Posts tagged Starbucks
Labor Relations Radio E145: Did you know that 95% of unionized employees NEVER VOTED to unionize? I4AW’s Vinnie Vernuccio explains.
September 4, 2024 // As Americans, every two, four, or six years, we head to polls to cast our ballots for who we want to represent us. For unionized workers in the private sector, the vast majority never voted to unionize. According to a new study [in PDF] by the Institute for the American Worker (I4AW), 95 percent of private sector union workers under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) are represented by a union they have never voted for.
Chipotle may have violated workers’ unionization rights, US labor board says
August 28, 2024 // The board said late Monday that its Detroit regional director found merit to allegations filed against Chipotle by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. The union alleges that Chipotle unlawfully disciplined an employee in Lansing, Michigan, for engaging in union activity and told employees the fast-food chain couldn’t give them raises because they were unionized. The regional director dismissed an allegation that Chipotle unlawfully withheld credit card tips from unionized workers. An allegation that Chipotle unlawfully used surveillance methods on its employees is still under investigation.
Chef Ann Kim’s Korean American Restaurant Will Close Following Unionization
August 26, 2024 // Vestalia did not voluntarily recognize the union. Kim made her first public statement about the unionization push on June 9, writing on Instagram that she “firmly agree[s] that everyone deserves the right to a voice and a vote,” but that she felt Kim’s team could “come together” without a union. (The post has since been removed.) Later that month, food blogger Joe Rosenthal posted internal messages from Kim, her partner Conrad Leifur, and restaurant managers seemingly attempting to persuade staff to vote against unionizing.
Long Beach Worker Files Federal Lawsuit Challenging Structure of Biden Labor Board as Unconstitutional
August 23, 2024 // Nelson Medina, a Long Beach, CA-based employee of transportation company Savage Services, has just filed a federal lawsuit against the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) challenging the Board’s makeup as unconstitutional. Medina, who is represented for free by National Right to Work Foundation staff attorneys, argues that the composition of the NLRB violates separation of powers doctrines enshrined in Article II of the U.S. Constitution because it shields NLRB bureaucrats from being removed by the President.
Commentary: Why Labor Strikes Are Likely to Take Off under a Harris-Walz Administration
August 14, 2024 // It is worth noting that the United Auto Workers (UAW) want to unionize the employees of Musk’s electric-car company, Tesla. Fain was paid $228,872 as head of the UAW in 2023; the twelve “top officers are paid in excess of the [sic] $200,000 and hundreds more earn six figures, putting them in the top 5 percent of US income earners.” It is also worth noting that the “total dues-paying membership of the UAW fell by 13,000 last year to 370,000, down from 383,000 in 2022.” According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average autoworker is paid $30.78 per hour and works 41 hours per week, adding up to about $66,000 per year.
Texas sees surge in union membership, defying state’s anti-union history
August 14, 2024 // In total, there are about 586,000 union workers in Texas, a fraction of the millions who work here. And yet, the increase is somewhat remarkable given the state's long history of hostility toward unions. And nationwide, union membership dipped during the same time. Texas is one of 26 so-called right-to-work states. Texas lawmakers first passed that law in 1993. The law allows for workers the option to not pay unions due and the right to work in a unionized workplace without being a part of the union itself. And more recently, the Republican-controlled Legislature passed a law aimed at stopping local governments from enacting progressive-leaning worker protections and other policies.
State of the unions: 8 facts you need to know about unions in Colorado
August 8, 2024 // Colorado is a modified “right to work” state because, under the state’s Labor Peace Act, workplaces with unions may hold a second election to become an all-union workplace. If at least 75% of eligible workers approve its Labor Peace Act election, the workplace becomes all-union, meaning every worker must join the union and pay dues. The act was passed in 1943 as a compromise between unions and business owners. In 2023 and 2024 to date, nine Labor Peace Act elections have been held — six won and three lost, according to the Colorado Fiscal Institute.
Nissan workers in Mississippi consider another union campaign: VW ‘proved it can be done’
August 8, 2024 // “We were the forefathers of everything that came to be,” said Rahmeel Nash, a paint body technician at Nissan who has been at the plant for 21 years. But when it came time for Nissan workers to vote in 2017, they rejected unionizing. The final tally wasn’t close — nearly two to one against it. Nissan technician Morris Mock said one reason they lost was because of the UAW itself. The union was in the early days of a corruption scandal, one that eventually led to two presidents going to jail for embezzling. Beyond that, there were deeply entrenched anti-union attitudes in the state. Even local pastors came to speak to workers, calling the company the savior of Mississippi, Mock said.
Op-Ed: Rep. Tim Walberg and Vinnie Vernuccio: Republicans must give workers a voice
August 2, 2024 // Union organizers can easily abuse this system, focusing on a small number of workers who can ensure a union victory. Trader Joe’s employee Michael Alcorn testified before Congress in May that “after an organizer realized I wasn’t on board, they told me that they couldn’t answer any more questions and were going to devote their attention to those who would help them ‘win.’” Alcorn also said an NLRB agent told him that “it makes sense that the organizers would only talk to people who already support the union.” Under current law, that smaller number of workers can ensure a union victory if they’re the only ones who vote.
Podcast: Rich Lowry with guest Vinnie Vernuccio; How Unions Are Failing American Workers
July 31, 2024 // National Review's Rich Lowry is joined by Vinnie Vernuccio, President of the Institute for the American Worker, to discuss how unions have reduced worker freedom, the underhanded tactics unions use to gain power and stifle dissenting voices, how the government enables unions, and how Americans can use free market principles to restore workers' rights and bring about positive labor reform.