The ride sharing app Uber is recruiting veterans to work as drivers, the Boston Globe reports. Uber representatives attended a veteran job fair in Boston last week to pitch the company to former service members looking for work. The recruitment effort is part of the company’s new UberMILITARY strategy, an attempt to hire 50,000 new drivers who are affiliated with the armed services. Cities and taxi companies have challenged Uber, and the company remains controversial as On Labor has reported.
Union leaders are calling on the Obama administration to provide greater protections against the Ebola virus for U.S. workers, the Wall Street Journal reports. Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO, asked President Obama to implement mandatory national protection standards and to protect workers who raised health and safety concerns from employer retaliation. The Service Employees International Union, which represents airport employees, has conducted its own safety training for its members.
New Jersey governor Chris Christie said yesterday that he’s “tired of hearing about the minimum wage,” while addressing the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s legal reform. Governor Christie went on to say: “I don’t think there’s a mother or father sitting around a kitchen table tonight in America who are saying, “You know, honey, if our son or daughter could just make a higher minimum wage, my God, all our dreams would be realized.” Politico points out that 69% of minimum wage workers are 20 years or older, while 44% are 25 or older.
In South Korea, workers at Hyundai Heavy Industries, the world’s largest shipbuilding company, have endorsed a possible strike. The Wall Street Journal reports that two-thirds of the Hyundai’s employees voted to strike over wage and benefit issues. The unionized members are asking for a 6.5 percent pay increase and a one-time bonus after the company began cutting bonus and overtime pay last year.
Daily News & Commentary
Start your day with our roundup of the latest labor developments. See all
April 19
Chicago Teachers’ Union reach May Day agreement; New York City doormen win tentative deal; MLBPA fires two more executives.
April 17
Los Angeles teachers reach tentative agreement; labor leaders launch Union Now; and federal unions challenge FLRA power concentration.
April 16
DOD terminates union contracts; building workers in New York authorize a strike; and the American Postal Workers Union launches ads promoting mail-in voting.
April 15
LAUSD school staff reach agreement; EBSA releases deregulatory priorities; Trump nominates third NLRB Republican.
April 14
Meatpacking workers ratify new contract; NLRB proposes Amazon settlement; NLRB's new docketing system leading to case dismissals.
April 13
Starbucks' union files new complaint with NLRB; FAA targets video gamers in new recruiting pitch; and Apple announces closure of unionized store.