Labor
UAW reports progress, even after GM cut off health care for striking workers
Union officials with the United Auto Workers (UAW) say they’re making progress on contract talks as more than 40,000 General Motors workers wind down their first week of a national strike. “I can report to you that as of today, some progress has been made, but there are still many of our Memberships’ issues that […]
Trump labor secretary pick Scalia questioned gay rights in 1985 article
WASHINGTON — When Eugene Scalia was a fourth-year English major at the University of Virginia in 1985, he penned an article for the student paper about gay rights. In it, he referred to a lesbian couple that had visited the university, “the proud parents of a daughter fathered by a homosexual acquaintance.” He went on, […]
UAW strike against GM reaches Day 2 as Trump could side with union
Almost 48 hours after the UAW kicked off a strike against General Motors, other unions walked the picket line to support their union brothers and sisters. On Tuesday, GM Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly Plant union workers were joined on the picket line by the Detroit Federation of Teachers members. “Companies like GM would not be the flagship […]
UAW wants GM jobs returned to Michigan from overseas, ready for long strike
Randy Freeman, president of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 652 in Lansing, says the union is ready for a prolonged strike if necessary. Freeman pointed to three issues that he says need to be addressed before the strike that began Monday morning can be resolved. Long-term temporary workers need to be made permanent employees More […]
Dem presidential hopefuls back UAW workers in strike
As about 46,000 UAW workers went on strike at General Motors at midnight, presidential candidates and other Democratic officials lined up to support them. This is the first strike since 2007. Amid a wave of layoffs, the UAW said it’s fighting to secure fair wages, affordable health care, increased profit sharing, job security and a […]
UAW set to go on strike Sunday night
Updated, 2:52 on 9/15/2019 to reflect that the UAW last went on a national strike in 2007 The United Auto Workers (UAW) will go on a national strike at midnight on Sunday, its first since 2007.* The Detroit-based auto workers union with about 400,000 members announced the strike on Sunday morning. In a statement, the […]
Feds again order back pay for Beaumont workers
The U.S. Department of Labor has determined that a metro Detroit health care provider must pay about $400,000 in back pay to almost 500 employees. Beaumont Health has again violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) for overtime and record-keeping provisions, according to a DOL statement on Thursday. The DOL investigation found that employees at […]
Castro, Booker only candidates to bring up Michigan at 3rd Dem presidential debate
Michigan was a big topic at the last round of Democratic debates in July — just as you’d expect for events held in Detroit. During the third debate in Houston on Thursday night, however, our state’s stock definitely fell, with only former U.S. House and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro and U.S. Sen. Cory Booker […]
Ex-NYT labor reporter: Trump has ‘not made America great again’ for workers
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has “not made America great again for American workers,” a former longtime New York Times labor reporter told an audience here on Monday. Steven Greenhouse, who covered the labor movement for the Times for almost two decades, recently released a book titled, “Beaten Down, Worked Up: The Past, Present, and […]
Why Is Gogebic County an island of blue in a sea of red in the U.P.?
Gogebic County is a small, rural county of 15,342 people located in the southwestern corner of the Upper Peninsula. Among the things you’ll find there is Copper Peak in Ironwood — the only ski flying hill in the Western Hemisphere — vestiges of Michigan’s iron industry, and, perhaps, a cougar, as the Michigan Department of […]
Brian Elder: On Labor Day, here’s why Michigan needs a working-class agenda
Organized labor didn’t just give rise to the auto industry; it gave birth to the American middle class. These jobs set the standard around the country and allowed for the American dream to be made possible for all — regardless of their gender, race, religion or class. And because of that, there is no group […]
Column: Worker-protection laws aren’t ready for an automated future
Science fiction has long imagined a future in which humans constantly interact with robots and intelligent machines. This future is already happening in warehouses and manufacturing businesses. Other workers use virtual or augmented reality as part of their employment training, to assist them in performing their job or to interact with clients. And lots of […]