Tag: union members

Recent B.C. decision on secondary picketing at non-striking facility

by David T. McDonald About 15 years ago, the Supreme Court of Canada changed the law on secondary picketing in Canada. That decision, RWDSU Local 558 v. Pepsi-Cola Canada Beverages (West) Ltd., 2002 SCC 8, ruled that secondary picketing was generally lawful unless accompanied by wrongful conduct such as violence or blockading. This meant that […]

Contract Vote Ends Controversial NLRB Case on Boeing Plant

The April 2011 unfair labor practice charge that was filed against the Boeing Co. and that became an immediate flashpoint for criticism of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), has been withdrawn. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers union asked to withdraw the charge after its members ratified a four-year collective bargaining agreement […]

Tyson Foods: a lesson in religious tolerance, community relations

Tyson Foods is going a long way toward making employees of all religious persuasions happy. At least that’s the case at its plant in Shelbyville, Tennessee. About 700 of the 1,200 employees there came to the United States as political refugees from Somalia, and most of those 700 employees are Muslim. Recently, the Tyson plant’s […]

Labor Day 2008: September 1

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the first observance of Labor Day is believed to have been a parade of 10,000 workers on September 5, 1882, in New York City, organized by Peter J. McGuire, a Carpenters and Joiners Union secretary. By 1893, more than half the states were observing a “Labor Day” on one […]

Union to pay $6.2 million in historic race and national origin discrimination case

Local 28 of the Sheet Metal Workers’ International Association in New York City (Local 28) will have to pay $6.2 million to a class of black and Hispanic workers. According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Local 28 provided them fewer job opportunities because of their race or national origin. The monetary part of […]