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NewsFeed - Labor

This feed was created by mixing existing feeds from various sources.

The Movement for Black Lives and Labor’s Revival

The police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis ignited the most widespread series of protests in U.S. history. Working people—not only Black, but people of all races—were the driving force. Even labor leaders who are usually reluctant to weigh in on hot social issues spoke out. The challenge now is to bring the militancy and […]
Posted: October 28, 2020, 4:02 pm

Working People Endorse Candidates Across the Country

Working People Endorse Candidates Across the Country

Election Day is less than two weeks away and many states have already started early voting and vote-by-mail. If you aren't certain about who to vote for in races up and down the ballot, AFL-CIO's state federations and allies have done the work to identify pro-working family candidates. Check out who your state's labor movement has endorsed:

Kenneth Quinnell Wed, 10/28/2020 - 11:34
Posted: October 28, 2020, 3:34 pm

Service + Solidarity Spotlight: IAM Releases Latest ‘Broken Promises’ Video

Service + Solidarity Spotlight: IAM Releases Latest ‘Broken Promises’ Video

Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.

In July 2019, Ingersoll Rand shut down its manufacturing plant in Cheektowaga, New York, affecting more than 300 members of Machinists (IAM) Local 330. In the latest “Broken Promises” video from IAM, the union shows how President Trump has failed to keep manufacturing jobs in the United States. Ingersoll Rand outsourced some of its production capability to its Italian facility and continued existing production in its facility in Wujiang, China. “The new facility in China hasn’t built a machine yet that was able to pass through the tests,” said Local 330 Chief Steward Frederick Fineour. “Until they do that, they’ll continue to struggle.” This plant is one of dozens of IAM-represented factories that have closed during the Trump administration.

Kenneth Quinnell Wed, 10/28/2020 - 09:17
Posted: October 28, 2020, 1:17 pm

The Movement for Black Lives and Labor’s Revival

Postal strike 1970, men standing front of a mail truck

The Movement for Black Lives and Labor’s Revival

October 27, 2020 / Tim Schermerhorn and Lee Sustar

The police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis ignited the most widespread series of protests in U.S. history. Working people—not only Black, but people of all races—were the driving force. Even labor leaders who are usually reluctant to weigh in on hot social issues spoke out.

The challenge now is to bring the militancy and energy of this year’s revived Black struggle into the workplace—amid the coronavirus-driven economic crisis.

Posted: October 27, 2020, 5:18 pm

Overcoming Inequality in Unemployment Benefit Access and Utilization

History may not repeat itself but it certainly rhymes. Today’s unemployed Black workers face a system of unequal state policies and practices that were created after the Civil War to maintain white supremacy and prevent Black Americans from obtaining wealth. These discriminatory policies drive enormous and persistent wage and wealth gaps, as well as the […]
Posted: October 27, 2020, 2:43 pm

Prop 22 is Bad for Black Workers

When the pandemic forced Cherri Murphy to stop driving for Lyft, she applied for unemployment benefits like millions of other workers. But because Lyft has refused to pay into California’s unemployment insurance fund, insisting that its workers are independent contractors rather than employees, Cherri received zero dollars in unemployment benefits. By day, Ms. Murphy is […]
Posted: October 27, 2020, 2:31 pm

Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Tradeswomen Lean In to Support Each Other

Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Tradeswomen Lean In to Support Each Other
AFL-CIO

Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.

Following a successful Tradeswomen Build Nations conference earlier this month, North America's Building Trades Unions (NABTU), its affiliates and Lean In have joined together to launch a virtual, structured mentorship program made for tradeswomen, by tradeswomen. “It’s important that tradeswomen have a space to talk about their experiences and to help each other,” said Aurora Bihler, a member of the Ironworkers. “I wanted to be a part of this program so that women all over can have this support system in place with researched advice and solutions that are specific to our unique careers.”

Kenneth Quinnell Tue, 10/27/2020 - 09:50
Posted: October 27, 2020, 1:50 pm

Labor Radio Podcast Network Launches Interactive Network Map

Labor Radio Podcast Network Launches Interactive Network Map
Labor Radio Podcast Network

To highlight the geographic reach of more than 70 members in four countries, the Labor Radio Network has created an interactive map.

