Stay Union strong
Category: Dan & Jeff
As I’ve mentioned before, the Oregon Legislature officially convenes each February. In even-numbered years the sessions are what are called “short” sessions and last for no more than 35 days. In odd-numbered years, like 2019, the session is referred to as a “long” session and can last up to 160 days, depending on how many bills are being considered and … Read more
Back in October, I wrote about the “long game:” how negotiations are a process, and one that sometimes feels as if it could go on forever. Here we are in March and I know you’re all feeling the frustration of the process. So am I. So is the whole team. My first retail bargaining session after being elected, though…that one … Read more
As you know if you’ve been following the details on Unity Negotiations, the last thing that happened was an extremely heated session with the employers over the “economics” of the contract. That means wages. They complained that we were asking for far more than anyone could ever expect: far more than was reasonable. (We consider a living wage to be … Read more
Midterm elections last month broke records across the country, including in Oregon, where final ballot returns are hovering around 70% voter turnout. At first glance that sounds a tad lower than turnouts in other local midterm elections, but it only appears that way because it is the first midterm election since passage of the “motor voter” law. Since that law … Read more
It’s a busy time of year with too many things for any of us to think about, so I’ll be brief, but I wanted to bring two deadlines to your attention. Health insurance OPEN ENROLLMENT. First, keep in mind that if you do nothing (purposefully or by accidentally missing the deadline), everything stays the same. If you want to make … Read more
Local 555 Kaiser members did an extraordinary job of standing together throughout this bargaining process, making it impossible for management to miss the message: we will do whatever it takes to get a fair contract. Our Local 555 Pharmacy and Imaging contracts were ratified on 10/12/2018. At that time, Local 555 also ratified the new national agreement, which was arrived … Read more
When we asked our Unity Negotiation Team members what was most unexpected about the bargaining process so far, there were two responses that recurred very frequently. One was surprise at the lack of interest that the employers showed in the lives of our members. Having this catch some folks unaware makes sense to me because we are all likely to … Read more
Whether or not you have much of an interest in politics, chances are good that you’ve heard at least some murmurs about how active the upcoming November midterm elections are likely to be. With tempers running hot on both sides of the aisle—and with so much at stake—this may well turn out to be one of the very rare midterm … Read more
July of this year saw the beginning of the implementation of Oregon’s Fair Work Week/Fair Scheduling law: a huge step in the right direction for hourly workers across the state! Just like any big change, though, there will be questions on the part of both the employer and the worker while the details of the law get sorted out. The … Read more
June 27th finally saw the long-awaited Supreme Court decision on Janus v. AFSCME. The decision was as expected: 5-4 in a blow against public sector unions. This decision essentially overturned the 1977 case (Abood v. Detroit Board of Education) which had been decided unanimously (9-0). Now, with the current court, the decision indicates that it is unconstitutional to allow public … Read more