‘We All Win’: The Working People Weekly List

Every week, we bring you a roundup of the top news and commentary about issues and events important to working families. Here’s the latest edition of the Working People Weekly List.

PWHL Players Association Strengthens Voice by Affiliating with AFL-CIO and Its 15 Million Workers: “‘These players have platforms, and they have a voice and power. And when they use it to advance workers’ issues, we all win,’ AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler told the AP. ‘So I think connecting those common struggles has been at the root of why we think this partnership is so important.’ Shuler said the AFL-CIO has played a role in ongoing talks between the Women’s National Basketball Players Association and the WNBA, after the union opted out of the previous CBA. And she noted the clout women’s soccer players had in eliminating the college draft in reaching its latest collective bargaining agreement with the NWSL. ‘When women athletes come together as workers, they don’t only elevate their own leagues, they raise the bar across all of women’s sports,’ Shuler said.”

Alexandria’s Professional Employees Agree to Unionize in Near-Unanimous Vote: “Alexandria’s professional employees have officially voted to unionize. On Tuesday, the city’s professional employees voted 155-1 in favor of unionizing with AFSCME Council 20, an affiliate of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. With significant support, the vote ‘marks 5 of 5 eligible Alexandria bargaining units to file and win their union representation elections since 2021,’ according to a release from AFSCME Council 20.”

Portland-Area Lab Workers Win First Labor Deal: “Laboratory workers who run blood, tissue, stool and toxicology tests for untold numbers of patients in Oregon and Southwest Washington have reached a first contract agreement with the company Labcorp, a significant victory in a yearslong labor organizing effort. The nearly 500 workers—ranging from lab technicians to phlebotomists—are represented by the Oregon Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals. They work at an array of labs owned or operated by Labcorp in Oregon and Southwest Washington, including at numerous Legacy Health Hospitals, a central lab in the Lloyd District, and another one on Northeast Halsey Street near the campus of Providence Portland Medical Center.”

San Diego Building Trades: PLAs, Jobs and Women in Construction: “San Diego Building and Construction Trades Council Business Manager Carol Kim joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast during Women in Construction Week to explain how a long campaign to repeal a project labor agreement (PLA) ban reshaped construction opportunities in the region. Kim, a former teacher and nonprofit researcher who became the council’s first political director, said organized labor remains the most consistent institution fighting poverty by structurally empowering workers. She detailed how the council helped elect a pro-union city council, took a ballot measure to voters and won 58% support to overturn San Diego’s PLA ban. That victory led to a citywide PLA covering the city’s capital improvements program, creating a more reliable pipeline of union work and expanding the ability to recruit apprentices.”

The American Library Association’s Workers Have Formed a Union: “Workers at the American Library Association have announced that they’re forming union with AFSCME Council 31. When the new union is certified, American Library Association Workers United/AFSCME will represent over 100 primarily Chicago-based ALA workers. An open letter signed by 40 employees was released yesterday, and lays out some of the new union’s core principles and commitments, include equitable pay, stable and comprehensive benefits, job security, and more of a say in the organization’s policies and strategies.”

Lamplighter Brewing Co. Workers Successfully Vote to Unionize, Local Representatives Say: “Workers at both locations of Cambridge brewery Lamplighter Brewing Co. have voted to unionize. Following a majority vote in favor of unionization Friday, all 45 employees across Lamplighter’s two brewing facilities and taprooms now join more than 11,000 other workers in New England‘s retail, grocery, and food processing industries represented by United Food and Commercial Workers Local 1445. The local chapter is a branch of UFCW, an international union with over 1 million members across the United States and Canada, including thousands in distilleries, wineries, and breweries, according to its website.”

As Video Podcasts Boom, SAG-AFTRA Looks to Organize the Industry: “SAG-AFTRA has been making more moves in the podcast space as video podcasts gain momentum on streamers and more. Recently, The Pete Davidson Show, the first original podcast launched by Netflix, made headlines after signing a SAG-AFTRA podcast agreement. The move may chart a course as more podcasts pop up on streamers, and as SAG-AFTRA ramps up its efforts in the space, while trying to define what constitutes a podcast versus a streaming show.”

Graduate Workers Overwhelmingly Vote to Ratify Union Contract with Penn: “After more than a year of negotiations, Penn’s graduate worker union voted to ratify its first contract with the University on Friday. The union—which represents over 3,700 graduate workers—reached a tentative agreement with Penn on Feb. 16, narrowly averting a strike that would have had widespread impacts on teaching and research across campus. On Feb. 27, Graduate Employees Together—University of Pennsylvania announced 77% of graduate workers participated in the vote and an overwhelming 99% voted in favor of ratifying the contract.”

USW Swears in Roxanne Brown as New International President: “The United Steelworkers union swore in Roxanne Brown as its new international president on Sunday. The USW elected Brown last fall. She succeeds David McCall, who had served as the USW’s international president since September 2023. Brown’s responsibilities will include negotiating new labor contracts with U.S. Steel and Cleveland-Cliffs. The USW’s contracts with the steelmakers expire on Sept. 1. Those four-year pacts, negotiated in 2022, included significant wage and benefit gains. More than 1,000 steelworkers and guests attended Brown’s swearing in at the Sheraton Hotel in Pittsburgh’s Station Square, the USW said. ‘Working people are at a crossroads in this country,’ Brown told the crowd. ‘Too many families keep working harder but are forced to settle for less because of the greed and indifference of Wall Street, corporate America, and the politicians who do their bidding.’ Brown is the first woman and first person of color to lead the USW. She was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and grew up in White Plains, NY, the union said.”