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Local 896-COGS Defeats Anti-Union Law for Third Time

November 5, 2022
Iowa City, Iowa
By Caleb Klipowicz and Glenn Houlihan, UE Local 896-COGS

On October 25, 2022, UE Local 896-COGS, which represents almost 2,000 graduate employees at the University of Iowa, won a recertification election for the third time in six years, with the support of nearly 70 percent of the bargaining unit. Due to a union-busting law passed in 2017, all public-sector union workers in Iowa must vote to recertify their union by a margin of 50 percent plus 1 before every round of contract negotiations. 

Local 221 “Relishing in Success” of New Contract at CVOEO

November 5, 2022
Burlington, Vermont

Members of amalgamated UE Local 221 who work for the Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity (CVOEO) ratified a new three-year contract this past week. The contract covers workers who work for Head Start programs, community action offices, food shelves, and a variety of other programs across the four Vermont counties of Chittenden, Addison, Franklin and Grand Isle.

UNC Housekeepers Rally for $20 per Hour, End to Pay-to-Work

November 4, 2022
Chapel Hill, North Carolina

On Friday, October 28, housekeepers at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, joined by over 100 supporters, rallied for $20 per hour and an end to pay-to-work policies.

Organized by the Workers Union @ UNC, a chapter of UE Local 150, the march and rally featured speak-outs from housekeepers as well as statements of support from the Campus Y, Siembra, and The Black Student Movement. The housekeepers delivered 2,100 petition signatures supporting their demands to the chancellor's office.

Brazilian Election a Victory for Working Class, Democracy

November 2, 2022

On October 30, Brazilian voters elected former metalworkers’ union leader (and former two-term president) Luiz Inácio da Silva, popularly known simply as “Lula,” as president. Lula defeated incumbent president Jair Bolsonaro, a close Trump ally who during his four years in office attacked unions, encouraged violence against opponents, and oversaw massive deforestation of the Amazon rainforests — hastening climate change and putting the entire world at risk.

In a statement released after the victory, the union federation Central Unica dos Trabalhadores (CUT) called the election a “victory of hope” over “fear, coercion and corporate electoral harassment,” and over those who tolerate and encourage “violence as a method of doing politics.”

First Contract Struggles Take Center Stage at Eastern Region Council Meeting

November 1, 2022
Needham, Massachusetts

“Not to recommend it, not to suggest it, but to demand change — that right there is the union difference.”

That’s what being in UE means to thousands of Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduate workers, said Nishad Gothaskar, a member of the UE Local 256 (MIT GSU) bargaining committee. Flanked by over a dozen fellow members of his local, Gothaskar reviewed Local 256’s bargaining goals for delegates to the UE Eastern Region’s fall council meeting, which was held on Saturday, October 29.

New National Contract with Hallcon Delivers “Dollars, Not Dimes”

October 28, 2022

The new UE national contract with Hallcon Corp., covering approximately 2,000 drivers in six UE locals who work in 16 states, will increase wages by up to 22 percent over the next four years, delivering on UE members’ demands for “dollars, not dimes.” Across-the-board wage increases in the first year of the contract alone range from six percent to as high as 13 percent, with drivers in California seeing a $2.10/hour increase to their base wage. The contract was ratified on September 30.

Western Region Meets in California

October 26, 2022
Irvine, California

“It’s just a great feeling for me to see people in-person again,” said UE Western Region President Bryan Martindale, as he looked out over the delegates who assembled for the fall regional council meeting on October 1 and 2. “This is what it’s all about — members interacting with members.”

It was a sentiment that was echoed throughout the weekend, as delegates took every opportunity to compare notes with delegates from other locals during breaks and meals, and in the evenings.

Refresco Workers Travel to NYC to Deliver Petition, Meet with Investors

October 21, 2022
New York City

Workers from the Refresco bottling plant in Wharton, NJ traveled to New York City on Wednesday to deliver a petition to the private equity firm which owns their company — and to meet with major institutional investors in that firm.

The workers are members of UE Local 115, and are currently in negotiations for a first union contract. As negotiating committee member César Moreira explained, they are fighting for “three basic demands” which are “things that everyone should have as a right” — decent wages and benefits, health and safety at work, and fair schedules.

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