All Articles

Searches titles and body text

Two Years After Huge Wage Cuts, Rally Kicks Off Tense Negotiations for NY Chemical Workers »

June 8, 2010 | By Jon Flanders

Wearing bright red shirts emblazoned with a cobra warning “Will Strike if Provoked,” chemical workers in New York came out in force to kick off negotiations.

Mexican Police Attack Cananea Mine, Beating and Arresting Striking Miners »

June 7, 2010 | Dan La Botz

As many as 2,000 Mexican Federal Police and Sonora State Police, supported by helicopters, invaded the Cananea copper mine Sunday night around 10 p.m., firing tear gas and attacking and beating miners who were defending the mine, according to news reports.

How Do We Win Strikes Again? »

June 4, 2010 | Peter Olney

Clearly, unions avoid strikes because they fear they can’t win them. How do we break this mold? We brought the question to Peter Olney, organizing director of the Longshore and Warehouse Union. In Boron, California, 560 borax miners—ILWU members—just won a 15-week lockout by their multinational...

A Honda Worker in China Speaks Out at Close of Historic Strike »

June 2, 2010

“Our parents have suffered from this cheap labor market and now they are getting old. Do we want to follow in the footstep of our parents?” asks an anonymous Honda worker in China in an internet posting explaining the motivations behind a stunning two-week strike that shut down Honda’s...

Suicides at Apple Factory in China Rock the Sweatshop Supply System »

June 2, 2010 | Tiffany Ten Eyck

Apple's been all over the news these days, and not just because of the iPad. The high number of worker suicides at a supplier factory in Shenzhen, China, has built into a crisis for Apple, one that activists could push to crack the abusive relationship between corporations and their suppliers...

Twin Cities Nurses Prepare for One-Day Walkout »

May 28, 2010 | By Nellie Munn

Twelve thousand nurses in the Twin Cities set a one-day strike for June 10. They're pushing for adequate nurse-to-patient ratios and fending off a coordinated bid by management to introduce Toyota-style "lean" restructuring.

Arizona Immigration Law Confronts Unions: Is an Injury to One Still an Injury to All? »

May 28, 2010 | Louie Rocha

The anti-immigrant bill passed by rightwing forces in Arizona has mobilized immigrant and community groups. When will organized labor raise its voice loudly in opposition?

Tobacco Pickers Challenge Reynolds: Take Responsibility »

May 26, 2010 | Justin Flores

Hundreds of Farm Labor Organizing Committee members and supporters rallied in Winston-Salem North Carolina, bringing complaints of abuse in the tobacco fields straight to R.J. Reynolds.

As Budget D-Day Nears, NY Transit Workers Hose Down MTA's Dirty Tricks with a Pool Party »

May 26, 2010 | Mischa Gaus

With huge service cuts and layoffs looming, New York’s transit crisis is the thin edge of a wedge threatening to up-end reliable bus and subway service in communities nationwide.

Strikers March to Boston to Win Justice at Shaw's »

May 26, 2010 | Rand Wilson

Striking workers at the Supervalu-owned Shaw's Distribution Center in Methuen, Mass., have been marching from Methuen to Boston for justice since Sunday, May 23.

The 310 workers, members of UFCW Local 791, have been on strike since March 7 over the company's insistence that the burden...

Mexican Mine Workers Protest Brutal Beating of 20 Union Leaders and Activists »

May 26, 2010 | Dan La Botz

Five thousand members and supporters of the Mexican Miners and Metal Workers Union blocked a port May 24 to protest the brutal police beating of more than 20 union leaders and activists.

Charter Schools’ Big Success? Accounting Tricks, Shady Land Deals, and Skimming Off the Top »

May 24, 2010 | Paul Abowd

Soon after declaring the first week of May "National Charter School Week," President Obama continued the push to open up public school districts—and their coffers—to non-union, privately run charter schools. Applications are due June 1 for the second round of his Race to the Top fund, which...

Labor Notes Conference: ‘I Feel Like a Troublemaker and I am Very Proud to Say That’ »

May 21, 2010 | Labor Notes Staff

Weeks after the Labor Notes conference the energy is still pulsing. As the strain of economic crisis pulls on every city and workplace, the biggest crowd of labor activists we can remember—1,200 of them—came to Detroit looking for answers, eager to make connections, and ready to turn the ship...

Representing Members at Investigatory Interviews »

May 21, 2010 | Robert M. Schwartz, Clark Peters

When management meets with a union member (or telephones the worker at home) to ask questions about possible misconduct, the employee can request the presence of a union representative and refuse to answer until the rep arrives. These are known as Weingarten rights (from a 1975 Supreme Court...

Health Care Fees Lead to Lockout, Hunger Strike at Bay Area Country Club »