 GW graduate students and their allies staged “grade-ins” last Thursday and Friday to demand recognition of their union, GW Graduate Students United. GW has refused to recognize GSU and had refused to even meet with the group to discuss their desire to unionize and win more affordable health insurance and higher pay for teaching and research assistants. At Thursday’s grade-in, “graduate workers did exactly that...we worked,” Pat Geiger told Union City. Sitting on the floor outside Provost Forrest Maltzman’s office in Rice Hall, “We graded papers, held office hours, and (fellow grad student Jackie Bolduan) even hosted her discussion section with us.” The GSU members were joined by GW undergrads and representatives from GAGE, Georgetown's graduate union, and after an hour, Maltzman agreed to meet. While the meeting proved “disappointing,” – Maltzman reiterated that GW had no interest in recognizing the union – Geiger says “we are encouraged by the successes of our organizing thus far” and says GSU plans to continue staging protests across campus. “What we are asking for is not radical,” says Geiger. “Graduate worker unions have been around for quite some time. Georgetown has agreed to exactly what we are asking GW to agree to.”
IBEW Local 26 congratulated their members and contractors on their 2018 Washington Building Congress Craftsmanship Awards, “an annual celebration of excellent work performed in our local industry.” Local 26 member Bruce Baldwin (right) earned special recognition “on his ninth induction into the WBC Hall of Fame!”   “Life comes to the miners out of their deaths, and death out of their lives.”
Click here to check out this week's Labor History Today podcast. Union City's Chris Garlock hosts. On this week's show: Joe McCartin talks about the origins of May Day and its relevance today. Patrick Dixoninterviews historian Kevin Boyle on anarchists Sacco and Vanzetti, and Saul Schniderman tells us how Mother Jones celebrated her 100th birthday in Silver Spring, Maryland. Plus, Billy Bragg on how Pete Seegergot him to write a new verse for “The Internationale,” and music by Billy, Pete and Joan Baez. An explosion at the Everettville mine in Everettville, W. Va., kills 109 miners, many of whom lie in unmarked graves to this day - 1927 The Obama administration’s National Labor Relations Board implements new rules to speed up unionization elections. The new rules are largely seen as a counter to employer manipulation of the law to prevent workers from unionizing - 2012 Compiled/edited by Union Communication Services  |
