Portside

Collective bargaining is under attack from right-wing, anti-union politicians. But union members are fighting back - pushing new boundaries in what unions do and challenging the notion of "management prerogatives." The Saint Paul Federation of Teachers’ recent contract campaign is an impressive example of this new direction in collective bargaining.

The National Union of Healthcare Workers says it's prevailed in a March 19 do-over election at Seton Medical Center over its arch-rival, the Service Employees' International Union, but the other side says the verdict isn't official yet.

A reform-union activist slate has won the election for Officers in the Los Angeles Teachers Union. This is the second largest teachers local union in the country. They have a long road to walk due to a discouraged membership.

The new film, which won the Audience Award at SXSW last week, tells the story of the iconic labor leader's fight to unionize farm workers, the inception of the United Farm Workers of America, and highlights the fight for better pay and conditions for farm laborers in the fields of California. "Cesar Chavez," which was screened at the White House on Wednesday, hits theaters March 28th.

Workers at McDonald's file lawsuits in New York, Michigan and California claiming wage theft.

New Mayor Ed Murray says, “We know it is not a matter of if we get to $15 per hour, but when and how we get there.” All nine city council members publicly endorse the concept. But underneath the apparent consensus are differences on what $15 means and how long it should take. So labor and community groups in Seattle are mobilizing to hold the council’s feet to the fire—and to get the job done by ballot initiative if the council compromises too far.

Last week workers filed wage theft lawsuits against McDonald's in three states. The suits are an attempt to get at the franchise system in particular, which has enabled large corporations to avoid legal responsibility for what happens in the franchise.

Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration is pushing for what would be the longest-ever contract with the teachers’ union: a nine-year deal that would let the city stretch out potentially huge retroactive pay increases. A nine-year deal for teachers would actually date to Nov. 1, 2009, when the union’s contract expired. But it would extend for another four and a half years — after Mr. de Blasio, a Democrat, would face re-election in 2017.

Conversations with workers on both sides of the union battle reveal that the macho culture at the plant, helped fuel the anti-union campaign by low-level management and workers, who stressed obedience to authority and masculine self-reliance as reasons to reject the UAW.

In a move expected to draw harsh opposition from the business community, President Obama will use his executive authority to push changes in overtime law so that millions of workers who are now exempt will be eligible for premium rates when working more than 40 hours per week.