Res 0066-2024

Whereas, The freedom of workers to join together in unions and negotiate with employers through collective bargaining is a fundamental right that is protected by the United States Constitution; and Whereas, Throughout history, Americans have unionized to build a fairer economy, improve workplace conditions, and gain a voice on the job; and Whereas, Unions fought for - and continue to safeguard - critical standards such as the 40-hour workweek, the federal minimum wage, Social Security, Unemployment Insurance, and child labor protections; and Whereas, The COVID-19 Pandemic and its long term labor effects catalyzed a new wave of organizing across sectors, including retail, hospitality, higher education, and government; Whereas, Between 2021 and 2024, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) reported that union election petitions more than doubled, with thousands of workers across the country organizing for better wages, job stability, and workplace protections; and Whereas, These campaigns have taken root in New York City and across the country, with growing movements among gig economy workers, New York City Council staff, digital journalists, graduate and adjunct faculty, nonprofit workers, and workers at major corporations such as Starbucks and Amazon; and Whereas, In April 2022, workers at Amazon's JFK8 Warehouse in Staten Island voted to unionize under the Amazon Labor Union (ALU) despite intense union-busting practices; since then, organizing efforts have expanded to other Amazon facilities in response to company policies such as aggressive productivity quotas, dehumanizing work environments, and low wages; and Whereas, In 2024, the ALU affiliated with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT), leading to the creation of ALU-IBT Local 1, which now represents workers in Staten Island, while Teamsters Local 804 now represents workers at the company's facilities in Queens; and Whereas, Amazon has unlawfully refused to bargain with the ALU-IBT Local 1 and Local 804, in violation of federal labor law; in response Amazon workers launched the largest strike in the company's history in December 2024, demanding that the company come to the bargaining table and agree to a fair contract; and Whereas, Starbucks workers have successfully unionized more than 400 stores nationally-including multiple locations in New York City-despite ongoing retaliation, surveillance, and aggressive union-busting tactics; and Whereas, These unionization efforts prevailed despite fierce union-busting tactics including one-on-one meetings with supervisors, mandatory employee meetings, also known as "captive audience" meetings, union-busting consultants, retaliatory terminations, and misinformation campaigns all aimed at dissuading workers from exercising their rights; and Whereas, Under President Donald Trump's administration, organized labor faces renewed and escalating challenges, including direct efforts to weaken the NLRB by removing a sitting member-effectively paralyzing the agency's ability to issue decisions and carry out its rulemaking functions; and Whereas, President Trump also issued executive orders that led to the termination of unionized federal workers undermining their right to representation and job security-part of a broader assault on the public sector that weakens essential government services and disproportionately harms working-class communities across the country; and Whereas, The Trump administration's actions represent an unprecedented assault on organized labor, emboldening anti-union corporate strategies and undermining decades of hard-fought protections that empower workers to improve their wages, workplace conditions, and job security; and Whereas, In this climate of heightened corporate resistance and federal rollback of labor rights, local and state governments have a critical responsibility to defend the rights of workers, support unionization efforts, and uphold democratic labor practices; now, therefore be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York strongly condemns the Trump administration's ongoing efforts to dismantle federal labor protections, stands in unwavering solidarity with unionization efforts across New York City's workforce, and affirms the fundamental right of all workers to organize, bargain collectively, and hold free and fair union elections. Session 13 EA LS #8346 06/05/2025 Session12 EA LS# 8346 5/9/22