RNs vote strike authorization

Registered nurses of the UMass Medical Center, University Campus (UMMC) voted overwhelmingly on Sept. 27 to authorize their union leadership to call a strike if necessary in their ongoing negotiations with hospital management. The nurses voted 716 to 46 in favor of the strike authorization. “The turnout for this vote was incredible,” said Kathie Logan, RN, a nurse at UMMC and chairperson of the bargaining unit. “The results send a powerful message to the hospital that our nurses are firmly committed to their positions in this negotiation ….” www.massnurses.org

NLRB decision makes many ineligible for unions

The National Labor Relations Board handed down a decision Oct. 4 that could impact the rights of millions of American workers to a union. Certain nurses, construction workers, and many others may now be considered supervisors because they give directions in the workplace. “The labor movement in Massachusetts will fight by all legal means necessary to stave off the impact of today’s NLRB decision,” said state AFL-CIO President Robert Haynes. “We will not sit by while the Bush Administration reinvents the English language, and makes up its own definition of the word ‘supervisor’ for the sole purpose of denying our brothers and sisters their rights to unionize.”

Union charges intimidation

Local 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers has filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board against St. Joseph's Manor Health Care Inc.. Charges included interference and coercion to discourage employees from supporting the union, surveillance of employees engaged in union activity and of workers seeking to vote on election day, authorizing or condoning a “gauntlet” on nursing home property “through which voters had to pass in order to vote,” firing an employee for active support of the union, and changing working conditions of employees supporting the union. The union lost the NLRB election, 74-45.

Arlington public schools: crossing guards want a union

In the wake of a 25 percent cut in hours and pay, school crossing guards in Arlington are demanding that the School Committee vote on approval of a bargaining association that would enable them to negotiate a contract with the city. Most crossing guards are women in their 50s and 60s, and each crossing guard expects to lose about $2,000 a year, said spokeswoman Roseann Casazza. Casazza also said the cut in guards’ working time could compromise student safety.

Pay suit filed against Wal-Mart

A class action suit charging Wal-Mart with illegally docking workers’ wages and refusing to pay overtime to tens of thousands of employees in Massachusetts goes to trial this month. The suit was filed in Middlesex Superior Court five years ago, and now includes 65,000 current and former Wal-Mart employees. The The Massachusetts lawsuit is one of 70 state and federal cases that have been filed on behalf of workers against Wal-Mart around the country.

Starbucks Solidarity Night a hit

The Boston IWW raised $380 for the Starbucks Workers Union in the first of a series of planned IWW Solidarity Nights. In addition to musical performances, IWW members provided an update on Starbucks organizing efforts in New York, Chicago and elsewhere. For more information: (617) 873-0843 email starbucks-worker@yahoo.com

Romney vetoes bill to enforce timely wages

Governor Mitt Romney vetoed a bill that would have imposed triple damages on employers who don’t pay their workers on time. The veto lets stand a Supreme Judicial Court decision last year allowing judges to decide whether employers should be forced to pay workers three times the amount of money owed in back pay. This means that workers who win wage-violation lawsuits could end up being reimbursed for only back pay, plus interest.

for links to the latest labor news from around the state, visit Jobs with Justice at www.massjwj.net