Here’s what Southern US workers were up to from September 8-15:
Big week for election filings in the Southern US and colonies: 2,455 workers total just last week.
25 workers at Science News Media Group in Washington DC filed for a union election with the Washington-Baltimore News Guild Local 32035
84 drivers and merchandisers at Pepsico in Collierville, TN filed for a union election with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 667
9 workers at Lush Cosmetics in Friendswood, TX filed for a union election with the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) Local 455
6 workers at Given Glass and Glazing in South Charleston, WV filed for a union election with the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) District Council 53, Local Union 1195
950 workers from apprentice to journeyman, meter techs to heavy equipment operators, and more at Luma Energy Serv Company – an electricity provider in San Juan, PR – filed for a union election with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 222
17 workers at Starbucks in Farmers Branch, TX filed for a union election with Starbucks Workers United
8 workers at Sysco in Louisville, KY filed for a union election with the General Drivers, Warehousemen, and Helpers Local Union 89 (an affiliate of the Teamsters)
7 staff for the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) in Washington DC filed for a union election with the Washington Baltimore News Guild Local 32035
25 employees for Allied Universal Security Services in Washington DC filed for union election with the Law Enforcement Officers Security Union
31 service techs and advisors at Honda of Frontenac in Saint Louis, MO filed for a union election with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW)
12 workers at marijuana dispensary Homestate in Kansas City, MO filed for a union election with the Teamsters Local 955
6 workers at Panelmatic St Louis in Earth City, MO filed for a union election with IBEW Local 1
780 workers at Peco Foods in West Point, MS filed for a union election with the UFCW Local 1529
215 workers at Phoenix Paper in Wickliffe, KY filed for a union election with the United Steel Workers (USW) International Union
200 workers at Grupo Antolin in Kansas City, MO filed for a union election with the Teamsters Local 41
50 workers at Morton Salt in Cape Canaveral, FL filed for a union election with the USW
30 workers at Battle’s Transportation in Washington DC filed for a union election with the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 689
One group of workers withdrew their petition for election last week: 300 workers at Coca Cola Southwest Beverages in Fort Worth, TX withdrew their petition for unionization with the Teamsters Local 997
4 workers at CTI Foundation Terminal Inc in Savannah, GA tied 2 – 2 in their election on whether or not to unionize with the USW, meaning the election is a loss for the pro-unionization workers
7 sprinkler fitters and apprentices at E Fire Southern in Gulfport, MS voted against unionization with the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry (UA) Local 669
13 workers at Papa Johns in Houston, TX voted against unionization with the “General Service Union” 0 to 2
10 security guards at Fideicomiso Olimpico in Salinas, PR voted against unionization with the Union Bonafide do Offialesde Seguridad 2 to 6
67 workers at Southwest Key Programs in El Paso, TX voted against unionization with the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 351 20 to 42
25 workers at GE Appliances in Orlando, FL voted in favor of unionization with the Industrial Division of the Communication Workers of America (IUE-CWA) 20 to 5
Despite pleas from students, faculty members and academic organizations to change course, and despite student protesters disrupting its Friday meeting, the West Virginia University Board of Governors voted today to slash 143 faculty positions and 28 academic programs from its flagship Morgantown campus.
Sanitation workers – members of United Electrical Workers (UE) Local 150 – for the city of Durham, North Carolina returned to work after a 6 day strike, even though their demands had not been met. Their struggle for higher pay continues, and they have been continuing to hold events after their return to work to try to apply pressure to the city.
Shangrila dispensary workers with United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 655 in Columbia, MO are still on strike – they began in May.
Three Brothers Coffee workers with UFCW 1995 in Nashville, TN have been on strike since June
Memphis soy protein production workers with Bakery, Confectionary, Tobacco workers and Grain Millers International Union (BCTGM) Local 390G have also been on strike since June.
The UAW went on a partial strike last week, all the big 3 UAW represented facilities in the South remain at work, but have been called on by the UAW international to maintain constant strike readiness. About 10% of the UAW’s big three auto maker membership is now out on strike.
Brookwood Baptist Health will close two labor and delivery units in the Birmingham area next month, making Shelby County the largest county in the state without a labor and delivery department at 230,000 people.
Help at Home – a home health provider – is completely pulling its services out of Alabama at the end of September and plans to lay off nearly 800 employees soon after, blaming the state’s inaction to expand Medicaid.
US Senator from Alabama Katie Britt last week came out in favor of free breast cancer diagnosis for women, saying “No woman across America should be faced with the impossible choice between affording basic necessities such as food or being able to confirm whether she has a life-threatening illness.” She has not come out in favor of free healthcare for women with a positive diagnosis, which presumably means she is ok with women across America being faced with the impossible choice between affording basic necessities and being able to treat a life threatening illness.
The U.S. Department of Labor proposed a new rule that would strengthen protections for farm workers in the H-2A program and help prevent abuses that undermine wages and standards for all agricultural workers. The proposed rule would add new protections for worker self-advocacy, better protect workers against retaliation, make foreign labor recruitment more transparent and enhance the department’s enforcement. This proposal builds on a final rule the department published in October 2022 that modernized key aspects of the H-2A program.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as part of its People, Prosperity and the Planet (P3) Program, announced $99,998 in research grant funding to the University of Alabama in Huntsville to develop a low-cost household water filter that removes PFAS. This project will help promote clean drinking water supplies, particularly in small, rural, Tribal and disadvantaged communities.
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