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This weekend, the Maricopa Area Labor Federation will be hosting their 2nd Annual Cornhole Tournament to raise money for the Andy Ward Memorial Scholarship Fund. Each year, the Andy Ward scholarships are awarded to union members and the dependents of union members who are pursuing higher education.

Those of you who have been involved in Arizona’s labor movement as long as I have will remember Andy Ward well. Andy was an attorney in Phoenix whose practice primarily focused on representing labor unions. In life, Andy was adamant that people needed to be educated about labor unions and their work to improve workers’ rights, pay, and benefits. Following his tragic passing in 1993, Andy’s widow, Dorothy, generously set up a scholarship the following year to honor his legacy.

I hope you’ll join us this weekend at UFCW 99 as we work to honor Andy’s life and legacy by raising money for his scholarship fund. In addition to hosting a corn hole tournament, raffle tickets will be available for purchase, where participants will be eligible to win an iPad, air pods, a sound system, a Fire TV, and more.

In solidarity,

Fred Yamashita
Executive Director
Arizona AFL-CIO

TOMORROW
2nd Annual MALF Cornhole Tournament Fundraiser
 
After a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, the Maricopa Area Labor Federation Cornhole Tournament Fundraiser is back!

Join MALF on March 19th from 10am to 2pm for cornhole, food, live music, and raffle prizes. All 2022 sponsors will receive a custom cornhole board, which will come painted with a logo of their choosing. For tournament participation, sponsorship information, and more, click the button below.

LCLAA and UFCW 99 to Host Union Power Training

Join the Arizona Labor Council For Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) and UFCW 99 on April 2nd at 10 AM for an in-person membership sign-up training. Seating is limited, so please register ASAP. Must be vaccinated to attend.

Confirm Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court

After 232 years, the first Black woman has been nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court: Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson. And if we have anything to do with it, she’ll also be the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court.

The Senate must confirm her immediately. Judge Jackson is eminently qualified for this critical lifetime position. Her distinguished legal career includes: Her term on the U.S. District Court in Washington, where she ruled on more than 550 cases; Her tenure as an assistant federal public defender; and Her experience serving as vice chair of the U.S. Sentencing Commission.

We are confident she will bring her clear commitment to equal justice and fairness to the highest court in the land. Being the first is never easy and Judge Jackson is doing what so many women have done before her, breaking barriers to ensure that she is not the last. Add your name to say you support Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson.

Starbucks Illegally Retaliated Against Pro-Union Workers, Labor Officials

"Federal labor officials issued a complaint against Starbucks on Tuesday accusing the coffee chain of illegally interfering with workers’ efforts to form a union. A regional director for the National Labor Relations Board said in the filing that the company’s managers retaliated against pro-union employees in Arizona. One worker, Laila Dalton, was suspended while another, Alyssa Sanchez, eventually lost her job..."

Why are women still only making 83 cents for every dollar earned by a man?

"Tuesday marked Equal Pay Day, which symbolizes how far into the year women must work to earn what men earned in the previous year. Right now, women are still only making 83 cents for every dollar earned by a man, and for the past 28 years, this number has remained fairly stagnant. 'A lot of people think that things have gotten better, but they haven’t. That’s why we first developed Equal Pay Day, when advocates, lawmakers and the general population can think about the wage gap and its impact on women, families and their lifetime of earnings,' said Carolyn York, secretary-treasurer for the National Committee on Pay Equity..."

Amazon Delivery Workers Hold Walkouts Demanding Pay Raise

"Workers at an Amazon delivery hub outside Washington, D.C., presented a petition to their management on Wednesday morning calling for a raise of $3 per hour. When their demand wasn’t immediately accepted, they walked off the job on their lunch break — just before dawn — and said they wouldn’t be back for the day..."

Teamsters Challenge Amy’s Kitchen B Corp Certification in Light of Worker Abuses

"In a complaint filed late last week challenging the B Corp certification of Amy’s Kitchen on behalf of long-time employee Cecilia Luna Ojeda, Teamsters Local 665 Principal Officer Tony Delorio stated: 'Amy’s Kitchen has demonstrated a callous disregard for workers’ health, safety, and human rights in violation of the B Corp Declaration of Interdependence.' The complaint calls for B Lab, the organization that grants B Corp certifications, to reconsider Amy’s certification status..."

Unionization of a Mesa Starbucks could be start of larger trend

"Employees at dozens of other Starbucks (Nasdaq: SBUX) locations around the country, including ones in Mesa and Phoenix, want to follow the lead of the Baseline and Power store and have voiced that they are ready to vote on unionizing their locations. But Fred Yamashita, the executive director of the Arizona AFL-CIO, said the recent news from Mesa isn't just a movement among Starbucks employees, but a broader trend that he thinks will be happening in more workplaces in Arizona. 'We are a reflection of what is happening nationwide,' Yamashita told the Business Journal..."

Arizona GOP files lawsuit, wants state supreme court to rule early voting unconstitutional

"Early voting is essential. That was the message from a group on the state capitol lawn on March 16. The Arizona Republican Party filed a lawsuit, asking the Arizona Supreme Court to rule early voting is unconstitutional. A Democratic senator from the Navajo Nation, a former Marine, and a retired senior joined forces in a fight... Sandra Cole of the Arizona Alliance for Retired Americans says retired seniors would be hurt without early voting. 'I had 70 and 80-year-old people standing in line for five hours trying to vote at the polls. That's ridiculous. That's inhumane. Seniors can't do that...'"

Arizona Senate kills 14 bills

"On Monday, 14 Republican bills died in the state senate, with Republican Sen. Paul Boyer joined the democratic congress against 12 of them. Earlier we spoke with Sen. Boyer for an update from the state legislature. The bills were all focused on election reform, but Boyer said each of the 12 bills that he rejected had its own issues. 'There are problems with every single bill that I voted no on,' he said Problems ranged from being 'unworkable' for election officials, to being 'duplicative,' or 'repetitive or redundant,' Boyer said...'"

Congress Questions $696 billion in Paycheck Protection Program Loans Forgiven by the Small Business Administration ahead of House Oversight Hearing

"Tuesday, Congressman Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) led a letter to the Small Business Administration (SBA) calling for vigilant oversight as $696 billion of the total $789 billion lent through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) phase has already been forgiven. On Wednesday, UNITE HERE Local 11 will submit testimony at a House Small Business Administration’s Small Business Oversight, Investigations and Regulations Committee hearing titled 'An Empirical Review of the Paycheck Protection Program...'”

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