Northwest Labor Press is an independent union-supported newspaper founded in 1900. Our print version is mailed twice a month to about 45,000 members of over three dozen local unions in Oregon and Southwest Washington. Our online version has been maintained here since 1997.
National
National AFL-CIO endorses Biden for re-election
Seventeen months out, it’s the earliest the federation has ever voted to endorse in a presidential election.
US Supreme Court ruling undermines the right to strike
The Supreme Court's Glacier Northwest decision lets some employers sue for damages in strikes where products spoil.
Postal unions to Biden: Stop stalling and fill postal board vacancies
Postal workers have repeatedly protested plans to slow mail, raise prices, close postal facilities, and pave the way for privatization.
Writers strike hits TV and film
Writers Guild of America unanimously called the strike after 6 weeks bargaining with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
Starbucks coming under pressure
The union-busting coffee giant sees a strike wave, an adverse legal ruling, and its leader hauled before a Senate Committee.
Michigan repeals ‘right-to-work’ and restores prevailing wage
Democratic majorities voted to repeal a “right-to-work” law that GOP legislators passed in 2012, and restore the state prevailing wage law.
Biden vetoes bill targeting shareholder activism
Republicans wanted to overturn a rule allowing ESG (environmental, social, and governance) investments in pensions.
Minor League salaries double in first union contract
Minor League Baseball players unionized in September. And by the end of March, they had their first-ever collective bargaining agreement.
Renamed PRO Act introduced in Congress
Democrats in Congress have signed onto the PRO Act, a bill to make it easier to unionize. Republicans have not.
Biden nominates Julie Su to be Secretary of Labor
If confirmed by the Senate, she would replace Marty Walsh, who is leaving to become head of the National Hockey League Players’ Association.
Big strikes creep up again in 2022
At least 23 major work stoppages broke out last year, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Feb. 22—up from 16 the previous year.
Unemployment at its lowest in 50 years
In a Feb. 3 report, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the United State gained 517,000 jobs in January.
Marty Walsh to step down as Secretary of Labor
Hockey came calling, and now a Biden administration cabinet seat is going vacant.
Biden: ‘Let’s finish the job’
Three Oregon union members were guests at Joe Biden's 2023 State of the Union address, which featured heckling and off-script engagement.
Back in charge, House Republicans cut ‘labor’ from committee name
In her opening salvo on the House floor, the committee chair made her hostility to the word labor and to unions crystal clear.
GOP House strips union rights from staff
The anti-union language was included in the first bill to pass the newly Republican-led chamber during the 118th Congress.
Biden and Congress force a contract on rail workers
History may remember the episode as a betrayal by the man who pledged to be the most pro-union president in U.S. history.
Minimum wage rises in 23 states
Meanwhile, the federal minimum wage - which is all there is in 20 states - has been stuck at $7.25 an hour since 2009.
Biden: Congress should impose rail contract
To win paid sick days, union rail workers are ready for a nationwide strike. But Biden wants Congress to force them to accept a contract they rejected.
Airlines plagued by delays, canceled flights
Airlines have faced growing criticism for a surge in flight delays and cancellations, and failure to refund customers.
