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.
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.
What Unions Want on AI Policy: “The AFL-CIO is trying to thread the needle, opposing a moratorium while supporting ‘regulations in place so that the water and power usage is done responsibly.’ Here’s Shuler: ‘We need the guardrails on AI, we just don’t think that a moratorium is the way to get there.’”
Washtenaw Community College, Roofers' Union Sign 10-Year Training Extension: “Washtenaw Community College (WCC) and the United Union of Roofers, Waterproofers and Allied Workers have signed a 10-year extension of their longstanding training partnership. The formalized agreement allows the union’s National Instructor Training Program to continue to be hosted at Washtenaw Community College through 2035. WCC President Rose Bellanca says it strengthens a partnership that prepares roofing industry instructors from across North America in skills that they will impart to fellow union members back home.”
Sean Astin and Duncan Crabtree-Ireland: Our Faces and Voices Belong to Us. Let’s Make It Law: “Many Americans reasonably assume that they are protected from having their identities stolen in the form of synthetic depictions of themselves saying things they would never say and doing things they would never do. Shockingly, our nation’s laws do not ensure that we all have the right to say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to whether someone else uses our visual likeness or voice to create realistic AI imposters. When images and voices are stolen, a person’s words are no longer their own, and a sacred trust between people is broken.”
Ocean State Public Media Votes to Unionize: “Employees at Ocean State Public Media in Providence, R.I., voted last week to unionize with the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. 71% of the employees in the unit voted in favor of unionizing, according to a SAG-AFTRA spokesperson. The unit currently consists of 14 content creators, all of whom voted. The employees announced their intent to unionize last month. They said in a petition to management that they want ‘a culture that is collaborative, equitable and inclusive.’”
Production Assistants Ratify Three Warner Bros. TV Union Contracts: “Production assistants on three shows produced by Warner Bros. Television—Abbott Elementary, George & Mandy’s First Marriage and All American—have ratified their first union contracts. The staffers, about 15 in total, unanimously voted to ratify the three separate contracts in a vote that ended Tuesday, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. Their union, Production Assistants United, is affiliated with the Hollywood laborers’ union LiUNA Local 724.”
‘The Ability to Say No’: Artists Demand Consent Over AI Use of Their Music: “This letter comes at a time when policymakers are reviewing copyright rules in response to AI and when streaming platforms and social media platforms are overflowing with AI-generated music. The American Federation of Musicians recently sued Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group, alleging the major labels ‘received significant compensation’ from the AI companies for past copyright violations and licensed ‘substantial’ portions of their music catalogs to them, but haven’t shared that with the musicians.”