The 10 Biggest Wins for Labor in 2013

[Omaha Steve]

http://inthesetimes.com/working/entry/16050/the_10_biggest_wins_for_labor_in_2013/

Wednesday Jan 1, 2014 12:54 pm By Amien Essif


2013 saw an uprising of low-wage workers demanding better pay and workplace rights, like these Fast Food Forward protesters in New York City. (Fast Food Forward on Facebook)

What marks a good year for labor? Certainly 2012 didn't end well, with union-dense Michigan becoming the latest “right-to-work” state in a blow to workers’ collective bargaining rights. By that measure, 2013 came out ahead: This year, no state legislature passed such a law. (And while Kentucky Republican Sens. Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul did try to tack a federal right-to-work amendment onto the Employee Non-Discrimination Act, the bill went forward without it.)

But besides having dodged more right-to-work bullets, did labor have a good year in 2013? Yes, says veteran labor reporter Stephen Franklin, formerly of the Chicago Tribune, in an email to Working In These Times:

It wasn’t one event but a number of events—demonstrations, rallies, press gatherings—that marked an unprecedented surge in organizing at the bottom of the wage ladder in 2013. The drive to organize fast food workers, car washers, retail workers is unparalleled in the last 70 years of the American labor movement, and a testament to workers’ still vital desire to lead better lives despite all the obstacles they face.

In other words, this year saw an upsurgence of low-wage workers fighting for—and at times, advancing—their rights to dignity and justice at their jobs. Workers at airports, fast-food establishments, car washes, Walmarts and college campuses across the country led the charge, testing new tactics in the struggle to win better jobs for low-wage America. Below, we list 10 of the most significant achievements.

10. First Union Contract for Carwasheros Outside of California

FULL story at link.