Posts tagged Pennsylvania
Op-Eds Union bosses almost blew the $2.5 billion Nippon deal. Don’t let them sabotage the next contract
August 13, 2026 // In 2025, USW held two significant strikes. One that put nearly 2,000 represented employees out of work for eight months, and another that forced 650 people out of work for five months. The strike likely cost these workers tens of millions collectively in lost wages. It also reported 615 employees earning more than $75,000, with an average total compensation of $107,476. The union paid its own staff more than 10 times what it paid in strike benefits. The terms were strong, as Nippon’s offer included $2.7 billion in capital investment earmarked specifically for USW facilities.
Penn takes graduate worker union to court over eligibility dispute
August 12, 2026 // In March 2024, the NLRB ruled that educational fellowship recipients should be excluded from voting in the unionization election. GET-UP won an appeal the following month which allowed educational fellowship recipients to vote but left their status in the union’s bargaining unit up for future consideration. After the tentative agreement was reached, a Penn spokesperson wrote that the bargaining unit’s scope “was one of the many issues the University and GETUP-UAW resolved through negotiations.” GET-UP members told the DP at the time that the issue remained disputed and that they would continue pushing for the inclusion of “all workers” in the union.
Dissident Philly Port Worker Successfully Defeats ILA Union Attempt to Exclude Him from Federal Case Defending Win at NLRB
July 27, 2026 // The United States Third Circuit Court of Appeals has granted a motion to intervene by Stanford Fowler, a longshore worker at the Ports of Philadelphia and Wilmington, in a suit between the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) Local 1694. The successful motion, filed with assistance from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, comes over the objection of union lawyers, who attempted to keep Fowler out of a federal case that arose from his legal victory against that union at the NLRB.
Workers at Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh to unionize after years of pushback from management
July 22, 2026 // Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh provides pet adoption and veterinary services, with locations in Homewood and North Side and a wildlife center in Verona. United Steelworkers, based in Pittsburgh, has grown to represent workers beyond heavy industry, including education, service and health care.
PECO worker strike ends: IBEW Local 614 wins pensions, retirement medical, wage hikes
July 7, 2026 // The new contract guarantees cash balance pension plans, full retirement medical coverage, and significant wage increases for all IBEW Local 614 members, according to the press release. The agreement also allows members to see any doctor for medical certifications, requires 24-hour notice for mandatory overtime in the call center, and doubles upgrade pay for members doing work outside their usual job duties.
Op-ed: Why teachers unions fear, and fib about, new federal program
July 7, 2026 // Perhaps the unions are right to be scared. Anything that introduces competition into the educational landscape threatens their monopoly. When you read between the lines of Weingartner and Pringle’s letter, you can almost hear the death rattle. But in the end, this isn’t about the unions. This is about kids who deserve a high-quality education regardless of their household income or zip code. And anybody who gets between them and their parents would be wise to choose their words more carefully.
PECO workers strike as power outages hit Pennsylvania
July 7, 2026 // Severe storms have caused widespread power outages in Pennsylvania, while over a thousand PECO workers remain on strike for a third day, with negotiations ongoing.
Union claims 3 striking PECO workers injured on picket lines; company calls claims ‘false’
July 5, 2026 // The workers - including linemen, gas technicians, mechanics and call center employees who serve millions of customers across five counties - walked out at the start of the holiday weekend and amid an ongoing heat wave.
Mount Nittany Hospital workers authorize strike if contract talks fail
July 4, 2026 // The union represents approximately 950 employees at the hospital, including registered nurses, certified nursing assistants, emergency department technicians, laboratory staff, maintenance workers, environmental services employees, radiology technologists, pharmacists and dietary aides. According to the union, workers are seeking higher wages, improved staffing and workplace safety measures.
Pennsylvania minimum wage bill stalls in state senate amid push for $15 an hour
July 1, 2026 // Citing the Pennsylvania Independent Fiscal Office, many GOP members say an increase in the minimum wage would result in layoffs, reduced hours, increased costs to customers, and the destruction of small businesses. At this point, House Bill 2189 remains in the Senate but off the table and unlikely to be debated or voted on—at least for now.