Here’s what workers in the Southern U.S. and her Colonies were up to from November 25 – December 6:
NEW CAMPAIGNS
The UAW is launching the largest organizing campaign in modern history, targeting 150,000 workers nationwide at 13 non union auto companies for unionization.
Workers likely led or pushed by their employer at Sherwin Williams in Lawrenceville, GA filed a petition to decertify the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) Local 1961 as the union representing the 37 employees there.
14 workers at Asplundh Tree Expert Co in Lexington, KY filed for a union election with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 369
34 workers at Casey Trees in Washington DC filed for a union election with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW)
14 workers at Frame Works Institute in Washington DC filed for a union election with IUPAT Local 1937
7 workers at Top Drilling Company in Yawkey, WV filed for a union election with the Chauffers, Teamsters, and Helpers Local 175
The employer filed for a union election after a majority of the 10 workers at Waxwork Recording Company in Harahan, LA showed support for unionization with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 270 (if you are getting deja vu, you aren’t crazy, the same number of workers at the same company in the same city filed for a union election with the same union just last week, so I thought maybe they had withdrawn that petition and submitted cards, forcing the company to file for the election. BUT last week’s filing is still an open case on the NLRB’s website, last week’s was an RC petition, this week an RM petition, so I’m not exactly sure what’s happened here)
14 workers at Darling Ingredients in Grapeland, TX filed for a union election with the Teamsters Local 745
The employer filed a petition for a union election after a majority of the 55 workers at Evonik Corp – Porocel Industries showed support for unionization with the United Steel Workers International Union (USW)
30 workers at Run for Something in Washington DC filed for a union election with Workers United
4 workers at Hi-Pointe Cannabis in Saint Louis, MO filed for a union election with the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 655
CAMPAIGN UPDATES
Workers organizing at Amazon’s KCVG air hub in Kentucky requested coats in 38 degree weather that felt like 35 degrees and were denied because “it’s not below freezing.” Hypothermia can set in between 30 and 50 degrees.
ELECTION RESULTS
The petition that was filed on behalf of an individual worker by the National Right to Work Foundation to decertify the General Drivers, Warehouseman & Helpers Local 89 (a Teamsters affiliate) as the union representing the 15 employees at IMI Kentucky in Bowling Green, KY was withdrawn
12 workers at Delta Helix Energy in Yawkey, WV withdrew their petition for unionization with the Chaffeurs, Teamsters, and Helpers Local 175
92 workers at International Rescue Committee in Dallas Texas voted in favor of unionization 56 to 8 with the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 277
58 workers at the Eastern Music Festival in Greensboro, NC voted 36 to 4 in favor of unionization with the American Federation of Musicians Local 342
34 workers at Rivers Portsmouth Gaming in Portsmouth, VA voted 27 to 1 in favor of unionization with the Teamsters Local 822
40 security guards at FJC Security Services in Nashville, TN voted 14 to 2 in favor of unionization with the International Guards Union of America
101 security guards voted for the International Guards Union of America (IGUA) in a two way race between them and the Federal Contract Guards of America (FCGA), with the IGUA receiving 33 votes, FCGA receiving 8, and 1 vote for no union at all.
Workers at Cooperativa de Ahorra y Credito Pepiniana (Pepiniana Savings and Credit Cooperative) voted 7 to 1 to decertify the UFCW as the union representing the 9 workers there
39 workers at American Electric Power Company in Hurricane, WV voted 28 to 4 in favor of unionization with the IBEW Local 978
42 workers at Republic Services of Georgia in Calhoun, GA voted 22 to 19 in favor of unionization with the Teamsters Local 728
STRIKES & BARGAINING
After unfruitful bargaining sessions with Anheuser Busch last week, the Teamsters are holding a rally in Jacksonville, FL with International President Sean O Brien.
The AFL-CIO Staff Guild has ratified their tentative agreement by 85%, after some controversy and contention. The new contract contains a 13.25% raise over 4 years, a cost neutral pension solution, and more.
The library administration in Durham, NC is planning to extend library hours without adding any additional staff or resources. The union of workers there, UE Local 150, claims the library is already understaffed and this would like mean workers being forced to work rotations of seven days in a row with no weekend off. They are asking allies to sign their petition opposing the move.
Workers at Sunergos Coffee, organized as the Sunergos Workers Union with the National Conference of Firemen and Oilers (an SEIU affiliate), went on strike on Black Friday, then voted to extend the strike indefinitely, and last week reached a tentative agreement with the company. The TA will go to membership for a vote next week.
Rocky Mount, NC recently raised police and fire salaries, with their police officers now having the highest starting salaries in the entire state at $60,000/yr. Sanitation workers for the city, unionized with UE Local 150 even though the state has no collective bargaining for public employees, are calling for wage increases as well. Their starting salaries are $40,000/yr, and they have members who have worked for the city for 25 years without making the same money that a brand new cop makes. UE Local 150 is calling for a 6% annual adjustment and a 15% raise for sanitation and maintenance workers.
Amazon workers in Garner, NC, organizing with Carolina Amazonians United for Solidarity & Empowerment (CAUSE), went on strike at the RDU1 fulfillment center with support from the Teamsters union, and picketers from the group that unionized in California and has been on strike for months. The striking NC workers are calling for, among other things, $30/hour, safer facilities, and more due process in the discipline procedure.
More than 100 registered nurses from HCA facilities across the country – the largest hospital system in the US – held a rally on Nov. 30 outside of HCA’s West Florida Division Office in Tampa, Fla., National Nurses Organizing Committee/National Nurses United (NNOC/NNU) has announced. Nurses say their protest is intended to send a message to management about nurse unity and solidarity in the face of mismanagement at their hospitals across the country, and it comes ahead of a wave of union contract expirations next year.
POLICY, POLITICS, AND LEGISLATION
Dialyzer manufacturer Baxter Corporation received $3.3 million in incentives from the city of Opelika and the state of Alabama. In exchange, it had to hire and keep at least 200 employees through last year. Now, no sooner than their obligations expired, they are laying offer hundreds as of 30 November and will be completely closed by the second half of 2024. Without a union contract, the employees have no guaranteed severance or layoff procedure, common articles in most contracts. Instead, they are at the mercy of of the company. Baxter states they will receive some severance, but it is unclear how much, or if it will be consistently paid to all employees. They have also not indicated how the first round of layoffs will be decided – most union contracts will say mass layoffs like this are to be decided by seniority.
Speaking of incentives, Alabama is funding a $30 million EV workforce training center in Decatur through the Education Trust Fund. According to Alabama Daily News: As conditions for receiving the $30 million in funding, AIDT must provide a 50% discount on tickets for Alabama school-aged children to tour the facility, and must not request additional state funding for a minimum of ten years. In total, the $30 million represents nearly 27% of the entire Commerce Department supplemental budget of $111.6 million.
The Federal Railroad Administration has recommended the rail industry beef up their preparations for and responses to adverse weather events, including infrastructure assessments. From Freightwaves: FRA pointed out that since the start of 2021, there have been 123 rail incidents in which severe weather conditions or weather-related events may have contributed in part or in whole to those accidents.
The UAW International Union last week became the latest and largest union to call for a ceasefire in Gaza
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