The Colorado Union Observer
News and opinion about litigation, legislation, and other developments that could affect Colorado labor law and employees’ rights.
Note: The content of this page does not solely reflect lawsuits filed by clients of the Fairness Center, and the opinions expressed in linked articles do not necessarily reflect the views of the Fairness Center.
Featured News
A labor lockout in rural Colorado has a town asking: How do we survive?
The Denver Post
“The economic engine of Fort Morgan — a beef processing plant that employs more than 20% of the town’s population — has remained largely dark since Cargill halted production in April, then locked out its unionized workforce in May amid contentious contract negotiations.”
Supporters launch campaign for Colorado Proposition NN to boost school funding
The Sentinel
“Kevin Vick, president of the Colorado Education Association, the largest teachers union in the state, said their polling shows there’s support statewide to raise money for education. . . The union planned the measure, which lawmakers put on the Nov. 3 ballot.”
Perspective: Jewish civil rights – under siege
The Denver Gazette
“Teachers’ unions should lead the country toward nuance and democratic dialogue. Instead, too many drift toward purity politics that divide the world into acceptable and unacceptable Jews. That path does not lead toward justice. ”
Colorado union chief’s pick to head NEA under heavy teacher scrutiny
Complete Colorado
“When thousands of teachers gather in Denver in July to decide who will lead America’s largest teachers’ union, the National Education Association (NEA), only one candidate will be touting the endorsement of Kevin Vick, the most powerful teachers’ union official in Colorado.”
Why Denver City Council aides want to form a union
Axios Denver
“The roughly 40 Denver City Council aides seeking to form a union are setting up an early test of the city’s voter-approved collective bargaining law. ”
Unions treat teachers like ‘political piggy banks’
The Denver Gazette
“Before members of the National Education Association (NEA) gather in Denver next month to choose a new president of the largest teachers’ union in America, they should hear Ann Marie Pocklembo’s story. ”
10th Circuit grants Boulder-Weld district’s fire chief immunity for firing union leader
Colorado Politics
“The Denver-based federal appeals court decided on Monday that the chief of a fire protection district spanning Boulder and Weld counties could not be held liable for terminating a union leader through the process outlined in the collective bargaining agreement.”
Roughly 1,700 workers at the Cargill meatpacking plant in Fort Morgan remain locked out as labor dispute drags on
Colorado Public Radio
“A labor dispute leading to a lockout at the Cargill meatpacking plant in Fort Morgan has kept roughly 1,700 employees out of work since May 20th, when the company closed the facility after workers rejected what they described as a lowball contract offer.”
News of Colorado Unions
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Frequently Asked Questions
Since 2020, Colorado has passed multiple new state laws that relate to unions and public employees. These laws allow for mandatory unionization of nearly 70,000 state and county employees. For instance, Colorado Workers for Innovative and New Solutions (WINS) Local 1876 is a union representing more than 27,000 state employees, affiliated with American Federation of Teachers (AFT), and Service Employees International Union (SEIU). Employees in several counties across the state are now unionized under AFSCME Colorado. Further statutes and regulations relating to labor law are under consideration.
NOTE: If you have questions about this topic, or think you have a legal issue, consider contacting a lawyer. Fairness Center lawyers represent clients for free and can be reached here or at 844.293.1001. We strongly encourage you to pursue with haste any legal claim you believe you may have, as the mere passage of time may prevent you from exercising possible legal claims.
The Fairness Center currently offers free legal representation in Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, Colorado, New Jersey and to federal employees, and may soon be expanding to other areas. The Fairness Center has represented clients involved in disputes with unions, including:
- American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE),
- American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME),
- American Federation of Teachers (AFT),
- International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW),
- International Brotherhood of Teamsters (Teamsters),
- Law Enforcement Employees Benevolent Association (LEEBA),
- National Education Association (NEA),
- National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU),
- New York State United Teachers (NYSUT),
- Pennsylvania State Corrections Officers Association (PSCOA),
- Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA),
- Service Employees International Union (SEIU),
- Transportation Workers Union of America (TWU),
- United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW),
- UNITE Here, and more.
NOTE: If you have questions about this topic, or think you have a legal issue, consider contacting a lawyer. Fairness Center lawyers represent clients for free and can be reached here or at 844.293.1001. We strongly encourage you to pursue with haste any legal claim you believe you may have, as the mere passage of time may prevent you from exercising possible legal claims.
Unions owe a duty of fair representation to all the employees in a bargaining unit they represent, whether they are union members or not. The U.S. Supreme Court has said that the duty is breached when a union’s actions toward an employee it represents are “arbitrary, discriminatory, or in bad faith.” Vaca v. Sipes, 386 U.S. 171, 190 (1967).
Many jurisdictions follow that standard, but the exact details of what the duty requires may vary by jurisdiction and circumstances.
The Fairness Center has represented clients, like Connecticut teacher John Grande, who have alleged that their union violated the duty of fair representation because they were not union members or because union officials misrepresented important information during collective bargaining, as was the case with Pennsylvania employee Mark Kiddo and his colleagues.
NOTE: If you have questions about this topic, or think you have a legal issue, consider contacting a lawyer. Fairness Center lawyers represent clients for free and can be reached here or at 844.293.1001. We strongly encourage you to pursue with haste any legal claim you believe you may have, as the mere passage of time may prevent you from exercising possible legal claims.
Unions owe a duty of fair representation to all the employees in a bargaining unit they represent, whether they are union members or not. The U.S. Supreme Court has said that the duty is breached when a union’s actions toward an employee it represents are “arbitrary, discriminatory, or in bad faith.” Vaca v. Sipes, 386 U.S. 171, 190 (1967).
Many jurisdictions follow that standard, but the exact details of what the duty requires may vary by jurisdiction and circumstances. Some states permit unions not to represent nonmembers in “individualized” grievances. Also, some states allow nonmembers to represent themselves in grievances, at least in the first stages.
The Fairness Center has represented clients, like Connecticut teacher John Grande, who alleged that their union violated the duty of fair representation because they were not union members or because union officials misrepresented important information during collective bargaining, as was the case with Pennsylvania employee Mark Kiddo and his colleagues.
NOTE: If you have questions about this topic, or think you have a legal issue, consider contacting a lawyer. Fairness Center lawyers represent clients for free and can be reached here or at 844.293.1001. We strongly encourage you to pursue with haste any legal claim you believe you may have, as the mere passage of time may prevent you from exercising possible legal claims.
If you are a public employee who is not a union member, you have a constitutional right not to pay fees to a union, according to the Supreme Court’s Janus v. AFSCME decision in 2018.
Some courts have said that employees who were union members but who later resigned from the union had to continue paying union dues for a period of time in some circumstances. One example is if the employee had signed a membership card or application containing certain language.
We have successfully represented clients who were told they had to pay the union when they did not want to. However, the facts and circumstances of each situation vary, and our ability to offer representation may depend on the relevant legal jurisdiction.
NOTE: If you have questions about this topic, or think you have a legal issue, consider contacting a lawyer. Fairness Center lawyers represent clients for free and can be reached here or at 844.293.1001. We strongly encourage you to pursue with haste any legal claim you believe you may have, as the mere passage of time may prevent you from exercising possible legal claims.