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☆ Apple agrees to first US labor deal
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-27 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —Apple and the union representing retail workers at its store in Towson, Maryland, agreed to a tentative labor deal late Friday in the first US labor agreement not only for an Apple store but for any US workers of the tech giant. The labor deal, which needs to be ratified by a vote of the 85 rank-and-file members at the store before it can take effect, is a significant milestone. There are not many legal requirements to force a company to reach a labor agreement with a new union once that union has been recognized by the National Labor Relations Board, the government body that oversees labor relations for most US business. The Machinists union said the Apple store deal includes scheduling improvements for a better work-life balance, which was considered a major issue in the talks. That store is not covered by this tentative labor deal.

Persons: “, ” Organizations: New, New York CNN, Apple, Workers, International Association of Machinists, National Labor Relations Board, Bloomberg Law, “, Communications Workers of America, CNN Locations: New York, Towson , Maryland, Towson, Maryland, United States, Oklahoma City

☆ Apple Store workers in Maryland vote to authorize strike
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-12 | by ( Jordan Valinsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —Apple Store workers in Towson, Maryland, the first of the tech giant’s retail employees to unionize, made history again by voting late Saturday in favor of authorizing a strike. “We deeply value our team members and we’re proud to provide them with industry leading compensation and exceptional benefits.”The union at the Towson store has not disclosed what date members would strike. Apple employees at the Mall at Short Hills store in New Jersey voted against unionizing on Saturday, according to Bloomberg. The union, known as the Communications Workers of America, alleged Apple engaged in illegal union-busting activity and blamed the defeat on the Apple’s tactics. The labor wave hitting Apple retail stores echoes the mass organizing that began at other influential companies in the United States, such as Starbucks and Amazon.

Persons: ”, Apple, “, unionizing, ” Kate Bronfenbrenner, CNN’s Ramishah Maruf Organizations: New, New York CNN, Apple, International Association of Machinists, Aerospace Workers Coalition, Retail Employees, IAM CORE, ” Employees, CNN, Towson, Bloomberg, Communications Workers of America, CWA, Labor, National Labor Relations Board, Labor Education Research, Cornell’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations Locations: New York, Towson , Maryland, Towson, Baltimore, Short, New Jersey, Washington, China, New York City, United States

☆ New Activision QA union is the largest in the video game industry
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-09 | by ( Rebecca Picciotto | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A group of roughly 600 software testers at Activision on Friday formed the U.S. video game industry's largest union so far. The union is the first to organize under a new labor agreement negotiated as part of Microsoft's $69 billion acquisition of Activision in October, the company's largest takeover yet. Activision Quality Assurance United-CWA, the name of the union, is seeking higher wages and more career opportunities, QA tester Kara Fannon said in a statement. Before the Microsoft-Activision deal closed, QA workers at the video game-maker's Albany branch had also formed a union. "QA is currently an undervalued discipline in the games and software industries," the Albany wrote on social media at the time.

Persons: Bobby Kotick, Amy Pannoni, Kara Fannon, Claude Cummings Jr Organizations: Activision Blizzard, Allen, Co, Activision, Microsoft, Assurance United, CWA, Communications Workers of America, Labor, Big Tech Locations: Sun Valley , Idaho, U.S, Microsoft's, California , Texas, Minnesota, Albany

☆ Labor coalition accuses Starbucks of 'flawed' union strategy, risking shareholder value
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-20 | by ( Kate Rogers | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

The coalition is pushing to replace three current Starbucks board members with its own nominees. The SOC proxy presentation claims the company's board has backed what it calls an "unnecessarily confrontational" strategy with the union. Starbucks said it has not only a new CEO, but with these additions, it has added five new board members in the past year. The proxy presentation targets three current Starbucks board members: Ritch Allison, Andy Campion and Jørgen Vig Knudstorp. Allison, Campion and Knudstorp, specifically, provide "continuity and highly-valuable unique perspectives," the Starbucks presentation said.

