Posts tagged rank and file
Bid Protests Offer a Way Around PLAs, But Will a Slow, Steady Precedent Win the Day?
June 25, 2025 // The OMB memo instructs federal agencies to maintain the labor pact requirements but also points to a Federal Acquisition Rule provision that provides an exception to the PLA requirement for large construction projects when its use would substantially reduce the number of bidders and impact the price. But it has left neither contractor groups nor NABTU happy. "To that extent this isn’t what we hoped for, it is definitely better than what was in place with the Biden administration,” Brian Turmail, vice president of public affairs and workforce at AGC told ENR. “In addition, given the recent court decisions, it is hard to see how the administration will be able to impose a mandated PLA without facing successful bid protests."
Op-ed: Reject The Rail Crew Mandate And Embrace Deregulation
June 24, 2025 // This destructive, union-backed rule undermines voluntary labor-management agreements that already govern crew sizes in a more flexible and effective manner. The Center for Transportation Advancement points out that rigid staffing mandates override productive negotiations and mimic the failed "full crew" laws of the early 1900s—laws long since repealed because they served union interests, not public safety.
When Union Leaders Cross the Line
June 12, 2025 // SEIU represents hundreds of thousands of essential workers. Their focus should be on improving wages, working conditions, and safety, not interfering in federal law enforcement or fueling divisive political narratives. When union leaders act like activists first and representatives second, it is the workers who lose. This moment is a wake-up call. America needs unions that are fair, transparent, and focused on results, not organizations that tolerate or even celebrate lawbreaking from the top.
UAW Reformers Close Caucus, Launch New Organization
May 1, 2025 // The resolution to dissolve, which passed by a vote of 160 to 137, stated, “It is clear to us that the coalition of members that came together to achieve UAWD’s greatest successes can no longer work together toward common goals… There are two different visions for the kind of organization we need to build to advance a more militant union.” Opponents said the majority group should work through the internal conflicts or leave, rather than close the caucus. “These have been tensions since the beginning, and we worked through them,” said Jeremy Bunyaner, a tenant attorney and longtime caucus activist. “Do you not believe we can work together? Then leave, don’t shut it down.”
Commentary: Labor unions prepare for battle against Trump’s federal workforce plans
November 25, 2024 // Federal unions will be a favorite target, as they were previously. In 2018, Trump issued three executive orders that nearly blew away the ability of federal employees — notably, not just union members — to be fully represented by labor organizations, particularly in grievance procedures. President Joe Biden revoked those orders shortly after taking office. Beyond what Trump did before, what he might do next has union leaders ready for a fight
Op-Ed Andrew Holman: Union political spending doesn’t represent all their members
October 30, 2024 // Most of Pennsylvania’s public sector unions’ certifications date back to the 1970s, meaning many of their employees have never had the opportunity to vote on their representation. Without accountability, public sector unions are free to divert resources from representation toward partisan politics with no regard for members. The rank-and-file deserves better from their unions.
Opinion: Why union workers are abandoning the Democratic Party
October 15, 2024 // Scott Sauritch, the president of United Steelworkers Local 2227, drew significant public attention recently when he told a writer for the New Yorkerthat despite being a longtime Democrat, he would be voting for Donald Trump in November. He also said that most of the current rank-and-file members of the union planned on doing the same. “I don’t care what you see on TV,” Sauritch said. “The grunts in the lunchroom love Trump.”
Harris faces challenge with union voters in Michigan, Pennsylvania
October 9, 2024 // One labor official who requested anonymity said many members of his union come from more culturally conservative households and aren’t very familiar with Harris’s record on labor issues. “We have a lot of Republicans in our membership,” the official said, adding that union members reflect society’s spectrum of different political views. That diversity within union membership, however, didn’t stop labor groups from embracing Biden in 2020, as well as Clinton in 2016 and former President Obama in 2012 and 2008.
Union membership is plateauing among California state workers, data show. Here’s why
December 23, 2023 // Across state government, just over 64% of employees paid union dues in October, according to the most recent available data from the State Controller’s Office, which deducts dues from union members’ paychecks. That’s down less than 0.5% from last October. The state’s total number of rank-and-file employees increased by about 1,580 people from October 2022. Meanwhile, the number of dues-paying members increased by just under 330 employees. These trends buck previous years’ patterns, which saw decreases in total staff as well as dues-paying members.
Here’s why the UAW’s record deals with GM, Ford and Stellantis aren’t getting full support
November 16, 2023 // At least three major assembly plants representing 9,730, or 21%, of GM’s 46,000 UAW-represented employees have voted against the pact. They include 61% against at Lansing Delta Township plant in Michigan, which builds Buick and Chevrolet crossovers; 67.5% rejection at a Cadillac and GMC crossover plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee; and 52% opposed at GM’s Flint, Michigan, truck plant. A handful of other smaller plants also have voted against the deal. At Ford, the automaker’s Kentucky Truck Plant — its largest in terms of employment and revenue — had 54.5% of members vote against it. The UAW reached tentative deals with each of the automakers, so each is voted on separately. One or more could fail, while another ratifies. They are not contingent on one another.