Solidarity with UFCW Local 555 at Fred Meyer locations in the Portland Metro area!

The following note comes from the Oregon AFL-CIO:

It’s time to show your support for union workers at all Portland-area Fred Meyer stores. Unitede Food & Commercial Workers Local 555 has called a weeklong Unfair Labor Practice strike. The action will begin on Wednesday, August 28th at 6am and go through Tuesday,September 3rd at 8am at all Fred Meyer locations in the Portland Metro area, unless a deal is reached that includes a resolution to the ULPs.

When any worker is struggling for the dignity and respect they deserve on the job, it falls on ALL of us to stand beside them every step of the way. We urge you to head to your local Fred Meyer and hold the line until management does the right thing. Pickets will be held at all locations during the stores’ operating hours.

A bargaining update from Local 555 under date of August 23 reads as follows:

August 23, 2024 7:39 pm

On August 23, your Bargaining Committee met with representatives from Kroger, Fred Meyer and QFC for our 5th bargaining session.

Since our very 1st bargaining session, your Bargaining Committee has made it crystal clear: we are here to bargain for every single Local 555 union-represented employee. That includes everyone in Oregon and Washington, everyone in the Meat, Grocery and Non-Foods contracts and everyone at Fred Meyer and QFC, including the newly organized units in Grants Pass and Springfield.

Up until today, the employer said they were here to bargain only for Portland and Bend, Meat and Grocery contracts, at Fred Meyer and QFC. Today, the employer changed their position – instead of being here to bargain for more of our members, they went back on their word and said they are here to bargain for even less – by putting forward a proposal that now excludes all of QFC, stating they will not bargain QFC until their contracts expire.

The employer’s proposal included yet another step backward: to freeze all new hires who are hired above the bottom step of the apprentice bracket, until they work the hours needed to continue to advance up the wage scale. This means that a new hire could be made to work almost 4 years without seeing a raise.

The employer’s proposal includes absolutely nothing to improve your pension – despite what Todd Kammeyer, President of Fred Meyer, said to you all in his robocall. They say one thing, and then do another. It now makes sense why they have no problem violating your rights under the National Labor Relations Act.

All of this is Kroger spitting in your face. They sent the message loud and clear: they do not care about you, they do not care about our communities, and they do not even care enough to pretend that they do. They have no problem misleading you and going back on their word.

Kroger continues their disrespectful proposal to take the money you need to secure your family’s healthcare to pay for one-time bonuses, and wage increases that leave you well behind grocery workers up and down the West Coast.

Your Bargaining Committee made our outrage very clear: we will not tolerate Kroger going backwards on their deals with us. As a result of their regressive proposal, Local 555 will be filing Unfair Labor Practice charges for bargaining in bad faith. We will continue to take all legal actions to hold them accountable to their commitments and the law.

We will be bargaining with them next week on August 29 and August 30. We will update you all then. If you have any questions in the meantime, please contact your Union Representative.

The Communications Workers of America strike against AT&T in the Southeast is gaining strong solidarity from CWA locals and the labor movement.

The Communications Workers of America (CWA) unfair labor practice strike against AT&T in the Southeast---the union's District 3---is gaining strong solidarity from CWA locals and the labor movement. Here are some photos from the strike and strike solidarity efforts, a link to a petition for you to sign, and a video from The Valley Labor Report.

Photo from AP News

CWA Local 7000 took a moment last weekend to support their local Starbucks Barista's Unions (05505 and 65352) at a 'sip in.'

They say: Support our local unions; we're all family!

They also remind us: Don't forget to also sign the petition for our own CWA siblings on strike in District 3!

https://action.cwa.org/.../support-striking-workers-at.../

CWA Local 7250 in Minnesota held a strike solidarity event.

CWA 7250 Officers and Stewards in Minnesota delivered a petition to AT&T AVP for Credit/Collections demanding the company bargain in good faith with Communications Workers of America District 3 and give the workers in the Southeast great wages with real raises, strong benefits, and dignity on the job. She agreed to convey the message to AT&T senior leadership. Local 7250 has been carrying out daily solidarity actions with the Strike.

A striker met with CWA Staff Marvin Wells and CWA Minnesota State Council President Shari Wojtowicz. The striker came to Minnesota to thank CWA Locals in person for supporting the ULP strike.

An Alabama AT&T Worker Talked With The Valley Labor Report

The union's bargaining report of August 24 says the following:

The parties continue to engage in mediation with a federal mediator, which we agreed to at the company's request. What we have made clear to the mediator through this process is that the CWA bargaining team knows what good faith bargaining with real company decision-makers looks like. While we are now meeting with company labor relations representatives, AT&T has yet to demonstrate that we are dealing with the real decision makers or that they are interested in real bargaining with the intent of reaching an agreement. It is a slow process to begin with, made slower by the company's tactics.

