Last Week in Southern Labor: 2/21 – 2/28

Jacob Morrison

Here’s what workers in the US South and the colonies were up to from February 21 to February 28

New Campaigns

  • 36 workers at Reworld Waste in Tampa, FL filed a petition to hold a union election with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 108
  • 13 workers at Empanola in New Orleans, LA filed a petition to hold a union election with the Teamsters Local 270
  • 95 workers at DAJCOR Aluminum in Chavies, KY filed a petition to hold a union election with the United Steel Workers (USW)
  • 83 workers at the Southern Electric Corporation in Pembroke Pines, FL filed a petition to hold a union election with the IBEW Local 222
  • The employer filed a petition to hold a union election after a majority of the 6 workers at Kay and Associates in New Orleans, LA demonstrated support for unionization with IUE-CWA (the CWA’s industrial division)
  • 220 workers at Genesis Logistics in Stafford, VA filed a petition to hold a union election with the Teamsters Local 322
  • 25 workers at the North Carolina Association of Educators in Raleigh, NC filed a petition to hold a union election with the National Staff Organization (NSO)

Election Results

  • For the first time in a long time, as far as I can tell, zero workers won union campaigns anywhere across the South last week
  • 72 workers at Sherwin Williams in Birmingham, AL filed a petition to hold a union election with the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers (IBB), but then withdrew the petition in the same week
  • 13 workers at King and George in Louisville, KY withdrew their petition for a union election with the United Association of Plumbers and Steamfitters (UA) Local 184
  • 13 workers at McAlister Oil in Memphis, TN voted 3 to 9 against unionization with the Teamsters Local 667
  • 21 workers at Greenlight Dispensary in Harrisonville, MO voted 5 to 13 against unionization with the Teamsters Local 955

Grievances, Unfair Labor Practices, & Court Cases

  • Rideshare drivers in Tennessee, organized with the Tennessee Drivers Union, is alleging that the Nashville Transit Authority has barred 34 drivers from servicing the airport after they participated in a peaceful demonstration protesting their low pay
  • An Alabama lunchroom worker was fired after accepting donations to feed students, allegedly because she lied about collecting the donations, but there is no allegation of any sort of theft or embezzlement from the employer
  • A federal judge ruled that the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) does not have authority to direct agencies to fire probationary workers since Congress gave that authority to the agencies themselves, ordered OPM to rescind said directive, and further ordered that the Department of Defense not go forward with plans to fire workers. Additionally, the Office of Special Counsel (OSC), the agency responsible for investigating illegal actions taken against federal workers, also found that 6 employees were fired illegally. This comes after the leader of the OSC was fired by Trump, but a court overturned his firing. The Merit System Protections Board, where a court has also overturned the Trump firing of the MSPB chair, will enforcethe decision, and the attorneys for the plaintiffs are seeking to expand this relief to all similarly situated probationary workers whole have been fired. However, on the same day as the federal court ruling the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) began firing probationary employees en masse anyways, even though famous Alabama meterologist James Spann, who is never really political, came out against such cuts. The cuts are expected to affect between 600 and 1800 employees.

Strikes & Bargaining

  • Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) Local 1296, who manufacture large commercial heating and air units at Trane Technologies in Clarksville, TN ratified a four-year collective bargaining agreement that includes wage increases (including 9.3% in year one), increases paid time off, increases protections against mandatory overtime, and more.
  • Members of the IAMAW Local Lodge 44, who work for United Launch Alliance in Decatur, AL, meanwhile voted to authorize a strike by 100% as their negotiating committee heads into bargaining with the company
  • Videogame workers at ZeniMax – including in Texas – who are unionized with ZeniMax Workers United CWA protested last week to demand progress in bargaining for a first contract with the Microsoft subsidiary
  • 100 pharmacies across the state of Alabama walked off the job last week to support a bill that would reform “pharmacy benefit managers” or PBMs, which pharmacists say are harming the industry
  • Hundreds of drivers for 10 Roads, including those in North Carolina, unionized with the Teamsters, are on strike against the company over their bad faith bargaining. 10 Roads is one of the largest contractors for the USPS
  • The National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) is calling on local branches to organize rallies to oppose dismantling the postal service on Sunday, March 23
  • The members of the International Longshore Association (ILA) ratified the agreement which increased wages by 62% by a 99% margin
  • Rail Machinists in the International Association of Machinists District Lodge 19 ratified a new contract by 67%. The new contract includes wage increases, increased vacation time, and more, according to the union
  • The ASL Interpreters Union–OPEIU held a press conference in front of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) with Rep. Greg Casar (D-TX.) about the poor working conditions, low pay and inadequate service quality associated with the Video Relay Service (VRS) – an essential service regulated by the FCC and funded by American consumers of telecommunications products. Issues have demonstrably worsened at the two largest VRS providers: ZP Better Together and Sorenson Communications. Both ZP Better Together and Sorenson Communications are majority owned by private equity firms, which has significantly contributed to the adoption of an unsustainable model that prioritizes profit over interpreters and the Deaf clients they serve. VRS interpreters have been organizing to win their union with the ASL Interpreters Union–OPEIU at both Sorenson and ZP Better Together. Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing VRS users are an integral part of this organizing effort to improve both services and working conditions.
  • The Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR) fired 20 immigration judges, including 13 immigration judges represented by the National Association of Immigration Judges (NAIJ/IFPTE Judicial Council 2). IFPTE spoke to numerous news outlets, sharing why firing Immigration Judges “makes no sense.”

