Tuesday, November 8, 2022

LOCAL ELECTION

► From the (Everett) Herald — It’s Election Day: Here’s what to do to get your vote counted — Ballots can be returned by mail or put in a drop box. You can register, then vote, right up until 8 p.m.

TODAY at The Stand — Election Day: No ballot? You can still vote! — If you’ve lost your ballot or are not yet registered to vote, welcome to Washington state, where you can still vote. Under our state’s same-day registration law, you can go to your local County Auditor’s office and voting centers until 8 p.m. today to register and vote, or if you misplaced your ballot, you can go there until 8 p.m. to cast a provisional ballot and make your voice heard. Already voted? You can check to confirm that your ballot has been counted at VoteWA.

► From the Spokesman-Review — Turnout down statewide ahead of Election Day but late surge in returns could mean late results — Don’t be fooled by Tuesday’s initial results as they could only reflect a small number of ballots returned.

► From the Bellingham Herald — Turnout lagging in Whatcom County

NATIONAL ELECTION

► From the NY Times — Election Day dawns, shadowed by threats to democracy (live updates) — Closely fought contests across the country will determine the balance of power in Congress, state legislatures and governorships. For many, the integrity of the election system is on the ballot.

► From More Perfect Union — What a Republican majority in Congress could mean for labor — Republicans have already introduced national right-to-work legislation and a range of bills meant to stamp out union momentum.

► From the AP — Illinois voters to decide on collective bargaining amendment — Illinois voters will decide Tuesday whether to amend their state constitution to guarantee the right to bargain collectively. The fate of the ballot measure is being closely watched in Illinois and beyond, as it will gauge public support for the labor movement.

► From Politico — Abortion is illegal in a quarter of the country heading into Election Day — In the four months since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, 13 states have banned abortion starting at conception. Another state, Georgia, prohibits the procedure around six weeks of pregnancy. And access to abortion remains legal, but in limbo, in eight states: Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, Utah and Wyoming.

The Stand (June 27, 2022) — Amid attacks on abortion rights, unions must fight back (by Shaunie Wheeler James and Cherika Carter) — We have the tools to transform protests into concrete actions defending bodily autonomy.

► From Politico — Why Uber and Hillary Clinton care about a minimum wage vote in Portland, Maine — Progressive groups are trying to use Portland’s initiative — and a similar one in Washington, D.C. — as national test cases for pushing beyond simply raising the minimum wage. They’re asking voters in both cities to bar employers from paying less than minimum wage to service workers who also earn tips, in what has become the next front in their long-running battle to hike pay floors across the country.

► From the Washington Post — Pennsylvania voters scramble to cast new ballots after GOP lawsuit — The effort spawned a two-hour line at Philadelphia City Hall, as well as anger among voters who saw it as an attempt to infringe on their rights.

LOCAL

► From Teamster.org — Dozens of ready-mix drivers keep Teamsters strong in dense union industry — Ready-mix drivers at Corliss Resources have officially joined Teamsters Local 174, following a clear vote last week to unionize and recent certification by the NLRB. The vote was nearly 4-to-1 in favor of the Teamsters, showing workers’ commitment to having the strongest voice possible on the job. The victory comes on the heels of a long and bitter concrete industry strike last winter that led to historic gains for Teamsters, demonstrating the power of union solidarity. Those gains prompted Corliss workers to take the plunge and become Teamsters themselves. Corliss driver Jason Nason said:

“After watching all the chaos and change in this industry over the last year, we realized it was past time for us to go union and get a contract that will put in writing everything we need to protect ourselves and our families. I can’t wait to see how much better things will be once we get a contract. I’m looking forward to life as a Teamster.”

EDITOR’S NOTE — Ready to get it in writing? Get more information about how you can join together with co-workers and negotiate for better wages, benefits and working conditions for your hard work. Or go ahead and contact a union organizer today!

THIS WASHINGTON

► From the Seattle Times — WA building council votes to require heat pumps in new homes and apartments — New homes and apartments in Washington will be required to install heat pumps beginning in July, the Washington State Building Code Council ruled Friday. The council voted 9-5 last week on the ruling, a decision that could help the state further reduce carbon emissions by electrifying the heating systems of new buildings. The council, which is appointed by the governor, voted in April to revise the state’s building code to require heat pumps in large and commercial buildings.

NATIONAL

► From the Daily Californian — ‘Off the job and onto the picket line’: UC workers authorize mass strike — United Auto Workers members voted to authorize a strike consisting of postdoctoral researchers, or postdocs, academic researchers, or ARs, academic student employees, or ASEs, and graduate student researchers, or GSRs. The strike is slated to start Nov. 14 with no set end date. Of the 75% of UAW members who voted on the strike referendum, 98% voted in favor of a strike, a figure that amounts to 35,000 favorable votes. The move comes in response to the University of California system’s alleged unlawful bargaining practices.

► From AFGE — AFGE records biggest October membership growth since 2015 — D.C. and federal government workers across the country are joining AFGE in droves, eager for the chance to be a part of our movement for better pay, stronger benefits, a respectable retirement, and dignity, fairness, and respect on the job.

INTERNATIONAL

► From CBC — ‘The government blinked’: Union to end Ontario education walkout after Ford promises to repeal strike law — A union representing some 55,000 Ontario education workers who walked off the job Friday says protest sites “will be collapsed” starting Tuesday and workers will be back after Premier Doug Ford said he will repeal legislation that imposed a contract and banned them from striking.

The Stand posts links to Washington state and national news of interest every weekday morning by 10 a.m.