When they are "bargaining" (if you want to call it that), the positions taken by the company on important issues to our members are shocking. One example is the company's refusal to make realistic proposals on wages that reflect the economic reality for our members who work hard for a living or the reality of the company's huge profits. Another is the company's refusal to budge on improving working conditions for Wire Techs, who we now know they think of only as "second-class employees." Yet another is that the company has come to the bargaining table demanding that our members switch to a new healthcare plan. AT&T’s new healthcare plan will jeopardize the livelihood of our members, as it eliminates the prescription copayments we have today, and in place of those copayments, our members would be forced to pay the full price of prescriptions, until they meet an annual deductible of $6,600 for families.

So not only are the company's bargaining tactics shameful, what they are proposing when they are "bargaining" is shameful. Remember that what the company is doing at the bargaining table is happening while CEO John Stankey talks about the company's plans to "grow subscribers and revenues, while deepening customer relationships." Apparently, Stankey has forgotten that CWA members - union members - are the people who are responsible for AT&T's growth in subscribers and revenues, and who are the front line in dealing with its customers. If only Stankey could find labor relations professionals who understand the meaning of the duty to bargain in good faith, all of us -- workers, customers, and company -- would be better off.

Our bargaining team is working around the clock trying to reach an agreement. We met into the evening yesterday, and met with the company again today. We have told the mediator and the company that we are ready to meet at any time. What we hope is that the company will wake up to the reality that it can't continue to bargain in bad faith and expect to get a contract. What we know is that we can count on our members to continue protesting AT&T’s bad-faith tactics until they change. Like all CWA members across the country, we are inspired by the unity that exists within the membership across District 3. District 3 members are united on picket lines across the southeast and are making a difference. We will continue fighting for more in 24!

Strike photo from the AFL-CIO

A strike statement dated August 23 said:

We are CWA members on strike at AT&T Southeast because AT&T is refusing to engage in good faith negotiations for a new contract.

We are a big part of AT&T’s success, but we have been at the bargaining table since June, unable to make any progress because of the Company's bad faith bargaining.

The National Labor Relations Act requires companies to bargain in good faith. We have filed an unfair labor practice charge against the company and are on strike to protest the Company's unfair bargaining tactics.

We want to be on the job, providing the quality service that our customers deserve and getting to work making sure every household and business in the Southeast has reliable high-speed internet service.

Tell AT&T to show us the respect we deserve and get serious about bargaining.

AT&T Southeast workers
Communications Workers of America

National Audubon Society Workers Announce 3-Day Unfair Labor Practice Strike Amid Continued Union-Busting and Discrimination

August 21, 2024

Members of The Bird Union/CWA Build Nationwide Solidarity as Audubon Leadership Continues Stalling Two and a Half Years Into Bargaining

Bird Union to Audubon CEO Dr. Gray: “We will not back down.”

NATIONWIDE – National Audubon Society workers with The Bird Union have announced a three-day Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) strike to start on Tuesday, September 10, in response to the nonprofit’s continued violation of workers’ rights under federal labor laws. The strike comes as members of The Bird Union, represented by Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 1180, approach their third year of contract negotiations with the national nonprofit. On Tuesday, negotiations stalled once again, with Audubon refusing to address union members' concerns.

Earlier this month, after years of workers sounding the alarm on Audubon’s toxic culture, the National Labor Relations Board issued a complaint against Audubon for violating federal labor laws in contract negotiations with the Bird Union-CWA Local 1180, including by refusing to bargain over minimum salaries and making unilateral changes to healthcare, which raised costs for union members.

In announcing their strike, The Bird Union/CWA released the following statement:

“For two and a half years, Audubon workers with The Bird Union have sat at the bargaining table with the goal of implementing just policies for workers of all backgrounds and securing good pay and benefits that allow us to live balanced lives and do our jobs protecting birds to the best of our ability. In turn, Audubon has broken the law by illegally union-busting and refusing to bargain with us in good faith. On Tuesday, negotiations stalled once again, with Audubon’s negotiators failing to remedy our outstanding ULPs.

“We want to be clear when we say: We will not back down. On Saturday, we held our largest national day of action to date, with support from elected leaders, labor allies, and colleagues across the environmental nonprofit space. We are building solidarity like never before, and on September 10, we will be bringing our movement to the picket line.

