Lone Star Labor: We need heat protections

Across Texas, workers are struggling in the extreme summer heat. And now, anti-worker leaders in Congress are quietly attempting to stop any heat safety protection laws from being passed, now or in the future.

H.R. 6213, the misnamed “Heat Workforce Standards Act,” would prohibit the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) from creating or enforcing any national heat safety law. 

This cannot stand. Will you make a call? Tell Congress to protect workers from heat—and not block heat safety protections.

In 2024, OSHA proposed the nation’s first heat safety standard following decades of advocacy from Texas workers. What’s good for workers is what’s good for businesses, and many heat safety measures are common sense, widely accepted and necessary to save lives. Tell Congress to protect workers from the heat, and block H.R. 6213 NOW.

 AS GOES TEXAS LABOR…

Austin: Potential strike looms as CapMetro bus workers urge board to pressure Keolis — Austin American-Statesman, featuring Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1091 President Brent Payne

Dallas: Despite high-profile deaths, ‘nothing has changed’ for USPS carriers working in heat — Dallas Observer, featuring National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 132 President Kimetra Lewis

Houston: Houston protest brings out union workers who seek answers in ICE shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo — Houston Chronicle, featuring Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Texas President Elsa Flores and member Antonia Escamilla

🏆 Houston: Highlights from AGMA’s New Four-Year Agreement with Houston Ballet — American Guild of Musical Artists

🏆 Lubbock: ‘Future of West Texas’: Lubbock’s new training center — Everything Lubbock, featuring SMART Sheet Metal Workers Local 49 Business Manager and Financial Secretary Isaiah Zemke, Business Representative Shawn Smith, and Training Coordinator Matthew Allen

Texas City: The Workers’ Mic talk Ashland Specialty Chemicals strike & wage theft — WGN Radio 720, featuring International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 564 Business Manager Charlie Singletary and Business Agent Lewis Crawford

Statewide: Texas bet on privatized foster care. EMPOWER tested its limits — KERA, featuring Texas State Employees Union (TSEU - CWA Local 6186) Organizer Christie Carrington

Statewide: Texas AFT, Texas AFL-CIO unveil slate of State Board of Education endorsements

NEWS TO USE

Case to Be Dropped Against Labor Leader Caught in L.A. Immigration Raid — The New York Times

Black Women Deserve Equal Pay. Unions Help Make It Happen. — Black Press USA, by AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Fred Redmond

AFSCME Leader Lee Saunders to Retire as Unions Face Increased Threats — The New York Times

The case for tripling union membership — Economic Policy Institute 

AI & TECH NEWS BITE 

Inside the AI protections union workers are winning — Axios
The NewsGuild currently has between 85 and 90 contracts with explicit AI provisions. At Politico, unionized reporters forced management into arbitration after the newsroom introduced inaccurate AI reporting tools without the union's permission.

TEXAS LABOR FAMILY NEWS

🏃 ON THE MOVE

The International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) South Atlantic and Gulf Coast District (SAGCD) held its 93rd Convention in Galveston this week.

Katy AFT delivered a petition signed by 691 Katy ISD employees to their Board of Trustees, asking them to launch a thorough investigation into the employee health plan.

💐 IN MEMORY

Sister Priscilla Ann Brown, vice president of the Communication Workers of America (CWA) District 6 Retired Members Chapter (RMC) in Fort Worth, passed away on Jul. 5 at the age of 94. 

Brother Gary Gauntt, a retired member of Teamsters Local 767 (Mesquite), passed away recently.

Brother Dustin Homeyer, member of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 278 (Corpus Christi), passed away on Jul. 19 at the age of 50.

Brother Tony Ray Lawson, member of IBEW Local 66 (Houston), passed away on Jul. 22 at the age of 63.

Brother George Edwards (Eddie) Morgan, a super activist with the Texas Alliance for Retired Americans (TARA) in Dallas, passed away on Jul. 16 at the age of 69.

Brother Douglas Pompey, member of El Paso Association of Firefighters (IAFF Local 51), passed away on May 17 at the age of 74.

Sister Robbie Sparks, founder and president emeritus of the Electrical Workers Minority Caucus, passed away on Jul. 28 at the age of 84. Her legacy will continue to inspire future generations of IBEW activists.

Brother Nicolas Valles III, member of United Association (UA) Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 286 (Austin), passed away on Jul. 24 at the age of 52.

Our hearts go out to their union families and all who loved them.

📜 THIS WEEK IN TEXAS LABOR HISTORY… 

The Texas AFL-CIO was formed on July 29, 1957, when two separate labor groups joined together: the Texas State Federation of Labor and the Texas State CIO Council.

SOLIDARITY CORNER: EVENTS & ACTIONS

🚨 TAKE ACTION

STRIKE SUPPORT: Support Texas City Metal Trades Council members on ULP strike at Ashland Specialty Chemicals

1. Sign the petition & send a message
2. Donate to the strike fund
3. Join the picket line

ADD YOUR NAME: 

• Austin: Tell CapMetro board members to stand with workers, supporting Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1091
• Fort Worth: Fair contract for the Fort Worth NewsGuild 
• Harris County: Give Harris Center employees a raise & stop union busting, supporting United Workers of Harris Center (UWHC - CWA Local 6154)

📆 EVENTS THIS WEEK

Friday, Jul. 31 in Texas City: ✊ Picket with Texas City Metal Trades Council at Ashland Specialty Chemicals
Workers at Ashland Specialty Chemicals in Texas City are on an Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) strike. Join them every Friday from 5:30 to 7:30pm. Details.

Friday, Jul. 31 in Pasadena: 🤝 13th Annual Gulf Coast BCTC Conservation Dinner
Join the Texas Gulf Coast Building and Construction Trades Council for the 13th Annual Conservation Dinner, benefitting the Union Sportsmen's Alliance. Details.

Monday, Aug. 3 in Grand Prairie: 🎤 North Texas Labor Town Hall
Join the Texas AFL-CIO for the next stop on our statewide listening tour! We want to talk with North Texas members about the future of the labor movement and our state. Details.

Wednesday, Aug. 5 online: 👩🏻‍🏫 AFL-CIO Training: Common Sense Economics and Artificial Intelligence
This workshop will explain the basics of how AI and technology impact workers, how tech billionaires impact the economy, and how together union members can build an economy that works for all people. Details.

Thursday, Aug. 6 online: 👩🏻‍🏫 AFL-CIO Training: Frontline Solidarity: Immigration Tools for Organizers and Activists
This session will provide participants with information to navigate the escalating attacks on immigrant workers and discuss resources available for unions and organizers. Details.

See all upcoming Texas labor events here.

📝 APPLICATIONS & PROGRAMS

👩🏻‍🏫 Texas AFL-CIO Solidarity School: Immigration Training Program
Registration deadline: Monday, Aug. 3
This four-part series will provide labor leaders with information on the political landscape in Texas that created the conditions for anti-union, anti-immigrant policies to pass, as well as actionable skills for unions to assess their rapid-response capabilities. Details.

💪 TEXAS UNION STAFF JOBS

• Lead Organizer — Southern Workers Assembly
• Part-Time Organizer (Houston) — Starbucks Workers United
• Waco Area Joint Apprenticeship & Training Committee Electrical Instructor (Waco) — IBEW Local 72

📸 PHOTO OF THE WEEK

CapMetro / Keolis workers represented by ATU Local 1091 are calling on the CapMetro board to take care of the workers who make our community run! Send a message: bit.ly/capmetroaction 

Photo by AFSCME Local 1624

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