One of Oregon’s Most Powerful Unions Is Rebelling Against Democrats
April 23, 2026 // Although many donors contribute to individual candidates, OEA sends most of its legislative contributions to caucus leaders, who distribute the cash to candidates in tight races. That ensures maximum influence with leaders, who in turn decide which bills get hearings and who gets committee chairmanships. (A 2012 study by the Fordham Institute ranked OEA the second-most powerful teachers union in the country—only the Illinois teachers union ranked higher.) In addition to large and steady contributions, OEA also developed a reputation for punishing Democrats who failed to fall in line, as Sollman is now learning. One infamous example still echoes nearly two decades later.
AFSCME union seeks to charge university with criminal offense for bringing in alleged “strikebreakers”
April 23, 2026 // The union says the practice violates the state's Employment of Strikebreakers Act, a Class A misdemeanor, but courts have found the measure unconstitutional
Faculty at University of Illinois Springfield reach tentative agreement to end strike
April 22, 2026 // UIS said in an email to students last month that it was running a $19 million deficit in the current fiscal year. UIS accounts for 2% of all of the university system’s spending in the current fiscal year, according to the system’s budget documents. The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign receives 44% and the University of Illinois Chicago 31% while the rest goes to the system’s administration and university’s hospital. UIS also receives only 3% of state funds allocated to the system. State lawmakers have been debating a new higher education funding formula that would allocate a greater share of annual funding to lesser-funded schools like UIS.
LLINOIS: 15,600 IFT members don’t exist, according to a union filing
April 16, 2026 // In a required annual report, the union’s own words reveal that: It has 15,600 fewer members than it claims on its website. Less than 28% of its spending is on representing teachers — what should be its main focus. The union spent over $1 million on politics in 2025. Nearly half of the IFT’s officers and employees made over $100,000 last year.
ISU workers go on strike after negotiations hit dead end
April 9, 2026 // Coplan said in addition to dining, they’ve planned for ensuring buildings are clean and grounds remain cared for. They do not anticipate disruption to other areas of operation. Most union contracts on campus have language restricting work stoppages if workers from another union go on strike. “We’re communicating with each of our other bargaining units to make sure that there’s an understanding of what that language actually speaks to,” Coplan said. That includes unionized faculty members, who cannot cancel classes, office hours, meetings or other work requirements in a show of solidarity with another union.