Pandemic, the Left, and Workers’ Power

In the face of the economic and public health crisis triggered  by the coronavirus pandemic, the U.S. Left oscillates between mutual aid efforts and parliamentary impotence. We need to take part in workers’ struggles today and prepare for the coming upsurge. 

French Aeronautics Unions Demand a Halt to All Non-Essential Production

Cases of COVID-19 are rising rapidly in France, doubling every four days. At this writing, some 2,314 people have already died from the virus, with 319 deaths occurring in just the preceding 24 hours. President Emmanuel Macron has declared “war” on the outbreak, using it as justification to implement repressive measures to keep people in […]

Italian Factory Workers Go on Strike for Coronavirus Protections

As coronavirus rips through Italy, the country remains on lockdown and most businesses are closed. Yet many of Italy’s factories remain open, putting millions of workers at risk. Workers are going on strike around the country to stand up against these dangerous working conditions.

South Korea’s Tollgate Workers’ Struggle: A Guiding Star for the Next Battle

As the valiant fight by South Korean tollgate workers comes to a close, a worker who joined solidarity efforts from day one reflects on the struggle’s peaks, limits, and lessons for the road ahead.

Self Organization: How French Rank-and-File Workers Have Circumvented Bureaucratic Leaders to Continue the Strikes

After more than 50 days of strikes in France against the Macron government, workers from the state train company SNCF and the Paris public transport company RATP formed their own Coordinating Committee. This is an example of self-organization and workers’ democracy that is relevant for the entire working class.

Squandered Power: The UAW and the GM Workers’ Strike

In order to win, the working class needs democratic unions, internationalism, and a leadership oriented towards class-struggle.

UCSC Graduate Employees on Strike

For the second time in as many semesters, UCSC graduate employees have defied union bureaucrats, staging wildcat actions to fight for the demands that their union won't. Such radical actions have the potential to inspire other struggles across the university system.

The Robin Hoods of France: Electrical Workers Cut Electricity to Sell-Out Union, Reconnect for Country’s Poor

In the past few months the electrical workers of France have taken up the mantle of Robin Hood by cutting power to the rich and reconnecting the poor. Most recently, on January 20, the power was disconnected to the headquarters of the French Democratic Confederation of Labor (CFDT) union, which has refused to call a strike and is working with French President Emmanuel Macron to legitimize his incredibly unpopular pension reform.

Eiffel Tower Shut Down as 1.3 Million People Mobilize Across France

Workers across France came out to protest the pension reform in numbers not seen since Dec. 17. As French President Emmanuel Macron officially announced the reform bill to the Council of Ministers, workers coordinated actions across the country, including shutting down the Eiffel Tower and cutting power to wide sections of France’s cities.