Posts tagged Labor Law
Hudson Valley Farmworker Challenges PERB Official’s Dismissal of Employee Petition Seeking Removal of UFW Union Officials
August 26, 2025 // Despite the fact he submitted a petition containing enough of his colleagues’ signatures to trigger a union decertification vote, Bell’s latest filing reports that the PERB’s Acting Director of Private Employment Practices and Representation refused to process his petition on the basis of four unproven claims of wrongdoing that UFW union officials filed against Porpiglia Farms management. At both state and federal labor boards, union officials often file such allegations (usually called “blocking charges”) to stop workers from exercising their right to vote a union out of power at a workplace –
SAG-AFTRA Confronts a Fran-less Future
August 21, 2025 // But now, with another tough contract negotiation on the horizon, SAG-AFTRA is going to have to push forward without its erstwhile leader from Queens. This time around, Drescher has decided against running for president. In her place, another celebrity, Lord of the Rings and Rudy star Sean Astin, and a rank-and-file performer, New England Local board member Chuck Slavin, are battling it out for the job. The stakes are high, given that the candidates face a darker and more foreboding landscape than the one that even Drescher confronted when she entered office in 2021 during the pandemic.
Under Trump, Student Labor Organizers Face New Challenges
August 7, 2025 // Anticipating a rollback of recent NLRB precedent, some unions have withdrawn petitions for recognition, looking for other paths to continue their work.
LaborLab Exposes Employers’ Use of Anti-Union Persuaders in Recent Filings
July 29, 2025 // Among the notable cases, The Tustin Group in Fairfield, NJ, and American Rock Products in Yakima, WA, were found to have engaged persuader services at significant hourly rates. American Rock Products’ case is particularly striking as the union won the election, yet the consulting agreement was filed post-election. Similarly, Alro Steel Corporation in Jackson, MI, and Medix Ambulance Service in Hillsboro, OR, have also been implicated, with the former’s union losing the election and the latter’s case still open. These revelations underscore the importance of transparency and adherence to labor laws in protecting workers’ rights to organize. The delayed filings by some employers raise questions about the effectiveness of current regulations and the need for stricter enforcement to prevent undue influence on union elections
Cato Institute: Reforming Labor Union Laws
July 29, 2025 // The 1930s labor union laws were premised on the false idea that management and labor are enemies in the workplace, notes Baird. The reality is that individuals and businesses work together to produce products for consumers. Management and labor are complementary, not rivalrous, inputs to value generation in the economy. The new Cato study is a great introduction to federal labor union laws from a libertarian perspective. Baird concludes that American workers would enjoy more freedom and prosperity if the labor laws of the 1930s were repealed.
Unions don’t deliver for workers
July 11, 2025 // Take the recent UPS layoffs. In August 2023, the Teamsters Union touted its new UPS contract as a historic victory, claiming historic wage increases and increased benefits. Fast forward to January 2024, when UPS announced it was eliminating 12,000 jobs. Just a year later, it said it was cutting its delivery business with Amazon in half by the second half of 2026 and was aiming to shutter 10% of its buildings. Why the cuts? Because the union’s monopoly bargaining power allows it to demand wages that make it tough for companies to stay competitive. When costs climb, even giants like UPS have little choice but to cut jobs or invest less in the future. The UPS saga is a shining example of what the Mercatus report highlights: union power can backfire, leaving workers worse off in the long term.
Republican senators unveil “portable benefits” bill for gig workers
July 7, 2025 // Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-L.A.) unveiled a bill on Monday that would make it easier for companies to offer benefits to gig workers without making them full-fledged employees. Why it matters: As more Americans turn to gig work and self-employment, there's a growing push to get them access to things like paid sick leave, health insurance and retirement benefits. Zoom in: Called the Unlocking Benefits for Independent Workers Act, the bill is part of legislative package from Cassidy, along with Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.). Both also plan on unveiling related bills Monday.
New York State Looks to Take Over Labor Law Enforcement Amidst Uncertainty at the NLRB
June 26, 2025 // With mounting uncertainty about the lack of a quorum and near term future of the National Labor Relations Board (the “NLRB” or the “Board”), New York State legislators are attempting to usurp the powers delegated to the Board by Congress.
Op-ed: Virginia Must Clarify Its Labor Laws
June 9, 2025 // The ideal outcome for Virginia would be to repeal the Democrats’ 2020 law and return Virginia to being one of the few states that outright prohibit collective bargaining in the public sector. North and South Carolina have for decades, and Utah joined them with a new law signed by Governor Spencer Cox (R.) this year. But with Democrats currently in control of the Virginia General Assembly, a repeal effort would go nowhere. In the meantime, the proposed regulations are needed to make sure local government unions are following the law. Virginia is a right-to-work state with many strong protections for employees in unionized workplaces. Public employees deserve those protections just as much as private employees do.
5.9% of Washington Workers Are Union Members, 6th Most in the U.S.
June 9, 2025 // Union membership in the United States has declined to its lowest point in decades. In 1979, unions represented 24.1% of the American workforce. By 2024, that share had fallen to just 9.9%, according to figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and UnionStats. In absolute terms, this represents a drop of roughly 6.7 million members—from a peak of 20.9 million in 1979 to around 14.2 million in 2024.