Willy Street Co-op Workers Vote UE in Landslide

In an election conducted by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on September 3 and 4, workers at the Willy Street Co-op in Madison, Wisconsin voted by 249-40 to join UE. “We won by a landslide, because we united and worked hard! This is proof that, together, we can affect real positive change, and we will continue to do so,” said Willy Street Co-op worker and organizing committee member Mourning Dove Wochos.

ESS Workers Confront Company Anti-Union Campaign, Join UE

Sheila Wanzer, a teaching aide in Winslow and a member of the UE organizing committee at the private contractor ESS, told the UE Convention in August, “We're fighting this battle and we're not giving up until we win!” On Tuesday, September 24, Wanzer and her co-workers voted to join UE in a National Labor Relations Board election.

UE Convention Highlights Now Online

UE NEWS coverage of the highlights of the 76th UE Convention, held in August, is now online! UE members made several historic decisions: unanimously endorsing Bernie Sanders for President, becoming the first union with significant manufacturing membership to endorse the “Green New Deal,” and reaffirming UE’s long-held support for single-payer healthcare, now commonly referred to as “Medicare for All.” Read more »

UE Members Visit GM Picket Lines

“I was proud to be a part of this strike,” said UE Local 610 Vice President Jeff Kohler. “It was great to see the solidarity of the community and all of the unions who supported UAW Local 1005. Perhaps the most inspiring thing that happened was unexpectedly running into UE Local 506. That's what rank-and-file solidarity is all about.” Read more »

UE Local 896-COGS Membership Drive Builds Union Strength Across Campus

Over the two weeks of their fall membership drive, UE Local 896-COGS volunteers and organizers signed up 40 new members in this right-to-work state. Local 896 represents the graduate employees at the University of Iowa. Read more »

Charlotte City Workers Union Urges Passage of Federal Medicare for All Bill

On Saturday, September 21, members of the Charlotte City Workers Union Chapter of UE Local 150, the National Nurses United, the Southern Workers Assembly, Healthcare Justice NC and others held a picket in front of the Government Center to launch their campaign for affordable healthcare, including passage of the Congressional bill for Medicare for All. They were adding to the numbers of working people, including local and state employees, who see Medicare for All as the way to comprehensively insure themselves and families and to contain skyrocketing healthcare costs. Read more »

General President Peter Knowlton to Retire (but Stay Active in the Union)

UE General President Peter Knowlton is retiring when his term ends on October 31, with over three decades of service to UE as a field organizer, district and then regional president, and national officer. As Knowlton is quick to remind anyone he's around these days though, this is not the end of his contributions to the union — he plans to stay active as a retiree. Read more »

UE Regional President Helps “Forgotten Land” of Puerto Rico to Rise

Shortly after UE’s 2017 convention, Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico. While most U.S. news outlets lost interest in the story after a month or two, the island has yet to fully recover. In May, Northeast Region President Autumn Martinez spent two weeks on the island as a volunteer, helping to repair homes. The UE NEWS spoke with her in July about her trip and the conditions she found there. Read more »

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