It’s Wednesday, June 26, 2024.

I was planning to write about the Iowa governor vs. labor this week:

Gov. Kim Reynolds was to appear in North Liberty Monday after the federal government cracked down on restaurants following Iowa’s lax child labor laws, which go against federal child labor laws. The Iowa Federation of Labor was also planning a rebuttal press conference.

But then this happened, and canceled all of that:

Record flooding caused by heavy upstream rainfall devastated Northwest Iowa over the weekend, forcing several cities to shut down utilities, block roads, and evacuate residents. More flooding is on the way, too.

Gov. Kim Reynolds issued a disaster declaration for 21 counties in the region, opening state resources for local authorities and grants for affected residents.

If you or your loved ones are affected by the floods, get help here, or here. And if you’d like to share your own photos or footage of flooding where you’re at (it’s coming to more of Iowa now), send it to me here.

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And as far as I know, even though Iowa’s anti-immigration law was temporarily stopped by a judge, this protest is still happening Monday in Des Moines, Iowa City, and Waterloo.

Amie Rivers

Community Editor, Iowa Starting Line

Email me

Working class news you can use:

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Speaking of devastating disasters: If you suffered through big storms in April or May, you may qualify for D-SNAP, or emergency food benefits for disaster victims. The assistance is only for folks in certain ZIP codes, however; see which ones here.
It’s not the heat, it’s the worker protections: As the temperature climbs, so do heat-related illnesses. Fifty-one workers died of heat in 2022, the last year for which data were available—an increase over 2021. The good news: Heat illness is preventable with frequent shade, fans, or A/C breaks. Here’s how some workers have successfully advocated for their health at work.
Dental care can be expensive. But the credit cards popping up for dental care can get even pricier—with some saying those cards’ high interest can prey on the working class. (Maybe Medicare should include dental coverage?)
Northwest Iowa can’t catch a break: Bird flu has been found in an 11th farm this month. Most of them aren’t turkey or chicken flocks, but dairy cattle herds, and most are in Sioux County with a few in Plymouth and O’Brien counties. (Unlike birds, for whom the disease is often fatal, cows can recover.)
Affordable housing is voters’ No. 1 issue, and it’s no wonder when mortgage rates are at 7%, monopoly algorithms are jacking up rental prices, and home prices themselves have far outpaced wages (the Des Moines metro alone has seen a 74% increase since 1990).
Help with housing for the lease gap: Some landlords only sign rental contracts for campus-adjacent housing for the school year, leading to a “lease gap” for students who stick around during the summer. The University of Iowa has a Lease Gap Housing program to help students through that period; though it’s already full this summer, you can be added to the wait list here.
Amazon workers join Teamsters: After fighting their company for a contract for two years, the independent Amazon Labor Union voted last week to affiliate with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. That’s the group that successfully negotiated a historic UPS contract last year.
Low pay is the reason we don’t have more teachers, teachers told
a Senate committee last week.
Unionizing news:
– 21 Bruegger’s Bagels workers in Coralville and Iowa City’s South Riverside location are voting on whether to unionize on July 9. Read more about that here.
– 140 Quaker Manufacturing workers in Cedar Rapids filed on June 21 to be represented by the North Central States Regional Council of Carpenters union. (That doesn’t include around 700 production workers, who are already unionized and won a big 4-year contract last year.)
Iowa layoffs coming up:
– Atek Metal Technologies in New Hampton is laying off 48 workers by Thursday.
– PSSI in Perry is laying off 76 workers by Friday.
– Tyson Foods in Perry is closing and laying off 1,276 workers by Friday (read more about that here).
– DTG2Go in Storm Lake is closing and laying off five workers by Sunday.
– Family Resources Inc. in Davenport is laying off 26 workers by Sunday.
– Glenwood Resource Center in Glenwood is closing and laying off 235 workers by Sunday (read more about that here).
– Wells Fargo in West Des Moines is laying off 40 workers by Sunday, and another 24 workers by July 14.
– Amcor in Des Moines is laying off 10 workers by Monday, one worker by Aug. 1, and nine workers by Sept. 1.
– Bridgestone in Des Moines is laying off 118 workers by July 5 (read more about that here).
– FD Treats in Hawarden is closing and laying off 36 workers by July 19.

Before you punch out 🥩

Four years ago, President Donald Trump called meatpacking workers “essential,” then proceeded to treat them like they were expendable.

Those of us who live in meatpacking towns remember covering what happened next.

Those whose loved ones actually worked in those plants, living with the terror of death from COVID-19—people like Chuy Renteria—want to make sure we never go back.

Read Renteria’s excellent, heartbreaking column here.