Flash Mob Sings for Respect at Wal-Mart
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Shoppers at a Laurel, Md., Wal-Mart yesterday got some unexpected entertainment while Wal-Mart managers got a serious message in the form of a rousing, revamped version of Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” from a flash mob and brass band.
Wal-Mart is planning to open four stores in nearby Washington, D.C., but the retailer hasn’t met with community members to talk about standards for respecting workers and the neighborhoods, said D.C. Jobs with Justice (JWJ) and the coalition Respect DC.
Wal-Mart drives down standards and wages, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) President Joe Hansen said yesterday.
When Wal-Mart opens in a community, it regularly displaces existing jobs with poverty-level jobs.
SoCal Union Members Show Solidarity with Grocery Workers
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In Southern California, 63,000 United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 770 members are fighting for a fair contract that doesn’t force the workers to pay as much as 50 percent of their take home pay for health care coverage. But they are not fighting the battle alone against the mega-grocery chains Albertsons, Ralphs and Vons.
Dozens of unions in the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor have “adopted” stores to take the workers’ message to shoppers and store managers. During the July 4 weekend, several International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and Inlandboatmen’s Union (IBU) locals went to 13 stores.
They delivered letters of support for grocery workers to the store managers and told them in the case of a strike, they and other Los Angeles working families would not cross picket lines. They also talked with store workers and customers.
A recent survey found that 62 percent of Southern California shoppers said they would honor picket lines in case of strike. Says Los Angeles Federation Executive Secretary-Treasurer Maria Elena Durazo:
Steelworkers Ratify Pact with RG Steel—and More Bargaining News
The United Steelworkers (USW) at RG Steel ratified a new contract—and more news from the “Bargaining Digest Weekly.” The AFL-CIO Collective Bargaining Department delivers daily, bargaining-related news and research resources to more than 1,300 subscribers. Union leaders can register for this service through our website, Bargaining@Work.
SETTLEMENTS
USW, RG Steel: The United Steelworkers ratified a new agreement with North America successor RG Steel that covers some 6,000 workers at five facilities in Ohio, Maryland and West Virginia.
Private-Sector Workers Join Ohio Fight
In Ohio, Gov. John Kasich (R) is fighting to eliminate collective bargaining rights for public employees—but private-sector workers know darn well an attack on middle-class jobs hurts all workers in the state.
Kasich’s S.B. 5 would eliminate collective bargaining rights for state workers. Some 5,000 workers were at the state Capitol in Columbus today protesting the bill.
In today’s hearing on the legislation, four members of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) submitted testimony against the bill. Says Bonnie France, a meat department employee at an Englewood, Ohio, Kroger’s store:
Now, I understand that the state has budget issues and we need jobs, but taking away collective bargaining rights that enable people to have a decent wage, workplace safety and a voice is not the solution. This bill is only going to put Ohio further in the red. If people make less, they will spend less and, people will move out of state to find better opportunities.
Click here to read the testimony of all four UFCW members.
AirTran Pilots Reach Tentative Pact—and More Bargaining News
After five years of negotiations, some 1,850 pilots at AirTran Airways have reached a tentative agreement with the airline, and more news from the “Bargaining Digest Weekly.” The AFL-CIO Collective Bargaining Department delivers daily, bargaining-related news and research resources to more than 1,300 subscribers. Union leaders can register for this service through our website, Bargaining@Work.
NEGOTIATIONS
ALPA, AirTran Airways: After five years of negotiations, pilots at AirTran Airways have reached a tentative agreement with the airline. If the 1,650 members of the AirTran Chapter of the Air Line Pilots (ALPA) vote to ratify, the contract will take effect Dec. 1.
Lehigh Valley Union Activists to Rep. Dent: Show Us the Jobs!
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Yael Foa, AFL-CIO senior field representative for the Northeast Region, recently rallied with Pennsylvania union members at the Bethlehem offices of Rep. Charlie Dent to protest his lack of action in creating good jobs. The event is one of dozens union activists are holding around the nation to hold lawmakers accountable for Good Jobs Now.
The sweltering heat did not stop more than 50 union members from turning out to rally outside Rep. Charlie Dent’s office in Bethlehem, Pa., during the congressional recess last week. The rally, organized by the Northeastern Pennsylvania Area Labor Federation, the Lehigh Valley Central Labor Council and the Lehigh Valley Building and Construction Trades Council, highlighted Dent’s failure to address the jobs crisis and rising unemployment in his district.
Warehouse Workers on 60-Mile March for Justice
After 12 weeks of walking picket lines, striking warehouse workers at Shaw’s Supermarkets are taking their fight for justice on a 60-mile march from their warehouse in Methuen, Mass., to a rally at the state House in Boston.
The workers, members of United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 791, began their march yesterday and will reach the state House on Thursday. They patterned their march after the farm worker and civil rights marches of the 1960s and, along the way, will reach out to build public and political support and stage rallies at several Shaw’s markets.
Russ Davis, executive director of Massachusetts Jobs with Justice (JWJ), which is partnering with the union for the march, says, “We want the entire community to stand up and tell Shaw’s to do the right thing.”
Philadelphia Transit Workers End Strike, and More Bargaining News
More than 5,100 members of the Transport Workers (TWU) ended their strike in Philadelphia this morning, and more news from the “Bargaining Digest Weekly.” The AFL-CIO Collective Bargaining Department delivers daily, bargaining-related news and research resources to more than 1,200 subscribers. Union leaders can register for this service through our website, Bargaining@Work.
NEGOTIATIONS
TWU, SEPTA: The six-day strike by Philadelphia transit workers is over. Transport Workers (TWU) Local 234 and Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) reached a tentative agreement early this morning, in time to get trains and buses running for the morning commute. A ratification vote by TWU’s 5,100 members will be held in the next 10 days.
2,000 City Workers Ratify Pact with Milwaukee—and More Bargaining News
AFSCME members ratified a new contract with the city of Milwaukee, and more news from the “Bargaining Digest Weekly.” The AFL-CIO Collective Bargaining Department delivers daily, bargaining-related news and research resources to more than 1,200 subscribers. Union leaders can register for this service through our website, Bargaining@Work.
SETTLEMENTS
AFSCME, City of Milwaukee: Members of AFSCME Council 48 ratified a new contract with the city of Milwaukee. The 2,000 city employees agreed to a pay freeze for 2010 and 2011 in return for a no-layoff guarantee.
AFL-CIO, Change to Win Agree on Joint Immigration Framework
The AFL-CIO and Change to Win (CtW) today announced a historic joint unity framework for immigration reform. The joint announcement and proposal is a critical sign of support for the Obama administration and Congress to address immigration reform and to ensure that the issue remains a priority. It also signals that immigration reform is an important part of economic recovery.
The framework for comprehensive reform was developed with the guidance of former Secretary of Labor Ray Marshall and the Economic Policy Institute.
In a statement, AFL-CIO President John Sweeney said:
Our nation’s broken immigration system isn’t working for anybody—not immigrant workers who are routinely exploited by companies and not U.S.-born workers whose living standards are being undermined by the creation of a new “underclass.”
As a part of broad-based economic recovery, we need a comprehensive solution—and soon. The development of a unified labor position, a position centered on workers’ rights, puts us on the path to a legislative solution.
