Among the wave of progressive, pro-worker candidates elected in local elections on November 7th were several strong supporters of UE Local 150. Local 150 members in four North Carolina cities — Greensboro, Charlotte, Durham and Raleigh — hosted candidate forums, talked with their co-workers, met with candidates and participated in election turn-out work. All four cities saw their city government shift in a more worker-friendly direction.
In Greensboro, newly-elected city council member Michelle Kennedy wore a Local 150 t-shirt to her victory party, and both Kennedy and Steve Schewel, the newly-elected mayor of Durham, used UE Local 150’s name and logos in all of their advertising material, including prominent front page ads in local papers.
Read more about the elections in Greensboro, Charlotte and Durham.
Local 150’s Durham City Workers Union chapter is seizing the opportunity and joining with other labor and community allies to organize a Durham Workers Rights Commission. The Commission will bring together workers in all sectors to establish standards and expectations for employers, such as a Workers Bill of Rights that includes better wages, safety on the job, an end to sexual harassment & discrimination on the job, and more job security and union rights.
Other organizations participating in the Durham Workers Right Commission are Raise Up for $15; the We Dream in Black program of the National Domestic Workers Alliance; and the North Carolina AFL-CIO.