Persons: Baristas, Nielsen, Maria Echaveste, Joshua Gotbaum, Wilma Liebman, Daniel Servitje, Neal Mohan, Mike Sievert, Ritch Allison, Andy Campion, Jørgen Vig Knudstorp, Allison, Campion, Knudstorp, Wendy's, Narasimhan Organizations: Starbucks, CNBC, Organizing Center, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, National Labor Relations Board, NLRB, Starbucks Corporation, Siren Retail, Service Employees International Union, Starbucks Workers United, Communications Workers of America, United Farm Workers of America, Chipotle, Darden, Restaurant Brands, Yum Brands, White House, Hawaiian Airlines, White, Grupo Bimbo, YouTube, Mobile, SEC Locations: Buffalo, Arlington , Virginia, China, U.S

NEW YORK (AP) — Microsoft is laying off about 1,900 employees in its gaming division, according to an internal company memo, just over three months since the tech giant completed its $69 million purchase of video game maker Activision Blizzard. Those impacted worked on teams for Activision Blizzard as well as Xbox and ZeniMax — which are also owned by Microsoft. “As we move forward in 2024, the leadership of Microsoft Gaming and Activision Blizzard is committed to aligning on a strategy and an execution plan with a sustainable cost structure that will support the whole of our growing business,” Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer wrote in the memo. The union deal was part of a 2022 agreement with the CWA that helped address U.S. political concerns about the merger’s effects. So far, however, only a small set of Activision Blizzard divisions have formed unions.

Persons: Activision Blizzard, Phil Spencer, Mike Ybarra, ” Ybarra, “, ”, _________________ O'Brien Organizations: Microsoft, Activision, Associated Press, Activision Blizzard, Microsoft Gaming, Twitter, European Union, The U.S . Federal Trade Commission, FTC, Google, Riot, eBay, Communications Workers, CWA Locations: United Kingdom, European, U.S, Canada, Providence , Rhode Island

☆ Wells Fargo employees at two branches mount unionization campaign
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A Wells Fargo logo is seen in New York City, U.S. January 10, 2017. REUTERS/Stephanie Keith/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsNov 20 (Reuters) - Wells Fargo (WFC.N) employees at two of the bank's branches filed for union elections on Monday, laying the groundwork for potential unionization in an industry that has largely been immune to such labor campaigns. In a petition to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), bankers and tellers at Wells Fargo branches in Albuquerque, New Mexico and Bethel, Alaska declared their intent to join the Communications Workers of America's Wells Fargo Workers United (WFWU). "While we are the first Wells Fargo workers to file for union elections, we will not be the last," said Sabrina Perez, a senior premier banker at Wells Fargo's Albuquerque branch. "We have a deep commitment to invest in and support everyone who works at Wells Fargo ... have significantly improved compensation and benefits for our lower paid employees in recent years," he said.

Persons: Stephanie Keith, Wells, Sabrina Perez, Wells Fargo's Saul Van Beurden, Niket, Anil D'Silva, Shounak Organizations: REUTERS, National Labor Relations Board, Communications Workers, America's Wells Fargo Workers United, Labor, Detroit Three, Wells, Wall Street, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Wells Fargo, Albuquerque , New Mexico, Bethel , Alaska, America's Wells, United States, Wells, Albuquerque, Bengaluru

☆ Group of Google contractors who work on Search and Bard win union vote
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-07 | by ( Jennifer Elias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A group of Google contractors, some of whom have worked on Search and Google's artificial intelligence chatbot Bard, have successfully voted to unionize. The group, from Google contractor Accenture, filed for unionization efforts in June after claiming Google asked them to help train the generative AI answers offered in Search and Bard, and that they felt underprepared for their work. The Alphabet Workers Union teamed up with the Communications Workers of America in 2021 as a minority union. "We have no objection to these Accenture workers electing to form a union," said Google spokesperson Courtenay Mencini in a statement to CNBC. The decision marks the second ruling to classify Google as a joint employer with its contractor for a subset of employees.

Persons: Bard, Courtenay Mencini, Jen Hill, Hill Organizations: Accenture, Google, Bloomberg, Alphabet Workers Union, Communications Workers of America, U.S . National Labor Relations Board, Workers, NLRB, CNBC, CWA, YouTube, Cognizant Technology Solutions, CNBC PRO Locations: London, England, Francisco

Microsoft, which owns the Xbox gaming system, closed its $69 billion deal to buy game-maker Activision Blizzard on Friday after fending off global opposition from antitrust regulators and rivals. It marks a career-defining moment for Spencer, who first joined Microsoft as an intern in 1988 and has helmed Xbox since 2014. When the companies announced a planned merger in January 2022, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella made clear it would be "critical for Activision Blizzard to drive forward” on its commitments to improve its workplace culture. As of late last year, Activision Blizzard had 13,000 employees, about 72% in North America, according to a regulatory filing. “It is a new day for workers at Activision Blizzard,” said CWA President Claude Cummings Jr. in a statement Friday.

