Featured Stories
Tucson nurses plan protests over unsafe staffing and working conditions amid contract negotiations
SILVER SPRING, Maryland, Sept. 22 [Category: Union] -- National Nurses United issued the following news release:
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Tucson nurses plan protests over unsafe staffing and working conditions amid contract negotiations
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Registered nurses at Carondelet St. Mary's and St. Joseph's hospitals will hold informational pickets on Thursday, Sept. 24, to demand that Carondelet management address serious staffing, patient care, and nurse recruitment and retention issues. The nurses are deeply concerned about eroding patient care conditions and the lack of experienced staff to adequately care for patients
... Show Full Article
SILVER SPRING, Maryland, Sept. 22 [Category: Union] -- National Nurses United issued the following news release:
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Tucson nurses plan protests over unsafe staffing and working conditions amid contract negotiations
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Registered nurses at Carondelet St. Mary's and St. Joseph's hospitals will hold informational pickets on Thursday, Sept. 24, to demand that Carondelet management address serious staffing, patient care, and nurse recruitment and retention issues. The nurses are deeply concerned about eroding patient care conditions and the lack of experienced staff to adequately care for patientssafely.
Who: Nurses from St. Mary's and St. Joseph's hospitals
What: Informational pickets for safe staffing and a strong contract
Where and When (both pickets on Thursday, Sept. 24):
St. Mary's Hospital, 1601 W. St. Mary's Rd, Tucson: 8 to 10 a.m.
St. Joseph's Hospital, 350 N. Wilmot Rd., Tucson: 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
"We've been in contract negotiations for months while management won't move on these issues that directly affect patient care," said Jessica Guzman, RN at St. Mary's. "We've made proposals for safer patient handling, safer staffing, and better working conditions to recruit and retain nurses. One of our most basic demands is to staff up enough so nurses actually get our meal and rest breaks on 12-hour shifts."
National Nurses Organizing Committee/National Nurses United (NNOC/NNU), the largest and fastest growing nurses union in the country, represents approximately 600 nurses at Carondelet St. Mary's and St. Joseph's hospitals in Tucson. Nurses began negotiations on a new contract in April.
National Nurses United is the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States with more than 225,000 members nationwide. NNU affiliates include California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, DC Nurses Association, Michigan Nurses Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and New York State Nurses Association.
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Original text here: https://www.nationalnursesunited.org/press/tucson-nurses-plan-protests-over-unsafe-staffing-and-working-conditions
Sysco Drivers in Wisconsin Vote Overwhelmingly to Join Teamsters
WASHINGTON, Sept. 22 [Category: Union] -- The International Brotherhood of Teamsters posted the following news release:
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Sysco Drivers in Wisconsin Vote Overwhelmingly to Join Teamsters
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(BARABOO, Wis.) - Drivers at Sysco in Baraboo have voted overwhelmingly to join Teamsters Local 120. The 84 drivers organized to secure the strong wages, benefits, and workplace protections that Sysco Teamsters have won at the bargaining table across the country.
"Our routes fall right between Minneapolis and Chicago, where Sysco workers are already Teamsters," said Tyler Knoup, a Sysco Baraboo driver
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, Sept. 22 [Category: Union] -- The International Brotherhood of Teamsters posted the following news release:
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Sysco Drivers in Wisconsin Vote Overwhelmingly to Join Teamsters
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(BARABOO, Wis.) - Drivers at Sysco in Baraboo have voted overwhelmingly to join Teamsters Local 120. The 84 drivers organized to secure the strong wages, benefits, and workplace protections that Sysco Teamsters have won at the bargaining table across the country.
"Our routes fall right between Minneapolis and Chicago, where Sysco workers are already Teamsters," said Tyler Knoup, a Sysco Baraboo driverand new member of Local 120. "We saw what Teamsters at Sysco in Minnesota and Illinois have won, and their wages and benefits are considerably better than ours. We organized because we're ready to close that gap and get what we deserve."
The newly organized drivers deliver food and supplies to restaurants, hospitals, and major universities throughout Wisconsin, including the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Nationwide, the Teamsters represent over 13,000 workers at Sysco and its subsidiaries.
