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Greetings from the Burgh, where today we have the worst air quality in the nation and my asthma is suffering. Donate to help me pay for my asthma inhalers.
Pfizer Using COVID Money to Union Bust
Pfizer is making a fortune from the pandemic, reporting $1,000 in profits every second from COVID vaccinations.
Yesterday, our friends at Labor Lab revealed that the company is using that money to hire union-busters, even though there does not appear to be any signs of active union organizing in the company.
“Unfortunately, it’s commonplace for employers to begin undermining worker solidarity before it ever has a chance to take root,” Labor Lab co-founder Bob Funk told Payday Report. “From the infamous “orientation” videos distributed by Wal-Mart and Target to the captive audience meetings being conducted by Pfizer, the strategy is the same: confuse workers about their rights under the National Labor Relations Act and intimidate them from ever starting a union.”
Dungeons & Dragons Workers Walk Out for Abortion Rights
Across the United States, people are demanding that their employers take more action to secure their rights. Yesterday, workers at Wizards of the Coast, the Hasbro subsidiary that makes Dungeons & Dragons as well as the card game Magic: The Gathering, staged a walkout to demand that their company do more to stand up for abortion rights.
“We, as employees of Wizards of the Coast, are frustrated, disappointed, and completely dissatisfied with Hasbro’s out of touch, tone-deaf, and lackluster response to Friday’s Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade,” the workers said in a statement. “This decision, that healthcare for marginalized individuals is a privilege based on location and means, violates basic human rights.”
Facebook Bars Employees from Discussing Abortion Internally
Meta, the company formerly known as Facebook, has instituted a policy that bars employees from discussing abortion on internal communication channels.
“On our internal Workplace platform, moderators swiftly remove posts or comments mentioning abortion,” Ambroos Vaes, a software engineer wrote in the LinkedIn post. “The ‘respectful’ communications policy that was put in place explicitly disallows it. Limited discussion can only happen in groups of up to 20 employees who follow a set playbook, but not out in the open.”
For more, check out the New York Times
Mercedes-Benz Auto Mechanics Strike
Mechanics at the Mercedes-Benz of San Diego dealership in Kearny Mesa have gone on strike. Until recently, the workers were paid a guarantee regardless of the number of cars they worked on. The dealership no longer wants to guarantee a base rate for the mechanics, effectively lowering many workers’ pay.
“This is San Diego. The cost of living here is outrageous,” Pedro Gomez told the San Diego Union-Tribune. “Technicians are in high demand … Not anybody can come work here. They’re having trouble replacing us because no one’s going to come work here for less.”
For more, check out the San Diego Union-Tribune
Medieval Times Workers Will Vote on Forming Company’s 1st Union
The Medieval Times is a series of ten chain restaurants where staff dress up as medieval characters and jousters perform on horses. The restaurants have been featured in movies and TV shows.
Now, Medieval Times workers are seeking to unionize. Dave Jamieson at HuffPost has the story:
Working at the famous dinner-theater chain Medieval Times comes with some unique occupational hazards. For instance, sometimes a guest who has emptied one too many goblets of booze starts banging the Middle Ages-style plates and bowls together.
Clanging the heavy dinnerware can spook the horses in the arena, endangering the knights as they joust for the queen’s honor. It often falls to the queen herself — a mic’d-up actor on a throne above the pit — or her chancellor, Lord Cedric, to gently admonish the overzealous crowd, all while keeping in character: Please, m’lord, don’t bang the plates.
“You can hear it backstage sometimes, it’s so loud,” said Purnell Thompson, a stablehand at the Lyndhurst, New Jersey, location. “We’ve had people thrown off their horses from the horses getting spooked. There’s only so much you can do to keep them under control at that point.”
News & Strikes Happening Elsewhere
- Racine UAW strike nears two-month mark
- NBA Champion, current Miami Heat assistant coach and Racine native Caron Butler showed up to support striking workers on the picket line
- PBS NewsHour employees seek voluntary recognition for their union
- Richmond City Council delays action on measure to allow city workers to unionize
- Starbucks fires union leader for being late once in five years on the job
- Georgia blasting, demolition contractor pays more than $5k penalty after allowing 16- and 17-year-olds to work near dynamite
- Finally, analysts are accusing Bed, Bath, & Beyond of turning off air conditioning as their profits fall
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Love & Solidarity,
Melk
