Troublemakers Blog

A Black Lives Matter banner hangs behind a statue of Willie Mays at Oracle Park.
August 10, 2020 /
UPDATE: This story was originally published on August 4 at 48 Hills. Since then, UNITE HERE Local 2 has initiated some hardball negotiations in response to these terminations, and is planning an action to counter the billionaire owners’ disrespect. »
August 06, 2020 /
On July 15 the grocery chain Kroger announced that starting July 22 its stores would begin requiring mask coverings for all shoppers in its stores. Walmart had announced a similar measure earlier that day. »
August 05, 2020 /
The $600 weekly federal unemployment benefits expired last Friday at midnight. The Senate left town without a deal to extend them, cutting the only lifeline keeping tens of millions of Americans afloat during the worst public health and economic crisis in memory. »
Four city workers and supporters rallying to link police brutality and the conditions that city workers face from their bosses.
August 05, 2020 /
While today's wave of protests focuses on the role of police in our society, we cannot ignore another big looming crisis for Black lives: the destruction of the public sector. »
August 04, 2020 /
All of us in the labor movement are—hopefully—scrambling to figure out how to construct defenses and get positioned to deal with the rapidly deteriorating bargaining climate. Every employer is either on the attack or soon will be. »
August 03, 2020 /
Shop stewards at the Strand, a prominent New York City bookstore, are denouncing owner Nancy Bass-Wyden for accepting federal loans but failing to keep workers on the payroll. »
A crowd holding signs saying Support Somerville Educators and Living Wage for Paras
July 29, 2020 /
The ask was clear and self-explanatory: a starting salary of $25,000 and permanent status after four years. Somerville’s paraprofessional educators made this demand over and over during the course of protracted and contentious negotiations over a contract that expired August 31, 2019. We made the demand on social media, at community meetings and rallies, and in »
A woman drives a car with the words "Schools are not safe!" "I love teachers" and "People over profit" painted on the windows
July 29, 2020 /
This piece originally ran on July 26 at Jacobin. On July 28, the American Federation of Teachers announced it would back local safety strikes around reopening.—Eds. »
July 24, 2020 /
Relief—that’s what Niki Gurgen, a personal support worker (PSW) at the Hillcrest Reactivation Centre rehabilitation hospital in Toronto felt when she heard about the $4 per hour “pandemic premium” the Ontario government was providing to health care and other essential workers. »
Herman Benson at podium in blue jacket with arm raised
July 24, 2020 /
The battle for union democracy is uphill but crucial to reviving a fighting labor movement. No person did more to advance it than Herman Benson (1915-2020), founder of the Association for Union Democracy. »

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