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* ACLU-IL staff union…
On September 3, 2024, the ACLU-IL Staff United will hold a one-day Unfair Labor Practice strike in response to a recent National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruling that found ACLU-IL Management committed unfair labor practices for withholding annual salary raises for union members while continuing to provide raises to non-union staff.
The NLRB proposed a settlement that included retroactive raises for union members, but ACLU-IL Management rejected the settlement and is intending to challenge the NLRB’s ruling. Management has opted to line its own pockets and spend exorbitant amounts on corporate lawyers to fight the Union, all while denying union members another year of raises.
This isn’t ACLU-IL Management’s first run-in with the NLRB. This most recent NLRB ruling comes after a slew of Management’s union-busting tactics over the past three years, including contesting the inclusion of more than half the bargaining unit positions–only to lose on every single contested position after a two-day hearing with the NLRB.
Lance Rhines, Regional Organizer at NOLSW UAW Local 2320, commented on the situation, saying, “This is clearly an effort to undermine the Union by trying to starve out the workers and weaken their resolve to exercise their protected rights. We hope this one-day strike will serve as a wake-up call to management that their unlawful practices will not be tolerated, and encourage them to follow the law and respect their workers.”
The one-day Unfair Labor Practice strike is scheduled to begin at 8:00 a.m. on Tuesday, September 3, 2024, the day after Labor Day. Union members will be stopping all work and picketing outside the ACLU-IL office, located at 150 N. Michigan Ave, at 8:00-10:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m-1:30 p.m. Support is expected from members of the National Organization of Legal Services Workers (NOLSW) Local 2320, United Auto Workers (UAW) Region 4, and other labor and community groups.
Unionized staff have waited too long to obtain raises that are due to them, especially during a period of excessive inflation and accelerating cost of living. Management’s attitude towards paying workers what is theirs is disheartening. Many of the original union members have been forced to leave work in which they find purpose and meaning because they cannot pay the bills. This union-busting is not right.
The Union and ACLU-IL Management have been at the bargaining table for over two years, but there is still no contract in place. Management’s approach to bargaining hasn’t been about negotiating for a fair contract–instead they are trying to penalize the Union for its lawful decision to unionize. The Union stands ready to return to the table at any time, provided Management shows a genuine willingness to bargain in good faith and distribute the long overdue backpay to union members.
Together, the members of the ACLU of Illinois Staff United are fighting for a better ACLU.
The fight will not stop until our workplace is transformed into one that reflects the ideals that this organization litigates and advocates for every day.
* Statement from management at the Roger Baldwin Foundation of the ACLU of Illinois…
The ACLU of Illinois is aware that our union colleagues have called a one-day strike for Tuesday. We respect the union’s right to take this action on behalf of their members. But this action does not move us closer to our shared goal – a complete contract with the union.
Since the union was certified two and a half years ago, and after the union took nearly a year’s delay in making proposals to reach a contract, we have bargained with the union in good faith, including in the midst of very busy times for the organization — like during the legislative session and planning for the Democratic National Convention. We have continued bargaining even when the union unilaterally decided to end a weekend session after less than an hour, with more work left to accomplish.
Still, we remain committed to securing a contract at the bargaining table. That is why our current offer would provide our union members – who already earn a salary at the top of the market for not-for-profit jobs in Chicago – with generous increases. Among other provisions, the current offer from management includes:
• Immediate and annual increases to salaries, which in the aggregate will raise bargaining unit employee salaries by more than 28% on average over the three-year term of a collective bargaining agreement, with annual salary increases of 5 to 6% each of the next three years. This is almost double national averages secured through collectively bargained agreements across all industries over the past year, and even higher when compared to national averages from earlier years.
• Continuing our current practice of paying 100% of the costs of health insurance coverage for employees and their family members – with no employee contribution.
• Continuing to contribute 6% of an employee’s salary to a retirement fund – again, with no contribution from the employee.
• Up to 49 paid days off per year—more than two months of working days annually. This includes 15 paid holidays, 2 personal days (the national norm is 8 days), 20 vacation days after the first year (15 in the first year) plus 12 sick days.
The ACLU of Illinois stands by these proposals; we believe they offer a fair contract to our employees and stand ready to continue to discuss them with the union.
At the same time we see the challenges to civil liberties across Illinois and across the country. The ACLU of Illinois will continue to ceaselessly and diligently protect the basic human dignity of our clients and advance civil rights and civil liberties in every corner of Illinois. We will do that work even as we continue to work on these internal issues – because there are people of color being unfairly treated by police, children in the custody of DCFS who need adequate health care and psychiatric care, transgender folks who deserve the full protections of Illinois law, and abortion providers who rely on our advice to deal with the crush of patients traveling to Illinois from states with abortion bans.
