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.
Labor Defends Jailed Immigrants: Forklift Driver, Hospital Worker: “The other detained union member is ‘Aunty Lynn’ Lewelyn Dixon, a lab tech at Seattle’s University of Washington Medical Center, who has lived in the U.S. for more than 50 years. Dixon has been held by ICE since February, when she too was stopped at the airport on her way back from visiting family in the Philippines. Her union, SEIU Local 925, and Tanggol Migrante have called another rally at the jail this Thursday, May 29, when her case comes up for a hearing.”
AFGE Locals Rally Against Proposed VA Cuts: “Members of three American Federation for Government Employees locals rallied outside the Veterans Administration hospital on East 23rd Street Wednesday to protest a Trump administration plan to fire tens of thousands of VA staffers, saying the layoffs would compromise care for veterans. An internal memo from the VA’s chief of staff, Christopher Syrek, in March called for a return to 2019 staffing levels, when the VA numbered about 400,000 employees. The memo cited a ‘Department-wide review of mission, organization, and structure’ called for by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency. The VA employed about 479,000 workers as of early February.”
Small MSO Fresh Eatontown Dispensary Workers Vote to Join UFCW Union: “The United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) union Local 360 announced that more New Jersey cannabis workers at the Fresh Dispensary in Eatontown in Monmouth County have voted to unionize. ‘I hope the management team at Fresh Eatontown recognizes how lucky it is to have such committed employees,’ said Hugh Giordano, UFCW Local 360’s Director of Organizing.”
Union Members Overwhelmingly Approve New Audio Commercials Contract: “SAG-AFTRA members have approved the new, three-year 2025 SAG-AFTRA Commercials Contract and the 2025 SAG-AFTRA Audio Commercials Contract by a wide majority. The union says the final vote tally was 96.9% in favor, to 3.1% against. The three-year deal with the Joint Policy Committee, which has been negotiating on behalf of major national advertisers and advertising agencies, nets SAG-AFTRA members $218.4 million in new earnings and benefit plan contributions. That almost doubles the gains achieved in the 2022 deal. The agreement covers April 1, 2025, to March 31, 2028.”
Washington Post Tech Guild Overwhelmingly Votes to Certify Union in Historic Election: “In a 171-38 blowout vote, The Washington Post Tech Guild has officially won its union election, marking a significant milestone for over 300 technology workers across engineering, product design and data roles at The Washington Post. After weeks of aggressive union-busting tactics from Washington Post management, tech workers at The Post persevered and have been recognized by the National Labor Relations Board. This is the first successful organizing effort to take place at The Post under Jeff Bezos’ ownership. Washington Post tech workers first announced the formation of their union on April 7.”
IBEW Touts ‘Landmark’ New Tentative Agreement With CBS: “The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the largest union representing CBS employees, has reached a new tentative agreement with the network that it calls a ‘landmark’ deal with ‘one of the most significant wage packages in the nearly 90-year history of the relationship.’ ‘This tentative agreement reflects a new era of partnership and progress that recognizes the important contributions of IBEW-represented technicians while embracing the challenges and opportunities of the future,’ IBEW International President Kenneth W. Cooper said in a statement Tuesday.”
Philly Mayor Signs POWER ACT Legislation, Giving City Workers Better Protections: “Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker signed the POWER Act Tuesday, giving the city’s workforce some of the most potent protections in the country. City Council passed the legislation on May 8, which includes harsher penalties for employers retaliating against whistle-blowers, expansion of sick time for tipped workers, and more avenues for city enforcement. The legislation also provides more protection for undocumented workers who find jobs through agencies in less regulated fields like domestic labor. While Philadelphia does have many laws on the books to support workers, this act bolsters their protections and provides additional oversight and enforcement.”
‘Unbought, Unbossed, Unstoppable’: Coalition of Black Trade Unionists Convention Opens in Orlando: “AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler didn’t mince words: The first 120 days of Trump’s billionaire-backed agenda have been ‘designed to put workers in the background and the billionaires in the driver’s seat.’...Shuler warned that the administration’s policies aren’t just an assault on unions—they’re a deliberate attack on Black workers and history itself. An example of the attack on history is the lies about ‘anti-white violence’ that Trump used to attack South African President Ramaphosa, as well as those he uses to validate his crusade against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).”
Whole Foods Union Certified by US in First for Amazon’s Grocer: “A union has been certified at a Whole Foods Market store in Philadelphia, marking a US first for the Amazon.com Inc. grocery chain. The regional director of the National Labor Relations Board backed the union, overruling objections from Whole Foods, which, like other parts of Amazon, has campaigned against unionization among its staff. The decision tees up a legal battle.”