Deal reached to end Jersey City teacher strike

A deal was reached Sunday night on a new contract for Jersey City's teachers, paving the way for them to return to classrooms Monday morning after striking on Friday.

The tentative contract agreement would end an eight-month dispute between the 29,000-student district and its 3,100 teachers. It must be approved by the nine-member school board and members of the teachers union.

Virtua averts nurses' strike with new contract, increased staffing

About 1,500 registered nurses have voted to accept a new contract with Virtua, calling off a threatened strike that would have affected the health system's locations in Voorhees, Marlton, Berlin and Camden, as well as its visiting home care nurses.

The new three-year agreement addresses many of the nurses' concerns about staffing, time off, wage increases and pension contributions, according to the union representing the nurses at the negotiating table.

A state mediator assisted during negotiations after the nurses' contract expired Feb. 28, but union members authorized a strike vote on March 6.

Both parties reached a tentative agreement at 4 a.m. Wednesday, and the nurses' bargaining unit voted to approve the contract late Thursday. 

The nurses' primary concern centered on staffing needs. Virtua recently hired 65 additional nurses and is actively recruiting to hire 100 more nurses, said Virginia Treacy, a registered nurse and lead negotiator for the union, JNESO District Council 1, IUOE-AFL-CIO.

Refinery Blues: As Philadelphia Energy Solutions files for bankruptcy, unions eye uncertain future

PHILADELPHIA >> Philadelphia Energy Solutions announced a restructuring last week that includes a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in an attempt to deal with the skyrocketing cost of regulations that have increased tenfold in six years, topping all of their costs except crude oil.


Employee union representatives at the refinery are concerned that should this trend continue, they won’t be long out of a job, especially as some say no one is heeding their call to address the plight.


For now, the company has managed to strike a deal with its creditors and gain access to a new credit line. The company said they do not expect the bankruptcy filing to have any immediate effects on the workforce.

Court to Decide Arbitrability in IBEW Union's Case Against DNC

An arbitrator handling a dispute between the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 98, the Democratic National Committee and several broadcast networks did not have the authority to determine whether that case could in fact be arbitrated, a federal judge has ruled.

An arbitrator handling a dispute between the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 98, the Democratic National Committee and several broadcast networks did not have the authority to determine whether that case could in fact be arbitrated, a federal judge has ruled.

U.S. District Judge Gene E.K. Pratter of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania granted motions to dismiss, and in doing so, held that the court had jurisdiction to decide the arbitrability of the case.

Union seeks audit of Eastern Window Specialists per bargaining agreement

PHILADELPHIA – A York company is alleged to have breached a bargaining agreement between it and International Painters and Allied Trades District Council No. 21.

International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council No. 21 Health and Welfare Fund, et al. filed a complaint on Nov. 30 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against Eastern Window Specialists alleging violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.
According to the complaint, the plaintiffs allege that the defendant is party to a collective bargaining agreement with them. They allege that the defendant has refused to submit to an audit since August as required by the agreement.

The plaintiffs seek all amounts due, amounts found due and owing after an audit, court costs, liquidated damages, and any further relief the court grants. They are represented by Martin W. Milz of Spear, Wilderman P.C. in Philadelphia.

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania case number 2:17-cv-05381-ER 

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Source: Penn Record

Alarcon & Marrone Inc. alleged to owe more than $16,000 to union funds

PHILADELPHIA – A North Wales company is alleged to owe contributions to labor union funds.
International Union of Operating Engineers of Eastern Pennsylvania and Delaware Health and Welfare Fund; International Union of Operating Engineers of Eastern Pennsylvania; and Delaware Annuity Fund and International Union of Operating Engineers Local 542-D, AFL-CIO filed a complaint on Dec. 4 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against Alarcon & Marrone Inc. alleging violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

According to the complaint, the plaintiffs allege that the defendant owes $14,060 to the funds for the period of March to September, plus union dues, penalties and interest. They allege this amount has not been paid.
The plaintiffs hold Alarcon & Marrone Inc. responsible because the defendant allegedly breached their bargaining agreement with the plaintiff by failing to remit their contributions.

The plaintiffs seek $16,070 due for the month of March 2017 through October 2017, additional unremitted dues and any further relief the court grants. They are represented by Regina C. Hertzig and Jeremy E. Meyer of Cleary, Josem & Trigiani LLP in Philadelphia.

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania case number 2:17-cv-05428-CMR

Source: Penn Record

Union funds seek to audit Lake Glenn Enterprises Inc. records

PHILADELPHIA – A Swedesboro, New Jersey company is alleged to have failed to submit the information needed by labor union funds to conduct an audit.

Cement Masons' Union Local No. 592 Pension Fund, Cement Masons' Union Local No. 592 Welfare Fund, et al. filed a complaint on Dec. 6 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against Lake Glenn Enterprises Inc. alleging violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.
According to the complaint, the plaintiffs allege that per a bargaining agreement between them and the defendant, the plaintiffs are permitted to audit the defendant's records to determine contributions owed. The plaintiffs allege that an audit of the defendant's records from January 2012 to the present has not been completed because the defendant has refused to provide the necessary information.

The plaintiffs seek to enjoin the defendant to permit an audit of its records, interest, liquidated damages, court costs and any further relief the court grants. They are represented by Maureen W. Marra of Jennings Sigmond PC in Philadelphia.

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania case number 2:17-cv-05460-AB

Source: Penn Record

Seaford passes its own right-to-work ordinance, adding traction to countywide proposal

Sussex County Council has officially set the date for a public hearing on the proposed ordinance for right-to-work, which is gaining traction fast as one town in the county has already instituted their own form of the proposal.