Launched in 2019, the Labor Radio Podcast Network focuses on working-class issues that are often overlooked in the corporate-controlled media. The goal of the network is to help raise the voices of working people and strengthen organized labor to demand and achieve better treatment from workplaces and elected officials.

If you are a journalist interested in learning more, or if you’re a labor radio or podcast producer and want to join the network, contact us at info@laborradionetwork.org.

Visit the Labor Radio Podcast Network.

Kenneth Quinnell Mon, 10/26/2020 - 14:04
Posted: October 26, 2020, 6:04 pm

How Coronavirus Exposed the Flaws of the Childcare Economy

The U.S. government’s Bureau of Labor Statistics finds that childcare workers in the nation have a median salary of just over $24,000 a year—below the poverty line for a family of four. The segment of our nation’s workforce that attends to the basic needs of our children is shockingly underpaid, and now during the coronavirus pandemic, left […]
Posted: October 26, 2020, 3:46 pm

Bernie Sanders: Build a Compassionate Nation

Photo of Bernie Sanders in front of Fight for $15 sign.

Bernie Sanders: Build a Compassionate Nation

October 26, 2020 / Bernie Sanders

Over the past 40 years, corporate America and the billionaire class have been waging a war against the trade union movement in America, causing devastating harm to the middle class and working class.

When oligarchs like Donald Trump tell us that the economy is “booming,” they are right—the economy is booming for the extremely rich and extremely profitable corporations in America—who, by the way, pay nothing or next to nothing in federal income taxes.

Posted: October 26, 2020, 3:42 pm

How much would it cost consumers to give farmworkers a significant raise?

The increased media coverage of the plight of the more than 2 million farmworkers who pick and help produce our food—and whom the Trump administration has deemed to be “essential” workers for the U.S. economy and infrastructure during the coronavirus pandemic—has highlighted the difficult and often dangerous conditions farmworkers face on the job, as well […]
Posted: October 26, 2020, 3:39 pm

Unemployment Payments Are Running Out for Millions, Even As Long-Term Unemployment Surges

Large numbers of jobless workers are seeing their unemployment payments come to an end as they reach their maximum weeks of eligibility despite short-term federal extensions. If Congress fails to act, millions more will suffer a total loss of income as their benefits expire at the end of the year. The loss of unemployment payments […]
Posted: October 26, 2020, 3:30 pm

Service + Solidarity Spotlight: IFPTE Backs Members Running in Kansas

Service + Solidarity Spotlight: IFPTE Backs Members Running in Kansas

Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.

The International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE) is throwing its support behind three of its own members running in Kansas: Matthew Joyce and Derek Milligan are running for the state House and Charity Kennedy is a candidate for Sedgwick County treasurer. Earlier this month, IFPTE sent out a series of mailers in support of the three members of the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace/IFPTE (SPEEA/IFPTE) Local 2001. The mailers, which were sent to nearly 2,700 members living in Kansas, highlighted not only the fact that fellow IFPTE members were seeking office, but that they would be strong voices for the rights of workers to collectively bargain. IFPTE International President Paul Shearon commented that, “IFPTE is a strong proponent of union members running for elected office, as they are the ones who become the strongest advocates for workers and unions in office. IFPTE is proud that Matthew, Charity and Derek are taking this step to run and are happy to support them.”

Kenneth Quinnell Mon, 10/26/2020 - 09:32
Posted: October 26, 2020, 1:32 pm

Why Trump Will Lose Ohio

It is always dangerous to publicly predict the outcome of a presidential election, especially in a purple state like Ohio. But I’ve done it twice, in 2011 and 2016, months in advance, when both of my predicted winners, Barack Obama … Continue reading →
Posted: October 26, 2020, 12:04 pm

Workers Fired, Penalized for Reporting COVID Safety Violations

When COVID-19 began making headlines in March, Charles Collins pulled out a protective face mask from the supply at the manufacturing company in Rockaway, New Jersey, where he was the shop foreman and put it on. The dozen or so other workers at the facility followed suit. There was no way to maintain a safe […]
Posted: October 23, 2020, 4:34 pm

How Can We Rebuild Working-Class Politics? Let’s Go to “Strike School.”

