Folks,
Greetings from the Burgh, where allies of Josh Shapiro are rallying union support as he competes to be Kamala Harris’ Vice Presidential candidate.
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Philly AFL-CIO Backs Shapiro for VP
Earlier this week, Payday reported that some teachers unions in Pennsylvania were upset that Shapiro had supported tax vouchers to send kids to private schools. Now, Shapiro’s allies in organized labor are rallying behind him.
Today, the Philadelphia AFL-CIO endorsed Shapiro for Vice President.
“At this moment in history, the role of unions is more critical than ever, and we take seriously the commitment of our elected officials to support and promote the union way of life. No one has been more steadfast in their commitment to working people than Josh Shapiro,” said the Philadelphia AFL-CIO in a statement.
For more, check out PoliticsPA.
Detroit Institute of Bagels Workers Quit Over Zionist Boss
In Detroit, workers at the Detroit Institute of Bagels (DIB) have quit en masse after the bagel shop was sold to Zionist owners. From the Detroit Free Press:
“The emails revealed that some workers were not comfortable working for Kafka, because of his Prince Concepts business, his past support of Israel (Kafka is Jewish), which is embroiled in a controversial war in Gaza, and the “transparency in the ‘sale.’ “After an initial email introduction from Newman to the existing DIB employees, Kafka made several attempts to meet with staffers but was met with reluctance. Early emails went unanswered and later, some employees’ responses indicated that they were unavailable to meet in a group setting and unwilling to sit down one-on-one with new leadership.
When Kafka suggested the team present a new meeting time of their convenience, the resignations began pouring in.
Since the news of the DIB closing, Delia Diedrich, a DIB line and prep cook who is among the DIB employees who resigned, said the group has received “incredible support across the bar,” including job offers within the restaurant industry and other industries. A fund is also set up through the Orenda Coalition to support the employees who resigned.”
For more, check out the Detroit Free Press.
Staff at Luxury Olympic Hotel Strike
Finally, as the Olympics start in Paris, staff at a luxury hotel, Hôtel du Collectionneur, where top Olympic officials are staying, are on strike. From the Guardian:
“Union Départementale CGT Paris (UD CGT), a trade union representing the workers, posted a video from inside the hotel showing around a dozen staff lining one of the corridors used by guests. Some waved the union’s flags and others held notices with slogans such as “Luxury hotel, poverty wages” and “Give us back our social assets”.
According to UD CGT, workers at Hôtel du Collectionneur have not been given a pay rise since 2017. It claims that, despite a dividend of over £8m being handed to shareholders this year, no breakthrough has been made in improving the financial position of its staff.
The Guardian understands that the offer of a 2% salary increase, made on Wednesday during the latest of five meetings in a negotiation with UD CGT that began in June, was rejected and led to the strike. Hôtel du Collectionneur is thought to be an outlier among Paris’s luxury hotels in not having reached agreements with its workers before the Olympics.
Central to the workers’ demands is a “13th month”, which is a common salary addition in France. It is essentially a bonus, or variable pay structure, in which an extra month’s payment is received annually in December. While not mandatory, it is viewed as standard in the high-end hotel sector. The stance among Hôtel Du Collectionneur’s strikers is that the total of their demands represents only one 20th of its contract with the IOC.”
For more, check out the Guardian
News & Headlines Elsewhere
- Dallas Black Dance Theatre retaliating against recently unionized dancers
- Columbus Jewish Community Center workers complain of union busting
- Unpacking JD Vance’s Labor Record
- Minneapolis park workers reach tentative agreement
- LA Times takes a deep look at how closing of Spanish-language newspapers is affecting many California communities
- Finally, a rural West Virginia Starbucks that I passed last week on vacation has now unionized
Alright yinz, that’s all for today. Keep sending tips, story ideas, comments and complaints to melk@paydayreport.com
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Love & Solidarity,
Melk
