The Local: Dec. 5, 2024 news roundup
Welcome back to The Local, a publication of NYC-DSA Labor Working Group reporting every two weeks (though we missed last week due to the holiday, thank you for noticing). As always, send any tips, corrections, and other feedback to thenyclocal@substack.com. In this issue, Aldi workers in Staten Island are organizing a union, UAW Region 9A makes their mayoral endorsements (and one anti-endorsement), and Henry Garrido wins another term as executive director for DC37. For our penultimate post of the year, we also have a winter holiday ask: Please forward The Local to three friends who may be interested in our regular NYC labor news updates but might not yet be subscribers!
Photo by Alexandra Chan
Organizing
A unit of Associate Vice Presidents at Precision Strategies voted 6-5 to join an existing unit represented by CWA District 1.
Engineering workers at The Frick Collection vote 5-0 to join the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 30.
Starbucks Workers United wins two elections and loses one in the city; the 2929 Broadway location votes 11-2 to join, and 291 Broadway votes 7-3 to join; however, 180 West Broadway votes 9-5 against joining.
IT workers at CAMBA Inc voted 11-2 to join UAW Local 2325 (aka the Association of Legal Aid Attorneys).
Nurses at the Huntington Hospital in Long Island vote 344-1 to join NYSNA.
Building service workers at 30 Crosby Street Condominium and Hudson Hill Condominium are organizing with SEIU 32BJ.
Workers at the Aldi location on Staten Island are organizing with UFCW Local 342.
Workers at a Starbucks location in Sunnyside, Queens are organizing with Starbucks Workers United.
Workers at the Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum – who have been battling a keffiyeh ban imposed by management – are organizing with UAW Local 2110.
UAW Local 2110 files a petition to clarify the bargaining unit of staffers at UAW Region 9A.
New York City Health and Hospitals voluntarily recognizes the addition of podiatrists to the clinicians’ bargaining unit represented by the Doctors Council (SEIU).
Bargaining & Action
11/20: New York Daily News Union with NewsGuild NY files ULP charge against owner Alden Global Capital
11/21: WGA East released a statement on significant layoffs at Hearst.
11/22: PBS with WGA East reached a tentative agreement after members authorized a strike by 100%.
11/25: WNET THIRTEEN Workers Union with WGA East unanimously ratified a new contract.
11/28: The Strand Bookstore Union with UAW 2179 authorized a strike by 92% but continued negotiations past their contract expiration. [The Chief Leader, Publishers Weekly]
12/02: UAW Local 259 service technicians at a Mercedes Benz dealership rallied to protest firings and demand a contract after a successful election in May. [The Chief Leader]
12/02: UAW Staff United begins strike against UAW Region 9A. [The Chief Leader]
12/03: Forbes Union members with NewsGuild NY held a one-day ULP work stoppage instead of staffing the launch of Forbes “30 Under 30.”
12/04: REI Union SoHo walked out on ULP strike in solidarity with unprotected ski shop workers.
Photo by Alexandra Chan
Albany
In their ongoing battle against 24-hour shifts, home health care workers bring the fight to state Medicaid plans, whom they are now suing for wage theft. [New York Focus]
This week in government understaffing: we are now seeing more wildfires in New York, but the state doesn’t have enough park rangers and firefighters to put them out. [New York Focus]
City Hall
A federal judge dismisses a lawsuit brought by a nonprofit social services contractor challenging, on constitutional grounds, the city’s labor peace agreement requirement. [Law 360]
The NYPD unions approve of the appointment of Jessica Tisch as the new police commissioner. Tisch, who is coming from a stint as commissioner for the Department of Sanitation, is the fourth police commissioner since Eric Adams was elected mayor in 2021. [The Chief Leader]
An administrative law judge finds that subway car cleaners during the COVID-19 pandemic are owed about $2 million from their MTA contractor bosses under the prevailing wage law; Comptroller Brad Lander brought the suit on behalf of the workers, while the MTA joined the contractors in opposing the prevailing wage claim. [The Chief Leader]
Miscellaneous
UAW Region 9A endorses (in no particular order) Zohran Mamdani, Brad Lander, and Jessica Ramos for the ranked choice ballot for the mayoral primary; they also endorse not ranking Mayor Eric Adams at all. [The City]
Workers at New York City’s airports are due to receive a $0.75 increase each of the next three years, and then wage increases will be pegged to inflation in a proposal by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. However the Port Authority will also be able to increase prices of concessions by 3% if this proposal is accepted by 32 BJ. [The Chief Leader]
The Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York showed support for a new 10-story building going up near the Brooklyn Botanical Garden that would create 1,000 union jobs for the project. The building is a scaled down version of the original idea that would’ve casted a shadow over the garden and faced community pushback, even though this new building will hold less affordable housing than initially proposed. [The Chief Leader]
A recent report by the city’s Economic Development Corporation said there are over 140,000 higher education employees and over 500,000 students enrolled and that this sector brings in $35 billion in “economic activity”. The City also reported that Vanderbilt and Northeastern are looking to open satellite campuses, which again raises concern about the tax breaks offered to schools, especially as it’s depriving the city billions in taxes. [The City]
Last week, the New York City Organization of Public Service Retirees (NYCOPSR) announced they were going to endorse Jim Walden, an independent candidate, for the 2025 New York City mayoral race. Walden pledged to protect retiree healthcare, which has remained under attack by the Adams admin, and is a lawyer that represented NYCOPSR against the city. (Work Bites)
Union delegates elect Henry Garrido to a fourth term as Executive Director of AFSCME District Council 37, which represents about 150,000 members. [The Chief Leader]
The Organization of Staff Analysts filed a petition to add Administrative Staff Analysts in managerial pay plan IV, as NYCHA and the city argued they shouldn’t be included in collective bargaining. The Office of a Collective Bargaining ruled that certain employees were eligible for collective bargaining and others were not.
Job Listings (Will check after Thanksgiving)
Field Representative - IATSE Local 161 (Salary: $65,000 - $80,000)
Local Representative - The NewsGuild of New York (Salary: $107,000 - $136,000)
Associate Counsel for Bargaining and Employer Relations - SEIU 32BJ (Salary: $110,000 - $115,000)
Staff Counsel (1st position) - NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (Salary: $71,163 – $81,838)
Staff Counsel (2nd position) - NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (Salary: $71,163 – $81,838)
A complete list of local union jobs can be found at unionjobs.com, alongside here is the complete list of New York City’s civil service exams. Additionally if you’re interested in taking a job in a strategic industry and want to be connected through the Labor Working Group, check out this form here.