“For more than two years, we chose not to strike, but it’s become increasingly clear that we have no other option if we truly want to reform Audubon’s toxic culture from the ground-up. On September 10, we will be walking off the job for us, for our families, and for the birds.”

###

About CWA: The Communications Workers of America represents working people in telecommunications, customer service, media, airlines, health care, public service and education, manufacturing, tech, and other fields.

cwa-union.org @cwaunion

Press Contact
CWA Communications
(202) 434-1168
comms@cwa-union.org

From The Front Lines

 

Workers hit the bricks at Cornell University in a historic strike.

The photo is from The Cornell Daily Sun.

A crowd of Cornell workers sing and chant as they march around

the university’s campus on Friday, August 16, days before the union called

 a strike. (Photo: Aaron Fernando) See this article in The Nation.

Starbucks workers continue to organize and win.

AT&T technicians, customer service representatives, and others who

install, maintain, and support AT&T’s residential and business wireline

telecommunications network in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky,

Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee

walked off the job at 3 p.m. ET on Friday, August 16, in response to

AT&T’s failure to bargain in good faith.

The workers have set up a petition for supporters to sign.

Please do so at cwa.org/attse-support.

UNITED MINE WORKERS OF AMERICA PRESIDENT

ROBERTS SPEAKS AT A PRESS CONFERENCE FOR

THE PROPOSED SILICA RULE AT UMWA’S DISTRICT 2

OFFICE IN UNIONTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA.

Photo Credit: Department of Labor

Shawn T Moore

New Silica Rule Funding Challenged---

A DIRECT ATTACK ON THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF COAL MINERS

The U.S. House Appropriations committee voted on July 10, along party lines, to advance a bill that would defund the Department of Labor’s efforts to enforce the new silica rule. The bill, which directs funding for the DOL and MSHA, explicitly states that no money can be used to enforce the silica rule limiting allowable levels of silica dust in mines.

Republican-controlled U.S. House Appropriations Committee approved the fiscal year 2025 funding bill in a 31-25 vote, setting up a vote on the appropriations package by the full House.

“This is an insult to the coal miners who have risked their lives and their long-term health to power our factories and heat our homes,“ said Senator Bob Casey (D-PA). “I am going to make damn sure we continue this funding so that we may keep our promise to miners suffering from black lung disease.

“MSHA’s silica standard was put into place to reduce the amount of deadly silica dust in mine atmospheres, which is crucial for combating the worsening epidemic of black lung disease. It is difficult to understand how certain members of Congress could possibly be supportive of more miners dying a suffocating death as a result of being forced to breathe silica dust,” said President Roberts.

“The actions of those in Congress who support defunding for the new silica rule is a direct attack on the health and safety of coal miners,” Roberts said. “The epidemic of black lung disease is a critical issue that demands immediate action. The union urges all members of Congress to reject this dangerous provision and stand up for the health and safety of our nation’s coal miners.”

“Miners with black lung disease have been fighting for protections from deadly silica dust for decades. The union is grateful MSHA finally took action formulating the new silica standard,” said Secretary-Treasurer Sanson.

“It is disturbing, to say the least, that a handful of politicians, who are supposed to be for the people, have taken actions that are a slap in the face to every coal miner in our nation,” Sanson said. “If this policy becomes law, it will put thousands of miners at even greater risk. Congress needs to do better, and our miners deserve better.”

Text taken from the United Mine Workers of America.

A 22-month strike journey: From staring sleepless into the darkness at 3 a.m. to finding hope

The following comes to us from the Pittsburgh Union Progress, a valiant effort that needs our full solidarity. This piece speaks in a very meaningful way to what happens when workers are forced out on a prolonged strike. Please donate to help the strikers. 

A 22-month strike journey: From staring sleepless into the darkness at 3 a.m. to finding hope

by Steve Mellon

August 18, 2024

Striking photojournalist Steve Mellon speaks surrounded by other striking

workers and supporters in front of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette building on

the North Shore for a news conference, Thursday, Aug. 15, 2024, after the 

National Labor Relations Board filed for a temporary injunction that would

return strikers to work. (Alexandra Wimley/Pittsburgh Union Progress)

At noon on Sunday, journalists on strike at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette hit another milestone: the start of their 23rd month on strike. That’s one day closer to two years of fighting against unfair labor practices. The strikers, in four unions, had some rare good news this past Wednesday, when the National Labor Relations Board filed in U.S. District Court for an injunction that could put them back to work. At a Thursday news conference/rally, striking photojournalist and Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh member Steve Mellon spoke about what it’s like to be on strike for so long.

