Shawn Fain has been elected to the presidency of the UAW, per the New York Times. Fain is a reform candidate, the first to win under a new "one member one vote" policy, who aims to take a aggressive approach in organizing and negotiations and implement changes to stem past corruption scandals.
07:15 AM - Mar 28, 2023
Maintenance and moving workers at RISD are undertaking an unfair labor practice strike. Workers claim the college has unilaterally altered their compensation and failed to pay wage increases without bargaining, per ABC6.
abc6.com
Workers at RISD go on 'unfair labor practice' strike | ABC6
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Workers at the Rhode Island School of Design went on an “unfair labor practice” strike. General Teamsters Local 251, the union representing movers, custodians and groundskeepers, said the school failed to pay a general wage increase and changing starting r..
09:52 AM - Mar 23, 2023
The Rhode Island legislature passed a bill on Tuesday for the third year in a row to allow retired teachers to instruct for a full year without giving up pension benefits. The bill is designed to help alleviate a shortage of teachers.
06:31 PM - Mar 21, 2023
Production, shipping and receiving employees at Cargill Meat in North Kingston, Rhode Island have filed for a union election, representing 550 workers, per the NLRB.
03:22 PM - Mar 19, 2023
A Massachusetts owner of a pizza restaurant was arrested for forced labor charges on Thursday, per WWLP. The owner allegedly utilized violence, including inflicting permanent harm and threats of deportation against undocumented workers to force them to work long shifts and endure low wages.
07:25 PM - Mar 18, 2023
The NH House Labor committee is voting on three bills this week. Legislation would cut unemployment benefits when the unemployment rate declines, increase the subminimum wage for tipped workers, and reenact child labor laws that would protect children from late night work, per NH Business Review.h
07:18 AM - Mar 16, 2023
A coalition of labor and racial justice advocates in Massachusetts are calling for legislation that would require companies to post salary ranges in job advertisements and report compensation data. The effort is intended to combat racial and gender wage gaps, per Mass Live.
08:01 AM - Mar 14, 2023
Declining cedar supplies along with high fuel costs are hurting Maine’s logging industry, per Bangor Daily News. One company has laid off 20 workers, while 58 workers at two more mills face possible unemployment. Climate change may also be contributing to conditions that damage the industry.
08:09 AM - Mar 13, 2023
Labor advocates and legislators in Connecticut are pushing for bills to improve working conditions in the state. This legislation includes increasing the tipped minimum wage for some workers to the standard minimum wage, enforcing predictable scheduling, and increasing paid sick days, per NPR CT.
ctpublic.org
Advocates in CT push for predictable hours, expanded sick time and expanded minimum wage for tip work | Connecticut Public
One proposal would bring tipped based wages for some workers up to standard minimum wage rates. Two other bills aim for more predictable scheduling, and expanding paid sick days.
08:30 AM - Mar 12, 2023
The State of Connecticut is suing a service plaza operator called Project Service, LLC for over $6.1 million in unpaid wages and penalties. Over 2,000 workers allegedly did not receive the proper wages and benefits.
portal.ct.gov
Tong Demands 6 Million from Connecticut Service Plaza Operator Over Unpaid Wages
Attorney General William Tong today sued Connecticut service plaza operator Project Service, LLC on behalf of the Connecticut Department of Labor seeking to recover $2.7 million in unpaid wages owed to food service employees at the Connecticut’s 23 service plazas. The complaint further seeks to coll..
03:49 PM - Mar 11, 2023
How long do New Englanders commute to work? Between 9 and 11 minutes on average according to data from the U.S. Census for 2021 (ACS 1-year estimate). While Massachusetts and New Hampshire have the longest commute times at an average of 11 minutes, Vermont has the shortest with 9 minutes.
08:36 AM - Mar 10, 2023
Childcare advocates in Connecticut rallied yesterday, arguing increases to funding of childcare from the state are insufficient. Advocates explained that without more funding, high costs of childcare and low wages will continue, in an industry that employs many women of color, per CT Public.
ctpublic.org
Early child care workers rally for livable wages and more centers in Connecticut | Connecticut Public
The rallies were organized by the group Child Care for Connecticut’s Future in six cities and towns across the state. In Stamford, advocates, child care providers and parents rallied outside of a preschool, calling for better working conditions.
07:53 AM - Mar 09, 2023
Massachusetts senator Ed Markey’s office becomes the first group of congressional staffers to unionize on Capitol Hill, after Markey voluntary recognized their union, according to Roll Call.
