"...the most recent high-profile battle between Philadelphia workers and their employers did not play out on the docks, in the stockyard, or in a factory. Instead, it saw 750 graduate teaching assistants and research assistants at Temple University, one of the city’s finest institutions of higher education, take on their own school’s administration in a historic six-week strike."

“One year after its surprise victory at a Staten Island warehouse, the only union in the country representing Amazon workers has endured a series of setbacks and conflicts that have caused longtime supporters to question if it will survive. In interviews, a dozen people who have been closely involved with the Amazon Labor Union said the union had made little progress bringing Amazon to the bargaining table, to say nothing of securing a contract. Many cited lopsided losses at two other warehouses, unstable funding and an internal feud that has made it difficult for the union to alter a strategy that they considered flawed.”

“In 2021, President Biden announced a new initiative to establish a national minimum staffing  standard for nursing home workers, improve compensation and make it easier for these workers to join a union. This is surely one of the single biggest ongoing initiatives to address the inequities facing women and workers of color; it is also one of the best solutions for addressing the emotionally difficult and physically dangerous working conditions these workers face.”

“Medical residents and fellows at the state's largest health system are preparing to unionize, frustrated that their salaries have not kept pace with the rising costs of housing and child care. If successful, the effort would create one of the largest unions of medical residents and fellows in the country, part of a wave of such unionizations. More than 2,500 residents and fellows at multiple Mass General Brigham hospitals would join the Committee of Interns and Residents, or CIR, at the Service Employees International Union, including trainees at Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Mass Eye and Ear, Newton-Wellesley Hospital, Salem Hospital, and Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital Boston.”

“Last week, President Biden’s Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment, which is led by Vice-President Harris, announced that the number of federal employees who are union members had increased by 80,000 from September 2021 to September 2022.”

“Where there is exploitation and oppression, however, there is always resistance. In Vermont, dairy workers organizing with Migrant Justice are engaged in a campaign to compel the grocery store chain Hannaford to join their compact, Milk with Dignity, which would guarantee fair wages, better benefits, and improved working and living conditions on dairy farms throughout the northeast.”

“The rebellion inside Medieval Times’ Southern California castle has spread to another wing. The castle’s sound and lighting technicians informed the company Tuesday that they intend to unionize, filing a petition for a union election with the National Labor Relations Board. The castle’s show cast formed a union of their own last year and have been on strike since February.”

“Most cannabis dispensaries are cash-only businesses, constantly at risk of being robbed. Indoor growing facilities use harsh lighting, and plants get sprayed with pesticides. Those conditions can create daily hazards for cannabis workers, which is why labor organizers are trying to unionize them as legalization spreads and the marijuana workforce grows.”

“Workers involved in organizing the approximately 150 staff members at the store said in interviews they are seeking a union primarily to address what they see as Trader Joe’s disregard for their physical safety and financial security in the high-priced San Francisco Bay Area. The Oakland store is the first Trader Joe’s location in California to join a national push that began in May.”

“Full-time faculty in non-tenured track positions at New York University are demanding that the university administration recognize their union. In February, a group organizing a union called Contract Faculty United-UAW presented the university administration with a petition signed by a majority of contract faculty urging the university to agree to a “fair and neutral process” for voluntarily recognizing their union. These workers say they lack the job security - and many of the benefits - afforded to faculty members in tenured positions.”

“As part of the five-year deal, MLB agreed during the contract not to reduce minor league affiliates from the current 120. The sides reached the agreement two days before the start of the minor league season and hours after a federal judge gave final approval to a $185 million settlement reached with MLB last May of a lawsuit filed in 2014 alleging violations of federal minimum wage laws.”

"You’ve done it. Your team of rank-and-file members has run for union office and won. In a few short weeks or months you will leave the truck, classroom, or hospital floor behind and join the staff of your local union. You’ve made promises to the members, and you don’t want to let them down.”

“The REI staff include about 70 employees who work at the store selling outdoor gear and apparel, handling inventory and repairing products, including bikes and skis. The workers are seeking representation with the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union.”

"Graduate student advocates at Stanford are publicly launching a campaign to unionize graduate student-workers Monday morning in what is shaping up to be a watershed moment for labor relations at Stanford and across higher education...The potentially transformative move would offer all students who earn money from the University, a group of approximately 5,000 students primarily composed of master’s and Ph.D. students, the right to join the nationally-affiliated SGWU."

"The practice of joining a workplace with the secret aim of organizing it is called ‘salting.’...Through interviews and exclusive visits to undercover training sessions over the past year, Bloomberg Businessweek got an unparalleled look at the revival of American salting, which has been around for a century. Until now, salts have been the mostly secret ingredient in a once-in-a-generation wave of union organizing that’s spread from Starbucks and Amazon.com Inc. to other Fortune 500 companies in the Covid-19 era."

“PhD student workers at Johns Hopkins University voted overwhelmingly in favor of union representation this week, opting to make Teachers and Researchers United–United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (TRU-UE) their exclusive representative for the purposes of collective bargaining.”

“[G]rievances — including claims of discrimination and calls for fair and transparent pay — have led a growing segment of the industry’s workforce to unionize — a tactic many might associate more with old-school factory lines than 21st century software gigs.”

“Chicago’s thousands of graduate workers — increasingly responsible for teaching and research work once performed by faculty — have long been overworked, underpaid, and non-union…If Northwestern and UChicago were to raise workplace standards, organizers believe it will have a tangible impact on academic workers across Chicago

"On Thursday and Friday, about 32,000 Disney employees will be voting on a contract offer from management... The company’s five-year offer would raise salaries for cast members by a minimum of $1 an hour per year, taking most workers to at least $20 an hour by 2026."

“Home care is one of the fastest-growing occupations in the U.S., and the need for these workers is only expected to skyrocket in the coming years as the population of people over the age of 65 doubles. But Black women … who make up a large percentage of this workforce, are also aging—and they’re entirely without a safety net.”

“2022 saw an unprecedented rise in labor organizing in U.S. tech firms, with some workers pushing for collective rights just as a tanking economy changed the industry's dynamics.”

"On February 20, Keyes, among other fellow graduate workers at the Twin Cities campus of UMN, announced their union drive in front of the Coffman Memorial Union. The workers were supported by a high-energy crowd of several hundred students, community members, city councilmembers, and labor movement leaders. In one passionate speech, Chiara Amato, a Ph.D. student in Aerospace Engineering and Mechanics, described graduate workers as the “silent labor that keeps the university running,” as dozens of student workers signed their union cards at a table nearby.”

“Tuesday morning staffers at the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington, DC announced their intent to unionize, joining a wave of workers unionizing at other ACLU affiliates in North Carolina, Virginia, Missouri, Minnesota and Kansas.”

“Several large US unions saw double-digit growth in 2022 at the same time employers were weathering a tight labor market and a wave of worker dissatisfaction, according to a Bloomberg Law analysis of new federal filings from the previous calendar year.”

“Brandon Johnson’s victory in the Chicago mayoral race last week is a major victory for the education justice movement, the 21st-century Black freedom movement, and the left in general. Johnson is a former teacher and Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) leader, a protégé of a legendary union president, the late Karen Lewis...Johnson described his victory as the coming together of the civil rights and labor movements, much as Martin Luther King always envisioned. It is that and more. A new generation of organizers—sexual minorities, abolitionists, undocumented activists, socialists, and environmental justice warriors—are also a critical part of what made Johnson’s bid for mayor a historic success…The financial support of Chicago’s social justice unions—SEIU State and local leadership, and the mighty CTU, led by Stacy Davis Gates—was crucial and foundational.”

“Employees say they began discussing unionization late last year in a group chat, and seek to win improvements in their pay, job security and work hours, which they call erratic and insufficient. To prepare their coworkers for any potential anti-union campaign by the company, they’ve been studying anti-union tactics and literature from other major retailers in recent years.”

“On Saturday, April 1st, Northeastern University’s Huskies Organized With Labor (HOWL) hosted their first labor summit. The event showcased the organizing efforts of several campus employee groups and provided a platform for discussion on the future of labor at the university. The summit was convened against the backdrop of several ongoing labor issues at Northeastern, including graduate workers organizing with the United Auto Workers (UAW) and the potential fragmentation of the university’s workforce as Northeastern expands its global footprint.”

“Student workers across California State University campuses filed Monday with the state to form a union, saying it would help them advocate for better pay and working conditions. ‘With a union, we’ll be able to hold the university accountable for how it treats students,’ said Grayce Honsa, a student and resident adviser at San Diego State University. The students looking to unionize serve as residential advisers, run mentorship programs, manage student radio stations and perform other jobs across the system’s 23 campuses. Many students are paid the minimum wage of $15.50 an hour, and in some cases, they are paid less depending on their level of experience, said Mike Roth, a spokesperson for the Service Employees International Union California."

“A recent poll shows that public support for labor organizing is the highest it's been in decades. But union membership is at an all-time low. Will Gen Z bridge that gap?”

“Less than two years after Starbucks workers went public with their union campaign, the union has now won its 300th store, marking a major milestone in the campaign that is now helping to inspire a new generation of union activists. On Friday, the 7th and K store in Sacramento, California, voted to unionize in a landslide win of 11 to 2, becoming the 300th Starbucks location in the U.S.”

“Today, staff at the ACLU of Kentucky, ACLU of Louisiana, and ACLU of Mississippi joined over a hundred fellow ACLU workers in organizing a union. Collectively known as ACLU Southern Affiliates United, workers at the three ACLU affiliates have organized with the Washington-Baltimore News Guild (WBNG) and are requesting joint recognition from their employer. Their announcement follows ACLU-D.C. Staff United, who just last week requested recognition of their union with WBNG.”

“More than 80 contract drivers and dispatchers who handle deliveries for Amazon Inc. have joined the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, marking the labor movement’s latest attempt to gain a foothold in the company’s e-commerce empire.”

"[A]fter working for more than three years at three different stores in Illinois, Tennessee, and Vermont, I now know the company does not treat its workers with the dignity—nor pay them the wages—they deserve. As workers at two Trader Joe’s locations—the Rockridge store in Oakland, California and the Essex Crossing store in New York City—move forward from union elections in April, it’s worth peeking behind the Hawaiian-print curtain.”

“As a new and emerging industry, cannabis is a case study in modern-day collective action. Companies involved in cannabis, from farms to dispensaries, are making billions of dollars as more states legalize their products. The problem: as the industry expands, so has cannabis workers’ need for union representation.”

“Today, workers at Sega of America’s Irvine, California, office have filed for a union election with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The new union, Allied Employees Guild Improving Sega (AEGIS), is partnered with the Communications Workers of America and consists of a supermajority of 144 employees across Sega’s QA, localization, live service, marketing, and product development departments, making AEGIS the largest video game union in the United States made up of workers across numerous departments.”

“Delta workers and labor and community allies rallied on Saturday at the St. Paul Regional Labor Federation headquarters to push for union representation at Delta Air Lines. The rally featured remarks from Delta workers from across the system.”

“A group of YouTube contract staff in Texas have unanimously voted to unionize in a labor victory that could force parent company Alphabet Inc. to collectively bargain with US workers for the first time in its history. The US National Labor Relations Board counted ballots on Wednesday, with 41 of the roughly 50 eligible employees voting for the union, nobody voting against and around eight people not voting.”

“Over the last few years, workers in the United States have propelled a resurgent wave of union organizing. With the approval of organized labor at its highest among young people, it’s no surprise that colleges and universities have been a linchpin of the movement. Across the country—from resident advisers at Columbia University to dining workers at William & Mary to undergraduates at Dartmouth and beyond—workers in higher education are demanding better pay and conditions as tuition and fees continue to skyrocket. To understand what’s at stake, we asked a few young organizers and student journalists to give an update on a few of these ongoing campus campaigns.”

“Nine hundred DHL Express workers at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) just won a union election. They voted 505 to 288 in favor of unionizing with the Teamsters. The ramp agents spoke with us ahead of their union drive to expose the dangerous conditions they face every day. They told us they’ve suffered broken bones, sleep deprivation, and other serious injuries on the job. They’re organizing for safer conditions and better pay.”

“A hundred immigrant seafood processing workers in New Bedford, Massachusetts, lost their jobs March 31 when their employer abruptly terminated its contract with the temp agency that placed them. Workers say it was retaliation for organizing.”

“Unionizing at Sloss in 2023 wasn’t something past workers would have believed possible, because Sloss Furnaces' working conditions were frequently harsh. Long working hours, low pay and hazardous working conditions were imposed on workers, many of whom were immigrants and African Americans. They were often injured and ill from their work in the furnaces and blast furnaces, which were hot, noisy and frequently dangerous. In the past, to improve their wages and working conditions, employees at Sloss began organizing. The Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel, and Tin Workers orchestrated a lengthy strike at Sloss Furnaces in 1907. Yet the workers returned to their jobs with few concessions after the strike was finally ended by force. Eventually, Sloss Furnaces closed in 1970. And now they’ve turned that dark history around by voluntarily acknowledging the union.”

“In spring 2021, workers at The Walters Art Museum in Baltimore announced they were forming a union, Walters Workers United. Although a supermajority of workers expressed support for a union, museum leadership refused to voluntarily recognize or even meet with workers. Management insisted that workers go through a union election process that would exclude many workers from the bargaining unit. Today, workers are glad they held strong in their demand for a wall-to-wall union – one that would include all workers, not just some and exclude the rest – and fought for all departments, including security staff, to be able to vote to join their union. On March 27, members of Walters Workers United and management of Walters Art Museum finally reached an election agreement that would allow workers vote for their union through an election conducted by a neutral third party. That’s similar to the process used by Pratt Workers United and the Baltimore Museum of Art Union, who both won union representation through AFSCME.”

“Ben & Jerry’s, the ice cream brand owned by Unilever Plc, has agreed to terms for a unionization process proposed by workers at its flagship store in Burlington, Vermont. The union, Workers United, proposed principles that go well beyond what is currently required by US labor law, including commitments that the company would not disparage the union or hold mandatory anti-union meetings without giving the union equal time to respond. The principles also included eschewing 'implicit threats’ that would be ‘lawful but unethical.’...The principles do not guarantee unionization, but specify that the company will either recognize the union once a majority of workers are determined to have signed up, or cooperate with scheduling an election as quickly as possible.”

“Georgia workers at one of the nation’s largest school bus manufacturers will begin voting Thursday on whether they want to be represented by a labor union — a chance for organized labor to make gains on the stony soil of the Deep South. More than 1,400 employees at Blue Bird Corp.’s two factories and warehouse in Fort Valley will be voting through Friday on whether they want to unionize under the banner of the United Steelworkers. That union represents more than 850,000 workers nationwide in a variety of industries.”

“Several hundred people gathered near the University of Pennsylvania’s Van Pelt Library last week, many carrying posters emblazoned with the United Auto Workers logo and personalized with slogans about their worker grievances.”

“Matt Wehrmeister was working at an East Lansing Starbucks in March when he learned about Michigan Democrats’ successful repeal of the state’s right-to-work law. Wehrmeister is a barista at the East Lansing location near Michigan State University’s campus, one of hundreds of Starbucks in the U.S. where workers seek to unionize.”

“But then came the long slog of negotiating a contract. The company has refused to bargain if anyone attends a session virtually, the union says, and when Trader Joe’s negotiators do engage, they offer up unrealistic proposals, such as waiving the union’s ability to intervene when an employee files a grievance.”

“Last week, the Center for American Progress (CAP) issued a report that confirmed a fact we all knew: unions build workers’ wealth. Even though its principal finding approaches the level of truism, it needs to be repeated and supported frequently with fresh evidence or it can get lost in the discourse.”

“The President does not make laws regarding worker organizing and collective bargaining. The Constitution delegates that responsibility to Congress. In turn, Congress delegated the administration of private-sector labor law to the National Labor Relations Board. The Supreme Court subsequently built a fortress called “preemption” around the NLRB’s jurisdiction and Congress’ authority. With only limited exceptions, efforts by the states or the President to regulate within the labor relations fortress are preempted and, therefore, void.”

“Hotel workers at the Sofitel, overwhelmingly immigrants, women and people color, are organizing to join UNITE HERE and the International Union of Operating Engineers. The hotel, operated by Accor and owned by Brookfield Asset Management, has held mandatory anti-union meetings  and threatened to change the schedule of an employee who is leading the union organizing effort.”

“After a bruising three-year fight, workers at school bus manufacturer Blue Bird in Fort Valley, Georgia, voted May 12 to join United Steelworkers (USW) Local 697…The main issues in Georgia were pay and safety. Workers began organizing at the height of the pandemic in the summer of 2020. They overcame a fierce anti-union campaign in a right-to-work state where only 4.4 percent of workers are union members.”

“Attorney General Ferguson’s announcement also establishes a framework for close monitoring of the current and future management of Windmill Farms (also known as Greenwood Mushrooms Sunnyside, formerly known as Ostrom Mushroom Farms) to prevent future violations. The resolution of this lawsuit in no way functions as an indication of approval of Windmill Farms, its management, or current working conditions by the Attorney General or the UFW…‘We are in this fight, and we are not going to stop until we get a union contract,’ said current Windmill Farms worker Isela Cabrera. ‘I am very happy for my coworkers who experienced humiliations and retaliations by Ostrom management. I hope this announcement will help begin to improve conditions at Windmill Farms – as this new management continues to commit favoritism and retaliation. We want our fired friends to get their jobs back and for Windmill Farms to recognize our union.’”

“CNET journalists are pushing to unionize, seeking a formal say on issues including the use of artificial intelligence at the technology-news company. Pro-union employees, who are organizing with the Writers Guild of America East, said they’ve signed up the vast majority of their coworkers. The union seeks to represent about 100 writers, editors, video producers and other content creators. The employees are asking management to voluntarily recognize and negotiate with the guild. ‘Our diverse content teams need industry-standard job protections, fair compensation, editorial independence and a voice in the decision-making process, especially as automated technology threatens our jobs and reputations,’ they said in a mission statement sent to management Tuesday.”

“For much of last year, a group of strippers at a California club called Star Garden raised concerns about safety issues like handsy customers and a poorly maintained stage — as well as retaliation from management when they spoke up. The complaints led the dancers to picket the club and seek a union vote. But while support for the union appeared strong in last fall’s election, the results have been delayed for months as the two sides litigated the dancers’ eligibility to unionize. The club, in North Hollywood, filed for bankruptcy in the meantime. Now, under a set of agreements finalized Monday, Star Garden has dropped its ballot challenges and agreed to work with the union, paving the way for the dancers to join the century-old actors and stage managers union, Actors’ Equity Association. That appears to make them the first strip-club dancers to unionize in the United States since the 1990s.”

“Graduate students from many public and private universities are now voting to unionize so they can engage in collective bargaining with the university employers over their working conditions. By 2019, just over 83 000 graduate students in the US out of a total of roughly 3 million were in collective bargaining units, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. And that number is growing. Continuing goals for the unionizing graduate students include establishing procedures to address workplace harassment, paid parental leave, mental health care access, and basic lab safety.”

“Nearly 200 workers at Webasto Roof Systems have voted to join UAW Local 3000, in the latest organizing victory for the union. The workers, who make convertible tops for the Mustang, Jeep, Bronco, and Corvette, launched their organizing drive in November, and faced an intense anti-union campaign from management. ‘We’re doing this for our coworkers,’ said Sheron Johnson, a production worker at Webasto. ‘People have been mistreated, not getting paid, having their schedules changed with no notice. We want to leave this place better for the next generation.’...‘These brave workers stuck together in the face of fierce opposition from the company,’ said UAW Local 3000 President Steve Gonzales. ‘As they move from this organizing victory to the fight for a first contract, we’ve got their back 100 percent.’”

“The historic wave of cultural workers organizing continues as employees of yet another Chicago museum are forming a union. Workers at the Museum of Science and Industry announced this month that they are organizing with AFSCME Council 31. The union, known as Museum of Science & Industry Workers United (MSIWU)/AFSCME, will represent about 140 employees in the museum’s guest experience, guest operations and education departments…MSI employees say they are organizing to win pay equity, improved professional development opportunities, an end to discrimination, and better workplace health and safety protocols.”

“This is a special live episode of Working People produced in collaboration with the Action Builder / Action Network team on March 21 in Atlanta, Georgia. In this panel discussion, Max speaks with local organizers about the specific challenges workers in the South face in their workplaces and in their efforts to organize — and how they are finding creative ways to overcome those challenges today. Panelists include: Chris Daniel of the Georgia AFL-CIO; Melanie Barron of the Communications Workers of America / United Campus Workers; and Maurice ​“Mo” Haskins of the Union of Southern Service Workers.”