Through­out Sep­tem­ber and Octo­ber, thou­sands of activists and union­ists from sev­en­ty coun­tries par­tic­i­pat­ed in the inter­na­tion­al ?“Strike School” orga­niz­ing train­ing led by Jane McAlevey and spon­sored by the Rosa Lux­em­burg Stiftung. Jacobin?’s Eric Blanc spoke with McAlevey about the key lessons of the course, the rea­sons why this tra­di­tion has been mar­gin­al­ized with­in orga­nized labor, and the ways […]
Posted: October 23, 2020, 4:25 pm

Workers' Rights Are on the Ballot: In the States Roundup

Workers' Rights Are on the Ballot: In the States Roundup
In the States Roundup

It's time once again to take a look at the ways working people are making progress in the states. Click on any of the links to follow the state federations on Twitter.

Alaska AFL-CIO:

California Labor Federation:

Florida AFL-CIO:

Georgia State AFL-CIO:

Indiana State AFL-CIO:

Iowa Federation of Labor:

Maine AFL-CIO:

Maryland State and D.C. AFL-CIO:

Massachusetts AFL-CIO:

Michigan State AFL-CIO:

Minnesota AFL-CIO:

Missouri AFL-CIO:

Montana State AFL-CIO:

Nevada State AFL-CIO:

New Hampshire AFL-CIO:

New Jersey State AFL-CIO:

New York State AFL-CIO:

North Carolina State AFL-CIO:

Ohio AFL-CIO:

Oklahoma State AFL-CIO:

Oregon AFL-CIO:

Pennsylvania AFL-CIO:

Rhode Island AFL-CIO:

Tennessee AFL-CIO Labor Council:

Texas AFL-CIO:

Washington State Labor Council:

West Virginia AFL-CIO:

Wisconsin State AFL-CIO:

Kenneth Quinnell Fri, 10/23/2020 - 11:52
Posted: October 23, 2020, 3:52 pm

We Finally Won Just Cause Protection at The New Yorker after AOC and Warren Refused to Cross Our Picket Line

Cartoon image of New Yorker's mascot (silhouetted man in formal coat, waistcoat, and top hat) but the bird is on his shoulder and he's holding a picket sign that says "JUST CAUSE"

We Finally Won Just Cause Protection at The New Yorker after AOC and Warren Refused to Cross Our Picket Line

October 23, 2020 / Hannah Aizenman, Stefanie Frey, and Mai Schotz

After 95 years, at-will employment is over at The New Yorker. Our union finally won just cause in our first contract. Securing this protection took strong organizing and strategic mobilization—on top of nearly two years of negotiations.

What changed the tide was a digital picket of the New Yorker Festival, a weeklong annual event where celebrities, politicians, and various experts discuss timely topics. The opening night was to feature Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Elizabeth Warren talking about “the future of progressivism.”

Posted: October 23, 2020, 3:39 pm

Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Alliance for Retired Americans and NFLPA Team Up to Educate Older Pennsylvania Voters about Voting in 2020

Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Alliance for Retired Americans and NFLPA Team Up to Educate Older Pennsylvania Voters about Voting in 2020

Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.

The NFL Players Association (NFLPA) Former Players Services Department and the Alliance for Retired Americans released a public service announcement (PSA) on Tuesday to encourage all Pennsylvania seniors to vote and ensure they are aware of how to cast a ballot by mail. This year’s elections mark the first time that any Pennsylvania voter can get a mail ballot. The PSA features Robin Cole, vice president of the NFLPA Former Players Pittsburgh chapter and retired linebacker who won two Super Bowl championships with the Pittsburgh Steelers football team in 1979 and 1980; his wife, Judith Cole; and Harriet Ellenberger, a member of the Pennsylvania Alliance. “Everyone needs to make a plan to vote this year,” Cole said. “I usually vote at the church, but this year Judith and I are going to vote by mail.”

Kenneth Quinnell Fri, 10/23/2020 - 09:20
Posted: October 23, 2020, 1:20 pm

NC Workers Call on Tillis and GOP Senate to Put Working Families Ahead of Politics

CWA members and other workers in North Carolina held a widely-covered virtual press conference to highlight how delaying much needed assistance has affected them and their communities.

Posted: October 22, 2020, 7:30 pm

Join CWAers to Phonebank Together to Elect Biden and Flip the Senate!

With only days left until Election Day and early voting underway in many states, hundreds of CWAers across the country are phonebanking together to flip the Senate and to elect Joe Biden!

