Portside

Millennials and Gen Z have lashed a government for a move that would see them working horrendously long hours.

The UAW has 400,000 members and a strike fund of a billion dollars. The new leaders campaigned on a militant approach to organizing, internal democracy, and solidarity against tiers, similar to the leadership shakeup in the Teamsters in 2021. The Members United slogan was “No Corruption, No Concessions, No Tiers.”

When it comes to labor, workers at other streamers are also in the midst of historic organizing.

Saving the planet isn't a matter of winning an argument. It’s about what trade unionists know only too well:  power and money.  And we know how to fight  power and money.

Organized labor was on the verge of scoring landmark political victories Tuesday as the Michigan Senate voted to repeal the 2012 right-to-work law that made union membership optional at unionized workplaces and re-establish a prevailing wage standard for state projects.

In Kentucky, workers organizing for a union at Amazon's biggest air hub are demanding the rehire of fired activists. Despite the retaliation, "our activity has been contagious among our co-workers," writes Griffin Ritze. Workers in various departments have taken direct action for immediate demands.

Supporters say a shortened week would push businesses to hire more people, increase labor market participation, and create healthier competition in the workplace that empowers workers to negotiate for better wages and working conditions.

The fight for democracy must infuse every union’s mission. If it does not, then the very survival of both democracy and the union movement will be imperiled.

On Thursday the Municipal Labor Council voted to shunt up to 250,000 city retirees into a for-profit Medicare Advantage plan.

The shrinking of unions effectively redistributes income from low- and middle-income workers to affluent investors.