Last Week in Labor: February 2-8, 2025.
While unions mount a collective challenge to Musk's DOGE and the Trump Admin, labor organizing continues across the US--with victories, setbacks, and new struggles to pay attention to.
Good morning, Monday morning.
I wanna take a moment to thank my subscribers for their patience as I've navigated the last few weeks of busy work--and frankly, the overwhelm of a constantly shifting news cycle. As you can imagine, there's a lot going on. Today's digest will feature the usual set of headlines, and I am keeping a separate section where I can group the responses to the new administration's EOs that unions have been working on.
There is...a lot of labor news that flew by this last week, and I really haven't even scratched the surface of what's been going on while we've been stuck in the Trump-dominated news cycle. Did my best to grab the headlines that I think are important to highlight.
A note: if you're in and around the labor movement, and you want more eyes on the work you're doing, shoot me an email or send me a DM on Bluesky. I'll add your work/actions to future digests.
Alright, here we go.
Notable News in Labor
Hockey Players' Unions Join the AFL-CIO
The National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) and the Professional Hockey Players' Association (PHPA) announced on February 3 that they are formally affiliating with the AFL-CIO. The AFL-CIO's membership is now at 63 unions, collectively representing more than 15 million workers.
“Whether our work is on the rink, in the classroom or on the factory floor, every worker deserves a voice on the job and the power that comes with union membership,” said Liz Shuler, president of the AFL-CIO. “We are thrilled to welcome the NHLPA and the PHPA into the federation and our Sports Council, and we look forward to supporting their work to ensure strong union contracts, fair wages, safe working conditions and professional development opportunities for professional hockey players. On the heels of SEIU’s affiliation last month, America’s labor movement is more unified than ever. We will continue to channel that strength and momentum into the fight for workers’ rights.”
Two years after East Palestine derailment, rail leaders still urge safety reforms
“Two full years have passed since this tragic and preventable disaster uprooted the lives of the people of East Palestine and neighboring communities, and Congress has not passed legislation to prevent this from happening again in the future,” said Representative Emilia Sykes, Vice Ranking Member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. “The people of East Palestine deserve better, and I hope the majority does right by the people of this country and prioritizes rail safety. Public safety is a nonpartisan issue that transcends political and district boundaries, which is why I am proud to reintroduce the RAIL Act, which is common-sense legislation to prevent future train derailment disasters like we have seen in East Palestine and across the United States.
Portland averts strike with last-minute tentative agreement for city workers
From local reporting, "The city has now reached tentative agreements with two major labor unions. The latest agreement came hours before a planned strike."
PORTLAND, Ore. — Portland announced it had reached a tentative agreement with the District Council of Trade Unions (DCTU) on Wednesday, one day before a planned strike. The city also said it had finalized terms for the tentative agreement it reached last week with the other union with which it was negotiating, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME).
Mansfield AFSCME workers use public event to turn up heat for new contract
AFSCME Local 3088 workers in Mansfield, Ohio staged an informational picket on Feb 4 to call attention to the need for a new contract as workers have labored under their expired work order for the last nine months.
“We were optimistic for some changes. We had discussions with the city’s new leaders about working together and that’s not materialized,” Daniels said as more than 50 union members and supporters held up signs for passing cars on Park Avenue.
“Ideas that we took to the city as far as serving the public better, to get more work done at a lower cost, it’s just been ignored,” said Daniels said, a member of AFSCME Ohio Council 8 based in Columbus.
The union, which represents about 150 city employees across a variety of positions, staged what it called a “negotiations picket” from noon to 4 p.m. A second such session is planned Wednesday during the same hours.
New city council sets new tone for city unions
In Portland, the new city council unanimously revoked a previous approval to file ULP charges against the union representing 1,100 city workers.
The resolution to revoke ULP authorization was introduced by city councilors Eric Zimmerman and Mitch Green, two of the three council members representing District 4, which includes all of the city’s west side and a few southeast neighborhoods.