Sysco is one of the largest food service providers in the United States and reported $1.83 billion in net earnings in fiscal year 2025. Across the country, Sysco Teamsters have secured contracts with substantial wage increases, Teamsters health care, pension benefits, and strong workplace protections.
"Sysco drivers in Baraboo saw what their Teamsters brothers and sisters have won across the industry and decided it was time to demand the same," said Tom Erickson, President of Local 120 and Director of the Teamsters Warehouse Division. "These workers generate enormous profits for Sysco, and now we're going to make sure they get their fair share. We are ready to bargain the strongest possible first contract, and Sysco should understand that Local 120 and the entire Teamsters Union will be standing behind these workers every step of the way."
Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.3 million hardworking people in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. Visit Teamster.org for more information. Follow us on X @Teamsters and on Facebook at Facebook.com/teamsters.
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Original text here: https://teamster.org/2026/09/sysco-drivers-in-wisconsin-vote-overwhelmingly-to-join-teamsters/
National Nurses United endorses Justin Pearson for Tennessee's 9th District
SILVER SPRING, Maryland, Sept. 22 [Category: Union] -- National Nurses United issued the following news release:
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National Nurses United endorses Justin Pearson for Tennessee's 9th District
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National Nurses United (NNU), the largest union of registered nurses in the United States with more than 225,000 members, today announced its endorsement of Justin Pearson for Tennessee's 9th Congressional District. Pearson has spent his life fighting for justice for his community, including holding polluters and corporate-backed politicians accountable. If elected, he will bring that same bold leadership
... Show Full Article
SILVER SPRING, Maryland, Sept. 22 [Category: Union] -- National Nurses United issued the following news release:
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National Nurses United endorses Justin Pearson for Tennessee's 9th District
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National Nurses United (NNU), the largest union of registered nurses in the United States with more than 225,000 members, today announced its endorsement of Justin Pearson for Tennessee's 9th Congressional District. Pearson has spent his life fighting for justice for his community, including holding polluters and corporate-backed politicians accountable. If elected, he will bring that same bold leadershipto Congress.
"NNU is proud to endorse State Representative Justin Pearson for U.S. Congress," said NNU President Jamie Brown, RN. "Whether it is taking on oil companies threatening the water supply in Memphis, Trump-backed politicians who want to silence the Black vote through redistricting, or tech oligarchs building toxic data centers, Justin is ready to fight for his community. Nurses are ready to stand beside Justin to elect him to Congress."
"I am grateful and humbled by this endorsement from National Nurses United," said State Representative Justin Pearson. "My grandmothers worked in nursing so this profession is near and dear to my heart. I appreciate the vital care nurses provide and support NNU's work to strengthen safe patient staffing and patient-care protections. Like NNU, I support expanding Medicare to everyone and look forward to working with them to bring home the victory in November and make Medicare for All a reality."
NNU supports candidates who are committed to nurses' values, including safe patient staffing in all hospitals across the country, protecting the rights of workers to organize, guaranteeing comprehensive health care to everyone through Medicare for All, and the abolishment of ICE. In a recent Gallup poll, nurses were voted the most trusted profession in the United States for the 24th consecutive year. NNU looks forward to helping elect Pearson and working closely with him in Congress on the important issues that affect registered nurses, our patients, and our communities.
National Nurses United is the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States with more than 225,000 members nationwide. NNU affiliates include California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, DC Nurses Association, Michigan Nurses Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and New York State Nurses Association.
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Original text here: https://www.nationalnursesunited.org/press/national-nurses-united-endorses-justin-pearson-for-tennessees-9th-district
Largest Federal Employee Union Endorses 5 California Candidates for Election to U.S. House
WASHINGTON, Sept. 22 [Category: Union] -- The AFL-CIO American Federation of Government Employees issued the following news release:
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Largest Federal Employee Union Endorses 5 California Candidates for Election to U.S. House
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AFGE says candidates will support federal employees and their vital work
LAKEWOOD, Calif. -The American Federation of Government Employees today announced its endorsement of five candidates for election to the U.S. House representing California in the 2026 elections. The general election is Nov. 3.
The newly endorsed candidates are:
* Mike McGuire (CD-1), president
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, Sept. 22 [Category: Union] -- The AFL-CIO American Federation of Government Employees issued the following news release:
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Largest Federal Employee Union Endorses 5 California Candidates for Election to U.S. House
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AFGE says candidates will support federal employees and their vital work
LAKEWOOD, Calif. -The American Federation of Government Employees today announced its endorsement of five candidates for election to the U.S. House representing California in the 2026 elections. The general election is Nov. 3.
The newly endorsed candidates are:
* Mike McGuire (CD-1), presidentpro tempore of the California State Senate and the first rural Democratic leader to hold that post in more than a century.
* Dr. Richard Pan (CD-6), a pediatrician who secured $90 million in new federal funding for California's emergency responders and helped keep Sacramento's fire stations open during a budget crisis while representing the city in the California State Senate.
* Aisha Wahab (CD-14), a state senator who worked with AFGE Local 1260 to pass legislation protecting federal employees from eviction during government shutdowns.
* Jacqui Irwin (CD-26), former mayor of Thousand Oaks and member of the California State Assembly who chaired the assembly's Military and Veterans Affairs Committee
* Marni von Wilpert (CD-48), who served as counsel on the House Committee on Education and Labor and helped write the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act.
"AFGE needs candidates that support the vital work of federal employees and understand that our workplace rights are crucial in helping federal employees provide the best services to the country," said AFGE District 12 National Vice President Mario Campos. "Jacqui Irwin, Mike McGuire, Dr. Richard Pan, Aisha Wahab, and Marni von Wilpert will help lead the way in ensuring that federal employees are given the dignity and respect they deserve by members of Congress."
AFGE previously endorsed 39 current members of Congress for reelection to their seats representing California ahead of the statewide primary.
More than 255,000 federal employees live in California - caring for veterans, supporting the military, ensuring the safety of our food and air, and getting Social Security recipients their benefits accurately and on time.
AFGE is the largest federal employee union in the country, representing more than 820,000 federal and D.C. government workers in all functions of government. AFGE represents nearly 82,000 federal employees in District 12, which includes Arizona, California, Hawaii, and Nevada.
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Original text here: https://www.afge.org/link/7ba4d1e5820c4a3589b4b1c056ebdc1b.aspx
CWA Statement in Response to Further Layoffs at XBOX
WASHINGTON, Sept. 22 [Category: Union] -- The AFL-CIO Communications Workers of America posted the following news release:
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CWA Statement in Response to Further Layoffs at XBOX
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The Communications Workers of America (CWA) released the following statement in response to the layoffs of 268 video game workers across XBOX today:
Today, 268 dedicated video game workers lost their livelihoods as XBOX continues to put profits ahead of the workers who are the heart and soul of the platform's games. CWA does not expect today's layoffs to impact union-represented workers.
Earlier this month,
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, Sept. 22 [Category: Union] -- The AFL-CIO Communications Workers of America posted the following news release:
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CWA Statement in Response to Further Layoffs at XBOX
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The Communications Workers of America (CWA) released the following statement in response to the layoffs of 268 video game workers across XBOX today:
Today, 268 dedicated video game workers lost their livelihoods as XBOX continues to put profits ahead of the workers who are the heart and soul of the platform's games. CWA does not expect today's layoffs to impact union-represented workers.
Earlier this month,CWA members at Blizzard Entertainment secured layoff protections and recall rights in a breakthrough union contract that has the power to set new standards for the industry. Every video game worker deserves the dignity of layoff protections and a voice in shaping their studios for the better.
To those workers left at studios impacted today, and to workers across the industry, our message is simple: join us. Together we have a stronger voice in shaping our industry into what it ought to be.
