Worker Wins: The Power of Collective Action

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

Current Affairs Magazine Workers Form Union: Workers at Current Affairs magazine announced they have formed a union with the Chicago News Guild, Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 34071. They received immediate voluntary recognition from the editor in chief and Current Affairs Board of Directors. “Membership in the News Guild will allow us to maintain the high standards in wages and working conditions we’ve experienced at Current Affairs, allowing us to do our best work and provide you with the high-quality writing, art, graphic design, and political analysis you’ve come to expect,” staff said in the announcement. “Unionization will allow us to preserve the magazine’s editorial independence and continue serving our readers with integrity in the years to come. In a time when the journalism and publishing industries are becoming increasingly dominated by corporate capital and precarious for workers, we are proud to be moving in the opposite direction.”

Workers at Womanhaven Domestic Violence Resource Center Vote to Organize with OPEIU: Workers at Womanhaven, a prominent domestic violence resource center in the Imperial Valley of California, voted to organize with Office and Professional Employees (OPEIU) Local 30. The new union members fill a broad range of staff roles—from mental health counselors to thrift store clerks.The election was split into two voting groups to account for the different roles within the organization. The larger of the two groups, composed of 22 employees who are the “front line” of the organization’s daily operations, include client advocates, lead case managers, shelter and housing advocates, and mental health technicians, as well as thrift store and warehouse staff. These workers voted 13–7 in favor of unionization. The second voting group consisted of the organization’s professional staff, specifically its mental health counselors. Womanhaven provides essential services to the El Centro community, including emergency shelter, counseling and legal advocacy for victims of domestic violence. “From the first time I met with the group in the fall of 2025, the employees at WomanHaven expressed their desire for a collective voice in the workplace and a clearer way for their concerns to be heard,” said Jamie Campbell, director of organizing for Local 30. “Serving the clients they help every day is their passion, and now, with union representation, we hope this will ease some of the tensions they’ve experienced on the job.” “We love the work we do, and we take great pride in serving our community, but it’s difficult to provide the highest level of care that our clients need when we are struggling with burnout and unfair practices. We can’t afford to leave any clients behind,” the organizing committee said via email. “Unionizing isn’t about opposing or hurting the company—it’s about fighting to stay. We are seeking stability and support that ultimately benefits everyone.”

United Academics of KU Secures Historic First Collective Bargaining Agreement Ensuring Due Process, Other Benefits: Faculty and academic staff at the University of Kansas (KU), represented by the United Academics of the University of Kansas (UAKU), announced Friday that they had reached a tentative first contract agreement. “Every step of the way we have seen the power of collective action, united across rank, position and title, in order to strengthen our institution and deliver the best possible education for our students,” said Marsha McCartney, UAKU’s co-lead negotiator and an associate teaching professor in psychology. The tentative agreement, when ratified, will establish a minimum salary structure that provides a median raise of 13% for several hundred workers on the lower end of the pay scale, a pool of money to address salary compression and reward professional performance, improved job security for nontenured faculty, a first-ever path to promotion for lecturers, safeguards for tenure and promotion, and enforceable protections for academic freedom and shared governance rights. “Faculty and academic staff have won a landmark agreement that will create ripples across our state. AFT-Kansas welcomes over 1,600 faculty and academic staff as we organize and fight for our collective labor rights,” said AFT-Kansas President Katie Warren.

Chemical & Engineering News Guild Overwhelmingly Wins Union Election: Workers at the Chemical & Engineering News, the independent magazine of the American Chemical Society (ACS), overwhelmingly voted to organize, with 96% of participants voting in favor of the union, Chemical & Engineering News Guild (C&EN). The win is a historic victory for the reporters, designers, production staff and platform editors who work diligently to craft news and features about the science, business, and policy of chemistry. It is also a victory for ACS members, who have shown their support and enthusiasm for a strong and independent chemistry publication. “This is an important first step for the C&EN Guild,” said life sciences reporter Rowan Walrath. “We look forward to securing the protections we need to make C&EN a great place to work—and an influential publication—for the next 100 years.” “I’m excited to get to work alongside the rest of the C&EN Guild to make sure everyone’s got a seat at the table when it comes to the future of C&EN,” said community content editor Liam Conlon. The guild now looks forward to bargaining promptly and in good faith with the American Chemical Society to secure its first contract.

Workers at The Basement Escape Room in Los Angeles Reach First Tentative Contract, Secure Raises of 6.8% or More: Workers at the Los Angeles-based escape room The Basement, members of Actors’ Equity Association (Equity), have become the first escape room workers in the world to reach an agreement for a union contract. Two years ago, the performers at The Basement organized with Equity, making it the first unionized escape room in the United States. Now that the workers have voted unanimously to ratify this contract, it is the only escape room in the world to operate under a collective bargaining agreement. Highlights of the contract include: wage increases ranging from 6.8% to 15.9%; a signing bonus; a guaranteed raise after one year of employment; scheduling protections; media protections, including both rules regarding capture and use of photos or videos and appearance fees for video capture; increased safety provisions; and sick leave protections. “I am so proud that the talented performers at The Basement are now protected by the union contract they fought so hard for,” said Brooke Shields, president of Actors’ Equity Association. “Negotiating a first contract is always a challenge, and in this case, we had no other unionized escape rooms to use for a model. These workers stuck together through a long process, and seeing what they’ve achieved, I’m sure they agree it was worth it. They have made history for a swiftly growing sector of our industry.”