“Amazon has annual turnover of 150 percent. ‘They design the productivity quota, the rates system, to be a constant speedup situation, and that makes it hard to keep the job,’ said Medina, who still works at the warehouse. Several ALU leaders have been fired. Still, ALU, an independent union now with affiliates in Kentucky and California, was able to collect enough valid cards and win its election in 2022. ‘The faster the turnover is, the harder it is to organize,’ said Medina. ‘You can still do it, but it’s obviously a challenge.’ Despite the churn, at Amazon, in charter schools, in restaurants, and among student workers, unions are developing strategies to organize high-turnover workplaces.”

“Organising efforts at Storm King, the PMA, the Hispanic Society and elsewhere reflect a trend that has been growing in the US art and heritage sector over the course of the past five years and accelerated with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. Workers at more than 20 institutions have formed a union since 2020 or are actively in negotiations for their first contract, including the Jewish Museum and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and Mass Moca in Massachusetts. In March, after 16 months of negotiations, workers at the Whitney Museum of American Art, who had formed a union in spring 2021, ratified their first contract.”

“Reporter Zaydee Sanchez traveled through California’s San Joaquin and Salinas valleys and spoke to four people with different journeys to activism. Together, their stories illustrate the complexities of organizing in communities faced with challenges like language differences, immigration status and systemic racism — and explain what keeps them motivated.” 

“For me the highlight of working at Amazon is being part of Inland Empire Amazon Workers United—spending time with my co-workers and making our workplace better and safer. When it’s you vs. Amazon, you know who has the power. But when we work together, there’s nothing better to protect you.”

“After fearing the National Labor Relations Board under President Donald Trump would roll back graduate students' power to unionize, campus organizers are energized under President Joe Biden.”

“Fewer than 100 employees out of the thousands who work at Nissan’s auto assembly plant in Tennessee can hold a vote on whether to form a small union, the federal labor board has decided. The ruling Thursday by the National Labor Relations Board overturns a June 2021 decision by one of its regional officials that has long blocked the vote.”

“Today, we welcome the Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) to the AFL-CIO. The labor movement’s commitment to gender and racial diversity isn’t simply rhetoric. We’re a movement about action. The WNBPA’s affiliation is a historic step in our ongoing efforts to advance the rights and freedoms of women and people of color.”

“At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Refresco — a transnational corporation that produces and bottles soft drinks for major brands such as Tropicana and Gatorade — had a single response to its staff about the public health crisis unfolding at its Wharton, NJ plant an hour outside of New York City: show up to work … Outraged, the predominantly immigrant workforce formed a union, winning their first election in June 2021 in what was one of the largest blue-collar union victories during the pandemic.”

“Yet his new job, at Noble Knight Games in a Madison suburb, had a special draw. The store has the world’s largest collection of role-playing, tabletop and video games, old and new, and it’s full of gamers like him, for whom games, since childhood, have always meant good memories and experiences. But the appeal was tempered after hearing his new colleagues’ complaints about low wages.” 

“When Rich Schiavoni tells people that he is a member of the United Steelworkers union, they often will ask him what he makes.“I make college students,” is the answer he has at the ready, knowing that isn’t necessarily the response people expect.”

“Without solidarity within the dubbing community, anime voice actors effectively cannot strike like video game voice actors — though many remain hopeful that Crunchyroll can be won over through conversation.”

“I walked my first picket line without my union-teacher parents when I was a college freshman at Cornell University. Cornell’s service and maintenance employees had won a NLRB-administered election the previous year that brought them a union, UAW Local 2300. They were fighting for their first contract. The workers won. Their lives improved (read an excellent first-person account here). In that same year, Cornell’s campus security officers organized an independent union and won a NLRB election. Soon thereafter, they had a good contract. It was a valuable real-world labor education that helped set the course for the rest of my career.”

“Graduate student workers at USC have voted to unionize, the United Auto Workers union announced Friday. The vote was held Feb. 15 and 16, with students approving the union by a 1,599-to-122 margin. The Graduate Student Workers Organizing Committee-United Auto Workers will now represent about 3,000 teaching, research and lecture assistants at the university.”

“After a three-day strike last month, the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) reached a tentative deal with Mount Sinai and Montefiore hospitals on Jan. 12. Ninety-eight percent of nurses voted in favor of their union contracts, which include safer nurse-to-patient ratios that ensure there will “always be enough nurses at the bedside to provide safe patient care, not just on paper,” said NYSNA president Nancy Hagans in a press statement.”  

“Student workers at the University of Oregon are trying to build a wall-to-wall union—uniting their resident assistants, dining hall staff, and all other undergraduate workers in a massive labor campaign. Over the last few years, interest in labor organizing has surged among young people, especially at colleges and universities.”

“‘Workers in the South face unique challenges tied to the legacy of racism that require a unique solution,’ said Eric Winston, a restaurant cook from Durham and a USSW member. ‘We are building a union despite the fact that the rules are rigged against us as Southern workers. We are building a union by any means necessary and building it in a way that makes sense for us.’”

“Doctoral students at Duke University say they have enough support to unionize the school’s workforce of Ph.D. student teaching and research assistants, but before doing so, the students have given the administration a deadline to act first.”

“Unlike many students across the country, my last all-nighter had nothing to do with my studies. In June 2020, the last month I was a graduate student at Oregon State University, I stayed on a Zoom call for almost 24 hours to support friends in my department who were members of the bargaining unit of our union, the Coalition of Graduate Employees (CGE).”

“Dancers at the Star Garden Topless Dive Bar in Los Angeles have recently received positive signs from the National Labor Relations Board, which bodes well for their contested union drive. If all goes as expected, they will be the only unionized strippers in the country.”

“Federal sector unionism offers several worthwhile lessons for those interested in worker power and worker organizing.”

“The Tesla union drive is a prime example of how the organizing models and infrastructure built by the Starbucks campaign and other labor efforts in Buffalo are inspiring and supporting other workers. The past few years of barista organizing in western New York — from SPoT Coffee to Starbucks, Perks Coffee to Remedy House — have created a culture of solidarity in the region and a growing diaspora of skilled organizers who are eager to assist new union drives when called upon.”

“Dozens of students and faculty at Rollins College, a private liberal arts college near Orlando, on Friday rallied in support of the college’s dining workers, who are seeking a fair process for union representation with the labor union Unite Here.”

“If the workers at Lodi succeed, they could be a leader in a new labor organizing movement at higher-end eateries – but the union’s supporters say they are encountering fierce pushback from management.”

“The Major League Soccer Players Association (MLSPA) today announced its formal affiliation with the AFL-CIO. The request to affiliate was unanimously approved by the MLSPA’s Executive Board and approved at the AFL-CIO’s Winter Executive Council meeting in early February. MLSPA members will join the more than 12.5 million workers who make up the unions of the AFL-CIO.”

“While union efforts at corporate giants have gained the most national attention, labor organizing is also happening in businesses less accustomed to unionization, including small restaurants, the video game industry, museums, newsrooms, theaters, the arts, and nonprofit organizations. These unions are on the front lines of developing new ways of operating to bring new groups of workers into organized labor.”

“The rest of “the world’s most exclusive club” may feel compelled to start treating the help a little nicer, as staffers in Sen. Edward J. Markey’s office are set to form the Senate’s first labor union. Aides formally requested that the Massachusetts Democrat voluntarily recognize their bargaining unit in a staff meeting Wednesday morning. Markey happily complied.”

“A favorite tactic of employers opposing their employees’ union organizing efforts is to argue that the union is a “third party” …This “third party” rhetoric is instructive and perversely helpful. It begs a critically important question that every worker should ask: who should I trust to advance my interests in the workplace: a union or my employer? In order to answer that question, it might help to read between the lines of the “union-as-third-party” epithet.”

“Workers are concerned about soaring rates of injury, high productivity quotas, incoherent policies, and a sudden warehouse closure.”

“The new union’s mission statement underlines the workers’ commitment to upholding Bandcamp’s stated values while emphasizing that the company needs to do the same.”

“Preston says callers grappling with terminal illnesses and angry at a cumbersome signup process often vent their frustration on the worker on the other end of the line. Sometimes their comments are outright racist. “You sound like you are Southern,” callers tell her. “I don’t want a Black person. I want an American voice. I don’t want no Indian.” No wonder 10,000 workers toiling at call centers across nine states, mainly Black women, want to unionize with the Communications Workers (CWA).”

“I work as a tug driver at Amazon’s global air hub in Northern Kentucky (KCVG). My co-workers and I are taking on one of the largest corporations in the world to get what we deserve. Our main demands are for a $30-an-hour starting wage, 180 hours a year of paid time off, and union representation at disciplinary meetings to end favoritism and retaliation. This $1.5 billion facility is a flagship for Amazon—it’s the company’s biggest air hub. Jeff Bezos personally broke ground on it in 2019.”

“Decades after Cesar Chavez made the union a power in California fields, it has lost much of its clout. Membership dropped precipitously, from 60,000 to 5,500. It hopes a new law will turn the tide.”

“Since the 1980s, U.S. public universities have become vessels of neoliberal dogma, with administrators obsessed with finding ways to turn a profit rather than providing support for teaching and research staff. One of the major tactics for accruing more profit, wealth and influence for university administrations has been the process of cultivating a workforce of precarious labor, made up of graduate workers, adjuncts and non-tenure-track faculty. This workforce can be paid less while being compelled to do many of the same duties as full-time faculty, with little or no job protections. In a majority of states, those who are part of this precarious workforce are considered “at-will employees,” meaning their contracts can be terminated for nearly any reason.”

“A majority of workers at eBay-owned TCGPlayer won their union election on Friday, March 10 and will be represented by the Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 1123. TCGPlayer is one of the largest online marketplaces for verification services, card games, comics, and collectible trading cards. It was acquired by eBay in November 2022. The workers, known as TCGUnion-CWA, are the first group of eBay workers to win union representation in the U.S.”

“The American Airlines pilots union plans to vote in April on whether to allow members to call a strike. The notice comes two days after American Airlines CEO Robert Isom said the carrier is prepared to raise pilot pay to match compensation at rival Delta Air Lines. Even if the pilots union called a strike it would not be immediate.”

“For nearly 40 years, Berlin Nightclub has set itself apart through its progressive, come-as-you-are atmosphere, late-night dance floor extravaganzas and bold, diverse drag performances. Now, workers at the club are seeking to set Berlin apart in a new way — by becoming the first nightclub in Chicago’s gay enclave with a unionized staff.”

“The Animation Guild has set its sights on unionizing the Walt Disney Animation Studios’ production workers — a move that organizers say the family-friendly company is resisting. Coming off of an aggressive run of production-specific organizing drives at shows (Rick and Morty, Family Guy) and studios (Nickelodeon, ShadowMachine), IATSE Local 839 revealed Wednesday that the union is attempting to form a bargaining unit composed of around 78 production coordinators, production supervisors and production managers at the Encanto and Wish studio.” 

“Ben & Jerry's on Tuesday set a powerful precedent by agreeing to voluntarily recognize the results of a union card check at its flagship store in Vermont. Workers at the popular ice cream chain's Church Street store in Burlington gathered on Tuesday to announce the results of their union vote… ‘We are taught from the beginning of our employment that equality and justice are integral rights of ours as people. But what happens when Vermont's Finest are continuously left out of these conversations?’ the scoopers wrote in a letter at the time. Ben & Jerry's responded to the announcement saying it supported workers' organizing efforts. The company followed up Tuesday's card check by voluntarily recognizing the result.”

“Barnes & Noble workers in Massachusetts just won the first-ever union at the book-selling giant. The vote was unanimous, extending a wave of union victories among retail workers around the country. We spoke to workers in Hadley, MA, and at the flagship store in New York City to understand why workers are unionizing.”

“As Hollywood writers remain on picket lines for a fourth straight week and the actors’ union, SAG-AFTRA, held a strike authorization vote in sympathy with them, commercial choreographers are creating a union of their own. After forming in 2022, the Choreographers Guild started accepting members this spring. The labor organization plans to tackle a host of issues: It aims to establish a standard pay minimum, secure health care and pensions, strengthen choreographers’ copyright rights and more.”

“In a major success story that has raised wages and improved working conditions for essential campus workers across the country, over 1,900 campus dining workers at 20 colleges and universities organized with UNITE HERE, the hospitality workers union, between August 2022 and May 2023. Dining services workers cook and serve on-campus meals to students, faculty, and staff members at nearly all institutions of higher education. They often form warm and long-lasting relationships with students, creating a ‘home away from home’ environment in the form of warm meals. In winning the union, securing their first union contracts, or bargaining new union contracts these UNITE HERE members have won wages and benefits that match the care they afford to students.”

“At the DHL Express superhub at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, 1,100 workers who load and unload freight on aircraft voted to join Teamsters Local 100 in April in one of the biggest private-sector union wins this year. Package giant DHL, a competitor of UPS and FedEx, is one of the world’s largest and most profitable logistics companies, and the Cincinnati-area hub is the company’s largest.”

“Amid this surge, one union is showing up a surprising amount: the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America, or the “UE.” Graduate worker union drives affiliated with the UE have popped up at Indiana University Bloomington, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Chicago, Johns Hopkins University, Dartmouth College, Northwestern University, Princeton University, University of Minnesota, Stanford University, and elsewhere.”

“Workers in union outlier industries are taking notice of the organizing success of the IAM and what once seemed unlikely or impossible has become achievable. Union organizing victories can be very contagious. The Machinists have led the way in non-traditional organizing – or organizing outside the box. The IAM’s Eastern Territory is in the forefront of a new organizing strategy, and when they organized the Maine Lobstermen, it was just the beginning.”

“In a major victory, a majority of employees at Solar Alliance Southeast voted for union representation with the Communications Workers of America (CWA) in an official National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) election held today…Despite playing a critical role in ensuring the demands of this rapidly expanding industry are met, workers at SASE and across the solar industry are currently faced with immense challenges. SASE workers receive low and inconsistent pay that is grossly under the industry standard and does not match the workers’ level of expertise and skills. In addition, the workers are constantly overworked without additional compensation, lack job security and safety, as well as adequate resources and support.”

“Barnes & Noble Inc. employees at a four-story Manhattan bookstore voted overwhelmingly to unionize, expanding a new labor foothold at the longtime union-free brand. Workers voted 76-to-2 in favor of joining the Retail Wholesale and Department Store Union, according to a spokesperson for the US National Labor Relations Board, which conducted the election Wednesday. RWDSU, an affiliate of the United Food & Commercial Workers Union, also prevailed in a vote last month among Barnes & Noble Education Inc. staff on Rutgers University’s campus in New Jersey, and another UFCW chapter won a May vote at a Barnes & Noble location in Massachusetts.”

“Hundreds of Dollar General workers gathered on May 31 during the general stockholders meeting at the company’s headquarters in Goodlettsville, Tennessee, to demand better working conditions. Through their activism, they won a victory for workplace safety after shareholders voted for an independent audit to review the company’s health and safety policies.”

“Following two weeks of picket lines, a boycott of non-union IHG (InterContinental Hotel Group) properties in the D.C. area, and months of intensive organizing, workers at the InterContinental on the Wharf are poised to win their union. In an agreement finalized today between IHG and UNITE HERE Local 25, IHG has agreed to an expedient, neutral process for union recognition and bargaining a first contract.”

“A group of Alphabet Inc. contract workers are launching a unionization campaign, saying they need a greater voice at the company that has tasked them with work on its most high-profile products, including training generative AI answers in Google’s search engine and chatbot.”

“One year ago this week, I was officially elected as the first woman to lead the AFL-CIO, America’s largest labor federation—consisting of 12.5 million workers across 60 unions. It’s been the honor of a lifetime to be part of the changing labor movement that is increasingly led by women, people of color, LGBTQ+ people, immigrants and others who have gone underrepresented for too long. But the truth is, the real leaders are the women and workers on the ground who are leading organizing drives and picket lines across America, such as nurses in New York, teachers in Minnesota, retail workers at REI, warehouse workers at Amazon, or baristas at Starbucks. The past 12 months have been nothing short of historic in how these workers and many more have risen up and seized our collective power (with the Federation marching and fighting alongside them).”

“As smoke from Canadian wildfires blanketed much of the East Coast last week and air quality worsened, some workers organized to try and stay safe.”

“The last two years have seen a wave of union filings emerge from Chicago’s coffeehouses and university halls, from its cannabis dispensaries to the steps of its vaunted museums. As of the end of last year, union filings in the Chicago area were up more than 17% over the prior year. Nationally, union campaigns have taken root at retail giants including Starbucks, REI, Apple and Trader Joe’s, as well as among graduate students at top U.S. universities and cultural workers at museums. Many of the new faces on picket lines and sitting across bargaining tables are relatively young, and many of them are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender.”

“For this article, New Labor Forum’s Working-Class Voices columnist Kressent Pottenger interviewed two women who are members of Los Deliveristas Unidos (LDU): Ernesta Galvez, a delivery worker of seven years and an LDU leader, and Hildalyn Colón Hernández, Director of Policy and Strategic Partnerships at LDU.”

“The campaign, which has representatives from every team and support from unions including the NFLPA and MLSPA, has three main demands: contract security, better working conditions and league-provided healthcare. The USRPA has asked for voluntary recognition, said its board chair, the former New York lock Nick Civetta, but is prepared to file for an election if necessary.”

“Legalizing pot has opened the floodgates to a new multibillion dollar industry in multiple states. But where there are high profits, there’s often high exploitation. The experience of unionized cannabis delivery drivers and warehouse workers who belong to Grassdoor Workers provides an instructive example of exploitative practices found across industries, and how workers can organize to fight back. Despite the best efforts of management to keep employees isolated from one another, Grassdoor workers managed to organize in response to company wage theft and successfully joined their Teamsters local. Grassdoor Workers organizer “G” speaks with The Real News.”

“In a moment of heightened interest in unions across the country and an upsurge in militancy among ‘culture workers’ in particular, a new industry is joining the labor movement: architecture.”

“Fifteen years after ProPublica published its first investigation, employees of the award-winning, nonprofit investigative newsroom announced today that they were forming a union, the ProPublica Guild. The announcement comes as a slew of newsrooms have organized and, increasingly, won major material gains for members.”

“Watch Burnes Center Senior Fellow Seth Harris in conversation with Cathy Nolan, former New York State Assemblywoman for District 37, and Jessica García, Assistant to the President of the Retail, Wholesale Department Store Union (RWDSU), as they discuss agricultural workers rights, the barriers and triumphs organizing under the 2019 New York Farm Workers Bill, the fight to get it passed, and much more.”

“Amazon is embroiled in a fight with workers at one of its delivery service partners in what union activists say is part of a longstanding anti-union drive by the retail giant which is now facing scrutiny in the US Senate for its anti-labor rights practices. At Battle Tested Strategies, an Amazon delivery service partner in Palmdale, California, workers are currently fighting Amazon’s intent to terminate the delivery service partner’s contract on Saturday. That matters because the 84 drivers and dispatchers at BTS became the first in Amazon’s network to unionize in the US in April among the company’s roughly 3,000 delivery service partners. Workers are now engaged in an unfair labor practice strike to demand Amazon bargain with the union, rather than simply terminate the contract.”

“This year, workers from GrowNYC and FRESHFARM, two sustainable food access nonprofits in New York City and the Washington, D.C. metro area respectively, formed unions. Workers who support and organize farmers markets, compost programs, and other initiatives will begin collectively bargaining for higher wages and job security in the coming months for the first time in the history of the industry.”

“On-air hosts, disc jockeys, producers, and others at Philadelphia radio station Power 99-FM are trying to organize a union. A group of 10 employees of the WUSL-FM radio station, which is owned by iHeartMedia Inc., filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on June 20. They are seeking to be represented by the Philadelphia local of the Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA).”

“My preliminary answer is that anger can be and is helpful to worker activism and organizing, but it also can be perilous. Ali/Desmet/Wacziarg summarize a comprehensive review of the psychology literature to explain how anger can affect decision-making in ways that are distinct from other emotions. Their summary offers four insights that provide a framework for thinking about anger in the context of union organizing and worker activism.”

“In a firehouse in Waterbury this week, supporters from varying organizations gathered to launch a yearlong campaign against wage theft. They urged collaboration to convince legislators to fund the hiring of more wage and hour inspectors and shared personal stories and information about workers’ rights. ‘We’re working on having people share their stories so that we can take them to the legislature next year,’ said Karime Pimentel in Spanish, lead organizer at the Naugatuck Valley Project, a nonprofit focused on providing resources to low-income and working families. ‘We’re showing up in written [testimony], through video, in-person … so that legislators know how severe the abuses are and the discrimination that our people are suffering.’ The CT Mirror previously reported that a bill that would have increased the number of wage and hour inspectors failed to pass, despite a backlog of cases. Since 2019, over 13,000 complaints were filed to the Connecticut Department of Labor. After investigations of the cases, almost $17 million in wages were ordered to be paid back to workers.”

“A majority of workers at The Trevor Project, a widely-praised nonprofit dedicated to preventing suicide among LGBTQ youth, decided to come together this spring and unionize as Friends of Trevor United. About a month later, they celebrated when management at the nonprofit agreed to voluntarily recognize their union.”