Last night, Region 6 of the National Labor Relations Board filed to enjoin the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for its many violations of federal labor law.

Here’s a reminder: The Post-Gazette could’ve settled this dispute at any point — even before the strike — by respecting us and our rights as workers and simply following labor law. Failure to do so has consequences.

We’ve fought for 22 months for this moment. Ours is the longest-running strike in the U.S., the longest strike in our union’s history, and the longest strike in the history of this great city of labor. We’ve been proud to stand up for ourselves and each other, but while we’ve waited for the law to be enforced, we’ve borne many costs.

This is what the fight has entailed:

• Twenty-two months of no paychecks.

• Twenty-two months of putting the career you love on hold.

• Twenty-two months of getting in your crappy old car in the morning and praying to God the red “check engine” light doesn’t come on because you don’t have the money for repairs.

• Twenty-two months of waking up at 3 a.m. and staring into the darkness and asking yourself some disturbing questions. “If I’m not a working journalist, then who am I? If I can’t provide for my family, for my partner, for myself, then what am I worth?”

• Twenty-two months of continually telling your spouse, your partner, your kids, “This strike won’t last forever; life will return to normal soon.”

• Twenty-two months of telling your family, “Let’s just get pizza tonight instead of going to a restaurant” because your bank account is at a low point.

• It means getting together with your family, your partner, and saying, “Look, we’re going to have to change our vacation plans again this year.”

When you go on strike, your spouse, your partner, your kids — they go on strike with you. They, too, feel the shattering of family routine, they feel and experience the anxiety that hits when your income plummets. They see the anger you express when people you thought you knew, people who you considered friends, betray all of those progressive principles they’ve spoken about in the past and cross a picket line.

• Striking has meant standing on picket lines in the cold rain at 1 a.m., tired and stressed, getting yelled at and pushed around by police, standing inches from the grill of a rumbling truck, with a PG manager telling the driver to go ahead, “Go ahead and put it into gear, these shitheads will move.” And of course we didn’t move.

OK, enough about the costs. Let’s talk about what we’ve accomplished. It’s a long list:

• We’ve learned how to take care of each other. The day the strike began, a handful of us got together to anticipate strikers’ needs — financial needs, transportation needs, physical and mental health care needs. And then we organized ourselves and worked together to meet those needs.

• We organized to raise money so people could pay their rent, make their college loan payments, keep food in the refrigerator. We organized fundraising events at Bottlerocket in Allentown, with music from the Pittsburgh Labor Choir, the extraordinary vocalist Phat Man Dee and our own Rick Nowlin.

• With the help of supporters like Allie Petonic and our great friends at the United Steelworkers headquarters, we held bake sales. We spent hours texting supporters and making phone calls. And when people sent donations, we wrote hundreds and hundreds of thank-you notes.

• When we saw that mental health was becoming an issue several months into the strike, we reached out to mental health experts and asked their advice. How do we help these people we’ve come to love and respect in this difficult time?

• We’ve learned how to talk to our families about the strike and the sacrifices it has entailed. Those have been difficult conversations. How do you explain to your children and your partner the importance of taking painful blows now so that you and your colleagues, and those who follow you, can have a better future? How do you convince yourself to keep up the fight as the days and weeks and months drag on?

We remind ourselves: Our children, our partners, our families and our friends are watching us, they’re listening to what we say and weighing it against what we do. How we square those two things in this moment will be our legacy.

• We’ve made so many good friends, people who understand what it means to take a stand, to pay a price to hold onto something you believe is so important: having a voice in the workplace. These are people who know that the only reason workers in this country have decent pay and health care, time off and safe workplaces is because workers have fought for those things.

I mentioned standing on picket lines in some very uncomfortable circumstances. We have done this, over and over, and when we’re standing on the line and look to our right and then to our left, we see our steadfast allies. Baristas, environmental activists, members of other unions, members of the LGBTQ+ community, musicians, and some people who simply have balls and like standing with others who are taking a stand.

This is a great city, folks. It’s filled with people of great courage, people willing to sacrifice their time and their money and their energy to stand by us, knowing that they themselves will get nothing tangible out of it. All they’ll gain is the knowledge that they’re giving a little juice to a cause and a people they believe in. These are people who reject the transactional nature that defines a lot of relationships in this country. I know no better people. And this gives me hope.

