Labor Roundup

Labor Roundup

Illinois Fire Fighters back bill to end frivolous lawsuits. The Illinois Association of Fire Fighters is backing legislation to end frivolous lawsuits against first responders. SB1070 would restore the state’s “public-duty” rule – letting first responders prioritize resources without fear…

Labor Roundup

CLUW urges local unions to mentor for women in the workplace. Mentoring is a recognized tool for career and union development, particularly for women, and “mentoring circles” – a group of peers (6–10 people) led by a facilitator – offer…

Labor Roundup

Low-paid workers stage another mass 1-day walkout April 14. Low-paid workers, fast-food workers, retail workers, adjunct professors, health-care workers and others from coast to coast staged another one-day walkout on April 14, again demanding “$15 and a union.” The protests…

Labor Roundup

Labor criticizes President Obama’s budget proposal for the next fiscal year for keeping the “Cadillac tax” on high-cost health insurance plans. The Cadillac tax is a 40-percent levy on health plans provided by employers to workers if the value is…

Labor Roundup

Journalists blast Supreme Court. In Chicago, journalists are reacting to the Supreme Court’s decision to let stand a lower court ruling letting police sue news media for disclosing officers’ physical descriptions, and the international president of the News Guild-CWA argues…

Labor Roundup

The year has had some labor victories. There were several big wins for the labor movement in 2015: the UAW (representing 142,000 workers) ratifying contracts at General Motors, Ford and Fiat Chrysler; Fueling Agents at Phoenix’ Airport unionizing with the…

Labor Roundup

Workers occupy lobby of SuperAmerica Minn. HQ. Workers seeking better wages and working conditions demonstrated on Nov. 17 at a St. Paul, Minn., SuperAmerica store, then briefly occupied the lobby of the company’s headquarters in nearby Woodbury. The actions called…

Labor Roundup

Inadequate offer forced East St. Louis teachers strike. Students in the East St. Louis, Ill., school district stayed home beginning in early October after its 400 union teachers rejected an inadequate settlement offer. Members of Illinois Federation of Teachers voted…

Labor Roundup

Labor-backed Chicago bank using sale proceeds to expand services to workers. The Amalgamated Bank of Chicago, one of the few labor-backed U.S. financial institutions, will use the $35 million it just gained from the sale of its old headquarters to…

Labor Roundup

Labor groups endorse Iran deal. U.S. Labor Against War (USLAW), the grass-roots organization that led the organized labor to oppose George W. Bush’s 2003 invasion of Iraq, is campaigning for unionists and leaders to back the proposed agreement to curb…