Local 610 Rallies for Jobs, Fair Contract at Wabtec
Hundreds of members of UE Local 610 and their supporters rallied on April 30 in Wilmerding, PA to demand that Wabtec invest in its historic plant in Wilmerding and settle a fair contract with its workers. Local 610 members were joined by State Representative and Congressional candidate Summer Lee, Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey, Wilmerding Mayor Greg Jakub, members of UE Locals 170, 506, 613, 622, 667, 690 and the Kenyon Student Worker Organizing Committee/UE, and a wide variety of supporters from other area unions and the community.
Local 610 ratified a new three-year agreement with Wabtec on May 2; details will be included in the next UE NEWS Bulletin.
See more photos from the rally on UE's Facebook page »
Italian Metalworkers’ Union Joins UE to Celebrate May Day in Chicago
A UE delegation joined guests from Italy and hundreds of immigrant rights activists for May Day in Chicago this year. UE hosted representatives of Federazioni Impiegati Operai Metallurgici (Federation of Metalworkers, FIOM-CGIL) to commemorate International Workers’ Day with a new plaque on the Haymarket Square monument.
Read more on ueunion.org »
New UE NEWS Issue in Print
The latest print issue of the UE NEWS is being mailed this week, and we've just posted the stories in it online. This issue includes a UE NEWS Feature on the successful and worker-led campaign that brought thousands of MIT graduate workers into UE, as well as coverage of the ongoing recognition strike by grad workers at Indiana University and the certification of UE Local 1498 to represent over 900 grad workers at New Mexico State University.
Several rank-and-file UE members contributed to this issue: UE Local 1186 member Embry Whitmore reports on their local's latest contract negotiations with Willy Street Co-op in Madison, Wisconsin; Margaret Dabrowski of Local 222 reports on a successful grievance that won extra comp time for dispatchers in New Britain, Connecticut; and Leslie Riddle of Local 170 writes about how her local is fighting West Virginia's attack on public-sector unions.
The issue includes reports on new contracts reached by Local 222 at Glastonbury Board of Education, Norwich Housing Authority, and the Town of Canton; Local 243 at Sargent Lock; Local 274 at Kennametal; Local 275 at Viking Kitchen; and Local 792 at Wright State University. It also includes coverage of actions for better pay and respect by Charlotte City Workers Union/UE Local 150, pickets to protest labor law violations by Locals 208 and 1008, and the new cafe opened by the worker-owned and UE-represented Slow Bloom Coffee Cooperative.
The print edition of the UE NEWS is mailed four times per year to all UE members; the general public can subscribe for $5 per year.
Virginia Beach City Workers Rally for Step Plan, Reclassification of Pay Grades, and $15/Hour Minimum Wage (video)
On April 20, 2022, members of the Virginia Beach City Workers Union/UE rallied outside and spoke at the City Council’s budget hearing, demanding that the city provide its workers with living wages and recognition for years of service. Read more and watch video »
Refresco Named One of “Dirty Dozen” Companies Most Dangerous to Workers’ Health
Refresco’s New Jersey bottling plant, where the company has been engaged in a ruthless union-busting campaign against UE Local 115 for the past year, has earned the dubious distinction of being selected as one of 2022’s “Dirty Dozen,” an annual list of unsafe employers who put workers, families and communities at risk. Read more »
Eastern Region Delegates Rally to Support Local 115
UE’s Eastern Region held its first-ever “hybrid” regional council meeting — conducted both in-person and on Zoom — the weekend of April 23. Approximately two dozen delegates and guests gathered face-to-face in Denville, New Jersey and another thirty or so joined remotely. Many of the in-person delegates visited the Refresco bottling plant, in nearby Wharton, to record messages of solidarity for UE Local 115. Read more »
Western Region Elects New Leadership
Meeting virtually over Zoom on Saturday, March 19, delegates to UE’s Western Region council meeting heard shop reports, reviewed the region’s political action and education work, and elected several new officers and representatives to represent the region on the national union’s General Executive Board. Read more »
Humberto Camacho, UE “Legend” in Southern California, Remembered
Longtime UE member, district president, and staff person Humberto Camacho has passed away. He was 87 years old. Read more »
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