Organizing Update

Verizon Wireless

Workers at a Verizon Wireless Express store in Portland, who recently formed a union with CWA, filed an Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) this week. The workers, who have a pending union representation election, filed the charge after being forced to attend mandatory captive audience meetings during the last six months. These meetings are a common union-busting tactic in which company representatives intimidate workers in an attempt to interfere with organizing efforts. Inspired by the groundbreaking union win in Everett and Lynnwood, Wash., Verizon workers in Portland are demanding a voice on the job and remain united in their efforts to form a union, while Verizon continues to force anti-union rhetoric on them. Joining the growing movement of retail workers organizing for a union across the county, Verizon Wireless retail workers at two stores in Flint, Mich., also have a pending NLRB union election. Read more here.

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Meow Wolf

Workers at Meow Wolf in Denver, Colo., won voluntary recognition for their union after a super majority of workers voted in favor of forming a union with CWA. The workers, who have been organizing for the last eight months, are the second group of workers at Meow Wolf to join CWA. In late 2020, Meow Wolf workers in Santa Fe, N.M., voted to join CWA and they ratified their first contract earlier this year. The new unit includes more than two hundred workers and will be part of CWA Local 7055. “I think it shows how much Meow Wolf as a whole has grown since the Santa Fe union started,” said Patrick Peterson, a creative operator and union organizer, in an interview with Colorado Public Radio. “If they did not unionize, I feel like we would’ve had a lot harder struggle than we have had. Every road’s gonna have its bumps, you know? But I feel like ours was a lot smoother because Santa Fe kinda set a precedent.”

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Activision Blizzard

Activision Blizzard is refusing to voluntarily recognize the Albany Game Workers Alliance/CWA union, a group of quality assurance testers at the company’s location in Albany, N.Y. In response, the workers released a statement saying, “It appears that Activision Blizzard’s management has once again decided to take the low road by choosing to fight against our union, in spite of the fact that 95% of us have signed union representation cards. Almost every time this company has the opportunity to begin to repair its reputation and demonstrate that it respects its workers, it declines to do so. Earlier this year, Activision fought fiercely against the supermajority of Raven QA workers who wanted a union voice. Activision lost that fight. And it's clear that the company will lose again this time.”

Microsoft is in the process of acquiring Activision Blizzard, and has entered into a legally binding agreement with CWA to remain neutral when workers want to organize a union. “Instead of following Microsoft’s lead and committing to a labor neutrality agreement, Activision has made the clear and conscious decision to deny us our basic labor rights while once again spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on a union-busting firm,” the workers added in their statement.

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Norse Atlantic Airways

After demonstrating unanimous support for joining AFA-CWA with signed authorization cards, Flight Attendants at Norse Airlines filed for official recognition and certification of their union by the National Mediation Board (NMB). Norse Atlantic Airways has also filed a letter of support with the NMB for the Flight Attendant’s request. AFA-CWA negotiated a pre-hire agreement with Norse management in May 2021. The full contract, subject to ratification after certification of the union, includes industry-leading starting pay and job protections, healthcare, and a 401(k) among other key benefits. Read more here.