“Workers at Sega of America, the North American branch of the Japanese company behind Sonic the Hedgehog, voted on Monday to form the first multi-departmental video game union in the U.S…The workers are based out of the company’s California offices in Irvine and Burbank, and their unit includes members of numerous departments, including Brand Marketing, Product Development, Sales, and Quality Assurance. Those offices are responsible for game development, marketing, and media streaming opportunities in the U.S. Workers have unionized as the ​​Allied Employees Guild Improving SEGA (AEGIS-CWA), with the Communications Workers of America.”

"Nearly 80 percent of the St. Louis Public Radio Guild members voted in favor of union representation under the umbrella of Communication Workers of America. The vote took place months after management staff and the University of Missouri-St. Louis declined to recognize the union, with 75 percent signing its statement of interest, forcing them into the longer legal process."

“On Friday, Delta Air Lines workers and their allies in the labor movement rallied at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport to demand that the company stop its anti-union propaganda campaign amid an organizing drive where as many as 45,000 people employed at the carrier are actively seeking to join unions…Mechanics and related workers are organizing to join the International Brotherhood of Teamsters; ramp, cargo, and tower workers are seeking to join the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM); and Delta flight attendants are organizing for representation with the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA-CWA).Last month, Delta shareholders rejected a proposal whereby the company would agree to remain neutral during a union organizing drive.”

"The United Farm Workers just had its biggest unionizing success in years, and it didn’t happen in California. In a first for the historic labor union, it organized nearly 500 workers at five farms in New York. The victories, which will increase UFW’s membership by 8%, come four years after a state law passed giving farm workers the right to organize…Like many unions, UFW has struggled to organize over the last few decades, its membership dwindling from 60,000 to around 6,000. Even with legal protection, farmworker organizing is often slow, painstaking work. Many prospective union members are reluctant to give up 3% of their already low wages for dues, and worry that their immigration status leaves them vulnerable to employer retaliation. But there are signs of a resurgence on both sides of the country.”

“Amazon Teamsters’ picket line is spreading nationwide. Workers across the country are standing up to Amazon after the company fired 84 drivers for unionizing with the Teamsters. Amazon, the nation’s largest single employer, represents the Mount Everest for the modern labor union movement. Smaller unions have worked to organize the mega-monolith, but Amazon’s sheer size has a bigger force eyeing it as well. Enter the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.”

“For a long time, Rachel Smith worried about how she’ll be able to get a job and support herself after she finishes her prison sentence at Coffee Creek Correctional Facility. Then in May, she enrolled in a new building trades pre-apprenticeship program at the prison that she says brightened her future. She plans to join Ironworkers Local 29 when she’s released next spring….Smith, 45, was one of the first five women to graduate from Union Pre-Apprenticeship Construction Training (U-PACT) Oregon, a grant-funded program run by Local 29, Bricklayers Local 1, and Cement Masons Local 555 at Oregon’s only women’s prison. U-PACT Oregon’s goal is to provide a path to a stable career with living wages once graduates are released from prison. It’s also a way to draw more women to three unions that have historically low rates of female workers.”

“Yellowstone National Park rangers have voted to unionize, according to unionization drive organizers. The Jackson Hole Daily has confirmed the results with the Federal Labor Relations Authority, which oversees the United States’ labor-management relations. But one of the Yellowstone employees organizing the vote, Mark Wolf, said it passed 66-15. About 350 employees were eligible to vote, organizers said.”

“On Thursday, July 20, workers at Grindr, the popular and long-running LGBTQ dating app, announced that they were unionizing with the Communications Workers of America (CWA). A supermajority of Grindr workers has signed union cards, and they are asking the company to voluntarily recognize the new union, Grindr United.”

“Across the nation, hundreds of workers at the Neighborhood Defender Service and their allies mobilized last week in support of a new collective bargaining agreement. The 200 workers are attorneys, social workers, paralegals, investigators, clerical staff, are represented by the Association of Legal Aid Attorneys (ALAA) – UAW Local 2325, which first won union representation at NDS in 2019. The Union’s contract campaign, titled, ‘Fulfill the Promise of Public Defense’ has won the support of workers and communities as negotiations intensify. On July 25 in Detroit, workers rallied outside the Frank Murphy Hall of Justice, chanting, ‘When NDS clients are under attack, what do we do? Stand up! Fight Back!’. Community members, autoworkers, and others joined in to spread the message before the bargaining committee headed into a negotiation session with management.”

“Peet’s Coffee now has three new union shops after workers voted to unionize Wednesday, hoping to increase wages and benefits and combat unsafe working conditions. Workers celebrated two unanimous decisions in favor of a union at Berkeley’s Southside store and in Temescal. At the Piedmont Avenue store, the union won by one vote in an 8-7 election.”

“Unions today are enjoying a surge of support across generations, particularly among Generation Z, and policymakers have a lot to learn about this pro-union generation. Typically defined as adults born in 1997 or later, Gen Z distinguishes itself from previous generations in a number of ways, most prominently in their attitudes toward the workplace, including a higher approval of unions than even older generations had at their age. Entering the labor force in a time of economic uncertainty, Gen Zers not only report high rates of economic anxiety but also have demonstrably more progressive attitudes than older generations. This has translated to on-the-ground organizing successes as Gen Zers lead union campaigns at their workplaces, which in turn has enabled young workers to reap the economic benefits of union membership.”

“The Fellows United campaign submitted union authorization cards to the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA)—the agency that governs relations between the federal government and its employees—on June 1. Organizers have spent the two months since then waiting for an election date, but will have to wait even longer now that the NIH has rejected the workers’ right to unionize and collectively bargain.”

“The nation’s most powerful farmworkers union, United Farm Workers (UFW), has seen a decline in membership since its heyday, falling from 80,000 members in the 1970s to around 6,000 in recent years. But the union scored a new opportunity in 2019, when New York State passed the Farm Laborers Fair Labor Practices Act, cementing farmworkers’ right to organize and prohibiting retaliation from employers against labor activities. UFW leaders say this law made the latest unionization effort possible.”

“AT&T In Home Experts (IHX) across Alabama have formed a union with the Communications Workers of America (CWA). IHX workers from hubs in Huntsville, Birmingham, and Mobile have joined together to make In Home Expert a union position in Alabama. The new CWA members join IHX workers across the country in a movement to organize the profession and bring respect and dignity to the job. AT&T voluntarily recognized the union after a majority of eligible workers signed union authorization cards signaling their desire to be represented by CWA. While many companies choose to engage in protracted, expensive campaigns to prevent workers from joining unions, AT&T has agreed to respect the right of IHX workers in Alabama and across the country to make their own choice about whether or not to join a union.”

“The staff of CalMatters, the award-winning nonprofit journalism outlet covering California politics and policy, announced Tuesday that they are forming a union to preserve and protect a robust, equitable and thriving newsroom. An overwhelming majority, 92% of non-management staff, have signed cards authorizing union representation by The Pacific Media Workers Guild, NewsGuild-CWA Local 39521. They are asking CalMatters leadership to voluntarily recognize the CalMatters Guild as a unit of the Communication Workers of America.”

“A supermajority of [Marvel’s] 50 on-set VFX employees have filed a petition for an election with the National Labor Relations Board. They're hoping to join the Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), which also represents hair and makeup artists, wardrobe, lighting and prop personnel, among other workers.”

“The UPS-Teamsters contract — which some 340,000 workers are voting on this month — is the beachhead for what labor groups see is a bigger war: organizing Amazon and growing union ranks after years of decline. The five-year deal for drivers, package handlers and others at Sandy Springs-based UPS is not only the largest private collective bargaining agreement in the U.S. It’s one that the International Brotherhood of Teamsters hopes will show Amazon hourly workers the union’s worth and build the case more collective bargaining can reverse rising income inequality.”

“On Wednesday, August 9, nearly 5,000 fellows at the National Institutes of Health were informed that the agency has accepted their petition to hold an election to affiliate with the United Auto Workers (UAW)... The NIH and UAW will now work toward setting a date with the FLRA for the Iinstitutes’ fellows to vote on whether to unionize. If successful, this would be the largest federal union drive in 12 years. It also marks the UAW’s first foray into the sector.”

“After successfully forming a union with United Steelworkers, workers at the Blue Bird electric school bus manufacturing plant in Georgia have moved one step closer to securing a safer and fairer workplace while building the clean energy future.”

“It is said that history is written by the winners. But when it comes to big wins by organized labor, the corporate news media, itself fighting unionization at all costs, tends to ignore unions even when they are shaping history. Missing from much of the coverage about Ohio voters’ rejection of the Republican legislature’s attempt to raise the threshold for voter approval needed to amend the state constitution from a simple majority to 60 percent — was the central role organized labor played in mobilizing and helping to defeat the scheme.” 

“Doctors at private hospitals are turning to unions to address the loss of autonomy and deterioration of working conditions that they believe are the result of increasing health-care mergers and acquisitions in the wake of post-pandemic economic strains on the industry. Hundreds of physicians at the Allina Health System in Minnesota petitioned to unionize last week in what the union says is the largest group of organized doctors in the country. The new campaign marks another step for organized labor with the nation’s doctors, and unions predict a bigger push could be on the horizon.”

“Doctors at one of Minnesota’s major health care providers have filed to unionize, a move that could create the largest group of private-sector clinicians in the entire country. Doctors Council SEIU Local 10MD, which would represent doctors in Allina Health’s system, formally filed an election petition with the National Labor Relations Board on Thursday. That means members will still have to actually hold an election to determine whether or not to unionize.”

“After an multi-year effort to unionize while facing sustained university opposition, Northeastern graduate student workers received authorization from the National Labor Relations Board July 14 to hold a vote in September deciding whether a union should represent graduate workers in bargaining talks with the university. In a consequential victory for the Graduate Students of Northeastern University, or GENU-UAW, the National Labor Relations Board, or NLRB, has allowed workers to hold a vote determining whether they want to be collectively represented by the United Automobile Workers union, the union announced on Twitter in July.” 

“The singers of the Philadelphia Orchestra have unionized. After members of the Philadelphia Symphonic Choir signed union authorization cards indicating their desire for the American Guild of Musical Artists to bargain on their behalf, a ‘card check’ on Thursday determined that a majority answered in the affirmative, and now the singers will be represented by the union. The union organizing effort — the latest show of labor muscle at area cultural institutions in the last few years — took about 20 months, organizers said.”

 “In this blogcast, Burnes Center Senior Fellow Seth Harris spoke with Maida Rosenstein, the organizing director for the UAW local 2110, and three museum employees she worked with— Jordan Barnes, Karissa Francis, and Erika Wentworth. Listen to what they have to say about their experiences, founding unions, partnering with the local 2110, working to ratify their unions' first contracts with their employers, and much more.”

“In a landslide vote, graduate students at Duke University have won their election to unionize, a major milestone in their pursuit to form a formally recognized labor union. If the results are certified, PhD students who work at Duke as teaching assistants and researchers will form the largest graduate student union at a private university in the South. The final vote count on Tuesday was 1,000 votes for the union to 131 against. Supporters of the union needed to win a simple majority of returned ballots to succeed; they received 88%.”

“Labor unions continue to enjoy high support in the U.S., with 67% of Americans approving of them, similar to the elevated level seen in recent years after more than a decade of rising support. Mirroring this trend, Americans have gradually become more likely than a decade ago to want unions’ influence to strengthen and to believe unions benefit various aspects of business and the economy.”

“Unionization so far this year has hit near-historic levels, with more than 58,000 workers—driven largely by graduate students and medical interns—voting to organize within the last six months. In the first half of 2023, organized labor has held onto its momentum from 2022, unionizing a total of 58,483 workers, 10,000 more than last year’s first-half tally of 43,502, according to a Bloomberg Law analysis of National Labor Relations Board election data. The figure represents the second-highest first-half organizing total since 2000.”

“Members of Data Center Operators of Colorado-CWA Union won their National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) election on August 28, marking a significant step towards ensuring fair treatment and just compensation for workers in the data center industry. The workers are based at International Game Technology’s Pueblo, Colorado data center…Workers at the IGT Pueblo data center began organizing after discovering that new workers were being paid substantially higher rates compared to existing staff, many of whom had dedicated years to the company. This unsettling pattern was exacerbated by cumulative negative adjustments to compensation, fringe benefits, overtime calculations, and a 15% pay reduction during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

“Trader Joe’s workers in New York City may be getting a second chance at forming a union after their election failed with a tied vote earlier this year, thanks to a groundbreaking new rule handed down by federal labor officials last week.”

“Before she had turned 18, Syrah May Lark rode a unicycle across the United States. Now a month shy of 24, the precocious bike mechanic has been a co-lead for the successful Blue Krewe United unionization campaign in a state where union density is at its lowest in the last decade.”

Self-organizing a union on a shoestring? Winning the supposedly unwinnable? Workers at a local burger chain out of Portland, Oregon, were doing it before it was cool. The Burgerville Workers Union, which went public in 2016 and won its first contract in 2021, has recently been influencing and supporting independent union efforts in the region - and it has a few lessons to offer independent unions around the country.

Ingredion workers in Cedar Rapids have been on strike for more than 6 months. The specialty ingredient manufacturer brought in record revenue of almost 7 billion in 2022 but tried to pay its workers less and cut their benefits

Until fairly recently, games were considered a niche hobby, typically associated with children. But the industry has grown widely in recent decades. About two-thirds of Americans, most of them adults, play video games. The video game industry was worth nearly $200 billion in 2021 - more than music, U.S. book publishing and North American sports combined. It employs hundreds of thousands of people in the U.S. alone.

Self-organizing a union on a shoestring? Winning the supposedly unwinnable? Workers at a local burger chain out of Portland, Oregon, were doing it before it was cool. The Burgerville Workers Union, which went public in 2016 and won its first contract in 2021, has recently been influencing and supporting independent union efforts in the region - and it has a few lessons to offer independent unions around the country.

Ingredion workers in Cedar Rapids have been on strike for more than 6 months. The specialty ingredient manufacturer brought in record revenue of almost 7 billion in 2022 but tried to pay its workers less and cut their benefits

Self-organizing a union on a shoestring? Winning the supposedly unwinnable? Workers at a local burger chain out of Portland, Oregon, were doing it before it was cool. The Burgerville Workers Union, which went public in 2016 and won its first contract in 2021, has recently been influencing and supporting independent union efforts in the region - and it has a few lessons to offer independent unions around the country.

Self-organizing a union on a shoestring? Winning the supposedly unwinnable? Workers at a local burger chain out of Portland, Oregon, were doing it before it was cool. The Burgerville Workers Union, which went public in 2016 and won its first contract in 2021, has recently been influencing and supporting independent union efforts in the region - and it has a few lessons to offer independent unions around the country.

"...the most recent high-profile battle between Philadelphia workers and their employers did not play out on the docks, in the stockyard, or in a factory. Instead, it saw 750 graduate teaching assistants and research assistants at Temple University, one of the city’s finest institutions of higher education, take on their own school’s administration in a historic six-week strike."

“One year after its surprise victory at a Staten Island warehouse, the only union in the country representing Amazon workers has endured a series of setbacks and conflicts that have caused longtime supporters to question if it will survive. In interviews, a dozen people who have been closely involved with the Amazon Labor Union said the union had made little progress bringing Amazon to the bargaining table, to say nothing of securing a contract. Many cited lopsided losses at two other warehouses, unstable funding and an internal feud that has made it difficult for the union to alter a strategy that they considered flawed.”

“In 2021, President Biden announced a new initiative to establish a national minimum staffing  standard for nursing home workers, improve compensation and make it easier for these workers to join a union. This is surely one of the single biggest ongoing initiatives to address the inequities facing women and workers of color; it is also one of the best solutions for addressing the emotionally difficult and physically dangerous working conditions these workers face.”

“Medical residents and fellows at the state's largest health system are preparing to unionize, frustrated that their salaries have not kept pace with the rising costs of housing and child care. If successful, the effort would create one of the largest unions of medical residents and fellows in the country, part of a wave of such unionizations. More than 2,500 residents and fellows at multiple Mass General Brigham hospitals would join the Committee of Interns and Residents, or CIR, at the Service Employees International Union, including trainees at Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Mass Eye and Ear, Newton-Wellesley Hospital, Salem Hospital, and Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital Boston.”

“Last week, President Biden’s Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment, which is led by Vice-President Harris, announced that the number of federal employees who are union members had increased by 80,000 from September 2021 to September 2022.”

“Where there is exploitation and oppression, however, there is always resistance. In Vermont, dairy workers organizing with Migrant Justice are engaged in a campaign to compel the grocery store chain Hannaford to join their compact, Milk with Dignity, which would guarantee fair wages, better benefits, and improved working and living conditions on dairy farms throughout the northeast.”

“The rebellion inside Medieval Times’ Southern California castle has spread to another wing. The castle’s sound and lighting technicians informed the company Tuesday that they intend to unionize, filing a petition for a union election with the National Labor Relations Board. The castle’s show cast formed a union of their own last year and have been on strike since February.”

“Most cannabis dispensaries are cash-only businesses, constantly at risk of being robbed. Indoor growing facilities use harsh lighting, and plants get sprayed with pesticides. Those conditions can create daily hazards for cannabis workers, which is why labor organizers are trying to unionize them as legalization spreads and the marijuana workforce grows.”

“Workers involved in organizing the approximately 150 staff members at the store said in interviews they are seeking a union primarily to address what they see as Trader Joe’s disregard for their physical safety and financial security in the high-priced San Francisco Bay Area. The Oakland store is the first Trader Joe’s location in California to join a national push that began in May.”

“Full-time faculty in non-tenured track positions at New York University are demanding that the university administration recognize their union. In February, a group organizing a union called Contract Faculty United-UAW presented the university administration with a petition signed by a majority of contract faculty urging the university to agree to a “fair and neutral process” for voluntarily recognizing their union. These workers say they lack the job security - and many of the benefits - afforded to faculty members in tenured positions.”

“As part of the five-year deal, MLB agreed during the contract not to reduce minor league affiliates from the current 120. The sides reached the agreement two days before the start of the minor league season and hours after a federal judge gave final approval to a $185 million settlement reached with MLB last May of a lawsuit filed in 2014 alleging violations of federal minimum wage laws.”

“The Power At Work Blog proudly presents the fourth and final installment of our Labor Day blogcasts, an exclusive and important interview with Brent Booker, newly elected General President of the Laborers' International Union of North America (LIUNA). Booker has been at the forefront of labor and industry initiatives to improve workplace standards and broaden middle-class career paths throughout his career.”

“On Thursday, September 21, the graduate student workers at Northeastern University ended nearly 8 years of organizing by voting to be represented by the Graduate Employees of Northeastern University – United Auto Workers (GENU-UAW). The union’s victory was secured with 94% of the votes cast.”

“WGA members will now vote on whether to ratify the deal, which includes higher pay than the studios were originally willing to offer, improved healthcare benefits, viewership-based streaming residuals, minimum staffing requirements for television writers’ rooms, and regulations constraining studios’ use of artificial intelligence.”

“The educators, researchers, and lab technicians at the prestigious Science Museum of Minnesota have been fighting not only to form a union, but to keep union members’ jobs, in the face of what they say is retaliation from management. Their efforts—and frustrations—show how when workers vote to form a union, the struggle is not over, but is just beginning.”

“Starbucks Workers United has not yet asked supporters to stop frequenting Starbucks locations. But unionized workers have been ramping up customer solidarity organizing, potentially laying the groundwork for a Starbucks boycott.”

“Low wages and poor health care benefits were among the reasons some graduate students who work for the University of Maine System sought certification as a labor union. After a majority of the grad-student workers signed cards supporting the formation of a union and the cards were verified, the Maine Labor Relations Board last week certified the University of Maine Graduate Workers Union-United Auto Workers. The new union will represent the 1,000 graduate workers across all campuses of the University of Maine System, who make up a large percentage of the overall teaching and research workforce.”

“Teachers and staff at KIPP St. Louis High School, members of the American Federation of Teachers St. Louis (AFT Local 420), held an informational picket and leafletting action at the school on Sept. 21, demanding KIPP management bargain in good faith and negotiate a first contract.”

“Visual effects workers at Walt Disney Pictures have voted unanimously in favor of unionizing with the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) in an election held by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The 13-0 vote comes just weeks after VFX workers at Marvel Studios voted to unionize with IATSE and comes amid the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, as the guilds continue to seek fair contracts with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.”

“In this blogcast, "WorkerTech" experts Michelle Penson of the AFL-CIO and Adrian Haro of the Workers Lab join Burnes Center Senior Fellow Seth Harris to discuss how technology is being used as a tool to build worker power.”

“Tesla has beaten back previous efforts by workers to unionize – but the United Auto Workers hopes a successful strike against Ford, General Motors and Stellantis could help it organize at Tesla. UAW membership has declined in recent decades, and the auto industry is moving to electric vehicles. EV battery and production plants thus far in the United States are mostly non-union. To grow, the UAW will have to make inroads at EV plants.”