Professional Women’s Hockey League Players Association Joins the AFL-CIO: The Professional Women’s Hockey League Players Association (PWHLPA) announced today it is formally affiliating with the AFL-CIO. The PWHLPA became the 10th professional sports union to join the AFL-CIO Sports Council and the 65th affiliate of the nation’s largest labor federation, a milestone in the fight for equity in women’s sports and fair treatment of all athlete workers. The PWHLPA represents 184 professional hockey players across eight teams in the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL), 61 of whom just competed in the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, including the gold and silver medal-winning U.S. and Canadian teams. The union’s affiliation with the AFL-CIO comes as interest in women’s hockey is reaching historic growth in the United States, with athletes driving record ticket sales. “When women athletes come together as workers, they don’t only elevate their own leagues—they also raise the bar across all of women’s sports. The players of the PWHL have been no exception, and I am thrilled to welcome the Players Association into our federation,” said AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler. “The AFL-CIO is proud to bring the solidarity of our 64 affiliated unions and nearly 15 million working people to stand alongside the PWHLPA and its members as they continue to grow the game, inspire the next generation of women’s ice hockey players, and fight for the contract they deserve.” “Our members know there is power in a union,” said Malaika Underwood, executive director of the PWHLPA. “That is why they organized to form the Players Association and negotiated a collective bargaining agreement before the first puck dropped in the PWHL. It is also why we are proud to join the AFL-CIO and its Sports Council today. We look forward to continuing the fight for the rights, fair pay, and the safety of our members as part of this historic labor federation, and to standing alongside our fellow unions to ensure all workers, including PWHL players, are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve.” Read the full statement from the AFL-CIO here.

Harvard University Custodians Secure Powerful New Tentative Agreement: Custodians at Harvard University—who are represented by Service Employees International Union (SEIU) 32BJ—reached a tentative agreement on a new four-year contract on Tuesday, containing the largest pay bumps workers have seen in decades. The deal comes after months of intense negotiations, during which members held rallies with lawmakers and community allies and staged a two-day strike. Both direct employees of the prestigious university and contracted staff would be covered by the agreement. Highlights include a $4 an hour wage increase—retroactive to the expiration of the previous contract—over the lifetime of the agreement, a ratification bonus, stronger job-security language, retention of health care benefits and more. “It was a long, hard process, but we finally got an agreement we can stand behind with pride,” said Helena Bandeira, a member of the union’s bargaining committee. “We risked our lives in the pandemic; we were the first to respond to the terrible snowstorms this year; and we are finally getting the increase and support for our existing benefits that will help us catch up with the rising costs of living in Massachusetts.”

Workers at Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest Join IAM Union: Staff at the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest in Nevada and eastern California have successfully joined the IAM Union (IAM), a powerful victory amidst the Trump administration’s continuing attacks on the labor rights of federal workers. The campaign was a true grassroots effort—origins that are reflected in the workers’ unanimous vote to form a union—supported with advice from their colleagues at the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE-IAM). Now that they’ve voted, these workers are immediately covered by NFFE-IAM’s Master Agreement with the U.S. Forest Service. “We are extremely motivated to bring union representation to more and more federal workers in the National Parks and Forest Service,” said IAM Resident General Vice President Jody Bennett. “Federal workers have been under attack by the current administration, and we are determined to bring the security of a union contract to the dedicated people who maintain and conserve our nation’s protected lands.”

Flint Symphony Orchestra Musicians Ratify New Contract: Members of American Federation of Musicians (AFM) Local 542 who perform in the Flint Symphony Orchestra (FSO) have settled a new collective bargaining agreement with the Flint Institute of Music. The deal was ratified last month and contained major highlights such as increases in musician compensation—including retroactive pay—and important changes to audition procedures. “It was a long road to get here, but the FSO musicians see this agreement as a path forward to an even brighter future for the orchestra and our audiences,” said longtime FSO musician and Local 542 Vice President Daniel Winnick. “I think our best days are yet to come.” 

Bookmans Workers in Flagstaff, Tucson Ratify First Union Contract: Workers at Bookmans Entertainment Exchange in Flagstaff, Arizona, have ratified their first union contract. Staff at two other locations in Tucson also are covered by the deal. United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 99 notes that these are the first booksellers in the state with a collective bargaining agreement. The contract includes guaranteed wage increases and department premiums, paid holiday and vacation, paid sick leave and bereavement leave, health insurance for both part-time and full-time employees, a 401(k) plan with an employer match, a progressive discipline and grievance procedure, and the establishment of an employee safety committee. “I feel hopeful for the future, excitement, and I’m so proud of my coworkers,” said Tony Taurman, an electronics buyer at Bookmans Flagstaff. “It seems today that people are expected to go about life without their community, but in starting a union I learned that you don’t have to. And in fact, we can’t. We have to stand together if we want to change things for the better.”