Persons: Phil Spencer, Spencer, “, ”, Gil Luria, Davidson, he’s, Bobby Kotick, who's, Kotick, Satya Nadella, Joe Biden's, ” Luria, George Jijiashvili, Elder, ” Jijiashvili, Claude Cummings Jr, ” Cummings Organizations: Activision Blizzard, Microsoft, Activision, PlayStation, Sony, U.S . Federal Trade, ZeniMax Media, Bethesda Softworks, Communications Workers of America Locations: Southern California, U.S, United Kingdom, San Francisco, Bethesda, North America, Canada

☆ Grindr loses about half its workers after trying to make them come back to the office
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-09 | by ( Jyoti Mann | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The dating app told employees to start working from an office 2 days a week or lose their jobs. The Communication Workers of America union said about 80 of its 178 workers rejected the RTO order. Last month the LGBTQ+ dating app told employees to starting work in the office two days a week from October or face dismissal after August 31. A representative for Grindr told Bloomberg the union claims were without merit and that it was "returning to the office in a hybrid model in October." Google has been telling employees to show up at the office three days a week since April 2022, and Meta followed suit in June.

Persons: Grindr, Grindr didn't, Meta Organizations: Communication Workers of America, Service, Communications Workers, America, Bloomberg, United, CWA, National Labor Relations Board, Wired, Tiga Acquisition Corp, Beijing Kunlun Tech, Vicente, Meta, Google Locations: Wall, Silicon, Chicago , Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay, Beijing Kunlun, Delaware

☆ Dating app Grindr loses nearly half its staff after trying to force a return to office
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —LGBTQ dating app Grindr ended its remote work policies and forced employees to relocate. The CWA also said the return-to-work policy was retaliatory and in response to a union drive at the company. Just two weeks prior to Grindr’s policy change, a majority of employees filed to organize a union. “Rather than recognize the union, the company issued a new return-to-office policy requiring staff to relocate or quit,” the CWA said in a statement. Seventy-one percent of employers that are mandating their on-site work policy reported difficulty retaining workers, according to the survey.

Persons: Grindr, “, ”, Andy Jassy, unaddressed Organizations: New, New York CNN, Communications Workers of America, CWA, Washington D.C, Grindr, National Labor Relations Board, Conference, Labor, Amazon, Meta, Business Locations: New York, — New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington

☆ Grindr employees working from home were given 2 weeks to decide to move across the country to work in person or lose their jobs
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The company's employees say Grindr could be retaliating against them for trying to form a union. The news comes two weeks after employees announced their effort to unionize under the Communications Workers of America, Grindr United. Grindr United posted Sunday that the pivot to in-person work by the company is a "bizarre coincidence." However, employees told The New York Times that the company told them to expect the transition after one or two quarters. Grindr United did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment sent over the weekend.

Persons: it's, we're, —, George Arison, Grindr, Quinn McGee, McGee Organizations: Service, Management, Communications Workers of America, Grindr, Grindr United, Bloomberg, New York Times, Apple, Disney, Google, Twitter, Grindr United CWA Locations: Wall, Silicon, Grindr, Chicago , Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay, —

July 20 (Reuters) - New York Governor Kathy Hochul on Thursday directed state departments to investigate health risks associated with old lead-clad cables left by telecommunication companies. The Wall Street Journal this month reported that telecom companies, including AT&T (T.N) and Verizon Communications (VZ.N), had left toxic lead cables on poles, underwater and buried under ground across the U.S. including in New York. The investigation is to better understand the inventory and ownership of such cables in New York, Hochul said. "AT&T’s commitment to addressing our members’ exposure to lead must go beyond point-in-time testing of blood lead levels and incorporate proper follow up," the union said. U.S. Representative Pat Ryan of New York on Thursday wrote to the CEOs of Verizon, AT&T and industry group U.S. Telecom, demanding that they remove lead cables.

