IRC Workers Unite, OPEIU Local 277 Prepared to Obtain their NLRB Recognition and Bargaining Order

  • 20 September 2023

DALLAS, TEXAS — A supermajority of workers at the International Rescue Committee (IRC), known as IRC Workers Unite, OPEIU Local 277, are prepared to obtain their NLRB recognition and bargaining order following their employer’s refusal to recognize their union.

Two weeks ago, more than 70 percent of workers at the international humanitarian nonprofit requested from their employer voluntary recognition of their union with OPEIU Local 277. IRC denied the request for voluntary recognition and, per the NLRB’s recent ruling in Cemex, filed a request for an election with the NLRB. The nonprofit is now sending employees from outside Texas to hold anti-union meetings with IRC Dallas employees.

“We are disappointed by our employer’s decision to deny voluntary recognition of our union after demonstrating a supermajority of support among IRC staff,” said Alina Zarate, budget and planning coordinator, finance department at the nonprofit for one and half years. “But we are looking forward to winning our union through the NLRB and starting the collective bargaining process shortly thereafter.”

“We hope to swiftly begin negotiating a fair first contract that reflects IRC staff priorities such as equitable pay and transparency in funding,” Zarate said. 

7,000 more CA healthcare workers overwhelmingly vote to approve a strike at Kaiser Permanente, including 2,500 in the Bay Area

  • 20 September 2023
7,000 more CA healthcare workers overwhelmingly vote to approve a strike at Kaiser Permanente, including 2,500 in the Bay Area

Largest single-employer union negotiation in the U.S. inches closer to strike over unfair labor practices

Healthcare workers say Kaiser’s refusal to acknowledge under-staffing, decline in patient care is driving a growing crisis 

OAKLAND, CA – 2,500 Bay Area healthcare workers who are part of OPEIU Local 29 announced on Wednesday that they have voted to authorize a strike to protest unfair labor practices by a margin of 94% if no agreement is reached by September 30. Simultaneously,  4,500 healthcare workers belonging to OPEIU Local 30 in San Diego have also announced their authorization of a strike, underscoring the widespread concerns of short staffing and unfair labor practices with an equally commanding margin of 99% should negotiations remain unresolved by the same September 30th deadline.

This comes on the heels of nearly 70,000 SEIU and OPEIU members in Colorado, California, Oregon, Southwest Washington, D.C., Virginia, and Maryland voting to authorize a strike at Kaiser Permanente in the past two weeks. These two decisive votes of OPEIU Local 29 and OPEIU Local 30 are the last to be completed before the coalition enters the final scheduled negotiations with Kaiser, concluding this Friday, September 22. 

This could be the largest healthcare strike in U.S. history, as workers say Kaiser executives refuse to acknowledge the decline in patient service and care and negate the struggle of the workforce to keep up with the high cost of living in areas where Kaiser operates.

7,000 more CA healthcare workers overwhelmingly vote to approve a strike at Kaiser Permanente, including 4,500 in San Diego

  • 20 September 2023
7,000 more CA healthcare workers overwhelmingly vote to approve a strike at Kaiser Permanente, including 4,500 in San Diego

Largest single-employer union negotiation in the U.S. inches closer to strike over unfair labor practices

Healthcare workers say Kaiser’s refusal to acknowledge under-staffing, decline in patient care is driving a growing crisis 

SAN DIEGO, CA – 4,500 San Diego healthcare workers who are part of OPEIU Local 30 announced on Wednesday that they have voted to authorize a strike to protest unfair labor practices by a margin of 99% if no agreement is reached by September 30. Simultaneously,  2,500 healthcare workers belonging to OPEIU Local 29 in the Bay Area have also announced their authorization of a strike underscoring the widespread concerns of short staffing and unfair labor practices with an equally commanding margin of 94% should negotiations remain unresolved by the same September 30th deadline.

This comes on the heels of nearly 70,000 SEIU and OPEIU members in Colorado, California, Oregon, Southwest Washington, D.C., Virginia, and Maryland voting to authorize a strike at Kaiser Permanente in the past two weeks. These two decisive votes of OPEIU Local 30 and OPEIU Local 29 are the last to be completed before the coalition enters the final scheduled negotiations with Kaiser, concluding this Friday, September 22. 

This could be the largest healthcare strike in U.S. history, as workers say Kaiser executives refuse to acknowledge the decline in patient service and care and negate the struggle of the workforce to keep up with the high cost of living in areas where Kaiser operates.

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​The Office and Professional Employees International Union was chartered in 1945 and​, with more than ​90,000 members, we’re one of the larger unions of the AFL-CIO. OPEIU has locals ​throughout the United States and Canada.

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