UAW Region 9A Weekly Newsletter: August 29
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LABOR DAY 2025
Sign Up to March with Region 9A in NYC & Boston Labor Day Parades!
đ„ March with UAW Region 9A in Bostonâs First Ever Labor Day Parade
Monday, September 1 | 9:30 - 11:30 AM | Boston Common
Be part of history and join fellow UAW members to march in Bostonâs first ever Labor Day parade, hosted by the Greater Boston Labor Council! Weâll follow a powerful route that honors the victories of the past and energizes the movement weâre building today. All are welcomeâhelp us spread the word by inviting your coworkers to join us. Please RSVP!
đïž March with UAW Region 9A in NYCâs Labor Day Parade
Saturday, September 6 | 10 AM | West 45th St., New York, NY
Come march with fellow UAW members in this yearâs 2025 NYC Labor Day Parade, which is themed Power in Unity. Bring your family, friends, and colleagues and wear your Region 9A red shirt! All are invited to join us after the parade for food, drinks, and fellowship. Please RSVP!
Join Labor Day Celebrations in Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, & Vermont
đŠ Maine Labor Councils: Labor Day Celebrations
Sunday, August 31 & Monday, September 1 | Portland, Brewer, & Skowhegan, ME
The Central, Eastern, and Southern Maine Labor Councils are hosting Labor Day celebrations across the state. Join them for breakfast and barbeques in Portland, Brewer, and Skowhegan on Labor Day weekend.
đ„ New Hampshire AFL-CIO: Labor Day Breakfast
Monday, September 1 | 8 AM | Manchester, NH
Senator Bernie Sanders is the keynote speaker at this yearâs Labor Day Breakfast in Manchester. All sponsorship proceeds support the NH AFL-CIO PAC fund and the ongoing fight against anti-worker legislation like so-called âRight-to-Work.â Tickets are sold out, but you can sign up for the waitlist.
đȘ§ Western Massachusetts ALF: Labor Day March & Gathering
Monday, September 1 | 10:30 AM - 1 PM | Holyoke, MA
Join the Western Massachusetts Area Labor Federation for a march beginning at 11, followed by remarks, a food truck picnic, music, and games at Holyoke City Hall.
đ§ș Connecticut for All: Labor Day Canvass and Picnic
Monday, September 1 | 11 AM - 3:30 PM | Meriden, CT
Join labor and community leaders as we hit the doors to talk to our neighbors about the future of Connecticut, followed by a Labor Day picnic at 2:30 PM.
đ Vermont AFL-CIO: Every Worker Stronger on Labor Day
Monday, September 1 | 1-6 PM | Battery Park, Burlington, VT
Join labor unions and activist organizations for a family-friendly picnic and a rally and march spotlighting local workplace challenges and labor struggles. These events reflect the growing coalition of Vermonters organizing against the billionaire- and Trump administration-led war on workers and the oppressed.
LOCAL & ORGANIZING UPDATES
BREAKING: Wellesley Organized Academic Workers Reach Tentative Agreement!
After fifteen months of bargaining, the Wellesley Organized Academic Workers reached a tentative agreement with Wellesley College. Workers' courage, hard work, and solidarity, including a 29-day supermajority strike, resulted in substantive gains for members with workplace protections that set the standard for faculty in higher ed.
The agreement includes new titles, the first-ever dependent care benefit at the College, critical and new job security protections, paid time for union work, and more. The tentative agreement raises the starting salary for faculty by nearly 15% and also addresses wage compression that resulted from a salary freeze instituted from 2008 until 2020. Overall, the tentative agreement provides a 10.6% salary increase for bargaining unit employees in the first year. We are stronger together!
Mount Holyoke College Housekeepers Set Strike Deadline for Tuesday
Mount Holyoke College housekeepers have been fighting for a fair contract for nearly six months. These Local 2322 members clean the residences, dormitories and common areas that students rely on for a safe and healthy learning environment.
In their words: âWe are nearly all women and many of us have devoted 10, 20, and even 30 years to making this college a special place for students. We deserve a living wage in these times of increasing costs. Our employer has an over $1 billion endowment and the raises we are asking for over three years are worth less than one one-hundredth of a percent (.01%) of this money! Meanwhile management has demanded increased workloads and responsibilities that will detract from the vital work we do for our students.â
Alongside our union siblings in SEIU 32BJ who are custodians, groundkeepers, skill trades, cooks, and dining workers, these members have voted 90% to authorize a strike to win a living wage and set a strike deadline of Tuesday, September 2. Sign their petition to support their fight and stay tuned about their potential strike!
