Here’s what workers in the US South and the colonies were up to from February 2nd to February 9th:
NEW CAMPAIGNS
160 workers at L’Auberge Casino Hotel Baton Rouge in Baton Rouga, LA filed a petition to hold a union election with the United Auto Workers (UAW)
The employer filed a petition to hold a union election after a majority of the 47 workers at the Texas Tribune in Austin, TX demonstrated support for unionization with the Media Guild of the West CWA Local 39213
9 workers at Co-Mo Electric Cooperative in Tipton, MO filed a petition to hold a union election with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 2
It looks like the Security, Police, and Fire Professionals of America (SPFPA) is raiding a unit of 110 security guards at Loomis Armored US in Atlanta, GA currently represented by the United Government Security Officers of America (UGSO) Local 382
98 workers at UNFI United Natural Foods in Atlanta, GA filed a petition to hold a union election with the Teamsters Local 728
4 workers at Barbizon Capital in Alexandria, VA filed a petition to hold a union election with the International Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 22
12 workers at Hairspray on Tour in Fort Myers, FL filed a petition to hold a union election with IATSE – the employer is being represented by Littler Mendelson
7 workers at Leidos in Merrit Island, FL filed a petition to hold a union election with IATSE Local 780
CAMPAIGN UPDATES
The UAW hit 50% cards signed at Volkswagen in Chattanooga – that means Shawn Fain should be making a trip down soon!
Tech workers at Grindr held a union election with the Communication Workers of America where the challenged ballots were determinative, so no official result is out yet. Last week the NLRB determined that some of the challenged ballots should be opened, and they only widened the lead the workers held. There are still more challenged ballots left, so the workers are stuck waiting on the NLRB for a while longer, but the CWA predicts if they are opened the lead will only increase
ELECTION RESULTS
The 1 worker at Transdev Services in Mobile who filed a petition to hold a union election to join a previously existing bargaining unit has withdrawn that petition, maybe they worked out a voluntary recognition deal.
50 security guards at Allied Universal in Tampa, FL withdrew their petition to hold a union election with SPFPA
2 workers at United Rentals in O Fallon, MO withdrew their petition to hold a union election with the Teamsters Local 600
17 workers at New Era in Clarksville, TN withdrew their petition to hold a union election with the United Steel Workers (USW)
29 workers at Giant Resource Recovery in Harleyville, SC voted 4 to 23 against unionization with the USW
14 workers for the Hertz Corporation in El Paso, TX voted 5 to 7 against unionization with the Teamsters Local 745
5 workers at the Peace Center Foundation in Greenville, SC voted 5 to 0 in favor of unionization with IATSE Local 322 (Alabama union side law firm provided legal representation!)
25 workers at Duke Raleigh Hospital in Raleigh, NC voted 14 to 11 in favor of unionization with the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 465
18 workers at Neal R Gross & Co in Washington DC voted 16 to 1 in favor of unionization with Court Reporters United
31 workers at Sherwin Williams in Lawrenceville, GA voted 15 to 16 in favor of decertifying the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) Local 1961
SETTLEMENTS, GRIEVANCES, & UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICES
You’ll recall that Trader Joe’s United, which has organized 4 locations including in the South, has been sued by Trade Joe’s for copyright infringement. Last month a federal judge threw the case out, saying the lawyer should almost be sanctioned for his arguments in the case. Last week, Trader Joe’s appealed the ruling.
STRIKES & BARGAINING
After the Durham, NC educators went on a sick out last week, the board of education approved all of the union’s emergency demands.
Duke University in North Carolina raised their minimum wage to $18/hr only a few months after UE Local 150 secured an $18.50/hr minimum wage for city workers
Paratransit drivers providing on demand service in Baton Rouge, LA ratified their first union contract with 17.25% in raises over 5 years, a grievance procedure, seniority, and more.
The Teamsters are heading towards multiple strikes in the beer industry – both Molson Coors and Anheuser-Busch are refusing to meet the Teamsters on key issues. The Teamsters raised the strike pay to $1000/week for these two groups of workers in the event they do go on strike.
POLICY, POLITICS, AND LEGISLATION
A farmworker died from the heat in Miami last summer, so we’ve seen efforts to pass municipal heat protection ordinances in Florida cities. The Florida senate is trying to pre-empt that, saying “It’s unconscionable…that all of a sudden we need babysitters for everyone that works.”
Former Alabama Governor Don Seigelman spearheaded an effort to buy over $4M in medical debt and forgive it, positively impacting over 5,000 Alabamians
With Florida’s new antiunion law in place, 30 public bargaining units for city, university and non-instructional school employees were decertified by the state. This means that their contracts, even though they haven’t expired, are null and void, and workers are not guaranteed those things anymore. The law automatically decertifies unions when they fall under 60%, with an opportunity for a recertification election if 30% petition for it, in which case a 50%+1 vote would recertify the union. But they would be at risk of decertification again if they didn’t get membership up to 60%. Mckenna Shueler has great reporting on this in the Orlando Weekly.
The AFL-CIO last week officially called for a ceasefire in Gaza. This comes after months of rank and file organizing against silence on the conflict, and now places “Union Joe” in direct conflict with the position of US Labor on the issue
Not the South but certainly has implications for the South, as the NLRB held that basketball players at Dartmouth College are employees and scheduled a union election for March 5.
INTERNAL UNION AFFAIRS
Amazon workers in Kentucky’s KVCG air hub vote to ratify their new local constitution
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