RELATED STORY: ‘We’ll see them in jail potentially if we have to’: PG unions hold news conference about injunction filed in their strike

RELATED STORY: A start to the end of the strike? Feds file for temporary injunction to return Pittsburgh news unions to work

STRIKE ! - OHSU PostDoc Workers United (AFSCME)

STRIKE ! - OHSU PostDoc Workers United (AFSCME)

Join the Picket Line - For Living Wages, Benefits and Immigration Expenses

Thurs. Aug. 15 + (open ended), 9am-4pm

OHSU Center for Health & Healing (Elizabeth Caruthers Park) 3508 S Moody

OHSU is offering 0% wage increase while shelling out billions to acquire Legacy Health

Wear union gear, bring signs, chants, friends and solidarity!

SIGN UP HERE!

Not able to make it in person? Contribute to the Hardship Fund: https://gofund.me/6b11c3f6

Add Your Name to these Petitions! Tell Peter Barr-Gillespie to Stop Targeting International Workers! Tell OHSU to Pay Your Fair Share!

More info: https://www.ohsupostdocs.org/

Two Possible Upcoming Strikes In Portland

Reed College Residential Advisors (OPEIU 11)
STRIKE for Fair Pay, Job Security, End Patrols
Mon. Aug. 26, times TBA
Reed College, 3203 SE Woodstock


Strike! New Seasons Stores (NSLU)
Unfair Labor Practices, Failure to Bargain in Good Faith
Sat. or Sun. (TBD) Aug. 31 or Sept. 1
All Eleven Union Stores - Williams, Arbor Lodge, Seven Corners, Slabtown, Woodstock, Grant Park, Concordia, Cedar Hills, Hawthorne, University Park, Sellwood
More info: https://www.nslu.org/

AFL-CIO: Workers at Crooked Media Stage Walkout Over Union-Busting

Top Cut:

Dozens of workers at Crooked Media, the media company that produces popular political podcast “Pod Save America,” participated in a one-day walkout on Monday to pressure the company to reach a fair contract.

Why It Matters:

Represented by Crooked Media Workers Union, an affiliate of Writers Guild of America East (WGAE), staff have been engaged in negotiations with management for more than a year. In a show of cohesive solidarity, more than 95% of the union’s 61-member bargaining unit signed the pledge to walk out and distribute leaflets outside Crooked Media’s office in Los Angeles. Workers are asking for fair and competitive salary minimums, annual cost-of-living adjustments, safeguards against layoffs, and other company policies that reflect the company’s nominally progressive values. Last week, WGAE filed an unfair labor practice charge against the company for unilaterally excluding multiple staff members from the bargaining unit in an attempt to undermine the union’s ability to uphold workers’ collective bargaining rights.

“Crooked Media has failed to live up to its values with its anti-union negotiating tactics,” WGAE President Lisa Takeuchi Cullen said. “This work stoppage is the direct result of leadership’s refusal to agree to fair terms with their workers after a year of bargaining. It is time for Crooked Media’s leadership to come to the negotiating table ready to make a deal that allows staff to turn their full attention back to the critical elections happening in less than a hundred days.”

Scenes, Words, And Links From Around Our Movement

 

The IATSE General Executive Board Endorsed Kamala Harris for President 

of the United States, Expressed Gratitude to President Biden

A strike is a last resort. No one wants to go on strike. We’re up against, frankly, an existential threat to our profession in the form of A.I. As you’ve probably heard from other entertainment strikes, A.I. is a huge concern. It’s especially a huge concern for our professions, for voice actors and movement performers. We have to take a stand because the protections that our employers have put across the table are woefully insufficient and are going to put a lot of people out of work.

Ashly Burch

Actor & SAG-AFTRA Interactive Media Negotiating Committee Member

The SAG-AFTRA video game workers strike continues!

U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., left , takes a selfie with her colleague 

U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, D-Swissvale, PA. and dozens of supporters during a rally

 for Vice President and presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Kamala 

Harris on the South Side of Pittsburgh on Wednesday, July 31, 2024.

 (Steve Mellon/Pittsburgh Union Progress) See this article and please support the

 Pittsburgh Union Progress.

Sheriff Sid Hatfield (right) and Deputy Ed Chambers (left) were assassinated

 in broad daylight on the steps of the McDowell County, West Virginia Courthouse

 by anti-unionBaldwin-Felt company gun thugs on August 1, 1921. The assassinations

markeda tragic turn in the West Virginia Mine Wars, but the gun thugs did not have

 the last word. We remember them and all of those who died in the Matewan West

Virginia Massacre---and all of the Union women and men who died in the West

Virginia Mine Wars---as heroes.

See here to add your support!

(Steve Mellon/Pittsburgh Union Progress)

“Wholly peaceful” picketing strikers at the Post-Gazette were 

legally allowed to picket on company property, the Pennsylvania Superior Court

 court says in dealing out the latest of a string of legal losses to the company.