06:46 PM - Mar 08, 2023
Per WPRI, school bus drivers in Providence will not strike as deal has been reached with First Student. The union says new contract would make school bus drivers in Providence the highest paid in the region at the end of the contract and double 401K contributions.
08:32 AM - Mar 08, 2023
Maine is the only New England state without paid leave for workers. Per WABI5, a state commission has published a report proposing medical and family leave for Maine residents.
10:13 PM - Mar 07, 2023
Per WPRI, Providence bus drivers may go on strike this Wednesday if a contract with the bus company, First Student, is not reached. Drivers are demanding higher ways and improved benefits.
08:20 PM - Mar 06, 2023
New England senators Bernie Sanders (VT), Jack Reed (RI), and Sheldon Whitehouse (RI) are reintroducing the PRO Act in Congress, which would include stiffer penalties for labor law violations, better protections for union organizing, and prevent private employers from interfering in union elections.
09:12 AM - Mar 06, 2023
Maine State Employees Association accuses the administration of Maine Governor Janet Mills of illegally interfering in the composition of the union bargaining committee and not bargaining in good faith during negotiations with the state, per Bangor Daily News.
07:27 AM - Mar 05, 2023
According to data from the U.S. Census for 2021 (ACS 1-year estimate), average yearly wages earned in each New England state varied considerably. Maine had lowest yearly earnings at $29,492, while Massachusetts had the highest at $44,368.
07:48 PM - Mar 04, 2023
More than sixty workers at Diesel Café, Bloc Café, and Forge Baking Company in Somerville, MA last week agreed to union contracts with UNITE HERE that would raise their pay and include paid time off, according to Boston.com.
08:58 AM - Mar 04, 2023
Per Connecticut NPR, legislators in CT are introducing a bill to limit packing quotas in warehouses. The legislation targets Amazon, whose workers have testified that quotas limit their ability to take bathroom breaks. Amazon warehouses in CT report injury rates double that of the private sector.
01:22 PM - Mar 03, 2023
The NYT reports widespread migrant child labor across the U.S. and in New England, with little government intervention. Children face exploitation from traffickers, overwork, and workplace injury and death. In VT, one child worked 12 hour days on dairy farms and had his hand crushed in a machine.
09:57 AM - Mar 03, 2023
Per WPRI, the R.I. Department of Labor and Training along with US DOL has recovered $1.6 million in unpaid wages to workers in wage theft cases between 2020 and 2022. Advocates argue wage theft can be linked to homelessness, health issues, and other problems for workers.
07:28 AM - Mar 02, 2023
The Vermont State Employees Association has filed unfair labor practice charges against Vermont State Colleges. The complaint alleges that VSC have been bargaining in bad faith and retaliated against union activists and leaders through layoffs, amidst arrival of new system president, per WCAX.
04:38 PM - Mar 01, 2023
4 in 10 workers in Rhode Island do not have retirement savings at their workplace. Per Providence Business News, new bills in the RI legislature would allow all workers to contribute 8% of their pre-tax annual income into savings accounts to save for retirement.
pbn.com
R.I. legislation would extend retirement savings to all workers
PROVIDENCE – More than 4 in 10 Rhode Island workers don’t have access to retirement savings plans through their job. Legislation recently introduced in the General Assembly would change that. Companion bills introduced by Sen. Meghan E. Kallman, D-Pawtucket, and Rep. Evan P. Shanley, D-Warwick, woul..
07:17 AM - Mar 01, 2023
Julie Su, current deputy labor secretary and former California labor commissioner, has been nominated as the next U.S. labor secretary, to replace former Boston mayor Marty Walsh, per CNN.
08:48 PM - Feb 28, 2023
Per the Boston Globe, Milk Bar in Cambridge, MA announces store closing hours after workers file for a union election, amid complaints of poor working conditions. Store management claims that their lease expired.
10:17 AM - Feb 28, 2023
Per the Press Herald, workers at Shalom House, a Portland social services agency, have filed a petition to form a union with the Maine Service Employees Association. Workers report high levels of burnout and financial stress that can impact client management. They are demanding a living wage.
08:02 AM - Feb 28, 2023
A proposed bill in CT would raise the pay of incarcerated workers. Workers can earn as little as 30 cents/hour and proponents argue that increasing pay would help incarcerated individuals transition back into society and ease the burdens on families of the incarcerated, per CT News Junkie.
ctnewsjunkie.com
07:38 PM - Feb 27, 2023
Workers at Starbucks in Somerville, MA and Brandford, CT have filed for union elections with Workers United this week. They joined the effort of hundreds of Starbucks locations who have filed for union elections, amidst the companies hostile opposition.
09:58 AM - Feb 27, 2023