Posted: October 22, 2020, 7:19 pm

Making Sure Your Vote Counts

Many people are voting at home and returning ballots by dropping them off at a secure ballot box or putting them in the mail. These ballots can take longer to process and will continue to arrive at election offices for several days after Nov. 3.

Posted: October 22, 2020, 7:14 pm

Organizing Update

The latest news on who is winning union recognition.

Posted: October 22, 2020, 7:10 pm

Judge Recommends Denial of T-Mobile's Attempt to Shirk Commitment to Hire 1,000 Workers

CWA filed comments with the CPUC rebutting T-Mobile's claim that the CPUC does not have jurisdiction to review wireless transactions and to impose job conditions.

Posted: October 22, 2020, 6:48 pm

Steward's Corner: A Path Out of Fear

Two bakery workers talk in a kitchen.

Steward's Corner: A Path Out of Fear

October 22, 2020 / Ellen David Friedman

What’s the greatest gift the labor movement offers? It’s not the ability to bargain a contract, protect yourself on the job, or win higher wages, though those are important.

The greatest gift is a path out of fear. Once we can see that path under our feet, the real fightback can begin. But the question is, how do we find it—especially at this dire moment?

Posted: October 22, 2020, 4:26 pm

Amy Coney Barrett could influence workers’ rights, other economic issues if she joins Supreme Court

The debate surrounding Amy Coney Barrett’s potential appointment to the Supreme Court has focused largely on the fate of abortion rights. But her tenure could significantly affect workers’ rights as well, experts say.  While no one can predict how justices will ultimately rule once they have a seat on the nation’s highest court, their past records offer […]
Posted: October 22, 2020, 4:07 pm

How to Boost Unions’ Power? Sectoral Bargaining.

sec•tor•al bar•gain•ing noun 1. a labor pol­i­cy that enables unions to set stan­dards for their whole indus­try, boost­ing their lever­ag­ing power “Sectoral bargaining could shift employers from competing based on who can pay their workers the least, to competing based on the quality of their services.” —Charlotte Garden, Professor, Seattle University School of Law Why can’t unions do “sec­toral […]
Posted: October 22, 2020, 3:54 pm

A Common Defense: Mobilizing Veterans in Labor To Beat Trump and the GOP

Zoom display shows a photo from Verizon strike (sea of red shirts) on the left; on the right, thumbnails of 18 participants in the call

During his 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump dissed a Gold Star family that had lost a son in Iraq. He called Senator John McCain, America’s most famous prisoner of war, a “loser” for being captured in Vietnam. When asked about widespread sexual assault in today’s military, he dismissed it as a problem. He had to be publicly shamed into making a promised donation to veterans’ charities.

Posted: October 22, 2020, 1:52 pm

Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Black Training Leaders in the Bricklayers Discuss How to Support People of Color in Your Union

Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Black Training Leaders in the Bricklayers Discuss How to Support People of Color in Your Union
BAC/IMI

Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.

Kay Whigan (BAC) stands 6 feet, 3 inches tall and carries a deep and booming voice. A welding instructor at the John J. Flynn Bricklayers (BAC)/IMI International Training Center in Maryland, he admits that one of his biggest fears about becoming an instructor was how his students would perceive him. As a Black man who grew up in Alabama, Whigan said he is no stranger to racism. So as an instructor, he worried that his appearance might be intimidating. “I wasn’t sure I wanted to take the job,” said Whigan, who said he was tapped some years ago for a foreman role. “They told me I’d be good at it because of how I carry myself and how I treat people. When I’m working with someone—whether it’s a student in the shop or a worker on the job—I want them to feel nourished and uplifted. We need to make a point to lend one another a helping hand.” Click here to read more about what Black training leaders are doing to build a more diverse and inclusive union.

Kenneth Quinnell Thu, 10/22/2020 - 09:37
Posted: October 22, 2020, 1:37 pm

As McConnell Blocks COVID Relief Package, NC Workers Call on Thom Tillis and GOP Senate to Put Working Families Ahead of Politics

Workers are calling on Thom Tillis to stop putting Mitch McConnell’s priorities, including ramming through a Supreme Court nomination, ahead of hundreds of thousands of North Carolinians who face unemployment, foreclosure and other serious economic consequences due to the COVID-19 crisis.

Posted: October 21, 2020, 7:05 pm

Economics Brief: The Rise in Income Inequality in the United States

Part 1: The Name of the Game Is Class Struggle

It’s no secret that, over the last 40 years, income inequality has soared in the United States.

