Today’s News & Commentary — September 20, 2017
Bloomberg reports that some labor unions are teaching workers how to handle visits from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Unite Here! has organized sessions around the country to teach hotel workers their rights and how to “effectively stonewall” ICE agents. Unite Here! also plans to make decreased collaboration with ICE a priority in upcoming collective bargaining negotiations.
President Trump formally nominated Peter B. Robb to become the NLRB’s next General Counsel, as has long been expected. Robb was the lead attorney that resulted in the firing of thousands of striking workers and the decertification of the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization during the Reagan administration. Robb’s term will begin in November 2017.
Workers at a General Motors plant in Ontario went on strike this week, reports the New York Times. The union is fighting GM’s plan to move jobs from Canada to Mexico. It is the first strike at a Canadian auto assembly plant in 21 years. GM moved a production facility from Ingersoll to Mexico earlier this year, resulting in the loss of 600 jobs.
The New York Times reports that median earnings have been rising after decades of wage stagnation. Some economists are forecasting a labor shortage in the American economy, arguing that factors like smaller labor force growth will lead to even further wage gains.
