Wednesday, September 13, 2023

LOCAL

► From the Guardian — Calls for Starbucks boycott grow amid aggressive union-busting activities — The baristas’ union, Starbucks Workers United, is having internal discussions about when and whether to mount a boycott. At the moment, in addition to organizing stores, it is focused on increasing consumer support. The union has scheduled a nationwide Day of Action on Sept. 14 to urge “customers and allies to join the fight” to get Starbucks to “respect workers’ fundamental right to organize and bargain a fair contract.”

The Stand — Starbucks customers, allies plan Day of Action on Sept. 14 — Join leafleting actions (or lead your own) to support Starbucks workers.

► From the Oregonian — Kroger says no Fred Meyer stores to be sold to win merger approval — No Fred Meyer stores in Oregon are slated to be sold off as Kroger and Albertsons seek to cement a $24.6 billion merger, a spokesperson for the regional chain said. The divestiture plan “includes the sale of the QFC banner name and some QFC stores but does not include the sale of any Fred Meyer stores at this time.”

The Stand (Sept. 11) — Despite C&S deal, UFCW 367 remains opposed to megamerger

► From the Seattle Times — ‘Feel safer yet?’ Seattle police union’s contempt keeps showing through (by Danny Westneat) — I’m pro-union, as well as a member of one, so this gives me pause. But when you have armed agents of the government using the safety of the public as a bargaining chip, well, my union stripes do start to fade a bit. Seattle’s police union needs to clean its own house.

AEROSPACE

► From KING — Boeing secures 2 multi-billion-dollar orders in as many days — The orders between Vietnam Air and SMBC Aviation Capital will total 75 Boeing 737 MAX jets. These narrow-bodied planes are assembled in Renton.

THIS WASHINGTON

► From the Seattle Times — Racial and gender-based pay gaps widening in WA thanks to tech boom — As Washington wages increase to keep pace with inflation and retain tech workers, the gaps between the high- and low-wage earners, women and men, and workers of different races are widening. Despite having the highest statewide minimum wage in the nation, wages of the top 10% of Washington state households was 12.6 times that of the bottom 10% in 2021, according to a state report. That’s a yawning gap compared to 1990, when the gap stood at 7.7 times. The gulf in pay equity is even wider for women, as well as Black, Hispanic and Indigenous workers, in part because the tech industry, dominated by white and Asian workers, accounts for such a large portion of Washington’s economy.

► From Equal Pay Day (March 14) in the News Tribune — It’s Equal Pay Day. What’s the best way to close the gender wage gap? Join a union (by WSLC President April Sims)

EDITOR’S NOTE — Mind the gap? Get more information about how you can join together with co-workers and negotiate for better pay and working conditions. Or go ahead and contact a union organizer today!

► From the Washington State Standard — Data shows drop in multifamily home construction in Washington — Building permits for apartments and other multifamily housing in Washington were down in the second quarter of the year while permits for single-family homes continued to rise. The slowdown comes as Washington leaders continue to push for more housing construction, particularly multifamily buildings and rental units, to help with the state’s affordable housing shortage.

► From the Seattle Times — Tackling WA school construction inequities can’t wait (editorial) — Washington’s Supreme Court has clarified a lingering question about the state’s obligation to fund all parts of a child’s education. But last week’s decision still leaves thousands of kids in poor districts at a disadvantage — unfinished business for lawmakers to tackle in the upcoming Legislative session.

► From the Tri-City Herald — Appeals court dismisses lawsuit over Gov. Inslee’s WA pandemic emergency mandates — A Washington state appeals court has dismissed the appeal of a Pasco-based nonprofit challenging Washington state Gov. Jay Inslee’s use of emergency proclamations related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

► From the Washington State Standard — Investigation finds BNSF railway at fault for Tunnel 5 fire — “Fire danger along the tracks in this general area should have been known to BNSF,” reads state DNR report.