Support ALAA & GRLPU Members Holding the Line in New York City
ALAA Local 2325 members at CAMBA Legal Services ALAA Local 2325 members at Goddard Riverside Law Project continue their strike, which is now over 5 weeks long. Theyâre fighting hard for a fair contract, and they need the rest of us to have their backs by joining them on the picket line! Look out for next weekâs schedule by following GRLPU and ALAA on Instagram.
Earlier this week, after five weeks on strike, CAMBA workers won and ratified an agreement with a $62,000 wage floor, 3% COLA, increased parental leave, improved sick days, and more. They wrote: âDuring the last six weeks, we extracted concessions from our management that we were told were not possible, deepened our bonds as union siblings, and proved without a doubt that when we fight, we win!â
More Region 9A Locals in the News
The AFL-CIO National Bus Tour came to Brewer Tuesday for a rally centered around the importance of unions. Union members representing the University of Maine graduate workers, the Maine Nurses Association, and Bangor Public Works employees all spoke at the rally as they continued to fight for what they believe are fair contracts. âGraduate workers at the University of Maine are paid thousands less than our peers at other similar state schools, and we pay thousands more in our health and insurance premiums. This is unacceptable,â said Lexie Merk, a UMaine grad student.
- WABI 5: Workers rally as AFL-CIO national bus tour comes to Brewer (August 26)
Lexie Merk is a member of the University of Maine graduate student workers union, which has been bargaining with the university system for more than 650 days. âWe deserve wages and benefits that live up to the critical contributions to the research and teaching missions of the University of Maine system and doesn't trail miles behind our peers," she said. "It's time for a fair contract that invests in graduate workers, because an investment in us is an investment in Maine."
- Maine Public: Local union members rally with national pro-labor bus tour (August 26)
FROM REGION 9A
Last Chance! Register for Fall LSAT Prep Course for UAW Members & Families
Register by September 2
The UAW Region 9A Workforce Training Center is excited to release the course offering for the second half of 2025. LSAT Prep for UAW Members was an extremely popular course in the first half of the year, and we are happy to bring the course to UAW members once again.
This 8-week intensive LSAT prep course is intended for members and their families who plan to attend law school. When offered by for-profit institutions, these courses can cost students $2,000 or moreâbut through the Workforce Training Center, you will have the opportunity to take this course for free with other UAW members. Learn more and register today!
UAW Leaders Featured in City & Stateâs 2025 Labor Power 100 in New York City
City & State NY named two UAW members to their 2025 Labor Power 100 list of the âmost influential labor leaders in New York.â Lisa Ohta, President of the Association of Legal Advocates & Attorneys (Local 2325), and Region 9A Director Brandon Mancilla were both included on the list, which highlighted Region 9Aâs early endorsement of Zohran Mamdani, the ongoing legal services strike, and our unionâs challenges to federal cuts to scientific research.
COMMUNITY ACTION PROGRAM (CAP)
Massachusetts CAP Endorses Municipal Candidates from Agawam to Salem
Itâs time for municipal elections across Massachusetts! Make your voice heard by voting for UAW-endorsed candidates in your city, in both the preliminary elections in September and the general election on Tuesday, November 4.
Through our Massachusetts CAP Council, UAW members have researched candidatesâ records, reviewed their responses to our questionnaires, and conducted interviews to identify the candidates we believe will best support us on our core issues. This process resulted in a strong slate of endorsed candidates who, if elected, will fight for causes that are most important to us.
Take a minute to:
- Check your voter registration status and make a plan to vote by mail, early in person, or on election day.
- Learn about our UAW-endorsed candidates for office in Boston, Somerville, Cambridge, Medford, Agawam, and Salem, and share with your coworkers.
- Join fellow union members at phone banks and canvasses. Stay tuned for upcoming volunteer opportunities.
- Help us spread the word about our endorsed candidates on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Massachusetts: Testify in Support of Paid Family Leave for Grad Workers
Graduate workers from across Massachusetts are coming together in the state legislature to testify for our rights to paid family and medical leave and unemployment protections. All the other workers on campus have access to these essential programs while student workers are left behind. We have a bill to change that (S.747 / H.1336).
We need you to come out and testify at the hearing to tell legislators why we need paid leave and unemployment protections! Sign up here to show interest in testifying at the hearing, aka telling your story of why you and your coworkers need these protections. You do not need to be a union member or graduate worker to participateâanyone who wants us to have these protections is welcome.
NYC Central Labor Council Phone Banks for Zohran Mamdani
Wednesday, September 3 | 6 - 8 PM | PSC-CUNY, 25 Broadway, New York, NY
Help us reach out to fellow union members to get out the union strong support for Zohran Mamdani for Mayor of NYC! Follow @labor4zohran on Instagram and Twitter for more upcoming volunteer opportunities.
