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Making Climate Protection Worker-Friendly »

June 16, 2010 | Joe Uehlein

“There are no jobs on a dead planet,” said one union leader to those arguing unions should care only about jobs, not the Earth. But is it fair to put the cost of halting ecological devastation on the fossil-fuel economy's workers?

In Battle with Dr Pepper, Workers Take on Poster Child for Corporate Greed »

June 16, 2010 | Shelly Snyder

Day 20 on the picket line. The rain has stopped and finally all of our union brothers and sisters have warmed up in the sun. Most of us on the picket line have never been through anything like this strike. Fear is a factor out here because Dr Pepper Snapple Group, which owns Mott’s, has played...

Grupo Mexico Imposes Company Union at Cananea Mine »

June 15, 2010 | Dan La Botz

Grupo Mexico, the largest mining company in Mexico, has imposed a company union on workers at its Cananea copper mine in Sonora in northern Mexico. This comes just days after the Mexican government used helicopters, tear gas, and thousands of police to dislodge striking members of the Mexican...

Chicago's CORE Reformers Win »

June 14, 2010 | Paul Abowd

The Caucus of Rank and File Educators (CORE) won Friday's election to lead the Chicago Teachers Union. The CTU's new President Karen Lewis garnered 60 percent of the vote against an incumbent whose caucus has controlled the third largest Teachers (AFT) local in the country for 37 of the last...

Behind the Headlines: The Workplace Kills 14 Per Day—One by One »

June 14, 2010 | Tom O’Connor

It’s been a very bad couple of months for worker safety, as deaths mount in horrific disasters from Connecticut to the Gulf Coast. But behind the headlines is a far quieter but equally disturbing story of entirely preventable daily carnage.

Solidarity from Below (the Equator) »

June 9, 2010 | Jane Slaughter

International union connections are a kick. Within a few hours of my arrival at a union convention in Brazil, I met a copper miner from Chile whose company wants wage cuts, a union doctor from Spain fighting the imposition of co-pays, a Nestle worker from Colombia, and railroad workers from...

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.

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