Holt McKeithan is a student at Harvard Law School.
In today’s News and Commentary, Trader Joe’s must pay its union for bringing a meritless lawsuit, and reports show that U.S. union workers saw record pay raises and Latino worker deaths are surging.
Trader Joe’s was ordered to pay Trader Joe’s United $100,000 in attorneys’ fees by Judge Vera of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. Judge Vera found that Trader Joe’s trademark lawsuit against the union was meritless and designed to harass the union during its organizing drive. The lawsuit, which was dismissed in January, alleged the union’s merchandise violated Trader Joe’s trademark rights by utilizing the store’s logo. Judge Vera said the case was “dangerously close” to being frivolous and would not have been filed “absent the ongoing organizing efforts that Trader Joe’s employees have mounted (successfully) in multiple locations across the country.” Trader Joe’s was represented by Latham & Watkins.
Unionized private-sector workers in the U.S saw record raises of 6.3%. That marks the largest increase since 2001, according to a new report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Meanwhile, nonunion workers’ pay rose 4.1% over the same period, barely beating inflation. Unions have won notable victories in the last year, including the UAW’s contract with the Big Three automakers, which included a 25% increase across 4.5 years, as Sunah reported in October.
Latino worker deaths increased by more than 50% over the last decade, according to a report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In 2022, 1,248 Latino workers were killed on the job, about two-thirds of which were undocumented workers. Latino workers predominate in low-wage, risky jobs, especially in construction. The fatality rate for Latino workers is disproportionate: while on the job deaths for white people have declined over time, that number has slightly increased for Black people and risen sharply for Latinos. This news comes amid efforts in some states, like Florida, to roll back legal protections for outdoor workers laboring in dangerous heat.
Daily News & Commentary
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December 13
In today’s News & Commentary, the Senate cleared the way for the GOP to take control of the NLRB next year, and the NLRB classifies “Love is Blind” TV contestants as employees. The Senate halted President Biden’s renomination of National Labor Relations Board Chair Lauren McFerran on Wednesday. McFerran’s nomination failed 49-50, with independents Joe […]
December 11
In today’s News and Commentary, Biden’s NLRB pick heads to Senate vote, DOL settles a farmworker lawsuit, and a federal judge blocks Albertsons-Kroger merger. Democrats have moved to expedite re-confirmation proceedings for NLRB Chair Lauren McFerran, which would grant her another five years on the Board. If the Democrats succeed in finding 50 Senate votes […]
December 10
In today’s News and Commentary, advocacy groups lay out demands for Lori Chavez-DeRemer at DOL, a German union leader calls for ending the country’s debt brake, Teamsters give Amazon a deadline to agree to bargaining dates, and graduates of coding bootcamps face a labor market reshaped by the rise of AI. Worker advocacy groups have […]
December 9
Teamsters file charges against Costco; a sanitation contractor is fined child labor law violations, and workers give VW an ultimatum ahead of the latest negotiation attempts
December 8
Massachusetts rideshare drivers prepare to unionize; Starbucks and Nestlé supply chains use child labor, report says.
December 6
In today’s news and commentary, DOL attempts to abolish subminimum wage for workers with disabilities, AFGE reaches remote work agreement with SSA, and George Washington University resident doctors vote to strike. This week, the Department of Labor proposed a rule to abolish the Fair Labor Standards Act’s Section 14(c) program, which allows employers to pay […]