► From KNKX — Formerly incarcerated WA lawmaker has her record cleared — Rep. Tarra Simmons is the state’s first formerly incarcerated lawmaker, and celebrated with loved ones and supporters after a judge cleared her record at a hearing last week.

THAT WASHINGTON

► From Reuters — Airlines say U.S. must boost air traffic control staffing — U.S. airlines on Tuesday expressed growing frustration with FAA air traffic control staffing shortages, which have snarled flights and forced regulators to extend waivers on minimum flight requirements.

NATIONAL

► From the Wall Street Journal — UAW threatens strikes at certain auto plants if it can’t reach labor deals — The United Auto Workers union plans to hold targeted strikes at certain U.S. auto factories if it can’t reach new labor deals with Detroit automakers by late Thursday, an unusual strategy that could broadly disrupt assembly-line production.

TODAY at The Stand — Show your support for UAW auto workers

TAKE A STAND — Sign this petition to show you have 150,000 UAW members’ backs.

► From the Washington Post — UAW workers plan pickets and pinch pennies as strike nears — Autoworkers at Detroit’s biggest vehicle manufacturers are signing up for strike shifts, buying burn barrels and saving money to prepare for a possible work stoppage as contract talks remain tense ahead of Thursday’s deadline. Many said they see a strike as inevitable, even as small signs of progress between the UAW and the Big Three automakers — Ford, General Motors and Stellantis — appear.

► From Reuters — UAW president says union still seeking big pay hikes

► From NPR — Why the transition to electric cars looms large in UAW talks with Big 3 automakers

► From Time — The lesson for employers at the center of Hollywood’s AI standoff — There’s already a clear lesson from the experiences of workers in Hollywood and beyond: Worker voice can be a critical part of getting it right. If allowed to shape AI adoption as a partner, workers can help organizations use new technologies to improve jobs and increase productivity, but employers have to start listening.

► From the LA Times — California lawmakers want to protect actors from being replaced by artificial intelligence

► From the LA Times — Drew Barrymore is dropped as National Book Awards host amid writers’ strike controversy — The National Book Foundation has cut ties with Drew Barrymore after the actor and daytime TV host made the controversial decision to tape her talk show amid the Hollywood writers’ and actors’ strikes.

The Stand (Sept. 12) — Barrymore ‘owns this choice’ of being a scab

► From the USA Today — California fast food workers to get $20 per hour if minimum wage bill passes — An estimated 1 million fast food and healthcare workers in California are set to get a major raise after a deal was announced earlier this week between labor unions and industries. Under the new bill, most of California’s 500,000 fast food workers would be paid at least $20 per hour in 2024.

► From the LA Times — California is poised to require employers to create workplace violence response plans

► From the AP — School district takes teachers union to court for wave of absences that forced school closures — School district officials in Las Vegas are asking a judge to put an end to what it claims is a coordinated union campaign of teacher absences during a bitter contract battle, forcing school closures and classroom disruptions in a state where it is illegal for public employees to strike.

► From the AFL-CIO — IAM wins campaign for 100-plus new members at North Dakota farming equipment manufacturer — The Machinists Organizing Department won a hard-fought two-year campaign to represent 103 workers at Vaderstad Inc., an agricultural equipment manufacturer in Wahpeton, N.D.

► From the AP — NYC pension funds and state of Oregon sue Fox over 2020 election coverage — New York City’s pension funds and the state of Oregon sued Fox Corporation on Tuesday, alleging the company harmed investors by allowing Fox News to broadcast falsehoods about the 2020 election that exposed the network to defamation lawsuits.

EDITOR’S NOTE — Why are public employee pension funds Fox shareholders? Just askin’.

► From the Onion — Worst job in every state — Spoiler: Washington’s is “Jeff Bezos’ head polisher.”

T.G.I.W.

► The Entire Staff of The Stand is out for the rest of the week to attend a wedding in Minneapolis. “Dearly beloved…”

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