UE Represented at Union Conventions in Brazil, Quebec
June 14, 2023
In a return to pre-pandemic practices, UE was delighted to accept invitations to the national conventions of two of our international allies this May.
UE NEWS Updates
UE Leaders Part of Green Worker Organizing Conference
June 14, 2023
On April 27 and 28, UE representatives participated in a Green Worker Organizing conference in New York City. The event, which was sponsored by the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung–New York Office, brought together leaders from unions, worker centers, and climate justice groups to discuss the need to organize unorganized workers as part of addressing climate change.
UE Locals 506 and 618 Postpone Strike Deadline by 24 Hours
June 10, 2023
UE Locals 506 and 618 have postponed their strike deadline by 24 hours. Negotiations with Wabtec, assisted by a federal mediator, will resume at 10am on Saturday, June 10.
Unions Representing Wabtec Workers from Four Continents Send Solidarity to UE Locals 506 and 618
June 9, 2023
Five unions representing Wabtec workers from across the globe have written letters to Wabtec CEO Rafael Santana expressing their solidarity with the members of UE Locals 506 and 618, and demanding that the company settle a fair contract at its locomotive plant in Erie, PA.
Local 808 Petition Gets Quick Response from Company on Minimum Pay
June 3, 2023
On January 30, 2023, the federal government made a cost of living adjustment to the federal minimum wage for contractors, bringing it from the original $15.00 set by Executive Order 14026 in January of 2022 to $16.20.
UE Local 808 represents hundreds of workers employed by the contractor ITC Federal at the USCIS service center here. “General Clerk I” — the lowest-paid job category — makes up about 40 percent of the bargaining unit, and the local had expected that raising GCI’s wages from the current rate of $15.91 to the new minimum would be non-controversial. The company, though, was resistant to acknowledging its obligation to make that adjustment, making specious arguments about contract renewal dates.
UE Local 150, Charlotte City Workers Union Demands Better Pay in Proposed Budget
June 3, 2023
On Monday, May 8, UE Local 150/Charlotte City Workers Union members rallied and marched in the streets from Marshall Park to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government Center in Uptown Charlotte chanting “When city workers are under attack, what do we do? Stand up, fight back!”
City workers from departments around the city went to Charlotte City Council meeting — against the advice of department heads and supervisors — to demand higher raises than the six percent raise being proposed in the city budget (three percent in July and a second three percent increase in January of 2024).
Local 250 Drivers Win Double-Digit Increases in First Year of New Contract
June 3, 2023
The approximately 100 members of UE Local 250 have ratified a new five-year contract with their employer, Hertz. Local 250 members drive Hertz rental cars between the company distribution center at Boston’s Logan airport and dozens of satellite locations throughout New England.
Years of Organizing Lead to Big Win for Northwestern Grad Workers
June 3, 2023
Northwestern University Graduate Workers (NUGW) was founded in 2016 following the NLRB Columbia decision that ruled graduate student workers at private universities can organize and bargain collectively.
The Road to Collective Bargaining for TRU-UE
June 3, 2023
Graduate workers at Johns Hopkins University began collective bargaining as Teachers and Researchers United-United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (TRU-UE) with the university administration on May 10, 2023. Earlier this spring, graduate students at Hopkins won a historic vote for the formation of TRU-UE with a 97 percent majority, with 2,053 graduate students voting yes and 67 voting no. TRU-UE now represents around 3,200 PhD workers across the Johns Hopkins Homewood, East Baltimore and Washington DC campuses.
New UE Local 1103 Was 16 Years in the Making
June 3, 2023
The certification of Graduate Students United-UE as the collective bargaining agent for University of Chicago graduate workers on March 24, 2023 was over 16 years in the making. A photograph of the National Labor Relations Board regional director’s signature resonated especially deeply with many of the senior organizers who had been around for the previous unionization campaign.
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