Local 123 Fights Off Gutting of Contract, Wins Solid Improvements

At the beginning of negotiations with UE Local 123 this spring, the new plant manager at Daikin Industries in Verona, VA — who had never negotiated with UE before — presented the union with proposals that would have completely rewritten and gutted the contract’s provisions on seniority, hours of work and overtime.

The members were having none of it.

New Local 642 Contract Boosts Wages at Harborcreek Youth Services

After one of the most contentious contract negotiations in recent years, UE Local 642 members who work for Harborcreek Youth Services in Harborcreek, PA ratified a new three-year contract that boosts wages by 13 percent over the life of the contract, including a 7.5 percent average wage increase in the first year.

Local 267 Preserves Contract, Makes Gains In Face of Concession Demands

The leadership of UE Local 267, which represents service and maintenance workers at the University of Vermont, had spent months preparing for their next round of negotiations — and then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, leading to what Local 267 Vice President Charity Dugener called an “unprecedented bargaining experience.” With the employer taking advantage of the uncertainty caused by the pandemic to demand concessions, the local pivoted to protecting, preserving and maintaining their contract. Read more »

Kenyon College Student Workers Strike for Union Recognition

On Monday, April 26, around thirty “apprentice teachers” at Kenyon College went on strike. The teachers, undergraduates who help teach classes in exchange for an hourly wage of just over $10, were joined the next day by more than 140 more members of the Kenyon Student Worker Organizing Committee (K-SWOC), a UE affiliate. Read more »

RMEP Workers Shut It Down!

Third-shift workers at the Cummins Rocky Mount Engine Plant in Whitakers, NC shut down production in late April, winning a reversal of management’s plan to force them onto second shift. Read more »

UE Local 667 Members Gain Ground in New Contract

UE Local 667 continued to gain ground in its ongoing fight for living wages at the East End Food Coop in Pittsburgh in their recent contract negotiations. In addition to winning substantial wage increases over the life of the three-year contract, the local negotiated pathbreaking contract language on accommodations, diversity and inclusion in hiring, on-the-job protections, and bereavement. Read more »

Iowa School District Workers Win Wage Increase, Retain Language

Workers at Urbandale School District in Iowa, members of UE Local 893-16, negotiated a new one-year contract which provides a 25 cent raise, step increases, and a five cent increase on longevity pay. The new contract also retains all the “permissive” language in their contract. Following the 2017 anti-union law passed by the Republican state legislature, public-sector employers in Iowa can refuse to bargain over anything except base wages (and arbitration awards on base wages are limited to the current inflation rate). In that context, simply maintaining the right to have a real union contract is a significant victory. Read more »

Class War in a Time of COVID-19

Join North American Solidarity Project webinar COVID-19 and Today's Class War to hear frontline workers in North America share their experiences and reflect on current paths towards eliminating the COVID-19 virus and learning from the lessons of the past year. The webinar will be held on Wednesday, June 9, at 6pm Eastern / 5pm Central / 4pm Mountain / 3pm Pacific. Register today »

Regions Elect New General Executive Board Members, Trustees

At UE's two regional council meetings in April, delegates elected a number of new members to the General Executive Board (UE's highest decision-making body, made up of the national and regional officers and rank-and-file workers from across the country), as well as several new trustees (who are responsible for auditing the books and records of the regions and the national union three times a year, and safeguarding the property of the union). Meet the new (and returning) GEB members and trustees »

UE Condemns Attacks on Palestinian People, Demands Biden Pursue Peace

In May, UE joined unions from around the world, including the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa, the Italian metalworkers’ union FIOM, and the French labor federation CGT, in condemning the most recent violent Israeli attacks on the people of Palestine. Read the UE Officers’ Statement »

UE Issues Report Card on Biden's First 100 Days

April 30 marked the end of the first 100 days of the Biden administration. The phrase “first 100 days” was coined by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1933, in a radio address in which he assessed his administration’s first actions to tackle the Great Depression and establish the New Deal. The purpose of this report card is not to congratulate or condemn the president, but to celebrate those areas in which aggressive struggle by the working class has won victories and highlight the areas in which we must redouble our efforts. Read the UE report card »

UE Fought for Child Care as “Infrastructure” as Far Back as WWII

In their attacks on President Biden’s much-needed proposals to invest in physical and human infrastructure, the American Jobs Plan and the American Families Plan, many Republican politicians have derided applying the term “infrastructure” to programs that support working families. They dismiss child care, elder care and paid family leave as “liberal social programs” as opposed to the “real infrastructure” of buildings, roads, and bridges.

The experience of UE members during World War II, when millions of women took jobs in manufacturing, tells a different story. Read more »

What Is a “Jobs Guarantee,” and Why Should Labor Fight for It?

“Imagine we have this Easter egg hunt for kids,” economist Fadhel Kaboub told participants in a recent webinar co-sponsored by UE. “Imagine we have 100 kids at the park where we’re organizing this party but we only have 90 eggs. We’re setting up those kids to fail.” Then he made it clear why he proposed such an absurd scenario:

“That’s what we do in the labor market.”

UE NEWS Feature on the Jobs Guarantee »

UE’s Perspective Sought by International Allies

Following the inauguration of Joe Biden as president, UE’s international allies have been reaching out to us to gain a better understanding of how his election will impact working people in the U.S. and around the world. UE received many thanks for sharing our initial analysis in written form in February. We subsequently received invitations to present our perspective because of our reputation as a union that is independent from the Democratic Party and has a clear understanding of working-class needs. Read more »

Member Education Continues Virtually

Early 2021 has been an active time for member education, although the pandemic has reshaped the size, frequency and format of many of the events. In coordination with regional presidents, the UE Education Department led virtual subregional education events for California, Vermont/New Hampshire, Wisconsin/Minnesota, and North Carolina, and also held a similar event for Rail Crew Transport locals. More than 85 members participated in these events. Read more »

Bulletin