Posts tagged Seattle
Commentary: Labor unions are mobilizing in new and old industries alike
October 6, 2024 // How job security issues are addressed following this wave of strikes could set the tone for what other hospitality, manufacturing and transportation unions seek when their contracts are up for negotiation again.The Conversation
Feeding the Kitty
September 30, 2024 // Unions have pursued shareholder resolutions asking for a “free and fair election process,” meaning card check and neutrality. They have also sought to pass resolutions demanding audits of a company’s labor practices. It’s not hard to see how a future resolution could explicitly try to prohibit companies from using independent contractors.
Boeing Worker Side Hustles Could Drag Strike Out for Months
September 23, 2024 // But as workers stare down the embattled manufacturer for better pay and benefits, the 33,000 members of IAM District 751 have the full benefit of a tight labor market and gig economy that provides a quick transition into jobs that help make ends meet. That gives the union bargaining leverage, potentially frustrating Boeing’s effort to swiftly end a conflict that’s costing it an estimated $100 million each day. While the battle between one of the world’s largest exporters and its blue-collar workers may look like an uneven fight on its surface, Boeing finds itself in an increasingly untenable situation with its finances so dire that it can ill afford a drawn-out paralysis.
Boeing workers going on strike after 96% vote for walkout
September 13, 2024 // The deal included a general wage increase of 25%, a $3,000 signing bonus and a pledge to build Boeing's next commercial jet in the Seattle area, provided the program was launched within the four years of the contract. Although IAM leadership recommended last Sunday that its members accept the contract, many workers had responded angrily, arguing for the originally demanded 40% pay rise and lamenting the loss of an annual bonus. "We're going to get back to the table as quickly as we can," Holden told reporters, without saying how long he thought the strike would last or when talks would resume. "This is something that we take one day at a time, one week at a time.” Workers have been protesting all week in Boeing factories in the Seattle area that assemble Boeing's MAX, 777 and 767 jets.
Boeing reaches tentative labor deal with 25% pay hike, new plane commitment
September 9, 2024 // The deal comes as workers are capitalizing on tight labor markets to make gains. The United Auto Workers union won a similar 25% general wage pay hike over four-and-a-half years with the Detroit Three last autumn. The talks had been watched by members of U.S. President Joe Biden's administration, with Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su last week urging the sides in an interview with Reuters to get a "fair contract."
Politicians attend Labor Day breakfast outside Boston hotel join striking workers
September 3, 2024 // Almost 900 went on strike Sunday at Hilton Logan Airport, Hilton-Hampton Inn Boston Seaport, Fairmont Copley Plaza and Hilton Park Plaza. The picket line outside the Park Plaza forced organizers to relocate the Greater Boston Labor Council's Labor Day breakfast, an annual gathering of Democrats and union leaders. The breakfast was moved outdoors to Statler Park.
Strikes start at top hotel chains; housekeepers seek higher wages, daily room cleaning
September 2, 2024 // The union hopes to build on its recent success in southern California, where after repeated strikes it won significant wage hikes, increased employer contributions to pensions, and fair workload guarantees in a new contract with 34 hotels. Under the contract, housekeepers at most hotels will earn $35 an hour by July 2027. The American Hotel And Lodging Association says 80% of its member hotels report staffing shortages, and 50% cite housekeeping as their most critical hiring need. Kevin Carey, the association's interim president and CEO, says hotels are doing all they can to attract workers. According to the association's surveys, 86% of hoteliers have increased wages over the past six months, and many have offered more flexibility with hours or expanded benefits. The association says wages for hotel workers have risen 26% since the pandemic.
Hotel Workers’ Union UNITE HERE Releases Travelers’ Guide to Possible Strikes as Busy Labor Day Travel Weekend Approaches
August 25, 2024 // Hotel workers’ union UNITE HERE today published a guide of travel tips to help hotel guests plan for possible strikes across the United States. Thousands of hotel workers in nine cities have now authorized strikes at Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott, and Omni hotels, but hotels rarely notify guests of a strike, and travelers sometimes learn of a strike only upon arriving at their hotel and being met by a boisterous picket line. The union launched the travel guide ahead of Labor Day weekend, when millions of Americans are planning travel.
Boeing Seattle factory workers to send ‘strong message’ at strike sanction vote, union says
July 18, 2024 // While the vote is considered procedural, the union is kicking off the 12 p.m. PDT event with fanfare, including an earlier convoy of workers on 800 motorcycles. “It does empower the negotiating committee, it does send a strong message,” union local president Jon Holden said about the vote during a June interview. For example, the vote would free up funds in case members choose to strike later, he added. North American unions have capitalized on tight labor markets to win hefty contracts at the bargaining table, with airline pilots, autoworkers and others scoring big raises.
Who Loves Minimum Wage Laws? Kiosk Makers
July 3, 2024 // Average voters who might think they are helping downtrodden, exploited workers might mean well, but they should realize that they are actually enriching higher-skill workers (who don’t need the help as much), software developers, and people who own shares in ordering kiosk companies.