Maine

Terminated Chipotle Workers Accuse Company Of Union Busting

July 26, 2022 Phil Hirschkorn, WMTW. Organize! Chipotle, Maine, union busting, Unions, Worker Rights and Jobs

Augusta, Maine - Workers who had hoped to form the first union at a Chipotle Mexican Grill believe the company closed their restaurant and terminated their jobs this week, because they were poised to form the first union among the chain’s 3,000 establishments. Chipotle closed its Augusta restaurant on Tuesday after two-thirds of its employees had pledged to form an independent union, Chipotle United, and just two-and-a-half hours before workers were scheduled to meet with the National Labor Relations Board about their union election. "They knew they would lose," Brandi McNease, who worked the Augusta restaurant for more than three years and led the union drive, said in an interview Friday. "I was just so angry. No. We had a fair fight going. We were doing things the right way, and you just took your bat and ball and went home?

Augusta Chipotle Workers Have Formed A Union

June 23, 2022 Christopher Burns, Bangor Daily News. Organize! Chipotle, Labor Unions, Maine, Worker Rights

The workers at the Augusta Chipotle are forming a union. The workers at the restaurant in the state’s capital filed for recognition as an independent union, Chipotle United, on Wednesday, according to the Maine AFL-CIO. That comes just a week after the Chipotle workers staged a two-day walkout in protest of what they called unsafe working conditions. Chipotle workers told the Kennebec Journal last week that low staffing is a big concern for them. Two workers are often doing the food preparation work of six people, and the restaurant will be staffed with three to four people when at least seven are needed. In a letter to the chain’s national management, they called those demands “unreasonable” and said they jeopardize the safety of customers and themselves.

How Lobstermen Formed A Union Co-Op To Claw Back Fair Prices

February 8, 2022 Bernadette King Fitzsimons And Rebecca Lurie, Labor Notes. Create! Cooperative, Maine, Unions, Worker Rights and Jobs

When you think of workers hamstrung by the “independent contractor” label, you probably don’t think of Maine lobstermen. But it turns out that lobstermen—a title claimed by women as well as men who catch and sell lobster for a living—have something in common with warehouse temps and Uber drivers. As independent contractors they’re denied the collective bargaining rights and various other workplace protections and benefits afforded (to some) by U.S. labor law. And the strategy they used to confront low wages is one that similarly exploited workers might want to try too: they teamed up with a union to set up a worker-owned co-op. The lobstermen partnered with the Machinists to create both an affiliate union local and a marketing cooperative.

Maine Lawmakers Pass ‘A Gift To The Planet’

June 10, 2021 Andrea Germanos, Common Dreams. Create! climate crisis, Environment, Maine, State Government

Climate action advocate Bill McKibben welcomed a development he called "a gift to the planet" after Maine state lawmakers on Tuesday passed a groundbreaking bill committing the state to divesting its assets from the fossil fuel industry. LD 99—"An Act to Require the State to Divest Itself of Assets Invested in the Fossil Fuel Industry"—cleared the state Senate Tuesday in a 19-13 vote. It passed the House last week over the objections of Republicans like state Rep. Michael Lemelin (R-88), who asserted that lowering carbon emissions will kill trees. The legislation calls on the state treasury and state retirement system not to make any further investments in the fossil fuel industry and sets a 2026 deadline for fossil fuel divestment.

Mother’s Day Demonstration At Trident Nuclear Submarine Base

May 10, 2021 Leonard Eiger, Popular Resistance. Resist! Maine, Military bases, Nuclear submarine, Nuclear Weapons

Bangor, Washington - people were present on May 8th (the day before Mother's Day), at the demonstration against Trident nuclear weapons at the Bangor submarine base. Five demonstrators blocked the main highway entrance into the base for over 20 minutes and were cited by the Washington State Patrol. At around 2 pm on Saturday, the five demonstrators entered the highway carrying two large banners stating,“CONGRESS WANTS $1 TRILLION FOR NUKES--What will be left for our children” and “TRIDENT THREATENS ALL LIFE ON EARTH” and blocked all incoming traffic at the Main Gate at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor. They were removed from the highway by the Washington State Patrol.