Persons: Kathy Hochul, Hochul, John Stankey, Jessica Rosenworcel, Rosenworcel, Pat Ryan, Ryan, Mrinalika Roy, Vinay Dwivedi, Marguerita Choy Organizations: Verizon Communications, Verizon, The Communications Workers, America, Federal Communications, Environmental Protection Agency, White House Council, Environmental, U.S . Telecom, Thomson Locations: New, New York, Bengaluru

☆ Slow pace of Biden’s reelection campaign feeds Democrats’ 2024 anxiety
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-13 | by ( Edward-Isaac Dovere | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

It’s a persistent sense that the inner circle of advisers to the president and several of the very few aides who have been hired for his reelection campaign dismiss as absurd. “They are so underestimated, and they keep getting it right,” said Jim Messina, former president Barack Obama’s 2012 reelection campaign manager, who has been one of the people privately advising Biden’s team to ramp up gradually. “We will grow and ramp up alongside the Biden campaign, probably in late fall or early next year,” Barnes said. “The most important power of incumbency is taking time to plan and build your campaign while your challenger is busy with a primary,” a Democratic campaign veteran said. “You can raise more now, but President Biden is raising less,” a veteran Democratic fundraiser on the West Coast said.

Persons: –, Joe Biden won’t, Biden, “, ”, Jim Messina, Barack Obama’s, Obama, aren’t, Donald Trump, ‘, “ I’m, Trump’s, David Axelrod, “ Trump, ” Axelrod, Biden’s, Kevin Munoz, Harris, Roe, Wade, Mitt Romney, Trump, Jen O’Malley Dillon, Messina, ” Messina, Roy Cooper, you’re, ” Cooper, Kamala Harris, Lavora Barnes, Julie Chávez Rodriguez, Barnes, ” Barnes, ’ ”, Axelrod, who’s, – “ it’s, Larry Cohen, Bernie Sanders, Obama’s –, Lis Smith Organizations: CNN, Democratic, Trump, GOP, Republicans, MAGA Republicans, Biden, Democratic National Committee, Republican, America, White, North Carolina Gov, ” Michigan Democratic Party, Communications Workers of America, Obama, Biden pessimists Locations: America, Wilmington, Capitol Hill, Washington, Chicago, stoke

☆ Google is downsizing its contract workforce that supports YouTube, shortly after one contractor team's union victory
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Thomas Maxwell | Hugh Langley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Workers in Austin recently formed a collective bargaining group with the Alphabet Workers Union. The move comes shortly after a group of Cognizant workers supporting YouTube Music voted 41-0 in favor of unionizing with the Alphabet Workers Union, which is affiliated with the Communications Workers of America, a larger trade union. The cuts did not impact the YouTube Music team, which helps curate themed playlists and review song metadata. The Cognizant team supporting YouTube TV had been in early talks to form their own union following the group at YouTube Music, according to three workers there. Cognizant also confirmed in an email that its contract supporting YouTube TV is ending.

☆ A union said 5 Apple Store workers were fired illegally for trying to organize
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-01 | by ( Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A union said five workers at Apple stores in two states were fired illegally. The Communications Workers of America union filed two Unfair Labor Practice charges. It was the first unfair labour practice charge filed by the CWA against Apple for alleged unlawful termination of workers for union organizing. No one working at Apple should be interrogated, intimidated, or silenced for trying to organize and win our fair share." It is unlawful for any companies to retaliate against workers for union activity, according to the NLRB.

☆ Worker killed at Alabama airport was too close to jet engine despite warnings, NTSB says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Dennis-Romero-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Dennis Romero | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

An airline worker killed in a Dec. 31 incident at an Alabama airport was exposed to multiple warnings about the dangers of being near running jet engines, the National Transportation Safety Board said. It noted examples of when workers were warned to stay clear of running jet engines when planes are stopped on the ground. The worker was not named in the NTSB report. An excerpt from American Eagle’s ground operations manual that was included in the NTSB report echoed those points. During that walk along the wing, the employee got too close to the running engine and was killed, the NTSB said.

☆ Microsoft Workers to Form Company’s First Union in the U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Sarah E. Needleman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A group of Microsoft Corp. employees has voted to form the software company’s first labor union in the U.S., marking the latest example of workers from top tech companies organizing in recent years. The group comprises about 300 quality-assurance testers in Microsoft’s ZeniMax unit, the Communications Workers of America, which is representing it, said on Tuesday. Just a handful of U.S.-based unions exist in the videogame industry.

