Jan 18, 2024 - Union Workers Win Big Against Musk's Big Green

CWAers Step Up at the AFL-CIO MLK Conference

Members of the CWA Human Rights Committee met in Montgomery, Ala., in conjunction with the AFL-CIO Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Civil and Human Rights Conference to prepare their agenda for the coming year and discuss how to elect pro-worker candidates during this year’s election cycle. CWA members will, once again, be leading legislative initiatives and getting out the vote to protect the rights of workers nationwide.

Additionally, committee members served as key volunteers for the AFL-CIO MLK Conference, which welcomed more than 800 union members, volunteers, activists, and organizers to discuss issues of civil and human rights. The theme was “Our Voice, Our Ballot, Our Future.” The entire committee escorted CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. to the main stage where he gave remarks and served as a moderator for the “Our Vote, Our Voice” panel, along with Christine Chen from APIAVote, Hector Sanchez from Mi Familia Vota, and Dominik Whitehead from the NAACP. He also participated in a panel discussion on Get Out the Vote (GOTV) efforts, “Mobilizing Voters of Color.”

CWA Chief of Staff Sylvia J. Ramos joined President Cummings at the conference to engage with CWA members and other leaders around the important role the labor movement plays in promoting civil and human rights. .

AFA-CWA Vice President Keturah Johnson spoke at the panel "An Injury To One: Why Attacks on LGBTQIA+ Workers Are An Attack On Unions" at the AFL-CIO MLK Conference.

CWA Human Rights Committee members gathered during the AFL-CIO MLK Conference to plan for the coming year.

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Maximus Workers Recognized for Organizing for Fair Pay and Better Working Conditions

Federal call center workers at Maximus, who are organizing to join CWA, took center stage at the AFL-CIO MLK Conference to receive the “Eyes on the Prize” Award. The award recognizes leaders who exemplify an unyielding commitment to social justice, civil rights, and workers’ rights.

Audrianna Lewis, speaking for the Maximus workers being honored, said in her acceptance speech, “All of this is about upholding an unjust legacy of using us – women of color – for their labor and brilliance while trapping our families and communities in systemic poverty. This legacy of injustice has gone unaddressed in our communities for far too long. We will not let this stand!” She concluded her speech saying, “We will keep moving, keep pushing until we win $25 and a union.”

Maximus federal call center workers, who are organizing with CWA, accepted the Eyes on the Prize Award at the AFL-CIO MLK Conference.

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CWA President Cummings Honored as the Labor Leader of the Year

CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. was honored as the Labor Leader of the Year during this year’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day Awards Breakfast, hosted by the National Action Network. Other honorees recognized for their work carrying on Dr. King’s dream included Maryland Governor Wes Moore; Taraji P. Henson and Tracie Jenkins of the Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation; actress Phylicia Rashad; National Education Association President Becky Pringle; and youth leader Deyona Burton.

In his acceptance remarks, President Cummings reflected on why he and others are motivated to carry on Dr. King’s work, saying. “We do this work because when we see injustice, we can’t ignore it. When we see people’s labor being exploited, we can’t sit on the sidelines doing nothing.”

From right to left: CWA President Claude Cummings Jr.; Becky Pringle, President of NEA;, Phylicia Rashad, actress and dean of the College of Fine Arts at Howard University; Tracie Jade Jenkins, Executive Director of the Boris Henson Foundation; Deyona Burton, youth activist; and President Lee Saunders, AFSCME.

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The March Continues

Members of United Campus Workers of Georgia (UCW-CWA Local 3265) participated in Martin Luther King Jr. Day events throughout the day, including marching in MLK parades in both Athens and Atlanta, Ga. Members and retirees form CWA Local 3204 helped plan the Atlanta parade, which included a contingent of Delta Airlines Flight Attendants who are organizing with AFA-CWA as well as many CWA members, retirees and their families.

