In a National Labor Relations Board election held on January 10 and 11, graduate workers at Northwestern University voted by 1,644 to 114 to join Northwestern University Graduate Workers-UE. They organized to win competitive pay, support for international students, a fair grievance process, sustainable transportation options, and other improvements.
UE General President Carl Rosen joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast yesterday to talk about UE’s Green Locomotive Project, the right to strike, and how young workers are driving a surge in organizing.
“The American working people have realized that there is a fundamental problem about the way our economy is organized,” Rosen told host Ed “Flash” Ferenc.
In this op-ed reprinted in the UE NEWS, economist Mark Weisbrot explains how misunderstanding of inflation and the economy distorts American politics and can influence not only elections but also the most important economic policy decisions that our government makes — and warns of the danger posed by the Federal Reserve Board’s interest rate hikes.
Over twenty stewards and officers from five Vermont UE locals and six shops gathered at the Vermont Workers’ Center for a two-day steward training on December 8 and 9.
“The steward’s training provided me with ample information, tools, and contextual examples to equip me and better prepare me for representing and aiding my colleagues, going forward,” said Ryan Southworth, a Local 203 steward at City Market in Burlington.
After a 20-month struggle, the members of UE Local 696 at Planned Parenthood of Western Pennsylvania ratified their first UE contract on Monday, December 12. The three-year agreement will raise wages by an average of over $2 per hour in the first year, and guarantees a path to a $20/hour minimum base wage with at least three years of service.
UE’s national officers submitted a comment to the National Labor Relations Board on December 6, encouraging the board to adopt a proposed rule that would make it easier for workers employed by “joint employers” (such as workers at a McDonalds franchise) to secure their rights under our nation’s labor laws.
UE Local 613 ratified a new four-year agreement on October 14 that secures contract wins long-sought by the union. For the first time, members will be compensated based on salary step scales — an improvement much desired by the local’s rank and file. The initial placement of Local 613 members will guarantee everyone a minimum increase of $2,000 in the first year of the agreement, with most members receiving a significantly larger increase based on their years of service and current salary.
In a “Giving Tuesday” email to supporters of UE’s international solidarity work this morning, UE Director of International Strategies Kari Thompson announced that “In 2023, we are planning to return to in-person member exchanges with workers in other countries, if health conditions continue to allow.” Specifically, Thompson said, UE is making plans for a worker-to-worker exchange with UE’s close allies in Mexico, the Frente Auténtico del Trabajo.
Over 200 members of UE Local 1466-United Graduate Workers picketed at an entrance to the University of New Mexico’s main campus yesterday, calling on the university to settle a fair contract by December 7. Following the picket, they delivered a petition signed by over 800 people to the university administration.
Earlier this week, workers in Ontario won an inspiring victory against their right-wing government. Premier Doug Ford’s government passed a special bill in an attempt to impose a contract on 55,000 education workers and revoke their right to strike. Those workers went on strike anyway, receiving support from the rest of the province’s labor movement (including important support from UE’s close Canadian ally Unifor), and on Monday the government announced it would withdraw the bill.
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