Posts tagged Paid time off
Terminations and failed union negotiations lead to closures of Nashville coffee shops
July 7, 2023 // The futures of two popular Nashville coffee shops are uncertain as multiple Barista Parlor locations and Three Brothers Coffee remain closed after weeks of failed union negotiation efforts and unexplained terminations. Employees at both companies say baristas have major concerns about the coffee industry in Nashville because of multiple closures, terminations and low or stolen wages. Golden Sound, a Barista Parlor location in the Gulch, closed almost two months ago. Some employees transferred to the Germantown location before all but three staff were fired without warning June 14. A Barista Parlor worker said management attempted to have one-on-one meetings with staff in order to terminate them, but the group demanded to meet together. Three staff members who were not terminated quit in solidarity. The entire staff of the Hillsboro Village location also walked out, citing similar concerns about working conditions, understaffing, wages and job security. Katte Noel, who has worked at Barista Parlor for a year and a half, said workers have experienced hundreds of dollars in wage theft in the last few months. Noel said management has promised to repay those wages but This was in addition to hours being cut and company favorites being given better shift times and assignments, which Noel says puts stress on baristas trying to make ends meet; shorter shifts mean slimmer pay checks.
Mayoral candidate still on union payroll
March 27, 2023 // Brandon Johnson, a mayoral candidate in the upcoming Chicago run-off election, continues to sidestep allegations of conflict-of-interest while he remains on the payroll of the city’s powerful teachers’ union, the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU). Johnson currently works as the Cook County Commissioner and is paid a salary of $93,500. But, one report said that Johnson earns an additional $103,000 from CTU as a union organizer focusing on legislative affairs.
New York City teachers union holds ‘teach-in’ protest over wages
February 7, 2023 // United Federation of Teachers (UFT), held a “teach-in” protest last week, where teachers reported to work, but did not teach classes. Instead, teachers gathered in a room to discuss issues of their choosing, such as political subjects like environmental justice or labor. On UFT’s website, the union wrote that the teach-in protest is to “encourage engagement and activism,” but the purpose of this week’s protest is to call for a new contract. UFT said that the protest will “engage in a discussion about the power of our contract in shaping our experience as educators and then brainstorm actions your school can organize as part of our fight for the contract we deserve.”
Workers at World of Warcraft studio Proletariat withdraw union petition
January 26, 2023 // Workers at Boston-based World of Warcraft support studio Proletariat (also known as Blizzard Boston) are pulling their petition with the National Labor Relations Board, and will not vote on a union. They announced their petition in late December, but withdrew the application on Tuesday. A representative of Communications Workers of America blamed management’s “confrontational tactics” for the withdrawn petition, claiming the company held “a series of meetings that demoralized and disempowered the group, making a free and fair election impossible.” Proletariat Workers Alliance was looking to secure the company’s current paid time-off plan, as well as flexible remote options, healthcare benefits, and ensuring transparency and diversity are top priorities.
The South Has a New Union — and Workers Have Black Women to Thank
January 17, 2023 // Union of Southern Service Workers (USSW), a first-of-its-kind cross-sector union offering membership to fast food, retail, warehouse, care, and other service industry workers across North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama. USSW is a continuance of Raise Up, the very active southern chapter of the Fight for $15 and a Union that formed in 2013 and took root in North Carolina. USSW will function as a part of the Service Employees International Union, a labor union that represents nearly 2 million workers in the U.S. and Canada.
If the Teamsters union strikes, will UPS close its doors?
December 19, 2022 // Things are different this time around. UPS has informed its managers not to schedule any paid time off during July and August in case parcels are required to be moved, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity. UPS did not respond to a request for comment. The move sends a clear signal that UPS, under CEO Carol B. Tomé, plans to continue operating even if the union goes on strike.
United Steelworkers hold rally for new labor contract
October 10, 2022 // U.S Steel and its unions are currently fighting over a new labor contract. Typically contracts culminate to four years in length and include things like wage increases amongst other things. The rally held today included steelworkers from many of the mines expressing their grievances.
Blue Lake Rancheria workers form first tribal union in county
September 22, 2022 // The new grievance process allows employees to contest disciplinary actions levied against them by management in a four-step process starting with their day-to-day bosses, going to human resources, mediation and ending with tribal chair Jason Ramos as the arbiter. The union would gather evidence regarding the specific contested action and inform the person contesting discipline whether or not the union believes their punishment was warranted.
Abortion becomes union business
July 26, 2022 // Typically, union release time is paid time-off used by employees who are conducting official union business. But according to In These Times, a pro-union magazine, Professor Rebecca Givan thinks union officials should be able to use release time to help union members get an abortion, by using the time off to provide assistance like childcare or transportation.
Op-Ed: Standing up when my union let me down
July 19, 2022 // Soon, I found out that one PennDOT crew in the county kept working and avoided my agonizing decision. This crew included the union president, his relatives, and other union officials – all men. Some of them had less seniority than me. I was stunned. I never questioned whether the union would honor seniority rights. It’s written into our contract. I could – should – have been working on that crew instead of burning through my PTO. Mindy McFetridge is a PennDOT transportation equipment operator in Venango County and is the recipient of a PennDOT Workplace Hero award.