Luck Bros. loses PLA lawsuit

A court has ruled in favor of Clinton County in a dispute over a Project Labor Agreement for work at Plattsburgh International Airport.

In his ruling, New York State Supreme Court Judge Mark L. Powers said the PLA did not harm the local construction company that filed suit.

Luck Brothers Inc., a Plattsburgh construction company, sued the county for implementing a PLA for $42 million worth of work at the airport.

VG Concrete alleged to have breached bargaining agreement with union funds

PHILADELPHIA – Several labor union funds are seeking to audit a Woolrich Township employer.
Cement Masons' Union Local No. 592 Pension Fund, et al. filed a complaint on Nov. 28 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against VG Concrete LLC citing the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

According to the complaint, the plaintiffs and the defendant entered into a bargaining agreement.
The plaintiffs hold VG Concrete LLC responsible because the defendant allegedly breached their contractual agreement with the plaintiffs by failing to let them audit its books and records from May 2016 to the present.

Torrado Construction Co. claimed to owe more than $395,000 for contributions

PHILADELPHIA – A Philadelphia company is alleged to owe several hundred thousand dollars in unpaid benefit contributions.

International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council No. 21 Health and Welfare Fund, et al. filed a complaint on Nov. 27 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against Torrado Construction Co. Inc. citing the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

Construction union seeking to recoup more than $150K in funds from bonding company

PITTSBURGH – A Pittsburgh-based non-profit corporation claims a bonding company has neglected to pay it more than $150,000 in contributions and wage deductions, and has initiated litigation to recover that amount.

Operating Engineers Local 66, AFL-CIO & Construction Industry Combined Funds, Inc. of Pittsburgh filed suit in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas on Nov. 27 versus Allegheny Casualty Company, of Newark, N.J.

South Jersey Dollar Generals are "below area standards," local carpenters union claims

FOLSOM — Members of the Northeast Regional Council of Carpenters protested Wednesday outside the construction area of a Dollar General on Route 54, claiming the company builds its stores “below the area’s standards.”

AG: Sussex not empowered to pass right to work: Arlett calls for public hearing and vote before year's end

Delaware Department of Justice has issued an opinion stating Sussex County Council has no legal authority to enact a proposed right-to-work ordinance.

That opinion, sent to council in a Nov. 15 letter, does not sway the councilman who is pushing to place the ordinance on a December county council agenda.

The letter came as no surprise to Councilman Rob Arlett, R-Frankford, who introduced a right-to-work ordinance Oct. 31. “It's one of many opinions. That office is not the end authority or decision maker,” he said. “The letter is part of the record for consideration. We are looking for all opinions.”

Union carpenters, Convention Center still, still, still battling in Philly, Harrisburg

At the Convention Center on Monday, more than 6,000 cell biologists and life scientists from the American Society for Cell Biology and the European Molecular Biology Organization will focus on connections between cell biology and neurobiology.

Nearby, at the federal courthouse, there will be another gathering — of lawyers representing the Convention Center and the union carpenters who used to be the center’s main labor force. The courthouse discussion will focus on a lawsuit over whether the union engaged in racketeering after it lost work at the center in May 2014.

Philly union presses pensions on nonunion hotel

Supporters of Unite Here Local 274 have been mobilizing political support to pressure public pension funds not to invest in a New York fund they say is backing the developer of a Center City convention hotel staffed by nonunion workers.

The 2,500-member local, which represents hotel, restaurant, and other workers in Philadelphia, says the Starwood Aloft at Broad and Arch Sts. was built with public subsidies from government economic development programs designed to help poor people, but questions whether the hotel is actually doing so.
But hotel investors says the Aloft employs already employs lower-income workers.

Y&F Campos Construction alleged to owe contributions to union funds

PHILADELPHIA – A Gaithersburg, Maryland employer is alleged to have failed to pay contributions to several labor union funds.

Carpenters Health and Welfare Fund of Philadelphia and Vicinity Carpenters Pension and Annuity Fund of Philadelphia and Vicinity, et al. filed a complaint on Nov. 13 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against Salvadora Yamileth Marroquin Reyes, individually and doing business as Y&F Campos Construction, and Francisco Campos citing the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

Capital Area Transit to file unfair labor practices with Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board

The management of Capital Area Transit will file an unfair labor practices complaint against the Amalgamated Transit Union Division 1436 charging an organized work action that will result in a significant disruption of public transit service which may cause massive cancelation of service provided to daily work commuters and other transit dependent riders in violation of provisions of the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Act.

The violation is that a concerted effort is behind a work stoppage to shut down or limit CAT public transit service to the citizens of Cumberland and Dauphin Counties and the City of Harrisburg on or about November 8, 2017.

Union Improperly Used Strikes and Grievances to Obtain Disputed Work, Says Appeals Court

In May 2016, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled that an International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) local unlawfully used strikes and grievances in an effort to obtain certain work on construction sites that had been given to members of another union. That decision was challenged in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, which upheld the NLRB’s ruling on Oct. 31.

While the NLRB allows a union to utilize these mechanisms to preserve work that it had previously performed, that was not the issue here because the board had handled a previous dispute and had awarded the work in question to another union.

Source: Lexology

United Elevator Co. LLC alleged to owe more than $155,000 in contributions

PHILADELPHIA – A Washington, D.C., elevator industry contractor is alleged to have failed to pay contributions to labor union funds.

Trustees of the National Elevator Industry Pension, Health Benefit, Educational, Elevator Industry Work Preservation Funds, Elevator Constructors Annuity and 401(k) Retirement Plan filed a complaint on Oct. 12 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against United Elevator Co. LLC and Nicholas Irving citing the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.