“In the latest sign of growing frustration among professionals, doctors employed by a large nonprofit health care system in Minnesota and Wisconsin have voted to unionize. The doctors, roughly 400 primary and urgent-care providers across more than 50 clinics operated by the Allina Health System, appear to be the largest group of unionized private-sector physicians in the United States. More than 150 nurse practitioners and physician assistants at the clinics were also eligible to vote and will be members of the union, which will be represented by a local of the Service Employees International Union.”

“Workers at Maryland’s Howard County Library System (HCLS) are forming a union through AFSCME Maryland Council 3 that would include 150 staff across all seven branches…Organizing efforts began after a group of employees met last year following sweeping job restructuring to discuss the challenges within the library system. After realizing administration had done little to address staff’s longstanding concerns, workers decided it was time to take action and form HoCo Library Workers United.”

“Workers at Alamo Drafthouse, the movie theater chain known for dine-in service and strict policies on etiquette, have voted to unionize at the Downtown Brooklyn and Lower Manhattan venues in elections held Friday, September 29th and Thursday, October 12th, respectively. In Manhattan, 65% of Alamo employees voted in favor of unionizing with United Auto Workers Local 2179 on Thursday. The bargaining unit consists of approximately 100 full-time and part-time employees, including wait staff, line cooks, bartenders, box office, custodians and dishwashers. This does not include Brooklyn’s bargaining unit of approximately 190 workers.”

“When George Lucas first created Star Wars, he used non-union workers to make the visual effects-heavy film quickly. But decades later, visual effects (VFX) workers are still non-union, leading to rampant abuse and turnover across the industry. VFX workers are often some of the only workers on set without union protections. That’s finally about to change. VFX workers at Disney and Marvel just voted to unionize with the International Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employees (IATSE), becoming the first in the U.S. to do so in the industry’s history.”

“An overwhelming majority of non-managerial employees of Wisconsin Watch, an award-winning, nonprofit newsroom, announced Monday they had organized as the Wisconsin Watch Union.”

“In this blogcast, Burnes Center Senior Fellow Seth Harris speaks with Amy Livingston and Sarah Lazare, co-authors of the Workday Magazine/In These Times article entitled "5 Things Unions Can Do To Defend Transgender Workers." The article argues that liberation for transgender, non-binary, and gender expansive people is a labor movement issue, and urges unions to do what they do best: fight for workers in the workplace and beyond.”

“It’s official. More than 200 workers for the City of Salisbury, Maryland, now have a union. Workers in the general government unit decided to form a union after the Salisbury City Council amended the city charter in fall 2022 and recently passed a labor code to grant collective bargaining rights to all city employees in three units: police, fire and general government. The Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) certified majority support within the general government bargaining unit. Workers learned this month that the FMCS has formally recognized their union, which will be the first of its kind in Maryland’s rural Eastern Shore region.”

“Student workers at the University of Oregon have voted to unionize. UO employs around 5,000 students in its dining halls, dormitories and other facilities. Workers are seeking higher wages, along with shorter pay periods and more protection against harassment…In an election this week, 97% of participating student workers voted in favor of forming a union. This follows a two year campaign by supporters of the move.”

“Hospice care was once the work of charities and nonprofits, but it has more recently become big business. More than half of Americans now die in hospice care, which is often paid for by Medicare. Last year, Medicare spent nearly $24 billion on hospice care, a jump of more than 24% from five years earlier. For-profit companies make up more than 72% of the hospice industry, with more than a hundred new for-profit companies entering the field each year. And these companies, though funded at the same daily rate per patient as nonprofits, enjoy more than three times their profit margins…Feeling increased pressure to provide more care for less pay has pushed hospice workers to organize…Capital & Main spoke to workers at three agencies with hospice union campaigns. All described similar pressures to see more patients more quickly, with little regard to the effect on care.”

“The United Auto Workers has reportedly offered to provide organizers with all the resources they need to unionize Tesla's electric car factory in Fremont, California, an effort that would pit an invigorated UAW against a company run by Elon Musk—the world's richest man and an aggressive union-buster. Following news Monday that the UAW reached a tentative contract agreement with General Motors—the final Big Three holdout—after six weeks on strike, Bloomberg reported that ‘Tesla's roughly 20,000-worker plant in Fremont, California currently has a UAW organizing committee whose members are talking to coworkers about the advantages of collective bargaining.’”

“Waffle House employees and organizers with the Union of Southern Service Workers are circulating a petition demanding better pay and workplace safety — and staging rallies in restaurants in Georgia and the Carolinas. Founded in 2022, the USSW is an affiliate of the national Service Employees International Union. The union has chosen to push for change through strikes, petitions and other direct action rather than the traditional National Labor Relations Board process.”

“A group of Alphabet Inc. contract staff working on content for Google’s support pages voted to unionize, setting up a likely contentious court battle over whether the internet company is legally their boss. The US National Labor Relations Board counted ballots in an election on Monday, with 26 eligible employees voting for the union and two voting against…The workers, whose jobs have included improving the quality of answers in Google’s search engine and artificial intelligence chatbot, are employed through consulting firm Accenture Plc.”

“In November 1994, Californians passed Proposition 187, which would have cut off a number of health and social services, including access to public education, to undocumented immigrants and their children. Proposition 187 was conceived by a group of extreme right-wing groups and elected officials as part of an effort to target immigrants in California… Proposition 187 created a spark in the immigrant rights movement.”

“After securing historic deals with the Big Three automakers, the UAW is continuing to go on the offensive. It has set its sights on nonunion automakers, from Toyota and Hyundai in the South to Tesla in California.”

“An alliance of influential online communities with a combined social media following of more than 300,000 individuals is teaming up to support the launch of  a new worker empowerment project called The Pharmacy Guild. The effort aims to unite pharmacists and pharmacy technicians to address unsafe staffing levels and dangerously high workloads throughout the industry.”

“In a major victory for farmworkers and the labor movement, approximately 250 tomato harvesters in California’s Stanislaus County won unionization, United Farm Workers (UFW) announced. The victory by Di Mare workers is the first under recent state law strengthening farmworkers’ union rights, including how laborers can vote in their union elections.”

“In Washington and most other states, agricultural companies can simply ignore demands to unionize, as the former owners of the Sunnyside mushroom farm did when more than 200 workers signed a petition last year demanding union representation. Early this September, workers tried again. More than 250 signed a petition whose demands included the right to negotiate pay and production quotas – and for the current owner, Windmill, to ‘recognize our union and begin negotiations of a labour agreement.’”

“It’s been a hectic two weeks. The Future of Freight Festival was last week, the federal government is cracking down on broker fraud, and the Teamsters union is still unionizing new trucking companies (when its president isn’t busy getting into potential fistfights with a certain Oklahoma lawmaker…). On Nov. 9, lawmakers in both the House and Senate introduced legislation that would remove the clause in the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 that exempts motor carriers from providing overtime pay.”

“The holiday season is here, meaning that many of us will probably find ourselves in an airport sometime during the next few weeks. While some travelers may not think much about who their pilots and flight attendants are –– let alone those workers’ schedules and pay –– many employees of the airline industry have been organizing for better working conditions for months or longer.”

“The United Auto Workers union says it has started an effort to organize workers at 13 non-union automakers with US factories. The union says it is seeing widespread grassroots support from employees at the plants after reaching labor deals with General Motors, Ford and Stellantis that granted members an immediate raise of at least 11% and subsequent raises and cost-of-living adjustments that could raise wages more than 30% over the life of contracts that run through April of 2028. The effort includes three US-based electric vehicle makers - Tesla, Rivian and Lucid - as well as 10 foreign automakers that build cars in the US - BMW, Honda, Hyundai, Mazda, Mercedes, Nissan, Subaru, Toyota, Volkswagen, and Volvo.”

“The successful UAW strike was the latest sign that the union movement is having a moment. Amid so much gloom in the world, US labor has emerged as an unlikely bright spot with genuine dynamism.”

“Buffalo, New York, has been a key hub within the current uptick of worker-led, store-level union organizing, especially among baristas and food service and grocery workers. From SPoT Coffee to Starbucks, the Lexington Co-op to Remedy House, the city has generated a collection of inspiring union victories and a growing layer of skilled labor organizers.”

“While unions represent nearly 70 percent of traditional public school teachers, they represent only 11 percent of teachers at charter schools. These numbers reflect many charter schools’ strident resistance to teacher unionization.”

“Adjunct professors at the University of Southern California’s prestigious film school are moving to unionize in pursuit of higher pay, benefits, better working conditions, expanded career opportunities and other demands. The college’s Adjunct Faculty Alliance-UAW announced that its colleagues at the USC School of Cinematic Arts will march Wednesday to the provost’s office and deliver a letter of request for their union to be recognized. In a news release, the AFA-UAW accused the film school of preventing its adjunct professors from teaching more than one class ‘to avoid providing health and other benefits.’ The alleged class cuts have resulted in a ‘severe’ loss of pay, the alliance said.”

“Ten of Walt Disney's (DIS.N) animation workers who operate remotely across six U.S. states are seeking to unionize, the Animation Guild said on Tuesday. The workers have filed with the National Labor Relations Board for an official union election and sought representation by the Animation Guild and the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE).”

“Listen to Burnes Center Senior Fellow Seth Harris in conversation about organizing in higher education with William Herbert, executive director of the National Center for the Study of Collective Bargaining in Higher Education and the Professions; Joseph van der Naald, Affiliated Researcher with the National Center and a Ph.D candidate at the City University of New York Graduate Center; and Scott Phillipson, president of SEIU Local 200 and chair of the SEIU Higher Education Council.”

“The United Auto Workers said it has signed up more than 1,000 employees at Volkswagen AG’s non-union Tennessee auto plant, setting up a high-stakes showdown at a site where the union suffered painful past defeats.”

“Dr. John Wust does not come off as a labor agitator. A longtime obstetrician-gynecologist from Louisiana with a penchant for bow ties, Dr. Wust spent the first 15 years of his career as a partner in a small business — that is, running his own practice with colleagues…But that changed in the months leading up to March, when his group of more than 100 doctors at an Allina hospital near Minneapolis voted to unionize. Dr. Wust, who has spoken with colleagues about the potential benefits of a union, said doctors were at a loss on how to ease their unsustainable workload because they had less input at the hospital than ever before.”

“With its recently announced drive to organize non-union automakers, the UAW is tackling the legacy of previous failures to organize the South. The union is wagering that the momentum of its Big Three strike will allow it to win where it’s fallen short before.”

“Since December 2021, nearly 1,000 animation professionals employed by about a dozen different studios have been cleared to unionize under the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 839, the official local known as the Animation Guild — a large figure considering the union has amassed about 6,000 members total since its founding in 1952, and had long grown slowly despite efforts to expand. At least 668 of those new or soon-to-be new members fall under the job classification of production worker, which includes production coordinators, assistants, supervisors and managers. They are the liaisons and planners who ensure each stage of the production process runs smoothly from start to finish by facilitating communication between the studio and the artists, scheduling meetings, providing their co-workers with the materials they need to do their jobs and keeping everyone on track.”

“Registered nurses at University Medical Center (UMC) in New Orleans, La., have voted in favor of joining National Nurses Organizing Committee/National Nurses United (NNOC/NNU), the largest union of registered nurses in the United States. In a three-day vote from Dec. 7 to Dec. 9, UMC nurses voted overwhelmingly in favor of joining the union. Despite a disgusting union-busting effort from management, nurses voted 82% yes with over 90% turnout. Altogether, 74% of eligible voters said yes to the union.”

“When the Bureau of Labor Statistics releases its Union Members–2023 survey results on January 23, Burnes Center Senior Fellow Seth Harris predicted the union density rate will have increased. Historic times call for bold predictions.”

“Amazon’s open opposition to unions may explain why some of the most successful worker efforts have been realized by those who’ve left the question of a union for later. Workers calling themselves Amazonians United have posted a range of wins across multiple sites. The Chicagoland chapter successfully demanded paid time off for part-time workers in 2020, and the company adopted the policy nationally, noted Ellen Reese, a professor at University of California, Riverside, who has studied Amazon worker campaigns. But while worker opposition to Amazon has been ‘popping up all over,’ said Reese, KSBD “has been more successful than a lot of others.’”

“As recently as the early 80s, about three of every four doctors in the U.S. worked for themselves, owning small clinics. Today, some 75 percent of physicians are employees of hospital systems or large corporate entities. Some worry the trend is leading to diminished quality of care and is one reason doctors at a large Midwestern health provider decided to unionize.”

“As the campaign to unionize workers at the Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, TN, picks up momentum, the UAW has turned to a key ally for help: IG Metall, Germany’s big metalworkers union.”

“Nearly 1,000 Patient Care Associates (PCAs) and Psychiatric Care Technicians (PCTs) at the Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center have voted to join the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM). The healthcare workers chose IAM representation in a mail ballot election conducted between Dec. 5 and 19, which concluded with the counting of ballots on Jan. 3.”

“The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) is calling on the Department of Justice to reverse its decision to eliminate retention pay for hundreds of officers at FCI Thomson in Thomson, Illinois, that was removed on December 31. To combat high staff turnover, a federally mandated 25% retention pay bonus has been in place at FCI Thomson since 2021.”

“Caltech union organizers say they want recognition for the critical work they do at one of the country’s most prestigious science campuses. ‘The vast majority of papers that are published from research at Caltech come from grad students. We run the experiments, we collect the data, we analyze the overwhelming majority of the data, we publish those results, we write grants to bring money into Caltech,’ said Michael Greklek-McKeon, a fifth-year planetary science student, who is frequently up all night collecting data.”

“Costco workers in Norfolk, Va., voted overwhelmingly yesterday to join Teamsters Local 822. The 238-worker group seeks strong representation to  improve working conditions.”

“Workers at the Barnes & Noble store at the Almaden Plaza Shopping Center in San Jose, California, voted 90% in favor of union representation with United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 5.”

“There is a widespread public appetite for unions right now. But unions don’t organize themselves. We need many more union organizers operating in many more places, and they need to make themselves available to a wider cross section of workers in many more industries. The goal should be for any worker who wants to have a union to be able to easily access a union organizer who can help them build one. We are very, very far from that ideal today. To get there, unions will need to invest billions of dollars in their organizing capacity.”

“Corporations spend millions of dollars on union busting firms; experts at dividing workers, annihilating hope, and overwhelming organizers. But an equally ruthless organizer supported by dedicated local leaders can defeat them at their own game. Fear is a sword that cuts both ways.”

“Rashaad Pritchett and Teresa Miles of SEIU United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW) join hosts Bianca Cunningham and Jamala Rogers for this episode of Black Work Talk. They delve into the challenges faced by Black healthcare support workers, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. They also discuss SEIU-UHW’s monumental healthcare strike in October 2023, which saw participation from 75,000 Kaiser Permanente workers across four states."

“The United Auto Workers pressed forward in its effort to unionize auto factories in the South by announcing that 30 percent of Mercedes workers at an Alabama factory have signed cards endorsing unionization. The 30-year-old Tuscaloosa plant is the second to reach that milestone in recent weeks, joining a Volkswagen factory in Chattanooga, Tenn., that the union is also attempting to organize. The UAW is targeting U.S. factories of a dozen companies, including Tesla, Honda and Toyota.”

“Fresh off its victories over the US’s three biggest domestic automakers, the United Auto Workers (UAW) is going all out to unionize Volkswagen’s flagship plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The UAW led a successful strike for significant increases in pay and benefits for workers at Detroit’s “Big Three” auto manufacturers – Ford, General Motors and Stellantis – last year.”

“Nonprofit unionization has become increasingly common, but the most prominent organizations whose workers have organized—such as the Southern Poverty Law Center, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the Art Institute of Chicago—are ones with hundreds of employees and that bring in millions of dollars in revenue. At the same time, there is an increasing trend of nonprofits with smaller budgets and fewer staff also trying to use collective bargaining to improve working conditions, overcoming some of the unique challenges that arise when small nonprofits unionize.”

“After more than 50 years, the Hawaiʻi Labor Relations Board on Thursday ruled unanimously that graduate assistants at the University of Hawaiʻi can now be recognized as public employees. The ruling creates a clear pathway for graduate students to have the right to collectively bargain for benefits, such as a living wage, a grievance process, health insurance and other working conditions.”

“Nearly 1,000 full-time non-tenure track New York University faculty members will vote in a union election later this year free from interference by university management, according to an agreement between the United Auto Workers and NYU officials signed Wednesday. If the professors succeed, their union would become the largest of its kind at any private university in the country, according to a union official.”

“Janitors at the Anheuser-Busch (A-B) Brewery and Corporate Center who’ve been fighting for union recognition since early October received notice recently that Clean-Tech, a union contractor, will assume control of day-to-day operations beginning Jan. 8, 2024.”

“On Jan. 9, staff at High Country News, a 54-year-old nonprofit magazine that covers lands and communities in the Western U.S., announced their intent to unionize. The High Country News Union has organized with the Communications Workers of America Local 37074, Denver News Guild, joining peers such as the Denver Post and Casper-Star Tribune. On a national scale, High Country News staff joins the ranks of an increasing number of nonprofit newsrooms to unionize, from Grist to CalMatters to ProPublica.”

“A majority of about 250 workers at the Denver Art Museum announced their intent to form a union with AFSCME Council 18 on Thursday, seeking to become the first museum union in Colorado’s largest city and joining a wave of organizing taking place across the country’s cultural sector. Denver Art Museum Workers United (DAMWU) seeks to ensure all employees earn living wages, improve management transparency and create better safety procedures, among other issues.”

“Wells Fargo workers at a branch in Daytona Beach, in a show of growing momentum for a national campaign to organize bank workers, voted to unionize Thursday, becoming the second unionized Wells Fargo branch in the country. In a 4-1 vote, the workers have opted to join Wells Fargo Workers United, a union affiliated with the Communications Workers of America, which represents over half a million private and public sector workers in the United States. Wells Fargo is the only major U.S. bank that, as of last month, has branches staffed by a unionized workforce.”

“Here in the United States, I think it’s somehow easy to confuse isolation for independence. We feel free driving our own cars, and many of us dream of being our own boss. But these faceless apps are a new kind of boss, one that is always watching each one of us while we work alone in our cars. Alone, we are powerless to change anything, which is why unions were created. The problem is that drivers for Uber and Lyft have no way to form one.”

“Listen to Burnes Center Senior Fellow Seth Harris in conversation about podcasting in the labor movement with Judy Ancel, executive producer of the "Heartland Labor Forum;" Max Alvarez, host of "Working People" and Editor-In-Chief of the Real News Network; and Mel Buer, staff reporter at the Real News Network and host of the "Real News Network Podcast." Seth and guests discuss why they started their podcasts and some of the biggest current issues in the labor movement like union reform, the strengths and weaknesses of American labor law, and the importance of labor leadership.”

“Culture change is never easy. But it is happening, and not just at Stanford. Medicine residents at the University of Pennsylvania and Fellows at Mass General Brigham Housestaff recently unionized. It is going to take time for people to adjust to the fact that being in a union is not a bad thing. Maybe this could be good for my professional development because I am going to learn skills about negotiation, public speaking, and what advocacy can look like. As a profession, maybe we could actually organize to change this harmful system instead of organizing to perpetuate it like we used to.”

“Costco workers in Norfolk, Virginia, recently unionized, defying the company’s reputation as one that cares about workers. In an interview, a Costco worker says he and his coworkers are tired of being treated with disrespect on the job.”

“After a years-long fight, legislative employees at the State Capitol and throughout California will have the right to unionize following the signing of AB 1 by Gov. Gavin Newsom. This will affect numerous Sacramento-area workers.  The bill, also known as the Legislative Employer-Employee Relations Act, or LEERA, takes effect on July 1, 2026. The bill was authored by Assemblymember Tina McKinnor of Inglewood, who formerly worked as a legislative staffer. ‘I thought this would be a dream job and then got here and saw it differently,’ McKinnor recalled. ‘I saw lots of bullying. I saw just an inconsistency in pay.’ McKinnor said she remembered only making $80,000 as a staffer when her male coworker was making $150,000. She said that state legislators were able to pay staff whatever they thought they were worth. ‘A lot of times in the Senate, doing the same work, a black woman is not thought of the same as a white man,’ McKinnor suggested."

“Toyota used to host free car giveaways and give workers 12% bonuses. They promised workers would ‘retire as millionaires.’ Now Toyota workers can’t even afford the cars they make, while the company’s profits have doubled over the past 40 years.”

“Nine MOW workers on the Class III Florida Gulf & Atlantic Railroad have voted 8-1 to join the BMWED and will be assigned to the Allied Federation. The newest Brothers, who maintain and repair trackage from Baldwin through Tallahassee into Pensacola along the state’s Panhandle, reached out to BMWED Organizing Director Thomas Kirby in August seeking Union representation.”

