Posts tagged retirement benefits
Amazon says it will not recognize workers’ unionization push at Merrillville warehouse
October 27, 2026 // Amazon does not plan to voluntarily recognize drivers who filed union authorization cards to join the Teamsters Local 142, setting up an election through the National Labor Relations Board. Transportation Operations Management, or TOM, Team drivers out of the 1 million-square-foot Amazon fulfillment center just off Interstate 65 in Merrillville rallied there Thursday to demand the company negotiate a union contract. The department employs about 21 workers out of the hundreds who work at the hulking Amazon warehouse, union leaders said.
IAFF Local 3631 Settles Case for Denying Retirement Benefits to Nonmember Firefighter
August 27, 2026 // Peter Crary, a Fire Apparatus Engineer who has served his community for over 20 years with the Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA), has prevailed in his dispute with International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 3631 union bosses, and OCFA officials. IAFF Local 3631 bosses moved to settle after the California Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) issued a complaint against the union for violating Crary’s rights. Crary’s settlement was secured with free legal aid from National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys.
Beverage Market strike nears 100 days as workers seek better pay and benefits
August 19, 2026 // Union representatives allege there have been confrontations involving people working at the business and those on the picket line. According to representatives, one striking worker was struck by a vehicle and another was shoved. The circumstances surrounding those incidents and whether any charges were filed could not immediately be independently verified.
Unions Blame Pension Reform for Empty Jobs, Demand Rollback — CT Takes 3 Months to Hire
August 18, 2026 // Connecticut doesn’t have to accept a three-month hiring process as the price of government employment. Pennsylvania says it cut its average time to hire by 42 percent, from 90 days in January 2023 to 52 days as of April 2026, crediting process improvements, modernized tools and targeted recruitment. Vacancy rates for permitting, licensing and certification jobs also fell from 14 percent to about 5 percent.
CT worker unions to test gubernatorial contenders on key issues
August 17, 2026 // The governor, who won a Democratic primary Tuesday by a 2-1 margin and is favored in early polling to win a third term in November, and Fazio are meeting with representatives of 45,000-plus unionized state employees at a closed-door forum at Charter Oak International Academy in West Hartford. Previous contracts establishing long-term benefits have been set in increments of 10 or even 20 years, raising the stakes for labor and the state.
Lewis Ginter union workers reject ‘last, best and final’ contract offer
August 17, 2026 // Garden agreed to include the generous benefits it already offers its employees: Health Insurance and the organization’s HSA contributions (the Union proposed no changes) Retirement benefits with the organization’s contribution (the Union proposed no changes) 35 days of paid time off Three weeks of paid parental leave The Union’s current demand for an immediate approximately 11.4% wage increase for unionized staff, followed by additional increases in subsequent years, is simply not a sustainable approach for an organization that does not make a profit and must budget on a year-to-year basis.
Beckley beverage delivery strike continues without agreement
July 26, 2026 // The Washington, D.C.-based Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, an independent federal agency that assists unions and employers in resolving labor disputes, provided the mediator. However, the agency lacks the authority to force either party to accept an agreement. Farley said the mediator separated the parties and explored possible compromises during an eight-hour session that ran from about 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Arrests, injuries reported at C&H Sugar refinery strike line in Crockett
July 23, 2026 // In a statement, a C&H spokesperson said, "Union members outside our gates are engaged in reckless and unsafe actions, endangering the health and safety of drivers, independent contractors and their fellow employees as well as unlawfully blocking commerce in and out of our refinery." The statement continued: "We call on the ILWU to stop the reckless, dangerous and illegal activity, and come to the table to finalize an agreement." As deputies continued ordering people to leave the area Tuesday, union leaders said the two injured workers were members of Local 10. One worker was transported to Kaiser Permanente Richmond Medical Center for treatment.
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.
Portable Benefits Win in Six More States
June 24, 2026 // A company willing to contribute toward benefits risks having the independent contractor reclassified as a traditional W2 employee, which brings new tax obligations, wage rules, and liability. Faced with that risk, most companies contribute nothing. Independent contractors are left to pay for benefits on their own, and many go without, with no safety net if they get sick, lose work, or grow old without savings. Portable benefits laws cut that knot. They establish that a voluntary contribution to a worker’s benefit account does not make the worker an employee. The account under this framework belongs to the worker, rather than the company, and follows them from one contract to the next. Contributions can fund health coverage, retirement savings, paid leave, disability protection, and emergency income, the protections a traditional job provides.