Portside

The election of Donald Trump produced a rash of commentaries heralding the death of organized labor, or at minimum an existential crisis. Although these epitaphs are not new and are very overblown, it is true that organized labor prematurely backed the corporate Democrat, failed to elect the candidate it did back, and is left divided over how to deal with the presidency of Donald Trump.

On September 3, 1991, the Imperial Food Products plant in Hamlet, North Carolina burst into flames. Twenty-five people died, trapped behind the locked doors of the red-brick factory. Most of the victims were women; many were women of color, most were single moms. Another sixty people were injured, and the blast left more than fifty children orphaned. Local officials called the fire an accident, but the women and men who worked at Imperial had been made vulnerable by the factory’s owners as well as public policy.

Ceding exclusive representation in order to write non-members off rather than winning them over will not result in the labor movement growing or becoming any more militant or successful.

Labor still has the power to throw sand in the gears of exploitation. The next step is for all these disparate troublemakers to start seeing their workplace struggles—from defending pensions to defending refugees—as part of the same bigger movement.

Trump promises to protect US jobs have proven false as Nabisco shuts down its Chicago plant to move to Mexico and Ford reneges onits promise to reinvest in Detroit. Under the new tax bill, even more manufacturing jobs are likely to move overseas.

Trump promises to protect US jobs have proven false as Nabisco shuts down its Chicago plant to move to Mexico and Ford reneges onits promise to reinvest in Detroit. Under the new tax bill, even more manufacturing jobs are likely to move overseas.

Just once a year we appeal to you to contribute to make it possible to continue this work. Please help. And because information is power, in addition to addressing the Big Picture, we are always trying to make what we present easy to read. It's been an extraordinary year. A year of unparalleled dangers, which we won't dwell on, as you know them well.

Rather than making the government a model employer, the labor proposals would unite Uncle Sam with employee-regressive business practices designed to maximize profits. But Sam is in the business of service, not propelling profits.

At WNYC, predatory and bullying behavior thrives in a workplace that has a shadow workforce afraid to speak up.

As the 50th anniversary of MLK Jr.'s Poor People's Campaign approaches, organizers want to take up King's mantle to "unite the bottom of this country, to bring about real change, to shift the narrative that is demonizing people for the problems they're facing and to build power from the bottom up," says campaign co-chair Dr. Liz Theoharis. Sharmini Peries of The Real News interviews Dr. Theoharis.