Worker Wins: Paving the Way For the Next Group

Our latest roundup of worker wins includes numerous examples of working people organizing, bargaining and mobilizing for a better life.

MedStar Nurses Secure Powerful New Contract: MedStar Washington Hospital Center registered nurses (RNs)—who are members of National Nurses United (NNU)—ratified a new three-year collective bargaining agreement on Saturday. The agreement contains major wins like new language around workplace violence prevention, guardrails around implementation of new technology, wage increases of up to 24%, among other gains. Separately, the union is also working with the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia to investigate ongoing and widespread wage theft at the medical facility. “This contract will help MedStar nurses as we seek to provide the highest quality of care to our patients,” said Julia Truelove, RN. “I am so proud of the nurses who stood together as we fought so hard to get these improvements.”

Research Assistants Vote Overwhelmingly to Form Union: Research assistants (RAs) at the University at Albany-State University of New York (SUNY) Research Foundation won a landslide election to join the Communications Workers of America (CWA). This victory puts the more than 200-member strong bargaining unit into a growing community of academic workers across the public college and university system who have already organized for a voice on the job. The majority of SUNY–Albany RAs are international students conducting the type of important scientific research that has been facing federal funding cuts, making this victory all the more critical given the current political threats they are facing.

Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula Nurses Vote to Form Union: Registered nurses at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula, commonly known as CHOMP, have won their election to join the California Nurses Association (CNA), an affiliate of National Nurses United (NNU). This victory means 800 nurses at the medical facility will soon begin negotiating their first-ever collective bargaining agreement. The organizing drive was heavily motivated by concerns around understaffing, which has impacted patient care and led to nurses being forced to skip breaks. “This is a great day for the Monterey Peninsula community and the patients we care for,” said registered nurse Kim Campbell in a press release. “I spent more than 30 years at CHOMP in the emergency department, and I recall when this was genuinely a community hospital and patient-focused institution. I am so pleased that by forming our union, we will now have a voice to advocate for our patients, create an environment that will help recruit and retain excellent nurses, and make improvements for our patients.”

Blizzard Quality Assurance Workers Ratify Union Contract: Blizzard quality assurance workers in Albany, New York, and Austin, Texas—who are represented by Communications Workers of America (CWA) locals 1118 and 6215, respectively—have voted to ratify their first contract with Microsoft. This is the third video game worker contract victory at the company, following the ratification of  their own deals last year by CWA members who work for ZeniMax and Raven Software. Highlights of the new agreement include guaranteed wage increases, artificial intelligence guardrails, disability accommodations, protections for immigrant workers and more. “After nearly two decades in the video game industry, it feels great to work with my fellow union members in ratifying a fair contract that makes it easier to see a real, long-term career in this work,” said Local 6215 member and senior quality analyst Matt Gant. “This agreement gives us a better working environment with increased pay, benefits, and layoff protections that include recall rights and ensures that quality assurance work remains a stable and respected role for the workers who will build games long after us.”

Union Leader Taylor Rehmet Elected to Texas Senate: Taylor Rehmet—an IAM Union District 776 member and the president of IAM Union Local 776B and the Texas IAM Union State Council—has won the special election race for Texas Senate District 9 this weekend, flipping the seat and defeating a candidate backed by President Trump. “Taylor’s victory is a win for working people,” said IAM Union International President Brian Bryant in a press release. “Taylor understands the challenges workers face because he’s lived them. He brings the voice of the shop floor to the State Capitol, and we know he will fight every day for fair wages, strong labor protections, and opportunity for all Texans. We couldn’t be more thrilled to have an IAM Union member in the Texas Senate.” “This is a huge win for Texas workers. Taylor embodies what it means to be a union leader — working together to address the struggles of real, everyday Texans,” said Texas AFL-CIO President Leonard Aguilar in a press release. “While state parties are trying to reconnect with the working class, we’re running union members up and down the ballot — and winning. Taylor’s historic win kicks off a slate of rank-and-file union members running for office to fight for all of us.”

