Last Week in Labor: December 8-15, 2024.
IRC workers announce union, Amazon workers ready to strike the holidays, and other headlines to start off the week.
IRC workers announce union, Amazon workers ready to strike the holidays, and other headlines to start off the week.
Howdy folks, happy Monday. I hope you’re gearing up for a final full week of work before the holidays are upon us. I handwrote 80+ Christmas Cards last week, which is both wonderful and slightly insane of me to do. (lol) I hope your holidays are full of warmth and friendship, no matter how you celebrate.
If you haven’t signed up for the newsletter, don’t forget to get on the email list so you can get these digest right to your inbox. And if you’re feeling festive, please consider subscribing as a paid subscriber—I’ve got some specials and discounts going on right now. I want to transform this newsletter into a broader labor publication—working on stories that I can’t place anywhere else—in 2025, and your financial support would go a long way toward making that dream a reality.
Alright, enough of the elevator pitches—Here’s the headlines from the last week (or so) that you might have missed.
Notable News In Labor
CSCU faculty union stages walkout at Regents meeting over report recommending cuts
Members of the Connecticut State Universities AAUP walked out of a special meeting of the state Board of Regents on Thursday, in protest of a report recommending cuts to the system.
“We don’t think it’s going to help the people of Connecticut, the progress of the state, if our system of public higher education is cut or shrunk,” said Louise Williams, a history professor at Central Connecticut State University and president of the Connecticut State Universities American Association of University Professors (CSU-AAUP), who led the walkout.
Strike ends at The Strand as Union, Management Reach Tentative Agreement
Workers at New York's famous Strand Book Store represented by United Auto Workers Local 2179 have reached a tentative contract agreement with their employer, putting an end to a strike that stretched through the weekend and much of Monday.
From Publishers Weekly,
The contract, which was proposed after a total of 12 bargaining sessions and ratified on December 12, will last through Aug. 31, 2028, adding an additional year to a contract that was previously three years long, said Will Bobrowski, the former Strand employee and current second VP at UAW Local 2179.
International Rescue Committee (IRC) Workers Announce Unionization with OPEIU Local 153
A supermajority of employees from the International Rescue Committee office of New York have announced their intent to form a union with the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 153. The IRC NY office is the eighth IRC regional office to announce the formation of their union with OPEIU, and IRC NYC workers have called on IRC leadership to avoid a wasteful and lengthy election process by voluntarily recognizing their union.
Read more about this here and here.
National Labor Union Presidents Urge President Biden to Continue Taking Bold Clemency Action
In a New Letter of Support, Labor Leaders Call on the President to Continue to Use His Clemency Powers to Commute Sentences for People Currently in Prison Serving Outdated Sentences
To read more about this and also read the full letter, check it out here.
Senate probe finds Amazon manipulates workplace injury data
The company discourages injured workers from seeking outside medical care and disregarded internal safety recommendations, a Senate panel led by Bernie Sanders reports
Read the report here.
'We need better pay': Amazon workers threaten strike, impacting holidays
University of Michigan Health-Sparrow nurses vote ‘yes’ to a strike, if necessary
About 2,000 healthcare employees have been working without a contract since it expired Oct. 30
Trump considers privatizing US Postal Service, Washington Post reports
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has in recent weeks expressed a keen interest in privatizing the U.S. Postal Service, the Washington Post reported on Saturday, citing three people with knowledge of the matter.
BLET ratifies contracts with two G&W railroads
The five-year agreement made with HESR provides general wage increases of 19.5% (21.06% compounded) over the five years, improvements to vacation time for senior employees and the ability for senior employees to bid on temporary vacancies, BLET officials said in a newsletter. The members belong to BLET Division 327 based in Richville, Michigan. HESR operates 394 miles of track around Saginaw Bay and Lake Huron.
While CEOs got dressed up for the Game Awards, 461 workers at Zenimax Online Studios unionised
Stealth launching a game during an awards ceremony is cool. But you know what's cooler? Stealth launching a union. As many in the games industry settled in for an evening of advertisements and blockbuster backslapping, one group of US workers quietly succeeded in organising something of their own. Employees at Zenimax Online Studios launched their union with 461 members, as announced on social media site Bluesky last night.
IATSE Creates Industry Firearms Expert Roles, Appoints Larry Zanoff and Brook Yeaton
The new advisory positions will see the pair work closely with the negotiating committee to address and mitigate firearm safety issues on-set
Animation Guild board defends contract deal as some members critique AI terms
As Hollywood grapples with worries about the threat of artificial intelligence, the union that represents animators is facing dissent over its latest deal with major studios.
United Airlines Flight Attendants Union Seeks Volunteers To Go First In CHAOS Strike Campaign
The United union, though, is threatening a strike. That won’t come any time soon, because they first need the permission of the National Mediation Board.
Detroit Marathon Refinery Strike Ends with New 7-Year Deal Through Teamsters Local 283
After months of picketing and negotiations, the strike at Detroit's Marathon Petroleum refinery has ended, with union workers securing a new seven-year collective bargaining agreement that includes substantial wage increases and benefits, according to local sources. According to CBS News Detroit, members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 283 ratified the contract securing "significant wage increases, Teamsters health care, and a union pension."
Commentary & Analysis
More Perfect UnionMeet the Workers Who Could Organize the Only Whole Foods UnionBy Georgia Parke and Ian McKenna, More Perfect Union…Read more2 months ago · 66 likes · More Perfect Union
How Things WorkYou Can't Rebrand a Class WarThis week, a federal judge blocked the largest proposed grocery merger in history, between Albertson’s and Kroger. The merger, which would have further consolidated the industry, raised prices for consumers, and hurt the power of workers, was strenuously…Read morea month ago · 217 likes · 32 comments · Hamilton Nolan
How to make America work for the American working class
Randi Weingarten, President of the AFT, wrote a new message to workers yesterday.
We all want a better future for ourselves and our families, regardless of how we voted in the recent presidential election. That’s why I believe there is a unifying path forward for all Americans—a path of hope, not fear, recognizing full well that fear, anger and a sense of powerlessness in many ways fueled people’s votes.
Labor by the Numbers
In the last two weeks, there have been 90 filings for union representation. Here’s a couple that stand out.
- Over 2500 faculty members filed for a union with the UAW at the University of Southern California
- At least five more Starbucks stores have filed for representations over the last two weeks
Looking Ahead…
The Big Union Contract Fights Coming in 2025 - LaborNotes
In some of the most exciting fights of 2024, strikers shut down ports on the East Coast and backed up plane orders on the West. The coming year is full of expiring contracts that could keep the strike wave rolling.
If you’ve got a…
- workshop,
- seminar,
- panel,
- conference,
- labor action,
- strike,
- protest
- walkout,
- negotiation,
- sit-in,
- or other item you’d like eyes on, shoot me a message.
I’ll add it to the "Looking Ahead” section and get it front of folks who might be able to join you in solidarity. Seriously. Send me a message. Shoot me an email at mel.buer.reports@gmail.com or mel@therealnews.com, send me a DM on Bluesky, send out your last carrier pigeon. If I get the message, I’ll add it to the digest.
That’s it for me, folks. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you next week.
-Mel
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