Posts tagged Maryland
IBEW’s James Scotti Sentenced After Guilty Pleas
March 2, 2026 // James Scotti, an employee of Professional Sports Publications, which is a company that conducted business with International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 26 (located in Lanham, Md.), was sentenced to three years of probation with six months of home confinement. He was also ordered to pay $162,960 in restitution. On November 4, 2025, Scotti pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 1343 and 1349. The sentencing follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office and the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
College Park MOM’s Organic Employees Slam Union Officials with Charges for Election Interference
January 28, 2026 // Although MOM’s employees voted nearly 5-to-1 to block the UFCW union from having forced-dues power, this was insufficient for Ricse’s effort to prevail because federal law provides that a majority of an entire work unit must vote to deauthorize a union. In contrast, only a majority of those participating in a vote are needed to bring a union into a workplace. Ricse’s objections, filed with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), detail the same conduct that MOM’s employee J-quan Tingling is charging UFCW union officials with in unfair labor practice charges before the NLRB.
Commentary: Right-to-Work States Dominate U-Haul Growth Index
January 12, 2026 // Among the top ten growth states in the U-Haul index, nine have a Right-to-Work law that protects workers from being forced to pay dues to union bosses as a condition of employment. -Among the bottom ten states in the U-Haul index, NONE has a Right-to-Work law. All are forced unionism states. -Of the 25 top ranked cities in the U-Haul Growth Index, 24 are located in Right-to-Work states. The 10 best ranked states in the U-Haul Growth Index are Texas, Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee, South Carolina, Washington, Arizona, Idaho, Alabama and Georgia. All are Right-to-Work except Washington.
IBEW Ally James Scotti Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud
January 7, 2026 // James Scotti, who did work with IBEW Local 26, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, totalling over $160k that would have been stolen.
BALTIMORE: Moore administration settles contracts with state unions — except AFSCME
January 6, 2026 // According to a Monday news release from AFSCME, the contract proposal the Moore administration offered did not include wage increases aligned with inflation, nor did it fully correct wage scales for unionized workers that lag behind other state employees. Last month, a Moore administration official told The Daily Record that in his nearly three-year tenure, the average salary for AFSCME-represented workers has increased by 12.47%, while inflation increased by 8%.
SEPTA and union workers continue contract negotiations as strike threat looms
December 4, 2025 // If a deal can't be met, John Samuelsen, international president of TWU, warned that a strike could "shut Philly down." "We all authorize a strike," SEPTA body mechanic Lyle Smith said last month. "If it happens, it happens. Sorry for the public, but we gotta do what we gotta do for our families."
Frederick County Public Libraries employees seek to unionize
November 12, 2025 // The push to unionize stems from employees’ desire to participate in the FCPL decision-making process, according to a press release from AFSCME, which is the American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees.
Union panel rules Baltimore IG interfered in election, orders new vote
October 29, 2025 // A union election will be overturned and rerun as a result of social media posts from Baltimore Inspector General Isabel Mercedes Cumming that interfered with the process, a judicial panel for the union ruled this week. The 10-member panel, which oversees the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees on an international basis, found that Cumming’s tweets, some of which were sent just days before the Aug. 23 officer election for Local 44, constituted “an act of interference” and an endorsement, regardless of the intent behind them.
Union call to reopen government exposes pain point for Democrats
October 29, 2025 // Democrats wrestle with whether to extend health subsidies for millions or leave more than 1 million federal workers without pay
Starbucks workers union planning pickets, rallies through Nov. 2. See in which states
October 27, 2025 // Starbucks, for its part, says it is willing to bargain with the union, which the company says represents about 9,500 of its "partners," or employees. "Workers United only represents around 4% of our partners but chose to walk away from the bargaining table. If they’re ready to come back, we’re ready to talk," corporate spokesperson Jaci Anderson said in a statement to USA TODAY. "Any agreement needs to reflect the reality that Starbucks already offers the best job in retail including more than $30 an hour on average in pay and benefits for hourly partners," Anderson said. "We’re investing over $500 million to put more partners in stores during busy times. The facts show people like working at Starbucks. Partner engagement is up, turnover is nearly half the industry average, and we get more than 1 million job applications a year.”