Poultry Workers in Mississippi Ratify First Contract: Members of United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 1529 who work at the Peco Foods poultry processing plant in West Point, Mississippi, have successfully ratified their inaugural union contract. Despite having to participate in three separate union elections and endure anti-union interference from management throughout the yearlong process of negotiating, workers stood strong and displayed a powerful show of unity. Highlights of the deal include major hourly wage increases, extra vacation time, additional holiday pay and more. “I am very proud of the employees of Peco Foods for hanging together for three long years and reaching a first contract that was better than expected,” said UFCW Local 1529 President Lonnie Sheppard. “The organizing program was a journey, and the direction we chose to take was worth the miles we traveled to get our first collective bargaining agreement,” said UFCW Local 1529 Secretary-Treasurer Rose Turner.

Navajo Nation Workers Secure New Agreement with Frontier: Frontier Communications staff working in the Navajo Nation—who are represented by Communications Workers of America (CWA)—have reached a new three-year contract, thanks in part to the support of Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona. In September 2025, Sen. Gallego penned a letter to Frontier Communications Chief Executive Officer Nick Jeffery calling on the telecommunications company to bargain in good faith and close the longstanding wage gap between Navajo workers and their counterparts elsewhere in Arizona. The new agreement ensures that these members are paid fairly for the essential services they provide on the largest Indigenous reservation in the United States. “Senator Gallego’s letter to CEO Nick Jeffery turned the tide on the company’s slow-walking of our wage parity proposal. This agreement takes an important step to close the wage gap our Native American employees faced, and we appreciate the senator’s continued partnership,” said Fernando Roman, CWA District 7 campaign lead.

Production Workers at D.C. Concert Venues Win Union Elections: Production and box office workers across four major music venues around Washington, D.C., have voted overwhelmingly to join the Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) locals 22 and 868. These newly minted IATSE members are a critical part of operations at the 9:30 Club, Anthem, Lincoln Theater and Atlantis. They join the ranks of their food, beverage and staffing co-workers who are part of UNITE HERE Local 25. Approximately 300 staff across departments at these venues first went public with an organizing campaign in October 2025. “With this vote for unionization, the backstage workers who bring the music and stage magic to thousands of showgoers at these I.M.P.-operated music halls will now be heard and can be treated with the dignity they deserve,” said Ryan Chavka, business agent for IATSE Local 22. “We will now reach out to I.M.P. management to schedule negotiations for a first contract. We look forward to giving these production workers a voice at the bargaining table.”

More Nurses Join CWA at Cayuga Health: Nurses at the Cayuga Health Surgicare clinic and Cayuga Cancer Center in New York have secured voluntary union recognition as members of the Communications Workers of America (CWA). The newly minted members of Cayuga United-CWA are joining the ranks of their counterparts at the Cayuga Medical Center—which is also a member of the Centralus Health system—who won their union election earlier this month. Nurses began organizing to fix chronic understaffing issues that were compromising both the quality of patient care as well as worker safety. “When nurses join together, we can make a positive change for our patients and our profession,” said April Mendez, a registered nurse in hematology and oncology. “We have been inspired by our coworkers at CMC sticking together through a union-busting campaign and winning their election. And we are proud to win our union as well. Now, we’re paving the way for the next group of healthcare workers by building the power to win a union.”

Slate Editorial Staff Ratify New Contract Writers Guild of America East (WGAE) members who work at Slate Media have ratified a new collective bargaining agreement that contains critical protections around artificial intelligence (AI) in the newsroom. The bargaining unit voted unanimously to approve the tentative agreement reached in early January. Along with establishing guardrails on the use of generative AI, WGAE members secured salary floor increases, higher severance payouts, more parental leave and other major wins. “The Slate Union is proud to ratify a new contract with management,” the bargaining unit said in a joint statement. “We’re thrilled to have secured better parental leave and severance, raised salary minimums and annual increases, added new positions to the unit, and introduced a brand new A.I. article. This contact improves the livelihoods of all our members, and we hope it helps set even better standards for all of those in our industry.”