Green described the ULP authorization approved by the old city council as “unnecessarily antagonistic.”
Local 189 declared impasse with the city and entered a 30-day cooling off period in late December. At the time of the City Council vote on the ULP, a potential strike was looming.
“We have an opportunity to hit the reset switch on this relationship with AFSCME and turn down the temperature during this cooling off period,” Green said at the city council meeting.
California Transit Safety Bill Aims to Protect Workers and Riders From Increasing Attacks
California Assemblywoman Lori D. Wilson introduced AB 394 into the California Assembly this last week, which aims to provide a serious response to increasing violence against public transit workers and passengers. The bill is co-sponsored by the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) and the California Transit Association.
Part of Wilson’s Transportation Safety Bill Package, AB 394 seeks to enhance security by increasing penalties for assaults on transit employees, expanding enforcement against trespassing, and allowing courts to issue prohibition orders against repeat offenders.
“Every Californian deserves to feel safe using public transit—whether they’re working or riding,” said Wilson. “AB 394 strengthens protections, holds offenders accountable, and ensures that transit remains a safe and reliable option.”
Amazon workers in Garner rally for union
Ky's governor calls it the world's largest EV battery plant, workers are looking to unionize
From great local reporting: "The first major union election in the South this year is headed to Glendale, Kentucky, a small farming community south of Louisville. Buoyed by notable Southern victories in 2024, the United Auto Workers Union is on a quest to organize the electric vehicle and battery sector. UAW hopes its next prize is a sprawling campus in rural Kentucky."
“It is nothing short of incredible,” Beshear stated during a plant tour. “This project is the largest in the history of the Commonwealth of Kentucky by far.”
A super-majority of workers at BlueOval SK has asked the National Labor Relations Board for a vote on joining the United Auto Workers, which represents Ford employees across the U.S. The nearly $6 billion electric vehicle battery campus is part of a joint venture between Ford and South Korea’s SK On, spanning two manufacturing plants totaling more than eight million square feet.
Kentucky’s new corporate neighbor is expected to employ 5,000 workers once fully in operation, but some early hires like Quality Operator Halee Hadfield said company management has ignored safety concerns.
“It’s like these people are wearing horse blinders,” Hadfield said following a meeting at a local union hall in Elizabethtown last month. “They think it’s just about pay, it’s just about insurance, but it’s not. It’s about how you treat us as people and whether or not we come to work safe.”
Streetcar Workers Unionize in Milwaukee
From local reporting at Urban Milwaukee,
The Amalgamated Local Transit Union Local 998 (ATU Local 998) has successfully organized the street car workers.
The City of Milwaukee’s street car system, called The Hop, is operated by TransDev, a French multinational transportation company. In November, a majority of 26 TransDev employees working out of the city’s streetcar facility at 450 N. 5th St. voted in favor of representation by ATU Local 998, according to National Labor Relations Board records.
Nurses at 7 Providence hospitals reject latest offer - Oregon Public Broadcasting
Nurses at seven Providence hospitals across the state have voted to reject a tentative agreement that would have ended a nearly month-long strike.
The Oregon Nurses Association said the proposed deal failed to “adequately address the underlying systemic issues that have plagued Providence hospitals for years.”
According to ONA, 83% of members from all seven bargaining units voted to reject the agreement.
Journalists in Lancaster, Penn., win union in blowout
From my Newsguild union sibling Dylan Manshack,
On Monday, a strong majority of journalists at LancasterOnline and WITF public radio station voted in favor of unionizing with The NewsGuild of Greater Philadelphia Local 38010 in a 39-10 vote.
In 2023, the Steinman Family, which owned LancasterOnline, gifted the news organization to the Harrisburg-based NPR affiliate, WITF. Workers formed plans to unionize after management laid off 10 percent of its staff one month after the new management took over. CEO Ron Hetrick had previously told news staff that the company wouldn’t reduce its workforce for five years.