At Portland Expo Center, Machinists union members at Boeing’s Gresham

 parts plant lined up to cast strike votes and collect gear like the red union

 T-shirts, above. The back of the shirt features a rattle snake coiled around the

 Machinists’ gear logo and the motto, “Will strike if provoked.” Photo and text

 by Don McIntosh. Read the story in the Northwest Labor Press here. 

According to an AFL-CIO press release, members of The

Bronx Defenders Union–UAW Local 2325 (BxD Union) last week voted to ratify

a historic two-year contract with their public defender nonprofit employer, one month

and a day after workers voted for strike authorization.

South Florida Sun Sentinel Workers Won Their Union Election by

a Unanimous Landslide--Photo from the AFL-CIO.

The Transport Workers Union of America secured the largest wage increase

 for Amtrak workers in the agency’s 53-year history after on-board service workers

 overwhelmingly voted to ratify a new seven-year contract on Tuesday.

Photo from the Northwest Labor Press. Media reports say that the Association

 of Flight Attendants (AFA) at Alaska Airlines has won a tentative agreement 

on a new union contract that contains many advances for the workers. Voting 

on the tentative agreement has been complicated by an extension on talks 

regarding the proposed merger of Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines. 

The union's strong campaign for a fair contract at Alaska Airlines was timed

 in part in synch with the merger talks, but with the unexpected extension of 

the talks the union vote becomes somewhat more difficult.

Request for Solidarity: Oregon Health & Science University Postdocs Authorize a Strike!

 

From Portland Jobs with Justice:

Passing by a vote of 88%, roughly 250 postdoctoral researchers represented by Oregon AFSCME at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) voted 7/24 to authorize a strike if OHSU executives continue to offer scrimpy wages and benefits.The vote comes after nine months of OHSU refusing to offer a contract with fair wages, benefits and improved working conditions. With this vote, if necessary, postdoctoral researchers can deliver a 10-day notice to OHSU, indicating the start date of the strike.

“We are standing together for better pay, better benefits, and better working conditions. Our work helped OHSU get a record $600 million in research grants last year, but they refuse to offer us a penny above a nationally set minimum wage that doesn’t recognize the cost of living in Portland, said Paige Arneson-Wissink a Postdoctoral researcher in the study of pancreatic cancer. “What happens next is up to OHSU. If the executives don’t come to the table with a better offer that shows respect and recognition of the work we do every day, we will strike” continued Arneson-Wissink. Read more here.

Contribute to the Hardship Fund: https://gofund.me/6b11c3f6
Leaflet patients and nearby businesses (through 8/12): https://tinyurl.com/OHSUPostDocs
More info: https://www.ohsupostdocs.org/

Video game performers strike as their industry is profitable and becomes more complex

The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) has called a strike covering their union-represented members who are employed by Activision Productions Inc., Blindlight LLC, Disney Character Voices Inc., Electronic Arts Productions Inc., Formosa Interactive LLC, Insomniac Games Inc., Llama Productions LLC, Take 2 Productions Inc., VoiceWorks Productions Inc., and WB Games Inc. The workers most directly affected by the strike do voice acting, stunts, motion-capture work, and other work that appear in video games. They are covered by the union's innovative Interactive Media Agreement.

The extraordinary nature of this strike is such that it is making headlines in industry publications, The New York Times, and the financial and business press. A strong union summary of what is at stake in the strike can be found here. A National Public Radio report on the strike can be found here. A key issue that makes this strike significant and is moving coverage of it into the mainstream press is the matter of A.I. and how it affects the work that the striking workers perform. Absent a national industrial policy on A.I., clear legal and legislative protections for workers whose livelihoods are impacted by A.I., and much-needed special efforts to protect workers and communities of color who are doubly impacted by A.I., unions are left to organize and take action protecting their member's interests.

In this case, then, SAG-AFTRA is leading a strong effort to gain ground at the bargaining table. A SAG-AFTRA press release quotes SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher as saying that “We’re not going to consent to a contract that allows companies to abuse A.I. to the detriment of our members. Enough is enough. When these companies get serious about offering an agreement our members can live — and work — with, we will be here, ready to negotiate.”

Another union leader has been quoted as saying "The video game industry generates billions of dollars in profit annually. The driving force behind that success is the creative people who design and create those games. That includes the SAG-AFTRA members who bring memorable and beloved game characters to life, and they deserve and demand the same fundamental protections as performers in film, television, streaming, and music: fair compensation and the right of informed consent for the A.I. use of their faces, voices, and bodies. Frankly, it’s stunning that these video game studios haven’t learned anything from the lessons of last year - that our members can and will stand up and demand fair and equitable treatment with respect to A.I., and the public supports us in that.”

