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
Judge strikes down NLRB’s landmark ‘joint employer’ rule
The National Labor Relations Board was all set to stop companies from dodging labor law by using temp agencies and franchise structures.
Child labor violations at Vancouver trampoline park
Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) found that 40 teenage workers at Sky Zone worked more hours than legally allowed.
BOLI head: Oregon labor law enforcement needs fix
Oregon Labor Commissioner Christina Stephenson took charge of an agency with chronic underfunding and heavy case backlogs.
NLRB: No more dodging labor law with temp agencies and franchise structures
Workers will soon bargain with all companies that have a say in their working conditions — not just the one whose name is on their paycheck.
Tip theft at Pizzicato and McMenamins
A Portland-area chain agreed to pay $540,000 to 367 employees after U.S. DOL found managers were unlawfully sharing tips given to workers.
Starbucks store closures were illegal
The company started closing stores, citing crime. Sound suspicious? The NLRB says it was a response to the union.
Jacked Co: Unfair. And quite likely unsafe.
Picketing outside a construction work site Dec. 11, Local 701 staff saw first-hand that a non-union crane operator treats workers poorly.
Arrest warrant issued for contractor who failed to pay for benefits
A federal lawsuit has a lesson for contractors: Skip paying workers’ fringe benefits, and a U.S. marshal might show up at your door.
Judge orders Starbucks to rehire fired baristas
Heather Clark and Gail Kleeman are among dozens of union supporters that Starbucks has fired illegally across the country.
Bill would give strikers in Washington the right to unemployment benefits
Senate Bill 5777, filed Dec. 4, is sponsored by Washington State Senator Karen Keiser of Des Moines and has 15 cosponsors.
Nationwide Starbucks strike protests rampant unfair labor practices
The one-day strike, to protest a staggering number of unfair labor practices, included stores in Beaverton, Portland, and Vancouver.
Washington apprentices get help with child care
A Washington state subsidy program drops the monthly cost of child care to $0 to $215, depending on a family’s income.
Shipyard workers in an uproar over paint damage to cars
An improperly contained cruise ship paint job resulted in paint particles floating almost a half-mile to the employee parking lot.
Washington sick leave for construction workers too
Washington is updating its mandatory paid sick leave program to cover construction workers who have historically missed out on the benefit.
Work at Kaiser? Better check your paycheck
After more than two years of problems as egregious as a $99,000 overpayment or zeroed out paid leave banks, OFNHP is speaking out.
Minimum wages rising in Washington and Oregon
Oregon’s minimum wage rose to $15.45 in the Portland metro area on July 1. Washington's will rise to $16.28 an hour on Jan. 1.
Washington Court tests new law in Freedom Foundation case
Washington Federation of State Employee advocated for the measure amid a multi-year legal battle against the anti-union Freedom Foundation.
City unions to Vancouver: self-insured workers comp isn’t working for workers
A group of 10 unions say the City of Vancouver's self-insured program has too often denied injured workers’ claims.
Lawful contractors only, says City of Vancouver
Contractors who bid on public projects with the City of Vancouver now must verify that their subcontractors are not labor law violators.
Starbucks refusing to bargain with union
Nearly two years after the first Starbucks store unionized, not one Starbucks location has a first union contract.