Maryland State professionals in the Maryland Public Employees Council, AFT Local 6197 and AFT Healthcare Maryland, AFT Local 5197 last week ratified new three-year contracts. The contracts include a 2% increase in January 2019 and expanded language on workplace bullying, indoor air quality and evaluations. Additionally, Local 5197 negotiated a recruitment and retention bonus for their nurse positions. More information on their contracts can be found online at the websites for MPEC and AFTHC. photo credit: AFT Healthcare-Maryland Two thousand workplace troublemakers will converge on Chicago for the Labor Notes Conference, April 6-8. “Don't miss this incredible chance to swap stories, devise strategies, and hone your organizing skills,” urge organizers. Register now and save $45 with the Early Bird rate. "It was the labor movement that helped secure so much of what we take for granted today. The 40-hour work week, the minimum wage, family leave, health insurance, Social Security, Medicare, retirement plans. The cornerstones of the middle-class security all bear the union label." Click here to check out this week's Today in Labor History podcast, produced by Union City Radio and the Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor. Also available now on iTunes and Stitcher; search for Union City Radio! Be a part of the podcast by calling in, just pick an event from this list and leave a voicemail. Responding to unrest among Irish laborers building the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, President Andrew Jackson orders first use of American troops to suppress a labor dispute - 1834 Six thousand railway workers strike for a union and the end of 18-hour day - 1889 Sit-down strike helps establish United Rubber Workers as a national union, Akron, Ohio (right)- 1936 American Train Dispatchers Department granted a charter by the AFL-CIO - 1957 Dolly Parton hits number one on the record charts with "9 to 5," her anthem to the daily grind - 1981 Newly-elected President Barack Obama signs the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, making it easier for women and minorities to win pay discrimination suits – 2009 Compiled/edited by Union Communication Services |