Posts tagged unionizing
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram strike marks a major moment for Texas newsroom unions
December 6, 2022 // When 21 reporters from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram announced their intention to walk out Monday, it made headlines. But as the first open-ended newsroom strike in Texas history, it was also a big step for the state’s fledgling newsroom unionizing efforts. In addition to the Star-Telegram newsroom, reporters at the Dallas Morning News and Al Dia; and the Austin American-Statesman unionized as news guilds in the past two years. The Star-Telegram is owned by McClatchy, the Statesman by Gannett, and the Dallas Morning News and Al Dia are owned by DallasNews Corp. All three unions are in the process of negotiating contracts and all of them have cited pay issues as a major driver.
Teacher group says communication with APS broke down after School Board allowed unionizing
November 1, 2022 // Arlington Public Schools became the second school district in Virginia to do so, after the General Assembly in 2020 repealed a ban on school employees bargaining collectively. Before that, AEA advocated for public school employees but could not guarantee benefits through legally binding contracts. This month, organization members told the School Board that its approval of the collective bargaining resolution shut out staff, and since then, communication has worsened between employees and APS’s top leaders.
Commercial Producers Ink Neutrality Agreement With IATSE Over Unionizing Workers
October 17, 2022 // The grassroots group Stand With Production, which has collaborated with IATSE on the organizing campaign, announced the deal to its supporters in an email on Friday, and IATSE confirmed the news. A neutrality agreement essentially means that the employer (in this case, the AICP) agrees not to resist a union drive being spearheaded by Stand With Production and IATSE. production assistants, assistant production supervisors, production supervisors, line producers, rest periods, safety training, higher minimum wage rates, union health and pension plans and diversity and mentorship initiatives.
Strike by Philadelphia Museum of Art workers shows woes of ‘prestige’ jobs
October 10, 2022 // Organizing one workplace can serve as an example for other similar workplaces to do the same. Adam Rizzo, art museum educator and one of the union’s leaders, says when it formed, it also created a new chapter, Local 397, which employees at other museums could join.
Minor league baseball players officially join MLBPA in ‘historic’ move
September 15, 2022 // In a statement, the league said: "Major League Baseball has a long history of bargaining in good faith with unions, including those representing minor and major league umpires, and major league players. We respect the right of workers to decide for themselves whether to unionize. Based on the authorization cards gathered, MLB has voluntarily and promptly recognized the MLBPA as the representatives of minor league players. We are hopeful that a timely and fair collective bargaining agreement will be reached that is good for the game, minor league players and our fans." Martin Scheinman, MLBPA executive director Tony Clark, Arbitrator Martin Scheinman,
We need better unions
September 5, 2022 // They need to leave behind the model where they treat all members as oppressed cogs and move to a model where they provide valuable services to their members and find ways to make union membership valuable for companies. It would be better to shift to an approach where unions serve as professional organizations, advocating for their members’ interests and providing tools for members to collaborate. Unions could train their members, award voluntary certifications, offer insurance, and provide assistance to employees negotiating their own terms and conditions of employment. In short, unions need to step forward into the 21st century.
Union deletes document after report shows taxpayer-funded collusion with Biden administration
September 1, 2022 // “This upgraded resource will be an excellent tool for our union to locate non-union employees across the federal government who are rightfully entitled to representation and a voice in their workplace,” NFFE National President Randy Erwin said in the release, which has now been removed. “NFFE specifically requested assistance in identifying the hundreds of thousands of unrepresented government workers, and today OPM delivered on its commitment to promote employee organizing and collective bargaining by rolling out the enhanced database. We are excited to help these federal employees who have not yet joined a union organize in their workplaces and obtain critical rights and benefits through unionizing.”
Unanswered questions surround unionizing effort by congressional staffers
July 26, 2022 // For starters, congressional offices have different budgets from which to draw salaries for staff — and those amounts are fixed once decided annually. That makes bargaining across multiple personal member offices difficult, as even ideologically aligned members of Congress may have differences in their personnel budget and staffing structure. Rep. Barry Loudermilk, House Compensation and Diversity Study, Census Bureau, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Opinion: Starbucks Workers United Is The Template For Modern Labor Organizing
July 6, 2022 // “We will have the right to negotiate a union contract and have a real voice in setting organization policies, rights on the job, health and safety conditions, protections from unfair firings or unfair discipline, seniority rights, leaves of absence rights, benefits, wages, etc.” Michelle Eisen, Reggie Bores,