Rally fills Utah Capitol building, urges Gov. Cox to veto controversial union bill
Extremely important news coming from the state of Utah this last week, where lawmakers passed a rather startling anti-union bill.
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — Utah’s largest teacher union hosted a rally at the Capitol Building Friday urging Gov. Spencer Cox to veto a controversial bill barring public labor unions from collective bargaining.
Hundreds of public employees — including firefighters and teachers — piled into the Utah Capitol Building rotunda, calling on the governor to veto H.B. 267 “Public Sector Labor Union Amendments.”
If signed, the bill would strip unionized public employees of the ability to use collective bargaining during contract negotiations.
Strike impacts maintenance work at Fort Leonard Wood
150 maintenance employees at the Fort Leonard Wood army base went on strike last week over a struggle for higher pay.
The strike comes after the base’s maintenance contractor, TSAY, and its labor union workers could not reach a contract agreement that both parties could agree on.
The U.S. Army Post said the strike could impact preventative maintenance service work orders that are not considered emergencies, and response times could be delayed. The picket is happening outside each of the Fort Leonard Wood gates.
Kevin McGill, with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), said TSAY does not agree to pay the workers on strike what they deserve, and that’s why they left their jobs.
Ohio postal workers ‘excited’ after union contract fails in historic vote
In Columbus, letter carriers rejected their most recent TA, citing concerns that it did not address the needs of their workers. Negotiations continue.
“In a historic vote, NALC members voted down the tentative agreement proposed by the Postal Service and the leadership at NALC headquarters,” Poston said. “The majority of our members are happy and excited that the contract failed ratification.”
Now, NALC and Postal Service leadership are back to the drawing board, with reopened negotiations beginning Feb. 3. Contractually, these negotiations are not allowed to exceed 15 calendar days, and NALC President Brian Renfroe confirmed NALC members will have an answer by Feb. 18.
Thousands of Denver-area King Soopers grocery store workers go on strike
triking workers at 77 King Soopers stores in Denver and its suburbs, plus those in nearby Boulder and Louisville, Colorado, urged customers not to cross picket lines that began taking shape before dawn.
“Stand together. Stay strong,” United Food and Commercial Workers International Union Local 7 President Kim Cordova wrote union members in a Monday letter announcing the strike.
UFCW Local 7 members voted by 96% last week to authorize the unfair labor practices strike.
Unions Respond to Trump Administration
Judge declines to block DOGE from Labor Department systems
In an effort to stop DOGE from stripping the DOL for parts, the AFL-CIO filed a lawsuit last week asking the court to block the rogue agency from accessing the department's systems. A federal judge ruled against the Labor Federation on Feb 7.
Bates ruled that "although the Court harbors concerns about defendants’ alleged conduct," the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) had not shown it was harmed by the Labor Department's actions.
AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said in a statement that the decision was "a setback, but not a defeat," and that the union would provide more evidence to support its claims. A Department of Labor spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent late on Friday.
AFL-CIO Pushes Back on Elon Musk's Campaign Against Federal Workers
A new campaign has been launched by the AFL-CIO called the Department of People Who Work for a Living, that will push back against Musk's DOGE takedown of the federal government. From reporting at the New York Times:
“Government can work for billionaires or it can work for working people — but not both,” Liz Shuler, the A.F.L.-C.I.O. president, said in a statement.
The scope of the effort is unclear, but it is expected to include digital ads, direct mail and rallies in front of key agencies where cuts are being pushed through. The group is planning to form partnerships with allies on Capitol Hill and other labor groups, an official said. A number of lawsuits have been filed seeking to halt Mr. Musk’s efforts.
If Harvard Bends to Trump, It's Already Lost
Members of the American Association of University Professors-Harvard Chapter published an Op-Ed in The Harvard Crimson last week, in which they discussed recent developments on campus and Harvard administrators' apparent early capitulation to actions by the Trump Administration as an urgent threat to academic freedom at the university. Quoting this one at length here:
We fear that University administrators may be using the current climate as a pretext for tamping down the active campus debates that have attracted the disapproval of outspoken donors and congressional committees alike. As New York Times columnist Michelle Goldberg observed, the forces working to disrupt the norms of academic freedom and institutional independence at Harvard may in fact be “pushing on an open door.”
