Here’s what workers in the US South and the colonies were up to from April 11 to April 18
New Campaigns
- Workers likely pushed by their employer filed a petition to decertify the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 429 as the union representing 39 workers at Casey Fork Electric Cooperative in McMinnville, TN
- 10 workers at Stanley Access Technologies in Louisville, KY filed a petition to hold a union election with IBEW Local 369
- 19 workers at Prestige Painting Worldwide in Lees Summit, MO filed a petition to hold a union election with the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) Local 2012
- 22 workers at SBM Management Services in Stanton, TN filed a petition to hold a union election with the Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 386
- 185 workers at United Natural Foods Inc (UNFI) in Pompano Beach, FL filed a petition to hold a union election with the Teamsters Local 769
- 21 workers at Best Virginia Heating and Cooling in Hurricane, WV filed a petition to hold a union election with the United Association of Plumbers and Steamfitters (UA) Local 625
- Workers likely pushed by their employer filed a petition to decertify the United Steel Workers (USW) Local 13-1 as the union representing 14 workers at CenterPoint Energy Resources Corp in Texas City, TX
- 66 workers at the Washington Post in Washington, DC filed a petition to hold a union election with the News Guild CWA
- Workers likely pushed by their employer filed a petition to decertify the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 465 as the union representing 27 workers at Duke Raleigh Hospital in Raleigh, NC
- 14 workers at Appalachian Power in Roanoke, VA filed a petition to hold a union election with IBEW Local 978
Election Results
- 16 workers at Starbucks in Purcell, OK voted 7 to 7 in a union election with Starbucks Workers United, and ties go to the employer. Workers prevailed in another Oklahoma store though – with 18 workers voting 15 to 2 in favor of unionization.
- 29 workers at TECO Peoples Gas in Sarasota, FL voted 7 to 19 against unionization with IBEW Local 108
- 6 workers at Kay and Associates in New Orleans, LA voted 6 to 0 in favor of unionization with IUE-CWA
- 20 security guards at Paragon in Washington, DC voted in favor of unionization with the Security, Police, and Fire Professionals of America (SPFPA) by two votes to one vote for the National Capital Union for Security Officers, with no votes for no union
- 24 workers at Consolidated Waste Services in Trujillo Alto, PR voted 7 to 14 against unionization with the General Workers Center (Central General de Trabajadores)
Grievances, Unfair Labor Practices, & Court Cases
- A lawsuit has been brought by the Solidarity Center – the AFL-CIO’s international arm – among others challenging the termination of worker rights programs funded through the International Labor Affairs Bureau (ILAB). The AFLCIO says “ILAB-funded programs have helped workers form independent unions in Mexico to enforce labor rights in U.S. trade deals like the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA), and crack down on child labor in West Africa’s cocoa sector—an industry that directly supplies U.S. chocolate manufacturers. Cutting these programs harms all working people by removing the essential tools that help stop the global race to the bottom in wages and standards.”
- The AFL-CIO brought a lawsuit against the Trump administration for its dismantling of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Services (FMCS). The AFLCIO says that “FMCS is a small but important independent federal agency that is integral to the federal government’s labor relations infrastructure. Among the critical services FMCS provides is helping resolve contract negotiations between workers and employers to protect both the economy and workers’ rights, generating more than $500 million in national economic savings each year, even by conservative estimates.”
- The Communication Workers of America’s (CWA) Committee for Better Banks released a new report warning that Wells Fargo – where they represent workers at dozens of locations – is sliding back into its harmful sales practices that led to scandal in 2016
- The United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) and the United Steel Workers (USW) are suing the Trump administration over their rolling back enforcement of the Department of Labor’s new silica rule
Strikes & Bargaining
- Machinist Union members at ULA tell me that the negotiating committee came to a tentative agreement with the company. We’ll have more on the details next week. The contract will cover 600 workers in California, Alabama, and Florida
- UE higher ed locals are calling on unions and universities to agree to a Mutual Academic Defense Compact to protect the independence of institutions and international students
- Veterans Affairs Secretary Collins issued a memorandum allowing unions to continue collectively bargaining with the agency… if their national union is not a party to lawsuits against the Trump administration. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), which represents most VA employees, said the move was “outrageous” and “cowardly.”
- Teamster pilots at Allegiant Airlines have taken one step close to striking – seeking release from arbitration
- Drivers at Sheppers Distribution in Jefferson City, MO – unionized with the Teamsters Local 833 – ratified a new collective bargaining agreement containing a 10% wage increase over the life of the three year contract
- Drivers for WAVE transit – the company that handles public transportation in Mobile, AL – who are unionized with the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 770 ratified a new agreement with the company. Details about the agreement aren’t public, but the union is less than enthused about the deal
- Bus drivers for Transdev in Houston, TX – who are unionized with the Teamsters Local 988, ratified a new collective bargaining agreement with access to the Teamsters pension plus sick days for the first time ever
- Workers for First Student – a bus company that services schools in Baton Rouge, LA – who recently unionized with ATU Local 1546 recently voted to take a job action if management refuses to agree to a fair contract. The action could disrupt bus services for 10,000 students if the company doesn’t come to the table
- The American Postal Workers Union (APWU) released an update on bargaining with the postal service, saying, more or less, that things aren’t going super well
- Nurses for New Orleans University Medical Center (UMC) who are unionized with National Nurses United (NNU) will hold a rally at a 10k sponsored by the hospital, protesting their stalling in negotiations
- Kroger workers in Georgia and a couple stores in East Alabama – unionized with the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 1996 ratified new contracts with raises, protection of pensions.
Political & Legislative
- US Labor Secretary Lori Chavez DeRemer had a busy week, speaking at the Teamsters Unity Conference and going to Miami to speak with leadership of the port and the longshoremen’s union
- A new NPR report details how the DOGE bros stole sensitive data from the NLRB involving unions, cases, etc., that have nothing to do with processes or efficiency, tried to digitally cover their tracks, and shortly after that the agency experienced log-in attempts from Russian IP addresses. The whistleblower reported being intimidated as he tried to raise alarms within the agency, including by taping a note to his door with his personal information and a picture of him from overhead that had been taken by a drone
- The AFLCIO’s Department of People Who Work for a Living held a hearing in Warner Robins, GA. The hearing featured an overdose prevention worker who had been laid off, a Blue Bird bus manufacturing worker who talked about the subsidies that created jobs like hers, and more
- A US born citizen in Georgia was detained by ICE for 48 hours despite having been shown his birth certificate and social security card
- Josh Eidelson has a really great profile of disabled workers in Bloomberg, with analysis of how the Trump administration’s Department of Labor is likely to affect them
- Alabama’s State Senate approved an overhaul of education funding which… may not be that bad? It now heads to the House. In more good news out of the Alabama legislature (rare), the House held a hearing on a Right to Repair bill and the reception seems positive. The committee will vote this week before it goes to the full House