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 Leaders, Advocacy Groups Respond to Big, Ugly Betrayal of America’s Working Families: “Liz Shuler, president, AFL-CIO: ‘Donald Trump signed into law the worst job-killing bill in American history. It will rip health care from 17 million workers to pay for massive tax giveaways to the wealthy and big corporations, amounting to the country’s largest money grab from the working class to the ultra-rich. Every member of Congress who voted for this devastating bill picked the pockets of working people to hand billionaires a $5 trillion gift. But if the politicians who rammed through this shameful bill think they can sneak away without anyone knowing the damage they’ve done and the chaos they’ve created, they don’t know anything about the Labor Movement. The AFL-CIO will make sure that all working people across this country hear the truth about what happened this (past) week in Washington and the dire consequences the bill will have on all of our lives.”
AFT Publishes Full Page New York Times Ad Opposing Trump’s ‘Big, Ugly Betrayal’ Bill: “Together with prominent activists, institutes, unions, legal experts and advocacy groups, the AFT published a full-page advertisement in the New York Times today slamming President Donald Trump’s ‘big ugly, betrayal,’ the billionaire-first agenda that Republicans rammed through Congress at the expense of everyone else.”
A Win-Win for Oregon: Legislation That Protects Public Workers and Fosters Economic Growth: “The unchecked burning of fossil fuels, carbon-intensive companies, and the escalating climate crisis pose real dangers to the health, safety, and financial stability of our state’s public sector workers. Many work outdoors, directly impacted by the dangers of extreme heat, wildfires, smoke, floods, and deep cold. Beyond their workplaces, too many live in impacted communities and have even lost their homes, destabilizing their families and livelihoods. Financially, the risks associated with fossil fuels and climate change pose significant threats to the long-term health of many different investments that fund their hard-earned retirement. This is precisely why we at Service Employees International Union Local 503 and Climate Finance Action commend the Oregon Treasurer Steiner for her leadership in passing the Climate Resilience Investment Act.”
State AFL-CIO Starts Training Program for Union Members Who Want to Run for Office: “Donald Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ is ‘just another example of a system that keeps handing more and more to the richest thousand people in this country, while millions of working people are told to settle for less,’ said Kentucky State AFL-CIO President Dustin Reinstedler. ‘And the most heartbreaking part is that some of the very people who will be hurt the most are still voting these politicians into office.’”
Kroger, Albertsons Reach Tentative Pact with Southern California Labor Groups: “Labor unions representing more than 45,000 employees for Kroger and Albertsons in Southern California have reached a tentative agreement on a new contract with the grocers, the United Food and Commercial Workers locals bargaining on behalf of the workers announced last week. The deal, which is subject to approval by the workers, includes higher pay, larger pension contributions, health benefit and welfare improvements, and other changes. Workers will vote on the proposal over a three-day period that begins Wednesday.”
AFL-CIO Bus Tour Revs Up Labor’s Mobilization Against Trump Bill: “AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said, in her talks on national television, that Trump ‘signed into law the worst job-killing bill in U.S. history It will rip health care from 17 million workers to pay for massive tax giveaways to the wealthy and big corporations, amounting to the country’s largest money grab from the working class to the ultra-rich.’ The nation’s largest labor federation, which she leads, promises to put thousands of people to work canvassing colleagues, friends and families, reminding all, every day, of the Trump-GOP law’s harms—a $1.1 trillion Medicaid cut, $300 billion cuts in a key special nutrition program and in Obamacare and an 80% cut in federal aid to K-12 schools, for starters. Campaigners will beat the drum from now through November 2026, and beyond.”
Food Stylists in the Writers’ Union? That’s a Reality in an Innovative New Labor Deal: “The production company behind Food Network staple The Kitchen has been cooking up something quite unusual with the writers’ union. On Monday the Writers Guild of America East announced that its members at Garden Slate Productions, formerly called BSTV Entertainment, had unanimously ratified a first union contract with the cuisine-focused entertainment company. The deal covers some nonfiction workers that the writers’ union has represented many times before—like producers and associate producers.”
AFL-CIO to Launch Bus Tour to Oppose Trump Agenda: “The largest federation of unions in the us is going on the offensive. The AFL-CIO is launching a cross country bus tour to oppose white house priorities they believe hurt working people.”
How Trump betrayed workers by gutting the Inflation Reduction Act: “United Steelworkers Federal officials, then-Governor of Indiana Eric Holcomb, union leaders, company representatives, and dozens of guests assembled at Heidelberg Materials in Mitchell, Ind., last year to celebrate a milestone for North America’s second-largest cement plant. The U.S. Department of Energy awarded the company up to $500 million through the Inflation Reduction Act.”