Need More UAW Swag in Your Life? Sign Up for VCAP!
The UAW Voluntary Community Action Program (VCAP) is our unionâs member-supported political fund. Thousands of UAW members make monthly VCAP contributions to support pro-worker political initiatives and candidates who earn our members' endorsement.
Political leverage in Washington and our state capitols can strengthen our position at the bargaining table, and it can help us win victories beyond bargaining. In todayâs political climate, with a resurgent and organized right-wing movement and an all-out attack on the working class by corporate greed, workers need to consider every source of leverage available to build power.
By supporting progressive legislative campaigns and candidates whose platforms support the working class, workers can gain the upper hand in our fight for dignified working conditions. A strong VCAP program means UAW members' voices can be heard to advance our own vision for the working class: fair compensation for our labor, health care and retirement security, and accessible education for all.
Region 9A members who donate monthly to VCAP will earn UAW swag, including tote bags, baseball hats, and bomber jackets! Learn more and sign up at region9a.uaw.org/vcap.
FROM THE INTERNATIONAL UAW
BlueOval SK Workers Win Majority to Unionize Kentucky Plant
This week, BlueOval SK workers won a majority of votes in an NLRB election to unionize their plant in Glendale, Kentucky, securing a hard-fought victory. This is a major step forward for workers who stood up against intense company opposition and chose to join the UAW.
The UAW is calling on Ford to acknowledge the democratic decision of its workforce. They should immediately drop their anti-democratic effort to undermine the outcome of the election and recognize a majority of BlueOval SKâs production and maintenance employees have chosen to join the UAW and ensure battery jobs in Kentucky are good, safe, union jobs. Read more at UAW.org.
UAW Marks 90th Anniversary, Highlighting Legacy of Struggle and Victory
This week, the UAW celebrates its 90th anniversary. Founded in 1935, the UAW has been at the forefront of the labor movement, winning historic gains for working people and standing at the center of major struggles for civil rights, social justice, and economic fairness.
To mark the occasion, the union has released a new video highlighting the UAWâs nine decades of bold actionâfrom the Flint Sit-Down Strike of 1936 to the Stand Up Strike of 2023 and beyond. The video lifts up the UAWâs proud tradition of fighting for fair wages, strong benefits, dignity on the job, and broader social and political change that has improved the lives of all working-class Americans.
âOur members have always understood that our fight is bigger than any one contract or workplace,â said UAW President Shawn Fain. âFor 90 years, the UAW has taken on billionaires and corporate power, and weâve raised the standards for the entire working class. Our mission remains to fight the bosses, build worker power, and win a better world for working people.â
Register Now for the UAW Organizing Conference
October 12-17 | Register by September 15 | Onaway, MI
Fewer than 10% of U.S. workers are union members, meaning millions do not have the power of a union contract or a voice in their workplaces. Low union density also weakens the negotiating power of current union members because bosses often leverage the wages and conditions at non-union workplaces against us. In recent years, there has been a significant surge in organizing to change this dynamic. People are standing upâworkers at Volkswagen in Tennessee, colleges and universities across the country, and many other industries and workplacesâand forming unions with the UAW.
Recognizing the need to increase worker power through union density, delegates at the 2022 UAW Constitutional Convention voted to require every local union to establish an organizing standing committee. The Organizing Conference aims to unite UAW members and empower them with the knowledge and resources to start and/or strengthen their local organizing committees. Through interactive workshops and collaborative sessions, delegates will gain actionable strategies and practical tools to build union power through organizing.
Sign Up for LUCAâs Monthly Online Newsletter
LUCA in the Loop is UAWâs monthly online newsletter dedicated to LUCA members. Sign up now and stay informed with the latest UAW news, training tips, and communications trends to strengthen your messaging and outreach. Each issue delivers insightful articles, best practices, and updates to keep you ahead in the ever-evolving world of labor communications. Stay in the loopâbecause strong communication builds a stronger union!
Sign the Petition to Keep Mack Trucks UAW-Made in Pennsylvania
Our UAW Region 9 siblings in Pennsylvania have built their communities for generations because of proud union jobs at Mack Trucks. Now, the company wants to sacrifice working families in the state to squeeze as much as they can out of exploited Mexican workers doing the same work for less. The UAW is fighting to end this race to the bottom that pits workers in the U.S. against workers in Mexico. Weâre both getting screwed by corporate greedâand the only people who win are CEOs and Wall Street. Please sign the petition and stand with UAW Local 677!