“Workers at the MPX/iAnthus cannabis dispensary in Atlantic City, N.J., recently voted to join UFCW Local 152 for a better life. The 12 workers are employed as budtenders, who provide knowledgeable customer service, facilitate retail sales, and fulfill online orders. UFCW Local 152 also represents workers at the MPX/iAnthus grow facility in Pleasantville, who joined the local last April.”

“Before California’s fast food workers get a minimum wage hike to $20 an hour in April, the state will grant them another historic avenue to advance their interests.  A first-in-the-nation fast food council will offer workers and labor advocates a way to set industry working conditions, hammering out rules directly across the table from franchise owners and representatives of restaurant chains such as McDonald’s and Burger King. The council is supposed to start meeting by March 15, and its decisions will be sent to state labor agencies to decide if they’ll become real regulations. Gov. Gavin Newsom will have a hand in how the discussion plays out: He’s responsible for appointing seven of the council’s nine members; legislative leaders will appoint the other two. The positions are unpaid, except for $100 per day for council business.”

“But Colorado was different. The state’s union membership rate ticked up, at least from a low point in 2021. Last year, the number of union members increased 6.2% to 189,000 workers. Union members make up 6.9% of the state’s employed population. A year earlier it was at 6.7%, which is below the national average. The state added 11,000 union members last year, and 13,000 in the prior year. Those included baristas at Starbucks and staff at Urban Peak, the first unionized shelter for unhoused people in Colorado. Momentum, especially among service workers, continued this month with more filing with the National Labor Relations Board to start a union, including 238 employees at the Denver Art Museum, about 180 workers from Alamo Drafthouse Cinema locations in Westminster and Denver and five at the CobbleStone Car Wash in Lakewood.”

“Over 10,000 autoworkers across 13 non-union companies have signed union cards with the UAW, as momentum builds across the auto industry for better wages, benefits, and rights on the job. The major milestone comes less than 90 days after UAW members ratified record contracts at the Big Three.”

“Today, a supermajority of restaurant workers at The Bazaar by José Andrés in Washington, D.C., have announced their intention to form a union with UNITE HERE Local 25. The celebrity chef’s highly-rated restaurant is located within the Waldorf Astoria Washington DC hotel, the same federally-owned former Post Office that previously housed the Trump International Hotel.”

“Workers at the Lush Cosmetics store in Lexington, Ky., recently joined UFCW Local 227 for a better life. This organizing win marks the second unit of Lush Cosmetics workers in Kentucky to join UFCW Local 227. Workers at the Lush Cosmetics store in Louisville made history by becoming the first Lush Cosmetics store in the U.S. to unionize when they voted to join UFCW Local 227 last April.”

“Contract faculty at New York University are one step closer to securing a union. A group of faculty members in full-time, non-tenure track positions are organizing a union affiliated with United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 7902. In early January, the union – known as Contract Faculty United – reached a deal with university administration to hold a fair and neutral union representation election later this winter. Under the agreement, the 950 faculty members who comprise the bargaining unit will vote in an election where they will decide whether CFU-UAW will be their bargaining representative. According to a union official, if the unionization effort succeeds, Contract Faculty United would be the largest union of full-time faculty in non-tenure track positions at any private university in the United States. “

“A majority of workers at Volkswagen’s Chattanooga, Tennessee plant have signed cards to join the UAW, less than sixty days after the workers announced their campaign to form a union at the German automaker’s only US assembly plant. The milestone marks the first non-union auto plant to publicly announce majority support among the dozens of auto plants where workers have begun organizing in recent months. The grassroots effort sprang up in the wake of the record victories for Big Three autoworkers in the UAW’s historic Stand Up Strike win.”

“The National Labor Relations Board on Monday green-lighted a union election for members of the Dartmouth College men’s basketball team, a decision with potentially seismic implications for the future of collegiate athletics. Players on the team last year petitioned the NLRB to organize with a local arm of the powerhouse labor union SEIU that represents other groups at Dartmouth. Dartmouth, like other universities, has seen a recent rise of union activism on campus, which leaders of the effort to form a union for the basketball team have publicly cited as an inspiration.”

“Auto workers at Hyundai in Montgomery, Alabama, have signed up more than 30 percent of their nearly 4,000 co-workers in an ambitious drive to unionize…Workers in this plant assemble the Santa Fe and Tucson SUVs, the Santa Cruz pickup truck, the Genesis GV70 luxury SUV, and the Electrified GV70. They’re the third plant to reach the 30 percent milestone in the UAW’s new organizing push, just weeks after workers at a Mercedes-Benz plant near Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and on the heels of those at Tennessee’s Chattanooga Volkswagen plant in December.”

“2023 marked another successful year of cultural worker organizing for our union. Across the country, hundreds of workers from museums, libraries and other cultural institutions organized through the AFSCME Cultural Workers United (CWU) campaign for a voice on the job, fair and equitable wages, safe working conditions and more transparency and accountability from management.”

“The move to unionize comes after a year of record-breaking layoffs across entertainment and games journalism; in response to the need for better diversity and representation at the company; and in the wake of online media becoming less and less financially viable to staffers, many of which must live in some of the most expensive cities in the world in order to do their jobs.”

“On January 30, nearly 400 workers at Antolin Interiors USA in Howell, Michigan, voted overwhelmingly to join UAW Local 163, Region 1A. The workers, who make instrument panels and door panels for Ford, GM, Stellantis, and PACCAR, launched their organizing drive last October after years of disrespect and unacceptable working conditions.”

“Workers at Ridwell have voted unanimously to join Teamsters Local 120. The drivers and warehouse workers united to advocate for their rights and improve pay, benefits, and working conditions. This is the third group of workers to join the Teamsters at Ridwell….Ridwell is a recycling start-up focused on responsibly reusing and disposing of hard-to-recycle items like batteries, lightbulbs, and plastic film. Since its founding in Washington State in 2018, Ridwell has expanded to California, Colorado, Georgia, Minnesota, Oregon, and Texas.”

“Unpredictable schedules, hazardous working conditions, and the crushing workload of Barbenheimer combined to lead workers at the Prospect Park location of independent Brooklyn theater Nitehawk Cinema to organize a union.”

“A profession that we do not often associate with the moniker of “workers” is football, but that is exactly what those players on the field are. They are the workers whose labor has made football the most popular and prosperous sport in America with revenues closing in at nearly $20 billion. The players who will take the field in Las Vegas this Sunday to play in Super Bowl LVIII will generate hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue for the NFL, broadcasters, and advertisers with their labor. The concept of the football player as a worker took root among the players in the 1970s and it began a battle that started players on the road to winning their rights – a fight that continues today.”

“As the Opinion video above explores, these are heady times for organized labor. Unions have recently scored big victories in the auto industry and Hollywood; an increasing number of health care workers are starting to organize; and the threat of a strike resulted in big gains for hospitality workers in Las Vegas. Elsewhere, baristas, nail salon and fast food workers, graduate students, warehouse and retail workers, tech employees, domestic workers and ride-share drivers have been mobilizing as unions enjoy levels of public support not seen since the 1960s.”

“California’s fast food workers have a new union to advocate for higher pay and safer working conditions, organizers announced Friday. Thousands of workers statewide will be able to join the California Fast Food Workers Union, an organization that will likely represent a small share of workers but advocate for all fast food employees in the state. The organization doesn’t have the same collective bargaining power of traditional unions, but it will be affiliated with the Service Employees International Union, a traditional union that represents workers in various industries and for more than a decade has fought to raise pay at fast food restaurants. Recently it helped secure a $20-an-hour minimum wage for all fast food workers in California.”

“A group of 1,700 performers who play characters and cheer and dance in parades at Disneyland in California announced their intent Tuesday to unionize with Actors’ Equity. The group, which includes performers who conduct meet and greets in the park and appear in character dining experiences, as well as the hosts and trainers that support them, are asking for increased wages, greater transparency on scheduling and rehiring decisions and addressing concerns about safe and sanitary workplace conditions. Calling themselves ‘Magic United,’ the group has already begun circulating union authorization cards and will aim for voluntary recognition from Disney Resort Entertainment. If that recognition is not granted, Equity will file a petition with the National Labor Relations Board with the goal of being granted an election.” 

“Basnet believes the best way to solve these problems would be for New York State to pass the Nail Salon Minimum Standards Council Act. Daisy Chung, director of the New York Healthy Nail Salons Coalition, the organization spearheading this legislation, describes the bill as an effort to create a permanent sectoral council — giving nail salon workers and business owners a seat at the table with government representatives to recommend changes. Instead of a conventional union, the board would support and promote sector-wide changes. With the creation of this council, nail salon workers, owners and legislators can come together and set standards across the industry without worrying about pitting shop against shop. Chung even notes that Starbucks Workers United-Downstate NY supports the bill.”

“Workers at the Evansville Courier & Press in southwestern Indiana won their union certification election. On February 8, every member of the nine-person unit voted in favor of unionization, becoming the latest Gannett newsroom to form a union. ‘We’ve remained firmly united since the beginning here in Evansville, and I believe the unanimous vote illustrates that,’ said Sarah Loesch, a government reporter at the Courier & Press.”

“On Jan. 25, workers at the Trulieve cannabis dispensary on East Magnolia Street in Phoenix made history by becoming the first group of cannabis agriculture workers in Arizona to unionize by joining UFCW Local 99 and the second group of agriculture workers to form a union in state history.”

"Employees at 21 Starbucks stores across the United States informed the global coffee giant’s CEO on Tuesday that they are launching the largest single-day unionization in company history. The baristas — who are employed at Starbucks in 14 states — said in a letter to CEO Laxman Narasimhan that they’ve ​’decided to follow in the footsteps of over 396 other stores and nearly 10,000 partners to demand better.’ Their union, Starbucks Workers United, cited low pay, inconsistent scheduling, and safety concerns as reasons for filing for union elections.”

“On this week’s episode of Lever Time, producer Frank Cappello and reporter Amos Barshad are joined by union organizers Griffin Ritze and Fatou Souare, who are both involved in a current union drive at an Amazon warehouse in Kentucky. Griffin, an Amazon employee who was recently fired as alleged retaliation, and Fatou, a local community leader with the Kentucky African Women’s Association, speak to The Lever about the unique challenges of organizing a large, diverse workforce in one of Amazon’s largest locations — and what their efforts mean for the larger fight ahead against Amazon.”

“An overwhelming majority of eligible employees at the nonprofit publication Houston Landing have formed a union to advocate for stronger job protections and a seat at the table in organization-wide decisions. For the last eight months, the Landing’s journalists and staff have worked together to publish numerous community-centered stories that have deepened Houstonians’ understanding of their community. They are proud to have met and even exceeded company targets for impact, page views and engagement time, among others, just months after launch.”

“On Feb. 9, workers at the REI store in Castleton, Ind., voted to join UFCW Local 700 to build a better future for themselves and their co-workers. The REI Castleton workers’ successful unionization push comes on the heels of a growing unionization movement at REI, and this is the ninth location nationwide to unionize with the UFCW/RWDSU.”

“SIUE support and building service workers represented by AFSCME Council 31 showed up in force last week at the university’s Board of Trustees meeting to demand a fair contract after nearly two years without one. About 75 AFSCME members showed up at the Feb. 8 board meeting armed with signs and banners to drive home the fact that they have been working without a contract for nearly 600 days. They were joined by Labor allies, including the Illinois AFL-CIO, the Southwestern Illinois Central Labor Council and the Greater Madison County Federation of Labor.”

“On Friday, the employees of The Texas Tribune were formally recognized by their employer as a union, the Texas Tribune Guild. The union — which secured support from 90% of eligible staff members — is wall-to-wall, representing more than 40 eligible staff members, including reporters, photographers, designers, engineers, accountants, editors, and members of the development, product and revenue teams.”

“Within a few years, Microsoft could have thousands of union employees working under collective bargaining agreements, making it an outlier in big tech. On one level, it seemed obvious why Microsoft, once a poster child for corporate ruthlessness, would go this route: The company wanted regulators to bless its deal with Activision. Given the Biden administration’s close ties with labor, it didn’t take a Kissingerian flair for strategy to see that a truce with unions might help. Cynics were quick to point out that the company laid off nearly 10 percent of its video game workers, most of them from Activision, once the deal was in hand. Still, many large tech companies have business before the federal government — and almost all have taken steps to discourage unionization. That includes Amazon, Apple and Google, which are in the sights of antitrust regulators.”

“This year is set to be a royal rumble between labor and capital in North America. By now, the reasons for the showdown are familiar. We saw a similar phenomenon in recent years, particularly in 2023. The pandemic not only increased the immiseration of workers — it also exposed the plight of working people everywhere. As the rich grew richer, everyone else struggled to feed themselves, fill their prescriptions, and indulge in the rare luxury of a night out.”

“More than half of the employees at Mercedes-Benz’s manufacturing plant near Tuscaloosa, Alabama, have signed union cards and intend to join the United Auto Workers, the union announced Tuesday. Hitting a majority of sign-ups marks a milestone for the UAW as it seeks to represent workers at foreign-owned auto plants in the South. The union has struggled to organize such facilities for years but has seen a surge of interest from workers following its historic strike against Ford, General Motors and Jeep parent company Stellantis last year. Jeremy Kimbrell, a 25-year employee at the plant and lead organizer for the union effort, said in a video posted Monday that workers ‘are ready to win our union and a better life with the UAW.’”

“Instructors at New York University have voted to join Contract Faculty United - UAW, forming what organizers called the “largest” full-time, non-tenure track faculty union at a private university. The win secures another victory for organized labor on college campuses, which have also seen a surge of undergraduate and graduate students unionizing. The union said it won by a vote of 553-72 and will represent nearly 1,000 workers. The university previously agreed to accept the election results and begin bargaining, it said.”

“Vanderbilt University graduate students have collected hundreds of union authorization cards from colleagues, leaders say — a major step in winning official recognition from the school before the end of the year. Late last year, campus organizers officially associated with the United Auto Workers, which claims more than 400,000 active union members, in hopes of unionizing an estimated 2,200 graduate student workers. Students cited insufficient pay, unsafe working conditions and precarious terms of employment during a lunchtime rally hosted by Vanderbilt Graduate Workers United on Feb. 14 outside the Jean and Alexander Heard Library.”

“The United Auto Workers is committing $40 million through 2026 in new organizing funds to support non-union autoworkers and battery workers who are organizing across the country, and particularly in the South. The UAW International Executive Board voted Tuesday to commit the funds in response to an explosion in organizing activity among non-union auto and battery workers, in order to meet the moment and grow the labor movement.”

“Employees of the San Antonio Express-News and MySA.com on Wednesday notified Hearst management of their intent to unionize. The San Antonio NewsGuild will advocate for fair wages, competitive benefits and layoff protections. Organizers petitioned for voluntary recognition from Mark Medici, the publisher of the Express-News and MySA, and Hearst Newspapers. Hearst’s labor counsel notified organizers Wednesday afternoon that the company has denied the union’s request for voluntary recognition. Organizers are filing for an election with the National Labor Relations Board.”

“Over 200 library workers at the Howard County Library System have overwhelmingly voted to form their union through AFSCME Maryland Council 3. Workers voted 151-19 in favor of their union in an election conducted last week. The new bargaining unit will consist of full-time and part-time staff from all seven branches through all eligible job titles in the Howard County Library System. Members of Howard County Library Workers United (HCLWU) announced their intention to unionize in October 2023. They formed their union to win a voice in the workplace, advocate for fair wages and job protection, and address issues such as staffing, promotion, schedules and workplace safety.”

“In this blogcast, Burnes Center Senior Fellow Seth Harris is joined by Wendy Chun-Hoon, Director of the Women's Bureau in the Department of Labor; Anita Bruno, founder and CEO of Rhode Island Women in the Trades; Jeannine Giguere-Gagnon, retired union carpenter and RI Women in the Trades representatives; and Sinade Wadsworth, New York City union carpenter and RI Women in the Trades representative to discuss the Women's Bureau's WANTO grant program, the upcoming Rhode Island Labor Standards conference, and the importance of providing education and support to women in construction.”

“Contract faculty at New York University won a historic victory on Wednesday when an overwhelming majority voted to form a union affiliated with United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 7902. The union, known as Contract Faculty United (CFU-UAW), is now the largest union for full-time, non-tenured professors at any private university in the United States, according to union organizers. In the union representation election, 87% of voters cast their ballots in favor of authorizing CFU-UAW to act as their bargaining representative. Of the 626 votes cast, 553 voted in favor, with 72 opposed (one blank ballot was also cast).”

“Auto workers at a Toyota engine plant in Troy, Missouri, have signed up 30 percent of their 1,000 co-workers to join the United Auto Workers (UAW)—a first at Toyota, the world’s largest automaker, on the heels of the union’s announcements of organizing campaigns at Volkswagen, Hyundai, and Mercedes-Benz.”

“When Shawn Fain, the United Automobile Workers president, unveiled the deal that ended six weeks of strikes at Ford Motor in the fall, he framed it as part of a longer campaign. Next, he declared, would be the task of organizing nonunion plants across the country…Four months later, the first test of that strategy has come into focus, and it features a Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, Tenn. According to the union, more than half of over 4,000 eligible workers have signed cards indicating support for a union. Workers say they have done so because they want higher pay, more paid time off and more generous health benefits — and because the recent strikes at Ford, General Motors and Stellantis persuaded them that a union can help win these concessions.”

“Members of the Dartmouth College men’s basketball team voted to form the very first union in a college sports program on Tuesday, delivering a boost to organized labor and another potential blow to the collegiate amateurism model. The union election held at the Ivy League school in Hanover, New Hampshire, could prove to be historic, but the legal battle over whether the players can bargain collectively is far from over. Dartmouth’s trustees have disputed the athletes’ legal status as employees eligible to unionize. It could be years before the case is resolved at the National Labor Relations Board, which oversees private-sector union elections, and possibly federal court afterwards.”

“In this blogcast, Burnes Center Senior Fellow Seth Harris is joined by Sarah Bright, Organizing Director at SEIU 925; Juan Eldridge, Assistant Organizing Director at IAMAW; and Indira Mohan, Associate Director of Organizing at AFL-CIO/AFSCME DC 37 to talk about how to become a union organizer, why union activism is increasing, and how to confront employer opposition to worker organizing.”

“Workers at the Denver Art Museum are celebrating their new union. They won their union election last week with a supermajority of 67% voting to join forces with AFSCME Council 18, making the Denver Art Museum the first unionized art museum in Colorado. Workers announced their union campaign in January and since then have endured upper management’s intense anti-union campaign. Through Council 18, the workers filed more than a dozen unfair labor practice charges. Now, the more than 200 workers from every department at the museum will have a voice to advocate for a culture that prioritizes employee and visitor experience over revenue.”

“In this blogcast, Northeastern University students from Huskies Organizing with Labor, or HOWL, take over the Power At Work blog for a discussion about how to get involved on university campuses, use your leverage as a student, and organize alongside workers. Abigail Thomas, August Escandon, and Amelia (Mimi) Yu share HOWL's top five tenets for undergraduate organizing and tell stories from their previous campaigns. You don't want to miss this special Power At Work blogcast!”

“During a period when union membership in the United States has continued its precipitous decline, Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 32BJ has been growing steadily, having successfully organized more than 100,000 workers since 1999.  The innovative strategies and tactics used by SEIU’s Justice for Janitors (JforJ) campaigns explain important aspects of this increase, but usually overlooked is the role that trigger mechanisms have played in this growth.”

"Approximately 600 workers at Activision Central Quality Assurance have joined CWA. This marks the first union to form at Activision since Microsoft and CWA reached a labor neutrality agreement in 2022. Activision Quality Assurance United-CWA joins the wave of game workers at Raven Software, ZeniMax, Blizzard Albany, SEGA, TCGPlayer/eBay, and more, who have organized with CODE-CWA to build a better workplace. The workers will be joining CWA Locals 9400 (California), 6215 (Texas), and 7250 (Minnesota).”

“For farmworkers in Skagit Valley, Washington, the year passes in crops. In February, flower and bulb season starts. By the end of spring, it’s berry season, which continues through hot and smoky summer months and winds down in autumn. As the weather cools, the work shifts to pruning. There is less work during this part of the winter, and it is harder to earn enough money, but before long, flower season has started again, and the cycle repeats itself.”

“After the UAW’s stand-up strike against the Big 3, the union pledged to embark on an aggressive campaign to organize nonunion automakers. Today, the UAW announced it is filing an election at the Chattanooga, Tennessee, Volkswagen plant.”

“And workers say it’s not just the pace of the work that’s dangerous. Jaye Hochuli, a team leader at the plant, says the plant had her crawl under a deck to clean out the sand, silica dust and chemicals that come out of the machines.‘It was a confined space,’ she said. ‘I should’ve been in a respirator and a hazmat suit. All they gave me was a KN-95 mask. How can the richest car company in the world not follow basic safety practices? We’re organizing to fix what’s wrong and win the protections we need.’”