SAG-AFTRA Video Game Strike Press Conference

The video game industry does indeed generate billions of dollars in profits and I have not heard that the industry is facing a crisis, although A.I. is changing the rules of competition in the video game industry, and in other industries as well. If we look at the industry and those employed in it as a whole, we see widespread and growing interest in unionization there. Moreover, we see video game workers motivated to unionize by many key issues, including fighting harassment and discrimination, protection from encroachments by A.I., winning enforcement of civil rights on the job, and winning parity with workers in other countries. Many unions are involved in organizing and representing these workers. One of the more innovative efforts is Rights & Protections for Gameworkers (RPG-IATSE).

The industry and labor relations in the industry are certainly becoming more complex. A very helpful article on the SAG-AFTRA strike that appeared in The Guardian yesterday said

The last interactive contract, which expired November 2022, did not provide protections around AI but secured a bonus compensation structure for voice actors and performance capture artists after an 11-month strike that began October 2016. That work stoppage marked the first major labor action from Sag-Aftra following the merger of Hollywood’s two largest actors unions in 2012.

The video game agreement covers more than 2,500 “off-camera (voiceover) performers, on-camera (motion capture, stunt) performers, stunt coordinators, singers, dancers, puppeteers, and background performers”, according to the union.

Amid the tense interactive negotiations, Sag-Aftra created a separate contract in February that covered indie and lower-budget video game projects. The tiered-budget independent interactive media agreement contains some of the protections on AI that video game industry titans have rejected.

Meanwhile, the Communications Workers of America is reporting the following victory for some of the video game workers CWA represents:

Video game developers at World of Warcraft and Bethesda Game Studios joined CWA this month, forming the first wall-to-wall units under our neutrality agreement with Microsoft. Over 1,750 video game workers at Microsoft now have union representation with CWA. A group of 60 quality assurance workers at Blizzard Entertainment in Austin, Texas, also joined CWA, and their union has been recognized by Microsoft. Workers at Bethesda Game Studios in Montreal filed for union recognition with the Quebec Labor Relations Board in late June to be represented by CWA Canada.

“What we’ve accomplished at World of Warcraft is just the beginning. My colleagues and I are embarking on a quest to secure better pay, benefits, and job security through a strong union contract. We know that when workers have a protected voice, it’s a win-win for employee standards, the studio, and World of Warcraft fans looking for the best gaming experience,” said Eric Lanham, Test Analyst and member of the World of Warcraft Gamemakers Guild–CWA Local 9510.

“We are so excited to announce our union at Bethesda Game Studio and join the movement sweeping across the video game industry. It is clear that every worker can benefit from bringing democracy into the workplace and securing a protected voice on the job. We’re thrilled to get down to brass tacks and win a fair contract, proving that our unity is a source of real power to positively shape our working conditions, our lives, and the company as a whole,” said Mandi Parker, Senior System Designer and member of CWA Local 2108.

Graphic from CWA

A Great, New, And Necessary Union Resource From Strikers In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

The Pittsburgh Union Progress is published by people who have been on strike from the Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) Post-Gazette since October 2022. They are demanding that the Post-Gazette provide affordable health care and follow labor law. They will love it if you can subscribe to their publication (it's free) and donate to their strike fund.

You can read more about the strikers and their on-going strike here. 

This is an excellent publication. Yes, there is a great deal of local and regional news that may not interest everyone who reads our blog, but right off the bat I was taken by an article about an eagle that has been nesting in an abandoned steel works, an article about a company that is trying to create a factory culture that is safe and inclusive for people with autism and other special needs, an especially important article on rail safety, and a thoughtful article on how regional union political action is affected by Teamsters President Sean O’Brien's recent address the Republican National Convention. These kinds of articles touch the lives of people everywhere and are also the kinds of articles that should inform our union activism. This is democratic and participatory journalism done as journalism should be done. I wish that our Mid-Willamette Vally Labor Solidarity Alerts could reach the high bar being set by The Pittsburgh Union Progress. 

Striking workers of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and supporters hold signs and listen

to a speaker during a rally, organized by the Newspaper Guild of Pittsburgh, in front

of the headquarters of C-SPAN in Washington, D.C., to demand that the company

removes Allan Block, chairman and CEO of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, from its board 

of directors, Wednesday, March 8, 2023. (Alexandra Wimley/Union Progress)

Samsung electronics workers announce an indefinite strike

Industriall is running the following report from South Korea. The IndustriALL Global Union "represents 50 million workers in 140 countries in the mining, energy and manufacturing sectors and is a force in global solidarity taking up the fight for better working conditions and trade union rights around the world."