Anticipatory obedience, however, is not how to best weather the coming storm.
We have already seen the benefits of a more courageous approach. During the 2024 pro-Palestine encampment, for example, University President Alan M. Garber ’76 declined to involve police, despite demands for an aggressive response like that deployed at more than 50 other colleges.
Given the urgent public safety threat our community now faces, with Trump threatening to seek the deportation of international students with criminal charges or records stemming from pro-Palestine protest activity, we see even more clearly the stakes of calling the police on students – and the wisdom of President Garber’s restraint in that moment. It is essential that the University maintain this stance going forward.
Leading Academic Group Joins Legal Challenge Against Executive Orders on DEI Programs
The AAUP is also leading a coalition of education and civil rights organizations in filing lawsuits against the recent EOs targeting DEI programs.
The lawsuit, filed jointly with the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education (NADOHE), Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, and Baltimore's Mayor and City Council, contends that the Executive Orders exceed presidential authority and contain problematically vague directives. The orders could potentially impact more than 130 U.S. colleges and universities with endowments over $1 billion, creating widespread uncertainty in the higher education sector.
"In the United States, there is no king," the legal filing states, arguing that presidential powers are constitutionally limited and cannot infringe on rights guaranteed to American citizens. The lawsuit specifically challenges the orders' lack of clear definitions for terms such as "DEI," "equity," and "illegal DEIA," arguing that this vagueness makes compliance virtually impossible for institutions while potentially exposing them to significant federal enforcement actions.
American Federation of Teachers: Facing deportation fear in schools, hospitals and places of worship
The AFT published an article discussing the threat of ICE in schools, and have offered some concrete steps that they taking in the event that a raid hits a school or church in your town. I'm pulling a quote from the top of the article, but please read through the entire piece to get a sense of what the union is doing to protect immigrant children and families in the coming months and years.
One of the biggest threats right now is a new Homeland Security mandate allowing Immigration and Customs Enforcement to enter schools, places of worship and hospitals—once considered to be “sensitive locations” that were off-limits to immigration raids. Fear and lack of information is sowing chaos in schools and healthcare facilities. Healthcare providers say patients are skipping appointments, opting for telehealth only or forgoing important procedures in case ICE officers show up. Places of worship, which have been sanctuaries for years, are also on alert. But there are important steps that formerly protected institutions can take to protect immigrant communities, as laid out in the AFT’s Know Your Rights for Immigrant Youth and Schools.
“These actions are traumatizing to all children, especially the young ones, and will leave them with fear and worry about whether they’re next to be taken away,” says AFT President Randi Weingarten. “They won’t want to go to school, and why would they when it doesn’t feel safe? This is cruelty. This is un-American.”
AFSCME’s Saunders: Russell Vought’s confirmation signals public services are on the chopping block
On Feb 6, AFSCME President Lee Saunders released a statement on Russel Vought's confirmation as Office of Management and Budget director.
“Russell Vought’s singular goal for decades has been to gut public services and hand over as much power and influence to billionaires as possible. His confirmation today signals that everything from Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security to Head Start and veterans' health care is on the chopping block.
“As the architect of Project 2025, Vought made his vindictive agenda abundantly clear: withhold funding of essential public services, replace federal workers with political loyalists and erase workers’ freedoms. He’s even admitted to wanting to traumatize public service workers – our nurses, school bus drivers, corrections officers and others – and have them viewed as villains. Vought will now control the purse strings to put politics between our communities and the essential services we all need. And he’s already signaled he will disregard Congress and the Constitution to achieve this vision. Let there be no illusions – Vought is an existential threat to the people’s government.
As Trump Attacks Federal Labor Protections, How Can States Protect Workers?