Largest Private-Sector Strike Of The Year Is Headed For Union Victory

August 15, 2020 Jeremy Gantz, In These Times. Organize! Labor Union, Maine, Strike, Worker Rights

Bath, Maine - It’s no coincidence that the first strike in 20 years at Bath Iron Works (BIW) began months into the Covid-19 pandemic. While Maine has one of the lowest Covid transmission rates in the country, the spread of the deadly virus helped spark the strike that has largely shut down the shipyard at BIW — one of Maine’s largest employers. In June, when around 4,300 Machinists Local S6 union members at BIW voted overwhelmingly to strike, many had already soured on management over its handling of the pandemic.

Maine Shipbuilders Bring The Hammer Down To Reject Concessions

July 27, 2020 Andy O'Brien, Labor Notes. Resist! Labor Union, Maine, Strike, Worker Rights and Jobs

More than 4,300 shipbuilders at the Bath Iron Works shipyard in Bath, Maine, are entering the sixth week of the largest private sector strike in the U.S. this year. It wasn’t assured that the members would vote to strike in such a difficult economic climate. In previous years, BIW management had pressured workers to accept concessionary contracts that froze wages and eroded job quality, ostensibly to stay competitive on bids for lucrative Navy and Coast Guard contracts. Last time around, in 2015, workers voted narrowly to give up scheduled raises in favor of one-time bonuses, in order to help the company win a contract to build patrol boats for the Coast Guard.

Secretive Police Unit Gathers Information On Maine Citizens

June 27, 2020 Megan Gray, Press Herald. Educate! Activism, Maine, Police, Surveillance

A secretive unit of the Maine State Police does gather information about groups and organizations even when they are not suspected of crimes, including people who are participating in protests, a top law enforcement official told lawmakers Wednesday. Michael Sauschuck, the commissioner of the Maine Department of Public Safety, testified at a joint legislative hearing about the Maine Intelligence and Analysis Center, which is at the center of a federal whistleblower lawsuit filed by a state trooper. The trooper had been assigned to the center and says he was retaliated against after reporting that the intelligence unit illegally used surveillance tools to monitor innocent citizens. Those allegations raised concerns among lawmakers and civil liberties advocates and prompted groups that were allegedly targeted by the center’s surveillance to demand details about the activities.

Maine: Medical Cannabis Is Now State’s Third Largest Economic Market

March 7, 2020 Staff, Norml.org Create! Finance and the Economy, Maine, Marijuana

Augusta, Maine: Patients purchased an estimated $112 million worth of medical cannabis-related products in 2019, according to newly released Maine tax data. The annual revenues related to medical cannabis are more than the total revenues generated by the sales of blueberries, maple syrup, apples, herring, and oysters combined.

Parents Become Activists In The Fight Over South Portland’s Petroleum Tanks

February 18, 2020 Sabrina Shankman, Insideclimatenews.org Resist! Activism, Families, Maine, Toxic Chemicals

SOUTH PORTLAND—Sometimes, grassroots activism looks obvious, with bold signs and public acts of disobedience. Sometimes, it looks like this: 14 people sitting on the carpeted floor of a sunny room in a home on Cottage Road while young kids color and eat crackers and fruit. So it was on a recent Sunday, as members of Protect South Portland, an environmental group, sought to tap into a new vein of activism: parents.

Sharon Treat: Mainers Right To Be Skeptical That USMCA Will Fix Farmers’ Woes

May 14, 2019 Staff, Sunjournal.com Educate! Farmers, Maine, USMCA

True, NAFTA and other “old trade agreements” hurt farmers and rural economies. It doesn’t follow, though, that the new NAFTA represents a bright new day — and a rebranding doesn’t mean an improvement. Analysis by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy makes clear that the NAFTA revamp doubles down on corporate-written policies that will worsen the economic headwinds faced by rural economies and farming families, lower food safety standards and make it much more difficult to inform consumers through nutritional and ingredient labeling.

