Listed from oldest to newest. Hopefully we can do this again at the end of 2024.
The stuff I'd consider my best or most important posts:
- Florida Legislature passes bill to gut public-sector unions, DeSantis expected to sign it into law
- Strippers at North Hollywood's Star Garden appear to win recognition, will become only current union for strippers in the United States
- AI-trained chatbot allegedly used to undermine unionization at the National Eating Disorders Association's Helpline / An update on the National Eating Disorders Association's Helpline
- Magic Tavern strippers in Portland, OR seek to become second stripper union in the US
- UC San Diego student workers arrested for felony "conspiracy and vandalism" over chalk/washable paint messages supporting UAW Local 2865
- How many IWW workplaces are there in the U.S.? At least 40 across 33 employers by my estimation.
- Longpost: Trouble brews in the independent Amazon Labor Union over theory of change, internal democracy, & leadership of Christian Smalls
- Ohio Republicans continue to push bill that would prohibit striking by professors among other far-right priorities
- Support Durham city workers as they contravene the law in striking for better wages!
- An interesting petition before the NLRB: the Dartmouth College men's college basketball team
- The attempt to save San Francisco's Anchor Brewing by turning it into a worker cooperative, and how that's going
Unions and Israel/Palestine:
- Multiple Spanish trade unions, parties support the Fin al Comercio de Armas con Israel (End the arms trade with Israel) coalition
- UAW becomes the latest union to call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza
- 1199SEIU calls for a ceasefire in Gaza
- GoFundMe shuts down a fundraiser for the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate that was organized by the IWW Freelance Journalists Union
Some underappreciated union wins:
- Rhode Island School of Design students and faculty walk out in support of RISD custodians / Update: RISD custodians and student-worker solidarity win a big victory!
- Coalition of Independent Unions formed by several Portland, OR unions
- BREAKING: Toronto transit workers win right to strike again after Ontario court rules provincial legislation to be unconstitutional
- Charlotte airport workers unionize in big win; largest Carolina airport worker victory since 1997
- 1,400(!) Georgia workers at school bus manufacturer Blue Bird unionize with the United Steelworkers
Labor law wins:
- NLRB overturns Trump era General Motors decision, removing civility requirement and allowing heated language for union members again
- Maine becomes latest state to take action against captive audience meetings―at least third state this year to address practice
- Alphabet's appeal fails, NLRB finds them to be joint employer of Youtube Music employees!
- Public sector employee strikes found lawful in San Francisco as Public Employment Relations Board overturns 70s-era laws
- NLRB issues new and significant pro-worker rules surrounding union elections, bargaining
- New York Governor Kathy Hochul signs bills banning captive meetings; punishing wage theft; and increasing benefits for some workers
- U.S. Marshals actually arrest an employer for not complying with an NLRB and Court order
- California governor Gavin Newsom signs "first-of-its-kind law" that requires teaching students about workplace rights, forming unions
- New NLRB rule will make corporations joint-employers if they determine one or more essential condition of employment
- Wisconsin unions challenge the constitutionality of the state's collective bargaining laws
Labor stories to consider into the New Year:
- Minnesota legislature caps off session with massive expansions to labor rights
- Trevor Project allegedly announces layoffs in the middle of bargaining session with union; threatens to withhold employee severance
- Starbucks workers in Ithaca walk out and Cornell students occupy administration offices in protest of Starbucks decision / After two days, twelve hours of occupation, Cornell students appear to win first steps of university ending relationship with Starbucks / UPDATE: Cornell to terminate relationship with Starbucks over union-busting, labor violations; will change coffee vendors by 2025
- Minneapolis City Council votes 7-5 to give Uber and Lyft drivers guaranteed minimum wage, labor protections—this time, mayor mulls veto / UPDATE: Jacob Frey vetoes Minneapolis City Council's rideshare ordinance; council will have a chance to overturn the veto in September
- Gizmodo en Español, Gizmodo's Spanish wing, shut down and replaced with machine translation—latest mess in G/O Media's pivot to "AI"
- Georgetown students petition to get Starbucks off their campus
