Posts tagged private sector
Labor standoff at LA’s Loyola Marymount University a battle over Catholic teaching
February 1, 2026 // On the pages LMU published profiling the dispute, the institution defends its action by stating “invocation of the religious exemption is lawful, grounded in the U.S. Constitution, and consistent with Supreme Court and NLRB precedent. This right cannot be waived and may be exercised at any point.” “The Board reached this decision to protect LMU’s Catholic mission, its students, and its long-term sustainability,” Griff McNerney, LMU’s senior director of media and public relations, told OSV News in an e-mailed statement. “After months of discernment, trustees concluded that direct partnership with faculty — without SEIU’s involvement — would enable faster, more mission-aligned progress toward shared goals.” McNerney noted, “From December 2024 to Summer 2025, LMU reviewed 39 proposals and made counterproposals, none of which were accepted by the union.”
Union Membership Stagnated in 2025 (report from Center for Economic and Policy Research)
January 28, 2026 // The share of US employees who are union members and the share who are covered by a union contract have both declined substantially over the past four decades (Figure 1). In 1983, 20.1 percent of workers were union members, and 23.3 percent were covered by a union contract. By 2010, union membership and coverage had fallen to 11.9 percent and 13.1 percent, respectively. In recent years, both measures reached historic lows. Membership declined to 9.9 percent in 2024 before ticking up to 10.0 percent in 2025, while coverage fell to 11.1 percent in 2024 and edged up to 11.2 percent in 2025. Throughout the entire period, the persistent gap between coverage and membership reflects the share of workers who benefit from union contracts without being union members.
Pro-Worker or Pro-Union? Why Choice—not Coercion—Is the Future of Labor Policy, Disunion: The Government Union Report; Commonwealth Foundation
December 18, 2025 // This week on Disunion, host David Osborne is joined by Austen Bannan of Americans for Prosperity and Vincent Vernuccio, president of the Institute for the American Worker, to break down a sweeping new report: How to Empower Workers: Embracing a Pro-Worker Agenda Built on Choice. With Congress rolling out a flurry of labor bills—from right-to-work reforms and secret ballot protections to proposals backed by unions and even some Republicans—this episode cuts through the noise. The panel explains why many so-called “pro-worker” policies actually empower union bosses and government regulators, not workers themselves.
Unionization Wave Hits Nonprofit Sector
December 17, 2025 // ASeveral key economic factors are driving this current union organizing trend, including inflation and job security. In this environment, employees are motivated to seek the protections that higher pay and increased benefits offer. However, about one-third of nonprofit museums and cultural institutions are also struggling to confront the loss of government grants or contracts. More than half of museums reported fewer 2025 visitors than in 2019, according to a Novemberreport by the American Alliance of Museums. In spite of these conflicting economic difficulties, employees are continuing to push back, feeling that they have been taken for granted for many years. Bottom line: unions continue to seek out new groups of workers to organize as their traditional targets, such as manufacturing and production jobs, wane or move overseas. Nonprofit employers would be well advised to stay engaged with their employees, keep an eye on employee morale, and look for ways to reward employees' hard work even when funds are scarce.
Halted: Federal Judge Stops Enforcement of New York’s ‘NLRB Trigger Bill’
December 5, 2025 // New York federal judge granted Amazon’s bid for a preliminary injunction barring the enforcement of recent amendments to the Empire State’s State Employment Relations Act (“SERA”) that would have subjected most private-sector employers within the state to the jurisdiction of the Public Employment Relations Board (“PERB”). Prior to passage of the “NLRB Trigger Bill” that amended SERA, PERB, which enforces state labor law, mainly oversaw public-sector employers in New York, though it also regulates labor relations for private-sector employers where federal laws – such as the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”) – do not apply, such as for agricultural workers. SERA, generally, applies more employee-friendly standards than the NLRA.
‘Fracture’ in Chicago’s labor world complicates Mayor Brandon Johnson’s third budget fight
November 25, 2025 // That’s the signature hue of the Service Employees International Union, whose local affiliates were Johnson’s second-biggest labor backer in his 2023 election. Instead, the self-styled “most pro-worker mayor” in Chicago’s history has only seen one union vociferously cheer his $16.6 billion proposal, despite his hard line against layoffs: the red-shirted Chicago Teachers Union. It’s a sign of the times after a “fissure” between the once-close SEIU and CTU has grown into a full-blown “fracture,” said Ald. Desmon Yancy, a freshman progressive who previously served in SEIU leadership.
RADIO: Vincent Vernuccio- Pro-Worker Labor Legislation That Promotes Worker Freedom
November 17, 2025 // Senator Bill Cassidy announced a swath of pro-worker labor legislation that promotes worker freedom and curbs undue influence and abuse by unions
Newt’s World Episode 899: Employee Rights Act
October 13, 2025 // Newt talks with Vincent Vernuccio, President of the Institute for the American Worker about the Employee Rights Act of 2025, a legislative proposal aimed at enhancing and safeguarding the rights of American workers while promoting fairness and accountability in the workplace. Introduced by Senator Tim Scott and Congressman Rick Allen, the bill represents a Republican vision for the workforce, focusing on empowering workers, improving unions, and fostering innovation and growth. Vernuccio highlights the outdated nature of current labor laws,
Right to Work Foundation Urges Ninth Circuit to Reject CA Law Granting Union Bosses Massive Power Over Cannabis Industry Workers
October 9, 2025 // The Foundation’s amicus brief argues in particular that the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) preempts California’s “labor peace agreement” statutes. The NLRA is the federal law that governs most private sector labor relations. The four conditions mandated for cannabis companies under California law, “an agreement with a…union, a ban on disrupting union organizing, a ban on union members picketing, boycotting, or striking, and a clause granting union organizers access to employees at work” all concern activity that the U.S. Congress intended the NLRA to deal with – not state law.
California unions are pouring more money than ever into CalPERS elections. Here’s why
September 23, 2025 // The money is coming from a mix of mostly private sector construction and trade unions that have been urging the $584 billion pension fund to favor union shops in its real estate and construction investments.