Leading 6000 workers out on strike is difficult. First strikes are always especially difficult. Going out on an indefinite strike the first time out seems like an impossible undertaking. I hope that unions here in the United States will support the strike and that we will learn from it.

The National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU) in South Korea has mobilized 6,000 members to join the first strike in the 55-year history of Samsung Electronics at the company’s semiconductor facility in Hwaseong. The strike was called over failed collective bargaining negotiations and union busting.

The collective bargaining between NSEU and Samsung Electronics reached a deadlock earlier this month as the company refused to agree to the majority of the union’s demands. The demands include 3.5 per cent of base rate increase, paid leave for the date of union establishment, and compensation for loss of wages during the strike.

Ignoring all the union’s strike demands, Samsung Electronics unilaterally set a 3.0 per cent base rate increase with some workers. Plant managers have been intimidating striking workers, saying they would be disadvantaged.

NSEU, affiliated to the Federation of Korean Metalworkers' Trade Unions (FKMTU), has 30,000 members at Samsung Electronics, roughly 24 per cent of the total workforce and is recognized as the representative bargaining union. In response to the uncompromising attitude and union busting, NSEU announced an indefinite strike, urging all members to continue the struggle until its victory.

FKMTU president KIM Junyoung says:

"At Samsung, significant changes are stirring. Five years after the collapse of its no-union management policy, union members are beginning to make their presence felt. Although the struggle is still in its early stages, it signifies the practical collapse of Samsung's no-union management. Solidarity and support are essential at this moment. We will fight together until the end of this struggle."

IndustriALL ICT, electrical and electronics director Alexander Ivanou says :

“IndustriALL supports the NSEU members in their fight for decent working conditions at Samsung Electronics. The company’s operating profit was KRW 6.57 trillion (US$ 4.79 billion) in 2023; it has a moral obligation to share profits with their workers who create revenue and value for the company. We call on Samsung Electronics to return to the negotiation table and engage in genuine social dialogue with NSEU and FKMTU.”

This video from Al Jazeera English gives additional details and some great footage:

THE BRONX DEFENDERS UNION ANNOUNCES UNLIMITED UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICE STRIKE BEGINNING WEEK OF JULY 22, 2024

Bronx, NY – On July 2, 2024, one day after the contract between The Bronx Defenders (BxD) and its wall-to-wall union, The Bronx Defenders Union–UAW Local 2325 (BxD Union), expired, BxD Union’s Bargaining Committee voted to authorize an unlimited Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) strike beginning the week of July 22, 2024.

The difficult decision to authorize a strike comes after the Bargaining Committee attempted for months to engage BxD’s executive management team in bargaining without success. BxD’s failure to bargain in good faith—an unfair labor practice—has left BxD Union with no choice but to call for a strike.

“For the past six months, the Bargaining Committee has worked tirelessly to meet the demands of all 260 of our members. BxD Management, in their failure to bargain in good faith, has shown us that they don’t serve the Bronx communities we defend. Sadly, the solidarity, equity, and empathy with which our union operates appears foreign to them,” said Tyler Johnson, Bronx native, Civil Legal Advocate, and member of the Bargaining Committee. “Nonetheless, BxD Union stands ready to show BxD Management the value of our labor and the power of our collective solidarity. We cannot be bullied, gaslit, or intimidated. We’re ready to strike.”

The Bargaining Committee was empowered to call for a strike by a historic strike authorization vote. On June 27, 2024, with 93% of members participating, 93% of BxD Union voted to authorize the Bargaining Committee to call for a strike if necessary. With this vote, BxD Union became the first of the alternate providers formed after 1994 to authorize a strike in thirty years, since the Legal Aid Society went on strike under Mayor Giuliani.

Members of BxD Union cannot effectively defend the people of the Bronx when they are among the lowest-paid public defenders in New York City, contending with high attrition and unmanageable caseloads. On strike, they will protest BxD’s unfair labor practices and call for competitive salaries and benefits, no rollbacks of existing benefits and protections, a one-year contract, and key noneconomic benefits, including free speech and sustainable working conditions.

BxD Union is prepared to return to the bargaining table and make every effort to avoid this strike. BxD’s management can avert the extreme disruption a strike will cause, including interruption of client services, by agreeing to BxD Union’s reasonable contractual framework.

Post from the United Auto Workers.