Posts tagged Oregon
Opinion: Banning teacher strikes in Oregon’s best interest
November 29, 2023 // Certainly, teachers’ union strikes that intentionally bar children from the classroom pose a significant barrier to quality education. If parents and taxpayers could face legal penalties for disrupting public education, why shouldn’t teachers’ unions? 37 states and Washington, D.C. prohibit teachers from striking. Teachers’ unions who initiate strikes in Nevada, for example, are fined $50,000 for each day that students are unable to attend school. In Maryland, unions who authorize a strike are immediately removed as the district’s exclusive representative. Oregon should follow the lead of Nevada and Maryland’s anti-strike legislation, both of which punish disruptive unions while protecting teachers.
Schools in Portland, Oregon, reach tentative deal with teachers union after nearly month-long strike
November 27, 2023 // Students last attended school on Halloween. The deal would provide educators with a 13.8% cumulative cost-of-living increase over the next three years and about half of all educators would earn an extra 10.6% from yearly step increases, PPS said. The agreement would also add classroom time for elementary and middle grades starting next year and increase teacher planning time by 90 minutes each week for elementary and middle-aged classrooms.
Oregon and Washington fruit packers vote to unionize fails
November 19, 2023 // Gibson told the Capital Chronicle the vote affirmed that most Mount Adams fruitpackers do not want a union, but that it also revealed a need to improve communication with staff. “It’s an opportunity to reset, and for managers and employees to work better together. The ones who wanted to unionize – we respect their interests and want to listen to their needs,” he said. Barajas said Gibson and company leaders had reached out to her and other employees to schedule a meeting, though a date has not been set. She does not know if the meeting is punitive or if it is to discuss issues the union organizers brought up, she said.
Portland teachers use strike to demand racial equity trainings as schools stay closed
November 15, 2023 // Former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos ripped the teachers unions in a statement to the Washington Examiner, saying, "Big school unions love closing schools." "They’re holding nearly 50,000 kids hostage to their radical demands, and families across Portland are paying the price," she said. "This is on top of Oregon recently removing basic math and reading competency requirements to graduate high school. It’s hard to argue kids are getting a great education there, and it’s a shame parents in Portland who want better for their kids can’t 'strike' themselves and take their kids out of the government schools."
PPS, PAT to exchange proposals; unfair labor practice alleged
November 13, 2023 // The district was upset after protesters rallied at the Oregon Convention Center where a school board member was attending a Metro retreat, according to a letter the district sent to the union. In the letter, sent Nov. 8, PPS claims an estimated 1,000 PAT protesters marched from PAT offices to the convention center where Metro was holding the retreat. The letter says PPS Board Member Andrew Scott was at the retreat in his role as Deputy Chief Operating Officer at Metro and as PAT protesters “surrounded” the convention center, they chanted slogans including, “’Andrew Scott you’re no good. Treat your teachers like you should!’” PAT members had early entry to the convention center and opened secured doors for PAT protesters to enter the secured wing of the building where Scott and other Metro members were meeting, the letter states. According to PPS, Scott evacuated the building and Metro members were traumatized from the protest.
‘A historic moment’: Oregon teachers launch first-ever strike
November 8, 2023 //
Oregon Woman Admits to $40K Embezzlement from Labor Union: Union Integrity Challenged
November 6, 2023 // Anderson held a part-time role that encompassed tasks such as signing checks, general clerk duties, bill payment, and oversight of the union's bank account. From 2013 to July 2022, Anderson purloined a cumulative $39,169 from BSAC, restituting only $8,000, resulting in a net loss to the union of $30,316 according to the press release.
Supreme Court ruled public sector workers cannot be forced to pay dues; unions take them anyway
October 28, 2023 // After the Janus ruling, Ms. Quezambra sought to invoke her rights to stop the involuntary union dues payments, demanding she be refunded going back to 2013. The union refused on the grounds that she had allowed the union to make the deductions. This was news to Ms. Quezambra. The union “presented Ms. Quezambra a membership and dues deduction authorization card containing a forged signature that she purportedly signed. Ms. Quezambra did not sign this card,” her complaint states.
Workers announce intention to unionize at The Bulletin, Redmond Spokesman
October 24, 2023 // Wright said, “Central Oregon Media Group has received a request from the PNW Newspaper Guild to voluntarily recognize members of our news staff at two our newspapers, the Bend Bulletin and the Redmond Spokesman. We are reviewing the request. Whatever the outcome, we stand by our employees.” The Central Oregon NewsGuild is represented by the Pacific Northwest Newspaper Guild, a sector of the Communications Workers of America and the largest union representing journalists and media workers in North America, according to the guild.
Oregon sees record-high unionization
October 9, 2023 // what’s happening here in Oregon is a little different: it’s driven by independent unions. Rather than join AFL-CIO, SEIU or other big unions, some Oregon workers are taking a “grow your own” approach to unionizing. Local chain Burgerville’s independent union, Burgerville Workers Union, won federal recognition in 2018 and signed its first contract in 2021. Seeing Burgerville’s success in organizing without the resources of a bigger union inspired workers at Voodoo Doughnut.