In the late 1970s, the top 10 percent of the U.S. population, ranked by income, received about one-third of total U.S. income. They now receive about half of total income.

Posted: October 21, 2020, 3:41 pm

#ReliefNow: What Working People Are Doing This Week

#ReliefNow: What Working People Are Doing This Week
What Working People Are Doing This Week

Welcome to our regular feature, a look at what the various AFL-CIO unions and other working family organizations are doing across the country and beyond. The labor movement is big and active—here's a look at the broad range of activities we're engaged in this week.

Actors' Equity:

AFGE:

AFSCME:

Air Line Pilots Association:

Alliance for Retired Americans:

Amalgamated Transit Union:

American Federation of Musicians:

American Federation of Teachers:

American Postal Workers Union:

Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance:

Association of Flight Attendants-CWA:

Boilermakers:

Bricklayers:

Coalition of Black Trade Unionists:

Coalition of Labor Union Women:

Communications Workers of America:

Department for Professional Employees:

Electrical Workers:

Farm Labor Organizing Committee:

Fire Fighters:

Heat and Frost Insulators:

Ironworkers:

Jobs With Justice:

Labor Council for Latin American Advancement:

Laborers:

Machinists:

Metal Trades Department:

Musical Artists:

National Air Traffic Controllers Association:

National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians-CWA:

National Association of Letter Carriers:

National Day Laborer Organizing Network:

National Domestic Workers Alliance:

National Nurses United:

National Taxi Workers Alliance:

NFL Players Association:

North America's Building Trades Unions:

Office and Professional Employees:

Painters and Allied Trades:

Plasterers and Cement Masons:

Professional Aviation Safety Specialists:

Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union:

Roofers and Waterproofers:

SAG-AFTRA:

Solidarity Center:

The NewsGuild-CWA:

Theatrical Stage Employees:

Transport Workers Union:

Transportation Trades Department:

UAW:

Union Label and Service Trades Department:

Union Veterans Council:

UNITE HERE:

United Food and Commercial Workers:

United Steelworkers:

United Students Against Sweatshops:

Utility Workers:

Working America:

Writers Guild of America, East:

Kenneth Quinnell Wed, 10/21/2020 - 10:44
Posted: October 21, 2020, 2:44 pm

Employees at Creative Agency Blue State Win Union Recognition With CODE-CWA

Seventy-five employees at creative agency Blue State won voluntary union recognition yesterday after a neutral third party verified that a majority of the workers had signed union authorization cards.

Posted: October 21, 2020, 2:42 pm

Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Seafarers Perform Humanitarian Rescue of Stranded Boaters

Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Seafarers Perform Humanitarian Rescue of Stranded Boaters
SIU Rescue

Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.

Members of the Seafarers (SIU) recently came to the rescue of stranded boaters in the Pacific Ocean, some 150 miles off the California coast. Chief Steward Samuel Sinclair provided the photo above from the MV Jean Anne (Pasha Hawaii). “The boat was drifting at sea for days….The captain notified the U.S. Coast Guard,” Sinclair explained. “The people in the boat were Mexican citizens trying to gain access to the U.S. Their motor gave out, resulting in the boat drifting aimlessly in the Pacific. The SIU crew professionally performed duties in this humanitarian rescue.”

Kenneth Quinnell Wed, 10/21/2020 - 09:37
Posted: October 21, 2020, 1:37 pm

Viewpoint: Don’t Count on New York Unions to Stop the Cuts

Man in orange vest hands out masks inside a train station

In his article "With City's Economic Future in Doubt, Can New York Unions Stop the Cuts?," Chris Maisano analyzes the looming effects of the pandemic on public workers and the services they provide in New York City. The city has cut $5 billion from its budget, with accompanying cuts to services and the workforce. Twenty-two thousand more workers could be laid off if the municipal unions don’t come up with $1 billion in givebacks.

Posted: October 20, 2020, 3:55 pm

Keep the Cops Out of Our Shop, Seattle Bookstore Workers Propose

Outdoors, four police officers handcuffing two people against two police cars

George Floyd was murdered by police after a retail worker reported that he had paid with an allegedly counterfeit $20 bill, and we know this was no isolated incident. So at the bookstore where I work, many of us have been thinking about the times when police have been called to our workplace.

