Free Republic

Unions are said to be having a moment. The story goes something like this: Helped by a presidential administration that touts itself as the "most pro-union in history," labor unions—after decades of decline—are winning big victories against anti-union corporations and extracting impressive concessions for their workers. But is it all true? There has certainly been a lot of union activity. Last year we witnessed a significant increase in strikes and threats of strikes. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the country lost 16.6 million labor days to work stoppages last year. You have to go all the way back...

Better not read this post out loud to anyone—federal labor regulators might not like it. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) stretched its speech-policing powers to new highs last week when an in-house administrative judge ruled that Amazon CEO Andy Jassy had violated federal labor law by expressing anti-unionization views during several televised interviews in recent years. Specifically, Judge Brian Gee dinged Jassy for suggesting that Amazon employees might be "better off" without a union and the layers of bureaucracy that come with it. Jassy made those comments during an appearance on CNBC in 2022—during a segment in which he...

(BRISTOL, Conn.) – Bus drivers and monitors at First Student in Bristol have voted overwhelmingly to join Teamsters Local 671. The new Teamsters provide student transportation for Bristol Public Schools. “In less than a week, more than 150 bus workers in Connecticut at two different locations voted to become members of North America’s strongest union,” said Tony Lepore, Secretary-Treasurer of Local 671 in Bloomfield. “This organizing victory was a united effort and sets a positive precedent for future organizing endeavors. Thank you to Joint Council 10 Secretary-Treasurer Tom Mari, Local 1150 Secretary-Treasurer Rocco Calo, Local 251 Secretary-Treasurer Matt Taibi, Local...

The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) is negotiating a new contract with the public schools system and is understood to be calling for an extra $50 billion to pay for wage hikes as well as other demands such as fully paid abortions for its members, new migrant services and facilities and a host of LGBT-related requirements and training in schools. To put the figure into context, the total base tax receipts for the state of Illinois last year were $50.7 billion.

(CHICAGO) – Workers at Sunnyside, a subsidiary of Cresco Labs, in River North have voted overwhelmingly to join Teamsters Local 777. “We are thrilled to welcome another Cresco location to Teamsters Local 777,” said Jim Glimco, President of Local 777. “Dispensary workers are seeing their counterparts at other locations organize with the Teamsters and they want to secure the benefits of a union contract for themselves. We look forward to helping these workers get their first contract and continuing to organize workers in the cannabis industry across Illinois.” The River North dispensary is the sixth location to organize with Local...

The Chicago Teachers Union's contract is set to expire in June which will soon prompt negotiations between educators and the school board. Union President Stacy Davis Gates said in early March that her proposed contract for 2024 to 2028 'will cost $50 billion and 3 cents.' 'And so what?' Davis Gates added. 'That’s audacity. That’s Chicago.' The teachers union is demanding nine percent cost of living adjustments every year. According to Indeed, the average salary of a teacher in Chicago Public Schools is $67,718. With raises every year for four years, teachers would be getting paid about $95,000 a year...

A group of Republican and Democrat senators, along with the United Steelworkers (USW), are calling on President Joe Biden to hike United States tariffs on imported aluminum to save American jobs. In a letter to Biden’s Commerce Department Secretary Gina Raimondo, the senators warn that aluminum extrusion plants in the U.S. are at risk of being eliminated as a result of imported aluminum extrusions.

CHICAGO — About 300 anti-war activists crowded into the basement of the Teamsters Union’s headquarters on Saturday to hear organizers from all over the country describe their plans to disrupt the Democratic National Convention this August. Joe Biden’s backing of Israel since Hamas’s October 7 attack has turned these left-wing radicals against their own party.

Time to Change Our Language.. It is time to stop blaming “Covid” for breaking the economy, destroying businesses and livelihoods, and wreaking untold havoc upon families. It was not “Covid” that did this. It was not even the Chinese. It was our government. The government has conditioned us to blame the impersonal “Covid” for the destruction it wrought upon our businesses and families. We need to change the discussion by using the proper language to fix the blame where it belongs. Good generals can win a battle by picking the terrain upon which they fight. At Waterloo, Wellington forced Napoleon...

---SNIP--- Every day, SEPTA employees see criminal acts, fare evasion, people experiencing mental illness, homelessness, or drug addiction. The union I lead, Transport Workers Union Local 234, which represents 5,000 SEPTA workers, has been sounding the alarm that unless conditions improve, the very survival of the public transit system is at stake. In response, we have been asked by image-conscious SEPTA managers and other public officials to tone things down and not draw too much attention to the transit agency’s challenges.

