Political Action Updates, February 2023

Big Win for Temp Workers in New Jersey

Photo by Latino Action Network

CWA District 1 along with CWA Local 1036’s Legislative & Political Coordinator joined a coalition of labor and community groups in New Jersey to advocate for the Temp Worker Bill of Rights, a piece of legislation to protect and strengthen the rights of temporary workers in New Jersey. The bill, which CWA has advocated for over previous legislative sessions, was stuck in limbo for several months until this month, when CWA was able to help push it over the finish line.

The bill (S511), the first of its kind in the US, would give temp workers in New Jersey the right to basic information in English as well as their native language about where they will be working, the pay rate, their schedule, type of work, and their amount of sick time.

It would also eliminate many of the fees temp agencies deduct from workers’ paychecks, including mandatory fees for the vans that take temps to their worksites each day, and would guarantee temp workers the ability to earn at least minimum wage after fees are deducted from their checks.

This will lift up more than 127,000 temp workers who play a vital role in New Jersey’s economy.

The New Jersey State Senate voted 21-16 to pass the bill. It now goes to Governor Phil Murphy to be signed into law!

Read more about the bill here.

Local 1298 President Dave Weidlich Speaks Out for Legislation Strengthening Striking Workers

CWA members know better than anyone about the power of the strike – and how tough a strike can be, especially financially. We’ve worked hard to build a strong Member Relief Fund to provide strike pay to members in the event of a strike, but we’re also fighting to ensure that striking workers can access Unemployment Insurance benefits while on strike.

On February 7th, CWA Local 1298 President Dave Weidlich testified at the Connecticut State Labor & Public Employees Committee Public Hearing to advocate for SB 938, a bill that would allow striking workers to file for Unemployment.

“I can tell you from experience that no worker takes the decision to go on strike lightly,” Weidlich testified. “Unionized workplaces raise standards for all workers, thanks to a collective bargaining process that allows them to negotiate fair wages, benefits, and working conditions. But that process is undermined when the balance of power shifts unfairly to the employer.

“An employer who doesn’t have to pay unemployment benefits has far less incentive to bargain in good faith, knowing that the workers’ precarious situation could break the strike and bring them back to the bargaining table demoralized and financially diminished—or remove the option to strike in the first place.

The bill, if passed, would be a massive win for Connecticut’s workers, strengthening union-members’ ability to fight for fair contracts that we deserve. It would make Connecticut only the third state in the country to recognize the financial burden that striking workers go through, after New York and New Jersey (all states in CWA District 1). In 2019, the New York State legislature reduced the waiting time for striking workers to file for Unemployment from seven weeks to two, and in 2021 our CWA Local 1133 members at Catholic Health Services in Buffalo, NY became the first workers in the state to take advantage of the shortened waiting time and collect Unemployment during their 40-day strike.

“SB 938 is not designed to enrich workers,” Weidlich testified. “It is designed to help avoid labor disputes by creating the conditions for good faith bargaining.”

The bill was successfully voted out of committee and has now been referred to the Office of Legislative Research and Office of Fiscal Analysis.

Read Local 1298 President Dave Weidlich’s full testimony here.

New York Legislative & Political Action Members New and Old Gather in Albany to Plan, Learn, and Lobby

On February 13th, dozens of members of the New York Legislative & Political Action Team (LPAT) representing locals across the state met in the capital for a two-day political action event. Members spent the first day talking and learning from one another at Session 1 of the monthly LPAT Training which helps locals develop and strengthen their LPATs. Veteran LPAT members welcomed new team members, many of whom cut their political action teeth on some tough election campaigns last fall, and spent the day discussing our 2023 legislative agenda and how we’re going to win for New York’s workers this year.

On February 14th, LPAT members put their prep into action and hit the halls of the Capitol for our first Lobby Day of 2023, speaking to dozens of legislators – including several new pro-worker legislators we helped elect in 2022. It was a special moment for activists to see one of our priority bills, SB3500/Stavisky, which would end unjust fees for SUNY graduate workers, represented by CWA-GSEU 1104, be voted out of the Senate Committee for Higher Education - with the new SUNY chancellor as a special guest present. This bill is one of District 1’s big priorities for 2023.

Our other priorities for the 2023 New York legislative year:

1. Hospital funding: To get our healthcare workers the support they desperately need, we’re fighting for $1.3 Billion for financially distressed and safety net hospitals, and a 10% Medicaid rate increase.
2. Raising the minimum wage for almost 2.9 million workers to $20/hr and index annual statewide increases to inflation and labor productivity after that, because wages have not kept up with inflation and many workers are falling behind.
3. Funding for the CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies.
4. Establishing a framework for public banking, so that banks are owned by and accountable to the people, with the goal of serving the public - not Wall Street.

Read more about our 2023 NY Legislative Agenda here.

Local 1180 President Gloria Middleton Testifies at the New York City Council for City Worker Healthcare Coverage

On January 9th, Local 1180 President Gloria Middleton testified at the City Council Committee on Civil Service and Labor on behalf of her 16,000 members and retirees regarding critical changes to the health insurance for City workers, retirees, and their dependents. She spoke in favor of legislation that would allow the Administrative Code 12-126 to be amended - the proposed Medicare Advantage Plan will replace both traditional Medicare and a Medicare Supplement plan with one unified program at no premium cost to retirees or to the City.

“We want to make sure our retirees have options, but we cannot do that without your support,” President Middleton said in her testimony. “It is imperative for this City Council to act responsibly and allow labor leaders to engage in negotiations that ensure our retirees have the freedom to choose a plan that best works for them.”

Read President Middleton’s full testimony here.