☆ Microsoft recognized its first labor union in the US after staff at $7.5 billion video game firm ZeniMax Studios voted to unionize
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Sawdah Bhaimiya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Microsoft recognized its first US labor union, the Communications Workers of America said, Tuesday. Around 300 workers at Microsoft subsidiary ZeniMax Studios voted to unionize in December. Microsoft agreed to voluntarily recognize the union if workers voted to unionize in December, per Reuters. Union workers can petition to the National Labor Relations Board to force their employer to recognize their union, but the process is long and arduous. Microsoft and ZeniMax Studios did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

☆ Microsoft recognizes its first union as ZeniMax software testers organize
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-03 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile for Web Summit via Getty Images)Microsoft said Tuesday that it has recognized its first union of employees in the software maker's 47-year history. Last year, Microsoft said it would support approaches that would make it simpler for its employees to join unions. A supermajority of ZeniMax workers said they wanted to join the union, the CWA said in a statement. Microsoft operates 23 internal game studios in addition to selling Xbox consoles and operating gaming services such as Game Pass subscription packages. The workers become the largest group of quality-assurance testers at any U.S. game studio, the CWA said.

In a statement provided to CNN, Microsoft said it has agreed to recognize the union. “Microsoft has lived up to its commitment to its workers and let them decide for themselves whether they want a union,” CWA president Chris Shelton said in a statement. Some companies like Amazon have so far refused to recognize workers who have voted to form a union. The union bid at the Microsoft subsidiary, however, stands out from some of the others because of Microsoft’s openness to employee organizing efforts. Microsoft last year entered into a neutrality agreement with the CWA, which is also supporting organizing efforts from workers at Activision Blizzard, the gaming giant Microsoft agreed to acquire for $68.7 billion.

☆ Activision's Boston studio workers announce unionization
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 27 (Reuters) - A majority of workers at videogame publisher Activision Blizzard Inc's (ATVI.O) recently acquired studio Proletariat said on Tuesday that they are forming a union with the Communications Workers of America. The move would make the Boston-based studio, the third Activision Blizzard studio to seek unionization. The 57 workers in the Proletariat unit – that include animators, designers, engineers, producers and quality assurance workers – said they have filed for a union representation election with the National Labor Relations Board. Earlier in July, Activision said that it had Proletariat to expand the development pipeline of its online role-playing game "World of Warcraft". Workers who test games at Activision's unit Blizzard Albany have voted to form a union months after the company began negotiating with employees at its Wisconsin unit, the first in the company to unionize.

☆ US labor officials say Apple violated the law by allegedly interrogating employees and holding mandatory meetings about unionization
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Britney Nguyen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

An Atlanta NLRB director found merit to allegations that Apple violated labor law. Apple, which did not respond to Insider's request for comment, has previously denied wrongdoing in a complaint with similar allegations concerning a New York Apple Store. We commend the NLRB for recognizing captive audience meetings for exactly what they are: a direct violation of labor rights." The Atlanta Apple Store in Cumberland Mall became the first Apple retail location to file for a union election in April. The employees in Atlanta eventually withdrew their call for a union vote days before the election, alleging intimidation from Apple.

☆ Microsoft could soon have its first union
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The workers are organizing with the Communications Workers of America (CWA) union and have until the end of December to vote on it. Microsoft has agreed to recognize the union if a majority of the workers vote in favor of it, according to the CWA. The union bid at the Microsoft subsidiary, however, stands out from some of the others because Microsoft has previously vowed to recognize the rights of workers to organize. Slack said Microsoft has been “very accommodating” throughout the process, ever since organizers first approached the company about the union. “They understand that it’s a right and they wanted to leave it up to the workers,” Slack said.

☆ In the midst of Amazon's record layoffs, corporate employees of the company float a forbidden word: Union
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Katherine Long | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A small group of corporate Amazon staff is discussing unionizing, according to messages seen by Insider. There, a small group of corporate employees have been openly discussing the pros and cons of labor activism, including organizing into a union. Though only one warehouse has successfully voted to unionize, organizing efforts are active in at least seven Amazon locations. And now, with about 10,000 corporate jobs on the line, union activism is picking up here, too. Members of the Discord group have brought up the Alphabet Workers Union, a minority union representing roughly 1,000 Alphabet employees and affiliated with the Communications Workers of America, as a possible model.

☆ Hundreds of Gannett Staffers Stage Daylong Strike to Improve Wages
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Alexandra Bruell | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Gannett, the parent of USA Today and local newspapers, this week posted another $54 million quarterly loss. More than 200 Gannett Co. staffers are staging a one-day strike Friday to push for better wages and benefits and protest layoffs and furloughs, among other cost-cutting measures at the news publisher. The striking staffers, from 14 of the company’s newsrooms, won’t work Friday, said a spokeswoman for the NewsGuild, a division of the Communications Workers of America union that represents members across Gannett publications. They include staff from publications in New Jersey, New York, Arizona and California, as well as members from Gannett’s Atlantic Digital Optimization Team, she said.

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