Last Week in Southern Labor: 3/13 – 3/20

Jacob Morrison

Every week in the south, workers organize new unions, they bargain for new contracts, they fight for good legislation and against bad legislation, and they put the boss in their place. Here are all the stories we could find from Friday, March 13, to Friday, March 20.

New Campaigns

181 workers in 5 bargaining units have gone public with their union campaigns

  • 51 workers at Olin Winchester in Independence, MO filed a petition to hold a union election with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW)
  • 6 workers at Volunteer Energy Cooperative in Decatur, TN filed a petition to hold a union election with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 175 
  • 58 workers at Bull Moose Tube Company in Gerald, MO filed a petition to hold a union election with the Teamsters Local 688 
  • 61 workers at Willowcreek Wellness and Rehabilitation in Florissant, MO filed a petition to hold a union election with the SEIU Healthcare Missouri/Kansas
  • 5 workers at MEMC Logistics Department in Saint Peters, MO filed a petition to hold a union election with the IAMAW District 9

Campaign Updates

  • United Videogame Workers (UVW-CWA) – a direct-join union for video game industry workers – just hit 550 dues paying members after going public for the first time last year. The union is committed to building large scale education campaigns about labor organizing in the video game industry, providing legal support and layoff support funds for workers, and more.

Election Results

87 workers across 8 bargaining units unionized, 27 workers across 2 bargaining units voted against unionization, 593 workers across 5 bargaining units withdrew their petition for a union election, 122 workers in 2 bargaining units decertified their unions, 74 workers in 1 bargaining unit voted against decertifying their union

  • 12 workers at the Ft Worth Report in Ft Worth, TX voted 11 to 1 in favor of unionization with the Newsguild CWA Local 39213, despite the employer hiring an anti-union consultant 
  • 15 workers at Starbucks in Prospect, KY voted 1 to 5 against unionization with Starbucks Workers United, as did 12 workers at a location in Palm Beach Gardens, FL – voting 5 to 6 against unionization. 
  • 15 workers at TDS Broadband Service LLC in Mooresville, NC voted 10 to 3 in favor of unionization with the Communications Workers of America (CWA)
  • 74 workers at Silgan Containers Manufacturing in Saint Joseph, MO voted 46 to 24 against decertifying the Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART) Local 2 – the union stays
  • 10 workers at Big Sandy Rural Electric Cooperative Corporation in Paintsville, KY voted 6 to 0 in favor of unionization with the IBEW Local 317
  • 115 workers at Windstream North Carolina, LLC in Rural Hall, NC voted 50 to 61 in favor of decertifying the CWA
  • 7 workers at Tricont Trucking Company in Fort Lauderdale, FL voted 7 to 0 in favor of unionization with the Teamsters Local 769 
  • 80 workers at Legal Aid Justice Center in Charlottesville, VA withdrew their petition with the Washington-Baltimore News Guild Local 32035 
  • 82 workers at Unifi Aviation, LLC in Charlotte, NC withdrew their petition with the IAM
  • 10 workers at Oklahoma Natural Gas in Oklahoma City, OK withdrew their petition with the IBEW Local 1002
  • 5 workers at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, DC withdrew their petition with the District of Columbia Nurses Association 
  • 416 workers at Molson Coors in Elkton, VA withdrew their petition with the Teamsters Local 29 
  • 2 staffers at Teamsters Local 512 in Jacksonville, FL voted 2 to 0 in favor of unionization with the United Steel Workers (USW) ( )
  • 7 workers at The Daily Progress in Charlottesville, VA voted 0 to 7 in favor of decertifying the Washington-Baltimore News Guild Local 32035 
  • 4 workers at Cap Transfers, LLC in Kansas City, MO voted 3 to 0 in favor of unionization with the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 101
  • 36 workers at American Chemical Society in Washington, DC voted 24 to 1 in favor of unionization with the Washington-Baltimore News Guild Local 32035
  • 1 worker at The Associated Press in San Juan, PR voted 1 to 0 in favor of unionization with the Newsguild Local 31222 
  • Back in October of 2023 a worker filed a petition to decertify the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 1776 as the union representing workers at Floral Leasing Company in Moundsville, WV. Shortly thereafter (in January of 2024), the regional director dismissed the petition because the union hadn’t had enough time to bargain the first contract, and because of the employer’s behavior. The employer and the anti-union employee filed requests for review that have been held up since then and finally last week the board declined the request to review the Regional Director’s decision, meaning a full two years after the petition was initially dismissed, the case has been closed.