From Truthout, "From limits on heat exposure to overtime rules, states can fill in some gaps as Trump dismantles federal protections."
Trump has chosen his acting heads of key labor agencies as he waits for the people he nominated for those roles to be confirmed by the Senate. Lori Chavez, a Republican House member representing Oregon, is Trump’s choice for the top spot in the U.S. Department of Labor. Chavez is one of Trump’s less controversial picks, given her support for the PRO Act, a piece of legislation that would make it easier to organize in the workplace. But despite Chavez’s support for some worker-friendly legislation, labor advocates are skeptical that Trump’s current plans for labor rules will be any different from his previous administration.
IATSE Pride Committee: Our Community is Under Attack — An Attack on One is an Attack on All
A recent statement from the IATSE Pride Committee on recent Trump Admin actions:
As a union, we are committed to fighting for a world where ALL individuals are respected, represented and celebrated. To our fellow LGBTQ+ members, we want you to know that we see you, we hear you, and we will continue to advocate for your rights with unwavering dedication. We call on all of our sisters, brothers and kin to lock arms with us and join in this fight. We are stronger together.
Commentary & Analysis
Finally, a Trump Opposition?
Up against a far worse assault on government and the basic components of democracy than in 2017, an opposition force to Donald Trump and Elon Musk may be cohering.
What Would a Pro-Worker Agenda for the South Look Like?
Amid Lots of Bad News for Working People, a Win in New Orleans Offers Hope
From Sarah Jaffe at In These Times,
The Workers’ Bill of Rights—supported by more than 80% of voters—is the latest tool to reduce labor exploitation.
Revolution Town
From Hamilton Nolan over at How Things Work,
Of all of the federal government’s departments, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is perhaps the most straightforwardly helpful to the public. It tries, within the confines of bureaucracy, to stop people from getting ripped off. It does not leaven its work with plots to destabilize foreign governments or spy on subversives. It is Consumer Reports with enforcement powers, providing a modest firewall against the constant deluge of banks and tech companies that make it their business to refine the practice of confusing people and deluging them with misleading verbiage and picking their pockets. If the CFPB was the size of the CIA, all Americans would be better off.
So naturally it is being dismantled, as a favor to the very sort of people who were the subjects of its enforcement. Russell Vought, Trump’s unblinking bureaucratic hatchet-wielder, who has spent a lifetime of dark nights pleasuring himself to the idea of a government that does nothing for anyone, has ordered the CFPB to cease all activity. Elon Musk, after a single day’s work of his destructa-kids, on Friday tweeted “CFPB RIP,” the act of a Wild West conman selling fraudulent patent medicines and thumbing his nose at the sheriff he just shot, before riding on to the next town.
Labor By the Numbers
According to the NLRB, there were 45 filings for union representation last week. A couple notable ones:
- A good number of employees at medical centers, clinics, and hospitals across the country filed for representation last week.
- A few more Starbucks stores have filed for representation. Every week it seems we see another store file and join the ranks of the steadily-growing Starbucks Workers Union, which is encouraging!
Looking Ahead...
The transition of power to the new administration will likely affect things in the future. As things change, there are a number of us working diligently on keeping track of the outlook for organizing. I'll likely be renaming this last section to something more appropriate, and bring in reporters and analysts who are keeping track.
I will likely be adding more info to the Labor by the Numbers section as well, including additional reporting on ULPs and other cases, as well as including more reporting from Matt Bruenig's incredible newsletter, NLRB Edge.
Stay tuned.
Alright folks, that's it for this week's digest. If haven't taken a moment to subscribe to the email list, please do. There's no fee to subscribe, and there are no paywalls on this site. As we move further into 2025, you'll see some additions and changes to what I publish here in this digest, as well as on the website, and you won't want to miss any new posts in the future.
If you'd like to support what I do and help me keep doing it, feel free to leave a donation here. Every little bit helps me to keep doing this work.
In love and solidarity,
Mel
Comments ()