Posts tagged Minnesota
AFSCME’s Beverly Hansen Charged with Theft by Swindle
September 4, 2025 // On August 4, 2025, in the Seventh Judicial District Court of Minnesota, Beverly Hansen, former Finance Director of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) State Council 65 (located in St. Cloud, Minn.), was charged in a criminal complaint with one count of theft by swindle, in the amount of $63,031, in violation of Minnesota Statute 609.52.2(a)(4). The charge follows an investigation by the OLMS Detroit-Milwaukee District Office and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.
Rhode Island Employer-Sponsored Meetings Ban Law Now in Effect
August 25, 2025 // The new law prohibits employers from holding mandatory worker meetings to explain what unionizing will mean for the business from an employer’s perspective. This also means labor organizers will have an unchallenged narrative on unionization. Identical laws in Connecticut, Minnesota, and other states face legal challenges citing the law is superseded by the National Labor Relations Act as well as federal labor law precedent. Rhode Island’s new law is likely to face a similar challenge, something NFIB and other organizations warned when lawmakers considered these bills
Workers in Missouri and Minnesota Challenge Union Bosses’ Scheme to Coerce Workers into Funding Union Political Activities
August 15, 2025 // Cases against AFSCME, Guards Union, are latest to argue federal law prohibits “window periods” that trap nonmembers in full union dues payments
MINNESOTA: Union representing U of M service workers files strike notice
August 10, 2025 // "The University is not immune to those challenges. The University has plans in place should a strike occur and is fully committed to minimizing any disruption this action might cause for our students, faculty, staff, and community." If workers walk off the job, enhanced strike benefits were approved by the union, including $1,000 a week, which reportedly exceeds the weekly pay of some workers across the university system.
Minnesota Teamsters unanimously vote to authorize a strike
August 5, 2025 // “Teamsters Local 120 represents hundreds of Sysco workers who deliver across the state of Minnesota, and a work stoppage at the company’s Mounds View facility would have a direct impact on the company’s operations in Duluth,” explained a representative from Local 120. The union further stated that Sysco is one of the largest and most profitable food service companies in the United States. They say, in 2024, it reported $1.95 billion in net profits, which is up more than 10 percent from the year prior.
Minnesota Teamsters unanimously vote to authorize a strike
July 31, 2025 // Workers at Sysco Minnesota, a food delivery service company based in Blaine, have unanimously voted in favor to authorize a strike if their union finds it necessary. More than 230 drivers and warehouse workers, represented by Teamsters Local 120, say they want higher pay, stronger benefits, and better working conditions.
Dems have been bleeding working-class support. Now possible 2028 contenders are fighting with unions.
July 24, 2025 // High-profile Democratic governors fighting the Trump administration are also mired in bruising conflicts at home — with allies they’ll likely need to advance their presidential ambitions.
Democratic governors face off with unions at home
July 22, 2025 // Democratic governors who may be eyeing 2028 presidential runs have been at odds with public sector-unions in their states over a variety of issues, including return-to-office policies and the impact of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. In Colorado, state workers sought to join a lawsuit after Gov. Jared Polis allegedly instructed employees to provide Immigration and Customs Enforcement with information on undocumented immigrants. Unions have also sparred with California Gov. Gavin Newsom over his order calling state workers back to the office for at least four days a week, with three of them securing eleventh-hour temporary exemptions. And Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s office has been engaged in a tense bargaining process with state employees over health care benefits and paid parental leave.
Gig Drivers Unionize Without Employee Status Under State Plans
July 17, 2025 // Unlike in California, Lyft and Uber remained publicly neutral on the Massachusetts ballot measure and Uber recently vowed to do the same in Illinois. For the companies, the bargaining schemes have the benefit of keeping drivers classified as independent contractors. “As we’ve said for years, we’re willing to work with state legislators on benefit and protection legislation that prioritizes preserving drivers’ independence and flexibility,” said Uber spokesperson Josh Gold.
VIDEO: Thousands of Minnesota nurses vote to authorize strike
July 1, 2025 // The union is required to give employers a 10-day notice before launching a strike. Union leaders said the decision to walk would be made by members in the coming days. Nurse negotiators who stepped to the podium said they've been at the bargaining table for three months. Yet, they allege providers are refusing to address pressing issues like staffing levels and nurse safety due to attacks and violence by patients frustrated with the health care system. They also accuse hospital leadership of: