Unions
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Who needs heat safety? Iowa layoffs and news, Aug. 6, 2026
Republicans in the US House are advancing legislation that would disallow OSHA from passing national heat safety standards.
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‘I gotta choose between gas and bread:’ Workers on strike in Cedar Rapids
Fifty-four skilled workers at the Pactiv Evergreen plant are tired of inflation eating up their paycheck—and tired of the middle class getting eaten up, too.
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‘Nobody is gonna come save us:’ Iowa’s university workers form different kind of union
Workers at Iowa’s three public universities who aren’t faculty aren’t unionized, and the state makes it hard to form one. So workers are trying something a little different.
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Gov. Reynolds asks UIHC to lower cancer bills: Iowa worker news and layoffs for July 23, 2026
Pretty please lower the hospital bills, Gov. Kim Reynolds is apparently asking University of Iowa Health Care after the Des Moines Register found thousands of patients were being charged more for cancer care. UIHC’s response? Take it up with the feds.
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Food, fuel prices still high: Iowa worker news and layoffs, July 16, 2026
Food and fuel costs remain 3.5% higher than they were a year ago, and the average Iowa household has paid an extra $516 on gas since Feb. 28.
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USDA cut 17% of Iowa workers in 2025: Worker news and layoffs for July 9, 2026
Iowa lost 17% of its USDA staff in 2025, including nearly 19% of its Natural Resources Conservation Service and 8% of its Farm Service Agency staff, both of which help farmers with federal loans and other programs.
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Hy-Vee’s manager problem? Upcoming layoffs and Iowa news briefs, July 2, 2026
A class action lawsuit was filed last week against Hy-Vee, arguing that the grocery store chain treated salaried managers like hourly ones—but didn’t pay them overtime like hourly workers.
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Workers suspicious of timing of River Hills Centerville closure
A healthcare company closed down the only clinic in town that takes Medicaid—and workers say it’s union busting.
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40% of Iowans can’t afford rent and bills: Iowa Worker’s Almanac layoffs and news for June 25, 2026
Almost half of US households didn’t earn enough money to meet basic needs in 2024, according to a new study. In Iowa, we’re doing a little better than average, with 60% of us able to make rent and utilities on time—but it varies widely by county.
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6 months later, UnityPoint still refuses to recognize nurses union
A Des Moines hospital chain has been refusing to recognize its nurses union for six months. Nurses are fed up and holding a rally to protest June 8.
