Posts tagged United Electrical Radio and Machine Workers of America
Op-ed: Stanford’s Graduate Student Union Tries to Stifle Dissent
September 4, 2025 // At the University of Chicago, graduate students in a similar position have taken their union to federal court, arguing that forced support of the union violates their constitutional rights. In Graduate Students for Academic Freedom v. Graduate Students United, the plaintiffs—including Jewish students—say they are being compelled to fund a union that promotes the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israel, a stance they view as antisemitic. The graduate unions at both Stanford and Chicago are registered as local chapters of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America, a national union that funds progressive activism.
Union accused of forcing Jewish students at MIT, Stanford, and Cornell to fund pro-Hamas agenda
August 12, 2025 // At MIT, following the October 2023 Hamas attacks on Israel, the UE affiliate supported campus protests favoring Hamas, the letter states. Five Jewish graduate students requested religious accommodations to avoid paying dues to the union, citing conflicts with their faith. UE General Secretary-Treasurer Andrew Dinkelaker reportedly denied the requests, saying, “no principles, teachings, or tenets of Judaism prohibit membership in or the payment of dues or fees to a labor union.” At Stanford, three graduate students faced similar challenges. Their requests for accommodations were met with what the letter calls an “abusive” questionnaire, which the union dropped after legal pressure.
Labor Unions 101 event hosted by Summit County Young Democrats is set for Sept. 6
August 11, 2025 // Summit County Young Democrats is hosting a free educational event for the public, Labor Unions 101, on Sept. 6. According to the U.S. Treasury, union membership has been in a steady decline for over 50 years, with only 10% of U.S. workers belonging to a union in 2022. This event aims to show how unions benefit the working class. The event begins at 11 a.m. at the United Steelworkers Local 2 Union Hall at 501 Kelly Ave. in Akron.
Commentary: Ivy Leaguers Aren’t Auto Workers
July 21, 2025 // In general, NLRB decisions are fake law made by fake judges who have to interpret a poorly written statute from 90 years ago that is based on assumptions about industrial organization that no longer obtain in the United States. But the NLRB remains powerful nonetheless, and its decisions matter. That’s why Russell Burgett, a doctoral candidate at Cornell University, which is private, is asking the NLRB to overturn the 2016 Columbia ruling. He isn’t a member of the Cornell graduate students’ union, a UE affiliate, and he said in charges filed with the NLRB on Monday that his choice not to join makes it harder for him to complete his education.
Walberg, Allen Demand Answers on Union Failures to Protect Workers’ Sensitive, Personal Info
May 8, 2025 // The National Labor Relations Board requires that unions receive personal information for the purpose of communicating with workers who are eligible voters in a union election. This information includes individuals’ full names, work locations, shifts, job classifications, home addresses, personal email addresses, and personal cell phone numbers. In order to ensure the union is taking the necessary steps to protect the employee data it collects and to assess whether all this data is necessary, the Committee requests that you provide the following information no later than May 22, 2025
Wabtec cites lost jobs in Erie as evidence that Fort Worth workers should not unionize
October 4, 2024 // In a letter to employees in Fort Worth, the company says they should consider the evidence from unionized workers at Wabtec plants in Erie and Wilmerding, near Pittsburgh. According to the letter, "Employment levels are down 58% in Erie since 2011. In Wilmerding, Wabtec's former headquarters, employment levels went from 70 employees in 2020 to just 5 remaining employees today,"
Cornell grad students overwhelmingly vote to unionize
November 13, 2023 // Union organizers have advocated that collectively bargaining with Cornell will be a path for graduate student to address issues ranging from improving the university’s services for foreign students studying on a visa, to assisting grad students with the cost of transportation, such as Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit’s bus services or parking on campus. In addition to improved wages and compensation, CGSU has also promised to advocate that Cornell provide dental and vision insurance to graduate students “at no extra cost.”
Despite rising number of strikes, union memberships remains low
September 7, 2023 // While the rate of work stoppages in 2023 is on pace to break the record set last year, union membership is still lagging at a record-low. So far, there have been 251 strikes in 2023, compared to 417 in 2022, according to data compiled by Cornell University’s Labor Action Tracker. Last year’s 10.1% unionization rate was the lowest on record, however, and workers have a long way to go to reach the 20% rates not seen in 20 years. While no comprehensive data exists detailing the success rate of recent worker strikes or labor disputes nationwide, some union workers have gotten their way this year.
Graduate students organize a push for unionization
September 7, 2023 // Chase said Iowa State’s potential union will be able to rely on UE for assistance in negotiations. “For example, University of Iowa is able to lean on their parent union and say, ‘Hey, we want an increase in salary, we want more health care supports,’ or ‘We want to waive or reduce these student fees,’ and through collective bargaining, they can negotiate for those things,” Chase said. Cain spoke on how graduate students are not considered employees, but they are held to the same standards as faculty.
Locomotive Manufacturer, Union Agree to End Two-Month Strike
September 6, 2023 //