How Penn Graduate Workers Got Their Union Contract

Emily Aunins, Sam Schirvar, Guru Shabadi Jacobin
As workers at the University of Pennsylvania pursued a first contract, Trump’s second presidency rendered the administration cowed, the labor board unreliable, and international workers afraid. The antidote: high-participation, worker-led organizing.

This Week in People’s History, April 1–7, 2026

Portside
Food, Tobacco and Agricultural workers picket line in 1946 Many Roots of ‘We Shall Overcome’ (1946), Union Wins Big at Ford (1941), Learning from a Riot (1936), Are You Now or Have You Ever Been? (1966), When Anti-Apartheid Actions Made a Difference (1986), Boston Splits Over Fugitive Slave Act (1851)

The UAW Volkswagen Contract Is a Win for Unions in the South

Chris Brooks Jacobin
After over 500 days of bargaining, the UAW have reached a first contract with Volkswagen in Chattanooga, Tennessee — a major breakthrough for unions in the South that lays the ground for further inroads at other employers across the regionl

labor

The UAW’s Shawn Fain on Union Growth and Union Power

Shawn Fain Jacobin
United Auto Workers president Shawn Fain: “Make no mistake: the billionaire class is not going to give up power willingly. They are on an endless pursuit of profit, no matter the cost.”

labor

Shawn Fain: We Need a Political Movement for Workers

Shawn Fain Jacobin
United Auto Workers president Shawn Fain explains his union’s position on tariffs and argues that we need a political movement that puts working-class people first to address the current political crisis in the US.

labor

Let Workers Lead

Jane Slaughter Jacobin
The “worker-to-worker” organizing model adopted by many of the most dynamic unions and campaigns in the country has enormous promise for revitalizing labor — in large part because it puts workers themselves in the drivers’ seat.
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