Posts tagged seniority
Strike ends for Mack Trucks workers after 39 days on the picket line
November 16, 2023 // Reggie Benjamin and his union brothers strike and walk a pickett line along Eisenhower Blvd. in Lower Swatara Township, Pa., Oct. 11, 2023. Benjamin is a Reman Technician working on assembly line transmissions and is from Lewisberry, Pa. Mark Pynes | pennlive.com Reggie Benjamin and his union brothers strike and walk a pickett line along Eisenhower Blvd. in Lower Swatara Township, Pa., Oct. 11, 2023. Benjamin is a Reman Technician working on assembly line transmissions and is from Lewisberry, Pa. Mark Pynes | pennlive.com © Mark Pynes | pennlive.com/pennlive.com/TNS The Mack Trucks employee strike has ended after more than a month of picketing. “After 39 days on strike, UAW members at Mack Trucks have voted by 93% to ratify their new contract with significant local improvements,” United Auto Workers said on X (formerly known as Twitter) on Wednesday evening. People Born Before 1969 Eligible For Walk-In Tubs People Born Before 1969 Eligible For Walk-In Tubs Ad profind.com Workers had been out demonstrating at the Mack Trucks plant along Commerce Drive in Lower Swatara Township and along Eisenhower Boulevard in Swatara Township as well as plants in the Lehigh Valley, Hagerstown, Maryland, and at distribution centers in Baltimore and Jacksonville, Florida. United Auto Worker Local 677 members strike along Eisenhower Blvd. in Lower Swatara Township, Pa., Oct. 11, 2023. Mark Pynes | pennlive.com United Auto Worker Local 677 members strike along Eisenhower Blvd. in Lower Swatara Township, Pa., Oct. 11, 2023. Mark Pynes | pennlive.com © Mark Pynes | pennlive.com/pennlive.com/TNS “UAW leadership has informed us that their members have ratified the new five-year agreement,” Mack Trucks said on its website. “The agreement guarantees significant wage growth and delivers excellent benefits for our employees and their families. At the same time, it will safeguard our competitiveness and allow us to continue making the necessary investments in our people, plants and products. We look forward to welcoming our employees back to our sites on Monday, November 20, for your usual shift.” Related video: Congressman Trone rallies UAW strikers at Mack Truck Plant in Hagerstown (WDVM Hagerstown) Maryland Congressman David Trone spent the morning at the Mack Current Time 0:14 / Duration 0:44 WDVM Hagerstown Congressman Trone rallies UAW strikers at Mack Truck Plant in Hagerstown 0 View on Watch View on Watch The vote for the new contract took place on Wednesday, after the United Auto Workers 677 negotiating committee said in a letter to its members that it met with the company and put formal requests across the table to address members’ needs but the company rejected all of the proposals. The negotiating committee did say that the company agreed to “some significant changes” since the strike began but that members would be voting on the same contract that was voted down in early October. The letter said that the negotiations were over and the contract would come up for a vote. Most notably, the letter warned of the repercussions of voting down the contract, which included possible lost of jobs, loss of insurance after Dec. 1 and a loss of a $3,500 ratification bonus.
UAW Union Negotiates Pay Increase Deal For Ultium Battery Workers
August 28, 2023 // While still set to be voted upon this weekend, the UAW sees this as a stride towards increasing working conditions and salaries at the Ultium manufacturing facilities.
Opinion: TALKING TRANSPORTATION: Union Power and the Potential Strike at Metro-North
August 8, 2023 // The union, which represents car inspectors, coach cleaners and mechanics has been without a contract since 2019 and says MTA management is dragging its heels on a new contract. The union has entered mediation through the Railroad Labor Act but says the first round did not go well. Under New York State law the union does have the right to strike and that would pretty much halt train service. But the effect of that might be far less in these post-COVID times as we’ve all learned how to WFH (work from home). This labor unrest comes as the MTA admits it paid $1.3 billion in overtime last year. About 1100 of its employees doubled their salaries with OT. There are mechanics and MTA cops taking home over $300,000 due to extra duty. Under their contracts, available overtime must first be offered to the most senior (and highest paid) staffers so those veterans, closest to retirement, are raking it in.
YOUNG WORKERS INCREASINGLY — AND RIGHTFULLY — WARY OF UNIONS
April 28, 2023 // Unions, on the other hand, are notorious for their seniority-based systems, in which benefits and promotions are often based on years of service rather than merit. This can limit opportunities for ambitious young workers who want to excel in their careers based on their own talent and hard work rather than being bound by rigid union rules that prioritize age over performance. Moreover, unions can be a costly undertaking for young workers. Union dues can be expensive, and the burden falls more heavily on those making less. For young workers already struggling with student loans and other financial responsibilities, union dues can further strain their budgets. At the same time, young workers may never have the chance to fully benefit from the services provided by unions, such as pension plans, since they are less likely to stay with a single employer for their entire career.
Sun Country fleet service employees vote to unionize
January 9, 2023 // Fleet service employees at Sun Country Airlines (NASDAQ: SNCY) voted this week to unionize, joining the Minneapolis Local 970 of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. The workers, who include ramp agents and personnel that load and unload planes, approved the unionization measure by a vote of 46-32. In a statement, the union said worker priorities including securing better wages and recognition of seniority, among other issues.
Geico workers organizing in Amherst
September 12, 2022 // For years, employees said, those jobs were good jobs. Geico today pays a minimum of $16.84 per hour for entry-level employees and as much as $91.70 per hour for upper management, according to records reviewed by Investigative Post. The employees who spoke with Investigative Post said they make between $20 and $30 per hour, or between $40,000 and $60,000 per year. But the COVID-19 pandemic, they said, rocked Geico’s business, causing the company to make a number of adjustments in short succession that changed employees’ jobs. Because many Geico employees are still working from home, organizers have been knocking on doors and visiting their coworkers at home to ask them to sign a union petition.
Op-Ed: Standing up when my union let me down
July 19, 2022 // Soon, I found out that one PennDOT crew in the county kept working and avoided my agonizing decision. This crew included the union president, his relatives, and other union officials – all men. Some of them had less seniority than me. I was stunned. I never questioned whether the union would honor seniority rights. It’s written into our contract. I could – should – have been working on that crew instead of burning through my PTO. Mindy McFetridge is a PennDOT transportation equipment operator in Venango County and is the recipient of a PennDOT Workplace Hero award.
Opinion: Connecticut Hits Its Taxpayers With a Huge Payoff to Unions
April 6, 2022 // If Hartford lawmakers consent, state employees will pocket $2,500 bonuses, back pay averaging nearly $2,000, and raises of 2.5% to 4.5%. Another $1,000 bonus and more raises await in July, around the time their unions will decide whether to offer Mr. Lamont’s re-election bid the same intense backing they delivered in 2018.
Minneapolis Teachers Union Strike Ends
March 30, 2022 // The new contract also includes language protecting educators of color from seniority driven layoffs (“if excessing a teacher who is a member of a population underrepresented among licensed teachers in the site, the District shall excess the next least senior teacher, who is not a member of an underrepresented population,” the contract reads), and will add mentors to support educators of color in the district.
Group calls on Minneapolis school district, union to protect teachers of color before strike
February 22, 2022 // A group is asking MPS and MFT Local 59 to sign an agreement protecting teachers of color from seniority-based layoffs.