Latest news with #fairpay
Yahoo
01-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
New Haven teachers reflect on 1975 strike impact
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — Several New Haven teachers that went on strike in 1975 reunited outside of the New Haven Superior Court house on Saturday. The gathering was designed to bring everyone together to remember the sacrifices that they made for modern day teachers. This historic strike resulted in 90 arrests. The teachers were charged with contempt of court and arrested after going on strike. The educators were calling for a fair contract and higher pay. They were brought into court when the judge requested that they return to work, but the teachers told the judge they did not think they could go back without a contract. Despite not knowing that their efforts would result in jail time, the teachers said it helped to encourage more improvements for teachers today. 'These are the teachers who made sacrifices for the teachers today to have the pay that they are getting,' Saundra Stephenson, a former teacher, said. 'When we all started, we were making under $10,000 a year.' According to the New Haven Federation of Teachers, this strike was supported by students, parents and other union members. 'When people ask me about teaching in New Haven and what I was most proud of, this is one of the things I was most proud of,' Richard Romao, a former teacher at Wilbur Cross, said.' The federation said another public event will be held later this year featuring retired teachers, students and parents from 1975. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Months Of Organizing Pays Off as CUPE 2189 Members at YWCA Toronto Ratify Landmark New Deal
TORONTO, May 26, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Over the course of months, a small cadre of dedicated labour activists turned a large but largely untested group of workers at the YWCA Toronto into a union prepared to fight for fair pay. It took hundreds of in-depth and often emotional conversations, union education, and strike training. The result was weekly informational pickets at rotating locations, record setting membership participation, and the ultimate prize: a new contract that workers are proud of. Last week, members of CUPE 2189 voted to ratify their new collective agreement. These roughly 250 members work at the YWCA Toronto as child care workers, housing support staff, settlement workers, violence against women counsellors and in other critical roles supporting the most vulnerable women and gender diverse people in the city. They entered this round of bargaining in desperate need for a fair raise in the shadow of Bill 124 but YWCA Toronto's first offer would have done little to help workers catch up. "Workers are going to food banks, missing rent payments, struggling just to get by. This was a make-or-break negotiation for us and I am so incredibly proud of the effort and care our members put into organizing and mobilizing for what is fair," said Amanda Kinna, a business administrator with the YWCA Toronto and president of CUPE 2189. "Nearly every person who works at the YWCA Toronto has a second or third job. We have families. We have the daily stress of trying to survive at the poverty line in this city. Despite that, we showed what is possible when workers build their power." The contract includes a flat rate raise amounting to an average increase of 11 per cent over three years, money which will go a long way to helping the 70 percent of CUPE 2189 members who struggle to pay their monthly bills. The deal also ends the practice of double on-call at the Woodlawn location, provides an additional day of union work for the president so they can continue to strengthen the local, and includes a one-time signing bonus on top of the annual grid increases. "The effort that went into getting these workers educated, informed, and prepared to fight is a much-needed reminder that all workers can fight for what they deserve. Regardless of the size of the local, when workers organize and fight together, we win together," said Fred Hahn, president of CUPE Ontario. "Frontline community workers are among the lowest paid in the province and this win is going to serve as a north star, motivating other workers to fight for fair wages while giving negotiators support to ask for more at the table." Widespread community support was key to this securing this deal, with hundreds of community members attending rallies and over one thousand community members sending messages to the YWCA Toronto Board of Directors. "We are a group of mostly women supporting some of the most marginalized women and gender diverse people in the city. We've felt ignored for so long. To suddenly be seen, embraced, and supported by the community was deeply meaningful," said Kinna. "We're proud to work at the YWCA Toronto. We're going to keep doing our jobs, keep supporting the people who need us, and keep building our power." od/COPE491 View source version on Contacts Jesse Mintz, CUPE Communications Representative416-704-9642 | jmintz@
National Post
26-05-2025
- Business
- National Post
Months Of Organizing Pays Off as CUPE 2189 Members at YWCA Toronto Ratify Landmark New Deal
Article content TORONTO — Over the course of months, a small cadre of dedicated labour activists turned a large but largely untested group of workers at the YWCA Toronto into a union prepared to fight for fair pay. Article content Article content It took hundreds of in-depth and often emotional conversations, union education, and strike training. The result was weekly informational pickets at rotating locations, record setting membership participation, and the ultimate prize: a new contract that workers are proud of. Article content Last week, members of CUPE 2189 voted to ratify their new collective agreement. These roughly 250 members work at the YWCA Toronto as child care workers, housing support staff, settlement workers, violence against women counsellors and in other critical roles supporting the most vulnerable women and gender diverse people in the city. They entered this round of bargaining in desperate need for a fair raise in the shadow of Bill 124 but YWCA Toronto's first offer would have done little to help workers catch up. Article content 'Workers are going to food banks, missing rent payments, struggling just to get by. This was a make-or-break negotiation for us and I am so incredibly proud of the effort and care our members put into organizing and mobilizing for what is fair,' said Amanda Kinna, a business administrator with the YWCA Toronto and president of CUPE 2189. 