WorkplaceLeader, vol 1, no 3: The Workplace Fight Against COVID-19
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Click here to see the most recent issue of WorkplaceLeader: The Workplace Fight Against COVID-19. The issue covers using online videoconferencing tools like Zoom for bargaining unit meetings (Local 2 uses it!), ElectionRunner for elections, and Coworker.org to petition employers on urgent issues. It also covers important questions related to COVID-19 that workplace leaders such as shop stewards should be prepared to answer.
WorkplaceLeader is a publication for leaders in the workplace focusing on technology, strategic planning, workplace tactics, and organizing. It's published six times a year by UnionBase, the world's first social networking platform for the labor movement with 30,000 union profiles. |
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UPDATE: General Membership Meeting To Be Held Via Telephone
Due to the most recent stay-at-home orders in the DMV issued by Washington, DC Mayor Bowser, Maryland Governor Hogan and Virginia Governor Northam, the OPEIU Local 2 Quarterly Membership Meeting, including the swearing-in of duly elected Officers, Executive Board Members and Trustees, will be held via phone on April 7, 2020 at 5:30pm.
While the OPEIU Local 2 Constitution, Article IV Section 1 and Section 2, gives the Executive Board the authority to move the meeting date, the Department of Labor (DOL) controls and limits the terms of the Officers, Executive Board Members and Trustees to 36 months.
Therefore, we will hold a General Membership Meeting via telephone limited to the Special Order of Business on the normally planned day. All members are welcome and encouraged to call the number provided above on April 7th at 5:30 to witness the installation of the duly elected Officers, Executive Board and Trustees.
Please call the following number at 5:30 to be added to the call. You do not need a meeting access code.
Date: April 7, 2020
Time: 5:30 PM
Number: 351-999-3530
The regular order of business will be moved to July 7th. Steward reimbursements for the April meeting will be based on the July attendance and paid in accordance with the practice of Local 2. We will hold a ceremonial swearing in service again at the July 7th meeting.
While the OPEIU Local 2 Constitution, Article IV Section 1 and Section 2, gives the Executive Board the authority to move the meeting date, the Department of Labor (DOL) controls and limits the terms of the Officers, Executive Board Members and Trustees to 36 months.
Therefore, we will hold a General Membership Meeting via telephone limited to the Special Order of Business on the normally planned day. All members are welcome and encouraged to call the number provided above on April 7th at 5:30 to witness the installation of the duly elected Officers, Executive Board and Trustees.
Please call the following number at 5:30 to be added to the call. You do not need a meeting access code.
Date: April 7, 2020
Time: 5:30 PM
Number: 351-999-3530
The regular order of business will be moved to July 7th. Steward reimbursements for the April meeting will be based on the July attendance and paid in accordance with the practice of Local 2. We will hold a ceremonial swearing in service again at the July 7th meeting.
Local 2 Members Elect Incoming Officers
In a historic election, Local 2 members elected Linda Bridges, the first woman president in the union's 124-year history. In addition, they elected Sarah Levesque as Secretary Treasurer, Michael Spiller as First Vice President, Rian Howard as Second Vice President, Rose Meushaw as Third Vice President, and Jessica Maiorca as Recording Secretary. Newly elected officers will assume their roles following the next membership meeting on Tuesday, April 7, 2020. Read the full election report below.
Left to right: Secretary-Treasurer Sarah Levesque, President Linda Bridges, First Vice President Michael Spiller, and Second Vice President Rian Howard
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Notice to Workers: COVID-19 Preparation
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As a new coronavirus continues to spread, the AFL-CIO warns workers to be aware of symptoms and how to mitigate risk. All unions should prioritize protecting the ability of sick workers to to stay at home without the loss of pay or benefits. Read the full brief for more information.
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Kaiser Permanente: We Earned Our Bonuses
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President Elect of OPEIU Local 2, Linda Bridges, lays out the situation regarding Kaiser's denial of PSP bonuses to Local 2 membership. Sign the petition and wear your stickers on Thursday!
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Kaiser Permanente Tele-Town Hall On PSP Bonuses
The Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions has just gotten word that Kaiser Permanente is denying our members their hard earned bonuses. What's happening, why, and how can Kaiser workers fight for their earned Rewards 4 Results bonuses? Tune in to our tele-town hall this Wednesday at 7 PM to learn more. Register below.
Sign Our Petition to Fight For Earned Bonuses of Kaiser Permanente Staff
150 employees at the National Endowment for Democracy vote to join Local 2
Join us in welcoming our newest union members. Read the press release and spread the word!
Kaiser union members vote to authorize strike
We came out, and we came out STRONG.
76% of our Kaiser union members voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike.
97% of clerical/technical members voted to authorize, along with 90% of professional members.
We are filled with love and support for our hard-working Strike Captains, Stewards, and volunteers who came out to set up voting locations at 5am and did everything they could to bring their colleagues out to vote.
They didn't think it could be done, but WE DID IT!
The ACLU of Maryland organizes - and joins Local 2!
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Fourteen employees at the ACLU of Maryland voted to join Local 2 on Wednesday, July 31st, 2019. The unit, comprised of organizers, attorneys, legal fellows and assistants, and policy specialists, spent nine long months building up power and support for the union before they finally won an election with the American Arbitration Association the last day of July. The recognition agreement with management and the American Arbitration Association allowed the unit to technically be voluntarily recognized, albeit through an election.
The ACLU of Maryland is an affiliate of the national American Civil Liberties Union, a progressive nonprofit that works to preserve and maintain individual freedoms. Staff routinely expressed how important it is for an organization with such dedication to civil liberties to support an employee union--after all, as the ACLU states on their own website, |
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“Collective bargaining statutes provide critical and necessary protection for workers who exercise basic civil rights, in particular, the rights of speech, association, and petition. Efforts to strip workers of these protections have no place in our democracy.”Following the victory, the Organizing Committee took the time to reflect on the process and recognize the progress they made:
“We are incredibly grateful for the opportunity to negotiate a workplace that is fair and equitable for all staff. The staff at the ACLU of Maryland take exercising our rights as employees as seriously as the work we produce on behalf of our clients, Maryland residents, and broader ACLU of Maryland family. We hope that the ACLU of Maryland will hold itself to the same values we use to fight for our civil liberties every day and apply those values to our internal workplace reform." |
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