Troublemakers Blog

Several woman hold blue and yellow signs that read "Pass the Pro Act: Build Back Better with Unions."
February 21, 2022 / Jonah Furman
In January our movement got its annual punch in the gut from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, whose 2021 report shows 241,000 fewer union members than the previous year. Just 1 in 10 workers belongs to a union; in the private sector it’s 1 in 16. »
A child and an adult paint signs. Behind them are many more signs hanging already painted.
February 17, 2022 / Sarah Hughes
Holding a union sign at a picket line or rally is a rite of passage for a fighting union. But how often do we stop to think about how we are using these moments of collective action to strengthen our sense of unity, pride, and power? »
Laptop screen shows a map of the Northeast with lots of pushpins. Along the side are checklists of union names and campus job categories.
February 17, 2022 /
We in the U.S. have never had a national strategy for dealing with the adjunct/contingent problem in higher education, even as this precarious workforce grew to nearly 75 percent of all faculty in colleges and universities. »
February 16, 2022 /
A day before the planned strike by 1,200 City of Portland, Oregon, workers, members accepted the city’s last-minute offer in a 58 percent “yes” vote. »
Black woman looks into the distance with a serious, determined expression. Behind her is a bus stop sign and a blue sky.
February 15, 2022 /
Throughout the pandemic, transit workers have kept our cities in motion. In California’s East Bay, even when most residents were isolating at home, AC Transit bus operators were on the front lines ensuring that people could get where they needed to go, including to other essential jobs. »
February 14, 2022 /
Despite the short flurry of support (it seems so long ago) for workers on the front lines, many of the folks who help hold our health and the economy together feel abandoned and used up. The Covid calamity and the escalating climate crisis are creating worker sacrifice zones. »
Young people of various races, fists in air, all masked. Some wear yellow "Gig Worker United" shirts and those in front hold a big banner with the group's logo and the initials of the Canadian postal union.
February 11, 2022 /
Less than 12 hours after co-sponsoring a labour-led discussion on the rights of gig workers, United Food and Commercial Workers Canada (UFCW) announced it had come to a deal with Uber to represent 100,000 of its workers. »
Medical officer in blue scrubs, green bandana, and surgical mask preparing vaccine for administration
February 02, 2022 / Saurav Sarkar
My grandmother, Ila Bose, passed away in October after several days in the hospital. The exact trajectory leading to her death is not known—she had pneumonia towards the end—but my mother (also a physician) suspects she may have had lingering effects from a previous Covid case. »
January 20, 2022 /
Mike Parker, the author of four Labor Notes books and a close supporter and key strategist throughout our 43-year history, died January 15 of pancreatic cancer. Read more about Mike his contributions to the labor movement here. —Editors »
December 23, 2021 / Alexandra Bradbury
To protest the unfair firing of a co-worker, on the morning of Tuesday, December 21, 150 UPS drivers in Chicago took a simple action: they didn’t go into work early. Instead, they gathered outside with an inflatable fat cat. They grilled food, played music, and then walked in together, right on time. »

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