Labor News & Commentary February 14, 2024 Professors signs on to a call for ceasefire in Palestine & more

https://onlabor.org/february-14-2024/

By Jacqueline Rayfield

Jacqueline Rayfield is a student at Harvard Law School.

In today’s News and Commentary, the American Association of University Professors signs on to a call for ceasefire in Palestine, the NLRB gives Dartmouth’s trustees extra time for a review of the board’s ruling on labor unions for NCAA athletes, and Swedish unions temporarily lift Tesla repair-shop blockade.

The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) signed on to a call for “ceasefire in Israel and Palestine,” joining other labor unions including the UAW, Amazon Labor Union, and many others. Some critics call for further rank-and-file organizing to support the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement in addition to a ceasefire.

Last week, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled that “student-athletes” on Dartmouth’s men’s basketball team were effectively employees of the school. However, the Board on Monday agreed to move the appeal deadline on this decision for Dartmouth trustees from February 20 to March 5. All 15 members of the team have already signed an initial petition asking to be represented by SEIU.

Swedish industrial workers’ union, IF Metall, blocked Tesla’s repair shops for almost four months, the longest running strike in Sweden since World War II. Starting this Monday, however, about 30 non-Tesla repair shops will temporarily open repairs on Tesla vehicles. IF Metall explained that this move is intended to help Tesla vehicle owners without ending the strike against the company.