“MarketWatch staff working in New York announced yesterday they have formed a union and are joining their colleagues at locations across the country already represented by IAPE. Through a mission statement delivered to Dow Jones CEO Almar Latour, Barron’s Editor in Chief David Cho, two-dozen other managers at MarketWatch and all MKTW News staff, New York-based employees stated their intention ‘to join our brethren employees at other branch offices of MarketWatch and Dow Jones as a collective unit under the IAPE Local 1096.’”

“Over 140 workers at DO & CO Chicago Catering, Inc. in Des Plaines, Ill., joined UFCW Local 1546 on Feb. 6. The workers, who joined our union family via card check, prepare and package premium catered food items for high-end international airlines. They joined UFCW Local 1546 because they wanted the better wages, benefits, and workplace protections that come with a union contract.”

“The Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) has voluntarily recognized the union its workers formed through AFSCME Council 57. That means the Oakland Museum of California Workers United (OMCAWU) avoided the cumbersome process of holding a union election. Council 57 will be the bargaining representative for over 60 museum workers, including preparators, ticketing and retail associates, curators, designers, program developers, and more.”

“Autoworkers at Mercedes-Benz in Alabama have been organizing to win their union. Today they met with UAW President Shawn Fain and Region 8 Director Tim Smith to talk about their path to victory. Here are remarks that President Fain shared with them:”

“Workers at Volkswagen's (VOWG_p.DE), opens new tab Chattanooga, Tennessee, assembly plant will vote in April on whether to join the United Auto Workers union, a test of UAW President Shawn Fain's campaign to expand the union's reach to foreign-owned automakers. The April 17 to April 19 election marks the third time in 10 years that the UAW has sought to represent the Chattanooga workers. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) said on Monday the ballot count will begin at 8 p.m. EDT after the third day of voting ends.”

“On March 14, about 50 workers at the Barnes & Noble 82nd Street store on the Upper West Side of Manhattan voted to join the RWDSU/UFCW by an overwhelming margin. Workers at the Barnes & Noble Upper West Side store now join two other unionized stores in New York City, including the flagship Union Square store and the Park Slope, Brooklyn store.”

“The United Auto Workers announced February 23 that it will provide material support to Mexican auto workers organizing in the independent union movement. As a member of the UAW Executive Board, I’m proud that our union understands how the futures of auto workers in the United States and Mexico are tied together. Our Mexico solidarity project is about empowering our membership to win strong contracts and protecting our jobs in the United States—and it’s also about ensuring justice for workers across the border. The auto industry is not nationally bound, and neither should the labor movement be. For every record contract there will come the threat of moving production to Mexico, where a partnership between the companies and the corrupt company unions keep wages low—a whipsaw that oppresses workers on both sides of the border. The irony of free trade is that even with expanded production, Mexico still imports most of the vehicles sold to its own people. Meanwhile 75 percent of Mexican-made vehicles are shipped to the U.S., and they do not cost any less because they’re produced with cheaper labor.”

“Factory workers at Mercedes Benz's assembly plant in Alabama are moving forward with efforts to join the United Auto Workers (UAW), and they plan to file a petition as soon as this week, a union leader said on Tuesday. Earlier on Tuesday, Reuters cited three people familiar with the matter saying employees at the SUV plant in Vance, Alabama, plan to file paperwork with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) seeking a formal election to join the UAW. The date of an actual vote is not yet certain.”

“The City of San Bernardino has recognized Teamsters Local 1932 as the sole bargaining representative for all full-time city workers—from public works to city hall and everything in between. A majority demanded union recognition earlier in the year, which the city has accepted. The new 180 San Bernardino Teamsters join mid-manager San Bernardino city workers who have been members since Local 1932’s affiliation in 2015….The new San Bernardino Teamsters join thousands of other Local 1932 members that provide public services throughout the County of San Bernardino, including in Colton, Fontana, Hesperia, Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga, and Redlands. The new members will now prepare for negotiations ahead of next year’s expiration of their current contract with the city. Workers are focused on strengthening job protections that many other union workers count on as basic rights.”

“In this blogcast, Burnes Center Senior Fellow Seth Harris is joined by Tim Rowden, editor of the St. Louis/Central Illinois Labor Tribune, and Don McIntosh, editor of the Northwest Labor Press to talk about how national headlines are impacting their regions, what they're hearing from workers on the ground, and the uncertain future of labor journalism.”

“At a Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and a Mercedes factory in Vance, Alabama, the United Auto Workers have filed for union elections. If the UAW wins, it would be a major victory against anti-union bulwarks.”

“In some California hospitals, early-career doctors make as little as $16 per hour working 80-hour weeks. It’s training, known as residency, that every board-certified doctor must complete. The grueling schedules for little pay have been contentious in medicine for decades, and they’re increasingly driving medical residents to form unions. The national accrediting agency for residency programs limits the average work week to 80 hours. Last week, hundreds of resident physicians and fellows at Kaiser Permanente’s Northern California facilities became the latest to join the wave of medical trainees demanding better pay and working conditions. Their petition filed with the National Labor Relations Board comes after Kaiser Permanente refused to voluntarily recognize the union.” 

“Journalists at Defense News and Military Times announced they are unionizing and forming the Sightline Media Union. In response, the organizing committee has released the following statement:”

“Workers at a Mercedes Benz factory in Vance, Alabama, filed a petition with U.S. regulators to hold an election to join the United Auto Workers, the union said on Friday. The SUV plant is the second to file an election petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in recent weeks. Reuters previously reported that Mercedes workers in Alabama would file an election petition with the NLRB as soon as this week. The NLRB said it plans an April 15 hearing unless the sides agree on an election schedule.”

“Non-tenure faculty at Harvard voted overwhelmingly on Friday to unionize, days after employees at Harvard Law schools joined the same union.  The more than workers voted 1094-81 to join the Harvard Academic Workers-United Auto Workers (HAW-UAW) union ... .On Wednesday, Harvard Law School clinical employees voted 62-3 to join the same union.”   

“Roughly 4,000 Volkswagen workers here will decide this week on whether to form a union at their assembly plant. Their votes will shape more than just the future of their jobs — they could mark a turning point for both the United Auto Workers and the auto industry in the South. The election begins Wednesday and runs through Friday. The union previously lost two factorywide elections at the facility, including a stinging 833 to 776 defeat in 2019. Zachary Costello quietly supported that organizing effort. This time he’s made his feelings known to anyone who will listen, throwing himself into the campaign as a member of the organizing committee. ‘I don’t want to narrowly lose again. This time, I’m not sitting on the sideline,’ said Costello, 34. ‘To me it feels like the most important thing I’ve ever been a part of, to the point where it doesn’t even feel real.’”

“Today, a supermajority of eligible 1199SEIU “In House Staff” employees – from New York to Massachusetts to Florida – filed a Union petition with the National Labor Relations Board and demanded voluntary recognition to join WBNG Newsguild-CWA Local 32035.”

“The workers who play characters like Goofy and Mickey Mouse and cheer and dance at parades at Disneyland have taken a step forward in their push to unionize with Actors’ Equity. The group of organizers, which is seeking to represent 1,700 employees, filed a petition for a union election with the National Labor Relations Board, Actors’ Equity president Kate Shindle announced at a press conference in Anaheim on Wednesday. According to Shindle, a ‘supermajority’ of eligible employees have signed union authorization cards, supporting the move to be represented by Actors’ Equity in collective bargaining. Beyond performers, the group — which calls itself ‘Magic United’ — also includes workers who help facilitate character performers’ interactions with park patrons and trainers who work with them.”

“In fall 2022, more than 60 Newberry employees formed a labor union with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. Staff members including librarians, conservators, library assistants and program coordinators won their first union contract in November 2023. They’re part of a wave of museums and cultural institution workers forming unions in Chicago and across the country. In addition to the Newberry’s staff, library workers in the suburbs also have unionized. Since 2020, library employees in the Niles-Maine district, Oak Lawn, St. Charles and Waukegan have organized. In contrast, none had joined AFSCME in 2019. AFSCME Council 31, which represents workers in Illinois, added more than 2,200 members from the state’s cultural institutions since 2021, according to spokesperson Anders Lindall.”

“Members of Teamsters Local 186 have ratified a new collective bargaining agreement with E.J. Harrison & Son Inc. The contract covers 120 residential, commercial, and semi-truck drivers who service communities in Ventura County, California. ‘We are grateful to now be working under the protection of a strong Teamsters contract,’ said Ricardo Morales, a seven-year commercial driver and Local 186 shop steward. ‘Our new contract provides great wages, improves our health care benefits, and for the first time offers a defined pension plan.’”

“Baristas at the Greenmount and Interstate 64 Starbucks here have voted to join Starbucks Workers United – joining eight other St. Louis-area stores. By a vote of 10-to-six, partners at the store, located at 1126 Central Park Drive, joined Starbucks Workers United at a key moment, with the coffee giant signaling seriousness in reaching a first contract with unionized baristas in one of the most rapidly growing organizing campaigns in modern history.”

“Another group of St. Louis Public Radio employees has filed to organize, following the newsroom’s historic unionization last year. The St. Louis Public Radio Guild announced it has filed for a second election to add the radio station’s non-supervisory fundraising, events and support staff to its ranks. The St. Louis Public Radio Guild organized the 37 newsroom workers who bring local, national and international news and programs to the airwaves and online, including journalists, producers, on-air talent and marketing professionals. Last year, they made history by becoming the first public media union to file for and win union recognition in the state of Missouri.”

“According to preliminary returns, workers in the Volkswagen manufacturing facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee voted overwhelmingly on April 17, 18, and 19 to be represented by the United Auto Workers (UAW) in a historic election result with important implications for those workers and their families, the city of Chattanooga, the state of Tennessee, the labor movement, and the auto industry.  Early returns suggest the union won the election by a roughly 3-to-1 margin.”

“After decades of poor working conditions and low pay, unpredictable mass layoffs are causing employees across the video game industry to turn to unions for security and stability. ‘Downsizing’ is nothing new to tech workers. Tech companies are notorious for blindsiding their workers with massive cuts to their staff. In 2023, an estimated 9,000 video game employees lost their jobs even as companies reveled in years of increased sales due to the pandemic.”

“On the night of Friday, April 19, the United Auto Workers (UAW) announced the results of its National Labor Relations Board election at the Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Workers there voted 73 percent in favor of joining the UAW — a historic victory for the union after two failed drives there, in 2014 and 2019.”

“Today, 32BJ SEIU and SEIU Virginia 512 members announce the launch of the SEIU Virginia State Council, to win good union jobs for all working families across the Commonwealth. Under the new structure, members and not-yet-union workers will come together to organize, mobilize, elect champions, and hold corporations and elected officials accountable. The SEIU Virginia State Council’s two locals represent over 11,000 members across the commonwealth, including frontline home care workers, janitors, airport workers, county and city employees, security officers, and more. 32BJ SEIU Executive Vice President Jaime Contreras will serve as Chair of the State Council, and SEIU Virginia 512 President LaNoral Thomas will serve as Treasurer. David Broder will serve as the SEIU Virginia State Council’s Executive Director.”

“On April 3, workers at the Barnes & Noble store in El Cerrito, Calif., took a significant step towards ensuring their rights and representation in the workplace by organizing with UFCW Local 5. The decision to unionize comes as a result of dedicated Barnes & Noble employees in El Cerrito standing in solidarity to demand a safe working environment, better wages, guaranteed hours, and a voice on the job. By affiliating with UFCW Local 5, these workers recognize that collective bargaining power will enable them to negotiate fair wages, improved working conditions, and greater job security.”

“Staff at Jewish Family Services in St. Louis (JFS) are organizing with the Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 6400 as Jewish Family Services Workers United, citing high turnover and a toxic work environment at the social services nonprofit. ‘Myself and others that are part of the union drive think JFS is a great agency that does a lot of important work in the community… but we just don’t feel like the care extends to us as workers,’ said Kelly Baker, a member of JFS Workers United (JFSWU).”

“In this blogcast, Burnes Center for Social Change Senior Fellow Seth Harris is joined by Anneisha Williams, fast food worker and Fast Food Council member; Michelle Healy, SEIU Director of Breakthrough Campaigns; and Maria Maldonado, statewide director and Fast Food Council member, to discuss the organizing and innovation achieved by the California Fast Food Workers Union, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union. Tune in to hear about the union's non-traditional sectoral bargaining strategy and what fast food workers in California have achieved so far, such as a pay increase to $20 per hour and the establishment of a historic Fast Food Council.”

“After going on strike and securing lucrative new contracts with GM, Ford and Stellantis last fall, the United Auto Workers union, under new president Shawn Fain, recently scored a major win in the South and is hoping to build on that momentum. In late April, 73% of the 4,300 production workers at a Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, voted to join the UAW and authorize it to enter into collective bargaining with their German employer. Two previous union drives there had failed. It’s a signal victory in the UAW’s $40 million campaign to organize approximately 150,000 workers at foreign-owned, nonunion automakers across the South, including BMW, Honda, Hyundai, Mazda, Mercedes, Nissan, Subaru, Toyota, Volkswagen and Volvo, as well as domestic electric vehicle makers Lucid, Rivian and Tesla.”

“The lab professionals employed by the medical lab services company, LabCorp of America, held a union election from March 1-3 where 434 workers voted to join together in a union with the Oregon Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals (OFNHP), a local affiliate of the 1.7 million-member AFT. These healthcare professionals work at labs within seven Legacy Health facilities in Oregon and Washington, including Emanuel and Good Samaritan in Portland, and Salmon Creek (WA).”

“On April 26, cafeteria workers in the Dolton, Ill., school district joined UFCW Local 1546 for a better life. The 30 workers are employed by Organic Life, a hospitality and food service management company.”

“John G. Shedd Aquarium employees are forming their union, Shedd Workers United, and affiliating with AFSCME Council 31. The April 18 announcement came in a public letter signed by 60 workers. When certified, Shedd Workers United/AFSCME will represent about 300 employees across the aquarium, including throughout its departments of Animal Care, Learning & Community, Guest Relationsand more.”

“On April 16, grocery workers at Anthony’s Foods in Meeker, Okla., joined UFCW Local 1000 for the better wages and benefits that come with a union contract. This organizing win marks the first unit of Anthony Food’s workers to be represented by UFCW Local 1000.”

“As they perform Swan Lake, dancers at Miami City Ballet in Florida have been facing a union-busting campaign from the company’s management. Their case went to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which ruled on May 8 in favor of the dancers seeking to unionize, clearing the way for a union election on May 14. These dancers are just one group in a wave of ballet companies unionizing with the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA). But in Miami, organizing dancers endured significant challenges. ‘The company has engaged in a pretty aggressive, coordinated anti-union campaign,’ including union-busting tactics, captive-audience meetings and attempts to deny a union election, said AGMA National Organizing Director Griff Braun, in an interview with Truthout.”

“Irrigation workers at the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District in New Mexico have voted to form a union with AFSCME Council 18. Irrigation systems operators, who overwhelmingly supported joining AFSCME last month, ensure that farmers, ranchers and homeowners have access to water. Their work includes maintaining ditches, operating water systems and working with the public. Workers cited compensation, fairness and respect on the job as major reasons for unionizing.”

“This surge in student worker organizing reflects a recent trend, with support for unions at record highs, especially among young workers. Petitions for union representation elections are up 35% at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) compared with last year, building upon significant increases over the last few years. The NLRB has also helped streamline the representation election process by adopting new rules that have cut the time between election petition and election from 105 days last year to 59 days. Young workers, including student workers, were a large part of the increase in union membership last year.”

“Mercedes put on an ‘A-level boss fight.’  Which was only to be expected. So how can the union win next time?”

“Disneyland Resort employees who portray costumed characters such as Mickey Mouse or Cinderella have voted to unionize under the Actors’ Equity Assn. The unit, which consists of 1,700 people, voted 953 in favor of unionization and 258 against, Actors’ Equity said Saturday night on the social media platform X. Of the votes tallied, 79% were pro-union. The results of the vote, overseen by the National Labor Relations Board, come after a three-day election period in which employees, known as “cast members” in Disney parlance, placed their votes at three polling sites in Disneyland. The employees announced their intent to unionize in February.”

“Laboratory technicians and assistants at Oregon locations of the multibillion-dollar multinational testing chain Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings (better known as Labcorp) took part in a groundbreaking union election this month. The results came in with a resounding win for labor, as all seven locations involved in the election voted to unionize. The percentage of workers that voted to unionize in the May 1-3 election was, if not totally unprecedented, at least remarkably high at 86 percent; for a union election, such a rate is practically unanimous. Several factors underlie the widespread assent found among Labcorp employees — their resounding certainty regarding the necessity of a union speaks to both the effectiveness of organizers and the camaraderie and solidarity among staff, as well as the difficult conditions in which they labor.”

“Citing pay and job security, nearly 2,000 eligible biomedical research workers at the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) are looking to form a union through Oregon AFSCME. A strong majority of those workers submitted union authorization cards to the Oregon Employment Relations Board (ERB) on April 26. OHSU research workers at OHSU are on the cutting edge of live-saving biomedical research focusing on a range of topics, including cancer, ALS and seizure disorders, coronaviruses and mental health disorders. Eligible workers who signed cards range from scientists to clerical staff to software/analytical tool makers.”

“Postdoctoral researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, a private nonprofit institution in the Bronx, have unionized with a 152-to-32 vote. Einstein Researchers United, the new union, said postdocs voted Wednesday and Thursday. It said it will represent about 230 workers. The union is affiliated with the UAW. Brandon Mancilla, director of the UAW region that contains New York City, said in a news release that the postdocs ‘overcame intense opposition from the Einstein administration to win their union.’”

“It’s the biggest organizing wave the U.S. labor movement has seen in decades. Graduate workers are unionizing in huge numbers, winning drive after drive with 90 percent support or more. What’s more, the workers are in the driver’s seat of these campaigns, with little help from union staff. Most union organizing these days relies on a staff-heavy approach that’s tough to scale up. But the grad worker upsurge offers a sketch of a worker-led model that could help reverse labor’s decline. The United Electrical Workers (UE) alone has organized close to 30,000 graduate workers over the past year and a half. We’ve won elections at eight major universities, including MIT and the University of Minnesota. Workers at other universities have voted to unionize with UNITE HERE, the United Auto Workers, and other unions.”

“On April 5, workers at the Nothing Bundt Cakes pastry shop in Whitestown, Ind., joined UFCW Local 700 for a better life. This organizing win marks the first Nothing Bundt Cakes shop to join UFCW Local 700. Nothing Bundt Cakes is a national chain specializing in bundt cakes, with over 500 bakery locations in over 40 states and Canada.”

“Journalists at Defense News, Military Times, Federal Times, and C4SRNet this week voted to form a union the Sightline Media Union with the Washington-Baltimore News Guild Local 32035. The Sightline Media Union announced its campaign to form a union in early April. After management failed to voluntarily recognize the union, workers voted overwhelmingly in favor of unionization on June 3, bringing journalists one step closer to protecting their colleagues and better serving their readers.”

“On May 17, baristas, trainers, and shift supervisors at Better Buzz Coffee’s Hillcrest location in San Diego voted to join UFCW Local 135 for the better wages and benefits that come with a union contract. This organizing win marks the first Better Buzz Coffee shop to join UFCW Local 135. This victory marks the culmination of a determined effort by the employees, who organized under the name “Better Buzz United.” The workers cited concerns about wages, benefits, scheduling, and overall workplace safety as primary reasons for seeking union representation.”

“This morning, it was announced that Virginia Education Unions, a joint coalition of Virginia-based AFT and NEA locals, had won a historic union election to represent over 27,000 teachers and school staff in Fairfax County, Virginia. 97% of all teachers voted to unionize and 81% of all support staff voted to unionize. ‘Today marks the culmination of a 47-year-long fight to win collective bargaining at Fairfax County Public Schools. The reason our campaign was successful was because we all took agency over our own lives,’ says David Walrod in a statement. The union victory in the 9th largest school district is one of the largest teachers union elections in decades. It also has the potential to dramatically reshape the politics of Northern Virginia.” 

“‘If you don’t have a union and you want one, the door’s open,’ invites Tracey Blasenheim, a University of Minnesota (UMN) lecturer and instructor in political science, after a successful organizing drive to reform a decades-old state law that predefines bargaining units for public employees. The reform effectively enables over 23,000 workers to form unions across the University of Minnesota’s five campuses. The reforms will go into effect on July 1.’”

“Education unions just won a massive victory in the fight to bring collective bargaining rights to Virginia’s public sector. Workers at the Fairfax County Public Schools voted this week to unionize, creating a wall-to-wall union of 27,500 teachers, custodians, teaching assistants, bus drivers, and more. The new bargaining unit is one of the largest K-12 unions on the East Coast, according to the National Education Association.”