About CODE-CWA:
The Campaign to Organize Digital Employees (CODE-CWA) is a union movement of thousands of workers fighting every single day to build the voice and power necessary to ensure the future of the tech, games, and digital industries in the United States and Canada. CODE-CWA is a project of the Communications Workers of America (CWA), which represents hundreds of thousands of workers throughout tech, media, telecom, and other industries who stand together to fight for justice on the job and in our communities.
cwa-union.org @cwaunion
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Original text here: https://cwa-union.org/news/releases/cwa-statement-response-further-layoffs-xbox
American Federation of Teachers Issues Letter to Treasury Secretary Bessent
WASHINGTON, Sept. 22 (TNSletter)-- The AFL-CIO American Federation of Teachers issued the following letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
Bessent is also the chair of the Financial Stability Oversight Council.
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Here is the text of the letter:
September 15, 2026
The Honorable Scott Bessent, Chair
Financial Stability Oversight Council
U.S. Department of the Treasury
1500 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W.
Washington, DC 20220
Dear Chair Bessent:
I am writing on behalf of 1.875 million AFT members, who are educators, healthcare workers and public service workers whose deferred wages are
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, Sept. 22 (TNSletter)-- The AFL-CIO American Federation of Teachers issued the following letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
Bessent is also the chair of the Financial Stability Oversight Council.
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Here is the text of the letter:
September 15, 2026
The Honorable Scott Bessent, Chair
Financial Stability Oversight Council
U.S. Department of the Treasury
1500 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W.
Washington, DC 20220
Dear Chair Bessent:
I am writing on behalf of 1.875 million AFT members, who are educators, healthcare workers and public service workers whose deferred wages areinvested through pension and retirement funds, exceeding $4 trillion in combined assets. Recently, I met with members of the AFT who serve as trustees overseeing many of those pension funds and discussed the potential threat to financial stability posed by the relationship between the artificial intelligence industry and the financial markets, particularly given the dire impact that past financial crises have had on our pension funds and members. We are gravely concerned and call on you, in your capacity as chair, to urge the Financial Stability Oversight Council to swiftly examine and direct its member agencies to monitor and report on a cluster of interrelated risks associated with the current buildout of AI infrastructure and the financial arrangements that support it.
Within the past week alone, top AI researchers and key leaders in the tech industry have been sounding alarms and calling for an immediate slowdown in the pace of AI development. It could not be more evident that policymakers and public officials have a duty to act to protect working people and our economy. With many Americans living paycheck to paycheck and struggling to make ends meet, the anxieties around the future of AI extend well beyond job displacement. The very real risks to our economy are becoming clearer by the day. Yet just yesterday, President Donald Trump said that he will not listen to anyone raising concerns about AI, not even from the frontier tech company leaders developing the latest AI models. We hope FSOC will choose a different approach and begin to disclose and act on the many risks detailed below.
Individually, each of the developments described below has drawn attention from market participants, central banks and international financial institutions. Together, they describe a pattern of rising leverage, concentration and interconnection across the financial system that falls squarely within the Council's statutory mandate under Title I of the Dodd-Frank Act to identify risks to the financial stability of the United States, promote market discipline, and respond to emerging threats before they materialize into crises that could jeopardize millions of working Americans' retirement security. Many of these concerns were raised with you in a Jan. 22, 2026, letter from Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Richard Blumenthal, Chris Van Hollen and Tina Smith;1 since then, new developments and additional data have only added to the urgency that FSOC act now.
Equity Market Concentration and Valuation Risk. AI-related stocks have accounted for 65 to 75 percent of S&P 500 returns, profit and capital spending since ChatGPT launched in November 2022.2 Currently, even after recent price declines, seven companies dependent on investments in AI comprise roughly 34 to 35 percent of the total capitalization of the S&P 500, up from about 12 percent in 2015,3 with combined market capitalization exceeding $23 trillion,4 which is larger than the GDP of most countries. Movement of any of these companies significantly moves the entire index. The dramatic increases in the stock prices of these companies have pushed the S&P 500's cyclically adjusted price-to-earnings ratio to 42 as of August 2026, a level only previously reached at the peak of the dot-com bubble.5 Other valuation metrics, such as the price-to-sales and price-to-book ratios, are even higher than their dot-com era peaks.6 The planned mega-IPOs of AI companies expected in the coming months7 and proposals by the Securities and Exchange Commission to deregulate public equity markets will only exacerbate these issues.8
Global regulators and oversight bodies are also sounding alarms. The Bank of England's July 2026 "Financial Stability Report" found that equity valuations "have become further stretched by historical standards," warning of increased risk of a sharp market correction due to increased leverage in equity markets.9 The International Monetary Fund's managing director has separately warned that financial conditions "can turn abruptly" and that current valuations are heading toward levels last seen in the run-up to the dot-com crash.10 Even the Federal Open Market Committee's October 2025 notes indicate that "several participants" raised "the possibility of a disorderly fall in equity prices" given "stretched asset valuations."11
Capital Expenditure and Revenue Disconnect. The scale of current AI-related capital investment appears vastly outsized relative to project revenues. Goldman Sachs Research projects $1 trillion of AI-related investment globally in 2026, with $581 billion of that in the U.S.12 Gartner projects global AI capital investment may reach $3.3 trillion in 2027.13 Yet GMO's Jeremy Grantham estimates that total AI revenue is only $64 billion against well over a trillion dollars of cumulative investment.14 OpenAI alone is reportedly spending roughly $60 billion a year on compute against a $40 billion revenue projection,15 with 2026 losses projected near $14 billion and a growing debt load.16 A March 2026 analysis found that 2026 hyperscaler capex, measured as a share of U.S. GDP, is on pace to exceed peak spending on the Manhattan Project, the Apollo program and the interstate highway system.17 Indeed, The Economist recently found that covering AI capex spending would require AI-specific revenues of $2.5 trillion per year.18
The revenue projections used to justify this spending assume that data centers can be built, powered and operated, and that sustainable revenue will appear to support those data centers, often on an aggressive timeline. Yet a Gallup survey found 71 percent of Americans oppose AI data center construction in their local area,19 and Pew Research reports that 52 percent of Americans are more concerned than excited about the increased use of AI,20 which does not bode well for revenue. Moratoriums, prohibitive legislation, and widespread backlash against data center power and water consumption, noise and air pollution, and tax subsidies, may cause further delays. Already, nearly 40 percent of data centers due to come online this year are at risk of falling behind schedule, and only half of AI computing capacity scheduled to come online over the next two years is expected to do so by its target date.21 Over 250 municipalities and one state have enacted bans or moratoriums on data center constructions.22 The AI revenue outlook is further complicated by Chinese competition, as rising usage fees from U.S. developers make Chinese models more attractive.23
Growing Debt Exposure to AI. Both neocloud companies and hyperscalers are using debt financing to fund data center builds. Oracle's growing debt load pushed its debt rating to just above junk status.24 Hyperscaler bond issuances are projected to have grown more than 16-fold in just two years, from $17 billion in 2024 to $279 billion in 2026. JP Morgan estimates approximately $2 trillion of the roughly $5 trillion AI buildout through 2030 will be financed through investment-grade credit markets.25 However, reported debt figures are likely understated. Moody's found that the five largest hyperscalers had accumulated $969 billion in undiscounted future lease commitments, with more than two-thirds related to facilities not even built yet. These lease obligations not yet on the balance sheet amount to 113 percent of hyperscalers' adjusted debt, larger in aggregate than all their currently reported debt combined.26 Special purpose vehicles push still more spending off their books. Meta's $27 billion Hyperion data center financing was structured through an SPV borrowing through the private credit market, such that the project debt never appears on Meta's balance sheet.27 In August, the Wall Street Journal estimated that nine large tech companies including Alphabet, Meta, Oracle, Nvidia, Microsoft and Amazon--hold $3 trillion in AI-related off-balance-sheet debt. When combined with the over $1.35 trillion in debt on top firms' balance sheets,28 this means that just a few companies now have nearly $5 trillion in debt outstanding.29 Massive capital outlays running far ahead of revenue were a key feature of past financial crises, including in 1873, 1929 and 2000.
Circular Financing. Financial relationships between actors within the AI supply chain have become increasingly interwoven and may be inflating perceived demand for AI services, making AI companies' earnings appear healthier than they are and masking potential risks. The circularity appeared prominently when chip manufacturer Nvidia announced that it would invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI, which in turn committed to purchase chips from Nvidia,30 followed by Nvidia's consideration of financing guarantees of tens of billions of dollars for OpenAI data centers.31 The scope and prevalence of these interlocking commitments prompted a Federal Trade Commission investigation into OpenAI, Anthropic, Microsoft, Alphabet and Amazon in 2024,32 and analysts now estimate that their scale may exceed $800 billion as of mid-2026.33
While proponents describe this as an efficient means to generate compute capacity amid real demand,34 critics warn that circular financing may inflate demand signals, mask the creditworthiness of actors whose revenue is substantially derived from their own investors, and concentrate risk among a small number of firms whose interdependent equity, debt and vendor relationships have become difficult to disentangle.35
Interconnections Between Private Credit, Banks, Insurers and Private Equity. Private credit has become a dominant financing channel for the AI buildout,36 including data center construction, GPU/chip purchases, and related capex, often through project-finance or asset-backed structures to the tune of trillions of dollars with very limited transparency about the structures involved. One industry source called the scale "astronomical" and warned this opacity could create litigation risk for pension funds who later discover they lacked full awareness of the concentration risk in the private credit funds they invested in.37 The Securities and Exchange Commission's release of an interpretive letter stating that data center securitizations are not asset-backed securities effectively shields them from a higher level of transparency and disclosure that investors could use to evaluate their risks.38
The wave of redemption requests this year further highlights the precarity.39 The September 2025 bankruptcies of First Brands and Tricolor prompted multiple banks to disclose material private-credit-related exposures,40 and prompted JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon to warn publicly that private credit losses would likely run "higher than expected."41 In the first half of 2026, several large asset managers, including Blue Owl, Apollo, Partners Group and Starwood, froze, gated or sharply limited redemptions on private credit and real estate funds after investor withdrawal requests exceeded contractual limits.42
Separately, U.S. life insurers now hold an estimated $807 billion in private credit and illiquid investments, equal to roughly 20 percent of fixed-income assets industrywide, which several analysts estimate is considerably higher at insurers now affiliated with, or acquired by, private equity sponsors that use policyholder capital to fund their own credit strategies.43 These developments suggest the very real possibility that private credit's interconnections with banks, insurers and the AI capital stack could transmit stress well beyond private credit funds themselves, much as problems in the subprime mortgage market in 2008 ultimately led to the collapse of AIG, the world's largest insurance company at the time.44
As a case in point, Nvidia recently announced partnering with several large asset management firms (Apollo, Blackstone, BlackRock, Brookfield Asset Management, Goldman Sachs and KKR) to create a $500 billion fund to finance data centers and acquire Nvidia's hardware, tapping institutional and insurance capital.45 Despite the projected short lifespan and rapid depreciation of current AI chips, Nvidia and its partner asset managers are marketing the underlying assets as "long-lived," long-term bankable infrastructure. CNBC reports that BlackRock's Larry Fink called this funding project, apparently without irony, "the start of the 'next future for financial engineering,' akin to the creation of mortgage-backed securities in the 1970s,"46 which is particularly notable given Fink's role47 creating the mortgage-backed securities market that triggered the 2008 financial collapse, as commenters have noted.48
This deepening interdependence is emerging at precisely the moment that federal banking regulators are reducing the capital, leverage and oversight buffers designed to absorb shocks. The Financial Stability Board's May 2026 report warned that the private credit market's complexity, leverage, and interconnectedness with banks, insurers and private equity firms "could amplify stress in adverse scenarios," posing broader risks to financial stability, which "at its current size and scope has not been tested during a severe economic downturn."49 Yet in March 2026, the Federal Reserve, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. jointly proposed rescinding the 2023 Basel III Endgame framework in favor of a package that would significantly reduce capital requirements at banks of all sizes.50 A separate rule took effect in April 2026 permitting the largest global banks to increase their leverage, and the Federal Reserve has indicated that it will not increase until at least 2027 stress test-based capital requirements while it revises its methodology.51 The Federal Reserve also announced plans to cut its own staff by approximately 30 percent by the end of 2026,52 effectively hampering oversight. Moreover, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board is shuttering its Office of the Investor Advocate, further limiting investors' voices in setting robust audit standards and inspection priorities for the companies they invest in.53
In a June 2026 speech titled "Deregulating in a Financial Boom: What Could Go Wrong?" Federal Reserve Gov. Michael Barr warned that the cumulative effect of these changes will "considerably weaken bank regulation and supervision" and that resulting vulnerabilities "may not be apparent today, but they will result in problems that will build over the coming years."54 Several other Fed officials, regulators and outside analysts have cautioned that rolling back safeguards increases systemic vulnerability precisely as asset valuations, AI-related lending and nonbank credit exposure are all rising in tandem.55
In light of the foregoing, and consistent with the Council's statutory purposes under Section 112 of the Dodd-Frank Act to identify risks to financial stability, promote market discipline and respond to emerging threats,56 we request that the Council:
* Compel data production to enable the Council to evaluate systemic financial risks stemming from direct and indirect exposure to AI-linked equities, debt and circular financing arrangements among the largest banks, insurers, private credit funds and private equity firms, utilizing its member agencies (including the Federal Reserve, the OCC, the FDIC, the SEC and, through the state insurance commissioner representative, relevant state insurance regulators);
* Report fully on these systemic financial risks in the Council's December Annual Report, if not sooner, consistent with its statutory mandate to identify emerging threats to financial stability.57 This report should include a dedicated assessment of AI-related concentration, capital expenditure/revenue mismatch, and circular financing's potential to overstate the underlying economics of AI-sector revenue and creditworthiness as well as any other research findings and recommendations of the interagency AI working group monitoring potential risks to financial stability;
* Require accelerated disclosure from public companies and private fund sponsors, providing transparency into related-party revenue, backlog and financing arrangements among major AI participants to enable asset owners to appropriately assess risk exposure across asset classes and price risk into current and future allocations;
* Develop and ensure implementation of enhanced capital, leverage and stress-testing rule changes that are sufficiently robust to protect our economy from a correlated-shock scenario where a sharp AI-linked equity correction is accompanied by private credit and insurer stress; and
* Take any other actions within its authority to protect our financial system and broader economy from these risks.
The risk landscape is changing rapidly, making the Council's monitoring and coordination role, as assigned by Congress, more urgently needed now than at any point since the 2008 financial crisis. Market participants--including our members' pension funds whose pooled assets provide critical capital investments in our economy--and the public deserve to know the extent and nature of risks building up in our financial system. Working people expect the government to work for them, and that includes this Council, which was founded in direct response to the 2008 financial crisis to prevent a lack of coordination among agencies from allowing unchecked risks to build up in the financial system again. The Council holds the health of our financial system in its hands, protecting our long-term interests in a strong, vibrant economy that provides jobs and opportunities.
In May, when we released the AFT's 10-point plan to address AI in the classroom, we made it clear that the tech industry itself--not our government--should pay for the development and implementation of AI technology and for any adverse impacts it has on American workers and families.58 At our national convention in July, AFT members adopted a comprehensive policy statement on AI.59 We would find it completely unacceptable and frankly illegal if a combination of irresponsible behavior by private actors and regulatory failure by the FSOC and its constituent bodies led to demands for a public bailout from AI companies, their executives and their financial partners. Publicly funded bailouts of tech companies and executives, including but not limited to support from the Federal Reserve System, would not be legal under the Dodd-Frank Act, nor would they be an acceptable response to either business or regulatory failure.
Given President Trump's continued refusal to act to address the public's growing concerns about AI, including both human impacts and AI-related systemic financial risk, we call on you as chair to act immediately. The American public deserves a clear, honest and transparent accounting of the risks to the economy that the current AI buildout poses, not just its potential, which you have promoted.60 Let us be clear: Refusals to act or regulate, despite the clear and mounting risk, is a choice that working people will long remember.
This context and the recent statements by President Trump make the urgency of the actions we recommend the FSOC take all the greater, and we call on you in your role as chair to act quickly.
