Independent, locally focused unions are expanding workers' rights

With help from national labor union Workers United, employees at Starbucks stores across the country are launching union campaigns in an effort to secure safer conditions and better pay. In all, 171 stores in 30 states have won union elections so far, and Workers United has filed to unionize at 302 stores in all.

Each year, farmworkers in Washington state gather for a people’s tribunal where they share their stories about the injustices they face on the job and advocate for policies to improve working conditions. In addition to supporters, the tribunal is attended by legislative staffers and sometimes elected representatives, and the tribunal’s findings have helped usher in new protections for workers, including guaranteed overtime pay and mandated cooling breaks in extreme heat.

Amy’s Kitchen workers led a two-year boycott of the company’s products with the support of the Food Empowerment Project, in an effort to petition for better working conditions. After several months, the company agreed to a meeting with the workers in which they crafted an informal agreement meeting their demands and guaranteeing they wouldn’t face punishments for their organizing.

Siragugal Bricks is a community-owned brick kiln operated by rescued bonded laborers, aiming to rehabilitate and empower them to explore business endeavors and find more sustainable, safer sources of income. Since April 2022, 100 families have worked for Siragugal and local government organizations have helped obtain funding and supplies to facilitate Siragugal’s operations, such as power supplies, a work shed and a borehole for water.

In what is being called the most historic tentative agreement for workers in the company’s history, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters came to an agreement with UPS over contract negotiations. This agreement is serving as evidence of the efficacy of unions and how they can work to achieve better working conditions, benefits and increased wages.

Video game testers built solidarity for their union effort by starting one-on-one conversations with coworkers in online chat servers. When it came time to vote, employees approved the union unanimously, giving them new legal protections while a contract is being negotiated.

Tucson’s Southside Worker Center supports day laborers by offering a safe place for them to wait for employment and services like English-language workshops and connections to attorneys should they need help collecting past-due payments.

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers developed a framework called the worker-driven social responsibility paradigm, which is designed to help protect migrant employees who often don't have the right to unionize but are vulnerable to workplace manipulation and abuse due to their immigration status. The paradigm targets the supply chain, using legal agreements to require that migrant workers have a direct say in designing and enforcing workplace protections, and the model has been implemented in initiatives such as the Fair Food Program and the Milk With Dignity Program.

An association of cooperatives has provided fair labor practices and equity for almost 70 years. Members of the coops vote on critical decisions that impact working conditions. When business is booming, everyone does well and when times are hard, everyone has a reliable security net.

Digital communication is allowing American employees to unionize at large corporations. In conjunction with face-to-face organizing, and more positive perceptions of unions from the public, digital communication such as social media and text messaging has led to an increasing number of unions. The current pro-worker political climate and the transparency of poor working conditions through social media have also contributed to the rise in unionization.