Association of Legal Aid Attorneys

"They’re full of st." This is how Queens Defenders Executive Director Lori Zeno described the union effort by her employees. This kind of union-busting has no place in our City and much less by a non-profit public defender agency. This is unacceptable.... https://www.thecity.nyc//22218/queens-defenders-push-union

UAW Region 9A condemns today’s assault on our Nation’s Capitol building. An assault that was not only instigated but perpetrated by a sitting President to prev...ent a peaceful transition of power. At the very moment we watched angry pro-Trump rioters attack our Capitol building, we learned that Jon Ossoff won his US Senate race. The people have spoken - Joe Biden is our President Elect and Georgia Democrats Jon Ossoff and Rafael Warnock are our newest US Senators Elect. The Democrats will have the Presidency, the US House and the US Senate for the first time since 2010 an opportunity we cannot afford to waste. Today’s attacks, while traumatizing, hateful, and racist were expected. Why? Because they were incited by Trump, in an effort to overturn this election. And yet, police and law enforcement personnel onsite appeared unprepared and paralyzed. Months back however, when supporters of Black Lives Matter came to DC peacefully demanding justice, those same police and law enforcement were frighteningly prepared to intimidate, silence and hurt and they were very effective. (The first 2 photos are from today in DC, the final photo is of the Black Lives Matter protest earlier in DC.) While we cannot ignore the racist, xenophobic, misogynistic, classist, and hate-filled beliefs that fueled today’s attacks, we can learn from it and we can do better. Republicans must be held accountable for encouraging such desperate attempts to hold onto power while millions of people suffer from COVID 19 and its economic fallout - both of which have disproportionately impacted Black and Brown communities. Democrats, now in power, must be challenged to do better and to be bold. UAW Region 9A calls on our lawmakers to come together, respect the people’s vote and move forward together with labor fighting for working families, defending our democracy and closing the increasingly unfair and unjust income inequality gap plaguing this country and its people. No Justice No Peace. Thanks to WSLC President Larry Brown and Secretary Treasurer April Sims for their article in The Stand that helped to inspire and shape this statement.

"The union-busting effort is antithetical to their mission as a progressive organization which exists to protect the most marginalized people in Queens https://queenseagle.com//queens-defenders-declines-to-reco

"A lot of offices have unionized and we were becoming one of the outliers, said Queens Defender staff attorney Christopher Van Zele. 'This helps us negotiate with the city for fair pay and reasonable caseloads and to be able to represent our clients better. [...] Queens Defenders social worker Emily Duran said 90 percent of qualifying staff members voted to join the union after months of organizing.... We’re really a progressive organization that has fully embraced this holistic model of defense practice and unionizing is a natural next step for us, she said. https://queenseagle.com//attorneys-and-social-workers-vote

Welcome to the newest chapter of ALAA at the Queens Defenders. These attorneys and social workers have come together to push for better conditions for their co-workers and clients. We call on Queens Defenders to recognize the union immediately!

See ALAA President, Jared Trujillo on Latino Rebels

"Workers at Catholic Migration Services, a non-profit run by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn and Queens, were swiftly recognized as a union by CMS Management, and will soon head into negotiations to bargain a first contract. The thirty workers, including attorneys, counselors, administrative staff, organizers, and paralegals provide free legal assistance to low-income communities in Brooklyn and Queens in housing, immigration, and employment practices. The eight Staff... Attorneys at the Lenox Hill Neighborhood House were also recognized as a union earlier this month after an announcement to Lenox Hill Management. The attorneys are some of the only non-union staff at Lenox Hill, where most workers are represented by 1199 SEIU and DC 37. All eight attorneys zealously represent Manhattan tenants in housing court, fighting eviction and displacement. The Investigators and Interpreters, some of the last non-union staff working at the Legal Aid Society, joined together earlier this year to form a union with the UAW which was quickly recognized by Society management. The ninety Investigators and Interpreters and ALAA’s Joint Council then both voted on motions approving the merger of the two unions. The Investigators and Interpreters will constitute a full chapter of ALAA." https://www.alaa.org//organizing-update-workers-at-catholi

Last night our union's Joint Council overwhelmingly passed the attached motion calling on the AFL-CIO and UAW to expel policing unions from our ranks. Read the full statement below: https://www.alaa.org//resolution-calling-on-the-internatio

We're Hiring! Please share widely. Job Title: Bargaining Representative Status: Full-Time, Temporary Length of Term: 9 months, with possibility of permanent extension.... The Association of Legal Aid Attorneys - UAW Local 2325 is seeking a temporary bargaining representative to join our team, with the possibility of permanent extension. Every day, our members fight for justice for low income New Yorkers, and for themselves to have equitable pay, benefits, and safer working conditions. ALAA combines organizing, legislative, and legal advocacy to effectively represent over 2,000 public interest attorneys and staff across New York City. In the past three years, our union has grown from four units to seventeen units and membership has doubled. We currently have one organizer on staff but there are several newly organized shops that are in first contract negotiations. We are seeking someone with collective bargaining experience who shares our vision for empowering workers in a strong labor movement. https://www.alaa.org/open-positions

We’re excited to announce that members at two of our chapters ratified first contracts this week! Friday, our 224 members at New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG) ratified a 2-year contract with 86% of members voting and 98% voting YES. The contract includes salary increases, a ratification bonus, retro pay, just cause protection and grievance procedure, frozen health insurance contributions for the first year, greatly improved leaves, job security, health and safety pr...otections, and a contractually-enshrined committee to address race, diversity, equity and inclusion issues. ALAA represents all NYLAG workers, including financial counselors, development and administrative staff, paralegals and attorneys. On Tuesday, our 18 members at Asian Americans for Equality (AAFE) unanimously ratified a contract through 2022 with significant salary increases, just cause protection and grievance procedure, employer 403(b) contributions, improved leave time and health insurance, tuition reimbursement, job security, health and safety protections, additional holidays and early release time. AAFE is our first non-attorney chapter, representing counselors and advocates for tenants, seniors, immigrants and other members of the Asian American and Latinx communities. https://www.alaa.org/medi/aafe-amp-nylag-contracts-ratified

BFS union on strike - The People United will never be Defeated