City Government

Kaplan Proposes City Support Labor Unions in Wake of Supreme Court Ruling

Published

7 years ago

July 4, 2018

The Rules and Legislation Committee of the Oakland City Council was scheduled this week to hear a resolution proposed by Councilmember-at-Large Rebecca Kaplan urging the City Administration to continue to work with public labor unions after the Supreme Court’s Janus undermining the strength of the labor movement.

The Janus decision Resolution was proposed by Councilmember Kaplan and co-sponsored by Councilmembers Noel Gallo and Dan Kalb.

In February 2018, the United States Supreme Court heard arguments in the Janus v. AFSCME Council 31 case, which could overturn the precedent set by the Abood v. Detroit Board of Education case in 1977, which allowed public sector unions to require “fair-share” fees from non-members that benefit from the union’s collective bargaining activities.

In the lead up to this week’s Supreme Court decision against labor this week, many cities and organizations have been passing resolutions urging for the continued partnerships with public unions no matter what the outcome of Janus.

“If the current precedent is overturned, unions could be restricted from requiring ‘fair-share’ fees from nonmembers, thereby weakening the unions’ power to effectively negotiate on behalf of all public-sector workers and to promote policies that protect workers’ rights, fair wages, and safer working conditions,” said Kaplan.

Others in the Bay Area that have already passed similar resolutions, include the Alameda County Board of Supervisors, San Francisco Board of Supervisors and AC Transit.

“This action, by the Supreme Court that was stacked with a more right-wing majority by the blockade on President Obama’s last nominee, will weaken unions’ power to effectively negotiate on behalf of all public sector workers, including to promote policies that protect workers’ rights, fair wages, and safer working conditions,” said Kaplan.

“As a life-long supporter of the rights of workers, I am concerned that this will hurt those who most need the protections. Today, we see financial struggles rising, including personal bankruptcies and the number of unhoused people at an all-time high,” said Kaplan.

“Without the appropriate negotiation power to fight for worker protections, we may see these numbers climb higher and at a faster rate. Also, it is important that people are able to afford to live in the cities in which they work, send their children to school, and have adequate healthcare and pensions available to them.”

The resolution passed the council committee Thursday and will go to the full council on July 10.

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Oakland Post: Week of June 4 – 10, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of June 4-10, 2025

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4 days ago

June 7, 2025

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Remembering George Floyd

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Minnesota State Attorney General Keith Ellison acknowledges that the Floyd case five years ago involved a situation in which due process was denied, and five years later, the president is currently dismissing “due process. “The Minnesota Atty General also says, “Trump is trying to attack constitutional rule, attacking congressional authority and judicial decision-making.” George Floyd was an African American man killed by police who knocked on his neck and on his back, preventing him from breathing.

Published

1 week ago

June 2, 2025

Oakland Post

Mural showing the portrait of George Floyd in Mauerpark in Berlin. To the left of the portrait the lettering "I can't Breathe" was added, on the right side the three hashtags #GeorgeFloyd, #Icantbreathe and #Sayhisname. The mural was completed by Eme Street Art (facebook name) / Eme Free Thinker (signature) on 29 May 2020. (Wikimedia Commons)

By April Ryan
BlackPressUSA Newswire

“The president’s been very clear he has no intentions of pardoning Derek Chauvin, and it’s not a request that we’re looking at,” confirms a senior staffer at the Trump White House. That White House response results from public hope, including from a close Trump ally, Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. The timing of Greene’s hopes coincides with the Justice Department’s recent decision to end oversight of local police accused of abuse. It also falls on the fifth anniversary of the police-involved death of George Floyd on May 25th. The death sparked national and worldwide outrage and became a transitional moment politically and culturally, although the outcry for laws on police accountability failed.

The death forced then-Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden to focus on deadly police force and accountability. His efforts while president to pass the George Floyd Justice in policing act failed. The death of George Floyd also put a spotlight on the Black community, forcing then-candidate Biden to choose a Black woman running mate. Kamala Harris ultimately became vice president of the United States alongside Joe Biden. Minnesota State Attorney General Keith Ellison prosecuted the cases against the officers involved in the death of Floyd. He remembers,” Trump was in office when George Floyd was killed, and I would blame Trump for creating a negative environment for police-community relations. Remember, it was him who said when the looting starts, the shooting starts, it was him who got rid of all the consent decrees that were in place by the Obama administration.”

In 2025, Police-involved civilian deaths are up by “about 100 to about 11 hundred,” according to Ellison. Ellison acknowledges that the Floyd case five years ago involved a situation in which due process was denied, and five years later, the president is currently dismissing “due process. “The Minnesota Atty General also says, “Trump is trying to attack constitutional rule, attacking congressional authority and judicial decision-making.” George Floyd was an African-American man killed by police who knocked on his neck and on his back, preventing him from breathing. During those minutes on the ground, Floyd cried out for his late mother several times. Police subdued Floyd for an alleged counterfeit $20 bill.