Portside

The Covid-19 pandemic undercut feelings of job security at cultural institutions. Now there’s an uptick in efforts to organize.

New York Times Co. technology employees plan to walk off the job Wednesday over what they say are the newspaper publisher’s illegal efforts to stymie their unionization campaign.

Pro-worker provisions introduced by Sen. Charles Schumer added to the bill include penalizing employers for interfering in union elections.

A task force is exploring how to boost union organizing and clout. Talks have included leveraging federal purchasing to steer agency contracts to companies with unionized labor or that otherwise promote workers’ rights.

The pending rulemakings involve legal questions that are frequently tested in Dept. of Labor investigations and in class actions pitting plaintiff’s attorneys and unions against management: contractor status, joint employment and tipped wages.

Marking a major step to change the agency's direction, the National Labor Relations Board's new acting general counsel withdrew 10 of his predecessor’s key anti-labor policy memos.

To maintain productivity and safety, some jobs are installing robot coworkers. Labor unions worry that the robots will continue to occupy jobs after the pandemic ends while others say they will free up workers for other positions.

The settlement ends five-year probe into misuse of union monies at the UAW. An independent monitor will oversee the union for up to six years.