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.
Workers Rights
Precision Castparts still refusing to recognize Machinist union
The company hopes a new Trump-appointed NLRB majority will vindicate its lawlessness.
Trump cabinet nominee Andy Puzder headlines Portland fundraiser for union-busting group
Freedom Foundation is attacking Laborers Local 483 and others.
Burgerville workers wage one-store Labor Day strike for holiday pay
It's the latest action by the Burgerville Workers Union, which has been campaigning for affordable health benefits and a $5 an hour raise.
TriMet Lift driver fired for answering the call of nature
Portlander Teressa Stevens was fired Aug. 21 from her job as a driver for TriMet LIFT — for urinating in a parking lot.
Nonunion concrete contractor gets prison sentence in wage fraud case
Caught violating prevailing wage, he lied to investigators about repaying the money — and offered money to employees to lie and say he'd paid them.
Lawsuit says nonunion ODOT contractor tolerated severe sex and racial harassment
The lawsuit against Ross Island Bridge contractor Abhe & Svoboda seeks a jury trial in federal district court.
Burgerville pays $10,000 to settle wage and hour violations
Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries found that the company willfully failed to give workers meal and rest breaks as required by law.
Oregon Supreme Court hears TriMet case
The public transit agency wants to keep union negotiations closed to the public.
Fair Work Week: Oregon will be the first state to curb schedule abuses
A new law will give retail, hospitality and food service workers predictable schedules — and extra pay when schedules change at the last minute.
Former Trump nominee Andy Puzder to speak at anti-union fundraiser in Portland
Puzder dropped out as nominee for labor secretary, and lost his job as CEO.
‘Right to work’ coming to the public sector
A Supreme Court ruling that ‘fair share’ fees are unconstitutional is likely 6 to 13 months away.
An end to overtime? U.S. House passes a bill letting employers offer ‘comp’ time instead of paying overtime
The bill would erode the 40-hour work week by making it cheaper for employers to require long hours.
Operating Engineers Local 701 picket at Gresham Wastewater Treatment Plant
A new complaint says a contractor, Veolia North America, broke federal labor law.
Oregon judge in bakery lawsuit rules against double overtime
The lawsuit against Portland Specialty Baking will still go forward.
Unions facing fierce attack in GOP-led state legislatures
Iowa strips public worker collective bargaining rights, but right-to-work fails in New Hampshire.
Another state goes ‘right-to-work’ – Missouri
Missouri follows close on the heels of Kentucky, and a right-to-work bill in Congress would bar any requirement to pay union dues nationwide.
Instafab hires union-buster Bob Tiernan
Tiernan, former chair of the Oregon Republican Party, is a labor relations consultant who helped rid a Berkeley grocery of its union.
Anti-union ‘right-to-work’ laws spreading quickly
Kentucky on Jan. 7 became the 27th "right to work" state. Missouri will be next, and maybe even New Hampshire.
Burgerville suspends union activist for eating a bagel
A vocal leader of the campaign to unionize the Burgerville fast food chain has been suspended without pay since Jan. 6 — ostensibly for...
Toothless law: 3 years in, still no penalty for flagrant unionbuster
The three-year legal saga of a local union-busting paint contractor shows how weak U.S. labor law can be.