SOLIDARITY REQUESTS
MassCOSH Ice Watchers Training
Saturday, August 30 | 1 PM and 7 PM | Zoom
MassCOSH will be holding online ICE Watchers training sessions to prepare volunteers for safe, coordinated monitoring and community defense. This is a chance for us to learn together and strengthen protections for immigrant workers and families. Please register in advance. For more information, contact Tatiana Begault at tatiana@masscosh.org.
Visit Tabitha Arnoldâs Gospel of the Working Class Exhibit in NYC
September 4 - October 4 | Opening reception on Sept. 4 at 6 PM | New York, NY
Join Dissent at Field Projects for the opening night of Gospel of the Working Class, a new exhibition by Tabitha Arnold, Dissentâs cover artist. Gospel of the Working Class illuminates a hundred years of labor struggle in the South through a series of narrative tapestry banners. Inspired by a historic union victory by the United Auto Workers at Volkswagen Chattanooga in 2024, the show emphasizes the reactionary South as a site of revolutionary struggle, profoundly shaped by its history of labor militancy and working-class revolt.
Massachusetts AFL-CIO Racial Justice Committee First Friday Meet-Up
Friday, September 5 | 4 - 8 PM | District 7 Tavern, Roxbury, MA
First Friday is a new monthly event hosted by the Massachusetts AFL-CIO Racial Justice Committee. This gathering is designed as a social approach to organizingâa relaxed environment where union members can connect, build relationships, and learn more about the powerful work happening across our movement.
Our goal is to create a welcoming space where members can:
- Meet and connect with the labor constituency groups
- Learn about upcoming union activities and campaigns across Massachusetts.
- Get involvedâwith opportunities to join constituency groups, participate in labor events, and strengthen our collective impact.
Rather than a formal agenda, the evening will center on connection, conversation, and building solidarity in a relaxed and engaging way. Please RSVP! Food and a cash bar will be available. Together, we can build power, strengthen our community, and create new pathways for leadership and action.
Connecticut: Tell Electeds to Protect Immigrants in Upcoming Special Session
With a special legislative session approaching, we must act now. Gov. Lamont, House Leadership, and Senate Leadership need to hear loud and clear: Immigrants deserve safety and dignity in the place they call home. In the past two months, ICE has ramped up operations in Connecticut. Armed, masked agents are targeting workers, abducting parents, and detaining studentsâinflicting fear and trauma on entire communities. These actions violate basic rights and safety. Fear has no place in our state. Connecticut for All is asking residents to call elected leadership now using this script to demand urgent protections in the special session.
Massachusetts: Contact Your Legislators to Support the FAIR Act
Employers are increasingly using new technologies that rely on AI and machine learning to hire, discipline, monitor, promote, and fire workers. At the same time, employers have started incorporating these technologies into the regular job responsibilities and expectations of their employees.
The Massachusetts AFL-CIO has endorsed a solution to ensure working class people have strong safeguards to protect from the harmful effects of artificial intelligence and other algorithmic tools. The FAIR Act creates commonsense guardrails on artificial intelligence to protect workers while supporting the benefits of innovative technology. Contact your legislators to cosponsor the FAIR Act today!
WILL Empower 2025 Edna Berger Award Nomination
WILL Empower is awarding the 2025 Edna Berger Young Courageous Leader Award ($15,000) to a leader who is leading for transformation. WILL Empower celebrates cisgender and transgender women, gender expansive and gender non-conforming leaders who reside and work in North America and who are actively involved in worker justice movements. Learn more about Edna Berger and the Berger-Marks Legacy.
Do you know a young (age 30 and under) courageous leader who demonstrates a commitment to worker, racial, and gender justice? Tell us about them. They should be affiliated with unions, worker centers, community-based organizations, or other justice-seeking organizations where worker well-being is central. Their work and accomplishments must demonstrate a willingness to confront power and exclusive institutional practices for greater equity. Nominate a leader who inspires you using this form!
Union Hiring Hall
- Rutgers Adjunct Faculty Union | Director of Organizing | New Brunswick, NJ
- Maine AFL-CIO | Campaigns Director | Augusta, ME
UPCOMING EVENTS
2025 UAW Contract Enforcement Boot Camp
September 7-12 | Onaway, MI
2025 UAW Membership Mobilization Institute
September 28 - October 3 | Onaway, MI
2025 UAW Local Union Officers Institute
October 5 - 10 | Onaway, MI
UAW Organizing Conference
October 12-17 | Onaway, MI
UAW Skilled Trades Conference
October 20-24 | Detroit, MI