Troublemakers Blog

How Can U.S. and Mexican Workers Build Cross-Border Solidarity?

Workers hold signs in Spanish saying ‘we are workers not beggars’.
December 02, 2024 / Henry Salazar and David Bacon
Since the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was passed in 1993, the economies of the U.S., Canada, and Mexico have become increasingly integrated. Workers in all three countries have suffered as corporations have used trade rules to maximize profits, push down wages and benefits, and manage the flow of people displaced by these rules. »

Welcome, Danielle!

A smiling Black woman in round glasses and a jean jacket is shown
November 14, 2024 / Alexandra Bradbury
Our newest staff writer/organizer, Danielle Smith, joined the Labor Notes staff in October. Danielle is a dynamo—a skilled journalist and organizer. »

Viewpoint: We Won’t Win Until We’re Troublemakers

A woman with a strike picket sign and a ‘Teamsters Against Trump’ T-shirt looks past the camera
November 14, 2024 / Jane Slaughter
Unions weren’t strong enough, in numbers or in influence with their members, to make a difference in this election. One sample showed union households at only 54 percent for Kamala Harris vs. 43 percent for the billionaire, with non-union households at 51 percent Trump, 47 percent Harris. If union voters had listened to their officers, Trump’s numbers would have »

New York Times Tech Strikers Sing 'No Scabs' and Call a Wordle Boycott

November 07, 2024 / Danielle Smith
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Book Review: How Telecom Customer Service Reps Got Better Connected Via Their Union

Cover of reviewed book, aqua green with a headset and looping wires.
November 04, 2024 / Steve Early
American politicians love to pose as defenders of factory workers threatened by globalization, corporate restructuring, and overseas outsourcing. »

Portland Grocery Workers Strike Together

Eight picketers, who appear mostly young and white, stand in front of New Seasons. Their screen-printed picket signs say "New Seasons Labor Union, On Strike, Unfair Employer, Do Not Patronize" in red ink with flourishes. Two hold a black banner with yellow letters, only partly visible but appears to say "On strike." They all stand near the curb, facing traffic, and one has a bullhorn.
October 29, 2024 / Paul Kirk-Davidoff
Over Labor Day weekend, 5,500 grocery workers in Portland, Oregon, went on strike across 38 stores—and two unions. A thousand workers at 10 New Seasons Markets, members of an independent union seeking a first contract, struck for one day on September 1, in their first union-wide strike. »

These Teamsters Don’t Buy Trump’s Lies

White and Black men and women march with picket signs that say "Teamsters Local 238, Marathon Petroleum Co, Unfair Labor Practices against Detroit refinery workers." Most of those whose T-shirts are visible are wearing messages like "Teamsters against Trump," "Trump is a scab," and "Harris-Walz" with an IBT local logo.
October 23, 2024 / Alexandra Bradbury
By the time Teamsters President Sean O’Brien finally announced in September that the union would not be endorsing anyone for U.S. »

UAW Picketer Killed by Drunk Driver Remembered as Personable, Funny

A dense line of picketers (at least 25 people are visible but it looks like there are more behind them) marches towards the camera on a leafy sidewalk alongside a factory. Many carry printed signs like "UAW on strike" and "Stand up for retirement security." Most visible faces are white but a few Black faces are also visible; there's a mix of women and men.
October 08, 2024 / Justin Yuan and Ethen Winright
A United Auto Workers member was killed on the picket line September 28 outside Eaton Aerospace, where workers have been on strike since September 16. Seth Webb, a member of UAW Local 475, was struck by a drunk driver. So were four other picketers, two of whom were rushed to the Henry Ford Hospital across the street with severe injuries. »

Welcome, Natascha and Kari!

Left: black-and-white headshot of Natascha, she has long dark hair and short bangs, and is smiling closed-mouth, looking up at the camera. Right: color headshot of Kari, a white woman with a shaved head wearing a wide smile and red glasses. Behind her is the mural in the old UE Chicago office.
September 26, 2024 / Labor Notes staff
Labor Notes is growing. Two wonderful new staffers joined us in September. »

AT&T Southeast Workers End Month-Long Strike

Black and white men, most in red union T-shirts, picket energetically on a streetcorner. Man in front, in turquoise shirt, is talking or chanting into a mic, arm outstretched. Everyone's pose is active. Printed signs say "honk if you support workers" and "AT&T unfair, CWA on strike, ULP." One handmade sign, partially visible, says "AT&T Unfair Labor." The man in the center is holding his sign high and wind or movement blows his red shirt.
September 19, 2024 / Dan DiMaggio
Seventeen thousand AT&T workers in the Southeast returned to work September 16 following a month-long strike. »

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