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Teamster Sympathy Strikes Defeat Lockout »

June 26, 2012 | Jane Slaughter

A series of one-day sympathy strikes by Teamsters in five cities helped convince the waste-hauler Republic Services to back off a six-week lockout of its workers in Evansville, Indiana. Workers in California, Michigan, and Illinois honored picket lines.

Hunger Strikers Target Congress for Starving the Post Office »

June 25, 2012 | David Yao

Postal and community activists began a hunger strike today to protest cuts that could devastate the Post Office.



A new coalition, Communities and Postal Workers United, announced the four-day fast to put heat on Congress for starving the U.S. Postal Service to the point where drastic...

Can SEIU Help Vermonters Win Single Payer? »

June 22, 2012 | Steve Early

While the nation waits for an overdue Supreme Court decision that will decide the fate of President Obama’s Affordable Care Act, another health care drama with wide implications for universal health care is just starting in Vermont.

Chicago Charter Teachers Fight for Their Jobs, And a Union »

June 21, 2012 | Theresa Moran

As Chicago teachers express frustration with charter schools, those organizing meet stiff resistance. One school rallied to save their campus from closure after teachers announced a union drive.

After So Many Wisconsin Workers Voted for Walker, What Next? »

June 21, 2012 | Jim Cavanaugh

The results of the Wisconsin recall indicate that the radical right agenda of the GOPers elected in 2010 has not turned off the voters.


How can a government of the 1% receive so much support from the 99%?

Secondary Targets Can Be Union's Primary Focus »

June 20, 2012 | Robert M. Schwartz

It may come as a surprise to some unionists, but the National Labor Relations Act does not prohibit boycott campaigns against neutral or secondary companies. Although Taft-Hartley is frequently described (even on some union websites) as banning “secondary boycotts,” this term does not appear in...

What Happened to All the Weatherization Jobs? »

June 19, 2012 | Mike Prokosch

Weatherization looked like a triple win: create jobs, save money and energy, and slow global warming. But judging from experience in Massachusetts, it may be smarter to raise standards for existing workers than try to create new jobs.

AFSCME Challenger Alice Goff on Politicians, Concessions, and Defending Public Workers »

June 18, 2012 | Theresa Moran

AFSCME delegates will vote Thursday at their convention in Los Angeles for a new president to replace 30-year incumbent Gerry McEntee. Labor Notes interviewed Alice Goff, who is running for secretary-treasurer on a ticket that challenges incumbent Secretary-Treasurer and McEntee favorite Lee...

How Can Labor Combat Obama's Secret 'NAFTA of the Pacific'? »

June 15, 2012 | Cynthia Phinney

Once a NAFTA critic, the Obama administration has secretly planned a similar pact, the Trans Pacific Partnership, that will harm labor, the environment, and democracy. What can unions do?

Will Wisconsin Wake-Up Call Lead to Shake-Up in AFSCME? »

June 14, 2012 | Steve Early

Battered public employees are debating whether to shake up the leadership of their union, AFSCME. Delegates will vote for president next week between local president Danny Donohue, left, and Secretary-Treasurer Lee Saunders.

Oregon Faculty Organize Against Corporate Creep »

June 13, 2012 | Stefan Ostrach

United Academics was certified April 27 to represent more than 1,800 professors and researchers at the University of Oregon. The union represents teaching employees across the board: full-time and part-time, tenure track and non-tenure track. The drive was motivated by U of O's creeping...

Standing Up to Corporate School Agenda, Chicago Teachers Greenlight Strike »

June 12, 2012 | Steven Ashby

After four days of ballot-counting, the Chicago Teachers Union said yesterday 90 percent of members voted to greenlight a strike if negotiations continue to falter.

Will Massachusetts Teachers 'Stand' Against Attacks? »

June 11, 2012 | Dan Clawson

Under assault from the misnamed Stand for Children, teachers in Massachusetts are about to give up seniority as a criterion for layoffs, and give principals greatly increased power over personnel issues.

Why Did So Many Workers Vote for Walker? »

June 8, 2012 | Jim Cavanaugh

The results of the Wisconsin recall election were very similar to the first run of this matchup in November 2010, when Scott Walker beat Tom Barrett. How can a government of the 1% receive so much support from the 99%?

Farmworkers Push Tobacco Giant Reynolds to the Table »

June 8, 2012 | Eduardo Soriano-Castillo

Perseverance paid off for the Farm Labor Organizing Committee in North Carolina as Reynolds finally agreed to meet with the union. FLOC has demanded since 2008 the tobacco giant discuss tobacco pickers' abysmal work conditions.


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