Jason Vazquez is a staff attorney at the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. He graduated from Harvard Law School in 2023. His writing on this blog reflects his personal views and should not be attributed to the Teamsters.
In organizing news, Region 10 of the NLRB set a date for the rerun election at the Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama. For context, the Region ordered the rerun after finding that the first election, the first at any Amazon warehouse and one of the highest-profile union elections in decades, was tainted by the company’s unlawful antiunion tactics. The rerun will begin on February 4, and votes will be tallied on March 28. The Region declined to issue a number of remedies the union had requested, prompting the union to criticize the order as insufficient to undo the effects of Amazon’s unlawful conduct. The union further voiced concern that Amazon would intensify its objectionable conduct in the coming weeks.
In strike news, UFCW local representing thousands of workers in Colorado and Wyoming rejected King Sooper’s “last, best, and final offer” on Tuesday, setting the stage for a three-week strike involving nearly ten thousand employees across dozens of locations. As negotiations disintegrate, the tension is escalating. The union filed a lawsuit in federal court last month alleging that company improperly subcontracted unit work, to which the company responded with an unfair labor practice charge accusing the union of refusing to bargain in good faith.
In political news, President Biden delivered a potent speech on Tuesday urging the Senate to eliminate the filibuster and pass legislation protecting voting rights. In dramatic rhetoric, Biden framed the present moment as a “defining” one and cast the Senate as “a shell of its former self.” “If state legislatures can pass antivoting laws with simple majorities,” he asserted, “the United States Senate should be able to protect voting rights by a simple majority.” Biden’s speech has obvious implications for the labor movement, as the filibuster has proven to be the graveyard of generations of efforts to reform the NLRA, which is likely a necessary condition for any resurgence of organized labor.
Daily News & Commentary
Start your day with our roundup of the latest labor developments. See all
October 16
Department of Labor reduces wage-and-hour enforcement at unionized workplaces; Fain's victory poses question of federal monitor's extension.
October 15
New reporting examines the rollback of child labor protections; California tries to block a strike; NLRB charges Wisconsin mental health provider with firing workers during union drive.
October 14
Eleventh Circuit overturns ERISA exhaustion rule; DHS finalizes removal of automatic renewal for work permits; AFGE challenges SSA over flexible scheduling policy.
October 13
Chicago hotel workers remain on strike; a coalition of Democratic states sues the Labor Department over canceled unemployment insurance grants; the Federal Labor Relations Authority establishes a new mediation framework for federal worker disputes.
October 12
Workers at the Obama Foundation begin organizing; MLB submits its latest collective bargaining agreement proposal; Brigham & Women's nurses postpone strike.
October 11
UAW President Shawn Fain succeeds in his reelection bid, and Spanish unions call for a general strike.