With misinformation being spread by management both at the NVC and the KCC, we need to clear up the confusion. Don’t let management’s lies intimidate you our of exercising your legally-protected right to withhold your labor!

Q: Are we going on strike?
A: That depends…

• We don’t want to strike. We’ll only strike if we decide we have no other choice.
• We will only go on strike if a majority of members vote to strike. Strike votes will be well-publicized and will occur during a membership meeting–or multiple meetings, if necessary to ensure maximum participation. 
• Members will only vote to strike if LDRM isn’t meeting our demands. If LDRM grants expanded telework, offers good raises, and brings UE 228 Chief Steward Shane Tassinari back to work, then it’s virtually certain that members won’t vote to strike.
• A strike authorization vote does not mean that the local will immediately go on strike. The vote “authorizes” the Bargaining Committee to call a strike at a time that is most strategically useful during bargaining. After a strike authorization vote, circumstances may necessitate striking within a few hours, or a strike may not be called for many weeks (if it happens at all).

Q: Can I be fired for striking?
A: NO! Striking can feel like a big deal, but workers are on strike every day in this country–including today–and none of them are fired for being part of a strike. All that’s really happening when we strike is this:

• We have a contract with LDRM
  • The contract is our agreement to provide labor in exchange for compensation
  • The contract also covers the terms of how we provide that labor, including what rights we have and what expectations LDRM is able to place upon us while we work
• Our contract expires
• Once our contract expires, we are not required to continue working unless LDRM offers us a new contract that we find acceptable

Our right to strike is protected by the National Labor Relation Act, which makes it illegal for an employer to fire, discipline, or retaliate against an employee who participates in a strike. Moreover, we would not return from strike without an “unconditional return to work” agreement, which is an added layer of protection ensuring that every striking worker can resume work without any consequences.

Q: Can striking affect my green card?
A: NO! Immigrant and non-immigrant workers in the U.S. have a right to participate in unions, including strikes. In fact, USCIS cannot even ask about your involvement with a union! The National Labor Relations Board has released a Know Your Rights infographic and a more detailed Immigrant Employee Rights notice that makes this clear.

Q: How long will a strike last?
A: As long as it takes. Once we go out, we need to be prepared to stay out until our demands are met and a new contract is ratified by a vote of the members.

That said, the frame of reference for most members is the UAW “Stand Up” strike against the Big Three automakers in 2023, which lasted about 6 weeks. It is highly improbable that we would have a strike last anywhere near that long. Unlike the Big Three, LDRM has pressure coming at it both from workers and from the State Department. The company’s failure to first prevent and then to rapidly resolve a work stoppage would seal LDRM’s fate for future contracts with DOS (or with any other agency for that matter). If LDRM responds to the strike by quickly agreeing to more of the union’s demands, the company will be able to ensure that the strike is very, very short.

In 2020, UE 728 workers at the KCC went on strike for one day after LDRM refused to give them raises (that’s right, LDRM tried to walk away from the table insisting that there would be NO RAISES that year). That one-day strike resulted in immediate increases of between $2.12 and $3.08 per hour depending on job classification. There are no guarantees, but experience shows that even short strikes can have dramatic effects!

Ultimately, members will be in control of how long the strike goes because members will democratically decide when to end the strike. This will most likely occur when LDRM offers a better deal that members find acceptable.

Q: I don’t have enough PTO to strike.
A: You cannot use PTO while striking.

Q: I can’t afford to strike.
A: You can’t afford not to strike. Striking is, in many ways, “paying yourself” by investing in your future. It’s meant to be a powerful thing when workers say “I’m so fed up with this company’s treatment, I’d rather sacrifice my pay right now than let their bad behavior continue.” And for the money you lose during the time you’re striking, you ultimately come out ahead because of the better raises and benefits that result from the strike.

But there may be some of us who are really struggling to keep our heads above water. That’s why the local has a Hardship Fund available for anyone who needs it. If a worker is faced with eviction, having utilities shut off, having a car repossessed, or is unable to afford their medication, the Hardship Committee will work with them to make sure the bill is paid or the prescription filled. We’re not leaving anyone behind!

There is presently more than $100k in the UE 228 Strike Fund. That is not enough to replace wages (to be prepared to do that, the local would need to massively raise dues contributions). But $100k is more than enough to make sure no one has negative financial consequences.

Q: Do I have to call out when striking?
A: NO! And you shouldn’t.

The Union will provide notice to LDRM when the strike begins. You will receive additional instructions to email management, advising them that you are on strike. This is one of the ways that we will thoroughly document your strike participation to ensure that you have the full legal protections afforded to striking workers.