Weekly Labor Roundup - March 11, 2025
For the first time ever, the Trump administration has negated a collective bargaining agreement with federal employees, telling roughly 45,000 airport security screeners who work for the Transportation Security Administration, that they will no longer honor their union contract. TSA employees are represented by the American Federation of Government Employees.
Nearly 2,000 members of the New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benefit Association were fired by the state of New York for refusing to return to work following a weeks-long wildcat strike of prison guards at many state prisons. The strike is now over, following an agreement between the guards’ union and the state.
Hundreds of union members and supporters rallied in Maryland to call for union-friendly legislation. The rally calls for legislation to strengthen collective bargaining rights for public employees and to improve workplace safety measures.
Lori Chavez-DeRemer was approved by the Senate to head the Department of Labor. Chavez-DeRemer was endorsed by Teamsters President Sean O’Brien.
In the Bay Area, VTA workers represented by the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 265 are on strike with no end in sight. Unresolved issues revolve around pay, some benefits, and rules for arbitration.
New bipartisan legislation has been introduced into the Senate to speed up union negotiations. The Faster Labor Contracts Act would require the employer and union to negotiate within 10 days of a union vote. If no deal is reached by 90 days, the matter would be sent to mediation. If no agreement is made after 30 days of mediation, all outstanding issues would be subject to binding arbitration.
