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A Pattern of Retreat: The Decline of Pattern Bargaining »

February 16, 2010 | Kim Moody
The age-old goal of unions has been to “take wages out of competition.” But after a 30-year employer onslaught, national pattern bargaining has been largely devastated or has become a top-down conduit for concessions.

Service Unions Try for Patterns »

February 16, 2010 | Mark Brenner

A few unions are forcing new types of pattern bargaining onto the table. While service sector unions usually have limited themselves to setting standards within local labor markets, UNITE HERE is using its Hotel Workers Rising campaign to push for a sort of pattern in the major chains it has...

UAW–Ford 'No' vote still echoes through plants »

February 15, 2010 | Eric Truss and Ron Lare

October’s national “No” vote on concessions is still ricocheting off shop floors at Ford.


The scene is the UAW Local 600 Ford Rouge DDMP (vehicle frame) Plant in Dearborn, Michigan. Management “creatively” proposes a shift that would hurt family life even without overtime! But workers...

Bloodshed Feared as Mexican Mine Company Asks Army to Dislodge Strikers »

February 12, 2010 | by Enku Ide
Class war in Northern Mexico, being fought in the Cananea copper mine, could soon turn much bloodier. The Mexican government is going after 13,000 striking miners determined to hold their ground—and their mines.

Turning an Issue into a Campaign »

February 12, 2010 | Ellen David Friedman

Grievances, while necessary tools, can make workplace problems seem like individual problems rather than collective ones that can be solved through collective action. As the campaign organizer, your goal is not just to help members solve their workplace problems but to help them build...

Reality TV Gives Corporate America a Big Wet Kiss »

February 11, 2010 | Mark Brenner

Want to know what chutzpah means? Look no further than TV's newest reality show, “Undercover Boss.” Apparently the titans of industry aren't satisfied that they burned our economy to the ground and got nothing but a slap on the wrist from Washington. They want us to like them, too.

Steelworkers Protest US Steel’s ‘Wholesale Indifference’ »

February 11, 2010 | Jane Slaughter

Ask a union member what’s the bedrock of a union contract, and most will answer “seniority.” Long established as the way to keep the manager’s brother-in-law from getting the good jobs, companies have learned to live with taking turns and following recall lists.


Worker Center Reports on Restaurant Industry: Bad Jobs—and Lots of Them »

February 10, 2010 | Paul Abowd

It’s apparent now more than ever why restaurant workers are urgently organizing. While members of the Restaurant Opportunities Center roll on with workplace justice campaigns in several cities, affiliates of the national worker center released reports this week from Chicago, New Orleans,...

DC Teachers Could See Shakeup in Union's Spring Election »

February 9, 2010 | Paul Abowd

An outspoken critic of D.C. schools Superintendent Michelle Rhee has entered the race to lead the Washington Teachers Union (WTU). Nathan Saunders, the union’s current vice-president, says the May election is a chance for teachers to take a different direction in contract talks with Rhee, which...

Labor Board Puts NY Call Center Workers on Hold »

February 8, 2010 | Kate Doehring
Call center workers in New York overcame a brutal yet predictable anti-union campaign, but are stuck as management stalls first-contract talks. The National Labor Relations Board, with only two of five seats filled as the Senate dithers, is painfully slow to respond to workers' pleas. They and...

Pattern Bargaining in Reverse: UAW Pushes for More Concessions at Delphi »

February 8, 2010 | Gregg Shotwell
GM can’t live without parts supplier Delphi but can’t live with union wages. The United Auto Workers is trying to break Delphi's master agreement, but didn’t anticipate rank-and-file anger, which has halted its concessions locomotive.

Pro Football’s Scrambled Brains Throw Egg on the Superbowl »

February 5, 2010 | David Finkel

I can remember it like yesterday, one of the great thrills of my sports-watching life. Tragically, Larry Morris, now living in a nursing home with dementia, can’t remember it at all. Absent a union that puts health and safety first for active and retired players, the NFL has discarded its...

How Could Little NUHW Beat Giant SEIU? Stewards. »

February 4, 2010 | Paul Krehbiel

Here’s my 2 cents on the NUHW win among the Kaiser Permanente professionals. In my view, it was the result of several key ingredients—but especially the existence of stewards councils that continued on their own even under the SEIU trusteeship:


Restaurant Workers Launch Multi-City Campaign to Transform Low-Wage Industry »

February 4, 2010 | Paul Abowd

The Restaurant Opportunities Center has launched workplace justice campaigns in four cities aimed at flipping the low-wage, high-discrimination industry.

After Bankruptcy and Concessions at Telecom Firm, Communications Workers Push to Prevent a Repeat »

February 3, 2010 | by Mischa Gaus

What happens when a guppy swallows a whale? In telecom, it’s meant service problems, then bankruptcy—which spells concessions for workers.

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