Anita Alem is a student at Harvard Law School.
In a significant win for Starbucks workers, on Wednesday, the National Labor Relations Board rejected Starbucks’ argument on appeal regarding the proposed size of bargaining units. Starbucks had argued that the appropriate organizing level is at the regional level rather than store-by-store in an attempt to make unionizing more difficult for workers through larger unit sizes. However, the NLRB, reviewing the decision that found single-store units appropriate, stated only that Starbucks had raised “no substantial issues warranting review.” The decision comes on the heels of a complaint the Phoenix regional NLRB director filed on Tuesday alleging that Starbucks surveilled and retaliated against pro-union workers.
In what may signal a change in Starbucks’ strategy against unionization, founder Howard Schultz has stated he will be returning to his position as chief executive after his retirement in 2018. The current chief executive, Kevin Johnson, will be stepping down. The announcement came soon after a group of Starbucks investors recommended that Starbucks “publicly commit to a global policy of neutrality and swiftly reach fair and timely collective bargains with the workers should they vote to unionize.”
The Chicago Teacher’s Union was unsuccessful in its attempt to temporarily block the lifting of the mask mandate in Chicago public schools. The Union had argued that the lifting of the mandate violated the COVID safety agreement the district had previously agreed to that extended the mask mandate through August 26, 2022. The preliminary injunction was not granted on a vote of 3-2. However, the issue will be taken up again by the state labor board in June.
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November 23
Workers at the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority vote to authorize a strike; Washington State legislators consider a bill empowering public employees to bargain over workplace AI implementation; and University of California workers engage in a two-day strike.
November 21
The “Big Three” record labels make a deal with an AI music streaming startup; 30 stores join the now week-old Starbucks Workers United strike; and the Mine Safety and Health Administration draws scrutiny over a recent worker death.
November 20
Law professors file brief in Slaughter; New York appeals court hears arguments about blog post firing; Senate committee delays consideration of NLRB nominee.
November 19
A federal judge blocks the Trump administration’s efforts to cancel the collective bargaining rights of workers at the U.S. Agency for Global Media; Representative Jared Golden secures 218 signatures for a bill that would repeal a Trump administration executive order stripping federal workers of their collective bargaining rights; and Dallas residents sue the City of Dallas in hopes of declaring hundreds of ordinances that ban bias against LGBTQ+ individuals void.
November 18
A federal judge pressed DOJ lawyers to define “illegal” DEI programs; Peco Foods prevails in ERISA challenge over 401(k) forfeitures; D.C. court restores collective bargaining rights for Voice of America workers; Rep. Jared Golden secures House vote on restoring federal workers' union rights.
November 17
Justices receive petition to resolve FLSA circuit split, vaccine religious discrimination plaintiffs lose ground, and NJ sues Amazon over misclassification.