John, 

As the holiday season approaches, we want to take a moment to extend warm and festive greetings to each and every one of you. This is a time for reflection, gratitude, and coming together with loved ones. It's also a time to celebrate the strength and resilience of our union family.

This year has been filled with challenges and triumphs, and through it all, our solidarity has been unwavering. The Arizona AFL-CIO is proud to represent such a dedicated and passionate group of individuals who work tirelessly to advance the rights and well-being of workers across our great state.

This holiday season, let us renew our commitment to the values that bind us together: fairness, justice, and equality. As we exchange gifts and share meals with loved ones, let us also remember those who may be facing hardships. Together, we can continue to make a positive impact on the lives of workers and their families.

Thank you for your dedication and contributions to our union movement. May this holiday season bring you joy, peace, and the warmth of solidarity.

In solidarity,

Fred Yamashita

Secretary-Treasurer

Executive Director
Arizona AFL-CIO

Union-Made Holiday Gift Guide 

It's that time of the year! No matter what you celebrate or how, we know many of you are looking for that perfect gift for your friends and family. And we'd like to suggest - in what has become an AFL-CIO annual tradition - gifting union-made! 

Find that perfect gift, from stocking stuffers to sports equipment to a unique book or theater performance. Best of all, you can feel proud knowing your gifts are made by workers who stood together for family-supporting wages and good benefits. 

2024 AFL-CIO Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Civil & Human Rights Conference

Registration is now open! The theme for the conference is "Our Voice, Our Ballot, Our Future," and will take place on Jan. 12-14 in Montgomery, Alabama. The conference will occur at a crucial moment for the labor and civil rights movements, as workers across the country are organizing at historic rates for dignity, respect and justice, both on the job and in our communities. 

Union Events and Action

We want to uplift what you are doing for our members and our community!

Please fill out all the required information to have your Local's event uploaded to our Arizona AFL-CIO website or featured in our next Labor Dispatch. If you have any questions please reach out to Alina Cordoba, Communications & Operations Director at [email protected].

California's Young Workers Struggle in Low-Wage Work Despite Critical Role in Economy 

"More than 2 million people ages 16 to 24 are working in California — about the same as the population of Houston — making up 12% of the workforce. They comprise a critical portion of the state’s economy, according to a new report by the UCLA Labor Center. But many young people earned low wages, worked long hours — often while going to school — and lacked sufficient worker protections and benefits. These hardships may impact their financial future and the state’s economy for years to come, said researchers who examined the years surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, 2019 to 2021."

Strength in Unity: Union Mobilization Is On the Rise Among Young People, and In New and Precarious Job sectors

"The topic has been trending on social media and catching the attention of experts like Nicholas Kristof, in a recent The New York Times column, or Lydia Saad, in her Gallup digital newsletter. Major union mobilizations — that Jurassic beast on the cusp of extinction since the end of the 20th century — are experiencing an unexpected upturn in the aftermath of the pandemic."

Teamsters Authorize Potential Strike at Bud Light Maker Anheuser-Busch's US Breweries

"Anheuser-Busch union members are prepared to strike. Ninety-nine percent of the roughly 5,000 Teamsters working across the company’s 12 U.S. breweries have voted to authorize a strike, according to a Saturday news release from the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. The breweries produce some of the most popular beer brands in the country, including Budweiser, Bud Light, Michelob Ultra and Busch. The union said it wants an agreement that improves wages, protects jobs and secures health care and retirement benefits for its members. The current agreement expires on Feb. 29."

Starbucks Closed 23 Stores to Deter Unionizing, US Agency Says

"Workers at more than 360 of Starbucks' 9,300 U.S. stores have voted to join unions since 2021, and the company is facing more than 100 complaints at the NLRB alleging a variety of unlawful union-busting activity. Starbucks has denied wrongdoing and said it respects workers' rights to choose whether to unionize."

TruStage Union Workers Get 15.5% Raises in Ratifying New Contract 

"Unionized workers at TruStage in Madison have ratified a new contract after nearly two years of negotiations and the largest local strike in over a decade. Office and Professional Employees Union Local 39, which represents around 450 workers at the company formerly known as CUNA Mutual Group, announced that members had voted to accept the labor agreement. The deal, negotiated earlier this month, provides new and retroactive raises and maintains pension and health insurance benefits the company previously proposed to cut."

More Hotels Sign Labor Agreements Following Months of Rolling Labor Strikes

"The labor union UNITE HERE Local 11 announced the agreements Saturday, bringing the total number of Southern California hotels signed to 20. Hotel worker strikes have been going on ever since the July 4 weekend, after contracts expired June 29 at more than 60 hotel sites."

How Corporations Crush New Unions 

"Bargaining-table negotiations over a first contract are never easy, but now they're becoming excruciatingly slow and difficult. For companies like Trader Joe's, that's the goal."

Arizona's Minimum Wage Set for Another Hike in 2024

“The minimum amount workers can get paid in Arizona is about to go up on Jan. 1, 2024. At the beginning of the year, the new minimum wage in Arizona will increase by 50 cents to $14.35 per hour, according to the Industrial Commission of Arizona. The increase is directly tied to the 3.7% increase in inflation from August 2022 to August 2023."

Playing Live, 'Nutcracker' Musicians Bring Unseen Signature to Holiday Staple 

“The Phoenix Symphony and the union that represents its musicians agreed to a new contract over the summer, said Cindy Baker, president of Professional Musicians of Arizona, an American Federation of Musicians union. But around 2008, during the economic downturn, shows did turn to recorded music, said Baker, who plays violin, viola and harp."

United Airlines Flight Attendants Picketing at Sky Harbor, Demanding New Contract

“The union said they've been negotiating a new contract with United for more than two years now."

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If you'd like to promote an event for your union in our weekly newsletter, fill out our submission form or email AZ AFL-CIO  Communications & Operations Director Alina Cordoba at [email protected]