Posts tagged sickout
‘Louisville is a union town’: A look back at the 2023 labor movement in the metro area
December 19, 2023 // This year, Kentucky saw 16 labor actions, including strikes and protests, which is more than the combined total of labor events in 2021 and 2022, according to Cornell ILR’s Labor Action Tracker as of Dec. 7. Each of these labor actions, from union giants such as Teamsters Local 89 at UPS and United Auto Workers Local 862 at Ford to the smaller labor actions at places including Heine Brothers Coffee, Sunergos Coffee and Rainbow Blossom, have resulted in victories for Louisville workers. “People are realizing, those that work for a living in places like Ford, in places like GE [Appliances], UPS and other large employers as well as the smaller employers, the baristas in these coffee shops ... that their only real option to progress themselves at their jobs and in their lives is to come together in solidarity as union members,” Londrigan said.
CVS, Walgreens pharmacists move to unionize
November 14, 2023 // The latest pharmacist walkout, originally dubbed “Pharmageddon” over fear of a widespread walkout with large ramifications, took place last week but ended up having minimal participation and impact. A Walgreens spokesperson told Reuters the protest closed only three pharmacies temporarily. CVS Chief Executive Karen Lynch told Reuters some workers called in sick at a few stores but there were no closures or disruption in service.
Kentucky Coinkydink
May 4, 2023 // The teachers who conducted the Kentucky sickout were officially unaffiliated with the Kentucky Education Association. They formed a Facebook group and called it KY 120 United. After the protests were over, they solidified their organization and eventually turned it into a union, affiliating with AFT, which previously had no real presence in the state. KY 120 United has had an uneasy relationship with KEA ever since. KY 120 United was recognized as a labor organization by the Fayette County Schools in 2021, but the school board rescinded that recognition last month, stating that the union had failed to file required paperwork. A district spokesperson said the union had to “show through bylaws and a democratic method that they represent our employees in order to ensure this is truly a representative group.”
Watching Democrats debate unionization of legislative staff is a popcorn-worthy spectacle
February 25, 2022 // One guaranteed beneficiary would be IUPAT District Council 5, a stridently partisan union looking to organize legislative staff. In addition to representing Democratic Party employees, nearly all 143 candidates the union endorsed in 2020 were Democrats. Using members’ dues, the union and its national affiliate have spent $700,000 influencing Washington elections.