Members of UCW-CWA Local 3265 share information at the 2024 Martin Luther King Jr. Day March in Atlanta, Ga.

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Does your local have any stories from this year’s MLK Day? Have any upcoming events scheduled for Black History Month? Let us know at news@cwa-union.org. We’d love to highlight your work!

Members of the Denver Newspaper Guild-CWA Local 37074 have won a major victory over the union-busting Musk family. When program coordinators and program managers at Kimbal Musk’s nonprofit, Big Green, formed their union in 2021, leadership responded with a campaign of intimidation, surveillance, and retaliation, then escalated by laying off the entire 10-person bargaining unit.

The U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado has ordered the organization to reinstate, and make whole, workers whose positions were eliminated in a blatant attempt to thwart the workers’ desire to form a union. The court further issued a bargaining order, compelling Big Green to recognize the workers’ union and bargain a union contract.

“It is very validating to see the law affirm that I did the right thing. I was shamed and threatened by leadership within Big Green for exercising my right to organize,” said Colleen Donahoe, an unlawfully terminated program coordinator in Indianapolis, Ind. “I’m glad to see them held accountable for betraying their staff and abandoning the schools we worked with.”

Big Green program coordinators build and operate “learning gardens” in schools to teach children about healthy eating. The workers began their union campaign to address concerns of racism at Big Green.

Last week, the Biden Administration’s Department of Labor issued a final rule that will reclassify some workers currently classified as “independent contractors” as employees. This rule will likely affect workers in the “gig economy,” such as truck drivers, food delivery workers, in-home healthcare workers, and some manufacturing workers.

The rule will replace a Trump-era version that classified these workers as “economically independent,” allowing businesses to withhold compensation such as health insurance and overtime pay, and serving as a barrier to union membership. “Misclassifying employees as independent contractors is a serious issue that deprives workers of basic rights and protections,” Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su said in a statement. “This rule will help protect workers, especially those facing the greatest risk of exploitation, by making sure they are classified properly and that they receive the wages they’ve earned.”

This rule follows a new National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) rule set to take effect in February that will make it harder for companies to use subcontractors to prevent workers from joining unions. The Republican-led House of Representatives has passed a resolution to overturn the NLRB rule, but President Biden has vowed to veto any attempt to interfere with workers’ rights to bargain for better working conditions.

Flight Attendants across the country, including our AFA-CWA siblings, have declared February 13, 2024, as a “Global Day of Action.” More than two-thirds of U.S. Flight Attendants are in contract negotiations right now, fighting for greater schedule flexibility, job security, and health benefits. Flight Attendants are also fighting for respect and dignity in a profession that has traditionally been both undervalued and subject to rampant sexism.

Flight Attendants will be picketing at over 30 airports worldwide. They ask supporters to stand in solidarity by amplifying their messages on social media and taking part in pickets where you can. For more information, follow @afa_cwa on X (formerly Twitter).

The Washington Post

Members of The Washington Post Guild, NewsGuild-CWA Local 32035, ratified their contract after 18 months of often contentious negotiating. This win came after hundreds of newspaper staffers walked off the job in a 24-hour strike in early December. The new contract guarantees staffers’ essential rights, doubles salary floors for the lowest-paid workers, and secures raises across the board.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), The Washington Post Guild stated, “This deal is the best contract Washington Post employees have seen in 50 years.”

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Washington Conservation Action

In August 2021, workers at Washington Conservation Action formed the Evergreen Workers Union, part of CWA Local 7800. The company voluntarily recognized the union and both parties ratified a tentative agreement which was finalized in December. “This is an exciting step forward, not only for us, but for Washington’s environmental, labor, and progressive movement as a whole,” the workers said in a statement. “By coming together in solidarity, we are organized to fight for a more just, equitable, and sustainable future.”

The contract also provides for reproductive and gender care, support for staff who are immigrants, recognizes tribal sovereignty, and creates a clear holiday work schedule.