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Local and National News
Teamsters praise new NLRB agreements meant to beef up antitrust law enforcement
Aug. 3, 2022 | The Teamsters applaud the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) for entering into agreements with two federal agencies to improve enforcement of antitrust law, promote fair standards of marketplace competition, and advance workers’ rights. The NLRB recently reached separate memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with the U.S. Justice Department’s Antitrust Division as well as the Federal Trade Commission, sending a strong message that the federal government plans to aggressively police bad corporate behavior. Continue reading at teamster.orgNew app now available for UPS Teamsters
Aug. 1, 2022 | Teamster members at UPS began a nationwide call to action today. With the current contract expiring in exactly one year, members are mobilizing now for the strongest possible contract in 2023. As part of the campaign launch, a new UPS Teamsters app is now available for download here.
Warehouse Division: Webinar to Update Members
July 29, 2022 | A division-wide webinar call will be held for all Warehouse Division members on Sunday, July 31 at 1 pm ET. General President Sean M. O’Brien and General Secretary-Treasurer will be on the call to provide an update on the future of the Warehouse Division. Click here to register.
Public Services Division: Webinar to Update Members
July 29, 2022 | A division-wide webinar will be held for all Public Services Division members on Sunday, July 31 at 12 pm ET. General President Sean M. O’Brien will provide an important update for Teamsters employed in the public sector. Click here to register.
Elsewhere in the News
Workers Wages Continue to Climb, But Not as Fast As Inflation
Aug. 3, 2022 | ECONOMY | […] The data shows that people are really falling behind, said Jason Furman, an economics professor at Harvard University and former chair of the Council of Economic Advisers in the Obama administration. "And they're falling behind, not because wage growth is slowing, but because price growth is so high," Furman said. "And that's a worrisome sign for the future." The super-tight labor market during the Covid-19 pandemic has forced employers to increase their compensation to fill open positions and hold on to their staff, though the raises aren't keeping up with the cost of living. This is adding to concerns about the duration and pervasiveness of inflation. CNN Business
NLRB Dismisses Starbucks Charge Against Union Organizing
Aug. 3, 2022 | NLRB | The National Labor Relations Board has dismissed a charge Starbucks filed against union organizers in Phoenix, saying there was not enough evidence that pro-union workers blocked store entrances or intimidated customers during a spring rally. Seattle-based Starbucks filed the charge with the labor board in April. The company contended that pro-union workers violated U.S. labor law by threatening workers and customers a Phoenix Starbucks store. The company claimed workers blocked the store’s entrances, made threats, yelled profanities and pounded on the store’s windows. Associated Press
Teamsters, UNITE HERE Partner to Protect Pensions
Aug. 2, 2022 | WORKERS’ RIGHTS | In response to private equity’s growing encroachment into the retirement services industry, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and UNITE HERE have announced an alliance to strengthen the protection of pension benefits. The two unions cited the recent multi-billion-dollar pension buyout deals by Apollo Global Management’s (NYSE: APO) Athene subsidiary as the spark for the new alliance. The two labor organizations plan to advocate for more state and federal oversight of group annuity providers. Of particular concern are risk transfers. The Teamsters and UNITE HERE are concerned that workers’ retirement assets are being moved into complex financial structures that lack transparency. Labor Press
Resurgence of Unions in Maryland and Beyond Just What U.S. Middle Class Needs
Aug. 1, 2022 | COMMENTARY | What do the Starbucks in Mount Vernon, the Apple store in Towson Town Center, MOM’s Organic Market in Hampden, the Baltimore Museum of Art, and the Maryland Institute College of Art have in common? Employees at each have voted to form or join a union in recent months. They’ve been part of a broader resurgence in organized labor within the United States triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, an improved public perception of unions under President Joe Biden, and a robust jobs market that has clearly put greater power in the hands of workers and less in management’s. The question many are left asking is whether this is a good thing, a bad thing or perhaps a not-yet-determined outcome. Our assessment? It’s not only a positive development, it’s really overdue. First, a disclosure: The Baltimore Sun has long employed unionized workers… Baltimore Sun PHOTO/BALTIMORE SUN
Week Ending 07/29/2022
• Can you believe my damned union?!?
• Unions could succeed where Senate Democrats fail
• The best $180 I ever spent: My union fees
• Need some good news? Look to the unions
• Massachusetts Trader Joe’s becomes first to unionize
• Medieval Times workers move to unionize another castle
• The fallout from Apple’s bizarre union-busting campaign
• Starbucks workers score unionization victories in more than 200 stores
• Auto workers to battle Detroit’s Big Three on two-tier wages
• Kentucky American Red Cross working with local officials on flood impacts
• Pro-union worker asked Amazon for injury accommodation: Amazon fired her