Holden Hopkins is a student at Harvard Law School.
In today’s News and Commentary, Teamsters authorize Amazon strikes and House Republicans name the next Education and Workforce Committee chair.
Unionized workers at two New York Amazon warehouses voted to authorize a strike unless their employer comes to the bargaining table. This move comes as one of the first major actions following the merger between the Teamsters and the formerly independent Amazon Labor Union. The two warehouses involved are JFK8 in Staten Island and DBK4 in Queens, where a total of over 5,500 workers are employed.
While Amazon has refused to recognize the union during past walkouts, this potential strike comes amid the holiday season, a particularly busy time for the company. In a statement, Teamsters President Sean O’Brien demanded that Amazon come to the bargaining table or face the strike, saying “[i]f these white-collar criminals want to keep breaking the law, they better get ready for a fight.”
On Thursday, it was announced that Representative Tim Wahlberg (R-MI) would be the next chairperson of the House Education and Workforce Committee. In a statement released by his office, the Representative vowed to “empower parents, incentivize workforce training, improve government efficiency, and unburden American innovators and job creators.” In the past, Wahlberg has introduced legislation to “rein-in” the NLRB, which he has criticized heavily under President Biden. In his fifteen-plus years in office, Wahlberg has been graded by the AFL-CIO to vote with working people twelve percent of the time.
Daily News & Commentary
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August 19
Amazon’s NLRA violations, the end of the Air Canada strike, and a court finds no unconstitutional taking in reducing pension benefits
August 18
Labor groups sue local Washington officials; the NYC Council seeks to override mayoral veto; and an NLRB official rejects state adjudication efforts.
August 17
The Canadian government ends a national flight attendants’ strike, and Illinois enacts laws preserving federal worker protections.
August 15
Columbia University quietly replaces graduate student union labor with non-union adjunct workers; the DC Circuit Court lifts the preliminary injunction on CFPB firings; and Grubhub to pay $24.75M to settle California driver class action.
August 14
Judge Pechman denies the Trump Administration’s motion to dismiss claims brought by unions representing TSA employees; the Trump Administration continues efforts to strip federal employees of collective bargaining rights; and the National Association of Agriculture Employees seeks legal relief after the USDA stopped recognizing the union.
August 13
The United Auto Workers (UAW) seek to oust President Shawn Fain ahead of next year’s election; Columbia University files an unfair labor practice (ULP) charge against the Student Workers of Columbia-United Auto Workers for failing to bargain in “good faith”; and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) terminates its collective bargaining agreement with four unions representing its employees.