“Today, AFT President Randi Weingarten announced the launch of a brand-new doctors’ organizing initiative and division: Union Physicians of AFT. Doctors across the country are faced with crippling burnout from administrative overload, frustration over financial barriers affecting their patients’ capacity to pay, and lack of respect from corporate owners who put profits over patients—and now they’re organizing with the AFT to fight back.”

“Cannapunch cannabis workers in Las Vegas recently voted to join the UFCW Local 711 for a better life. This 32-person unit is the first cannabis processor in the state of Nevada to unionize with UFCW Local 711. These workers joined our union family because they wanted a voice in the workplace and the better wages and benefits that a union contract provides.”

“Earlier this month, teachers at all six Citizens of the World charter schools in Los Angeles voted overwhelmingly to unionize with United Teachers Los Angeles. Jacobin spoke to two teachers about the organizing drive.”

“Occidental College student workers have voted to join SEIU Local 721, allowing approximately 1,000 undergraduate workers — baristas, resident advisers, tutors, translators, lifeguards, and researchers among them — to collectively bargain with the private liberal arts college in northeast Los Angeles. SEIU announced the results of the April election on June 12, revealing that 85% of voters chose the union, though it declined to share specific numbers. The election created two new bargaining units, and will make nearly half of the student body into union workers once a contract is signed.”

“In this blogcast, Burnes Center Senior Fellow Seth Harris is joined by Madison Zack-Wu, lead organizer of Strippers Are Workers, and Kim Kelly, freelance labor journalist, to discuss Washington state's new bill to protect dancers in their workplaces. Watch now to hear about the Strippers' Bill of Rights, how the COVID-19 pandemic affected dancers, and how the labor movement can get involved in securing rights for strippers.”

“The largest union in the country has locked its own workers out of their jobs after they went on strike for three days, escalating an ugly contract dispute that has already involved the White House. Staffers at the National Education Association said they were told not to report to work at the union’s headquarters in Washington on Monday. Last week, the employees went on strike during the NEA’s annual convention in Philadelphia, prompting President Joe Biden to back out of a planned speech. The staff union claimed the lockout was retaliation for their Philly walkout, calling it a “dangerous” and “reactionary” move by the NEA. A lockout is a work stoppage initiated by the employer, essentially the opposite of a strike.”

"The journalists of the South Florida Sun Sentinel announced today they are forming a union to defend the future of their newsroom and South Florida’s access to quality local journalism. The last two decades have been difficult for journalism in general, and for Sun Sentinel staffers in particular. They have seen staff levels razed and salaries and benefits cut. With diminishing resources, they pulled together and provided the region and the nation with Pulitzer Prize-winning coverage of the slaughter of 17 students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland in 2018. They continue to win awards and earn national praise for their reporting.”

“Over 150 workers at TC Transcontinental in Brooklyn, N.Y., joined UFCW Local 342 on May 1. TC Transcontinental is a leader in flexible packaging in the United States, Canada, and Latin America, and the workers produce flexographic printing, as well as the lamination of plastic film and covering.”

“Two major shifts are occurring in U.S. workers’ attitudes toward labor unions: the rise of workers who are interested in, but unsure about, unions and an emerging generation gap between younger and older workers.”

“On June 10, workers at the Planned Parenthood health center in Kalamazoo, Mich., made history by joining UFCW Local 951 and becoming the first Planned Parenthood unit in Michigan to unionize. The eight workers at the health center are employed as medical assistants. The workers at the health center initially came together to remove an abusive manager from their location and realized the power of collective bargaining. The workers were also concerned about improving the workplace for themselves and their co-workers, as well as improving health care for their patients.”

“Workers at Jewish Family Services (JFS) have voted overwhelmingly to join Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 6400 Missouri-Kansas, which includes the recently merged CWA 6355 and CWA 6400, as Jewish Family Services Workers United. After months of organizing, and despite sustained union avoidance tactics resulting in numerous Unfair Labor Practice charges against JFS management, the professional and non-professional bargaining units voted nine-to-seven and six-to-four to join CWA.”

“Journalists at Utah’s Salt Lake Tribune announced they are forming a union to ensure The Tribune remains Utah’s independent voice. In a mission statement announcing the union, the Salt Lake News Guild, journalists note that ensuring a workplace with fair wages and working conditions will allow workers a voice in the future of their nonprofit newsroom.”

“July 17 (Reuters) - Unions are filing petitions to hold elections and winning them at rates not seen in decades, according to data released by the National Labor Relations Board on Wednesday, likely a reflection of the agency's adoption of policies favored by unions during the Biden administration. The board in a release said it has already received more than 2,600 union election petitions during the fiscal year that ends Sept. 30, surpassing the total for the full previous fiscal year. NLRB regional offices have seen a 32% increase in the number of petitions filed compared with this time last year, the agency said.”

“World of Warcraft workers have voted to unionize the popular video-game franchise, expanding organized labor’s new foothold at Microsoft Corp. by around 500 employees. An arbitrator overseeing an election at the company determined that a majority of the Warcraft team’s employees have supported the Communications Workers of America, the union said.”

“Over 45 workers at 17 CBD Kratom and Mr. Nice Guy cannabis dispensaries in Missouri and Illinois joined UFCW Local 655 for a better life on June 7. These workers are employed at 14 CBD Kratom and Mr. Nice Guy dispensaries in St. Louis and three dispensaries Fairview and Alton, Ill. They joined our union family because they were concerned about insufficient wages, benefits, and health insurance, and wanted job stability and a voice in the workplace. UFCW Local 655 negotiated a neutrality agreement with the employer that allowed for a fair and cooperative process for workers to join a union, and the campaign to organize these workers included reaching out via social media platforms, including WhatsApp messaging, as well as store visits and one-on-one conversations with the workers.”

“The workers at the nonprofit newsroom Prism Reports announced today they are unionizing. In forming Prism Workers United, workers seek a seat at the table in shaping what a fair, equitable, and compassionate workplace can be.”

“Deerfield Beach, FLORIDA – A supermajority of employees at the South Florida Sun Sentinel voted Monday to form a union to fight for stronger job protections, better pay and benefits, and a louder voice in newsroom decisions.”

“...It’s a process that has built up over years, as a small group stacked up wins and more and more groups joined them; as new organizations were seeded and grew in immigrant communities and disparate neighborhoods; when in 2020, after George Floyd was killed, residents rebelled at ongoing police violence and kicked off a wave of protest that shook the world. The Minnesota Model has yielded gain after gain: free school meals and driver’s licenses for undocumented immigrants; getting Amazon to negotiate with workers for the first time; a $15 minimum wage (with proposals to bring it up to $20); so many union contracts it’s hard to count, for janitors and tenants and teachers. Minneapolis sent Ilhan Omar to Congress, Keith Ellison became state attorney general, and Minnesota residents voted in a Democratic trifecta to run state government. But the real power of the Minnesota Model is the solidarity it fosters in the streets.”

“Adam Hefner has worked at Disneyland for seven years, mostly in the character department, embodying the world-famous and deeply beloved characters that Disney is known for. Hefner, who uses ‘they/he’ pronouns, was hired to play ‘Star Wars’ characters and loved it, finding ‘magic for myself,’ they said. The character actors pride themselves on being one of the biggest-selling points of the resort. ‘You have the same exact attractions year over year,’ Hefner said. ‘We’re the reason people come back.’ But the job has left its mark on Hefner. Thanks to a repetitive strain injury Hefner said they experienced while performing, they ended up needing shoulder surgery and now have a permanent range of motion disability. They’re not alone, Hefner said: Plenty of other character actors have been permanently injured by ill-fitting costumes or other physical demands of the job. (Disneyland officials did not comment on the specific allegation.) It was these safety concerns, among others, that pushed the character actors to begin organizing a union.”

“Minneapolis – Today a majority of Café Ceres baristas voted ‘yes’ in their union election, winning representation with UNITE HERE Local 17, Minnesota’s hospitality and craft beverage workers union. Café Ceres is part of Daniel del Prado’s prolific DDP Restaurant Group.”

“Just over 100 on-board attendants for Brightline Florida, including workers in Orlando, have begun the process of unionizing with the Transport Workers Union, an international labor union that represents more than 155,000 workers across the airline, railroad, transit and related sectors in the United States. It's a historic effort by the workers in a state that is generally considered hostile to labor unions, and where less than 5 percent of the private sector workforce has union representation.”

“BARTONVILLE — About a year ago, Soleil Baker noticed their coworkers weren’t getting enough hours. Many of them struggled to pay rent and buy groceries. Baker decided it was time to take action. “I just wanted everyone to be able to afford to live,” they said. A barista at the Starbucks in this small North Texas town, about 15 miles northwest of Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, contacted Starbucks Workers United, the national union for Starbucks workers, and asked for more information about how to start a union.”

“On June 23, lifeguards at the YMCA of the Pikes Peak Region in Colorado Springs, Colo., joined UFCW Local 7. This is the first unit of YMCA workers to be represented by UFCW Local 7. The 15 lifeguards joined our union family because they were concerned about low pay and poor management and wanted a voice in the workplace. The campaign to organize these workers included meeting with workers and educating them of the benefits of having and being part of a union, explaining to them the importance and power of having one collective voice at the table, and reviewing examples of recent contract gains that UFCW Local 7 was able to bargain and secure.”

“Reporters, photographers, editors and digital producers in Connecticut’s largest newsroom are working to form a union with the NewsGuild-CWA. On August 8, the staff of Hearst Connecticut Media Group went public with their union drive, with more than 80 percent of our 110-person unit having signed union cards. Staff presented Hearst with a mission statement signed by the majority of our unit and asked the company to voluntarily recognize our union.”

“On August 12, program and community organizers at the Planned Parenthood health center in Lansing, Mich., joined UFCW Local 951. This organizing win marks the second Planned Parenthood health center to join UFCW Local 951, which represents medical assistants at the Planned Parent health center in Kalamazoo.”

“Friday’s ratification vote, approving California scientists’ tentative agreement with the state, marked a turning point for the relatively small, but active union. Not only did California Association of Professional Scientists members overwhelmingly approve the measure, they also turned out in big numbers.”

“(SKOKIE, Ill.) – Even more Amazon drivers at the company’s DIL7 delivery station in Skokie, Ill., are demanding that Amazon recognize the Teamsters Union and deliver a labor contract. The movement to organize in Skokie became public in June when 100 Amazon drivers went on strike over Amazon’s unfair labor practices. Those workers organized their union at one of Amazon’s Delivery Service Partners (DSPs) located at the station. The new organizing push has now spread to all four Amazon DSPs in Skokie — with a majority of drivers having signed authorization cards with Teamsters Local 705.” 

“ITHACA – UAW members at Cornell University have secured a historic tentative agreement, which includes record wage increases of up to 25.4%, a cost of living adjustment, and the elimination of the two-tier wage system. The agreement also introduces significant improvements to policies on time off, uniforms, inclement weather and safety protections. This deal follows an unfair labor practice strike by Cornell workers, which forced the university to offer a contract that truly reflects the workers’ immense value.”

“The right of temporary agricultural workers in New York State to organize has been upheld by the Public Employment Relations Board. In a series of five decisions issued Aug. 15, PERB also upheld the United Farm Workers of America’s certification as bargaining representatives for workers at five farms. The farms and their industry advocates had petitioned the board to review decisions by PERB hearing officers who determined that temporary, nonimmigrant workers working in agriculture, known a H-2A workers, could be included in the farms’ bargaining units.”

“"The new jobs of the South will be union jobs," said Tim Smith, a regional director for the United Auto Workers, after the union announced Tuesday that 1,000 workers at Ultium Cells in Spring Hill, Tennessee had voted to form a collective bargaining unit.”

“The California Supreme Court recently upheld Proposition 22, a 2020 ballot initiative that classified drivers as independent contractors, though the court found a provision that barred unionization unconstitutional. This November, Massachusetts voters will consider a ballot initiative permitting ride-hailing drivers to unionize, which could open the door to unionization in other states. In California, 30,000 drivers have formed the SEIU-backed California Gig Workers Union, an advocacy organization. Ultimately, only through collective bargaining can gig workers win family-supporting wages and comprehensive benefits and systematically address worker exploitation by app-based gig companies. If Massachusetts app drivers unionize, California will undoubtedly follow.”

“On August 27, about 49 workers at Bookmans bookstore in Tucson, Ariz., made history by becoming the first bookstore in Arizona to unionize by joining UFCW Local 99. Bookmans is a Tucson-headquartered retail chain that buys and sells used goods, including books, music, movies, and games, and the workers are employed in positions ranging from cashiers to department supervisors and managers on duty.”

“Approximately 160 workers at Eos Energy Enterprises in Pittsburgh voted to join the United Steelworkers (USW), marking a significant step in their pursuit of stronger job security, fair wages, and improved working conditions. Eos workers manufacture batteries used to store electricity generated from renewable sources like solar and wind energy. The decision to unionize reflects the workers’ desire for a voice in shaping the future of their jobs in the rapidly expanding clean energy sector.”

“In July 2023, early morning visitors to Baltimore’s Common Ground coffee shop found a sign taped to the door⁠. With a thank you to the Hampden community that had sustained it for 25 years, owner Michael Krupp announced the shop would be ceasing operations ​’effective immediately.’ Common Ground employees released a statement saying they had only been notified themselves the previous afternoon and, notably, had been a few months into forming a union. According to Common Ground barista Nic Koski, the effort was sparked by ​’general workplace concerns in terms of people wanting more fair, equitable wages, especially between in front of house and back of house, and better treatment — wanting to look into health care and benefits.’ Now out of work, Common Ground’s former staff turned to another idea — buying out the shop and turning it into a worker owned and managed cooperative. The plan moved fast. The Baltimore Roundtable for Economic Democracy (BRED), an organization created to facilitate just those kinds of transitions, offered a loan for the purchase along with assistance managing the technicalities of the changeover. And within two months, Common Ground reopened, with 19 former employees on staff as worker-owners⁠ — a welcome surprise for Hampden and workers across the city.”

“Hundreds of Amazon drivers at a delivery station in Queens, New York, marched on their bosses today to announce they are joining the Teamsters. They are demanding the logistics giant recognize their union and negotiate a contract. “To march today and walk in there with everyone behind us, all of us standing together as a union, it was so amazing,” said Latrice Shadae Johnson, who earns $20 an hour delivering packages for Amazon, where she has worked as a driver since last November.”

“DENVER – More Colorado workers are gaining a seat at the table through AFSCME. Workers in Arapahoe County’s Facilities and Fleet Management departments voted overwhelmingly last week to join together in a union two years after Colorado lawmakers passed a law giving county employees throughout the state the right to collectively bargain.”

“The Culinary Union and the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Acting Labor Secretary Julie A. Su celebrated the Las Vegas Strip becoming 100% unionized on Thursday, September 19, 2024 at the Venetian Resort Las Vegas. Attendees of the event celebrated the historic first union contract that was reached between the Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and The Venetian Resort Las Vegas, which was the final casino resort on the world-famous Las Vegas Strip to be covered by a Culinary and Bartenders Unions collective bargaining agreement.”

“Workers at Walt Disney Co. and Hearst Communications Inc.’s A+E Factual Studios are trying to unionize, aiming to establish a high-profile foothold in the largely unrepresented nonfiction TV business. The Writers Guild of America East is seeking to represent a group of around 150 writers and producers, most of whom have signed up with the labor group, the union said. The employees, who create shows such as Dance Moms: The Reunion, Cold Case Files, and Buddy Valastro’s Cake Dynasty, asked the company on Monday to voluntarily recognize and negotiate with their union. If A+E refuses, the guild plans to petition the US National Labor Relations Board to hold a unionization election.”

“Delivery drivers for trucking company MBM Logistics in Orlando voted in favor of unionizing with the International Brotherhood of the Teamsters last Friday, despite the company’s decision to hire professional anti-union labor consultants to water down union support. According to the Teamsters, drivers voted 60–47 in favor of unionization with Local 385 in Orlando, representing an overall voter turnout of 93 percent.”

“RACINE, Wis. — Journalists at The Journal Times newspaper in Racine, Wisconsin, today announced plans to unionize together as the Racine NewsGuild, seeking a partnership with the newspaper’s ownership to protect quality local journalism and to demonstrate a joint commitment to improving services in the Racine area. Newsroom employees at The Journal Times have signed authorization cards and agreed – by an overwhelming majority – to seek representation by The NewsGuild, a sector of the Communications Workers of America. The Racine NewsGuild will operate as a unit within the Kenosha Newspaper Guild Local 34159, which represents employees at our sister paper, the Kenosha News, in Kenosha, Wisconsin.”

“Mariam Karkache has worked as a barista for over six years at different establishments in Minneapolis. Her current job as a barista lead at Café Cerés at the Linden Hills location became her first unionized position on August 3, when 30 workers across four locations voted 88% in favor of joining UNITE HERE Local 17.”

“Today, over 100 Amazon workers at the company’s DCK6 warehouse in San Francisco, Calif., formed a union with the Teamsters. The workers demanded union recognition from Amazon with a ‘March on the Boss’ held early this morning. The DCK6 workers represent the first-ever group of Amazon warehouse workers to demand union recognition outside of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) election process.”

On Sept. 23, workers at Bookmans Flagstaff Entertainment Exchange in Flagstaff, Ariz., joined UFCW Local 99. This organizing win marks the second successful organizing drive by workers at the Arizona-based book chain. On August 27, about 49 workers at Bookmans in Tucson made history by becoming the first bookstore in Arizona to unionize by joining UFCW Local 99.

“On Sept. 25, cannabis workers at two Honey Sour dispensaries in uptown and downtown Butte, Mont., voted to join UFCW Local 1889. This organizing win marks the first time cannabis workers in Montana have unionized since the legalization of cannabis in the state in 2021. These workers reached out to our union via the UFCW’s “How to Start a Union” webpage because they were concerned about workplace safety issues, including mold and the lack of running water. They were also concerned about job security and the well-being of the customers and workers in the shops.”

“The Teamsters are spinning off momentum from recent organizing fights to new battle fronts across Amazon’s logistics chain. A group of 100 warehouse workers at DCK6, an Amazon delivery station in San Francisco, marched on company managers October 2 demanding voluntary recognition rather than filing for a National Labor Relations Board-supervised election. In the Teamsters’ strategy to organize the logistics behemoth by a thousand cuts, this is the first time that warehouse workers—rather than delivery drivers nominally employed by a subcontractor—have demanded recognition.”

“There has been a doubling of petitions by workers to have union representation during President Joe Biden’s administration, according to figures released Tuesday by the National Labor Relations Board. There were 3,286 petitions filed with the government in fiscal 2024, up from 1,638 in 2021. This marks the first increase in unionization petitions during a presidential term since Gerald Ford’s administration, which ended 48 years ago. During Trump’s presidency, union petitions declined 22%. President Joe Biden said in a statement obtained by The Associated Press that the increase showed that his administration has done more for workers than his predecessor, Donald Trump, the current Republican nominee who is vying to return to the White House in November’s election.”

“...Dixon is a member of 1199SEIU’s Weekend Warriors –– union members who voluntarily canvass various neighborhoods, and sometimes other states, to help boost voter education and registration for the upcoming elections. Local unions like 1199 recruit volunteers and bus them to battleground states in ongoing efforts to encourage voter participation. Union members say they are compelled to get information to voters about this year’s candidates and what the results of this presidential election could mean to union families.”

“(Bethesda, Md.)—Today, retail workers at the Bethesda Row Apple store in Maryland filed for a union election with the National Labor Relations Board. Over 70% of the group of 59 workers have signed union authorization cards, including workers in a range of retail, repair, and other job roles. The Bethesda Row Apple store workers will be represented by CWA.”

“Unemployment insurance (UI) benefits do not reach all eligible workers, even though they are designed to support unemployed workers and their families, as well as the economy as a whole, during economic downturns. Access to UI benefits has been a challenge for all workers, but especially workers of color, workers with less formal education, lower-paid workers, younger workers, and workers with disabilities, who have all been less likely to apply for, and receive, benefits, even when potentially eligible. Community-based organizations—particularly those focused on worker issues and led by workers, such as unions and worker centers—can act as trusted intermediaries to help workers interact with government employees and systems to better understand how to complete applications and claim benefits. Through this process, workers can also learn about their labor and employment rights and develop stronger interests in workplace collective action.”

“Journalists at Military.com voted unanimously 10-0 to unionize in a balloting that was tallied last Thursday. They will join the Washington-Baltimore News Guild Local 32035 of The NewsGuild-CWA. The Military.com News Guild filed to form a union in August, seeking voluntary recognition from Monster Worldwide, the corporate owner that recently merged with Career Builder. The unionization effort came after workers at one of Military.com’s main competitors, Military Times, also unionized with The NewsGuild-CWA in June of this year as the Sightline Media Guild.”

