USW - United Steelworkers
05/02/2024 | News release | Distributed by Public on 05/02/2024 07:33
Workers Win in Minnesota
May 02, 2024
Workers Win in Minnesota
This article was originally published in the June 2023 Election Connection newsletter.
In our November 2022 newsletter, we celebrated after labor-backed candidates in Minnesota won a slim state senate majority (34-33). This secured the state's first pro-worker trifecta in nearly a decade with a union-friendly governor, state house and state senate.
In May, these allies joined Governor Tim Walz to enact the Jobs, Economic Development, Labor, and Industry Finance Bill (HF3028/SF3035), which has been hailed as the "most significant worker protection bill in state history."
Taking effect July 1, 2023, the law will:
- Ban "non-compete" agreements, which often keep workers from switching jobs because they fear being sued by their former employer (only Oregon and Connecticut currently have this protection);
- Ban "captive audience meetings," which are the primary opportunity for anti-union employers to bully, intimidate, and manipulate workers who are seeking union representation or more fair treatment on the job;
- Establish the first-in-the-nation state-level ergonomics requirement to address repetitive strain injuries that are common in warehouses, meatpacking plants, health care facilities, and elsewhere;
- Force large meatpacking plants to develop plans to prevent workplace injuries;
- Provide greater protections for workers who have been victims of wage theft and misclassification;
- Guarantee all workers paid sick and safe days (days that can be used to care for a sick family member, go to a doctor's appointment, etc.);
- Empower teachers to negotiate over class sizes;
- Establish industry-wide pay and benefits for nursing home workers; and,
- Require companies that operate warehouse distribution to be more transparent about work quotas, productivity, safety and health, wages, and more.