Posts tagged work conditions
This East Bay Coffee Company Just Entered Its Union Phase
November 30, 2022 // A new coffee company union effort just launched not far from California’s state capital. No, it’s not more Starbucks locations demanding better working conditions. This time it’s the East Bay’s own Peet’s that’s looking to get a union started. According to More Perfect Union, workers from two Davis stores will submit their cards to the NLRB on November 28, signaling a formal intent to unionize. The stores have near-unanimous support from staff and have been organizing for about five months, according to Alyx Land, a leader at the North Davis location. The worker says one of his main reasons for getting involved was receiving a 50-cent raise at his last performance review which, given inflation, means his promotion sees him making less money than last year.
WFAE journalists want to become the first public radio station in the Carolinas to unionize. Will they succeed?
November 28, 2022 // WFAE may become the first public radio station in the Carolinas to form a union. On Tuesday, a group of content staff members — hosts, reporters, producers and other journalists — announced their intention to unionize in tweets issued under the handle @wemakewfae. More than 70% of WFAE’s content staff signed on to a petition to form a union, the organizing committee said in the tweet thread and accompanying press release. The petition does not include newsroom managers.
BC Graduate Employees Union Rallies For Better Working Conditions
November 8, 2022 // Graduate employee unions from neighboring schools joined BCGEU for the rally right before the Friday BC football game against Duke. Crowds of drunken students and gamewatchers passed as protestors demanded BC recognize their union and negotiate a contract to guarantee better working conditions.
Illinois: Concerns raised Amendment 1 could open door to public safety strikes
October 21, 2022 // Supporters say Amendment 1 aims to codify collective bargaining rights in Illinois for wages, work conditions, and other issues. Opponents say that the amendment would lead to higher property taxes for residents. The Illinois Municipal League argues against the measure, saying if approved, it could lead to strikes among emergency workers. The measure will be on the ballot for the Nov. 8 election. The question requires either three-fifths approval of those voting on the question or a simple majority of all votes cast in the election to be enacted.
Striketober Is Back As Workers Fight To Close The Wage Gap
October 4, 2022 // Strike Activity Heats As Workers Grapple With Covid Inequities Workers have long been frustrated by a wide range of issues–from low wages to poor working conditions, but Covid brought these problems into sharp relief. Workers who interact with customers in person, from medical staff to restaurant workers, realized that while companies considered them essential, they also considered them expendable. As the immediate horrors of Covid fade into the rearview, the way workers were treated has left a permanent scar. The combination of a lack of basic benefits (like healthcare), poor working conditions, unfair labor practices and the extreme wealth disparity between business owners and workers has triggered action—which is now showing up in worker walkouts, says Kate Bronfenbrenner, director of labor education research at Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations.
Old Town Voodoo Doughnut employees vote to unionize
October 3, 2022 // Voodoo Doughnut was founded by Portlanders Kenneth “Cat Daddy” Pogson and Tres Shannon at the Old Town location in 2003. The Portland Business Journal reported that the San Francisco-based equity firm Fundamental Capital bought a large stake in the company in 2017. However, Kenneth and Pogson told PBJ that they retained “significant ownership and influence in the company.” Doughnut Workers United and Voodoo Doughnut itself did not immediately respond to KOIN 6’s request for comment.
Restaurants move to stop new California fast food worker law
September 19, 2022 // If it stands, the law will create a 10-member Fast Food Council with equal numbers of workers’ delegates and employers’ representatives, along with two state officials, who will be empowered to set minimum standards for wages, hours and working conditions in California. The law will raise consumer costs, isn't needed, and will create “a fractured economy” with different regulations for different types of restaurants, objected the coalition. The coalition is co-chaired by the International Franchise Association and the National Restaurant Association, but organizers said it includes small business owners, restaurateurs, franchisees, employees, consumers, and community-based organizations.
Elizabeth Warren Introduces Bill to Bolster Union Power
September 13, 2022 // Twenty-seven states have right-to-work laws on the books which prohibit unions and employers from requiring workers to pay fees to a union. In practice, this means that workers who reap the benefits of being represented by a union can still decline to support the union’s work financially. This deprives unions of the funds they need operate—weakening their power to bargain for better conditions on behalf of their members. Rep. Brad Sherman,
Are Labor Unions Effective?
September 1, 2022 // Critics of labor unions maintain that union contracts are anti-employer and make it more difficult for a company to fire an unproductive employee. They also believe that unions can increase long-term costs for employers, which can decrease competitiveness. 8 For example, many claim that unions are responsible for the decline of the U.S. auto industry. Foreign automakers entered the U.S. auto market in the 1970s and hired non-union workers to build vehicles. 9 Due to the savings in labor costs, they could afford to sell their vehicles for less than U.S. manufacturers. This made it much harder for the unionized big three automakers to produce competitive cars at affordable prices, and they lost significant market share.
FAST Act Advances to Full Senate as Largest Restaurant Operator Flynn Weighs In
August 16, 2022 // IFA President and CEO Matthew Haller. "This bill forces an unnecessary tax on working families across the state during a time of historic inflation. It would unequivocally hurt locally owned and operated restaurants and have sweeping impacts on a huge portion of the restaurant industry." Last December, David Kaufmann of Kaufmann, Gildin & Robbins wrote a fiery piece against the FAST Act in the New York Law Journal. "The state whose recently enacted AB-5 law has in significant part triggered the nationwide supply chain breakdown is now threatening to turn franchising into a socialist endeavor," he wrote.