AFL-CIO Daily Briefs: Shuler; AFSCME; RWDSU-UFCW; WGAE WGAW SAG-AFTRA and New Jersey

Message from President Liz Shuler

• As I look forward to the new year, I'm filled with hope and optimism for our labor movement. While we don't know all the challenges that may be ahead, we do know that we'll face them together in solidarity, as we always have in the past.
• The task ahead of us is not to seek cover in what's easy or comfortable. Our calling in 2023 is to keep pushing forward with boldness and clarity of purpose.
• I am confident that our best days are yet to come. Working people are counting on us-and we're not about to let them down.

AFSCME Organizes 600 Workers at Maryland Office of the Public Defender

Workers at the Maryland Office of the Public Defender (OPD) won their union election, voting overwhelmingly to certify AFSCME Maryland Council 3 as their exclusive bargaining representative. This success comes after more than two years of organizing efforts by these workers, including administrative staff, social workers, attorneys and others.

"I've seen our collective voices finally be heard in a way that our individual voices simply are not," said Angie Chou, a social worker with the Prince George's County OPD office. "Now that we've won the right to negotiate our wages and working conditions, we're able to accomplish even more. We're going to continue to fight for the resources we need to positively impact all of us at OPD, our clients and their communities."

RWDSU-UFCW Secures Big Win for Worker Safety

Earlier today, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into law the Warehouse Worker Protection Act that will help protect workers in the warehousing industry from inhumane quotas. The Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union-UFCW (RWDSU-UFCW), which has championed this new law, said it will safeguard warehouse workers at companies such as Amazon who are suffering from injuries and illnesses on the job.

"…We have seen increased stress, pain and resulting safety issues for warehouse workers, due to increased quotas and speeds," RWDSU President Stuart Appelbaum (pictured above, center) explained. "Today, we've achieved a big win for workers' safety."

"First and foremost, I want to congratulate RWDSU President Stuart Appelbaum on this tremendous victory," said New York State AFL-CIO President Mario Cilento (TNG-CWA; not pictured). "This law is a big step forward on protecting the health, safety and labor rights of warehouse workers. No worker should have to risk injury or illness to meet inhumane quotas. This new law was desperately needed and will put in place critical protections to ensure a safe workplace."

Late-Night and Comedy-Variety TV Stars to Sign Pledge on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) and Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) unveiled a landmark pledge on Tuesday to address diversity, equity and inclusion issues in late-night and comedy-variety television. The pledge was signed by industry leaders such as Samantha Bee, Charlamagne tha God, Adam Conover, The Kid Mero, Desus Nice, Trevor Noah, John Oliver, Kal Penn, Amber Ruffin, Amy Schumer and John Wilson, among many others who are also members of SAG-AFTRA.

The pledge calls for concrete steps to ensure that the hiring pipeline is open and accessible to writers who are people of color, address unconscious biases in the review process of writing packets, support all writers' ability to succeed in traditionally White writers' rooms and ensure diverse voices are heard, supported and elevated.

New Jersey State AFL-CIO Spearheads Partnership to Lead Retail Cannabis Worker Training Apprenticeship

The New Jersey State AFL-CIO led a workforce development consortium to make the state among the first in the nation to create a pilot apprenticeship dedicated to training workers in the cannabis industry. The partnership with United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 360, the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Rowan University and others will develop a cohesive curriculum to provide industry-specific training to work in the growing cannabis retail field.

"With both medical and recreational cannabis now legal in our state, organized labor looks forward to partnering with academia, business and government to craft a program to ensure the best-trained workforce and quality jobs are the standard in the cannabis industry," said Charles Wowkanech (IUOE; not pictured), president of the New Jersey State AFL-CIO.

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