Workers rallied outside Sofitel on Tuesday to make it clear the hotel still does not have a union contract. Photo via UNITE HERE Local 25.

Summer might be over, but that hot labor summer energy is rolling right into fall as workers in DC and Maryland keep up the pressure to win key fights.

Workers at Sofitel, UNITE HERE Local 25, AFL-CIO, and allies rallied outside Sofitel DC on Tuesday to make it clear there is still no union contract at the hotel. Senator Sherrod Brown, Congressman Brendan Boyle, AFL-CIO president Liz Shuler, and hundreds of workers have joined the effort to stop the hotel's union-busting practices.

September 14: Starbucks Worker Day of Action

On September 14, Starbucks customers and allies are organizing visibility and petitioning events to demand Starbucks quit union busting. Dozens of events are already planned around the country and in the DC/Maryland region. RSVP to join an existing event, or organize one at your local Starbucks store.

Recent News

Labor Day this year was different. "Many indicators suggest that labor’s long decline is over," writes E.J. Dionne Jr. in a Washington Post opinion piece. And as CNN reports, "U.S. unions have flexed their muscle in a way not seen in decades."
Unions are more popular now than any time in the last 50 years, but membership is still relatively low. Why? As USA Today explains, "Labor laws in the U.S. make it more difficult for employees to form unions." That's slowly changing, as NLRB has recently passed new rules that are good for workers.
Those headwinds aren't stopping unions from building power everywhere. In particular, some unions are taking on one of the toughest fights in labor: organizing low-wage workers in the anti-union south.
A new proposal in Congress would raise wages for tens of thousands of the lowest paid airline industry workers, and the Biden Administration has proposed new staffing standards at nursing homes.
UAW is demanding a 46% raise for workers and you should too.
Plus, union workplaces are verifiably safer. New research from Health Affairs finds that unionization increases employer compliance with
OSHA rules by 78%.

Hiring Hall:
Union jobs in the DC region

AFL-CIO Technology Institute: Policy Advisor on Industrial and Tech Policy
Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund: Research Associate or Research Specialist
AFSCME: Customer Service Aide
American Federation of Teachers Maryland: Organizer
American Federation of Teachers Maryland: Full-Time Lead Organizer
American Federation of Teachers: National Representative I-IV
American Postal Workers Union: Floater, Human Relations & MVS Division
American Postal Workers Union: Secretary to the Director
American Postal Workers Union: Secretary
Communications Workers of America: Sr. Technical Specialist
SMART: Communications Specialist
SMART: International Instructor
League of Conservation Voters: State Partnerships Director
National Air Traffic Controllers Association: Deputy Director of Public Affairs for Events and Outreach
National Federation of Federal Employees: Organizing Director
National Nurses United: Legislative Advocate
National Treasury Employees Union: National Negotiator or Assistant Counsel
SEIU: Senior Organizer
SEIU Local 32BJ: Lead Organizer
SEIU Local 32BJ: Organizer
SEIU CIR: New Organizer
SEIU CIR: Lead New Organizer
SEIU CIR: Negotiations and Grievance Coordinator
SEIU CIR: Worksite Organizer
Solidarity Center: Program Assistant, Europe and Central Asia
Solidarity Center: Project Accountant II
UNITE HERE: Campaign Researcher
Washington-Baltimore News Guild: Staff Attorney

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Does your local have actions, events, open positions, or other updates you want labor leaders in DC and Maryland to know about? Submit news items to [email protected].

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