The ACLU of Illinois is proud of our work and it will go forward.
Thoughts?
posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Sep 3, 24 @ 12:36 pm
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-who the heck gets free employer health insurance these days and 49 days off??? You want to know why we can’t grow Illinois’ economy– can you imagine what the unions are demanding from the state’s for-profit businesses?
Comment by ANON Tuesday, Sep 3, 24 @ 12:53 pm
@ANON
What are you even trying to say?
Comment by Bob Tuesday, Sep 3, 24 @ 1:11 pm
Imagine trying to undermine the efforts of workers striking the day after Labor Day. These management people are so out of touch.
Comment by Hypocrisy Tuesday, Sep 3, 24 @ 1:12 pm
==You want to know why we can’t grow Illinois’ economy==
Yeah, it’s the union’s fault. I think you have a bright future working for the Illinois Policy Institute.
Comment by Demoralized Tuesday, Sep 3, 24 @ 1:43 pm
Wait a minute….how is the DNC a “very busy time” for the ACLU such that continuing to negotiate is a hardship?
In the private sector those are generally known as “days of the week,” but apparently the ACLU-IL’s management is so out of touch with working for a living that the thought of having to execute two organizational tasks simultaneously seems overwhelming and a basis for public sympathy.
Comment by Larry Bowa Jr. Tuesday, Sep 3, 24 @ 1:44 pm
Yes, federal holidays AND vacation time, how greedy!
The truth is that ACLU workers often work nights and weekends when the work requires it–it’s literally a requirement of the job. A current posting for a staff attorney position says applicants must be “willing and available to travel throughout Illinois and to work beyond the normal workday and /or on weekends when needed.”
What ACLU’s statement doesn’t say is that their current proposal actually seeks to reduce the number of vacation days that people in their first year of work currently get at the organization (right now they get 20, but management’s proposal says they’ll get 5 fewer in the first year) and, more importantly, management’s proposal will prohibit employees from rolling over any vacation days–so employees who aren’t able to take a vacation day because of the demands of their work will LOSE these days, which are part of their compensation. That doesn’t seem fair. Seems like a punishment for unionizing.
Comment by Toms Tuesday, Sep 3, 24 @ 2:04 pm
== The ACLU of Illinois is proud of our work==
What a tin ear these people have. You think maybe the union members are also proud of the organization’s work, or have they just stuck it out for three years with no contract and no raise for the fun of it?
Comment by charles in charge Tuesday, Sep 3, 24 @ 2:33 pm
Hey, ACLU Management, you forgot to address anything about the NLRB ruling. Which is what the strike is about. Maybe you were too caught up in blaming the Union for delays (did you forget you caused major delays by refusing to voluntarily recognize the Union and then trying to gut 60% of its membership, forcing a time-consuming hearing before the NLRB, and then you lost on all counts?) and talking about what a generous employer you are. Yes, you really are generous - mostly to yourselves, though. I’ll drop this info from the 990s here again: According to the 990s, through FY2013-FY2018, the percentage of total functional expenses going to executive compensation averaged 6.2%. It has BALLOONED since then to 41.6% in FY2023. Across 45 ACLU affiliates’ publicly available 990s (excluding National), ACLU-IL’s expenses toward executive compensation were the HIGHEST in FY2022 at almost $2,245,505 (about 40% of total functional expenses), over $1.4 MILLION MORE than the ACLU office with the next highest executive compensation. The next highest ACLU office was ACLU-WA Found, with executive compensation at $822,797 (but only constituting about 9% of their total functional expenses). The average of expenses towards executive compensation across 44 affiliates (excluding National and ACLU-IL), was only $158,500, not even half of ACLU-IL Executive Director Colleen Connell’s average annual salary over the past ten years (she’s raked in over 3.6 MILLION since FY2013). I wonder how that compares to “the market for not-for-profit jobs in Chicago.”
Comment by Picking Cherries Tuesday, Sep 3, 24 @ 3:42 pm
“We will do that work even as we continue to work on these internal issues – because there are people of color being unfairly treated by police, children in the custody of DCFS who need adequate health care and psychiatric care, transgender folks who deserve the full protections of Illinois law, and abortion providers who rely on our advice to deal with the crush of patients traveling to Illinois from states with abortion bans.”
How do they plan to fight for “transgender folks” when they haven’t had a dedicated LGBTQ Project for several years, and can’t seem to hire for it? All those attorneys have jumped ship and word gets around about how “challenging” it is to work with current management.
Comment by Priorities Tuesday, Sep 3, 24 @ 3:49 pm
ACLU workers are talented, and hard working people. Management, it seems, is out of touch. How can they expect to connect with the community they fight for when they can’t even respect their own workers?
Comment by SandyJ Wednesday, Sep 4, 24 @ 9:38 pm