UE NEWS Updates

Higher prices ahead thanks to war and corporate greed; nearly half of private-sector workers saw wages decline from 2021 to 2024; deportation policies have shut down job creation; Canadian unions demand improved unemployment insurance to deal with tariff chaos; and new NYC office of worker power inspired by UE project. All in this month’s Economics News for Workers.

During a wide-ranging discussion at their fall meeting, held on September 3 and 4, UE’s General Executive Board addressed health care, AI, threats to labor rights and democracy, and new federal regulations which impact UE’s international-worker members. The General Executive Board is made up of 16 rank-and-file members who are elected by UE’s geographical regions, plus the three national officers.

“Over the past two years, we have proven that unity and determination can lead to some incredible wins for our members across the state,” said President Willie Brown during his State of the Union address at the start of the 14th Biennial Convention of UE Local 150, the North Carolina Public Service Workers Union. “Unite, Empower, and Transform” was the theme for the convention, which drew in over 70 delegates and guests from across North Carolina. The union leaders met at the Franklinton Center at Bricks on August 15 and 16.

David Hall, a custodian at Smith Middle School in Glastonbury and member of UE Local 222-27, was honored by the Glastonbury Board of Education in May for his “quick thinking and decisive action” when a student in the middle school cafeteria began showing signs of choking on April 24.