“This summer, workers at Bernheimer Architecture in New York City became the first private sector architects in the US to ratify a union contract. An architect at the firm explains their road to a first collective bargaining agreement.”

“Workers at the Sweetspot Medical and Recreational Dispensary in Exeter, R.I., recently joined UFCW Local 328. The workers are employed as patient counselors, floor leads, and inventory specialists. These workers joined our union to build and secure good jobs for their futures and communities, and to work towards better fulfilling their company motto, “Worry Free.””

“On Oct. 7, workers at two Planned Parenthood health care facilities in Traverse City and Ann Arbor, Mich., joined UFCW Local 876. These organizing wins mark the third unit of Planned Parenthood workers to join UFCW Local 876 this year. Planned Parenthood workers in Livonia joined the local in July.”

“On October 9, 101 workers from across Mississippi Market Co-op’s three locations in the Twin Cities voted in a union election, and 82 workers voted yes to union representation. Around 158 employees will be represented by United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) Local 1189, which also represents thousands of health care, food processing, cannabis, and other retail workers in Minnesota and western Wisconsin, including workers at the Wedge Co-op in Minneapolis, the River Market Co-op in Stillwater, Minn., and the Whole Foods Co-op in Duluth, Minn. The other Mississippi Market locations are on East Seventh Street and Selby Avenue in St. Paul, Minn. According to a press release from UFCW Local 1189, workers at all three stores have cited unpredictable schedules, unrealistic attendance policies, and inconsistent management as reasons for forming a union.”

“The 24-hour chain famously stays open come hell or high water (inspiring FEMA’s Waffle House Index), but pays workers as little as $3 an hour….In May 2024, Waffle House CEO Joe Rogers III announced that the company would be making its ​’single largest additional investment in our workforce’ by raising the base pay for servers like Gleaton to three dollars an hour. That raise came as a direct result of a yearlong campaign led by the Union of Southern Service Workers (USSW), a worker-led union of low-wage service workers backed by the Service Employees International Union’s long-running Fight for a Union campaign (formerly Fight for $15 and a Union). The USSW has continued to push for more, calling for a $25 hourly wage for its members.” 

“CHICAGO — Workers at Flex-N-Gate have voted overwhelmingly to form a union with the United Auto Workers (UAW). In the election, held yesterday and today, the 370 workers at the auto parts manufacturer in Chicago overcame an aggressive anti-union campaign by the company that included threats, intimidation and even firings of union supporters.”

“DENVER – A majority of Arapahoe County Human Services employees have voted overwhelmingly to unionize as AFSCME Colorado. They became the largest unit of workers to organize under Colorado’s collective bargaining law for county workers, which took effect last year. Human Services employees hailed their Nov. 1 vote as an historic win that will give them a seat at the table to address important issues to improve their jobs and the services they provide. Key issues include manageable workloads, fair pay, improving safety standards, and enhancing health care and job security. The new unit will include 520 Human Services workers.”

“RICHMOND, Calif. – Workers at NIAD Art Center, a northern California institution that serves artists with disabilities, have formed a union. The group of cultural workers and service providers organized as NIAD UNIDAD (NIADU) and are seeking representation through AFSCME Council 57. The new union would cover approximately 35 workers across NIAD, short for the National Institute of Arts & Disabilities, and include teaching artists, direct service providers, administrative support staff, and others — many of whom serve in more than one of these roles.”

“The Anchorage News Guild won their NLRB election today in a 13-4 election vote in favor of the union. Anchorage journalists will join the Pacific Northwest Newspaper Guild, a local union of The NewsGuild-CWA. The journalists and news staff at Anchorage Daily News filed a petition for a union election with the National Labor Relations Board in September and have now pulled off a historic win, becoming Alaska’s first unionized newspaper.”

“Amazon workers in Alabama will decide for the third time in three years whether to unionize after a federal judge ruled that the retail giant improperly influenced the most recent vote in which employees rejected a union. Administrative law judge Michael Silverstein on Tuesday ordered the third vote for Amazon warehouse workers in Bessemer, Alabama, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) south of Birmingham, after determining that Amazon committed six violations leading up to the second election in March 2022. Amazon managers surveilled employees’ union activities and threatened workers with plant closure if they voted with the union, Silverstein said in an 87-page decision. Amazon managers also removed pro-union materials from areas where anti-union materials were available, the judge determined. The National Labor Relations Board also found improper interference in the first election in 2021, leading to the redo in 2022.”

“Intimacy coordinators have unanimously elected to unionize under the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. Members of the bargaining unit voted 100% in favor of unionization in an official election overseen by the National Labor Relations board, the union announced Tuesday. Intimacy coordinators are the professionals who help actors navigate scenes involving nudity, simulated sex and other sensitive scenarios on set.”

“GLENDALE, Ky. – A supermajority of workers at BlueOval SK (BOSK) in Kentucky have signed union authorization cards and today launched their public campaign to join the UAW. The campaign launch at BOSK, a joint venture of Ford and SK On, is the latest breakthrough for electric vehicle (EV) battery workers organizing with the UAW.”

“It is the largest successful union election in recent memory: 10,000 nurses will be joining the Teamsters. They work for hospital conglomerate Corewell Health at eight hospitals and one outpatient facility, all in southeast Michigan. “We’re so excited we can hardly stand it,” said Katherine Wallace, a nurse at the hospital in Troy, who has been a core part of the campaign since October 2023.”

“A wave of anger is cresting at post offices across the country. Letter carriers are looking at the big raises that other union members have won — 38 percent over four years at Boeing, 62 percent in six years at the East Coast ports, $7.50 in five years at UPS. They’re comparing those gains to the tentative agreement their president handed them in October: 1.3 percent a year for three years.”

“Some St. Louis University graduate students have voted to unionize. The Graduate Workers of St. Louis University Union-UAW will include more than 500 people who work for the school as teaching and research assistants. The union passed with 90% voting yes in the election overseen by the National Labor Relations Board…Members are calling for the university to improve working conditions and increase pay, saying prior to the unionization effort, the workers had not received a raise in over 10 years. Organizers also cited uncertainty in science funding and unstable regulation of visas as motivators for unionization.”

“(CHICAGO) – Drivers at FreshPoint Chicago, a subsidiary of Sysco specializing in providing premium produce to high-end restaurants, have voted overwhelmingly to join Teamsters Local 710. The group of 29 drivers organized with the Teamsters to put an end to at-will employment, fight for higher wages, secure improved benefits, and demand better working conditions.”

“Inspired by a steady wave of cultural organizing in Ohio, workers at Gateway Film Center — a nonprofit cinema house in Columbus — voted unanimously to form a union on Nov. 13. Gateway Film Center United is the fourth union representing cultural workers in Ohio to affiliate with AFSCME Council 8 in recent years.”

“Motion-capture workers at the prominent video game company behind NBA 2K and WWE 2K have chosen to unionize with Hollywood crew union IATSE. Fifteen workers at 2K’s motion capture studio in Petaluma, California voted to unionize with IATSE in a National Labor Relations Board election that took place on Friday morning, while six voted against unionizing. All 21 workers that are in the proposed bargaining unit at the gaming studio — including stage technicians, engineers, animators and recording and audio specialists — took part in the vote.”

“On November 22, Whole Foods Market employees in Philadelphia declared their intention to unionize with the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 1776 and filed papers with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). If successful, this would be the first unionized Whole Foods Market store in the company. Past unionization campaigns that occurred before the 2017 Amazon takeover, such as in Madison, Wisconsin and Tyson’s Corner, Virginia, succumbed to captive audience trainings and other effective union avoidance techniques. Whole Foods Market’s founder and former CEO once even likened unions to herpes. But the company’s industry leading pay, culture and benefits also deterred employees from unionizing. At least until now.”

“On Nov. 7, workers at The Convalarium of Dublin nursing home in Dublin, Ohio, joined UFCW Local 1059. These workers are employed as registered and licensed practical nurses; state tested nursing assistants; respiratory therapists; dietary, housekeeping and laundry aides; cooks; and in the maintenance division.”

“When I arrived in Boston, I really liked the fact that MGH has built-in professional development for newly graduated residents, where we get to start off for the first two years at a reduced schedule that’s still considered full time. Full-time primary care at MGH is considered eight half-day clinic sessions, and then you get two half days of administrative time. So rather than start right at that level, the MGH plan for new hires out of residency is to give you two years where you’re doing six clinical sessions per week, and then you have a full day where you get professional development time. It’s a mix of structured and unstructured.”

“Amazon drivers at the company’s DGT5 facility in Atlanta have formed a union with the Teamsters and demanded union recognition with a ‘March on the Boss’ today. The Atlanta drivers’ demand for recognition comes just weeks after neighboring drivers at the DGT8 facility organized with the Teamsters. With this announcement, nine Amazon locations and more than 7,000 Amazon workers have organized with the Teamsters across the country.”

“Whole Foods workers say they’re surveilled, tracked to the minute, and have to work two jobs to survive. Amazon bought the grocery chain in 2017. Now it’s like “walking around in the corpse of what used to be.” So workers are organizing to form the first Whole Foods union.”

“A supermajority of eligible staff at Metro Caring, a Denver-based anti-hunger nonprofit, formed a union and sought voluntary recognition last week. Workers are organizing with the Denver Newspaper Guild, TNG-CWA Local 37074. A supermajority of workers signed union authorization cards, forming Metro Caring Workers United, and asked nonprofit management for voluntary recognition by December 12.”

“Twenty-one days without running water. A week before any cell service or internet. Hospitals closed, and thousands of houses swept away. Not long after developers started trumpeting the city of Asheville, North Carolina, as a “climate haven” from coastal storms, the area experienced catastrophic flooding. Upland Tennessee and North Carolina were the hardest hit by Hurricane Helene on September 27.”

“Two years after 48,000 University of California academic workers won big pay gains in a historic six-week strike, labor experts and organizers predicted that their success, along with a labor-friendly Biden administration, would spur broad union activism within higher education institutions. A flurry of recent university union activity coupled with fears of a more pro-business, anti-labor Trump White House is providing the answer. At campuses across the country — including top California universities, New York University and Harvard — unions representing graduate student workers, part-time and non-tenure track faculty and others are rapidly and aggressively moving to organize workers.”

“Members of the Associated Administrators of Los Angeles (AALA) have voted overwhelmingly to affiliate with Teamsters Local 2010. The 3,000 members work as principals, assistant principals, adult school and ROP/ROC center coordinators, early education center principals, classified managers, and school support administrators for the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD).”

“WASHINGTON, D.C. & LORTON, VA — Workers at the Capital Area Food Bank are set to vote to unionize as the Capital Area Food Bank Workers, with the voting scheduled for January 2nd, 6th, and 7th. The staff, including office and warehouse workers, are advocating for fair compensation, a voice in implementing workplace policies, an end to PTO blackout periods and a stronger relationship between warehouse and office staff. Workers are unionizing with the Washington-Baltimore News Guild, The NewsGuild-CWA Local 32035. The Capital Area Food Bank will become the first union food bank on the East Coast, joining other Feeding America food bank unions at San Francisco Marin Food Bank, Alameda County Community Food Bank, and Oregon Food Bank.”

“On December 10, workers from the Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx in-house audio-visual crew’s votes were counted and the workers won a union. With an estimated 80% of the 50 workers submitting ballots, the final vote count was 24 in favor of the union and 17 against. The workers are now a part of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 745.”

“President-elect Donald Trump’s victory in November may have stalled the effort to organize college athletes into unions, at least through the formal election process. The union seeking to represent men’s basketball players at Dartmouth College withdrew its petition last week at the National Labor Relations Board, the federal agency that oversees union elections. The Service Employees International Union Local 560 said its strategy would be ‘shifting’ in the years ahead. Then, on Monday, the NLRB’s general counsel also dismissed an unfair labor practice charge pending against the school, alleging Dartmouth had illegally refused to bargain with the union. That case is now closed. The quick unraveling of the election case shows how much a presidential election can impact a labor campaign.”

“Autoworkers at a Ford international joint venture electric-battery plant in Kentucky have filed for a union election, a key development in the storied United Auto Workers’ campaign to organize Southern auto factories and EV battery facilities. The union said more than half of the workers at the new $6 billion electric-vehicle battery plant in Glendale, Kentucky — started by Ford and its South Korean partner SK On — filed with the National Labor Relations Board on Tuesday to hold a union election. The development at the BlueOval SK plant builds on a string of victories by the UAW — which represents about 400,000 workers — under the union-friendly Biden administration. If successful, the effort could lead to the first unionized Ford-backed EV battery venture, at a time when EV sales in the United States are picking up.”

“Amazon.com Inc. workers at a North Carolina warehouse will vote in February to determine if they want to be represented by the upstart Carolina Amazonians United for Solidarity and Empowerment. The group, which is known as CAUSE, filed a petition last month with the National Labor Relations Board seeking an election. The organization and the NLRB said the voting is scheduled for Feb. 10 to Feb. 15. ‘We’re making history, and we’re on the right side of history,’ said Mary Hill, a CAUSE organizer who started working at Amazon four years ago.”

“The schools of Clovis, California, are not an obvious place for a union campaign. Some of that reflects politics: Nearly half of registered voters in this city of more than 120,000 are Republican, while about 30% are Democrats, and its home county, Fresno County, flipped to Trump this fall. Some of that reflects history: The Clovis Unified School District has been without a teachers union since its inception in 1959, and it is California’s biggest public school system without a teachers union. But since 2021, teachers, psychologists, sign language interpreters and others in this nearly 43,000-student district have been trying to change that. Under the name Association of Clovis Educators, or ACE, which is affiliated with the California Teachers Association, teachers and others have pushed for smaller class sizes, better pay and more class prep time. But the real battle, they said, has been to persuade teachers and residents in this conservative community to support a union.”

“GLENDALE, Ky. — A supermajority of workers at battery maker BlueOval SK filed a petition Tuesday with the National Labor Relations Board for a vote to form their union with the UAW. The election filing at BlueOval SK (BOSK), a new joint venture of Ford and SK On, is the first major filing in the South in 2025 and continues the movement of Southern autoworkers organizing with the UAW.”

“ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Administrative and technical workers for the City of Alexandria, Virginia, voted overwhelmingly at the end of December in favor of unionizing withAFSCME District Council 20. The historic vote ensures these essential workers have a collective voice on critical workplace issues such as wages, benefits and working conditions.

“Philadelphia – Penn Libraries staff, unionizing as AFSCME DC 47 Local 590 Penn Libraries United, announced this fall the results of their August election conducted by the National Labor Relations Board. In the final count, staff have successfully unionized, winning 40 to 27. The new bargaining unit includes around 90 employees in librarian, curator, archivist, developer and other professional titles, joining Local 590’s longtime bargaining unit of Penn Libraries support staff, unionized since 1969.”

“NEW YORK –  Editorial staff at The Athletic announced Monday that they have organized with The NewsGuild of New York and are asking The New York Times to recognize them as part of the newsroom union, The Times Guild. The Athletic’s organizing committee sent an email on behalf of about 200 Athletic U.S.-based editorial staff to Times Publisher AG Sulzberger and CEO Meredith Kopit Levien, requesting that they recognize them as part of the Times Guild.”

"The union, Monterey Bay Aquarium Workers United (MBAWU), would cover more than 300 aquarium workers from all sectors, ranging from guest services to marketing and education. In a public letter, MBAWU leadership cited workers’ desire for fair pay, comprehensive benefits and career transparency. They noted that they continue to stand behind the nonprofit aquarium’s mission of ocean conservation and that they hope a union will allow them to foster a healthy environment for workers.”

“Last year, medical residents at several major Philadelphia-area hospitals announced they wanted to form unions, and now some of the results are in. Residents at Temple University Hospital, and Einstein Healthcare Network, which is now part of Jefferson Health, voted overwhelmingly to form a union with the Committee of Interns and Residents; whereas residents at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia voted narrowly against it late last year. In a statement, a spokesperson for the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia said in part that they “firmly believe the best employee experience is achieved by direct, two-way communication and collaboration and will continue to partner with our residents and fellows to find ways to improve or strengthen that experience.”

“In this blogcast, Burnes Center for Social Change Senior Fellow Seth Harris is joined by Nicole Anschutz, an SEIU member and Triage Registered Nurse at Planned Parenthood North Central States, and Jeffrey Hirsch, a law professor at the University of North Carolina. For the 52nd anniversary of the Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade, join Power At Work to reconfirm the importance of access to reproductive health care and how unions can be a strengthening tool for this issue. Also hear Anschutz’s insights at the front line in this fight for women’s bodily autonomy, along with Hirsch’s knowledge of the worker’s rights to bargain and how that is relevant in this fight.”

“The recent growth of the labor movement also owes much to well-known contemporary leaders, like Shawn Fain and Sara Nelson and Chris Smalls, people who carry on the legacy and stretch the tradition of worker struggle. But in order to keep growing — and keep building worker power — we need to raise the profile of and support the next generation of labor organizers who will help push the movement to be as diverse, as energized, and as creative as ever. It’s why In These Times, with support from Omidyar Network, decided to launch the Labor Organizer of the Year award, designed to celebrate and support emerging labor leaders — and inspire workers to rise up together.”

“The workers who answer calls for 1-800 Medicare and Healthcare.gov insurance exchanges have been organizing for a union at Maximus Inc. since 2017, part of a workforce of 12,000 customer service representatives at 12 worksites. Wages for workers start at $17.75, far beneath living wages, and workers say their health insurance is too expensive to use…Eileen Rivera, Maximus vice president of public relations and communications, told Capital & Main that wages are set by federal law under the Service Contract Act. That is true for ‘minimum monetary compensation,’ but the act does not ban contractors from paying higher wages, though doing so can lower profit margins.”

“In late December, while Amazon workers were striking across the country, Carolina Amazonians United for Solidarity and Empowerment (CAUSE), a union of Amazon workers at the company’s RDU1 warehouse in Garner, North Carolina, filed for a union election with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). If the election is successful, they will be the second unionized Amazon warehouse in the country and the first in a right-to-work state.”

“A supermajority of workers at battery maker BlueOval SK filed a petition Tuesday with the National Labor Relations Board for a vote to form their union with the UAW. The election filing at BlueOval SK (BOSK), a new joint venture of Ford and SK On, is the first major filing in the South in 2025 and continues the movement of Southern autoworkers organizing with the UAW.”

“The staff of EdSource, the award-winning nonprofit journalism outlet covering education in California, announced today that they are forming a union to maintain their organization’s relentless drive for critical journalism, while building an inclusive and equitable newsroom. An overwhelming majority, 93% of non-management staff, have signed cards authorizing union representation by The Pacific Media Workers Guild, NewsGuild-CWA Local 39521. They are asking EdSource leadership to voluntarily recognize the EdSource Guild as a unit of the Communication Workers of America.”

“Employees across five restaurants owned by two of DC’s biggest restaurateurs announced plans to unionize this week. The restaurants include Le Diplomate, St. Anselm, and Pastis from Stephen Starr and Rasika Penn Quarter and Modena from Ashok Bajaj. Among the issues workers say they are fighting for: better pay, more predictable hours, and respect they say is lacking from management at both companies.”

“In this special blogcast, Burnes Center Senior Fellow Seth Harris is joined by music and labor experts to reveal the results of Power At Work’s #LaborGrammys2025. This awards ceremony features Elise Bryant, the founder-director of the DC Labor Chorus and co-host of the Labor Heritage Power Hour podcast; Chris Garlock, the Executive Director of the Labor Heritage Foundation and founder-coordinator of the Labor Radio Podcast Network; and Ruben Garcia, Professor of Law and Director of the Workplace Law Program at the University of Nevada.”

“As the Academy Awards ceremony approaches, Power At Work is excited to announce our second Labor Oscars! #2025LaborOscars is dedicated to spotlighting films that feature worker power, unions, labor leaders, front-line union members, and workers’ collective action. This year we have added 13 more labor films to our original list published last year, including the acclaimed documentary Union about the organizing of the Amazon Labor Union.”

“Whole Foods workers in Philadelphia formed the chain’s first union on Monday, setting the stage for a larger organizing fight at the Amazon-owned grocer. Employees at the company’s Center City location voted 130 to 100 in favor of joining the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1776, according to a spokesperson at the National Labor Relations Board, the federal agency overseeing the election. Whole Foods has five business days to file a challenge to the results, though a spokesperson declined to say if it planned to.”

“Last week, over 1,400 workers in Boulder County made history, becoming the largest group to win union recognition since Colorado passed SB22-230 in 2022 granting county employees collective bargaining rights. The unit is also the largest group to join CWA District 7 in 25 years. Workers voted overwhelmingly to join Boulder County Employees Union-CWA (BCEU-CWA).”

“The Trump administration has swept into office with a volley of attacks: Gutting programs that acknowledge race and gender inequality. Freezing funding for a wide swath of programs (though that order has already been rescinded). New work rules. Immigration raids. Replacing career civil servants with political lackeys. A mass email inviting federal employees to resign.”