This section covers labor unions in the United States — organizing campaigns, contract negotiations, strikes and the legal and political environment that shapes the labor movement. Reporting takes in union activity across industries and sectors.
The United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America called on the incoming Congress to act on wages, Social Security and labor law after the midterm elections.
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November 6, 2026
Appeals Court Upholds Union Pacific Win in Retaliation CaseThe Eighth Circuit affirmed a jury verdict that Union Pacific did not retaliate against employee Stephen Parr under federal rail safety law.
November 6, 2026
Steelworkers Reach Tentative Deal With Cleveland-CliffsThe United Steelworkers announced a tentative agreement covering about 10,000 workers across four states, with contract details not yet released.
November 6, 2026
Labor Department to Require Electronic FilingA final rule will require most parties in Office of Administrative Law Judges cases to file and serve documents electronically.
November 6, 2026
Walkinshaw Pushes for 2027 Federal Pay RaiseThe Virginia congressman says he will seek a pay increase in upcoming funding talks, as the White House has proposed a freeze.
November 6, 2026
Court Stays Google Joint Employer CaseThe Ninth Circuit paused proceedings while Google and its union implement a settlement agreement over contracted Accenture Flex workers.
November 6, 2026
SAG-AFTRA Launches Pre-Funding Pitch AgreementThe new Interactive Media Agreement lets developers hire union actors for pitch material before their games are funded.
November 5, 2026
Union Members Win 639 Public Offices in MidtermsThe AFL-CIO reports union members won office across the country as union households favored Democrats by 21 percentage points.
November 5, 2026
AFSCME Says Backed Candidates Win Congress, Six TrifectasThe public-sector union said its endorsed candidates won control of both chambers of Congress and will hold new state trifectas in at least six states.
November 5, 2026
Labor Department Rescinds Apprenticeship Affirmative Action RulesA final rule removes affirmative action and mandatory anti-harassment training requirements from registered apprenticeship programs.
November 5, 2026
UAW Pushes Wage Rules in USMCA ReviewThe United Auto Workers want labor standards for Mexican car plants written into the trade pact after the United States declined to renew it in its current form.
Organizing campaign outcomes, contract ratifications and the negotiations that precede them, strike announcements and their resolution, right-to-work legislation and the legal challenges to it, and union political endorsements and their strategic logic are the recurring subjects in this coverage. New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston and Phoenix are home to some of the country's largest union memberships across public and private sectors, and contract negotiations in those cities generate national coverage because of their scale and the patterns they set. Strike actions generate the most concentrated short-window coverage in this area, since they have immediate and visible effects on the industries and workers involved. Long-term trends in union membership rates provide a recurring structural context for individual organizing wins and losses, and coverage of those trends runs as a secondary thread beneath the contract and campaign news.