Posted: October 19, 2020, 9:02 pm

After 500 Issues, A Look at Labor Notes Then and Now

A photo of an addressograph machine

After 500 Issues, A Look at Labor Notes Then and Now

How was Labor Notes #1, from February 1979, different from Labor Notes #500, the issue we just sent to the printer? There’s the obvious:

Posted: October 19, 2020, 4:47 pm

The “Other America”: The Poverty and Peril of Domestic Workers

America is mired in a crisis of unprecedented scope and depth.  The disruption of the pandemic is draining for all of us, but for many, its consequences are dire. For the millions of people who’ve had little or no work … Continue reading →
Posted: October 19, 2020, 11:20 am

Review: Forty Years of Working-Class Films

Review: Forty Years of Working-Class Films

October 16, 2020 / Toni Gilpin

If you search for films about labor, one makes every list: Norma Rae. This most iconic of union movies was a critical and box office smash when it came out in 1979, the same year Labor Notes published its first issue. At that moment, when more Americans than ever before were union members, it wasn’t surprising that a movie about a gutsy labor organizer would prove popular.

Posted: October 16, 2020, 3:47 pm

Join CWAers to Phonebank Together to Elect Biden!

Hundreds of CWAers across the country are phonebanking together to flip the Senate and to elect Joe Biden and Kamala Harris!

Posted: October 15, 2020, 7:23 pm

AT&T’s DSL Shutoff Will Leave Thousands of Consumers Without a Broadband Option

AT&T recently announced that it will discontinue DSL sales nationally and disconnect 160,000 DSL customers, only some of whom have access to another wireline service from AT&T.

Posted: October 15, 2020, 7:00 pm

Bargaining Update

The latest bargaining information about Nokia.

Posted: October 15, 2020, 6:52 pm

Reality TV and Real Work in the Fishing Industry

Fishing may be the world’s second oldest profession, but the industry is about as visible as a quiet cousin at a family reunion. Unassuming, keeping to itself, it is largely ignored in talk about work and the economy.  All of … Continue reading →
Posted: October 12, 2020, 11:34 am

What Can Workers Expect from Amy Coney Barrett?

Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination to the Supreme Court of the United States poses a difficult question: does her faith commitment as a Roman Catholic preclude an interpretation of the law that is responsive to concerns of the working class? The … Continue reading →
Posted: October 5, 2020, 11:11 am

A Law and Order Platform to Unite Working-Class Voters

Donald Trump has positioned himself as the “law and order” president, because the term provides a positive framing for the racially-tinged rhetoric he uses to divide members of the white working and middle classes from people of color. The Guardian’s … Continue reading →
Posted: September 28, 2020, 11:18 am

The Unsettling

It’s fire season again.  Two years ago, my parents lost their home in Paradise.  This year, I almost lost mine.  I live in Oregon, where scores of fires were stoked up by unusual Eastern blasts of dry wind over the … Continue reading →
Posted: September 21, 2020, 11:10 am

Undelivered: The DeJoy Scandal and Democracy in the Balance

In this turbulent moment, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy aptly symbolizes the precarious state of both our democracy and the workers on whose shoulder its future rests.  Last week,  a Washington Post team uncovered seven former employees of New Breed Logistics … Continue reading →
Posted: September 14, 2020, 10:52 am

Unemployed Workers of the World Unite?!?

Karl Marx’s famous phrase spoke of the unemployed as the “industrial reserve army.” His argument was plain. Creating greater unemployment was a key tool in giving employers the upper hand in forcing down wages and disciplining workers. I can still … Continue reading →
Posted: September 7, 2020, 12:25 pm

No Class: Why You Should Be Getting Your Labor News from Teen Vogue

Last Wednesday NBA players refused to take the court for their playoff games in order to protest the latest police shooting of an unarmed Black man, Jacob Blake of Kenosha, Wisconsin, who survived the shooting but is now paralyzed. In … Continue reading →
Posted: August 31, 2020, 11:07 am

Working-Class Public Housing in the COVID Spotlight

The Covid19 pandemic has highlighted many inequalities experienced by working-class people — insecure work, unsafe work places, access to health care, housing conditions and the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on people of colour. Mainstream media has also covered many … Continue reading →
Posted: August 24, 2020, 12:13 pm