Posts tagged Oregon
Deal Or No Deal?
April 8, 2026 // Workers at the Moda Center, with the exception of a handful of engineers, are not unionized. That, Davison said, is atypical—particularly in states like Oregon without right-to-work laws. The Teamsters have union contracts at Lumen Field and Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, Oracle Park in San Francisco, and Ball Arena in Denver, while other unions, like the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union, have a number of stadium contracts as well. But neither of those unions have a foothold at the Moda Center.
Op-ed: Blue States Are Insulating Unions From Debate
April 8, 2026 // My research shows that teachers and other public-employee unions have long been state-subsidized political actors. Beginning in the 1970s, many states adopted labor laws and bargaining arrangements that made it cheaper and easier for these unions to recruit members, collect dues and mobilize members in politics. Those policies gave unions a built-in advantage. Reform groups—including parent activists, school-choice advocates and the Freedom Foundation—must organize and compete from the outside. By contrast, public-sector unions operate from the inside, with advantages created by the state itself. For example, in most states, public-sector unions aren’t required to win re-election and instead get the privilege of representing all employees (even dissenters) year after year.
State Sen. Janeen Sollman Says Two Prominent Unions Resorted to ‘Bullying and Intimidation’
April 7, 2026 // Those unions hope to unseat Sollman in May after clashing with her over expanding the urban growth boundary in Hillsboro, education funding, and her vote against Senate Bill 916, the controversial bill that now allows striking workers to collect unemployment pay.
Op-ed: Florida made public-sector unions more accountable — Oregon did the opposite
April 7, 2026 // In 2023, Florida passed a law requiring a recertification election for public-sector unions that fail to maintain the support of 60 percent of their dues-paying membership. What followed was revealing. Between June 2025 and January 2026, there were 218 such recertification elections in Florida. In 192 of them — 88 percent — fewer than half of eligible employees bothered to vote. Under existing rules, the unions were certified anyway. For example, at the University of South Florida, exactly 41 employees out of 2,169 eligible cast votes for union representation. Nonetheless, the union now holds exclusive bargaining authority over all 2,169. At Florida A&M, three votes out of 202 eligible employees had the same effect. In one Broward County unit, two votes bound 51 employees to their union. The new bill will change that.
Democrats vs. the Freedom Foundation New York and Hawaii are copying a toxic union-protection law.
April 2, 2026 // The unions claim the Freedom Foundation is trying to trick workers into thinking the mailings come from the union. But the mailings all identify the foundation or its union educational outreach project in plain sight. Freedom Foundation’s Maxford Nelsen says it’s “very risky to continue our outreach efforts in the state,” and that’s the point. Democrats mean to discourage the think tank from dissuading workers from automatic union fees collection.
As Michigan’s childcare costs rise, workers debate risks of unionizing
March 31, 2026 // Instead of childcare workers unionizing against owners, the model most commonly seen in childcare unions across the country is owners unionizing against their state, as Henderson is advocating for — specifically, childcare owners who receive state reimbursement payments for care they provide low-income families and therefore can be considered state employees. The purpose is to get more robust and permanent public dollars through contract negotiation to fund things providers say they can’t currently afford because of limits on their revenue, like higher wages, insurance benefits, and overall more stability for the struggling industry. Critics of this model say childcare providers shouldn't be considered public employees just because they receive payments from the state or put in a position where they may feel they have to pay union dues. They also say the fractured layout of the industry doesn't lend itself well to unionization and could create division among already under-resourced owners and staff.
Editorial: Striking PCC faculty should drop push for back pay and let classes begin
March 31, 2026 // Cushing’s insistence that the college make faculty “whole” seems to be a misunderstanding of what it means to go on strike and to accept the risk that comes with it. Demanding that the college provide back pay — which PCC estimates would cost roughly $5 million so far for the union’s 1,600 members — would be fiscally irresponsible as the college already struggles to cover escalating expenses. It would also signal to other unions that there are no risks to walking out. But Cushing’s statement is notable for another reason. It’s a reminder that there’s one key constituency who will not be made whole from this strike: PCC students. Classes have been canceled, grades have been delayed and PCC is pushing back the start of spring classes by one week, without any extension on the back end. International students also face the potential of having to leave the country, if this strike continues much longer,
PCC, classified employees union reach tentative deal that could end strike for 700 workers
March 26, 2026 // Portland Community College and its Federation of Classified Employees union have reached a tentative agreement that could end a strike involving about 700 classified employees and move the college closer to resuming normal operations. The tentative agreement, posted at 6:18 p.m. March 25, includes a 0% cost-of-living adjustment for this year and a 5% cost-of-living adjustment for 2026-27. Classified employees also would receive a $1,350 lump-sum payment upon ratification on the next payroll cycle and would be able to cash out up to 40 vacation hours.
For Portland Community College students, the fallout from ongoing strike is ‘visible everywhere’
March 16, 2026 // Al-Amreeki and others described mounting fear for some students over financial pressures, given uncertainty over when and how student aid packages will be processed or when they can return to campus jobs, given the college shutdown. Portland Community College says it is the largest post-secondary institution in Oregon, with more than 50,000 full-time and part-time students, including thousands who take non-credit courses. Nearly half of its students are non-white, and about 40% are over the age of 25; most work and support their families while attending the school.
Portland Community College faculty and staff commence historic strike over wages
March 12, 2026 // PCC and its two unions have been negotiating over compensation and other benefits for nearly a year. But all sides have been stuck for months on salary increases and how much the college has to spare for such increases. Neither union has gone on strike before. This is the first strike to occur among any of the state’s 17 community colleges.