Very truly yours,
Randi Weingarten, AFT President
RW : dlk opeiu#2 afl-ci0
cc: U.S. Department of the Treasury
Federal Reserve Board of Governors
Comptroller of the Currency
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Securities and Exchange Commission
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Commodity Futures Trading Commission
Federal Housing Finance Agency
National Credit Union Administration
House Financial Services Committee
Senate Finance Committee
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Original text and footnotes here: https://www.aft.org/sites/default/files/media/documents/2026/AFTFSOCLtr.pdf
News Release here: https://www.aft.org/press-release/aft-demands-financial-regulators-investigate-ai-bubble-risks-workers-retirement
[Category: Union]
2026 WGAE Council Elections Results
NEW YORK, Sept. 22 [Category: Union] -- The AFL-CIO Writers Guild of America East issued the following news release:
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2026 WGAE Council Elections Results
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NEW YORK, NY (September 22, 2026)-The Writers Guild of America East (WGAE) today announced the results of its 2026 Council election. Elected members will serve a two-year term, the first full day of which is September 23, 2026.
The Council consists of 20 Council members: twelve (12) Film/TV/Streaming members, five (5) Online Media members and three (3) Broadcast/Cable/Streaming News members, plus five (5) officers: President, Secretary-Treasurer
... Show Full Article
NEW YORK, Sept. 22 [Category: Union] -- The AFL-CIO Writers Guild of America East issued the following news release:
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2026 WGAE Council Elections Results
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NEW YORK, NY (September 22, 2026)-The Writers Guild of America East (WGAE) today announced the results of its 2026 Council election. Elected members will serve a two-year term, the first full day of which is September 23, 2026.
The Council consists of 20 Council members: twelve (12) Film/TV/Streaming members, five (5) Online Media members and three (3) Broadcast/Cable/Streaming News members, plus five (5) officers: President, Secretary-Treasurerand three (3) Vice Presidents, one from each work sector.
Film/TV/Streaming members work in film, television, podcasts and SVOD; Online Media members work in digital news shops; Broadcast/Cable/Streaming News members work in traditional broadcast, cable and streaming news shops, all in positions under the Guild's jurisdiction.
The 2026 WGAE Council election will include the following open positions: One (1) Online Media Vice President, one (1) Broadcast/Cable/Streaming News Vice President, six (6) Film/TV/Streaming Council seats, two (2) Online Media Council seats, and three (3) Broadcast/Cable/Streaming News Council seats.
Jessica Schulberg has been elected Vice President of the Online Media sector.
Elizabeth Godvik has been elected Vice President of the Broadcast/Cable/Streaming News sector.
Larry J. Cohen, Geri Cole, Greg Iwinski, Adam Wiesen, Suzanne Weber, and Linda Yellen were elected to serve on the Council representing Film/TV/Streaming members.
Hamilton Nolan and Kelby Vera were elected to serve on the Council representing Online Media members.
Samantha Brown, Jordan Lilly, and Phil Pilato were elected to serve on the Council representing Broadcast/Cable/Streaming News members.
Members currently serving on the WGAE Council with one year left in their term include President Tom Fontana, Secretary-Treasurer Sasha Stewart, Vice President for Film/Television/Streaming Michael Rauch, Film/TV/Streaming Council members Nicole Conlan, Chris Gethard, Liz Hynes, Sarah Montana, Sharyn Rothstein, and Erica Saleh, Online Media Council members Sie Morley, Nitish Pahwa, and Samantha Smylie.
In Film/TV/Streaming, votes were cast by 13.04% of eligible voters (4,294). In Online Media, votes were cast by 9.14% of eligible voters (1,631). In Broadcast/Cable/Streaming News, votes were cast by 12.46% of eligible voters (1,172). The ballot count was supervised by eBallot.
ABOUT THE WRITERS GUILD OF AMERICA EAST
The Writers Guild of America East, AFL-CIO, is a labor union of more than 7,500 members working in film, television, news, podcasts and online media. The Guild negotiates and administers contracts that protect the creative and economic rights of its members; conducts programs, seminars and events on issues of interest to writers; and presents writers' views to various bodies of government. For more information on the Writers Guild of America East, visit wgaeast.org.
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Original text here: https://www.wgaeast.org/2026-wgae-council-elections-results/