President Biden vowed on Friday that the federal government would cover the cost of rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore – and that the work would be done by union labor, potentially setting up a funding fight with the conservative wing of the House of Representatives. Biden has promised from the outset that the federal government would pay for the bridge to be rebuilt. His comments on Friday came after the House Freedom Caucus — the conservative wing of the House of Representatives — released a series of conditions for federal funding for the bridge. The conditions include...

(NEW WILMINGTON, Pa.) – Cheese processing and manufacturing workers at the Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) plant in New Wilmington have voted 125-9 to ratify their first collective bargaining agreement with Teamsters Local 261. “These workers fought hard for a good contract, and because of that, they secured the strong wages and benefits that other DFA Teamsters across the country have been enjoying for years,” said Peter Finn, Teamsters Western Region International Vice President and Food Processing Division Director. “I’d like to thank the negotiating committee for all of the hard work they did to make this contract possible,” said...

The federal government pays more than $100 million a year to employees who aren’t doing their actual government jobs, but rather working for unions representing government employees against management — with taxpayers essentially funding both sides of the bargaining table. For decades, the government has tracked and reported those figures, but the Biden administration has removed the reports. Under the policy known as “official time,” hundreds of nominal government employees haven’t done anything but full-time union work in years, yet remain on the federal payroll. Not only is the policy expensive to taxpayers, but it also props up the power...

Democrats hate the gig economy, since they can’t force independent contractors to join unions (and thus rake off their union dues). So Biden’s NLRB issued a “joint-employer standard” to force companies to treat gig employees and subcontractors as subject to union representation. Well, a federal judge in Texas squashed that rule. Last week, a federal judge in Texas issued a ruling that struck down a new joint-employer standard by the U.S. National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) that would have classified numerous companies as “employers” of specific contract and franchise employees, obligating them to negotiate with unions representing those workers. U.S....

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. Workers at the plant just outside St. Louis build 2.6 million cylinder heads per year. Should they stop building them, it would cut off supplies for all of the company’s engine plants in North America. Toyota is still working to build up its supply of chips and other inventory, following pandemic lockdowns...

... As American Airlines puts on a show for investors, proclaiming the company’s goal is “To Care for People on Life's Journey®,” its Flight Attendants will be outside, demanding to be cared for on their life’s journey. Flight Attendants picket to educate investors that AA is still waging labor war against its largest unionized workgroup. AA has thus far refused to make the improvements to wages and quality of life the way that Flight Attendants need to see, driving Flight Attendants to ask for release from mediated negotiations so they can move toward a strike. ... American Airlines Flight Attendants...

Although the United Auto Workers (UAW) union voiced their support for Biden as an organization, some current and retired members claim they’re leaning the other way. "Donald Trump speaks our language. He came in and speaks directly to us," one UAW member told FOX Business’ Grady Trimble outside the union headquarters in Detroit. "I would say, among the people I work with across all demographic spans, really, there's a lot of support for Trump," a second member added on "Varney & Co." on Friday.

Michigan Democrats’ repeal of right-to-work took effect this month, forcing unionized employees to belong and pay dues to their unions as a condition of employment. This marks the first time in 58 years a state has repealed a right-to-work law, which exists in 26 states and allows workers to opt out of union membership and dues. Eliminating right-to-work is Michigan Democrats’ payback to the unions who fund their political campaigns. But don’t expect anti-worker Democrats in the pocket of Big Labor to wait another half-century for their next victim. They’ve already set their sights on Wisconsin. Last week, Wisconsin Democrats...

WASHINGTON — The Teamsters union's political action committee donated $45,000 to the Republican National Committee's convention fund in January, according to federal election commission disclosures, but an RNC official told NBC News that "we haven’t received any contribution." The Teamsters PAC’s donations overwhelmingly go toward Democrats, but the $45,000 donation would be the first significant donation to the RNC in years. The fund is specifically designated for the convention rather than general usage.

A United Auto Workers (UAW) local union, UAW Local 62, and Ford have reached a deal to avert a strike at a Louisville, Ky., truck plant. The deal comes as the UAW union said nearly 9,000 autoworkers threatened to strike Friday at Ford’s most profitable plant that produces SUVs and pickups. Ford was “pleased to have reached a tentative agreement on a new labor contract,” according to a statement provided Wednesday to The Hill. The UAW said “local issues” related to “skilled trades, ergonomics and health & safety” were addressed with the deal. The union added that contracts with three...