Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1511993
AROUND AEA 6 ADVOCATE | WINTER 2023 When The Labor Movement Fights, We Win O rganized labor is winning. In late October, United Auto Workers ended their rolling stand-up strike aer securing some of the biggest gains that organized workers have seen in decades. is outcome was far from guaranteed. is was the first time that UAW had ever led a strike at all three of the big automakers at once. And for the first time ever, workers walked out of individual plants one at a time based on the progress of negotiations, instead of striking every factory owned by a company simultaneously. eir ambition and militancy paid off big. Under the new tentative agreements, workers will see their largest pay increases in decades—about 30% over the life of the four-and-a-half year contract once cost of living adjustments are included. Less experienced workers may see their pay go up by much more. Some workers could see a raise of $32,000! Workers also landed other key victories. Auto manufacturers will reopen some shuttered factories, and they've agreed that if workers at battery plants unionize, they will be covered under the same newly created contract as other auto workers. And it's not just auto workers who have made huge gains in recent months. Earlier this fall, screenwriters ended their 146 day strike aer finalizing a historic agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. e contract included groundbreaking provisions related to the use of AI in TV and movies, as well as staffing guarantees and compensation increases. e list of labor wins goes on and on. Aer threatening a massive, nationwide strike over the summer, the Teamsters won big raises and an end to the unfair two-tier wage system. Healthcare workers at Kaiser Permanente went out on strike in early October and won significant raises, which should alleviate chronic understaffing. Educators aren't about to be le out. Education support professionals went out on strike in Los Angeles this spring, and classroom teachers joined them in solidarity. eir unity paid off: both education support professionals and teachers won significant victories, including hey raises and fully paid healthcare benefits (including family coverage!) for many employees. Teachers in Oakland walked out in June, and as of publication, Portland teachers remain on strike as they fight for an end to mold and rats in schools, working A/C and heat, smaller class sizes, compensation increases, and more. ere's never been a better time to be part of your union. When we fight, we win!