'Nearly every person who works at the YWCA Toronto has a second or third job. We have families. We have the daily stress of trying to survive at the poverty line in this city. Despite that, we showed what is possible when workers build their power.' Article content The contract includes a flat rate raise amounting to an average increase of 11 per cent over three years, money which will go a long way to helping the 70 percent of CUPE 2189 members who struggle to pay their monthly bills. The deal also ends the practice of double on-call at the Woodlawn location, provides an additional day of union work for the president so they can continue to strengthen the local, and includes a one-time signing bonus on top of the annual grid increases. Article content 'The effort that went into getting these workers educated, informed, and prepared to fight is a much-needed reminder that all workers can fight for what they deserve. Regardless of the size of the local, when workers organize and fight together, we win together,' said Fred Hahn, president of CUPE Ontario. 'Frontline community workers are among the lowest paid in the province and this win is going to serve as a north star, motivating other workers to fight for fair wages while giving negotiators support to ask for more at the table.' Article content Widespread community support was key to this securing this deal, with hundreds of community members attending rallies and over one thousand community members sending messages to the YWCA Toronto Board of Directors. Article content 'We are a group of mostly women supporting some of the most marginalized women and gender diverse people in the city. We've felt ignored for so long. To suddenly be seen, embraced, and supported by the community was deeply meaningful,' said Kinna. 'We're proud to work at the YWCA Toronto. We're going to keep doing our jobs, keep supporting the people who need us, and keep building our power.' Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
TikTok posts falsely claim Ethiopia's health minister and her deputy quit over medical strike
'The minister of health has resigned,' reads the text overlay on a TikTok video posted on May 7, 2025. The video, which contains a picture of Mekdes, has been shared more than 820 times. The Ethiopian health professionals had given the government seven days to respond to their demands before going on strike. The post was shared on TikTok during this period. People commenting on the post hailed Mekdes for purportedly stepping down. 'She is a hero,' read one comment. 'The struggle should start from the top leaders. Other officials should learn from her decision.' Another user added: 'She did the best thing. The health workers' demand should be met.' A similar post published by the same TikTok account a week later claimed Mekdes' deputy Dereje Duguma, whose official title is State Minister of Health, had also stepped aside. 'The health professionals' demand is leading to protests,' reads a text overlay at the bottom of the video, posted on May 14, 2025 – a day after the partial strike by healthcare workers began (archived here). Shared more than 730 times, the clip contains a photo of Dereje. On May 7, 2025, the Ethiopian Health Professionals Association (EHPA) urged the government to immediately address the demands made by the sector's workforce, giving a week's notice of their intention to strike (archived here). The nationwide partial strike began on May 13, 2025, to demand fair pay, better benefits and risk compensation. The strike coordinators reported on May 14, 2025 that several health workers and medical students were reportedly arrested in different parts of Ethiopia as the strike gained momentum across the country (archived here). However, the claims that both the health minister and her deputy resigned because of the strike are false. Both Mekdes and Dereje made public appearances and statements in their official capacities days after the claims about their purported resignations were posted. Mekdes appeared on the state-owned Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation and spoke about the list of strike demands and ongoing efforts to address them (archived here). 'A new proclamation was recently passed that provides health insurance for health professionals and the cost will be fully covered by the government,' Mekdes said in her interview on May 12, 2025. She also pointed out that the new law provides further benefits for health professionals. Three days later, she issued a stern warning to striking workers, saying that 'strikes in the health sector are prohibited by law' and announced legal action against those who refused to return to work (archived here). Mekdes again appeared on EBC News on May 19, 2025, and said, "Health professionals are performing their professional duties in health facilities." Despite this, she indicated that some medical schools' activities have been interrupted over the strike (archived here). Meanwhile, Dereje posted a message on Facebook about the strike a day after the claim about his resignation was published. He denounced the actions of individuals whom he accused of hijacking the interests of health workers to advance their political plans amidst the strike. 'I want to assure that the attempt to hijack health professionals for a political agenda will not achieve its objective,' he posted in Amharic (archived here). The healthy ministry confirmed to AFP Fact Check that the claims about both ministers were unfounded. 'This is completely false,' a health ministry spokesman said.
BBC News
19-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Clyde Tunnel workers vote for strike action
One of Scotland's busiest roads could be forced to close due to strike action by control room team in the Clyde Tunnel control room at Whiteinch monitor cameras, control ventilation and respond to breakdowns and emergencies on the GMB union - which represents most of the workers - previously rejected a 3% pay rise from council umbrella body Cosla, and called on the Scottish government to provide councils with extra funding. The union said the proposed strike is the first step in a campaign of action aimed at securing an improved pay offer of 6.5%. Keir Greenaway, GMB Scotland's senior organiser in public services, said council staff were tired of being treated as "the poor relations in our public services."He added: "Council workers have again been forced to fight for fair pay while watching others in the public sector, NHS Scotland, for example, being made acceptable offers."The team at the Clyde Tunnel keep Scotland's biggest city moving - only one example of the essential services delivered by our members."Without their expertise and experience, one of the country's most important roads could close with untold disruption."Council pay is negotiated nationally between unions and Scotland have called for a 6.5% pay increase instead of the proposed 3%, saying it would work out as the equivalent of a £1 an hour estimated 65,000 cars, vans and lorries use the Clyde Tunnel every City Council and the Scottish government have been contacted for comment.
