Labor Movement
The Fight to Kick Cops Out of Unions Is a Fight Against the Union Bureaucracy
Though there is a growing movement from rank-and-file members to disaffiliate cops from unions, the leaders of the U.S.’s largest unions defend cops’ right to organize alongside workers. Both the union bureaucracy and cop “unions” are means by which the capitalist state maintains control over working class organizations. Mobilizing the power of the working class against police terror and capitalist exploitation requires confronting these two enemies of the working class.
Madeleine Freeman
September 16, 2020The PRO Act: Biden’s Latest Lie to Labor
Polls show that support for unions is rising. 60 million workers would join one if they could. At a Labor Day event with the AFL-CIO, Biden outlined his plan to be labor’s “friend in the White House.” But the PRO Act will be betrayed just like the Employee Free Choice Act over a decade ago. Only class struggle will give us our rights.
Ioan Georg
September 12, 2020NYC School Workers Solidarity Campaign Rejects UFT President Michael Mulgrew’s Deal with Mayor Bill de Blasio
The union leadership of the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) struck a deal on Tuesday with NYC city officials to postpone reopening by 10 days. This deal comes as the UFT Delegate Assembly was planning to vote for strike authorization against school reopening. Below we republish a press release from the NYC School Workers Solidarity Campaign on this decision.
NYC School Workers Solidarity Campaign
September 3, 2020The Po-Po Are a No-Go at SEIU Drop the Cops Town Hall
More than a hundred people from across the United States participated in the “SEIU Drop the Cops” virtual town hall. Panelists reported on organized labor’s struggle to kick out police and security guards and elaborated a list of broader anti-racist demands. Speakers called on the broader labor movement to take up the fight against police terror and revitalize the unions through democratic debate and mass, anti-racist struggle.
Thaddeus Greene
August 31, 2020PSC-CUNY President Finally Says the S Word
Will CUNY workers finally go on strike? With public school teachers in New York City threatening a strike of their own, PSC leadership implied last week that a possible strike is on the table. With 3,000 part time workers laid off this summer and more cuts expected, and racial capitalism ravaging the CUNY community under the pandemic, a strike is long overdue.
Olivia Wood
August 29, 2020Postal Workers in Washington Defy USPS, Reinstall Mail-Sorting Machines
Postal workers in two plants in Washington have reinstalled mail sorting machines that were disconnected as part of postmaster general DeJoy’s attack on the USPS. The Postal Service is vital, and working class action can help save it.
Otto Fors
August 26, 2020“By Solidarity We Triumph”: The Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters
95 years ago, Pullman porters came together to form a union. The Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters won union recognition and a contract in a decade-long struggle. Their fight wasn’t just against the Pullman Car Company, but also against racism within the labor movement.
Ioan Georg
August 25, 2020Shut It Down: Arizona Teachers’ Mass Sick-Out Delay School Reopening
On Saturday, Arizona teachers flexed their muscles. They called out sick and delayed the unsafe reopening of schools that will put many in danger. This is just a small taste of what a nationwide teachers’ strike would look like.
Carmin Maffea
August 17, 2020CUNY Union Lawsuit Fails; Workers Need a Strike
The faculty and staff union’s request for a court injunction to reinstate 2,800 workers laid off by CUNY earlier this summer has been denied. By relying on the lawsuit instead of preparing for a strike, the union leadership has failed to protect the jobs --- and health insurance --- of its members.
Olivia Wood
August 14, 2020A Wave of Workers’ Strikes Erupts in Iran
The working class in Iran is currently suffocating under a severe economic crisis exacerbated by U.S. sanctions and the coronavirus pandemic. In response, a historic wave of strikes has swept through the country, opening a new wave of class struggle in Iran.
Salvador Soler
August 8, 2020