Political & Legislative

  • Florida’s legislative session begins next week, and Republicans have filed several bills to make the lives of workers worse. Specifically, they have bills to: make unionization more difficult for public sector workers, make it easier to decertify public sector unions, further weaken child labor laws, and allow apprentices and interns to be paid less than the state minimum wage. Several of these are ALEC bills, and the Center for Media and Democracy has a good explainer on their agenda for state legislatures in 2025 (it’s bad)
  • The Kentucky Center for Economic Policy has an explainer out on HB 398, which would significantly cut back on worker safety protections in the state
  • The US House and Senate passed budget resolutions that lay the groundwork for tax cuts for wealthy folks and cuts to spending on Medicaid and food stamps. Multiple unions have issued statements opposing the resolutions
  • In Alabama’s Rocket City, the return-to-office order is already having an effect on traffic, with 15% more traffic around the arsenal. This is also requiring the Arsenal to hire more gate guards. As a reminder, all the evidence points to telework being as or more productive than in office work for those eligible. More DOGE effects in Alabama include the closure of three rural social security offices, the closure of Mobile’s EEOC office, the firing of probationary employees at the Social Security Administration in Birmingham, and more. The Alabama Reflector interviewed a Department of Education employee in Birmingham who was part of the firings
  • DOGE cuts are even extending to prison guards, where the US Bureau of Prisons last week told employees to expect pay cuts of anywhere between 10 and 25%  
  • Bernie Sanders introduced a bill that would fully fund Social Security for 75 years while raising cost of living adjustments and increasing benefits across the board. The increased expenditures would’ve been funded by simply removing the cap on social security taxes, making millionaires and billionaires pay the same tax you do, but the bill was blocked from even receiving a vote by Republicans
  • Trump nominated Wayne Palmer to lead the Mine Safety and Health Administration. Palmer has made frequent use of the revolving door, moving from regulatory jobs in the government to positions for employer organizations and back again. Business groups applauded the decision, including groups that have explicitly lobbied in favor of eliminating a new rule limiting the amount of allowable silica dust in coal mines. As a reminder, silica dust exposure has led to a significant increase in the rate of black lung among miners, and if the rule is rolled back, this will increase further
  • Staying on federal worker updates: the Washington Post examined data about working habits of Americans that expose some interesting things like the fact that federal workers work longer hours than private sector workers
  • Additionally, 20 civil service employees at the DOGE resigned, saying that the new appointees had limited technical understanding, were guided by ideology and Elon Musk fandom, and wanted to slash and burn rather than improve government for working people. 
  • Meanwhile, the Trump administration’s Department of Homeland Security has budgeted up to $200M (10% of everything DOGE has “saved” so far) to “thank Donald Trump” for closing the the border
  • The Trump administration continues to halt $100B in construction work in the US
  • Both the Communication Workers of America (CWA) and the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE-IAM) were in Atlanta last week, objecting to the Trump administration’s actions regarding federal workers and federal healthcare cuts, with the CWA saying that “funding cuts and freezes led to layoffs that have interrupted or halted lifesaving research on cancer, viral pandemics, heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and more”
  • The International Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employees (IATSE) has unveiled its 2025 Federal Issue Agenda, including protecting the right to organize, a national film and television production tax incentive, safeguards for workers against AI, and more
  • A bill to give mothers access to maternal health care earlier in their pregnancy has advanced in the Alabama legislature
  • Low-wage workers with the Missouri Workers Center held a Lobby Day in Jefferson City, Missouri, to urge lawmakers to pass the “Clean Slate Initiative,” a state bill that would grant 518,000 eligible Missourians automatic expungement of certain nonviolent arrest and conviction records. Many low-wage Missourians have found the process of expunging their record difficult to access and confusing to navigate, preventing them from securing better jobs and housing
  • Kansas City bus riders could see degraded service for higher costs soon
  • Retirees who worked for the public sector who unfairly had cuts to their social security payouts will begin seeing them restored soon thanks to the passage of the Social Security Fairness Act. These changes will begin in April, and in March, retirees should see a lump sum check for the amount deducted in 2024
  • Lori Chavez DeRemer was confirmed to the post of Labor Secretary by the US Senate, and despite her shameful backtracking on support for key union issues, some unions are still publicly supporting her

Internal Union Affairs

  • After huge drops in the stock price of Tesla, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) has sent letters to managers of their pension funds urging them to immediately review their holdings of Tesla stock and explore options to protect AFT pensioners