Union Strong

The Future of Public Education

The COVID-19 pandemic created unprecedented challenges for teachers and support staff, students, and their parents.

Now the 600,000 member New York State United Teachers has turned those challenges into an opportunity.

NYSUT brought together a group of education professionals from across the state to come up with ideas on how to support public schools to build a brighter future for students.

On the latest Union Strong podcast, we talk to three teachers who were a part of the Future Forward Task Force and get their insight on what their classrooms are like today and what the future of public education should look like.  

Link to report  https://futureforwardny.org/

Fairness for Farmworkers

For most workers, overtime pay after 40 hours was a victory won over 80 years ago, but shockingly for farmworkers it’s a battle still being fought.

Farmworkers in New York State won some very basic rights in 2019 with passage of the Farmworkers Fair Labor Practices Act. 

Those rights which the New York State AFL-CIO had been fighting for, for years include: the right to organize a union, a mandatory day of rest, and the right to overtime pay.

But the overtime threshold remains unfairly high at 60 hours per week. 

On the latest Union Strong podcast our guest is the former president of the New York State AFL-CIO, Denis Hughes.

Denis represents Labor on the Department of Labor's Farm Labor's Wage Board which is scheduled to meet on the overtime threshold within weeks. 

Operation Union Veterans Day

On the latest episode of the Union Strong podcast, we learn how unions are helping veterans find a pathway to the American dream.

Our guest is Will Attig who is a U.S. Army Veteran and serves as the Executive Director of the Union Veterans Council at the AFL-CIO.

Will discusses the benefits of belonging to the Union Veterans Council and how it helps veterans transition from military service to civilian life and a solid middle class job.

Vote Yes on Props 2 and 4

Voters have an opportunity in the 2021 general election to make changes to the state constitution.

The Labor Movement is supporting two of the propositions; Prop 2 and Prop 4. 

Prop 2 would add environmental rights to the state constitution. 

Prop 4 would allow no excuse absentee voting.

On this podcast we discuss what the propositions are about and why they have the support of working people.

Potential Shutdown of Film and TV Production as Strike Looms

IATSE President Matthew Loeb has drawn a line in the sand saying the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees will go on strike Monday unless a deal is reached. IATSE has been in a contract fight with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers for more than five months over safer working conditions, fair wages, and sustainable benefits.

On the latest Union Strong podcast, Cinematographer Sarah May Guenther of IATSE Local 600 describes the current working conditions and talks about the union’s demands.

UPDATE: Landmark tentative agreement reached for IATSE West Coast Film and Television Workers before Strike Deadline - https://iatse.net/landmark-tentative-agreement-reached-for-iatse-west-coast-film-and-television-workers-before-strike-deadline/

Department of Labor Update with Commissioner Roberta Reardon

On the latest episode of the Union Strong podcast, our guest is New York State Department of Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon. Commissioner Reardon discusses a variety of topics including the unemployed, job creation, apprenticeship programs, workplace safety and the role unions play in all of it.

 

https://dol.ny.gov/

Labor Day 2021

Newly elected AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler joins us on the Union Strong podcast to talk about Labor’s priorities and what’s behind the growing support of labor unions. 

Fighting for Fairness on a picket line in Brooklyn

The Essential workers at United Metro Energy Corporation in Brooklyn, New York have been on strike since mid-April.

The oil terminal workers are fighting for their first union contract after joining Teamsters Local 553 in 2019.

On the latest Union Strong podcast Andre Soleyn, a terminal worker and leader of the strike, talks about their fight to get what they deserve and their determination to prevail. 

http://teamsters.nyc/locals/local-553/

212-929-6828 call in number for teamsters 553

 

Labor’s role in the fight for social, racial, and economic justice

One year ago, the New York State AFL-CIO created a Social Justice Task Force to serve as a forum for frank and honest dialogue, and more importantly a vehicle for real and meaningful change to make our society and our movement more equitable and just for New Yorkers of color.

On the latest episode of the Union Strong podcast, CSEA Executive Vice President Denise Berkley is our guest. As a member of the Social Justice Task Force, Denise shares some insights on the work being done and talks about what it takes to build a more perfect union.  

Forming a union should not be this hard

The campaign to unionize workers at the Amazon Warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama has been referred to as the most important labor struggle in more than half a century.

We know the outcome as announced three months ago by the National Labor Relations Board, which determined workers voted against joining a union. That outcome is being challenged by The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU).

On the latest Union Strong podcast, RWDSU NYC Director and Vice President David Mertz is our guest to discuss the lessons learned from the campaign, including how the PRO Act would have changed the landscape of the union election.