Grievances, Unfair Labor Practices, & Court Cases

  • Workers who care for our nation’s veterans have their union rights back – for now. A federal judge ruled that the contract the Department of Veterans Affairs signed with the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) must be immediately reinstated, granting the union a preliminary injunction while the case plays out. The judge found that the revocation of the contract was likely a violation of the First Amendment and the Administrative Procedures Act. This decision immediately impacts more than 320,000 workers
  • Unions are demanding that the Trump administration stand up for working people and people and an end to corporate consolidation. In entertainment, the Teamsters union is calling on the Department of Justice to block the merger between Paramount Skydance and Warner Brothers Discovery. In their statement, they say that this merger poses a “direct threat” to film and television workers. They point to Disney’s 2019 acquisition of 20th Century Fox, saying that merger “resulted in eliminated production units, significant job losses, and canceled projects.” In news, the Communication Workers of America (CWA) condemned Trump’s FCC for allowing Nexstar and Tegna to merge. They say that “longstanding ownership limits have been crucial to protecting a free and competitive media market,” but now one “single entity to reach 80 percent of U.S. households.” The union, as a shareholder in the company, announced that it would be pursuing governance reforms to protect workers and the public. 
  • A union buster’s firm filed a form with his signature on it – under penalty of perjury! – after he had died. McKenna Scheuler reported on it here
  • 40 civil-society and press-freedom organizations – including the Nes Guild – condemned the arrest and detention of Nashville, TN journalist Estefany Rodriguez by ICE, and are calling for her immediate release
  • Drivers at SpartanNash in Midland, GA rallied to protest management’s discriminatory and degrading treatment. The union says that the “company is forcing drivers to use outdoor portable toilets rather than allowing them to use restrooms inside the facility.” The union is demanding that SpartanNash immediately end the practice and treat all workers with dignity and respect.

Strikes & Bargaining

  • 500 workers at Genesis Logistics in Stafford, VA – organized with the Teamsters Local 322 just ratified their first union contract after unionizing last year. The workers make commercial deliveries to 7-Eleven stores. The union said the contract includes higher pay, paid more time off, and improved working conditions
  • Flight service workers for Leidos in Ashburn, VA and Ft Worth, TX just ratified a new collective bargaining agreement. The workers – organized with the International Association of Machinists (IAM) Locals 2010 and 2011 – secured wage increases, increased employer retirement contributions, more paid leave, increased shift premiums, and more
  • The WNBA and the players union came to a new tentative agreement – averting a lockout or a strike for now. It’s a significant improvement over the last contract – the lowest paid player now will be paid higher than the highest paid player under the last contract. Players must vote on the contract
  • The American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) secured a new policy for county workers at Harris County, TX to be able to have a union as their consultation agent, giving workers a voice with management
  • 150 drivers and warehouse workers at Keurig Dr Pepper facilities in Norcross and Union City, GA – members of the Teamsters Local 528 – voted down the company’s last, best, and final offer by a huge 13-to-1 margin, and authorized a strike. The union says that instead of bargaining in good faith, the company has begun a union busting campaign

Political & Legislative

  • Trump wants to bring CEO pay down! No, not for all CEOs, who at most large companies in the US make nearly 300 times more than their average worker, but at the Tennessee Valley Authority, the largest public utility company in the country. In a presidential memorandum, he encouraged the TVA to limit the compensation of all of its employees to no more than $500,000, in particular targeting the CEO Don Moul who makes $6.4M annually. While probably not a bad policy, it’s notable that Trump’s ire at CEO pay only extends to the TVA CEO, and not to the billionaires who supported his campaign and continue to prop up his presidency. For some context, the TVA’s CEO makes about 34 times the median workers compensation. Elon Musk – a huge donor to Trump and booster on social media – makes literally thousands of times what the average Tesla worker makes. Seems like Trump’s priorities might be a bit misplaced. 
  • Texas firefighters are fighting for collective bargaining rights. The College Station Professional Firefighters Association is pushing for a referendum on civil service protections and the right to collectively bargain for firefighters. In a statement about the referendum, the union said that this will not increase taxes on local residents. In their own statement about the referendum push, the city said that they “only recently” learned of the campaign, and that they will “carefully consider” how these potential changes could affect citizens and workers, but stopped short of opposing the measure.
  • So far no union in the United States has been supportive of the war in Iran. Many unions came out quickly with statements condemning the war: the United Electrical Workers (UE), National Nurses United (NNU), the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), among others. Following several affiliates speaking out against the war, the AFL-CIO – the nation’s largest union federation with 65 affiliates and millions of members – also issued a statement opposing the war, demanding “an end to the conflict, respect for international law, a renewed commitment to nuclear disarmament, and full respect for freedom of association.” 
  • A VA employee was shot and killed at a Georgia – the union is condemning the lack of response from the Department and calling for further improvements
  • Alabama Arise – the state’s leading progressive nonprofit advocacy organization – released its 2026 Tax and Budget Handbook. They say the handbook, “examines the state’s four major kinds of taxes – income, sales, property and business – to show how they measure up in terms of adequacy and equity for Alabamians and how they compare to taxes in other states” and “recommends numerous improvements to make Alabama’s taxes more equitable and allow stronger investments in public services.” Some highlights: they found that the less that you make the more you pay in taxes as a percentage of your income, and they propose ways to fix that imbalance
  • The AFL-CIO decried the February jobs numbers
  • Anniston Army Depot workers are going to get millions more in income after a recent locality pay adjustment that their union – the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) – fought for
  • Tennessee legislators have introduced legislation that would ban dynamic grocery store prices – the UFCW supports it
  • 200 low-wage workers, Kansas City Public School (KCPS) parents, and community members packed an emergency meeting to organize against a Missouri Republican plan to swap out the income tax with sales tax hikes on everything and blow a $5 billion hole in the state budget. The mass meeting, led by Missouri Jobs with Justice, Missouri Workers Center, and Parents for KC Kids, occurred as state lawmakers returned to their districts for Spring Break