Fairfax teachers unionize
Thousands of Virginia public school teachers and staff vote to unionize
Public school employees in one of the biggest school districts in the U.S. have voted overwhelmingly to form unions, capitalizing on a recent Virginia law that allows for collective bargaining in the public sector.
"Today marks the culmination of a 47 years-long fight to win collective bargaining at Fairfax County Public Schools," said David Warlord, President of Fairfax County Federation of Teachers, in a statement. "This is undoubtedly a historic moment in Fairfax and a monumental step forward for labor." Read more »
Multiple Compass Coffee, Bluestone Lane, and OCF Coffee stores are unionizing
The unionization movement in the coffee industry continues with recent announcements of three Bluestone Lane Coffee stores and three OCF coffee stores in Philadelphia have unionized, and seven Compass Coffee stores in the Washington, D.C. area filing for a union vote the same week.
At the DC-based coffee chain Compass Coffee, employees at 7 out of the 17 coffee locations filed petitions for union representation through Workers United MARJB. Compass Coffee denied union organizers voluntary recognition on June 1. The next step would be a unionization vote. Read more »
Glenstone museum workers vote on unionizing as founders push back
Workers at Glenstone, the sprawling contemporary art museum in Potomac, Md., will vote this week to determine whether to form a labor union. Mitchell and Emily Wei Rales — the museum’s billionaire founders — have taken a personal hand in trying to stop its workers from organizing. Read more »
Upcoming ActionS + Events
Labor Night at the Nationals is coming up on Friday, July 5, and now is the time to reserve your seats! Get tickets to join us for Labor Night at Nationals Park.
Mass Poor People’s and Low-Wage Workers’ Assembly and Moral March on Washington, D.C. and to the Polls
Saturday, June 29 — 10 AM
3rd & Pennsylvania Ave. NW, DC
800 people die each day from poverty and low wealth. This is an unacceptable and abolishable reality. The Mass Poor People’s & Low-Wage Workers’ Assembly will mark the start of outreach to 15 million low-wage infrequent voters ahead of the 2024 U.S. elections and beyond. Join AFL-CIO and its affiliates at the event.
Around the Region
Top left: UNITE HERE Local 23 walked in DC's Pride parade on Saturday. Top right: Washington Teachers' Union gave away more than 1,000 books at Pride. Bottom left: Early morning picketing outside Compass Coffee last week. Bottom right: Congratulations to the latest group of electricians to complete IBEW Local 26's Foreman Training course!
Share your news
Got an action, event, open position, or other update you want labor leaders in DC and Maryland to know about? Submit news items to office@dclabor.org.