Maine’s Radical Universal Home Health Care Proposition

October 15, 2018 By Naomi LaChance, Truthdig.com Create! Health Care, Maine

A group of progressives in Maine has proposed a radical new solution to providing medical care for an aging, rural population. Question 1, a measure on the ballot in November, proposes universal home health care for all Maine residents, to be paid for by a tax on people making more than $128,400 a year. Opponents of the proposal say that the program would be too costly; supporters say it could radically change the lives of people living with disability or serious illness. Eligibility for the program would depend on daily needs, rather than on a medical diagnosis. Maine residents who cannot complete at least one “daily living” activity, such as bathing, cooking or walking, would be able to receive help in a variety of forms.

What Happened After 17 Employees Took Over A Beloved Maine Business

May 18, 2018 By Lauren Abbate, Bangordailynews.com Create! Maine, New Economy, Worker Cooperatives

ROCKLAND, Maine — For the last two months, patrons of Rock City Coffee might not have noticed any changes when they stopped at the busy downtown cafe for their regular order. That’s exactly what the new owners — the people behind the counter — want. Two months ago, Rock City Coffee, a cafe and coffee roastery, became a worker-owned cooperative, with employees buying the business from its previous owner and founder, Susanne Ward. For Ward, selling the business to her employees was a reward to people who worked for her and a way to ensure that what she and her husband began 26 years ago would live on true to character. For the employees, the opportunity allowed them a path to business ownership and to keep Rock City as the place where they love to work.

Maine Campaign Against War And Corporate Rule Nears Climax

March 15, 2018 W. T. Whitney, Counterpunch.org Resist! Corporations, Inter-Imperialist Rivalry, Maine, Wars and Militarism

Maine legislators have a hot potato in their hands. But they don’t seem to be feeling any pain. On March 6, their Taxation Committee, controlled by the Democratic Party, voted 8-2 to send LD 1781 to the floor with an “ought-to-pass” recommendation. That bill calls for Maine to provide Bath Iron Works (BIW) with a $60 million tax credit extending over 20 years. The proposed legislation would renew a previous 20 – year, $60 million tax exemption that ended in 2017. In return for the bill’s approval, BIW promises to invest $100 million in its Bath shipyard and maintain a workforce of at least 5000 employees until 2023. BIW is owned by General Dynamics, the nation’s fourth largest defense contractor. The company located in Bath, Maine – population 8303 – currently builds Arleigh Burke and Zumwalt class destroyers.

Landfill Clean-Up Needed To Install Solar In Portland, Maine

August 30, 2017 Randy Billings, www.pressherald.com Create! Maine, New Economy, Solar Energy

By Randy Billings for Portland Press Herald - City officials admit the site has been allowed to deteriorate, and now remediation may disrupt installation of the 2,800 power panels. Plans to create a 4-acre solar array in Portland are forcing city officials to address longstanding issues at its closed landfill off Ocean Avenue. The city is looking to install more than 2,800 solar panels on the closed landfill by the end of the year so it can take advantage of higher rates paid for electricity from solar projects. Changes to so-called net metering rules will begin ratcheting down rates for solar energy beginning next year. But before it can install the solar panels, the city must fix the landfill cover, which has settled over the years and been compromised by recreational use, lack of maintenance and erosion. The city must also install vents to address methane gas that is collecting underneath the landfill cover. Several landfill neighbors, including Copley Woods Circle residents Sara Scola and Kim Rich, have been showing up at City Council meetings to urge the city to fully address the issue. They have expressed concern that the city would rush the mitigation work because of the solar project. Last Monday, they reiterated their concerns during a public comment period.

«1 2 3 4 »

Daily movement news and resources